The Cave

The Cave

          The village was in an uproar. Various townsfolk were yelling and screaming at the top of their lungs. Most of it was just noise, with a few interpretable words here and there. Monster…attacked…do something…the children…severed arm.
          “Silence!” The lord of the village’s voice rang out above the crowd. The villagers fell silent except for a few muffled whispers scattered about. The lord resembled a peacock, in his flamboyant garments, standing before the mob. He gestured to the mercenary, standing next to him, and the man grabbed the hilt of his sword as the lord began to speak.
          “My friends,” the sound of fear echoed throughout the silence, “I know you are frightened. And for good measure. Some foul devil has plagued our land. It has slaughtered some of us while we’ve been out at night, and a couple of us in our sleep.” A man standing nearby shuddered and bowed his head.
          “Tonight…I say…no more! The beast will be slain. I will pay a handsome reward to the men who bring me the foul things head. Are there any among you who will show bravery for this noble task?”
         An older man with long black hair, that had some grey peppered throughout, stepped forward. His skin had been kissed by the sun and his broad shoulders showed he knew how to get by in a scrape.
         “I’ve been hunting the beast for two nights now. I believe I know where it lays its head during the day. I will kill your devil, my lord.” The crowd stared at the man for a brief moment before returning their gazes upon the lord. The lord silently nodded in agreement.
         A man leaning against a rake, more slender and less gruff looking than the hunter also stepped forward. Without a word he simply raised his hand in the air. The lord acknowledged the second man and then saw the local butcher, a rather portly man, raise his hand shortly after.
          The lord began to open his mouth, when some of the villagers began to stir. He fell silent and looked in the direction of the commotion as another man began to walk forward. The man had pale blue eyes, was dirty, and clearly stole the clothes that he was wearing as they were too big for him.
         The village knew the man all too well. He showed up a year ago and they had dubbed him the village fool. He was only known for drinking and rambling nonsense. The lord couldn’t help but stifle his own laughter as he saw the fool approach. After the four men gathered next to the lord, he raised his hands to settle the village again.
          “We have our hunting party and what a fine troupe,” the lord began, “The hunter, the farmer, the butcher, and…the fool.” A mix of laughter and cheers erupted amongst the villagers.
         “Rest yourselves for the night. For in the morning you will all end this nightmare.” The lord then dispersed the crowd.

          The next morning, the hunter was tightening his bow string while he waited on the outskirts of the village. The farmer was the first to arrive with his nap sack and a spade. Surprisingly, the fool was the next to arrive. The hunter asked where his weapon was and the fool brandished a small knife.
          The hunter turned away as he rolled his eyes. The farmer simply smirked at the fools’ failure to grasp their situation. The butcher finally arrived with a hefty bag full of supplies, his cleaver was tied haphazardly to his waist.
         The group did some last minute checks before the hunter, taking charge, called for them to move out. They all silently and unintentionally fell into a line as they walked out of the village limits.
         They hiked until the sun was just barely over the horizon when the hunter pointed out a cave ahead of them. They grouped up a hundred meters from the mouth.
         The fool started towards the cave. The hunter grabbed him by the arm to stop him and wagged his finger. He gestured for the men to sit down and rest.
         “We need a plan,” the hunter stated. The farmer picked at his teeth and stared off into the distance. The butcher opened up his bag and pulled out some meat to start gnawing on. The fool rolled his eyes and flopped onto the ground.
         “First thing,” the hunter started, “we do not separate when we get inside. We don’t know what kind of beast awaits us.” The others perked up and brought their full attention to the hunter.
         “I suggest we wait for the beast to come out of the cave,” said the farmer, “it’ll be daylight and we’ll have an easier time seeing it.”
         The butcher chimed in, “I believe we should follow the hunter on this one. He is the expert on these sort of things.” The farmer hung his head for a second and then glanced at the fool.
         “What say you fool?” The others looked at the fool awaiting his response. The fool looked back and forth between the hunter and the farmer. He didn’t say a word, but instead pointed at the hunter.
         “That settles it, rest up for a bit and then we head in,” the hunter declared.

         The group approached the mouth of the cave. The hunter had to stow his bow as he lit a torch. He was not prepared for the darkness inside the cave. The men slowly advanced with only the small glow lighting their way. They walked about a hundred paces before they reached a fork in the cave.
         “So much for not separating,” the farmer jested.
         “You’re right, we’ll have to separate and check both paths,” the hunter said. The hunter lit a spare torch and handed it to the farmer.
         “You and the fool had left, the butcher and I will take the right.” The farmer started to protest, but was silenced by the hunter.
         The farmer let out a faint groan and then departed with the fool down the left side. The other two watched the glow of their torch fade into the darkness.
         The hunter gestured to the butcher and the two began hiking down the left path. The butcher slipped on a loose rock but managed to catch himself. The hunter stopped briefly to ensure the butcher wasn’t injured. He thought to himself that he would’ve been better off pursuing the monster by himself.
         After a few hundred feet, they came out of the tunnel and found where the forks meetup again. Waiting for them was the fool, his eyes wide and his clothes covered in blood.
         “What happened?” The hunter asked.
         “Farmer’s dead,” was all the fool was able to say.
         “How?” The hunter probed. The fool kept staring into the darkness. The hunter gestured at the fool, but the fool showed no sign of responding.
         The hunter glanced at the butcher who gave a slight nod to the hunter. The hunter prepared his bow, left his torch with the butcher, and ventured into the darkness.
         About halfway through the tunnel he saw a dim glow. He stopped to prepare himself, then he slowly approached. The farmer was laying on the ground, completely motionless. The hunter got closer to inspect.
         The farmers eyes were wide with fear. His mouth hung open. There was a cut across his neck, and blood all over his clothes. The hunter picked up the fading torch and held it up to get a better look at the cut. It was small, the monster wasn’t as giant as they had believed.
         The hunter processed what he was seeing, trying to think of anything he had hunted that would produce a cut so small. He ruled out bears, cougars, and wolves. What else could it be? What? Suddenly he remembered the knife. That simple little knife that he laughed at only hours before.
         He realized the situation they were in and needed to get back to the butcher. He stood and turned only to come face to face with the fool. The hunter felt a sharp cold pain, just under his left breast. Then he felt his stomach get warm. He fell to the ground watching his own blood trickle onto the ground.
         The fool stood with a torch lighting his face. He was emotionless as he squatted down next to the hunter. The hunters’ breathing was getting shallower and he was struggling to receive air. He kept his eye on the fool until the light finally faded.
         The fool noticed the spark had left the hunters eyes and proceeded to grab the hunters hand. He then cut off the hunters’ index finger, pulled out a cloth and placed it next to two others. He wrapped it up and tucked it into his waistband. He let out a sigh, stood up, and started walking towards the mouth of the cave.

         A few months later, there was a feast being held at a castle. The king had spent a fortune to ensure his subjects were justly rewarded for holding off invaders. The tables were overflowing with meat, bread, and ale.
         The steward was informing the king of their losses when a knight opened the doors to the great hall. The feast grew quiet and the king let out a hearty laugh. He was smiling from ear to ear as the knight approached him.
         “Sir Percy, how goes the hunt?” The king asked.
         The knight lifted his visor, revealing his pale blue eyes, “So far the beast eludes me sire, but I do believe the next village will fare better.”