Yori was afraid. The jackalope’s attack had hurt immensely and he was unsure if he could take another hit like that. His left hand was starting to tingle and become numb, his fingers getting more and more difficult to move. Taking a deep breath, he calmed himself and remembered his determination, just in time to attempt to dodge in order to avoid the monster’s next attack.

The jackalope dove forward, looking to ram Yori in the same shoulder, but Yori was ready for him. As his head and torso were pulled out of harm’s way, Yori’s leg did not move fast enough. The rabbit-like creature collided with his shin, throwing it back behind him. Since he was more prepared for this second attack, he caught himself before being splayed on the ground, recovering faster than before. He landed with his stomach facing the ground, his legs firmly under him, putting him in a position to pounce himself. His leg was painful to put weight on from the new bruise on his shin, but adrenaline helped him ignore it. Without wasting time contemplating his next move, relying on his reflexes and instinct, Yori sprinted at the jackalope. The creature was once again in a crouched position, preparing for a third attack.

Through all this Yori had maintained a firm grip on his dagger. He extended his arm that bore the weapon towards the monster, diving and letting out a yell as a determined battle cry. The jackalope was a small, nimble creature, and despite his determination, his inexperience was easy for the small monster to anticipate and therefore take advantage of. The sheer act of aiming at a moving target with no practice was far more difficult than he had foreseen. The dagger missed its mark, harmlessly whistling passed the jackalope, harmlessly nicking one of its antlers on the way by as it jumped to Yori’s left.

Yori had put all of his momentum and force into that assault. Unable to stop himself, he fell sprawled onto the ground on his stomach. He was in trouble. The jackalope was right in front of him while he lay in a vulnerable position, helpless and vulnerable with no way to defend himself from the next pounce.

Dammit! I’m done for. It’s going to aim straight for my head!

Yori scrambled while simultaneously bracing for a painful, and potentially fatal, impact. However, the creature did not attack. Instead, it jumped backwards, not forwards. Yori was perplexed, but thankful for the monster’s mistake. Taking the opportunity he rolled yet again, trying to get his feet under him as fast as possible to either dodge or lunge. This action took too long as the horned rabbit slammed into his left shoulder once again before he could get up from on all fours. The throbbing that was already present was intensified, but adrenaline was still giving him much needed aid and masked it to a bearable level. Unlike before, he did not fall to the ground on his back or stomach. He was already firmly planted on the ground on his hands and feet. When the jackalope hit his shoulder it was met with an opposing force and landed directly in front of Yori once again.

The jackalope’s red eyes bulged and its muscles flexed. Yori could tell it was preparing to retreat. He could not miss this opportunity! Gripping his dagger with his right hand and balancing his weight on his other three limbs, he stabbed his dagger down, aiming for the torso of the beast.

Since his aim was poor then he would simply aim for the biggest part of the monster’s body. As he thrust his arm forward the jackalope jumped backwards again, accidentally directing the knife into the back of its own neck in its frantic attempt to retreat. The combined momentum of Yori’s arm and the creature’s jump drove the blade deep, severing its spine.

Blood spewed from the wound. Its red eyes went blank.

Yori loosened his grip on the dagger in shock.

He had killed a monster. A Villager had killed a monster!

For the first time since the murder of his family and the people of Oseford, Yori smiled and let out a triumphant shout. He had taken his first step towards leaving his past behind him and starting his new life as an Adventure. To him it was his first step towards throwing his weakness away.

He straightened up to a kneeling position in front of the creature and dislodged his bloodied dagger. Crimson continued to leak from the mortal wound, staining the grass below it. He brought his right hand to his chin in a pondering manner, muttering to himself.

“I know jackalopes are worth money, but I don’t really know how to go about selling this thing. I’ll bring it with me, but there’s blood everywhere.”

He needed a way to carry the beast away from his body to avoid getting blood on himself. He never thought of himself as squeamish, but he was not exactly thrilled about the idea. Yori undid his belt and tied it around the jackalope’s legs, lifting it off the ground and holding it at arm’s length. Tying the belt proved more difficult than expected as his left arm was still tingling and it was difficult to move his fingers. He eventually managed. Yori was forced to choose to push his luck and go for another, or to go back to the city and call it a personal victory. He glanced down at his slightly limp left arm, bruised and sore now that his shock and adrenaline was weaning.

I should probably get some rest and let my arm recover. On the other hand, it’ll take centuries to get strong if I’m this cautious. I need to get strong now!

Yori shook his head in frustration, conflicted between doing what he should and what he wanted. Out of the corner of his eye he saw movement. Looking for the source, Yori spotted a new enemy not far from him. Another jackalope. He took this as a sign to push his luck. It was the perfect opportunity to test what he had just learned about this creature.

He lowered his head and crouched, gently laying the lifeless body on the ground as silently as possible. Readying his weapon in his right hand, Yori approached the monster cautiously. However, he would learn from his mistakes this time. This jackalope was not the pure white of snow like the first two he had encountered. This beast had a mottled gray coat, with black spots emblazoned across his fur.

One step in front of the other, slowly and deliberately placing his feet on the soft grass below them, hoping to get the drop on the creature this time, Yori proceeded. As he crept ever closer the jackalope’s ear twitched in Yori’s direction, just as its companions’ had. And just as suddenly, the antlered head swung towards the boy, instantly followed by a jolt propelled by its powerful back legs. Even though he was expecting the attack, Yori was unable to dodge in time, receiving almost the full blow to his left shoulder once again. It seemed that they all had the same tactic, which was painful at the moment but predictability made it easier to find an opening.

The creature’s head hit him in the same area as the last, once again launching Yori onto his back. There was a difference this time though, and not in a good way. The pain was much worse. Yori’s eyes teared up as his entire left arm went numb and limp. He tried using it to push himself up but he was unable to move the limb. The pain was unbelievable, but he knew he had to move. He was once again at the mercy of this small creature.

Through sheer willpower he rolled to dodge the next attack, like before, but learning his lesson he tucked his leg in to avoid it getting hit. The jackalope missed completely, landing behind his left leg. Yori gripped his knife tight in his hand and spun around. Using all the speed he could muster, he shot towards the monster.

They always jump away if I get too close. They must hate close proximity unless they initiate it.

Using this logic Yori closed the distance immediately, not giving the jackalope time to recover and ready another attack. He was right, the jackalope jumped backwards. Yori kept dashing towards it, wanting to keep it on the defensive. He had always been a fast sprinter, so he would put that talent to good use. Just before it could make another jump back Yori dove, the sun glinted off of the dagger in his outstretched arm. As it did in his previous battle, his knife came down as the jackalope hopped backwards, impaling itself on his knife and severing its spine.