Young Writers Society

Chapter 2 - The Hunting Trip

Jeremy set up camp as soon as he reached the hunting grounds, in a convenient cove under an overhanging rock. He pitched his small tent – a feat which took him longer than he’d care to admit – and found some stones which he formed into a ring on the ground. He then dropped some sticks that he had collected on his journey into the center of the ring for a campfire later on. Then, after a couple of practice shots with his new weapon, Jeremy ventured out to find prey.

On his trek, he came across some deer and foxes, but to his dismay, he discovered that his skill was not up to catching them. Not only was he unable to hit the creatures, he couldn’t even get his arrow loaded onto the bowstring before they noticed him and ran off. In fact, his pursuit showed him that he was actually much clumsier than even he had previously thought. Figuring that most of his skill would lie in his wit and cleverness, he set traps for the animals he knew he would not be able to fell through force. More than once he walked into these traps himself, and never managed to notice that many of the creatures he had intended to catch were watching him as he set them up. Thus, the first day of his hunting trip was overwhelmingly unsuccessful, and more than a little discouraging.

Jeremy went back to his campsite, defeated, and searched through his pack for his reserve food supply. He lit his campfire (thus far the only task he accomplished within a short time span) and ate his meager supper before laying out his bedroll and turning in. Despite his failure that day, he came to find that lying out under the stars, surrounded by the thick scent of pine, and listening to the crackle of the fire, he felt as though he was right where he was meant to be. In any case, he figured that hunting and fishing weren’t absolutely essential for a worldwide adventure – surely he’d visit enough towns and villages to be able to buy fruits and bread to sustain himself. The thought of fulfilling his lifelong dream put his worries at ease, and he eventually drifted off to sleep.

Jeremy awoke the next morning to the singing of birds and the warmth of the sun’s rays. He opened his eyes and gazed out at his campsite, and he couldn’t help the smile that formed on his face. He quickly got up, snatched an apple out of his bag, grabbed his fishing pole, and walked swiftly toward the river.

When he reached the water, he spied a large bolder where he could perch and he cast out his line. The river’s flow at this spot was very slow, almost stagnant. Jeremy could see the shining fish darting back and forth in the murky water. Whether it was the stillness of the water or because he truly had a knack for the sport, Jeremy’s foray into fishing yielded much different results than his hunting attempt the day before. By the afternoon, he had a nice little collection of fish – all fairly small, but after his luck from the previous day, it was a wonderful victory in his mind. Feeling satisfied with this, Jeremy retired to his camp for the rest of the day, where he cooked a few of his small fish for dinner and fell asleep early, feeling ready to try his hand at hunting again in the morning.

The next day, Jeremy was delighted to find that he managed to catch a rabbit in one of his traps, and a bird in another. He returned home later that afternoon, to which the people of Merrihill were either not surprised to see him back after so short a time (with such little result) or very surprised to see him back at all. In spite of their opinions however, Jeremy could feel an unrivaled sense of accomplishment, and immediately began making arrangements for his journey.

There were a few in Merrihill (besides his parents) who did not mock Jeremy, but rather thought that an expedition to see the world would be good for him. Among these people were the town’s carpenter and the tailor. Both of them congratulated him on the success of his hunt and on the news of his trip, and offered to donate supplies to him.

“Where do you think you’ll go, lad?” asked the carpenter, a portly yet strong man who went simply by Mullar. He worked at sanding a walking stick as he spoke.

“I think I’ll start to the north, in Orsoria,” Jeremy answered. “In my time exploring Lochnall, it’s my favorite place that I’ve seen. Look here—“ he reached around to the satchel that hung at his side and dug through it, eventually producing a small leather journal. He flipped through a few pages before showing it to Mullar. “Torren is the desert land, to the west. I don’t think I’d like to start there. To the northwest, Myinae Forest.” He paused and thought for a moment. “I don’t think I’m ready to travel into it just yet.” He paused again pensively, then continued: “But Orsoria… It’s beautiful! I’ve seen the farms of Lyanthus and I’ve read about Norfield, the capitol city that lies beyond it. It’s the perfect place to start. Then I can work around Erus from there.”

“So it’s all decided, then?” Mullar asked, smiling at the passion in Jeremy’s voice.

Jeremy nodded, returning the carpenter’s smile. “Yes,” he replied, “I’m leaving. I’d like to leave as soon as I’m packed, but I promised Mother I’d stay until the day after tomorrow. The mare’s foal should be arriving within the next day and she’ll need my help, with Father leaving for the faire tonight.”

The Vondran family did most of their marketing at special events during the year, as these faires and festivals were not only a place to make money with the show horses, but also a perfect opportunity to spread awareness of their skill. Jeremy’s father was attending a nearby faire with some of the horses and would be gone for at least a day and a half.

Jeremy thanked Mullar, gathered what items he had given him, and went to visit the tailor, who had some blankets and garments to give him. He collected the gifts, chatted for a bit, then said farewell to his friend and returned home to finish his preparations.

When he arrived, he found that his mother had also made some garments for him, and had already packed them away. He spent the rest of that day working around the ranch and cleaning his bounty from his trip.

During the next day, the foal was born, and Jeremy’s mother spent most of the afternoon preparing foods for him – at least, enough to hold him over until he reached the next town. His father returned the next morning, and Jeremy departed almost immediately upon his arrival. He loaded all of his supplies onto his personal horse, then said goodbye to his parents and made his way north, toward the country of Orsoria.

As he rode through streets of Merrihill, he smiled and waved at the people. His cheerful farewells were met with tired and exasperated glances and mutterings of either “He’ll be back in a week,” or “He’s going to die out there.” Jeremy was deaf to all of this however, and continued jovially on his way.

By the afternoon, he had reached the border of Orsoria. Having seen all of Lochnall so many times, he hadn’t felt compelled to take his time on his way there. He paused right at the edge of the country and inhaled slowly as he glanced over his shoulder. Jeremy gave a little smile as he admired Lochnall one last time. Then he turned back and sighed with content as he nudged his horse onward and took his first steps out of his homeland.