"Die, you filthy rat!" she yelled on top of her voice as she continued her pursuit of the rodent. Her drake falchion flashed once, releasing a series of fireballs at the giant rat, which it quickly dodged. She swung again. A wild downward slash severed the giant rat's left foot! Bloody stump, anyone? The rat screamed and fell to the ground, grasping its mangled leg. She was not one to watch a creature die a slow and painful death. Another swing at the rodent. Neck broken. The rat twitched several times before dying.
She took out a dagger and worked on the rat. Her skillful hands quickly skinned it, producing a charming pelt. "This should bring me at least twenty silvers at the furrier." she said to herself and shoved the pelt into her backpack.
She was one of "them". She was a half-elf rogue, going from town to town, looting. She ran away from her village when she was only thirteen. She did not belong there. A town of purebred elves. She towered over them all. She was not sure what she was looking for.
She was now a monster hunter, hunting down violent and dangerous creatures for money. When she was short on cash, she tended to steal. She was so good at it, she rarely got caught. Picking pockets was a useful and unique skill.
Her name was Sennymay the descendant of the prominent Belldandy family. She had been skilled in swords and numerous other weapons. Her favorite was the falchion she carried around. Since it was a drake, it could produce fireballs, but always at the wrong time. She once burned her right hand that way. Over the three years that she had been away, she learned a lot.
Her hair was shoulder length, dark brown, and braided. Her eyes were multihued. She was incredibly well proportioned and all the men stared at her every time she came to a new town. She always wore a singe gold earring in her left ear. Gave away that she was a rogue. They stared but did not come close. Afraid. Afraid she would pick them clean.
Men's fears amused her. She loved to scare them. It brought some fun into her dull, monster-hunting life. They called her "Demon Hunter Senny." She didn't mind. She had killed countless monsters, vampires, etc… She didn't like thinking of herself as someone good, ridding villages of monsters, making them safe again. She thought of it as making money, thus she never stayed around when the towns threw her parties for killing the creatures.
It's been three years now her 17th birthday was nearing. She would celebrate it by getting herself a rabid squirrel and then roasting it. They didn't taste all that great, but that was all she had money for. The Etrion Empyre didn't seem to like her all that much. She got little money for the monsters.
This time she was going to a village called Teutealia. Sylvankinds and other wood elves inhabited it. At least they wouldn't stare at her this time since none of them approved of any crossbreeds or halflings what so ever.
She walked into the town and headed for the furrier shop. Once again she received bewildered looks from the villagers. She had been certain this time that they would not look at her at all, but guess she stood out.
Their shop was a small hut with 3 pelts of rabid squirrels hanging over the door. She walked in.
"How may I help you, miss?" asked a short, round wood elf. His hair was bright yellow and his eyes were ice blue. He looked her over. "Looking of a fabulous snow cat hide? It's only 2k!"
Senny looked at him. Like I have two thousand just lying around, she though. She reached into her backpack and removed a rap pelt. The merchant took it, appraised it silently, and then handed her 16 silvers.
"Sixteen?!" she exclaimed. She was ready to throw the coins at the man. She would have, but she still needed money no matter how much she wanted to keep her pride. Never had she been so insulted in her entire life! That pelt was worth at least 24 silvers! She moved on to the next village on her map. That one was called Elutia. She wasn't quite sure what awaited her there, for the map did not say. She didn't care. She knew there was a lair of kobolds called Kobold Village nearby, and she was going to ambush them.
She stepped lightly through the forest. The trees were so tall, they covered the sun. It was dark and sinister. The only thing on Sennymay's mind was silver, and an easy way to get it.
Her nose suddenly twitched and she froze in her step. She could feel a pair of eyes watching her. She stepped even more lightly, her whole body alert as a cat's. There was a sudden rush. Senny lunged forward and did a summersault. She turned around just in time to see an arrow land behind her where she was first standing. That was not a warning shot. That was bad aim. Senny quickly reached for her belt and produced three little shurikens. The halfling knew exactly where to aim. With a swift move of her hand, she hurled them at a bush by her left shoulder. There was a loud shriek at the shurikens found their target.
Senny drew her falchion and neared the bush. She parted the leaves with her hands and froze. Pinned to a tree with her shurikens was a Dark Elf. She looked up at Sennymay with her terrified green eyes.
"You ought to learn how to aim," the Rogue told the Elf, who in return shook her head. Her long red hair was tangled up in shurikens and looked painful. It was like a spider's web. The more one struggled, the more entangled one got.
"Go ahead, kill me," said the elf in a tiny voice. Senny laughed and took out her dagger. The elf gasped. "No, don't kill me!" she screamed. "I was just kidding!"
With a swift slash, Senny freed the elf from her containment. She stood there, her green brocade cloak waving in the light breeze. Senny turned away from the elf and resumed her journey.
She felt the elf follow her. Senny stopped.
"What do you want?" she asked. The elf froze.
"Who, me?" the elf asked, looking around.
"No, the hephulumph behind you!" Senny said with sarcasm. "Yeah, you!"
"Oh, well… You didn't kill me," the elf answered. "Can I perhaps… join you on your journey?" she asked quietly.
Senny thought it over. A Dark Elf with long hair and bad aim certainly wasn't going to make her voyage any worse then it already was. One can't go lower than dirt.
"I hunt alone." Sennymay answered.
There was some hesitation from the elf's side. "Please," she said, "I have no one else to turn to."
"Alright," Senny sighed. "What is your name?"
"I am Artemisiana Aquiliga the Dark Elf Sorceress," she said in a formal tone and curtsied. How polite, Senny thought with disgust.
"I'm Sennymay Belldandy, the Half-Elf Rogue," she said and bowed. They exchanged smiles, both of which were obligatory. Senny turned and started walking again. Artemis followed. They walked in silence for a while. Sennymay watched from the corner of her eye as Artemis fiddled with her bow. She pulled the string, the let go again. She bent it until there was a snap, after which she quickly let go, her face bright red. Senny grinned. She might not be 100% elf, but she knew how to shoot arrows better than Artemis did.
Tall timber trees passed by, spreading shade over the two travelers. Now and then a bird would utter a cry of passion, or a wild animal would scream out a battle call as it chased a victim into a death trap. Senny watched Artemisiana's dress and smiled, as the elf would forget to pick it up and occasionally trip on it. Leafs rustled under the Rogue's feet. A little hurricane momentarily surrounded them as a light breeze ran through the trail.
Soon enough both of them were famished. Senny slightly lifted her double leather and pulled out a white fur pouch. She opened it carefully and removed a loaf of bread that contained a charred fish in it. She picked out a stump just a little off the trail and sat down. Senny glanced at Artemis.
"I didn't bring any food," the elf said. Senny rolled here eyes. She traveled alone for this exact reason.
"Here, eat my bread," Senny said hastily. "I'll go kill a cockatrice or something." She handed the loaf to Artemis and took off. The halfling felt better inside, somehow. She had sacrificed a whole loaf of bread to a 14-year-old elf with bad aim! She wasn't even going to say anything about Artemisiana's velvet gown. This was hunting, not a dance party.
Artemis sat there, on the stump, hungrily devouring the bread and fish. She had lost sight of Sennymay for a long time now, and was wandering if the girl caught anything yet.
"AAAAAYYAAAA!!!" came a sharp cry which sent Artemis veering of the stump and just missing the mud.
"Alaaaaaaaaa!" cried the cockatrice. Then came a terrible choking sound, then finally the moment of clarity when the Sorceress heard the cockatrice's heartbreaking cry of death.
Senny came marching out of the briars behind Artemis with a cockatrice carcass dragging behind her.
"You're a sorceress," she said to Artemis. "Make a fire so we can cook this."
"I am not partial to snakes," the elf answered, looking at the bloody cockatrice.
"Well I am. Now make a fire," Senny mouthed and threw the carcass to the ground.
"I… can't…" was Artemisiana's reaction. Senny stared at her with a blank expression. "I am a Lightning Sorceress. I don't know Fire magick."
Senny sighed and got up. She drew her falchion and closed her eyes. Sometimes concentrating on the sword helped bring the fireballs enchantment to work not so randomly. She had never tried it before since in a fight every second was important. Senny soon felt a tingle in her hands. She swung and her falchion flared up with fire. She quickly drove it into campfire wood prepared by Artemis, setting flames dancing. As the Rogue threw the snake into the fire, a fowl smell rose from it. Artemis wrinkled her nose.
They soon ate, with Artemis obviously still hungry even after that fish bread. Sennymay suggested they call it a night and the Dark Elf agreed after Senny reassured her it was safe enough. The Rogue kept kicking herself for this. She could have jumped the kobolds a long time ago and make a hefty sum. She doze off with that thought stuck in her head.
That night Senny dreamed about a man she had never seen before. She strained to see his face, but failed every time. The dark shadows of the night loomed over him, concealing his face. Then the dream turned into a nightmare. She dreamed that out of those dark shadows three serpents slithered towards her. She could not fight them off as they surrounded her, biting at her, injecting her with their venom.
She woke up with a silent scream on her lips. Senny rubbed her head and shook off the terrible vision. The sun bathed her in its warm morning light. As the Rogue became more awake, she realized that they should get moving if they wanted to zero in on the kobolds. She turned and looked at Artemis. The elf was sleeping like a baby. A huge grin appeared on Sennymay's face. She rummaged around in her belt pouch and took out a whistle. Senny leaned closer to Artemis, put the whistle to the elf's ear and blew.
An immense sound pierced the morning air. Artemisiana's eyes flew open as that noise rang through her ears. She sat up in a blink of an eye, terrified and confused. Sennymay fell to the ground, laughing hysterically. Artemis stared at her with a bewildered look.
"That was not a nice thing to do!" she yelled, realizing that was somewhat an understatement.
Sennymay wiped a tear from her eye, and said: "I haven't had this much fun in years!" Then added in a calmer voice: "We should leave for the village now. You'll have to learn to live with my pranks if you wish to stay longer." There was a pause. "Of course you can always leave if you'd like. No one's keeping ya."
Artemis didn't need to think it over. She would rather take her chances with Sennymay then with the Trolls and Kobolds of the wild.
They left in a hurry, but their resting spot was clean and unpolluted. The trail snaked into the deep forest where the tall trees covered the sun. The dull underbrush and short stubs of fallen trees went on and on. There seemed to be no end to this boredom of the woods. The forest had a magic of its own, protecting itself from eager campers that thought of the precious wood as mere campfire fuel.
Sennymay decided to start a small conversation: "So, where were you heading?"
"I wanted to travel to the Capital and visit the Castle," she answered. "Maybe they will have some use for me. The King and Queen, I mean." Sennymay nodded to this.
"We'll be close to the Kobold Village soon," she said. "What spells do you know?"
"Sleep level one, Venom, and Cure."
"That's it?!" Senny's jaw dropped. A Dark Elf that only knows three spells! She sighed. "Don't use any of them unless it gets too tough," she said. "If there are more kobolds then I can handle, then cast sleep spells on them all."
Artemis nodded. They kept walking. There was a fork in the road as they emerged from the forest. Sennymay checked her map. According to it, they had to take the left turn. They did. There was less noise in the forest now. The wind quieted. The situation was getting eerie. Artemis walked closer to Sennymay, her hands fiddling with the bow again.
A sudden snap behind the girls startled them. Sennymay swung around, drawing her falchion. Her eyes searched the forest. Nothing. She didn't know what had made that sound, but something did. She disguarded it and decided to keep on moving. She kept her eyes out for any signs of danger. Artemis was playing with the feathers on one of the arrows. The Rogue was thinking how "lucky" she was to be stuck with a fourteen-year-old sorceress who can't aim and only knows three spells. Just her luck!
She began to detect a fowl smell. Smelled just like kobolds. The human-like wolves were civilized, but not clean. Artemis seemed to smell it as well, for her nose was wrinkled and there was a disgusted look on her face. They slowed down. As Artemis strained her ears, she heard a marching sound. Senny dragged the elf into the nearest bush and hid there. The thick leaves of it provided a perfect cover.
Several rows of kobolds, four in each row, marched by the bush, carrying their petty weapons along. Sennymay licked her dry lips. This was turning out to be a good day after all.
"Can you at least cast silence?" Senny whispered to the elf as she leaned over to her. Artemis nodded, then blinked at what appeared to be a friendly smile on Senny's face. "Do it, then I ambush them so that no other kobold can hear their cries of agony!"
Artemis rose. The kobolds turned to face her simultaneously. The elf rose her hands to the sky and chanted.
"Mo shut!" she exclaimed. The kobolds froze, stunned. They grabbed at their throats, trying to scream, but only choking noises came out. Senny sprang up into the air, drawing her falchion at the same time. She landed in front of one of the kobolds. Upon her landing, her falchion struck the creature, nearly slicing it in two. The rest jumped back.
Another kobold swung at Sennymay. A great block by the half-elf warded off the strike. Senny swung. Beautiful head shot. That ear will be missed. The kobold screamed with terror and dropped to the ground, dying of shock.
Artemisiana finally decided to join in, clumsily shooting down the kobolds that tried to escape. Alas, they weren't as stupid as they seemed. There was about seven of them left over. Five rushed at Sennymay and jumped her. She was hurled under five furry, sweaty bodies, pinned down by their immense weight.
"Urgh!" Sennymay's scream came from under the creatures. They were pushed back and brought to their knees. The rogue stood in the middle, her chest heaving. It wasn't long before the kobolds tried to overthrow her again, this time all seven of them.
Sennymay was hurled under again. Artemis panicked. She was told to cast a sleep spell in such a situation, but if she did, the kobolds would fall asleep on Sennymay. Artemis would never be able to pull the halfling out in time. Senny would die from lack of air. Artemis was going over other options in her head. She knew that not even the "super strength" of the halfling could get her out of this situation.
As an act of desperation, the elf ran out of her cover and screamed. Tears rolled to her eyes for she didn't know what to do. Any spell she cast would have the kobolds die and Sennymay with them. She was running out of time.
"Heeeeeelp!" Artemis cried, although she knew that no one was able to hear her. Still she cried. "Help! Someone!"
A bright flash appeared, followed by a puff of smoke. A human man appeared. His dark hooded cloak settled down with the smoke, the hood casting a shadow on his face. Artemis strained to see his face. He turned to her.
"Cast lightning, Elf!" he yelled.
"I can't!" she cried back. Senny had only a few seconds left until she ran out of air. "I don't have that sort of power!"
"I give you that power then!!!" the man yelled again. He pointed at the elf.
Artemis felt a new power. A soft tingling sensation ran through her body to the tips of her fingers. She rose her hands and chanted, "Thor, I command you! Bring lighting upon these fowl creatures!" The skies parted, sending a shock down to the kobolds, electrifying and killing them all. Alas, it was not over. What Artemis was afraid of had happened. Senny was trapped under the furry creatures.
"She will die!" she screamed and ran to the pile. With her best effort, she began to tug and pull at the bodies, but managing to move only one of them and only an inch before a fireball shot. The man held up another one as a warning.
"Stay back, woman!" he yelled. The man rose his hands and chanted. The pile trembled then rose, revealing Sennymay. He put down his hands abruptly, causing a shower of kobold bodies. Casually, he walked over to the halfling and leaned down to look at her.
Senny slowly opened her eyes. She saw a man in a hooded dark robe. Unlike Artemis, she was close enough to see his face. He was about her age, with mesmerizing brown eyes and soft wavy brown hair slightly above the shoulders. He smiled.
The man rose and walked by Artemis. She felt the power coming back to her. The man's eyes were the only features of his face visible to her. He frowned and walked away, slowly fading into the mist that he came from.
Senny groaned. Artemis ran to her side immediately.
"Who was that man?" she asked the elf. Artemis shrugged and helped the rogue up.
It was starting to get late and the shadows of trees grew longer and darker. The two maidens started skinning the kobolds. Eighteen skins would have them make around 200 silvers. That was more than neither Artemis nor Senny had ever held. The elf botched two of the skins and quickly received a scolding from Sennymay.
They checked the tattered map and resumed their course. Artemis whined from time to time about the weight of her sack and that she was tired. Sennymay paid no attention to her. The only thing occupying her mind was that man. She had never seen a human like him before. This man had a certain spark in his eyes and a pair of white fangs in his mouth. The more she thought of him, the stranger she felt. She cast the vision out of her mind and concentrated on the task at hand, which was getting safely to a village.
As the sun set completely, dozens of small, bloodshot eyes began to surround them. The forest was becoming even more sinister. Dark shadows loomed over the crippled trees and dried out grass. Senny quickened her pace.
She was almost running now, with Artemis whining about how she couldn't keep up. She was beginning to get on her nerves. Only one thing stopped Senny from disbanding her group, and that was the fact that Artemis was exactly what Senny sought in a friend… when she wasn't whining. Alas, right now she was.
"Shut up!" Sennymay snapped at Artemis as she whirled around. The elf fell quiet. "This is a dangerous enough territory without your awful crying attracting the attention of every bloodthirsty carnivore in the forest!" she whispered in a crude voice. Artemis swallowed.
"We can handle kobolds," the elf said.
"You don't understand! That's no ordinary kobold out there!" she gazed in fear around the forest. "I fought him two years ago and managed to only injure him," Senny whispered. "Now he is holding a grudge against me!" She grabbed Artemisiana's hand and dragged her further into the forest. "He is the strongest of all the creatures you'll encounter in this forest, with blood-red eyes, sharp teeth, and black lustrous fur."
Artemis swallowed again. Her imagination, like Senny's, could not let her stop the horrifying visions of the kobold that seemed to follow her everywhere.
Another snap made itself known behind them. Senny whirled around frantically, her heart beating at incredible speed. Two red eyes pierced the darkness of the night.
"We meet again, Belldandy," said a deep growling voice.
"K'krath…" Sennymay whispered in terror.
The figure moved forward, revealing a dark, tall kobold with black fur and reinforced leather. A painful old battle scar ran across his somewhat handsome face.
"RUN!" Sennymay screamed and grabbed Artemis. She literally lifted the Elf into her arms and took off into the darkness. Artemis tripped over a twig and fell on her face. Her ankle made a crunch and she burst into tears. Senny hauled the elf over her shoulder and ran.
She could hear K'krath following her. No matter how fast she tried to run, he always seemed to gain up on her, his teeth snapping in the darkness. What she would give for a powerful sorcerer right about now! K'krath swung his cudgel at her. The rogue threw the elf into the air and flipped her over her other shoulder just in time. The sword swung a moment later through the place where Artemisiana's neck used to be. A one-second delay could have left the Elf headless. But that wasn't a completely rational thing to do after all. The cudgel drove diagonally into the rogue's back and ripped a seriously deep wound in it. She creamed and sprung forward as fast as she could. She was going to put some distance between her and the kobold.
A tree loomed up from the right. This was her chance. Senny jumped up into the air twirling and landed on the trunk of the tree. She pushed off and sailed into the air again, landing on the trunk of the next tree. She continued jumping like this until she lost the kobold. Artemis was shocked beyond speech. She almost lost her head in that pursuit, and now was sailing in the air from tree to tree.
A few lights in front of them signaled their safety. Senny ran down a narrow path towards the light. It was the Elutia village. The rogue ran to the gate while still carrying Artemis in a piggyback ride.
"Halt!" It was a guard. He was partially human, partially giantman, with shoulder-length red hair but human height. "Who goes there?" he asked, pointing his spear at the two.
"Please, we need shelter from the kobolds!" Senny stuttered, her heart still beating in her throat. Artemis was too shocked to even blink. The guard looked them over, thought about it for a while then opened the gate and let them in. Senny thanked him with a quick nod of her head.
There was a wide bonfire in the middle of the city. The shadows from the flames danced on the tall brick walls of this fortress. Huts surrounded the fire. All sorts of races lived here. A few halfling giantman guards stood next to the gates, watching the night. Senny placed Artemis on the ground. She almost screamed as she saw blood all over the elf's abdomen. She quickly lifted the elf's dress to see what was wrong, where she got hurt. Nothing was there. Not even a scratch. Suddenly Senny was aware of what was wrong. She reached back and her hand felt warm fluid on her back. She brought her hand back to her face to see what was wrong. Blood oozed from her fingers down onto the elf's dress. K'krath had scored after all.
One of the giantmen gave her an odd look, then returned to the gate again. Sennymay was ready to cry. What kind of a city was this?! Everyone walked at a distance from her. They were afraid that a rogue that could not even stand would steal from them. Her eyelids felt heavy. She slid back down to the ground and closed her eyes. She had lost a lot of blood and now her conscience went as well.
She awoke in the middle of a forest, stripped of her map, compass, food, and money. They were afraid of even an unconscious rogue. The villagers had brought her here and left her. As she looked around, she saw no sign of Artemis. Thank gods, the elf was all right. At least she would live.
Senny tried to stand up. That was a bad idea. Blood rushed to her head, making her fall down on her back. Right on the wound! Senny screamed with agony. She rolled over onto her stomach, gritting her teeth. She tried to stand up again, this time slowly. The halfling could not do it all the way and had to crawl on her hands and knees to a small, clear puddle. She dipped her hands into the water and drank. By the amount of thirst she was experiencing, she'd say she was out for at least three whole days!
Her life in the wilderness taught her how to survive out there. She foraged around for a while and found a leaf of acantha. The rogue put it in her mouth. Boy, that tasted awful! Her nose wrinkled up, but she felt a lot better. Now she tore off pieces of her leather and began to tie them around herself, somewhat stopping the bleeding on her back. There would be a terrible scar, she knew it.
Without a map or a compass, she was lost. She had no way of telling where she was and which way to start moving. Senny thought about waiting for the night and telling her whereabouts by the stars, but that would not work since she had no idea how to tell her locations by the stars! She decided to head what appeared to be west, hoping she'll turn in to something cozy, or perhaps even a village. She rummaged around in her pockets and found 2 silver coins and her trusty lockpick.
She got up and started walking. The tall trees no longer covered the sky, letting rays of light shine down through the canopy. There didn't appear to be any hostile creatures around this part of the forest. Not even rabid squirrels. For the first time in her years away from home, she felt safe.
But not for long. There was an unfamiliar smell among the trees. The half-elf knew she was being watched and followed. Her hand slowly lowered to her dagger, ready to fight at any sign of danger.
She smelled her pursuer again. It was a familiar smell, but she couldn't quite place it. Senny could tell that he was a male by that distinctive smell of power that fire wizards tended to have. She waited for him to slip up in his so far flawless pursuit.
He did. The man accidentally stepped on a twig. The snap sounded like a sonic boom in the silence of the forest. Senny sprang to where the snap came from. No one was there and the smell was gone. The wan was clever, but even clever people made stupid mistakes. Senny's eyes spotted a piece of red cloth, undoubtedly part of the man's robe. She took the cloth and put it in her pocket.
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