“And if you don’t then people are killed? That’s barbaric.”
“It is the way of things. Strength survives. Is it not the same in your world?”
“We try to take care of other people, and we don’t send people off to these hunts.”
“Then how do you learn?”
“Our parents teach us. They take us out and offer us wisdom. So, I don’t particularly feel like taking part in your ritual, thank you very much.” She dug her hands in the pits of her arms and stood as motionless as a statue.
“If you don’t do this, then Axanar will simply keep you locked in that cell for the rest of your days, if he does not make a display of you first.”
“A display?”
“You are the first world walker to return from another world. You are the example of how our ancestors lived, but if our pride should find out that your pride squandered the gifts of strength, then they will all want to see you punished for their ineffectiveness. Our purpose is to rule, and your ancestors failed in that purpose. If you fail as they did, then Axanar will have no choice but to make an example of you, because it will be his right to enact judgment.”
“Great, so I’m not only fighting for myself, but I’m also fighting for the sake of my ancestors, who just wanted a better life. No wonder they left here,” she muttered. It was a curious thought. I had not considered the possibility that the world walkers left this pride because of philosophical differences. Perhaps that warranted further thought, but at the present moment, I was there to prepare her for the hunt.
“In this room you will find everything you need to help you in the hunt. We will allow clothing and rudimentary weapons, but that is all. Anything else, you will need to find in the wild.”
“And what exactly am I supposed to be hunting?” she asked.
“Whatever comes to you. There is a belief among our people, one that perhaps is shared by yours, that each animal has its own time, and when their time comes, they become prey. No animal dies before they are meant to, and every part of the animal is used for something greater.”
She nodded softly. “We don’t have exactly the same thing, but I remember my father telling me about the nobility of the hunt, and how we must respect our prey, because we are taking something most sacred from them. A life is never meant to be taken without thought. It is a heavy burden, and in taking this life, we must take everything as well. We use the meat for food, the fur for clothing, the bones for tools.”
“It is good to see that there are some similarities after all,” I said with a smile. She held my gaze for a few moments, and I could feel something stirring within me. Then she broke it and turned her head away.
“I guess I should figure out what I’m going to take then,” she said, and began walking around the room, inspecting the various weapons. I was pleased when she took out a bow and arrow, but she returned it to the rack.
“I have to admit that I wasn’t really trained with weapons. We were taught to use the weapons that are our natural gifts,” she said.
“You are of course free to go into the hunt without taking anything from this room, but I should warn you that the beasts of Orestes are likely far more brutal than the ones that are found on your Earth. It would be wise to at least take something.”
She wandered around the room and eventually settled on a long hunting knife. The blade was eight inches in length and serrated on one side. It surprised me that she was intending to battle in close quarters. I would have assumed that, for her, ranged combat would have been more sensible. I did not bring this up to her though, for it was not my task to influence the hunters. After this, she perused the outfits and picked out thick pants as well as a leather top. The top left the arms exposed. She took a long time feeling the material, comparing it with the gown she was wearing.
“These feel similar, are they the same?” she asked.
“They are derived from the same fabric, yes.”
“What is it exactly? It’s different from everything I have ever felt.”
I remembered how she had appeared naked in our world, and I suppressed a smile. “I’m surprised you do not have such a material in your world. This remains while we shift, allowing us to remain clothed. We do not need to leave our clothes behind.”
“That’s handy,” she said dryly. She then stared at me expectantly as she held the clothes. I wasn’t about to leave her in a room alone with weapons, so I took her back to her cell where she changed. When she emerged, she looked like a completely different person. Breath rushed out of my mouth. She looked every inch the warrior, magnificent. Her dark hair was tied back into a tight ponytail, revealing the soft angles of her face. Her eyes were dark and yet shone at the same time. Her lips were full, her body ready for battle. The top she wore was cut at the top, plunging down to reveal her feminine curves, narrowing at her waist. To see her like this was to believe that she could be the woman we thought she could be.
I led her down to the bottom of the tower where Axanar awaited. There were a few others in attendance as well. It had been impossible to stop word from spreading once he had decided to allow her outside, and there were people gathering around, eager to see this strange girl from another world. She held her head high and did not seem intimidated by the crowd. Axanar declared the hunt to begin and then Kara strode away towards the plains. I found myself hoping that it was not the last time I saw her.
“You have to admit Axanar, she looks every inch the warrior. She looks magnificent,” I said. He grunted in reply.
“We shall see Volkan. I predict that she will return empty handed, weeping and pleading for her life. The way of her ancestors seems to be the way of cowards. I do not think she has what it takes to share in our glory.”
I didn’t say it out loud, but I disagreed with the Alpha. I had faith that she would return because there was something about her that I simply could not put my finger on. She was more than she seemed, and when she returned, I hoped that Axanar would be able to see it as well.
Chapter Nine
Kara
I walked away from them, resisting the urge to turn my head. There were more of them gathered out to see me, perhaps to treat me like a curiosity. To them, I was a strange thing, a relic of another era, a child of their ancestors, who had left them a long time ago. I suppose it was interesting to think about how they had left this place and changed over the years. Was it for better or worse though?