Don't Forget

#50 The Hunt

General Lachlan skids to the side, his hand just missing Prince Adam's arm when he swiftly changes direction. Lachlan clenches his jaw and chases after him.
This is a total waste of time! GoldenEye is still in the middle of the war, and Lachlan has to play tag with their country's greatest hope. He has no idea how Mitch caught him last time. Adam can really run if he wants to. Not to mention he's as slippery as a bar of soap.
Lachlan pants as he tries to keep up with the ex-assassin. It barely registers when the two zoom past Mitch. He yells something, but Lachlan is too occupied with his prey.
Mitch and Don stare at the two for a moment, but the Zemrlt prince laughs it off. It's good knowing that he might not have to deal with silver tongued politicians. The two join in on the chase.
The soldiers inside the city watch in a mix of confusion and amusement as two princes, a general, and a captain chase each other through the town.

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Unlike Quinten, Jerome actually went looking for the other hybrids. He was a little surprised when Mitch seemed completely neutral on the subject. He used to hate even mentioning the other Baccas on Liblicen. That hurt Jerome a little, but he was more worried with how little trust Mitch had. Jerome will never abandon his brother ever again.
     Walking through the Liblicen camp is very strange. It's set up a lot differently then how GoldenEye has done on the other side of the gate.
     All the different hybrids keep to themselves, for one. Zemrlt are the largest group. They act more human, but Jerome is a little creeped out that none of them speak. Their section of the camp makes hardly any noise. Any other hybrid groups stay in their own little areas.
     Jerome is used to getting strange looks whenever he goes anywhere. Now, it's strange that no one spares him a second glance. They're probably more confused to see him waking out of the gate then being covered in fur.
He can't help but stare a little when another hybrid crosses paths with him. The girl has a set of bird wings neatly folded on her back. She catches Jerome staring, and quickens her pace. Caelum and Baccas don't have the best of histories. Jerome doesn't know that.
"Oh, um, sorry. I don't mean to be rude", Jerome stumbles, "Do you by any chance know where the others are? The other Baccas, I mean". The girl slows her walk, looking him up and down.
"Wow, you aren't from Liblicen, are you?", she asks, finally stopping for a conversation. She almost ignored him and walked right past before taking another look at him.
"Is it that obvious? No, I was raised here in GoldenEye. I've never gotten to talk to another hybrid", Jerome awkwardly rubs the back of his neck in embarrassment. The gesture in entirely human.
"You don't see many hybrids over here. You're way too polite to be from Liblicen. Our two species don't get along very well", the Caelum girl chuckles.
"Oh, uh, I didn't know. Does that mean that I should go ask somebody else?", Jerome asks, completely serious.
"You're such so strange for a Bacca", the girl laughs, "Just head closer to the woods. You can't miss them. Your kind isn't so quiet like the Zemrlt".
Jerome thanks the Caelum girl and turns towards the trees. That conversation really confuses him. Jerome doesn't know anything on how he should be acting. Will the other Baccas think that he's as strange as the girl did?
     When he gets closer, Jerome realizes what the girl meant when she said he would hear them first. There can't be very many of them, but their hoots and hollers echo out of the woods. Jerome only hesitates for a moment before being swallowed up by the trees.
He follows the voices a little ways in until he can see something moving. Jerome quickens his pace until he comes to a small clearing.
A fire is lit on one side, but it's burning down into embers since no one has been adding more wood. All the other Baccas are standing in a ragged circle and cheering someone on. Jerome doesn't see any danger in walking over to them. They're all so focused that none of them notice him.
     Jerome is slightly in shock after finally being around his own kind. It's weird for him to look around and see others with fur and claws.
He jumps a little when two other Baccas tackle each other, the small crowd cheering them on. The two fight with claws and teeth, and both of them are bleeding. Jerome has no idea why they're fighting. He steps forwards and turns a little to ask the person next to him.
     "Excuse me? Can I ask what you guys are doing? I'm not really-", the other Bacca tunes to Jerome to listen, but they quickly interrupt him.
      "Hey! You're in the circle!", they laugh, the sound deep and guttural, pointing down to Jerome's feet. He looks down to see that one foot has crossed a circle drawn in the dirt.
      "It's a three way brawl!", another Bacca comes up behind Jerome and shoves him forwards. At some point, the axe is pulled off his shoulders.
     "W-Wait! I don't know what's going on! I'm not from Liblicen!", Jerome tries to push his way back out, but the others won't let him.
     "You went into the circle during a pugna. No matter where you came from, you're fighting now", the Bacca he was originally talking two smiles wickedly at his confusion. To him, Jerome is just making a joke about not knowing the rules. Everyone here is a Bacca, after all.
     Jerome finally gives up on trying to escape the circle. If this is what his people do for fun, he's gotta win to earn their respect.
     He turns just in time to see the two fighting Baccas spring apart. The smaller one is battered and bleeding from multiple shallow scratches. They see Jerome turn to the fight, and quickly scamper away on all fours. Jerome is a little jealous when the others let them run out of the circle.
     The remaining Bacca is almost the same height as Jerome, but wears only a pair of loose pants. An empty sword belt says enough about their combat skills. To him, Jerome looks very strange in his suit jacket and black pants. That outfit doesn't have any benefits. It doesn't cross his mind that Jerome wears it because he likes the look.
     The other Bacca makes the first move. He drops down on all fours and charges Jerome. The GoldenEye hybrid jumps to the side, still standing up. The Liblicen Bacca skids in the dirt and turns to jump at Jerome. They both go down in the middle of the circle.
      It shocks Jerome to feel claws pierce his furred shoulder, but it also awakens a much more savage part of his personality. He gets a knee up and kicks the other Bacca in the stomach, rolling on top of them. His own claws are flashing now.
     The other Bacca swipes at Jerome's face, and they break apart. Both of them stand up half hunched over. Jerome's never fought with anyone who could match his strength, but his years in the military have made him even stronger. Living with Mitch in GolenEye means that he never had to hunt or survive outside in the winter like Baccas usually do. All of his time and energy has been spent getting stronger.
     Jerome moves first this time.

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     "You have no where to run, now. There's still a few hours of light left. You can still go make a speech to the soldiers and citizens", General Lachlan smiles gleefully. Prince Adam backs up another foot so that his heels touch the brick wall behind him.
     "Oh come, I said that I'd do it in the morning, promise", Adam looks around frantically for an escape. He's panting from his mad sprint.
     "The big meeting is tonight, so I'd prefer it if you won over the people now", Lachlan takes a step forward. He doesn't look back to see whoever skids to a stop behind him. Adam does, though.
     The former assassin suddenly bolts forward, swerving towards the ally wall. He jumps at the side of the building and kicks off the wall. The jump gives him enough height to grab the roof of the building and pull himself up. Just like that, the GoldenEye Prince is gone.
     Lachlan watches, stunned into silence. Mitch comes up behind him and puts a hand on his shoulder in comfort.
     "Don't feel too bad. I only caught him last time because he treed himself", the captain sighs. Adam may be difficult to work with, but Mitch has faith that he'll come through.
     "I was so close. Every time that I cornered him, he's used some trick to slip away again", Lachlan glumly replies. It isn't the first time in the last couple hours that he's lost Adam's trail.
      The General turns away from the ally's dead end, but freezes for a moment in surprised. The Liblicen prince stands in front of him with a mask hiding his expression. Don has been watching the scene fold out with obvious curiosity. He hasn't ever met Adam personally, but Mitch said that he knew Sub very well.
     "Oh, Prince Don! I'm sorry, I didn't know that you were here", Lachlan stutters. His face flushes red in embarrassment. How much of the chase did he see?
     "Do not g-go formal on me n-now, General", Don smiles underneath the mask, "This is a n-nice break from my father's court".
     "Prince Don wanted me to bring him to you so that you could tell him more about the meeting tonight", Mitch explains. He fully believes in Don's good intentions after seeing the shadows in the in-between.
      The three leaders quickly shift into politics, all the while keeping an eye out for the assassin prince.