Book of Bones

Chapter 02: Crazy Mornings!

It was the middle of the night, the Clan House was full to capacity, the Clan Hall was dimly lit with candle lights against every wall. The lightning was good, not nearly as good as it used to be. The serpent and white grape wine was still good, it aged over 9 years but it was still pretty tasty.

It was like a full cafeteria, everyone was gossiping and murmuring through the crowd. I had a glass of serpent wine in hand as I made my way up onto the stage. "SHUT THE FUCK UP! PRIMO'S ON THE STAGE!" A man in a faceless helm shouted slamming his fist down on his table so hard it sent a shockwave through the entire building.

"Thanks, Boomer." I said to him and he raised his glass to me. "At any rate, we've been let back into Rabanastre. But as you can see...we have to start from the bottom again. We have to raise funds to get our home back to it's former glory. Which means lots and lots of mark hunting...and it's going to be a lot more competitive this time around. There are other clans other than Clan Centurio that's out there slashing for money. So we have to step it up."

"Screw those wankers! We can handle a little competition." A woman with long silver hair roared as she sat on the bar table holding a massive keg of wine with one hand. She wore nothing but a pair of black slacks which were rolled up to her knees and a bikini top.

With her a lot of men and women began to cheer and raise fits. "Clan INFAMOUS is back bitch! We can handle anything!"

I could do nothing but smile. "Hm...perhaps you guys are right. We'll be taking on the tough marks, we will thrive and our home will be back...and look even flashier."

"Now now now...Boss...let's not forget the incident that happened today between Topper and Doughbelly." A mysterious voice said from above. Everyone looked up to see a single man standing upside down on the ceiling. He had grape purple hair and glowing silver eyes and wore a full black ninja suit with two twin scythes on his back.

"Silent." I said his name.

He looked back at the rest of the Clan. "All of you have to keep yourselves under control this time. Queen Ashelia has granted us this to come back to our homeland...I will not leave it again. So no drunk bar fights, no loud trash talking the city guard, no fights in the streets...eh you get the picture. If you find the need to do all of these things then go do it in another city!"

I stepped forward as well. "I stand by what Shadow said. We can't be as crazy as we were 9 years ago...Lest you want to return to the desert living off scraps and unhireable by the public?"

"Noway! There's no way I wanna go back to that." Butterfingers a small girl in a suit was sitting on Doughbelly's head.

"Then we must improve our behavior now. Got it?" Stitches added as she walked up onto the stage beside me.

"AYE AYE!"

The Next Morning...

I woke up the next morning in my old bed, it was a king sized mattress in a large 1000 square foot room with balcony window that had a nice breeze blow in during the night. Over the years my mattress had gotten hard, wall paper was peeling and all of the furnishings I had were riddled with cobwebs.

I didn't even make an attempt to clean any of it, because I sucked at cleaning and two I was too lazy.

But all things considered, it was good waking up in Rabanastre again, my home. Back during our 9 years of exile we'd lived in an encampment that we created out in the Westersands. Because of the King's exile it gave us a bad rep with our former clients and no one would hire us. So we went along doing odd jobs and just barely managing to scrap by. Having so many mouths to feed.

But all of that is over now.

I stood up and got dressed into one of my old suits a white button up and black suit with my signature long collar cape. In Clan INFAMOUS despite our rowdy-pirate like barbarian behavior, we all dressed nice in suits. I really love tailor made suits, back in the day I had all of my cloths custom made from a tailor in Archadian who would come to Rabanastre once every three months.

My new suit fit like a glove, looks like my body hasn't really grown that much.

Once I had all of my cloths on, as if on que my mahogany double doors were kicked open and rushing in was a girl with jet black hair designed in two huge puffs. She came at me naked with all of her business showing and her breasts bouncing. Her pale naked body leaped through the air and drop kicked me in the face, completely flooring me to the ground.

"Ouch..." I said laying flat.

"G'morning! It's so great to wake up in a house again nyaaaaaaaaaaaaaan!" She stretched.

"Pain. How many times have I told you...PUT ON SOME DAMN CLOTHS!" I screamed at her.

"But Pain doesn't like wearing cloths! Cloths are so itchy and formal...Pain hates it! Pain hates it!" The energize little 17 year old bounced all around my room. She crawled on walls, hung from my chandelier, rolled on the floor, ran in circles around me and crawled all over me like a monkey on a branch.

I grabbed her by her head and peeled her off of me like the skin off of a banana. "Listen, you're a girl...you can't keep running around naked like this."

"But..." Pain started.

"No buts, go and put on some cloths or you can't go outside." I said flicking her away like a piece of garbage or a booger.

"Nyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!" She flew back through my doorway.

I walked out into the hallway where a bunch of clan members were running around with tooth brushes in their mouths, half naked or screaming at one another to use the bathroom first. I swear this clan house was like an orphanage at times. There were members of all different ages from 12 all the way to 40.

In the morning it was hectic because everyone wanted breakfast and there was only two chefs who prepared breakfast, lunch and dinner. Everyone crowded around the northeast corner of the Clan Hall which was the food stand, behind the stand were two members. Sugar and Spice.

Sugar was a beautiful pink haired woman with dark brown skin with amber colored eyes. She wore a white chef's hat on her head with a white apron, beside her Spice was a short boy with spiky black hair with a red headband and a white chef's suit with a matching red apron.

"This morning's breakfast includes, Cockatrice scrambled eggs, Honey pancakes and freshly brewed orange juice." Sugar announced to the crowd. "Single file! Single file now! Everyone will get a plate!" As she announced to the clan members and handed out plates, behind her Spice was working the fire grill and hot plates.

Though the house was still pretty ragged, that was also a good sight to see. My clan being under a roof and receiving hot meals. But seeing everyone grab plates and chow down was beginning to make me a little hungry too. Not to mention thirsty.

"Hey Primo! Over here!"

I turned my head to see in another corner of the hall was a man with bright fire colored hair and black tattoo's all over his face with a burgundy colored suit. He wore his suit rather messy with the shirt untucked and the tie loosened. "Yo...got ya this." He spun a plate on his index finger with a muffin on it.

I grabbed the blueberry muffin and hoffed it down as well as a glass of orange juice, it really hit the spot. "Thanks Heat..." I said dropping the glass in front of him.

"It's been how long since our last spar?"

With that said I sort of stopped feeling a killing intent coming from in front of me.

[Battle BGM: "The Mirror's Truth" by In Flames]

I spun around seeing Heat thrust towards me launching his foot at me as a katana ejected from his pants leg. I leaned backwards dodging the blade and the it retracted into his pants leg and five more katanas ejected from his right sleeve as if by command. I side stepped the strike and slid backwards a bit.

"Definitly nostalgic...during our exile everyone was so busy with trying to earn money for the guild. There was hardly any time for battles...it's been so long since I challenged you boss. I wonder if you still got it." With that four katanas ejected from Heat's sleeves, two blades shot from his shoulders, another from his pants leg and two from his knees. Blades erupted from everywhere all over his body.

I narrowed my eyes at him. "I told you that this kind of fighting is prohibited."

The clan hall was completely silent, clan members came rushing from their rooms to the clan hall some of them still in their underwear, others completely nude. It didn't matter to them.

"Alright...Boooooss!" He leaped into the air and came flying down like a bladed hawk. "Sky Slayer Fullbring!"

"If you really want to do this then...you leave me no choice." I said leaping into the air to dodge his sky slayer technique. He shredded the floor boards below and looked up at me. I flipped up to the ceiling and pulled out my metal armored gloves then slipped them on over my hands and flew back down at Heat whom looked up at me.

"Sky Slayer Wing Slasher!"

I filled my right fist with fire magicks and it burst into flames like a torch. "Wyrm Rake Fist!"

POW!

His blades and my fist collided causing both of us to jerk backwards, with that I flipped backwards with my momentum flying back and hitting the ceiling again then thrusting down at him. "Cross Edge!" I said slashing both of my palms in an X slash causing a burning X to appear over Heat's chest.

"Gaaaaahhhhh!" Heat shouted in pain as his katanas dropped from his sleeves, his shoulders, knees and pants legs.

I stood up from a kneeling position behind him and watched him fall on his face.

Battle Over: BGM Ends

Challenges from Clan members wasn't anything new, they would often to battle against me to test their own strength. But like Heat had said, it has been so long since anyone has challenged me. We were all worried about surviving so badly for the next day over the past 9 years, there's no telling how much pent up aggression the Clan has. I looked back at the crowd of silent clan members to see them staring at me like a pack of hungry wolves.

"I'll take you on any time you wish." I said just seconds before walking out the front door.

Author's Note: Mornings in the Clan House is so hectic! But now it's time to start the day Primo!

CLAN ROSTER:

Boomer
Clan Member: No.22
"Boomer's family name is well placed for he has the strangest ability to amplify his voice to make shockwaves as well as create shockwaves with his fists or really any part of his body. He fights using a sledgehammer and wears thick armor over his suits."

Boozehound
Clan Member: No.77
"Boozehound is the silver haired woman with the keg. Boozehound is a beautiful busty woman but drinks like a fish. She is seen almost all the time drinking beer or some form of alcohol. She has otherworldly strength and is nearly 10x stronger than doughbelly. She uses a trident on her hunts."

Silent
Clan Member: No.13
"Silent is a ninja from Rozarria who joined Clan INFAMOUS to service Primo whom he believes will become a great lord one day. He is an assassin type hunter who prefers a quick kill rather than a long drawn out battle. He fights mostly behind the scenes and also gathers secrets for the Clan. His weapons by choice are twin scythe blades."

Best Pain
Clan Member: No.25
"Best Pain is a spunky energetic 17 year old girl whom loves Primo like an older brother. Her older brother Brice was once a painter who traveled all over the world but when he was killed by a powerful mark. She committed herself to finding the mark and ending him. She loves Primo because Primo looks exactly like her older brother Brice. (Only Brice's hair is black, Primo's is blonde). She is completely aloof sometimes and oblivious to people's feelings around her. She also speaks in the third person. She's a very powerful girl in the field of endurance. Her name is Best Pain because she can handle a full on gore strike from a Behemoth King and still stand back up. She can take a lot of punishment. Her weapon of choice are her powerful legs."

Sugar
Clan Member: No.41
"She joined at the same time as her younger brother Spice. Sugar like her name suggests, specializes in baking sweets. Despite her field of cooking she is still a huntress, able to take down monsters if needed. Her weapon of choice is a giant kitchen knife which she uses a lot like Cloud using his Buster Sword."

Spice
Clan Member: No.42
"Joined at the same time as his older sister, Sugar. Spice is just 14 years old yet he knows his way around the kitchen. He is a damn near gourmet chef. But much like his sister, cooking isn't his only talent. He also hunts, he and Sugar go on different hunts from the rest of the Clan. Being the cooks they must hunt down monsters to cook for the Clan. Spice battles using a rifle much like a traditional hunter."