Hunter and the Hunted [Job/Solo]

Job stuff:

Garret leaned up against a tree, panting from the running. He looked over to Marinus Nerva, and whispered loud enough for the man to hear him. "The hell am I doing here?" This wasn't the first time Garret had asked that very same question during the mission that day. The sound of stampeding footprints and the howl of a dangerous beast echoed out not too far away from them.

Marinus shook his head, looking back to Garret. "I told you that you should have just left this to me. Would have been a simple clean-up job. The man was holding back a laugh, and had a grin on his face that made little of the fact that they were in a lot of danger at that moment.

Garret grunted, looking up at the tree branches above him and thinking back on how he had gotten into this mess in the first place...

OOC:
156/1500 word count.

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Garret sat at the head of the staff table, listening to to the details of the meetings. They finished their latest topic and flipped to the next page for the topic they had slated for the meeting. An important topic was broached by Aurelius Janius with the details on the following papers containing the information relevant to the discussion. "It looks like the project for determining a site for the construction of the new city, named 'Portsmouth', has met some complications." The others read the papers, as did Garret. Frowning, Garret looked back up to Aurelius. "As you can see, there are dangerous species in the area. Our evaluation of the danger in this area doesn't show good things for start-up construction as is."

It was at this point that Iulius spoke up. "I see. Are there any plans in motion that addresses these concerns? Are we able to simply relocate the 'choice' location to a nearby spot and retain advantages?" Iulius understood that the level of resources it would take to clear the forest of those dangers were high. The real question was 'would it be more cost effective to choose a new location, or does this particular location have such a strong benefit that we should fight for it?'

OOC:
156+217 = 373/1500

Lieutenant Acius spoke up at this point. "Actually, that location has been determined to be the best location to start up another city. This was after taking into consideration distances from other cities and ports, as well as access to various raw materials. These materials can be used not only to assist in the construction of the port city itself but also as a means of supplying additional support to the Imuchakk peoples that we are allied to. Mind you, we must also keep in mind how busy the ports themselves are, and to make sure that the distance between Narpolia and Portsmouth are far enough so that the cities do not 'cannibalize' each other by stealing business."

Quintus Titus spoke next, clearing his throat before he did so. "My apologies, but where are we going to find the funding for such a project as hunting down ferocious beasts? A majority of the gold that Spymaster Garret has brought is in use for funding the new city itself, and while part of that is invested in the ownership and operations of a large Inn as well as a Restaurant, that is an investment in the future and we will be unable to collect in the meantime."

"Heheh. Hahahaha! Marinus Nerva laughed, cutting through the discussion. The table went silent, and all heads turned to him. Once he was finished laughing, he slapped his knee with his hand, planting that hand in place and leaning forward with an eyebrow raised. "Sounds like you've got an issue that needs troubleshooting. We should keep this in-house. I'll take care of it."


OOC:

276+373 = 649/1500 word count

Everyone was silent for a moment, looking to each other. Garret brought up what was on everyone's mind. "If you're tied up with this, it means we won't be able to use your assistance for other matters." That was the obvious thing that was on the other's minds, but what he said next was only expected by Lieutenant Acius, who knew Garret well, and Maximus Cypriatus who was known for his skill in reading people. "I'll join you. Together, we should be able to make faster work of this."

That brought about a few arguments, but after a while it died down and the end decision resulted in Garret and Marinus Nerva taking on the mission.

OOC:

118+649 = 767/1500

The two found themselves in the forest, near the spot where Portsmouth would be built. Garret couldn't help but be impressed with the size of the forest itself as it covered a large portion of the area, yet he still noted that the trees were spread out enough for it to seem like a light density location. Marinus and Garret walked through the forest, continuing to search for signs of the beasts they were to slay. While Garret seemed somewhat cheerful, Marinus held a serious look about him.

Hours passed, and their search on the first day ended with nothing. Setting up camp Garret took first watch, allowing Marinus to sleep. When it came time, they reversed roles. Nothing untoward occurred that first night, and as such the duo continued their hunt the next morning.


Marinus seemed to be noting small details about the forest, and moved with a purpose. Garret couldn't help but ask the man if he was on the trail of something. "You've caught the trail of something?"

Marinus paused, looking back to Garret before motioning him forward. He pointed to a tree in the distance, and Garret followed it. He saw a broken tree branch. "Look over there. That branch. I believe it was recently broken. We might be on the right track, but it's still some distance away. We'll need to get closer and see if it's one of our 'trouble species'."

Garret nodded. Just what all does this man know how to do? Tracking itself wasn't something out of the ordinary for a member of the operations force to know, but that 'training' didn't include various beasts. By the confidence Marinus showed in his steps, Garret wondered just how skilled this man was at the tracking of such creatures. The true extent of the man's knowledge was a mystery to Garret. When they had finally gotten to the tree branch, there was something that even Garret would see as obvious; the two sets of footprints, one of which was half a meter long whereas the other was a meter long.

OOC:

352+767 = 1119/1500

Garret and Marinus nodded at each other, and a thin smile came upon Marinus' face. The hunt was on. Both Marinus and Garret began running, moving through the forest at a decent speed. Garret noted that Marinus seemed to be moving in an extremely agile way, and had no difficulties turning about. Garret briefly wondered whether or not the man was using Magoi Manipulation to move in such a manner. He seemed to be pacing himself at a rate similar to that which Garret was using. The two continued to follow the footprints, and Garret began to tire. His slowing down was matched by Marinus, before the two of them both stopped. While Marinus was fine, Garret was panting. "Looks like... You're not having any issues... With chasing the target." Though Garret was used to running for long periods of time, it was under controlled environmental conditions. The heat from the forest made him sweat and was more difficult to run in, as it took a larger amount of concentration and strength to not fall or trip over any tree roots or poor footing. "The hell am I here for?" Garret shook his head, chuckling. "Tell me, have you hunted beasts before in the past?"

Marinus looked at Garret and considered the choice of his words before speaking. "Yes, I've hunted many things. The most important thing of a hunt is to pay attention to your surroundings. Never let down your guard, and make sure to keep an eye out for anything out of the ordinary..." This was the same for tailing a human opponent, and Garret understood it fairly well. "Though it's said that the most important part of tracking is 'intuition.' It requires experience in hunting that allows you to transfer your ability to hunt specific species to hunting any species." Marinus spoke to Garret as they began moving again, teaching him various animal tracking skills. Impressively enough, much of the advice transferred over to tailing humans, though there was plenty of information that was only relevant to beasts, such as the marks of territory and other such beast-like mannerisms.

OOC:

359+1119 = 1478/1500 word count

Marinus suddenly held his hand up to Garret and the two of them stopped. Garret began looking about, listening to the noise around them. A fast movement caught his sight and he turned to it quickly, pulling out Kuroi Shimo. A beast came charging right for them. This creature was tall; it's height, easily that of 3 men. And its size was nothing to laugh at, either. The sharp teeth and claws were the first thing Garret recognized as the creature's means of hunting. The creature was huge, and it sent a chill down Garret's spine. He breathed in deep and focused on the enemy, casting Jet Stream at the underbelly of the creature. The two orbs of water coalesced at the tip of Garret's wand, generating a 1 meter wide beam of pressurized water which shot forward and struck the creature. The water hit, and the creature screamed out in pain. Garret paused, watching as the creature continued to run towards him. At first he did not believe that the spell was enough to kill the creature; it seemed the scales on the creature's body was able to withstand a certain degree of strength. Yet once the second beam of water struck the creature in the same spot, it split the creature's body, opening it up and killing it while it let out a final death cry. The screech was loud enough to hurt Garret's ears.

This all happened within the span of a few moments, and Marinus turned to Garret with a wild look upon his face. "You fool! That was a cry for help. RUN!" Marinus immediately began running, making a break to the left of where they were moving in the first place. Garret began running as well, making his way past various trees while following Marinus. In the distance, he heard several other squawks very similar to the one that was made by the creature he had already slain. Yet these squawks had a different quality behind them. Are these... Louder? Deeper? He shook his head. He would have to pull out the stops if his opponent was stronger than the one that had nearly ignored his previous spell. After running for a period of time, Garret found himself needing to stop again. He moved behind a tree, and Marinus followed suit, pausing behind a tree not too far away from Garret...


OOC:

408+1478 = 1886/1500 Word Count
270/300 Magoi/Stamina

Abilities Used:

Looking back to the area around him, Garret imagined that they were nearly surrounded. The two sets of footprints were ahead of the position they were tracking, and the opponent came from behind. Thinking back on Marinus' explanation on tracking the beasts and how similar it was to tracking humans, he briefly wondered if they had been double tailed. He dismissed the notion, thinking it a silly one; these beasts, surely, were not that intelligent. The crashing of the beasts footsteps came closer, closing in from behind. Marinus looked over to Garret. "After taking this one out, head back. I can handle the rest of this nest. You'll just get in the way. Believe in my work, and get back to yours."

Garret winced at the words. He felt the man was far above him in terms of overall ability, and the reason he joined Marinus on this mission was not because he didn't believe in the man's work. "Marinus, don't misunderstand me. I wanted to join you on this mission so that I could understand your work better, not because I didn't think you could handle it. I still do not understand how you fight, and what your capabilities are..." Garret paused; he did have another reason, which he had brought up in the meeting. "Though I did also hope to speed this mission up for you."

Marinus stared at Garret for a moment before chuckling. "I see. Interesting. Either way, you'll only hold me back if I have to guard you as well as fight these things. These beasts are known as Gurantarthers, and they have an extremely tough skin making it nearly impossible to fight them easily." He paused again, mulling over a thought before speaking again. "As for my ability, I normally use these..." Marinus showed Garret a small needle , which he had to squint to see. The needle seemed to be made of some sort of silvery material. "Needles that are strong enough to pierce even the thickest of hide."

OOC:

345+1886 = 2231/1500
270/300 Magoi/Stamina

Garret recalled the fight at the Caravan he had with the man on his side. The opponents he had fought had fallen swiftly, and Garret could not even tell how the man was attacking at that point in time. Nodding, Garret agreed with the man's choice. With a better understanding of how the man fought, Garret knew that he would be able to sustain a fight against large numbers. The sounds of the footsteps were drawing closer, and Garret looked to Marinus again. "I'll be awaiting a positive report at the Villa.

Marinus smiled, nodded, and ran off at an incredible speed. Garret rounded the tree, facing off towards the direction the large beast was coming from. In the distance, he saw the creature approaching. Larger than the one he had killed earlier, Garret realized that these creatures likely hunted in pairs. The reason this one was the first to get to them was because it was the hunting partner of the other one that he had killed earlier. Garret leveled Kuroi Shimo towards the beast and intoned the commands to the Rukh that would allow him to cast Ice Explosion. The ball of ice moved out at 25 m/s. Approximately a second and a half was all it took for the two to collide with each other, and his spell let out a deafening explosion of sound and ice, scaring many creatures in the process and causing them to run from the area. The spell shred the large creature, finishing it in one go. He did not want to get anywhere close to such a creature.

Garret turned back to the south, and made his way back to the Villa with the supplies he had left.


OOC:

291+2231 = 2522/1500 Word Count
230/300 Magoi/Stamina

Abilities Used: