Domia Abr Wyrda (Inheritance Cycle Book 5)

Chapter 2

I walked for what seemed like hours, until I found a cave that appeared to be unoccupied. I decided to take the chance, and settled down there. The cave would be my temporary home. I sat down on the musty floor of the cave, pulling my bag into my lap. I emptied the contents onto the floor, and analyzed what I brought. I had packed 2 sets of clothes, enough bread and cheese to last about...4 days, a small kitchen knife, my bow and 6 arrows, the necklace I had since before I was abandoned, and a few dragon carvings from my shelf.

I sighed, leaning back against the cave wall. What am I going to do? My food supply will run out in a few days, and there is barely any game in this forest! What would mom do? I don't know! If she were here, I would...if she were here... I broke down into sobs. I would never be able to ask her for advice again. I'd never see her again. Pull yourself together, Lilliana! You can get through this! Don't sulk around, get up and do what needs to be done! I took a deep breath, and rose to my feet. I decided to stay in the cave over night, and the next day, I would leave and head north. For now though, I would hunt. I didn't care how small the game might be. I was only feeding myself anyway.

With that, I grasped the handle of my bow, slung my quiver across my back, pocketed my knife and set off into the woods. I got lucky. I ventured deep into the forest, but not so deep that I would forget how to return to the cave, and I stumbled upon the slightly fresh trail of a small group of deer. I tracked the deer to a small clearing about a half league away from the cave. There were 6 deer, 3 does, 2 with babies, and a buck.

I only needed one. In fact,  I only needed less than one! I drew back my arrow, aiming for the doe without any offspring. I inhaled, and on my exhale I released the arrow. The outcome was a final dying squeal from my target, and pure panic and terror from the remaining deer. They bulleted off into the undergrowth, fearing for their lives. They never looked back.

As I scooped up the doe's carcass and swung it over my shoulder, I thought about how much I envied the deer. They were so free, so...unworried, I guess. They could witness the death of a family member, and never look back, never mourn, never grieve, and never care. If I was a deer, I wouldn't feel this gaping hole in my heart, left there because of my lack of family. If I was a deer, I wouldn't be in constant pain at seeing others and their families laughing, knowing that I never had that, and probably never will.

But if I was a deer, I would never have experienced the love that radiated off my almost-mom. If I was a deer, I wouldn't cherish the memories I shared with her. If I was a deer, I wouldn't care about anyone or anything but food. That would be a pretty empty life.

So, as I trudged back to the cave, my bow in hand, my deer over my shoulder, I came to this conclusion.

Every creature has their ups and downs, rights and wrongs, goods and bads. The real strength is in finding those goods, ups and rights, and prioritizing them over the downs, wrongs and bads.

When I arrived back at the cave, I could tell someone had been there. My possessions were strewn across the floor of that cave, the food half eaten. I gathered my clothes and carvings up with frustration. I should have known something like this would happen. I checked to make sure everything was still there (except for the food of course). Dragon carvings, check. 2 changes of clothes,  check. Food, eaten and on the ground, but check anyways. I had brought my knife hunting, along with my bow and arrows. I didn't remember anything else, but I couldn't help but feel as if I was missing something.

I shrugged. Whatever it was, it mustn't have been important for me to forget about it.  I got to work, collecting firewood, dismissing the predicament in the cave as some scavenger animal foraging for food. I started a small fire just outside the cave, and used stones to suspend a thin shale of rock above the flames. Then,  I carried the doe carcass over to a small alcove at the edge of the clearing, and skinned and gutted it. Once I had all the insides out, (A/N hehehe) I buried them in a hole a few meters into the forest. Hopefully the few creatures that actually resided in the forest would ignore my cave, my few possessions, and most importantly, me, and would go for the deer remnants instead.