So here they were, having a human pack hunting meeting before they tracked and stalked their prey. It was an awful lot of people sitting in silence and looking up to Amber, but mostly at her companion, for guidance in the upcoming fight.

"Okay, gentlemen. Your fine governor put me in charge of this operation. You can call me Jane Doe since that is what they chose to write in their papers. I don't care. There are two targets unless proven otherwise. The first confirmed target is an Air Elemental. The second is an earthling human summoner.

I won't insult your intelligence, so if you spot any hostile human, don't wait for my call and shoot them. They are a damn summoner, so they might use a portal to kill you with your own bullets if you give them enough time. Humans are cunning, so they might not appear hostile until it's too late. In that case, you know human weaknesses better than I do.

On the other hand, Air Elementals are stealth predators. They have the same modus operandi and intelligence as stealth spiders. But they are magical creatures made of Mana, and as the name suggested, they are damn good at Air Manipulation. You won't be able to see it until it loses control. That's what Ember and I are here for. And it would try to steal your Air so it could come at you when you are the most vulnerable.

First thing you need to know: Your bullets are as effective on it as a bee sting on you. It's distracting and unpleasant. But it won't hurt it and definitely not kill it. If both Ember and I are down and you need to kill it with conventional weaponry, you will need enough explosives to cause a shockwave. It would seriously injure it, but I would only give it a 50/50 that it kills the creature on your first try. So remember, the point of guns is to distract. It won't hurt it. I won't help either for self-defense. If you are attacked, let someone else distract it.

Second thing you need to know: there is a limit to their power. It will create invisible bubbles with either no air or no breathable air. But either way, you only have to walk away to be able to breathe again. And it will use every tool at its disposal to try and prevent you to do so. You just have to keep going and ignore whatever it throws at you.

I know it would go against your every instinct, but that also means you can't rush to someone's help if they are going down. There is no safety in number against this creature. On the contrary, you will have to spread out at all times and help each other from a distance.

Third thing you need to know: Air Slash won't kill you, but it can kill me. I won't need your support against its vacuum bubble because I don't need to breathe. But I'm made of fabric, so everything that cuts or burns will hurt me badly. I have a self-repair cantrip, so I won't go down to a lucky air slash, but I will still appreciate the support.

Fourth thing you need to know: While everything non-magic is mostly ineffective against that creature, it's incredibly vulnerable to magic. Ember and I have plenty, but it still outmatches us in raw power. So it will most likely be a long, painful draw-out fight. Don't freak out if either Ember or I go down or run away. So long as one of us is still fighting, you can assume that we both are okay and that it is all part of the plan.

Fifth and last thing you need to know: There is a slight chance the human working with the Elemental is NOT a summoner. That is the most likely scenario and the most optimistic. There can also be more than one, but the most important fact is: if they are using anything but portals or rumbling about demons or gods, just assume the worst and run away for your lives. I mean it.

So, now, it will take your question before we get to work."

The assembly remained dead silent until one human finally raised their hand.

"Yes! The small guy over there."

Ember silently snorted at the irony.

"I'm in the field medic in charge of first aid. How can I help my patient if I can't reach them?" The 'small guy' asked.

"That's a good question, to which I have no good answers. If you are thinking of compressed oxygen bottles, forget about it. The Air Elemental might be able to weaponize it against you. And you might give it some bad ideas. Next question?"

Three hands were raised this time.

"How about grenades?' Another man asked.

"A well-aimed grenade to the Air Elemental would be as effective as a good punch to you. If you are confident you can aim and time it right, so the grenades would detonate mid-air while it pass through it, be my guest. It would be barely effective, so about two to three dozen grenades might do the trick. However, like for oxygen bottles, the Air Elemental is not especially intelligent but not stupid either. The first one would take it off-guard. The second would probably be sent back right at you. Next. Yes, you there."

"You mentioned you might be wrong about the summoner. What about the Air Elemental? Is there a chance we might run into something else? Or maybe more than one?"

"Good question. A single Elemental has done all murders. But there is indeed no proof we are not dealing with more than one. Or that Air Elemental would be the only thing that maniac has summoned, even if all those things are unlikely. Summoning is costly, and the summoner only got access to magic recently. In any case, my former statement stands: if we are facing something we are not prepared for, the only thing to do is run away. Final question there."

"I'm the major in charge of liaison with artillery. I will watch you from afar and call the shot if needed. Any signal I should watch out for, except that you are either dead or fleeing for your lives?"

"My second magic type is illusions. I can summon a pillar of light centered on the creature that only we can see. I won't be able to use any other magic while maintaining it, so I would rather keep it as a last resort. Would that be good enough?'

"How long can you keep it?" The major asked again.

"As long as I stay alive." The doll responded, chuckling nervously.

"That should be good enough." The man concluded.

"Then, it's time to track the creature. Remember, this is a recon mission until we confirm that it is indeed only an Air Elemental and its summoner. Anything else will require more preparation, so coming back alive is our first priority. And remember, even if we can't kill the Air Elemental, killing the summoner is a win. While dangerous, Air Elementals alone are ambush predators, not mass murderers."

★☆★

Visiting the crime scene in Great Falls had been a formality. Visiting the morgue to see the corpses, which had yet to be reclaimed by the families, was different. And her owner's body was among the corpse that no one asked for.

'System, can you read the tag for me, please?'

It read, "Megan Jones, Teacher." The file underneath is about her dental and fingerprint, which they were not able to confirm on the database. So it probably wasn't her actual name. Then, there is a detailed report of her autopsy, including injuries prior to her death, which you might not want to know about.

'I already know what killed her and what she probably went through,' Ember confirmed. 'Any clue, however, why she was so sad all the time?'

She did have several poorly healed fractures, including on the side of her head. She also has burn marks and scars.

It's conclusive with the hypothesis that she had a harsh life prior to knowing you, which might have triggered her untreated depression.

'Okay,' Ember concluded, finding some closure in the news. It wasn't her fault, and there was nothing she could have done. 'Thank you for letting me know. I got a good sniff, but I think they are not around anymore. They mentioned a second crime scene?'

Yep, in Helena, the capital. They attacked another school of children for a total of 58. 42 to go, and the Air Elemental will be able to evolve into an Air Elemental Spirit.

'So that's what they are after?' Ember asked rhetorically. 'All those death, just to evolve?'

The author's content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

Close enough. To be fair, the Air Elemental just wants to evolve into its adult form. The human, however, probably made a contract with the magic creature to help them evolve and speed up the process in exchange for a bloodline. That's a pattern among Sapients. They don't only want power for themselves but for their kids as well.

'That's why you said the killing would end with the human. The Air Elemental would still want to evolve but would stop killing children en masse,' Ember finally understood before realizing the implications. 'Is that okay for humans if some of them are picked one by one?'

Not really, but Air Elemental are territorial ambush predators. They love altitude and would rather kill people in their sleep or throw them off a cliff. Anyway, if some humans are stupid enough to trespass into Air Elemental territory alone, they kind of ask for it.

Ember still remembered the dream clearly. She was also a territorial predator, so she could understand the Air Elemental's point of view. To the preys, every predators were monsters. To the predators, preys were just their ticket to survive another week.

Except this time, she was not hunting to feed herself. The humans gave her plenty of delicious food. And she would repay them with this hunt. It was also personal this time. The Air Elemental had killed one of Ember's pack members. So it meant war. The Air Elemental had a pack of two. One would have to die for her revenge and the other for the humans.

'Let's get moving,' She decided. 'The tracks are cold here. Let's find a fresher one.'

★☆★

Helena was really different from Great Falls, as it was in a valley entirely surrounded by forest. The scenery was less varied, but Ember found out she liked it more here. What she thought was a forest back home simply could not compare. It was closer to what the primeval forest in her dream was like, although it felt too tame, neat, and perfect.

'Is it too late to negotiate for a place here,' She asked, hopeful.

I'm afraid the first contract is already signed and binding. It could be worth renegotiating for the second contract, though. How do you feel about expanding your territory?

'It's feel great. How much do you think we can afford?'

Humans are greedy and don't like giving up territory, so that would be pricey. But we can also buy a small portion and negotiate hunting rights for the rest. Humans are transitioning to veganism anyway. So let's give them some help.

'Humans are crazy,' Ember shook her head. She had nothing against vegetables, but she liked them in small portions accompanied by plenty of meat. It was like eating an herbivore's entrails right after their last meal, except it was cooked and seasoned right to her taste.

Then, they entered the crime scene, and Ember focused on the task at hand.

She gave the room a good sniff all around, and aside from the victims she had previously visited, there were four human scents aside from the air elemental. But only the faintest one had a hint of magic to it. And a smaller non-human magical signature was going elsewhere. Another living puppet, she guessed. Not that it mattered right now.

'So which one should I track? The magical creature or the human?'

I told the humans that their peer was the priority, but that's your call. No one would blame the dog if you had other priorities.

So which one is it: the Air Elemental who murdered your owner or the mastermind human who made the decision?

It was a hard decision for Ember. Her mind told her both, and the tracks went in the same direction until they reached the woods, probably where the creature and its summoner met. But then, they forked, and she had to make a decision about which one she wanted to go after first. The human tracks led to the city while the Air Elemental backtracked up North in the woods.

'Can you tell the humans that their peer is in the city, hiding in plain sight? We can surely track and kill him, but I wanted to know how they felt about it.'

"Ember found the track of the summoner. However, it leads to the city. Are you okay with going after them now, or do you wanna wait?" The doll translated.

"And risking losing them or worse?" The second in command retorted, "We can handle the public backslash of executing the summoner in the streets. But people are already panicking and keeping their children home. Another bloodbath, children or otherwise, and the summoner would be the least of our problems."

You got your answer. It's not like you can turn around now that I announced it.

'Perfect. Time to hunt.'

★☆★

Appearances are often misleading, and the tracks had led Ember right to the suburbs, to a house where a dad was playing with his kids while their mother watched over them like a Hawk from the residence's first floor. Unfortunately, for that very picturesque scene of family bonding, the father was the summoner. He was utterly oblivious to the fact Ember was watching him from afar with murderous intent and was about to report her founding.

'The man with the green shirt with the kids over there: He is the summoner. You told the men it would be better to catch him unaware. Sound like perfect timing.'

And so the doll translated:

"Ember found the summoner. It's the man with the green shirt playing with the kids at the 45."

"From this distance?" The second in command asked, disbelieving. "And how can you tell?"

"I have an empathic link with her. What she feels, I feel. Ember is positive this is your guy. Do you want to shoot him or try to arrest him? I must remind you he is most likely a summoner and might use portals to either fight, escape, or both."

"We have a kill-on-sight order. The summoner is responsible for 58 death." The man stated coldly. "I just need to guarantee this is the guy. 'Innocent father got shot' is not the headline we want to read tomorrow morning."

'Asked them if 'A stray ate the summoner before authority could arrest him' is a better title. I don't want to risk him getting away.' Ember said.

"Ember is growing impatient. Are you going to call the shot, or should I let her do it her way?" The doll translated.

'That’s not what I said!" Ember barked.

You better downplay your intelligence for now. The humans did not realize you were a Magical Beast yet. You don't want to give them a reason to make you the next target on their hit list.

'Fair point,' Ember conceded.

"Truth be told, that might help. Calling the shot with kids around would be a huge blunder. Too many kids already died as it is. Can your dog go distract the kids so I can call the shot without risk?" The officer replied after giving it a thought.

Nevermind. This one already suspects something, or he would never have suggested something like that.

Sorry girl. Just play along for a few seconds.

Then, the living puppet came closer and started petting her while cooing:

'Okay, Ember, calm down. Who is the good girl? Who is the good girl? You are the good girl! That's right.'

Ember decided to play along and offered her belly, tongue lolling at the side as if she was having the best time in her life. Memories of her former owner doing the same thing did help her play the part.

"Right, Ember, calm. Now go play with the kids," The doll said, pointing in their direction.

And Ember took her cue to go do her part.

Gods, it had been awkward. But she had missed it too. The policemen had not been so cuddly and favored praise and food over physical contact. Probably cause they did not want to get attached.

Jumping over the small wooden fence of the garden was easy-peasy. And so Ember barged in, barking joyfully and luring the kids away from their murderous dad. It took her only a few times running in circles, flattering the kids' legs, and chasing her own tails away from the man. She heard the shot long before the kids could react and tried to keep them focused on her instead of their father, who had collapsed, a bullet in his head, and a pool forming all around him.

Unfortunately, she was not enough of a distraction compared to the loud noise, and soon, the little kids were crying by their late father's body while their mother rushed out, panicking before she completely broke. And what came out of her mouth weren't cries but a mix of crying, shouting, and other noises. Ember had never heard anything like this before and never had guessed it could come out of a human voicebox.

'Note to self: some humans are just better than others at expressing their feelings properly.

She decided it was a perfect time to howl along for all the life wasted when the military made their entrance causing the woman to burst into a flurry of inarticulate attacks against the men who took her husband's life, oblivious of Ember's part in it.

One down, another to go. Though Ember agreed to the plan, she decided it wasn't the kind of hunt she liked.

A proper pack would have lured away the target before killing and feasting on it. Humans were doing it all wrong.

Maybe she should teach them how the job should be done?