By Oros, was there anything that Humans made that was not delicious? Everything Samuel had shown and cooked for her over the last four days was mouthwatering and unbelievable. From the flavor to the texture, and even the condiments and sauces that went alongside the meals—It was so sublime she could Imagine Oros, or the Great Mother, snatching him away just for his knowledge of cooking alone. However, at this point, Scarletra would do everything she could to prevent that. But what good was one cursedVarintol when facing a god?

　　Scarletra moved a swathing wave of bacon grease over from one side of the griddle with a spatula and simultaneously poured fresh pancake batter onto the golden ambrosia. Just hearing the sizzling batter and sputtering bacon made her mouth water. She wanted to dig in right now—but she wanted to wait to eat breakfast with Samuel. Even if a few slices of bacon might have made it into her mouth while she cooked.

　　Hopefully, she would not have to wait much longer. Samuel was currently out in the garage. He wanted to modify a few parts of the Varintluk so she could ride inside the vehicle with him instead of plodding alongside it while traveling to the hunting grounds.

　　He also mentioned that he wanted to adjust the built-in sleeping area for the vehicle, believing the area inside was too small for both of them to fit. Scarletra did not doubt him; when it came to GU technology, he knew better.

　　Scaletra flipped the pancakes and then quickly scooped up the last of the bacon onto a rack for them to cool off. Once this batch was done, they would have all the food they would need for breakfast and lunch. Scarletra had already made several kilograms worth of bacon and nearly two dozen pancakes, which should be plenty to keep both of them fed, during the drive out to the hunting grounds she had keyed Samuel onto. Samuel wanted her to prepare this much food simply because, as he said, "I would much rather get there, get the hunting done, and not have to worry about stops."

　　Why he felt that way was beyond her; it wasn`t like it was too much trouble to stop for a few hours, find a few small animals and eat them. If he simply did not want to have to walk around more in the snow, she would gladly hunt them while he prepared a fire to cook the food. Unlike Samuel, She did not need to cook meat but preferred to simply because it made less of a mess in her fur. Blood could be a massive pain to clean, especially if there was no stream or shower nearby.

　　While Scarletra was loading the food they would take with them on the trip, a piece of bacon slipped off the spatula and landed on her tank top, leaving a greasy stain.

　　Just like Samuel had promised the morning after they started sleeping in the same bed nightly, he set the fabricator up and had it create an entire ensemble. Half a dozen sets of snug-fitting short-shorts and tank tops. Both were as black as night and had been made with the same soft, stretch, and pliable material from which Samuels boxers and t-shirts were made.

　　She was thankful for that; having something closer to the attire she had worn for years felt natural. She also thought they looked amazing on her, showing off more of her gorgeous glistening fur, and complimented her womanly assets well, having caught Samuel stealing more glances—not that he had to, he could just ask. Or stare for all she cared, but if he did stare, he better understand that it would be an invitation as she saw it.

　　Scarletra did enjoy the Jumpsuits he had made for her, but much like him, unless she was going outside for a while, she only wore her skivvies. Although their idea of an extended period could not be any more different.

　　 She mainly wore the jumpsuit if she was going into the woods. It kept insects and parasites out of her fur and made her nightly checks for them a moot point. Samuel, however, wore his environmental suit just to step outside unless it was a very warm day; in those cases, he only slipped into a jumpsuit and boots—now that was when she could not keep her eyes to herself.

　　After Scarletra had the food and the rest of her clothes packed into a duffle bag and set it next to Samuels, he returned from outside. The winds howled loudly, announcing her shivering, grumbling companions` arrival.

　　"God, the winds are bad today. My suit barely did anything," Samuel shuddered, cleaning snow off his collar and beard.

　　"It wasn`t that bad when I cleaned the snow off the roof earlier," Scarletra replied.

　　"Well, yeah, you also have a built-in jacket," Samuel quipped. "Did you make coffee? I need to warm up."

　　Did she make coffee? What kind of a stupid question was that. If she had not, Samuel would have been grumbly and groggy until he got his hands on some. That and she drank it with him.

　　Scarletra reached over and grabbed their steaming mugs and sauntered over, then handed his steamy brew over. "I also filled your thermos and stuffed it into the bags with the food for the drive. Are you ready for breakfast before we go out, or do you need more time to finish your work?"

　　"I can eat, and no, once we have breakfast, we can get moving," Samuel smiled, taking a sip from the simple unaccented mug. "The sun is about to rise after all. We want to leave soon."

　　"Perfect, food is in the kitchen. Go ahead and serve yourself," Sacrletra replied, gesturing to the door she had just squeezed through.

　　Samuel nodded and walked over to the kitchen, with Scarletra`s shortly behind. They quickly served themselves their massively different portions, with Scarletra`s tripling his meager amount of bacon and pancakes.

　　The fact he ate so little was still something she did not understand. Samuel had tried to explain to her how, just based on the variation of their size and muscle mass, she needed at least twice his daily calorie intake. That amount was calculated before they accounted for her daily walks amidst the verdant pines and whipping winds—so it was more of a guess.

　　Scarletra was not so stupid to not understand that one needed to consume more food to have enough energy to be out and about for long periods and not die. However, the detailed explanation that the GU and his species had about calories and nutrients was overwhelming.

　　Maybe someday she could comprehend the idea of a calorie and basal metabolic rate. But that day was not today. Today, simply eating enough so she wasn`t hungry and taking pleasure in the godlike combination of bacon fat, plush pancakes, and sugary syrup was enough. And, of course, enjoying the warm, eye-opening sensations of coffee.

　　"Thanks again for making breakfast," Samuel said before stuffing a piece of buttery, syrup-sopped pancake into his mouth.

　　"It`s no issue," Scarletra mumbled, her mouth packed with succulent, fatty bacon.

　　Scarletra genuinely meant that. The two of them generally did not even need to ask the other to cook any meal. They had ended up on a nearly identical daily working tempo. If one was not busy while the other was working on something around the outpost, the other would prepare the meal.

　　Scarletra could still not do much around the outpost alone, so she had cooked most of the meals over the last few days. But on a few occasions, she was either tending to the drying Litrit materials, clearing snow, or working on whittling the statue of Samuel`s late wife so he would cook. It was a simple system and routine they both naturally had just fallen into.

　　 Scarletra was getting a rough idea of what Samuel had meant by his wife being a partner, not a matriarch. She could not picture her mother ever doing half of what she did daily around here. Mother would rather lounge about and force the men of the village to wait on her hand and foot or just have one of her daughters do the rudimentary chores that needed to be done.

　　But it wasn`t like that here. So long as Scarletra was capable of doing something, she was more than happy to help. And if she was not, Samuel was always there to help her eventually understand the process.

　　"How long are we going to be out for? I only packed enough food for today?" Scarletra questioned.

　　"We will be back tomorrow afternoon, most likely. Worst case, we are out for a few days," Samuel replied, twirling his fork.

　　"Won`t Liro be upset with you being gone for that long. What if something breaks?" Scarletra asked, setting down her now empty plate and licking the bacon fat off her claws.

　　"Nah, The Verintluk has communications and supplies for a week. And if something does break, the computer will let us know, and we can come back," Samuel casually replied.

　　After Breakfast, a quick shower, and slipping into one of her jumpsuits, Scarletra grabbed her spear, donned her load-bearing belt, then stepped outside and met Samuel in the Varintluk. Eager and ready for the long, nearly eight-hour drive out to her hunting grounds.

　　—-

　　 Scarletra and Samuel were trudging up the side of a steep hill out in the woods, a half day from the outpost. The sun was high, casting heavy, intimidating shadows around them.

　　 Each step Samuel took was a struggle. His rucksack weighed heavily on his back like it was crushing his vertebrae; his legs felt like iron, and his muscles begged for a break. But they had only been climbing for thirty minutes and were not even halfway up to where Scarletra wanted to go. The snow crunched and shifted beneath Samuel`s heavy footfalls, each step threatening his stability, nearly causing him to slam face-first into the white powder.

　　 His lungs burned like fire. The frigid gale force winds winding through the trees clawed down his throat and ripped heat out from his lungs. Only for his heavy environment suit thermal regulators to push warm more, attempting to compensate. It was abject agony as the machine desperately tried to keep his internal temperatures stable. Too bad the fucking thing was not working well. The simple AI`s objective of keeping him at 37 degrees was not helped by his body naturally heating up from exertion. Uncomfortable, yes, but not deadly. Thank god it was not that horrible at its functions. Samuel had enough projects, and building a new suit was not one he wanted.

　　 He glanced up and spotted Scarletra`s red jumpsuit, clear as day, drifting through the trees. With how slow he was compared to her, he had to wonder why in all the Universe he thought this would be a good idea? He was twice her age and half her bulk. A mountain climber and outdoorsman, he was not.

　　 Scarletra was in her element. She steadily moved ahead of Samuel, scouting for any signs of the Kharnit that lived in the area`s hills. The snow did not bother her at all, nor did the low temperature. As far as she saw it, the day was quite pleasant, far better than many of the days she had over the last six years. Even with the backpack she carried, it might have been a proper size for Samuel, but for her, it was puny. It did not even weigh much, maybe 25 kilograms at most.

　　 She was excited to see how Samuel intended to use that odd weapon of his to hunt the Khatnit. She had initially agreed to go with him, assuming they would both be using spears and would have tracked, stalked, and killed a few game animals together. But Samuel insisted that they did not have to work that hard. She only had to get him within a few hundred meters of the Khatnit, and he could do the rest.

　　 She had seen the hunters of her old tribe use bows and arrows, along with javelins, to hunt animals, but those were only effective to maybe fifty meters or so. So she was slightly skeptical of his claims that he could guarantee kills from several hundred, But she would have to see.

　　 "Hey, are you doing alright?" Scarletra said just loud enough for Samuel to hear, not wanting to scare any Khatnit that might be just over the ridge.

　　 Samuel leaned against his rifle, placing the butt in the snow, not wanting to fill the muzzle with the heavy snowpack. This day sucked enough. The last thing he needed to do was turn his only rifle into a pipe bomb.

　　 "Yeah, I am," Samuel heaved, giving her a shaky thumbs up.

　　 Samuel knew he was not about to die, but the dear lord, he felt like he was about to. This had to be some of the most challenging hunting he had ever done. No, it was the most physically demanding thing Samuel had ever done as well. He was not much of a hunter, but Samuel hunted every year in the upper peninsula in Wisconsin, a few hours away from his home.

　　However, calling sitting in a treestand for hours on end waiting for a whitetail hunting would likely piss off anyone who went trudging through Montana or Colorado for Elk.

　　If this experience so far had shown Samuel anything, he needed to do two things: start using the exercise wing in the outpost, because dear god he was out of shape, and find some way to become twenty years younger; maybe then he could hold a candle up to Scarletra.

　　"I will catch up. Just keep going to the crest," Samuel said, waiving her on.

　　"Not a chance," Scarletra said, starting back down toward Samuel, covering the roughly hundred meters between them in a near instant.

　　Scarletra knelt next to Samuel and rested her hand on his back. She glanced around and ensured she did not hear or see anything worrisome. "Did you forget that this area is the domain of Barut`s hounds?"

　　"The big wolf things, right?" Samuel questioned.

　　"Massive. It takes a dozen hunters to take one without several deaths. Even then, they would have to have bait, traps, and ambush Barut`s chosen beast," Scarletra explained, heavy concern in her voice. "I doubt either of us would survive if one hunted us."

　　"Then how did you survive in their territory for years?" Samuel groaned.

　　Scarletra grimaced and turned her head away, not wanting to explain that whenever she ran into them, blood rage overtook her, and she only managed to scare them off. When Hurot was watching her, she was too much trouble for the beasts to attempt to eat; they both would likely die that way, and no creature wanted to die—not even them.

　　"I just avoided them or ran away," Scarletra lied, "So we have to be careful."

　　Scarletra knew there were none around right now. She could not smell or hear them. Barut`s chosen beasts were many things: massive, savage, cunning, and powerful, but stealthy was not a word she would use unless it was a juvenile.

　　 "If I go ahead, one might attack you. So, would you like me to carry you?" Scarletra asked?

　　 "How about no. You picking me up and dragging me to bed is awkward enough. Let`s just go slower, alright?" Samuel grunted while standing, nearly stumbling when the snow gave way under the combined weight of him and the rucksack. Luckily, Scarletra reached out and steadied him.

　　 "Are you certain I could easily carry you," Scarletra pressed.

　　 "I am," Samuel replied, stepping off to continue the grueling march up the hill.

　　 "Aww, but you are so cute when I pick you up. You squirm and argue but smell like you enjoy it. It`s adorable," Scarletra occurred, walking alongside him.

　　 "I`m not cute," Samuel argued. A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

　　 "Oh yes, you are," Scarletra teased, judging her knuckles into his cheek.

　　 The rest of the hike took them about an hour to complete. It was in no way less grueling. But Scarletra attempting to convince Samuel he was cute made it more enjoyable. Although the first ten minutes of that quickly turned into both teasing and flirting back and forth, it was essentially a game of chicken to see who would either give up first or be too embarrassed to continue.

　　 Scarletra naturally won.

　　 When they breached the trees and exited onto a near barren tableland, only thin scrub brush waved just in front of them, leading down into a capacious valley for dozens of kilometers. With sparse trees in patches throughout the valley, a slightly thicker scrub was in the center, as red as blood.

　　 No doubt it would take them an entire day just to reach the height of the other crest on the far side. Thankfully, that was not the plan.

　　 Samuel looked down into the vast, open, snow-covered landscape. The lead overcast made the already ethereal sight only more so. Something was odd about the landscape. It almost called to him, welcoming him to gaze at its grandeur and soak in its stories.

　　Looking to the left and right, the long valley was akin to a god-sized draw, with pine-covered hills jutting up on the sides. Samuel initially assumed it might have been a river long since frozen over, but no, it could not be that. It was too flat. The elevation change from where they were to the lowest point in the valley was maybe a hundred meters despite it being twice the width of the Grand Canyon.

　　 Despite the strangeness of the land, it was undoubtedly alluring. Was it the wind? The red grass? Or the odd width? Something about the place felt right. Was he starting to honestly think of Baratin as his home?

　　 "Wow! This place is beautiful," Samuel gasped.

　　 Scarletra rested a hand on his shoulder and grunted, turning her sight to join in, looking below at the swaying red grasses.

　　 "Indeed, Akam`s scars are hauntingly beautiful," Scarletra said solemnly as if she mourned the sight of them.

　　 "I feel like there is a story behind that name," Samuel replied.

　　 "A long one," Scarletra crooned while scanning every detail of the horizon.

　　 That did not surprise Samuel, with how often Scarletra had referred to various gods and characters involved with their stories. The Varintol likely had many stories to interweave what was probably an extensive pantheon. "Let`s get set up somewhere there will be the animals we are after. Want to tell it to me when we get there?" Samuel posed.

　　 Scarletra dragged her eyes from the red flora to Samuel. Samuel was taken aback by the look in her eyes. It was not the soft, gentle one he was accustomed to. Something about it looked almost regal like she had boundless confidence. But that was only there for a flash before the usual comfort returned.

　　 "Yeah, I can. Come on, we will go to those trees," Scarletra pointed at a gaggle of scraggly pine halfway down the hillside. " The Khatnit like to shelter there at night and will likely arrive soon. Let`s go,"

　　 "Lead on," Samuel replied, wanting to defer to her wisdom.

　　 It took them an additional half hour to make it to the trees. Once nestled inside, Samuel began to teach her what Human hunting was like in the modern day. They broke branches and set up a quick makeshift hunting blind that offered them a view down the valley but would make them all but impossible to see.

　　Looking around while setting up, Samuel was glad he let her lead. Scarletra was definitely correct. There were a lot of animals that called these trees home.

　　 The center of the hundred-meter circumference patch of pine was filled to the brim with tracks and flattened bedding areas. Apparently, even the Khatnit were not fans of being snowed on, with all the bedding spots he could see set as deep in the cover as possible, nestled between thorny, thick bushes.

　　 They set up in the center of the blind, with Samuel seated on his rucksack, his rifle in one shoulder, the handguard resting on a stick with a split in it, acting as a crude monopod. Simple but effective. Scarletra, instead of sitting on her backpack, had plopped down onto the snow so her head was roughly at the same level and covered by the lush branched greenery. "Would you still like to hear that story while we wait?" Scarletra asked in a hushed whisper. "Of course. We might be here a while," Samuel whispered back.

　　 Scarletra told Samuel a tale that deserved to be in the epics of the Prose Eda. Her hushed whispers only made the story seem all the more mysterious and grandiose. According to the legends of the Varintol, these wide canyon-like structures resulted from a great betrayal amidst their Gods. When the Great Mother`s husband, Akam, attempted to strike her down, hungry for her power, with the aid of their sons and two of their daughters. His claws were sharp and vast, and he cut the Great Mother deeply and carved the five valleys in the area, all perfectly in a row. Not that Samuel could see the five valleys, but he was not about to interrupt.

　　 When the Great Mother bled, the red grass sprouted from the wound. This was, as far as the story tells, the only place on the moon where this grass grows, showing how, despite the ensuing battle and slaughter of the husband and nearly all of their children, that was the only wound Great Mother had ever received. Following the battle, the Great Mother was tired and needed to rest. To ensure her remaining children were safe and taken care of, she became Baratin, her body the very ground they would rule. And leaving her care to those loyal to her in the betrayal—and leaving them the punishment of the traitors.

　　 To adequately punish the surviving traitors, their brethren stripped them of their god-like powers and condemned them and their descendants to the fate of mortality. They would live and die, forced to walk atop their greatest sin and pray to her for salvation.

　　 For the very wind and snow were her furry for their actions. Every act of nature was defined by her mood for someone on her surface.

　　 The final sentence the remaining gods bestowed to their once brethren was the males befell to the rule of the females. Not because the gods trusted the traitorous females but because, through cunning and trickery, their brothers had led their sisters astray. So, the only way for the woman to gain favor in the gods` eyes and not be cut down where they stood was to lead and atone for their willingness to follow the traitors.

　　 So that is what led the Varintol to have a Matriarchal society. That did not come as a surprise to Samuel. If that was the basis of their origin story, getting away from anything ingrained like that would be nearly impossible. Hell, humans still followed the words of god, Allah, and hundreds of other gods, many with similar ideas.

　　 Samuel was about to ask some questions about the other gods, wanting to learn more. The exciting tale of how the moon was formed piqued his curiosity, but before he had a chance, Scarletra nudged him and drew his eyes to the tall, blood-colored grass.

　　 Samuel peered down his scope. What he saw at first gave him pause: the trees were moving? No, they weren`t moving; they were migrating, hundreds of knurling jutting branches weaved through the ocean of red. It wasn`t until the Khatnit breached the cover that he realized they were antlers, tall and proud.

　　It did not take long before dozens of the beasts had flowed out of the grass. Each looked nearly identical, save for the complexity of their weaving antlers. They stood on six legs, two large ones in the front and four in the back. They looked similar to an Elk solely based on their body type, but their heads and fur were wrong. They were shorter, thicker, and topped with ears that jutted straight out to each side.

　　By god, they were massive, majestic beasts. Each likely weighs half a ton.

　　 "Well, show me how Humans hunt," Scarletra urged him.

　　 "Is there any of them I should not shoot?" Samuel asked, unsure if, like deer on Earth, you tended not to shoot females.

　　 "No, any of them will do. There are millions of them in this valley alone," Scarletra assured.

　　 Samuel nodded and focused down the scope, trying to pick out his first target. He was planning on shooting several, but they had to get at least one, so he wanted the first shot to count for something and only wanted a kill shot—after the first round is out of the barrel, who knows how they would react. They had never been shot at by a gun and might not respond, or they could bolt and be gone in milliseconds.

　　 After taking his time, Samuel picked out his Target. It`s an absolutely massive animal. Even without his magnified scope, he could see its bulging, powerful muscles flex and move while it grazed beneath the snow, rooting for something.

　　 "Alright, I`m ready," Samuel said, letting his cross-hair settle on the center of the creature`s chest. He waited, breathing slowly, only removing slack from the trigger as his cross hair was perfectly over where the Khatnit`s heart likely was. Millimeter by millimeter, the moment of truth got closer.

　　 Scarletra leaned forward and rested her chin in her hands, waiting to see what Samuel`s weapon could do. Her heart thumped loudly in her ear as she intently focused on the herd two hundred meters away.

　　 The trigger broke, and thunder echoed out from their position. Recoil pressed softly into Samuel`s shoulder. The first 12.7mm caseless round hit perfectly, boring deep into the majestic beast, splattering its crimson blood across the snow. The Khatnit collapsed in the snow without even taking a step, its cold grave welcoming it.

　　 Spurred on by the success, Samuel shifted aim to the nearest other Khatnit and continued to fire. He was slow and methodical with each trigger press, trying not to miss a single round.

　　Samuel could not believe how well this was going. He had already downed three and shifted to his fourth, although this one was in a dead sprint and would be more difficult. The entire herd had noticed their friend`s deaths, and all began to scatter at the first shot at the fourth target.

　　Samuel was excited and eager to keep going, wondering how much food he could get them. But he was alone in his enthusiasm. Scarletra clamped down on her ears when the first shot sounded. The pressure overwhelmed her and ripped away all her ability to hear, replacing it with a shrill chime, eerily similar to a Julital`s cry of the hunt.

　　 Scarletra`s heartbeat shot through the roof, and adrenaline poured into her. She collapsed to her side on the ground. The thundering roar of the rifle was unexpected and shocked her— Far too much.

　　Scarletra`s vision pulsed red, and her muscles clenched and twitched. The rifle`s report was not some tool bringing them food. No, it was the roar of enemies, the drums of war, the screams of Hurot, the god of war. Hurot roared in Scarletra`s ear, urging her to challenge the weapon so near to her chosen warrior.

　　 Scarletra slammed a hand into the snow, digging her claws straight into the permafrost as effortlessly as running claws through a flowing stream. Scarletra roared at the top of her lungs, the start of overwhelming, uncontrollable rage flowing like fire through her veins. The mighty call overpowered the gunfire in defiance and caused the already fleeing Khatnit to quicken their escape.

　　 Scarletra, with what little of her faculties were left, begged the Great Mother to stop her, to not let what was coming to happen. She could not let this happen. She would kill Samuel. Tear him limb from limb and turn him into nothing but a horrible reminder of her fate.

　　Samuel watched the rest of the Khatnit flee for a few moments, disappointed by his performance, watching their antlers fad into the grass. But his attention was ripped back to Scarletra, her screaming stabbing at his heart.

　　He looked over at her and dropped his rifle in the snow, rushing to her.

　　 "Scarletra, are you alright?" Samuel questioned, resting his hand on her. His heart clenched, seeing her writhing and clawing at the snow in pain.

　　 The moment his hand touched her, Scarletra`s eyes snapped to him, her pupils as large as her eye. Her deep snarl was animalistic and filled with venom, violence, and fury, sending a shiver down his spine. She looked furious.

　　 "Woah, Woah. Take it easy, Scarletra," Samuel said, "It`s alright."

　　Scarletra`s glare traced Samuel, her eyes picking out every detail of his body that mattered when she started to lose it: neck, skull, gut, limbs, and eyes, all fantastic easy targets for her to debilitate her enemies.

　　 But that look of fear and concern in his eyes might as well have shot her like one of the Khatnit. His eyes were deep, emerald, and familiar. The soft green was the only other color in the ocean of crimson she saw and pushed into her mind.

　　 Scarletra breathed deep and slow, her conscious mind locking onto the detail. Gradually, the red faded, and all color returned to the world. Even once her heart had settled, she did not move. Not wanting to hurt Samuel.

　　 Samuel saw her relax and hesitantly rubbed his hand on her cheek. "Hey, are you alright?" Samuel questioned

　　 "I can`t hear you," Scarletra mumbled, still keeping her hands away from him, fearful she might still snap.

　　 "Oh, fuck, I forgot to make your earplugs," Samuel replied.

　　 They remained there for a long while while Scarletra relaxed fully and dwelled on the reality of what she nearly did. She almost killed Samuel, the only person she had.

　　 Scarletra sat back up, but her eyes never left Samuel during the interim. Throughout it all, she wondered, How? How, in the Great Mother`s name, did she not freak out and slaughter Samuel? She had never been pulled back from the brink before. While some of her was glad she did not, it was still confusing.

　　 "Hey, can you hear me now?" Samuel asked, somewhat speaking loudly.

　　 "Barely, my ears are ringing," Scarletra replied.

　　 "Don`t worry, that will pass." Samuel assured, "I am sorry, I forgot to give you ear protection. The sound must have startled you."

　　 Startled her? Did he not see the look in her eyes? Or the gouges in the ground? Had he not realized he was a moment away from being slaughtered by the monster who shares his bed? Whatever the reason, Scarletra could use that and not admit it to him. All she would have to do in the future was never be around that weapon again—or just be further away.

　　 "Yeah, it did. It hurt my ears," Scarletra lied.

　　 "Again, I`m sorry about that," Samuel said, standing up and gesturing to the field, "But we have food for a while."

　　 Scarletra stood beside him and looked out over the field, and her jaw dropped. Half a dozen Khatnit lay dead and dying on the ground. If she had gotten one, it would have been an excellent hunt, but in a matter of seconds, Samuel had slaughtered them. This rifle truly was a devastating weapon. Something she had never imagined possible.

　　 "Wow," Scarletra exclaimed.

　　 "Yeah, we will be fed for a while," Samuel said, grabbing her hand. "Sit here and rest. Again, I am sorry. I will drag them closer, then we can dress them and make a sled to get them back to camp, alright?"

　　 "Ok, Sam," Scarletra replied, glad he offered her breathing room.

　　 Samuel grabbed some rope and headed out of the blind, treading through the knee-deep snow. As Samuel made it halfway, he glanced back, a haunting feeling in his chest. He had been attacked by an animal before when out in the woods. That look Scarletra had when she was on the ground was not hers. It was the hateful glare of a beast. Samuel hoped he was mistaken. But knew he was not.

　　 Was she about to attack him in some fight or flight response?

　　 Scarletra sat there and watched him lash one of the Khatnit with rope. A knot in her gut, her mind lingering on how close that was to the end of the greatest thing she had ever known. She let the guilt grip her tightly like fangs gouging her throat. Scarletra wondered if she should leave? If she did, Samuel would live longer and would never have to face the reality of trying to put her down like an animal.

　　 Scarletra stood up and walked deeper into the small group of pines. Not because she was leaving—yet. She would try to talk to Samuel about it later. For now, she could not let Samuel see or hear her break down.

　　Scarletra slumped down, her back to a tree. She pulled her knees close and sobbed. Bemoaning and despising what she was. She did not want to be a monster. She wanted the little life she had with Samuel to be her reality, not just her playing pretend because he did not know the truth.

　　 "Why Great Mother? Why? I just want to be normal again."