Two hours later, I clutched the axe I had used to chop the tree in my hands, crouched in the bushes with Rosie on one side and Lia on the other. We were watching a herd of Steban graze in a clearing, minding their own business.
"Didn't Chief tell you not to do something exactly like this?" Lia hissed in my ear. I grinned at her and whispered back:
"It'll be fine. Look, see that big, fat one off by itself? Three o'clock." I pointed at the individual I had targeted, one that was about double the size of the Steban I had seen on Zerik's table last week. "That's our target. Lia, you used fire about a week ago. Can you do it again? And can you throw it?" She nodded. "Wonderful. When I engage, I want you to start throwing fireballs between it and the rest of the herd. Keep it separated. Can you do that?" She nodded again, setting herself against the world.
"Yes, Sir. I won't disappoint you." My grin widened into a smile.
"Atta girl. Rosie, you're going to be our secret weapon. I'll keep the beast's attention and you go for the kill when you get a chance, okay?" The wolf nodded her head like a human, her sky blue eyes locking onto mine. I smiled and pet her, pushing past the weirdness of this world. "Good girl. Okay, y'all ready to do this?" Both Lia and Rosie nodded. "Alright. Ready, break." I didn't clap my hands for fear of alerting our prey, but I placed them lightly in each other, still completing the ritual. Rosie slunk off into the darkness on silent paws, her dark coat disappearing into the jungle with ease. I looked at Lia, who was looking at me with wide eyes. A ring of fire encircled a forest of concern, burning bright and holding me in place. On impulse, I pulled her into me and kissed her softly, pushing her away before it could go too far. "See you on the other side."
I crept through the jungle, axe in hand, placing each foot as carefully as I could and staying low. It was actually really difficult to do and I had a greater appreciation for every time I bitched at a video game for being seen. Crouch walking is hard. Regardless, I made it to the other side of the clearing without any difficulty. The creature was right in front of me, no more than twenty yards away. It grazed on the ground, its beak pushing the soil away as it searched for whatever it ate. Now that I was closer, I could see a six-inch-long spike on the creature's chin that it used to dig up the earth. I thought it was an herbivore, but maybe it prefers roots? I wonder what its favorite food is. I shook myself from my thoughts. I can't get distracted, not now. Distraction means death. I remembered Lia's words; Imbue your Spark into your muscles. I summoned my Spark, feeling the warmth and power at my disposal and injected it into the muscles in my arms and hands, feeling the warmth all throughout the limbs. I grinned and stood, walking from the tree line. The Steban, clearly not caring about a thing, ignored me and continued to eat. Huh. I moved a little closer, every nerve on edge.
The Steban glanced up at me, its purple eyes looking into mine. The head was damn near at my head height, only being about six or so inches shorter. Clearly, this beast was too big to be worried about me. Good. I grinned and readied my axe when I caught movement from the corner of my eye. Acting on instinct, I hit the deck, dropping to the ground as the Steban's tail woosh'ed over my head. I felt my hair move as the tail whipped over me. I rolled to the side, springing to my feet in a ready position, only to hit the deck again as the tail made another pass. Thank you, Coach, for all those stupid ass up-down's you made us do, I thought as I popped back up, a grin on my face. My blood pounded in my ears like it did during bowl games when everything was on the line. My smile widened. This was the feeling I lived for. The Steban had turned its flank to me, spiked tail whipping back and forth in the air in anticipation. The plates on its back got redder and redder as I circled it slowly, searching for an opening. My opening came when a ball of fire launched from the edge of the trees and landed between my Steban and the herd. A loud FWOOSH! sounded as the fireball burst, spreading flames everywhere. Nothing caught, the jungle being far too wet for such a short lived flame to burn anything, but it did distract the creature long enough for me to move in. The herd, startled by the sudden fireball, honked at each other and fled the clearing, making all kinds of noise and leaving the three of us alone with the beast. Excellent.
I rushed in as the beast was distracted by the fireball, seizing the opportunity and bringing the axe down on its neck in a vicious chop. I made contact, the axe driving deep into the back of the Steban's neck. It honked in distress and swung its tail madly, trying to hit me but I danced away, pulling my axe free. Blood flowed freely from the wound and the Steban glared at me, like it knew I was the one who attacked it.
"Sorry, friend," I said, dodging another wild tail attack. "but we gotta eat, too." The Steban, entirely focused on me, didn't notice the black shape slinking towards it until it was too late. Rosie lunged and attacked the wound I had created earlier, sinking her fangs and claws into the beast's exposed flesh and crashing into it. The creature roared, a sound of pain and despair as Rosie rode the creature to the ground, jaws locked around its neck and growling audibly. I could hear her from ten feet away. The Steban fell with a thunderous crash that shook the earth, blood seeping from its neck. Its feet spasmed as the creature struggled to rise but lacked the proper equipment to do so, what with its spinal cord having been crushed by Rosie's jaws. The light began to fade from the Steban's purple eyes as I approached, axe held at my side. It wasn't the first creature I had hunted for food, but this felt more intimate than shooting a deer with a rifle. I knelt, placing my hand on the Steban's head.
"Thank you for your sacrifice." I whispered to it, petting the creature. "May you rest in peace." The Steban closed its eyes and I felt the life leave its body, my heart strings aching for the creature. I stood and wiped my eyes dry. When had I started crying? "Alright." I said to no one in particular and looking around for Lia, who was approaching me from the tree line. I smiled at her and she returned it shyly. "You did perfectly." I told her when she got close enough. "Exactly like we drew it up." Her smile got a little brighter at my words.
"Thank you, Sir."
"Here." I said, handing her the axe. She took it, confusion on her face.
"Sir?"
"I need both hands to carry this fucker." I said, grunting as I imbued my arms with my Spark. I lifted one of the Steban's legs and twisted, heaving the massive beast onto my back and letting the head fall in front of me. "Alright, let's get going." I started to walk, the Steban surprisingly moveable. I had expected it to be like moving literal dead weight, but the corpse was almost light. I was able to keep a solid pace as we returned to the village, my Spark strong and focused. Each breath I took fueled the flames a little more, filling me with strength. I felt incredible, like I could do anything. The Steban's weight actually decreased as we got closer to the village and by the time the walls came into view, I was walking like normal. Had my shoulders been broad enough, I would have carried the beast on one of them alone. Figures moved around on top of the walls, pointing and shouting. I couldn't quite hear what they were saying, but the message was made pretty clear when an arrow landed at my feet.
"Hey!'" I shouted. "What the fuck?!" Another arrow landed at my feet. Ah, shit. "Lia, get behind me. You too, Rosie." The girls obeyed without complaint, hiding between me and the Steban's body. We walked like that, using the Steban's body for cover as the guards shot arrows at us. At least they get good target practice. When the walls were within touching distance, I stopped moving.
"You assholes done shooting at me?!" I called up at the wall. The gate opened in response and a green skirt walked out and stood in front of me.
"And what in all the gods names is that?" Kiltont asked. I grinned and tossed the Steban aside like it was nothing, the creature landing a solid twenty feet away. I looked at it with a surprised, yet satisfied look on my face.
"That was cool."
"Marshall." Kiltont snapped. I looked over at the bird man, his avian eyes serious. He had his hands held behind his back and a feeling of unease settled about my soul. My smile dimmed just a little and I stood straighter.
"Yes, sir?" I asked, all levity gone from my voice.
"What. Is that?"
"A Steban, sir. Lia said we ran out of food this morning and I need to eat, so I went and got us some. Should I go get some more?" Kiltont's face went through a myriad of emotions as I talked, ranging from anger to disbelief to begrudging acceptance.
"Of course you would." he said with a sigh. "I specifically told you not to do anything today. Did you use your Spark?" I nodded.
"Yes, sir. Been using it for the last few hours or so and haven't had any problems. In fact, I think it's grown." That got a reaction out of him.
"Grown? Even after passing out from over exertion yesterday?"
"Um, yeah? Is that a bad thing? I feel fine. Fantastic, even. The Steban got lighter the longer I carried it." I walked over to the corpse and lifted it with ease, my Spark still flowing through my body. I could feel it, surging in and out as I breathed. The warmth was concentrated in my arms, but I could feel little tendrils of it reaching out from my core. They didn't go far, but they were there. "Should we take this to Zerik? I'm kind of hungry. Didn't have enough to eat this morning." Kiltont scoffed and shook his head, turning back towards the village.
"I knew you'd eventually surpass me, but to think you'd be fully recovered from Spark Drain in under twenty-four hours is remarkable. Come, follow me." He walked away and I followed, the Steban barely a factor. We walked through the village, drawing a crowd of on-lookers. People talked in hushed whispers, but what about, I couldn't tell. It wasn't long before we came to Zerik's warehouse and Kiltont came to a stop, turning to face the crowd. Rosie stood on my right and Lia on my left.
"Everyone!" Kiltont called, his voice echoing over the crowd and hushing the murmurs. "As I'm sure you are aware, our village has had a new resident for the last few days. His name Marshall and he is here to help. He and his Cave Wolf familiar, Lady Rosie, have brought us all a gift and ensured our survival for the next few days. Let us thank them." Everyone present, including the Chief, bowed at the waist to me and Rosie. I dropped the Steban, smiling at the folks and rubbing the back of my head.
"Naw, y'all ain't gotta thank me, I just wanted more of her stew." I hooked my thumb at Lia, who paled, then blushed as my words registered. She looked at the ground, dropping her eyes from mine. "And Rosie wanted revenge, so it all worked out." I chuckled and Kiltont rose back to full height.
"You still took down a full grown Steban with no training and what could graciously be called a team. That is a feat not many can accomplish."
"Well, damn. Really? 'Cause it really wasn't all that hard. Separate the one you want then distract it while another attacks from the blind spot. Simple enough." Kiltont scoffed.
"Of course you'd say something like that. Come, bring the Steban. 'Simple enough'." he grumbled as he walked into the warehouse. I followed, a small smile on my face. The slaughterhouse was exactly as I had left it, dusty and cold. Zerik came out from the back room, wiping his hands on his apron and grinning like a madman and missing several teeth.
"Finally!" the big man cried as I walked past him to the butchering room. "I haven't had anything to work on in days! Anywhere is fine." I placed the Steban on four tables put together, rolling my neck as I let the weight go. It wasn't heavy, but it sure was awkward.
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"Mr. Zerik," I asked as the big man got to work draining what blood remained. "may I watch?" He cast a confused, assessing look at me.
"Why?" he asked in return, voice full of suspicion.
"I'm a Biologist. I want to learn all I can about these creatures." Zerik's normally stoic or pissed-looking face split into a grin.
"I like you. The monsters are fascinating, aren't they?" I nodded enthusiastically.
"Yes!" I pulled my notebook from my pocket, clicking the pen and opening to a new page. I began drawing as best I could, copying the Steban's form onto the page. When I had finished the admittedly not great outline, the page shone a brilliant gold and when it had faded, left a picture perfect Steban on the page. I grinned. Hell yeah.
I spent the rest of the day with Zerik, learning all I could about the Steban while Lia went back to the house to finish some chores. The one I had killed, a mature male, was towards the upper limit for the species, weighing in at a respectable four and a half tons, but not the largest one Zerik had ever seen. My eyes went wide when that particular bit of information came up, but I kept my reaction fairly contained, at least I hope. I just dead lifted over eight thousand fucking pounds! The monsters were "medium-sized Steginmari", the genus the species belonged to. The Steban were, indeed, herbivorous, as we found that the monster had swallowed a series of stones it stashed in a separate stomach to aid in digesting plant matter. The plates on its back served no purpose, but it is thought that they are a sexual display organ. Those with the brightest plates were the most desirable.
"The plates also seem to be a defense mechanism, as well." I said, jotting the information down in my notebook. "This one's plates grew redder as we fought."
"Hmm. Good to know." Zerik replied, reaching into the body cavity and pulling some organs free with a squish. He made a face of disgust and tossed the innards into a wooden barrel next to the table, continuing his lecture. The Steban have no elemental affinities, yet make up for it in numbers. They are by far the most common monster in Andesis, appearing in almost every part of the county, and are valued for their tail spikes, which make wonderful weapons, though they tend to break easily against sufficiently armored opponents. The Steban's eyes, which are apparently a critical ingredient for an aphrodisiac, are also highly sought after. I copied all this information down in my notebook, which divided itself into four sections upon completion of the entry. The sections were as follows: Quests, Map, Monsters, and Inventory. The hell is Inventory? I flipped over to it and gasped. The page held a 10x10 box grid, two of which were occupied. The box containing the pouch was a solid white while the box containing the notebook and pen was greyed out. Seems like the pen and pad are considered one item. I laughed aloud, flipping the book closed and returning it to my pocket.
Zerik chopped off one of the spikes and gave it to me, along with the one I had left with him last time. He told me to go visit Ol' Zerok down at the smithy, and to tell him Zerik said hello. I told the big man that I would and took my leave of him. The sun was just beginning to set when I exited the slaughterhouse and I held my hand up to block the glare, admiring the burning clouds. An idea sprouting in my mind, I turned and raced back home with Rosie by my side, as always. Such a good girl. I didn't use my Spark this time, letting the power rest. I wanted to, but something told me it wasn't the best idea, that maybe I should listen for once and take things easy. I still pushed myself, though, and made it home in just over five minutes. I leapt up the stairs and burst through the front door, crying:
"Lia!" I moved further into the house, again shouting "Lia! Where are you?" The girl came flying around the corner, apron half covered in flour and face wild with fear.
"Yes? Are you alright, Owner? How can I serve you?" Her face dropped into a scowl that disappeared just as quickly and I grabbed her hand, pulling her towards the door.
"Come on! The sun is setting and we won't make it in time if we don't hurry!"
"Wait! Sir, please, the dough is almost ready and... WAAAAH!" I, of course, ignored her pleads and picked her up, tossing her over my shoulder. The girl weighed nothing and had no chance of fighting back. I walked out the door and down the street towards the gate, the sun getting lower, and I picked up my pace. Pretty soon, I was full on running towards the ocean, my eyes locked on the sun. Lia had given up trying to escape and rode on my shoulder, occasionally asking for adjustments to get more comfortable. We arrived at the top of a sand dune right as the sun touched the water. I smiled, breathing deep of the sea air and setting Lia down next to me. She shook herself loose and sat with me, staring out at the water.
The sun met the ocean in a wet flame, spreading across the water. Waves disrupted the image of the sun, shifting and cutting bits from the main body. Clouds turned from orange to pink as we watched, the water taking on a rosy color. The sound of the waves cresting against the sand and gulls crying from somewhere close by comforted me, my smile growing. I looked over at Lia and all thoughts of the watching the sunset dissipated. The pink light set against her skin beautifully, turning her into a caramel rose. Her wine dark hair sparkled in the light, throwing pink sparks as the wind whipped her hair. She was magnificent.
After the sun had set and we returned to the house, Lia continued to make supper. Zerik had delivered ten pounds of differing meats to us while we were gone, with a note saying that everyone in the village would eat their fill tonight because of us. Lia, as per request, made a delicious Steban stew that was hearty and filling. I had six bowls before finally being full, eating almost the entire pot by myself. Once the table had been cleared and the doors locked, Lia and I moved back to the bed. I let out a yawn as I got closer to the bed, the days events finally catching up with me. I had used a lot of energy, when I thought about it. That Steban weighed four tons according to Zerik, and I was able to toss it around like a paper bag. Granted, so did he, but hey, that's something, right? Deciding to test something, I whispered:
"How strong am I?"
"Error." Robot Lady said. I sighed. Figures. The shower I took that night felt incredible, though. Washing off the day's dirt and grime before climbing into bed was one of my favorite things, especially after a big game. And while I wasn't as wiped after, say, a bowl game, I certainly felt drained. Is this the Spark Drain Kiltont was talking about earlier? I flopped onto the bed, my eyes closing almost immediately. Lia snuggled into me, resting her head on my shoulder and her feet on Rosie's back.
"Good night, Sir." she mumbled, kissing my neck.
"Good night, Lia." I whispered back, kissing her on the head.
Everything hurt when I woke the next morning. The only part of me that didn't hurt was my head, thank God. Everything else, though, felt like it had been smashed by a semi-truck and dragged behind it for three miles. It was early, so early that the sun hadn't even started rising. The light from the moon and stars filtered in through the small window and gave me enough light to see by. I groaned as I shifted, getting more comfortable. My abs screamed when I lifted my torso and flipped the pillow, Rosie adjusting as well. Lia sighed as I settled, shifting closer to me in her sleep. Small hands grasped at the pillow, clenching and unclenching repeatedly. I raised my own hand and held one of hers, feeling it grab onto mine like a vice. Damn, she's strong. I winced as she crushed my hand, but didn't really mind. It was still soft and comforting in my own. I closed my eyes but didn't fall back asleep; I kept replaying Zerik's butchering over and over instead. It was fascinating watching a master at work. His large hands kept the body still, yet moved so gently as he brought the knife up its gut, opening the skin. A grin split across my face and I buried it in Lia's hair, inhaling deeply of tropical flowers. I have to learn more, and to do that, I need to get out of here. The next few hours passed leisurely, with me simply lying there and holding Lia, content. Rosie was a reactor of warmth at our feet, warming us from the bottom up. She snored softly in her sleep and a paw would occasionally twitch.
The sun rose, as it always does, the first beams of dawnlight falling onto Lia's peaceful face. Her eyelids fluttered as she woke, coming back to consciousness. I stroked the side of her head with my thumb, enjoying the feeling of her hair. Her fantastic eyes opened, emerald irises burning. Pencil thin lips formed into a smile as she focused on me.
"Good morning." she said, her smile growing a little.
"Good morning." I replied, kissing her on the nose. She was beautiful and I couldn't tear my eyes from hers. She blushed and looked away, her eyes flitting back to mine and away again. I still had my hand on her head and unconsciously pulled her closer, slowly, haltingly. She closed her eyes and parted her lips, and Rosie flopped between us. I laughed and pet the wolf, kissing her head.
"Alright, you get some lovin' too." I said, running my hand up and down her flank. She panted happily as Lia joined in, doing the same on the other side.
A while later, we were having a breakfast of meat as we had run out of eggs. Damn, this food shortage sucks. There was bread, too, as we still had wheat and other grains, but little else that was edible. There was a knock at the door and Rosie barked, rushing to the door. I laughed, the wolf acting exactly like a dog from home, jumping at the door and barking loudly.
"I hear ya, Rosie!" I hollered over her barking, petting her flank as I walked by and opened the door to Kiltont's face.
"Good morning, Marshall." he said with far too much energy for the sun not even being fully above the houses. I covered a yawn with the back of my hand and Kiltont grinned. "Did you finally hit your limit?" I nodded, gesturing for him to come in. I was still eating, after all.
"Yeah, I'm takin' today off. Zerik wanted me to go see Zer...ak? Zeruk? Somethin' like that. Somebody with a 'Z' down at the smithy, and I'm gonna go visit them a little later this mornin'." Kiltont laughed as I sat back down at the table, pulling one of the seats for himself. Rosie sat next to Lia and the girl pet her, taking small bites of her food. "So, what's up, bro? Why the house call?"
"I have come with wonderful news!" the Chief cried, a huge smile on his face. "The Caravan is coming!" My eyes went wide.
"No shit? That's awesome, dude. When's it supposed to get here?"
"It should arrive mid-morning tomorrow." I smiled at the bird man's obvious joy and placed a hand on his shoulder.
"I'm happy for you, man. I know that's a huge weight off your back."
"There is more. When I sent word to the Lord, I asked him to prepare two additional spots for the return trip." I frowned, tilting my head.
"Two spots? Did you..." He nodded, his smile never diminishing.
"Yes! It would be selfish of me to keep you here when you can be so much more. Even before you killed the Steban alone, I knew you were special. You can't stay here."
"I wasn't alone. Lia and Rosie were with me. Rosie landed the killing blow, so it wasn't even me that killed it."
"That doesn't matter. The townsfolk saw you carrying a full grown Steban like it was nothing, something they could only do in their wildest dreams. All the guards could talk about was how shocked they were when the Steban the couldn't kill was tossed aside like a broken toy. Word will eventually spread of you. You won't have much time, but if you can get to the Guild in Lingholm before the Empire finds you, you should be safe. The Guild isn't attached to any one country, but is its own entity, operating all over the world."
"The Hunter's Guild?" Kiltont nodded.
"Okay. The Hunter's Guild in Lingholm is our goal, then."
"Error." Robot Lady said. "Check Journal." I frowned. That was the first time she's said anything other than 'Error'. Deciding to follow the advice, I pulled out my notebook and opened it. There, on the the first page and under the bolded word Quests, was a line of text.
Get to the Hunter's Guild in Lingholm.
Huh. That's neat.
"Marshall?" Kiltont was saying. I looked up, shaking my head clear.
"Huh? What? Sorry, was confirming something." Kiltont rose from his seat and said:
"That is all I had to share with you this morning. I wish I had more time to train you, but such is life." He turned to leave, but I called after him.
"Hey, y'all gonna be okay? We still haven't solved the food crisis." Kiltont smiled at me, a sad smile, one that was tired and beaten down.
"We will be fine, Marshall. Your concern is appreciated, but Rivera has come back from worse. She will survive." His voice was sure and strong, and I actually believed him for a second. I rose from my seat and hugged the bird man tightly.
"Thank you, Kiltont." I said, patting him on the back twice. "For everything. I have one more request, if you don't mind."
"And what is that?"
"The day I arrived, I passed two families out in the fields." Kiltont's face fell and he looked at the ground.
"Yes. The Robin's and the Greti's were good people. They did not deserve their fate."
"No. Nor do they deserve to hang there like that. Will you help me bury them?" Kiltont nodded, setting his jaw.
"I will. We will see to it after you attend Zerok at the smithy. I am sure you have something he wants to see. I will be at Maria's for the majority of the day; come fetch me when you are finished with the smith. I nodded.
"Yes, sir." Kiltont nodded and left as Lia began to clear the table. I assisted her, doing the dishes in half the time, and we left for the smithy, one spike in either hand. I fought the urge to swing them around and make lightsaber noises, failing miserably.
"What are you doing, Sir?" Lia asked in a voice full of disappoointment.
"Being silly. Hey, since we're actually doing this, do you want a weapon? I was gonna ask Zerok to make us both one, but I wanted to check with you first." Lia's face went through some emotions I couldn't read before settling on thoughtful expression, thin brow narrowed in focus.
"I was best with knives and daggers when I was training. You seem like a Bulwark, though. We should consider material size too..." She trailed off into her thoughts as we walked South, heading towards Zerik's warehouse. Zerok had his smithy a little further down the street than Zerik did, and I played with their names in my head. Zerik, Zerok. Is there a Zeruk? Are they related?
Ten minutes later, I knocked on a wooden door. Lia said that the old, dilapidated sign above the door said smithy, but I couldn't tell you. The writing was too faded to make out much, but what I could see looked like it was full of swirls and dots, not dissimilar to Arabic from Earth. Nobody answered my knock, so I knocked again after thirty or forty seconds. I heard a crash from inside the building and gave Lia a glance. Trying the doorknob, it twisted with ease and creaked open, leading into the dark interior. Shrugging, I walked inside.