CW: contains references to murder and child death
This post is part of a chronicle of the journal entries of Alarian Vasz, my wanderer in my first ever playthrough of Her Odyssey, a caltrop core solo journaling RPG.
I left under the cover the smoke provided, my bag loaded only with what I could grab as I absconded from the house. The hunting party didn't know about the break in the fence, so that was my opportunity. Michael and I had seen a faun squeeze through the torn corner of chain link just a few days prior, but we hadn't had a chance to repair it yet. That delay was now my salvation. As I passed through the fence I grabbed the shovel I'd left out to dig a new post hole. The metal head was heavy, so I tried to break it off by snapping the haft over my knee. It worked, but I do have a bit of a limp now. At least the haft makes an okay walking stick. I headed west under the moonlight into the moors. When we were younger we would hunt the bog monsters from sunrise to sunset, coming home with our trousers coated in muck and dust. Hell, just last month we thought one day I'd be the cool uncle taking Michael's soon to be son on his first hunt. Probably best not to think about it right now. The hunting party made sure I would have no kin.
Jenine's family farm wasn't far if memory served me right, and for once it did. I made it there about dawn and banged on the door. Jeremiah never cared much for Michael, so he wasn't too pleased when the opening door revealed me covered in the muck of my childhood and soot from the night's fire. I begged for water, a slive of bread, anything; but he demanded to know why I darkened his doorway. I did my best to keep my composure. Telling a man his daughter, son-in-law, and soon to be nephew were gone isn't really my strong suit, but I kept my voice steady and told him of the attack. Being Jeremiah Blakely he naturally blamed this on my brother and I and "your damned way of life" and turned me out, but I did get his word that should the hunting party turn up he would deny ever seeing me. He even handed me a half-full water skin before slamming the door in my face. I'll stay close for now, maybe grab a nap under my jacket in the thicket of woods near the farm's edge.
This has not been an auspicious day.