“No, that's stupid! Clearly it was a cult!”
Merry cried a little too furiously as she slammed a palm on the table.

The group of young hunters were currently crowded around Jessica’s dining table. Although three of the group shared accommodation, they seemed to gravitate to spending time in Jess’s far more luxurious apartment. As such it had become something of a de facto meeting place and club room.
The current conversation was on the recent and well reported murder of a young lady several nights before. Although the details weren’t being released, it wasn’t uncommon for them to leak. Especially in the community of young and energetic hunters looking for something to do.

What had started as a simple discussion of the scene and the findings had very quickly devolved, with the help of alcohol, into a heated debate between Max and Merry. The latter was of the opinion that this was clearly the work of a cult worshiping vampires. While Max was convinced that it was the creatures themselves. An impossibility if the current literature was anything to go by.

 Aden, to his credit, had not picked a side. Being content to simply provide enough conversation to keep the two from arguing more than debating, and of course to keep it entertaining. Jessica mostly stayed out of it. She was happy enough to be around people and too feel involved with the odd question. The topic wasn’t her favourite, a little too close to home, but she smiled all the same, mostly tuning it out and just enjoying the company.

Max browsed furiously on his phone.
“If it was a cult, where's the blood? There was nearly four and a half litres missing.”

“I don’t know? Being used in some kind of crazy ritual? Like a cult would do? You heard the translation of the runes. It’s more likely a werewolf, or some great spirit bullshit…, But not a vampire! Those things are as good as extinct here… Hey Jess, when was the last vampire sighting on Occidia?”

Jess snapped into attention, luckily she had actually been paying attention in class and doing the extra research for the course. So, she had the relevant information still fresh in her mind. Or at least fresh enough to give the basic detail form their monster familiarisation course, it had been extremely light on the vampire material, hence her own personal research. Another thing she had buried herself in doing to avoid free time.
“I think it was around a hundred and three years ago? At Fort Edgewood, if I remember rightly, they caught and destroyed three vampires.”

“Yes! Here,” Merry pulled something up on her phone. “The last confirmed reported contact with vampires was one hundred and three years ago. When a small group from Erropa attempted to destabilize the still forming second Occidia republic following the robbery of the treasury and assassination of several representatives. Two were caught outright after being betrayed by an ally, while the third escaped but was later captured by bounty hunters. All three were publicly burned at the stake in Edgewood. It is widely believed that this was the final eradication of the creatures on the continent. So say the Hunters Association website!”
She finished by banging her hand on the table and smugly sipping her drink. 

“Last seen isn't “last were” though!” Max leaned forward to defend his point. “They could be hiding out somewhere, one of the mining settlements, or one of the towns out on the Great Lakes? A vampire could easily pull it off!”

Aden leant forward to add his thoughts.
“They probably could. But the experts said this was done with a knife….. any real reason you think it was vampires? You’re not some burgeoning diviner are you?”

Max shrugged.
“Just a feeling? We were at that club, then there was the whole coincidence thing with the doctor lady, and with that girl she was with, even Merry said she looked just like-“

He was cut off by a slap to the back of the head from Aden, who looked at his friend with a hint of anger. His voice a low growl.
“Don’t finish that sentence you moron.”

Jess looked on, a little confused as Merry glared at Max, who rubbed his sore head. Looking sheepish as he again spoke.
“Right, right…. But there’s just this feeling I have, you know?”

Merry shook her head and downed her drink.
“I wish it were vampires, at least that would be interesting. But I put money on a cult, probably some necromancer bullshit again.”

Aden stepped in again, this time with actual interest.
“How much money?”

This of course sparked another round of debate, Jess joining in this time. It was still a little odd for her, but betting in good fun was something her and Ellie had often done, and the spirit of the night was still one of fun. Something she intended to have and not drain from the others.
The problem came when everyone was a few too many drinks in. Jess had been pacing herself, and Aden had tried for a while, but ultimately was also on the ropes as the night passed into the early morning.

Merry was talking again, mostly complaining that the bet was pointless, putting ten dollars on the line, and that if it was vampires the government would never let that kind of news leak.
“How would we know? We won’t be actual Hunters for another three years the way it is. They won’t even let us go out and fight things till next year!”

Max groaned, the effects of the alcohol and the time catching up with him.
“There’s nothing stopping you going now? We could probably just walk into the scene if we wanted too…. We have a Feyborn and all her cool magic things…” 

Jess had a moment of supreme uncomfortableness. Not at the mention of her origins, but at something of a small premonition that the group was about to do something unbelievably stupid that would almost certainly get them into trouble. It was a sense she had developed with Ellie and she had come to trust it.

“Fine!”
Merry declared, a glint of excitement and confidence in her eyes as she pulled herself upright.
“Let’s go. Aden, we’re using your car…. Jess you good to drive?”

Aden raised an eyebrow.
“I’m in if you let me tell the story next time you’re showing off.”

“Of course you’re in! Your the one with a car. Jess, you’re coming this time! We’re going on an adventure!”

Jess dumped a quite substantial amount of magic into her system. She didn’t purge the alcohol, simply putting its processing on hold till later. She would need to pay the price but at least she wouldn’t be over the limit once they hit the road.
“I hate all of you…… but yeah I’m in. Assuming we don’t get caught doing anything illegal! I like my apartment and scholarship….. So just a look ok?”

In truth she didn’t really want to do it. She would much rather stay here and just talk with her companions. But Jess knew that it was important to both support, and babysit, your friends when they were about to be idiots. Not to mention she wanted to be with them, they helped a lot with keeping her mood up and this would be a good distraction, if they left her here alone she would just mope…. There was also a part of her that was interested in the crime and its implications far more than she would ever admit.  

⁂

 

Getting to the right spot on the east side took a little longer than it should. Mainly because Aden had been trying to corral his drunk friends while also being on the edge of what could be considered tipsy. He was a little worried about this whole thing, but he had confidence in Jessica to be a voice of reason.

The young man had gone out of his way to make sure the poor girl felt welcomed in the group. Something he seemed to have succeeded at so far. It wasn’t a secret that she had lost her friend in unfortunate circumstances, and that her race made her a natural pariah in a place like the university. Most being jealous of her innate magic, or her height, or her near ethereal looks. But there were still plenty who stuck to the word of the church and viewed deviations from “true human” as abominations.

Thankfully she was doing much better than when they first met, coming out of her shell little by little, and doing things like drinking with the group and going on stupid little trips like this. She still didn’t seem ready to attend any of the more social things that Merry, Max, and himself often did. But progress was progress and Aden was just happy to see the young woman smiling again.
Soon Jess was pulling his slightly rusty car into a parking spot near where Max said the murder happened. Aden had double checked his friend’s directions, and they were close enough given who was navigating.

“Ok…. Where is it again?”
Merry leaned forward from the back seat and looked between Max and Jess in the front.

Jess poked her cheek and the other girl gave a muted squeal as she fell back into her seat.
“I told you, no drunks in the front.”

Merry sat up again and stuck her head right back where it had been.
“Don’t you need consent before doing strange medical magic on people?! Stop poking me with Fey tricks! Also, Max is here, and he can’t hold a drink to save his life!”

Jess shrugged, a cheeky grin on her face.
“Max has the map up, and I’ll turn your legs off if you keep complaining.”

Aden laughed.
“First rule of hunting groups Mer, don’t annoy the medic.”

It was good to see his friends getting along.

Merry mumbled noncommittally but smiled as she sat back in her seat. Aden taking her place leaning forward.
“Ok Max, you’re navigating, where too?”

“Ummm,” The blonde looked at his phone. “A block over, I think? There’s a little lane or something where the place is.”

Aden patted him on the shoulder. He found Max was overconfident, though quick to criticise himself for mistakes, but did respond well to positive reinforcement. Something Aden tried to give him when he did the right thing.
“Nice job. Ok gang, let go!”

The group piled out of the little car and started walking in the direction Max had pointed. Aden making an effort to stay at the back so he could keep an eye on everyone, and Jess staying near Max. Her eyes weren’t much better than a full human, not unless she decided to modify them, but she could still see a little better at night. So she did her best to keep them from tipping over anything, including their own feet.

Soon they reached the corner that would take them down Hurn street. Max was about to step out, not breaking his stride, when Aden grabbed him by the collar. Max gave a straggled noise that had Merry in fits of quiet giggles as Aden gestured to Jess, speaking in a hushed whisper.
“Could you take a quick peek around the corner?”

“On it.”
Jess nodded before leaning her head around the edge of the building. She couldn’t see much, just one Guard car at the far end of the street. For a brief moment she thought she saw something moving on the rooftops, a vague shadow peeking over the edge. But it was just a little too hard to tell if it was a bird or a stray cat. She tried to look a little closer but was interrupted as the shape disappeared.

“Anything?”
Merry asked, trying to push herself past Jess who hurriedly pushed her back.

“Guard car down the street yeah…” Jess sighed and leaned back from the corner. “I think they’re on their phones though. Going off the light in the cab.”

Max seemed to deflate slightly and Merry got a rather concerning look as though she were thinking of something. Aden took a very quick peak himself and leaned back.
“Yep. Probably here to scare people off.”

Jess crossed her arms.
“Like us?”

“Exactly like us….. I’m not saying we should go home… but maybe we don’t do this tonight?”
As he said that they all heard a distant, dull thump. Like someone throwing a mattress from the second floor, or an animal falling from a tree. The group looked at each other, then in the direction of the noise, the same direction as the alleyway. Jesse's more sensitive ears also hearing the noise of flapping and a angry hiss.

“What was that?”
Merry whispered excitedly, trying again to look around the corner but being pulled back by Jess.

“Probably a cat or something…. Anyway we really shouldn’t be here guys…”
Aden nodded at Jess’s statement but both Merry and Max seemed to completely ignore it. Talking to each other in conspiratorial whispers, not that it did much to keep their words from Jess’s ears.

“It looks pretty dark…. I bet if we stuck to the far side of the street they wouldn’t even notice.”

“Definitely. For once I’m actually glad the city never fixes things around here.”

 Aden coughed lightly.
“Even without street lights, if they turn on the car….. or just have good eyes, they’ll see us.”

 Merry peaked around the corner, no one stopping her this time. She seemed to take a long moment to scan the scene before stepping back.
“Nah, easy as. We got this.”

With that she shot off across the street, pressing herself close to the building’s on the far side and slowly creeping forward. It always caught Jess a little off guard when her friends actually showed their strength. As hunter students they were all expected to train and stay fit. But Merry took it to the extreme, even if she seemed to never be able to lose the slight child-like chubbiness that she constantly pestered Jess about “magicing away”.

Not having many options, the group looked at each other, before Max also made a run for it. Crossing the street and disappearing along with Merry.

“I hate both of them…”
Jess muttered, shaking her head with a small smile.

“They're like children…. Drunk children”
Agreed Aden as the two of them shared a look and followed the others example. Neither wanting to go, but not willing to leave their friends.

Surprisingly, near miraculous, they weren’t spotted as they made their way down the street. It might have been incompetence from the guards, or it might have been the faint aura of magic Jess began to spin the moment they broke cover. It wasn't anything impressive, just enough to polarize the light around them, taking the shine out of their hair and dulling any reflections that might give them away.  
For a brief moment, as she focused on letting her magic flow, Jess thought she heard faint but indistinct voices ahead. It wasn't clear what it was, given the concentration needed to keep her magic effective outside her body she couldn't even be sure it was a conversation. If it was, they stopped talking just as suddenly as they had started, and were replaced with the sound of something scratching and scrambling against brick. It wasn't hard to make the assumption that some cat had fallen from its perch, poor thing was probably trying to climb back up to the roof. She hoped it was ok.

With the help of magic, and despite any wayward felines, they were soon at the “do not cross” tape. Merry and Max paying it no heed as Aden and Jess shared another look.

“Oh shit…”
The two morons had paused a few meters ahead, both staring at the ground.  

It was very difficult to see with only the moonlight, but the reflective surface of the circle was still clearly there. Not wanting to use a light, Max raised a single finger, a small flame soon appearing at its tip, giving the barest minimum of illumination.

“Awesome…”
Merry said softly, crouching to get a closer look.

As Jess stepped closer she felt a slightly chill run through her. Not from the sight of the circle, although that was indeed creepy, but from something in the air. Some trace amount of magic that felt unnatural to her. Maybe it was just that a person had died here? The others didn't seem bothered by that, but to her, a mage who was dedicating herself to saving lives, it was a travesty.

Aden noticed something off in the Feyborn and stepped up beside her.
“You ok?”
He asked softly, genuine concern in his eyes.

Jess took a breath before answering. Watching the other two as they inspected the runes and muttered about cults and magic.
“Yeah…. It just feels creepy…. I think my connection with “life magic” doesn’t like whatever went on here.”

Merry must have heard as she looked over her shoulder at them.
“The circles broken though. You shouldn’t feel anything after that right?”

Jess stepped forward, looking at the spot Merry was indicating. Not only was the circle indeed broken, someone having removed a small section of the blood that empowered it, but it was that spot in particular that made her feel so off.

Merry looked up at her with a stupid grin.
“Group selfie?”

Jess facepalmed and Aden groaned.
“No…. let's not gather evidence on ourselves.”

The two drunks laughed but agreed. Making life a little easier as they made there way back to the car.