On the balcony of a two-storey cabin on the outskirts of the mountain town of Lightstal stood a lone hired hunter - a woman in her mid-twenties of a slender build with glossy bronze skin and brilliant turquoise orbs that shone from her almond-shaped eyes. Her jet-black hair was pulled into a firm braid with straight cut-across bangs. Not paying attention to the racket caused by her rowdy companions in the background, she first turned to the left, watching as the Sun set over the lush green forest. It was their destination for that night, and it is with the darkness that the dangers would come. With a quiver of crossbow bolts attached to her belt and a large dagger slotted in the holster around her calf, she was as ready as she could be for them.

To the right was the little town which displayed a semblance of comfort and peace. That was all it was, however, a semblance. Shamira was well aware of what truly went through the minds of its inhabitants when the Sun went down every single day. Anxiety, worry, fear that they and their loved ones would not make it through the night without falling victim to the savage monsters that would emerged from the adjacent forest. Having had her mother taken from her at an early age, she knew exactly what it felt like to have that very fear become a reality. The fact that she had been recruited to go right into the danger she had trained to protect herself from was ironic, to say the least, but they needed anyone they could get. This current view of Lightstal would motivate her to do her very best to bring its residents the sound sleep and peaceful nights they deserved.

"Miss?"

Shamira turned at the voice to see the head of the youngest recruit poking through the doorway. It was at that point when she realized that she did not even know his name. He could not have been past his late-teens, and the other members of the team would simply refer to him as 'boy', or 'kid'.

"We're umm, moving out..." he then continued in a slightly nervous tone.

She simply nodded to him in thanks and acknowledgement before picking up her crossbow. Following her companions out into the forest, she glanced up into the night sky and saw that the moon was already shining bright. The atmosphere quickly changed once the team set foot in the forest, each member wary of what might be lurking in the nearby vegetation. Shamira pulled a bolt out from her quiver to load her crossbow with. She gripped the weapon tightly, taking a deep but quiet breath to calm herself as she put her finger on its trigger and readied herself for the first sign of an attack.