Kylar had met a large group of people, but of them all this woman intrigued him the most. She was determined to do this alone one minute, yet welcoming him the next. She was telling him all of this advice like it was a common thing, or like she'd been planning it for Trials. It was incredible.
Perhaps this was what Kylar's prayers being answered looked like. Perhaps it was just one big coincidence and he was overthinking it. Either way, he lowered his head a little, praying to Karem as he did so. 'Thank you' he thought to himself.
When Mareth asked about injustice, the answer was more than obvious. He looked out to the trees and at the sky. "Well, my life was a difficult one. I lost no loved ones, nor did I get hurt badly or anything of the sort. It wasn't a tragic story. Instead, it was a life. As it was a life, it was difficult by default. Some more than others, of course, but all lives involve struggles and difficulties" he said, whole-heartedly. "If I took the road that was easy, then I could become a hero. People would admire me for doing little if anything. Or I can take this road. Nobody knows who I am, nobody knows that I risk my life daily to save them. Even after I watched a man get mauled to near death, when he recovered, I didn't visit him again in the hope he didn't remember my face. For the pure fact that I will never let this become about being a 'hero' and getting praised for it. This is about saving lives, nothing else. That's why I do the hard jobs, hunting injustice. For the worlds' sake, not my own."
Last edited by Kylar on Tue Dec 20, 2016 8:24 am, edited 1 time in total. word count: 302
When Kylar gave his short little prayer of thanksgiving, Mareth twitched her head in mild annoyance, as if a fly had just landed in her ear. However, when he gave her his explanation, she listened attentively, then stopped moving entirely and let out a slow breath. "You seem to have the reason you hunt well in hand. Perhaps you just needed to work it out to someone." she said, before laughing. "Well, for that, I suppose it is only natural that you come to me for questions about the Hunt." she said, laughing slightly and running her hand through her hair.
As she spoke, a snow white doe stepped into the path before them. Rather than run from the two hunters the doe stepped over to Mareth and nuzzled against her hand. Dropping to a crouch, Mareth gently stroked the doe's neck as she spoke. "I am not as well known among the Lotharro as many might suspect. The reason is their Path of the Hunt. They claim it, and yet they do not understand it. A Hunt can take many forms, many shapes both commonplace and obscure." she said, her tone thoughtful before she turned to look at Kylar.
"You asked me to show you the way. You are closer to understanding your way than you were before, but I can no longer help you with words alone." Karem said, an aura of power beginning to radiate from her as she spoke. "So it is my companion here who shall guide you further. She is harmless, and it would do you no good to harm her. Hunt her without harming her, Kylar. While you do so, think on why you chose to hunt evil itself rather than evil men, for there is a profound difference and one that I believe will be important to you. In addition, think on why I would tell you to hunt without doing harm." she said. As she spoke, the forest changed, becoming a forest at the height of spring, a forest greener and more alive than any on Idalos. The doe shook itself and nuzzled Kylar's hands, then ran off into the woods.
"I will watch your progress." Karem said, stepping back into the trees before vanishing into the forest as if she had never been there to begin with.
As Mareth spoke, Kylar stopped and listened in fascination. The one he should come to about questions to do with the Hunt? What did that mean? As she said it, things only got stranger. A white doe approached the two - but not running with fear. The surprise was clear on his face, as was the awe. Could this woman really be the Immortal he'd been working for all his life? Was that even possible? If so, why him? He was just a skyrider, a Lotharro who had strayed from his path and in doing so found his true reason to hunt.
As the doe stopped and nuzzled Mareth, Kylar couldn't believe his eyes or ears. She was Karem. What did someone say in the face on an Immortal who had just spoke to them about their path as if they were a normal Hunter? Kylar could hardly make conversation with a new friend when they were of the same race, not when they were the immortal he worked so hard on showing his loyalty to.
Fortunately, Kylar didn't need to speak for a short while more. Instead, Karem told him what he was to do. Hunt without harming? What could that mean? He'd have to work that out on the way, whenever he was to 'Hunt' the doe. Until then, he'd have to keep a close eye on it. "I...I understand" he said, and it was all he could muster. But he bowed his head respectfully, the fluster almost entirely overwhelming him. As the doe nuzzled his hand, he gave it one small and gentle scratch under the chin and just under its ear. Then it ran, as Kylar would expect in a hunt. Karem spoke to him one last time. Before he could say what he wanted to, Karem walked away, just as a small noise left his mouth. She vanished.
"Thank you, Karem. I won't disappoint you" he said out loud, smiling with pride. Then, without any hesitation, he ran in the direction the doe went. He searched for any sign of the doe, be it prints in the dirt or twigs snapped from the trees.
It soon transpired that the doe left a clear path for a hunter follow, leaving a trail of crushed grass, bent branches and plenty of prints in the dirt. Still, the doe stayed well ahead of Kylar. Occasionally, she'd let the hunter get a glimpse of her, then bound off away again, always staying out of reach. As he tracked her, Kylar would occasionally see other creatures of the forest, rabbits and squirrels, moose and quail. Every so often a wolf would appear in front of him and consider him for a moment, before going elsewhere on business of their own. If Kylar was observant enough, he'd notice that the wolves appeared to be the only major predator in the forest, though there were plenty of prey animals to be found.
Kylar jogged on, following the tracks. Having hunted before, he ignored the animals around him. When a wolf came near, his pace slowed to cautious. He saw no other predators, but that didn't surprise him much. This wasn't a normal woodland, nor was it a normal doe. Perhaps, though he wasn't sure, he was in Karem's domain?
What was more important, however, was what he had to do. Hunt without hurting? The question was, what was the doe? If he couldn't hurt it, there was more to hunting it than just physical? Perhaps it was leading him somewhere, or giving him time to think. Whatever it was doing, he sure seemed to have a lot of time to do it. He was seemingly getting no closer or further away from it.
Before Karem had left, she told him to think of why he was to hunt without doing harm and why Kylar hunted evil instead of evil men. He let his mind wander. The first was still a puzzle, but the second he could work with. Why hunt evil instead? Well, you want to kill a plant easy you dig it up at the roots.
Targeting evil was a much harder job than just going looking for bad people and dealing with them. But Kylar had a firm belief. He believed that every mortal and immortal had potential for greatness. In fact, he didn't see evil people as the fault. Evil wasn't necessary, it was contagious and dangerous. So he hunted wherever that evil spread. If that lead him to evil people, so be it. But that was what he did. Hunted. Just as the path he chose bid him to do.
"That's my answer" he said, quiet but audible. He continued pursuing the doe, ever hopeful that he could find the creature and the meaning behind all of the questions he was struggling to answer.
As Kylar found his first answer, the doe's actions changed. She let him get closer now, every so often stopping to drink from a stream or nibble a bit of grass. However, she always stayed just out of Kylar's reach, still leading him on a merry chase through the forest. If Kylar were careful in his observations, he would likely notice that the doe stopped longer when there was fruit on the ground for her to eat. She was also careful never to get too far ahead of him, when he slowed for whatever reason, she did the same. When he slowed too much, she even occasionally move back towards him, as if curious as to why he had slowed.
He could now get closer to the doe, he noticed. It would take longer breaks, and when he stopped for breathers it was if the doe did the same. What did it mean? It was as he answered his question, and he already knew the doe was far from a normal creature. But, things were starting to add up. He answers a question correctly and it slows down, and he has one question left - how to hunt without hurting.
It finally hit Kylar. The wolf that had found him to bring him to Karem had hunted him, as had Karem. But he wasn't harmed. It was as Karem said, it wasn't strange for a wolf to look for someone for a passionate reason. That was what Kylar needed, passion - something he had plenty of. He stopped walking, then looked around for fruit. When he finally found some fruit, he held his arm out and refused to move towards or away from the doe. "Is this what you wanted? I'm hunting, for answers if anything, but nothing must be harmed. Instead, I offer a bond. Trust, friendship and peace. Is this what you meant, Karem?" he said to the doe, knowing that Karem would be listening. He stayed in a casual stance as he held out his hand.
"Whether my answer is right or not, I thank you, Karem. When I entered the forest by our camp, my goals seemed uncertain - like I had no idea. But in truth, I knew all along, I just needed someone to show me. Thank you, for showing me. I promise to do you proud, as I have always tried to do."
The doe paused as Kylar did, watching find and pick up some fruit and offer it to her. After a moment she slowly approached and began to eat the fruit out of his hand. When she finished, she nuzzled his hand again before bounding off into the woods, this time staying pretty close to him. After a bit, the doe led him into a large clearing in the forest. Despite being part of the Domain of the Immortal of the Hunt, this place was peaceful. The prey animals of the forest seemed content here, scampering about freely and either ignoring the massive number of wolves lazing about in the clearing or actively playing with them. At the center of the clearing there were three figures, the masters of this forest. One was a great golden stag, the second was a truly titanic wolf, who, when standing, would be tall enough for Kylar to walk under his chest without having to duck. Both of these great animals were resting on the forest floor next to the third figure, the Immortal of The Hunt.
Karem looked up at Kylar and the doe as they entered beckoned them closer. When the approached, she gestured for Kylar to sit and when he had, the doe lay next to him and put her head on his leg. "So many assume that a hunt must end in the death of either the hunter or the prey." she said softly, looking at the doe before meeting Kylar's eyes. "You now know that to be wrong, you know that it is possible to make the fearful come to you. Self discovery of a concept is the greatest way to master it. You hunt evil by choice, yet I insisted you learn how to hunt without causing harm. So. Tell me how you would use this technique?"
Kylar followed as the doe slowly walked away from him, a change obvious and the gap closing. Eventually he arrived in the clearing. Kylar watched the animals in fascination. Wolves playing with other animals, a beautiful golden stag and an incredible wolf. He couldn't help but smile at the beauty and peace of these creatures. It was harmony, and that was how it should be.
With that smile still on his face, he sat beside Karem. When the doe rest its head on his leg, he gently brushed along it's head and behind it's ear. The creature was beautiful, so much so he wanted one. But with a pet lion, that wouldn't be possible. Perhaps, however, if he saw one in the wild everything would now change. Instead of kill, he would feed.
Kylar took in each of Karem's words, before considering her question. He looked out at all the animals around them. "Well, I can be like that wolf" he said, pointing to a wolf that was playing with some prey as if they were friends. "Yes, I am perfectly capable of killing evil. But why if I can befriend them? If I believe everyone has some good in them, then the best way to rid the world of evil is to try and find that good. It may not always work, but if I even try then I'm saving more people that if I just assume there's no hope."
Kylar chuckled to himself. One minute he'd been in his tent and now he was here. He gave a warm smile to Karem. Then his mind wandered to Crimson, and he couldn't help but say it. "My wife, Crimson, would die to see this. Perhaps one day I can bring her here, or at least show her one of the creatures here up close and peacefully."
Karem smiled slightly at Kylar's answer and nodded, before raising an eyebrow at the mention of him bringing his wife to her forest. "Possibly it will happen. My forest does not hold comforts to everyone, however. After all, many people fear my wolves and would be less than comfortable in such a gathering." she said, laughing slightly at the snort from the massive wolf behind her. "No use grumping about it, you know it's true." she said, looking over her shoulder at the massive canine.
After a moment, when it became clear the wolf had nothing to add the conversation, she turned back to Kylar. "You aren't wrong, sometimes someone can be saved from corruption of evil. And knowing that is useful, but it is not the only use for that skill." she said, before she leaned back against her wolfs sides in thought for a moment before speaking again. "To hunt evil is well enough, but let me ask you this, Kylar. You know evil is a corruption,that feeds on fear and pain, consuming hope and love until nothing is left. To a victim, one man with a weapon looks much the same as the next. Is it enough to just hunt evil and do nothing for those left in its wake?"
