Ion and the Hunt Master emerged from the forest and walked into the meadow, instantly drawing the gazes of their fellow huntsmen. The Hunt Master looked around the clearing, noting the skinned and quartered elafiotéras. He stared hard as he moved toward the dead animal, enthralled by its beautiful and graceful visage.

  CRACK! He turned to see a large branch fall into a hunter's waiting arms. Glancing upward, he spotted a second hunter climbing down the tree.

  "Hunt Master."

  Turning back, the Hunt Master saw the hunters fixing him with expectant stares. He squatted next to the elafiotéras' carcass, forcing a wide grin into a grim line. "The innards?"

  "In the sack," came the reply.

  Upon receiving the affirmative reply, he turned to Ion. “You and Fafon will be the first team to share the load of the elafiotéras." He then turned to the surrounding hunters. "I'll lay a few false trails. Who knows what creatures could be attracted by the bloody smell?" He picked up the woven sack. "Hopefully, this will throw most of them off." He stood up and began walking away.

  The Hunter Master suddenly paused and glanced back. "Hutu’s in charge. He’ll plan the path," he stated matter-of-factly, nodding at a particularly rough-looking hunter. The hunter growled in response.

  His words acknowledged he turned back to the men. "Take his words as mine." He slung the sack over his shoulder. "Hurry men, you must leave while the trail is safe." He looked around, confirming his words' impact. Seeing the serious looks of the hunters he nodded in satisfaction. "I'm leaving now. Leave as soon as you finish tying up the elafiotéras." With that, he disappeared into the forest.

  No sooner had he left than the hunters sprang into action, quickly tying the quartered limbs and skin to the branch before wrapping them in a layering of leaves. They also selected a variation of large and small bones before storing them in a leather sack. Hutu took charge of the group, directing each hunter with precise albeit rough-sounding instructions, showcasing his wealth of knowledge and experience.

  "Straight, then right," he growled, jabbing his stick into the dirt to carve a crude map. "Past the river, if safe, rest. Then downhill, follow water. Rocky ground leads to the cave."

  Hutu threw the stick into the forest. "Surd and Yill, lead. Puty scouts front; Suio and Lak, the back. Rest, surround the carriers"

  Hutu pointed at the quartered carcass tied to the broken branch. "Fafon, take the lead, Ion carry end. We rotate at the stream." He nodded his head and smiled, his sharp canines showing. "Good plan."

  "Got it, Hutu," Ion replied, stretching his arms. He and the hunter named Fafon exchanged cold glances before wordlessly moving to their directed positions, carefully maintaining a healthy distance. They squatted, grabbed the branches' ends, and hefted it onto their shoulders.

  Hutu carefully observed the group before nodding in satisfaction. "Move."

  With that, the hunters entered the forest, moving in the opposite direction of the Hunt Master.

  "Any sign of them, Char?"

  The man—Char, apparently—looked over from his perch on the broad branch. Climbing the tree was a fellow hunter, Sax. Sax was dressed like all hunters; naked apart from a dirty loincloth over his groin, and had long braids covering his face. Char waited until he reached the top and sat beside him before shaking his head. "I haven't seen anything yet," he replied softly, carefully observing the expansive trees and foliage below.

  Sax grew quiet, leaving Char to listen to the crash of the distant river

  "You think something’s wrong?" Sax asked, breaking the silence. He twiddled his thumbs and nervously glanced at Char.

  Char shifted on the bough, mindful not to disturb its delicate balance. "Of course not. They were well prepared," he scoffed. Why do you think they were patient in observing the elafiotéras?"

  "You're right," Sax replied slowly. He slouched and sighed in relief. "I should relax. They've probably crossed the Tachyroís River and will be back—"

  SQUEAK! Startled, Char broke off and stared into the forest. "The signal." He turned to Sax, ignoring his startled expression. "Hurry, the reply!"

  Sax recovered from his state of irony and hurriedly got to his feet, nearly falling off the bough, before whistling into the forest.

  SHRIEK! Char's head swiveled from left to right, watching the forest for any movement, Suddenly, a group of hunters materialized from within the forest. They rose like specters from the shadows and crawled out of the bushes and foliage.

  Char's heart skipped and bubbled as they walked toward him. They appeared grim, serious, and tempered—everything a man should be. Char and Sax hurriedly climbed down, landing on the ground as the hunters reached the tree.

  "Cave," Hutu grunted, staring past Char at a sheer rock cliff a distance away. He hunched forward in exhaustion and staggered past Char. "Home."

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  Char excitedly turned and watched as he walked up the path and disappeared past a large boulder, barely noting Sax following close behind him.

  "Hey, Char."

  Char turned to see Ion walking toward him. "Ion," he replied, barely restraining his curiosity. "How was the hunt?" he asked in what he hoped was a casual tone.

  Ion smirked and jerked his head backward. "Look for yourself."

  Char glanced over Ion's shoulder, his eyes widening as the remaining hunters passed, having seen two among them with the carcass tied branch. He switched back to Ion, hands quivering. "Are my eyes deceiving me? You got a—" He broke off and turned once more to look at the hunt.

  Ion nodded his head proudly and whispered excitedly. "Yes, it's an elafiotéras."

  A smile brightened Char's face and his head swiveled back to Ion. "That's amazing—!"

  CRACK! A sudden noise shattered the quiet, sending a flock of birds screaming upward. Char and Ion froze, their gazes locking as they dropped low. Ion tapped Char's shoulder and raised his fingers to his lips. He slowly removed a stone knife attached to his loincloth and began to creep forward, keeping his body as close to the ground as possible.

  After a thorough search, Ion dismissed the noise as a small animal. He carefully sheathed the knife before standing up, eyes still searching the forest despite his conclusion.

  Char caught his gaze and gave him a questioning look. Ion shook his head as he walked toward him before offering Char his hand.

  Char exhaled heavily as he grasped Ion's extended arm and got pulled to his feet.

  The interruption was a stark reminder of the forest's unforgiving nature—a place where composure was not a luxury, but a necessity.

  "Well," Char started. "You should go rest. I'll get back to the watch."

  "Ok," Ion said. "Watch out for the Hunt Master."

  Char nodded and wrapped his arms around the tree trunk to begin his climb.

  Ion watched until Char was safely up the tree before quietly following the hunters.

  Ion marched around the boulder before grounding to a halt. He inhaled deeply and turned his gaze toward the surrounding woods, watching the foliage and undergrowth of the forest sway with the wind.

  “Ion, where is Char?”

  The voice startled him, snapping him out of his thoughts. He turned to find Fafon leaning casually against the cliff wall, his arms crossed.

  Fafon kicked off the wall and strolled toward him with a slight bounce. "Sax says he needs Char's help dressing the elafiotéras."

  "He's still on watch," Ion said. "I'll help Sax instead."

  Fafon shook his head. "Always covering for him, aren’t you? You know everyone has a job to do," he stated, resting his right hand on Ion's shoulder. "You did your part during the hunt, kick up your feet and relax."

  Ion shrugged off Fafon's hand and continued down the path. "Take his place out here if you want him dressing the elafiotéras." He glanced over his shoulder, staring into the foreboding woods. "All alone. Only you, the trees, and the beasts."

  SQUACK! As if to make his point, a loud noise sounded from deep within the forest, startling Fafon and Ion.

  Fafon's eyes briefly narrowed and his mouth drew into a thin line. "I'd rather not. Anyway, why can't he do both?" Fafon replied, a cocky smirk on his face. "If he wants to join us on hunts he should be able to do at least that much."

  Ion tuned out Fafon's voice and continued down the rocky path, leaving the greens of the untamed woods behind him. He made a final leftward turn before grinding to a halt. Ahead, a towering cliff loomed. Ion's eyes traced its peak before settling on a narrow crack, veiled by moss, wide enough for a man but impassable to larger beasts. He passed through the opening and entered a large, cavernous space.

  Ion briefly ran his gaze around the cave, searching for anything unusual or strange. The floor was uneven, littered with jagged rocks and fine, silty dust patches. Stalactites hung from the ceiling, each drop of water that formed on their tips falling with a faint, echoing plink into shallow pools below. Among the pools, the largest and deepest one was at the cavern's heart. Stalagmites shaped like scraggy teeth rose from the cave floor and surrounded the pool like faithful sentinels. Sometimes when Ion entered the cavern he felt he had been transported to a hidden oasis within a forest of stone. With everything in place, he let his body relax and ended his search with a sigh.

  "Ion, join us!" strange

  Ion's eyes shifted and at the center of the cavern, he spotted his fellow hunters relaxing around the oasis. "Not now!" he shouted, turning leftward with an apologetic smile.

  He left the boisterous laughter behind, stepping toward the cave's far end. Once there, he saw Sax crouched near a branch suspended between two boulders, its ends supporting the quartered elafiotéras above the ground. Two leather pouches—one larger than the other—and a grass sack rested by his feet and beside him, a smooth, flat boulder served as a makeshift table. Ion silently walked up to him, watching him clear the ground of rocks and debris.

  "Sax," Ion called suddenly, startling Sax into a jump.

  Sax glanced at him, startled. "Ion. What are you doing here?"

  "I came to help," Ion replied, squatting beside him. "Char's on watch duty so I'm here to take his place."

  "Really?"

  "Yes," Ion answered with a nod. He ran his gaze across the materials before turning back to Sax. "What are we doing?"

  Sax glanced at him from his eye's corner. "S-s-smoking the elafiotéras's meat," he stammered, reaching down to grab the grass sack.

  "What help do you need?" Ion asked.

  Halfway out of the sack, Sax's hand stilled, clutching a bundle of twigs. "I'll start building the fire. While I do that, can you cut the meat?"

  "Sure," Ion replied, walking over to the suspended elafiotéras. He cut a restraint, took a slab to the flat boulder, and unsheathed his knife.

  Sax's gaze flicked to the blade. "Is that clean?"

  Ion shrugged.

  "Can you wash it?" Sax answered, muttering under his breath. "And can you also wash the meat? There is a pool where you can do it over there," he finished, nodding to the right.

  Ion sighed as he picked up the meat, yet still complied. Once back, he removed excess fat and unwanted tendons, using short, controlled strokes to avoid cutting into the meat. He sliced the meat thinly, working across the grain with careful, deliberate strokes, adjusting his cuts for bone or sinew. Ion repeated the process with all the quartered pieces of the elafiotéras, changing his technique with each section.

  Ion glanced back moments before finishing, noticing that Sax was nearly done with the fire. With a resounding click, he cut the final slice of the final piece of the elafiotéras. Ion carefully sheathed his knife before turning around. "I've finished."

  Sax was sitting in front of the fire, gazing at its smoldering coals with a blank expression before Ion called him. Upon hearing his voice he turned around and stood up. "Oh, you're done," he said, wiping beads of sweat off his forehead.

  "Yes," Ion replied impatiently, his fingers tapping a fast rhythm against his thigh. "What's next?"

  "Right!" Sax exclaimed. He turned and pointed at the low-burning fire, practically embers. "Can you stack stones around it?" he requested. "I'll coat the meat in ash. After this, we'll begin smoking."

  Ion shot a glance at the fire before turning and walking away. "I'll go search for some."

  "Avoid any close to the pools. They're too weak and might break."

  Ion raised his hand in a backward wave before stepping beyond the fire's glow, vanishing into the darkness.