I ran throughout the trade post grabbing everything I needed. I knew my father was getting the trade goods. I looked at the map on the wall. I made sure I knew where all the trade posts were by memorizing the map. Then my father walked in and gave me the goods.

“Here are the trading goods, and your mother wanted me to give you this. It is a bag of food and a canteen of water,” my father says.

I checked through everything he gave me and grabbed all my things. I brought them outside and put them on the packhorse named Spot. I put my dog Lucky’s collar and leash on him. Lucky was a tall dog he was a 6-year-old golden retriever. He barked when he saw his leash and I smiled at him. I snapped the collar in place and put the leash on the loop. Then I put his sweater in my bag just in case he needed it.

I grab my knife off of the shelf and put it in its sheath on my belt. I give my dear mother a hug and wave to my father. I turn and start walking toward the trail leading from our trading post. I run through my mental checklist as I go. I heard a rustling up ahead and watched Spot’s ears. They flicked to the right and I saw a deer. It stayed very still because it had seen us as well. I tried to get close but it bounded away. I signaled Lucky to heel and kept walking. I looked at the sky and saw it was just passed midday I knew I would have to start looking for shelter soon. After a little while I started searching the area for a cave or other types of shelter.

There! I found a small cave that would hide me from the cold of the night. I led Lucky and spot inside and when we got in there I noticed something I couldn’t see form outside: A bear and it was big. I snuck up on it and when I got close to it I tried to stab at it with my small knife. It woke up very angry and growled at us. I quickly reacted and started stabbing at it some more. It was enraged now and it snapped at me. It took my 3 middle fingers on my left hand. Filled with rage and pain I stabbed it one last time and it fell in a pool of blood. I cleaned my wound and bandaged it up. I lit a small fire and cooked the bear. I gave a bit to Lucky and I ate my fill. I fed Spot some carrots and apples and after we ate we all fell asleep.

Bang. Boom. Bang. Bang. Boom. Crash. I woke up to a gunfight coming from not too far away. I left Lucky and the horse in the cave and carefully moved onward through the woods. When I arrived at the scene I realized that it was the trading post that was being attacked. I smelled the gunpowder in the air and tasted the blood of the fighters. I watched as the Native tribe Wind Runner was fighting the traders. That is when I saw her. The chieftain of Wind Runner she was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen in my life. I swore she saw me staring at her through the bush. She was staring straight at me. She was ravishingly beautiful. As soon as she saw me she called the attack off and the Natives retreated into the woods. When I was sure they were gone I tiptoed into the trade post and looked around. Suddenly a man jumped up from the dead and I stopped dead in my tracks.

“Hello Nicholas of the Grean family,” he said.

I nodded.

“Oh that is right you are unable to speak because of your disability,” he said.

I nodded again.

“The Natives are angry with the traders for expanding on their land,” I am going to head to the next post now. Here take this lion pelt give it to Mr. Scyther and you will be on his good side,” he said before he took off running.

I headed back to the cave to get Lucky and Spot. By the time I got there it was close to nighttime I fed them and myself and we fell asleep.

In the morning we ate quickly and headed out. I put the lion’s pelt on Lucky’s back to keep him warm. I wore a blanket around my shoulders myself. I knew the next trade post was far away so I started looking for a shelter just after midday. Night was falling when I found one and I put Lucky and Spot inside before I left to explore the area. I decided to follow the river. After a bit of walking I heard a strong roar in the distance. I wondered what it was and kept going. There were not many trees near the banks of the river so the moonlight shone down on the river illuminating the dark waters sending a dark green glow off the banks. The roar was coming from a waterfall. The water bounced off of the rocks and jumped down the cliff gently landing at the bottom with a splash and a current extending the length of the river. The moonlight making it look like each droplet of water was an individual star falling down and splashing before continuing to its own destination. I found a small cave behind the waterfall and went inside. I couldn’t see anything but I kept going anyway. I went over a small hill and found a large lit up system of tunnels. I counted at least 50 and was walking back and forth when I heard a lot of people coming in behind me and heard the Natives’ language. I quickly hurried into the nearest tunnel, which happened to be the last one, and hid under a bed. As I waited for my demise the chieftain came inside the room. I was very scared for my life but she didn’t notice me. I heard her heavy breathing and was sure she was asleep. I snuck out from my hiding place and started creeping toward the exit. As I walked out I slipped on something and held in a scream as I his the hard ground. I squinted at the ground and saw hat it was the chieftain’s clothing on the ground. So I decided to keep walking and as I was about to turn the corner I looked back and saw her again I couldn’t stand not seeing her again before I left. I looked at her, her long golden locks flowing down from her scalp over her shoulders and stopping at the shoulder blades. I smiled at her tipped ears and pointed nose. I was mesmerized by her beautiful looks when she flipped over and was now pointed toward me. I froze still as a statue when her eyes flipped open and I saw her shining green eyes sparkling like raindrops on a green leaf of a tree on a sunny day. Her red lips opened like she was going to say something or raise an alarm but instead she yawned as majestically as a person could. I held my breath so I would not follow suit and yawn myself and get caught. She flipped over and went back to sleep and I stayed for a second recovering my mind before I left. When I turned the corner there was a guard asleep in a chair in front of me. I unsheathed my knife and crept towards him. When I got to him I covered his mouth with my left hand and stabbed through his neck with my right.

When I got back to where Lucky and Spot were waiting a snowstorm had started and it was daytime already. That’s when I realized the Wind Runners were nocturnal. I knew it would be a bad storm by looking at the sky and seeing white everywhere. I covered us all with blankets before I kept moving. We stayed off of the road so the trees would give us more shelter from the wind. I stayed alert to make sure no one snuck up on me even though I couldn’t see 3 paces in front of my face. I didn’t know how long it would take me to get to the trade post but I knew I was going the right way.

When I got to the 2nd trade post, I waited before I went in to make sure no Natives were around, when I went in I looked around and everyone in sight was packing up. I went to Mr. Scyther to find out what was going on and why. And to give him my lion pelt. When I couldn’t find him a man walked up behind me.

“Young man, you must be Nicholas. The head trader of last post told me you would be coming with a lion pelt for me. That must be it right there. Here are a few platinum coins for that pelt. I wouldn’t advise you to stay here very long the Wind Runners gave us two days to pack up and leave before they launch an attack on us,” Mr. Scyther said.

I nodded after he told me everything and walked around ‘til I found my best friend Jarvan.

“Hey Nick. Want to help me pack up?” he asked.

I nodded and went to work. He talked to me about himself and life at the post as we packed his things up. After everyone in the camp had packed up Mr. Scyther, newly appointed head trader, gave a speech. He told everyone that they would be moving to a camp next to the third post and from there they would be planning a large scale attack on the Wind Runners. Then we all ate before going to sleep then heading out the next morning.

I woke up early to make sure I had everything and to take inventory. I left the 3 platinum coins in my shirt pocket. I left Spot with the horse breeder in the back. Lucky followed at my heels and I walked with Jarvan by Mr. Scyther in the front. As we walked I wrote on my pad how to get to the cave and what I saw there. Jarvan was astonished when he read that the chieftain was female they thought for sure she was male.

When we got to the next post we spent the first 2 days unpacking and settling in. Then Jarvan told both of the camps about everything I saw. They had me draw a map of how to get there from here, so I did. All the leaders and generals looked at my map and I gave it to Mr. Seal, the leader of the 3rd trade post. Everyone at the meeting was dead silent and still. No one knew what to think of this. For the next 7 days all the leaders and generals, Jarvan and I met to discuss invasion plans. Jarvan was acting as my translator and Lucky lay behind me during this time. I realized in these meetings Jarvan knew a lot more about military than I thought he did. He was a gifted general and knew a lot about leading troops, training troops, tactics, and fighting. After this people started preparing for war the next 40 days I knew what I was doing so I went exploring with Lucky.

I got stuck in a snowstorm the first day of exploration and I dove under a nearby tree for shelter. Was conditioning myself so I didn’t have food or blankets. To be able to fight in a battle you need to withstand pain. After the snowstorm stopped a few days later I went exploring some more before heading home I heated snow in my thermos so I could have water to drink. After awhile I came across a small cave and I went inside. It took time for my eyes to adjust to the darkness and when they did I saw two wolves staring at me. They had red eyes and saliva was dripping from their yellowed teeth. They looked like they hadn’t had a meal in weeks maybe a month. They snarled at me and I could taste their hunger for blood. I knew they would eat me whole if they killed me. I also knew that they won’t fight as well if they are hungry because they would not be as strong. I stood still and waited for them to strike. The first one lunged at me and I knocked it to the side. It yelped in pain and then they struck at the same time. Fended one of them off but the other clamped its strong jaws on my leg. I sliced its throat and it fell off. I staggered backward before the other one struck and I wasn’t able to react quickly enough. Just when I thought I was doomed Lucky pounded into it and wrestled with it until it had a shot t the throat. Lucky suffered some teeth and claw marks but he was okay. I cleaned my leg and Lucky then we went to sleep. In the morning I knew I couldn’t stay out any longer so I started heading back the way I came.

While we were walking another blizzard started up. I was very cold but I suffered through it. I knew that I was far away from the camp so I tried to walk quickly. After awhile I felt like I was lost. I had wandered the way I thought I came but I had not gotten to the camp yet. I walked quickly but after awhile my leg just couldn’t take it anymore. I let up the pressure on it and started limping. I knew I would be in big trouble if I ran into any more hostile animals or people. My vision was darkening with every step. When I thought I was doomed I heard something ahead. I thought no one would ever find me. Then I realized that the people that found me might not be friendly and I got scared. I threw myself on the ground and slowed my breathing as much as I possibly could. Lucky lay next to me. As wounded as we were if anyone found us they may think that we are dead. I waited for what seemed like forever before the thing that I heard burst through the shrubs in front of me. I stayed calm, my breathing slowed ever more. I felt it. Hands on my shoulders, heavy breathing on my face. Then I passed out. I opened my eyes to find myself laying on a bed in a white room. I got very scared. I had never seen a white room before I had no idea where I was.

“He is awake,” A voice I did not know said. “Go get the other boy, the one who found him. I’m certain he will want to know.”

“Do you know what caused him to pass out yet?” Another voice asked.

“I have narrowed it down to two causes: Freezing cold temperatures or blood loss,” The first voice replied sharply.

I couldn’t see anyone but I heard voices. I was very scared. I had no idea what might happen to me. As a child I heard stories about things that abducted children and tested them. I always thought they were just stories but maybe not. I thought I was in one and I knew that when you get in you cannot get out. I thought maybe I would be stuck in there forever and I would spend the rest of my life being tested by evil people. I would get sedated before every test so I wouldn’t know what happened or why so I wouldn’t see the faces of those that did it so I wouldn’t escape so I wouldn’t fight back so I wouldn’t live long…

“Nicholas! You’re alive!” A voice I knew exclaimed.

It was Jarvan. I was safe after all. I still didn’t know where I was but I knew I was safe. If I was with Jarvan I was safe. Feeling relieved I tried to sit up and look around. Jarvan was standing in front of me and a mirror was behind me on the wall.

“That is a 1-way mirror he whispered to me. They can see us through it but we can’t see them. We only see ourselves,” Jarvan told me.

I got out of the bed and followed him out the door. I leaned on him as I walked because my leg hurt even more than it did before. He told me about how he found me and what happened while I was unconscious. I nodded when he looked at me to show him that I was still here and listening to him. You were in a doctor camp there are a few spread throughout the forest to bring the wounded to so that would get healed.

When we got back to the camp I was told about the war plans and the invasion. We were ready for the attack. I needed to go with Jarvan and get around the right side and fight the Natives from the side. We were going to try to box them in to ensure that they couldn’t run away. I was fully kitted out with: a sword, a knife, a first-aid kit, 4 knives for throwing, food, water, tent, flint and steel, and a bow with 15 arrows.

We all marched in our own groups some distance away from each other. Someone was supposed to run in there and try to draw them out. I didn’t know who this person was but I knew that he didn’t have good chances of making it out alive. He ran in and disappeared for a while I didn’t know what was going on and hoped it would be okay when I heard his scream. It was a child that went in there because they wouldn’t expect what we had planned if a child was the bait. He ran out screaming and crying toward the road as we had instructed him to. All the Wind Runners ran out after him that is when I realized why they were called Wind Runners; they were faster than the wind. I knew this battle was going to be hard fought but I knew what I had to do. When the first row of attackers rose up to fight the Wind Runners, we rose up to close off the right side. I started slashing away with the sword I had been given. When I heard someone cry out my name. I heard it several more times but shrugged it off and kept fighting.

Someone broke through out of the throng of people and fell on top of me. I wiped the blood out of my eyes and felt my forehead. I had a long gash deep enough to expose bone. Then I looked at who fell on me. It was the chieftain. She screamed at me to take her away from here. She had blood on her face and her hand was cut off she had a long cut on her leg. I picked her up and carried her away. I laid her down on the ground and took out my first aid kit. I bandaged her and cleaned her wounds then did the same to my forehead. She smiled at me and I smiled back. I left her where she was and went back to the fighting.

During the fight I finally figured out what I was fighting for. I was fighting for my people. There was no other reason for me to be fighting a battle that was not my own. I knew when I looked over all the people of the posts that a loved and respected all of them. I fought valiantly the rest of the fight. A battle was raging that could go either way.

At the end of everything we won the battle and defeated the Natives. While everybody celebrated I knew what I had to do. I went to where I left her. When she saw me she smiled.

“My name is Elisa,” she said, “I have seen you around and I have not been able to stop thinking about you. I found out you were a Trader and knew during the fight that I needed to find you. When I saw you I knew you were a good person.”

I leaned in to kiss her. I helped her to her feet and she helped me walk toward a nearby tree. I leaned against it as she cleaned herself off. She told me to walk with her so I did. We followed a river as we walked and she talked to me about herself. I nodded along. We were both smiling widely as we walked. I reached out and grabbed her hand. I started blushing a little bit as we walked. She kissed me on the cheek then jumped into the river.

“Cleanse your body of your troubles and sorrows,” She yelled to me.

I grinned and slid in after her. We swam around a bit and then Lucky jumped in right in between us. She laughed and we kept swimming. After a little while we got out and started walking around. She told me to stay next to the giant oak near the water. I waited there for a bit wondering what she was doing. She came back with fruit and bunny rabbits. I looked at her questioningly as she came back.

“Picnic,” she said.

I smiled at her. I started making a fire while she got some sticks for a spit. After everything was made we ate. She told me everything she wanted out of life. We ate watching the sunset over the horizon. I realized that if you can only know love when it comes to you. I knew this is what I wanted. I wanted to be a father. To have a family that surrounds me with love and care. People that I can listen to and help with their problems. To pass my wisdom to my children, to watch my children grow and learn new things, to watch them gain knowledge that I couldn’t think of ever knowing, to watch them have their own families and pass traditions down more and more generations.