Rule with Me | TordTom

Chapter I

Tom grunted as he sliced through a leaf branch standing in his way. It was his usual daily routine he had experienced over the last two years. Wake up, hunt, protect, sleep. Out of his only remaining two friends and him, he was the one they could truly rely on to protect them.

Tom would never admit it, but he hated it this way. Having someone rely on him. Tom despised having to carry other's responsibilities on his back, let alone his. But Tom would never say that to Edd and Matt. As soon as he'd imagine himself explaining that to them, he'd picture their hurt and helpless expressions, forcing an ache in his chest.

Speaking of imagining, Tom was quite the daydreamer. In his fantasies, he would often be fighting any passing by foes of his, or defeating a whole mob of 'bad guys'. However, as soon as Tom would picture it happening the instant, his enthusiasm would fall. He'd never be able to do such.

Yes, some would call him selfish, and a coward, but dare they say that to Tom's face? Exactly.

So back to reality. Tom trudged through the moist and moldy undergrowth of the thick, olive-green forest. The damp yet familiar smell filled his nostrils, causing Tom to pull up his navy-blue bandana to cover his nose. Usually, about now, Tom would be extremely careful, listening out for any chance of prey, but today Tom had gone out for his own sake, as the other day he had caught a huge wild boar, one that would be enough for a week at least. Edd was practically drooling all over Tom the moment he showed them the boar, showering Tom with compliments and saying;

"Oh, Thomas, how would I ever make it up to?"

But, between you and me, the boar was a female, and badly injured on her back leg, making her simple prey for Tom.

So why would Tom be out in the forest when he could be lying peacefully in his warm bed, with his stomach comfortably full? You see, Tom craved adventure. A mystery, a quest, hell, even a crime! Anything that would drag him out of his boring and dull routine. And, according to Tom's ever so precise calculations, he'd have to be out of his safehouse, and exactly at the forest for that to happen.

Tom took one last step and stomped his leg, his heavy boot creating a squish sound in contact with the moldy undergrowth. Tom huffed and put his arms on his hips, after putting his Gerber knife in its holster.

What do the guys in movies do again? Tom thought, deciding he'd wait for a bad guy to jump out. As soon as Tom was about to give a try on a new heroic pose, a rustle in the bushes distracted him.

That couldn't have been a rodent. The bushes are far too sturdy to rustle at such a small body. But before Tom could compliment himself on his marvelous detective skills, the bush rustled again, and as Tom got closer, he realized how tall the bushes were in this part of the forest, it was nearly an inch taller than Tom, Tom himself being 6ft.

Tom put on his thick leather gloves and parted the bushes, displaying a wide clearing. No bushes grew here. Only pathetic patches of grass and a wide hole in the ground, revealing an underground stream with a surprisingly strong current.

As Tom closed the bushes behind him, he walked around the clearing. The tall bushes formed a perfect wall and sort of a ceiling around it, leaving a small hole, the only source of light here. and unless you knew about this place or were in it, you'd never think such a place would exist behind those bushes. Tom was astonished and decided that he'd come back tomorrow to get a better look at it, and as he was about to leave and draw an X shape on the ground so he wouldn't forget, a small, bright object, illuminated perfectly by the light caught Tom's attention. With closer inspection, Tom realised it was a piece of fabric, colored a blood red. Footsteps were littered near it. Tom's gaze followed them, and they led to a far side of the 'wall', the bushes dented exactly where the footsteps had stopped, as if someone had been passing by for a long time.

Tom shoved the red piece of fabric in his pocket and decided that that was enough adventuring for the day.