Rise Of The Hunters - Chapter 26

“Wait. I don’t know what a government is, or a military. And if there have always been vampires, how are they just now making the monsters when people are living in holes? How do you even make a monster?”

“Wait, people are living in holes?” Rick returned his puzzled look.

“The last compound I lived in, was underground. The people had dug out rooms and tunnels connecting them.”

“How did you keep it from filling with water when it rained?”

“The entrance was inside a tree so the rain didn’t come in. It got a little damp, but never flooded.”

“Wow. I’d almost like to see that.”

Xun shook his head. “I’ll never go back, too many bad memories.”

Rick nodded and patted him on the back softly.

“Well, to your question, a government is a group of leaders. Just way bigger then what we have, and a military is a group of trained fighters.”

Xun nodded. If there were more people it would make sense there would be a need for more leaders.

“So, if we get rid of the vampires, there wouldn’t be any more monsters?”

Rick’s mouth opened in shock. “That’s…that’s what you got out of that??”

Xun’s brow scrunched in confusion. “But, that would be true, right?”

Rick shook his head in amazement, then thought about it seriously.

“I think so? I’ve never thought about fighting them back. It’s always been about surviving them.”

“Do you know what their weaknesses would be? The newspapers said sun and water…”

Rick waved a hand, “One of the books downstairs stated that they were also weak to silver, had to stop to count things scattered around them, like seeds or whatever, and had to untie knots if they encountered them.”

“Why?” asked Xun, puzzled. “If the vampires can make monsters, do you really think they would have a problem with counting and knots? That seems like something someone came up with to calm their kids at night.”

Rick opened his mouth, then closed it. He hadn’t thought of that before.

“I want to know if there are any books on cooking over a fire, how to identify plants, maybe something about surviving large animals?”

Rick nodded and led him out of the room and over to the various sections. They spent hours looking through books to find exactly what Xun was looking for. There were several times that Rick would find something on a top shelf that Xun hadn’t noticed. By the time they were done, he had seven books to read, including the one already in his bag.

“If you don’t let anyone see you with them, I won’t tell anyone if you take them with you,” whispered Rick, glancing around.

Xun looked at him with amusement. The big guy was so funny, despite looking like a hulking terror. It was like a two-year-old in a man’s body.

“That was exhausting, let’s go get something to eat.” Rick led Xun out of the library and to the cafeteria.

After they had their food and sat down, Rick looked over at the food Xun had grabbed.

“Are you gluten intolerant?” he asked, taking a bite of his bread.

“What’s that?” asked Xun, taking a bite of his potatoes.

“It’s where you can’t eat gluten. Something in grains that makes your stomach upset.”

“I’m not sure, why?”

“I just noticed you didn’t grab anything that had flour in it.”

“The first night I was here, the food I ate made my stomach upset, so I’ve decided to only eat what I’m familiar with.”

Rick nodded and went back to eating his food.

Xun sat in silence for a moment, when suddenly, Willow sat down next to him. He frowned inwardly, wondering why he sat with his back to the room. It wasn’t like him. Talking to Rick had really thrown him off.

“Hey! I’ve been dying to talk to you since last night! How did you do those things?” Willow asked, taking a bit of pie.

“Hi, Willow,” murmured Rick quietly. He focused on eating his food.

Xun turned to her, wondering why she had to be so abrupt.

“Do what?” he asked her, turned his back more to the wall.

“The fight last night? How did you win against those guys? They were so much bigger then you, and you just danced around them, like they were nothing. And that tower climb! You almost flew to the top and back down. I want to know how you did it?” She sipped from her water, looking at him expectantly.

“It wasn’t all that hard. I mean, none of them were werewolves, so it was pretty easy.”

Rick spewed water out of his nose, turning his head to the side, coughing and choking. Xun hurried to his side, to help him, but he waved him off. He stood there, feeling awkward as everyone in the room turned to look at them.

Rick finally caught his breath, and looked at Xun in amazement. Xun looked away, and handed him the napkin he had in his hand. Rick took it and wiped the water and snot off his face.

“What do you mean??” hissed Willow as people started talking again. Rick looked at him expectantly, but Xun had forgotten what he had said.

“About what?”

“You’ve fought against a werewolf?” She had set her spoon down, and had a look of utter terror on her face.

Xun knew what that look meant. He had seen it before, in a mirror. He sat back down and looked at his food. It was very good, cooked just right, and seasoned with salt. Picking up a sliver of meat, he took a bite of it.

“Xun, answer me.” Her voice was soft, as if she was holding in a scream or a sob.

“I’ve seen many werewolves, and Slavers, too. When did you see one?” He looked up just in time to see her glance down at her food. Her hair fell forward and he couldn’t see her face.

Rick’s face held such pain, Xun could tell she was probably crying. Jumping to her feet, she rushed out of the room. Rick was a second behind her. Xun just sighed as he took another bite of his food. He looked at their meals, knowing they both needed to eat. Was this what it meant to have friends?