~In Hunting Beasts and Monsters~
Kenji and High would find, as they left the dusty chapel behind, that the reality before their eyes was more than most minds would be able to process. Lead colored clouds covered the sky, except for the few cracks through which filtered the ethereal azure of the twin moons which oversee the World of Wasted Dreams. The wind howled and things, unspeakable things, could be heard on the distant cliffs, the nearby fields and even... right besides them.
Swish! A rat ran away, cowered by the hunters' appearance. That was the reality of the World of Wasted Dreams, of the town of Iredele and of their lives from now on. A reality were even the scuttling of a rat could mean a life threat, dare you not check it and behave with caution.
The town was silent, dead silent one might even say, perhaps a wake was being held somewhere and all sounds and activities had been drowned for fear of them disturbing the deceased's departure thereby, bringing yet another horror into this world. Most likely, however, was that this very town was a huge wake, which was much closer to the truth.
In the murky darkness, a few outlines denounced the presence of other points of interest. From the temple it was possible to make the shapes of: The
Town Square whose only distinguishing feature aside from the mud was an old half-beaten well that certainly had seem better days in the past. The
Town Hall with it's opulent decadence, crested by a bell tower probably meant to serve as a public broadcast for general uses. The former
Constable Station which lays vacant and decrepit, the scrape of chains and creacking of the rusty bars still being heard up to this day. The
Inn of Four Winds which has long ago been turned into Maria's private manor, as is noted by an engraved brass plaque (if they care to go and check). And lastly, the
Winter Wolf Tavern the only solace in this depressive world, being it's many drinks and meager food for those who have the means to pay for it. To find what lay beyond this initial panorama they would have to go out and explore the shadows that shrouded Iredele.
"Nooo! Nooo, let me go! Please, don't take me!"
Suddenly, a bloodcurdling scream pierced the monotonous silence of the night, coming from somewhere down the main street. Sure, the people inside the temple would hear such a commotion as well, but Kenji had the advantage of already being outside the building, so he would arrive there faster, in case he decided to check.
"Oh my, isn't your lot an eager one?"
"Very well then, I'm yours for the time being, ask me whatever you want." Maria jested, crossing her legs casually and sighed, letting her bare fangs visible as she listened to the hunters who showered her with questions.
First it was Donny, who seemed to be the most eager of them all. Maria spared him a glance at the compliment, wondering again why such a person had to be wasted being born as man, before she finally answered him, in order.
"Actually, you go all the contrary, you bring back the trophies of the slain quarry and sell them to old Rotting Bone, and then, you use the money for donations. It's a rip off, but if you want to live here, you'd better get used to it, otherwise you'll not even have what to eat, I fear. Don't worry for things such as the population around here, it fluctuates far too much to be a matter for us, though it generally stays on the low end of bare minimum. Do you want to change that, by any means? Go forth, most women there won't complain about being taken (even by force) as long as you're not a monster, because they know what could happen if you are." To this last statement Maria flashed her teeth to Donny, in a sort of provocative grin.
Nevertheless, she continued soon enough
"As for their skills, I guess that you could count old Rotting Bone as the closest thing to a doctor this place will ever have. I tend to do most of the craft work for things that hunters normally need, simply because I enjoy the past-time, I'm also the owner of the only place you can stay, unless you want to salvage an abandoned house, or... force yourself on an occupied one." Again, Maria displayed her challenging grin, her teeth shone wickedly against the pale light that saturated the temple's innards. It was a habit of her, to provoke the hunters and test their morals, she didn't cared to the outcome too much, but Maria always enjoyed watch how the World of Wasted Dreams changed a person, for better or worse.
Anyway, for the final stretch of Donny's questions, Maria replied
"Oh, my lovely Annabel, so sweet a flower, she really doesn't deserve such a wretched fool as a relative." Maria skirted around the matter as she talked about Annabel, in a wistful (Or was it lustful?) voice.
"Anyway, you won't have trouble spotting her, my sweet Fleur-de-Lis doesn't look nothing like your typical townsfolk. You won't be finding her, she finds you. Your best bet is carry on with your 'lives' as normal and wait until Annabel wants to make herself known, I say that from personal experience."As Maria finished with Donny's questions, came both Paul and Sinthe, one of them displaying at least some respect and the other as gruff as his looks made him appear to be
"You are free to do whatever you wish, as long as you mind the consequences. The Wasted Dream isn't a very forgiving mother to careless children. As for you, gentleman, and... the rest of you who are still a bit shocked, I presume." Maria ran a gaze over the other hunters, not caring to account for Highball and Kenji's disappearance. If they wished to speed up their demise doing something stupid, so be it. Who knows, if they the could even manage to surprise Maria with their tricks?
"You can leave your questions for later now," Maria grinned as the cry for help echoed within the temple, raising up from the old pew and moving to dramatically push the heavy iron-framed doors of the temple in a dramatic (and easy) way.
"Is the time for you to take your first glance at what you'll be dealing with for the rest of your days..."Without gazing backwards, Maria shifted Pandora's weight to a better position and walked distressed call, wondering what sort of ill luck had befallen the poor soul who owned such a desperate voice.
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