Spirit Fire - Amos

Chapter 2 - New Beginning

The next morning, as I was hunting around the mountains, I found a trail, still fresh, in the snow. I became very eager and excited, but the feeling faded away as I followed the prints near a mountain's narrow and unkempt path.

     I hesitated but continued, taking took out my bow from its sleeve and strung it.

     Suddenly the trail veered away, and luckily, the elk had not gone up the path, but was standing near it, eating berries off a small bush.

     I nocked an arrow, knelt and waited. The elk turned and started to eat from the right side of the bush, its side facing me.

     I slowly drew the arrow, waited, and let go with a slow with a silent breath. The bowstring twanged as it sent the arrow spiraling towards the elk. I cursed as I realized I did not check the wind direction and speed and watched as my mistake took effect.

     There was a sudden gust of wind that caused the arrow to lift mid-flight and miss just a hairline's width of its back, whizzing through the air into a tree with a loud thwack. The sound resonated off the mountain and startled the elk which bounded away in the opposite direction of where I knelt.

     Immediately, I started chasing after the elk, but this time I saw the animal started going up the mountain. I yelled but the elk kept going. I had no choice to follow.

The mountains, although not the biggest, nor the tallest, still reach high enough for their sharp, snow-capped peaks to stab into the sky. The jagged edges along their sides were sharp and steep, almost impossible to climb unless along the treacherous paths, all proving a fall fatal.

     With temperatures cold enough to freeze someone to death, and parts of the path that are only a foot wide, they are not your average mountains to climb for recreation. Always, the dark, ominous shapes of the mountains overshadow the towns and valleys below them.

The temperature continued to drop as I went up the trail. I wrapped my fur coat around myself tightly and put my bare hands under my arms.

     As I slowly crept up the path, I tried to keep a grip on the frozen stone, slipping here and there. I heard the elk trotting around and occasionally slipping as well. I knew I was getting close.

     As I looked around the corner, I saw the animal holding onto a dead bush with its teeth, trying to gain grip as it slipped on the ice.

     I considered letting it go but changed my mind as it started up the narrowing path again.

     I caught up to it, retrieved my bow and nocked another arrow. Before I took the shot, the elk saw me, started to panic and franticly spun around for a few minutes, slipping. Laying down, it settled and was still.

     At that point, I was not going to risk missing again, so I took the shot. I released the arrow and once again, it whizzed through the air.

     The elk jumped up and the arrow hit between its leg and its stomach. The elk let out a saddening howl of pain and dropped back to the ground. It struggled to get up and limped away. The deer hurried down the path to the bottom of the mountain, leaving a trail of blood.

     I thought to myself how I would get down safely while I put my bow back into its cover and strapped it to my quiver. I started to shimmy my way down but I hit black ice and slipped, falling on my back, which knocked the wind out of me and left me gasping for air.

     Suddenly, the ground shifted underneath me and started to slide off the mountain's side.

     I got up and started to run as fast I could to get away from the falling path. My grip on the ice was weak, but I managed to go far enough to find a cave.