Ghost of the Mountain

Have you ever seen something unbelievable? Something you just couldn’t explain, and no matter how many times you played it through your head, it just didn’t make sense? The only reason you know it happened is because you saw it with someone, so the only proof of its existence is the memory you share with that person?

Zara crouched near the ground, staring at the scraggly bush in front of her. Her father Mondi looked down at her.

“What do you see?” he asked.

Zara shrugged.

“Moss. Stones. Scrub brush.”

Mondi tisked, shaking his head.

“No. Look harder.”

Zara looked at the bush again, then tilted her head and noticed several short brown hairs caught in one of the branches. She frowned, “It’s some kind of fur.”

“Yes. What else?” he asked, and she looked beyond the bush to see a slight scuff on the grey, lichen-covered stone.

“There,” she pointed. “The rock has been disturbed.”

Mondi smiled slightly, “Exactly. When we take time to look, it’s all in front of us. You see this?” He reached forward, pulling the hairs out of the bush and sniffing them. “That’s a Kanyori mare. I’d say five or six years old.” Mondi looked at Zara, “She’ll feed our family for a month. Come.”

Zara quietly followed her father in the direction of the scuffed rock, keeping low to the ground.

They had been on the hunt for several hours, but Zara wasn’t tired at all. This was her first time on the hunt with her father, and she was excited. He was a champion hunter, and had filled the halls in Lukona with the trophies of his greatest quests. It was in his blood, and on his first hunt he had taken down such a great stag that it took two trips just to carry all the meat back to the city. He had even told her a story about how he had once seen the great Kanyori King, the largest stag on the mountain. But it was only for a moment, and he was on his own, so nobody believed him. Many didn’t even think the Kanyori King existed.

But Zara believed him. He was her hero, and she was in awe of who he was and what he had done. She prayed that the blood running through his veins was also in her. She dreamt of being a hunter as capable and strong as Mondi. He had taught her lessons at home, but she had never been allowed on the wild trail with him. So today was her day. She was focused, alert, and ready to soak up everything she could.

Mondi stopped at the top of a ridge, looking around. Thick mist hovered over the valleys beyond, revealing only the tops of the grey rocks, and the occasional tree or scrubby bush. He closed his eyes, then breathed in deeply. Zara did the same, smelling the earthy moisture in the air coming off the stones, lichen, and moss.

When she opened her eyes, her father was nowhere to be seen. Zara glanced around and saw him walking down the slope, and she rushed down to catch up with him.

“Keep up, little one. We’re on her tail now!” he whispered with excitement.

Zara smiled. On her tail? How close were they? Zara peered into the murky landscape in front of them. Would her father let her try to make the kill herself? Was she ready?

Zara’s mind raced as she followed her father, and after a few minutes he stopped suddenly, raising his hand. Zara skidded to a stop as her father crouched beside a rock. There, on the ground, was a small mound of dung. It was steaming.

Mondi looked up the slope. “She’s up there,” he said, then looked at Zara and brought a finger to his lips. She nodded, then followed him up the ridge, trying to keep her breathing as slow, steady, and silent as possible.

They crested the ridge, revealing a small clearing with several bushes and a lone tree at the centre. Looking into the clearing, Zara saw nothing except the plants in the mist. She looked at her father in confusion, and he pointed toward the tree in the heart of the clearing. There, chewing on the matted leaves of a bush, was a large doe. It had white spots running down the ridge on its back, and big black eyes.

Mondi quietly drew an arrow and notched it in his bow, then slowly offered the bow to Zara. She looked at him in wonder and he nodded. Zara carefully took the bow in her hands, and looked toward the doe. Then she lifted the bow, drew the arrow back, and raised it to her ear, aiming for the doe’s neck.

Just when she was about to fire, a twig beneath her foot snapped. It barely made a sound, but it was enough to catch the doe’s attention. She immediately raised her head, looked directly towards Zara and Mondi, then ran off. And just like that, the doe was gone.

Zara stared in disbelief. Mondi sighed, then placed a hand on her shoulder.

“It is all right, little one. Everybody misses on their first try,” he said, and she shook her head.

“You didn’t,” she replied, and he smiled.

“Yes…well. You did your best. There is always next time.”

Zara nodded, following her father away from the clearing, back down into the valley.

As they neared the bottom of the slope, Mondi stopped a moment and looked towards a narrow path that cut into the rock beside them.

“What is it?” Zara asked, as her father crouched down, looking at the fork in the path.

“I’m not sure. It’s…something.” Mondi glanced at Zara. “Watch your step,” he said, then made his way down the narrow path.

Zara followed, unsure about this new direction or what lay ahead.

They walked for several minutes in silence, passing more forks in the path. Every time the path split Mondi would stop, close his eyes, and inhale. Then he’d open his eyes once more and choose a path with certainty. Zara knew they were following something big, but had no idea what it was. So when the path ran up to a sheer rock face, she was surprised.

Mondi stared at the rock wall in silence. “It can’t be,” he whispered to himself.

“Can’t be what? What is it?” Zara asked, but Mondi ignored her, reaching forward to the cliff face and pinching a small rock between his fingers.

“But where did it go?” he mumbled, and Zara placed her hand on his wrist.

“Papa. What are we following?”

Mondi looked at Zara, “The King…He was here.”

“King. As in the Kanyori King?”

Mondi nodded, then looked up the cliff face. “He must have gone up. Come on!” he said with a hint of excitement in his voice, and Zara noticed a twinkle in his eye, like a child filled with awe and wonder. She smiled, following him up the cliff face.

The cliff was steep and hard going, and when they reached the top Zara was winded. She closed her eyes and gasped for breath, and Mondi shushed her. Zara opened her eyes and saw her father staring across the ravine with a shocked expression on his face.

She rose quietly, following his gaze towards a nearby mountain stream. And then she saw it. A creature unlike anything she had seen before. Powerful black hooves, tufts of golden brown fur around its shoulders and neck, and a rack of antlers that eclipsed the greatest trophies in Lukona, like two identical trees sprouting from the top of its massive head.

“The Kanyori King. Ghost of the Mountain,” Mondi whispered.

Zara nodded, then quietly drew an arrow and notched it in her bow.

“No,” her father said softly, laying his hand on the bow. “This one we leave.”

“But father, it’s…”

“It is a good omen to see such a creature. I would not tempt fate by killing such a noble spirit. This is just for us.”

Zara nodded, then lowered her bow.

They watched the buck drink from the stream as the clouds parted overhead, and a ray of sunlight fell down on the clearing, causing the creature to glow on the grey mountainside. Zara took a deep breath, feeling her spirits lift as she was overwhelmed by the majesty of nature.

Then the buck raised its head and looked toward them, and Zara could have almost sworn it nodded slightly at Mondi before turning and walking away. And just like that, it was gone.

Mondi took a deep breath, then smiled and looked at Zara. “That was a feast of its own. What a blessing to experience it with you.”

Zara nodded, then frowned. “Will anyone believe what we saw?”

Mondi shrugged. “Some will, and some won’t. That’s not our concern. We know what we saw, and we have the memory to share together. That’s what really matters.”

Zara nodded. It would have been nice to have something to show for their efforts, but that experience was something she wouldn’t have traded for the greatest trophy in Lukona.

And with those thoughts in her head, Zara followed her father back down the mountain.

This is one of several short stories set in the world of Alduna, leading up to my fantasy novel Journey to Khaldor, coming in 2026. Stay tuned—there’s more to come.