01-01-2024, 04:27 AM
It was early on a warm summer day in the Cumberland Gap in the state of Kentucky. Two large tents were set up in the forest away from the normally traveled trails. Jerry and his three sons Dennis, Allen, and Thomas had come with Jerry's twin brother Peter to celebrate Peter's son Alex's eighteenth birthday. They all came out of their tents wearing buckskin loin cloths, mocassins, headbands, and arm bands that held the ensignia of the Cherokee nation. Jerry was tall slim with a swimmer's build. Dennis was much like his father with the tall slim body. Allen was fair skinned blond blue eyed and almost painfully thin. Thomas was shorter than his brothers and a little overweight. Peter was a tall broad chested man whose only concession to the modern world was his brown horn rimmed glasses. Alex was as all as his father already broad shouldered young man. He had light blond hair and bright blue eyes.
"Why do we dress like this every year?" complained Allen.
"It's tradition." said Jerry.
They went to Jerry's truck and he passed out bows to each of them and quivers with only three arrows in them.
"We only get three shots, so someone had better get lucky or we go hungry tonight." sadi Peter.
"Alex and Pete, you go to the top of the ridge and we'll go along the bottom and see what we can find." said Jerry.
As the six men seperated and moved into the woods they had no idea that another group of men had been watching from the ridge above. They were dressed similarly except on their arm bands they had the emblem of the Shawnee nation. The leader of the group whispered to his followers:
"Those Cherokee dogs are hunting on Shawnee ground. As soon as they get in range, we make them pay. Make them suffer, shoot them in their bellies."
Twenty minutes later Peter and Alex made it to the top of the ridge and were beginning to walk along the top looking for any signs of wild life.
"Do you have any idea how ridiculous we look in these things?" asked Alex.
"Our ancestors hunted like this for centuries." said Peter.
"I'll bet they looked just as silly." said Alex.
Shump. Alex stopped short and dropped his bow. Peter turned around and looked at his son. Alex stood with a dumbfounded look on his face and his hands wrapped around an arrow that stuck perfectly into his round belly button.
"Alex!" screamed Peter as he dropped his bow and moved toward his son.
Shump. Peter dropped his bow and fell to his knees bent over with an arrow stuck above his loincloth and below his navel. Shump. Shump. Shump.
"Oooohhhh!" groaned Alex as he took a step back when three more arrows drove into his toned belly.
Peter forced himself to straighten up and reached toward Alex.
"Dad! Help me! Daddy!" gasped Alex.
Shump. Alex stiffened as an arrow hit between his sixth and seventh rib. His pale blue eyes went blank and blood dribbled over his lower lip. Alex's legs gave out and he fell in front of Peter and lay motionless. Shump.
"Ooomphhh!" grunted Peter as an arrow slid into his deep round navel.
Peter stumbled to his feet and tried to make it over to where Alex lay. Shump. Shump. Shump.
"Ooooooooo!" screamed Peter as three more arrows hit his belly.
Peter looked around trying to find the archers.
"Why?" asked Peter as he looked down at his fallen son.
Shump. The only answer Peter got was the pain of an arrow hitting the middle of his chest. Peter gurgled and fell back. He landed on the edge of the ridge and slid down the hill almost at the feet of Jerry and his sons.
"Pete!" cried Jerry as he ran toward his twin brother.
Shump. Shump. Jerry stopped running and stumbled, then fell to his knees clutching arrows that stuck on either side of his navel angled into his guts. Shump.
"Uuffh!" spat Jerry as an arrow plugged into his belly button.
"Dad!" cried Dennis.
"Daddy!" gasped Thomas.
Shump. Jerry spun around as an arrow hit just left of the center of his chest. He spun down to the ground beside Peter and lay motionless. A hail of arrows came from the woods toward the three brothers. Thomas staggered back and looked down in shock as sixteen shafts stuck in his rounded belly. Dennis leaned back against a tree with six arrows in a straight line up the middle of his long lean belly from the top of his loin cloth to just below his sternum. Allen stiffened and bent a little as he wrapped his hands around the two arrows in his big round belly button.
"Great, we get turned into pin cushions and he gets two in the belly button." groaned Thomas.
Shump.
"Eeeyaaaahhhh!" shrieked Allen as an arrow hit between his navel and his loin cloth at his waist.
Shump. Shump. Dennis stood up to his full height as arrows hit between his sixth and seventh ribs on both sides.
"Ullkh!" gagged Dennis as blood poured over his lower lip.
Dennis slid down the tree and sat staring blankly at Allen. Shump. Thomas took a couple of staggering steps back as an arrow hit the left side of his chest. He fell flat on his back and lay still. Allen looked around him and groaned. One look at Thomas' eyes rolled upward and he knew his baby brother was dead. The empty look in Dennis's eyes confirmed he was dead. Allen stumbled toward his father. The slack jawed empty eyed look on Jerry's face confirmed that he was already dead. He looked over at Peter and saw that his face was a mask of agony. Peter's belly jerked up and down in heavy gasps and Allen was relieved to find at least one of his family still alive. Shump. Peter arched his back and groaned as an arrow hit below his sternum with the arrow angled so that the arrowhead went up under his ribs.
"Gluck!" spat Peter through a mouthful of blood.
Allen shook his head as Peter's eyes went wide and his belly stopped pumping. Shump.
"Oh!" gasped Allen as an arrowhead went into his heart.
He fell to his knees, then over on his side. Allen had joined his brother, father, uncle, and cousin in death.
"Why do we dress like this every year?" complained Allen.
"It's tradition." said Jerry.
They went to Jerry's truck and he passed out bows to each of them and quivers with only three arrows in them.
"We only get three shots, so someone had better get lucky or we go hungry tonight." sadi Peter.
"Alex and Pete, you go to the top of the ridge and we'll go along the bottom and see what we can find." said Jerry.
As the six men seperated and moved into the woods they had no idea that another group of men had been watching from the ridge above. They were dressed similarly except on their arm bands they had the emblem of the Shawnee nation. The leader of the group whispered to his followers:
"Those Cherokee dogs are hunting on Shawnee ground. As soon as they get in range, we make them pay. Make them suffer, shoot them in their bellies."
Twenty minutes later Peter and Alex made it to the top of the ridge and were beginning to walk along the top looking for any signs of wild life.
"Do you have any idea how ridiculous we look in these things?" asked Alex.
"Our ancestors hunted like this for centuries." said Peter.
"I'll bet they looked just as silly." said Alex.
Shump. Alex stopped short and dropped his bow. Peter turned around and looked at his son. Alex stood with a dumbfounded look on his face and his hands wrapped around an arrow that stuck perfectly into his round belly button.
"Alex!" screamed Peter as he dropped his bow and moved toward his son.
Shump. Peter dropped his bow and fell to his knees bent over with an arrow stuck above his loincloth and below his navel. Shump. Shump. Shump.
"Oooohhhh!" groaned Alex as he took a step back when three more arrows drove into his toned belly.
Peter forced himself to straighten up and reached toward Alex.
"Dad! Help me! Daddy!" gasped Alex.
Shump. Alex stiffened as an arrow hit between his sixth and seventh rib. His pale blue eyes went blank and blood dribbled over his lower lip. Alex's legs gave out and he fell in front of Peter and lay motionless. Shump.
"Ooomphhh!" grunted Peter as an arrow slid into his deep round navel.
Peter stumbled to his feet and tried to make it over to where Alex lay. Shump. Shump. Shump.
"Ooooooooo!" screamed Peter as three more arrows hit his belly.
Peter looked around trying to find the archers.
"Why?" asked Peter as he looked down at his fallen son.
Shump. The only answer Peter got was the pain of an arrow hitting the middle of his chest. Peter gurgled and fell back. He landed on the edge of the ridge and slid down the hill almost at the feet of Jerry and his sons.
"Pete!" cried Jerry as he ran toward his twin brother.
Shump. Shump. Jerry stopped running and stumbled, then fell to his knees clutching arrows that stuck on either side of his navel angled into his guts. Shump.
"Uuffh!" spat Jerry as an arrow plugged into his belly button.
"Dad!" cried Dennis.
"Daddy!" gasped Thomas.
Shump. Jerry spun around as an arrow hit just left of the center of his chest. He spun down to the ground beside Peter and lay motionless. A hail of arrows came from the woods toward the three brothers. Thomas staggered back and looked down in shock as sixteen shafts stuck in his rounded belly. Dennis leaned back against a tree with six arrows in a straight line up the middle of his long lean belly from the top of his loin cloth to just below his sternum. Allen stiffened and bent a little as he wrapped his hands around the two arrows in his big round belly button.
"Great, we get turned into pin cushions and he gets two in the belly button." groaned Thomas.
Shump.
"Eeeyaaaahhhh!" shrieked Allen as an arrow hit between his navel and his loin cloth at his waist.
Shump. Shump. Dennis stood up to his full height as arrows hit between his sixth and seventh ribs on both sides.
"Ullkh!" gagged Dennis as blood poured over his lower lip.
Dennis slid down the tree and sat staring blankly at Allen. Shump. Thomas took a couple of staggering steps back as an arrow hit the left side of his chest. He fell flat on his back and lay still. Allen looked around him and groaned. One look at Thomas' eyes rolled upward and he knew his baby brother was dead. The empty look in Dennis's eyes confirmed he was dead. Allen stumbled toward his father. The slack jawed empty eyed look on Jerry's face confirmed that he was already dead. He looked over at Peter and saw that his face was a mask of agony. Peter's belly jerked up and down in heavy gasps and Allen was relieved to find at least one of his family still alive. Shump. Peter arched his back and groaned as an arrow hit below his sternum with the arrow angled so that the arrowhead went up under his ribs.
"Gluck!" spat Peter through a mouthful of blood.
Allen shook his head as Peter's eyes went wide and his belly stopped pumping. Shump.
"Oh!" gasped Allen as an arrowhead went into his heart.
He fell to his knees, then over on his side. Allen had joined his brother, father, uncle, and cousin in death.