This is an old story I found in my deviantart account. I thought I'd post it since it involves deer, although it has to do with my old First Person Shooter community. I wrote this a long time before I became a TEF member.

The hunter is my character from the FPS community, who originally kills deer but has a change of heart after what happens in this story.

A few more things...

AOD - "Angels of Death", an organization Chris is part of.
Doom - Doomhammer, a friend of Chris'
Quad - QuadRaptor, Chris' nickname (not Quad, the deer from TEF)

Anyway, enjoy!

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"Change your thoughts and you change your world."
- Norman Vincent Peale


A loud shriek pierced the silence of the woods. She couldn't help herself from letting it out, but it was by far the worst pain she had ever felt. The Doe was generally very clever, and could often spot traps set by hunters and avoid them easily. But this time, she paid too much attention to one trap that she did not see the second trap that waited to sink its teeth into her leg.

She held her voice wisely, trying not to make too much noise as she didn't want to give away where she was. The pain increased dramatically every time she struggled, and the trap's teeth burrowed deeper into her skin. Blood was already seeping out and running down her leg and covering the metal teeth. She wanted help - some other deer to come and free her if they knew how, or if all else, to accompany her when she could endure the pain no longer. But alas, she was alone and terrified.

She could call out, but there were several things that could happen: Another deer could rescue her, since many of them were familiar with the traps; A larger animal or group of animals could come an kill her; A hunter could find her; Or nothing at all, and she would exhaust herself completely and probably die of starvation or blood loss. Of these, she obviously would want another deer to find her, but if she had her choice from the other options, she'd rather have another animal find her and give her a quick death, since they would understand her pain and she wouldn't mind allowing them to benefit from her corpse. Of all, she didn't want a hunter to come. She despised man and his creations, and a death by a human would ultimately disgrace her honor.

Despite the odds being against her, she made a hard decision, and taking in a deep breath, she let out a call as loud as she could manage before collapsing and waiting for her fate.


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Chris Daté carefully walked though the woods, stopping every so often to look through his scope when he thought he heard something, only to continue on when he saw nothing. He was patient, which is a vital thing for hunters, and he enjoyed the quiet of the woods regardless of if his hunt was successful or not. He was one of the best in the area, as more times than not he returned with prey. He was especially well trained in hunting deer, and he always kept the antlers of the males as trophies, which he displayed proudly on a wall in the AOD compound. On top of that, he saved his clan some money by returning with venison so they didn't have to buy meat for dinners that week.

He heard a loud sound nearby, and shrugged it off. But when he heard it again, he rushed towards the sound, not bothering to muffle the sounds of his steps as he ran. The Doe heard something coming, and prayed that it was what she hoped for, but when the hunter arrived she wailed in anguish and then, in a sudden act of shame, abandoned her former thoughts and surrendered pitifully to the hunter. She would not struggle any longer, for she knew he would take her life. Chris approached and knelt down close to her, and as she was already becoming dizzy from the blood she had already lost, she could barely keep her eyes open and eventually rested her head on the hunter's chest. He put a hand on the back of her head, and the other gently rubbed her spine. She was defeated, and waited for him to put her to sleep.

But she was wrong. The hunter himself hated traps, and seeing her in one was a horrid sight. Chris had his own system of beliefs - he believed in quick deaths, not long, slow suffering. He would never resort to traps, and though he knew not who set this one, he cursed that hunter for placing it in HIS woods. He spoke softly to the Doe, "It's all right, you're going to be fine....", as he removed a knife that was sheathed on his belt. The Doe saw this and closed her eyes, waiting for the blade to slice her neck or stab her in the heart, but instead she felt the tension on her leg released quickly. Chris had pryed the jaws open and removed her leg, and she lay there silently, taking long breaths. He saw the tears forming in her eyes, and wished he knew what she was thinking.

Chris observed his surroundings a bit, then took a cell phone and called the AOD base. "Doom, hey it's Quad. Listen, I need you to call Animal Control immediately, I've got a wounded deer out here near the stream, and I think I'm just off of Takenawa Road because I can hear cars close to here....alright, I'll stay put then. Thanks." He returned the cell to his pocket and looked back on the deer. She was already asleep, and while he waited for the medics, he began to reflect on his life.


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The Doe weakly opened her eyes. She laid on a table in a dark room, with bright lights that shown only on her. She was blinded immediately and closed her eyes, moving her head around so she could try to get the light from her face. She could barely feel the rest of her body - most of it was numb anyway. Then she heard something, someone spoke to her: "You're lucky to have been found."

A veterenarian put her hand on the Doe's neck. She felt this and tried to open her eyes again, making out a figure within the light. She was able to see a little better now, and she looked down on the rest of her body. Most of her torso had been covered with a sheet, her legs remained uncovered. The one that had been caught was already stitched and bandaged. Her eyes returned to the woman, but then she saw someone behind her....the hunter was here too. She could get a better look at him now that his camoflauge clothing didn't blend with the surroundings, and after surveying him, she closed her eyes, and let out a soft sound. It was her way of whispering, "Thanks....hunter."


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The Doe would be released the following week. She healed amazingly fast, and despite that her leg limped a bit she was able to manage herself well. In the meantime, the woods near the AOD base were scoured, and more than twenty traps similar to the one the Doe was caught by were found, with no idea who was responsible for placing them on private property.

Chris had the Doe in the back of a Dodge Ram, and stopped on a side road deeper into the woods where he thought she would be safe. He opened the trunk and she helped herself out of the bed. Before disappearing in the woods, she looked back on the man, and at that moment, she made another decision - not all humans are so bad, and she wouldn't hate them as much anymore. She then scampered and vanished into nature.

Chris smiled. He, too, had made some changes in his life. He would soon sell the antlers on his wall, and give the proceeds to a wildlife foundation. And from then on, he only used tranquilizer darts when he hunted, and never brought a deer back to the base. He still had a passion for hunting, and still was the best in the area, but he had much more respect for life than before, and rather than being a deerhunter, he soon became a deerprotector.