This story has been made significantly better by the tireless efforts and editing of IMcRout.
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Kaarthen the Huntress felt the strain of keeping up on the hunt so soon after delivering birth. The enclave sisters had wanted her to stay and rest. She could never admit it, but being denied holding the beautiful baby boy she had made forced her to seek the familiar as she tried to move on and forget.
Now after giving up 5 years seniority just to get away she was with a random group of rather amateur and petty Huntresses who knew nothing of her. She was unable to sleep or close her eyes without his face creeping up.
She was despised now for being the band's weakness. The feelings of awkwardness that played with her mind at the enclave where she meditated and rested for birth stayed with her. Now she was sleepless for almost a week and feeling watched. The Huntress leader Caris, who was hardly any good, had left her behind to search the area for food.
Kaarthen was not familiar with the area but felt the wooded areas to the south where they just came from would have been easier hunting. She was ignored when she tried to give advice and snarky comments about whether she could make it up the mountains with her own weight were made. Making tea was her solace. She had grown fond of what the priestesses had served in the enclave and it helped focus the mind from her leaking throbbing breasts and mourning heart.
By nightfall, Marcos was beyond agitated. After staying up nearly two days straight worrying about Amazons sneaking up on him he concluded that the lone female was obviously weak somehow, and that the group still had not returned. His mind knew that there must be others but moving around he noticed no sign or tracks in the rocky snowless hill. He was tempted to ask this one but a nagging suspicion told him she had been abandoned. The sun was to set in these mountains soon. The female he was observing was fidgeting in apparently troubled sleep. Marcos crept forward into the attack.
Creeping along over the top of the ridge to avoid being 'sky lined' and coming down the steep wind face Marcos was able to roll and slither along. He reached the flatter landing and continued once he got his feet under himself. With no ability to get back easily, he was so far committed to some kind of action; with Amazons it was a mixed bag if you could reach them from a position of strength. So not knowing if she could be reasoned with, he moved from rock to rock until he could slink over smaller noisier pebbles to bald patches.
Kaarthen opened her eyes her head hurt and her temple throbbed but she felt oddly rested. The strong sun warmed her despite the elevation and patches of snow visible. Trying to sit up she realized her arms were tied. Her arms were behind her and from the feel of it; her elbows and wrists were bound. She was also on a fairly steep incline so this was definitely not, where she ought to be. Nearing panic with visions of ogres lighting cauldrons or sisters raped by demons she searched wildly with her eyes, and then moved her head in jerks that really just made the pain worse. She was on the ridge still though where she did not know. The area was covered in brown stumpy foot tall grass that was coarse. Large weather-worn stones protruded, and around her snow stuck in the creases of the hill. Kaarthen spotted movement overhead.
"A snake!? No feet, a sideways foot, up the hill." She thought.
Rolling over to her side, the pain eased in her head. She saw a man in black more than a pace up sitting and drinking from a waterskin before making it disappear in his shapeless overshirt. He turned and stared at her with the examining eye of an inspector.