The Hunter's Apprentice

by Stentson, Mark

  There was another bump and again the door resisted. The innkeeper rushed behind the bed and knelt down out of sight. Part of Aerys wanted to do the same thing but he knew that he could not leave alone so he remained where he was.

  There was a third assault and this time the door gave away. The man who had bumped against it fell with the door and crashed down. The hunter was quick as lightning and Aerys barely saw him move. His sword entered the man’s back and came out quickly. The man died instantly. The other bandits rushed in and the hunter backed away calmly.

  -That’s some nasty business you’ve done here, noted a big man who appeared to be the leader. There were still four of them. They were in superiority and they knew it. They had the upper hand.

  -I would have just robbed you but you will understand that I cannot ignore poor Larry’s death here, he said as he indicated the dead body with his sword.

  They walked inside and faced them. Aerys casted a worried look at the hunter who did not look at all worried. How could he be so calm in such a situation? They were outnumbered. The leader nodded and the other three attacked all at once. They surrounded the hunter. Aerys ran towards him to help but the leader intercepted him and blocked him.

  -Stand still and watch, he said pointing his sword towards him.

  He laughed but his laughter died on his lips as he turned towards the hunter. The three others lay down wounded or dead and the hunter calmly walked towards him.

  -How?, muttered the bandit frightened. Who the hell are you? He ran towards the door and fled.

  There was a loud noise and the bandit returned into the room with a terrified look on his face. He fell down and pointed towards the door. Before any of them could ask him something several black round-shaped jelly-like entities hobbled inside and launched themselves on him. The bandit screamed and tried to get them off him but they did not let go. They were as if glued to the poor man’s body and Aerys watched in horror as they opened their big mouth and bite off his flesh off. He was being eaten alive. His screams filled the room and Aerys looked at the hunter to see if he would try something to save the man but he just watched the scene with an expressionless face. Was he going to let the man die? He certainly could not. Aerys walked towards the black creatures to try to help him but a hand held grabbed him and pulled back.

  -Don’t move or you’re as dead as him, the hunter whispered as they backed silently behind the bed.

  The screams of the man continued.

  -What…

  -Black oozes, he whispered. They are very dangerous creatures. Be sure not to make any noise after they finish with him.

  -Can’t we help him?, Aerys asked with pleading eyes.

  ‘-Help …me…please’, shouted the man.

  -I’m afraid we cannot if we are to have a chance to get out of here alive. And if you ask me, he added coldly, he deserves this.

  Aerys did not know what to reply. It was true that this man wanted to kill them but even so, this was a death he would never want even his fiercest enemy to have. The creatures emitted a suction noise as they moved over the body and ate the flesh. It was a horrible sight and Aerys looked away. The cries of the man finally died out and he knew that he was dead. It went on for a couple of minutes and he heard the sound of munching as the creatures ate his flesh.

  The innkeeper besides them was sweating heavily and watching with terrified eyes. He was nearly grabbing the hunter’s hand and the latter was trying to push him away as silently as possible. It would have been a very comical sight if they had not been in such a dangerous situation.

  The creatures finally stopped eating and they all froze, trying not to move. They jumped off the corpse or the skeleton that remained for there was not an inch of flesh left on the body. Aerys held his breath waiting for them. Would they attack them? If they did, he had no idea what he would have to do? But there was one thing he was sure of; he did not want to finish like the bandit.

  The creatures stayed still for a moment and then much to their relief, they out of the room. The hunter beckoned them to remain silent though and he walked as quietly as possible towards the door. He looked down in the corridor and after a quick look, he closed the door.

  -We are in a tight spot, he said as he walked towards the window and looked outside.

  -What’s happening? Aerys asked alarmed. What were these creatures?

  -I told you lad, black oozes, replied the hunter. I did not know that there were any in this region. They must have migrated here recently. In any case, there are a lot of them downstairs and all around the place.

  -What are we going to do then? , asked the innkeeper frigthtened. Can’t you kill them master hunter.

  The hunter shook his head.

  -There are too many of them right now. We cannot attempt anything while we are still trapped here.

  -Could we not just cut them? They don’t seem that quick, Aerys proposed timidly.

  The hunter cast him an angry look.

  -If you had studied the bestiary you would have known that using a sword against them is ineffective. If we do so, they will only multiply.

  Aerys resisted the urge to reply. How was he supposed to know the whole bestiary in such a small lapse of time? The book was enormous and it was not the only one he had. There were six others.

  -So what’s the plan then?, he asked sulkily.

  -Maybe if you stopped asking so many questions, I could think about one, hissed the hunter angrily.

  He walked back and forth in the room muttering to himself. Aerys walked towards the window in the meantime and looked outside. A terrible sight awaited me. The whole inn was surrounded by an important mass of these jelly-like creatures who were feasting on some horses that had tried to run away but failed. There was no way out of this.

  He heard a tinkling sound behind him and when he turned he saw the innkeeper on the floor surrounded by the coins that had fallen out of his pockets. The hunter cursed him angrily and rushed towards the door.

  Did they hear? They all listened attentively. There was a chance that they had not. Aerys turned back to look outside and all hope left him. The black mass was moving inside. This time, there would not be just a couple of them.

  -Quick, shouted the hunter. Let’s barricade the door.

  But then he cursed loudly. There was no door because of the bandits.

  -The window, he said hurrying to the door. Quick.

  Aerys opened it hastily and the fresh air penetrated inside. The wind was blowing as hard as ever. He looked down quickly. There were few Oozes left and none of them was directly under the window. They still had chance but jumping from such a height was not an appealing thing to do. He would be lucky to come out uninjured. The innkeeper joined him with his hands full of coins.

  -Leave the gold, Aerys said to him. You won’t be able to climb down.

  He ignored him and pushed him aside roughly and went through the window. Aerys looked in the door’s direction and saw that the hunter had pulled the bed there and was trying to block the access to the room. He could see that it was barely working and that it would not resist for long. The suction sound became louder than ever. He looked through the window again. The innkeeper was attempting the descent and he immediately saw that he was not doing a good job. He was using only one hand while the other was tightly wrapped around his pockets. Several gold coins were falling down and Aerys could only hope that the Oozes down would not notice their presence. But then there was a cry.

  The innkeeper slipped.

  He fell down and lay unconscious on the ground. The Oozes that were left rushed towards him immediately and started to attack him. Aerys watched the scene in despair. There was nothing he could do to help him. There was another breaking noise but this time it was from inside the room and he turned to see that the door was lost. The hunter rushed towards him while the oozes entered inside.

  -Let’s go, he said as he grabbed his bag.

  Aerys did not need to be told twice. He stepped across the windo
w and started to descend. Luckily the moon was out and he saw places where he could find support. The hunter came just after him and they climbed down as quickly as possible. The oozes down below them were busy feasting on the poor innkeeper and Aerys could hear them eating his flesh. It was so disgusting that he nearly vomited.

  They were nearly down when he heard something fall. He looked up and heard the hunter shout something at him but he did not hear him. It was probably a warning because a moment later something hit him and he lost his balance and he fell.

  He was lucky for he was not far from the ground when he fell and he fell a bit further from the corpse of the innkeeper. However he still had an Ooze on him. He wrestled with it nervously as it tried to attack his face. It was slimy and it proved very difficult to get it off him. He saw the big round mouth and the dangerous claws as the Ooze tried to bite him.

  Fortunately the hunter jumped by his side and managed to pull it away. He lifted Aerys up quickly. Other oozes fell from above and they hurried away from the walls. But his fall had unfortunately alerted the Oozes that attacked the innkeeper’s body and they hopped towards us threateningly. Their mouth was filled with blood and they wanted more.

  -Run, shouted the hunter and they made a run towards the road. They did not go far though. To their horror, a swarm of oozes was approaching and they found themselves surrounded.

  -What are we going to do now? Aerys shouted desperately at the hunter.

  He put his bag on the ground and searched inside quickly.

  -Cover me lad, he said.

  Aerys swallowed. How was I to cover him? Had he not said that it was no good cutting them? He gathered what courage he had left and grabbed his dagger. The Oozes were coming slowly but surely. Some of them merged together to his horror and their size doubled. They were more threatening than ever. He looked at the hunter alarmingly. If he did not hurry, it would be the end.

  Finally he stood up with something in his hands. He began to struck them together and Aerys realized that he was trying to lit a fire but unfortunately he was not doing a great job. Was fire the solution? The Oozes must have sensed the danger too because they began to advance more quickly.

  -Let me try, Aerys said to the hunter as he grabbed the flint and steel from his hands. He nodded and took out his sword. Aerys had barely started when an Ooze attacked. The hunter cut it and it split in two in front of Aerys horrified eyes. He saw its two parts transform into smaller oozes and they hopped towards them again. This was unreal. He struck the flint and the steel together near the twigs. A spark appeared but it quickly disappeared.

  -Quick lad, shouted the hunter as he Ooze after Ooze to no effect. It made things worse as the Oozes multiplied but it was the only solution to buy him time

  Aerys tried again and again. The sparks appeared but the fire did not take. He panicked and the flint fell off. He quickly grabbed it again, his heart beating quickly. The pressure was unbearable. If he failed they were doomed. The hunter backed towards me then. Aerys looked around and saw that they the Oozes were just inches away from them now. In despair he tried one last time and this time the flames appeared and bite the oily twigs hungrily. The oozes backed away immediately with terrified noises.

  -Well done lad, barked the hunter taking the twigs cautiously from him. He took a bottle of wine from his bag and sent it crashing on the oozes. The burning twigs followed and the fire started. The flames grew bigger and bigger as it engulfed the oozes who tried to retreat desperately but in vain. The wind turned to be an ally as it fuelled the fire. The whole swarm lit. The hunter and Aerys rushed towards the walls of the inn and watched as the fire consumed the oozes. But they quickly saw that it was not a good idea for the walls of the inn started to burn too.

  As soon as there was an opening they ran through and soon they were at a safe distance from the inn. They watched it burn in silence. So many people had died. The image of the bandit being eaten alive kept coming in Aerys mind. He could still hear his cries. He broke in tears.

  The hunter said nothing. He did not console him. He gathered some wood and lit a small fire. Aerys sat around it silently. The trees around protected them from the wind.

  -I know that it’s hard, said the hunter after a while. But don’t expect me to console you or anything like that. Life is like this. Now at least you know that death can happen at any time. So you must always be on your guard.

  -You did not want to save the bandit, Aerys pointed out between his sobs.

  The hunter held his gaze.

  -Aye and I don’t even regret it. These kinds of people don’t deserve to be saved.

  -Even then, it is not a reason not to help him.

  The hunter sighed.

  -You have a noble mind lad but even if I wanted I would not have been able to help him.

  -Why did you not lit the fire in the room then?, he asked angrily.

  -I did not want to bring the rest upstairs. I wanted to wait silently in that room for them to leave or climb down through the window. But that clumsy innkeeper messed up.

  -So you let him die so that you could escape, Aerys said.

  He nodded unashamedly.

  Aerys shook his head disapprovingly. He did not know what to think about him anymore. Was he supposed to follow this kind of man who was ready to sacrifice others for his own safety?

  -Now look here lad, he said quickly. Don’t you get a bad opinion of me. I save people all the time but I am not going to risk my life for someone not worth it like that bandit.

  Aerys looked at him blankly.

  -I don’t care what you think above me but I just had to tell you how things are, he said opening the last bottle left in his bag. You will soon find out by yourself that in this world it is each man for himself. So if I have one advice for you it would be to be a little more selfish. You might live a little bit longer then.

  He did not know when his eyes closed or when he slept but he woke up the next day with a sore body. The hunter was already waiting for him as usual. He had probably not slept at all as usual. He looked more tired than ever. Aerys wondered how he could live like this. Igor was right. It was a terrible curse. Aerys was a little bit ashamed of himself. He slept while the remained awake.

  The memories of the past night then resurged and he looked towards the inn or what remained of it. The whole area was burnt and the carbonized debris that remained were scattered all over the place.

  -Come on, said the hunter going back on the road. We have a long road till Adington and I want to arrive there before dusk.

  The wind had not fallen but luckily it blew sideways now. It was still a bother but it was more bearable. They continued north and crossed the green plains.

  CHAPTER 7

  They continued their route in the difficult weather. The wind was blowing as hard as ever and at a constant rate and the geography of the region did not help them at all. There were few places where they could shelter in these green plains. They usually stopped near the rare trees they saw and which sheltered them for a bit from the wind. However the wind was not the only problem; coldness was also one. Despite the clothes that Erasmus gave him, Aerys was beginning to feel the effects of the cold weather. He had never been in such cold regions and hence he find it a bit difficult to adjust. The hunter on the contrary did not seem to mind it that much. He was probably used to it. He did not even put his coat on and continued to drink occasionally as they walked on the road that led them further north.

  Aerys had more and more difficulty to follow the hunter and after two days he was trailing behind by a not negligible distance. The fact that the road went straight to the north meant that he could still see the hunter in front of him and the latter if he noticed it, did not lower his pace. The hunter finally stopped on the third day. He waited patiently for Aerys to catch up with him.

  -You took your bloody time lad, he said harshly as he left the road and headed towards the woods.

  Aerys had thought that he would be able to rest but it was def
initely not the case. He followed the hunter gloomily as they walked away from the road.

  -Where are we going? He asked in a tired voice.

  -There’s a Zorg lair here, said the hunter darkly.

  Aerys stopped in his tracks stunned. His heartbeat increased exponentially and he felt the fear rising in him.

  -We are going to fight it now? He called at the hunter.

  -Keep your voice down, replied the latter angrily turning towards him.

  Aerys walked towards him but found that his knees were trembling uncontrollably.

  -Listen, said the hunter gravely. There is a Zorg’s lair in there and we are going in now.

  -Are you sure it’s the right time? asked Aerys unsure. I mean we just fought those imps and we are tired after this long walk.

  -There is no perfect time lad, replied the hunter. You must acquire your artifact and the sooner it is done, the better it will be.

  Aerys shuddered.

  -I’m not sure I am ready, he confessed.

  -No one is ready to face a Zorg. I was not and the old man too was not but it has to be done. There is no need to wait and waste time. Either you have what it takes to be a hunter or you don’t.

  Aerys nodded still unsure. The hunter turned and walked into the woods. Aerys followed him slowly. He felt numb. He wanted to turn and go away but his body was moving on its own. He wiped the sweat that pearled on his forehead and breathed hard. He knew he was not ready yet. After their encounter with the imps and the Oozes which were supposed to be C type creatures, he could only wonder how strong the Zorg would be. If even creatures like imps could give a hunter like Drake so much difficulty, how strong would A class creatures be.

  After a while the hunter stopped and beckoned Aerys forward. Aerys followed his pointed finger and saw something he had never seen before. There was a blurry round excavation in the trunk of a gigantic tree.

  -What’s this…?, said Aerys trying to find a word for the entrance like shape.