"Haaa... It's getting colder."
Soli was bundled up in thick, warm furs, the sound of the icy wind howling around him. Beside him, Gray was curled in on himself, sniffling and shivering slightly. With them were two women and one man from the tribe, carrying empty baskets.
The two had gone out today as part of Soli's patrol, accompanying some of the tribe's animal keepers to gather food for the livestock.
After a short walk, they reached the Diamond River. The colors shimmering from it were as beautiful as ever.
The five of them headed with their baskets to one of the trees by the river—a tree with large, striped leaves and fruits that were neither too big nor too small, colored in yellow and deep purple.
Soli placed his basket on the ground near the tree and looked up at it.
"I still remember the first time I ate one... how it tasted... only to find out it's animal feed..."
Soli walked over to the nearest dark rock, took the bow off his chest and set it down before removing his quiver and sitting on the rock. Meanwhile, Gray went to collect diamond stones from the river, and the remaining three headed towards the tree.
They pulled out three long sticks with sharp, hooked heads made of obsidian that reflected the light from the river. They would place the hook around the fruit's stem, then with a precise downward pull, the fruit would detach from the tree completely intact, landing on a cloth they had spread out beforehand.
***
After about two hours, the gatherers finished their work and filled their baskets.
"You're done... alright, let's head back then."
The three walked side by side in front, with Soli and Gray directly behind them.
[Core: 245/500]
"The lizard attacks have been dropping off fast... They were my only source of shards after the hunting training period..."
Soli ordered the screen to close before lifting his tired eyes, the dark circles stark against his snowy skin.
"It doesn't matter anymore... The Hunter's Trial is close... I already have a plan in case I don't gather enough shar..."
Whoosh
Before he could finish his sentence, a sound from behind some bushes cut him off.
"Hey..."
In a low voice, he alerted the three in front, and they turned to him. He signaled for them to get down, and they did, crawling slowly toward Soli, frightened and trembling.
Soli pushed aside some of the damp bush leaves to see the source of the sound.
"Scaled-one..."
A lizard was holding a four-armed monkey in its fangs—a plump monkey.
"You got yourself a hunt too, huh... Well, you came at the right time..."
He took off the basket on his back and handed it to one of the three gatherers, then signaled for them and Gray to go in the way to the tribe Meanwhile, he slowly drew the bow hanging on his chest and turned around.
He hid among the bushes, then pulled out a cold, damp arrow. The arrow was affected by the damp, cold air, and so was Soli—his fingertips were blood-red and his nose too.
He slowly and deliberately placed the arrow on the bow before drawing it back slowly and with such force that the red on his fingertips turned stark white.
He aimed his arrow at the lizard and paused, waiting for the right moment. He was completely still. A heavy silence was broken only by the sound of his heavy breaths, a warm vapor caressing his cheeks.
"Heee haaa... heee haaa..."
Then he held his breath completely and closed his left eye, preparing to release the arrow.
"Now... Ugh fuck!..."
He gritted his teeth hard, squeezed his eyes shut, lowered his head slightly, and let the arrow fly without focus or precision.
Swoosh
The beast let out a distorted screech before fleeing, leaving its prey lying on the ground, then disappeared into the bushes.
Meanwhile, Soli was clutching his head, grinding his teeth hard, and let the bow drop to the ground.
"Ugh!.. Damn it!.. Why now?!.. It got away... Hell, why now?.. Ugh!"
Gray, who had been watching from the bushes, ran toward Soli and knelt beside him. Soli saw him from the corner of his eye and yelled at him.
"What are you doing here?! Didn't I tell you to go with them?!"
Then he pushed him hard, and Gray fell backward onto the damp soil, dirtying his clean clothes. Gray looked at him in confusion and fear as Soli yelled at him again.
"Get away from me now!"
Gray stood up quickly, left him, and ran off after the three gatherers, leaving Soli behind.
Soli took a deep breath, then exhaled. The sounds of his breathing were heavy and loud, mixed with a faint moan. He stayed like this for a while before leaning against a tree behind him.
He lifted his head, looking up at the blue sky where a few clouds drifted and multiplied, covering it.
"No... I have to get up and return before the light fades..."
Soli stood up and walked toward the four-armed monkey the lizard had left behind. He picked it up and continued staggering back to the tribe.
There, he gave the monkey to the women of the village and headed to his tent with heavy, slow steps.
"Ugh... Damn it, my head still hurts..."
He was sitting in his tent, wrapping himself in warm wool, shivering violently, but he hadn't closed the tent entrance yet.
"Where is that boy now?... Why hasn't he returned?... It's getting cold and cloudy; he needs to come back before I close the tent on him..."
Soli sat waiting for Gray for a long time, but to no avail—Gray hadn't come. The clouds were covering the sky faster, and the sunlight began to fade.
"To hell with you... Stay outside if you want..."
Soli stood up and headed to the tent entrance. He grabbed the ropes he always used to close it, pulled them tight, and started to tie them, then stopped.
He stared at the ropes in his hands for a few seconds before gritting his teeth.
"Ah!.. Damn you, you little brat..."
He untied the knot, opened the curtains, and ran out from among the other tightly sealed tents—their inhabitants enjoying the warmth inside—while Soli ran in the cold.
After a few minutes of running, turning, and shivering from the cold, Soli had searched all the tribe's quarters but found no trace of him. He stopped for a moment.
"Wait... maybe he's in that place..."
Soli headed toward the tribe's boundary. He stood before the trees swaying and moving in all directions from the cold wind, carefully examining the damp ground.
"He really went this way..."
He followed the same path indicated by the tracks through the trees. Gray clouds had gathered in the sky, almost completely covering it.
"It's the same path that leads straight to the cave, but it leads somewhere else too..."
It didn't take him long to reach his destination.
In front of a large, wide tree—bigger and broader than the others—standing tall and facing the strong winds without shaking, while the smaller trees around it were almost uprooted. In the tree trunk was a large hollow, and inside it sat Gray, motionless, hugging his knees.
Soli rubbed the back of his head before heading toward the hollow where Gray sat. As he approached, Gray looked away.
"Scoot over..."
Gray didn't respond; he didn't even look at him.
"Ah, fine..."
Soli turned around, sat in front of the opening, then scooted backward, making Gray move aside for him. There was a look of resistance on Gray's face—he was fighting back a smile. Soli had already noticed it.
"I see you came to your family's tree, huh..."
He said this while his eyes scanned the inside of the trunk, where carvings were etched—similar to the drawings on the hide in the tent: four people, two adults, one of medium height, and the smallest of them all.
A deep, heavy silence fell. The only sound echoing in the hollow was the wind, until Soli spoke.
"Look, kid... I know you won't understand me, but... I'm sorry for yelling at you."
"You know something... You have all the right to be angry. after all this is my habit; I ruin everything around me."
Soli looked out of the hollow with tired eyes. The wind was raging through the trees violently; some leaves were flying in the air, and the sound of the trees and wind echoed inside the hollow.
The boy turned his gaze forward, a sad expression on his face before he sneezed.
"You'll get sick if you stay here in this cold place..."
Soli smiled before placing his hand on the sad boy's shoulder. Gray lunged at Soli and hugged him tightly.
Soli gritted his teeth.
"You really do ignore what I warn you about... Ahh... Well, I'm the one at fault this time."
After a few minutes, the two left the tree hollow and headed toward the tribe.
"This hollow in the good tree trunk... maybe I'll use it during the Hunter's Trial. It could be a good shelter—"
Before he could finish his sentence, he grabbed Gray and put a hand over his mouth, then the two jumped behind some bushes.
While Gray struggled to remove Soli's tight grip from his mouth, Soli raised his index finger and placed it in front of his lips without making a sound. When Gray saw it, he stopped resisting.
"Damn... Time passed so fast I didn't even realize..."
Thud! Thud! Thud!
The sound of heavy footsteps slowly approached their hiding place before stopping nearby. Then...
Click! Click! Click!
Deep clicking sounds sent a shiver down the boy's spine. His eyes flew open wide, his azure pupils dilated, and his body began to tremble violently. He gripped Soli's hand tightly.
A creature with pale white skin, two black eyes, long pointed ears, large curled fangs, and strong, long arms with sharp claws.
"We're not far from the tribe; we need to move now before—"
He was cut off by the sound of the heavy footsteps moving away.
"It moved away, that's good... He saved us time."
Soli stood up, but as he tried to move, his hand was weighed down by Gray, who was like a heavy anvil, unmoving.
"Damn it... Come on now before it comes back..."
Even though Gray didn't understand Soli's language, he didn't even look at him. His eyes were wide open, and his trembling hand was gripping Soli's tightly.
"Alright, come on."
Soli pulled him hard, and the two ran toward the tribe. But before they stepped out of the forest boundary, they hid in some bushes, and Soli watched the tent area from afar.
There were many Night Folk surrounding the tents—some pacing around them, others standing still, doing nothing.
Soli shifted his gaze to the edge of the tribe.
"We're already late, but maybe there's still one last chance..."
Soli looked toward a spot that seemed empty of Night Folk, then pulled Gray with him through the bushes, sneaking until they reached the safe spot.
Soli checked his surroundings carefully before the two moved toward the tents very slowly so as not to be noticed. And indeed, they passed between the tents and behind the monsters until they were near their own tent. But something stopped them.
"Damn... They're standing right in front of the entrance."
Five Night Folk creatures were standing motionless in front of the entrance before a sixth one came out of the tent.
"They're making themselves completely at home... Well, there's only one thing left to do."
While Gray was completely stiff, Soli dragged him to the empty area. But he stopped at the tent closest to the forest boundary and took some striped leaves from the lower parts of the tent. Then he took Gray and headed straight for the massive tree trunk.
After avoiding the Night Folk blocking the way, the two reached the tree. But there were some Night Folk creatures standing in front of it.
"I could lure them away, but the risk would be too great..."
Soli cut some bushes and placed them next to a nearby tree. Then he put on the striped leaves he had taken earlier—they already had ropes, so putting them on was somewhat easy. He leaned against the tree with his back, sat Gray in front of him, wrapped him in the striped leaves, and placed the bushes Around them.
Gray was trembling violently, more from fear than cold , and his breathing was somewhat loud. But the sounds of the wind and rustling leaves covered the sound of his breath.
"All directions are secure, and now... time to wait."