Lazy Hunter

Freeja nodded, having no problem with staying up late. She lowered herself back to the ground, laying her staff down beside her as she watched the fire, admiring the sparks that would sometimes leap off of the wood. After what seemed like an hour, Ebony and Ivory returned, each one carrying something in their mouth. Ivory carried a brown hare in her mouth, but Ebony had managed to catch a duck, and both were very proud of catching such game.

"Rift, they caught some food, and it looks delicious," Freeja told the Zora as she made sure to thank each of them and gave them both large kisses on the nose in thanks, though Ebony squirmed to try and avoid such a fate. Freeja crossed her legs and took the duck in hand, and started to defeather it. She assumed Rift had a prefered way to cook his food, so she was content with helping him prepare the meal as he instructs.

Rift looked at the duck. It had been awhile since he had caught one, let alone cooked one. Pulling two arrows out of his quiver, Rift set them aside. He looked through the pile of wood until he found four branches with the right shape to make a stand for a spit. He dug the ends of the branches into the ground on an angle, two on either side of the fire, with the tops crossing to form an X shape. Rift picked up the hare and began to skin and gut it with his knife. He threw the scraps in a pile, assuming the wolves would devour them. He sat in silence while he worked, listening to the blade of his knife slice through the dead animal.

When he was finished cleaning the hare, he took one of the two arrows and proceeded to thread the meal along it. It was a difficult task, ramming an arrow through a hare, but when it was done Rift laid the arrow across the two stands, creating a spit with which to cook the food. The arrow was just long enough to reach both sides, and was high enough out of the fire to avoid lighting itself.

"When this is cooked we can do the same with the duck. It shouldn't take long." The hylian man was watching him intently.

Rift seemed to be more then experienced in cooking then she was, as he was able to rig up a design simple enough to cook the hare. With the bird mostly defeathered, Freeja sat to watch the hare and wonder how it would turn out. Had she been the one cooking, it either would of been raw or badly burned. Really, her preference with how cooked her food was wasn't a big concern to her, she more or less ate however her two canine friends preferred.

Ebony and Ivory defineatly didn't care about cooked meat or not, instead started scarfing down anything edible from the pile Rift left. Once they were done the scraps there, they both laid down near the Zora to watch him prepare the other food they had gone to the work of catching. They both wanted more food, and they made sure to watch the Zora carefully to ensure they got more.

When the hare cooked Rift removed the arrow from it and cut it into portions. He threw the legs and head to the wolves and kept the rest for his companions. He set up the duck in the same fashion.

"Come eat, while its hot." Rift shifted his weight. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, a black plumed arrow buried itself in the ground beside his hand. Rift looked at it for a moment, not realizing what was going on.

Suddenly shouts and laughter filled the air. More arrows buried themselves in the tree trunks around the make-shift camp as Rift lept to his feet and spun to meet his attackers. Countless figures, who looked to all be Hylians with full helmets on were pouring into the grove from all sides. Rift lifted his bow and began to blast off arrows as fast as he could. The first missile found its mark in the neck of an attacker, but most dinged harmlessly off of helmets and dug into shields. The attackers had come too close to use arrows, so Rift spun his spear and jabbed a man through the gut, twisting the blade as he pulled it out. The man fell screaming, clinging to his burst stomach. A sword came out of nowhere at his head, and Rift lifted his spear shaft just in time to deflect it. He smashed that attacker across the head, and it dropped in front of him. Rift had fought before, but he was no warrior. Hunting and fighting a group were no where near the same. As he spun to stab another attacker the flat of a sword found his skull. It hit with a clang and Rift fell dazed to the ground. The attacker bent down and clubbed Rift in the face with a gloved fist. Blossoming darkness filled his mind, and he blacked out.

Freeja was just about to enjoy eating the cooked hare when her two companions started to bark wildly. As they did, an arrow sunk into the ground nearby and she could see Rift leaping into action. Freeja lifted her staff in hand, ready to defend herself as she saw the crowd of strangers surround them. The first one to come at her was quickly tackled to the ground by Ebony, who then ripped the man's throat out. Ebony launched himself at the next man, pulling him to the ground and mauling him, but when he heard the howls of his brother, he quickly ran off toward Ivory, who was being pinned to the ground by a large net.

Freeja cried out to Ebony, telling him to watch out, but he was soon captured as well as he ripped apart one of the men who had captured Ivory, others came and threw a net on Ebony. More men surrounded Freeja as she struggled, trying to smack them with her staff, but they were much better with their weapons then she was with hers. Heat started to run through her staff, as she prepared to unleash flames from her staff across these men, but the men overwelmed her before she could unleash the flames, the last light being the campfire as she hit the ground, blacking out.

Light. Searing pain. Darkness. Rift blinked his eyes repeatedly, almost crying out in every time the brightness assaulted his splitting headache. He opened his mouth and took a breath, tasting blood. For nearly five minutes he lay there before he could focus his eyes. His eyes adjusted to the once blinding light, and looked around. He was laying on his back in a large circular room. The light was coming from an unknown source on the ceiling far ahead. Pushing himself painfully to a sitting position he looked around at his surroundings. Freeja lay, still unconscious, to his left. Her wolves lay unmoving beside her, each still wrapped in a strongly woven net. Rift looked to his left. There in a neat pile lay all of his possessions. He slowly got to his feet and spit a mouthful of blood onto the ground. His head still throbbed painfully, but it was a bearable pain now. He stumbled over to Freenja and dropped to his knees by her side. He placed a hand on her shoulder and, ever so gently, shook her.

"Freeja. Hey. Wake up. Come on..."

Freeja groaned as her eyes slowly opened, looking around the as she rubbed her eyes wearily. "W-where are we?" she mumbled as she sat up. Once she saw her two friends wrapped in the netting, Freeja jumped to their side in an instant, flames quickly jumping around her fingers as she tore at the netting, burning the net away as she tore it off her two friends and freed her wolves.

"What happen Rift?" she asked, relaxing now that her two companions were safely at her side. "Where did they come from?"

Rift stood up and looked at his companion.

"It was that dirty hylian. He played us. I had a bad feeling but ignored it. I don't know where we are, or why we are here, but we need to get out." Rift walked quickly over to his equipment and picked everything up. He was stringing his bow when a noise sounded behind him. He spun on the spot, and lowered to a crouch, bow raised and an arrow in his right hand. A door had opened in the far wall, but nothing seemed to be behind it. Taking another look around, Rift judged the size of the cylindrical room. It was about 100 feet in diameter, and several hundred tall. There was a steep wall going straight up about 100 feet around the edge of the room, but that wall leveled off into what appeared to be steps, leading up another 50 feet. Rift heard another noise and turned back towards the door. Out of it walked the hylian man, that little smile on his face. Rift stood and moved between his friend and the man, who began to speak.

"Ah, my friends. Good to see you're awake at last. I hope you are feeling well? I do apologize for the roughness of last nights encounter, but we all know you wouldn't have come alone of your own accord. He smiled again and opened his arms wide, invitingly. "Welcome, friends, to my Colosseum. You have the honour of participating in the game to be held here tomorrow. Should you win, your names will live on forever. If you lose, well... Now, if you all will come with me, I will show you to your rooms." He smiled again, as beings of various sizes filled into the room behind him, and grouped up in rank and file to his left and right. Each of these beings wore black armour, and carried a large spear. The spears were all pointed at Rift and his companions. The hylian smiled again. "No, you do not have a choice. Now come."

Rift stepped forward, defiance burning in his eyes. There had to be a way out of this, but now was not the time. These guards looked more than capable of ripping him apart.

It was all Freeja could do to resist the urge to sear the flesh of every soldier who held a weapon to them, clenching her teeth as she kept a firm hand on each of her companions to calm the snarls that leapt from their maws. "Not now you two, we'd lose," she whispered to them, trying to keep them from making any stupid mistakes.

Following Rift's lead, Freeja walked behind him with her staff in hand, Ebony and Ivory walking beside her, one on each side, snarling and glaring at the men who held them prisoner. All they had to do was survive whatever they had in store for them, then they could focus on escaping.

The hylian lead the companions through a maze of tunnels. A right turn, then a left, then two more right turns, then a left... As hard as he tried to remember the way, Rift was soon lost. A dozen guards walked between the Rift and the hylian, and a dozen more followed the group; all of them had their spears ready. A confrontation in this hallway would not end well for the Zora at all. Soon the hylian stopped.

"Here." He gestured to a door on the left. "You will find all you need inside. I will come for you in 24 hours. Get some rest." He gave another evil little smile and walked off. One of the guards put down his spear and opened the heavy door. Rift entered, expecting a cell. What he saw before him caused him to stop in his tracks and gasp. Before him was a large, comfortably lit room. On the back wall there were four large low beds. In front of those, in the middle of the room was a long table piled high with foods of all shapes and sizes. There was meat of all types, bowls of fruit, and several jugs. Rift was shoved forward by a guard, and he fell to the ground, too surprised to catch himself. Rift stood up and looked over to Freeja as the door closed and locked.

"Where are we?"

Freeja looked around the room in awe, slightly confused by how nice the room was. She hadn't a single answer to Rift's question, merely shrugging and walking around the room for several minutes, running her hand across the furniture and walls. "I can't imagine why they are doing this, it's so... odd." Sitting down at the table, she glanced at the food, eyeing it curiously, before picking an apple and sniffing it curiously. It smelled ok, Ebony and Ivory even seemed to think it smelled fine, as they had started munching and pulling meat off the table.

Freeja took a bite of the apple, and after a few minutes with nothing happening, continued to eat. "I think it's safe."

Rift followed the girl around, looking at everything he passed in the room. He watched as the wolves ate, trying to decide if he wanted to eat this food. He didn't trust it, but without sustenance there would be no hope of escape. In the end logic took over.

"I doubt they would poison us. I get the feeling we have a bigger role in this strange happening... probably haven't seen the last of that Colosseum either." He shook his head, then began picking through the food on the table. The meat was cooked to perfection, and the fruit was crisp and fresh. "Why would they treat us like this after kidnapping us and threatening us?" Rift shook his head and laughed, as a funny thought passed through his mind. "Heh. I expect we won't be getting paid now, will we." He laughed again and took a bit of some fowl.

"With the way they have it set up, I wouldn't be surprised if they did," Freeja laughed. Though she doubt that they actually would, this whole situation seemed too strange to discount the possibility. As they continued to eat, Freeja thought about what they might face tomorrow in the arena, imagining huge monsters and ugly beasts who plan to try and rip them apart. Shaking the idea from her head, Freeja set the food down she had been eating and stood up.

A few minutes later, she could be found asleep in the corner, blankets and pillows from three of the four beds pulled off and piled up to make the usual nest-like structure that Freeja enjoys sleeping in. Her two companions snuggled up on either side of her as she curled up.

It would be a long day tomorrow.

Rift finished his meal and, thoroughly stuffed, moved to the only bed Freenja hadn't stolen. He sat on the edge and watched her and the wolves for a couple minutes in silence. I should have taken this job alone, as usual. Why did I let her come? If she died, I will be to blame... and I'm sure her damn wolves know it too! He shook his head and placed his gear in a pile next to the bed. He placed his dagger under the pillow, and lay down, facing the ceiling, mind racing.

"Stop thinking and sleep, you fool. You need your strength," Rift muttered, barely audibly, to himself. He rolled on his side and closed his eyes. In moments he was asleep, dreams of combat and death filling his mind.

Freeja seemed to be the first awake this morning, climbing from her nest of blankets, pillows, and wolves. Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, she silently slipped across the room back to the table for a drink of water. Biting off a chunk of bread, Freeja moved away from the table to stretch properly until she was wide awake.

Holding out both hands infront of her, palms facing each other, Freeja closed her eyes as flame leapt between her hands until a ball of fire formed before flickering out. Turning in spot, she could see Ebony had awoken from her exercise and trotted over to her. His eyes were full of concern, but Freeja patted his head and whispered to him softly. "It'll be ok, I'll make sure of it. Go wake up Ivory and eat something, I think we'll have a long day ahead of us."

With the wolf off to wake his brother, Freeja glanced over to their Zora companion before going back to the table to eat. I'll make sure we all get out of this ok.

Rift opened his eyes and sat up, instantly alert. He looked around, remembered where he was, and relaxed a bit. Getting out of the bed was quite the ordeal; he had never slept on something so soft. Stretching, he walked over to the table, and the girl.

"Morning. Been awake long?" He shook his head. Residual dreams of his companions and himself being torn limb from limb by an unknown enemy still echoed behind his eyes. He shook his head again, and the images faded. He walked to the table and grabbed some fruit. As he bit in juice as red as blood ran down his chin, and dripped to the floor.

Just then, the door opened with a snap. Rift spun quickly, and watched as the hylian man calmly entered, that small smile on his face. He was flanked by two large guards, and Rift could see several more in the hallway. The hylian looked around the room, then smiled again.

"Did you enjoy the food? The beds? We only give the best to our friends. Now, if you will kindly gather your things and come with me, we have a deadline to keep." He turned and exited the room. The guards walked in closer, menacingly. Rift walked over to his bed and collected his weapons, then moved towards the door, pausing to wait for Freeja.

Freeja took a defensive stance as the men stormed into the room, both Ebony and Ivory instantly rushing to her side, growling between clenched teeth. Freeja took a deep breath as she relax, resting a hand on each of her companions to try and calm them. She knew they would have a better chance of escape once they were in arena, as it would have more room to move... at least, she hoped.

Grabbing her staff as commanded, Freeja and her friends stood beside Rift before steeling their resolve and moving into the hall to be led to a fight for their lives.

Rift strode proudly, shoulders high and chest out, down the hall. If this was the walk to his death, he would be remembered for his dignity.

The walk was shorter than he remembered. It was a matter of minutes before Rift and his companions were led into a large room just off the main arena. In the room sat two dozen men and women... mostly Hylian and Zora, but featuring a large Goron and one female Rito. Each was dressed in brown cloth clothing. The clothes were likely white at some point, but what seemed like years of dust and toil had stained them forever brown. The people sitting in the room did not look up as Rift and his companions entered. They sat, heads down and hands tightly gripping an assortment of weapons. The Hylian man smiled, and looked at Rift.

"Make yourselves at home! You all should get acquainted before the main event." He bowed, and left the room. Rift moved forward.

"What is going on here?" None of those sitting before him looked up, except for one old Hylian. This man had silver hair, matted and knotted, and thick gnarled limbs. He gripped a broadsword by the hilt, point down, and used it to stand straight. When the man spoke, his voice was loud and strong, full of pride and honour.

"We fight, young one. As soon as that gate opens, our lives are over. Those left standing when the dust settles live to die another day. Stand by my side, friends, and you may survive your first day." He cocked his head to one side. "It's time." Everyone in the room stood up and readied their weapons. Rift gripped his bow, an arrow notched. Suddenly a horn blew, followed by another, and another. With a bang and a clatter the gate opened, pouring sunlight into the dim room. The old Hylian raised his blade above his head and shouted incoherently before rushing into the light.

"Here we go." Rift followed the crowd, bow draw. Upon entering the arena, all that could be heard was the roar of the crowd. Followed by another roar. From across the arena floor charged eight Dodongo's, fiery exhalations lighting the ground before them. Rift stopped short. "Oh shit."

Freeja stood quietly and listened to Rift and the old man speak about what would happen, then as they prepared to go Freeja gripped her staff tightly and quickly followed Rift out the gates, Ebony and Ivory following closely behind. As the light blinded her for a moment, it didn't take long for her adjust and then see what they would face, not that she knew what exactly they were, except that they were scaly and could breath fire.

Speechless, Freeja stopped beside Rift as he swore at the sight of the beasts. She didn't know how she would hurt these things if they are able to breath fire, they might also be immune to it. Ebony and Ivory seemed less worried, snarling loudly as they waited for the command to attack. Taking a deep breath, Freeja mustered all her courage she had and spoke.

"Whenever your ready, Rift."

Rift shook his head, and started forward.

"Aim for their tails!" It had been many years since Rift had encountered a Dodongo, but this strategy was one he remembered. Explode from inside, or attack their weak point for massive damage. Weak point is tail. Attack the tail. But, how to get behind them? Rift veered to the left, and ran towards the wall. And here we go.