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Chapter 1: A Bloody Alley

Ask a dozen people what they like about Emryss and you'll get a dozen answers. 

    For some, it's the Emeria. The great sea stretched all the way to the horizon and spread north to south as far as the eye could sea, dotted only by the lumpy shape of keystone isle a mile off the coast. Most of the time the waters were calm, as calm as an ocean ever got, and the rythmic sounds of her gentle waves were almost peaceful after a long day. When the tide came in though, her dark swells would crash against the rocks that lined the mouth of the Narrows like teeth on a Sea Serpent and cast a spray that would bathe East End in a layer of salt more voracious than a hungry Ruster at a junkyard. The ever present breeze that blew in off the ocean would carry the salt, along with the worst of the smells from the dockland the fisheries and spread it across the slums to mingle with the miasma of unwashed people, piss and garbage. 

    For others, a visit to Emryss was all about the culture. Settled smack in the middle of Imperial space, the former Capital city of the former Capital planet saw a lot of tourism as merchants and cruise ships worked the inner systems. Most of the tourist tended to be of the less-than-affluent variety since anybody who had any real Aurins to their name preferred to save them for their arrival at New Emryss, the current seat of the Empire, a few more jumps in. Besides them, Emryss would get the occasional ships crew taking advantage of a lengthy shore leave while their captains argued with the dry docks over at Helios station in an attempt to get a berth on the rush. It never worked. The dockmasters got a stick wedged so firmly up her ass you could hang an anvil off it. Instead if you're ever in a hurry, limp over to Ganyme instead and slip the customs agent a little tip. They'll hook you up with a spot on the quick. As long as you don't mind Second rate Artificers with First rate prices, and parts with the serial runes scratched off the side, they'll get you sailing the flows again in half the time. Just be sure you don't find yourself with some off the book extras stuck in your scrub tanks without getting paid up front first. In cash. 

    For me, it's the storms. Most of the time they blew in off the ocean but often enough the city would get hit by a real blower from inland. Those where the ones I liked. The torrential downpours would scrub the streets and wash away the dirt, salt, grease and grime and leave the city smelling fresh. With the air clear of all the resident smogs you could smell the sweet scent of smoke and spice that wafted off the open air market from across the district. It would take a few days for the stench to return so whenever one swept through I tried to take my time to enjoy the occasion. Usually by spending a day at the market myself to peruse the newer wares and enjoy a couple skewers of Direboar sausage dipped in a sweet batter and lightly fried. Preferably covered in a drizzle of Syrup. Breakfast of champions. 

    Instead I found myself approaching the mouth of an alley, nestled between a pair of low rent tenement buildings, before dawn had even winked at the Horizon. The dark gate was blocked off by a veil of energy that shimmered as I grew near and projected an illusion of the 'Emryss Imperial Protecterate Department's' symbol into the air. I glanced briefly at the Empires crest - a crescent moon, bisected by a slender sword - that was emblazoned upon a silver Protectorste shield, then directed my gaze to the sides of the alley where a pair of Protectorate Jacks stood in full kit. Their heavy, black, full plate armor was flecked with hoar frost and shone like the frozen oily carapace of a giant ant in the light from a nearby street lamps. One of the few that still retained the [Light] spell they had been enchanted with. Each of the guardsman carried a long, slender weapon held across their body. The Spellform Tactical Aetheric Variable Energy System, or S.T.A.V.E.S. for short, resembled a modified Energy Rifle complete with a folding shoulder stock, angled combat grip and a pair of attached modification rails. The rail on top sported an old school magnification lense rather than the newer, inyegrated Scrying lens, and a kinetic micro-launcher was fitted to the bottom side of the barrel. 

    As I took in their equipment I felt a peak of curiousity worm its way into my mind. East End Proties weren't always the most diligent types, coming from local stock as they did, and they tended to slack off at the earliest convenience. These two, however, looked tense and focused, even at this early hour. They stood at the ready, their feet spread apart as if to engage against a threat at a moments notice. Their faces were obscured behind the blacked out visors of tactical helmets but I could feel their eyes focused on me as I approached out of the fog. Something must have spooked em to get these boys to act this way. Might make for a good job. Slowly I raised my hands to show I was unarmed and tapped two fingers to the brim of my hat. 

"Hell of a night, eh boys?" I asked as I came to stop a polite distance away. The Guard kn the right turned his helmet slightly as if he had looked towards the left one and gave a small nod. 

The Guardsman on the left shifted his stance uncomfortably then took a step forward to address me. "The Alleys closed. Official business. Go around."

His voice sounded younger than I had expected. Sending a thought to my Native Personality Construct I activated the [Identify] script loaded into my Page and waited while the corners of my vision flashed with a series of Runes and the script scanned the target. After only a moment the script finished and an illusion appeared before my vision that looked like transparent scroll, one that only I could see, unless I willed it otherwise, that detailed the man's information. 

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Name: Terry, S

Race: Human

Affiliation: E.I.P.D. Thirty-Three

Class: Fighter

Rank: Apprentice

Summery: No information found

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Since I hadn't met this guy yet the information was severely limited, mostly just what could be observed if I bothered to look close enough at the badge sigil displayed on the left side of his breastplate. As it was I could barely see it through the layer of hoarfrost from the frozen damp that clung to the armor. It didnt really matter though. The information was enough to go by for now. I tagged him with a thought and asked my Pages NPC to run a background check on the kid before I turned my sights on his companion and repeated the process. My NPC was a little out dated but it shouldn't have trouble with a basic query. 

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Name: Paulk, Edward

Race: Human

Affiliation: E.I.P.D Thirty-three 

Class: Guardsman

Rank: Senior

Brief: Eddie has been a long standing member of the East End EIPD. Born and raised in the ghetto the man blew away the odds by joining the Academy rather than one of the many gangs in the area. Tends to be calm and collected most of the time but you never really wash the streets off and will scrap without hesitation.

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That's more like it, i thought as the details appeared. I had met Eddie a few times throughout the years as I worked one quest or another. The guy had a decent head on his shoulders and was fairly competent at his job. Even to the point that he had upgraded his class from the original Fighter type given to every Academy attende to the more specialized Guardsman Edition. The Operating Enchantments wheee basically the same but it had a greater focus on security and law than the basic Fighter did. He was no great detective, but he was an honest, diligent and fair man. Traits in rare supply here in East End. Normally he worked the streets over at the border with Central though, which made me even more curious about the goings on within the alleyway. Captain Ozregaed wouldn't pull a good Guard off his regular beat without a damn good reason to do so, and the fact that he had only left me even more intrigued. The message I had received from Inspector Boyle earlier hadn't gone into any real details but he had said it was something more my field, and the promise of a job was always welcome. The landlady had already been a bit pushy about the rent and I didn't want to deal with that witch any more than I absolutely had to. 

    I held my hands out to the side to show I was unarmed and addressed the Senior Guardsman as I continued to approach. "Hey Eddie. Boyle told me to stop by. Said he might have a job for me."

    "Rune, is that-" he began but the newbie stepped forward brandishing his youthful ignorance like a bludgeon of self harm. 

"You hear what I said? Alleys closed!" He proclaimed in a loud attempt at an authoritative voice. I had to stifle a chuckle as the kid squeaked a pitch there at the end. 

    "Easy there kid," I said and jerked my chin to the side at the surrounding buildings, "Keep it down. Third shift ended an hour ago. People are trying to sleep."

"What did you call me?" He growled and took another step forward, his grip tighter on his stave. 

Ouch. The Kid had some kind of a complex. Baggage of a troubled past, not something I wanted to help him unpack though. I shot Eddie a look and the man sighed before reaching out to grab the kids shoulder and haul him back.

"Easy there Spencer. He didn't mean nothin' by it. Why don't you call it in? Tell the Inspector Runes here. Sounds like he's expected." 

   Ah, so that was it. The kid was training on perimeter duty under a Senior Guardsman. Eddie had probably let him take over to see what he did when I arrived. Let the kid eat his own rocks so to speak.

    I felt Spencer shoot me a glare from behind his visor before he nodded and stepped away to tap the side of his helm and activate the privacy shield enchantment. While he made my presence known to the OIC I fished out my tarnished tin of tobacco to roll myself a smoke and turned to survey the lamp-lit fog and narrow street that led to the scene.

    East End, as you might have guessed, ain't the fanciest of places in the city. The old streets still held the ribbed cobblestones of the old world from when the main mode of transportation had been beasts of burden and wooden wagons. Since then, a few repairs had been made but as the city had expanded further inland to become the major metropolitan area it was today, and funds had been dedicated to the more prosperous areas like Central, Brighton and The Heights. East End had since fallen into a regular state of disrepair that led it to be formally designated as the slums. Pockmarks of darkness now riddled the old streets and shoots of grass warped the stones where they pushed up from below. Likewise, the buildings had seen better days and retained the aesthetics of their time. All stone and wood in the Emryys style with heavy support beans and slate grey roofs covered in cracks. Chimneys, barely large enough to fit an arm into, belched a steady plume of oily smoke into the air, their fires maintained to stave off the lingering chill from the recent winter with whatever the locals could find to burn. Firewood was in the minority but at least piles of garbage where better than burning shit.

    Finished rolling my cigarette I tucked the stick into the corner of my mouth and searched for my box of pyresticks. When I found it I gave the little wooden crate a shake but heard nothing within. "Damn" I looked within just to be sure but found nothing much to my annoyance. "Hey Eddie, got a stick?" 

"Nah," he said, with a shake of his head, "Aisha made me quit a while back. Those things will kill you ya know."

"Heh, if only." I mumbled under my breath and turned my attention to the youth as he finished his call. 

"The Inspector says to let him in." He explained as he returned to his position next to the ward gate. 

"Good job. Go ahead and let him through." Eddie motioned towards the gate and the kid nodded and tapped the surface along the edge to bring up the controls. With halting movements he poked through the settings to disable the barriers force shielding temporarily to allow me access. 

"Thanks" I tapped my hat again in a loose salute and swept past the youth into the alley. As I did the youth tapped his helmet again and a series of Runes lit up the edge of his visor. He stiffened and took a step back away from me, his grip tightening on his stave. Poor kid, probably just ran a spectral scan. Standard OP, sure, but the Runes always made them twitchy. Rather than stick around for the inevitable questions I pushed through the ward and felt the static tingle of its presence as it passed over my skin. 

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

    The alleyway was everything you might imagine it would be. Dark, damp, littered with garbage, frequented by gremlins and other vermin, and full of fog. That and every associated smell that came with the assembly. Every dozen paces or so a steam vent would make itself known as it released the built up gasses from the sewers into the frosty air to mingle with the fog. The Tenements to either side were more or less the same as the other buildings along the main thoroughfare. They stood only a few stories tall with gabled roofs that glittered with rows of dangling icicles. The left building still held an old, rusted, iron fire escape that clung dangerously to the weather worn stones in a weakening death grip. The drop ladder connected to it had long since rusted beyond use and frankly looked more dangerous to traverse than any emergency that might require it's use. The salt had eaten through the escapes landing to form a death trap of pit falls along the grated floor. The building on the right sported no such embellishments. Whatever escape had once been there had long since fallen away, and had left only a few bolt holes to show it had ever existed. 

    No light shone through any of the alleyside windows, but further in a collection of mobile lights had been placed at regular intervals. Each was a tall, thin rod of silvery metal thay was attached to a tripod stand. Over each one floated a ball of pale light that bathed the alley in a harsh blue-white glow that barely peirced the fog. Scattered within the lit area were a handful of technicians that combed over what must be the scene of the attack. At least. I assumed it was an attack, if I was to judge by the wet, coppery smell that lingered beneath the other scents. Closer at hand I spotted the broad figure of my contact where he stood deep in discussion with a lanky scene tech. I made my way over to the pair, careful to avoid the tagged markers that indicated bits of evidence like lamplit landmines. 

"Hey Boyle," I called out to grab his attention and the Inspector raised a hand and indicated I should wait a moment with a raised finger. 

I paused to give him a moment and instead took a look at the scene from this angle while i waited. Spread down it's length were a number of dark, frozen pools and patches of viscera that glittered in the mage lights glow. More of the same could be seen along the walls as well as what looked like a a series if claw marks that had scored the stones. 

    "An attack indeed," I mumbled as i plucked free my cigarette and absently held it between my fingers, "and a pretty bad one by the look of it. No wonder Boyle called me in."

    Whatever this was it hadn't been your run if the mill mugging. Not with the gore left in its wake. This had been a monster attack and while every Guardsman had enough training to deal with your run of the mill encounters, their job focused more on criminal investigations. Monster hunts were firmly in the Leagues Raid yard, and this had all the right signs. I had seen worse in my time, Death and I where far too familiar and I had sent more than my fair share of souls into her cold embrace, but I had to imagine the scene looked pretty gruesome to those who where less familiar with the savagery and carnage of a monster attack.

    While I scoped the scene I noticed a glimmer of light, nearly hidden beneath a scatter of refuse. I crouched to examine the spot and found a small patch of blackened dust that reflected the light like powdered glass. There wasn't a marker near it so I assumed it had gone unnoticed. I would have missed it myself had I not stood in just the right spot to catch the reflection. I couldn't be sure what exactly I had found, not without a little testing, but I recognized a spell reagent when I saw one. 

Fucking perfect.

   I patted my pockets absently in search of my [Arcane Eye] while I scanned the area for any hint of chalk residue or, possibly, salt, but before I could find anything I heard the sharp, staccato click of a pair of hard-soled boots headed my way. I stood from my inspection to greet Boyle but instead of a friendly face I found Inspector Perkins headed my way with his dark eyes flashing and his jaw set. The man wore his Officers uniform coat like a brandished sword, starched to within an inch of its life, and his polished silver buttons gleamed in the lamplight like stars against it's Sable background, as they competed for brightest shine with his oily, blonde slicked-back hair. He had started growing in a beard since the last time i had seen him and the pale scruff had been trimmed into a neat mustache and goatee that failed to soften the blade of his sharp chin. 

"Ah crap" I muttered as I braced for his arrival. Being forced to put up with Stephen Perkins was an annoyance at best and a nightmare at worst. 

"What the Abyss do you think you're doing here? Who let you in?" The man growled as he slammed to a halt barely a pace away.

"Morning Perkins." I said as politely as I could muster, which wasn't very. We had done this song and dance far too many times before. 

"Don't you 'morning' me," he snapped and slashed the air with a knife hand. "I asked you a question, Ward."

I sighed openly and could already feel the faint twinge of a future headache. It was too early for this crap. "Do you have to be like this, Steve? I mean seriously, don't you ever get tired of walking around with that stick up your ass?"

He tensed, his face coloring my words, and balled his fists up at his sides. "You think you're so damn funny don't you Rune. Well i'm not laughing." He stepped closer and looked up at me with a sneer. "You may be Captain Ozregaed's little pet project but I see you for what you really are. You're just a washed up, has been wasting the stations time and money, and that's all you'll ever be." 

"Piss off Perkins. I don't have time for your shit today."

He growled and jabbed a finger at my chest. "You watch what you-" His words were cut off just as the offending finger tapped my sternum and my clamped onto his wristin a vice grip. With a pain filled twist I locked his wrist back then spun under his arm to plant my shoulder against his core and pulled. Leveraging his weight against him I flipped him over to fly across the alley and land in a pile of refuse that was piled against the far wall. He hit the ground with a loud crash that scattered bits of trash around him. 

"You son of a bitch!" He yelled as he clambered hastily to his feet, slipping on the unsteady footing. "That's it, I've had it with your shit."

In a fit of rage Perkins reached for the Weaponized Aetheric Node Delivery System holstered against his ribs. Before he could even draw the weapon though I crossed the distance with a quick [Flash step]. Perkins froze as his eyes focused first on me, now only an arms length away, then on the barrel of the MK III Ballistic Accelerator Rail Cannon I had pressed against his third eye. 

"Go ahead Perkins. Draw that wand on me." I growled, my voice as cold as the grave and dripping with promise. "I dare you."

"Y...you wouldn't dare." He tried to sound tough but in contrast to his words the man remained frozen, his eyes locked on the cannon. In response I thumbed the control sigil on the side of my drake skin grip and primed the acceleration ritual. A series of Arcane circles appeared behind the firing chamber and slowly began to spin in place. Their icy glow making the shadows dance. 

"Try me."

Perkins gulped and wet his lips but before he could say anything else a deep gravelly voice cut him off. 

"What the Abyss is going on here?" Boyle stomped up in his heavy boots, now finished with his discussion, and paused just out of my range of vision to take in the scene before him. "Uh.. Rune?"

"Mornin' Boyle. Having a good day?" I said evenly, still focused on Perkins and the cannon held to his forehead. 

"So and so. Work you know?" He took another step, filling my periphery and followed my outstretched arm to his co-worker then back to me. "You uh.. you having a good day?"

"That has yet to be determined. It's kinda early. What do you say Perkins. Am I gonna have a good day?"

"B...Boyle, a little help here?" 

Boyle sighed at the man's distress and rubbed the bridge of his nose with his meaty fingers. "I told you not to screw with him Perkins." Shaking his head he turned to me and let out a breath. "Right, you've made your point. Mind letting the kid go? I really don't wanna do more paperwork this morning. I haven't even had my second cup of coffee yet." 

I met Perkins eyes and let out a flicker of [Killing Intent] that made his knees tremble and a bead of sweat rolled down his cheek. 

"Sure buddy. Since you asked." I withdrew my weapon with agonizing slowness and returned it to its holster beneath my great coat. The man didn't move until it was safely put away once more and I had taken a step back. Once he was sure he wasn't in anymore danger he huffed ojtnthe breath he had been holding and tried.to force himself to stop trembling.

"Y...you... you'll pay for that ward." He began but Boyle cut him off with a hard look.

"OH shut up Perkins. We both know you started it. Like you always do. I don't know what the Abyss your problem is but rest assured I'll be speaking to the Captain myself about this incedent." 

Perkins clenched his jaw and ahot me a look filled with daggers but didn't say anything else. He may be an Officer but he was only a Junior Officer. Boyle, for all his faults, was still the Senior Officer-in-charge at the scene. In a huff he spun on his boot heels and stomped away. Hopefully he would step in a pile of gremlin shit or something. 

"I don't know what you did to make him hate you so much but he needs to get over it." Boyle said wearily.

"I guess I just have that effect on people." Truth was I didn't have any idea why Perkins hated me so much. He had been like that ever since our first encounter. There's was nothing I could do about it though so I let it go and turned to face my old friend. 

    Boyle was one of the few, full-blooded Orcs that served in the Protectorate. Of the ones that did, he was the only one I knew of that had opted to join the Investigations and Enforcement Division. Over his many years of service the orc had worked his way all the way up to Senior Inspector. Most orcs preferred to join the Terran Armed Forces if they didn't, or couldn't, join their clans Mercenary Guild. Any that did join the EIPD did so as a Guardsman where they could better make use of their Racial Affinity for combat. It had been a while since we had the chance to catch up so I gave him a warm smile and offered my hand. 

"Ain't that the truth." He grabbed my wrist and gave it a firm shake. "Glad you could make it. We got a real doozy here." 

"Glad you called. I could use the funds." 

Boyle raised a brow at my admission. "Ah, no wonder you agreed to come. Vera?" 

"Yeah, already giving me a hard time about the rent."

"How far behind are you this time?"

I adopted a look of affront but as his brow twitched even higher I folded. "About three months."

He whistled appreciatively and shook his head. "Damn. Well hopefully this helps." He said and nervously tried to smooth out the perpetual wrinkles that criss-crossed his uniform. "Got the call about two thirty. Some poor bloke stumbled onto the scene on his way to work." 

"Docker?" 

"Yeah, First shift. Already questioned him but he didn't know much. I'll send you the transcript later"

"Do that. In the meantime, take a look at this." I motioned to the spot I had found the black powder and Boyke stooped down to get a closer look. 

"Huh, guess we missed that. You think there might have been someone else here?"

"Maybe. If there was i cant figure out what they tried to do from dust alone. Plenty of spells use something similar."

"Should probably look into it anyways." He flagged down one of the Techs and pointed out the spot to them. "Ain't been here five minutes and you're already helping. I take it that means you want the job?"

"Good bet." I helped him back to his feet and waited as he stretched out an old knee injury before we headed onto the scene proper. I had already given it a breif glance before but with a closer look I could see just how brutal the attack had been. There was blood everywhere laid out in a mural of mayham and murder. Long lines of arterial spray curved along the walls and pools of blood had spread across the cobblestones and seeped into the cracks. A pair of legs terminated abruptly at the start of a gory streak that stretched a few paces away where the torso lay. It's guts trailed out behind it. I tread lightly, careful to avoid the pools of blood, and approached the torso to get a better look.

"Where's his head?" I asked as I crouched next to the corpses shoulders and examined its neck. The skin around it looked like it had been stretched and curled in in itself. Had it torn his head off?

"Over there." He pointed to a patch of wall that featured a small crater surrounded by cracks. Inside the circle was a pulpy mess of skin, bone and grey matter. I grimaced at the sight. He monster was strong. Damn strong to do something like that, and if it's strong enough to crater stone with a thrown head then it's strong enough to tear that head clean off. I tucked my cigarette back into the corner of my mouth and took a drag, only to frown as I realized I still hadn't lit it. 

"Any idea who he was?" I motioned to one if the scene techs and twisted my fingers into the universal 'got a light' gesture. The tech shook his head and hurried on about his business. 

    Boyle scratched his stubby, pointed ear and fished his Page out of his coat to thumb through his notes. "No confirmation yet but so far my best guess is he was the homeless guy that lived in that little lean to down the way." He gestured with his page towards the far end of the scene where a crate and canvas vagrants tent had been erected next to one of the sewer vents. "The clothes match what you would expect a homeless guy to wear during this season but it'll take some time to get a positive I.D." 

"Right, I'll leave that to you guys." I poked around the corpse a while longer and examined the many claw marks that riddled it, trying to match what I was seeing with any the BEASTs I had encountered in the past. The creature had at least four claws, which didn't really narrow it down much, but it was a start. They were sharp too, as they had sliced through the skin and muscle like a hot knife through butter. Too many beasts had similar claw spreads for me to make a firm guess buy that was only one piece of the puzzle. I tasked my NPC to recording the information and moved on. 

    When I reached the corpses hands I found a bit of fur trapped beneath one of the nails. The victim had clawed at his attacker as fiercely as they had him. Enough to tear his own nails. Purple, splotchy bruises had swollen his finger tips and blood leaked from the open wounds left behind from when his nails had torn free.

"Yeah, I'm definitely taking this one." I decided as I levered myself back upright. This kind of job was right up my alley, no pun intended, and should pay out a decent amount on its own. Plus whatever I could get from selling the monsters corpse. 

"Glad to hear it. I'll send over the Quest." Boyle tapped his page then returned it to his coat pocket. 

My NPC pinged me as a document arrived and I focused on the notification that flashed in the corner of my vision. 

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[Quest offered] "Monster Hunt!"

[Difficulty:] D

[Description:] "A monster is stalking the back alleys of East End. Locate and kill the monster."

[Reward:] 1,500 Æ, +100 renown with related parties

[Commissioned by:] The Emryss Imperial Protectorate Department, Station Thirty-three. 

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    I quickly accepted the quest and stretched to loosen up my frozen joints. "Not bad. Should cover at least this month's rent plus expenses. You got anything else for me?" 

"Not really. You know as much as I do at this point." He lifted his shoulder in a half sheug. "Whats your plan?"

"Hmm." I rubbed my chin and thought over what I had seen so far. "This one's pretty violent, is this the only attack?"

"Far as I know. You think it might hit someone else tonight?"

"It's possible. I'm not seeing any signs of feeding. It might have been interrupted by whoever used that dust back there. Judging by the wounds though im thinking it wasn't here to eat. This has the look of a [Rage] attack. Either that or it really likes to mutilate its prey before it feeds." 

"Well, let's hope your right. I don't wanna get another call this morning saying another bodies been found."

    I tipped my head towards him to acknowledge the sentiment. It would be better if I could wrap this up quickly before it attacked anyone else.

"You need anything else?" He asked but I had everything I needed for the time being and i was eager to get started. 

"I'm fine. Pretty sure this won't take too long."

"Alright. When your done swing by the station with the record and I'll make sure you get paid." 

"Will do." I paused to glance over the seen one more time to make sure i hadn't missed anything but we had covered all of our bases. Still something about this was bothering me but I couldn't put my finger on it. I gave a mental shrug and filed my misgivings away for another time. For now I had a monster to hunt.

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