The journey to Goart village was short and mostly uneventful. The queue to exit the city was significantly shorter than when we had first entered. We were out of the city and on the road towards the farm within an hour. We’d be given a private room in the guildhall when we returned, a safe place store items was apparently a necessity if one joined the Warrior’s guild.

Despite my initial apprehensions about the quest, I was starting to get excited. This contract was an opportunity to improve myself through earning a bit of prestige. If we could complete this contract with flying colors then maybe we would be able to start building a good reputation amongst our peers at the hall which might lead to better contracts in the future.

I looked down at the armor I was wearing around my chest, its iron plates overlapping to form a protective barrier over my chest. With each step the metallic pieces ground against each other and clattered together in a chorus of defense, I had chosen protection over stealth to be sure. Orion’s armor by contrast was very quiet, his small form barely making any noise at all as he marched by my side. Any attack that he made first might be able to take an enemy by surprise. In our future fight against the dogs it might be a good idea for me to draw their attention first and then have Orion ambush them, if the terrain permitted such a tactic.

During our walk to the village we discussed this and many other strategies that came to mind. If we were going to get good at these combat oriented quests then we needed to start learning how to plan our movements prior to the actual fight. In my previous life I had learned that military battles were often won before the fighting began. A commander needed to focus on gathering knowledge about the enemy, debating tactics that could be used, and planning around one’s supplies and logistics. The first two focuses were very relevant in our current situation as the more information we could gather about our enemy the more prepared we would be to fight them.

Even so, the best made plans never survived contact with the enemy. People almost never act the way you predict they will and the same could be said for animals. Plans needed to be flexible and broad enough to adapt to any situation while still being rigid enough to organize in the first place. It was a fine balancing act that any good leader had to learn and the only way they could do so was through practice. Fortunately for Orion and I, we only had to worry about ourselves rather than having to worry about coordinating others. The advice still applied to us but its extent wouldn’t need to be fully considered in our case.

After reaching the village, we asked for directions to the quest giver’s farm. We were pointed towards a small plot of land south of the village beyond the first few hills. The small hut situated on the land was built on a dark wooden frame and had a thatched roof. A gravel path leading to Goart was packed down outside a fence surrounding the property, obviously well travelled. A rickety wooden fence made of what looked like spare branches surrounded the property and contained what looked like cattle within. A short burly man was working on a small tilled plot of soil near the west side of the hut.

Upon hearing the clattering of my armor he looked up at us, grabbed his pitchfork, and started walking toward the fence, “Get off my property before I stick ya!” He shoved the pointed end of the tool towards both of us as we stopped a few feet away.

“Sir we’re members of the Warrior’s guild here to fulfill your contract.” Orion responded kindly after showing his copper medallion.

The man scowled looking us up and down, “You’re beastmen. I specifically asked for no beastmen.” The points of his pitchfork lowered but it was clear he wasn’t happy about the help that had arrived.

I tried to ignore the previous comment as I tried to act as professionally as possible, “We understand that you’ve got a bit of a problem with some feral dogs taking your livestock? If you could show us the last spot you saw the animals we think that we might be able to help with that.”

He stood there for a moment considering what I’d said. His pitchfork scraped the gravel as he debated on whether to accept the offer of help, “Fine, you can help, but you’re sleeping outside. I’m not having any flea-ridden Ferrin dirtying up my house.” He opened the small wooden gate he’d been so valiantly guarding with his pitchfork before leading us towards a section of fencing on the far side of his plot.

The cattle were grazing in the glow of the amber sunset. A small pond provided the 20 or so heads drinking water while the cleared field provided ample grass on which to graze. The fence that protected them was much less picturesque. The fence was cracked or broken in many places along the section. Its bracing was just sturdy enough that it still presented a visual barrier to the cows however, any smart predator would be able to get through it with a little bit of effort. In the corner where the fences came together the grass was still stained slightly red with the blood of a slaughtered animal.

“Right here is where they’ve been taking them. My cattle bed down in this corner most nights and I’ve already lost three animals to these dogs. I saw them chewing on the bones of my favorite cow the first time they took one and I can't afford to lose anymore.” He stopped and pointed at the corner of the fence, “I had to butcher what was left of one of them right there as they watched from the woods. It was probably the most scared I’ve been in a while.”

I was examining the fence as he was talking. The majority of the fence was undamaged but on one small section in particular there were several large claw marks. No other section of the fence that I’d surveyed had the same kind of damage. As well as the claw marks, some branches in the section were even splintered and slightly cracked, “We’re going to set up camp here for the night. How many nights has it been since you lost an animal?” I said, still examining the marks on the fence.

“They’ve taken one animal every night for the last three nights. I put in the request after I lost my first one.” Looking towards the hut I noticed that there were a few small hay bales laying near the plot the farmer had been working on. I headed over to them and started to haul them over near the fence, forming a small rectangle big enough to lay in. At this point he started yelling at me, “What are you doing furball, I just got those baled and now you’re tracking hay across my property?!”

I responded nonchalantly, “We need these to protect your cattle tonight. We’ll put them back in the morning.” Orion had started helping me while the burly man continued to complain. Eventually as the sun was setting, he gave up his protests and went inside, commenting on the world of hurt we’d be in if we stole anything. Finally we could begin our preparations for the night.

Hours passed as we laid behind the bales of hay, the ground below the night sky was illuminated by the radiance of the full moons. The fenceline, usually obscured in darkness at this time of night, was visible to the naked eye. Orion laid next to me, spear in his right hand and armor donned, there would be no sleep for either of us tonight. We both peered over the hay, our presence hidden behind our makeshift barrier.

Suddenly my eyes caught movement. A large quadruped silhouette traced the fence line towards the weakened section. Its large sharp claws scraped over the wood as it made its way inside, slowly stalking toward the sleeping livestock. From the claw marks I’d observed, I’d figured that it might not have been feral dogs taking his cattle. From the shadow it gave off however, I couldn’t tell exactly what it was. Whatever it was, it was big, its muscles rippled clearly with each move it made even under the dimly lit night sky. Its elongated features and whiplike tail swayed back and forth in the moonlight as the creature’s body stalked perfectly flush with the ground, flowing through its depressions almost as if it were a river.

When the creature was halfway to the livestock I sprange my trap. Getting up and sprinting over to the weakened section of the enclosure, I stood guard over the exit, sword and shield at the ready. Because of the huge amount of noise my armor was making, the large creature spun around to break for the exit and found me blocking its path. Its eyes locked with mine and I finally got a good look at it. The beast had a sleek black coat of fur covering its entire body and black spines protruded from its back. It’s claws were tiger-like while its face resembled that of a panther, at the top of my vision its species name appeared, “Namori”. I heard a deep growl as the creature realized it had lost its avenue of escape. As it growled its fur began to trace itself with red light. The glow traced its path through the monster’s fur, flowing through channels carved into the creature’s flesh until it swirled to trace its entire shape.

A strange feeling pulsed through my body as I watched the glow of the creatures bioluminescence. I tensed up and brought my shield in front of my body a split second before two of its red traced spines darted forward. The projectiles were blindingly fast and impacted my shield with enough force to stagger me backwards. Before I could regain my balance another warning pinged through my mind and I dove out of the way. Two more spines embedded themselves in the fence behind where I had been standing.

Quickly rolling to my feet I readied myself for another attack. The Namori was in a full sprint towards me, its strides covering the distance in seconds. At the last possible moment I sidestepped and brought my sword down, slicing through the flesh of its paw as its claws passed within inches of where I now stood. It yowled in pain as its tail came around and bashed me in the side, flinging me back. I was able to remain on my feet by some miracle as I watched my health drop by 20.

My shield came up again to block my face as I felt its claws rake across the buckler. I heard the beast yowl in pain again and I instinctively thrust my sword, embedding it deep into the monster’s side before withdrawing it and jumping back. It wheeled on me, baring its fangs that were also glowing with the same red fluid as the rest of its body. Orion had wounded it badly while it had been focused on me, his spear had penetrated deep into the creature’s neck where luminescent red fluid could be seen seeping onto its fur.

Orion stabbed it again in the back leg and it turned to swipe at him, missing him by only a few inches. I dodged to the side as its tail whipped out to hit me again and brought my sword down hard, the force of the blow slicing clean through the flesh of the tail, severing it from its master. The Namori roared as its eyes fixated on me, filled with hatred and agony. Before I could heed the warning that flooded my mine I felt a sharp pain in my right arm and my health dropped by another 20.

The creature lunged at me and feeling the spikes embedded in my arm, I was unable to bring my sword up. In desperation I raised my shield as the monster tackled me, its weight pressing down on my chest like a vice as razor sharp fangs snapped at my face. Drool, slobber, and blood filled my vision as I hysterically fought against the murderous beast, trying to keep its jaws from crushing my skull.

Just when I thought my left arm was about to break under the pressure there was a sickening crack as a copper spear tip lodged itself into the soil next to my ear. The Namori violently convulsed as it collapsed onto me, the shaft of the weapon protruding through its eye socket.

Namori (Level 8)

0/800 Experience

90/90 Health ----

60/60 Stamina ------

60/60 Mana --

40/40 Spirit ---

‘0’ Stat Points Available

Racial Ability - (Luminescent Hunt)

Skills: (Rage) (Projectile Spike)