Hunting for the Right Note Pt. 01

I unconsciously rubbed a spot right above my heart. Tattooed there was the mark of the Soul Hunter, a hooded skull with a scythe above it. It was simple, and one of the two that all Hunters had somewhere on their body, though mine was a bit fancier than that as I was a higher ranking member. The base color of the skull was white, while mine was silver, signifying that I was allowed to take on higher ranked assignments alone. Moms was blacked out, fully, which meant her orders were only outranked by Death himself. I never aspired to have that mark; I was relatively satisfied with my Silver skull. On my left wrist was the second tattoo, the one that was linked to my gear. It was a flat black set of tribal patterns that resembled a skull, and just above the skull was a rune that stood for 'hidden'. That one obscured my tattoos from my sister, and just as importantly, from Myrlla. I normally kept a decent brand of watch over it, so that if I was fiddling with it, people wouldn't be able to tell I was reapplying the obscuring charm.

I, like mom, got the main mark above my heart, I knew I got called a momma's boy for it, but I was following tradition. My grandmother apparently had it in the same spot, and since Chloe never took a real interest in weaponry, it was up to me to carry the torch.

We finished dinner not too much later, and mom got up. She was exhausted, and headed to bed, but not before giving me another hug. Once she left, it was just me and Chloe. I got up to leave as well, but she gestured for me to stay. We didn't speak until we heard mom's door shut. Then, Chloe turned to face me, though her eyes didn't meet mine for a few moments. When they finally did, they were complex, a mixture of worry, regret and care.

"Look, I'm sorry I yelled at you earlier, you know I care about you, and I'm worried she's going to push you over the edge. You know we lost Maria that way. You know how her boyfriend was a psycho."

Fuck, I had honestly tried not to think about her in forever, she was a girl in our class, she was a great person, but fell in love with the wrong guy, and she ended up jumping off a bridge to get away from that crazy fucker. He was emotionally abusive, it turns out. Now I knew why she was so angry, at least I think I did, I still remembered that feeling of jealousy she had when she talked about Myrlla earlier.

"I'll be fine, I promise, just need some time to kick it around, I wasn't lying to mom about ending things. You know Myrlla and I have been on and off fighting since we hooked up four years ago. I don't really think I want to go back to that."

Chloe just nodded, before stunning me. She hugged me, briefly, before letting go. She then left to go get ready for bed herself, leaving me to clean up dinner. I didn't mind though; I wanted more time to think. I was coming to a conclusion, one I wasn't fond of, and that I wasn't sure I could do on my own. Once I cleaned up, I made my way to my old room, stripping off my pants and falling into bed, where sleep claimed me not too long after.

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Chapter 3

I made my choice the next morning, I wanted to end things with Myrlla, for good. I didn't want to just do it over text, I wanted my stuff from her apartment, and I assumed we could end it like adults. The three of us were eating breakfast when I broke the news. Chloe seemed relieved, and mom was sympathetic.

"So I'll take The Network over there, Fort Myers still does low priority transportation to Tampa, right?"

Mom nodded, The Network was a teleportation hub for Reapers and their families that connected major cities together, it made Hunters' jobs much easier, and when the Veil was breached fifteen years ago, we didn't have to hide them in out of the way shitholes anymore. We could establish them in most cities, while not incredibly openly, we did have spots that weren't back alleys or abandoned buildings now. Before they weren't nearly as common. At least, that's what mom always said. I was only seven when they breached it, and didn't understand the whole thing about The Network yet. The only reason I didn't use it to come home was so that I could use the two hour drive to decompress, and bury the worst of the emotions in case mom was home when I got there. I directed the question to mom, who polished off the last of her toast before standing.

"Yes, I'll be going with you, I have to pick up someone from Tampa International. A bronze put in for a transfer to work here, from Ireland of all places. Not sure why, but that's her business. She'll be staying with us until she can find somewhere to call home. I want both of you on your best behavior while she's here."

I shrugged, didn't plan to be overly long. I'd break up with Myrlla, like an adult, gather up my clothes, and the few things she allowed me to decorate with, then leave. Simple as that, but now, as mom and I stepped out of the network center in the heart of Tampa, I wasn't so sure it would be that simple. There was something in the air that had me set on edge. Almost like... no, couldn't be, Tampa was a massive hub for reapers, hell, Florida as a whole was one of the most heavily populated states when it came to those working for Death. It wouldn't make sense for a powerful enough feral undead to create this air to be here. I shook my head, probably was just the whole doom and gloom hanging around inside my head. Myrlla and I had been a thing for most of my adult life, it wasn't a good feeling, knowing I needed to end things.

Mom and I went our separate ways, her going to the airport, I was heading to a suburb near USF. Myrlla was enrolled there as a psych student, I just stayed there because the damn frats and sororities would end up attracting the attention of a vampire or two. It was easy money for those ones. It paid a couple grand to take out some low level guys, and I would be back home in a couple hours. Now, though, there was something else in the air. Mom and I both took courtesy vehicles provided by the workers at the hub, mom getting a white Nissan Altima sedan, I grabbed the keys to another one in black. I was just pulling into the area around campus, when my phone went off. It was a text from the local dispatch center.

'Piralla sighted in the area northeast of USF, nearest hunter respond. Silver or above only.'

Then it rattled off a rough area of streets. I grimaced, I hated fighting piralla, gangly fuckers took a lot more damage than they had any right to. Sadly, I was practically there already, so I sent off a quick message that I would be there in a few moments. With that, I made my way over to the area. Hopefully I would end this quickly, because I passed by Mrylla's house, how a group of piralla got here in less than twelve hours, I wasn't sure. If I had to guess, someone who had latent witch blood had passed away, and that energy combined with death attracted the hungry shits.

I allowed my senses to expand, getting a feel for their sickening essence. Piralla were beings of gluttony and death; their essence was a disgusting amalgamation of pure hunger and pain. Once I felt it, I almost retched, it was like smelling a rotting corpse combined with mustard, for some reason, but I felt it all the same.

I stopped in front of a low sitting ranch style house as the feeling became its strongest. Out front were two cop cars, with three officers using them as cover, rifles pointed at the building. They were here, I was sure of it. As I got out of the car, I ran a thumb up my right arm, where my tattoo sat, and felt a familiar weight settle on my shoulders and hips. My cloak and blades, something I would need now, were sitting on my body. My cloak, a black piece of cloth, the ends tattered, both by design, and by consequence of my profession, along with my blades. A paor of arming swords. One had a blue hue to it, the other was pink, almost the same color as my eyes. Duna and Vrail, two blades that felt like extensions of my own arms, were in their sheathes. Along with them came almost a dozen knives, most were throwing knives in a bandoleer across my chest. There were also two on my hips, and they were my favorites, a pair of ka-bar made of a black metal, Akra and Hano, blades mom had gifted me with upon my ascendance to Silver. All of the blades I used were made from Aetherium steel, a rare metal that was deeply effective against all demons and undead, regardless of what they were truly weak to. On the small of my back was a special surprise for anything that thought they could stay at range. A revolver chambered in.454 Casull, something I could easily pop specialized rounds in to deal with any bastard I ran into.

I walked up to the officers, my cowl up as I called out to them. Hunters tended to try and get along with law enforcement, as it made our jobs far simpler. They turned a blind eye to our activities, and we helped them deal with things they couldn't handle by themselves. A win for both parties involved.

"What's the situation."

One of them looked over to me, taking in my appearance before sighing in relief.

"Hunter, thank God you're here. We were informed of a few complaints in the neighborhood, most about this place smelling awful, but when we went to investigate, something that looked like a lanky dead man attacked a patrol officer. He managed to get away, but he's in critical condition from a rapid infection."

Definitely piralla then, fuck. I told them I would handle it, just keep crowds away. All three agreed, and I finally made my way up to the door. Using a magical multitool over the lock, I heard it click, and I eased the door open.

Before I stepped in, I pulled up a piece of cloth that sat below my chin over my nose and mouth. It was a mask that was infused with certain herbs that would reduce smells, like the one I was about to enter. The fucking stench still burned my nose though, it was that horrid smell of rotting flesh combined with shit. This wasn't just a feeding area; they had made this a nest. That they had already established a nest meant that they had most likely been here for a week, or even more. I was getting sloppy; I should've had these wiped out a few hours after they showed up. But I guess the tension between Myrlla and I had me off the ball.

I sighed and shook my head, I was in a piralla nest, I needed to focus. A nest was not the most ideal place to fight them, they made them a dangerous place for intruders, crude traps made from victims' bones, usually coated in feces and offal to spread disease to those unfortunate enough to wander in. I had to carefully make my way through it, but before I could take two steps into the entryway, I heard the hissing before the first creature leapt at me. I whipped out my ka-bar and buried Hano in the throat of the guard piralla. It was a short thing, only about four feet tall, its arms looked like they belonged on someone closer to six feet and they were completely hairless. The pale, gangly thing tried to slash at me with clawed fingers, but I drove Akra into its heart, and it let out a quiet death rattle. I now got a better look at it, it was a young one, I could tell simply because its hands weren't quite the same as a fully grown piralla. It had ten fingers in total. An adult piralla had six, their bodies mutating as they aged and fed on putrid meat, the fingers fusing to become more talon like. I stepped over the corpse and made my way deeper into the nest, the light from the door barely illuminating the darkness.

As the light coming from behind me faded, I channeled power to my eyes, and things became much clearer as they became able to see. It was a charnel house, scraps of clothing and what I assumed were homeless people were everywhere. Blood, chunks of rotting meat and plenty of feces, in piles. Disgusting creatures, truly, how such a hated creature survived at all was a miracle. I glanced around the living room, but before I could get too far in, I heard even more hissing coming from all around me.

Six adults, coming from different hallways, or pulling themselves from under piles of offal. They were all covered in gore, and I slid my knives back into their sheathes. This was not a battle I desired to fight with daggers, I pulled Duna and Vrail from their sheathes now, their blades emitting a low glow. I was ready, and they were too, as two piralla charged me. I twirled around the two of them, my blades lopping off an arm off one, and the hand of the other. They screeched, but I put an end to that in just a moment, my blades flicking out to behead them both. The next pair charged just as I finished the swings. I was not ready to attack again, and I had to spin out of their attacks, putting me on the back foot. With speed that belied their appearance, they both whipped around and charged again, but this time, I was more than ready for them. I met their attacks with my own, a shout slipping from my lips as I twisted between them, using the momentum to bisect them both. I was down to the last two now, and they were now circling me, more cautious than their former comrades. I maintained my position, slowly turning my head to keep them in my sights as much as I could. From experience, I knew they'd attack separately, one while my back was turned, the other when I turned to face the first, it was only a matter of when.

I was right on the nose, as when I turned to face one that came around to my field of view, the other shrieked and charged at me. I ducked, allowing the piralla to fly over me, directly into the other one. They crashed into each other, falling to the ground in a tangle of limbs. I struck out at them both, hacking into them multiple times until they stopped moving. Once they stopped twitching, I stood back up with a sigh. It seemed like the nest was cleared out, and I was about to sheath my blades when I was blindsided by something huge. It launched me from the home through one of the windows. I rolled on the ground, planting a hand to get me back onto my feet. I had lost my blades in the tumble, and was cursing mentally.

I looked up as the creature moved out of the window itself. It was twice the size of a normal piralla, and had a massive growth of fat around its entire midsection. It didn't even have a neck, it was just fat, along with some osteoderms that acted as a natural armor, preventing me from beheading it. From experience, I also knew it had a fused ribcage, making it insanely hard to put down quickly, had to bleed it out first. This was a fucking broodmother, just my luck.

Before I could stand, however, I heard the crack of the officers firing at the lump of filth and fat. I knew their bullets would only piss it off, but I saw my blades lying a few feet behind it. I just had to get her attention, then I could get them back. The officers' fire wasn't doing anything other than drawing its attention, so now I had to get it back on me. I pulled my revolver from my back, and fired three rounds into its stomach, right into whatever it had in there. That drew its attention back to me handily, as it screeched at me. I popped my gun back into its holster and charged at it, sliding between her legs and snatching up my blades. It turned to me after I finished my slide. I got into a crouch; my legs coiled beneath me like springs. She was furious now, even more than before.

I stood to my full height as the creature roared at me, and, as power thrummed through veins, I roared back. The Path I walked, the Path of the Beast, created a tad bit of aggression when I channeled my energy. I never had been able to wield the elements like the main five Paths, and that relegated me to stay at the Silver level, but I could use magic to enhance my body and blades. Now, I had my energy, what mom had cultivated in me over the years, coursing through my body. The broodmother was not exactly ready for me to roar back at her. She blinked off that confusion, roared again, then charged me. I, in a slightly feral state myself, charged back.

The Beast Path was a path dedicated to aggression, and the fighting style of those in it is summed up as "offense is the best defense." and "You can't hurt me if you can't hit me." If you pushed so hard that they couldn't even get the breathing room to swing, you didn't have to worry about having armor, same thought about dodging. Stay out of the way, don't get hit, and you don't need to tank any blows.

I bellowed at her again before I started hacking and slashing, either countering her attacks, or just not being there when her attacks landed, for the most part at least. She was fast, but she wasn't agile. I was faster and far more agile than she was. Soon I was covered in her blood as my attacks kept bleeding her out. Once she was weaker, I could bury my blades in her skull and finish this, but for now, it was too dangerous. Her arms, while still gangly, were incredibly strong. I had already taken a few glancing blows that made my bones creak. Another blow caused me to jump back as her arms impacted the dirt, putting a few yards between us. I could feel bruises on my arms starting to form.

The broodmother stumbled as she dragged her hands from the crater in the earth. She was there, and I tensed my legs as she righted herself. She was bleeding heavily, and I could see the sluggish way she was moving. It was time for the killing blow. I launched myself forward, reaching her in a flash, spinning around her, and my blades whipped out in a scissoring motion. They met a little bit of resistance, but there was a crack, and the broodmother's skull was halved.

The mound of fat and claws collapsed as I stood behind her, chest heaving as the adrenaline started draining from my system. I reached into a pouch on my waist and pulled out a cloth I kept specifically for times like this. I cleaned the blood off my hands, and, once they were clean enough, I pulled out my phone and dialed the area commander, AKA my mother.

"It's done, one juvenile, six adults, and a fucking broodmother. I have no idea how this thing slipped into the area, but they're all dead."

"Are you okay?"

I kicked the corpse, making sure it was finished before I replied. The creature didn't even move as coagulating blood and brain matter slowly leaked from the half of its head still attached to its body.

"Yeah, I'm fine, but I need a cleanup crew asap, they established a nest, it is disgusting in there."

"Alright, the transfer was delayed, bad paperwork done by the damn desk jockeys, so I'm already on my way to you. I'll stay in the car until you're finished talking. Love you."

"Alright mom, see you in a bit, love you too."

She hung up on me, and I pulled the mask of my cloak down. I needed to get cleaned off before I went to meet Myrlla. With that though, I went out back and found a hose. I thanked any and every god out there that I wouldn't have to be covered in their filthy blood when I met up with her.

Once I had cleaned off the best I could, making sure my cloak was at least rinsed out, I dismissed my weapons, watching them all fade into the aether. It was a handy ability, letting us carry our weapons on us at all times, but not being forced to actually carry them. With that, I made my way back to the rental car, making my way to Myrlla's place, to end things. The officers thanked me before I left, telling me they'd keep people away from the area until a cleaner crew arrived to dispose of the bodies, and the mess in the building. Once I was far enough away, I dismissed my cloak, making sure that nobody had seen my face.

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Chapter 4

I pulled up to the house a few minutes later, but decided to wait until mom got there. I figured that this could go poorly, and I didn't want to be here alone with her, I didn't want to fall into the same trap as before, where she would seduce me with some of the best makeup sex, ever. Thankfully, I didn't have to wait too long, as I saw mom pulling up about ten minutes later. She rolled her window down, concern on her face.