Songs: Jonny Boy's Bones - Colter Wall, Dead on the River - Ian Noe
"Oh come on. FUCK. Fucking twotting rotter shits!" I threw a tantrum. Henry's eyebrows might as well of shot off his stupid forehead..
The fat fucker had landed on my carbon arrow and snapped it in half.
It didn't take us long to stuff the disgusting lumps of rotten flesh into hessian sacks, I was tying up the big bastard like a turkey to be dragged to the river.
"We can make more arrows right?" I know he was just trying to help bring the mood back up. But between the rotters, and cleaning up all the fucking filling from that ridiculous orange coat I was at the end of my tether.
"No Henry we can't just 'make' carbon reenforced, steel tipped, people hunting arrows. Unless you can fucking wield magic then I'd say we took a pretty big hit here." Furious wasn't even an accurate description of the waves of anger radiating through my body right now.
Henry didn't even question why we weren't just leaving the rotters where they fell, I didn't even assume he knew why. I think he was just terrified of asking me another question.
"You know my life was pretty quiet until you came along!" He took my jabs with little to no reaction, which just pissed me off even more.
We would make the trip to the river and hunt for what we could find, but there would be no journey onward for tonight. I'd had the big job of getting rid of the rotter stench and the mess we made on the forrest floor. I couldn't leave a marker like that to my tree, whether it brought Hunters or more rotters it was the only place I held any attachment to. I'd already washed away and disturbed the dirt where Henry had bled, I'm doubtful that those Hunters have his scent but that would be a pretty big give away.
Compensating for the added fleshy cargo I strung up our packs higher in the canopy out of sight, we'd only take what we needed to set traps and collect water.
It took the both of us to throw the big bastard on a tarp and string him up to be dragged like a sled. Henry could probably handle him by himself, but he'd taken a nice slash to his palms which looks like it stings like a bitch. So like sled dogs we worked together in silence trudging on through the tangle of tree roots and thick forest growth.
We'd wasted precious daylight, so we were racing the rays minute by minute, by the time we reached the river and threw the rotters into the current we were both a heaving sweaty mess.
Their corpses bobbed and turned, the turbulent water crashing them into every upturned boulder along the way. They looked the same, death was death they didn't crumple or shrivel like in all those movies they just... were. I'd never stuck around to see what happened to them afterwards, decay wasn't so shocking if anything it reminded you that mother nature still ruled no matter what you became.
"I'm sorry."
I swilled water in my mouth and spat it back out purging the rotten taste and smell from my senses, I pushed the canteen into Henrys chest motioning him to do the same.
"I'm sorry I'm useless. I know I'm only holding you back." His big puppy dog eyes bore into my damn soul I swear. He was seconds away from watering eyes and a quivering bottom lip, and I couldn't handle that sight.
"You did good princess." He perked up slightly at my praise.
"You're no Van Helsing but you killed two pretty vicious rotters by yourself." I continued looking out across the wide river the current was too rough here we'd have to move up stream, there were a few calm pockets we could bathe in.
"If you weren't there I'd probably be joining their band right now." He let out a deep chuckle and I felt the tension evaporate.
"You'd make a crappy base player."
"Who say's I wouldn't be the front man?" He teased and that smile was there painting his face handsome. I couldn't stand it.
"Now that's less believable than the walking dead being real."
"I'm sorry about your arrow... I know you love that bow." That's when my skin prickles, love is a strong word. Putting love with a thing you've used to take lives, it just doesn't match up. I don't have much of a conscience left but I feel all types of wrong when I hear him say it.
"Just stop apologising Henry, you're giving me a headache." Brushing him off I push past him unpacking our traps.
YOU ARE READING
Evergreen
Adventure"It wasn't long now, time had ceased to exist. The world had become impoverished, crops have shrivelled to dust, wildlife slowly died out. There were only survivors now; groups of warriors scavenged to stay alive." My name isn't important, my stor...
