“So, why are you here, Ray? I’ve been asking you that for five days now; you have to tell me.” Sera looked at him, walking while he stared at the sky, counting the clouds. “Alright fine, he blackmailed me.” She let out a soft chuckle. “Don’t joke now. He’s an instructor; why would he do that?” He looked at her, staring into her eyes. “I’m not joking.” She crossed her arms. “Oh? But why?” He glanced back at the sky. “I might have snuck out.”

  She stared at him, her eyes widened, and burst out laughing. Her voice rang across the forest, overshadowing the footsteps of all the other apprentices walking. “You had it coming then.” She wiped the tears forming in her eyes. Behind them, Jon mumbled something, his head pointed to the ground. “If Ray is here, why isn’t Vivi…? I mean Vivian. I wanted to see her — her beautiful eyes, her warm smile, her…” Elaira shook her head, walking next to him. Aidan and Cassandra walked behind Maximus at the front while he led the apprentices through the forest path. Aidan stole glances at Cassandra as she walked, looking forward. Maximus had ordered Victor and a few others to carry the supplies at the back of the group. The remaining apprentices walked in the groups they had formed.

  They continued through the forest for some time. The sun rose high above their heads, casting a bright white glow across the forest. The trees cast shadows on them as a warm noon breeze grazed the stems, whistling through the leaves and bushes. Flowery scents flowed through the wind, masking the dampness of the dirt from a nearby swamp. Eagles hunting for the snake, frogs, screeched through the skies. The apprentices followed Maximus, chatting among themselves, glancing around, picking flowers.

  After a while, they reached an open clearing in the middle of the forest, near a lake. The blue sky, the sun and nearby trees reflected in the still water. On the other side of the lake, two laizards fought, tearing each other apart. The apprentices flinched at their shrieks. Maximus unbuckled his bow, grabbed two arrows, and aimed. His back muscles stretched through the linen of his tunic. Silence fell around them as they stared at him. The tension of the string against the wood crawled up their skins as he let go. The arrows flew, cracking through the air, and struck the two lizards simultaneously, like lightning striking the ground. Their bodies fell to the ground, green blood pooling around their black scales. Maximus turned around and pointed at four apprentices. “Go bring their corpses here.”

  The apprentices stared at him, their mouths wide open, nobody moving an inch. Ray clapped, still staring at the sky. That’s what I would expect from an instructor. Following his lead, the others started clapping and cheering. Maximus cracked his knuckles, his bow still in hand, and said, “I said, go get the corpses here.”

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  The apprentices flinched, and the four rushed to the other side of the lake to get the corpses. When they reached it, they realized the laizard corpse was twice the size of two of them. Somehow, two of the four picked one, and the other two picked up another, and slowly made their way back. Cassandra raised her hand. “Why do we need the corpses?” Maximus stared at her for a moment, his face stone cold. “To eat.”

  Her face dropped, so did the other apprentices’, as some of them puked from the smell of the laizard blood flowing toward them. Maximus turned around, with a sly smirk playing on his lips. Ray squinted his eyes and looked at his back. What? Is he joking? Has to be.

  The four brought the laizard corpses and dropped them in front of everyone. They all covered their noses and mouths, turning around. Ray walked up to the corpses, covered his nose and knelt. They look like the illustrations in the book. But… are they edible? I don’t think so.

  He took a deep breath and turned to say something, but Maximus stopped him, whispering. “Let them think for themselves.” Ray nodded, stood and walked to a nearby tree. He stretched and lay down in the shade. He’s teaching them. I can’t do much here, so I’m just gonna rest.

  Sera and the group formed a circle, in which Casandra was the first to speak. “I think he’s testing us.” Sera nodded and crossed her arms. “Laizard meat is chewy and hard to digest. Also, its blood is poisonous, so if we cannot cook it properly, we will die.” Everyone stared at her, and Victor raised a finger. “How do you know that?”

  “Because I’ve eaten it before.” Sera replied, her voice firm and her face straight. “Father used to cook for us all the time. I never liked it though.” Jon clenched his teeth. “Ew. Well, no wonder you never complained about food. You’re used to eating shit.” Sera glared at him. “I’ll shove its meat down your throat if you don’t shut up.” Jon jumped behind Elaira, peeking over her shoulder and pointed his tongue out at Sera. Elaira slumped her arm over Jon’s shoulder.

  Cassandra interrupted their banter. “So! Should we eat it or not?” Sera took a deep breath. “No, I don’t think anyone here can cook.” Victor glanced back at the corpses, then at the apprentices. “We should do something about the corpses.” The group turned to look at the others still gagging and puking near the trees in the forest. Cassandra unbuckled her broad blade and put it on the ground. “Since we aren’t eating them, let’s bury them somewhere.” Sera stopped her, grabbing her shoulder. “Wait, no. Maximus must have done this for a reason, so let’s think for a moment.”

  Aidan sat on the ground, staring at the laizard corpses. “We’re on a hunting trip, right? What if… this is his way to keep other dangerous animals away?” Sera tapped her chin. “Or maybe lure them toward the scent of blood?”

  A low, distant growl whispered through the trees, reaching Ray’s ears. His eyes opened, and he shot to his feet. He stood still, his ears following the wind toward the sound. The growl grew louder; branches crunched under its weight. What is it?

  A touch on his shoulder made him flinch as he turned to punch. Maximus caught his hand and pointed a finger to his lips. “Shush… keep quiet.” and let go of his hand.

  Ray shook his head. It’s an Aligktor. He’s luring an aligktor.