Esther Foxman and her girlfriend Siobhan O'Clery have been tasked with an important job. To ensure the continued prosperity of their peaceful settlement of Grey's Bluffs, the pair are sent to the foreboding mountains known as the Hungers in order to fulfill a pact with its mysterious inhabitants.
Cyril Redstone has also been tasked with a job, albeit one of a far more sinister nature. Commissioned by the Bancroft & Hughes Mining and Railroad Conglomerate, Redstone and his mercenaries have been hired to wipe out Grey's Bluffs so its valuable land can be seized by his employers.
While Esther and Siobhan hunger for a peaceful life for themselves and their people, in order to see their dreams realized, they must fight against the dark hunger for profit and power that lurks in the hearts of men and the bloody hungers of beings as old as the land itself.
Hungers as Old as This Land is a horror Western and the debut novella of Zachary Rosenberg.
This book provides examples of:
- Action Girl: Esther Foxman and Siobhan O'Clery have both been trained how to fight by Esther's father, who was a champion boxer in the Union army. Siobhan in particular enjoys pit fighting to blow off steam, and both of them fight courageously to protect Grey's Bluffs from the Blackhawks.
- Alcohol-Induced Idiocy: Cyril gets one of his men to ply Tobias with enough drinks that the boy ends up revealing information about Grey's Bluffs that allows the Blackhawks to massacre most of the town.
- Arc Words: "Hungers." Not only is the Hungers the name of the mountains that the people of Grey's Bluffs live in the shadow of, but the word is repeated many times throughout the story. From Esther's hunger to live to see the country get change for the better and become less bigoted, from Cyril and Bancroft's hunger for money and control. And, of course, the hungers of the beings in the mountains, who hunger for something bloodier.
- Asshole Victim: Mike Vinson, who's introduced beating a young man for winning a bet that Vinson lost, then goes on to insult Esther for being Jewish and half-Native American, and continues to threaten her even after she offers him the money he lost on the bet to just let things drop. He ends up being ripped apart and eaten by one of Esther's "escorts" from the Hungers when it overhears him saying he plans on killing her, Siobhan and Tobias. The innkeeper is more upset that he needs new sheets because the room he rented is now drenched in blood.
- Bad Samaritan: Cyril introduces himself to Esther by stepping in and knocking out a drunken racist who was on the verge of attacking her. He's mostly doing it to size her up since he plans on killing her along with everyone else in Grey's Bluffs.
- Badass Boast: Esther gives a phenomenal one when staring down Cyril Redstone after he killed her father, slaughtered most of Grey's Bluffs, and is trying to intimidate her and the other survivors into giving up the location of the gold.Esther: My name is Esther Foxman. My father was Abraham Foxman. My mother was Halona of the Muscogee Creek. My father's people stood with Judas Maccabeus, my mother's with Tecumseh. Through generations, they fought to the last breath against men like ya, Cyril. And I ain't givin' you a damn inch.
- Battle Couple: Esther and Siobhan are willing to fight to protect themselves and the people they love. Not only do they fight during the Blackhawks attack on Grey's Bluffs, but they fight side-by-side to defeat Cyril Redstone in the climax.
- Big Bad: Gerard Bancroft, who hires Cyril Redstone to wipe out Grey's Bluffs. Possibly a Big Bad Duumvirate on account of his partnership with Kenneth Hughes, since the latter is said to be aware of his partner's actions even if Hughes isn't personally involved in the story.
- Bittersweet Ending: The story ends with Abraham Foxman, Tobias and many members of Grey's Bluffs dead, as well as the survivors being forced to divide up the remaining gold and abandon their destroyed home, but Cyril Redstone and Gerard Bancroft are dead and Esther and Siobhan are still alive and still have each other as they go out in search of a new home.
- Child of Two Worlds: Esther is half white and Jewish on her father's side, and half Muscogee Creek on her mother's side. This causes her some internal conflict because, while she's a firm believer in Judaism, she does feel bad about not knowing much about her mother's culture, since her mom died before Esther could learn about it from her. Nonetheless, Esther is proud of both sides of her heritage and invokes the strength of both her people when standing up to Cyril.
- Childhood Friend Romance: Esther Foxman and Siobhan O'Clery have known each other since they were kids, Esther's father having taken care of Siobhan when her own father passed. The two women have been in a loving relationship for years by the time the story starts.
- Converting for Love: Siobhan converted to Judaism so that no god could come between her and Esther's love.
- Corrupt Corporate Executive: Gerard Bancroft, the company owner of Bancroft & Hughes Mining and Railroad Conglomerate, who sees nothing wrong with having unionizing workers murdered or wiping out an entire town to get his hands on their land and their gold. His partner, Kenneth Hughes, is implied by Bancroft to be just as bad but he's never seen in person.
- Daddy's Girl: Esther loves her father dearly, still running into her arms when she sees him like when she was little.
- Dark Is Not Evil: The inhabitants of the hungers are literal monsters sometimes described like shadows, with glowing eyes and knife-like teeth, but they can be reasoned with and do have a sense of honor.
- Deadpan Snarker: Cyril has a wonderfully dry sense of humor, made all the better by the fact he purposefully recruits violent idiots into the Blackhawks. A great example is when he's informed about Mike Vinson going missing and his room being drenched in blood.Ben: The innkeeper was proper sore about needin' new sheets.
Cyril: Probably more torn than anyone findin' a new Vinson. - Deal with the Devil: A long time ago, Abraham Foxman made a pact with the inhabitants of the Hungers. His settlement of Grey's Bluffs offer them a yearly tribute of meat, and in exchange they're given gold from inside the mountains to help their community prosper. Considering the meat doesn't have to be human, it's actually a pretty benign example. So long as the rules of the pact are followed.
- Death by Materialism: Cyril and the rest of the Blackhawks insist on going to the Hungers to steal every bit of gold not embedded in the walls before handing over the territory to their employer. This results in Cyril and all his men meeting their gruesome ends at the claws and teeth of the inhabitants of the Hungers.
- Defiant to the End: Abraham Foxman refuses to beg for mercy or show a hint of fear even as Cyril draws his death out with a knife. Abe just keeps telling him to go to the Hungers to get his gold and refuses to elaborate anymore, knowing what awaits Cyril there.
- Did You Just Flip Off Cthulhu?: Esther demands the inhabitants of the Hungers allow her to take Tobias's body back for a proper burial. When the monsters that have just torn apart twenty-five men snarl and object, she just snaps at them that they've eaten enough today, even getting one of them to carry Tobias's body for her back to the horses.
- Dragon-in-Chief: Cyril Redstone may work for Gerard Bancroft, but Bancroft's power comes from money whereas Cyril is a veteran fighter and the leader of a gang of vicious mercenaries. At one point Cyril is tickled when he realizes Bancroft actually thinks Cyril may kill him, and while the showdown with Cyril is a dramatic and climactic battle for Esther and Siobhan, the pair of them effortlessly killing Bancroft afterwards is treated more as wrapping up a loose end.
- Due to the Dead: Esther demands the inhabitants of the Hungers allow her and Siobhan to take Tobias's body back for a proper burial. The final chapter has her, Siobhan and the remaining survivors of Grey's Bluffs paying their respects to those killed by the Blackhawks. They wash their bodies, dress them in white, and bury them in white pine boxes, then recite a prayer over them.
- Ear Ache: Cyril shoots off one of Siobhan's earlobes for attacking one of his men.
- Eaten Alive: The inhabitants of the Hungers are fond of eating people while they're still alive, either because they intrude on their territory or threaten those under their protection. People who experience this firsthand include Mike Vinson, the majority of the Blackhawks, and Cyril Redstone himself.
- Face Death with Dignity: Esther, Siobhan and Tobias are all prepared to do so when they return to the Hungers, knowing setting foot on the mountain and bringing the Blackhawks into their territory is a direct violation of the pact. As the Blackhawks are being ripped apart and eaten alive by the Hungers, the three are completely at peace with dying if it means the people who destroyed their home die too. Tobias is the only one who ends up actually dying by offering himself as restitution to the creatures of the Hungers to spare Esther and Siobhan their wrath.
- Faux Affably Evil: Cyril Redstone may be a complete sociopath but he often adopts a manner of breezy charm when dealing with his victims and has an incredibly dry sense of humor. When Esther first meets him, he acts cheerful and friendly, but as he goes on she realizes he doesn't really feel anything and it's more like he's pantomiming affability.
- Fiery Redhead: Siobhan O'Clery has a fiery mane of red hair and an even fierier temper. Esther usually needs to discourage her from fighting when provoked and Siobhan likes to blow off steam by participating in pit fights.
- Good Parents: Abraham Foxman is a loving and devoted father to his daughter Esther. He has absolutely no problem with her being in a relationship with Siobhan, even making sure the bed in Esther's room is big enough for two, and tells Esther that both he and her mother always wanted Esther to chose for herself what to believe in.
- Heroic Sacrifice: Double-subverted. Tobias volunteers to take the Blackhawks to the Hungers to get the gold they're after if they'll let everyone else go, intending for the creatures living in the mountains to only kill him and the Blackhawks. Cyril spoils the plan by forcing Esther and Siobhan to accompany them to ensure Tobias isn't lying. However, once Tobias is mortally wounded in a fight with Cyril, he convinces the creatures that bringing the Blackhawks to the Hungers was all his idea, successfully trading his life for Esther and Siobhan's survival.
- Hired Guns: Cyril Redstone leads the Blackhawks, a unit of "problem solvers" willing to do any dirty job so long as their client can pay, whether it be wiping out a group of unionizing workers, or massacring an entire town.
- Humans Are the Real Monsters: The people of the Hungers are ancient and territorial creatures that will devour anyone who intrude on their home, but they have some sense of honor and can be reasoned with. The human antagonists, Cyril Redstone and Gerard Bancroft, lack any honor or mercy and will casually resort to mass murder to line their pockets.
- I Own This Town: Bancroft says everyone in Independence and the surrounding region works for him in some way, from the proprietor of the general store, to the miners in his quarries and the women working in the brothels. All money in the region is supposed to flow back to him and the fact that Grey's Bluffs goes against this "natural order" galls him.
- Leave No Survivors: Cyril and Bancroft don't intend for anyone to survive Grey's Bluffs to tell the truth of what happened. Cyril promises to spare the survivors of the town if someone leads them to the location of the gold, but that's only because he believes he'll have enough time to claim the gold, circle back and kill the survivors.
- Money Is Not Power: Bancroft seems to think he can but his way out of facing consequences for causing the massacre of Grey's Bluffs. Esther and Siobhan scoff at his attempts to bribe them into ignoring his atrocities and off him with a Vorpal Pillow.
- My God, What Have I Done?: Tobias's reaction to realizing the information he shared over drinks with a Blackhawk helped facilitate the massacre at Grey's Bluffs.
- Neck Snap: Tobias is killed this way by one of the people of the Hungers. It's strong enough for the bone to end up poking through the skin of his throat.
- Non-Action Big Bad: Gerard Bancroft hires Cyril to do his dirty work but he isn't a fighter himself and instead hangs back in town while waiting for Cyril to report back to him. When ambushed by Esther and Siobhan, they're able to overpower and kill him effortlessly.
- Nothing Is Scarier: The "people" of the Hungers are never given an explanation of what they are outside of being things that predate mankind. Likewise, their physical appearance is mostly left up to the readers imagination, mostly being referred to as "shadows." The most consistent physical characteristics they all share are glowing eyes and razor sharp teeth.
- Only in It for the Money: The only thing Cyril cares about is his payday. Money's the only reason he enlisted in the Union during the Civil War, and it's the same reason why he agrees to wipe out a town of innocent people despite owing its founder his life.
- Pinkerton Detective: Cyril used to be one before forming the Blackhawks. Apparently Bancroft prefers hiring him and his men rather than the Pinks because they're more morally scrupulous than Cyril and his men.
- Politically Correct Villain: Cyril Redstone is surprisingly tolerant for the time. He doesn't discriminate against people or kill them based on race, religion or sexual orientation. He's willing to kill everyone equally so long as there's money involved.
- Pragmatic Villainy: Cyril tries to stop his men from committing murder in Independence, not out of moral objections, but because he considers it discourteous and unwise to do it while in the city their employer runs. Likewise, if his men fail him in some way, he prefers to dock their pay instead of just shooting them, feeling it could negatively impact employment rates in his group.
- Railroad Baron: Gerard Bancroft and Kenneth Hughes of the Bancroft & Hughes Mining and Railroad Conglomerate, are robber barons who earn their fortune by "civilizing" the frontier and wiping out anyone who gets in their way.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: Esther is the calm, rational blue to Siobhan's fiery, passionate red.
- Religious Bruiser: Esther Foxman, her father Abraham and her lover Siobhan are devoted followers of Judaism and all of them are capable fighters.
- Retired Badass: Abraham Foxman is a veteran soldier of the Civil War and a champion boxer on the Union side. Nowadays he's a peaceful town leader. When the Blackhawks attack, he proves every bit as badass as ever, even fighting Cyril one-on-one in a fight he would've won had Cyril not gotten his hands back on his gun.
- Sequel Hook: Esther and Siobhan survive and leave the ruins of Grey's Bluffs, but just before he dies Bancroft says killing him will ensure his children, his business partner, and others will hunt them in revenge.
- The Sociopath: Cyril Redstone is a high-functioning example. He's superficially charming and good at lying and manipulating others, but he's utterly incapable of empathy or remorse. He doesn't love, hate or experience complex emotions, only being capable of shallow, fleeting ones like anger, fear and amusement. The only person he truly cares about is himself and because of this he can commit mass murder like it's nothing.
- Take Me Instead: By entering the Hungers with the Blackhawks and violating the pact with its inhabitants, Esther, Siobhan and Tobias know their lives are forfeit. However, since Cyril has already mortally wounded Tobias, Tobias tells the creatures the truth, that it was his idea to bring the Blackhawks to the mountains, saying Esther and Siobhan should be spared and only he should have to pay the price. The inhabitants agree and one of them honors his request for a painless and peaceful death, snapping his neck so he dies instantly. They then allow Esther and Siobhan to leave under the condition they never come back.
- They Look Just Like Everyone Else!: Gerard Bancroft is a small man with thinning hair and features so ordinary he could disappear into a crowd of three. He's also willing to resort to mass murder at the drop of a hat.
- To Serve Man: The "people" of the Hungers are inhuman creatures who will devour any human who intrudes on their territory.
- The Unfettered: Cyril won't let anything get in the way of his profit.Cyril: I just killed a whole town, little girl. I just carved a man I owed my life to like he was a Sunday roast. Don't think there's a place I won't go to.
- Ungrateful Bastard: During the battle at Antietam, Abraham Foxman saves Cyril's life when a Confederate soldier has the latter dead to rights. Cyril isn't too proud to admit he wouldn't be drawing breath if it weren't for Abraham. Nor is he too grateful that he'll spare his life if it means losing money. However, he will charge double to kill him due to the "emotional burden" the task places on him.
- Villain Protagonist: Cyril Redstone, the other POV character aside from Esther Foxman, is a charming yet utterly merciless sociopath who will cross any line for money.
- Villainous Breakdown: Cyril gets more and more on edge the further he's he's led into the Hungers, remembering the horror stories he's been told about the place, jumping at shadows, and growing ever more uneasy until the monsters reveal the truth of their existence and he breaks down in a panic.
- Villainous Respect: Cyril admits to himself that he admires Esther and Siobhan's strength, it being a trait that he values in people. He ruminates if he was capable of feeling regret, he'd regret their upcoming deaths.
- Villains Want Mercy:
- During the climax, Cyril Redstone tortures and kills Esther's father, wiped out a good portion of Grey's Bluffs, threatened to torture her lover and planned on murdering her, Siobhan, Tobias and the rest of the survivors after he claimed the gold in the Hungers, but he still pleads for Esther to spare him. When that doesn't work, he tries pleading with the people of the Hungers themselves, only to find their hungers are beyond words.
- In the denouement, Gerard Bancroft, who ordered Cyril to conduct the massacre that caused their town to be destroyed and many of their neighbors dead, tries bribing Esther and Siobhan to spare him. When that doesn't work he tells them that killing him will just cause his children and his business partner to hunt them down. They respond with a Vorpal Pillow.
- Vorpal Pillow: Bancroft meets his end this way. After being ambushed in his home and trying to convince his killers to spare him by pointing out that shooting him would just attract attention, Esther and Siobhan smother him to death with a pillow.
- Weird West: The story's a western with Horror elements. In addition to settlers trying to make their way in the frontier and industrialists trying to "tame" it, there are also ancient, eldritch beings lurking in the mountains that hunger for human flesh.
