Claiming Dias (book 1 of Alpha claiming series)

Chapter 1 Ana Standing at the edge of a clearing of a dense forest among the trees that line my hut. The moist morning air caresses my skin, leaving a trail of goosebumps across my chest. My hands smooth on a thick layer of mud, the earthy scent filling my nostrils as I finish the daunting task. I clench a knotty wooden bow in hand and pick up a quiver of arrows, slinging them across my back. I close my eyes taking slow deep breaths, focusing my hearing on any slight noise within the surrounding forest. My furs ruffle in the gentle breeze. The sound of rustling leaves, twigs snapping, and birds singing songs in the distance fills my ears. After some time concentrating, I can hear a small animalistic belt reverberate through the space of the surrounding forest. Turning in each direction, I listened carefully. As if on autopilot, my legs begin to move toward the grunting calls. I try to be cautious of where my feet fall as I weave my way through the dense greenery. Easing my eyes open, I sling my bow over my shoulder, and the cold hard wooden shaft bumps against my skin. Carefully I pick my way through the leaves and limbs that litter the forest bed. My eyes shifted between the low-laying green and teal bushes. As I arrive at a small stream, I bend down to study the ground for any signs of animal-hooved prints. Hunting takes a great many talents. One is tracking. You can wander for days by the sound of an animal’s call, but if you follow their tracks. You can determine how long it has been since they were last there, and if it is a place they come often. Tracks can also alert you to other animals, such as predators that could be in the area too. It would suck to walk upon the mutated while hunting prey.   My finger grazes a few leaves on the ground, quietly pushing them to the side. I discovered a three-hoofed print sunk into the mud. I continue to brush aside the twigs and leaves, revealing a second set of tracks. These prints are smaller. My fingers slide along the cold moist mud, tracing the indention as my mind shifts through images of what kind of animals could have left them.  Deciding on what creature I am hunting, I settle my resolve. Crawling in the direction, the hoofed prints lead. Reaching a small sapling, I pick a patch of fur from the tiny thorn of a barely leafy branch. Bringing it to my nose, I fill my lungs with the heavy scent of dirty wooden musk. Slowly standing, I’m careful not to snap any branches. An image of a Pudu comes to the forefront of my mind. Its short stubby legs look awkward on the dwarf deer. It is a small animal, but a perfect size for me.   I searched the path ahead for more signs of which way it had traveled. Every few steps, I can hear the loud grunting call of the small deer. As if the small hoof-prints before me aren’t enough to find my prey.   My feet slip into the leaves, and further into the soft ground.  Small rocks poke into my calloused feet as I pad through the dense trees and undergrowth. Cautiously, I peek around large trees and dimly illuminated shrubbery from the sun fading from view within the cluttered forest of trees. Pangs of pain start throbbing in my calves running further up my leg the longer it takes to hunt down the elusive Pudu. I’ve hunted them before, and it takes a great deal of stamina to catch one if it gets spooked. What worries me more are all the other predators in the forest. One wrong sound and my prey will bolt, and I will have no hope of ever catching it today. If I am not lucky, something will find me that I don’t want to.   That thought alone is enough to send my stomach into flips and moisture to break out on the palms of my hands. Eyeing an ancient-looking tree in front of me, I crept towards it. Pressing my back against the bumpy, rough bark of the tree. I close my eyes to focus on calming my breath and nerves. Shallowing my breath, I slide along the bark as it scratches the skin of my arm to peek around it.   In the distance under the undergrowth, I caught the movement of a small fawn edging closer to its mother. Her ears are standing straight up as her watchful eyes move over the area around them.  She is on high alert, as every mother should be.  The fawn belts at the mother Pudu and nuzzles the n*****s on its mother’s belly before hungrily sipping. Its coat still has the little dots on its hide, letting me know it’s only a few months old. Closing my eyes, I leaned back against a moist mossy patch on the otherwise rough tree trunk, feeling its soft caress against my back. Do I kill the fawn? That would allow the mother to birth more fawns. Do I kill the mother and most likely kill the fawn as well? It’s not yet old enough to live on its own.  Drawing in a steadying breath, the scent of damp fur and pine assaults me. Slowly leaning away from the tree, I lift my bow from around my shoulders. The string catches on my hair, lifting it as I slide it over my head. My heart is beating wildly in my chest, so much, so I’m afraid the Pudu will hear it and take off. My fingers slide along the soft feathers of the arrow as i pluck it from the quiver at my side. I attempt to steady my breathing and slow my wildly beating heart by picturing a rushing river, hearing the beautiful sound of the water caressing the rocks as it rushes past. With my eyes closed, and my focus readjusted, I hone into noises that surround me. I know there are several hungry carnivores in the woods. The way this little Pudu has been belting could have attracted others besides me.   Opening my eyes, hardening my gaze, I grit my teeth and exhaled a held breath.  It is not something I take immense pleasure in, but to survive I must hunt.  In my world, it's hunt or be hunted. While I don’t like the idea of taking a life, I’m not willing to lie down and die either.  Lowering my body towards the ground, I crouched, allowing the deep greens and cascading shadows of the forest to hide me. Moving along the ground through the shadows, I cross the distance before the Pudu catches my scent.  As I inch closer, I rub an arrow between my fingers. I notched the arrow across the shaft and onto the string. Holding it between my fingers, I quietly drew it back. The slight sting across the inside of my fingers let me know the string is almost tight enough to send the arrow through the air for a deadly hit.  I tightly hold it waiting till the last moment when my sights are set, to pull it fully back before letting it loose.  Easing towards the Pudu, I raise the bow to aim, watching as the fawn moves from its mother’s teat. I realized at this moment that I'd made a deadly mistake. Not once has the mother made a move. Her ears twitch, and her head swivels, but she isn’t listening for me. Something else has spooked this doe, and it sets my skin aflame and a twist in my gut. I glance around my surroundings, taking note of every tree and outstretched branch, of every flower lining the meadow floor, of the blades of grass, and how sickeningly still they stand. Sliding my foot back across the grass, I started easing back the way I came. Looking at the Pudu, I notice a small rope attached around its ankle tied to a tree nearby. This close, I can sense the fear rolling off the Pudu, and I know I’ve been led to a trap.   Slowly stepping back the way I came I keep my eyes focused on my surroundings. As I turn my neck, I take in a lung full of fresh air. At some point, I stopped breathing. A cool breeze washes over me, rustling the leaves, and bringing with it a new scent. Whatever is out there is smart enough to set a baited trap, and I don’t want to be what it catches.    The doe grunts and tugs hastily at its bindings, attempting to flee. My heart sores as it thumps in my chest. My body starts to heat as my blood pumps wildly through my veins. I swear I can feel my heartbeat in my toes. My ears are pounding with shockwaves from the blood rushing in my body, making it harder to hear. A sudden sharp pain stung my waist, causing me to jump. Gasping softly, I fill my lungs with fresh air. Turning, I start running, and that is when I realize it’s too late. My vision hazes, and my head feels heavy, but I refuse to stop moving.   Ripping the small feathery bit out of my waist, I tossed it to the ground. I run as far as I can before my body starts giving way on me. The trees around me swirl together, causing me to stumble with uncertain footsteps. I whimper slightly as my foot slams against a fallen limb, causing pain to wrap around my ankle. The sudden stop clogs my brain, and I feel the hard surface of the forest floor against my knees. My breath was coming in short pants like I had just run across the entire forest.  I can barely make out the shadows that stand against the ground around me. The shapes around me start merging, becoming one incohesive mass. Everything swirls faster around me. The acid in my stomach is hard to hold down. All I can feel is the pounding of my heart as it beats inside my chest like a caged bird.  I moan out loud, trying to get up from the ground, but my arms refuse to work. My head is swimming in a fog of fuzziness as black spots fly before my vision. I can hear the blood pumping in my ears, pulsing in my heart. My legs and arms are nothing but dead weight, I can’t even feel them anymore. I close my eyes, and that is when it hits me. Only a small breeze is blowing, but I am suddenly freezing. I can feel my breath fogging up in my air as I start breaking out in a cold sweat. I beg for my body to work; I know it’s too late, but I don’t have any more time. Too sleepy to move, too scared to witness what it is that had set the trap. My mind rebels as I feel hands grabbing my arms, legs, and hair. My mind slips into the darkness giving into the sensation of sleep. *********************** I started awake gasping like a fish out of water. Bright blinding lights force my eyes to squint shut. My head feels like it is going to burst open from the thrumming inside. As I attempt to raise my hand to shield my eyes, I realize I can’t move them. Panic starts to settle in my chest as I try to move my legs, finding they are too bonded down. I lifted my head to look around the room. I am only able to lift it slightly off the surface beneath me. The walls are white, and a sponge-like material is fastened to it. I had never seen materials like this before.  My father had always told me about places that were out of my reach. I always thought he had made them up. Places he invented to scare me. The white walls that surround me convince me otherwise. There is a black window on the wall that reflects the light. It looks much like the windows at my father’s hut but as dark as the night sky.    There are small tables that are on wheels with all sorts of small knives and other pointy objects. Across the room to the other side is a box that keeps beeping and a line that jumps on it. After inspecting the items laid where I can see them, I realize I have not seen anything in the room before. My eyes follow the colored rope that stretches from the box to my chest, making steady beeping noises. The noise from the small box starts beeping at a faster pace. Which doesn’t help to ease the panic rising within me. I scan my body as best as I can with only a slight lift of my head. I lay bare, with just a white covering laying on top of me.  My breath comes out in rushing pants as my mouth hangs agape. Panic spreads like wildfire under my skin.   What the hell caught me, and what the f**k is going on?