The purple-orange moon cast a slow swirling multi-colored glow across tall grass that waved gently in the midnight breeze. A figure in a tightly fitted dark blue robe stood on the steps to the ziggurat, his face hidden by a brass mask depicting a deep frown and a single tear drop under the left eye. His gaze followed the cracks in the steps down to a wide trail of crushed flat grass that cut through the plains to the north.

"This is definitely it," a man said behind him, from the shadows of the ziggurat's roof. He was identically dressed, only distinguishable by the teardrop under his right eye, rather than the left, "the source of the pulse is beneath this structure."

Even now, the strength of the aura reverberated in their flesh with each pulse. To those with weak aura sense it was imperceptible, but to those who could sense it -- who could feel it -- it was unending. It called to them like a monotonous drumbeat of war.

"Seal it," said the man with the left-eye tear.

His partner nodded and set upon his task. The strands of magic that weaved through the stones would be invisible to most, but he saw them laid out like the intricate workings of a machine that he could decipher and manipulate. Meanwhile, the man on the steps held out an arm. In a puff of black smoke, a raven appeared perched on his wrist.

"Report to command," he said to the raven, "we've found the source. Site three. Securing location and awaiting orders."

The raven cawed and took flight in a flurry, quickly rising to soaring height towards Giantrock City.

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Eli had scouted out the least busy registration booths in advance the day before. It was a short walk through the crowded city that ultimately took them down a walkway on the northern edge. The walkway clung tightly to the backside of buildings, hanging over the side of the rock with a hundred feet of open air between them and the rocky beach below. They were on the lowest of many such walkways that winded around the outer edges of the city.

The morning sun rose into the sky ahead of them, casting brilliant golden light on the beach far below and across the redwood trunks beyond the shore that rose even higher than where they walked.

After stopping a few times for Autumn to steady herself, they eventually entered a small door that lead into a cramped waiting room. An old, angry looking man was hunched over paperwork at a desk behind the counter. He didn't look up when the bell above the door chimed as they entered.

"You're early, hope that means a light load," he said.

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"We're here to register for the Hunt," Eli said.

The man turned in surprise, "you came all the way out here to register? How did you even find this place?"

"Pamphlets," Eli said with a smile, flashing the pair of pamphlets in his hand.

The man snorted, then stood and began rooting around various stacks of papers. He seemed to find what he was looking for, dropping a small stack of forms on the counter.

"Fill out one of these, each of ya," he said, "don't skip any boxes."

Eli took a few sheets from the stack and handed one out to each of them. An inkwell and several tattered quills sat on the counter. The form was relatively simple, requiring simple information about the adventurer such as their name, place of origin, and rank.

The man placed a stack of small index cards on the counter as well, each one had its own small form on it, "after that, write your name and rank on one of these."

After they each handed over their forms and cards, the man sat aside the forms without checking them and stamped each of the cards with a simple ink seal. He handed the stack of cards to Eli.

"All done," the man said, returning to the paperwork at his desk.

"Uh," Eli said, "isn't there supposed to be more?"

"I'm sorry," the man said snidely, "did you want to do the entire process? I didn't plan on falling six hours behind on my actual job today but who cares about me, right?"

"Isn't it protocol--"

"That's alright," Victoria interrupted, giving Eli a criticizing look, "we're happy to expedite things so long as you are."

As they stepped back out onto the walkway, Eli inspected his card. "He didn't even give us the questionnaire."

"Eli," Victoria said.

"Yeah?"

"Remember that time you reminded Teacher Mira that it was test day?"

An offended expression took over his face, "this is nothing like that."

"Oh it's everything like that," she said, "take the win, stop complaining."

As they turned into the thin alleyway that led them back to the city proper, they stopped and stepped back to make way for a young man carrying a heavy box with another stacked on top, visibly stuffed with papers. He curtly smiled at them as he passed. Before they continued, Eli began going over assignments.

"Autumn, you're on food," he said, "we'll be out there for a while, and we'll save a lot of time if we're not hunting for food along the way. We're pretty sure nothing spoils in your bag, right Iris?"

"Seems that way," Iris shrugged, "I've got an old mushroom in there that still looks the same as the day I picked it. Usually they get all slimy."

"Good," he said, "Autumn, get a shipment of ingredients sent to the Flopping Fish. This pouch is your budget."

Autumn accepted the pouch of coins with a stunned expression, like a child just given the toy they'd always asked for. "Yes sir," she said, with an exaggerated salute, "we're gonna eat like royalty."

"Titus, you're on medical," Eli continued, "we can’t afford potions, but I trust you to get what we need on a budget."

Titus nodded, accepting a pouch of coins as well.

"Victoria," Eli hesitated, "you know your assignment."

"Yep," she said.

"What about me?" Iris blurted out, still eager to pull her weight in the team and panicked that she might have been overlooked.

"You like reading, right?" Eli said. He was clearly anticipating excitement from Iris, who nodded eagerly.

Eli handed her a slip of paper with a short list of names and topics, and a pamphlet that contained a map of the city.

"There's a Library somewhere near the north end, see what you can find out."

She smiled wide, barely resisting the urge to blip away immediately.