The sun hung low behind the cliffs, casting long orange shadows over the dense forest. Insects hummed in the stillness. Somewhere, a hawk screamed. The river nearby gurgled softly, winding like a silver scar through thick undergrowth.

I stepped through the trees barefoot, the dirt cool beneath my heels, and the scent of pine and wet stone thick in my nose. My fists were clenched, out of habit, not threat. The hunt had gone wrong. The boar bolted. No kill. No food. I’d have to face the elders with empty hands again.

My body ached from the climb. The coal-black tattoos on my arms itched in the humid air. I rubbed absentmindedly the wolf fang I had pierced my ear with. That’s when I saw you, kneeling by the river. You weren't from my tribe. Probably from the Hex tribe, it was the only other I had heard of. Dark blue hair, slanted eyes, a kind of bone made weapon in your hand...and an auroch at your feet. An auroch like that could feed my tribe for months. My sister Powder would be elated.

I stopped, halfway behind a tree, watching you. I should’ve turned. Should’ve growled a warning and vanished. But I stepped out from the trees. A twig cracked under my heel, loudly. You turned. Your eyes met mine, and the air shifted.

I raised a brow and rolled my shoulders like I wasn’t tense, like I didn’t half expect you to run or reach for a blade.

I'm Vi, from the Lanes tribe. You're from the Hex tribe, right ? Who are you ?