Sunburst Erased

After completing Inked Beginning, I turned my attention to the second piece of micro-fiction for the month, returning to my hunter, Solomon. While his larger story continues to unfold elsewhere, I find myself drawn to these smaller, quieter moments. They allow me to explore who he is when the hunt pauses just long enough for choice, reflection, and consequence to surface.

Some of Solomon’s hunts are measured in blood spilled and enemies slain. Others are defined by what remains after the violence has passed. This moment belongs to the latter. It is not about the clash itself, but about the space between pursuit and resolution, where meaning lingers in the smallest details.

In a moonlit forest, torn earth, frayed fabric, and a pendant worn smooth by hands long gone tell their own story. For Solomon, these signs are not distractions. They are markers. His focus is absolute, yet despite the changes forced upon him, he remains human. When an immediate threat looms over others, he is compelled to choose—not between right and wrong, but between what can be saved and what must be erased.

This short piece offers a glimpse into the hunter’s discipline and unsettling restraint. It is a pause before the chase resumes, where mercy and erasure blur together. Read on for a brief interlude that reveals as much about Solomon as any battle ever could. If you’d like to read the full piece, consider buying me a croissant and settling in for a quiet escape.

Come, sit down and allow me to give you a mini-escape and kindle your imagination.

As moonlight threaded through the canopy, Solomon paused alongside a fallen log. He kneeled beside it, examining the rotting wood as the forest stilled. He tore a piece free, and it crumbled in his fingers. The hunter drew a deep breath, not from urgency, but from a ritual formed long ago.

A scrap of cloth fluttered from a nearby thorn. He stepped over the dying trunk and hurried toward the material. He ripped it off, feeling the cheap fabric between his fingertips. Solomon abandoned the fragment and rushed ahead.

With every stride, damp dirt and old smoke filled him, followed by fear, faint yet fresh. When the scent surged, he dropped, discovering a small charm protruding through the torn earth. He lifted a child’s wooden pendant carved into a sunburst, worn smooth by years of handling. When the cord came free, the break revealed jagged edges.

Solomon closed his eyes and pressed the necklace into the soil before erasing all trace of it.