Twilight Zone [Monster Hunt: Raging Behemoth] (Job w/ Starstruck XD)

Job Description:

Somehow Akeya was getting the feeling that she often had to deal with religious and spiritual matters during her jobs. She also was pretty sure that it wasn't true, since she could remember a lot of times where it was much more mundane (and physical), but a part of her mind was insistent that she constantly kept running into situations and creatures which were either ethereal, spiritual, or had a positive or negative interaction with the divines. She didn't like the idea of her mind acticely trying to deceie her, so after this particular job was over she'd have to go and update her records of past jobs and make sure she wasn't falling for the same old self-delusions basically everyone suffered from if they weren't actively fighting against them.

For now though she had a job to do, and it would be her first official job as part of Onyx Moon, even if she still wasn't openly declaring herself part of the guild. It wasn't exactly a secret that Onyx Moon had some trouble with the legal side of Fiore (which from what she heard was partially because of the dark guilds using them as scapegoat), and since Akeya didn't want to get herself into any trouble if she could avoid it she'd just pretend to still be a freelancer. Since Onyx Moon was all about deception anyway they wouldn't mind if she didn't openly declare her allegiance, and as an unaffiliated mercenary it'd be easier for her to deal with situations where Onyx Moon might find itself somewhat troubled.

And the job this time around was that someone or something had wrecked a sacred shrine, and because of that some unknown creature was going around destroying buildings at night. There hadn't been casualties yet (in fact from what she'd heard the creature had yet to even threaten anyone), but it was clear that this state of things couldn't continue, which was why the people living in the area had requested for the mages to come and deal with the situation. Akeya looked down at the mountain below her as she wondered if they couldn't repair the shrine instead. If they wanted her and her partner to take care of the creature instead that was fine with her, but she didn't think that attacking the symptom when you already knew the actual disease was the smartest of plans.

Circling high above the mountain she was scouting it, already having spotted the sacred shrine itself before but having decided against landing and looking around. On the off chance that the lack of repairs was because it was dangerous to get close she would wait with that until she and her partner could go there together, so they could watch each other's backs while looking for the creature. For now she flapped her wings slowly to keep herself up in the air as her emerald eyes scanned the mountain, futilely as there wasn't a lot to see. There was the settlement which had requested for aid, there was the sacred shrine, some other landmarks like a creek which flowed down the side of the mountain and the spring from which it originated. She memorized the landscape, but no sign of a monster or anything like that.

Once she was finished scouting she let herself be dragged down by gravity, angling forward so she'd enter a steady dive. Her partner should already have arrived at this point, another mage from Onyx Moon. While Akeya hadn't met the woman personally yet she'd been told that her partner would be one named Haia Illie Starstruck, and that their magics should complement each other nicely. Whether that meant that the nature of their magics were similar or they would be good at covering one another's weak spots she wasn't sure, but she was quite interested in finding out the meaning behind those words.

As she descended she glanced over towards the horizon, where the sun was quickly beginning to set. The creature only came out at night, so they had to start their search at dusk so they'd have plenty of time. Her dive brought her to the besieged village, the dragoness flapping her wings once to slow herself down before tucking them in and landing on her feet in the middle of the town square, ignoring stares from the spare villagers who hadn't retreated to their homes yet for the night. Since they hadn't travelled together they were supposed to meet at the inn, Akeya already heading in that direction as she noticed the sky slowly darkening. Good for her, because as a dragon of shadows and darkness the night was much more comfortable and convenient than the day.

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Word Count: 611

Coming closer to the inn Akeya noticed that there was quite a crowd outside, all of them apparently heading back home. If it wasn't for the fact that it was already getting dark the dragoness would have considered this strange, but as it was she just assumed they'd all decided to call it a night. Instead she stood to the side, the shadows concealing her as she waited for all of them to have left before she stepped into the inn, her body shimmering in and out of view as she moved between shadow and light. Once inside the inn the lighting was sufficient to keep her visible, the dragoness looking around even as she sensed the magic in the room. Most of it was just the mundane background magic, along with a couple of weak sources which either came from the kind of mundane magic items used to make life a bit easier and the few people who hadn't left the building. However there was one strong one, coming from a woman who was sitting right next to a demolished table.

Stepping over towards the woman Akeya studied her a bit more, using the fact that the other mage seemed to be not paying attention to quickly inspect her on a surface level. The magic she emanated signified that she was indeed strong enough a mage that she'd be of use in this mission, although the taste of her magic... Akeya's tongue flicked out of her mouth for but an instant while a frown marred her face before she smoothened it out. She smelled light. Not mass, but the element. Combined with the outfit that her partner was wearing... It looked like when she was told that the two of them would complement one another nicely they were indeed talking about contrast, and Akeya wasn't certain she liked that. Light may also cast shadows but it was the enemy of true darkness and beyond that just because it created shadows didn't remove the fact that it destroyed them just as easily.

Still, this was what the higher ups had decided and she would abide by their decision. If the light mage was willing to combine forces with a shadow user they could get a lot of work done, as they'd have both sides of the spectrum in their arsenal.

Coming to a halt when only a couple of feet away from the woman Akeya coughed to draw Haia's attention, her emerald eyes still studying the woman intensely as she waited for her partner to pick up on her arrival.

"Given that you are the only one with significant magic power here I'm assuming you're the one who I'll be partnering with on this job."

She didn't really need confirmation for that, as it was clear that there was nobody else with sufficient magic power in the area, and this village was far enough out of the way that it was very unlikely that this was another mage. Add in the whole 'darkness and light' thing that was going on and Akeya barely waited for any form of response before continuing.

"I've already scouted the area during the day, but there's little sign of there being anything out of the ordinary aside from the ruined shrine. Given that the monster for some reason keeps returning to destroy parts of this village I'd suggest that we don't waste time running all over the mountain and instead keep our eyes on the area directly around the village. Do you have any suggestions?"

She glanced over at the innkeeper, who looked somewhat troubled at the woman who had easily smashed one of his tables and the dragoness who was now standing next to that woman. Given how everyone else was also staring not only at Akeya but also at Haia the reptilian mage snorted weakly, having a pretty good idea about who broke the table. Maybe a bit rough, but at least it showed that this partner was willing to get dangerous when she had to.

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Word Count: 858

A spark of recognition in Haia's eyes, a certain sensation, told Akeya that the two of them were clearly aware of the other's element even without either having spoken about it out loud so far. More so than other elements there was a strong bond between light and darkness even as there was an unusually strong opposition. Fortunately it didn't look like either of them was looking for a fight, and as long as Haia wasn't going to act hostile towards Akeya the dragoness wasn't going to show the first sign of aggression. Instead the reptilian woman took the offered seat, nodding as Haia voiced her agreement with the plan, and at the same time also threw in a compliment. Said compliment managed to draw a small smile from the stoic mage as she glanced outside, noting that there was indeed still quite a bit of light left, even if it was quickly fading from orange to blue.

"That is true, so I suppose we'll have to fill up some time before our vigil begins. Usually I'd suggest gathering more information or preparing the field and our equipment, but since you had plenty of time your equipment should already be in order, and the other two... I don't think we can learn more about our prey until the hunt, and what limited information we have suggests that most traps aren't going to be effective."

After all, either the monster was of a religious/spiritual/ethereal nature in which case physical traps weren't going to do much, or it was a monster which could easily wreck buildings and it'd trample most things you'd throw at it.

"Given the situation I must admit I'd prefer to avoid killing whatever it is that we'll be facing. While I wouldn't shed a tear if it died one rule for improving your chances of living a long life is to avoid making enemies of powerful entities, and if we're truly dealing with the retribution of a destroyed shrine I'd want to avoid killing the messenger of a higher power."

Not one to pray or ask gods for aid Akeya nevertheless acknowledged their existence, and so far as she was concerned they were dangerous powers which had to be avoided as much as possible. Too difficult to predict, too powerful and intelligent to easily work around, the smartest move was to give them no reason to involve themselves in your life to begin with.

When Haia introduced herself Akeya tilted her head, then drank from her own glass while at the same time her voice sounded in one of Haia's ears, the dragoness very subtly under the table casting a minor spell while hiding her mouth with the drink.

"As long as I'm showing my identity I'm taking on the guise of being guildless so my actions don't affect the guild and the other way around, so I'd appreciate it if you didn't address me as a guild member for the duration of this mission."

Moving the glass from her lips Akeya then answered Haia's actual question.

"I am Akeya Kuusai the Shadow Dragon, one of the Rising Stars. Given the nature of this mission I thought it prudent to get involved, if only so people would be more inclined to trust us once we reported our success." She gave a minor grimace. "As you've undoubtedly already noticed the common populace isn't always as trusting of mages, so my status as Rising Star might be necessary to convince them."

She then chuckled, a minor but still clearly noticeable sign of her amusement as she looked at Haia. "That said I didn't expect Cirven's own guild members to refer to him as demon doggy. Does he not mind or do you only use that name behind his back?"

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"Ah, so he's the kind of leader to mingle with his followers? Or at the very least he treats you as people and doesn't demand absolute strictness." Akeya briefly thought back at what she herself knew of the man, but honestly outside of his abilities she had never gotten the opportunity to know him better as a person. "I've found it an interesting concept for a leader to try and treat themselves as one of the group, when from a logical perspective the leader would stand above the group. It seems to work well for smaller groups, where it's still possible for everyone to actually know one another personally and not just as another face in the crowd." Which indirectly could help make an estimation of how big Onyx Moon actually was. "Unless of course you're the exception due to having known him for a long time."

Ending her pondering about the nature of leadership Akeya followed Haia outside, noting how by now everyone had departed and even the innkeeper was nowhere to be seen. Given that inns usually stayed open until very late into the night, sometimes not even really closing at all, having that monster around must be bad for business even if it was only going around destroying things without harming anyone.

"I was unable to find out what force or deity that shrine was dedicated to, which would have been useful as it could have told us something about what we would be facing. As for what kind of woman I like..." She watched as Haia's clothes went up in flames and were replaced by another outfit, one which would provide a lot more freedom. "As long as the woman can make a strong impression whether it's gentle or rough is secondary."

Akeya herself didn't change her outfit, instead simply stepping back into the darkness that had now enveloped most of the world. As she left the light behind her scales and skin faded away, the dragoness quickly disappearing. For now she didn't bother hiding her magic or her smell, so Haia at least would have some way of tracking her aside from just throwing light everywhere.

"It'd probably be better to not announce our presence too loudly. I doubt whatever we're dealing with would be easily scared away, but since it's gone out of its way to not harm anyone even as it destroys buildings it might become more elusive if it realizes that it's being tracked down... although that might also make it become violent." She sighed, the sound disappearing into the vast night as the dragoness wished that she'd had some more time to figure out what was up with the shrine and whether they could have fixed it more directly than just finding whatever was causing a mess. "For now I'll follow you like this. We only have to guard the village and its direct surroundings so there's little need to split up, and with some luck it'll be more brazen if it thinks there's only one of you."

Hearing a soft sound from far away the shadow mage quickly fell silent, her ears going sharp as she tried to pinpoint it. It sounded like her own sigh, except it came from another direction and it was so faint she barely caught it. Waiting a bit longer another sound came, this one sounding less like a sigh and more like whispering, the dragoness narrowing her invisible eyes as once again it was too faint for her to make much of it.

"...There's something out there. Can't pin it down."

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"A cage enforced by prayer?" Akeya sounded rather surprised by that idea, and if it wasn't for the fact that she was already disappearing Haia would have been able to see a puzzled look on the dragoness's face. It was an interesting suggestion, although Akeya was somewhat doubtful about it being the actual answer... "If it was from ancient times and people forgot what it was for that could be, but if it hasn't actually harmed anyone yet... I'd expect any creature dangerous enough to require a divinely empowered prison to also be a threat to the people, and so far it seems to actively avoid hurting the villagers.

It did make her once again consider the possibilities. She was pretty sure that it was important that it didn't harm anyone directly, instead only destroying their property. While still a problem the way it had yet to inflict more permanent wounds couldn't be mere coincidence... well, it could, but they'd have to be insanely lucky.

"I still think it's more likely that whoever that shrine was dedicated to is angry that it was destroyed and is... well, throwing a tantrum honestly." Who said gods and other divine entities couldn't be childish and emotional when the situation called for it?

With Haia acting as her anchor Akeya moved through town, sticking close enough that her fellow mage would be able to notice if something happened, and vice versa. There wasn't much to see, with all the villagers hiding inside their homes and whatever was attacking the town being more of a shy creature. Out in on a mountain the effects humanity had on the world was also fainter, the sky being clearer and more stars visible. The villagers of this mountain didn't seem very inclined to have too many lights on, probably worried that the assailant would focus on them if they stood out too much.

When Haia began to inspect the bushes nearby Akeya withdraw towards her companion, sticking even closer although she made sure not to actually step into the light. She'd rather not abandon her advantage of being hard to find. As the spectre burst forth from the bushes Akeya brought one clawed hand up, a dagger appearing in the hand even as it faded away just like the rest of her body had already done. Seeing the apparition get dispersed by Haia's light Akeya refrained from attacking, instead looking around and nodding invisibly as Haia noted that there was more than just one of those nearby.

"Looks like it..." She narrowed her eyes, a faint but cold killing intent filling the air as the dragoness concentrated. "But spirits wouldn't destroy buildings."

The blue lights quickly came closer, boxing them in until they had come close enough that they could be distinguished as many spirits, some of them distinctly human but others taking more sinister shapes, shapes which either belonged to beasts or didn't look like they belonged to anything which had ever been physical. There weren't any eldritch monstrosities, and they didn't seem to be made out of dark energies, but it was still unpleasant to suddenly be surrounded by a bunch of spirits and ghosts, none of which looked particularly friendly.

Akeya spread her wings and flapped them to bring herself up into the sky, where she could see how far the spirits stretched. Looking at it from above it was clear that they were converging on Haia, which meant that the villagers were right in hiding inside their homes.

"They don't look friendly, but that first one couldn't handle being exposed to your light. I don't know how well shadow magic works, but for now just try to keep them back."

Magic was supposed to be a way of touching the dead and the spiritual, but it might be that some magics was better suited for the task than others. For now Akeya dispelled her dagger, returning it back to the shadow realm she always stored it in, before curling her claws into fists and concentrating.

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