Status: In Progress
Redemption Quest
Chapter 1-Betrayal
“Do you see it?” the voice crackled through my walkie-talkie. Rough, distorted, static-y. So different from his usual silky purr.
“He’s right in front of me,” I replied a moment later, as quietly as I could. I didn’t want to scare the magnificent beast. It was a buck, the largest I had ever seen, with beautiful antlers. We could fetch a lot for them, although it was technically illegal. But Bryan had told me that it was alright, that it didn’t hurt the animal, and I believed him. Bryan was a genius when it came to animals.
I reached down and absently pet the head of my tracker dog, Splotch. A frown tugged at my lips as I felt his dirty, coarse fur. As soon as we cashed in this buck, I would need to get him a bath. He had done a great job tracking this beauty though. I handed him a treat from a hidden pocket in my jacket. Bryan didn’t like me feeding him treats. He said it would make the dog spoiled. But Splotch deserved it.
A bird call came from the other side of the clearing. A birdcall in a forest wouldn’t normally have been suspicious, but this was of an owl. It was the middle of the day. I eased to my feet, although still hidden by the bushes, ready to act.
A rope swung from out of the trees and wrapped itself around the buck’s legs, thanks to the weighted balls on the end. Bryan had shown me the special tool when I first joined his crew. It was his prized possession. He had even offered to show me how to use it someday, something he said he had never offered to anyone else.
The buck toppled to the ground, his legs wrapped neatly in rope. He let out a bleat of pain, and I covered my mouth with my hand. He wasn’t trying to hurt it, I told myself. Bryan would never do that.
“Nice catch,” Dylan said, coming out of the trees. Another member of our band. He was tall and lean, with shoulder-length black hair that fell in front of his eyes. He dropped to the ground and began roping up the buck, whispering in its ear the whole time.
“I could do better if you would let me use that,” another member of our group, Caleb said. Like his brother, he was tall, but where Dylan was skinny Caleb was lean muscle. His dark hair was short and tousled. What he brought to this team besides pure brute force I wasn’t sure, but Dylan had been clear. The twins stuck together.
“Not a chance,” I instantly perked up at the familiar voice. “This baby’s all mine.”
I was grinning like a maniac as I tumbled out of the brush. “Bryan,” I called longinly
“Hey babe,” he replied, with a sour note that made me pause. “We’re gonna take it,” he waved a hand at the buck, “back to camp. Mind scouting around the area?”
I nodded. “Meet up at the camp at nightfall.” he ordered. “You know the drill.”
I nodded again. I knew exactly what to do. I began walking around the area in a tight spiral. “Scout,” was all I had to say to Splotch, and he followed me with his nose to the ground. Any unusual scent and he would alert me. I smiled down at the young tracking dog. He had been just a pup when I had ran away from home, and with the help of Bryan, I had raised him into a fine dog.
The sun was going down as I made my way back to camp. I walked quietly, as Bryan had taught me. Bryan. I had hardly seen him all day. My heart yearned for him, for the familiar embrace, and for stolen kisses in the dark.
A sharp smack snapped me out of my thoughts, and I winced at the sound. A tired bleating followed. The cry of an animal in pain. I crouched down in the bushes and peered into the clearing where we had made our camp.
“Don’t hurt him,” Bryan was whining in a high-pitched voice. My voice, I realized, clutching a hand to my throat.
“Why do we keep her around anyways?” Caleb asked. He held a whip easily in one hand, and watched as Dylan chained up the buck. It began to struggle, and he swung the whip into the buck’s side, which was already raw and bleeding. The sight made my stomach churn.
“Oh, I hate her,” Bryan said. I felt my heart drop at the words, and how casually he said them. “But we need a good tracker, and her dog’s the best option we have. Unfortunately, it won’t listen to anyone but her.”
“We could just leave her…” Dylan began, but Bryan cut him off.
“We’re not taking that chance. Until we find a better method of tracking, we’re stuck with her. But believe me, as soon as we do, we’ll leave her far, far behind.” He smiled, his usual charming half-smile. But this time there was something dark in it. Something twisted.
I ran
As fast as I could, away from the nightmarish camp, I ran. I ran, and continued running, even as my legs burned and my lungs screamed. I ran until I couldn’t run anymore, and I crashed my knees.
The sobbing began as soon as I hit the ground. Wailing sobs that shook my whole body and startled the birds in the nearby trees. They flew off, shrieking as they were disturbed from their slumber. I shrieked too. I shrieked and cried and clawed at the ground, wailing because he had been my whole life, and it had been a lie. I cried and cried, even when the tears were gone and all that was left was a dry gasping. Eventually, even that faded away, and I fell asleep among the pine needles.
“He’s right in front of me,” I replied a moment later, as quietly as I could. I didn’t want to scare the magnificent beast. It was a buck, the largest I had ever seen, with beautiful antlers. We could fetch a lot for them, although it was technically illegal. But Bryan had told me that it was alright, that it didn’t hurt the animal, and I believed him. Bryan was a genius when it came to animals.
I reached down and absently pet the head of my tracker dog, Splotch. A frown tugged at my lips as I felt his dirty, coarse fur. As soon as we cashed in this buck, I would need to get him a bath. He had done a great job tracking this beauty though. I handed him a treat from a hidden pocket in my jacket. Bryan didn’t like me feeding him treats. He said it would make the dog spoiled. But Splotch deserved it.
A bird call came from the other side of the clearing. A birdcall in a forest wouldn’t normally have been suspicious, but this was of an owl. It was the middle of the day. I eased to my feet, although still hidden by the bushes, ready to act.
A rope swung from out of the trees and wrapped itself around the buck’s legs, thanks to the weighted balls on the end. Bryan had shown me the special tool when I first joined his crew. It was his prized possession. He had even offered to show me how to use it someday, something he said he had never offered to anyone else.
The buck toppled to the ground, his legs wrapped neatly in rope. He let out a bleat of pain, and I covered my mouth with my hand. He wasn’t trying to hurt it, I told myself. Bryan would never do that.
“Nice catch,” Dylan said, coming out of the trees. Another member of our band. He was tall and lean, with shoulder-length black hair that fell in front of his eyes. He dropped to the ground and began roping up the buck, whispering in its ear the whole time.
“I could do better if you would let me use that,” another member of our group, Caleb said. Like his brother, he was tall, but where Dylan was skinny Caleb was lean muscle. His dark hair was short and tousled. What he brought to this team besides pure brute force I wasn’t sure, but Dylan had been clear. The twins stuck together.
“Not a chance,” I instantly perked up at the familiar voice. “This baby’s all mine.”
I was grinning like a maniac as I tumbled out of the brush. “Bryan,” I called longinly
“Hey babe,” he replied, with a sour note that made me pause. “We’re gonna take it,” he waved a hand at the buck, “back to camp. Mind scouting around the area?”
I nodded. “Meet up at the camp at nightfall.” he ordered. “You know the drill.”
I nodded again. I knew exactly what to do. I began walking around the area in a tight spiral. “Scout,” was all I had to say to Splotch, and he followed me with his nose to the ground. Any unusual scent and he would alert me. I smiled down at the young tracking dog. He had been just a pup when I had ran away from home, and with the help of Bryan, I had raised him into a fine dog.
The sun was going down as I made my way back to camp. I walked quietly, as Bryan had taught me. Bryan. I had hardly seen him all day. My heart yearned for him, for the familiar embrace, and for stolen kisses in the dark.
A sharp smack snapped me out of my thoughts, and I winced at the sound. A tired bleating followed. The cry of an animal in pain. I crouched down in the bushes and peered into the clearing where we had made our camp.
“Don’t hurt him,” Bryan was whining in a high-pitched voice. My voice, I realized, clutching a hand to my throat.
“Why do we keep her around anyways?” Caleb asked. He held a whip easily in one hand, and watched as Dylan chained up the buck. It began to struggle, and he swung the whip into the buck’s side, which was already raw and bleeding. The sight made my stomach churn.
“Oh, I hate her,” Bryan said. I felt my heart drop at the words, and how casually he said them. “But we need a good tracker, and her dog’s the best option we have. Unfortunately, it won’t listen to anyone but her.”
“We could just leave her…” Dylan began, but Bryan cut him off.
“We’re not taking that chance. Until we find a better method of tracking, we’re stuck with her. But believe me, as soon as we do, we’ll leave her far, far behind.” He smiled, his usual charming half-smile. But this time there was something dark in it. Something twisted.
I ran
As fast as I could, away from the nightmarish camp, I ran. I ran, and continued running, even as my legs burned and my lungs screamed. I ran until I couldn’t run anymore, and I crashed my knees.
The sobbing began as soon as I hit the ground. Wailing sobs that shook my whole body and startled the birds in the nearby trees. They flew off, shrieking as they were disturbed from their slumber. I shrieked too. I shrieked and cried and clawed at the ground, wailing because he had been my whole life, and it had been a lie. I cried and cried, even when the tears were gone and all that was left was a dry gasping. Eventually, even that faded away, and I fell asleep among the pine needles.