The two golden orb weaver spiders sat and waited high above in the shade of the tree in the thick of the jungle at the end of a large branch, watching her prey from high above together. The waiting had been horrendous, but her moment had finally come.
Now? She asked impatiently. More than ready to pounce."
"Not yet." Naru said calmly. Patience child."
Nadia grunted. Ok her moment would have to wait a little longer it seemed. Nadia continued to fidget and began plucking bark from the branch beside her in attempt to stave off boredom. Letting it fall and spin to the jungle floor.
Father on the other said behind her, his back relaxed and content against the tree, his arms folded behind to listen and wait. Enjoying the peace and quiet in a way she never seemed to be able to.
They had chased and guided it for hours right into the trap. It had thrashed and fought. But it was going knowhere. There was no way to escape a spiders webbing. Especially an orb weavers. She had just wanted to shoot the dumb beast as soon as she had caught it but father always insisted they do it when it was calm and conceded. She never understood why. It was a waste of time when victory was certain.
"You did a good job." Naru whispered from the shadows. "The net held up well."
Nadia felt otherwise. Her handiwork had always been supar. But it had at least gotten the job done.
"It's almost time." Father said resting beside her. Prepare yourself.
Finally. Nadia breathed a tired sigh of eagerness and silently jumped down. She ran toward the boar no longer screaming and flailing in panic out in the open undergrowth. Caught hopelessly in the inescapable web trap screaming bloody murder for thirty minutes. It had been agonoize to have to listen to and put up with and she was more than eager to hear it finally shut up.
She was anxious to see this through finally after hours of painstaking tracking and planning since early morning. She hadn't realized how much effort and patience it took into planning a hunt all by herself and it frustrated her. It had taken her a great deal of effort to convince mother to allow her to go on hunts with father. Even more begging to be given a bow for her 15th birthday as she had always wanted. Now. This was her chance to finally prove what she was capable of, instead of just being at stuck at home all the time weaving. And failing at it. Horribly.
She would not fail this.
It's tired itself out. See it through to the end. He handed her her bow.
Nadia hastend her step with tempered renewed purpose as she crept out of the shadows to come face to face before her first quarry out in the open. Illuminated in front of her by a faint ray of light seeping through the thick jungle trees above. As if to highlight how different and beneath it was to her. It was completely at her mercy and it strangely excited her. Her Bow on the string, shaking and hasty. The creature suddenly stopped wailing. And looked her dead in the eye. It's final moments in her hands, Naru was hoping they weren't agonizing.
"Can I shoot it now?. She asked drawing her bow excitedly.
Father stared at her from above displeased.
"You're too impatient. You have all the time in the world to make the shot now. Make it count and don't let it suffer."
"Yes yes father..." She groaned and rolled her eyes, drawing her bow down at the boar.
"Stop." Youre going to miss and hit its eye. Youre shaking too much.
I can hit it. Its not going anywhere. It's just a dumb animal.
Stop. Now.
Nadia turned and lowered her bow, suddenly nervous. That was not what she was expecting.
"This isn't a game Nadia." You're taking a life. Respect it." Look down at tell me what you see. What you really see.
She sighed and knealt.
A boar.
What else.
Its huffing, its angry, and its...
Scarred. It was terrified of her. It knew how much she enjoyed this.
In suddenly felt different this time. It felt wrong and alien. Despite being unevolved. She still see its fear up close. And it made her uncomfortable how much it was like her.
She now was able to look into the eyes of an animal who had not been fortunate enough to be evolved and sentient like her. A simple creature yes, but not a mindless one. It still felt. Felt the need to survive. Against a potential predator. Yes, that was what she was. And so was father, but he never took pleasure in killing as she had always seen him done while on their hunts. But she had always been a mere follower. Now, it was him that was watching her from the shadows instead. Every step and action she took, that would be how he would remember her in this moment they shared together.
She now hesitated and couldn't even bring herself to do it. And he could see it plain and simple.
"Something wrong?" He asked from the trees above.
Nadia grimmaced ashamed at her own hastiness and eagerness to end the hunt quickly out of her own tiredness. She had seen father take the shot dozens of times. But now that she was the once doing it at her own request and hadn't even considered the pain and fear she was putting the creature before her through. But father always did. And she hadn't even noticed it.
I'm sorry.
"I know. Now. He said calmly. But you asked to lead this hunt. Now. Finish what you started." Treat what is at the end of your bow with as much respect as you do toward that bow itself."
Nadia breathed and took the time to wait before slowly plucking her fingers eagerly around her simple jauari wood bow hand carved by father. She cherished it almost as much as its maker who had been beside her all her life. And now she would make good use of it for him. She pulled the silk string of golden webbing. Tightening her grip to become as steady as she had ever done as she looked upon the helpless animal in its final moments. No not animal, target. That was all it was. That was what it needed to be. But she would make sure for what she was taking from it.
Nadia nodded and turned her gaze back to her first prey. Observing its last moments alive. She had spent hours weaving this trap. Planning. Waiting. These were the final moments of her first hunt and she would not dishonor herself or her prey with a misguided arrow. It would be quick. She owed it that much for giving its life for her and her family.
She released.
The unevolved boa did not wail in pain, dropping in silence to the jungle floor. After waiting for a few moments. Father stood and emerged from the hiding of the thick undergrowth above, putting his hand hand on her shoulder to inspect before kneeling to inspect her game. She twildled the string of her bow nervous as to what he would say.
A clean kill. He said. His gentle black eyes full of pride.
Nadia crept closer and knelt down beside the animal as it let out its last weak breath beside her. She laid its head in her lap before twisting and pulling the arrow cleanly from the creature's skull without hardly any effort. Almost pitying the animal as it had died in her arms. But that was the way it was. She was a predator, and it was unevolved. That was all there was to this decision.
Her father smiled at her act of compassion. It wasn't needed. But he was glad she had done it regardless.
Nadia nodded in silence and cleaned the arrow with her tunic before putting it back to rest inside of her quiver on her back. "Are we finished?" She asked pretending to seem bored, and not shaking with adrenaline.
He smiled slightly amused before looking into the horizon beyond them, the sun was setting and nightfall would soon be upon them. "Yes. I think that is enough for today. Come, you're mother will worry if I keep you out again."
He tried to hug her tightly around her skinny arms to no response. Nadia walked over to lean against a tree and wait as her father placed the animal atop his shoulders to carry back himself. That was the deal they made, she find it, he would take care of the rest until she was old and strong enough to the entirety of the hunt herself, beginning to end. Her arms would get stronger the more she used them she knew.
The two walked back in a somber silence through the thick foliage of the jindari jungle. lined to the brim with bushes, vines, and trees as far as the eye could see. Which didn't seem very far, for the thick jungle forests were blocking much of their view around them. But she didn't worry. Father knew these ancient lush lands better anyone she knew, which really wasn't saying much. He never ever got lost when it came to leading her.
Finally, after an hour of walking they stopped standing at the edge of the familiar enormous gorge. with a flowing waterfall sprouting from above. Emerging as tears from the eyes of a colossal tiger maiden statue carved against the face of the rock in between the gap, creating a powerful river at the base of the ravine that thrashed violently against its sides far below her shadow. It was here in ancient times that she cried tears of joy as she held a mighty stone bridge in the palm of her hands to allow safe passage across her river to all who were kind and good in the jungle nation. Only now her withered hands lay bare and broken beyond repair much like her nation, for her beloved bridge had been reduced to nothing but rubble at the bottom of the dark gorge. The crying maiden now sat covered in moss and vine's without purpose. Now in tears of sadness at being unable to help visitors any longer in their safe travels across her river.
Father and daughter sat in observing the sad view yet again and preparing to make do without the maiden's help. The crossing would seem impossible to any without wings. But both of them excelled where others had failed. Quite easily in fact.
"Ready?" Her father asked excitedly. He always loved this part. Nadia grunted and shrugged her shoulders preparing her bow. Pretending she didn't also just as much as he did. She reached behind, not for her arrows first. But for her thorax resting behind her narrow waist. Pulling out a thin strand of golden webbing to tie to the rear of the arrow.
"Swinging again?" he asked before letting out a faint chortle. "Its easier just to zipline across."
She smiled. "Yes but its more boring."
She looked across the deep narrow gorge and fired the arrow, unworried with a pitiful fear of heights like her sister.
The arrow sped across the chasm to the other side to become logged in the exact same tree she always aimed for time and time again.
She then fearlessly swung across gripping tightly to the end of the yellow thread which was as thin as hair but as strong as steel with all six of her arms. Feeling the rush of air beside her face as she planted her feet against the side of the cliff before letting go. Sticking to and scaling the vertical walls effortlessly as if it were flat ground.
She climbed to the top and looked behind. Firing another arrow to her father to create a zipline to carry the meat across. Her father fastened the meat to hang by some webbing before sliding across the line himself using his bow. Landing beside his daughter before rolling dramatically through the dirt and dusting himself off smiling. She passed the boar to her father and continued along the path. Leaving her father standing by the edge of the gorge in silence, a bit concerned and saddened with her silence.
"Is everything alright?" he asked Nadia sincerely like his usual doting self.
She stopped in place.
"Why do you even bother in bringing me along? She asked him agitated and not turning around. "You know mom just want's me to sew for the rest of my life. I'm not even good at it. Why can't I just hunt with you all the time instead of staying at home? This won't change anything."
Her father stood in place silent for a moment before setting the boar down to the side and approaching. Turning her around gently by her shoulders as she tried to avoid his concerned gaze. He smiled calmly as he tilted her head and her eight narrowed black eyes up to face directly at his.
"Nadia, I know you hate weaving. But I know you'll get better over time I promise. It just takes practice and patience. That's all there is to it. We can still go hunting together."
"I know dad! She muttered agitated. "You tell me that all the time. But I try and try and try but everything I make ends up rubbish compared to the rest of you." I'm no good at it! But with this I am!" She raised her bow and fired an arrow cleanly through a single leaf as it floated and fell from a swaying tree above her. Pinning it against the branches.
"And how did you get good at that I wonder?" he asked amused.
"That's different." She muttered annoyed. "I like archery so I know I'm good at it. But if I don't like something, I suck at it. That's just how it is with talent. You choose what you're good at and you leave out the stuff you aren't because you know you can't do it right."
Really? He caressed his hand across his chin perplexed. "Well I don't like cooking and skinning animals and Somehow I'm quite good at it? Care to explain that to me? He smiled obnoxiously.
"That's different. You're forced to do that in order to take care of us. So you get used to it..." She trailed off.
He grinned victoriously. Proud of her at last seeing it.
"There you have it. You do something long enough even if you don't like it and you're bound to improve eventually just by sheer repetition Nadia. That's how I was with this bow. I was terrible when my own father gave it to me when I was young. But he made me practice every day after even if I hated it. And you know what? I got better. And thanks to that hard lesson, now I get to feed my beautiful family with fresh food I catch every day. And defend them from anything. As will you.
She let out a faint smile before turning her head toward the ground silent. Her father leaned in and hugged her softly whether she wanted him to or not.
"I know its hard. We can't rely on primal instinct to teach us these things which came naturally to ancestors anymore. That's the trade off to being evolved. It takes time and dedication. But that's something that is far more rewarding to have than being born with some effortless talent. Trust me." If I can do it. You'll do even better."
"But why can't I just rely on instinct? It would make it so much easier if I could weave without even trying like unevolved spiders. Maybe I'm just bad at it. Everything I make end's up in shambles. I'll never be as good as..." She stood silent trying not to let her frustration slip out any longer.
"As good as what? He asked troubled. She remained silent. Fidgeting with the end of her green headscarf and kicking her heel against the dirt.
"Ahhh..." he smiled. So that's what this is about isn't it?" "You're jealous of your sister."
"What?!!, No!! she scoffed. I'm not jealous of..."
"Her father raised his brow, clearly seeing right through her frustration.
"A little..." She replied defeated. "She's better at everything I do, and she's always so smug about it too! Always showing off how good she is when we go to town. It makes me feel terrible seeing her make stuff better than me every time."
"Nadia. You don't need to compare yourself to the work of others. The only person you need to worry about is you. And your sister isn't trying to compete with you. She's just having fun! How do think she would feel if she tried archery and saw you landing bullseye's every time?
"....Jealous?" Nadia replied dejectedly while fiddling with her bow string. "Maybe a little mad."
"Perhaps." He replied. "But Instead of being Jealous of you, I'd like to think she might instead be so impressed with how cool her big sister is! She already looks up to you more than you could ever know. She loves you and wants to be just like you even if you don't see it. You're strong, determined and so caring. So don't be too hard on yourself. Besides, she couldn't have asked for a better loving sibling to look out for her.
Nadia smiled. Wiping away a brief tear and hugging tightly around her father's back.
"Fine dad. She said quietly as she snuggled up against her father's shoulders. "I'll keep practicing for you and mom."
He smiled. Proud of his little girl and how much she's grown.
"That's my girl."
The two orb weaver spiders then resumed their journey home, chatting all along the way about stories and telling jokes. Finally emerging out of the thick jungle woods to be greeted with high mountains in the distance and the warm green view of the beautiful open countryside of Jeng San with their stone and thatch cottage at the base of the hill below, smoke puffing in rings from its chimney above.
What was once the crown jewel of the great ocean monarchy. Now free and independent from outside rule was set on its own path much like the both of them. Father and daughter stood in joyful silence as they let the sun hit against their yellow and black striped faces. Naru then smiled and sniffed the fresh air of his homeland invigorated as he looked across the lush isolated valley in front of them both that had finally known peace for so long. It was a quiet life in the middle of nowhere some might say. But it what he had fought for all his life to give his family. He was more than fine with that if it meant they were safe and happy beside him. Always.
"It's good to be home."