As Pluto and Xera had a better look, they could see two men and two women around the bonfire. They were cooking an animal over the fire. One of the men was sharpening a curved knife. One of the women was throwing a metal star at a tree.

"How do we know that the stones exist?" The thrower asked.

"The river wasn't there yesterday." A man said with a gruff voice. "That is not something that happens every day. That is the work of something bigger going on."

"What are the stones for again?" The other woman asked.

"The new recruit has forgotten our mission," the gruff man laughed. "We need the stones to bring back Cheron. He's going to rule every kingdom; we won't have to work again. He's going to make life very easy for the likes of us."

"And if we find whoever is hiding those stones, we will do exactly what we did to that king." The man cooking said. He pressed his finger to his neck, making a swiping motion.

Xera had to cover her mouth to stifle a scream. Tears welled up in her eyes. She reached for her bow, but Pluto stopped her.

"Now's not the time," he whispered. "They've done horrible things, but we don't stand a chance right now."

She swallowed her anger and replied, "You're right. Let's wait until they sleep then we can give them quite a scare."

Pluto nodded in agreement. For the rest of the night, they waited as the cult members ate and laughed and cursed and drank until they were in a stupor. Xera rolled her eyes at each dumb joke. Pluto covered his belly, hoping it would muffle the sounds inside.

Eventually, the noise died down. Xera sprang awake, shaking Pluto to get him up. They formed their plan and began to put it into action.

As Xera climbed a tree, Pluto moved in among the sleeping cult. He grabbed an empty sack from the ground and filled it with leftover food. Then, Pluto snuck over to the gruff man and stole the communicator lying next to him. Once those things were secure, he took a few thick sticks and set them in the fire to catch. He then spread dead leaves all around the sleeping cult members.

Meanwhile, in the tree, Xera nocked an arrow and shot it into one of their cloaks. She held her breath after each arrow shot, hoping they wouldn't stir. Pluto met Xera further off, holding the lit sticks. They took turns throwing the tinder, then turned tail when finished. They felt an odd satisfaction as they heard the cult members awake screaming.

The pair moved deeper into the forest, leaving their enemy behind them. When they could no longer hear the screams and curses of the cult members, they slowed to catch their breaths. They sat on moss and displayed their plunder. Xera took the communicator and examined it.

"Looks like someone won't be receiving their orders anymore," she laughed. "It was a good find."

"I thought it looked important," he responded sheepishly.

"It could only benefit us."

They divvied the leftovers and dined on them. They didn't light a fire because they didn't want to alert the cult members that may be out looking for them. They divided the rest of the night into shifts so they could sleep.

When day broke, sunlight flittered through the leaves. The pair yawned, stretched, then made their way out of the forest. There was a short field on the other side of the trees. They could see the town of Titan from there. They heard a scream and ran across the range into town.

When Pluto and Xera entered the town, they saw a crowd. The crowd was surrounding a body lying on the ground, bleeding. The body belonged to a boy no older than Pluto.

"That's another one," said a man with a big, thick mustache. "That is the second one this week."

A lady in a green dress said, "And it's the baker's son. He was such a nice boy."

A few of the town's men lifted the boy and took him away with tears in their eyes. "What happened?" Xera asked a woman passing by.

"That poor boy was attacked and killed by one of the monsters that haunt this town."

"I heard it said that this was the second attack this week. Where are the monsters coming from?"

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"No one knows their origins. There have been hunting parties to search, but it's always a dead-end."

"Is there someone we could talk to point us in the right direction? We'd love to help out if we can."

"There is a man that lives up the hill that fought one of the monsters and lived. His name is Powehi. Be careful talking to him; he lost someone special in the attack."

Xera bowed in thanks. She and Pluto walked through the town, mourning hanging over it like a thick cloud. They made their way up the hill and saw three houses sitting at the pinnacle. They knocked on the doors of the first two, starting from the left. They knocked on the door of the right-most house; a man opened up the door.

The man had shoulder-length brown hair and navy blue eyes. He was as tall as he was wide, with an abundance of muscles. He wore a light blue shirt and brown pants and was barefoot.

"How can I help you?" The man said solemnly.

"Are you Powehi?" Pluto asked.

"The one and only." He didn't seem enthused with his visitors.

"There was a boy in town that was attacked and killed. A woman said that you fought the monsters before."

He sighed. "Come in."

The three of them walked into the house. Powehi offered them tea which they accepted. He had to clear a place at a table for Pluto and Xera to sit. They looked around and saw that it was clear that his house hadn't been maintained in some time. In one of the corners of the large room, a long hammer leaned against it.

Powehi poured them tea and sat with them. He said, "Okay, let's talk."

"Well, we came to town for a specific reason, but it seems your monster problem has piqued our interest," Xera told him. "We'd be interested in helping before we can finish our task here."

"Well, you don't look like much, but if you want to march off to your deaths, who am I to stop you?"

"We will have you know that we have defeated bandits, a giant bird, and a town full of ghosts. I think you grossly underestimate us," Xera huffed, red in the cheeks.

"That is impressive, but you are underestimating the monsters." There was a flash of pain in his eyes.

"Where did they come from?" Pluto asked.

"No one knows. The first attack was two years ago. I was working in the forest while my wife was in town shopping. When I returned, I found her slain. I went searching for the monster but couldn't find it. A few weeks later, there was another attack. After that attack, the town's men and I formed a war party and tracked the monster. We followed it to the large tower outside of town. Inside the tower, there were a plethora of monsters. We were outnumbered; I was the only one that made it out alive. I have been trying to watch from the house ever since, but the monsters always come in undetected."

"So, the monsters come from the tower? No one has been able to defeat them for two years?"

"Titan doesn't have any fighters and I couldn't do it alone."

"Would you help us if we went to investigate?"

"Unfortunately, I don't think I could leave the town unguarded. I know I haven't been helpful to the town the last few years, but I couldn't abandon them outright."

"But, you could avenge your wife!" Xera steamed. "Together, we could rid this town of its biggest problem."

He sighed again. Defeated, he said, "I'm sorry. If you're looking to fight the monsters, you'll have to do it on your own."

Xera huffed and marched out of the house. Pluto lingered for a moment.

"We are probably going to head to the tower," he said. " In case you change your mind, we could use the help."

He let his words swim in Powehi's mind. When there was no retort, he left to join Xera outside.

"It looks like we are on our own," he told her.

"Why don't we just leave it be? Why don't we find the temple and get out of here?"

He looked at her longingly. "Because it wouldn't be right. We can help them, so we should."

"You're a good person, Pluto. I am glad I met you."

Pluto could feel his cheeks reddening, praying Xera didn't notice. They gave each other a nod and headed toward the tower.