Chapter 1 - 27 Years Later

CHAPTER ONE

----27 Years Later----

Januk was in the woods, he had been allowed out of the cave more of late. He cared not for the darkness in the daytime (an odd quality for an Anklorian true enough). The trees were a shade of green that reminded him of his mother's eyes, the sky was ice blue as the eyes of his father. His eyes were a turquoise shade, his hair was jet black. He wore the traditional loincloth around his waist. He lived for the sunny days he had his claws brandished. He was hunting for food, he had seen a particularly scrumptious deer and really fancied his chances. He'd seen it near the cave when the sun was just beginning to rise over the high mountain, he had given chase but the deer was almost twice as fast as he. He continued to trace the deer by scent, Anklorians had a keen sense of smell, it was not their strongest trait but it did come in handy in such circumstances. He pressed up a hill of trees with a small pathway in the middle.

"I'm sure you can't have got far!" He muttered to himself slightly frustrated.

As he marched his legs began to drag behind him, as they do when you walk up hills, you know? You give it that extra push just to propel yourself up. He crushed the leaves beneath his clawed feet. He could still faintly smell the deer, it led him further up and the smell grew more and more intense. He dared not be excited. Quite the opposite. He paused suddenly. The smell was stronger than anything he had ever smelt before. As if it were punching his nose. He knew all too well that this hill led to an overcliff, the last thing he wanted was to scare the deer away. He climbed the tree to his left, he used his claws to clutch on to the side, and as he ascended he smiled with glee imagining the taste of the juicy venison. He hopped between the trees branch to branch. Leaves stroking his grey face with each hop. He reached the clearing and saw the deer, just grazing away at the floor.

"Oh-ho, yes! You just wait there," he whispered this to himself and licked his lips at the thought. He decided it was now or never.

He pounced.

He landed on the deer's back and slit its throat with a smooth swoosh of his clawed hands. The deer felt no pain, only shock and then the black doors of eternity granting it entry. 'Worked like a charm,' he thought as he grinned to himself. He began to pick at the meat and pick up the parts he wanted, when all of a sudden he could hear rustling around him. He saw the trees moving. A small shadow flickered through them. This had Januk worried. He shook his claws to get rid of any small unevenings, he needed them clean if this was to get ugly. He knew the figure was getting closer, the shadow was closing in like nasty walls.

Until the shadow fell flat on its face in front of him. Januk put his head in his hands. In front of him there lay another grey skinned pointy eared boy. This one had green hair poking out his head and bright red eyes. He looked up with a bashful but delighted smile. This was Korar, Januk's only friend, purely because they had gone to collect together in the high mountain since they were little.

"And to think you almost had me!" He giggled.

"I was close though wasn't I?" Asked Korar.

"No, not in the slightest," laughed Januk.

"You ready for this year's collection?" He asked with a big grin "My parents haven't stopped talking about it, saying how fun it is and how they met at the ceremony!" Korar explained excitedly. "Mum told me how she saw dad grinning at her and how he-"

"Okay!" Cried Januk "I really hope you don't plan on telling me any more, I can go without that thanks," he continued to giggle like a child. "Are you ready do you reckon?" Asked Januk.

"Well I don't know, see, I've heard rumors and hearsay of problems at the high mountain, but these are just rumours so there's likely nothing," he paused thoughtfully "no smokes without fires though, and that there is what bothers me," claimed Korar, at the end of this statement he wagged his claw in the general direction of the high mountain.

"Aye, evening mentioning rumours spreads them more does it not?" Said Januk with a calm smile. "What's the worst that there can be? Anyways, would you like a bit of venison? Freshly killed?" Offered Januk.

Korar put his hand to his toned grey stomach "No thank you, I hardly think it's appropriate to be stuffing my gob here just yet, I've been watching me shapes and I'm quite pleased with my turnings out," he beamed with pride, "Say hello to Freya and Fyurik from me! I do hopes they are as excited as my folks!" He turned to go until Januk spoke.

"Korar?"

"Yeah? That's me,"

"The coming of age… I'm just worried, you know how it is," Januk didn't want a deep chat with Korar right now.

"Aye I do share your worrieses, but fear we not for we will become legal… citizens!" laughed Korar. "Right, I'd best be off. Probably catch another fox knowing my bleeding luck," he stepped towards the other end of the overcliff.

"If anyone asks, you killed it, go on," Januk showered him with gifts of raw venison that smelled of claw trimmings and rotting flesh, the stench wasn unpleasant even to the anklorian race.

"I can't be doin' tha-" Korar started.

"Shut it! I will not take no for an answer, so brother, take this. Kindly do one and enjoy it," ordered Januk clicking his head to the side.

"Alright then, thank you very very much, I'll sort you back for this! I will,"

"There's no need!"

"I will anyway! Just wait, it'll be something… Real nice," Korar grinned as he said this statement. Januk smiled at his friend and walked away with half the venison he originally had in his hands but a smile in his heart for the interaction.

"I'll see you in a bit, I've got somewhere I need to be,"

"Be seeing you on the way to the collection," shouted Korar as he turned and waved. Januk loved his interactions with Korar, though he worried for his safety sometimes especially with all the stealth talents of a screaming banshee. Januk trundeled through the forest and took it all in. The trees lightly swaying in the Ragh breeze and whispering calming words to him that he couldn't make out but found relaxation in. The earth poking out from under the leaves that crunched beneath his clawed feet and the warm sun overhead. It was truly a beautiful day, he continued down the hill and along a winding path.

He reached the entrance to the cave in which he lived. It sat beneath a modest mountain, nothing truly immense, a stream of clear water ran beside with the glistening light reflecting back off of it. The stream ran peacefully through the woods, it all sat atop a small hill the winding path climbed. It truly was a comforting sight, the birds could be heard in the late morning, these ones sang a chirpy melody with whistling tones, they were in fact communicating actually. A species of bird inhabited this forest called the 'Raust' they were red birds predominantly. Small and chubby in stature with a distinctive melody which they chirped in, their orange beaks had two black dots on the front and their tail feathers were green, there wingspan was just over the size of 3 leaves. The birds spoke in harsh avian tongues. This is what they were saying.

"Bloody hell Geoff, the weather is phenomenal innit?"

"I know! I was trying to get the Mrs to have a butcher's but she gave me evils!"

"Why? Barbra got another dustbin lid on the go or summink?"

"Steady on there sonny Jim we've 'ad bloody four already, 'ow talented you fink I am eh?"

"Yeah true, true, why was she so aggy? She gone all sixes and sevens?"

"I dunno summink about the eggs being in danger or uvver you know what birds are like eh?"

"Yeah beats me really mate, anyways I gotta fly, gotta see a man about a dog, Ave a good'un,"

"Speaktcha' la'er sunshine, I've gotta get back to the trouble and strife," and with that the birds took off to fly away, Januk was disappointed he liked the melodies they provided, oh well.

The cave was small by the standards of most Anklorians, however it was full of the comforts these people required. They heated their food and home with an everlasting fire in the centre of the cave, it burnt a tinge of green with pink at the core, magic fires were hard to conjure but it was one of the family's pride achievements between them, his mother and father said they cast it after he was born and he somehow helped. He was never told how but he knew he'd contributed. Beside that also a stone fashioned spit and cauldron that could be attached. Previously they had made their own fires with whatever they could find. Food wasn't a priority for these people, they could go about four days and feel no more than a smidgeon of that 'I wish I'd had something even if it was small' feeling. There was a small stone fashioned cupboard in the corner with an array of loincloths and breeches made of bearskin. It was jagged at the edges and crooked in shape but still held up. There was a drinks holder which contained meads for special occasions, home brewed with experimented honey, there was also a small stone compartment on the side with 'VITAL STACHE FY' and on the other side 'VITAL STACHE FR' written on it where the blood from the collection was stored for each of the of agers. There was another separate compartment in the room all on its own, it was a present for the year Januk would turn of age, coming 'of age' happens in a specific day of the year, it is said to be the day the curse was first inflicted on the race due to a war a long time ago. Either way it's when the curse takes effect, the ceremony at the collection gives the young ones a final night to enjoy their youth out of their caves. It was tradition that this is where youths met their future spouses and so on however that was not entirely common for spouses to stay together given the emotional state these beings are somewhat predisposed to. There were a series of bowls upon a small counter in the left cave wall.

Januk entered the cave to see his father sitting by the fire. Staring very deeply into it, deeply thinking, some might even call it pondering. Fyurik was indeed a man of stature but also one grown wise. Mind you his wisdom came from his past wrongdoings as a young man in carelessness and impatience, he felt the burns of his past like scars that would never heal, like dirt that would never clear and he felt that illness everyday. He swore to himself that for the sake of Januk that conflict remained within him and while his wife, Freya was out he had no real distraction from this other than the fire, everything he had done had led to that child who he saw as not only his soul purpose but his redemption. He felt the presence of the young Anklorian's eyes.

"Hello son, how was the hunt?" He readjusted himself and tried to pull the regret from his eyes. He turned to his son and beamed with pride at being able to ask such a question, "I take it you gave that deer a good run around eh?" He added.

"Yeah, you could say that. He didn't get far though," as Januk said this he met his father's gaze.

"Oh really? Let me guess you scared him off the overcliff like last time?" Fyurik joked.

"No!" Januk cried.

"Calm down son, it was merely a joke, tell me how did it go? I want to hear every word from you for once!" He said heartily, "So you sit down there," he said gesturing to around the fire, "I'll just…" He pottered around the mead cupboard and poured himself one, "Ah! There we go, look at that eh? Truly divine beverage is this mead I tell thee!" He met his son's gaze, "your mother's a star, when she wants to be. So go on tell me."

Januk went into great detail about his careful process of extracting the meat from the deer, taking great pleasure in emphasising his abilities in the realm of stealth and his claw technique. He also explained Korar's beautiful fumbling which had Fyurik in small bursts of miniature laughs, his eyes were slightly lighter than before. "That was nice of you, I'm sure his parents will be grateful for the extra meat!"

"I do hope it'll come in useful if Korar fails to beat anything, it's a difficult hunt out there, where's mum?" Asked Januk, it wasn't odd for her to be out but this was a significantly long time.

"You know your mother, into her old herbs and concoctions as such says she's out looking for something to give you before the collection ceremony, supposedly it takes a rather extravagant amount of time to sort out but the brewing is relatively simple. She'll be along soon fret you not my lad," with that Fyurik lifted the meat from Januk who had been using it as props for his story.