• Chapter 1: A New Hope for a Dark Future

    The town of Lynn was abuzz with the newest and highest rewarding bounties just posted in the square. All bounty hunters of every race, species, and gender were gathered in the square to try and get their hands on the highest paying bounty their class could handle. “Man…Do you see that?” One of the bounty hunters pulled his partner over to the board and pointed to a bounty that lay un-touched. His partner squinted his eyes, before gaping dumbly at the posted bounty. “The bounty on ‘The Immortal’ has gone up again!?” He nodded his head and his partner let out an exasperated sigh. “That guy is impossible to kill…and still the bounty on his head just keeps going up…” “Whoever brings that b*****d down will be one lucky son of b***h that’s for sure. We better get a move on ourselves. Griffons don’t hatch themselves you know.”

    The guy and his partner left as a young woman with chestnut brown hair came walking into the square. She was drinking a pint of ale as she lazily looked over the posted bounties that were left over from this morning’s dash and grab. Bright jade green eyes widen as she dropped her ale when they landed on the bounty for The Immortal.. “Fifty million for a body…One hundred million for him to be brought in alive!!!” She took the flyer off the board and looked at the wanted man. His hair covered his entire face and seemed to go on forever. Only a sliver of his left eye was visible, but nothing more. He was dark and mysterious, but all that did was entice her more to take the bounty. “I wouldn’t go after that guy if I were you Meiya…He isn’t called The Immortal for nothing.”

    The young woman called Meiya turned around and narrowed her eyes as she noticed the man leaning on the side of a building. A jagged scare covered his right eyes as shaggy red-orange hair fell into his face and slightly passed his shoulders. His arms were loosely crossed about his chest while his good eye studied her intently. “Oh? And what would you know about him, Kei? After losing your eye to that Wraith, you rarely take on bounties. So how would you about this ‘Immortal’ character?” She folded up the flyer and put it in a black pouch that hung at her hip before crossing her arms and glaring at the guy before her. “It may have been awhile, but I still know more than you Little Crescent Slayer. He is the one bounty that can never be killed by any means. I’ve only seen him once, but I will never forget that encounter…”

    Meiya just rolled her eyes as she shifted lightly on her feet. She was anxious to get out of Lynn and head over to Kyrin to where a large wolf was wrecking havoc. “Oh really? So what does this ‘Immortal’ look like then?” She then began to make her way to the north side of town where a large black panther was awaiting her arrival. Kei glared at her with his good eye as he walked with her through the market place. “His hair is as dark as a raven’s feathers and as long as a unicorn’s mane.” Meiya snorted as she began to purchase some dried meats and rice for the trip. “A unicorn’s mane huh?” Kei huffed out angrily as she placed her goods in a black sack. “Nothing is as long as a unicorn’s mane. My hair unbound isn’t even as long as that!” She laughed as she bought some more things for the trip.

    “But it is true none the less! His skin is as pale as the moon and those eyes…those eyes were like bewitching gems…:” Meiya giggled as Kei began to day dream while filling her black sack with a few vegetables and sweets. “My Kei…It sounds more like you are smitten with our ‘Immortal ‘friend!” Kei flushed a slight pink as Meiya paid and thank the shop keeper. “I-I’m not smitten! They’re just…ya know…interesting…” He began to mumble to himself as he shoved his hands in his pockets. “Yes and I love to play with other women.” Kei stuck his tongue out at her as he began to follow her to the edge of Lynn. She rubbed a black panther with blue eyes on the head as it purred lovingly. “I’m serious Meiya…I’ve seen him shot, stabbed, and even set aflame. Nothing can hurt this guy. He truly is an immortal. I’ve heard that he is even over a millennia now.”

    Meiya took his words to heart, but on the outside she just seemed to be ignoring his wishes. Grabbing her by the wrist, Kei turned her around and made her face him. “I’m begging you Meiya…Please don’t pursue him. You’re still very young and have your whole life ahead of you. A meaningless death is all that awaits you if you chase after him. You may be a high ranking bounty hunter, but he is not your typical bounty.” Meiya sighed in defeat as she embraced Kei tightly. He was only trying to look out for her as he had for years. He was the only person she could actually count on. “Alright already…I won’t go chase him down. But I do have another bounty over in Kyrin that I’m dying to get my hands on.” She gave him another tight hug before she mounted her large black panther and taking off.

    “Hey…uh…s’cuse me but, did Crescent Slayer say she was going over to Kyrin?” Kei turned to the side to see a curious hunter looking off in the direction Meiya just left in while giving a worried look. “Yes. That is what she said.” “Huh…Well…there’s this rumor going around that The Immortal has been sighted in that area…There’s an even worse one saying that he knew Crescent’s mother…” Kei‘s heart leapt into his throat. “Wh-What?!” “You worried about her right? There is no need. He’s not going to harm a little girl.” Kei wasn’t really listening to the hunter anymore. All he knew was that Meiya’s life was in danger. She only promised not to hunt him down. They never said anything about them crossing one another’s path. “Sorry…all my traveling panthers have been rented out until tomorrow. The last one was raised by Crescent Slayer herself and only answers to her.” “Damn it all!” Kei slammed his fist into the counter and the shopkeeper jumped slightly.

    The hunter with him placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder, but all it did was make Kei growl. “Hey, relax. They are just rumors. There is no way he would actually be there, Crescent Slayer’s got a good head on her shoulders. She knows when to run when it gets too dangerous.” He nodded his head and took a deep breath. Meiya was very smart and was a very skilled fighter. That is one of the many reasons why she made such a high rank at such a young age., but if the Immortal was truly as dangerous as he remembered then her life would still be in jeopardy. “I want the first panther here so I can get to Kyrin in the morning.”

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    Meiya held onto the reins as her black panther as he nimbly raced through the open fields. She relished the feel of the powerful beast under her as he leapt and turned sharply to avoid random rocks and trees that sometimes blocked their paths. She could feel his powerful muscles flex as he leapt down from the hill and landed nimbly before the river that separated Kyrin from Lynn. He bent for a drink of the cool water and Meiya took the time to look at the sun. It was sinking slowly in the west and night would be approaching soon. She slid down off the panther and began to set up camp. When she started the fire, the panther laid on it’s belly and Meiya sat against him. “There has been a wolf that’s bigger than you terrorizing Kyrin for the past few weeks…The reward isn’t much, but if he is as intelligent as you are, then we might have a new partner on our hands.”

    She scratched the ear of the panther who gave a contented purr as she gazed into the dancing flames. She had began to nibble on a piece of the dried meat as she took another look at the Immortal bounty. “Immortal huh? He doesn’t look that dangerous and I bet someone came up with the name to catch the eyes of people.” She folded the piece of paper and placed it back into the pouch at her hip. She settled more into her panther’s warm fur as she looked up to the sky. Stars littered the large purple canvas as the moon hung silently and patiently as it has done forever.

    “Still…One has to wonder how he got such a name and bounty on his head…What do you think Lunar? Should we look into him or just go about our business?” She tossed Lunar a large, juicy salmon and he gave an approving growl. “Guess we’ll round up some information when we reach Kyrin…” The panther wrapped his tail around Meiya and she smiled while snuggling into Lunar’s fur. “Goodnight to you too Lunar…” The master and the pet fell soundly asleep completely unaware of the dangerous that awaited them on the way to Kyrin.