Chapter 23 The Hun (1/2)

The next day, a search was ordered. Every able bodied man was to venture into the woods and comb it for the hide out of this new beast. Phillip and Rassa joined the hunt, but could do nothing to guide the others in any particular direction, such as away from recent gravesites.

While Rassa had worked to ensure the sites were disguised as his father had showed him earlier on, there was little he could do it the grave was too shallow, and opportunistic carnivores had dug up a free meal.

Luckily, nothing was found that day of the three kilometres of forest they had combed through. Phillip warned Rassa to be very careful when he venture out to hunt. While Phillip wanted to prevent Rassa from going out entirely, the last thing he wanted the hunters to find was a fresh grave site once his son became too hungry and once again had to take a life to satisfy his hunger.

Rassa was incredibly cautious that night. Instead of running along the ground where the hunters patrolled, Rassa took to the trees, jumping from one branch to another with grace and little more sound than that of his bare feet hitting the bark. Bare feet because his boots would make far too much noise, and they wore down too quickly with his speed anyway. Rassa went deeper into the woods this time, at least an hour's walk from the village. There he hunted a boar and took the equivalent of a large cup of blood before he reluctantly licked the wound. Rassa watched as the wound closed over at a speed visible to the naked eye. Rassa then retreated to the branches of a nearby tree, and waited to watch as the boar fought off the effects of Rassa's venom then eventually left.

Rassa felt much better seeing the results of this hunt. Licking a creature had seemed gross at first, but knowing his saliva had healing properties was good. Was it just to heal bites from his fangs or could he heal other wounds too? He stayed a little longer to enjoy the moonlight before carefully making his way back.

It was in this way that Rassa spent the next three days. Hunting further and further from the Village as the Hunters hunted him. During the days he would accompany his father through the woods, until it became clear that more men were needed for the upcoming harvests. Phillip stayed with the Hunt, and Rassa went back to the Orchards.

”Is it true what they're saying?” asked Jane as he accompanied her like he usually did.

”About what?” asked Rassa.

”That this...creature the men are hunting,” Jane paused, unsure of how her next statement would be perceived, ”It drinks blood?”

Rassa paused in the middle of picking an orange, turning to look at Jane from beneath his hood. Jane took his silence as confirmation, and it pained Rassa to see the fear in her eyes.

”What if...what if it can drink any kind of blood?” asked Jane, ”I mean, I know it's only taken deer so far, but...there's a possibility. Right?”

Rassa looked away, eventually replying in a serious tone, one Jane rarely heard him use, ”Don't worry. If it's only been here a few days like evidence suggests, then it doesn't seem to have left the forest, so if you stay out I'm sure you'll be fine”.

”And if it's been here for longer?” Jane asked hesitantly.