Samye woke on the hill to the sound of something out of place.
Not wind.
Not animals.
Not the forest.
Voices.
He sat up slowly and looked down from the slope.
A group of bandits moved through the trees below, armed with crude weapons and stolen gear. They dragged metal cages behind them—inside, terrified children cried, screamed, and begged with tiny broken voices.
Samye’s jaw clenched.
His first instinct was to turn away.
It’s not my problem.
I shouldn’t interfere.
I’m already injured.
But then the crying grew louder… sharper… more desperate.
His heartbeat quickened.
Aren’s face appeared in his mind—
bloody, blind, terrified.
Samye shut his eyes tight.
“…Man,” he muttered, frustrated, “I don’t want to regret this decision.”
He stood.
As he scanned the area for a plan, something caught his attention:
A bear cave nearby.
Samye’s eyes narrowed.
Stolen story; please report.
A crazy idea formed.
He walked toward the cave quietly, keeping distance so the creature wouldn’t smell him immediately. Then he picked up a fist-sized rock, aimed, and threw it using all the strength his battered body had left.
The rock struck the cave wall.
Hard.
A low, rumbling roar answered.
“Come on…” Samye muttered. “Wake up.”
He threw another stone—faster, sharper.
This time the roar was louder.
The bear burst from the cave, massive, furious, wild with instinct.
Samye turned and sprinted downhill.
His injured foot burned with pain, but he pushed through it, leading the raging beast straight toward the bandits.
The bandits heard the thunderous footsteps.
One shouted, “What the hell is that—?”
Samye didn’t stop to answer.
He ducked behind a fallen tree, hiding in the shadows. Then he picked up smaller stones and hurled them with precision.
Each one struck a bandit squarely in the head or back.
They stumbled, cursed, shouted.
The bear heard their yelling.
And charged.
The first bandit didn’t even get a chance to scream. The bear crushed him instantly, tossing him aside like a rag doll. Panic erupted immediately.
“No—NO—RUN!”
“Kill it! Someone kill it!”
But none of them were capable.
The bear tore through the group with terrifying power. Blades shattered against its thick hide. Bones snapped under its weight.
One by one, the bandits fell.
The bear, though injured, roared victoriously—
—until it turned toward the cages.
Its attention fixed on the trembling children inside.
The bear began smashing its claws against the metal bars, bending them dangerously.
Samye felt his stomach drop.
No… not again.
Not another Aren.
Not another helpless child dying in front of me—
Without thinking, he grabbed the heavy iron hammer of a fallen bandit and rushed forward.
“HEY!” he screamed.
The bear didn’t look.
The cage started to crack.
The children screamed louder.
Samye ran with everything he had left.
His legs burned.
His lungs screamed.
His vision blurred.
But he ran.
As the cage finally split open, sharp metal tearing apart—
—Aren’s last moment flashed in front of his eyes.
The empty sockets.
The shaking voice.
The final breath.
“No…” Samye whispered.
“Not again.”
His heartbeat thundered.
His steps quickened—
past human limit.
Past pain.
Past fear.
He raised the hammer high—
and swung it with a roar that shook the trees around him.
