24 The Hunting Team

The other ends of the threads were coming out of the hilt of a stone sword that was embedded in the very depths of a canyon. This canyon was located between two sharp and towering peaks on the Dragonite Farm. As the strings came out of the hilt of the stone, embedded halfway into the ground, they began waving and dancing in midair. If Icarus was here with his metaphysical 'switch' on, he would have been shocked to see the thread of light actually interacting with the red threads of fate and karma. The threads changed and weaved them as they danced until finally withdrawing into the hilt of the sword. The youth withdrew the threads into his hands, seemingly satisfied. 'Well, now that the pieces are set, all I have to do is wait for the guy to come here.' After saying this, the youth simply laid down on the grey ground and closed his eyes, seemingly listening to the silence.

The sunlight streaming in through the window fell directly on Icarus. He squinted as he slowly opened his eyes. That was also when the memory of last night's event came back to him. Accompanied by the fear. He didn't panic this time, perhaps because he had a good night's sleep but he was able to process the feeling that was emanating from inside him better. It wasn't a threatening feeling, instead it was similar to a long-lost lover was calling to him. Shaking his head, he decided to think about it later as he couldn't do anything about it now. Getting dressed, Icarus soon came down to the dining room and found his father sitting on the dining table with the kitchen completely quiet. Finding this atmosphere odd, he took a seat in front of Daedalus, with a puzzled look on his face.

'Icarus, Caylus told me that you are going hunting today.' Icarus nodded to affirm. 'Hunting is a dangerous task son, I want you to stay back and let your uncles take care of it.' Seeing his father's concerned expression caused Icarus to have a warm and fuzzy feeling within his chest. He nodded, furrowing his brows to display the focus and seriousness. His father repeatedly warned him about the dangers of hunting before he reached into a leather bag that was sitting beside him and pulled out a leather suit. 'This was the suit that I wore on my first hunt. It was given as a present to me by my sister and mother as a present. Now I pass it on to you.' Icarus nodded and grabbed the leather suit off his father before rushing upstairs. After a few minutes, he came down dressed in tight dark brown leather armour with dark leather pauldrons and arm guards. He could tell the amount of thought and care put into crafting the armour by his ease of movement in the armor as well as the fact that there was beautiful decorative embroidery and carvings on the armour. 'Do you like it?' Daedalus asked, a hint of anticipation in his voice.

Icarus nodded, 'it's functional as well as elegant.' He paused a bit before continuing, 'I love it!'

'Hahaha!' his father let out a hearty laughter as he heard that and picked up the leather bag, handing it off to him, 'your lunch is in here.' As if on cue, the sound of galloping hooves echoed through the door. Icarus nodded and grabbed the leather bag, slinging it over his shoulder as he rushed outside. Caylus was trotting up with on his white horse alongside other people behind him. The black mare was trotting beside the horse, except he could clearly tell that it was having trouble keeping up. Caylus stopped a few meters from where Icarus was standing and got off his horse. Others stayed on their horses as Caylus handed off the reins of the mare to Icarus. 'Let us hurry young lord, we are already slightly late. I will introduce you to the team on the way to the Farmhand Settlement.' He nodded and got on. Looking back one final time at the house, he galloped off in pursuit of the others.

Icarus soon found himself standing on the training field at the Settlement. 'Right, let's begin the introductions, everybody.' Caylus clapped to break the somewhat awkward atmosphere that was in the air due to the not speaking for so long. A skinny man walked out of the group, wearing a dark greenish coloured armor. He had frizzy black hair and hazel eyes with a thin nose. 'My name is Hick, young lord, I specialize in tracking.' He gave Icarus a smile before backing into the circle. Another man walked out of the circle, this time he was a hulking giant that was two meters tall, with shaggy rustic brown hair and a gigantic shield behind him. 'I am Frank young lord, I am the Vanguard for the team.' One by one, the rest of the men came forward, introducing themselves to Icarus along with telling him about their role on the team.

As they were explaining their roles Icarus started to understand that a hunting team needed to have some basic structure as well. They needed someone to be their vanguard, with one person who would be tracking the prey and damage dealers. Yes, damage dealers and by judging the size of the shield, Icarus could tell immediately that it wasn't any old boar that they were going to hunt. He started to get excited as he fantasized about defeating monsters, something everybody wanted to do ever since they were little children. He didn't let the dazed expression get to face, however, as he didn't want to appear anymore unreliable than he had already been deemed. Finally, after everybody was done, they all stared at Icarus with some anticipation in their eyes. Icarus realized that they were waiting for him to introduce himself. He took a step forward, taking a deep breath at the same. 'As you all know, my name is Icarus Dragonsword,' pausing a bit for the dramatic effect, 'and I will be joining you guys as an archer.'