Hunter's Bond, page 25
She was standing in the middle of the clearing, her gaze unfocused. Arheis saw her draw in a shuddering breath as if to calm herself, but it didn’t seem to work.
“It happened so quickly,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper. “One minute she was evading its attacks, and the next…”
Her words trailed off, cut short by a shaky sob. It wasn’t unreasonable to assume that the spot she stood now was where she’d witnessed her lover take her last dying breath, Arheis realized. Torn between not wanting to intrude and desperately wanting to offer some comfort, he stepped just a bit closer. Amira slowly sank to the ground, her hand moving over the dirt as she spoke words in a language Arheis didn’t understand.
Then, in the common tongue, “I’m so sorry. I failed you. I wasn’t strong enough.”
It broke Arheis’ heart, but what could he do? Telling her it wasn’t her fault in the moment of her grief was pointless. Rationally she might know it, but she wouldn’t listen. He knew from experience.
Instead, Arheis did all he could think to do. He looked around, finding a dash of brighter color amidst the sea of green. Orchids flowered within a gnarled tangle of roots, and he took his hunting knife from his belt, cutting them away from the plant with enough room for more to flower in the future. There was a cluster of three purple flowers on the stem he’d chosen, and he crouched down beside Mira to place the plant atop the small patch of dirt.
“What is that?” she asked, her voice made scratchier by her tears.
“When I finally visited my mom’s grave, I left some lilies on the stone. They were her favorite,” he said softly, remembering. “I didn’t know Eva, but she was important to you. And I guess I just… wanted to do something.”
She wiped the tears from her eyes and looked down at the flowers. To Arheis’ surprise, she reached out for his hand. “Will you pray with me?”
“I don’t… think I know any prayers,” he stammered, wondering if the small amount of church he’d attended as a child would help him even remotely in this.
“You don’t have to say anything. I can lead it.”
Arheis nodded, and she gave his hand a squeeze before bowing her head. He did the same, and after a moment of silence, she began to pray. Again it was in a language he didn’t understand, but the heart of it was impossible to miss. There was no doubt in his mind she was praying for Eva to finally be laid to rest. He felt that, with every fiber of his being.
They stayed there in silence for several moments before he finally felt her start to stand. She didn’t let go of his hand, so he did the same. When he opened his eyes, Mira was looking down at the flower.
“Thank you,” she said, her voice full of emotion. “I can’t say what this means to me. I don’t know why you came along, but… thank you.”
Using the hand she still held, Mira pulled him into a hug. Warmth and comfort filled him—two things he hadn’t realized he’d even needed. But as she’d said a prayer for Eva, he’d thought of his mother. Of how long he waited; how much time he wasted. It felt cathartic somehow, even if this moment had absolutely nothing to do with him.
So he hugged her back, holding her tightly as he felt her shoulders shake with tears again. They were fewer this time, but his energy was so focused on her that he barely saw the notification briefly linger in his field of view.
> Your relationship with Amira has greatly improved.
> You have formed a Bond with Amira.
Eventually she pulled away and wiped her eyes, then looked back at the makeshift grave site one last time and smiled. “I’ve done what I needed to do here. Let’s head back.”
Chapter 22
Zindar was waiting for them when they returned, and while he cast them both a curious glance—complete with a smirk—he didn’t say anything about the fact that they’d very obviously gone off somewhere together. Arheis was glad for that. He wasn’t ashamed or even embarrassed, really. He just preferred to keep his private life private. He’d always been that way.
The Pruvari moved right into telling them about the bounty he’d secured for the Ignicris, though, and a quest soon popped up for Arheis:
> Guild Bounty: Great Balls of Fire
At the edge of the jungle, surrounded by charred trees, a group of Ignicris have become a nuisance. Slay them and return with their tail-feathers as proof of the deed to receive your reward.
Quest Level: 6
Reward: 1,800GC in currency and 375 XP.
Another quest he was under-leveled for. It was likely designed to be completed in a group, which was just fine with Arheis. Somehow he’d gone from being absolutely determined to solo everything to thinking of his friends as a crucial part of the hunt. It was the holy trinity of tank, heals, and damage, and he wasn’t sure how he would take down beasts as efficiently without them.
Sure, the XP and other rewards were shared three ways—or two ways, in the case of the credits—but that was a small price to pay.
So as Mira bought some aloe-rich herbs from the market that were meant to soothe burns, Arheis and Zindar paid a handful of credits each to have their weapons sharpened, giving a temporary bonus to attack power. The three of them met up at the gates and—with Zindar holding the map the Guild had given him—they set off.
It was impossible not to notice the damage the Ignicris had done when they approached the area the Guild marked on the map. Trees began thinning out well before that point, the dense jungle making way for pastures and farmland. It was something Arheis hadn’t expected, but it made sense. Crops had to be grown somewhere, after all, and just because games didn’t tend to focus on those aspects of a biome didn’t mean they weren’t there.
But the thinning out of the jungle due to logging ventures was nothing compared to what they came upon at the actual site. An entire acre—at least—of trees and foliage was burnt into a charred mess of what it once was. Skinny, blackened trunks stood one next to the other, piles of ash and charcoal littering the ground. Any grass that had been present was completely dead, and the ground was scorched in patterns that suggested deliberate bursts of flame instead of a raging wildfire—at least at first.
Deliberate, my ass.
Ignicris were widely regarded as the least intelligent creature in the Apex universe. They frightened easily, and as soon as they were spooked they launched an over-sized fireball fueled by the disgusting array of gases that were constantly trapped in their stomach. They were disgusting and useless creatures that caused more harm than good in the environment, and in Arheis’ experience, there were always a plethora of low level quests to take them out.
“Are you sure this is the right spot?” Mira asked, her sarcasm coming through. “I honestly can’t tell.”
“Yeah, it’s a toss-up. On the one hand, it could be where all these burned trees are. On the other…” He shrugged.
Zindar laughed, shaking his head. Evidently his spirit said something, because he responded, “Oh, be quiet. They’re just having fun.”
Arheis recorded what he saw in his journal, and his companions gave him time to do so. There were scorch marks, tracks, and molted feathers clearly visible, so he made a note and a drawing of each one, a bit of information appearing as he did.
> Discovered: Ignicris Scorch Marks
Ignicris are infamously known for their skittish nature and terrible aim. When frightened, the avian creatures activate a special organ inside their throats that creates a spark. Gas expands and shoots forward in a fireball, burning everything in its path—including the Ignicris.
> Discovered: Ignicris Tracks
Ignicris have wide, reptilian feet with small talons on each toe. They are not the most coordinated beasts, and as such their walking patterns can often seem erratic.
> Discovered: Ignicris Feathers
Juvenile Ignicris molt completely before reaching adulthood. Once the first molt is complete, adult Ignicris shed their dead plumage approximately once a year, over a three month period.
That was more information than he was used to getting, and it allowed him to infer things about the signs he’d seen thus far. He also noticed another system message follow quickly after the last:
> You have reached Ignicris Research Level 1! Because of your thorough note-taking and observation, you are now aware of the Ignicris ability Flame Belch and how best to avoid it.
Well that was handy. He snapped his journal closed and hung it off his belt again, following the tracks with Mira and Zindar. In the distance he could hear the loud, clucking squawk of the beasts, and it didn’t take long for them to come upon the group. There were four gathered in a cluster, all of them sitting down in a pile of feathers, using their beaks to pick bugs and other debris out of their plumage.
“Be ready for a fireball,” Mira said in a whisper.
“I can try and stun the two in the back for a bit,” Zindar said, “but I’ll need you to get them off of me once they’re moving again. They flail around too much for me to attack them otherwise.”
Arheis nodded, retrieving his spear and shield from his back. Now that he had a better idea of how Shield Bash affected his threat level, it shouldn’t be a problem. Especially if he was the first to attack.
“I’ll go in first,” he told the others. “I think I can get them all to fire at one spot and then just dodge out of the way.”
That was the plan, anyway, and when his companions raised no protest, Arheis drew in a steadying breath and prepared himself for the attack. He moved downwind of the otherwise occupied beasts but planned a route to get them to notice him rather than just being startled and throwing their fireballs wherever their mouths happened to be pointed at the time.
He moved slowly into their peripheral, until at last one saw him. It rose to its feet in a clatter of limbs, the firestarter inside its throat already clicking. The others rose, too, and all of them directed their focus on him. One squawk after the next, they launched their explosive gas balls in his direction just seconds before he dodged out of the way. Or… they tried to. One of the ones in the back actually breathed its fire onto another Ignicris, much to the beast’s distress. A clawing war of talons ensued, giving Zindar an ample amount of time to run up behind them, channel the Fulcorn’s lightning into his blades, and stun them.
God, how are you this stupid…?
The two beasts that weren’t stunned answered by running toward him in the same way ostriches did in cartoons. Their legs were thicker, but still completely ridiculous, and they planted each step as though they were trying to claw him while doing so—no matter how far away they were. It was honestly a wonder the things hadn’t been hunted to extinction yet.
Arheis braced behind his shield as they came at him like a runaway lawnmower. The first bounced off—almost literally—but it recovered quickly, throwing its big, empty head at the barrier. There was a crest on top, he realized, and the Ignicris was actually trying to break through by using it as a battering ram. It wasn’t the most successful thing, but he felt his stamina draining.
If he didn’t do something soon, his guard was going to be broken.
Holding firm until the other Ignicris rammed his shield, Arheis then lowered it and did his best to jab at the beasts to try and force them back.
> You pierce Ignicris for 63 points of damage. (+15% Sharp bonus)
The hit landed successfully, but it was met with an answering squawk. With surprising swiftness, the Ignicris he’d struck caught the haft of his spear in its beak and tried to yank it out of his hands.
“Motherfucker,” Arheis muttered, very clearly losing the Strength contest.
If not for the second Ignicris trying to attack him and catching its companion in the process, Arheis might have been disarmed. Instead he heard the grating scratch of claws on metal, then felt it pierce between his chestplate and leg guards.
> You have been slashed by Ignicris for 30 points of damage.
> You have been inflicted with burn blight.
For such a small cut, it shot a pain through him that was sudden and intense. It felt like his skin was burning away, and he didn’t dare look down to see if that was true. Instead, he used what he’d regenerated of his stamina to Shield Bash the Ignicris closest to him while Zindar attacked it. Drawing in a hiss of air through his breath, Arheis tried to fight through the pain, getting in another jab, this time at the beast’s chest.
“Are you all right?” Mira yelled, right as he drew in another sharp breath and thrust his spear toward the Ignicris.
“Yeah,” he said, even as he felt that burning sensation spreading over his abdomen. “We have to get these two mostly down before the stun wears off on the others.”
He heard the clicking of Mira’s crossbow as a bolt was loosed, fully expecting it to go into one of the beasts. But the thwack of the blunted tip against his hip made it clear she’d ignored him. Within moments, he felt a cooling sensation all over his body, as though a thin coat of rime was slowly spidering its way over his skin.
> You are no longer afflicted with burn blight.
“Use that on them,” Arheis said, “not me!”
“Only if you stop lying about how injured you are.”
He let out a grunt as he slammed his shield right into an Ignicris’ face, cracking its beak in the process. He’d tried to hide his pain as much as possible, but apparently as a healer Mira had some kind of sixth sense about that sort of thing. Either that or he sucked at faking it.
Her next bolt did fly at the roughest-looking Ignicris, though, thwacking it right on the back of the head. What had been a brief sting and then relieving cold to Arheis seemed like pure agony for the creature in front of him, and he almost felt bad for the thing. It stumbled backward, flailing and taking the other Ignicris down with it in a heap of feathers and limbs, all while ice spread over its body in a thin coating.
Zindar slashed at the pair as they went down, sending blood in a spray. As soon as his blades did their damage, though, his entire posture turned into one of fear. “Oh, balls. I cut the stomach. Get down!”
The stomach…? Why would that matter? As Zindar dove away from the beasts, Arheis had a brief flash of memory that included blood, guts, and bodily tissue flying every which way in a massive… explosion.
Oh, fuck.
He tried to move, pushing off with one foot and pivoting away from the beasts, but everything progressed in slow motion. The Ignicris writhed, the pressurized gases in its stomach beginning to seep from the wound. It would explode any moment now, he just knew it. And he wasn’t going to be able to get clear of it. He was going to have to respawn and suffer yet another blow to his Morale, leaving his friends alone to clean up the mess.
But just as he was resigning himself to his fate, he felt someone tug him down. He was hurled to the ground, the sudden impact knocking the breath from his lungs and making it impossible to grasp what had happened. The explosion sounded with a loud bang, spraying viscera and the Ignicris’ last meal all over him with a brutal, wet slop. His ears were ringing, but he wasn’t hurt. He’d managed to make it out of the blast radius.
Or rather, someone had pushed him out of it.
When he was finally able to take in his surroundings, he saw—and felt—Mira lying half on top of him, her arms covering her head. She’d full-on tackled him to save his life, even knowing he wouldn’t technically die. That was… a lot more than he could process right now.
“Thanks,” he managed, breathless.
She nodded, pushing herself off of him. Arheis used his spear to get off the ground, noting Zindar was able to just spring up with ease. The Pruvari looked behind him, and Arheis could guess at his focus. He turned in the direction of the two remaining Ignicris and saw they were, indeed, no longer stunned. And both were currently running at them with that ridiculous yet effective gait.
“Let’s make this quick,” Zindar said, his transmitter glowing with a bright yellow light.
Clouds blanketed the sky, blocking out the sun with their mass, and Arheis heard the telltale sound of thunder rolling in the distance. Arheis got back into position with Mira close by, her crossbow aimed at the nearest Ignicris. She fired, and he immediately used that opportunity to Shield Bash the creature, forcing its head and neck into an awkward position.
The clicking sound of a firestarter chilled the blood in his veins, but Mira was quick to fire off another one of those cooling bolts—straight at the beast’s mouth. It staggered backward, giving Zindar—and his newly appeared spirit—time to sink both blade and antler into its chest. Summoning all his strength, Arheis thrust his spear into the beast as well.
> You pierce Ignicris for 63 points of damage. (+15% Sharp bonus)
> Ignicris is staggered!
The three of them unloaded on the poor beast, Arheis keeping the other busy with well-timed blocks and a Shield Bash when his stamina would allow it. It felt like they were working together as one unit, each a part of a well-oiled machine. Especially he and Mira. It was almost as if she knew where he was going to be at any given moment and could anticipate when she’d have an opportunity to shoot over his shoulder and when she needed to hang back. He also felt far more aware of when she was drawing attention from either of the beasts, and he was able to stop the threat change before it happened, each and every time.
The second set of kills happened seamlessly, with only a few scratches here and there and absolutely no explosion. The last Ignicris collapsed, letting out a puff of putrid gas through its still open mouth, and the system messages rolled in.
> You have slain Ignicris! You have gained 33 XP.
