Life in Orage Dell

Disclaimer: Monster Hunter is copyright Capcom. All the characters in this story are mine, unless otherwise noted.

Edited by: Hoenn Master96 and Thomas A. Hawk

"Wake up, dear. It's time to greet the day."

Kimberly Trine groaned in agitation as a firm hand shook her shoulder for a moment, squeezing her eyes a little more tightly shut and gripping the contours of her pillow. An amused laugh caught her ears a moment before she felt a kiss on her cheek.

"Come on, now. I thought you were planning on going on a hunt today."

"Just planning on looking for one," Kim muttered. It took a moment for her to realize that she might not have been audible with her face buried into her pillow, and a few moments more for her to work up the mental acuity to actually turn her head. "Need Barioth materials to fortify my lance. Getting dinged up. Running out of spare materials."

"Ah… well, you won't find those here, unless the Guild discovers a subspecies that favors the rainforest in the next few days. Does that mean you're planning on heading up to the Tundra for a week or two?"

"Mmhmm… Sorry."

"Don't apologize. I knew what I was getting into when I started a relationship with a hunter. I've suffered through a half-empty bed before while you were out on your little forays. I'll be sure to keep the bed warm for you once you get back from the frozen north."

"Hmm… warm bed…" Kim sighed into the pillow, and her consciousness began to fade again. But the covers were suddenly yanked completely off of her and Kim groaned as cool air replaced the comfortable warmth that once was, as she peeled an eye open to scowl at the perpetrator of this most cruel of torments.

Before her, holding the edges of the blankets she so desired was a beautiful woman. She was a pretty little thing with long brown hair, confident hazel eyes, and a round face with a pair of small, circular glasses sitting on the brim of her nose. Kim had yet to even peel herself from the sanctity of the bed, but the woman had already donned the standard Guild uniform for Orage, a bright red coat with the Guild symbol emblazoned on the chest. Troika Arden, the woman Kim had been in a relationship with for eleven years now.

"Honestly, you're such a slug getting out of bed," the woman sighed, bunching up the covers at the end of the bed as Kim groggily sat up. "One of these days I'm not going to bother waking you up, and then we'll see if you can sneak from here to your apartment without getting spotted by someone when the crowds are out."

"I could always just stay here all day," Kim groaned, scratching the back of her head and yawning. Troika pursed her lips as she walked over to a nearby table and began sliding folders and paperwork into a shoulder-hung satchel.

"Right, and when I get back from work, I'll just shout 'Honey, I'm home!' Let everyone know you're here."

"You can't," Kim replied sharply, and Troike sighed.

"Honestly, Kim, I'm certain we don't need to keep our relationship a secret anymore… especially after eleven years as lovers."

"You know why it's a secret," Kim muttered, earning a despondent sigh from Troika. "It would cause a scandal if people knew…"

"I guess… that's possible."

"After all, I used to be your boss. People would think you slept your way up the Guild's corporate ladder, and I don't want you to have that kind of reputation…"

Troika stared at Kim blankly for a moment before laughing lightheartedly, leaning forward to kiss her on the cheek and smirking in amusement. "I think people would be more scandalized to find out you'd been dating a girl that was fifteen years younger than you more than anything else. One who started working for you when she was seventeen?"

"Oh… right," Kim replied sheepishly. "I guess that would cause a ruckus, wouldn't it? But… to be fair, our relationship was strictly professional until you were twenty-two."

"Much to my endless frustration," Troika replied with a sly smirk. "You were a tough egg to crack, my dear Kimberly. But my perseverance paid off."

"Thanks to Nat encouraging me… and about a bottle and a half of wine," Kim muttered.

"I won't complain," the Guild worker laughed. "I admit, it wasn't the most romantic start to a relationship, you showing up staggering drunk at my door and then pushing me against a wall and shoving your tongue down my-"

"I don't really need a recap," Kim sputtered, flushing red.

"You sure?" Troika teased. "I thought you'd appreciate it, since you apparently don't remember that night at all."

"Troika, love, please…"

"Oh, fine. But, all that aside, it wouldn't be the biggest age gap in the Guild. Old Pinako and her husband are a good thirty years apart after all."

"Yes… but they're Wyverian. I think Pinako had her two-hundredth birthday a few years back… That's not as big of a gap compared to their lifespans."

"Mmhmm. And will our relationship really be that big of a deal when I'm in my sixties and you're pushing eighty?"

"Assuming I live that long, considering my profession?"

"Don't be pessimistic," Troika chided. "You've survived a lot in your life, Kim. I expect fate to be kind to you and allow you to live long enough to enjoy a long and happy marriage with me… once we push through this painfully long engagement you've forced on me. Only two years left."

Kim nodded. "Two more years, and then we can get married. I promised. By then not many people will associate your professional career with me, so-"

"Blah, professionalism, blah, integrity, blah, public opinion, blah," Troika huffed, plopping down onto the mattress next to her. "You take this way too seriously, Kim. Honestly, anyone in the Guild whose opinion actually matters wouldn't care if they found out I was sleeping with you. A few of them would probably high-five me when they did. I think the only people that would really raise a fuss are your old enemies in the Guild or my own enemies."

"You have enemies?"

"Well… Rivals would be a better way to put it. People who envy my position and are trying to usurp me. Except Donna. I think she'd try to gut me if I met her in a dark alley."

"Really…" Kim sighed, leaning over and resting her head against Troika's shoulder. "You should hire me as a bodyguard…"

"Because that's the pragmatic idea for a woman trying to keep our relationship a secret," Troika sighed. "I'm all for it though."

"Hmm… Never mind."

"All's the pity. Well, if you change your mind, let me know. I could walk around the Guild hall with you hanging off my arm like a trophy wife… which I plan to do anyway once we finally do get married." With that Troika pushed Kim's head off her shoulder and stood. "Well, I need to get to work. I'll see you tonight?"

"See you then," Kim nodded, and Troika smiled before turning to head out the door.

Kim yawned again, contemplating flopping back down onto the mattress, but forced herself up a few moments later; she really did have a few things to do today, and if she hung around here too long, she'd risk being caught leaving. She gathered her clothes from the floor and slid them on before approaching the front door and cautiously glancing out into the courtyard. She and Troika lived in opposing apartment complexes on the eastern side of the city, and it was only a short walk from here back to her own place through the back alleys and side paths, but Kim still needed to be careful not to be caught. The complex was quiet now, however, and the huntress slipped out the door, locking it behind her before walking briskly towards her own apartment.

It wasn't that far, and soon Kim found herself in her own home, and thankfully without having run into anyone on the way. She supposed it was still early; the sun hadn't quite peeked over the horizon yet, and she'd taken the lesser-traveled roads, but it was still a relief to have not been spotted. She quickly took a bath and put on some clean clothes before heading out.

Leaving the safety of her own home, Kim took a moment to stretch on her porch, glancing around to make sure a few passersby she knew noticed her. She had to keep up appearances, and it was best to have people thinking she been in her own apartment all night. Troika could say what she wanted, but Kim personally knew the dark underbelly of Guild politics, and finding out they had been in a relationship while Kim had been her boss would summon those who would try and oust her from her position faster than sharqs converging on a bloody Kelbi steak. Troika said she was just being cynical, but still…

Kim sighed, pressing off through the brisk morning air and heading southwest towards the ocean. The roads were still thin with passersby, but that would change within the hour. She recalled the days in her youth when the early hours of the day were quiet in the streets of Orage, but that had long since changed.

Orage Dell had grown in the twenty-five years since the death of the Alatreon, upwards, if not outwards. With the destruction of Loc Lac, all the other hunting cities in Theron had seen a greater influx of hunters as they sought out new stomping grounds to call their own. Orage had also taken in a fair number of Lost that had awakened on an island off the coast a few months before that, so things had gotten packed. The tall city walls, the pride of the city, weren't exactly easy to move or replicate, and the land outside the walls was very dangerous - the walls were there for a reason - so the town had grown denser and taller instead of wider. The tallest buildings in the city used to be only three or four stories tall at the most, but now eight or nine story apartment complexes and businesses weren't too uncommon. Any new constructions had to be built with the expectation that other shops and housing would one day have to be built on top of them. As such, the crowds of people seemed to start swamping the roads as soon as the sun peeked over the eastern forest, and wouldn't start to dwindle until it started sinking under the ocean to the west.

The most impressive structure that had been created in the last couple decades, however, was the western wall of the city. The waterfront had once been completely open to the ocean, allowing the horseshoe shape of the city's outer wall to keep a calming view of the sea. However, recent years had seen an excess of especially dangerous monsters appearing off the coast: Plesioth, Ivory Lagiacrus, Purple Ludroth, at least one Ceadeus scare… With such dangerous monsters threatening to appear from the relatively undefended waters of the ocean, a new barricade had been built at the edge of the city proper to tide the threats from without.

So the new wall of Orage had been built. Twenty yards tall and six yards thick, made from the hardest stone available within a hundred miles of the city and fortified with a Lost substance called 'concrete'. Dozens of cannons and ballistae lined the balustrades, aimed out to sea and ready to blast any threat to the city out of the water. The only thing that was missing was a dragonator, and Kim had heard from Troika that the Guild was trying to figure out a way to install one that would actually be feasible; there was a lot of wall, but dragonators weren't the most mobile weapons, so unless any attacking monster all but tried to chew on one, a dragonator would be pretty useless.

Kim continued walking until she hit the southern wall of the city, following it west until she came across a large collection of stone and brick housing. This was an interesting side of town to visit, where apartments and housing catering to hunters had become prominent in recent years. The structures were strong and durable, made to survive the rambunctious natures of their inhabitants, as well as uniquely designed to meet the needs of those within.

Space constraints had forced hunter housing to change in the city; no longer could any but the wealthiest hunters afford spacious homes with their own armories and equipment rooms. These days, hunter housing usually consisted of compact apartment complexes with a single large armory and storehouse that served all of the hunters that lived within; the hunters would keep their civilian goods and other sundries in their rooms, while their weapons and armor were kept in a locked storeroom that only leased tenants could enter. Other structures had been built which were little more than several-story buildings containing nothing but storage rooms that hunters could rent out and turn into small armories of their own; all you needed to do was provide your own lock and key. Kim had seen hunters storing all sorts of things within: weapons, stacks of hide and talons, massive Diablos horns, crates full of bowgun ammunition, and at least one hunter that had several hundred jars of honey and potions rising up to the ceiling.

Kim had her own storage room as well, out in a building closer to her apartment, within which she kept the carves she'd gathered over her years as a huntress. Most of it went unused these days; she'd gotten settled in her ways with a sturdy set of Agnaktor armor, and swapped between her favored lances: the Barioth "Shiera Vitalica", her Zinogre "Oppressor's Genesis", and her Gobul "Gobulaluku Aquir", swapped depending on the monsters she was intent on facing. She had to admit that having a separate storeroom away from her house was much better than trying to try and store three lances and tower shields somewhere in her closet, and weaseling her way through the front door in full armor while carting around a tower shield and lance was a pain no matter where you lived.

On the topic of hunter, today she had to find a good Barioth hunt to go on, maybe look for some old comrades that might consider traveling with her, and buy the items she'd need to make the journey. Before even that, however, she had a friend to visit.

On the eastern edge of the hunters' area of town, things abruptly shifted to a mix between light commercial and residential structures. Things were still tightly packed, apartments and businesses rising into the sky at every road and intersection, but this side of town just had a different feel to it. Some of the older Lost she knew liked to refer to it as 'the suburbs', whatever that meant.

Kim turned north, following the main thoroughfare until she came upon a large wooden structure with a tall peaked roof. There were quite a number of people loitering around the entryway, many of them hunters, while others were young men and women that were either hunting apprentices or would-be hopefuls. The doors to the building were closed, and those outside were waiting patiently for them to open, but Kim walked right past them. Those that saw her simply nodded, stepping out of the way and allowing her to stride past, pushing through the doors and latching them shut behind her.

Within the building was a large classroom, rising up in tiers up to the back of the room. A dozen rows of seating stretched from one wall to the other, providing plenty of places to sit for at least fifty people, if not more if folks got cozy. Stretching across the wall near her was a wide, sliding chalkboard, which could be lifted up to reveal a second chalkboard of equal length underneath it. Across the room from where she'd entered, Kim could see another door leading out into a small yard, and could make out several wooden dummies and targets scattered around the area, all of them battered and sliced up.

"Aunt Kim!" a delighted young voice squealed, and the huntress turned just in time to catch a small bundle of energy that slammed into her chest. Kim laughed, spinning the small girl around once before setting her down on the ground.

"Good morning, Marie," Kim smiled, ruffling the girl's hair. The child was short for her age, only six years old, but filled with all the enthusiasm and glee that her age afforded. Her large brown eyes gleamed eagerly up from under her shoulder-length black hair, held back into a couple pigtails. The little green dress she wore was already brushed with a layer of dust somehow, and a couple broken crayons could be seen sticking out of her breast pocket.

"Do you gotta 'nuther story to tell me?"

"Not today, Marie," Kim replied, and the girl's expression sank. "Buuuut… I am planning on going north here in a day or two to hunt down a few Barioths to fix my lance. I'll probably need to take down four or five of them so I have a surplus of materials, but that means that I'll have some exciting new stories once I get back, alright?"

"Yay!"

"I thought you'd like that… Now, where's your mom at?"

"She's getting the books. Mamma!" The girl turned and darted away through a side door into the back room. There was some excited conversation, and a moment later Marie reappeared, straining herself as she pushed a large cart stacked with a collection of books. Following behind her in a wheelchair was her mother and Kim's best friend, Natalie Paninya.

Nat had aged fairly well in the last twenty-five years, all things considered. Her black hair had barely lost any color, save for a couple small streaks at her temples, kept short in a pixie cut. Her black eyes were alight with humor that Kim wished she still had, though there was a weariness in them, and a few lines crawled down her face towards the corners of her mouth. Her upper body was kept well in shape… but that was to be expected, given that both her legs were gone only a few inches below her hips.

"Kim! It's good to see you," the woman smiled, wheeling over to her and reaching up to pull Kim into a hug. "How are you doing? How's Troika?"

"We're both doing fine," Kim replied. "Troika's lined up for a promotion."

"Oh, wonderful! Tell her I said congratulations. You should bring her by the next time you come to visit. Are you here to help me give a lesson today?"

"Ah, not today, I don't think. I just came by to say hello. I need to look for a Barioth hunt."

"Fun, fun. Regular or Sand?"

"Regular… though I could afford to gather some Sand as well. Maybe next time. I don't want to spend too long away from Orage."

"Getting too comfortable with the feeling of spooning someone to spend too many lonely nights out in the wilds?" Nat smirked, and Kim rolled her eyes. She didn't actually know what 'spooning' was - probably some Lost term - but she could guess. Nat's attention turned to the rolling cart, pulling off a collection of books and placing them in her lap. "Mind helping me set up?"

"Sure thing," Kim nodded, taking a stack and marching up to the upper rows to lay out the books. "What's today's lesson?"

"Rathian territory-marking and breeding habits."

"Ah, for the mating season coming up."

"Exactly. They've been gathering along the coast and I figured a week of lessons about them and Rathalos was due."

Nat had managed to find herself a rather unique place in the city in the last quarter-century. She'd managed to get a job at one of the Guild's manufacturing warehouses as an atilliator, constructing common bowguns and ammunition. A few years after that, however, she quit working for the Guild entirely and got a job at one of the bookstores and printing offices that Ellie's father had built in Orage, but it wasn't until a few years after that she found her current work.

What had started out as a minor favor helping a hunter friend of hers in town train his apprentices had slowly evolved into something more. The Guild had been using the new printing presses to print copies of their ecological and botanical journals and research, and though few copies of the research were sold at first, Nat had been one of the few with the time and interest to really read through them. Mix that with the advice she'd managed to receive from their hunting master and stories she'd picked up from hunters in town, and Nat had collected quite a bevy of hunting tips. The information had proven useful when Nat had been giving hunting advice to the apprentices, with information that even their master hadn't known.

"Meat tainted with mushrooms doesn't always work, you know. At best they only work when they're too hungry to care, but most monsters can smell the mushrooms before they bite the meat, and won't touch it. Try coating it with honey first."

"Out of deodorants? Smear a paintball or paintberry across your face. It's got a pretty potent scent to it, but it won't nauseate you like whatever scent you're trying to repel. Or just use air philters. Those things have a thousand and one uses."

"If one of your teammates has a broken leg, try rubbing some parashroom extract inside the splint. Don't get it into the bloodstream, obviously, but the paralyzing agent will tighten the muscles and help them walk."

"Speaking of meats, some monsters prefer fish to red meat, like Qurupecos. Try using a sushifish as bait; they've got a lot of fat and nutrients in them and most fish-loving monsters won't say no to one. Don't use mushrooms if you can avoid it though; try shoving a sleepyfish inside the sushifish instead. You could probably use something like an arowana to give them a real surprise, but you'll need a bigger fish. Maybe a Glutton Tuna if you can catch one."

"A friend of mine once used a sap plant and a smoke bomb to make a sticky smoke. If you're in a tight spot and need to run, try that."

"Bait for herbivores and rock-eaters like Uragaan? Huh… Maybe try bumblepumpkins or heftcorns for the herbivores. It might be tricky though; herbivores have stronger senses of smell and taste than carnivores and omnivores, so they'll sense a trap quickly. Uragaans actually prefer the taste of Malachite above anything else, so if you find a vein of it, you might try adding a coating of paralysis venom to it. Don't worry about the smell; Uragaans have terrible noses."

In the end, the advice she had given had made the apprentices an exceptional group. They didn't pass the hunter's exam with flying colors or anything, but they'd given a fine performance that hadn't left any doubt. That by itself hadn't garnered any undue attention, but the following few years of their rookie careers had. The team had proven to be a rather reliable in harsh situations, and were praised as being highly inventive and adaptable, and when asked how they had been so successful, they'd given a lot of credit to what Nat had taught them.

Since then there were many hunters and apprentices that had sought her out, willing to pay good zenny to learn some of the tips and tricks that had apparently led her first students to success. Eventually she'd just made it an official thing, giving hunting lessons during the morning before returning to the bookstore in the afternoons.

"How are your students doing?" Kim asked, taking another stack and walking up the stairs to work on the next level.

"They're learning. Slowly. The older ones actually have a harder time than the younger ones. Most of them tune out half of what I tell them; they only care about battle tactics and combat theory, not ecological studies… even if that's where all this information is coming from. To be honest I'm surprised I have the crowd I do. So many hunters walk out my doors thinking that physical prowess and combat tactics are all it takes to be a successful hunter."

"That's how it is with some people: a sharp blade and quick feet and they think they can take on the world…" Kim agreed. "But the ones that stick around seem to be learning. Every time I visit there seems to be another seat or two filled up."

"So it seems," Nat sighed. "Used to be I'd only need to pass books out across the first row… now I need your help to get to the upper rows."

"Maybe you should consider hiring an assistant."

"I don't have that many students to afford an aide," Nat scoffed, tossing books across the front row. "Usually I just leave the books by the door and tell people to take one when they come in. I only lay them out when you come around to help me overcome my most mortal of enemies: stairs."

"You could get the midget to help," Kim grinned, looking towards the front desk where Marie had occupied herself with drawings on a piece of paper. The girl had perked up at the words, looking utterly offended at the idea.

"There's a thought. Make her earn her dessert after dinner."

"No!"

The two older women laughed as the girl huffed in dismay, before returning to her drawing. As Kim walked down the stairs, she frowned, looking around. She usually came around once a week to talk to Nat and Marie, but now and then there was at least one other person around as well. "Where's… he at?"

"Tanzia," Nat replied with a sigh. "Honestly, Kim, after all these years you could at least afford to call him by name."

"...Fine. What's Micah doing all the way over in Tanzia?"

"There's a medical conference over that way," Nat replied, pulling a book from her lap and placing one each onto the tables as she rolled past them. "A local doctor is giving a presentation about his research into treating electrical burns, and Micah insisted on attending."

"Burn wounds again…" Kim muttered, and Nat nodded simply. Kim lowered her voice. "And he hasn't-"

"His memories haven't returned," Nat said sternly. "You've asked me that every week for the last twenty-five years. Honestly, Kim, if he gets his memories back, I will tell you. Obviously something of who he used to be still lingers within the confines of his mind, but it's only haze… and I believe it'll remain that way. After all these years, I'm fairly sure he's doesn't want to remember who he used to be. He's a different person now."

"And yet you're still not married to him."

"No… I'm not. Would you rather I was?"

Kim frowned, glancing towards Marie, who was happily drawing pictures with a collection of colored pencils. The girl was happy, she knew that. Her mother and father loved her dearly, and both of them provided her with everything she needed, and yet…

"People talk."

"Like I give a damn."

"Mommy!"

"Oh, whoops! Don't repeat that word, Marie, sweetie! At least, not around Daddy." The girl giggled and quickly returned to her drawing, as Nat rolled her eyes and lowered her voice. "People can say what they want, Kim, I really don't care. I'm not associated with the Guild, so I don't need to worry about appearances. Marie is Micah's daughter, everyone knows that. I share a house and sometimes a bed with him, everyone knows that. But I'm not married to him, and I don't plan to marry him, everyone knows that too."

"Because of who he used to be. That's something very few people do know."

Nat nodded slowly. "Not… who he used to be. Just… what he was a part of."

"There's not much difference," Kim grumbled. Nat stared down at the floor for a long moment before looking up again.

"I love him," Nat said sternly. "Don't ever believe that I don't, Kim. I wouldn't have had a child with him if I didn't. But there are nights when I… have dreams. Of bad times. When I wake up those nights and he's the first person I see, I just… And if Marie wakes up, I…" Nat's eyes were tense and distant for a moment, before she shook her head. "I want to marry him, Kim. But I… just can't."

Kim nodded slowly, picking up another stack of books and moving lay them out. She'd always been told that time healed all wounds… but neither she nor Nat were healing very quickly from theirs, even after twenty-five years.

"You know that new restaurant that opened downtown?" Kim asked suddenly, getting a curious look from Nat. "What's it called, some dead language… 'Trop Voyant'?"

"Hmm… Oh, yeah, that fancy place at the top of that tower in the shopping district. My neighbor told me about it, said it's really pricey and it's reserved like two months in advance. What about it?"

"I was just… thinking maybe you and, uh, and Micah could go when he gets back from Tanzia. Have a night to yourselves. I can take care of Marie for you."

Nat stared at Kim for a moment before nodding slowly and returning her attention to her notes. "That would be nice. But like I said, two months."

"I could probably get you in. I, uh, know the owner. Did him a favor a few years back that I've never called in. He can probably get you a spot if I ask."

"Huh. Yeah, I'd appreciate that." Nat looked back up and smirked at Kim. "Maybe we could just get a babysitter for Marie instead, and you could invite Troika. Make it a double date."

"...Maybe next time."

"I'll remember that. Now, I should probably get class started here soon… Sure you don't want to stick around and help with the lesson? You know your way around Rathians pretty well."

"I'll pass."

"Shame. Well, stop by once before you run off to the Tundra and you, me, and Marie can have a girl's night while Micah's still out of town."

"Now that's something I'll agree to."

"No alcohol though."

"I know, I know… I promised, after all. See you around."

"Don't be a stranger."

Kim sighed as she stepped out the door, finding herself in front of the cluster of hunters and apprentices out front. With a shrug, she pointed a thumb over her shoulder. "School's in session. Head on in."

As the crowd pressed into the building, Kim wove her way through the mob and turned back east, following the main thoroughfare back into the hunter's district. Things were starting to pick up, and Kim could see that some groups of hunters were suited up and preparing to venture out on a quest, or hauling chests behind them as they marched to the docks. Kim passed them all by, heading back towards the southern wall of the city and turning into a shadowy alley, entering a section of town that was commonly referred to as the Maze District.

Here there were some of the smaller, more battered, and occasionally less savory shops, forming an exotic bazaar within the thick underbelly of the city. The roads were all narrow, barely two yards apart at the most, and upper balconies stretching out from the buildings blotted out the sky above. Sliding doors and storefronts leading into the tightly-packed shops were small and hard to notice, most of them only a few yards across at most and only found if you were paying close attention to the hanging banners nailed to the walls nearby. Barside grills and diners had bolted-down stools sticking a few inches out into the road, letting passerby sit down instantly to order from the chef behind the counter, and filling the alley with blasts of steam and a thousand different smells. And that was just the first floor: the need for multiple stories was just as necessary here as it was elsewhere in the city, and the sound of footsteps echoed down from the walkways above on the half-dozen upper stories, filling the street with noise. Couriers wove through the foot traffic, leading Gargwas laden with crates of food, merchandise, and other materials as they made their deliveries to the shops.

Men half-hidden in the shadows and shady, dimly-lit shops were selling barely-legal goods and services, available to those that knew what they were looking for and who to ask. Several buskers and vendors peddling their wares saw Kim coming and shut up as she passed, sliding even further into the dark alleys giving her nervous expressions until she vanished around the next corner, before their shouts and promises to passerby continued again. Back when she was still working for the Investigatory Squad, these men might have the right to fear her when she showed up… but not now. She no longer had any official authority to do anything to them. Besides, she usually had bigger fish to fry in those days. They were just the ones with the information she needed, and she was willing to rough them up to get it. These days she didn't come to this part of town for anything official: she came here to drink.

...Actually, she didn't even come here to drink anymore either, not since Troika and Nat had convinced her to stop.

Kim passed through a short dark tunnel between two buildings and found herself in a ring of old rugged structures. There were several hunters bickering over prices with a merchant off to the right, the sound of hammering steel could be heard somewhere ahead, and a merchant with a long pipe was sitting atop a Gargwa-drawn cart, hawking off a rainbow of ores to a pair of young hunters. Kim made her way to the left, walking up onto the front stoop large brick structure. Two old, gnarled hunters stood near the door, eyeballing anyone that walked near as they drank from bottles of some heavy liquor, but they each nodded respectfully to Kim as she stepped up. The door to the building was large and metal, and it took a couple shoves to open it; it always stuck a little bit. With a nod to the two bouncers, Kim made her way inside, slamming the door behind her.

The inside was dark, but noisy, full of talking and laughing and even some arguing. A lilt of music could be heard over the tumult, and the first thing that Kim made out in the shadows was a small, lit stage where a young man was playing a fiddle and singing some ridiculous song to the amusement of the men and women in front of him, some of whom knew the words well enough to sing along. As her eyes adjusted, she began to make out the rest of the room: circular tables with small candles lit at the centers filled the room, occupied by worn and battered men and women, a good number of them hunters. There were two stories, the first floor filled up with tables and chairs, while cylindrical timber pillars held a balcony area aloft in a wide U-shape around the walls of the building, where several patrons leaned over the railing to watch the fiddler or shout down at someone on the floor below.

Off in the back was where Kim's attention was drawn, where a bar stretched across half the back wall, with hundreds of liquors and drinks available for perusal. Off to the right of the bar was a wide and cluttered corkboard, covered with papers detailing hundreds of hunt requests. Several hunters loitered about in front of it, talking between each other and motioning to and comparing various requests. Kim's eyes searched out the Guild representative that was supposed to be on duty to accept requests… but she found him slouched up against the bar with his hat over his eyes, likely hungover and sleeping it off. Very unprofessional… but common enough that Kim only rolled her eyes as she made her way over to the bar, weaving between the tables to approach the bar and meeting eyes with the woman behind the counter.

"Ho there, sweetheart. How you doing this morning?"

Kim smiled wanly at the barkeep, Lynn Sturmtrum. The woman was positively massive, at least two heads taller than her and easily the largest human she'd ever met in her whole life. She wasn't unshapely or fat, just… big, a bit over seven feet tall. The woman had impressive strength, even for her size, and the knowledge that she had once been a huntress came as no surprise to anyone that knew her. Her hair was ridiculously long these days, stretching all the way down to her knees and braided elaborately, and remained a chestnut color with only a few streaks of grey creeping through her locks. Her grey eyes were sharp and devious, and those that didn't instinctively know not to cross her learned it very quickly.

It was shocking that she looked as good as she did at her age; the woman was nearly seventy years old and looked half that! She would often say that she had Wyverian blood in her, and Kim was inclined to believe her. Human or not, Lynn seemed like she could live for another seventy years at least.

Lynn's bar, the Roughhouse, was rather infamous within the walls of Orage these days, both as a place where all of the most rambunctious and disorderly hunters found themselves after hours to drink, and a place where said hunters were somehow kept in line. She also had a keg cellar under the building, where she hosted a fistfighting ring of some kind, though she made certain to clarify that 'she only hosted, and she didn't participate'. Kim didn't know too much about that herself, but as long as they weren't doing anything illegal down there, she was perfectly content to put it out of her mind.

"I'm fine, Lynn," the huntress sighed, approaching the corkboard to scan the hunts available.

"Want a drink?" the barkeep asked. "Is on the house."

"Really? What's the occasion?"

The woman gave a broad and proud grin. "Got a letter from my boy today. He and his apprentices passed the hunter's exam in Gahiji!"

"Really? That's good to hear. They've been out that way for a while now, haven't they?"

"Five months now."

"They coming home soon?"

"Eh, not immediately. They's some stuff they wanna do 'fore they head back home. But that's the way it is for young hunters, hey? Back when I was they age, they was times when I wouldn't visit home for years, I was traveling so much. Long as my boy sending me letters letting me know he's okay, I is just glad he's having fun." The barkeep leaned over the counter, looking between the corkboard and Kim. "So, what you looking for, girlie?"

"Barioth. My lance is wearing down."

"Ah, you is in luck then. They's some new quests comin' in from up north asking for hunters to clean up some Barioths."

"Oh?"

"Ja, ja. Lotta Stygians bred in the eastern Tundra this year, so the Barioths and other beasties been moving towards the west coast, hey? Villages up there been asking for cleanup to get control over they numbers. Guild's thinking 'bout calling open season on it all, they's so many of them."

"Hmm, that's convenient… If that's the case it shouldn't be too hard to gather the materials I need quickly. What about travel?"

"Eh, you ain't so lucky there, girlie. The call's coming from the western coast, but they ain't any airship routes up that way yet. Thinking you fastest way up there's gonna be flying to Tanzia then catching a boat the rest o' the way, hey?"

"Damn it… That's at least a two-week journey at best…"

"Well, if you interested, I heard they was a Barioth up for fighting in the arena, hey?" Kim felt her expression darken at the suggestion, and the innkeep quickly waved her hand in a dismissing gesture. "Eh, ja, figured you wouldn't like that idea, girlie. Didn't mean nothing by it."

"Yeah… Guess I don't have much of a choice then," Kim groaned, grabbing a hunt request from the board and tearing it off. "I think I'll take you up on that drink. Make it something strong."

"You got it, girlie. Cola or coffee?" Kim sighed as the barkeep smirked. "You was the one made me promise not to give you liquor, hey?"

"I know, I know… but your coffee tastes like dirt, and the cola is just so… prickly in my mouth."

"Kimberly Trine?"

Kim turned at the prim voice behind her, finding a Guild officer staring intently at her with his hands folded behind his back. His back was ramrod straight, but there seemed to be an air of nervousness in his expression. That made sense, as the man stood out like a sore thumb here in the Roughhouse.

"Yeah?"

"Guildmaster Liontári wishes to speak with you," he told her, sparing a distasteful look down at the hungover Guild worker snoring on the floor.

"She does?" Kim asked, raising an eyebrow. A few of the other patrons in the bar turned at the words in surprise; getting a direct request to speak with the Guildmaster wasn't exactly common. However, Kim scoffed, turning her attention back to the hunt request in her hand. "No thanks. Tell her I'll get back with her when I return from the Tundra."

"What?" the man sputtered. "But she-"

"I really don't care," Kim replied, waving her hand dismissively. "If she wants to talk to me, she can come here and see me herself."

"But… but Miss Trine…"

"Hoy. Give the boy a break, hey?" Lynn groaned from the other side of the bar, sliding a glass of bubbling liquid across the bar towards her. "He just the messenger, ja? Just go see what the girlie gotta say."

Kim growled some colorful curses under her breath in consternation, snatching the glass off the bar. "Fine. Hold onto this hunt request for me though, would you? I'll want to accept it when I come back."

"Ja, ja…"

Kim slid the paper across the bar and quickly made to drink the soda she'd been given before she left, but she only got about halfway through before stopping. "Ech. Tickles my tongue and throat…"

"Heh, big bad Trine, scourge of the underworld and corrupt, is weak to carbonation, hey?"

"Oh, shut up."

Kim sulked after the Guild man as she followed him out of the bar and north towards the Guild Hall. She didn't like going to the main office anymore, not when she could avoid it, but receiving a direct summons from the Guildmaster wasn't something she could easily ignore, no matter how much she wished she could. Not that Liontári had much desire to see her in the building either unless she absolutely had to… If nothing else, Kim could amuse herself by watching the whelp they'd sent to find her struggle to navigate his way through the narrow paths of the Maze District while avoiding the more aggressive salesmen. Her fun came to a halt as they entered more open roads, where the man could lead her with more confidence towards the tower in the distance.

The Orage Guild Hall had changed just as the city itself had over the years. As the population had boomed, the Guild had needed an increasing amount of space to deal with all the new hunters they had living within the walls. Much like the rest of the city, the building had grown taller than it had once been, but the existing building had been old, and there was only so high it could rise before the structure needed to start reaching outwards instead. Nearby buildings and shops had been bought out and absorbed into the structure, old warehouses and storefronts swallowed up in the expansion and repurposed for the Guild's use as offices and libraries, with new hallways and roofs built over the open areas between and new floors built on top. The only things that hadn't been touched were the restaurants and bars, but those had just been officialized as Guild-sponsored food courts now nestled in between the new offices. What had once been a single, rather easy-to-navigate building, had now evolved into a wide, convoluted labyrinth that took up several acres of land and rose up into the air in mismatched, oblong shapes that made little sense at first glance and not much better once you were used to it.

Kim followed the man through the twisting halls and crooked pathways, but she wasn't really paying attention to where she was going. She had taken this same route a thousand times back when she was still working for the Investigatory Squad; She didn't need the escort, but she knew this was how the Guild did things. In the meantime she glanced around, reading the names at desks and office doors, figuring out who was still around, who had been promoted, and who had been transferred. Her eyes lingered on the desk of the woman Troika had mentioned, Donna, but the woman herself wasn't at her desk. Shame.

Eventually, the two of them reached a long winding staircase in the center of the complex, where the original building stood. Up they went, climbing up nine flights until at last, they reached the top floor, and the two of them approached a pair of ornate wooden doors. The Guild man nodded to the pair of guards flanking the entryway and announced her, before the one on the right reached forwards and opened the door for them, allowing the pair to pass through.

Inside was a room as equally ornate as the doors they'd passed through, with trim, finely-crafted furniture made from materials that would make the wealthiest individuals blush. A cascade of small knick-knacks, baubles, and commemorative items littered the nearby shelves and lamp tables. Framed photographs lined the right wall, and on the right a large map of the western coast stretched across a greater portion of the wall. The entire rear wall consisted of floor-to-ceiling windows, providing an expansive view of the entire city, and right in front of it stood an intricately-wrought wooden desk.

Behind the desk sat Orage Dell's Guildmaster, Nedra Liontári. She was a relatively short woman with bright blonde hair, hanging curled and wavy down over her shoulders. Her blue eyes were hazy and listless as she stared blankly out the window, humming a small tune to herself in idle vacancy. Kim couldn't help but notice that a couple of the buttons on the collar of her crimson Guildmaster's uniform were fastened in the wrong holes. The desk she sat as was messy and unkempt, and the stack of papers and folders in her inbox towered over the scant two or three documents that were placed unceremoniously in her outbox. She held one parcel of notes in one hand, but the pen in the other hand was held loosely, looking like it would slip from her grip any moment.

The Guild worker that had led Kim here cleared his throat, but the Guildmaster didn't seem to notice. He cleared it again, this time louder, but again the woman maintained an empty gaze looking out over the city. He sighed in frustration. "Guildmaster Liontári? Ma'am!"

At the shout, Nedra blinked and ceased her humming, looking confused for a moment as though coming out of a dream. She turned, looking towards the two others in her office, and a small, apologetic smile curled up at the ends of her lips.

"Oh! Borune. I didn't see you there. Is it time for lunch?"

"Ah… no, Guildmaster. I brought Miss Trine."

"Oh. So you did. Hello, Kimmy." The Guildmaster was silent for a moment, tilting her head in thought. "Was there something you needed?"

"You asked us to bring her here," Borune groaned in exasperation. "Said it was 'very important'."

"Oh, I did? I did! That's right… But why? Hmm…" Nedra paused, looking down at the scattered folders and papers across her desk with a hopeless expression, shifting through the documents aimlessly. "I… I'm sure I'll figure it out. Um… Borune, I'll talk to Kimmy. You can go do… something else. Or did you want to stay?"

"No, I have work to do," the man sighed, turning to walk away, but not before giving Kim a weary look. "Good luck…"

Kim nodded as the man left the room, before returning her gaze to the Guildmaster as the woman callously tossed the paper and pen she was carrying onto her desk before leaning far, far back in her chair until the headrest bumped against the window behind her.

"So… why the social call, Kimmy?" Nedra asked airily. "Is something the matter? Or… wait, did I invite you here? I can't remember…"

Kim scowled at the Guildmaster, however, crossing her arms and lowering her voice to a growl. "Wipe that vapid look off your face or I'll slap it off of you. And I'll make sure to enjoy it."

In an instant, the oblivious look on Nedra's face vanished, replaced by a shrewd and calculating gaze. "Oh, my dear Kimmy, you never let me have any fun, do you?"

"Stop calling me that, or I'll slap you anyway. It's painful enough watching you lead the Guild while acting like a braindead layabout. If I have to talk to the 'Guildmaster', I'd rather it not be that idiot you pretend to be."

Nedra smirked, leaning forward over her desk. "What can I say? I prefer to stay in character. It makes people underestimate me. Dissenters and usurpers are so much easier to uproot when their plans are made for outwitting someone with the intelligence and attention span of a goldenfish."

Here was the true Guildmaster of Orage Dell, the real face behind the empty-headed fool that some people thought she was, a brilliant and ruthless mind. It was all an act, a charade for both her own amusement and for pulling those that would try and abuse their power out of the woodwork. People would let slip things that they'd never say otherwise when they thought she couldn't hold a thought in her head for more than ten minutes. Even her office was part of the scam: the pile of papers and folders stacked in her inbox were probably already done, but left in the wrong box intentionally.

Kim didn't blame the public for falling for her act; she'd rarely revealed her true nature outside this building, not since she'd been promoted to Guildmaster. However, the members of the Guild should know better. She'd risen through the ranks far too quickly to be the simple fool people thought she was, not to mention that she'd gotten a direct recommendation for the position by the previous Guildmaster, Polgara, and anyone half as old as Kim remembered how unquestioned her leadership had been. Kim had no pity for the Guild workers and hunters who couldn't see past Nedra's facade, and figured they deserved whatever they got by trying to outwit her.

"I see you're just as popular as ever," Kim muttered, not waiting for permission to take a seat as she plopped down onto the chair in front of the desk. "That Borune boy acted like talking to you is a chore."

"Oh yes!" Nedra cackled. "The common theory is that I'm a puppet, dancing on the strings of some devious shadow master who's writing all my policies and speeches. Care to guess who they think the puppet master is?"

Kim shrugged. "I don't know… Eriond?"

"Not quite… He's a contender, but everyone knows he's too in love with me to ever try to make me his little plaything."

"Really. I've heard rumors that you've let him make you his little plaything in the office some nights."

"So Mara did catch us that evening… Well, he has his value outside of the office, figuratively speaking. Keeps him loyal to me, if nothing else, though he knows me well enough to know what would happen if he ever tried to outmaneuver me. But back to business: guess again."

Kim sighed in frustration. "Aldur."

"There you go! Just because he's quiet and efficient, people think he's some devious schemer. Really he's just an introvert. Smart enough to see what kind of girl I really am, but that just makes him useful. The reports are pretty entertaining though: Chaldan's been trying to make friends with Aldur the last couple months, looking for a chance to 'cut my strings' and pull the rug out from under Aldur. So many people in this building seem to think I'm a runt Popo just waiting to be culled from the herd, and they're just the person to do the culling. He's been vying for my position since day one, and I've been waiting patiently to see what kind of scheme he pulls to try and take my seat."

"Chaldan? Pssh. Please. That fool's an opportunist," Kim scoffed. "He's waiting for you to make a big mistake before he jumps in, so he can strike while the public opinion of you is low… well, lower. The people have a pretty neutral opinion of you right now."

"Of course they do. They haven't been given a reason to dislike me. Not yet. They think I'm an airheaded bimbo, but my reforms are solid and I've yet to make any mistakes that would make them consider ousting me." The woman leaned forward over her desk, smirking at Kim. "But that's the thing: I don't make mistakes, do I Kimberly?"

Kim scowled at the woman, but kept her silence. As much as she hated to admit it, Nedra was scarily efficient at her work, and had yet to slip up since taking over the role of Guildmaster, save for those situations that were unavoidable. Public image aside, there were few that would be capable of matching her in intelligence or shrewdness, and she really did make for an excellent Guildmaster. That didn't mean Kim had to like her, though.

"You're going to slip up eventually."

"Maybe one day, but I don't just sit back and wait for problems to appear, Kimmy. I gather information, I collect secrets and evidence, I cut off threats before they truly become a threat. There is very little in this city that I am not aware of. I know about Chaldan and his desire to usurp me. I know that the heir to one of the prominent merchant lords in the city is not actually his son, but the result of his wife's indiscretion with one of her servants. I know that one of the managers of the Guild's potion distilleries is trying to weaken the formula and sell the excess materials for his own profit. I know that some smugglers are planning to sneak some Nargacuga hides out of the city tomorrow by hiding them under a pile of Kelbi hides." The woman's eyes narrowed. "I know that you sneak out of the apartment of a certain I.S. member five nights out of the week."

Kim felt the blood drain from her face for a moment, before returning and beginning to boil. "If you fire her just because-"

"Don't insult me, Kimmy. Troika is an excellent worker, and has more than earned her position, even outside your tutelage. She even has the potential to replace me as the Guildmaster one day, if she keeps her momentum. I'm not about to fire such a valuable asset to the Guild just to screw with you… or just because you're screwing her. I don't give a damn who either of you sleep with, I'm just making sure that you know that there is nothing in this city that I don't know, or that I can't find out."

Kim grit her teeth to avoid snapping at the Guildmaster, but managed to keep her calm, taking a deep breath before nodding. "Alright, fine. Now what did you call me here for?"

"A hunt," Nedra smirked. "Isn't that what the Guild normally pays you for?" Kim opened her mouth to retort, only to be cut off as the woman continued speaking. "Or at least, a hunt is the cover story."

That made Kim pause. "Cover story for what?"

Nedra's smirked faded away, and the Guildmaster's expression turned serious as she leaned forward, resting her elbows on her desk and entwining her fingers together. "For the kind of mission the Guild doesn't like sending you on anymore."

Kim's eyes narrowed, and she felt the corners of her mouth pull back as her voice dropped to a guttural growl. "Poachers."

"Possibly, but not necessarily," Nedra replied carefully. "The situation is not that simple."

"What do you mean? Poachers are poachers. There's no-" Kim's words froze in her throat. Nedra was staring at her levelly, dead serious. Kim crossed her arms, thinking for a moment before returning the Guildmaster's gaze. "Why did you call for me, Nedra? The Guild hasn't sent me out to hunt down poachers in almost a decade."

"For good reason," Nedra replied flatly. "The Guild does not approve of poachers, but we'd prefer them to be arrested and face trial for their crimes. That tends to be somewhat challenging when they need to spend months recovering in a hospital beforehand… and utterly impossible posthumously. Personally, I wouldn't have called you in had I any better options, Kimmy."

Kim remained quiet for a long moment. "I won't make any excuses for what I've done. But why change that now? What's really going on? If you didn't want me on this job, why bring me in?"

"In different circumstances, you never would've heard about this mission, much less been a part of it. You'd still be loitering around a bar deciding which hunt to go on next, or back at your house… or back at the house of that pretty little scandal you share a bed with."

"Do not call her a-"

"That being said, since the circumstances can't be avoided, consider this a trial run to see if you're ready for this type of work again. Our psych specialists believe that you've mellowed out over the last decade-"

"What the hell are 'psych specialists'?"

"The Lost 'psychiatrists' we pay to gauge the mental stability of our workforce. It's an experiment the Guild's been conducting to determine their value. They're mostly for the higher-ups, like me or the other section heads, to make sure we don't give power to someone mentally unstable or overly ambitious, but I've had a couple of them studying you, my dear Kimmy."

"You what?! Why?!"

"Because I just care about you so much." The Guildmaster sighed wearily at Kim's dark scowl. "My reasons are my own, Kimberly. In short, I've kept an eye on you the last few years to determine your mental stability, and - good news! - the psyche team seems to thinks maybe, just maybe, you may take to this kind of work again with a level head and a less… fatal results. Maybe that pretty little… friend of yours is actually helping you become a saner member of society. Whatever she's doing when you're alone together, tell her to keep it up. Or do it harder, whatever."

Kim growled under her breath, but quickly shook her head and tried to calm herself down. "So. The poachers."

"Not poachers… not yet at least," Nedra replied, pulling a folder from across her desk and sliding it towards Kim. "However, we believe we have a lead on a group of poachers that are growing more and more organized. Your job is to follow the lead and see what you can find."

Kim swiped the folder, flipping it open and skimming the first couple pages. "Cobi Village?"

"Do you know it?"

"It rings a bell, but…" Kim continued to read through the papers. "What? Explosives?"

"It's a side business. The locals apparently can make some very powerful bombs with the materials that grow in the area. But they don't produce any bombs at all unless their fishing boats aren't getting any good hauls, at which point they make bombs and sell them as a supplement to their fishing losses. And like I said, they're powerful, second only to anti-dragon bombs. The Guild is not the only organization that are frustrated at Cobi's reticence to produce them en masse. That being said, we've been picking up reports across the country about poachers using explosives to kill their prey."

"That's not uncommon," Kim replied. "Poachers are in it for the profit, so they'll usually take the less dangerous and more efficient approach to kill their prey. However, I assume these reports have some relation to Cobi Village?"

"They do. The Guild's active poaching enforcers are as well-versed in typical poacher behavior as you are, Kimmy. By their reports, the explosives being used to kill these monsters are exceptionally powerful, more so than the garden-variety bombs hunters can purchase. We followed a few leads to be certain of ourselves, and all our information pointed us in one direction: Cobi."

"You think the villagers are selling bombs to poachers under the table?"

"They wouldn't. Or, they have no reason to. They know the value their bombs hold, and have always sold them at an exceptional price publicly. Their fishing hauls have been profitable the last couple years as well, so there's no real need for them to do so. Our Guild rep in the area hasn't seen anyone making bombs, either. We have a few suspicions though. One of the villagers may have joined up with a group of poachers, or cut a deal with some shady individuals. Maybe someone in town just got greedy; the bombs that are sold by Cobi usually profit the village as a whole, not a single individual. Maybe someone in Cobi is trying to turn a personal profit off his or her village's famed bombs. Or, perhaps, one or more of the villagers are producing these bombs under duress. The Guild informant hasn't seen anything suggesting such a thing: no unfamiliar faces sticking around longer than expected, or rough-and-tumble characters passing through on a regular basis, but we can't be certain."

"I think I see where this is going," Kim nodded. "You want me to go and find this bomb dealer, capture him and his accomplices, and try to wheedle information out of him about the people he sells to."

"Basically."

"But there's more to it than that, isn't there? You said you didn't want me on this job, but I was the best choice. This kind of job doesn't sound like anything another poaching enforcer couldn't do. Why do you need me?"

Nedra's expression remained level, keeping her expression unreadable. "Because of the poaching incidents themselves. You of all people know that poaching leaves a trail, one way or another, something we can follow back to a source. But these incidents around the country are giving us almost nothing. It's careful, cautious, meticulous. We've been tailing these poachers for almost a year, and our only lead so far is those Cobi bombs. That means careful thought, and professional preparation and operation. It means we're dealing with more than a bunch of former hunters looking to make some easy money. It means there's a good chance we're dealing with a criminal organization of some kind, or at least the makings of one."

Kim's blood grew cold, and her eyes narrowed. "Like Malefica."

"Possibly," Nedra shrugged vaguely. "Again, we don't have enough information, but if the possibility exists, we can't ignore it. As such, though I am hesitant to involve you, you are the most experienced individual Orage has in matters like this. The question is, can you actually capture one of these bomb makers and get them to us alive and coherent enough to interrogate?"

"I'll get them back," Kim replied, crossing her arms.

"In chains or in coffins?"

"I'll bring them back alive!"

"I suppose we'll see," Nedra replied coolly, before narrowing her eyes once more. A dark and merciless glare bored into Kim from across the desk. "But let me be clear, Kimberly: you need to take this mission seriously, and practice as much caution as you can muster. As I said before, it may be likely that one or more ne'er-do-wells are threatening villagers in order to acquire these bombs. If you run in roughshod like you've done in the past, you may have the pleasure of beating up and killing the poachers involved, but you'll also likely cause innocent lives to be lost, and I will not tolerate that. Am I understood?"

Kim winced back at the sheer force of threat in the Guildmaster's words. Civilian or not, Nedra was a woman who could instill fear in even the most grizzled hunters. Her wrath was cold and piercing to those she directed it at, and even if the majority of the populace would never guess it, the woman could bring men and women to ruin with shocking efficiency, and there was rarely anything the target of her ire could do about it, even if they knew she was the cause.

"You don't need to tell me that," Kim muttered darkly under her breath, returning her gaze to the pages in the folder, and away from Nedra's threatening stare. "So what happens now? How do I begin? What are my resources on this?"

"Minimal at the outset," Nedra admitted, relaxing her expression and leaning back into her chair. "Like I said, we need this to be secret until we have more information. However, we will allow you to choose three team members to assist you, a standard four-man squad. We'll even allow you to pick the three people who join you. Any ideas, Kimmy?"

Kim leaned back in her chair, furrowing her brow in thought for a minute or two. "I think I might know a few people for the job…"

Author's Note: Please Review! Thanks for reading this chapter about a jaded huntress!

And here we begin the first side-story of SOP, which, as you can see, focuses on Kim and some stuff she has to deal with back in Theron. There are… about 7 chapters to this, which all culminates in a finale which leads into the big reveal for the story. But not yet. Next chapter should be posted in a couple weeks, focusing on our main characters back in Gahiji!

I really need to finish Horizon and Nier though… Double Cross is out in Japan now, and a lot of the livestreamers I like are showing off gameplay, and it's getting me wanting to get back into Generations again… Gotta stay strong and actually finish my games though!

Playing: MHGen, Skyrim Special Edition, Pokemon SUMO
Watching: Critical Role