I've Been Reincarnated As A Bunny Girl?! (Chapter 6)

by

Shadow Bunny Dragon

Kiana's ears twitched as she strode up to the Job Board, where all the different jobs submitted to the local adventurer's guild were posted. Each one was on a slip of paper with the job rank at the very top, along with location and all other pertinent information involved with the job, ending with the reward at the bottom. The jobs could be something as simple as gathering up ingredients for a local apothecary to arresting wanted criminals, rescuing kidnapped victims, or even the slaying of dangerous beasts. On this job board, there were around fifty requests, the majority of them copper-rank. There were more than a few silver ones. She spied a large reward for a gold-ranked quest that made her briefly pause. It was to collect a rare ingredient for a local alchemist. There were even a couple of ruby-ranked jobs that looked like fun, but until she joined one of the official guilds, Kiana would have to pass on them.

That was when she saw it. A single platinum-ranked quest. The reward was 10,000 gold. Her face breaking out into a wide grin, she reached forward and yanked the sheet off the board. Reading it over, Kiana nodded, feeling a rush of excitement.

"Aye, lass. That's a decent job, but banshees aren't to be trifled with," Kiana's perked up ears twitched and swiveled before she turned to face the speaker of the rough and gravelly voice. She looked into the face of a fox-kin beasta. The bulging muscles rippling beneath his green-leather armor and the way he carried himself, walking with a certain grace like a dancer, suggested he was a swordmaster. The twin scimitars strapped to his waist confirmed that thought. His fur was bright orange, with the fur on his muzzle and hands being a light brown. Like Kiana, he had creamy white fur from his chin down his neck, presumably to his belly. "For a job like that, goin' alone's practically suicide."

"I'm tougher than I look," Kiana said, turning to head towards the front desk to hand in the sheet and formally accept the job. She found the fox standing in her way, swishing his long and fluffy tail, amusement twinkling in his crystal blue eyes.

"I've no doubt in me mind about that, lass," he said, gesturing to a nearby table where three other adventurers were all sitting. Kiana spotted a female elf with flowing black hair wearing shimmering white robes, signifying some kind of healer; a very large and imposing-looking eagle-beasta, in a full suit of chainmail, with a very long and solid-looking shield resting beside him and a greatsword strapped to his back, clearly the group's tank; and a black human man wearing a deep blue cloak, staring at her with glowing green eyes, some kind of mage. All of them had gold star-shaped badges prominently displayed. "It's just that our party has been eyeing that job for the last couple of days, and--"

"And since none of you are platinum-rank, your party can't accept the job. So you'd like to team up with me since I am a platinum-rank, and split the reward money evenly. Am I correct?" Kiana finished for him. The fox smirked and held out his hand.

"Beautiful and smart, a lovely combination," he said in a sultry tone. Kiana rolled her eyes and started to walk past him.

"Pass. I'd rather take care of this myself and keep all of the money," she said.

"Wait!" the fox said, side-stepping and blocking her path once more. Kiana was starting to get annoyed. "Just because you are the required rank doesn't mean that you can handle this job alone!" He leaned forward, placing a hand on the bar, flexing his muscles. "Besides, a job like this is so much more fun with... multiple partners." Kiana quickly noticed a flute partially sticking out of one of his pockets and rolled her eyes.

Of course he's a bard, she thought.

"I said no," Kiana said in a firm tone. "I work alone." The fox was smirking, not appearing to have been paying attention, as he leaned in for a kiss. Just before his lips could brush against hers, Kiana headbutted him right in the forehead. He fell to the floor on his back, a glazed look in his eyes, his tongue lolling out of his muzzle. Kiana heard the scrape of some chairs just as all music and chatter in the dimly-lit guild-hall tavern went silent, and whirled around to face the annoying fox's party members, quickly slipping on her mithril knuckles and taking a fighting stance. The large eagle-man walked forward, looking very irritated. Instead of heading for Kiana, he grabbed the fox-man's ankles and started dragging him away.

"Sorry about Horst here," he said, indicating to the now moaning companion of his, "but he's right. Even for a platinum-ranked adventurer such as yourself, a banshee is too dangerous for a solo adventurer to take on by themselves."

"Thank you for your concern," Kiana said, relaxing her stance and resuming walking towards the front desk, "but like I said, I work alone." She smiled at the female spider-taur running the front desk. The lady with the lower half of a giant black widow and the upper half of a blonde-haired and blue-eyed woman smiled at Kiana and accepted the slip of paper from her. She jotted down some notes and put the job in the accepted jobs file, before handing Kiana a clipboard and pen back. Kiana nodded to her and turned towards the front door of the guild hall, stepping out into the bright morning sunshine and out into the city of Snowlight.

Looking around, Kiana smiled, as Snowlight was a beautiful city. A port town, it was quite the bustling metropolis. The trio of concentric walls encircling the city in gradually increasing semicircles protected the city and its surrounding countryside, with guard towers that were regularly manned and patrolled. The farmlands were in the outermost ring, with the middle ring comprised of estates for the upper class. The city itself was very metropolitan, hustling and bustling, with towering buildings and businesses as well as the government buildings in the center. It was easy to see why the city of Snowlight was the capital of Sessteria. She stepped onto the paved road and headed in the direction of the inn she was currently renting a room in, to collect her travel pack and Mirabelle.

The small hamlet of Rustroot was a three day ride by horse from Snowlight. Kiana, running full-sprint, made it there in under two hours. Unlike the paved and securely walled streets of the capital, Rustroot was much more rural. It had a log wall surrounding its perimeter, one that looked hastily constructed, a stark contrast to the well-built log cabins she could see through the open gate. She set Mirabelle down, the large blue snake uncoiling and looking about, the pink bow around her neck as prominently displayed as Kiana's platinum badge, which was clipped to her belt. The bunny girl leaned down and stroked Mirabelle's head, making the reptile's tail begin to thump on the ground. "Okay, maybe I don't always work alone. Having someone guard my pack is always a big help."

Kiana confidently strode forward, taking note of the nervous-looking guards in their leather armor and matching helmets standing up straight as she approached. They tightened their grips on the spears standing at their sides. Kiana gave them both a friendly smile as she came to a stop before them.

"What business brings you here, stranger?" Kiana heard the one on her left call out. She looked him over, and saw that he was not much older than her. The one on the right looked to be in his mid-thirties.

"I am an adventurer who has accepted your village's request," Kiana said plainly, flashing her badge at the two. The guards shared a look, and the older one rolled his eyes at the younger man, before turning back to her.

"You'll need to speak with the councilor. She's inside in the main hall," the older guard said. Kiana nodded to them, and thanked them both before walking forward, Mirabelle slithering right behind her heels. Kiana's ears twitched after she entered Rustroot proper and passed by one house. She could hear the older of the two guards talking.

"I told the councilor that the guild wouldn't take a village as small as ours seriously. And now we got us a little girl come to our 'rescue'," he said the word rescue with a derisive snort.

"But, Malathor, she had a platinum-rank badge," floated the voice of the younger guard, who spoke in wonder.

"Bah, she probably only ever got it from joining large groups to raise her rank by participatin' in higher ranked jobs. Mark my words, boy, they'll be sendin' a request to rescue her next."

Now Kiana was the one to roll her eyes as she walked, knowing her actions would prove the jackass wrong. She looked around, seeing the scared and haunted looks of the villagers. Most looked upon her with a combination of wariness and curiosity. Several playing children stopped and stared. Looking around, Kiana didn't see any beastas, so she figured seeing an anthropomorphic rabbit show up was probably gawk-worthy for these people.

The large wooden building in the center of the village was what Kiana took to be the great hall. Walking in through the open doors, she came upon two long oak tables with benches on either side of them. There were animal furs adorning the walls, as well as some shields. Seated on a raised dais was an older elven woman, her skin a deep tan and her hair a stark white. She was wearing a tunic and trousers made from leather. Kiana approached, stopping at the foot of the dais, and bowed her head.

"Good day, councilor," Kiana said, looking back up towards the grim-faced woman who waved her hand dismissively.

"Bah, I'm not one fer all them fancy proceedins, lass," she said, her voice strong and vibrant, "just call me Leafna. Now are ye a messenger fer a larger adventurer party or are ye here all on yer lonesome? I can see that yer a platinum-rank from here."

"I have come on my own," Kiana said, then gesturing to Mirabelle, who was looking all around and flicking her tongue to and fro, "with my pet here, Mirabelle. We heard that you all have yourselves a bit of a banshee problem."

At this, the elf's mouth quirked up into a slight smile at the corner. "So ye came all this way ta fight a banshee by yerself? That's bold, lass, I'll grant ye that," Leafna said with a chuckle. "Well, ye should know that yer not the only one who came a'callin' about that ghastly beastie."

Kiana furrowed her brow at that. "Are you saying that another adventurer accepted the job?" Kiana asked. Once a job was officially accepted by an adventurer or a party, then it was legally their job and no-one else's. Unless the acceptors failed, quit, or died before the job could be completed. But in the event of that happening, the job listing would always be updated before being put back up on the job board, often with an increase in the reward too.

"Nah. He be a travellin' paladin, not a licensed adventurer. He didn't even ask about any reward. He just purchased some supplies from the general store and asked questions about the beastie in question. Then he rode off towards Nevermoore Marsh, where it is. He said that as a follower of Luminaria, it was his sacred duty to vanquish any evil wherever it be. Quite the nice fella, and very well-built, although he never once took off his armor." Leafna looked down at Kiana, who appeared very annoyed.

"Great, so another wannabe knight getting in over his head that I'm gunna have to save," Kiana said with a sigh. A couple times already she'd had to help some local village boys who got it in their heads that hopping onto their family's work horse and riding out with some armor and a blade they saved up to buy they could easily find fame and fortune, before winding up ensnared by a dangerous creature, about to be eaten.

The first such boy, a little younger than herself, had tried to challenge her to a duel to reclaim his besmirched honor, and the jackass had even used the word besmirch. Kiana simply caught his thrusting sword in one hand and broke the blade before tossing him a few feet, sending him scurrying away wiping tears from his eyes. The second boy, her own age, had instead proposed to her right then and there, in front of the smoldering carcass of the giant centipede she had killed. Needless to say, Kiana was not thrilled with this turn of events.

"How long ago did he leave?" Kiana asked.

"Oh, I'd say about half-an-hour before ye got here," Leafna said, amused at the bunny's frustration. "If ye leave now, ye might be able to catch up to him before he enters the marsh. It's south of here, along an old worn wagon trail that ya can't miss. Ye'll know ye've found him if you see a big fella in shiny red armor."

"Thanks, Leafna," Kiana said, giving another bow, before turning to leave.

"Wait, lass," Leafna called out, making Kiana turn to regard the older woman. "What be yer name?"

"I'm Kiana," the bunny girl said with a smile, before darting back out the way she came, Mirabelle hot on her trail. Leafna grinned wide as she watched Kiana gather up her pet snake, and then sprint back towards the gate and out into the rolling hillside, following the old worn trail skirting the nearby tree cover. As the blur-like bunny neared the trees, she looked for anyone in red armor on a horse, but still the trail was deserted. She slowed to a quick jog into the tree-filled marshland. The trail was becoming uneven and slick, but Kiana kept her footing, smiling when she spotted fresh hoofprints.

"How did he get here so fast?" Kiana wondered to herself as she continued down the trail. It was past midday when she came upon a lone horse, its reins tethered to a tree, decked out in a well-oiled and slightly worn saddle and pack. She stopped to admire the beautiful creature. The horse in question had inky black fur with a white splotch on his right flank. His mane was a bright blue with a matching colored horn spiraling out of his forehead. Magenta eyes looked over at Kiana before he let out a nicker.

"Easy there, boy," Kiana said in a soothing voice, setting Mirabelle down before carefully approaching the beast while looking around.

"I've never seen a live tenebricorn up close before," she said, gently stroking his mane. "Where's your rider?"

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"Right here," said a deep voice behind her. Kiana whirled around, surprised that someone so large and wearing such bright and shiny armor could sneak up behind her. Looking him over, Kiana had to pause. When she'd heard he was a paladin, she imagined the classic knight in armor. Instead, she was looking at a cross between an English knight and a samurai, complete with a katana at his side. His armor was indeed a bright red, with a silvery chainmail visible in the gaps. There was a long white scarf with bright purple symbols stitched into it wrapped around his neck. His helmet looked more samurai-ish, depicting a snarling demonic face. The purple eyes looking out from the eyeholes looked Kiana over.

"Who are you?" he asked, his hand resting on his katana. Its sheath, also a polished red, had a long intricate carving of a serpent etched into its side.

Kiana bowed before sticking out her hand. "Hi, I'm Kiana, a professional adventurer," she said, giving him her best customer-service smile, "and actually I've already accepted the properly submitted job of eliminating the banshee threat. Although I really appreciate you coming all the way out here."

"It is my duty to seek out and eradicate all evil, no matter its form," the paladin said in a dry and serious tone. "Return to the rest of your party and inform them that this 'job'," he practically spat out the word and continued to ignore Kiana's offered hand, "is no longer their concern."

"Well, Mister Personality," Kiana said, firmly planting her feet on the ground, crossing her arms, and staring him right back in the eye, "first of all, I'm not with any party. I'm here solo. Secondly, this is my job, and I will be the one to finish it, as well as be the one to collect the reward. And finally, it's pretty rude not to introduce yourself when someone gives you their name."

The samurai straightened and gave a slight bow. "I apologize. I am named Getholon the Mystic," said the paladin. "And you truly accepted this quest all on your own?" His surprise was evident by the wide eyes visible behind his mask. Kiana rolled her own and nodded.

"Yeah, I get that from time to time. Look, I am stronger, MUCH stronger than I look, hence why I'm a platinum-rank," Kiana indicated her badge as she said this, "and like I said before, this is my job and the reward will be mine."

Getholon snorted. "Reward," now he was the one to roll his eyes before placing a hand onto his chest, "I fight in the game of the Goddess Luminaria, as a soldier against the forces of evil. I do not require or have any interest in rewards or monetary gain, unlike you adventurers. Begone from this cursed place, little girl, I was led here by a vision. This is but another test of my skill and my faith."

"Listen up, jackass, I--" Kiana had balled up her fists and was approaching the paladin when his horse whinnied and stomped his hooves at the same time Mirabelle hissed and coiled herself defensively at Kiana's feet. There was a low moan before five mottled gray-fleshed figures wearing dingy ragged clothes burst out from the surrounding marsh, reaching for them with grinning moaning, yellow-fanged mouths.

"Ghouls!" Getholon shouted, turning to face the nearest two. He quickly tensed up, and whipped out his blade, which immediately ignited in bright purple flames. The ghouls who saw it shrieked in high screeching voices. He slashed three times. One ghoul's head rolled off while the other collapsed into three sections of body. The cuts were precise and neat, until purple flames exactly like the ones from the katana sprouted all over the two slain abominations. In seconds the two were little more than smoldering ash piles, not that Getholon was waiting to watch. He turned and froze, confused. The three remaining ghouls were nowhere to be seen. Instead, for miles in a single direction, the direction that trio had come from in fact, it now looked as thought there had been some kind of horizontal tornado, with the land and trees ripped up along the way. Standing right before it all was a very calm Kiana, holding out a single fist. She then turned to regard the paladin.

"As I said before, this job belongs to me," she said.

An Hour Later...

"I can't believe I let you talk me into this," Kiana said in a quiet voice as she and Geth, as she had taken to calling him, were picking their way along the path. Geth was leading his horse, named Bolt, by the reins as a curled-up Mirabelle rode on his back. Bolt didn't seem to mind the least.

"Do you even know how to vanquish a banshee?" the paladin asked the bunny monk, who in turn simply shrugged her shoulders.

"What's to know," Kiana said, "I'll just obliterate it."

"You took a mission to fight a powerful monster, and you didn't even bother to do just a little bit of research?" Geth whispered back, incredulous.

"Yeah, that's kinda my thing," Kiana shot back, her ears twitching and on the alert. They'd had to kill several more packs of ghouls on their way to the banshee.

"And I suppose that you didn't even ask the locals about the location you were heading in either?"

"Nope, I was too focused on finding the guy that was going to try and take my reward money," Kiana hissed, annoyed.

Geth stopped and turned to look Kiana in the eye. "First of all," he said, Kiana able to hear the frown in his voice, "banshees often don't have corporeal forms, meaning that a physical attack will do no more than trying to slug the air. Secondly, they're dangerous because of their wailing attack. It can paralyze most and even kill those with weakened constitutions. While its victim is paralyzed or at least partially paralyzed, it will try to drain the life from their body. I have prepared a spell for myself to help protect me from the power of its wail. I'll just go ahead and assume that you yourself have no such protection and continue illustrating just how unprepared for this encounter you are. It uses the energy it drains from its paralyzed victim to animate any nearby dead. Since we've been slaying ghouls and not simple skeletons or zombies, that means that this banshee is really powerful, doubly so considering how many ghouls we've encountered so far. Thirdly, if you'd bothered to talk to the townspeople, you would know that where we're going was once a lush booming town named Oakville. But a darkness took over the land, soured the soil, and now only festering abominations remain. The banshee is most likely a result of the greater evil that poisoned this land. A condition that has slowly been spreading, hence why only recently the townspeople of Rustroot built a wall around their village. They're talking about pulling up stakes and moving away. If you truly want to help them and earn your reward, then we need to locate and destroy the source, once we've dealt with the banshee."

"Fine, yes, I get it," Kiana said, throwing her hands up in exasperation.

"Something in me tells me that you don't," Geth said, before continuing forward. Kiana looked at the back of his helmeted head and stuck her tongue out at him. "I saw that," he called out behind him.

Their trek through the road that had become a trail brought them to a small clearing. All around there were run-down and ramshackle buildings. There was an old clock tower in the center of the clearing, the faces of the clock stained, the exposed gears caked in rust and overgrown with vines. Half of the structures were partially sunken into a boggy mire, with a low mist at ankle-height spread out across the land.

"I take it that we've arrived in Oakville," Kiana said in a whisper. Geth nodded, gripping his katana. The Dream Scythe, as he had identified it, was a weapon of legend bestowed once a generation onto a chosen champion of Vailira, its purple flames able to smite any undead creatures or other abominations.

"Yes," he said, letting go of the reins and snapping his fingers. Bolt looked around, standing in place. "He'll keep an eye out and warn us of any approaching dangers from behind."

"Mirabelle will do the same," Kiana said, shrugging off her pack and setting it onto Bolt. She had her tetsubo out and at the ready, feeling excitement rush through her veins. She turned and grinned before walking confidently out towards the center of town.

"Kiana?! What do you think you're doing?" Geth demanded in a louder whisper.

"Oh come on, Geth," she said without breaking stride, "like whatever's here doesn't already know that we are?" As she said this, the mist near her started to shift and swirl, taking in a very faint blue-green hue. The mist writhed and shaped itself into a figure with long flowing filthy hair, the wide black soulless eyes glaring around in hatred. It was missing its nose, leaving a hole where one should be on its twisted face. Its mouth opened, the lower jaw stretching much further down than an ordinary person's mouth would be able to and still remain attached, all of its teeth broken into sharp shards. Its tattered gossamer clothes exposed a gaping hole where its chest should be, ringed by the creature's lifeless and cloudy flesh, displaying cracked and broken ribs. Its arms were long and emaciated, ending in wicked claws.

"Well... that's unsettling," Kiana said just before the creeping chill washed over her. She shrugged and then swung with her trusty tetsubo. It passed right through the banshee's form like the surrounding mist. "Huh... that could be a problem," she conceded.

A low gurgling sound started in the back of the creature's hideous throat, rapidly building up in power and rising in pitch. Out came a shrill, ear-splitting wail, something Kiana gained a better understanding of while she desperately tugged down her ears in an attempt to block out the sound, which itself was only semi-successful. She felt the chill creep into her limbs, and found that her arms and legs were a bit uncoordinated in her movements, and a bit sluggish.

"Dammit, Kiana!" Geth called out. He charged forward as many figures began to stumble out of the fog. Ghouls and lots of them. Geth counted thirty entering the town from all sides except the direction where they came, with more figures shambling forward in the fog. With a roar, Geth began to slash left and right, cutting down any undead in his sight. With the ghouls focusing their sights on the paladin, Kiana was left to face the banshee alone. She punched and kicked, working through the sluggishness, while the creature slashed back at her. She had a few cuts on her arms already, none looking serious, but all of them freezing cold.

"Okay, physical attacks do nothing," she said, throwing one more punch that sent a jutting rock the size of Bolt flying off into the distance. Taking a second to calm herself, Kiana took a new fighting stance, both feet firmly planted on the ground, and felt in the back of her mind for the source of energy that had become easier and easier to tap into over the years since her early second childhood. Pushing into it and working partially on reflex, Kiana willed that energy forward. Her eyes opened, glowing a bright blue, as electricity could be felt in the air.

The banshee seemed even more agitated, and lunged, both clawed hands outstretched. Kiana felt the energy flow down into her fist, and she punched outward. Said fist crackled with blue electricity, and actually made contact with the banshee's face. To Kiana, it felt like punching something soft and gooey, like oatmeal. The creature was sent flying backwards, and appeared dazed as it came to a stop in front of one of the cabins.

Kiana took the opportunity, grateful to feel the cold quickly diminishing from her cuts and the sluggishness abate from her limbs, to look back. She saw Geth slashing ghoul after ghoul, his movements and blade graceful and almost like a dance. All around him were ghouls burning with the purple fire of his sword, yet still more were coming. Kiana spied a shifting mound of earth before another three burst out the ground, heading straight for Geth. Kiana sighed and leapt in a backflip right behind Geth. Her fists, still crackling with blue electricity, lashed out, her punches and kicks blurs. In a matter of seconds, she had decimated the majority of the ghoulish horde, giving the two some breathing room.

"Alright, fine, I was wrong. I mean, I can damage the banshee, but it'll take a while and you were about to be overwhelmed," she said, pushing Geth in the back in the direction of the banshee. "So you kill it while I keep these things off your back."

"OOF! Wait!" Geth started, only to stop. He watched for a moment as the horde swelled up and attempted to bring down this new prey... only for bodies, some of them exploding into putrid chunks from the force alone, to go flying into the air. The savage storm of punches and kicks a veritable whirlwind of destruction that Geth found to be quite the sight to behold. Recovering from his amazement, he took a fighting stance and turned in the direction of the banshee. It was flying towards him, arms outstretched, mouth opening even wider and letting loose a wail. Geth stood still and chanted under his breath a prayer, purple runes appearing all over his armor. When the blast of the wail struck him, he simply shrugged it off, his sword flaring up even brighter, dispelling shadows and forcing the banshee to stop and shield its eyes.

"Your suffering is over," Geth said in a gentle voice, stepping towards the creature, his katana poised. "May you find peace in the next life." With that, he slashed. The banshee tried to dodge, getting nicked on its arm. It screeched as ethereal purple flames erupted from where it had been slashed. He slashed again, this strike true, and the partially see-through head of the banshee floated up away from the body, rapidly being consumed by the purple flames as the body was, new ones springing from the open neck hole. The banshee soon burned away to nothing, with the mist dissipating. As it did, Kiana punched the head off of another ghoul. Then the ghouls all froze in place before they simultaneously crumbled to dust.

"... So... that happened..." she said, turning to face the paladin. She couldn't tell for certain, but Kiana was sure that she could see his eyes smiling.

"Yes... it did..." Geth said, looking as uncomfortable as Kiana felt. Deciding to jump right into it, Kiana held her hand back out for him to shake.

"Thanks... I... uh... I appreciate the help," she said.

Geth looked at her offered hand, and took it in his own, giving her a hearty shake. "And I appreciate you keeping the ghouls from overwhelming me. Together, we have cleared some of the darkness plaguing this land."

"Well, it's all in a day's work," Kiana said, letting go of the paladin's hand. He let out a bellowing laugh and clapped her on the back.

"True. Of course, we're not done yet. We still need to excise the source of it all!" Geth sounded so much different from the grim and annoyed person he was when Kiana found him earlier that day.

"Do you know where it is?" she asked. Geth pointed and after a second of looking, she spotted a stone tower not too far off into the distance.

"Oh... yeah, a lone tower in a cursed marshland. If nothing else, that's probably a great place to start looking."

"I have researched this area before I came here," Geth said, striding towards Bolt and Mirabelle, "and I believe that the source of the darkness is a vile corrupted necromancer, who has been experimenting in forbidden things."

"A necromancer, huh?" Kiana said, falling in step with Geth and rubbing her chin.

"Correct. Normally, a necromancer utilizes their knowledge to banish evil spirits, help wayward souls find their way, and exorcize demons. But some pervert this sacred knowledge to perform unnatural deeds and rituals, often for personal gain, or even sickening pleasure," Geth explained as they arrived at Bolt, and he handed Kiana her pack and her snake.

"Makes sense. People suck like that sometimes," Kiana said, giving Mirabelle a pet.

"What's more, I am certain that whomever they are, they are well aware of our presence in their territory. We have slain one of their creations, after all. I imagine vengeance is on their mind, as well as creating a replacement."

"Got it. So we need to take out the big bad evil guy," Kiana said, twirling her tetsubo.

"Well, yes, but we must proceed with caution," he said, emphasizing the word caution, "as he has had many years to set up traps and dark spells and unleash all sorts of unholy creations within this area. Making it to his tower will not be an easy task." Kiana grinned and clapped a hand on Geth's shoulder.

"Oh yes it will," she said, her eyes glowing blue as she looked into the confused paladin's mask's eyeholes.

At the Tower of Zrathk...

"CURSE UPON ALL INTERLOPERS!!!" the older human male in the black robes screamed, swiping his books and beakers off of his desk. Up in the highest room, he looked out in the direction of Oakville, his first ever conquest, and seethed with rage. It was the late afternoon, with the sun heading towards the western horizon, the orange ball not yet touching the mountain range, but growing ever closer.

"When night falls, I shall release my newest creations, yes," he said, his voice becoming raspy. He coughed a few times, and then snapped his fingers. A mustard-yellow ball of light winked into existence right in front of him, and Zrathk the Undying started to chant in a hateful tongue, his eyes glowing green. He stopped, however, when he heard something. It sounded like a distant voice, a male voice, yelling, and growing louder by the second. He looked around out the window and saw something glinting heading in his direction. He barely had time to jump out of the way before two figures smashed through the thick glass and wrought iron windows. Chunks of stone went flying about the room, overturning a small bubbling cauldron, pouring out a red glowing substance that puffed into a red smoke which briefly took on the shape of a human skull until it dissipated.

"This the bastard?" a female voice asked. Zrathk, rattled, dusted himself off as he looked at the two intruders. One was a rabbit beasta, the other a large figure, comically riding piggyback on the smaller girl's back. The red-armored figure slipped down on slightly unsteady legs, and nodded.

"Y-yes, that is indeed the bastard," Geth said, his eyes hardening. He drew the blade, the purple flames flaring up. Kiana twirled her tetsubo, blue electricity crackling at the end and dancing among the many rivets.

"You fools dare come to me, Zrathk the Undying, personally? You should have fled when you had the chance." The necromancer's eyes turned pitch black, dark veins forming around his eyes, his voice becoming deeper and more booming.

A short while later, Bolt, with Mirabelle happily riding in a large saddlebag with her head poking out, came to the location that Bolt had heard his rider's whistle originate from. They found Geth and Kiana standing next to a smoking crater, sections of stone masonry and other debris scattered about nearby. Kiana was watching as Geth, holding his flaming sword aloft, spoke in another language. He then plunged the katana into the ground, and he, Kiana, Mirabelle, and Bolt all felt a pleasant warmth spread outwards, like ripples in an otherwise still pond. All throughout the area, dark unnamable things shambling and crawling throughout the marsh, felt the purifying force, immediately bursting into bright purple flames, their horrendous cries ringing out before being silenced forevermore. The sensation was far-reaching, until even those in Rustroot felt the warmth, the villagers all relaxing and letting out a collective pent-up sigh.

"This land has been cleansed," Geth said.

"So, what do you think, we split the reward?" Kiana asked after Geth pulled the sword from the dirt, lovingly brushing it off.

"I am not an adventurer," he stated simply.

"Meh, we'll get you evaluated and a badge," she said, smirking. Geth let out a sigh.

"It would... be nice... unfortunately," he reached for his helmet and hesitated, before pulling it off. He shook his head. Kiana looked at the green skin and polished white tusks of the orc standing there, looking at her miserably. His dark hair was close-cropped, and his pointed nose had been broken. His purple eyes, a scar running down his right cheek, looked at the bunny girl expectantly. Kiana said nothing at first, knowing full well that orcs were often considered to be an evil race, and she had certainly fought plenty of orcs who had kidnapped and eaten villagers, as well as done worse things. But she knew that people of every race were capable of vile acts as well. She smiled at him.

"Oh that's nothing to worry about. Lots of folks get bad haircuts from time to time," she said with a mischievous twinkle in her eye, "and if anyone gives you any guff for it, I'll beat them into the ground... partner." She extended a hand. Geth looked at her with wide, amazed eyes. Slowly, feeling as though he were in a dream, the orc reached out and clasped the bunny girl's hand, giving it a shake.

"Alright... partner... but I am not interested in rewards or superficial ranks," he said, chuckling. "I shall become an adventurer, but only so that together, we can destroy evil and help the innocent."

"Fine by me," Kiana said, "although we absolutely are collecting the reward for the killing of the banshee."

Name: Kiana

Species: Beasta (Rabbit-Kin)

Age: 16

Skills: Sibling Wrangler, Babysitter, Puppy-Dog Eyes, Master Martial Arts, Brawling, Heavy Weapon Proficiency, Sarcasm Mastery, Eyerolling Mastery, Beast Taming Level 3, Baseball (Amateur), Lightning Strike (Level 1)

Class: (Official) Master-Level Dragon Monk: Storm Dragon School, Storm Dragon Hatchling.

Str: 141

Int: 12

Dex: 140

Cha: 12

Wis: 11

Con: 173

Languages: Common, Draconic

Equipment: Adventurer's Pack, Steelwood Tetsubo, Mastercraft Mithril Knuckles (x2), Rope (25 Ft.), Canteen (Full), Road Rations, Spare Clothes, Bedroll, Health Potion (x2), Books (x3)