Chapter 9: Hunted
Waking up the next morning, I quickly bathed and dressed for the day. I took my time bathing because it would be a few days until I returned back to my glorious bathtub. Today Heda and I will be leaving for a few days to hunt Pauna. It was a very dangerous expedition but Heda insisted on it. He said "A true hunter must prove himself by taking down the best." And there was no better hunter compared to the Pauna.
The Pauna was nearly a legend at this point, it had killed hundreds of warriors and hunters over the years, and anyone else foolish enough to get near its hunting grounds. Yet, here we are, getting ready to set out with a group of four. Shaking my head at the thought, I grabbed my spear and stepped out of my room, marching across the hall. I knocked on Heda's door and
hearing shuffling and giggling inside, I assumed that Heda probably had company for the night. When the doors opened, my assumptions were proven correct. Stepping out of the room was a scantily clad pleasure girl, who looked to be only a few years older than myself. Watching her walk away down the hall I shake my head in disgust.
Matthew always spent the night in the company of a pleasure girl before a hunt, sometimes multiple. He'd say "You never know if this will be our last, so live it like it will be our last." He has a point, but I could never find the appeal in sleeping with some random woman. I personally felt that you should only sleep with someone who you had genuine feelings for.
Taken out of my thoughts by the door to Heda's room opening once more, I see Heda dressed in his full battle regalia.
"James! Are you ready to finally witness your old man kill this thing once and for all, my boy?" Heda asked excitedly, clapping me hard on the shoulder. Now that I stand equal to him in height as well as having put on quite a bit of muscle over the years, his shoulder claps don't nearly take me out anymore.
"Of course father." I say with faux enthusiasm. Every time we go out and hunt for the Pauna we never find it. We've even stayed at his hunting grounds for a few nights and it never showed its face. Heda believes it's because it can feel its demise, personally though I think we've just been lucky.
Laughing at my words, we discussed battle tactics and politics while we made our way to the ground floor. Apparently Azgeda has been becoming reckless and in some cases hostile towards our warriors.
It's never been Azgeda themselves that I've had problems with, but the queen. Queen Nia has wanted the position of commander, apparently since before I was even born. The only problem with that, is that she isn't Natblida. That doesn't stop her from causing a ruckus though. I guarantee that if she thought that the clans would follow her, even if she wasn't Natblida, she would take her armies and march upon Polis without hesitation.
Coming to a stop in front of the guards that are to be extra protection for Heda on our journey, I see that they are rather new. Probably only one to two kills to their name each. Sighing in annoyance, I order them to go and secure us our horses for this expedition.
"Emo laik pathetic, Heda." I utter in annoyance. Heda merely chuckles at my words.
"Emo laik just gon show anyway, yu laik hogeda the protection ai need" Heda says, giving me a meaningful look.
His words make me smile under my bone mask. Before I could insult the new guards further, they returned with four horses in tow. Nodding my head in thanks to them, we hop on our respective mounts and we ride out of the city.
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It's been about a solid day since we've begun our trip. We've discovered Pauna tracks and they worry me. The tracks are much bigger than what the reports have said. What that means is that the Pauna is much larger than we thought.
However, this only seems to excite Matthew that much more. He likes a challenge and there is no bigger challenge than the Pauna. Knowing my words will not veer him from his current course, I do not even try. I can only hope that we do not encounter the beast and return from our trip with nothing to show for it, just like all the times before.
The tracks of the Pauna are about the length of most of my body if I were to lay down in the holes they made. I notice the trees along the path we were following created by the Pauna have all been splintered, as if they were swatted out of the way like a man would a fly.
As we continued to follow the Pauna's trail, I began to get a growing feeling of unease in my stomach. We passed the corpse of a puma, the side was smashed in but nothing was eaten and the feeling of unease rose immensely. That wasn't the only dead animal we crossed and that meant one thing... The Pauna was killing for sport, not for food.
"Heda." I said urgently, attempting to try atleast once to dissuade my father from this suicide mission. A few minutes ago I realized I couldn't hear any birds. That was never a good sign, it meant a predator was near. While the whole point of being out here was to kill the Pauna, I knew we wouldn't be able to after seeing all the signs. The thing is a monster, and it would not show us any mercy.
As if knowing what I was going to ask, Heda never even missed a step. He simply sighed and pre-emptively answered my request. "We are not leaving, I have been waiting many years for this moment, and now it is finally close."
I struggled to withhold my groan at his words, but I knew I couldn't talk him out of it. "Yes Heda." I answered, knowing that my answer would please him.
Hearing a sudden crash in the distance, we all stopped, and hopped off of our horses. We did not want to alert the Pauna to our presence before the time was right.
The tension in the air was thick, it was so thick you could nearly feel it. I adjusted my spear getting ready for a fight. The guards behind Heda and I did the same. Heda himself unsheathed his battleaxe and turned to us with a feral grin on his face.
"It's time, today we show the city of Polis that man is greater than any beast. That with enough strength and perseverance, anything is possible." Heda spoke with excitement, lacing his words.
Turning towards where we heard the sound, we crouched low and moved over a little hill. What we saw on the other side was something that would stick with me for the rest of my life.
There at the bottom of the hill, we witnessed the Great Pauna rip a bear in half like it was nothing and tossed the pieces into the forest. Establishing it's dominance, it released an earth quaking roar and beat on its chest with bone breaking force.
The roar shook me to my core, looking back at the guards to make sure they were still with us. It didn't surprise me when I saw that they were white as ghosts. Looking towards Heda I see nothing but fierce determination. Before I could even warn against it, Heda runs down the hill with a battle cry and an axe raised high.
I would follow that man to the ends of the Earth for all that he has done for me, and that's what I did. Chasing after Heda I could hear the guards footsteps behind me. Thanking whatever gods there may be for at least giving us men who were warriors and not cowards, I witnessed Heda slice off a finger from the Pauna's hand.
The small victory was short lived when I could only watch in horror as I saw the Pauna backhand Heda into the woodline. Fury flooded my veins seeing Heda's body flung away like that.
I charged forward, ducking under a fist the size of myself, I sliced a deep cut along the Paunas forearm with my spear. With the Pauna roaring in anger, I just had enough time to process the sight of a huge hand taking up my field of vision.
Pain unlike anything I've ever felt before, and then I was weightless. Smashing against the ground a good distance away from the battle taking place, I witnessed the absolute slaughter of the two guards that came with us.
The pauna picked them up and smashed them against each other with a sickening crack accompanied by a sound similar to that of wet fruit hitting the wall.
With adrenaline and fury making its way around my body, I grasp my spear tightly which I was lucky enough to have been able to keep a hold of during my unplanned flight.
Lining up the shot I pray to the spirit of the Heda's that my aim is true. I pour everything that I have into my spear, all my anger and despair at seeing my Heda most likely killed. Launching the spear with everything I have, it soars straight with the force of a battering ram.
With a strength that even surprised myself, I watch as the Pauna's head snaps back with the force of my spear. It's body collapses like a puppet with its strings cut.
Completely numb from the amount of raw fury and adrenaline I felt, I cautiously made my way over to the Pauna's body. The thing was monstrous, the largest living thing that I've ever seen... taken down by a single spear throw.
With the death of the Pauna, my anger and adrenaline was slowly fading. With the fading adrenaline, pain came in its place. I almost collapsed with the sudden rush of pain, the only thing that kept me standing was the hope that my father was still alive.
Painfully limping in the direction his body was sent, I could only hope that he was still alive.
Following the broken branches, I finally see his limp form. Seeing his body, my heart starts to thump in my ears and I limp towards him as fast as I can.
"Father!" I yelled over and over again with every step, hoping and praying that he would respond. Reaching him, I had to choke back a sob.
A branch was sticking straight out the center of his chest, at this moment I knew he was dead, or if he wasn't, he would be soon. Looking at his face I cried in relief when I saw that he was looking at me with tears in his eyes.
Kneeling down next to him I grasped his hand in my own. "D-Did you k-kill it James?" He gasped out, nearly choking on the blood that was no doubt flooding his lungs.
"Yes, yes I did father, I killed it for you." I sobbed out, trying my hardest to remain strong in his eyes for his last moments.
"T-That's my boy..." He uttered with his last breath. The ever present spark of life, left his eyes with those last words. I felt his hand go limp in mine and I sobbed over his cooling body.
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Emo laik just gon show anyway, yu laik hogeda the protection ai need - They are just for show anyway, you are all the protection I need.
Emo laik pathetic- they are pathetic
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