The Encounter Pt. 1

It had been 4 years since that fateful day. Hartanna's childhood home was long gone by now. Somewhere between a distant memory, and a painful fact that it still stood and thrived. But to her, for the time being, it was something she could put behind herself until she was better equipped for going back.

Hartanna was instead, living off of what she found in the woods. Even if that meant stealing from unsuspecting campers or hunters in order to make what she needed. This forest, after all, is where she had been calling home for two years. It had practically everything she needed. It was located at the base of a mountainside, so during the summer it wasn't too hot, and during the winter the wind didn't bother her so much. There was a river near by with fresh water that came down from the mountain, plenty of food to hunt, and berries to pick. And to top it all off, there was an old bear cave she had been using as her home.

The bear that had lived in it was long gone, Hartanna was sure of that because she killed it herself and turned its pelt into a blanket for her bed. Her bed she had made out of a couple of hunters bed rolls, covered in deer hide so that it was extra soft.

She had also fashioned herself plenty of other things within the cave. Shelves from the fallen trees of the forest, pottery from the clay and mud in the river, and baskets weaved from grass. She lived a fairly comfortable life, but that wasn't enough for her.

She also had turned her fathers old sword into a large scythe. She used it in battle, she found it was much more effective when used properly against an enemy, or even for hunting. She could easily decapitate someone with it or just dismember someone or something. She did still carry a knife she had stolen off of a hunter, and a bow and arrows from another hunter all for hunting.

One fine summer morning, however, she awoke to the loud roars of something large in the forest. And to top that off, she could also smell smoke. And whatever was making that noise, sounded distressed and angry. She quickly got out of bed, and rushed to peer out of the cave and see what was going on. And what she saw, was a bunch of smoke from in the thickest parts of the forest. It looked as though a forest fire had begun, and whatever it was making that noise, was stuck in the thick of it.

Part of her said to just wait it out, and go check it out once the fire had died out. But the rest of her told her to go in and do what she could to put out the fire. It was a threat to her home, and whatever was trapped could be something that would keep the forest population of aanimals up for her food. She walked away from the cave exit and grabbed for her knife, scythe, and a large clay pot which she fastened to her back so she could carry water in it. She also grabbed a shovel which she had traded off of a farmer in exchange for her protection that particular day against a large pack of wolves that wanted the farmers sheep.

Once she had properly packed what she needed, including a small bag to carry some trail rations and a water canteen, she dashed out of the cave towards the river.