The Hunter's Island
The day she told me his body was lifeless was truly the day my body had succumbed to genuine horror. His orange eyes were clouded and unfocused; with a hint of decay. The brown tabby coat that covered his delicate flesh was drenched in river water. My heart was hammering a burrow deeper into my chest, trying to flee my body. "Brother Xander," she had said, her green eyes glossy with fresh grief. "Brother Pine has ascended to the Gods in the Stars. They will take care of him now."
My tongue was as dry as dirt in a drought midsummer, caged between my clenched teeth. Her orange tabby fur was smooth and glossy. Around her fragile neck hung a cross crafted of sticks wrapped tightly together with a thin vine. A gentle breeze carried the sharp bite of a chill, sending my entire body trembling vigorously. Tiny droplets of rain drizzled from a sky darkening with the dense clouds of a threatening storm, like it always did in the Evergreen Forest. Tall pine trees towered over our heads with their branches reaching down towards our spines. "Brother Xander?" her voice came again, making me blink as my body shivered involuntarily.
This shiver was not because of the cold, but because of the hollow look that stared back at me from just beyond her. They had him lying down in a manner that was disrespectful to anyone dead. He was sprawled out over the slick grass with his arms reaching out. Sharp claws were unsheathed and caked with mud; his paw pads scraped and scabbed over. His jaws were agape in a horrified yell, as if his last sound was a cry for help. His eyes were full of fear, but I could also see a taunt; a 'Why didn't you save me,' look. All the words that were within me were gone with the wind; flowing out of my brain like the river that staked claim to his life. It was all my fault; I had caused his death, all because I hesitated out of fear. How could I be so stupid? He's my Brother!
His claws had dug into the side of the cliff beside the Drop Off. The sound of his claws scraping against the stone side sending my spine tingling with a sinister grip of fear. The roar of the river had drown out the murder of cawing crows endlessly as they circled in the darkening, tempestuous sky. We were hunting at the time, and the condensation from the waterfall was too thick; I didn't see the Drop Off in time...he didn't… — I clench my eyes shut as my entire body shudders when I feel a paw jolt me out of my hallucination. "I'm sorry, Sister," I mumble as my black ears flatten against my head. "This is all my fault."
I can see the pity glimmering within her pretty green eyes as she shifts them away from me and directs them to the cat lurking behind me. I swallow hard as I angle my muzzle over my shoulder to confirm my suspicion. A form draped in a ragged black piece of twoleg cloth stands behind me with two other toms on either side of it. "Father," I saw slowly as I force my body to turn around fully.
"Follow me, my Son," he replies with a taunt voice full of age and wisdom.
The Father is anything but my real father. This being is a deity in our living world; blessed by the Gods of the Star's themselves with the capability of relaying their precious messages. My entire body is enveloped in an uneasy haze as I once again force myself ahead. The grass below my paws is slick with rain and the dirt below it has turned to mud. My paws are splayed open with each step I take as the mud forces its way between my paw pads. Father is just ahead of me; his ragged, black cloak billowing in the harsh wind that whips against my freezing black pelt. His two guards slow their pace to match with my own which only causes my anxiety to heighten.
What is about to happen? I knew a punishment was coming for not helping save Brother Samuel, I just didn't know what it could be. Staying within the walls of the Sanctuary for the rest of my life? Becoming a Healer's assistant to take care of the old and ill? Every step I took was one full of angst and the natural instinct to flee from danger. I take in a sharp breath as Father comes to a stop on top of the slick hill. The sound of water running down the hill into the gully was soothing despite the coward that was fighting to flee within me. "My Son, you have sinned," he began as he kept his head facing over the hill.
I peer ahead as well as my pelt quivers from the chilly wind and rain. The Sanctuary, an abandoned twoleg den, is just ahead; it's massive structure towering above the evergreen tree tops. The front steps were made of stone as two columns on either side of the doorway stretched towards the sky. The door, made of heavy wood was broken and bent in the doorway, allowing just enough space for a full grown tom to make his way in. I glance into the black sky to see a massive cross perched upon its highest peak and around it, a murder of shrieking crows circling as lightning flashed in the stormy sky. Fog had began to settle in, leaving the grounds of the Sanctuary with a errie essence. "Are you ready to repent?" Father asks as his two guards shift closer to me.
He climbs the first level of the stone stairs and turns to look at me. Lightning flashes and lights the dark atmosphere with a white-blue glow revealing Father's narrow face. It's incredibly brief, but I can make out the scar over his right blind, blue eye, sending ice spearing down my spine. My brain is telling me to turn and run as fast as I can; why is he being so eerie about this? It was just an accident! However, my heart is telling me to remain loyal and see this through. Brother Samuel did not deserve to die; he had a mate and kittens to look after. Now they were fatherless and it was entirely my fault. "Yes, Father," I reply with a respectful dip of my head.
With a small, quick nod, something sharp pricked into the delicate skin on my neck, sending my spine arching and an abrupt hiss spitting out from between my jaws. "What the Hell…" I mumble as the world sways before me.
Father's expression is grim when I crash to the ground sending muddy water spraying out from beneath me in tiny droplets. I can't feel my legs or my own tongue for that matter. My entire world is covered in a dense, swirling fog. What was about to happen to me? What was Father planning to do?! "It was an accid-," I manage to whisper just before darkness began to cloud my vision, but not before a massive dark shadow appeared behind Father; it's glowing red eyes lit with glee and a grin curling upon its lips.
My head feels thick with tension as I force my blue eyes to open. The atmosphere has shifted from a sorrowful cool tone to an irate warm tone, making me blink quite a few times to register the warmth. I raise my head, but cannot feel my body from the neck down, but as I look around, I see that I am tied down onto a beam of broken wood. The walls of the Sanctuary stretch high above me. The roof is supported by beams of dark wood that match the dark walls. Splintered fragments of wood litter the wooden floors from a gaping hole in the roof of the den, allowing the cool, moist air of the outside in. Rain water is drizzling in, filling a slant in the floorboards with fresh water.
This place had been my home my entire life; I didn't know what was outside these protected walls. My mother had birthed me here shortly after her arrival when Father had discovered her in labor just outside the Sanctuary. They had given my mother a family she never had and a home she could never imagine, so I never left. I try to will my paws to twitch, but they lay lifelessly against the splintered wooden beam. I look down and notice a massive pile of branches of trees that are coated in sap. The splintered beam I am securely tired to is suspended about a three tail lengths above the pile. It isn't until I see a warm light waver out of the corner of my vision that ture horror and fear engulf my entire being. "No...No!" I cry out as the light moves closer in my direction.
"My Sons and Daughters, Brother Pine has ascended to the Gods of the Star's," I hear Father's elderly voice echo off the walls of the Sanctuary, making my attention wildly snap between him the wavering torch. "But, not by old age or the Godly act of a soldier. Brother Xander is to blame!"
The mournful cries from a she-cat can be heard behind me, causing me to crane my neck to see whom it may be. I see a form shift in the crowd; my mother is forcing her way to the front. Her once black pelt now overcome with the silver of old age drenched with rain water. Her deep, blue eyes glimmering with a plea and sharp panic. Two of the tom's hold her back; their massive bodys providing to be the perfect restraint for her elderly form. "Please… PLEASE! He's my only son; my only family!" she shrieked from beyond their tightly bound muscle.
I look back at Father with my ear's erect in his direction; maybe he would listen to her, they had been close for so many years. "I am sorry, Sister Adrial, but our Son must be cleansed of his sins," he replies with a sad soul tone as he adjusts his hood to show his narrow gray muzzle and black nose with a nimble paw, "Night Dwellers lurk within him; they have played tricks on Brother Xander's mind, allowing him to believe Brother Pine died from falling into the river. The Gods of the Star's have spoken to me and I have read their will. They have deemed that in order to save Brother Xander's soul, we must cleanse him of the demons known as Night Dwellers."
"NO!" My mother shrieks again as I hear claws scrape against the hardwood and then the whistle of claws through thin fur. "I won't let you kill my son!"
I angle my wide, shocked eyes in her direction to see her fighting the two toms. Blood is being sprayed into the air and all over the other onlookers by her tactless slashes at their thin pelts. "By the Gods will, end her life!" Father's elderly voice hollers through the Sanctuary in a powerful boom.
"No!" I cry out as the tom with dark brown tabby fur uses his talon-like claws to slash across her exposed windpipe.
I want to break free of these restraints and flay the two to pieces, but my body is still numb from whatever they pricked me me with. My heart feels as though it's being stabbed when I see her delicate head bounce off the wooden floor when the tom throws her aside like a piece of fresh kill. The noise deafens me as I shriek as loud as I possibly could, unsettling the entire inhabitants of the Orthodox. Her deep, blue eyes fade right before mine, sending heat over the hole in my chest where my heart use to dwell. Anger, fresh and abrupt, darkens my innocent mind. Adrenaline spikes through me as I watch the torch bob towards me - I have to get out of here! They're going to kill me! But I can't escape….I can't go anywhere.
"My Son, by the will of the Gods, you will be cleansed by fire and set free from these demons," Father rasps as he pads down a set of stairs from upon a small platform. "Everyone, we must speak our mantra with pride: The Darkness, The Earth, The Light."
"The Darkness, The Earth, The Light," I could hear their voices deepening with regret the more they chanted.
Father was pacing before me, as thunder clapped in the sky outside of the Sanctuary, shaking the twoleg structure in its wake. "After he is cleansed, we will take his remains to the Hunter's Island!" He determined, which in all honesty, was far worse than being burned alive. "All demons must be anathematized to the Hunter's Island where He may take his vermin back to the Dark Realm!"
The Hunter's Island was a small landmass within the center of the lake just beyond the river. Our ancestors had practiced unknown things on the island that drew Night Dwellers there, but it wasn't the Night Dwellers that you needed to worry about. It was the Hunter himself; a demon unlike any other. He was the Gatekeeper; the God of the Underworld. The Hunter's Island was used for only those who had the most evil of souls, and I didn't deserve to go there. I didn't do anything wrong! "No! It was an accident, I swear! I never wanted to see Brother Pine dead!" I cry out as tears bead in my eyes. "Please...PLEASE! You can't do this to me! Please don't abandon me on the Island! I'll do anything; ANYTHING but that!"
Father didn't even hesitate in his encouragement of the mantra. My throat then constricts as a horrible caterwaul crawls its way up to flee my body. It echoes off the walls, throwing the Orthodox's mantra off balance. A pure white she-cat with amber eyes pads towards me with a look of excitement in her eyes; in her jaws was a torch with a mighty flame blazing on the end. My shrieks of objection are so loud that they had torn apart my esophagus for the metallic taste of blood sprayed against the roof of my mouth and tongue. With a gentle flick of her muzzle, the torch went flying into the air. I cry out as I watch the torch fall onto the bed of branches and sap. It starts out small; igniting in the form of blue fire before it spreads in a snap to a wild, orange blaze.
The heat is unbearable; I can feel the beam of wood ignite below my paws. I shriek when the skin on my paw pads begins to split from the burn. The fur along the delicate flesh of my belly was singed completely off, making my skin bare of any protection. The pain is completely unbearable and unlike anything I had ever felt. The noises that are coming out of my vocal cords are deafening and horrifying, I wouldn't wish anyone to witness this. Just before the pain takes my consciousness, I manage to move my eyes painfully in the direction of my mother's corpse, and all my fear drains away and turns to sharp retribution. I muster what strength I have before I shout at the top of my lungs, "I swear by the Hunter himself that I will set you all ablaze for the wrong you have committed against me! You will all fall at my claws! Mark my words, Father!"
And as my last word leaves my jaws, I feel my mind begin to fade away. The fire engulfs my entire body and I embrace it with open arms. I send one last, black dotted glare at Father and see the horror on his face, but it is not this that surprises me. It's the demon that stands behind him once more with glowing red eyes and a form that towers above all else.
Pain shreds through me, causing a low moan to shatter the air surrounding me. It hurts to breath; it hurts to think.. It feels as though someone had flayed my pelt off of my flesh and rolled me in disease before putting it back on. What happened to me? Instantly, I envision a horrible fire that had set me on fire; the images jolting my body and mind out of fear. Shouldn't I be dead? Why am I still in pain? So..much..pain.. My breathing comes out in shattering and wheezing breaths I force my burned eyelids open.
The silence is deafening as the world around me is been draped in a cloak of darkness. I shift my eyes upward and see the dark clouds prowling in the sky, but I do not dare move a muscle. I give out a shattered cry to help me cope with the unbearable pain in order to help my mind, but it does not help. My arms are splayed out before me and I am shocked when I twitch my arm and see it glistening with fresh blood. I can feel the thickness of mud all over my belly and legs, but it's soothing the horrifying pain in those areas. I maneuver my eyes to look around and see gnarled trees with limbs stretching towards the Gods in the Star's in order to catch and bring them toward the Dark Realm. I know where I am, and the fear that once gripped me had morphed into an excitement. "Gatekeeper!" I holler out, "I summon you!"
What if he doesn't come? Would I just die slowly and painfully? Would the crows come eat me alive? My heart, although faint, pounds once...no, twice, in my chest. I hear the girthy snap of a thick branch ahead of me; what was that? Maybe I shouldn't have summoned him - NO! My mother was slaughtered because she tried to protect me! I mustn't think that way! "Hunter!" I scream like a lost kit; what has come over me?
A low hum followed by a deep chuckle shake the muddy ground beneath my paws. I whimper when a loud thud sounds just ahead. What was that? "Who's there?" I cry out feeling my body begin to tremble with fear; if I could flee right now, I would, undoubtedly. "Show yourself!"
What would I do if they showed themselves? What a foolish thing to say! From within the shadows, two beams of red light blaze in my direction, making my body freeze involuntarily. What is this? I wheeze out, feeling the leftover smoke catch in my lungs. "I don't know who you are, but please, kill me!" I plead out as the figure comes closer; it's so massive that the ground quakes with each step it takes.
I can feel myself begin to fade once more as black dots lurk within the corners of my vision, and hopefully once in for all. But, just before I let out my shaky last breath, the figure snaps before me; looming overhead with a sinister grin on it's muzzle. "Say my name, Xander," The deep growl that meets my ears fills me with a menacing purpose.
"The Hunter-" I utter just before the massive being opens his mighty jaws to let out a deafening roar and devour my soul.
At dusk on the following day of the cleansing of Brother Xander, Father had sent you out all alone on a mission to retrieve the skull of the cleansed, despite your objections. When you asked him why, Father had responded with, "Because, the Gods of the Star's wish to see proof of his death. They must be sure!"
You could see the uneasiness lurking deep within the one yellow eye of his, but you assumed it was solely because Father was the most superstitious among all of the Orthodox. As he should be, afterall, he was the All Seeing Father; the Prophet of the Stars. Your entire lineage had been born here within the walls of the Sanctuary and you had been raised on the interesting ways of the Orthodox. You watched as Brother Xander was set ablaze shortly after the murder of his own mother. You witnessed the curse he laid upon the members of the Orthodox without so much as a moment of hesitation. You had to do this; you had to settle everyone's unease.
Water flowed past you as you sat upon a raft that was constructed of broken branches and vines. The Hunter's Island was just ahead; a place covered in the shadows of evil and hate. Those who had been anathematized by the All Seeing Father were sent here to die where the Hunter would drag them back to the Dark Realm. You glance back to see your counterpart, a cat covered in a black cloak much like Father's, using a long stick and his forepaws to manipulate the raft across the stagnant lake. The sound of crickets chirping and frogs croaking was beginning to get more and more distant. By the time your counterpart shoved the stick into the lake once more, the raft came to an abrupt stop in shallow water. "You're on your own now," your counterpart meows; their eyes full of uneasy distress. "Get the skull and come back before nightfall. If you aren't here by the time the color drains from the sky, I'm leaving."
"Whatever," you reply with a scoff; they wouldn't abandon you here, surely?
You leap off the raft and into the cold, shallow water; it never bothered you like it did other cats. Your paws meet the bottom of the lake and you surge forward slowly as your pelt becomes drenched from the cold water. By the time you make it to the bank, you shake out your pelt and realize that place where you and the others had laid his body the night before was now gone. You open your mouth and taste the scent of Xander and blood not too far away, so with a glance back you shout to your counterpart, "A predator must have drug him into the forest! I'll be right back!"
You don't wait for a response before you tread forward. The silence here is unsettling; there isn't even a peep from a crow or bark of a squirrel. Is this place free of all life? Darkness begins to set in around you, enveloping you in a blanket of tension and fear. His scent is getting stronger, so you continue forward, but you feel your tail begin to curl between your hind legs. Something's not right; the air here is dense and hard to breathe. Your throat constricts as you swallow. Your eyes widen as you begin to look around in every direction, but all you see are gnarled, moss covered trees and dense thicket.
Your entire body shudders as a cool breeze howls through the branches of the trees; sounding as if a wolf is hunting you. Your paws begin to tingle with each step you take as you make your way to a small, shadow covered clearing. This is where Xander's scent stops abruptly. You tilt your muzzle into the air and open your mouth to attempt to catch his scent, but you can't detect it anywhere. How is this even possible? You're the best tracker in the Orthodox!
Again, the feeling of uncertainty spirals throughout your entire body. Your tail is grazing your belly fur when you have the feeling of being watched. Where are their eyes? You being to twist your head in every direction you think you're being watched from and slowly begin to back up against the nearest tree.
The tree's roots are shooting up from the ground and you don't notice until you fall backward onto your haunches. Mud splatters against your fur and against the gnarled tree at your back. You hold your breath as you look around wide eyed —you should probably run. As you gather what energy you have that hasn't fled your body out of fear, the earth shattering split of a thick branch above you echoes off the hollow trees that surround you. Your breath catches in your throat as several dried, dead leaves fall from the canopy. Slowly, you glance up, but your vision is blocked as something crashes down just a tail length ahead of you. The thud of muscle against the earth echoes through the hollow.
A shriek of terror splits from your vocal chords within your jaws. You're body is slammed against the trunk of the tree when you realize what you're looking at: the mutilated corpse of a burned cat. Your heart is slamming against your chest at an irregular speed that you can't seem to catch your breath. The hair along your spine lifts on end as you stare wide-eyed. Xander's skin is singed and torn away at areas to reveal bloody, exposed muscle. The jowls that once covered his jaws were burned and torn away to show the horrifying form of his bare boned jaws and blood covered, ivory teeth.
Forget this! You think as you place all four paws on the ground. You carefully step over Xander's remains and skirt back onto the path you came. When you turn your back on the corpse, you can see the water of the lake; you're going home. Just as you take your first step, the sound of bone snapping makes you leap and yowl in fear. You turn your head slowly to discover that where Xander once laid was now free of any remains. No, now forget this! Your mind screams at you as you attempt to spring forward but meet a wall of decayed flesh. You stumble backward and land with a grunt once more to see the form of Xander standing before you with his head hanging down. His foreleg is broken at an awkward angle as he hunches forward.
Your paws fumble backwards as you attempt to flee, but the mud that's on your paws won't allow you to get a grip on the slick grass. You call to your counterpart for help at the top of your lungs, but when you look past the disfigured form of Xander, you can see on the horizon that night had fallen; likely, your counterpart had abandoned you as they said they would. Bones crunch then crackle as Xander's neck snaps into place. His exposed jaws open to reveal a glowing red light beaming from within. His narrowed eyes are solid black with glowing red slits for pupils. You begin to cry out for anyone...anything to save you.
After a few moments, Xander has not moved. You're yelling ceases to echo off the trees, but you're still terrified; maybe you can get away. You attempt to get your footing, but as you plant all four of your paws on the earth slowly, you glance up to see Xander looming above you. "I told you all to mark my words. I told you that you would fall at my claws!" A thousand voices boomed from within his distorted figure.
The Hunter's Island quakes aggressively at the voices that are expelled from within him. You cry out, but you are silenced as Xander launches his disfigured body forward and slices his claws across your exposed throat in one erratic movement.
"I, now, hold you all in a deathgrip and your hollow king will meet his end!"
A/N: Hello! It's been a very, very long time since I posted a story here, but I am trying to get back into it! Let me know what you think of this short story! It took me approximately a week and a half to write! If you have any questions about the terms or characters, ask away and I will respond in my next post! 3
Until then..
Nightspirit