The forest was quiet.
Wind whispered through the leaves. Birds sang without fear. Water rushed over stone somewhere nearby, steady and alive.
A deer grazed in the clearing, calm, unaware, chewing slowly at the grass.
Then its ears twitched.
Something was coming.
Fast. Too fast. More than one.
The deer froze for half a heartbeat before bolting, white tail flashing as it vanished into the trees.
A boy burst from the brush a second later.
Ki stumbled into the clearing, barely staying on his feet. Sweat flew from him as he landed, chest heaving, lungs screaming for air. His shirt clung to his skin. His legs trembled, begging him to stop.
He didn't.
He watched the deer disappear, envy flickering across his face. Even animals knew how to escape.
Branches cracked behind him.
Men poured from the forest like hounds unleashed.
One of them raised a crossbow.
The string snapped.
Ki twisted just in time. The bolt screamed past his head and buried itself into a tree trunk with a violent thunk.
Laughter erupted behind him.
"RUN, RAT!"
"LET'S SEE HOW LONG YOU LAST!"
Another bolt flew. Then another.
Ki sprinted, ducking low, leaping roots, slamming his shoulder into trees as arrows chewed bark inches from his body. He hid behind trunks, rolled through brush, changed direction again and again.
It didn't matter.
They kept coming.
Too fast. Too coordinated.
These weren't soldiers.
They moved like predators. Cutting angles. Driving him forward. Herding him.
Head hunters.
The thought settled cold in his chest.
The king had put a price on him.
Ki knew then. This wasn't pursuit. This was a harvest.
He couldn't run forever.
And he knew what waiting meant.
The memory of the barbarian's lifeless eyes surfaced uninvited. Ki swallowed hard. He didn't want to kill again. His hands still remembered the weight of that blade sinking into flesh.
But wanting didn't matter.
Something crashed down in front of him.
A man leapt from higher ground, aiming to crush him under sheer force.
Ki skidded to a stop. The hunter slammed into the dirt where Ki had been standing, sending dust and leaves into the air.
More men closed in instantly.
A ring.
Ki stood at its center, bent forward, gasping. The hunters weren't breathing easy either, hands on knees, grins wide with excitement.
"You're a fast one," one of them said between breaths.
"We finally caught you," another sneered.
The man who had jumped groaned as he pushed himself upright. "Damn it… missed."
Ki's eyes flicked left. Right.
No opening.
Slowly, deliberately, his hand slid to the hilt of his dagger.
The hunters noticed.
Laughter rippled through the circle.
"Look at that," one mocked. "Our prey bites."
Ki didn't answer.
He lunged.
Steel flashed.
One hunter tried to dodge, too slow by a fraction. Ki's blade sliced across his chin. Blood sprayed hot into the air.
The clearing exploded into motion.
They rushed him all at once.
Ki ducked a swing, took a fist to the ribs. Pain flared. A kick sent him stumbling, but he stayed upright. He blocked. Slashed. Moved. Every instinct screaming at him to survive.
Another hunter charged.
Ki stepped forward.
Too close.
The hunter's blade cut across Ki's cheek, tearing skin. Blood streamed down his face.
At the same time, Ki drove his dagger into the man's stomach.
Everything froze.
The hunter gasped, blood bubbling from his lips. His weapon slipped from his fingers as he collapsed at Ki's feet.
Silence fell, thick and stunned.
Blood ran down Ki's dagger.
He stared at it.
At his shaking hand.
The weight of another life pressed into his chest, heavy and sickening. He hated this feeling. Hated how wrong it felt. Hated that it was becoming familiar.
Ki inhaled slowly.
Then raised his blade again.
The hunters' shock shattered into rage. Teeth bared. Jaws clenched.
"Kill him!" someone screamed.
And they surged forward.