Eat or be Eaten 2 - The Somewhat Disappointing Reboot to the Original; [side quest - Up to 4]

Mirai was a little more than surprised to find herself being approached by an Enkidu. Instead of talking, however, the fox Enkidu wrote down the word Chimera. Mirai arched an eyebrow curiously.

"If you're referring to the hunt for Chimeras, then yes, this is the spot," she said. "I'm afraid you've just missed the briefing. But I think you'd be more than welcome to join once the one in charge is here. Err...do you have a name, miss?"

While Mirai wasn't one for getting acquainted, she did have to say it was odd that the girl who barely looked apt for combat was interested in this thing. Her curiosity was getting the best of her.

At the young lady's response, Eun, snapped her journal shut and raised her arms up, jumping up and down a few times. Finally! Not only had someone responded, but she had actually found the right place! She quickly stopped, though, as the rest of it began to register. She'd missed the briefing, but that was fine, she didn't need a briefing to go out and kill some monsters. But if the one in charge wasn't there yet, then that meant the one in front of her was also going on the hunt.

Well, that meant introductions were in order! Opening her journal once more, Eun quickly scribbled down her name, along with another line. She wanted to get along with her partner, so she had to make a good impression! Once she was finished, she then displayed the journal calmly, rather than practically throwing it at her like before.

The words read, 'Eun Eryuell! I'm looking forward to hunting with you! What's your name?'

After she was sure the words had been read, she took a seat nearby in order to wait for the so called 'one in charge'. She was eager to get this hunt started, and even more eager to earn the rewards!

If the three were perceptive enough, they might hear heavy footsteps going to their direction. And if they were to turn, Mirai and Wanyu would at least recognize the person coming towards them. It was none other than Kassandra, with a small bag strapped to her back, containing a couple potions and a sturdy rope. Admittedly, it wasn't a lot of things to bring with her, but too much equipment would encumber her, and besides, thanks to her cloak, she didn't need a sheet to wrap herself during the night.

However, with her remaining eye Kassandra observed that there was another person with those two. The fox-like features denoted her as an Enkidu, while the tiny frame made Kassandra think she was another kid. Wonderful. But she also saw how the girl was communicating with some sort of journal. What, was she a mute? She better not be deaf either, as she didn't know much about hand signs. "I'm back." She announced to the other two, before turning towards Eun. She was able to read something about wanting to hunt with them, which made Kassandra glare at her. "Child, if you are here for the hunt, I recommend you turn back. It's not safe for someone like you."

"I'll be the judge of that."

A dry, gravelly voice spoke from behind Kassandra. Walking up behind her was a young man with chestnut brown wild hair. He had red marks on his face, some form of warpaint, that resembled streaks under each eye. He wore a swamp green cloth tunic and brown pants with leather knee patches tucked into a pair of boots. on his back was a large naked blade. Its edge was serrated close to the guard. The handle was minimal, suggesting it's meant to be wielded with one arm. Speaking of one arm, the man's right arm was covered in ragged fur from the elbow down, each finger ending in a hooked claw. On his head, blending in the mess of hair were a pair of triangular ears.

Following behind him were two others. One was taller bespectacled man with curly hair wearing a cloak that wrapped around his shoulders, held by a gold pin in the shape of a shield. Aside from the rifle and sack on his back, his manner of dress contrasted heavily from the rustic village and even the Enkidu man in front of him.

Beside him was a young girl with similarly colored and curly hair. She smiled with bright blue eyes, her arms behind her back as she followed along, her long skirt waving with each lift of her boots. She had a sword sheathed at her right side and a shoulder bag hanging from the other hip.

Enter the Village People:

"I am Koga," the enkidu stated plainly.

"Salutations," the well-dressed man greeted and smiled. "I am Professor Edgar Kallens of the University of Aldmerrow."

"Emily Kallens," the girl smiled, leaning her back down and lifting one leg up.

"We are the best hunters of the village and the most the guild can spare for the expedition," the enkidu Koga stated. He crossed his arms and gave each of them a once over. "Even a young enkidu can match a seasoned human hunter. That said..."

He leaned down and stared at the mute girl with squinted eyes.

"You seem a little thin," he stated bluntly. "Are you really able to take care of yourself? What's your weapon?"

He notably didn't extend this same line of questioning to Mirai.

He stepped back and sniffed the air before addressing the rest of the group. "I want to be clear on one thing. The moment we enter the forest, we're a hunting party. I don't wanna see any showboating or anyone jumping ahead of anyone. We stick together as a group and work together to take down the monster infestation. You will be compensated fairly for your contribution, but if you get in the way or act selfishly, that will affect your pay. You're free to give up and go back to the village anytime. If you runaway in the middle of a battle, you will not be paid at all. You will be compensated for each chimera you help take down."

As the enkidu explained things, Edger was flipping through a red book. Earlier he introduced himself as a university professor. It seemed strange for a scholar to be part of a hunting party. He was introduced as a known member of the village as well. The more learned people of the group may note the cartic rune carved into the pin on his cape.

"A pleasure, Madamoiselle Eryuell," Mirai said blankly. "As for me, you may simply address me as Mirai Cinq."

Oh, this poor girl didn't even look the part for the hunt. One swat of a corrupted wolf, and she'd probably go through a tree. That said, Mirai was not one to judge. After all, she was the one in a frilly dress, and it wasn't the first time an Enkidu of small stature surprised her with a great amount of strength or resilience.

The snooty girl from earlier had noticed their little conversation and had turned to them, insisting Eun was far too weak-looking to fight. Mirai would have vouched for her, but someone else did. Three hunters appeared and introduced themselves as the main hunters in the village.

"A pleasure, you three," she said. "Mirai Cinq."

The Enkidu went on to discuss how they expected the party hunting to go, and that they needed to stick together as a group. Part of Mirai wanted to roll her eyes. Any huntsman knew that. That said, seeing how one of her partners was a scrawny fox and the other a rather lonesome grump, she decided maybe the lecture was needed.

Once the little lecture was over, Mirai merely opened up her fan and waved it. She smiled smugly.

"You will not have to worry about me," she said with her usual aloof air. "If working together is what will bring the best results, then rest assured I shall do what's needed in line with the group's intentions and plans. Now, shall we be proceeding?"

At Kassandra's entrance and remark, Eun had half an idea to cut the pack off of her back just to prove a point, but decided against it. If she was also there for the hunt, those supplies work better if they weren't suddenly dropped to the ground. Instead, she simply picked up the journal that was still displaying her introduction and showed it to the newcomer, this time with what she intended to be an intimidating frown instead of a smile. She didn't care to revise it; this jerk wasn't worth the effort.

When the three from the hunting guild showed up, Eun perked back up, her tail slightly wagging. She wasn't going to be the only Enkidu, and he was even sticking up for her! At his questions though, her tail stiffened, her excitement fading. He didn't expect much of her either, did he? He probably expected her to be dead weight, just like that other person.

So, after scratching out the line asking for a name, she handed her journal to the one who introduced himself as Koga before pulling a golden trident out of her cloak. She spun it around in her hand once, then flipped a small switch near the top of the handle, this time spinning the weapon above her head as the metal rod extended by a few feet, with pieces of metal extending at the edges to merge the three trident prongs into a single pointed blade of a spear. She then deftly brought the weapon down, the blade ending about a foot away from his right leg, before stopping and flashing him a bright smile.

The way Eun showed her introduction page towards Kassandra was something that did not amuse her. Either this was some quirky child playing some mind game with her, or she was honestly mute, both which she felt would be detrimental to this hunt. She let out a sigh, and was about to at least introduce herself, when suddenly she was interrupted by a voice that came from behind. Once she turned, Kassandra saw three other individuals, some classroom teacher, yet another little girl ("Ugh.") and an Enkidu man with a weird looking blade.

Koga, Edgar, and Emily were their names, and once they presented themselves as part of the hunt, each of them would be presented with a glare coming from Kassandra. Did she perceive them as opponents? Was she planning on telling them off? Well, none of that, she just felt a bit annoyed over how the small party was now going to turn into a big one. Actually, the second question was accurate, she wanted to tell them off, but she didn't have the time nor energy to spare for a squabble. "... Kassandra Yoxall." She said, once the three gave out their names.

And so Koga gave an outline of the rules for the hunt, all that felt rather common and standard for Kassandra, and in all honesty, she felt he was wasting his breath. But then again, given who her other hunting partners are, maybe explaining such rules wouldn't be useless. After all, she had a bad feeling about the girls, specially Mirai. People like her make Kassandra's blood boil. Once the explanation was done, Kassandra merely nodded. "We'll get the job done." She had to put effort in getting the 'we' out, but if the kids planned on throwing their lives away, then that was their business, she wasn't gonna babysit them. And just when that thought exited her mind, Eun decided to show off her weapon, some sort of changeable spear, which made Kassandra wonder if the girl was not only mute, but deaf. Didn't Koga say 'no showboating'? Or maybe she was getting that out of her system now, who knows.

Koga didn't seem to have much of a reaction to Eun's little performance piece, even as she seemed to bury the head of her spear a foot away from his leg. He merely gave a glance at where the spear hit and nodded approvingly. "Very good then. Let's go."

The enkidu started towards the entrance into the forest. The man named Edger jogged behind briskly. The last of the three, Emily, faced the three adventurers and smiled with a tilt of her head. Her calm expression was very soothing, like a mother calling along her children. Even compared to the university professor, it was hard to imagine her as a hunter or warrior like Koga or Stonehammer the guildmaster.

"Let's all get along," she said sweetly, before spinning on her heels and hopping after Koga and Edger.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The forest was about what you'd expect. Trees surrounded you wherever you went but there was enough space in between to walk around freely. The grass was thick but were not long enough to impede walking. It seemed like a natural and healthy land of trees and foliage. One might note the oddity that no local wildlife has been spotted since they got here.

The group would've been trekking the landscape for half an hour with Koga stopping for a second here and there to sniff and literally taste the ground before directing them this way and that. Despite being one of the first to walk ahead, Edger was starting to lag behind the most as he seemed preoccupied with writing something in his book. He seemed to keep up with the pace of the group regardless.

"Tell me what your methods and abilities are," Koga said after half an hour remaining in silence. "I will need to know so that we can organize ourselves properly when we get in a battle."

Emily looked back and seemed to stare at Eun specifically. She seemed to have caught on quick about the young enkidu girl's "condition".

Mirai was careful to observe her surroundings and look around. Despite the lushness of the forest, she did indeed notice the lack of any wildlife. That was, no doubt, a sign of multiple species fleeing their habitats. However, she didn't have enough to go on just yet to determine for how long they had been gone. If it had been awhile back, that might have been fine. But if it was recently, she feared they might be in territory a little too close by.

Her thoughts came to a halt when Koga asked for her abilities.

Mirai paused for a moment before speaking.

"I'm capable of one-handed and two-handed sword fighting," she said plainly. "Knife combat, and long-range, wide-spread damage. Granted, for the latter, it may serve a risk in closed spaces and if we're all in close-proximity, so I'd like to save that as a last resort if ever."

She didn't need to reveal more than that. That was the basics of what they needed to know. She looked around, once again noting the quietness.

"For a lush forest, the place seems rather...quiet," she said. "Empty even. Wouldn't that be a sign of wildlife fleeing from a threat?"

At Koga's approval, Eun retracted her spear and stowed it away again, slightly wagging her tail. Finally, some approval! As the group began to set out, she followed Koga, eager to learn how an experienced Enkidu hunter worked. When Emily spoke up, though, she turned and gave a small wave with a smile. Of course they'd get along!

Once the reached the forested area, Eun almost felt at home... save for the lack of wildlife. There was definitely something off about the place. She was slightly interested in Koga's method of what she assumed was tracking the chimeras, but she decided against trying it herself; the idea of tasting dirt was not the most appealing thing in the world. At his request for their abilities though, Eun quickly snapped her journal out of her pocket, ready to write a few lines before noticing Emily's gaze.

"...Why is she looking at me like that? Did I do something wrong?" Eun thought, but shrugged it off as she quickly began to write. Once she was done, she handed the journal to Koga, waiting for him to read it before pointing up at the higher branches of the trees, her feet shifting as she kept glancing at the trunk next to her. It was perfect for climbing.

'Best at using spear and backing up people with shorter reach. Also good at recon. May I take a look?'