The Beast Master

Chapter 2

    The rest of the day went by easily, as Zara seemed too busy tormenting the small boy who tripped at lunch. Zara’s family is powerful and wealthy, her father being an advisor to the President has gained her family an excellent reputation. She stands at a stunning 5’8” with golden long hair and pale blue eyes. She really could be beautiful if you ignore the nastiness that comes out of her mouth. Luckily for me, the studying I was doing at lunch no longer ran through her mind and the rest of the day was average at best. The hallways cleared and I gathered my things to return to my safe zone of the forest. 

    When I reached home at the very edge of Veldaria in what we call the Grunge, where perfect houses don't exist only dilapidated shacks, I found my mother sewing a dress for someone who will only give her a few coppers for her work. She smiles at me as she lowers the gown and I catch a glimpse at her calloused fingers.

“Dinner will be ready in a few hours, I was able to fix something up with what was left in the pantry” She says through a pained smile. 

“I'm going out hunting, I saw a herd of deer behind the tree line when I was on my way to school. Hopefully I’ll be able to track one down.” 

I grab my treasured bow and head toward the forest. 

    This bow is the most expensive thing in our home. I won it from a bet I made with one of my brother's rich friends. Ever since I was little my brother would take me out into the forest, and we would make bows and arrows from sticks. I became a pretty good shot over the years, and when my brother, Brenner, told his best friend I could shoot better than him the game was on. My brother’s friend, Clayton, had a cocky attitude most of the time, but after his family purchased him a brand new bow he felt that he could shoot a bullseye without skill. We bet the bow naturally and although he wasn’t as bad as I thought he would be, my years of practice kicked in and I obtained the nicest gift I could receive. 

The wind blew through my raven black hair as I followed the tracks of the deer I had seen earlier that day. 

After a few miles I stumbled across a doe feeding on the ground she walks on. 

Aim

Breathe

Shoot

The deer went down clumsily and it let out its last few breaths.

It took all my energy to drag the beast back home and I realized how long I had been out in the woods as the sun began to set. 

My mothers worried face welcomed me home.

“You know I don't like you out after dark”

When she saw the reason I was so late getting home her eyes lit up and she rushed over to help me butcher the meat.

“Aren’t you happy Brenner convinced you to let me keep my bow?” I joked as she gave me a quick shake of the head. 

“Let's just get this cut up and in the freezers before it goes to waste.” My mother says hastily as she calls my brother from his room to help us cut up the deer. 

The rest of the night was merry knowing we would have food for a week and I went to bed feeling content with the hunt I had that day. 

One day closer to being outside of these walls.