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It had been towards the end of basic training.
Theoretical lessons and practice done, rookie scouts were divided into small groups and send to various forests around the Isles. Hunter was send to Left Wrist with Mara (mix of rat and finger demon, taller that Hunter but short and round compared to others, fur, teeth and tail from rat side, finger count from the other), Severine (tall and lanky brownish demon with horns and spikes) and Steve (witch with one horn, average size) to test their skills and teamwork.
Two weeks on their own before they could seek civilization again.
They were allowed to take with them whatever they themselves would consider everyday gear, so no extra food rations or sleeping mats. It was suppose to simulate unexpected trip due to unforeseen circumstances, such as after an airship crash or extended pursuit of a criminal.
Hunter had written practice wand and stack of batteries to his Everyday Gear -list and was both surprised and relieved to see it approved. It wasn't standard gear, but if those who used bard magic could bring their instruments everywhere and potion focused people could bring their bottles, maybe his request wasn't too outlandish.
He didn't put his supplements on the list. He didn't carry the bottle with him all the time so no way would he have two bottles with him in sudden survival situation. This was meant to be realistic simulation. Besides, his condition wasn't that serious, surely he could manage two weeks without.
So the four were dropped of in the middle of the woods.
First order of business was finding a water source. Cauldron mushroom was considered but the others complained over the aftertaste, so it was reserved as plan B.
Condensation dripping from a cave ceiling was dismissed, it wasn't enough for four people a day, plus the cave had glueworms.
Stagnant pond was viable as long as they managed to distill or otherwise purify the water.
None of them had strong preference to potions but Mara and Hunter together had enough know-how to conjure passable distillery equipment.
Then came the issue of camp location. Mara wanted to put camp near the pond so they wouldn't have to carry water around so much but Severine argued the pond would attract beast, bugs and other wildlife. Hunter agreed with Severine and Steve went with majority.
Severine insisted on top of a nearby hill to be good spot but Hunter argued it was too open. Mara sided with Hunter to spite Severine and Steve went with the majority again.
Hunter wanted to purge the glueworms and make camp in the cave but both Severine and Mara argued it was too far from the water and inconveniently big for four people to habit.
That was when Steve deigned to reveal his leaning towards construction magic and promised he could make a cave, small tower or stone house anywhere the others wanted.
They picked a spot at the foot of the hill and Steve constructed three room house halfway in the hill. Biggest room was for distilling water, cooking food and whatever else they might need it. Two other rooms were bedrooms.
The "bunk beds" were more akin to big stone shelves that needed something soft to make them sleepable. Steve wasn't an expert so he couldn't make glass windows, metal hinges or wooden doors and therefore doorways were empty and there was no window openings.
Severine assured Steve that it was plenty enough for a start as long as he sealed the front door for the night.
At Maras suggestion Steve added small basin on the outside and the two filled it half way with water while Hunter and Severine were scouting the surroundings for immediate dangers, edible plants and easy prey.
No immediate dangers were detected, Hunter found ground nut bush and Severine caught a purple flapper, a four winged, four legged creature resembling pig and bat, except scaly.
With sky getting dark, enough water distilled to fill four mugs and some food secured, Steve sealed the door (leaving air holes, suffocation endurance was one of the many endurances they had to train for but didn't want to right now) and sat down to eat and plan tomorrow.
Mara reserved one of the ground nuts for tomorrow. She knew some plant magic and might be able to grow more and offered to try make a vegetable garden if others found more edible plants.
Steve wanted to look for something soft to make better beds and other furniture. He would do so while in search for food with Hunter and Severine.
Hunter brought up the topic of leadership. While they were all rookies and equal in rank, every group needed someone who had the last say. Severine doubted if it was necessary with just four people but Hunter was insistent, convincing Steve to agree, getting Mara and Severine to comply as well.
He nominated himself as the leader but was immediately turned down. Despite his arguments of scoring high in almost all test and having widest range of knowledge, the adults were not swayed.
Steve didn't want the position so it was just Mara and Severine arguing their merits.
Hunter proposed a duel between the two, Steve opposed the duel, Severine accused Hunter of intentional agitation and Mara conceded the position for Severine, explaining that she had been ready to duel but realized, as Severine admonished Hunter, that a duel could cause unnecessary hostility and injuries.
Severine was more levelheaded of the two, could make decisions on her own but was open to suggestions while turning down bad ideas, therefore being more qualified to be temporary scout leader.
The decision was made, Hunter was told not to pout (he wasn't!) or incite more conflict and they retired for bed, aside from Severine whom was tasked with keeping watch as her first responsibility.
The stone slab of the top "bunk" was so uncomfortable that Hunter conjured fake flesh to soften it. Still in the bad mood for having so many of his ideas rejected today, and needing to preserve wand battery, he may have been a bit harsh to Steve.
"Hey kid, that thing looks softer than stone. Mind giving me one too?"
"You made your bed from stone, now lie in it. I don't have to waste energy to coddle you".
"Sheesh kiddo, this is team building exercise. We're suppose to help each others".
"Whatever, I'm asleep and can't hear you anymore". Hunter turned to face the wall.
"Hope you'll get a good sleep and won't be so grumpy by morning. Nighty night".
"Night".
By morning, no one had slept well.
Softening the beds with something was put higher on the priority list, right next to food and water. Severine needed to take a nap to clear her head, but rest of them got to work.
Hunter dug up more ground nuts and also spotted small snare vines (only one managed to grab his ankle and he ripped that easily of) which were edible if you boiled them first so he harvested some of those as well.
Finding beasts to eat was harder than he'd anticipated. He'd learned tracking spell specifically for this but now his casting wobbled. To preserve battery, he tried tracking unaided but found nothing. It was as if the forest was empty.
Checking in on base, he gave the extra nuts and vine cuttings to Mara, who had as her task filled the basin to the brim and tilled the garden spot ready.
Severine and Steve were off hunting and gathering food and bedding material and Mara wanted to explore the surroundings as well, so after planting part of Hunters yield, she tasked him with distilling more water.
While at it, Hunter re-estimated how much magic he had at his disposal. 28 spare batteries might have been overkill when he hadn't used up the first one, but unlike the others, his reserves didn't refill after a rest so better safe than sorry.
Failing to cast a spell still drained magic. Could he afford to practice?
Battery drainage depended on casters affinity to the spell they were trying to cast. Strong affinity, small drainage. Weak affinity, big drainage.
Being powerless meat he had weak affinity to all types of magic and it was only by clear intention and good visualization that he could improve his spell casting.
Deeming it important enough and having yesterdays battery to drain, Hunter practiced casting tableware from stone. Steve had made four mugs last evening but the meat had been roasted on a spears and nuts in the fire pit.
They would need pot for boiling and cooking, bowls to eat from, spoons, forks, ladle, pan of some sort. He envisioned them carefully, smooth inner surfaces, thin enough to not be too heavy, thick enough to not crack at smallest tap.
Bowl and spoons came out fine and the pot seemed functional, but pan cracked when he put it down too fast, forks were blunt and ladle was too heavy to be practical. Wooden ladle would be better anyway.
After draining the battery on hopefully working pan, he put new one in.
As Hunter was about to try making wooden utensils, Steve returned in high spirits and two dead birds in hand.
He had lot of tears and scrapes yet eagerly started explaining to Hunter how he'd spotted flock of raven sized birds, followed them to their roost, got the idea of gathering feathers to soften the beds, climbed up, got into a fight with the flock which seemed hungry for his flesh and felled the two he now was waving in Hunters face.
They were in the process of plugging and gutting the birds when Mara returned carrying bitter tubers, sour ferns and polypore to add on the menu.
Not having eaten breakfast, all were hungry and Hunter was getting impatient.
He wanted to start lunch without Severine but Mara contended that eating without their leader wound be rude and it was Hunter who insisted on having a leader.
Steve weighed in that the polypore needed to be parboiled before it was safe to eat. Tubers and snare vine likewise needed to be boiled different lengths of time, so they could star cooking and Severine would probably be back around noon when it was ready.
His prediction was accurate.
The boiling ordeal was almost done when Severine returned. She'd hauled three millipedes, biggest of them as long as Hunter was tall, although Mara stated that to be below average. Both hunter and Severine were scowling at her so it was Steves turn to admonish Mara for agitating them.
Halfhearted apologies were given, lunch was cooked and Hunter got few thanks and compliments on his pot, bowl and spoons. Millipedes were saved for dinner.
Mara continued work in the garden, encouraging the small selection to grow enough to be harvested again. Severine fetched more water, since the parboiling and regular boiling had depleted the basin. Upon returning she demanded Steve to construct an aqueduct, which he argued one: didn't go upwards and two: he didn't know how to make.
While they were at it, Hunted made bubble flesh mattresses to all of them. Mostly as silent apology to Steve. He had made the whole house and Hunter couldn't give him lump of fake flesh as thanks?
He'd had the idea while gutting the birds. Different organs had different density so making something else but muscle could be better. Since he had studied anatomy hands on with real body parts, it was easy to vision.
Small vesicles with thick membranes, cartilage to keep them in place and skin to wrap it all up in mattress shape.
Sure, they would decay eventually, but should last well over a week.
Making the four mattresses took a lot out of the second battery, which he hadn't anticipated but it was still withing his calculations.
Water basing was expanded to bathtub size and it was declared that those who slept the whole night would fill it together first thing after breakfast.
Hunter volunteered to keep watch next night but so did Steve, stating that growing kids needed sleep.
After another argument over his maturity failed, partially because Hunter stomped his foot, Severine set half-night guard schedule.
Hunter could start next night and wake up Steve at midnight. Night after that, Mara would start and switch up with Severine. Then Steve and Hunter. Then Severine and Mara. No one would have to stay up all nigh, everyone wound get to sleep some full nights.
Grumbles from the guys and sarcastic applause from Mara but everyone accepted.
Rest of the afternoon was spend crafting baskets, wooden utensils and stools to sit on. Mara could make small vines and logs but had no crafting skills to speak of. Severine however was very handy, having done craft works as a hobby for years, and taught them the basics of basket weaving and wood carving.
It was pleasant few hours, sitting outside on the grass in the shade of tree, Mara playing kalimba with her head fingers.
Hunter was fascinated at how people could create stuff without magic. He had always though everything was made with magic, houses, books, clothes, carts, mirrors and everything else that came to mind.
But here he was, making two pronged fork with his own hands and a simple knife. Carving little slices of wood away to reveal what he wanted underneath. The fork came out a bit choppy, but according to Severine, it was very good for a first try.
At dinner time they ate the millipedes and more tubers. The others scrunched up their faces, complaining about bitterness like they had done at previous meal.
Hunter felt like his lack of taste was an advantage for once.
By nightfall as the others went to sleep (thanks for mattresses thrown by Steve and Severine), Hunter took a knife to a stick with the intention of making a snake out of it.
He'd had great time this afternoon. Learning something new and useful, bonding with fellow scouts, getting thanks and compliments!
Even if rough, and ignoring few incidents, basic training in general had been fun.
It was mostly due to everyone being a rookie. Unlike his uncle and teachers, these people were not better than him. They made mistakes, they failed, they could not scold him for failing.
Some may have belittled or ridiculed him (he yelled at them), few tried to coddled him like a toddler (he yelled at them too), while others ignored him (on bad days he yelled at them as well) but occasionally he got compliments and approval.
He was getting so much attention! People were envious, proud or looking up to him.
It had been shocking to learn on the first weeks how childish some of the other rookies were. Clumsy during exercise, whiny in the morning and crying over injuries so easily.
And the table manners!
The canteen had been a mess. While behaving like savages was apparently suitable code of conduct, and Hunter learned to lax his standards, there were some manners he would not let go. To some people, you didn't even need to sit down or use utensils.
If uncle ever were to see him behave like that, he would flog Hunters fingers and back and it wouldn't be gentle warning flicks to correct his posture or remind what wasn't allowed.
Thinking of his uncle made him homesick.
Hunter would be here for twelve more days before he could see uncle again.
One of the drawbacks of basic training had been separation from uncle.
Before, they had spend time together almost every day, but as the rookies were restricted to training compound, Hunter could only see his uncle once a week. Sometimes Belos was too busy to have dinner with Hunter on that one day.
Uncle was always sorry afterwards and to make up for it, send treats like red sauce or jello in the care package with the supplement bottle.
Obviously Hunter was happy to know he cared, and getting something good to eat was great, but it wasn't the same.
When they ate together, Hunter could pic any sauce he wanted.
Sour and sweet for salad, spicy for bread and soup.
Potatoes and pastas could be salted properly and meat was extra rare and juicy, perfect to sink his teeth in.
Of course Hunter had to cut it properly like a civilized person, but as long as he could chew with his mouth closed, uncle allowed the bigger pieces that fit both of his canines at the same time.
Desserts were red jellos, custards or velvet cakes with extra sweet sauce.
Belos never ate desert, finding them too sweet.
Uncle never used any of the sauces either, claiming to prefer his meals milder that Hunter, and that's why the food on his plate looked sometimes different that that on Hunters.
Not that Hunter questioned his preferences, that would be rude and deserving of swats.
Disciplinary flicks, swats or slaps aside, dinnertime was best time and after eating it was nice to just talk.
Hunter would share what he had learned recently, what he found difficult or questions that were bothering him. Uncle would give tips how to succeed, answer some of his questions or warn of danger that they could lead to, encouraging his studies.
Sometimes Belos talked about the world and people, about details and grand pictures that are challenging to perceive. How importand it is to trusts those who know better and to guide those who do not.
Often Hunter felt wiser after dinner than he did after full day of studying. These meals with uncle were almost sacred and the only times Hunter enjoyed eating.
Wisdom of the World was granted to him, uncle was happy with him and food was better than anywhere else. Everything tasted like something, textures were good, there was no crunchy or dry stuff.
Here in the wilderness they were living almost like animals. Scouring up anything they could to fill their stomachs. But that was to be expected, it was about surviving, not thriving.
The wooden snake he made looked more like earless ratworm.
Around what he assumed to be midnight, he switched up with Steve.
Third day went mostly as planned.
Water was carried and distilled, goreberry bush was added to the garden. Hunter succeeded at casting tracking spell but the small beast he found ran too fast to catch. Severine got another flapper. Steve spotted big paw prints. Washing room and second distillery were added. Mara made wok and they ate with wooden forks. Severine and Mara guarded the night.
Fourth day Mara got mauled.
The paw prints Steve had spotted belonged to allicore, a reptile-feline beast that drops down from trees on its prey.
Mara escaped with bardic scream but got deep wounds on her arms and lost a piece from left ear.
Severine and Steve hunted the allicore down while Hunter healed Mara.
She ridiculed him for using training wand and then accused he didn't heal her ear out of spite (not true, it was too advantaged). Mara claimed to be better healer despite only knowing first aid.
They froze the extra meat from allicore. Steve and Hunter guarded.
Fifth day was leisure.
Meat already secured and vegetable garden doing fine, there was no need to hunt or forage. Only task were retrieving water, harvesting crop, cooking and perimeter check, which no one was allowed to do alone, Severine was taking her role seriously.
After lunch there was nothing important to do.
Steve made small tiles he called domino pieces and taught how to play with them. It was mostly a game of luck that shaved of few hours but Hunter grew restless. They were wasting time and should do something useful instead, so he demanded the others join him on spear form practice. They did not. He unwinded his frustration with spins, trusts and throws.
Dinner was soup and there was still meat left for tomorrow. Mara and Severine guarded.
Sixth day was leisure as well.
Task were done quickly and before dread of uselessness could set, Hunter insisted they spar. Severine agreed and got Mara and Steve to spar as well.
When it came to combat skills Severine was little bit better than Hunter, her illusions and invisibility catching him of guard more than once. Steve had strong earth spikes but predictable movements. Mara used bardic scream and levitating spear but was slow at dodging. After all had a round against each others, it was lunch.
Others refused more sparring after and played dice instead. Their mission was to survive and they were succeeding so far.
Hunter slipped away while they played. Wasted time was time wasted no buts about it. He would scout a bit outside their perimeter in preparation for continued hunting.
He found a trail of something insectoid, six legged creature that walks on the ground, and followed it into smaller cave than the first he had found. Preparing to fight a dog sized beetle or solitary giant ant he failed to look up.
Weigh dropped on his back, fangs sinking into his left shoulder. Immediately blasting the thing off, Hunter spun around to face the opponent.
It was six legged spider. Hexapoda aranea. Venom from one bite was enough to kill adult griffin.
Fear flooded his veins along with venom. The spider was barely injured and Hunter was already loosing the feeling of his left arm. He dashed out of the cave. Running while he still could, trying to teleport as cold numbness spread through him. Panic scrambling all his thought. He failed to envision any spells.
Hunters knees buckled and he fell onto the fores floor.
Gasping in air felt like like strenuous work. Everything below the neck was cold and numb.
His sight was dimming and thoughts getting blurry and slow.
Was this dying? It didn't hurt all that much.
Uncle would be sad if he died.
Gotta get back...
..
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Hunter was warm.
His eyelids felt like they were glued shut.
There was talking.
He was hungry. Wasn't he going to eat with uncle?
Hunter groaned.
"Kiddo! Can you hear me?!"
Mans voice. Uncle? No, it was off.
"Sorry, not your uncle. It's Steve. You're awake then. Good. Thank Titan. We've been worried, you been out for, like, eight hours and Sevs said that the thing dragging you into the cave was lethally venomous so we though you were a goner 'cos we had no antidote and uh..."
The voice stopped raving for a moment.
Hunter groaned again, vaguely hoping it would result in getting a drink, of food.
"Oh, uh, Mara! he's sort of awake!"
Another voice spoke. something about water.
"...never pour liquid in unconscious persons mouth... just a little to see if he can drink".
Food got closer.
There was a hand on the back of his neck, lifting his head up. Something was pressed to his lips. He managed to open his lips and little bit of liquid poured in. It was bland.
The food was under his neck. Out of reach. Hunter whined.
"Hey. Hey". Bland drink went away. "It's gonna be okay kiddo. You're alive and you're gonna stay alive. We'll look after you".
"Wipe his face with moist shirt corner. It should stimulate some energy" said the other voice.
Wet fabric started wiping his face. Whining and huffing he tried to turn his face away but he couldn't move.
"That's good, Keep making noise. Noise means breathing. Mara thought you were not breathing when we got you. But it was just really shallow, wasn't it? And your heartbeat just was so slow we didn't detect it, right? It was a close call but you'r getting better".
Babbling continued.
He managed to open his eyes but saw just a foggy figure in dim light.
"That's it, that's a good little punk. Some bug is not gonna keep you down".
"He really should stay down. It is a wonder that the brat is still breathing if it really was heksapoda aranea. I'll check him again, you go rest". The other voice came closer as the first figure left his sight.
Pale figure with two dark eye holes. That was familiar. That was a friend.
Fingers were touching his neck, turning his head, moving back and forth before his eyes.
"Your hear beat is steady as is your breathing but you're really out of it. I doubt you'll remember any of this. Go back to sleep".
Hand closed his eyes and everything faded away.
.
.
.
It woke up.
It was hungry
It could move again.
Food was nearby.
Food was above it, one limb dangling right in front of it.
It's fangs ached.
Moving covering out of the way, it bit down.
Good.
It gulped down the food.
It had never drank anything better.
"Stop"
Something else was in the room.
It growled and turned to glare.
There was blue circle of light.
.
.
.
Hunter woke up again. He was dizzy.
Staring at the unfamiliar stone above himself Hunter tried to recall where he was. Scout training, wilderness survival, stone hut.
Three other people.
He got up to look for them.
His limbs were heavy and slow yet he felt like floating. As if he was something light, incorporeal, barely tethered to solid form he was puppeteering forward.
Severine was in the common room. Seeing him she got up.
"Oh, you are walking. Good, that's good, very good. How is your head?"
His head was here, on his body. There were many goods. "Goods"
"Good?"
"Good".
"Good. Okay. Leadership. Reprimanding. I made a rule that no one goes to the forest alone. And two days later, not only do you wander off alone, you leave the perimeter! You are lucky Steve noticed and insisted we go find you as a group. I tracked you, Steve squished the spider and Mara gave you first aid. You would be dead if all of us hadn't come! What do you have to say for yourself!?"
She was tall, her horns almost scraping the ceiling. In the bright light coming from the front door behind her, he saw tall, dark, cloaked figure with antlers. What do you have to say for yourself?
He knew the answer.
I'm sorry "mm ssry", I made a mistake "i mm de miss stake", I won't do it again "i won doot gain".
"Oh shiiiip... You're not... Mara!"
"Already here. We could hear your yelling from the outside. I told you he wouldn't be clear for a day at minimum" Two other figures had appeared in the doorway.
"Good to see you up kid. Let's get you some fresh air and sunlight" Steve took gentle hold of his shoulders and guided stumbling Hunter out the door. He squinted in the too bright light.
"I can babysit while you two go do the perimeter check" Mara offered. "I'll need to ask him some questions to better understand his health status and that would be better to do in private. So if you could?"
Severine and Steve left, leaving Hunter to sit in the grass with Mara staff length away.
The hairy, gray fingers on her head were tapping her temple. She had a long stick and she used it to poke Hunters mouth.
Annoyed, Hunter bit the stick, but didn't manage to put enough force into it to dent the wood.
"Hmmm. Do you remember last night?"
Hunter tried to recall. Steve had been there, talking a lot. Mara had been there, touching him. They gave him some water to drink.
"Ssteev was thee. Maar was theer. Got drinth"
"Got a drink alright. Lucky for everyone I can do sleeping spells and first aid. Steve seems to be oblivious of anything being wrong".
Pause.
"How does the sunlight feel?"
It was pleasantly warm.
"pleshlanly worm"
"See that doesn't fit the picture. A lot bout you doesn't fit, or is off somehow. I am not good at healing but I can examine pretty well and I can tell your body is weird. No bile sack, heart feels like a moving stone, curse in your veins. Every cadet had to pass medical examination at some point and your condition should have disqualified you. How did you pass? Why are you allowed to stay and use practice wand and staff? Whose idea was it for you to join the Emperors Coven?
Lot of words, Hunters head was spinning trying to catch some of them. Curse? Medical exam? The Emperor? The Emperor had said he couldn't be cursed, Titan had blessed him.
"No curss, TiiTann shaid so. Blessh".
"What? Not a curse? Titan said so? And how have you heard what Titans has to say about you? Have you talked to the Emperor?" she laughed.
"Ye. Te Emprlor taalk tme a lot. Plansh fo me. big plansh. im shpeshul".
Silence.
Hunter flopped down on the grass. It was soft under his back.
"The Emperor talks to you. He has a plans for you. You are special".
"Titann hash plansh fo me".
"The Titan. Titan himself has plans for you. You are not cursed, you are blessed. The Emperor talk to you a lot. I'm not sure I should believe any of what you say, you are still under the effects of poison and delirious. This all could be some grand delusion. That sounds more believable than you being some sort of Chosen One.
But if the Emperor himself involved, that could explain the concessions and exceptions made for you. Ugh, if this is some sort of state secret, I don't want to be involved".
Blessed. Chosen One.
Hunter giggled. He was lucky and special and important. It was good to be him.
Hours passed, noon came and Hunters head cleared. His limb still felt a bit heavy and his reaction time was slow but he was mostly functional.
He got stern talking to from Severine but no physical punishment, she deemed almost dying punishment enough.
Mara had been "safekeeping" his wand while he was too delirious to use it. Upon returning it, she told him to pretend they never had that chat and to leave her out of any future plans.
That made Hunter confused and nervous. He couldn't really remember what had happened while he was out of it, but he did recall saying something about Titans blessing and plans when he wasn't suppose to say anything. He needed more interrogation resistance training so something like this didn't happen again. He didn't want more.
Seventh day came to a close. Steve and Severine guarded.
Eight day Hunter felt fully recovered.
He did his part of the tasks and tried to go hunting but it was harder now with Steve almost clinging to him. They didn't catch anything and neither did the girls. They ate only vegetables and everyone was mildly grumpy. Hunter and Mara guarded.
Ninth day it rained.
Just few drops fell when Hunter, Severine and Steve were getting water. They made a mad dash to the house and got in before the drizzle turned into downpour. The vegetable garden was in danger. According to Mara, while the plants were rain resistant, downpour could wash them away. Levitation harvesting couldn't be done, the patch was of to the side so someone would need to lean their head and arm out the door to do it.
Hunter considered becoming the hero of the day, revealing his rain resistance and harvesting everything. But he was already in trouble for revealing too much to Mara. Besides, Steve saved the day by constructing covered walkway and roof for the plants.
They were playing with dominoes again when Severine brought the poisoning up.
"As glad as I am that you survived, I really want to know how. That was heksapoda aranea. Every bestiary I've read states that one bite is certain death. What if there are more of them around? Tell us how to survive a bite".
"It's not a trick that can be learned in a week. It's mithridatism".
"It's what?"
"Mithridatism. Practice of poisoning yourself with small doses to build up immunity. Commonly know as poison resistance training and it takes years".
"Hold up. Poison resistance training is one of the requirement for scout captain or higher ranks. Why would you already have it? Aren't you like eleven?"
"For Titans sake! Everyone already knows there is no age restriction to join! I started training early. I met the requirements. My dream since forever has been to become hero who protects the people from evil criminals, dangerous beast and wild magic. I can do that in the Emperors Coven".
While Severine mulled it over, Steve took a turn to question him.
"That's all noble and shi...ip" "I know what shit is." "but is your family okay with this? Even our basic training is dangerous. They aren't forcing you into this, are they?"
"They are not! I decided I wanted this and they are supportive, figuring out what I need to learn and helping me train".
"They helped you to poison yourself?"
"You make it sound like a bad thing. But no, I didn't need to do it myself. They sneaked small doses into my food and poked me with needles in my sleep. I didn't even notice until I had already build high resistance, they are so smart".
Severine and Steve had slightly horrified looks on their faces.
"They poked you with poison needles in your sleep?!"
"And thanks to that I'm still alive now!"
The adults were glancing around at each others.
Hunter was offended on uncles behalf. These people were acting like Belos had done something wrong when it was the opposite. Having the mithridatism done to him without him noticing was far more pleasant that the pain tolerance training. He would have preferred to be asleep for that.
Severine started again.
"It did save your life, yes, it's just that..um it's a bit creepy, and your life wouldn't have been in danger if you weren't here, in the training. The rest of us are over 18 and have consi.." "Stop with the age issue! I'm already better than most of the rookies! Being young is not a flaw!"
"That's not what I was... You are good at combat, okay? I wasn't tying to belittle you. I was going to say, the rest of us got to consider other options, I for example could've gone into entertainment business. We spend our childhood and teen years making friends and having fun. It kind of feels like you and your family are sacrificing your childhood".
Anger that made him roar moments ago was replaced with anxiousness and confusion.
Making friends and having fun? Was he suppose to do that? Uncle had never told him to make friends. Normal kids did that but it just wasn't for him. Hunter wasn't normal, for many reasons. He was born without a bile sack, so he couldn't go to regular school or play games with other kids. Magic was needed for that and he was powerless. He wouldn't be able to defend himself if things got rough.
And if criminals found out that the Emperors nephew was wandering around, unguarded and defenseless? He'd get kidnapped and used against uncle, or worse.
He couldn't let that happen. Uncle needed him so much Titan had blessed Hunter. The Titan who had plan for him. This was part of Titans plan. He needed to mold himself according to Titans vision. If he was sacrificing his childhood, it was for Titan.
He was too different to have a commoner childhood. He had too many secrets and responsibilities.
But how to explain that without revealing any of it?
"Sacrificing ones childhood to Titan is good. Titan knows what is best for the Isles as a whole. He has a vision of how everything should be.
Agents of chaos, wild withes and criminals, refuse to listen His words, selfishly stealing, destroying what other have build, harming them, spreading corruption to the world. They blunder the land we live upon, defiling the very Body of Titan.
Titan laid down to decay, knowing that life would flourish upon Him. He gave His body and life so we could live. We all own our lives to Him. We must be grateful for His sacrifice!
Joining one of the other nine covens is the bare minimum to acknowledge His Will. Refusing a sigil is an insult against Titan, like spitting on His gift, taking being alive for granted. Joining the Emperors Coven is to show appreciation for what He has given us.
Sacrificing ourselves, dedicating our bodies, time and lives to Him, giving back what has always been His, is right thing to do.
I am not sacrificing my childhood, I'm sacrificing everything I am! From the moment I was born, I belonged to Titan. I want to act His Will, to bring order and peace to the Isles. Titan has plans for all of us and this is my part in it. Do not question me".
Everyone was staring at Hunter, eyed wide.
He felt powerful. Everything he'd said was right, uncle had said the same things during different lectures.
They didn't question him.
Tenth day they had no vegetables.
Mudslide had wiped out the garden during the night and only one tuber was found by luck. Mara and Steve restored what they could while Hunter and Severine dug out enough bugs for lunch and dinner. It was crunchy.
Eleventh day Severine relented.
Foul tasting food and hunger had made the adults irritable (Hunter was irritable too but wasn't sure why) so she gave permission for everyone to search on their own but reminded them to look up and stay vigilant.
Hunter found tracks of something small and followed them to find a clump of gelbils, rodents smaller than echo mice. They secreted extremely sour gel from their backs to deter predators and to form a clump for the group to sleep in.
They might not be worth the effort of capture, gutting and eating with how small they were. Mara might be opposed to eating rodents given her rat side. Or the extreme sourness from gel could ruin the meat for others.
For Hunter, the sourness sounded tempting. Adults had complained over almost everything tasting bitter here, and probably wouldn't care for sour either, but it had all been bland for him.
Gently and carefully to not wake all of them, Hunter levitated one gelbil out of the clump. It woke but before it could make a sound, Hunter bit it's neck. Small crunch and flavor flooded his mouth. It was bitter and fresh! Like extra rare steak with extra sour sauce!
He bit again and again, messily chewing the small beast into a pulp. Not to waste food, he ate it in five bites. Texture was mix of good and bad. Gel and meat were good but small organs, fur and crunchy bones were bad. But after eleven days of blandness, the fireworks in his mouth that sour-fresh taste gave, made it worth the discomfort of small bones and fur.
He ate two more before the whole clump woke up, at which point he levitated several wriggling gelbils back to camp.
Gelbil meat was too sour for other to eat. Steve had gotten one millipede, Severine a bird, Mara found nuts and berries.
Twelfth day buddy system was back.
Hunter went with Severine (just strategic, he wasn't avoiding Mara) and they encountered a spitter snake. Twice as long as Severine was tall and spitting acid. Hunter distracted it as she went for the kill but one trust from spear wasn't enough. The snake spat acid on her eyes before hunter finished it of.
First aid prevented permanent damage, according to Mara, but Severine would need to keep her eyes closed 24 hours.
Thirteenth day Severine was out of commission.
Steve followed Hunters lead, which was unusual but welcomed, and they caught the biggest purple flapper yet. It was twice the size of previous two and it was Hunter who tracked it down and killed it! It had ran fast enough to elude Steve but Hunter kept up, predicted its next turn and tackled it.
They had wounded it in the first attack. Chasing after bleeding prey brought out something savage and animalistic in Hunter. When he jumped at it, he used his canines to tear open its neck. The chase, the bite, the taste, the victory, the praise for bringing back the best quarry of their stay, it was all amazing.
The meat lost its taste after cooking but there was enough of it for lunch and dinner.
Steve taught Hunter to play dice game Knuckle Bones, Mara played gentle tunes on her kalimba, Severine got to open her eyes again.
Fourteenth day came and they bid fare wells to the stone hut, it was time to travel back to civilization.
Hunter had four batteries to spend still so he levitated a bench Steve had made that fit all four of them and they flew the way back in comfort. Hunter was eager to see uncle again and to tell him how well Hunter had done.
Hunter kept some of the dice and wood carvings as mementos.