The Big Game

It was a crisp afternoon as she leapt into the ravine crashing through the branches. Slowing her descent into the gorge that held the shallow river. By the fourth branch she stopped counting which snaps were coming from her frail malnourished body or the dying branches. Falling she saw flashes of brown and orange keeping her eyes mostly shut so as not to blind herself. Once the trees became greener and started slowing her as they bent before breaking she was able to open her eyes more reliably. She found herself a few branches from the ground. Writhing in pain, the buzzing of the drone above caught her attention forcing her to move again. As she was dropping to the last branch gunshots rang out from above followed by yelling.

“Save your ammo! Don’t lose her!” echoed through the ravine walls. As she saw the drone become stuck in the trees trying to navigate through the thicker brush. Dropping into a hanging position she immediately regretted opening up her ribs as much as she did, pain rushing up her left side. Vomiting onto herself just before dropping into a shallow stream. She tried to get up with little success then started to drink the cool water without trying to get up. Not far was a fallen tree that could provide some shelter if she could make it over there. Hoping her makeshift kit was still intact from the fall, she slowly dragged her way towards the tree for much needed shelter.

Looking around, she fumbled with her kit, applying the ointment to her wounds as best she could. The trees were much thicker here, it almost reminded her of the tropical rainforests she was used to. Regardless, the forest was much more pleasant than the arid wasteland she had been traversing for the last several weeks. Deserts only served to remind her of the loss of the man who raised her and never spoke a word to her. He was the one who gave her the lady who showed her the way so far. The man taught her how to read as best he could, but it was clear he was not a scholar and had limited access to books. They kept heading in the direction the lady told him. When she was old enough he started teaching her many other useful things, such as how to live with nothing, how to find food in the most disgusting places, how to defend herself, among many others. She heard voices for the first time long after she had already learned how to hunt. It frightened her so much she didn’t start learning for almost another year. They started visiting villages more often on their journey, she started to learn to speak as they were begging. As soon as she started to learn the language, the next village spoke another.

She wondered if the lady could speak. She started wondering who she was. Maybe she was that man’s wife, maybe he was her father, but they would always go back to the jungle or forest before she could muster up the courage to ask. Until the day they came to a desolate space of sand and death, they both made it through the desert after a hard week.

Collapsing a short time after leaving the desert he was unable to move, with a simple bite on his ankle. Handing her the lady who would guide her. He put his hand on her chest with the locket at the same time resting his other hand on his heart. Tears streamed down both their faces as she watched him stop breathing. Grief and terror overwhelmed her, clawing at each other for the top spot within her mind. Alone for the first time in her life, she spent several days mourning and eventually found she could only do what she was taught to do. Pulling off all the supplies she could from the only father she had known. She followed the lady’s direction, leaving his body in the small thicket he had collapsed in.

It would be another month of traveling north before finding a village to beg at. Eventually she was able to pick up some of the language, enough to converse. After several years of moving village to village through a map bought when she was a child, the child had grown into a young woman and was now ready to keep heading north, towards what she now knew was called the finish line. Straight north, just as the lady directed her. She studied for years as she kept moving north. About the geography, the defenses, hunting parties, the starting line, the finish line. But not as much as she read about the benefits of getting across the finish line. Eternal happiness. That was what the man had been pulling her towards, that was why they never stopped.

Even since the collapse, the two channels available were the wealthy route or the gauntlet, as they called it, into the lifeless class. The wealthy route was for those who had resources, which was clearly not for her. The other was much more suited to her skillset. The Gauntlet was an intense nine month hike through the wilderness, deserts, and snowy peaks to a finish line. She had never seen snow before, she was looking forward to seeing it.

She studied what she could in regards to what she would be encountering in her path. Only fools would try to cross the mountains to get to the safe route, so she did not worry about the creatures on the other side. But those within the forests of the north were different. Different plants, different beasts, and worse things. When she had entered the gauntlet she ensured she was well prepared and then was immediately robbed by a less equipped gang of exiles. She was able to run off with a few key items, but nothing fancy. A knife, map, medical kit, a couple days of rations, and of course the lady left to guide her.

She was able to cross the desert with that, through the plains and hills into the forests at the base of the mountain range. The entire time with the hunting parties on her trail. There were much easier prey that they tracked first. She covered her tracks and did her best to not leave a clear trail behind like the others. To always stay downwind when she could. To listen for the buzzing of the drones and the roar of the engines.

Awakening in the freezing cold of the night, she somehow managed to sleep next to the fallen tree. She had to get over this part of the mountain, even if it was only part of the mountain. Her clothes were water resistant and well insulated, but not meant for the mountains in early March. The hunting party was probably waiting for her ahead, she would need to backtrack through the ravine to the mountain’s base.

It took her several days to be able to move well again, her side was in agonizing pain. She had to be close to the finish line, they would take care of her as soon as she crossed it. She just needed to get across. What was worrying her was the fact that she had not heard any of the tracking parties during the days she was resting and moving only a few kilometers a day.

It took just shy of a week to reach the ledge of the mountainside. She couldn’t see any way around it, and in the distance she had a clear view of two of the hunting parties. One party was heading away from her and would not be an issue. The other was sitting at the base of the mountain waiting at the path leading through the woods. She assumed she knew what they were waiting for. If she took the path through the gorge as she had originally planned, they would have ended her as soon as she emerged from the woods. Seeing the gorge was a crescent moon shape that would have led her into the wooded area they were waiting outside of.

She would need to go against her better judgement and climb the side of the mountain, exposed for them to see. If they did see her, it would take them several hours to get up the mountainside, she could make her escape by then. As she started walking along the narrow path outside of the tree line, she stayed as low as she could. It took several painful hours of pulling herself up the mountain side. Nearing the top, she turned around looking down towards the hunting party. The party hadn’t moved, but they were pointing in her direction. This made her worry about why they were not giving chase. Eventually, as she neared the top, she concluded they didn’t want to give up their position in case any other outcasts came that way. They seemed to want an easy hunt.

Rounding the crest of the mountain side, she saw in the distance the red and white checkered finish line hovering across the sky, stretching each way out of sight. She excitedly thought it was only a couple of days away. As she was marveling at the beautiful view of the finish line, a light snow began to fall. It was only a few flakes at first, then it started to become heavier. Excited at first, she was enjoying the moment, when the cold started to cut through her coat. Realizing that if she stayed here much longer she would likely freeze to death, she quickly and painfully headed down the mountain side with the wind at her back pushing her harder.

She reached another stream in a wooded area that was warmer than the side of the mountain and out of sight of any hunting parties. Not hesitating, she started drinking the fresh cold water feeling rejuvenated. If she could only catch some food she would be set until she crossed the line.

A rustle in the bushes startled her to stand painfully upright. Getting ready to try to run, she looked towards the bushes unable to see anything. She thought she heard the noise from that thicket, possibly just her dinner getting away. From the underbrush to the right, she saw a bright flash and then heard the shot.

As the bullet ripped through the heart shaped locket and into her chest, she could only look down as the picture of the lady inside fell to the ground along with the shattered compass. Looking ahead at the boy who destroyed her heart, she wanted to run but her legs wouldn’t lift up as she fell to her knees. Looking ahead, she saw the boy showing his father his triumphant victory over the broken destitute girl. At least the father looked angry at the boy. But the last thing she heard before closing her eyes was “You don’t shoot the doe, only the bucks. Doe have other uses, boy.”