Monster Hunting (A-rank Midgame Grind)

The travel to and from the guild and her schooling had been very taxing. At first, it wasn’t much of a big deal that she spend some time there, like anyone else, she had run low on funds and began to need adjustments to her stay of place in order to keep up with everything. At first it wasn’t so bad, however the more this happened, the more the fire mage had begun to feel this was impacting her negatively. Her grades started to begin slipping and immediately she knew doing so was not an option to continue doing at all. Something had to change that. It hadn’t been until she got back to her guild over the weekend that she’d noticed there was a request called for. Having not really done much, there was a feeling for the brunette to put herself out there as a potential person to join this request. Who knows, maybe she’ll grow a little more than she had. After all, she’d been known to be someone who could bury herself in her books for the rest of her life if she wanted to. But that wasn’t the purpose of her learning magic, just to sit on it without ever using.

Of course, the turn of events in her accepting this crusade of hunting didn’t begin very well at all. Her task was to join up with another member of the guild in order to go with them. Unsure honestly of whom that was, just meeting by the nearest port to join them was the plan.... only she didn’t make it. Why? Well, everyone has one of those days. Taken the trip up to the guild the day prior wiped her out. That in turn led her to oversleep drastically. And in turn led to a slight feeling of horrible flashbacks of past foster homes that she’d done so in. Each one varying in how they dealt with that sort of accident, but none of them ever good. Pushing her time back even more, she didn’t think it was any sort of good for her or anyone else that she do this. It put a huge damper on her mood, more over beginning to motivate her to want to hit something that hate herself. Perhaps a good sign she really did choose to hunt down monsters rather than people. Less moral repercussions.

The boat was a good way to relieve stress. Just some time to low off steam, work on a bit of side work of her own accord was just what the young girl needed. Helping to pass the time until she arrived onto Shadow island, Lehanna grabbed a small bag, a sketch book, and a couple other tools to help her. The way the island looked was extremely unique, almost unnatural. Wanting to make notes and research, she prepared herself for nearly anything. Just so long as the sword on her back didn’t cut her bag strap either, at least. Just off from the dockside had been two others that seemed to be a little lost for wears, so to speak. The blonde.. male(?) with a long, white cape was making what she could only perceive as small talk with a peppy lighter blonde. It went without saying that she was probably able to fit just right with them as a growing crowd of strangers. ”Excuse me, are you both here for a hunting job?” She asked, attempting a bit of formality without wanting to waste time should her actual party have run off without her.

593 words
593/833 personal total
1309/10,000 thread total

Monster hunting was among Juliet's least favored past times. Objectively, it protected innocent citizens from harm, at the expense of dark creatures' existences. However, as an avid animal lover and conservationist, she could not help but compare magical beasts of all shapes, sizes, and temperaments, to each other. In her mind there was no doubt that some essences and souls had a tinge of darkness that could not be denied. Born evil, they were only corrupt at heart. But she still had sympathy for them. That was why today was going to be a bit rough for the young mage. Although she was accustomed to following orders and taking on difficult jobs, whether it be physically, mentally, or emotionally, she did not have to enjoy it all the time. While rising to the occasion was something Juliet strove for... to the blonde, jailing a politician who had laundered funds meant for public buildings was quite different than cleansing an island of undesirable wildlife.

Having teleported to the location, Juliet avoided the nastiness that came with passage by sea. Although voyage through the water was the most common form of travel, she had always found it to be unpleasant and nauseating, unless the accommodations were... expensive, to say the least. (Stabilized with enchanting magic reserved for only the more elite passenger liners.) Perhaps it was her noble upbringing rearing its head or more likely, she was just easily affected by motion sickness. Regardless, the mage had arrived on the isle by way of crest fueled instantaneous travel. Now, standing in the harbor, she glanced around herself, searching for fellow mages. Despite accepting this job, it had been more of a vague request, sent out widely to many guilds and independent associations, posted in various places in order to ensure maximum exposure, no doubt. This having been the case, she needed to figure out exactly what they would be hunting. It would assuage her conscience's concerns about the welfare and truly "dangerous" or "evil" state of the creatures they would be killing or imprisoning.

343 Words

It was not much of the idol's first idea to jump out into the middle of a dark island and begin an ambush of monster hunting. That seemed like a better suited thing that she do under her guise of a doll and her cover. However, this was something she wanted to get out there to do. Time and place probably was the best way to go about this all, so for the meantime she could just enjoy the company of others, maybe raise her prestige among the public eye a little more than she's gotten between the recent event, her prior shows, and the social media. She'd taken a bit of precaution with her traveling, making sure to use a bit of money to secure a private ride to and from the island. It seemed the best of ways to do things in her mind. Why worry about being bugged in some fashion by another person when she can just argue amongst herself.

Her boat had pulled up among some of the others, and while they all showed some signs of varying sea life, hers seemed squeaky clean, like it had been driven off of a car lot and placed right on the water. Not something that was entirely her fault, however not wanting to chance using someone else's boat was also a thing she cared to avoid. The teenage girl stood up and gave a nice long stretch, holding a bottle of water in one hand. Once she stretched, the girl opened the water bottle and began to chug the bottle. The benefit of being a slayer made it much easier to eat something that wasn't food. Once off of the boat, she would toss her bottle in a random trash can sitting on the dock and make her way towards land when she could hear a voice. Or.. maybe voices?

Fixing the pair of fake glasses up to her face in choosing an outfit that she thought would best suit her both in looks and combat, she stumbled upon a face she'd seen before, but never in person. Always in magazines and through social media. It was no mistaking how human she felt in this moment. So used to shelling her emotions off unto her music or that of her doll form where she can stuff it into a place where she wouldn't need to worry about frivolities in the throws of her work. Now, a smile crossed her face as she looked on happily to this elven looking woman, however she simply waved and moved along for the time being. If she was found out so easily, maybe she'd speak to her. However, for now, the thought someone like her would talk to a person like Sakura was few and far between. Best not to break her hopes so early in the day, so to speak.

483 words

Seika loved monsters! She was out today to hunt some! Aphelia was coming along; hopefully, they could manage to meet some cool creatures instead of having to kill them. Death was usually not very pretty, although she guessed it could be. Mostly, the mage was excited overall to explore this new location. There was sure to be a large number of opportunities to take snapshots of the adventure. Although her bond mate rather disapproved of venturing off to a random island with no explicit promise of pay, the girl wouldn't allow herself to be dissuaded. "Aphi, hurry up!" Even though she herself was the one lagging behind, the mage managed to chastise her feline companion. Trying to encourage her to lead the way faster, Seika rushed after the spirit, hot on her heels. Somehow, a regular train ride had turned into running the rest of the way there after the girl had accidentally set fire to one of the cars. Her magic wasn't always attributable to herself, but in this case, half a dozen other passengers had seen the uh, small spark, fly out and land on a pillow, soon engulfing the booth into flames.

The cat's attitude was still sour from the abrupt change in their itinerary. Rather than spending a few days lounging about on plush cushions, then taking a ferry to the island, they were stuck walking. Who even know if they would make it on time for the majority of the monster hunting? Although, Aphelia could acknowledge it might be better to miss out on that sort of thing. The rewards weren't exactly promising. In addition, she was sure they might encounter dangerous beasts that could potentially deal serious harm to her bond mate. So for all of those reasons, the feline couldn't bring herself to be upset enough to bribe the train conductor into letting them stay. Normally, she wouldn't shy away from tossing around funds to get what she wanted. That one incident with the spa had proved that quite clearly.

337 Words

The tone of this island certainly fit the secret lair that was hidden deep within its long stretching shadows. Elizabeth Rose Hodgins would have never thought such a place existed, let alone that it would be the first place she'd see upon being "un-retired". The events leading up to her release from eternal cursed purgatory were still blurry.

Prior to being summoned, she'd stood armless and soulless amongst all the other spent magical girls, all standing in a dim, sparse forest of leafless trunks. She'd been there for close to one hundred years, yet the creeping bark that had overtaken the others had only just begun to crawl up her legs. It was a sick and twisted consequence for momentary power, made worse by her sister taking up the mantle. Every time Millie-- or Dela as she went by now-- died, she was both elated to see her and speak with her and guilt-ridden for feeling that way. In those sometimes long gaps between visits, Elle was left to pine after the simple farm days and her ruined aspirations for the future, as well as worry for her sister who was trying to very hard to save them both.

Aberneel, the orchestrator behind the magical girl con, somehow brought her back from that place. While it was true he'd devoured her corrupted crystal and thus her soul, his new ambitions and the twins' unique situation led to a risky move to bring her back and bond her to Dela's crystal. Her entire purpose was to corrupt their now shared crystal further. Dela was taking too long to mature the crystal, and Aberneel was famished. He had complete control over her and her purpose was to lead Dela to her bleak fate.

But first, she had to relearn to exist. At current she was mute and fitted with mechanical arms she didn't know how to use. His current mission for her was to wander around Shadow Island and get reacquainted with living, fighting, and using the cursed magical girl powers.

wc: 339

Today's outing was fueled entirely for personal gain. The tall blond had already been on Shadow Island when all the mages started arriving. Given it's permanently dusky and frankly Vampire-friendly atmosphere, it wasn't exactly a tourist attraction. With a little investigation into what was drawing all these people, it soon became clear. The locals had hired those strong enough to come and quell the dangerous mythical beasts that hid in the shadows. The promise of jewel had brought more than anticipated, but despite the shabby state of most of the island's amenities, it seemed some islanders still had deep pockets. Pockets Birch would have no issues emptying.

Instead of boarding the boat he possessed a ticket for to get back to the mainland, he instead turned and went out into the wilds by himself. A little carnage would do him good after the events that had happened prior to this. He wanted to flex his magical muscles, perhaps feed on some magical beasts or even some particularly strong mages that appealed to him. While killing people would earn him no jewel, the beasts certainly would. And if he was to regain his power and his kingdom, he'd need to build his bank and power simultaneously.

Luckily for everyone else, he ran into a shadow crawler, a cloaked spirit that crept out to devour creatures and man alike. They didn't eat the body, though. It was the essence of a person or thing they munched on, draining it of energy and magic and soul if they got a hold of it long enough. One sprang on Birch, but it barely got a taste of the celestial magic he possessed before he reversed it on the dark beast. Birch preferred to touch what he siphoned from, but it couldn't always be done. Instead, he held out a very small black hole in his palm, which started to drag in the wisps of darkness from the screeching spirit, as well as any debris in a ten-meter radius.

wc: 334

Unlike most that traveled to this dark and foreboding island for the promise of a heft payday, Percy was here purely for the thrill of fighting monsters and studying mages. Armed with his gadgets and a bag containing a science kit and a notebook, he was prepared to go out and face danger. He'd prove himself capable of handling just as much as a mage while also trying to find the secret that would unlock the magic within himself he sought so much. It was a complicated mindset, but it was one that the younger Dagger struggled with for most of his life. It was a constant strive to prove himself and improve beyond any possible expectations of him.

Much to his fanboy glee, there were way more mages than he'd anticipated. The island was crawling with them and they were just as diverse if not more so than all the native species on the island that were being hunted. Some drew on practical forces like energy to accomplish their supernatural feats, some pulled from artifacts, most just bent innate magical power to their will in a variety of ways, while others were blessed by gods or cursed by demons. He'd attempted the demon route himself and was left...less than satisfied. It'd almost killed him and he still couldn't remember what he'd done in that missing two weeks in his memory. Lucky for Percy, most of these mages loved to brag, so as long as he stayed out of their way while they slew beasts for money, they would answer any inquiries he had about their abilities, like where they'd come from, what age they got them, and exactly how they could control them. The two-toned young man had asked these questions countless times, and while some answers were similar, it was always worth asking. Sometimes he got answers that differed, and he never knew which potential answer could crack the equation and allow him to get the thing he wanted most in life.

wc: 335

The bunny girl wasn’t pleased and as she took her first steps on to Shadow Island, her normally blue hair had already turned pink, a symbol of her unhappiness. She’d been deceived by the job giver, who’d told her to her face that the job would involve saving animals from a group of nasty humans, not that she was supposed to wipe out a group of animals herself. Someone was going to pay for this deception and as her red eyes gazed out upon the shadowy place in front of her, Miranda would place a hand on her set of spirit keys

“Rengar! Come to my aid!” She called out, summoning a large cat-like humanoid creature who appeared beside her.

The spirit would turn its eyes to Miranda, sensing her anger and spoke swiftly, her voice deep, “I take it that this is not a social call, Mistress? Something troubles you?”

Turning to her spirit, Miranda would give her a rather solemn look, “We’ve been lied to, Rengar. We’ve been tricked into going after our fellow beasts and I’m not going to stand for it. So, we’re going to go and protect them instead and take out those who try to cause them harm. You with me?”

The tall cat-like creature laughed, her claws bursting forth, razor sharp and ready to strike. “You know that you never have to ask me that. I do so hate to see you frown, Miranda. Let’s do this.”

With a nod, the red eyed bunny girl would start to sprint off into the forest that was almost asking to be explored, her loyal spirit behind her, more than ready for battle. She had no idea of the strength of any of the others who were involved in this cruel escapade but that didn’t matter to her, she’d take care of them.

(308 Words)