Hunters of Sian - Book 2. The Užaren Canyon

Drowning Rumours

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Chapter Four

Drowning Rumours

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'What do you want do you think he was guarding against?' Jeremy asked. They had finished for the day and were lounging against one of the grassy hillocks near the stronghold. Nell was staring up at the emerging stars, his eyes slightly unfocused. He had been distracted all day and finally told Jeremy the story of his father's spell-work.

'No idea. I'm not even sure how old I was. I can't have lived that many summers...'

'You said your pa was killed by a bear?' Jeremy asked tentatively.

Nell nodded. 'Yes. The hunters that went with him brought the bear's pelt back as an offering to ma.'

Jeremy hummed thoughtfully. Nell found it difficult to think about that day. His mother's sons were so loud, as though somehow magnified by the quiet night sky above him and distance he couldn't close. Nell had been young enough that she had not let him see the body. He had always suspected this was because the bear had probably made the form of his father unrecognizable. Nell had accepted this but as he thought back to that day, it was the faces of the other hunters that stood out to him. They had been pale, pale as death and with the wide-eyed look a trapped animal in a slaughter pen. If the bear was dead, why had they still been so terrified?

'I suppose it doesn't matter. No one in my village wanted anything to do with me after ma passed away. There's no one I could write to ask,' Nell said finally.

Jeremy's excitement dwindled. 'Well, I guess it will just have to remain a mystery,' he decided after a long moment. The boys sat up and stretched.

'Dinner?' Jeremy suggested.

'Yeah,' Nell agreed readily. As they trudged back down the well-worn track towards the main building, the boys were distracted by the sounds coming from the main gate. Despite the late hours, all the torches were lit and there were the sounds of oxen, clanking metal and raised voices. Deeply curious, both apprentices detoured to walk by the stables and catch a look.

'Look. Poor souls,' Jeremy whispered. Nell peered into the gathered crowd and felt his heart lurch in his chest. There was a group of humans, muddy, scared, and thin looking. That looked so incredibly familiar. It was obviously a new batch of servants, taken straight from their villages and brought up to the stronghold to begin their ten years of service.

'The hunting season has already begun for the summer. None of them could join the apprentice program so late now,' Nell said without thinking.

Jeremy snorted. 'Of course not. Their basically slaves. They're from the poorer villages. None of them would ever get pick for... for...' he trailed off, looking from Nell's pale face to the group of thin humans in their old and tattered clothes. Realization dawned on Jeremy's face along with a distinct look of pity.

'Shit. Nell, you never told me that-'

'That I was dragged here like an animal to auction?' Nell said with a hollow voice. He felt something that he hadn't experienced in a long time. Shame. He'd told Jeremy that he came from a poor village but never that he'd arrived, bruised and skinny, smelling of piss and covered in mud. He watched in bitter silence as one of the men got mouthy at a nearby demon. The demon backhanded him swiftly across the face, knocking him to the floor. No one helped him up. The man reminded Nell of Tom.

A familiar human servant came out of a side corridor, his head held high as he readied himself to address the frightened mob of humans. Seeing Jerome, the man's balding head and oily disingenuous smile made Nell lose his appetite.