Amethyst | Chapter 2: Lost and Found

In the East

Alternating decades of ravaging conflicts dotted the historical association of the Centerners and the Hunters; it all boiled down to principles. Trust was never only an issue, but the biggest issue in all of Nim's kingdoms. How in the war-torn archaic accounts of Nim would they be able to live beside an enemy of the past, and the past of the past, and back on?

The wolves, or Hunters civilization, lived in Terclaws, a vast landmass situated northeast of Center Isle; it is shaped like a claw that trapped and slowed down fast-moving water passing through the Rush Channel, a convergence of waters from the Silent River and the Wicked Sea.

Terclaws is described by a cold, humid desert in the north and a lush tropical rainforest in the south, where a dock of floating two-seater trunk-boats can be found. The dock, called Fallen's Talon, is one of four gates that lead to the Kan 'an Ocean, a violent basin of gigantic tides where whirlpools and storms originate. Two more can be found in Cavia, Nim's northern kingdom home to the Caviens (bears), while the last of four can be found in Speliz, the southern landmass housing the Necromancers (witches and wizards).

What extremely captured the eye of any wanderer in such a bloodbath place was the presence of skeletons everywhere, except for sun-lit canopies.

Most wolves were naturally dire evil, while a few have retained a portion of their first lives – as humans. Natives become wolves when while still alive, they were bitten with prior submission, intent or acceptance. Those who survived from the jittering pain then began their transformation on the night they got bitten. During the day, they become Natives again –so cunningly beautiful and charming, yet deep inside are beasts ready to track and feed on flesh. They can sleep any time they want and when they sleep, it takes two to three days for them to wake up. Unlike Centerners, they didn't have powers. Instead, they acquired the ability to be agile and stealthy. Aside from that, they were independent and mostly heartless. To hunt was their natural instinct.

"Let the Feast begin!" Chieftain Canis of the Hunters civilization declared on that night when the moon was full and red. He referred to the Feast, a celebration where souls are offered to the bleeding eye, the round moon, of their first ruler Admenon and in return, he'd be provided new hunters from the lives that he willfully offered.

The crackle of burning fire wood and the billow of smoke were masked by the vastness of the inanimate wild. Chieftain Canis had held a large number of Native captives, mostly coming from a town near Oz who immigrated to Terclaws to seek refuge in what they thought were the south's less densely populated Samori forest. It was too late before they knew that no such haven waited for them; instead the Pack, a group of ten master Hunters, surrounded them while they were trailing back to where they started and brought them ailing alive for the semi-annual Feast. The wolves, in its ferocity, can slash and cause severe damages without killing.

Around 50 wolves joined the celebration. Greedily, they entered the cage filled with the injured prisoners. Wolves are good keepers; they hide their prey in places that seem to be unnoticeable and won't alert anyone – such as beneath the towering heights of trees that provide easy cover.

"Spare us, King Canis", one dying man shouted, his right palm jaggedly cut off by sharp-fanged teeth from his apparent escape.

"Chieftain of the Hunters, keep us here and we shall be of service to your rule", another one reached her hand out with tears gushing out of her eyes. Death and life were both tugging her at far ends.

The evil Chieftain drew up a smirk, and softly touched the woman's face.

"You, of all women, are so loving and true. Kill her."

With just one word from the leader of the pack, the honorable slaughter commenced. The sound of helpless cries echoed into the immense wilderness. Pain became the joy of the few and the newly living.

The strongest ones got bitten. When wolves stare, they can see in their preys' eyes who wanted to live like one. Some, in the Feast, were devoured alive. Almost no one escaped, except one – a child. The cage though made of sturdy branches had a weak spot; it was built with six inches of gap from the ground, making it easier for the ten year-old little girl to escape from it and desperately run as fast as she could.

Wolves may be fast and hideous, but they were simple fools too. They didn't have the creativity that the Centerners possessed. Their edge, nevertheless, was their capability to kill every living thing that came across their path, even Centerners.

Seeing the child escape, the belligerent, selfish wolf ran towards her, at split second almost clutching the poor child's arms, until...

"Leave him, Amadeo," and he stopped upon the Chieftain's command. The little girl continued her breakout, enduring the pain of running barefoot in a prickly, death-seeking, trap-laden forest.

The night of the Feast ended when drizzle from the gloomy night sky washed the bloodstains off the wolves' contrasted furs. The red moon was still there, but appeared vague at a distance, minute by minute, showcasing its eager bid for the indulgence to end.

"Welcome novice Hunters, to Furia, your new home! I am your King, Chieftain Canis. Bring forth the darkness, scatter the stench of permissible death, and live within all your hunting desires. I only have one thing to ask from you. Never ever leave this den, without me knowing. Or else, your blood that runs through my veins will mean death with conviction. " After all the terror, the howling took tranquility over for a few seconds.

Still running soaking wet from the deadly encounter, Saina felt her feet ache. She slowed down when she heard the wolves howl. She sought refuge up high in a red tree's canopy. Wolves cannot climb, but can jump five feet high, thus can still launch an attack and kill anyone, even a happy-go-lucky Centerner. However, even as fierce as one may see, a wolf will instantly die once its heart gets pierced by an Amethyst weapon – of any origin. They lose the second life given to them, and turn to ashes once they die.

At such heights, Saina was able to see the scope of the Samori rainforest. She saw no life and heard no sound. She then turned her back and gazed at what she once never believed in - the Silent River. From what she's learnt in lore, when her parents were still alive, they used to tell her that if she'd get into trouble with the Hunters, she should sail through the river and seek help from the other side.

A flashback surged into her gaunt mind.

One starry night, in a town eight miles north of Oz, she and a beloved one conversed. The scent of salvation and stability for everyone was irresistible, as the truce between the Centerners and the Hunters had already taken effect, until few months it all ended without the other kingdom knowing – a nightmare made clandestine. No one in Center Isle knew of the attack.

"Saina, this is the Silent River. If you get lost and see it the same way as you feel it, cross with no fear and you will find home." His father, Sai, mentioned about it. A historian who worked for the Citadel, Sai got killed by the same Pack that captured and feasted on Saina's company. That was the last thing she remembered of her father.

The Silent River is a diagonally formed body of water that separates Center Isle and Terclaws. It ends out and meets the Wicked Sea that washes away the coastline of Speliz, the land of the witches and wizards. Half of the river is dead near the Terclaws, while its other half is bountiful of harvest.

The rich catches along the coast of Center Isle fed the entire naturalized Centerner (Native) population, while bug saps were what supported the fairy and gremlin populace. Naturalization was accepted in Center Isle, as long as the kingdom's safety was not compromised. If they lost governance of time, from possible secession, to the Hunters whom as of the moment they believed were not aggressive, Nim's dark fate will be unleashed.

Saina thought that the river was the only possible way to safety. She was the sole survivor, who could only tell of the Hunters' illegal doing which could disintegrate the truce pact that was forged between the warring kingdoms and in the long run, destabilize other kingdoms as well. It was agreed during the declaration day of the pact that wolves can freely roam and feed on anything within their territory, but wanderers. It was also agreed upon that no foreign being, a wanderer to be certain, should relentlessly lay ground or fly up within the Hunters' territory without the Chieftain's permission. This however excluded all Natives, thereby allowing them to freely and safely navigate the lands of Terclaws. The Hunters' aggression against Natives must be made known, Saina thought without fear.

"Wolves can swim," she thought, "but they can be tired easily in waters so calm that impatience could kill them." Wolves were born in a fast-paced environment; they don't want to take things slow. This quickens up their temper and makes them lose control of what they do easily.

Saina, though left with little of hope, felt fear in her heart that when she goes down and falls, the wolves will find out and eat her alive. At that time of unwanted dying, she needed to do something. She looked in all directions. She opened up her eyes wider and saw something much more familiar – the spike of Oz's watchtower.

"It is the nearest and only reachable place by water," she said..

This eagerness to survive gave her an idea. Several meters from her, she spotted a dead trunk that could just be dragged down or pushed out into the river.

"Will it float? I'm not quite sure, but I have to try."

Shivering, she slowly began going down, nervously looking up at the stars wishing for more courage and endurance.

She then pushed the trunk into the river. It landed floating in the water. She laid face down using her hands and feet to paddle through the dead current and reach Oz. She felt cold, and realized that a good-looking man in his 20s has followed her into the river.

Terrified, she paddled faster and stronger that she couldn't even feel nor hear anything amidst the silence. She could only see darkness and amidst it was the tiny torch light emanated from the watchtower.

She was almost there, but she suddenly fell off the trunk out into the calm river. She felt exhausted and knew that it was over – that the wolf acting as a man was going to get her. She lost consciousness.

"Aaaaaaaaaaa!", she screamed so loud the whole town of Oz was surprised. People, sporting pig clothing, rough leather shoes and head crown-laces of natural leafy motif, then flocked to her whereabouts immediately.

"Mother, she's awake!"