I dream again about flying over the ocean. This time is different, though. The storm in the sky is raging, the wind howling as lighting cracks around me. The waters below are anything but calm, waves reaching high into the air before they come crashing down. Between the surge and the storm, it's taking all I have to stay in the air, looking in every direction for signs of clearer skies.
I wake to the sounds of birds chirping, the remnants of my dream slipping away.
Haven't had one of those in over a week.
The morning air is cool, and it makes me pull one of my legs back under the bedroll. Khazak is spooned up behind me, his arm under the pillow we're sharing. No matter how we fall asleep, we always seem to end up in some other position by morning.
I stretch myself out, making sure to press back against the warm body behind me. I feel a familiar lump against my lower back, one that I'm matching in front. And if we weren't only a few feet away from a bunch of
other
sleeping orcs, I might be tempted to do something about it. As it is, I shimmy my way out of the bedroll, reaching for my pants so I can step outside and pee. I hear a slight grumble from Khazak as I close the tent flap behind me.
There's a light layer of fog blanketing the forest, the sun still low on the horizon. Glasha is sitting by the campfire, the last one to take watch, which means she's also the first one up. She waves a hand at me as she tosses another log on the fire, which has gotten low over the course of the night. I wave back as I sleepily stumble beyond the camp's boundary, looking for a nice tree to stand behind. By the time I'm finished and stepping back into the tent, I'm greeted by the sight of a bleary eyed Khazak stretching his own limbs.
"Good morning." He smiles up at me sleepily.
"Morning." I crawl back into the warm bedroll. "Ready for our first full day on patrol?"
"Someone is eager." He sits up, stretching once more.
He climbs out, pulling on a clean set of clothes, though not his full uniform. I also finish getting dressed, pulling on a clean shirt and my shoes before we leave the tent together. Glasha is still the only one up, and I'm not sure what time it is or how long she's been at it. When the two of us move to join her by the fire, I notice Wu'dag reentering the camp from the north, a covered basket hanging from one hand. Poking out from underneath the cloth covering is a familiar purple flower, and I'm only just realizing the orc is wearing gloves as he heads over to us.
"Good morning, Captain, just finished clearing the flower patch." He lifts the basket slightly.
"Good morning and thank you, Shaman Bonespirit." Khazak gives a small bow of his head from his seat.
"You brought it back to the camp?" I figured he was just gonna use his magic to wither the plant or even burn it.
"Given that it's springing up a lot this year, I thought it would be smart to keep the antidote on hand in case of any accidents." He points over towards his tent. "I'll be brewing that this morning, so please do not enter my tent until I give the all clear."
"Understood, shaman." Khazak turns to Glasha. "How long until the others are due up?"
"Forty minutes or so," the orc woman answers.
"Perfect." Then he turns to me. "Are you any good with a bow?"
"I'm alright." I shrug. I was a decent shot on the archery range.
"Have you ever been hunting?" he asks as he stands.
"No, not really. Why?" I stand as well, following him back to our tent.
"Because we are on breakfast duty." He grins and grabs his bow.
"Does the shaman actually live in the camp?" We've been walking for about fifteen minutes now.
"He does." Khazak nods to my right. "Each of the patrol camps has a resident spellcaster, typically nature-based, two shamans and two druids at the moment."
"Seems like it would get lonely." I don't think I could handle not living in a city when I'm not traveling.
"I cannot imagine it does, considering there are always at least five other people around at any given time," Khazak reasons.
"Didn't think about that." Now I wonder if he ever wishes he could be alone.
"I have seen him in town, gathering supplies or for the occasional celebration, but he once told me he did not enjoy living in the city." Khazak pauses by a tree for a moment. "He feels that he fits better into the forest. I think most of the camp spellcasters feel that way."
I guess if you're connected to nature the way they are, living in it full time probably isn't that bad. Still not sure I'd want to do it. I'm not even sure I'll be happy by the end of this week, I was just getting used to not sleeping on the ground anymore. What? I've accepted that I'm a little spoiled now.
We keep walking until we come across a clearing.
"This spot will do." Khazak examines the perimeter. "Over here."
He leads us behind some bushes, crouching down low. I copy him, seeing that at this height I can peer through, into the clearing ahead of us. Satisfied, Khazak drops the bag from his shoulder and reaches for the bow and quiver on his back--handing them to me.
"You want me to do it?"
Isn't he the hunter?
"Worried you are incapable?" His eyebrow quirks up.
"No." I glare, taking the bow. "What are we hunting?"
"That will depend on what comes along." Khazak bends down on one knee, beckoning me to follow.
He has me move ahead of him to watch the clearing while he moves behind me. Khazak's left hand comes up to cover mine as I hold the bow, helping me to position it correctly. I feel his other hand move down my arm to take my other hand, bringing them both up to grab the string.
"Good," he rumbles low in my ear. "You want to make sure you are steady, but still able to maneuver your upper body for your target."
This is all very unnecessary--the bow might be a little big and I'm not an
expert,
but I've handled a bow before, plenty of times. But when I feel his hot breath ghosting across my neck, I find myself not caring. He has me practicing drawing the string back, testing its strength. The bow is a little heavier than I'm used to, but I get the hang of it.
"Very good, pup." He sits back in a more comfortable position. "Now, we wait."
I'm not sure how long we're hiding in that bush for, but it's a while. I start to get bored, knowing there's not much to be done about it; we can't talk because we have to listen for our prey and not risk scaring it off. We don't really hunt for our food in Lutheria, at least not most of us.
Maybe this is why.
"David, get the bow," Khazak whispers, seconds before I hear the sounds of something in the forest ahead of us.
Grabbing an arrow from the quiver, I kneel up into position, notching it onto the bowstring. I can feel Khazak behind me, not as close as before, trying to watch for the target along with me. There are a few moments of silence, and for a second, I think that whatever we heard may have turned around and left, but then I see the bushes on the other side of the clearing move.
It sounds big.
Maybe a deer?
The leaves rustle again and I see a flash of brown fur. That's it. I pull back the arrow, aiming for the spot where I expect the creature to emerge. Then I feel a hand on my shoulder.
"Wait!" Khazak whispers hurriedly.
What?
I turn to look behind me, annoyed, but slowly release the tension on the bowstring, no longer aiming. I look to see what this creature I am suddenly no longer supposed to be hunting is. Then I hear a sharp intake of breath--my own.
What emerges into the clearing is a deer alright, but unlike any I've ever seen before. It's a male, and everything you see about it appears normal--brown and white fur, black nose and yellow-brown eyes--until you get to its head, where it is sporting a set of large, crystalline antlers. The sunlight streams through them, fracturing like a prism and scattering small rainbows across the forest floor. As it stands there, two more deer emerge from behind it, a female and what I can only assume is their fawn. It moves forward on unsteady legs, its mother watching every step. The two of us wait in silence as the happy little family passes through, never noticing the two men watching them from the bushes.
"Wow." My voice is still barely above a whisper, even though the deer are long gone. "Sorry, but I don't think I could have killed that thing even if you wanted me to. What was it?"
"It is alright." Khazak smiles. "
Dhur'ovuk
. A crystal hart. They are very rare, seeing one is a good omen. And killing one is considered bad luck."
"I can see why." I'm still kind of in awe. "Those antlers were amazing."
"They grow them at the start of spring, and they keep growing until the end of autumn." Khazak explains. "Once they enter their rut, they will use them to compete with other males for a mate, and normally shed them by the end of winter."
"I've never seen an animal like that before." I think that was my first encounter with an
actual
magical creature.
"Their antlers are a powerful magical regent," Khazak explains. "It is not uncommon to see people out in the forests in late winter gathering them. In the past, we have had issues with poachers, which is one of the reasons we patrol the area."
"Aww, so we're out here to protect them." I pick up the bow and dust off my knees as we stand and exit the foliage. "So, what do we do about food?"
"Come, we will find another place to hunt, and if we still turn up empty, we can try our hands at some fishing." Khazak grins.
"Ooo, fishing I
have
done before." I hand the bow back to Khazak so he can strap it to his back.
