"Are you sure this is right?" Julie asks, straining to lift the pack I had set out for her. "I swear mine is heavier than yours!"
I shoulder my pack, which was considerably lighter than hers. "No they're the same weight, you need to have endurance if you want to be a hunter Julie. Almost everything you'll face can run faster than you and for longer." I smirk as she continues to struggle with the backpack, "would you like some help?"
"N-no!" She strains, finally shouldering the pack. Her knees buckling under the weight. "I got this! Don't worry about me."
Shrugging I check my gear. I had my pistol concealed and a pocket knife tucked away, extra water in my pack, and a small first aid kit for any bumps and scrapes we might get. Julie should have extra water and a first aid kit as well. Along with about fifty pounds of added sandbags. As I watch her struggle I ponder the thought lessening the load, but I wasn't actually trying to train her as much as actually trying to dissuade her from continuing down this path. Whatever it takes to keep her out of the crosshairs.
"So are we going from here? Or driving to the trail?" Julie asks, taking a slow step. Testing out the backpack.
"I'm not cruel, we're driving there." I respond. Besides, we're gonna be trespassing on Silverlock 'territory' on the way there... I think to myself, not really enjoying the idea of passing through Reyna's neighborhood. I know that she must be aware that hunters are always in the area, but I also assume that there are lycans watching us back.
We pile the gear into my car and are quickly on the road. I swear I could hear a thunderclap over the engine noise, but without the flash of lightning I dismiss it as just road noise. If it turns to a thunderstorm we'll have to try again another day. But Julie had a million questions to keep me distracted from the weather.
"So what was your training like? Who trained you? What's the craziest thing you've hunted?" She rapid fires off question after question, barely giving me time to think of answers before the next one takes my attention.
"My training was rough, a man named Paul trained me. I was pulled into an exorcism a little while back by Paul, probably the most unique hunt I've been on. And one of the more terrifying." I try my best to answer Julie's questions to the best of my ability.
As we begin to pass along the road bordering Reyna's neighborhood I slow down. I keep my eyes on the trees and quiet homes as I speak up to Julie, "Hey, so keep an eye out. We're passing close to where that werewolf pack has been hanging out. Let me know if you see anything out there okay?"
Julie goes silent, shifting her gaze out the passenger window. "What should I be looking for?" She asks.
I pick the speed back up. Rhythmically tapping the steering wheel. "Any odd shapes in the shadows, movement, something that looks like what you saw last night." I try to rattle off a few descriptors. I don't expect Julie to see anything, but better safe than sorry. Plus it keeps her occupied so I don't have to keep answering her questions.
"Okay," She says. "I'll keep my eyes open."
We arrive at the trailhead a few short minutes later with no issues. Julie hadn't seen anything which at least put her at ease. Optimism keeping her from being more jaded about not seeing anything. Shouldering my pack I end up helping Julie with hers. Again she insists I'm carrying a lighter pack, which I assure her we are carrying the same weight.
"Okay!" I say with a clap of my hands, "Consider this your first of many conditioning tests. Like I had said earlier: This is to help evaluate and strengthen your endurance. Hunters are always at a distinct disadvantage out in the field, so we need to even that playing field in anyway we can." I begin my briefing, trying not to sound as preachy as I felt. Julie shifts her backpack awkwardly, nodding along to everything I say. "Our goal is to reach the top of the trail without having to stop. Shall we begin?"
With an enthusiastic smile Julie takes off towards the trail. Ironically the same one Reyna and I had hiked up all those moons ago. Yet this time it was for an entirely different purpose. I try not to think back to all of the warning signs that I missed. All the moments where something tickled the back of my mind. Where something didn't add up.
It doesn't take long for Julie to begin to slow her pace. Having started too enthusiastically, she has quickly burned through all her energy. A common mistake I know I've made in the past. I try not to poke her on it, other than the occasional jab that if she stopped it meant the monsters would catch her. That tended to spur her onward.
The trail itself isn't that long, maybe just a mile or two. But it has three distinct sections of varying difficulty that I make sure to note her progress on. The first is a winding trail that leads up to the base of the mountain, a rather shallow incline that is quite a beautiful and easy hike on a good day. The second is where we finally start ascending the mountain proper. With steep switchbacks that seem to have no end it's a repetitive and grueling section of trail that really tests morale and one's own ability. It's not terrible with a light pack, but a bag full of sandbags makes it a grueling slog uphill. The third and final section of the trail is much shorter in comparison to the other two, a steep and winding portion with poorly maintained trails. Deep erosion grooves threaten to roll your ankles if you aren't careful with sheer drops down into valleys blocked by flimsy and old guard rails.
It's around the middle of the second section that I begin to see Julie really begin to struggle, and if I'm being honest I was surprised to see her get even this far. "You alright Jules? We still got a ways to go." I call back to her, slowing down to not outpace her. "Any slower and you'll be eaten."
She stops, putting her hands on her knees, panting heavily as she tries to catch her breath. "Y-yeah... never better..." she says between breaths, "I'm coming, we're almost there!"
Her determination and drive was astounding, I knew I'd surely have given up by this point or at least had stopped for a break long before now. Even my legs were burning a bit, and I wasn't the one carrying fifty pounds of sand. It was also around this time that the rain I had previously seen on the forecast begins to fall. The sound of the water through the trees begins to drown out our labored breathing, cold drops of water splashing us as we trek upwards, cooling down our hot and sweaty faces.
"I won't fault you if you want to turn back Julie. There's always tomorrow." I call up to her as she begins moving again, wiping water from her eyes. "I won't force you to continue in the rain."
"No... Onward..!" She pants.
And onward we go. The rain coming down heavier and colder the closer we get to the summit. The third portion of the trail proving to be the most challenging as the rain turns the tight and steep trail to a muddy stream which threatens to knock us down every chance it gets. I find myself having to catch myself once or twice, and having to catch Julie from toppling over the edge into the valleys below. It rapidly turns from me being an observer to a participant in this endurance test.
Finally, after an eternity of slogging uphill through the mud, the summit presents itself to us. The small clearing at the top of the mountain sits before us. The view would be quite beautiful if it wasn't mostly obscured by dark threatening clouds and rain. Julie drops the pack quickly, groaning loudly as she stretches her back. Laughing through the rain to the heavens.
I have a hard time suppressing the smile on my lips as I watch Julie celebrate her victory. Her determination was something to behold. Now only if she was like this with any other topic. Maybe she'd actually be good at math. "Drink something. You don't want to get dehydrated." I say, passing her my canteen. "Good job Jules."
"Thanks." She says taking the water, drinking. "Can I ditch the weight now?" She asks as she passes the canteen back.
"Well—" I begin to say, but a blinding flash of light followed immediately by a booming crack of thunder cuts me off. Causing both of us to sit up straighter. "Y-yeah you can ditch it." I say quickly, changing my initial response. The thunderstorm that had been on the forecast for later had come early, and by the sound was right on top of us. Probably best to make it easier on the hike back down.
"Sweet!" Julie cheers as she begins pulling sandbags from her backpack, looking up towards me "what about you? You not dropping weight?"
I shake my head, "nah I got none. I lied." A smirk dancing across my lips.
"Ugh! You dick!" She cries, "I can't believe I believed you!" She sulks for a moment before regaining composure. "Whatever... So what's next?"
"Well..." I ponder. My intention was to break her spirit, make her want to quit. But she seemed way more determined to persevere in the physical challenges than I ever was. "...we need to keep this endurance training up. But if it's going to keep raining like this we can begin to hit the books."
"Wait, there're books about this stuff?" She asks, zipping her now significantly lighter backpack back up.
Laughing I shake my head, "No, at least there's nothing official. Just notes I've taken and copied from hunters that knew more than me." The rain was beginning to soak through my clothes. The cold slowly driving its way down into my bones. "Let's go, shall we?"
The thunder responds to my question before Julie can, inspiring a fast nod from her as we shoulder our packs. Right as I begin to turn back towards the trail something catches my eye, causing the hair on the back of my neck to stand up. I've been trained to rely on this uncanny feeling, to never ignore it because it's more than likely right. "Julie," I command, "Get behind me. Quickly."
It doesn't take much to persuade her, especially when I draw my gun. Spinning to face back towards the way we came I train the sights on the dancing shadows cast by the blowing trees. I could feel Julie holding onto my pack, and as I'm about to lower the gun something catches my eye deeper down the trail.
Something was moving in the shadows against the swaying trees. There was something watching us.