A/N: The first fourteen chapters will be introductory and therefore shorter. Fifteen and onwards will be notably longer.
Shadow Huntress of the Sky Realm
Shadow Hunters were known to be relatively sparse in really any of the lands. They would occasionally drop into a settlement to pick up some info, and would typically leave right after. They did not visit the ground for friends: they took their voyage, eliminated a target, and returned from whence they came. The mysterious attitude of the archangels was practically universal. It made sense, considering they were raised in an environment of equally edgy people.
Every so often, there would be a Shadow Hunter who didn't seem to grasp the gravity of their job, or they simply handled it rather well. An upbeat hunter was indeed a rare sight. For joviality to survive in such a realm as the Sky Realm, it would typically need special care. They just couldn't be trusted to take anything seriously. Even more rare than the upbeat hunter was the effective upbeat hunter. That was where the Shadow Huntress Magnolia came in. Young and naive, but skilled and radiant as the goddess herself, she was often looked up to by the younger angels who had yet to become Shadow Hunters.
Magnolia was raised by a single huntress, who had lost her husband to the dragons on a mission. From the time she could stand, she was given a bow. From the time she could walk, she was taught to use Neophyte's Wings. Before she was ten, she had passed routine education, and by the time she was sixteen, she was a qualified huntress, complete with a halo above her purple hair and a suit of armor.
A prodigy could do well in practice, but in the field without any experience, they were only marginally better than the norm.
Every hunter has their first mission. The hunters could passively detect nearby evil, and by the command of the goddess, they would find the vicinity and monster. The target could not hide. The angelic hunters could find evil anywhere, and their arrows would transcend time and space, passing through physical obstacles. Hunters were extremely adamant about their ability to track anything down and destroy it. And with no escape, all a monster could do was try to defend itself. Some fared better than others. Tougher monsters like the dragons would require a hunting party, while things like giant bees in the abandoned Highlands could be easily dispatched by one person.
The legendary warrior carves their name in their greatest endeavor, placing themselves in history by doing what others would not. Magnolia was ambitious. She sought to be the finest Shadow Hunter in history. She saw herself and her talents, and believed she was ready. The goddess illuminated a huge dungeon in the Dragonfire Peaks, surely one that would take at least four hunters to handle. The hunting party gathered their things and prepared for an attack the next morning. Four seasoned veterans. It was still debated whether or not they should take a fifth, as the dungeon was believed to warrant a strong force.
This was her chance. That night, she donned her armor, grabbed her purple bow, and snuck out of her barracks. Now eighteen and with three giant bees under her belt, she thought she was ready.
Blue Adept's Wings sprouted, a stark contrast to the red sky of the Dragonfire Peaks. A single warrior descended from the heavens, alone in a biome absolutely filled with things that wanted her blood. Fireballs from the ground were easily avoided, ember drakes missing their mark as she wove through the sky with the technical intricacy only a Shadow Hunter has. Flames and lava plumes gave the little light the mountains had a distinctly evil, red aura.
The dungeon was massive. The first target was shadowmarked, a mere lava crab. Magnolia landed, skidding across the brimstone, before destroying the crab quickly. She was in front of the door. The next mark was a Magmito, which was destroyed the second the mark appeared. Magnolia entered the labyrinth of a dungeon, quickly annihilating anything that was marked or got too close. The labyrinth was a blistering 125 degrees Fahrenheit, 51 degrees Celsius. The monsters spat fireballs, which made it even hotter. They all missed and were countered with impunity.
Magnolia found this to be too easy. Five person mission? No way. The task was indeed one that disappointed her preconceived notion of a Herculean quest. The young huntress finally found the grand room, dark and seemingly hollow. Was there anything in here? Her shadowmark failed to pick up anything, even after about a minute. It seemed that she had cleared out everything that was active. After her short survey, she fully entered the room. Magnolia knelt and said a prayer. "Goddess of Light, lend me your might. Enlighten me, give me day. Show me the way, I will make the world right." The spell worked, as a ball of light appeared above the huntress. She could now see. She wished she couldn't. Before her was the last thing many hunters would ever touch.
The altar of cursed skulls.
Everything up until now was small fry compared to the weakest things that would come from that altar should it be touched. The mere sight of one of these would turn a wise adventurer back. Nothing good really happened after touching one. This was why the plan was to send four hunters. The altar itself seemed to whisper.
Turn back. There's nothing to be gained here. Go away. Do not touch it. We will kill you.
The prodigy was marginally better than the norm. Magnolia was not the norm. Magnolia was not a prodigy. She didn't seek to be a good soldier. She did not seek to be a good leader. She wanted more. Much, much more.
I will be a legend.
The warrior of the sky placed her hand on the altar. "Send everything you have. Make my day." She giggled in anticipation. Immediately, ten Magmen appeared. They moved with impressive speed for their towering size, throwing literally explosive blows. Magnolia dashed back from the altar. She took aim at the nearest one's head and loosed a shot that only seemed to anger it. Three more, fired in haste. The Magman fell as the farthest one fired a stream of lava from its mouth.. A few drops of the stream touched the armor, but could not melt it in such a small amount. Four headshots each, nine more times. She fired rapidly, two on the nearest and three on the spitter. A cartwheel to the left, avoiding another stream. Magnolia took aim and fired twice, destroying the second Magman. The one behind it moved in swiftly, throwing a hook at Magnolia. She was launched into the wall a few meters away. She stood, staggering, but recovered quickly and shot at the spitter, taking it out. The melee attacker moved in, leaping at her. She flew up and over with her wings, shooting at it quickly, causing it to explode in its at the back of the horde, she sprayed shots into it indiscriminately, destroying two more. On the last shot, her fingers cut open, but she kept firing while backpedaling. The horde collectively fell, unable to withstand the arrows of light.
After they were handled, the room began to rumble. Magnolia instinctively got away from the cursed skulls, sensing something coming. The gem on her pauldron responsible for materializing the shadowmark quivered and shook violently. An orange flash of light and a deafening roar shook the entire area, as a massive Red Dragon appeared in the center of the room. It was at least fifteen meters tall, blood red, powerful. Lava flowed rapidly through its eyes and nostrils, falling freely from its powerful jaws. Its roar carried sheer malicious intent, the desire to harm and kill everything it could, to destroy. It was evil, embodied in a beast that could only be described as a monstrosity.
She was afraid. This thing would instill fear in anyone, even the strongest warriors would feel their heart skip a beat. But fear could be ignored. Courage was not the lack of fear, but the ability to do what must be done even with it. Courage was being able to take aim in the intense heat that warped the air, to draw a bowstring back with bloodied and sore finger, and to fire the first shot at a monster that you knew could kill you.
It roared again, drooling molten rock everywhere. It slashed at the angel, nicking the armor but not quite hitting the person inside. She flew just high enough to grab its claw with her bloody hand. The dragon thrashed about, but she held on with a vise grip and climbed up onto its arm. The beast swiped at her with its free hand, but missed as the huntress jumped above.
"I will make the world right!" Magnolia screamed, at the top of her lungs, reciting the mantra of the Shadow Hunter. The Goddess smiled down upon her and gave her strength. The arrow that was nocked glew suddenly, turning a bright yellowish-red. The monster roared once more at the airborne archer. This was her chance.
Magnolia took aim in the dragon's fiery mouth, and released the Arrow of the Goddess! It pierced through its head, exploding violently when it hit the behemoth's throat. It was dead, without a doubt. The dragon and all of the lava it spewed vanished in a flash as the sky warrior descended slowly. The cursed skull altar returned where it had been, albeit now useless. The skulls were no longer there, and its dark aura vanished. The huntress pulled out her knife and carved a message into the tabletop.
"Beat you to it,
-Magnolia"
She turned away to see a figure in front of the exit. The figure appeared to be a female angel, but had a few noteworthy differences. She radiated with a light glow, which brought the huntress a feeling of peace. Had Magnolia not known better, she'd have thought it was the Goddess of Light.
"Come with me," whispered the figure. Magnolia could not respond before a glow enveloped the area, disappearing a few seconds later. Neither of them were there when it faded.
