The Primal Hunter

Sultan stood in the old ruins of what had once been Ambermill as he looked at the departing former citizens. Four large barges able to accommodate every person had been brought from the Fort and would help transport them all back to the settlement.

He had been asked by Miranda to go to Ambermill together with a crew of others to handle the situation. She had heard slavery was going on, and people had been forced into contracts, so she wanted someone with knowledge of slave contracts to go and hopefully help annul those already signed as well as track down potential leads. The first one he had gladly done, but the second job was a bit more… complicated.

“I did tell that idiot this was too close to Haven,” Sultan smirked as he shook his head. He had known about the operations going on in Ambermill for quite a while but had naturally kept quiet. It wasn’t anything that affected him, and he had already left the entire slave-trading scene for good. That didn’t mean others had, though.

As he stood there alone, a person slowly became visible as he exited the shadow of a nearby house. “Libra took it too far, attempting to take advantage of the gap in the market left by Haven and Sanctdomo, both cracking down on slavery. I do agree it was wise to take him down a peg.”

The shadowy figure soon became fully visible. He wore a dark cloak and was enveloped by shadow magic Sultan naturally recognized.

“I am surprised the Court of Shadows didn’t try to defend one of their clients,” Sultan said with a teasing smile.

“We are by giving him the advice to not fuck with this area and hiding all evidence of Libra’s involvement in this shithole,” the assassin sneered. “The other constellations have already requested an emergency meeting. Have you been informed?”

Sultan nodded. “Naturally.”

“Great, then my job here is done. Now for my pay,” the assassin turned instigator of town destruction said with a smile.

Returning his smile, Sultan transferred the sum as per the contract for a job well done.

If Carmen had been there, she would have recognized the cloaked man as the same police officer that had brought her to the town hall. The same man who had coincidentally chosen a house right outside the motel Carmen was staying in as a great place to round up potential slaves and the person who had “screened” Carmen as being part of the slums.

Sultan had predicted Carmen to raise a ruckus, but it had become a bigger issue than expected, more or less leading to the end of the entire town of Ambermill. It wasn’t really a big deal, though, as with the biggest asset of the town destroyed – the mill – it held no value anymore.

However, more importantly… he managed to toss out a competitor from his very own backyard and, if things went well, possibly get rid of him entirely in the near future.

“Pleasure doing business with you as always,” the assassin said as he slowly faded back into the shadows, his presence disappearing entirely.

Sultan summoned his small black book and circled a name in it as he nodded. With his work done, he summoned his ship to travel back to Haven – after a little detour and a covert meeting, of course.

“Do you seriously just do that every time?” Carmen asked Jake as the two were running leisurely through the plains. They had already returned to Haven, teleported a few times, and were now running from a small-ish Pylon city with a teleporter in it. It was the settlement closest to the port city, and thus they had to run the rest of the way.

The problem was that Carmen kept giving Jake grief over Miranda’s response. When they returned to Haven, Jake, Sylphie, Miranda, and Carmen had met up briefly for them to exchange greetings and for Jake and Carmen to explain the situation in Ambermill more in-depth.

Carmen found it hilarious how little Miranda seemed to actually care or be surprised. Miranda had then made it worse by telling her about all the times Jake had forgotten things, been late or nearly late to events, and how he just kept doing unpredictable stuff. Case-in-point when they went and said hello to Rick because Carmen really wanted to know if they were just pulling her leg when they talked about the “troll gardener.”

What was so weird about a troll gardener?

“Ree?” Sylphie asked with a confused screech, coming in with the clutch assist.

“As Sylphie said, I wasn’t the one who did anything this time. You did,” Jake shot back.

“She did not say that.”

“Ree!” Sylphie huffed.

Carmen looked at the bird. “Touche. How the hell do you even understand Sylphie? Like, I can get general intent and stuff, but not anything even halfway complex.”

courses when I went

fucking useless college was for all my friends, I could believe that was an actual thing,” Carmen scoffed. “But seriously, how? We

have no idea myself. It’s mainly guesswork and just intuition as well as reading the intent as you said,” Jake shrugged. “It helps when you spend a lot of time around the other person. Sylphie and I also have a weird contract and

at Jake. “What

enslave beasts to use them in armies. Not that some beasts didn’t also willingly join these tamers, but the fact

and it wasn’t even me

the two running humans a few times, being faster than the both of them by

sighed in

more in silence as Jake considered their merry band. It did come as a bit of a surprise, but Carmen had not surpassed him in

had pursued improving other aspects of herself, such as forging her fists through weird rituals and magic – something she still did. She said that she had to take a few hours every week and submerge her hands in some golden

noises to taunt them, and she sometimes sped ahead and then laid down on the ground pretending to be asleep until they caught up. All juvenile things that Jake and Carmen both

now exceeded Jake’s by a large margin, and while he could keep up with her

skills to travel with. Flying up in the air also wouldn’t be faster for either of

they always ran with a tailwind and a refreshing breeze blessed their way forward, giving them a bit of speed and reducing

they came to one of the areas marked with orange and a P. Orange meant there were high-tier D-grades, and the P meant

the Exalted Prima thing and the

said and seemed oddly reluctant to talk about

on. “Had a

out of the dungeon that he had been stuck in for a long time right around when I left… three members of his party died, and he was in shit condition. He would have no chance to get three fragments by

hell didn’t you focus on

“It just isn’t that

as he

she just scoffed. “Why do

going for four, so it may get a bit tight on time, but I am sure we can manage. There should be several

I don’t care about getting a key,”

yet you will. Why are you afraid

I just don’t need

whatever rewards it may give. You should do the same,” Jake

I fucked up my life already and how I could have been way smarter in retrospect or suddenly be forced to choose some other

at her and thought for a bid before he just shrugged. “You like punching stuff,

said,

Path where you punch stuff. Heck, I can see myself being shown a Path during the event telling me I am an absolute moron for choosing to use a bow, but I like my bow, so that event can fuck right off. I will instead just use what I learn to improve what I currently do. You should do the same, and fuck what is optimal or considered the best. Just pick what you like the most,”

end up stuck at early C-grade if you even

You know Valdemar, right?”

assuming you are purposefully being an asshole,” Carmen said, glaring at

up reaching godhood in a time where it was far harder than

of entire intergalactic empires. He was a hero who

to swing an axe isn’t mutually exclusive,”

trying to start a

suddenly just stopped talking as she stood with a blank stare for a few moments. Jake

“What happened?” Jake asked.

fucking wife just laughed and said you were right on the money,” Carmen said

Jake just said triumphantly. “So just do whatever feels

spoke to her again as she stood there with a blank stare. Jake saw a faint