Page 23 of Moon Chosen

“All right, but be quick. It’s well past sunset, and I don’t have to tell you what that means,” Davis said, handing him a lit torch.

Nik nodded, his expression turning somber as he latched the door of the cage shut. “That’s why I have this.” He lifted the Guardian’s crossbow.

“I hope you don’t need it, but I’m glad it’s you holding it,” Davis said, adding grimly, “Hey, don’t know if you’ve heard or not, but some of us Hunters have been finding some pretty strange signs out there lately.”

Nik was taken aback. No, he hadn’t heard of anything weirder than the usual mix of deadly insects, poisonous plants, and mutant humanoids. “Strange signs?”

Davis looked uncomfortable. “I shouldn’t say anything. Thaddeus ordered that I keep my mouth shut about it.”

“Hey, no worries. I won’t say anything. What strange signs are you talking about?” Nik felt a crawling up his spine.

“I found a stag. He was half skinned.”

“Someone wasted something so precious? That is strange.”

“It’s worse than strange. The stag was still alive when I found him.”

“What?”

“The only injury he had was that he had been partially fileted alive.”

“Skin Stealers! Why were you hunting so close to the city?”

“That’s just it, Nik. We weren’t close to the city. And we didn’t see any other sign of Skin Stealers. It was terrible. Truly awful.” Davis paused, shuddering. “I put him down. Quickly. It was just Thaddeus and me on a training Hunt. The stag practically ran into me, appearing in the middle of the trail all of a sudden. I took the shot with my crossbow, and then followed up by slitting his throat. The poor creature was mad with pain. It struggled. Its blood was everywhere… everywhere.” Davis shook his head, looking pale. “When I hit the stag’s artery Thaddeus was close by, and the spraying blood spattered his face, actually getting into his eyes and mouth. He said there was something wrong with the blood—that the rancid taste of it gagged him.”

“You didn’t bring the meat back to the Tribe did you?”

“Absolutely not. You should have seen the creature, Nik. There was something very wrong with it. We built a pyre and burned its body.”

“Sounds like you did the smart thing. It probably was sick and wandered too close to Port City and the Skin Stealers attacked it. Bloody beetle balls those mutants disgust me! Though I didn’t think they messed with animals. I thought they only skinned—and ate—people.” Nik grimaced, his stomach roiling.

Davis shook his head. “They’re completely insane. They do skin people alive and eat them, which means nothing they do makes any sense.” He paused and then added. “Hey, thanks for letting me get that out—and thanks for not saying anything about it.”

“No problem.” The pup yipped imploringly and jumped against Nik’s leg. “Okay, sorry, I see you.” From inside the lift Nik looked through the wooden slats at Davis. “Hey, don’t worry. I’ll be quick and careful. The three of us will piss and then I’ll wave the torch for you.”

“And I’ll bring the three of you right up. Piss fast.”

Davis released the lever and there was a series of clicks and the clattering of the great chain salvaged decades ago from the wreck of what, centuries before, had been a thriving city of two rivers—but was now a nightmare of death and danger. The platform lowered slowly and smoothly while Nik peered down into the forest blackness, trying to see if anything waited or slithered below them.

Here the moon had a difficult time reaching its delicate silver fingertips to the forest floor, and the best that even the fullest of moons could do was to touch the green beneath the canopy only slightly, not truly illuminating anything, but rather adding an eerie, underwater quality to the night.

The lift came to rest on a well-cleared circle of ground, covered with thick moss. Nik reached through the cage slats to place the torch in the upright log that had been slotted as a holder. Cautiously, he studied the surrounding forest, already feeling the prickling just beneath his skin that always came when he left the sanctuary of the city in the trees.

The torch cast a small globe of yellow around them, which lit the pine needles and moss that carpeted the forest floor. No underbrush was allowed to grow near the lift, though Nik noticed a thick log that lay recklessly close to their circle of light.

“Must have come down in the windstorm last night. Strange that no one cleared it today,” Nik said, hesitating to open the cage door as he studied the broken bough.

The pup whined plaintively and jumped against Nik’s leg again as Cameron huffed and snapped playfully at his heels. “Okay, okay!” Nik laughed. “I get it. You two have to go.” He unlatched the cage door so that the two canines could spill out. “Stay close!” he voiced the familiar command. The Terrier instantly complied, circling back to Nik and lifting his leg on the stump that held the torch, almost getting Nik’s feet wet. “Well, maybe notthatclose.” Chuckling, Nik went a few strides away from the lift and untied his pants, not far from the pup, who cocked his head to watch him, and then squatted to relieve himself, reminding Nik of just how young he was.Maybe it isn’t too late. Maybe this one will choose me.

“All right then, let’s go home,” Nik said, gesturing at the cage with the crossbow and feeling doubly relieved as he headed to reclaim the torch and the Terrier that waited beside it. “Inside!” he called the command that all of the Tribe’s canines learned to obey before they were fully weaned from their mothers. Cameron jumped into the cage, and then stared behind Nik, whining softly.

Nik turned, and a sickness began to fill his stomach.

The pup was exactly where he had been when he’d relieved himself, only he wasn’t watching Nik anymore. He was staring out into the blackness, ears pricked, and tail up.

“Pup! Inside!” Nik commanded.

The young canine turned his head slowly and met his gaze. Nik was suddenly filled with a flood of emotions—happiness, confidence, and, lastly, regret. And then, before Nik could move, the pup sprinted into the black maw that was the forest at night.