2 Chapter 2: the hunt
A gentle, cool wind was blowing in Long-Bore forest. The leaves and branches of the trees were shaking, birds were sitting on them and singing.
Their songs were high-pitched, and melodic, like the sound of a carillon. Seeing these little birds singing from their branches could remind you of a Christmas tree, decorated with little balls of all colours of hair, and accompanied by the sweet song of an angel.
The rain had just passed, the ground was still wet, the forest smelled that sweet smell of wet wood.
A sound of a crushed branch was echoing through the surrounding calm. A frightfully thin child walked, looking around him, while at the same time he mumbled bits of sentences.
"Not there. Not there... ho... not there either, actually. "
This child was Prometheus, he had just left the town of Cheerby to join the Long-bore Forest, which was on the outskirts of the town and was known for its phone and abundant flora.
Prometheus was looking for a bird's nest. But not any bird's nest. He was looking for a burning sparrow's nest.
These birds were well known in the region for their commercial value.
Their prices were high, but this was not really due to the rarity of the species, but rather because of the difficulty of catching a burning sparrow's egg.
It was impossible to train a mature burning sparrow, they were too fierce, too violent, too hateful. The nobles of the region were very fond of these birds, they wanted them as pets, to be able to show them to their friends, or to play with them. Moreover these birds were often represented on the coats of arms of the noble families of the region.
The burning sparrow was a majestic bird admired for its beauty. It had a thin neck and its head was like that of a swan. Its body was large and proud, and its wings were imposing.
Probably the most important was their plumage. The burning sparrow, as their names indicated, was covered with delicate warm coloured feathers. Some were vermeil yellow, others were fiery red and sometimes their heads were covered with bright orange feathers.
Prometheus had a plan in mind, he was going to steal burning sparrow eggs and then sell them, but first he had to find a nest.
He walked for a few minutes before he stopped, bent down and crouched behind a tree.
Prometheus did not want to be seen. In front of him less than 8 meters away was a burning sparrow's nest. He was at the top of a tree with orange leaves, which was three meters high.
Prometheus was sure that he had found a burning sparrow's nest, because in the middle of the nest there was a female burning sparrow. Its head was covered with orange feathers.
" Shit his head is orange, that means she is dangerous "
In his youth Prometheus had often stolen burning sparrow eggs, he started at the age of 11 years old to be able to afford food and shelter. It was then that his social status began to improve.
So he was used to seeing burning sparrows and he knew how to differentiate a male from a female, he also knew that the orange-headed sparrows were the most dangerous. They were so violent and resentful that they were even willing to destroy their eggs rather than leave them in the hands of humans.
Prometheus went through his pockets. He took out several stones of different sizes. He stood for a few seconds contemplating them, then he stood up with a smile on his face - his plan was ready.
In his right hand he had a stone about 5 centimeters in diameter, he closed his point on it. He made a few pats towards the nest. He took a deep breath.
Then he threw the stone with all his strength on the tree next to the one where the nest was located.
When the stone touched the tree, it made the sound of a broken branch. The burning sparrow orange-headed stood up, he was on the lookout, his two small Persian eyes turned to the nearby tree.
Meanwhile Prometheus took a second stone and put it in his right hand and threw it on the nearby tree.
At the same time he shouted, his shout was sharp and short, like a crow's cry.
The branch touched by the second stone moved, as if a bird had just landed on it. The burning sparrow standing on the tree next to it became frightened.
He shouted loudly, then flew to the next tree, where he landed on the branch hit by the stone. The bird was looking in all directions, looking for a predator.
Prometheus did not wait and took advantage of the absence of the burning sparrow to move towards its nest. Prometheus walked quickly, although not very well, his body was so weak that he was almost unable to run.
There was only 4 meters left between him and the nest. He took a short break, the burning sparrow had not yet noticed him.
He took a deep breath, his lungs filled with air, his legs and left arm contracted.
Suddenly he started to run, he used all his strength at each step, when there was only 2 meters between him and the nest he threw the big stone on it. The nest fell and Prometheus was at the point of fall.
His two hands on the flat face, ready to receive the bird's nest. He took a brief look inside.
There were three eggs inside, they were as big as swan eggs. But the eggs were red and covered with yellow spots.
Prometheus kept on running, he had to flee as fast as possible. But before he had time to get far enough away, the mother of the burning sparrow noticed him.
He had his denial and his cubs in his filthy hands of men. The animal's eyes turned red with rage.
It spread its wings and then, as if in a leap, it flew towards Prometheus, its beak wide open. The bird's flight was more like the flight of a plane in a plane crash than a flight. In a few seconds the bird reached Prometheus.
She gave him a violent peck on the heel. Prometheus, already weak and tired, fell forwards.
He managed in his fall to protect the eggs. But the bird did not give him any respite, he gave him another peck on the legs.
Prometheus, who was on his belly, tried to turn around. The bird gave him very violent blows, he even tore Prometheus' pants revealing his thin and dirty legs.
The bird attacked the shin of Prometheus, blood was flowing, the bird was going mad and wanted to reduce him to lint.
Prometheus, who was suffering terrible pain, put his left hand in his pocket. He was looking for something.
At the same time with his right hand he tried to scare the burning bird, but he was rewarded only with bites on his fingers.
Suddenly Prometheus stopped struggling. The burning sparrow thought it had won, he climbed onto Prometheus' chest ready to deliver the final blow.
When suddenly Prometheus lifted his chest, at the same time he took out of his left pocket a huge stone weighing at least 2 kilos.
The bird did not have time to react and received a violent blow on the head. Blood flowed and the beast fell on its side, its eyes closed.
Prometheus looked at the bird for a few seconds before he got up with difficulty. He took the nest full of eggs and limped away, with each step blood was flowing from his legs, with each breath of sweat coming out of his body.
He murmured, "My sweat and blood for a kingdom," he had a broad smile on his face.
***
Prometheus stopped at the market, he was in front of a shop specializing in the sale of animals.
The front of the shop was rather sober, the building was made of wood covered with fir green paint, a slogan was displayed on a sign "Give us a name, we have a price".
The only special thing about the shop was the lack of windows, which did not surprise Prometheus.
He stayed in front of the shop for a few seconds, then he walked with difficulty and pushed the door open.
Inside, the shop seemed alive, it was filled with cages in which animals were locked.
There were dogs, cats and also exotic animals such as monkeys and parrots. You couldn't see them from here, but in the back of the shop there were also more dangerous animals, such as tigers, or wolves from the ice mountains.
Prometheus turned to the counter. There was a young blond man with a slightly round face, who was playing with a baby cat.
Prometheus made only two pats before the other customers of the store turned to him. They were all disgusted by his appearance.
He was covered with dirt as if he had been fighting in the dirt, his legs were bleeding profusely and his body was skeletal. But Prometheus paid no attention to them, he was there to make money and nothing else.
He walked to the counter, the young blond man looked at him with a broad smile. He knew very well that a beggar like Prometheus would not come to his shop without a reason.
The baby cat who was lying on its stomach straightened up. He looked at Prometheus with curiosity. Prometheus stood in front of the salesman for a few seconds without saying anything.
"How much did you pay for burning sparrow eggs?"
The young blond man stroked the kitten's head, " That depends, do you have any? ».
Prometheus put his hand in his poach and pulled out a burning sparrow's egg, "I guess so...". ».
The smile of the salesman became wider and wider, he grabbed the egg carefully and then he began to observe it more closely.
A few minutes later he put the egg very gently back on the counter, putting it as far away as possible from the baby cat.
The salesman looked at Prometheus seriously, "It's a real... Um, I can take it for 100 Kester."
Prometheus who was looking at the kitten playing with a pencil did not answer. His gaze was calm and serene
"You heard me, I'll give you 100 Kester for it".
Prometheus took his eyes off the kitten and looked at the seller.
"You're joking, I hope, or maybe you think I'm a fool..."
The seller started to lose it's average, he wanted this egg of a burning sparrow, recently these birds have been very searched and the sale of an adult specimen could bring him at least 2000 Kester.
The seller did not let Prometheus finish his sentence "How much are you selling it for? ».
Prometheus smiled "500 Kester sounds honest to me".
The seller looked at Prometheus with surprise, even though his price was too high, it was not far from the average price of a burning sparrow egg 400 Kester.
The salesman nodded, "This is too much for me to accept."
Prometheus, who had been selling burning sparrow eggs since the age of 12, pretended to leave the store, "It's a shame you don't take me seriously goodbye."
With his limp leg it took him about twenty seconds to reach the exit.
But when he opened the door the salesman shouted in desperation, "Wait, I'll give you 400 Kester".
Prometheus did not turn around and shouted "500 Kester".
The salesman also replied "450".
Prometheus closed the door but remained in the store, "It's a deal."
A few minutes later Prometheus came out from the store with a smile on his face, he couldn't forget the comical look on the salesman's face when Prometheus had pulled out 2 more burning sparrow eggs from his pockets. The salesman had stuttered for a moment.
The sun was beginning to set and Prometheus still had no place to sleep. He scratched his head for a few seconds before tapping the dot on his other hand.
Then he started walking again with a strong but slow walk.
20 minutes later Prometheus stopped in front of an inn called The Gourmet Imp, he leaned over to read the sign
"Night plus Meal 40 Kester".
Prometheus looked at the building for a few moments before he pushed the door open and entered.
In the hall there was a counter in the centre of the room, on the left there was a corridor leading to the room and on the right there was a bar which also served as a restaurant.
Prometheus walked up to the counter and pressed a small metal sonnet that was placed on top of it.
A few seconds later a young brown woman who must have been about 25 years old arrived, she squinted her eyes when she saw Prometheus' clothes stained with blood and covered with holes.
The young woman came from the bar and had to walk around the counter before she could get behind it.
She looked Prometheus in the eye and defiantly said, "What's that for?"
Prometheus, who was well aware of his condition, did not take offense. "Do you make good room and board?"
"Yes, but you must have enough to pay for it."
Prometheus did not answer and put 4 pieces of 10 Kester on the table. The saleswoman grabbed the coins early, then she grabbed a key on which the number 12 was written
"Follow me". The innkeeper led Prometheus to his room, "You will sleep here." The innkeeper put the key in the lock and opened the door.
Prometheus entered the room while the innkeeper left, suddenly he turned around and called the innkeeper before she was too far away.
"What year is it?"
