Think they know better.
They think the veteran and senior hunters are all just cowards for sticking to crossbows and swords.
'but guns are strong and you just need more bullets and to hide in a tree and make sure you don't get ambushed and soon you'll be the strongest and best Hunter ever' Is what the newbie thinks.
And now nobody has heard from the new hunter in weeks because they got snatched by a Wendigo the second they fired a round within one kilometer of one.
Don't worry, we'll add their name to the wall, the one for all the hunters who went MIA. Maybe someday a new hunter will look at it and finally decide maybe they won't try to use a gun when everyone else sticks with medieval weapons for some reason. The reason is because we don't want to die.
Guns are for militias and the people on the walls where being loud won't get you killed. Where an anti-air system will fire missiles into any dragons that look at us funny.
We don't get that luxury. We get to go into the dark corners of the world where the light and anti-tank missiles don't reach.
- Retired Tier VII Hunter 'Commander' Lecture On Guns
Shit.
The moment my brain boots back up I realize I’ve made a huge mistake, my already sore body having not appreciated the lack of proper sleeping posture. Still, a stiff neck and beginning of a headache pales in comparison to the disgusting feeling of all the grime and dirt that’s now dried onto my skin. On top of that I'll need to clean my sheets, blanket, comforter, pillow cases, and pretty much everything on my bed now. Dammit I should have taken a shower first and done the upgrades in the morning.
I try not to dwell on it too much while I’m roughly shoving everything into a hamper before pulling out a clean change of clothes. I’m not planning on doing any missions so casual is fine. An oversized black t-shirt with jagged pink lettering that says ‘Kill by death’ and a pair of white cargo shorts. I add a white cap, socks, and pink topped sneakers to the ensemble for when I’m clean and actually fit to wear anything. It’s going to feel like I’m missing a layer of skin without the fatigues, but if I’m going to be celebrating I want to wear something casual, something cute.
The walk down the hall to the women’s communal showers is a bit nerve wracking. Even though there are stalls and I’ve been told there wouldn’t be any issues I still use the private shower room. It only takes one person to ruin my day and have to add another thing to look over my shoulder for, not to mention how uncomfortable being exposed around others is. I hate having to think about this, I'm already missing being outside the walls.
Thankfully nothing happens, same as every other day, and I’m in and out and clean in no time at all. Phew, there’s nothing quite as refreshing as a fresh set of clothes after a good scrub.
A quick brush has me looking at loose brown strands of my shoulder length hair and contemplating a haircut, but I decide to tie it up into a ponytail instead and splash some cleanser and moisturizer on my face to finish up. Nothing fancy, just enough to keep me from looking like I just rolled out of bed. I use the time I’m brushing my teeth to psyche myself up for the rest of the day, it’s going okay so far at least so I'm hoping it stays that way.
First day as a hunter, let’s see if I can snag a decent mission.
I get to the admin building just in time for the offices to open, which is about the time I bump into my mentor. He’s looking about as well as always, which is to say a complete and utter mess. His curly black hair is almost past his ears and borderline greasy from stress and lack of care, while his intense brown eyes dart around the room like he’s currently in a nest of Stalkers. I can see a few more wrinkles on his dark skin than I remember, but these at least seem like they’re from old age. He might be paranoid as all hell and not know the meaning of off-duty, but I learned a lot from him and he’s a pretty nice guy.
“Alex.” he calls out in the usual gravelly tone.
Despite my attempt to come across as stoic I’m still smiling warmly at the man when I speak. “Hey captain Evan, did you hear I’m a graduate now. Shiny new badge and everything.”
“Heh, I heard.” He says with an amused snort. “Congrats kid. Though you checked in a bit late, ran into a little trouble on the way back right?”
“Yea, though I don’t remember mentioning anything. How do you know I didn’t just take my time?” I say a little petulantly, but he simply gives me his classic twitchy smile.
“Saw your fry pan enchantment ditched at the gate, needs a core so it would have been on the way back. Through the suburbs I’m guessing from the pan. Detour from the anomaly? Back around old Arlington then, Leaping Lizard or Chomper judging by the blue-ish color from the flecks of blood and the area you were in." He spouts off in a knowing tone and I half expected him to say he was shadowing me as he’s been a bit overprotective at times. I’m not sure how to respond to the fairly accurate assessment, but I guess that’s the reaction he was looking for with the smug look on his face.
You wait until I pass your tier old man, then we’ll see who’s smug.
“Anyway, figured you were due for a graduation gift.” He says as he tosses me a thumb sized chunk of metal and my heart practically stops when I realize what it is.
“Titansteel.” I whisper out as I snatch it out of the air and cradle the gift in my hands.
“Yup, with a basic shifting inscription, tier two of course. Figured a smart girl like you would get a lot of use out of a damn near invincible multitool like that.”
He passes by me with a pat on the shoulder as I’m staring at the piece of legendary metal in awe. I only managed to snap out of it long enough to spin around and shout an enthusiastic “Thanks captain!” before he’s gone.
I fiddle with the metal chunk as I get in line to sign up for a mission. A little pang of sadness and guilt twisting inside me when I realize I probably won’t see him as much anymore now that I’m not an initiate he’s training. He’s been there for me ever since I stumbled into the area outside the Pittsburgh outpost as a kid, barely eleven years old at the time. A runaway claiming to be orphaned after a monster attack destroyed one of those crazy settlements that tries to pop up in the wilds every now and then.
I never told him the truth, even after all this time he still thinks I’m an orphan and not just ashamed and scared of being sent back to my parents. People don’t look at you the same when they find out your family are Second Adventists. Even worse if the Adventists find out and try to ‘rescue’ you back to the United States of God’s America up north.
There’s no ‘help’ like a Second Adventists help and not for the first time I wish my parents could have been part of a less awful group like the Jesus Walks Among Us people at the soup kitchens or Mother Mary’s Gospel and their battle nuns.
Instead I got stuck with the fascists, trying to bring back the ‘Good old America where men were men and women knew their place and there was no queer people and everyone was Christian’. And of course Jesus is back, the new and improved Jesus Jerry Falgood because the real Jesus is apparently a Dictator who punishes anyone who is un-American or un-Christian, often with execution or torture. Sorry I meant to say ‘Letting the lord judge them’ and ‘reconditioning’.
“Excuse me Miss, what is it you need help with today.”
I’m broken out of the spiraling rant in my head by the bored and somewhat goth looking clerk working the front desk. Everyone in front of me had been sorted out while I was ruminating it seems.
“Hi, yea, I’m uhhh looking for a posting for a new hunter. Yea…” I mumble awkwardly, my brain refusing to get back on track.
Real smooth Alex.
The guy shuffles some papers and I can’t help but notice the black nail polish and silver ring shaped like a crow. It matches the upside down cross earrings and black eyeliner, the contrast with the way too innocent baby face underneath being kinda cute. I might be losing my mind, but the part of me that’s been enjoying the day so far is wondering if maybe he’d be interested in coffee.
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
That’s an innocent, getting to know each other kind of thing right? Fuck, I have no idea I’ve never done anything like this before. I must actually be losing my mind.
“Scouting in Fort Worth, Convoy plus investigation for Phoenix, Convoy to Houston and back, and East Gate patrol.” The cute clerk lists off.
Okay focus.
I don’t want anything to do with Fort Worth for a while so “Hows the- I mean what’s the pay for the Phoenix job.” I fumble out.
Dammit, get it together girl, you’re embarrassing yourself here!
The clerk lifts a brow with wide eyes as he scans over the posting, which clashes with the serious goth thing he’s obviously going for and it just ends up being seriously adorable.
“Five thousand marks for completion of the contract.”
“Holy shit, I’ll take it!” I blurt out as if the job will disappear, but also five thousand marks could cover food for a whole year.
I hear some gasps and muttered cursing from the people behind me. First come first serve suckers. Looks like it'll be a pretty darn good day today.
The clerk starts filling out the paperwork then spins the sheet over to me to sign while I’m humming a little bit in happiness.
Now or never.
“So I’m uh, Alex by the way-” I start.
“I’m gay.” He states matter of fact, interrupting my stammering.
“Right right, cool, yea.” my cheeks are burning as I hand over the signed paper and receive a copy.
Argh! Why did I do that!?
He waves me off with a deadpan “Have a good day ma’am.” and I practically bolt out of there.
Forgetting that little blunder, I head over to a little hole in the wall cafe called Jimmy’s Beans to look over the contract details. I even pay for an expensive regular coffee that’s not mixed with anything, even if it costs me five entire marks.
Gotta make up for the mess that didn't just happen. Happy thoughts.
I take a sip and savor the earthy blend as I look through the documents. Phoenix, a little outpost town fifty kilometers to the west over in what's left of Arizona. Something fast and deadly tore through their outer wall and chewed up the livestock and left. Unlikely to happen again, but it's better to stamp out small problems before they become big ones.
Damage and eyewitness reports point to a desert stalker which isn't a huge threat. It might be a bit terrifying at seven feet tall and looking like a body builder crossed with a dinosaur, but still not all that threatening. The HMGs in the settlement would turn it into pulp the moment it comes back, It might even get taken out before I arrive there.
On the scale of monster threats it's a reasonable level for a new hunter. What's more concerning is the convoy guard duty, Dallas to Santa Fe to Phoenix. There’s no telling what you’ll run into on the road even if there are frequent patrols, it’s fortunate that it's a small detachment. Six armored humvees to go with the six hunters and twelve militia guarding them, including one mounted HMG, and a Tier seven hunter Artemis.
Oh my God I get to work with Artemis, I really hope I don’t fangirl too much, I don’t want to make a fool of myself in front of her.
Artemis is a legend and everything I look up to in a hunter. Always prepared, never afraid, fierce and deadly with a bow. She takes on the less glamorous jobs without complaint and is a pillar of the Hunter’s Guild. She’s also been around for over a century even if she doesn’t look a day over forty. She’s my biggest inspiration and my biggest crush, back before I even knew I liked other girls.
Ugh, I can already tell I’m going to make an absolute idiot of myself in front of her. I just hope I don’t do anything too embarrassing.
Alright, professional time, think about what I need for this job and what I can afford. First is to attune the titansteel, so I will a little mana through the mana veins in my body into the inscription on it. That should keep it powered from my core until it moves too far from me or I sever the link, or so I've read.
[Name: Alexandra Summers]
Core Type: Crystaline ■
Core Power: 65/100
Stored Power: 35
[Nervous System]
-none-
[Frame]
-Burst Muscle ■-
[Internal]
-none-
[External]
-Shapechanging Metal ■■-
Twenty isn’t too bad for a tier two enchantment and I can think of a million uses for a nigh indestructible metal that can take any shape. I try to stretch it out as much as I can but it only gets to about the size of my palm which makes sense. Any piece large enough for armor is practically priceless and it’s impossible to fully combine the smaller pieces.
There’s only one person I know of with titansteel armor and that’s the tier eight hunter, Lyon the Golem. Even then, his armor is dozens of shapechanged pieces of titansteel all interlinked together with the largest only being about the size of a fist. He’s also the person who discovered the ‘nigh’ part of nigh-Indestructable during the Vegas Incident.
That reminds me, I need to pick up the new copy of Hunter Monthly… Enough about that, I’ve got two thousand marks and sixty-five core power to plan around.
Another detector is right out since I’d need tier four to deal with the cores from the other people. Running out of arrows was a significant issue and I'm not sure I'll be able to retrieve them on the road so a replicating quiver would be great. The cost is a problem since even the cheap ones run about two thousand, but I can save significantly by making my own.
I should also make a classic stamina combo, it's only thirty core power and there's a reason pretty much everyone uses them.
I’ve got a list and a plan so I finish up the rest of my coffee, taking a deep breath to ease the tension from my body. Everything is still stiff from the long day yesterday and the materials warehouse is on the other side of the inner city.
Tossing the paper cup in the compost bin, I slip out the front of the small shop and start heading toward the east side. Walking down the flat sidewalks is a pleasant change from the uneven mess outside the walls, especially for my sore legs. When I get to a crossing there are a few bikes that pass which leaves me with no small amount of envy.
I should splurge on my own bike soon, maybe even one with a small electric motor since I’ve got the core to power the mana battery. They’re heavily regulated so it might be a pain, but I’ll take that over being able to do whatever you want if you have the money. Ugh, I can still taste the smog and gas fumes from when I was living in the USGA.
It’s closing in on noon by the time I get to the wholesaler and finish buying what I need. Unfortunately I was right on target for the costs, no discounts for non-bulk purchases and nothing on sale. It’s to be expected since haggling with an established business over sale prices usually just gets you unamused glares and annoyed sales clerks. I’ve blown almost my entire savings, but considering the payout and the fact that I’d like to come back alive to cash out it’ll be worth it.
I know there’s a market for bartering and haggling near where the inner city ends and the farmland begins, but you never know what you’ll find there. Which is not great unless you’ve got time to burn and the convoy heads out tomorrow morning so I don’t have much of that.
With my materials packed up I head back to HQ and spend the rest of the evening in the workshop putting everything together. Tom is there, the cute clerk I made an ass of myself in front of, but it’s only awkward for a little while. He keeps burning his hand on the soldering iron so I end up steeling myself and heading over to help him, which is how I learned his name.
It was a bit uncomfortable at first trying to convince him I didn’t have any ulterior motive, but I managed to break the ice with a joke about how I knew it wouldn’t work out since every girl I like is straight and every guy I like is gay. Turns out he’s crushing on one of the new hunter guys and claimed he could fix his radio for him despite the guy showing no interest and Tom having zero knowledge of electronics.
Nice to know we’re both idiots.
With no small amount of cursing I finally get the thing back in working order and I wave him off with a ‘good luck’ before I start making my own gear. Replicating Quivers aren’t too complicated, you only need a slot for the base arrow and an inscription for a construct of mana based on a pre-existing object. The two snags are faster replication takes more power and the mana construct is just a chunk of mana that looks like an object and lasts until the mana drains out.
The first is easier, I just tune it to about one construct every three seconds, so the moment I pull the replicated arrow out it will take three seconds to form another. There’s some complicated formula in the textbook that will give you an approximation of core power, but also a big emphasis on the guessing part because mana acts more like a living thing with behaviors that we work around.
The second issue is more of a pain, it’s not actually an arrow so I need to make a more complicated structure that works similar to an arrow. Dense and tough for the arrowhead, strong but some flexibility for the body, and very flexible for the fins.
I go through six separate iterations of the circle before I finally get an arrow as good as the one it’s replicating while making certain the end result only eats up thirty core power to keep working. It’s probably even a bit better since the fake arrowhead is bordering titanium in strength from what I tested.
For the stamina combo I end up just copying inscriptions for the remaining three enhancements from the textbook, all of which are inscribed around a leather armband. The HQ library has a whole compendium of free enchantment circles to use, the only reason I made a new one for the quiver is because it’s based on the newer market models and not the older one in the book.
It’s also fun to work with designing my own stuff. It’s like that historical piece that was very famous in its time period, ‘girl’s just wanna have fun’.
I start snickering at my own corny joke which is usually a sign that I need to take a break. It’s a good thing all of my preparations are done for the day and there’s even some time left to get through more of ‘My Husband’s A Mimic, But Our Love Isn’t Fake’.
It’d be nice to get through the rest because that’s not a book I’m taking where people can see.
Giving one last look at my status, everything appears to be in order so I think I’m ready for tomorrow.
[Name: Alexandra Summers]
Core Type: Crystalline ■
Core Power: 5/100
Stored Power: 30
[Nervous System]
-none-
[Frame]
-Burst Muscle ■-
[Internal]
-none-
[External]
-Replicating Inscription ■■-
-Shapechanging Metal ■■-
-Minor Muscle Recovery ■-
-Minor Nerve Recovery ■-
-Minor Blood Oxygenation ■-