Ok,
so first story of my little marathon, little riding red hood, (I am only going to put part of it here as it turned out 8 pages long. )
Story by: Deathpaloma (I am not going to put my real name)
Once upon a time, there was a little girl that lived in a small village that was surrounded on all sides by a dense forest, news of the other villages and towns rarely came. News of war and famine had been the last to arrive, many years ago, none came after. But that never alarmed the people of the village, the dangerous forest that seemed to protect them from all the problems of the "other side" also seemed to deter visitors, and travelers only appearing once every few years was not unusual.
Since the forest was large, tortuous and tangled it was nearly impossible for anyone even those acquainted with its paths, twists and turns to get across before nightfall.
Some were tasked with entering the woods to gather herbs and hunt for animals, but only during the day, at night was when the evil that existed there came out to hunt, it always seemed to return to the shadows where it came from.
The little girl was one of said people, even though she was only 11 years old she, like her mother before her, was being trained on the ways of the forest to become an herbalist, she needed to learn what plants to harvest, which ones could be cultivated, which needed to be foraged, how to identify them, where to find them, what were its uses, but also how to navigate the forest, the paths to follow in and out of the village, and what places to avoid.
She had been formally learning for three years now and she was younger than most, but coming from a family of herbalists, she had been familiar with the plants for most of her life. Today she and all the other herbalists would receive their green capes, but the girl secretly wanted a red one, that one was reserved for the hunters alone.
-Silence! Said the headmistress.
-Today is you final test, the final challenge, one you will face without a tutor to assist you. To the herbalists, each of you individually must locate and bring back one of the herbs from this list, any of them will do.
She said as she pointed to a scroll being open on the wall.
-To the hunters you have a choice, to go alone or in pairs. To go on a hunt alone means having no one to watch your backs as you hunt the wild beasts that roam these woods, but if you so choose you will be tasked to bring back a small beast, from this list.
Another scroll was opened with smaller creatures.
-To the ones that choose to go in pairs, you will have bigger liberties since you will have a partner, and have more strategies to choose from, for instance one you can take a sword and the other a bow, to be able to hunt from a distance but also defend yourself in close range if a beast comes close, however you will need to hunt for a bigger beast from this scroll.
One last scroll is opened, this one containing larger and more dangerous beasts.
- Oh, and remember a partner can be an asset… or a liability.
- That being said you will have until dusk, to return, after if you arrive after the sun is set you will have failed the test. The same goes for those who return empty-handed, however it is better to fail the test than it is to die, so we advise all to return, with or with having completed the test, before the sunset, for we won't be coming to your assistance after dark.
All the kids and teens that were ready to take the test start looking at each other and murmurs fill the gathered crowd.
-There is however! A safe heaven, if you are too far to make it back to the village safely, there is in the middle of the path we will set you off on, a house, there lives an elder, who was once a part of our village, she left with the objective of helping those lost in the woods, whether they are travelers, students or inexperienced hunters and herbalists. Her cabin should always be surrounded by light, that's why we call it the lighthouse, if you think you won't make it back before the sun sets, go there. She will give you shelter for the night, and you will be able to return safely to the village in the morning.
- Light can deter the dark creatures, but it will not stop them completely, and to the hunters, if you are carrying a dead best with you, leave it behind, some dark creatures will stop and eat the beast before starting to chase you again.
-To all of the soon to be hunters and herbalists good luck, you may now take your capes and go.
All the kids formed lines, some ran, others took their time. The little girl walked towards the wall that had the scrolls, and gave a very subtle laugh, she knew at least half the herbs listed on the scroll were not in season and therefore could not be found. A "very easy task, right?" she thought to herself, she looked at her mother far in the crowd, the kids were not allowed to talk with their parents or tutors after the orientation, still with only a nod and a slight grin, she told her mother she knew, but she was curious, was the lighthouse real? She had never heard of it.
As she headed to grab her
green cape, she made the decision, she was going to look for that house, she was confident, finding the herbs shouldn't be too hard for her.
She was not the only one to notice the little "trick" played by the evaluators, some hunters noticed that most of the species on the solo hunt list would be hard to find given the time of the year they were on, and so it was much more advantageous for inexperienced hunters who did not know the exact location of the dens of the few small species present at this time of year, to form pairs and hunt the larger animals which, despite being more dangerous, would be more abundant.
The little girl checked her pouch she had a bit of medicine, a bit of poison, string, a piece of chalk, a strike-a-light and a piece of flint. On the other side of her waist her had the dagger her mother gifted her, when they announced she was fit for the exam. "Everything in place" she thought and headed out without looking back.
to be continued