Chapter 4

As he gets himself dragged back to reality with his painfully sore throat and a dehydrated sniffer, the young Bear slowly regains consciousness. Trying to get himself up, Akim realizes that the place he is in right now is the middle of nowhere, no longer the water trail full of bovine carcass that he was just fighting on a few moments ago. Though overwhelmed by the pitch darkness, Akim is certain about the place he was in - an enormous cave. At this moment, the frightened creature is overpowered by his own anger for no one else but himself: It was supposed to be an auspicious expedition today, Akim has clearly pictured himself proudly returning home and legally become a true Bear, and getting his neckhair braided neatly by his own father. Yet he is right here, lying wounded in complete darkness in some hellhole that he could not possibly know, his hunger almost uncontrollable, his body apparently full of injuries from the skirmish.

Wait...

A profoundly confused Akim takes a closer look at himself, his eyes wide opened, his paws running on his belly, his arm, his back. The wounds are no longer there. All of a sudden, something tells Akim that every single thing he has encountered today was merely part of his own dream.

- Save your efforts. Your injuries are healed.

Startled by a weakened voice coming from the depths of the cave, Akim instantly retreats and forms a defensive stance towards the direction of the sound. A firefly appears, glimmering as he flies around Akim, the scene reminding him of the spirits mentioned in the legends of the old forests.

- Don't be afraid. You're safe here. - The cave once again echoes with the wheezing voice, giving Akim some bit of courage to move towards it.

- Don't come closer. - The hidden creature orders the young Bear to stop where he is.

- Who the hell are you? And why am I here?

- I am the Terror of the Ruins.

- I thought… it would have a mask… with hooves and claws, and an everblue skin? - Akim inquires the mysterious creature in the dark.

- Ah, that's another one. - The lying creature giggles before getting in a fit of excessive coughs. - He's my son. Do you know why he has brought you back here, and even treated you from your wounds?

Akim shakes his head. If he was to be devoured for dinner, all those creatures had to do was to let Akim succumb to his bleeding.

- Have some gratitude for the mercy of the Ruins. - The creature speaks again. - I would always have my deepest respect for Igor the Valiant, and in exchange, he should have told his hunters to keep themselves away from my territory...

- You know my father? - Certainly the inadequate living experience at a young age has not been able to teach Akim when he should not interrupt someone.

- What? You are the son of Igor? - From the darkness of the cave, the slightly glimmering crimson firefly has lit up in excitement. In just a passing moment, Akim could identify the mysterious creature, as clear as day. A haggard old Bear with many of his body parts now completely hairless as if an incurable case of scabies, exposing his pale, ailing gray skin underneath. One of his eyes full of cataract, the other apparently blinded under a lengthy scar running from the middle of his forehead to the edge of his lips.

His hair are left unbraided, as opposed to a normal Tribesbear. Reclining himself on a terribly torn makeshift mat made from raw grasses, the Bear waves his pipe around in delight, his other arm resting on his belly. Akim immediately realizes that his vision of the fairy firefly some moments ago was just the burning ashes on the creature's smoking pipe - a dirty, sick geezer seemingly awaiting his turn to ascend to the Great Bear.

- Answer me. Are you the son of Igor? Why am I not aware of that? Is he well? And how....is the Tribe? - The ill Bear finds it difficult to control his excitement. As Akim finds his way towards the elderly Bear, apparently for a tête-à-tête, a menacing, blinding everblue light suddenly illuminates - from the pitch darkness, a creature with the claws of a Bear and the hooves of an Antler plunges towards Akim, shoving him several meters away, growling intimidatingly.

- Nakil, no! - The old Bear loudly shouts to the creature, ordering him to stop while struggling to get on his feet. Nakil carefully retreats towards his father to help him lean on the cave wall. He then sits down while maintaining his defensive posture, the everblue luminescence in his mask's four deep eye sockets and his skin mildening.

For the first time under the haunting radiance, Akim is fully aware of the situation he is in right now. The inexperienced Bear-hunter, sitting in an arid, gloomy cavern, with a plethora of scattering animal bones, skin and cold ashes, with two complete strangers.

- Will you please calm the hell down! - Akim lashes out at the creature while rubbing his painful shoulder. Because in just merely one day, he got his ass kicked by this bizarre creature. Twice.

- He doesn't speak your tongue, son. - The elderly Bear speaks to Akim. - He does not speak the tongue of the Great Bear Tribe, and I have been the only one communicating with him throughout all these years.

- What about you? What are you to my father?

- You are not supposed to know this. - Akim could transiently sense the profound bitterness in his virtually blinded eye, now wide open, even though the old Bear tried hard to maintain his silently firm speech tone. - How many winters have you been through?

- Four winters, and four springs. Today's my adulthood celebration. - For a moment Akim was full of pride as he talks to the old Bear about the ceremony, but not before he suddenly remembered that his expedition is far from over. A crestfallen Akim then starts thinking about his unfinished business without realizing the old Bear's deeply saddened state of emotion.

The old Bear is no one else but Kolya, the brother of Igor the Valiant, and Akim is his nephew. The one who abandoned his name as a bona fide Bear, hoping to leave his past behind and have a peaceful life with his half-bred offspring in the depths of the Ruins. And yet, a brief conversation with Akim forced Kolya to admit that he has, not one day, stopped thinking about his Tribe, and his own brother.

- You will return to your Tribe. - The old Bear firmly orders Akim to go back where he belongs. - Nakil will show you the way.

***

The cavern returns to its usual solitary as Nakil leaves his sickened father lying on the cold ground, to guide Akim back to the tribe. During the past five years, Igor had been day by day honing his hunting skills, his durability and tenacity far surpassing any muscular Bears in their middle age, while Kolya had gradually becoming ill since his retreat to the Ruins. The agreement with Igor has forced Kolya to live the rest of his life in the Ruins, without any knowledge behind his rapidly weakened state, seemingly originating from the cursed place. Strangely enough, his son Nakil would thrive, his strength fully enhanced as he grew up - giving Kolya the meaning to live his burdened life to the end.

Half a day later, Nakil returns to the cavern and lies next to his father. Through his son's familiarly deep growls, Kolya understands that Akim has safely returned to his Tribe.

The nightfall has come before the sights of his Tribe appear in Akim's eyes. As the entire Tribe rushes out of their camps to welcome his return, the females sigh with relief, while the male Bears would scornfully look at Akim - the son of the Chieftain has miserably failed on his first hunting expedition.

Sitting face to face with his father in their tent, Akim has prepared himself to endure his father's onerous lectures. Strangely enough, Igor would only take a close look at his son while stuffing his pipe, then he too, gives out a sigh of relief.

- I have to admit, I was a little disappointed because you were not able to finish your mission. But you fought with 3 grown Fangs and survived to tell the story. Not many experienced hunters would be able to pull that off.

At this moment, it is Akim's turn to sigh with relief, as he can now get the burden off his chest for returning to his father empty-handed. But what he did not recognize was how careful Igor was as he chose his words.

- But don't misread. It's not your moment to be so full of yourself. That fact does not change anything. You will have to stay in the Tribe until the next Spring. You will continue your chores, and go on fishing with the women and children.

- How did you know about the Wolves? - Akim asks his father as he suddenly thinks about it.

- Kiv, that weakling. He too failed the expedition, but before he returned, he had been following you to see if he could steal what you would be achieving. But when he saw the Fangs surrounding you, he quickly ran back to the Tribe, as cowardly as he was.

- Father. I saw the Terror of the Ruins. - Akim hesitatingly recounts the experience to his father. The immature personality allows Akim to quickly and fluently talk about his encounter to his father, while Igor's eyes open wide as if he's in shock.

Because it is something Igor has never wished to happen, something he was deeply afraid of - An encounter between his son, Kolya and Nakil, in his first hunting trip ever. Igor orders Akim to return to his tent, but not without telling him to keep his mouth shut.

- That old Bear… he also has a pipe, identical to yours... - Akim speaks his last sentence to Igor before returning to his camp, with thousands of questions in his mind and his heart wounded. As much as he was able to realize, Igor has respected the rules of the ceremony to the end - he did not send anyone to look for his own son who might have not survived the woods, and worse, he has decided to keep the mysteries of the Ruins away from Akim.