Part One .. The Hunt

Why would a Tuchuk even HAVE stupid verr. Tuchuk should be taking care of bosk. Verr are stupid. Verr never do what they are told .. or they all do what one verr does for no logical reason. I hate verr. They never listen .. they always are afraid. They are .. stupid.

I needed to get away. I needed to go hunt and kill something. With the salt shortage now a thing of history .. nothing more than a colored peg on a Year Keeper's wagon ... there was no reason I should not. And so I did.

Hunting. It was a thing a man could do and enjoy and feel .. like a man. Me working within nature to be stronger .. smarter .. and more fierce. Either that or go hungry. It was just all about back to basics. Simple problems to be solved .. either that or go hungry and be eaten yourself. I liked those kinds of problems. I knew how to survive those kinds of problems.

I did not even try to ditch the Ubar's guard Kam had placed. I simply sent them away. They are still more afraid of me than they are Kam .. which works for me. If that ever changes I will have to do some other problem solving .. but for now I was free and I saddled Rocca and put a pack saddle on Blue and we were off like old times.

I had no idea what I was going to hunt. I would simply come across it and when I did I would hunt it. The Central fire was on my shoulders and my weapons were clean and sharpened .. my kaiila were well fed and ready to go and the breeze was from the South and held the hint of snow and ice upon it as it brushed across the scars of my cheek.

I was going to kill something and I felt damn good about it.