Another Girlfriend-less Saturday...DAMMIT!

Had all kinds of cool plans setup. Was gonna take her out to lunch to get some chinese, come back to my place for a bit, watch some of the movies she got me for X-mas. Maybe go out to EB and pick out some new games or movies....

But oh no...cant do that. Shes gotta feel bad. Her sugar decided to skyrocket this morning so she feels like total shit and doesnt feel like going out.

Im not mad at her...but I am pissed off. I cleaned my place real nice last night for her to be here (something I never do for anyone...).

So shit.

Anyway....I decided I'd probably do some writing today and thought...hey...I'll post an exerpt from my fantasy book Im writing and see what the response is.
So I am.

This is the first few pages from the first chapter introducing 3 of the 4 main characters. Let me know what you think honestly. Dont sugarcoat because I plan on trying to get this shit published...and I need harsh so I can make it the best it can be.

A little bit of a setup - this world (dont have a name yet) has been overrun by vampires. Every race they encounter is enslaved and used for their manual labor and food supply. People are branded and used as cattle. The vampires primary militia are made up of Lycans (werewolves), and they rule the nations with an iron fist.

But there is a small rebellion that has formed and they are trying to overturn the vampires rule and restore the world to what it once was.

In this world there are various types of hunters that go after rabid werewolves and other odd creatures...the story mainly focusses around a group of hunters that end up joining the rebellion.

Theres an ass of history that I'll post more about later...but you'll get a small idea from this.

Anyway. Here we go:

The Hunter Chronicles
Book I:
Pray for Rebellion

Written By:
Chris Pierce

Chapter I:

The forest of Kytan was never the safest place to be, especially at night. No telling what sort of foul creatures roamed under the dark canopy of trees. Most respectable merchants or travelers made their way through the forest during the light of day, avoiding the many potential dangers and other unseen obstacles. But on this night, one poor soul has ventured into the forest, and she is not alone.

The young girl ran with all her might, trying to ignore the burning of the tree branches scraping her face as they went by.

“Keep a steady breath,” she kept telling herself.

But the thought of what was chasing her kept her in a slight state of panic. The sounds of her pursuers rang clearly in her elvish ears. The sound of hard panting, like that of ravenous dogs and the crushing of bushes and fallen branches under massive limbs.

“Must be at least five,” she quietly said to herself, “a whole pack of ‘em.”

The noises grew louder behind her, which meant her pursuers were catching up. She had to pick up the pace. Not too much farther to go.

Suddenly she felt a massive force shove her down. Her instincts kicked in as she pulled her limbs in and rolled, letting the crushing weight roll over top of her. Coming out of the roll, she put her back up against the nearest tree. Keeping her wits about her, the girl’s long, pointed ears cocked back, filling her head with every sound of the forest. From the smallest snap of a twig, to the rustling of the trees above, she listened. She listened for her life.

“Well, this is about as close as I’m gonna get.”

She stopped all motion, sensing eyes glaring at her from the surrounding patches of darkness. Several sets of eyes suddenly appeared, glowing around her, letting her know that she was most definitely not alone.

The chuckles of her pursuers suddenly filled the air; the pride of surrounding their prey in an almost record time. One of the pursuers emerged from the shadows, letting the miniscule amounts of moonlight penetrating the forest canopy cover it, revealing its form to the elvish girl.

The entire body was covered from head to toe in fur. Its mountainous shoulders hunched over to give it a dog-like appearance. The arms were immense, tense with rage, and at the end of each were massive claws. The creature’s face was that of only one sort of creature in this land, that of a werewolf.

A loud, booming voice suddenly erupted from the gullet of the beast.

“Well, you’ve given us quite a workout little one.”

A few more of the creatures emerged from the darkness of the surrounding foliage. Drool oozing from their mouths burned and hissed against the floor of the forest like acid.

“We’ve chased you long enough little puppet. And now we will have the pleasure of feasting upon your flesh,” came a voice from one of the beasts still cloaked in shadows.

The single lycan slowly moved in on the young girl, coming eye to eye with her. It stared hungrily at her. She could see the hate in its eyes, and that made her nervous. The creature leaned in with its tremendous maw half open and deeply inhaled the air around the young elf.

“Now if you don’t mind, please, die quietly.”

The lycan beast raised its massive claw high into the air, ready to strike the elvish girl down.

The young girl closed her eyes as her body tightened, ready to take the blow.

The claw came down swiftly. But never made contact. A shot boomed from a nearby tree, striking the attacking lycan between the eyes. The beast fell back as smoke poured from the freshly made hole in its skull. Several more shots boomed, tearing down one wolf after another, until only one remained. Panic-stricken, the last lycan tried to run from the scene but was stopped suddenly. It looked around to see what was holding it back only to see the elvish girl grasping it by the tail. And she was grinning.

The girl’s strength was immense. The lycan pulled away with all of its might but did not even advance an inch.

“Pl....please...sp…spare me,” the lycan pleaded, its ears lowered slightly.

“Now why would I go and let my bounty run away like that?” the girl replied.

The lycan’s ears shot up and eyes widened.

“Bounty Hunter!”

“Yep,” the girl replied, “and you’re my bounty.”

The lycan let out an immense roar of bloodlust and rage. Surprising the elvish girl, the lycan swung one its massive arms around knocking her back into a nearby tree with full force. The impact knocked the wind out of her. Gasping for breath, she fought the darkness that was trying to steal her consciousness.

The lycan charged, its arms tense and ready to rip the tiny bounty hunter to pieces. Suddenly, an all too familiar sound boomed in the forest once again, and the last lycan went down. Smoke billowed from the bullet hole in the back of its skull.

A frown creased the young girls face. She turned her head in the direction of the shot and yelled, “Hey, I had him just where I wanted him. You stole my kill!”

A tall, cloaked figure jumped down from a nearby tree and walked towards the young elf.

“Well excuse me for doin my job. Is that not my part of the plan?”

The figure began to pull back the hood of the cloak.

“And besides, you sure you looked like you had ‘em eatin outta yer little hand. They were bendin over backwards and everything,” the figure snapped sarcastically, “I’m sure by sunrise they’d be doing tricks for ya.”

The weathered face of the young girl’s companion was revealed. Numerous scars covered his sun beaten, leathery face. Proof enough of the hazards of his occupation.

“So what do we do now oh fearless leader,” the young girl sneered as she crossed her arms in aggravation.

A roar suddenly erupted from behind them. A single werewolf had escaped detection, and was in a rage. The creature lunged at both hunters with claws ready to render flesh from bone. The werewolf was stopped suddenly when the barrel of a gun was slammed into its face.

“Damn.... missed one,” the taller hunter grinned.

BANG.

The lycans body collapsed under its massive bulk. The young girls ears twitched as she bent down to examine its lifeless body. “Nice shot Balkus. Couldn’t have done it better myself,” the elfish girl commented sarcastically.

Balkus’ eyes narrowed at the little elf, “Yeah? Now go get the cart.”

The young elf protested, “Why do I always have to get the cart?”

“Cause yer stronger than me,” the older hunter replied, “And besides, we don’t have a horse yet.”

“And whose fault is that,” Raniel continued.

“Well... pickings have been slim lately. So it’s really no ones fault,” Balkus said calmly, “Now go get the cart.”

Raniel finally gave up, “Fine.”

As the aggravated elf tromped away, Balkus started neatly stacking the bodies.

------------------------------------------

Chapter II:

One the other side of the Kytan Forest.

Punctuality. Baron Palidan had always thought of himself a punctual being. Always striving to be on time. Tonight was no different for him. Sticking his head out of the carriage window, the Baron scolded the driver to go faster.

“Idiot, incompetent humans. I can’t stand them,” Palidan growled. His aristocratic ancestors would certainly not allow such impudence in their human slaves, and neither would he.

A young voice softly spoke from the other side of the cabin, “Be calm dear Uncle. We will reach the capital in a few short hours.”

“That is easy for you to say nephew. You do not carry the responsibilities on your shoulders as I do.”

The young man replied, “I still do not see why you’re so upset over nothing. It’s a simple meeting. Just like all of the others.”

The older vampyre interrupted, “No, not like the others. Councilman Damian has called this meeting. Which means it is somewhat of an emergency.”

The younger vampyre leaned forward in his seat, “You are one of the heads of the Council. They will not start the proceedings without you.”

“All the more reason for us to hurry it along,” Palidan replied.

Suddenly the cart came to a halt. Palidan yelled in aggravation, “What the devil! I’m going to kill that slave when I....” The Baron exited the cart, his nephew close behind.

“Driver! What is going on,” the Baron demanded. But the driver would not reply. A lone figure stood in front of the carriage, blocking the path.

“You there, get out of the way,” the nephew yelled, “you are blocking the path of Baron Palidan ReinHeart.”

The figure did not move.

The Baron waved his hand, “Guard, please dispense this little problem.” The guard, riding horseback behind the carriage, dismounted and drew his sword.

“If you do not move, I shall have to cut you down,” the guard yelled to the figure.

The stranger made no reply. He only stood his ground, his face hidden behind the gray, leathery cloak he wore draped over his shoulders, concealing his shape and size.

“Very well then,” the guard yelled as he charged the figure with his blade readied.

In what seemed like an instant, the stranger sidestepped, letting the guard move past him and fall. The guard had been cleaved in two; split neatly at the waste.

The younger vampyre signaled for the other guards to attack. The three remaining guards dismounted, drew their blades, and attacked the waiting figure. With blinding speed, the stranger reacted to each guards attack. Each guard came to the same end as the first, his torso and waste neatly separated.

“How is he...”? Palidan choked, “How can he? He has no weapons!”

The cloaked figure slowly pulled his hood back to reveal his face. Two piercing yellow eyes gazed blaringly at the Baron. The strangers silver hair was short and disheveled, an extravagant tattoo encircled his right eye.

“You!” The Baron yelled, “You’re that damned Dhunpeal hunter!”

The nephew leaned towards his uncle. “Uncle, May I have the honor of killing him?” The Baron looked at the hunter for a moment, then at his nephew.

“Oh very well. But be quick about it, we need to get to the Council meeting. And be careful Altrien, he’s still a vampyre hunter.”

With that, the hunter drew his blade and pointed it towards the nephew.

“Oh this looks to be very interesting,” the young vampyre yelled.

The Baron retreated to the cart and closed the door, knowing this was going to get messy.

“Are you ready?” the young vampyre asked.

The stranger still stood silently, letting his piercing gaze tell his answer. “Very well then, I shall be the one to make the first move,” the young vampyre replied.

The vampyre removed his cloak and threw it aside. Then as he threw his head back, he began the transformation.

For some vampyres, although they seem human, are not. In order to tap into their natural abilities, they must transform themselves into their natural forms. For their seemingly human appearance is just a shell. But for more powerful vampyres, this transformation is not needed.

First a slight tear, then a loud rip, a gut-wrenching crack, and the transformation had begun. The vampyres’ eyes filled with blood and began to glow; his hair grew long and white. His hands contorted into fierce claws, and his teeth grew into almost dagger-like fangs. His shoulders contorted and expanded, giving him more mass. Leathery wings erupted from his back like those of small dragons and folded over his shoulders like a cape. Then his face turned from that of a human into a hideous, almost perverted creature, one that could only be described as a nightmare. A mockery of life as we know it. And then, it spoke into the hunters mind, for its new form did not have the capacity for audible speech.

“So, now we can begin our little dance my friend.”

The massive creature then lunged with all its mass towards the hunter. The hunter, being surprisingly calm, stepped to his left to let the lunging creature tumble by. A simple move, but to the lumbering vampyre was almost impossible because the hunter seemed to disappear before his eyes. Then as the hunter disappeared, the vampyre could feel his legs go numb. He bellowed an unearthly roar that almost shook the forest, and then fell forward with a loud thud. The battle was over. The victor decided by one stroke.

Balkus glanced over at Raniel as she finished loading the last body into the cart.

“Did you hear that?” Balkus asked.

Raniel stopped, her ears suddenly twitching sporadically.

“Yeah. We should go check it out.”

With that, Raniel started hauling the cart with Balkus running along beside her.

The hunter walked up to the dying creature. Surprisingly, it was still alive; despite it’s being cut in two. Its breathing became deep and almost liquid as it’s lungs filled with blood. The hunter placed the tip of his sword in the center of the creatures’ neck.

“Do you wish me to end your pain?” the hunter asked.

The creature slightly turned its head to leer at the hunter and nodded. Then the hunter’s right eye began to glow. Then with one swift swipe, the head of the creature was removed.

Baron Palidan peeked through the window of the carriage only to see that his nephew had been slain by the hunter. Anger boiled from deep within him. And then, it erupted.

“HUNTER!” the elder vampyre yelled. The hunter knew what was coming. He sensed the power just before it erupted.

Suddenly the carriage and its driver burst into a mountain of flames, and the elder vampyre emerged, a red aura pulsating around him as he hovered over the burning carriage. Light from the flames glistened in his eyes.

“A warning to you young hunter. I will not fall as easily as my arrogant nephew,” the vampyre snidely spoke.

“But you will fall,” the hunter replied as he pointed his blade at the floating vampyre.

Flames suddenly shot from the vampyres hands towards the hunter. The hunter leapt out of the way just in time to smell his singed cloak behind him.

“Too close,” he thought to himself.

The hunter then sprinted towards the vampyre, blade readied. More flames erupted, almost catching the hunter’s head on fire, but the hunter continued his assault and leapt at the vampyre striking at his head. But an unseen shield stopped the blade before it hit its mark.

The vampyre then sent the young hunter sprawling back with a ground-shaking blow. The hunter struck a nearby tree at almost full-force; and could feel several of his ribs snap upon impact. After landing from the impact, the hunter began violently coughing. Struggling for air, all that came up was blood. Ribs definitely broken, the hunter slowly started to stand; a slight smirk creased his face. Suddenly another burst of energy came from the vampyre, but the hunter could sense it coming. The hunter rolled to the left, pulled a small dagger, and threw it with all his might at the vampyre. But Palidan saw it coming and stopped the blade before it came close enough to touch him.

“Pathetic,” the vampyre commented. But as his eyes searched for the hunter, he was gone.

“Where have you gone little hunter?” Palidan taunted, “Have we ended the fight so soon? I would have thought you would put up a better fight than this.” Just then, the hunter leapt down from a branch above the Baron, bringing his sword down into the Baron’s shoulder.

Shrieking in pain, Palidan tossed his arm back, unleashing a burst of arcane energy that threw the young hunter soaring into yet another tree. Palidan then yanked the sword from his shoulder and fled the scene, heading towards the capital. The young hunter sighed heavily, and then grimaced from the sharp pain in his sides. He’d definitely been careless. But at least he was alive, he thought to himself. He knew he would have to finish the job before Palidan could get to the capital. The hunter leaned back against the tree and rested for a few moments, trying to fight unconsciousness. But the rest was short-lived as he heard an approaching cart and hurried footsteps.

“Come on, we’re almost there! I can see a fire ahead.” Balkus yelled to his small companion.

“Yeah! But your not pulling the damn cart!” Raniel yelled back in protest.

Soon the two broke through the foliage and into a clearing, where they saw the burning carriage, a dead vampyre, and a young man struggling to stand on his feet.

“Hey! You ok over there?” Balkus asked. Raniel emerged behind him, struggling for breath from the long hike with the carriage.

The young man made no reply but began to hurry himself. He stood, picked his bloodied sword from the ground, and then in what seemed like a flash to Balkus and Raniel, disappeared from sight. The rustling of tree branches caused both hunters to look up, where they saw the young man leaping from branch to branch towards the nearby city.

“That was strange,” Raniel commented.

“Tell me about it. Why do you think he left so damn quick?” Balkus replied.

Both hunters walked over to the burning carriage. But the dead vampyre caught Balkus’ eye.

“Hey, I think our little friend was a vampyre hunter.” Balkus said.

“Why’s that?” Raniel replied, staring at the burning wreckage.

“Because Mr. Ugly over here is a vampyre, and in ‘pure’ form no less.” Balkus stated, “And it takes a lot more than what you and I have to kill one of these bastards. So he knew what he was in for.”

Raniel noticed a seal on the side of the carriage door.

“Hey Balkus, come take a look at this.”

Balkus stood from the dead beast and walked over to Raniel.

“Hmmm…this isn’t good. It looks like a clan crest. Can you read it Ranny?”

“Of course, what good is an elf if she can’t read some vampyre gibberish?” Raniel stated matter-of-factly.

“Well, whose crest is it?” Balkus asked impatiently.

“Baron Palidan ReinHeart, Clan Torunus.” Raniel stated, “Balkus, this guy is one of the Twelve.”

“You mean the Twelve of the High Council? Great. Well I think we had better get out of here before we get caught in the middle of all this.” Balkus said as he looked around worriedly.

“Yeah. I’ll get the cart.” Raniel replied.

The two hunters returned to the main road through the forest and made their way to the capital city of Acuron to collect their bounty.

FIN
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I have more but thats all you get right now. lol.

Hopefully I'll be able to salvage whats left of this somewhat shitty turn of events and actually enjoy the day by myself. We'll see.

See you bitches on Live!

Gatsu OUT!