Chapter 3
Each year, A great Hunt is called in Hoelbrak. Only the best among us are invited to participate. I'll prove my worthwhile guile, collecting trophies to show my prowess. That's if I must do it all over again since the last time I participated in the Great Hunt. Then, I'll drink and boast of my victories. I accept this challenge once again, with or without Jormag's intervention. I relish it. Come danger, come adventure. In the lodges and halls of my people, my cunning will be remembered throughout the ages. And finally, I'll have the respect for that me, and my family deserves.
"Hail! Hero, are you here to take part in this year's Great Hunt?" Thora Griffonbane asked.
She waived at an approaching Conan, running up the slope. He gave her thumbs up enthusiastically. She was dressed in her khaki ranger female armor. She reminded him of Eir. The difference was Thora had long black hair nearly the same style as Rena's.
"Of course I am! Just tell me what needs to be done and stand clear."
"Hunt down three of the most wildest animals you can find and take the heads of those three animals as trophies. Present only the finest to Ido the Tanner to prove your worth. Whoever has the best trophies, and whose bravery is the greatest, will be invited to join the Great Hunt."
Her eyebrows furrowed. "Knut Whitebear has said this season's event will be one of the most dangerous since that tragedy ten years ago at Frostgorge Sound, so be ready." She said continued.
He knew which particular event Thora was suffering too. It was ten years ago. Hoelbrak hosted the Great Hunt. It was during the final moment when ten hunters, including him were fighting a champion Polar Bear at Earthquake Valley when a monolithic ice dragon came soaring out of nowhere, covered the sky with its colossal body, spitting out immense corrupted crystals, which spawned a battalion of icebroods.
Everyone but him perished that night, even though he'd slain the price beast to win the Great Hunt. And when they found him, the next morning, encased in a block of ice, Conan testified that he'd gone to pursue Jormag on his own instead fleeing for safety and calling for backup. He was blamed and accused of abandoning his people. And this ruined every reputation that of the Burnstiens. Conan was stripped of the Great Hunt crown and was banned from the Great Hunt for half a decade.
"I was there," he said it mournfully.
"Oh my..." she covered her mouth, afraid that she would say something that offended him. "Personally, I never hold you responsible for all those casualties. They don't understand is where you're going to run when you have an elder dragon in his minions on your back." She said it with humor and they both laughed. "Any ways, the best of luck to you. I even heard the renewed Eir Stegalkin might attend."
Suddenly, a mischievous smirked was plastered on his face. The last time he'd seen her was on that dreadful night eighteen years ago. He heard stories over the years that she had accomplished more than any other female Norn in history. And is considered to be the most decorated Norn ranger in history. Like him, she was shunned for whatever reason he didn't know about.
"I'm looking forward to impressing them both!" Especially Eir, he thought. "After I've earned my place in the hunt!" he exclaimed.
"Then let the Spirits of the Wild be with you always, hero."
Conan tracked down the biggest boar he could find and successfully beheaded the boar and dumped the carcass in the lake, so that the water Drakes could devour the remains. The size of the head was nearly one-third of his body. He dragged it with a piece of rope. He'd tied to the head and dragged it on soil. It never took him that long to find the second animal. An immense Owl Griffon flew over him.
Conan knew it was after the head. He had to use the power of his scepter to shoot the creature. About fifteen spheres of energy were launched from the balled point of the scepter and five of them landed a hit. The griffon screeched, spinning out of control. And when it was prone on the autumn turf. Conan clubbed it with brute strength on the crock of its neck, severing the neck from its head in one clean stroke. He took the decapitated head of the griffin and tied it with the boar's head.
Finding the third animal was the hardest. None he saw was quality size and time was ticking. In fact, the more trophies he collected. He had predators threatening to devour his trophies, so he had to ward them off with either of his mace or staff. It was tiring.
Then luck had struck him in the back as he spotted a herd of Alpine Minotaurs. In the center, was the veteran and the biggest of them all. Quickly, he hung the two heads on a tree stem and proceeded towards the minotaurs. He whistled, administering their scrutiny to him. The first one came in to gore him. He sprang on that minotaur's head and used it as a trampoline to boast his jump.
Conan catapulted himself towards the veteran. In reaching distance, Conan drew out a dagger and plummeted it into the veteran's neck. In doing so, the veteran screeched before counter with gait and planted its two hoofs onto Conan's chest plate.
Conan grunted, slightly disoriented has his body collided into one of the biggest oak trees in all of Wayfarer Foothills. The wind slight knocked out of him, and vision was hazy for several. He had only time to get up to a sitting position when his instincts had spiked. He viewed forwardly, and the longhorn of a minotaur was several feet from impaling him into the chest. He caught them and held onto them for dear life.
Conan felt that his leg underneath the beast was loose. He used the power of his feet and pushed the minotaur of him. Quickly, he got up into a stance and swung away with mace, colliding into the minotaurs right cheek. He felt that he'd broken something. His heard jerked into the left direction. He then hurdled over the unconscious minotaur only to evade another gore.
He got away from one, but another one flanked him three o'clock, and he was tackled. Conan wrestled the beast while trying to keep its horns in place. Snaring his legs around the beast, Conan rolled hard to his left. He successfully reversed their position, minotaur on the ground, flat on its belly and him on its back. Conan vehemently grasped its two horns and began to wrench them out of its head.
The minotaur, "Mooooh," in desolation. He then used the horns as a weapon by plunging it into the next minotaur that tried to blindside him. Blood was gushing out the two sides of its neck, where the two horns were buried profoundly. The Veteran had finally dropped into slumber after battling against a very potent tranquilizer that he'd ministered onto the dagger.
The rest of the herd had fled once their leader had fallen. Conan smirked triumphantly, watching the herds disappeared into the distance of the woods. Conan knelt next to the unconscious, pulled the dagger out and cut its head off. Conan grabbed the head by the horns and carried it to where the other three heads were hanging. And that was what he thought, two Alpine Skelks were licking the blood from the boar's head.
"HEY!" Conan hooted.
The two skelks turned to him. Then they peered back at each other before fleeing. As they flee into a puff of black smoke, their bodies became transparent the made them invisible to naked eyes.
"Get your own!" he grumbled.
He'd made it back to the moot. There he stood, Ido the Tanner. Conan dragged the heads along him. Ido waved at him and Conan in responded in the same gesture.
"Hail, hunter!'
Conan observed the moot and surprise that no one, but Ido and Knut were there. Where is everyone?
"Am I late?"
"Look up on the plateau. A red flag will be kited in the sky, signaling the Great Hunt is over."
Conan sighed eagerly.
"I'm the local leatherworker. Ido's the name. Show me your kills, and I'll make them into a trophy you'll be proud to show at the moot."
Conan started untying the heads one by one and presented each one.
"Drinking, singing and boasting! I love a good old-fashioned moot!" he continued. "Others save their parties for holidays, but I say everyday a life's worth celebrating!"
Ido took the heads from Conan, and glint of in his eyes told Conan that he was more than inculcated.
"In the decade I've been doing this. I've never seen such kills only Eir Stegalkin could ever accomplish. Let's see what the forge will bring yah. All that's need is several drops of your blood in the forge."
Conan did as asked. He slit his thumb and squeezed in several drops of his own blood. The forge looked like an immense stewing cauldron as the three heads were tossed in. A swirling, blue aura on the boiling water's surface took shape of a cone.
"Its no where near the Mystic Forge's level in Lion's Arch, but it was designed by the same asura engineers who present it to us norns, only used to forge trophies for the Great Hunt."
Something instantaneously floated on the surface of the aura clone. Ido's eyes virtually bulge out of his eye sockets. It happened to be a greatsword practically seven feet long and over one feet wide. It had the colors of a corrupted ice with a murky mist seemed to magically ooze out from the greatsword eternally.
Perfect! Just what I needed for my adventure. Conan exclaimed mentally.
"Hey! Knut, look at this impressive trophy!" He waived at Knut. "Worthy of the Great Hunt, I'd say!"
Knut Whitebear was also astonished.
"Indeed. To forge such an Exotic Wolfborn Greatsword, not only requires the greatest trophies, but the blood of a true slayer with many years of training. You are very skilled enough to defeat your monstrous preys and wise enough to revere their spirits. You are definitely worthy of join in this year's Great Hunt!"
Knut presented the Wolfborn Greatsword to Conan.
"By my hand, I brought the mighty wurm, Issormir. Use only your trophy to slay Issormir." He pointed at the plateau. "He waits above, in the plateau, for one such as you to challenge him. The great Eir Stegalkin watches over him now, waiting for the hunt to commence. When its time, you and the others will go to the high ground over a the valley. There, you will face Issomir and claim victory—if you can!"
"I can and I will. This is where my adventure begins!"
