Time to Gather Stones, Chapter 1, Segment 7

TIME TO GATHER STONES
by Lidia Gladyshevskaya

Chapter 1 “The Land Of Fire”
Segment 7 of 23

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The deafening sound of breaking dry branches that took place outside pointed to the fact that some large beast was coming to the ambush.

Soon, a long horn appeared from the bushes and the hunters held their breath. Melis suddenly sneezed really loudly - and the drops of his saliva flew in every direction. Ad angrily elbowed him for revenge.

The monster was massive, covered with thick fur. It was moving on six feet, thick as trunks of trees. Despite all rumours and stories it did not look like a bull or a dragon. In any way, Ad imagined it to be different.

In reality the creature was even more hideous. Its curved back was topped by a very hairy short mane and the large wild-pig-like fangs could be seen in its huge mouth. It was enough to send anyone running. But the hunters knew neither fear, nor mercy.

Melis, burning with anticipation, was the first one to rush from the cover towards the Unicorn, having completely forgotten his agreement with his chef.
In a hurry the awkward fat man caught Ad’s fur skin with his spear. He tried to break it free, but the weapon got stuck in the thick fur.

Melis pulled the spear back with all hi might, and the thick skin was ripped in half in a blink of an eye.

Ad became furious. He was very proud of his lovely fur skin that was obtained in a fiery battle with a whole pack of wolves. Such animals were rare in his land.

They lived in far way forests and would only wander to the red cliffs of Flamia, forced out by drought. The animal that attacked him, an old wolf, grabbed Ad’s throat with his teeth, and very nearly chewed through, but the caveman was very strong and was able to break the wolf’s neck with his bare hands.

The deep scars from the wolf’s teeth on Ad’s wrists were still there as the “memento, and a souvenir” for the victor.

 Get back! - Ad hissed, trying not to scare away the Unicorn.
The savage grabbed his partner by the scruff of his neck and threw him aside. The next moment the partner, who was in too much of a hurry, got hit in the face by a massive fist, and fell unconscious to the ground.

Ad stepped over the lifeless body with the weapon by its side. This very weapon just cut the priceless skin. The tip of the spear was reflecting light in a strange way.

The surprised savage leaned over and lifted a very well-sharpened spear with a red crystal at the top. It looked exactly like the crystals from the secret grotto that Ad alone knew the way to.

Ad wanted to know where the not-so-smart Melis got this stone and how did he come up with an idea to position it at the tip of his spear? But there was no time to think about it, and the bearded man chased after the six-footed creature that departed white a ways from the ambush while Ad was dealing with Melis.

He threw the spear that belonged to his fallen comrade, and the animal crashed to the ground releasing a trumpet-like howl that resounded in the woods at large. Ad screamed victoriously, even louder. He did it! Alone, without Melis’s help! The savage chose to forget immediately about his friend’s weapon, as he found himself by the dead body of the beast in three large jumping steps.

 
 Translated from Russian by Gregory Novikov @2022
Under the reduction of Lidia Gladyshevskaya