Shuttling through the woods , a thin figure seemed dextrous like a cat , full of life and agility . It shuttled and ran to a small pond which was more like a swamp in the dirty ,,Black mist filled woods.
The figure climbed dexterously on the tree , looking vigilant at the surroundings. It's heterochromic Blue and Gold eyes jumping with flame of life. Near the swamp was a mutated Snake beast currently slithering towards the swamp.
The thin figure exploded with strength that it shouldn't have and threw a worn out metal dagger that hasn't completely lost it's edge towards the head of the snake beast.
The beast instinctively wanted to avoid the oncoming danger but it was slow to react by only a fraction .
'Fuuuu'
'I couldn't do this anymore' Rex came down from the tree and went towards the snake beast . Skinning and seperating some useful organs would have been best to sell it at higher price. But Rex wasn't in the mood today.
......
"Hey Boy " , Dylon patted Rex on his shoulder lightly. It was a form of encouragement from an elder, thinking that Rex was sad for not hitting much prey today.
Rex just smiled and didn't say anything . He couldn't tell why Uncle Dylon looked at him strangely, not that he cared even. It might be cruel , but that is the truth. In this Dark world , if you care , you would drown deeper into the quagmire. No one knows who they will lose in the next beast tide.
Rex sold his snake beast and two Rat beasts he hunted earlier to Hunter's Association. According to Hunter's Association , Anyone who can hunt is a hunter . It's just the level of permissions each hunter has differs.
He walked through the streets and came to a small alley near the outer edges of city , crowded with people .
Buying three servings of beast meat today , he almost spent his this month's earnings. But one couldn't see much reluctance on his face.
Rex walked through the alley to stairs leading underground. The further down is a city almost as large as the city on surface. But the thin and scrawny people, tattoed gansters could be seen here and there.
He walked back to his home. A metal door was in front of him . Taking a deep breath , looking at the Food box in his hands, he entered the door finally. The metal door made a screeching sound when pushing and closing again.
He didn't care. Smiling in the direction of small table with 4 chairs around it , he quickly walked to the kitchen to divide the food in the box. Placing the food in front of two chairs and walking back to his own chair, he started eating.
No one spoke. Then he started talking . About what he had done these days. How he almost died at the hands of a Tiger beast. How he hunted a snake beast today.
Time ticked. No one answered him even after listening to his story. But he didn't feel bad at all and continued talking af if to tell all the stories he had accumulated these days to the people in front.
The atmosphere was harmonious. It would have been quite a warm scene of young man telling his grievances and achivements to his family , If only the chairs weren't empty.
Tears trickled down his face. It was already 5 years . 5 years ago , a beast tide happened near city J , all the safe zones near the city were crushed. Even the city barrier was almost shattered to pieces. Numerous lives were lost again.
Among them were Rex and his family. When the beasts attacked, he watched his Father trying to save him and his younger brother. He sent them both towards the Gaurdian team from city in charge of rescue. It didn't help though. They were only children. A child of merely 9 years in age. His twin younger brother was holding his hand . They both wanted thier father to come too. It was too late. Numerous flying beasts suddenly attacked. When he lost conciousness , the last thing he saw was his brother running towards him .
Everyone died. That was what he was told. He wanted to deny the reality, but the facts were in front of him . The burning ruins of once called safe zone and almost ruined city told the story of how savage the beasts were in thier rampage.
The flaming ruins with rotten smell of blood of beasts and charred corpses of beasts and humans. This was the scene the nine year old Rex saw when he woke up after three days , hungry and thirsty under the scattered remains of a broken building. It happened that the remains when fell down created a small narrow area inside where he could barely be squeezed.
He wanted to cry , wanted to make trouble. But there wasn't anyone who would care about his tears anymore. A nine year old boy grew up overnight.
A corpse was found in the ruins , that was his father. But his brother didn't even had his corpse remaining. At first he was overjoyed , thinking his brother may be alive.
In these five years , he worked day and night trying his best to get into Warrior's Academy when the time comes. He wanted to search for his brother.
Dreams are beautiful but reality is cruel . The number of corpses that were summed up had no missing in them . His family was dead.
The Fourteen year old boy who showed maturity and steadiness beyond his age during the hunt was now crying like a child whose world was shattered.
The news from the Administration shattered all his fantasies.
This year , he truly lost his family. For the first time , he didn't sat there alone for one , but two people's death anniversary. He was crying in willfulness for one last time.
He wanted to tell them , tell his father and brother how aggrieved he was.
When three hours later Rex wiped his face with a wet towel ,his red and swollen eyes showed his plight a moments ago . But at this time , he was calm, just like he was in the forest. A steadiness and maturity that would let people ignore his age.
He walked towards the only bed in this cramped room , a rusted iron bed. On the head of the bed was a small wooden box.
He opened the box and rummaged through it. The small toys in the box made a xlang! Clang! sound clashing with each other. They were the toys he and his twin younger brother used since they were child.
He never had a mother. His father never told them who she was , he wasn't a curious child though.
But hus brother was different . He pestered father for so long just to ask the other people's mother made him a toy. Father had to work hard to make one for both of them .
He shook his head and thrw the thoughts away. No one could deny, thier father was both a father and mother figure for them .
Finally finding something , he brought it out and put the box back into the compartment near the head of the bed.
It was a woven rope with small cubic wooden beads interwined in the middle. The small woven rope was made quite meticulously as if the weaver had put his heart into making it.
Putting the rope on his left hand, Rex crept onto the bed and putting on a thin blanket , fell asleep. If one would rotate the beads on the rope ,they would find the words R-E-X respectively on the three wodden beads in the middle.