FIRST BLOOD
“I already told you. I’m just here to investigate. This doesn’t mean I’m taking the job.”
Propping down his beanie on his head, Ryuuji, the taller of the two, scoffed at his partner’s weak excuse. “Are you serious? You say that after drinking that expensive coffee blend she ordered just for you?”
By horse, they had only arrived at the dark forest on the outskirts of their client’s village. To venture deep into the woods stealthily, they left their steeds and walked silently… although, their voices were loud enough to give away their location anyway.
“You’re a heartless dick,” he scoffed again.
“Says the one who asked her to be… Ugh!” Hajime retorted but didn’t dare continue. Instead, he changed the subject, “To even agree on offering herself as the reward, don’t you think she’s a little… too desperate?”
In contrast to his doubtful nature, Ryuuji was laid back, “Why wouldn’t she be? Lives are in danger.” With his aged but still sharp sight, he checked the ground for tracks. Even without a torch or a lamp on his hands, he was able to do some tracking in the middle of the night. Unfortunately, he only spotted boot marks – not a beast’s paw prints – on the ground. “Stop asking pointless questions. Let’s just find this werewolf’s lair. Get your head in the mission.”
And in contrast to what he just said, his mind pictured the naked image of their raven-haired client all up on him. His mouth curled to a grin even more wolfish than an actual wolf's, “Be grateful that Ryuuji Sakamoto The Great has been partnered with a neophyte agent like you. With me around, you got nothing to worry about.” He let out a short, confident laugh, “And after tonight, with the rest of the reward money, I will live like a king with Rika as my personal plaything!”
The redhead started to protest again for the maiden’s welfare, “HOLD IT RIGHT THERE!”
“Oh yeah, I almost forgot,” the aged, scruffy agent paused, “She mentioned about us taking turns on her. Damn, we gotta agree on some sort of a schedule.”
“Screw that! Fraternizing with clients is NOT ALLOWED as per The Agency’s rules!”
Ryuuji definitely heard him but he pretended he didn’t and continued checking the area for werewolf tracks.
Hajime pressed on with his deductions, “She’s way too desperate and willing to do absolutely anything. It sounds suspicious.” He knew his partner was only half-listening but he went on anyway, “Something is off, not about the reward… but the job itself.”
Ryuuji could almost roll his eyes, “What, you think she’s lying?” In his mind, he began recalling his time doing his own investigative work before the night. Images rushed to him. The image of human and animal corpses lying around, maggots swarming to them. The image of a maiden that wouldn’t meet his mortal gaze and how strangely quick she put on a bandana over her head as if to hide something when he approached her for questions. “There are witness accounts on the attacks. Evidences too. Mutilated corpses of villagers and half-eaten livestock. Checked them personally. Client’s accounts are true.”
They approached a clearing past the bushes where only mosquitoes greeted them. They both waved off the pesky parasites.
“But why would a werewolf target her village or any village for that matter?”
“It’s a predator. Hunger drives it to go crazy for any meat it finds.”
“Maybe. But then,” Hajime, not doing any werewolf tracking at all, seemed sure about his deduction, “this forest is an abundant hunting ground.” He pointed out two adult rabbits scurrying back to their hole and a buck and a doe in a distance. Ryuuji didn’t bother to lay eyes on the animals in the forest. “Any predator shouldn’t have to invade villages to ‘kill and eat their livestock’ nor ‘mutilate people.’”
The neophyte agent added, “And werewolves don’t attack indiscriminately especially when there are neighboring places full of silver and wolfsbane wards.” He recalled the torches and table decorations around the tavern they were at, “They have extremely sharp senses. I’m told they can detect those from miles away.”
“I did notice those wards, neophyte, however,” the veteran smoothed his long beard, reasoning, “those might not have been used by the locals before. People couldn’t have known they’d be plagued by a werewolf.”
The young hunter countered with an idea, “But what if the wards were already in use even before the so-called ‘attacks’?”
Ryuuji stood straight, finishing his fruitless tracking effort, his back turned towards his hunting partner, “Agent #747 Hajime Saitou, enough with the bullshit ‘what ifs’. I know where you’re going with this. Your previous mission might have turned you this paranoid toward clients, yet for all we know, we might be facing an aberrant, mindless creature driven to kill.” Hajime had nothing to counter that, so he supplemented, “We can’t disregard the mutilated dead bodies. What’s left of Rika’s people are counting on us. Just imagine yourself when you’ve completed this task. You’ll be a hero.”
BANG!
There was suddenly a gunshot not far from the hunters. It rang for miles, the animals ran into hiding. The pair were alarmed as they heard other people yelling in the area, seemingly around the origin of the gunshot… and also the helpless yelps of an adult werewolf.
“You got the fiend! You shot it, man!”
“AFTER IT!”
Fist clenched, Hajime surmised, his gaze directed to the origin of the noises, “We’re not the only hunters around here!”
“Dammit, we better move.” Ryuuji hurriedly said.
When Hajime looked around for his old partner, Ryuuji was already gone. Off to compete with the rest and take the prized beast’s head.
Now alone, Hajime brought out his revolver – a loaded Webley Mk. IV model – and depressed the trigger safety. “Screw it, I’m a better hunter when I’m alone anyway.” He performed a quick recheck of the gear he hung on his waist upon arrival at the location, “Hunting knife, powdered silver, and silver bullet magazines. I’m ready.”
Looking up, the bright and beauteous full moon in the night sky greeted him. ‘On the upside, I won’t need to use a lamp. On the downside, our target…’ he winced, ‘…has become stronger. That is, if the werewolf happens to be a beta or an omega.’
He held up his firearm as he cautiously walked through the bushes. His deep blue pupils locked on anything that moved, be it a leaf, or the bushes getting blown by the cold wind. His long fringes almost blocked his vision while the wind blew gently by but he kept his guard up and his hold on his gun steady for anything that moved.
A few more cautious steps and he reached another clearing. His eyes locked in on the thick liquid on the grass illuminated by the moonlight.
Blood trails, he saw and followed. His adrenaline through the roof, sweat dripping down the sides of his face, he breathed. ‘Should I try to confirm if it’s an aberrant, merciless monster first?’
His inquisitive nature wavered, ‘What if it really is?’
Hajime gulped hard upon spotting a silhouette behind the tree the blood trail ended. He extended his arm toward the shadow’s direction. ‘Fuck it. For all I care, this job could be just like the ones I’ve had before. Kill or be killed.’
I think the werewolf is going to be innocent...
Ryuuji: "Agent #1234 Yati, hold that tongue of yours."