1. Leafshade

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It all started with hand signs and weird sounds. Groups of Homo sapiens started to create something totally different. Language, tools, and weapons which were used for survival. Afterwards, more new advanced tools came into the picture, these were the ones created by not one but a group of people. These were usually appointed by the chief of the so-called settlements.

There were clashes between settlements and mindsets but the clashes were totally based on survival. Some like-minded settlements opted for mutual benefit or alliances. Those which might even be remembered in history if the later generations survived.

One such settlement was Leafshade Hamlet. The name Hamlet was actually the name of the first chief who helped the settlement survive the attack and onslaught from the Tundra Haven which was a group four rivers ahead. The Weapons here were normally made from sticks and stones but some groups used weapons made of bones. These were usually the groups that encouraged cannibalism and used this as an excuse to take the enemy settlements. They were known to have powerful warriors and brutal leaders.

--In Leafshade Hamlet Early Morning--

"..c…..chief..chief"

"Ugh…. what happened?" I look towards the entrance of my house and see two of my scouts calling me.

"A pack of wolves has been spotted hunting one river ahead. They seem to be heading towards our direction."

"We have notified the guards and awaiting your commands."

"Damn, guard the women and children, others with me," I shout while walking outside. I suddenly feel a light pull and looking below I spot my son 'Tharok' looking at me with curious eyes.

"Later boy, right now Dad has to protect the village. Stay with your mom and here take this."

I take out a sharp stone knife from my leather bag.

"Protect the family."

My son looks at me with determination and takes the weapon. I then look towards Gorak.

"How many pups are there?"

"At least four chief."

"Ready the weapons, we are going to surround them and then attack."

I take out my spear and point towards the river.

"For Hamlet."

Others also take out their weapons and do the same. After this, we started discussing the plan.

"Gorak and five men will take advantage of our head-on assault and surround the wolves. Don't let any of them escape, there might be more of them living on lands far away."

Everyone nods in understanding and the plan is immediately put into effect. Now here I am, walking near the entrance of our village with twelve men guarding the area from every side. Everyone is walking with several wooden spears, the first assault will be a ranged one and we do have a pretty good advantage. Watching closely I spot a deer running towards the river nearby. The deer seems to be injured but it is still desperately running. Then finally I spot the wolves, there seems to be four wolves at the front with two more barely visible.

"Wolves incoming, prepare for the assault boys."

With this, I tighten the grip on my spear and others follow behind. I then whistle in a systematic way and throw my spear as far away as I can.

The spear flies in the air and strikes land far away from them. The deer is now caught by one of the wolves, they start tearing it apart and eating it. One of the wolves is way too big than the others and he starts to growl in our direction. I take up another spear from the ground and start yelling to scare it off. The others behind me also follow suit and start striking their sticks on the ground.

The deer is now just skin and bones plus all the wolves are growling at us. The nearby forest echoed with the sound of growls and now I am certain there are more than just six wolves.

The battle has started and now we are throwing our spears at those wolves. Most of our spears miss them, while two hit the big wolf. There is no time for another throwing session as they are just in front of us.

The massive wolf lunged forward, teeth bared and snarling. My men with spears held high stood their ground, shouting in defiance. The battle is intense, we are being overpowered because of that big wolf, but just then I sport Gorak and their group. They are armed with clubs and spears, Gorak uses his club to hit the head of the big wolf. The wolf is hit and growls in pain while retreating. The other wolves start to change targets but we will not let them.

The battle was intense and primal. With precision and power, we were able to defend ourselves. The forest echoed with sounds of cries, growls, and whimpering. Eventually, the wolves are defeated and the big wolf is dead. There is silence now with occasional chirps of birds and grunts of wounded men. We are victorious but are exhausted with broken spears and bones. Two of the braves have perished in battle while five are injured.

We start carrying the dead wolves, dead men, and the wounded. I go ahead and collect the bones of that deer.

"Take the injured to see Ayla, me and Gorak will carry the dead braves one last time".

We have our belief that before burying the dead, they should be taken to their homes. It helps them lose attachments from this life and follow the path of our founder Hamlet.

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