“Why did you bring that…thing with you?” Hainer remarked, gazing at the black furry creature that waked alongside the woman that he fought with earlier. The daylight made it easier to see the muscles on the beast, its dark and shiny coat almost polished in the light. It was large, and Hainer was weary of having such a thing come along with him. It wasn’t long until the others that fought form the previous night, joined the party. Hainer took a brief glance around at everyone. Including the 4 of them, there were an additional 5 people that were seemingly apart of this particular party. They certainly were a colourful bunch, although, Hainer wasn’t sure if 9 people were enough for this supposed hunt. He wasn’t even sure how many people were in the other parties either.
“Okay, I think that’s everyone.” A voice suddenly spoke. Hainer turned to his side, and saw one of the guardsmen holding a parchment in his hand, looking at it as he spoke. “Welcome to the Third Party!” His voice shouted, as he tried to grab everyone’s attention. “I’m going to go over some things with you before you head out.” He said. “First off, a reminder of the task at hand - Find the Demon’s nest where the queen resides. You are Third Party, which means you lot will be taking the northern path towards the mountains.” The guardsman paused as he read over the script in his hand. “The hunt will last for 1 week, exactly. If you have not found the nest within the week, you are to return immediately to Ivesburg. Likewise, if you find the nest, you are to return to Ivesburg.” The guardsman said.
“Wait, we don’t get rid of the queen?” A messy, brown-haired man spoke. He had a sword to his hip, and clearly looked like he was ready to fight whatever was they were going up against.
“No. You are to find the nest where the queen supposedly resides, and return to town where we will gather the Mayor’s guard to exterminate it.” The guardsman replied.
“The guards need to stay here in case of another attack. There’s not enough resources to send them on a hunt, without knowing where the nest is. That’s where the citizens come into play…to save time looking for it ourselves.” An older man spoke with a deep and gruff voice, his hair grey with a tough and hardened look across his face. Hainer simply pondered, beginning to wonder if the Hunt wouldn’t be as bad as he thought. He had figured they were to get rid of the demons themselves, but they were just the middle man to avoid having the guards waste resources looking for it themselves. All in all, it may not be as dangerous as he initially thought.
“Exactly.” The guardsman spoke. “And above all, look out for each other, and save yourself. You are a party, which means you must work together. It’s a dangerous world out there. If you need to escape a situation, by all means, do whatever it takes to stay alive. When you get back, there will be a substantial financial compensation for your help.” The guardsman said, nodding as he concluded. Hainer nearly scoffed. He sure as hell didn’t need the money like the rest of the peasants, and he had every intention of saying alive in this quest.
Suddenly, a loud trumpet like noise echoed through the Hive, as people began to murmur louder and louder. Hainer glanced around, and realized that was the sound that would trigger this so-called quest, evident as people began to walk towards the edge of town. The part began to walk alongside the crowds of people, with guards standing by in case anything were to happen. Buildings, houses and shops passed by one after the other, and soon enough, they reached the gates of the town. A large wooden set of doors, opened by the cranking of a metal lever that revealed the outside of Ivesburg. Although some farmlands and shacks were situated out here, it was largely outside territory. The sky was dark, dreary and cloudly, as a dirt path trailed along green meadows and grasslands towards forests and mountains. This was it. The starting of the quest.
“Remember, NORTHERN path.” The guardsman said to the group, as he pointed them into the direction they were to go. “The other parties will go down the other paths, to cover more ground. 1 Week, and you’re back. Sooner if you find the damn nest.” He said. Hainer looked at the crowd of murmuring Ivesburg citizens behind them, watching them as they set foot outside the city and towards their seemingly invisible goal. Okay, here we go. He took in a breath, as they began to make their way out of the city and into the wilderness of Arandia.
It wasn’t long after leaving the city, the party found themselves in the middle of what seemed to be empty grasslands. Lush green meadows, with a forest visible in the distance, although still quite a ways away. The sky was still dark and cloudy, despite still being morning time. The group had been walking for about an hour or so, along the so called ‘Nothern Path’, although no path was visibly there. “Hey, did you guys know that many people speculate Demon’s are actually nocturnal? Like Owls.” A younger man spoke, around 18 years old. Hainer didn’t respond, simply choosing to ignore the man’s attempts and trying to start a conversation with the group. “I realized we haven’t really formally introduced ourselves yet. I’m Henrique!” He said to the group, once again trying to start a conversation. He stared around at the group hoping someone would say something.
“Nice to meet you young man. My name is Wolfe.” The elderly man spoke, giving a slight smile as they continued to walk.
“Kind of old for this, aren’t you?” Hainer responded, chuckling a bit to himself.
“I could probably pummel you, and wrap you around my finger. Don’t let my age fool you.” Wolfe responded, almost as if he were expecting Hainer to give a snide remark. “I’ve known your father and grandfather since they first came to this town, Hainer. You ought to show more respect to those around you.” He responded.
Hainer scoffed, keeping his eyes forward and ignoring Wolfe’s response. He wasn’t in the mood to tussle with the old man, nor did he think it would be smart to do so.
“We aren’t here to be friends. We are here to do a job.” A taller, blonde-haired man spoke, his face neutral and calm as he walked.
“I already know who you are. You’re Gabriel, aren't you? You’re apparently one of the best swordsman in the city.” Henrique spoke up. Hainer took a glance back. That guy? The best swordsman? He definitely looked the part, however, Hainer had never even heard of the guy and usually he knew alot of city rumours and gossip. The group was silent for a few moments, until Wolfe raised his hand.
“Everyone stop!” Wolfe shouted, commanding the group to stop. Startled, Hainer stopped and glanced back at the group, and in particular Wolfe. “Do you hear that?” Wolfe suddenly took out his axe as he readied into a battle stance. Hainer wasn’t sure what the man was referring to, until something caught the corner of his eye. In several directions, there were figures crawling along the grassy meadows towards them. Hainer couldn’t believe he didn’t spot them earlier. Granted, they were a decent distance away, but they were closing in. They were humanoid in both size and appearance, however they were a pale white. Almost grey and ghostly. Their limbs and were slightly longer than a humans, however, their bodies were built for walking on all fours. As they reached closer, Hainer could see their hairless bodies, and their deformed faces, which did not look human at all. Grotesque, and deformed, Hainer had no words to describe how sinister these monsters looked. They growled as drool dripped from their mouths, with their eyes almost soulless in lustre. Hainer grabbed his sword, readying himself for another fated showdown with a demon. There were at least 6 of them, which meant they would need to help each other killing them off. “Don’t let them bite you! They’ll rip your flesh!” Wolfe shouted, as the demons closed in on them.
Without thinking, Hainer swung his sword to keep the particular demon closest to him, at bay. He wasn’t even sure how to go about killing the damn thing, however, he figured if he swung around he would have been able to hit something. “Damn! How am I supposed to hit this thing?” Hainer shouted, gripping his sword.
“Okay, I think that’s everyone.” A voice suddenly spoke. Hainer turned to his side, and saw one of the guardsmen holding a parchment in his hand, looking at it as he spoke. “Welcome to the Third Party!” His voice shouted, as he tried to grab everyone’s attention. “I’m going to go over some things with you before you head out.” He said. “First off, a reminder of the task at hand - Find the Demon’s nest where the queen resides. You are Third Party, which means you lot will be taking the northern path towards the mountains.” The guardsman paused as he read over the script in his hand. “The hunt will last for 1 week, exactly. If you have not found the nest within the week, you are to return immediately to Ivesburg. Likewise, if you find the nest, you are to return to Ivesburg.” The guardsman said.
“Wait, we don’t get rid of the queen?” A messy, brown-haired man spoke. He had a sword to his hip, and clearly looked like he was ready to fight whatever was they were going up against.
“No. You are to find the nest where the queen supposedly resides, and return to town where we will gather the Mayor’s guard to exterminate it.” The guardsman replied.
“The guards need to stay here in case of another attack. There’s not enough resources to send them on a hunt, without knowing where the nest is. That’s where the citizens come into play…to save time looking for it ourselves.” An older man spoke with a deep and gruff voice, his hair grey with a tough and hardened look across his face. Hainer simply pondered, beginning to wonder if the Hunt wouldn’t be as bad as he thought. He had figured they were to get rid of the demons themselves, but they were just the middle man to avoid having the guards waste resources looking for it themselves. All in all, it may not be as dangerous as he initially thought.
“Exactly.” The guardsman spoke. “And above all, look out for each other, and save yourself. You are a party, which means you must work together. It’s a dangerous world out there. If you need to escape a situation, by all means, do whatever it takes to stay alive. When you get back, there will be a substantial financial compensation for your help.” The guardsman said, nodding as he concluded. Hainer nearly scoffed. He sure as hell didn’t need the money like the rest of the peasants, and he had every intention of saying alive in this quest.
Suddenly, a loud trumpet like noise echoed through the Hive, as people began to murmur louder and louder. Hainer glanced around, and realized that was the sound that would trigger this so-called quest, evident as people began to walk towards the edge of town. The part began to walk alongside the crowds of people, with guards standing by in case anything were to happen. Buildings, houses and shops passed by one after the other, and soon enough, they reached the gates of the town. A large wooden set of doors, opened by the cranking of a metal lever that revealed the outside of Ivesburg. Although some farmlands and shacks were situated out here, it was largely outside territory. The sky was dark, dreary and cloudly, as a dirt path trailed along green meadows and grasslands towards forests and mountains. This was it. The starting of the quest.
“Remember, NORTHERN path.” The guardsman said to the group, as he pointed them into the direction they were to go. “The other parties will go down the other paths, to cover more ground. 1 Week, and you’re back. Sooner if you find the damn nest.” He said. Hainer looked at the crowd of murmuring Ivesburg citizens behind them, watching them as they set foot outside the city and towards their seemingly invisible goal. Okay, here we go. He took in a breath, as they began to make their way out of the city and into the wilderness of Arandia.
~
It wasn’t long after leaving the city, the party found themselves in the middle of what seemed to be empty grasslands. Lush green meadows, with a forest visible in the distance, although still quite a ways away. The sky was still dark and cloudy, despite still being morning time. The group had been walking for about an hour or so, along the so called ‘Nothern Path’, although no path was visibly there. “Hey, did you guys know that many people speculate Demon’s are actually nocturnal? Like Owls.” A younger man spoke, around 18 years old. Hainer didn’t respond, simply choosing to ignore the man’s attempts and trying to start a conversation with the group. “I realized we haven’t really formally introduced ourselves yet. I’m Henrique!” He said to the group, once again trying to start a conversation. He stared around at the group hoping someone would say something.
“Nice to meet you young man. My name is Wolfe.” The elderly man spoke, giving a slight smile as they continued to walk.
“Kind of old for this, aren’t you?” Hainer responded, chuckling a bit to himself.
“I could probably pummel you, and wrap you around my finger. Don’t let my age fool you.” Wolfe responded, almost as if he were expecting Hainer to give a snide remark. “I’ve known your father and grandfather since they first came to this town, Hainer. You ought to show more respect to those around you.” He responded.
Hainer scoffed, keeping his eyes forward and ignoring Wolfe’s response. He wasn’t in the mood to tussle with the old man, nor did he think it would be smart to do so.
“We aren’t here to be friends. We are here to do a job.” A taller, blonde-haired man spoke, his face neutral and calm as he walked.
“I already know who you are. You’re Gabriel, aren't you? You’re apparently one of the best swordsman in the city.” Henrique spoke up. Hainer took a glance back. That guy? The best swordsman? He definitely looked the part, however, Hainer had never even heard of the guy and usually he knew alot of city rumours and gossip. The group was silent for a few moments, until Wolfe raised his hand.
“Everyone stop!” Wolfe shouted, commanding the group to stop. Startled, Hainer stopped and glanced back at the group, and in particular Wolfe. “Do you hear that?” Wolfe suddenly took out his axe as he readied into a battle stance. Hainer wasn’t sure what the man was referring to, until something caught the corner of his eye. In several directions, there were figures crawling along the grassy meadows towards them. Hainer couldn’t believe he didn’t spot them earlier. Granted, they were a decent distance away, but they were closing in. They were humanoid in both size and appearance, however they were a pale white. Almost grey and ghostly. Their limbs and were slightly longer than a humans, however, their bodies were built for walking on all fours. As they reached closer, Hainer could see their hairless bodies, and their deformed faces, which did not look human at all. Grotesque, and deformed, Hainer had no words to describe how sinister these monsters looked. They growled as drool dripped from their mouths, with their eyes almost soulless in lustre. Hainer grabbed his sword, readying himself for another fated showdown with a demon. There were at least 6 of them, which meant they would need to help each other killing them off. “Don’t let them bite you! They’ll rip your flesh!” Wolfe shouted, as the demons closed in on them.
Without thinking, Hainer swung his sword to keep the particular demon closest to him, at bay. He wasn’t even sure how to go about killing the damn thing, however, he figured if he swung around he would have been able to hit something. “Damn! How am I supposed to hit this thing?” Hainer shouted, gripping his sword.