“I heard it.” The older of the group nodded. There were four men intent on one thing, the deer they had been stalking and the shot that would end its life to provide them food.

The arrow flew from the longbow steadily and impacted with a profoundly satisfying thud in to a fleshy hide. The group ran towards the stream where the deer often spent moments taking water to discover their folly. They had not shot a deer, in the stream, fallen amongst the reeds laying face up was a man.

It was a midsummer evening, fireflies and beautiful sounds from the natural forest greeted him. The young lad, barely fifteen, had been given his first task as an adult which was to go to the woods and collect the meal for the next day. An elk would suffice or something that the family would be able to eat for a few days. He took this new task seriously as his father had placed great merit on his skills by allowing him to travel alone.

The woods had been quiet; the copse near home had yielded nothing new for forage or living creatures. He ventured a little further. There was a small river it was a place where the deer went to drink. His footfalls were lighter to the ear as he walked along; he made it his task to go quietly and slowed down. Experienced hunters could move swiftly for a kill but he had time to learn.

It was not a pleasant evening as he headed in to the area, the clouds threatened to bring rain, he straightened his doublet as a fold irritated his flat belly and crouched lower to the floor as he approached the stream. Something felt intrinsically wrong as he set in to the darker shade of the trees. There was no chirping of birds or signs of heavier-footed animals. He moved towards the waters edge more cautiously.

He hadn’t planned to see a body in there, a human one… no wait. He moved closer and looked around half expecting an ambush from something nearby. When he got to figure half hidden in the reads he panicked. He was bleeding and there were two arrows sticking out of the victims’ gut. One had broken, possibly as the poor man fell. Man? No…

The young man checked again, he looked otherworldly to himself. He looked not so very different apart from the more angular face and the slightly pointed ears. He held his breath in, he felt almost afraid to make a noise in case suddenly the injured and unconscious figure jumped up at him.

Daniel was the young man that had been sent out hunting, short hair and curiosity that flickered in his eyes with the attention of a person who could absorb knowledge although that ended when you put any form of written word in front of him. It was not his passion.

Right now his attention and curiosity leant to the figure in the water. He stepped forwards and tenderly placed one booted foot after another to the waterside before extending his arm and then moving to the man’s neck. There was a pulse, it was a good strong one but the arrows in his stomach were not there to improve his health. They needed to come out.

He moved to the body and looked around once more before picking the stranger up under his arms and dragging him clear of the water. He looked for some grasses and made up a temporary bed to lay him on. Daniel then set to work removing the arrows.

There was a fine art to removing arrowheads and the shafts of wood that sent them to flight. He looked at the fallen man and picked the easier of the two first. One had settled to the right side of his gut and he broke the shaft and fed the arrow through before packing it with some herbs from his backpack and then stitching the open wound as best he could.  

“What are you doing please?” The voice spoke as the other male woke up from the strain of being pulled around.

“Lay still I am stitching that wound.” Daniel said looking to him a little of his more adult nature showing as he concentrated on something very important.

“Thank you.” The other man said and rested back against the grass. “I’m sorry to have caused you so much trouble.”

“It’s no trouble,” Daniel said patiently, “but you are certainly a stranger to this area.”

“Yes I guess I am.” He said watching the sky and trees above.  “My name is Amarenth and I am an elf from the continent to the East.”

“An elf?” Daniel looked at him amazed. So he was an elf? This is what they looked like? “Well, um, I am Daniel the son of Orlan the Blacksmith. I live in the village two miles back.” He explained. It didn’t sound very exciting compared to a stranger from a distant land.

“You have been granted a good home.” Amarenth nodded seeing the unsure look on Daniel’s face. “Do not be ashamed of good honest hard work.” He told him: annoyed that he could not yet sit up or move around as he was in so much pain.

“I am restless that’s all. I just think there could be more out there.” He said threading more of the thread through the needle. He finished the work and looked around in case he had missed any advancing danger. “I can help you back to the village and you can rest there? Do you think you could make it?”

The progression to the small village was slow and it was quite dark by the time they returned. He had not brought food home but his father’s anger and concern were abated when the young man brought the new arrival towards him.

“My gods.” The burly round-shouldered man helped him inside and there with Daniel’s aid they found him a room and warm furs to get Amarenth comfortable in.

Daniel took it as his primary concern to make sure that Amarenth was well catered for and also listened to his tales of home. He spoke of woods and lands where children ran free from the harm of other men and other creatures. The land he was told was a good one but the elf was young too and had wanted to wander. He had ran afoul of a hunting group who thought that they had shot a deer but had missed and shot him in the woods instead.

“Will you go home once you are well again?” Daniel asked him as he sat late one night with his new friend.

He idolised him, the work, the nature of their life and the existence that seemed to be adventurous. He had not known him long but a connection of friendship was something that did not need years to build, they had found common grounds on which to talk and this had made them easy around each other, relaxed and with no need to put on a brave face or show of bravado.

“I think I shall. It is the call of our earth that I long and my brush with death has reminded me of that.” Amarenth said softly to him. “It would be good to return home.”

Amarenth saw the look on the young man’s face. Saw the look of dismay that followed the news. Perhaps Daniel thought that he would be able to convince him to stay and that he thought enough of him to do so. The elf looked at the younger man and sighed. He wanted to go home but he knew that Daniel had grown so used to him being there and to talking to him his life had been touched in a way that he could not easily forget.

The chance meeting had changed his life and Amarenth had to admit that Daniel had saved him and he owed him a lot. He thought deeply for a few days having noticed the young human had tried to distance himself. The thought that he had done this also upset the elf. He had considered staying, he had thought about it and then he had sadly realised that the life here would not fulfil his needs.

When he was on his feet and ready to move Amarenth went to see Daniel who was helping to shoe a horse. He watched with interest from the fence as his father heated and hammered against the red hot metal and then put it to the horses foot. It carried and unusual smell as the hoof horn and hot metal touched one another. The horse did not seem to find it all that unusual as Daniel fed it hay and rubbed the forelock.

The shoe was then removed, heated, beaten again and folded until it matched the correct pattern. His father then took nails from his mouth and the hammer hit at an angle through the hard outer shell of hoof. Daniel’s father turned the end of the hammer, twisting the claw to bring the nails closer and he then took the hammerhead around again and forced the nail flat so as not to be caught.

“That is an art form as much as a living sir.” He said finally as the hoof was placed back down, the horses shoulder was patted and then he looked to the elf.

“Thank you.” He said nodding at Daniel that it was okay to go. Daniel hopped over the fence and smiled at Amarenth glad to see him up and about.

“How are you feeling?” Daniel asked trying not to sound over eager but unable to hide the smile on his face.

“Much better thank you.” Amarenth nodded, he was so glad for the chance to see the fresh air. “I have been thinking Daniel.”

“About leaving.” The young man nodded. He tried to keep calm but he felt it was the immediate goodbye, a cold nervous shiver ran though his body, his skin paled. His heart thudded. Was this the final talk they would ever have? He felt a strange lump in his throat, like he was about to watch a coffin go in to the earth and the mud be thrown over.

“But I shall ask if you wish to join me.” He smiled, he looked to Daniel. “I would like a companion and I would trust none other with my life to return home with.”

Daniel looked at him and then finally back towards his father. He had a good home, a loving family and yet, the pull of adventure was very strong. He looked at the house; the constant rise of smoke came from the forge at the side. He was so torn about what to say because leaving home would mean leaving people he loved but saying no might pass him the chance he would have to get out in the world.

“Would we…” Amarenth put a finger to the human’s lips.

“We would travel between your home and ours.” He finished. He had thought about many things, why had he decided upon this path? Was there more to his feelings? He didn’t want to consider it too deeply. Right now it was a matter of adventure and a young man that held the same sparkle in his eyes as the elf did. “We would return.”

“Then we shall go.” Daniel smiled and nodded. Amarenth watched him run, head to the house to tell them he was about to start a whole new section of his world and all because of two arrows, were they misplaced after all?