DIRPG | Main Quest | Part 1

BEGINNER QUEST
You’ve been travelling for what feels like forever. You stop to rest but are rudely awaken by the sound of wild dogs, they sound pretty vicious and large in number. What do you do?

A] Run, Flee 
B] Hide, head for the bushes, then search for shelter. 
C] Follow the noise and attack 

Spring had finally made an appearance after a cold, lonesome winter. Rook was munching on bits of grass that were just starting to grow, every few seconds he’d stop and check his surroundings and then begin munching again.

He’d had a stressful winter, always having to keep an eye out for danger. He wasn’t doing well on his own, he hadn’t had a decent night’s sleep since before Atlas, his brother, chased him from the herd and the only family he’d ever known.

He lost a bit of weight and was amazed that he’d made it through to Spring at all.

He’d tried to join a bachelor herd that he’d come across at the beginning of winter but he hadn’t fit in. He was used to being in a herd that shared everything and looked out for one another, and so he had gotten to close to another Stallion while he was eating and the large male had not taken kindly to Rook encroaching on his space.

Rook had ended up being chased away by a big brute of a male. He’d gotten in a good kick to the Stallion’s face but had ended up with a nasty gash on his back from a well-aimed bite that refused to heal until just recently.

He’d learned his lesson and would not be venturing near any bachelor herds in the near future if he could avoid it.

But still Rook was lonely, at least for the few weeks he had traveled with the bachelor herd he hadn’t felt so alone. He had a memory of being alone and cold and scared, that tormented him on his worst days. Being alone was his biggest fear. When he was growing up he always made sure to stay close to the herd, and to his mother, being terrified that he might lose them, and now he was living that fear and it was lonelier than he ever could have imagined.

He missed his mother, he wondered what she would think if she could see him now. He wondered if she would be disappointed in him for not standing his ground when Atlas had attacked him.

He missed Atlas too as strange as that was. The thing was before the herd had started getting sick, he and Atlas had been thick as thieves, they were only a month apart and they had been best friends for as long as Rook could remember. He fondly thought of days chasing his brother around the plains, racing each other and sparring, laughing as they went while their mother called to them to be careful.

He remembered lying against Atlas at night, keeping warm and knowing his big brother would protect him.

The memory hurt, especially when it was paired with Atlas calling him a plague on the herd and rearing up to strike him, putting himself between Rook and Kala.

Kala…

Kala he missed the most.

Kala, who must think of him as a coward.

He’d had many a sleepless night thinking about her, dreaming that she was with him and waking up to find that he was still alone.

It was hopeless. He would probably never see her again and he just had to get over that and focus on staying alive.

Rook could feel his eyelids start to droop. He was tired; he had not stopped to sleep for almost a day. He hated having to sleep; it was when he was at his most vulnerable, never knowing what he’d wake up to but he couldn’t go much farther without sleeping.

This little meadow looked like as good a place as any. The whole time he had been grazing, he hadn’t been disturbed. It was isolated and quiet, he was sure to awake if anything or anyone were to approach.

Ungracefully Rook sunk to the ground and found himself slipping into sleep easier than he would have liked, he was way too tired for his own good.

…

He didn’t know how long he had been out when he came to in a panic, his heart beating wildly within his chest. His eye flew open and he looked around for what had caused the discomfort that had woken him. He didn’t see anything; he scanned the meadow, willing his heart to calm down.

He let out a sigh, thinking whatever had woken him must have passed, when he heard the distant barking.

He was up and on his feet in an instant. Wild dogs…he could hear them barking and growling, the sound getting closer like something from a nightmare. If Atlas had been there, they would have charged the dogs and chased them away but without his brother Rook was useless.

Rook looked around, he could hear the dogs getting closer and closer but he still couldn’t see them, and if he couldn’t see them that meant they probably couldn’t see him yet either.

Bordering the meadow was a dense forest, Rook headed towards the bushes, moving quickly but not so quick that he’d make a sound. Maybe he’d be able to find shelter and hide out until the dogs passed him by.

At least he hoped. He could always run if they caught up to him, he’d always been fast, a lot faster than Atlas for sure but he was still tired and really he hoped he could just avoid them altogether. 

   

Word Count: 896
Rook