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20
"What the hell are we supposed to do with this?" Harley said as she examined the tree branch in her hands. Dustin was standing nearby. They had returned to her little home to discuss their plans further. All that was left was to make a weapon out of the tree and hunt down a Faerie, which was going to be the hardest part of their journey. So far, everything seemed to go according to plan with very little set backs. It almost seemed too good to be true.
Dustin moved to take the branch from her hands before he too looked it up and down. "I was thinking we could make a dagger from it," he replied. Harley frowned. She was hoping for a long ranged weapon. It would make it a lot easier to kill a Faerie if she could fight it from a distance. But the only long ranged weapons were a gun and a bow. Bullets couldn't exactly be made from wood, so gun ammunition was not an option. Arrows would be useful, but no one had used any bows for centuries. Not since guns had been invented. She wasn't even sure if they would be able to get their hands on a bow anymore. So she supposed that close ranged weapons was their only option.
She crossed her arms as she looked at Dustin with a raised brow, "And how exactly are we supposed to make a weapon out of it? Do we take it to a wood carver or something?" Dustin gave her a suggestive smile, "No need. Making weapons out of my surroundings was something I was trained to do back when I was being raised to become a hunter. So wood carving is a skill that I know." She blinked at him. She shouldn't have been so surprised. It seemed only logical to learn such a thing when you're preparing to be tossed into the woods and forced to survive all alone. "Who would have thought that those skills would actually be useful one day," he muttered as he stared down at the branch with a frown.
It then occurred to her that she was forcing him to become a hunter. Even just for a short while. He despised the hunters, and for good reason. Yet here he was, being reminded of those past painful and traumatic days of his childhood. Still, he was handling the whole thing with grace. She was impressed. Not only did he refrain from complaining, that look of determination and bravery never left his eyes. Even after almost getting killed by the Fae a second time, he was still willing to enter the woods and hunt a Faerie down. He was the ideal soldier; brave and strong.
Harley spun on her heel, and with one long stride she was at the edge of her bed where she sat. She crossed one leg over the other while leaning on her arms. "How long will it take you to carve a dagger out of it?" she inquired. He shrugged one shoulder and inclined his head, twisting and twirling the branch, "A couple hours at the most. Shouldn't take me very long since we don't need anything fancy. Just something good enough to stab and cut." Slowly, Harley nodded. Dustin sat in one of the chairs by the hearth. He took out a small kit that he kept in a pouch on his belt. Inside were tools designed for carving wood. He took up the first tool and got to work.
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The snow of the Forbidden forest crunched underfoot. Harley and Dustin came prepared with their muskets, pistols, as well as a variety of daggers. Although they knew very well that anything but the wooden dagger wouldn't do any real harm to a Faerie, all of the other weapons were still good enough to help slow the Fae down.
Dustin was the one in the lead while Harley followed suit, as he was the one with Faerie hunting experience. She did not. They were silent for the majority of the walk, delving deeper and deeper into the unknown woods. The more they ventured on, the more her heart seemed to hammer in her chest. Memories of the bear-like Fae flashed in her mind and all that it had done to the soldiers. She had always known how cruel the Fae were and how they enjoyed to torture and kill weak humans. But that was the first time she had witnessed it with her very eyes. She didn't want to see it happen again. Let alone be the one that ends up being the prey.
But she already was.
A gun went off, startling Harley from her thoughts. Dustin had his musket aimed in the air, smoke puffing from the end of the barrel. "What the hell?" Harley scolded. He turned to face her with an innocent expression, and he lowered his gun. "Faeries are attracted to noise," he explained. Then he took out a dagger and placed it into his palm. His fingers curled around the blade as it slid along his skin. Harley winced, watching the blood begin to seep out of his hand. "They're also attracted to the smell of blood."
"They can smell that?" she asked, feigning ignorance. She already knew just how sensitive a Faerie's nose was. But she didn't want Dustin to know that. He took a handkerchief from a pouch on his belt and began to wrap his injured hand. "You'd be surprised what all a Faerie can smell and hear. Imagine a bloodhound, but ten times better," Dustin replied as he struggled to wrap his injury with one hand. Harley clicked her tongue and stepped closer. "Let me help." She took his hand into hers and curled the cloth around his bloody palm, tying it at the back of his hand. "Thanks," he quietly said, his eyes locking with hers. And it was then that she realized, his eyes were...longing. The look of hatred she was so used to was gone. He had said he wanted her to soar. That he wanted her to succeed and he was only cruel to her as a way of pushing her. She wasn't sure she had believed him. She just couldn't see it. But these past few days with him had been...nice. Not at all what she had expected. Not once did he make a snarky or insulting remark like he used to.
She didn't know what to believe anymore.
She averted her gaze. The air around them suddenly seemed thicker than it was moments before. She glanced around, observing the fog that was quickly rolling in. Then it hit her. Fear. Like a crashing wave that washed over her. Her entire body began to tremble while her eyes widened. She looked up at Dustin, who's face was paled as he stared at something behind her. The sound of heavy steps approached her. She spun on her heel, sending snow flying, and she was stricken with horror by the sight she saw.
A large black horse strolled nearer with blank, milky eyes. The snow was left steaming and melted in the wake of its burning red hooves. But what was most striking was what sat astride on the horse. The figure was human, clad in ebony armor with a massive double-headed ax in one hand and the reins in the other. On its hip was a spiked chain whip curled neatly in place. And above its shoulders, where a head should have been, was an empty space. The figure was completely headless with its neck wrapped in black cloth.
A Dullahan. It was a very rare but unkillable breed of Faerie. Of course they would run into the most deadly of Fae when they go hunting for one. Thinking fast, Harley grabbed Dustin and spun him around with her so that their backs were facing the Faerie. "Don't look at him," she whispered. "If you do, he'll kill us both." Dustin was frozen beside her, his eyes wide like saucers. "I've never seen a Faerie like it before," he whispered back. "We can't kill it," Harley added quietly. "They live on the fence of life and death. They're not exactly living, but not dead either."
"Why are we looking away?" He finally turned his head enough to face her. "Because they don't like to be looked at. They're normally very mild as long as they aren't pissed off. If we don't look at him, he will mind his own business and just pass by," she explained. The Dullahan carried an aura with it, one that left them frozen and trembling with fear until it finally vanished, the fog fading along with it. Harley and Dustin released a heavy sigh of relief. Dustin squared his shoulders and cleared his throat, "That was...unexpected." Then his green eyes met with hers, a brow raising. "How do you know so much about that kind of Faerie?" Harley stiffened. She couldn't tell him that she knew about the Fae because she's made a deal with one. "I used to study them, when I was younger," she lied. He slowly nodded.
"Humans are so entertaining."
They spun on their heels to see a woman of complete white. She wore a flowing white dress with skin and hair as pale as the snow beneath them. But her eyes were hollowed and bloody, with a sinister smile on her face.
