New England, 1776. Winter had taken it's toll on the Frontier as a Bald Eagle glided over hundreds of trees, burdened with thick white snow. After the predator surveyed a very familiar landscape, the eagle decided to dive for a change of pace and gracefully soared through the trees with the greatest of ease. As the eagle did so, it noticed a figure in the distance moving through the upper branches of the trees, with almost as much elegance as the eagle itself. As the bird of prey drew closer, it almost mistook the figures head for its own. The agile figure kept a healthy pace, whilst free-running effortlessly through the variety of upper branches. My name is Kuruk Achak and my method of moving through the Wilderness was a lot quicker than trying to move through the thick snow that lay on the ground. I was a capable free-runner, able to climb trees and swing from one to another, as well as scale cliff faces or other natural elements. I leapt across to a slightly lower branch, as the Bald Eagle flew right past me.
I fluidly swung down and landed in the soft, crunchy snow. I glanced up at the Eagle receding into the distance and stood for a moment, taking in the beauty of my surroundings. The snow was up to my knees and was numbingly cold, but with practiced ease I jumped through it and before long I was walking swiftly along on bare ground. I came to a stop at the edge of a dense pine forest. Dusk was almost upon me and I needed to reach my destination before nightfall, so I sprinted through the forest, expertly dodging branches and trees alike. Just when I hit a small clearing, the stench of smoke stung my nostrils. I sensed the direction the wind was coming from and ran into it, hoping to find the source of the smell. I was almost at the village, I could afford to take a detour. I scaled a small ledge and jogged up to a high ridge which looked over the whole valley. It didn't take me long to spot the source.
A fire was blazing in the centre of a wheat field, and spreading quickly. I quickly assessed the danger and scrambled down the rocky slope to the plains below. I flew through a quaint patch of foliage and burst out into the field to see the fire blazing ferociously, the heavy snow offering no respite. Damn I thought, as I dashed towards a nearby stream. I gathered as much water as I could in my arrow quiver and returned to the ever-spreading fire, attempting to douse it, though my actions were in vain. The fire had swept down the corn field, almost at the forest. I could only hope some of the thick recent snowfall would halt its advance. Then I noticed something. Over the pop and crackle of the raging inferno, I thought I picked out a voice. A hushed, subtle voice, but a voice none the less. I span round as I heard a crunch of snow behind me and found myself staring into the barrel of a musket.
'Lookie 'ere boys, look what I've found' snarled a voice. I froze, not even moving my eyeballs. Out of the corner of my eye I made out a beefy figure pacing towards me, but I was powerless to resist to whatever he was going to do. The man got closer and the musket was still pointed unwaveringly between my eyes. I kept his eye on the man approaching me.
'Whatsa little boy like you doin out here, in the wild, eh?' he cackled, in a surprisingly high voice for his stature 'It's a bit dangerous ere, especially with us around.' The figure brought his hand up and flexed his fingers, before his fist smacked into my temple. Pain rocketed through my head and I hit the ground. Every sound seemed distant. The laugh of the man, the pop of the fire, the crunch of snow. Poachers, I realised. I slowly brought myself up from the ground, dusting the icing of snow of my elkskin.
'Blow 'is brains out, Bruce,' he shouted.
No, I thought. I acted fast, bringing my palm up and flipping the musket away from me, then kicking the assailant in the knee. I spun and crunched my fist into the second poachers nose, who in shock. My vision was still blurred from the punch but I could hear other, angry voices approaching so I turned and ran into the forest. Trees whistled past me as I tore through branches and leaves. Even with my agility and fitness I was struggling, and I could still hear voices echoing through the forest behind me. I glanced back to see a flare of spark and smoke and a bullet thudded into a tree trunk next to me. I sprinted even faster, not daring to slow or look back. The uneven ground was a killer at this speed, and it was only a matter of time before something nasty happened. And it did. A thick, fallen tree log was splayed across the track in front of me, and I tried to vault it, but I was so tired and couldn't clear it. My foot clipped the top but it was enough to send me sprawling. I was flipped forward, smacking my head into the hard packed ice. The world spun and my back violently jarred. I landed in the bitter, freezing snow and it was a stark contrast to the hot, salty blood flowing down my face. Angry voices were approaching and I used the last of my ebbing strength to slither silently into a patch of dense ferns beside where I had landed. I held my breath as thudding boots ran past and the cacophony of raised voices faded into the distance, unaware they had missed their quarry. And with that I let the darkness fall around me.
I woke up staring into a pale sky. Wispy clouds floated nonchalantly above me, stark against the blueness. Ferns rustled about me in the cold breeze and the snow was numbing against my back. I went to get up but pain flared up my spine and I lay still. A few moments later I carefully rolled onto my stomach, grunting with agony. I pushed myself up onto my knees, then proceeded to stand up, hissing with pain. I craned my neck, studying my surroundings.
The forest was thick, the trees standing tall and overpowering. This was unfamiliar to me, I didn't know this area. I stumbled around for a few minutes, exploring before the pain became too great and I sat down on a thick, mossy log. From the position of the sun, I reckoned it was about 10 in the morning. I didn't know how long I had been out after those thugs started the fire and beat me. I sat there for what seemed like hours until I sensed someone, or something, watching me. I shuffled uncomfortably, feeling vulnerable in my state of disarray. Within the silence of the trees, a lone wolf cry pierced through wilderness like a pistol shot. Roosting birds exploded from the trees, raining down leaves and brush from the disturbed branches in panic. I froze to the spot, not daring to look or move.