The Hunt {Job}

Norva walked off of the ship onto the snow covered ground. The sun was high in the air, marking the middle of the day. Norva had traveled from Minstrel, where he still had no luck finding who he was looking for. Perhaps he would find her in Iceberg... Norva's breath seeped through his mask, fogging in the air in front of him. It was apparent that the weather there was harshly frigid. Norva would need to find his client and take shelter before night, else he wanted to freeze to death. He made his way through the cold, his armor barely able to keep him from freezing.


In due time, Norva made it to the village in question, Frostfire Village. He looked around. The people there were dressed in heavy clothing, yet they seemed so frail and scrawny under all of that animal skin. Norva walked into the village, a few villagers shooting odd looks at him. It most likely did seem strange for a man fully covered in nothing but armor to be walking around such a cold place. Norva moved passed the odd looks and made his way to the largest hut of the village, where his client would most likely be.

Norva walked through the door to find a woman adorned in tribal wear, sitting at a fire in the center of the hut. She couldn't have been any older than 40 years, probably because surviving passed that in this environment would be close to impossible. The woman looked up at him with slightly wrinkled eyes and motioned for him to sit down.

Norva sat down with his legs crossed, and looked into the fire. Prior to this encounter, Norva had sent a letter to the village, asking for temporary shelter. By the sounds of it, most of the village did not want him to be there. However, the village elder disagreed. As long as Norva benefited them while he was there, then she would allow him to stay in the village overnight while he traverses the country. "My most sincere gratitude for allowing me to stay here," he said to the woman. She nodded her head at him and smiled.

"Of course, traveler," the elder responded. "But before you may rest, you must prove that you have earned your stay." The fire cracked as its embers rose upwards before slowly drifting back down to the frosty ground.

Of course it would make sense for Norva to do something in return for a temporary shelter. That much he expected. Norva turned slightly and faced the elder, sitting up straight. Although his mask was on, he made it clear that he was listening. The elder's expression dropped into a more serious one. "The people of this village are slowly dying of starvation. The very few animals that prowl these grounds are too elusive, and our hunters are slowly losing their will to hunt... We are in need of help."

Norva nodded his head. "I understand. In what way may I be able to assist your village?"

"By hunting as much as you can for this village," the elder replied. "Hunt as many rabbits, foxes, bears, and vultures as you can find around these woods. Keep my people from starving."

"Understood." Norva thought about the task. Hopefully a mass hunting will not permanently damage the animal populations nearby. If it did, then their hunger would only be temporarily solved, before they fall into an even deeper hole of starvation. Norva shook his head. Surely the populations were much larger than he would guess, and his hunting would not worsen this village's situation in the future.

Norva bowed to the elder before standing up. "I'll begin immediately."

"Of course, but before you do," the elder stopped him, motioning to a neatly folded pile of bear skin clothes. "You will need these to survive the cold weather."

Norva went over to the clothes and picked each article up, inspecting it before putting it on. Inside the letter he was sent before he came to Iceberg, he was asked if he required winter clothes, and that he would be supplied some if he did not. Norva sent another letter with the preferred measurements, and they had apparently furbished a set of winter wear for him. It really amazed him, some of the things people did.

The first article of clothing was a thick bear fur coat that fit comfortably over his armor. The next was a pair of gloves made of the same material. As was the coat, the gloves were very comfortable and warm over Norva's hands. Last was a pair of sturdy boots lined with bear fur on the inside. Fortunately, Norva only wore tabi boots, so he could easily slide the boots right over them.

Once he tied up and secured all his things, Norva thanked the elder, then walked outside to begin hunting.

The member 'Norva Odenias' has done the following action : Dice Rolls

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'Monster Dice' :

Norva took deep breaths, only his mask's front above the snow. Fortunately, the winter clothing he was given has done its job, protecting his body from the cold. Protecting his legs was difficult, but Norva was able to convince the village's elder to lend him a small but warm blanket so that his legs did not fall off from the cold. Underneath the snow, Norva had the blanket wrapped around his legs, protecting them from the cold snow, and his other winter wear was also on.

Why was he doing this? Well technically, Norva did not have to see his prey to find them. Because of the doings of his ancestor, only known as Viktor. Cannibalistic, hungry, and insane, he had developed a sixth sense, of which he could 'see' those of flesh and blood from far distances. Norva had the perfect advantage for a hit-man, all because his ancestor was cannibalistic. A dark piece of his past, surely, but an effective one, especially for a Norva.

Suddenly, Norva's senses kicked in, and he could feel something. He closed his eyes, focusing away from the cold, away from the breeze. It was moggy at first, but the blood came closer. After a few minutes, Norva could make it out... or rather, make them out. It was a large group, more than three at least. However, beyond that was unknown to Norva. He took slower breaths, and calmed his body, keeping himself hidden from the prey approaching. It slowly came closer and closer... Norva could feel it. This wasn't a group of hunters, it wasn't human... canine? Yes... wolves, foxes maybe.

Norva didn't move his hands, but knew the Shang Gou on his hip were there, ready for a tumble.

Norva's breathing slowed... they were very close now, within sniffing range. Hopefully his buried tactic would negate any smell he may have given off, but that thought was already beginning to waver. Norva could hear the faint sound of choppy and sudden inhales through the nose of an animal. They could smell him, or his armor. He wouldn't be able to get the jump on them like this...

The animals slowly moved closer, more and more of them beginning to sniff around. It was then that Norva could discern what type of animal the members of this pack were. They were snow foxes, and it sounded like a large group of them too. Norva was nearly holding his breath as they crawled closer to him, their noses going crazy with his odd and unnaturally metallic scent. If he lingered too long, then they would either run away or attack him. Either way, he wanted to initiate the first move.

The foxes got closer and closer until they were a few meters from Norva, still sniffing around. One's ears suddenly perked up.

Perfect

Norva flashed green before disappearing from his hole. He reappeared a few feet from the foxes almost simultaneously, pulling both hookswords from his hips and swinging it at the closest prey. Both blades embedded themselves in the fox's skull, delivering an instant death to the animal. Norva quickly pulled both weapons free and backed away a reasonable distance. Almost immediately after his attack, five other foxes leaped at him.

Norva dove to the side and swiped his left hooksword at another fox. However, the clever animal was quick enough to leap back just enough to avoid the sharp edge of Norva's weapon. Three of the foxes leaped at Norva and tried to bite at him. He was able to shove his Shang Gou guards into two fox's skulls to kill them, but the third got a straight shot at his neck. It bit down on his armor with all the strength it could muster. Had Norva not worn his armor, he would most likely be dead.

The hit-man growled, swiping his right hooksword down through the fox's spine. It fell limp onto the ground, and allowed him to attack the remaining two. The closest one swiped its paws towards Norva and tried to catch him by the leg. In retaliation, Norva lifted his foot and pinned the fox's paw beneath it before it could escape. He swung a hooksword and severed its spinal cord, then released his foot. The last one did not seem as eager to fight. It backed up, still growling at Norva, then turned on its heel and took off.

"Quippon, War Shot." Norva hooked his Shang Gou back onto their mounts on his hips and his right hand flashed. When the flash died, a jet black revolver formed and fell into Norva's hand. He immediately raised it, pulled his left hand to the pistol grip, and aimed it at the fox, taking a swift and deadly accurate shot at its head. The fox tumbled forward into the snow as the revolver's shot boomed through the air. It laid still, no sound or movement coming from it... or any of the other foxes.

Around Norva, six dead foxes lay in the snow... six animals towards his goal.

The member 'Norva Odenias' has done the following action : Dice Rolls

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'Monster Dice' :

The gun shot was sure to catch the attention of anything or anyone nearby. Norva mounted his hookswords back onto his waist, picked up the blanket that had fallen off, and tied together all six foxes with a length of thin rope from his pack. Once he secured the load of goods, Norva grabbed it with one hand and began pulling it through the snow, the black revolver still in his hand as he walked towards the village.


The sun had peaked over the mountains about ten minutes ago, casting long and sharp shadows through the trees. Nothing else had encountered Norva, except for a few echoing signs of life, but he was in no hurry. Today, he would dedicate his time to hunting, then he would sleep through the night and continue moving through Iceberg. In the moment, he just had to get the foxes to the village. He walked through a final pair of trees before getting eyes on Frostfire Village in the valley below. Once he dropped off his delivery of foxes, Norva would continue to hunt, hopefully continuing his streak of catches.

As if by universal impatience however, Norva was encountered before he made it a quarter of a mile. He could sense another animal near him. However, this one was much larger than the foxes, and there was only one of it. 'Probably a bear,' Norva thought to himself. He dragged the package of foxes next to a tree, then gripped his revolver. The bear was getting closer... quickly.

Suddenly, Norva saw it breaking through the trees towards him. It roared and bared its teeth threateningly as it stormed through the snow, shimmering in and out of the snowy landscape against its white fur. Without a second thought, Norva raised up his revolver and fired the remaining four shots at his enemy. Two embedded themselves deep in the bear's shoulders, while the other two planted right in the bear's forehead. However, it barely flinched as if it were driven by rage. Norva dropped his right hand to his side, and the revolver flashed green before disappearing. He reached at his hips for the hookswords. Killing a bear may not be as simple as the foxes.

Norva was going to engage the bear and take it out swiftly. Just aim for the head and try to break through its thick skull. Trying to get at its vital organs was nearly impossible with all that 'padding.' However, Norva didn't get the chance to initiate his attack right away. The snow around the bear suddenly flew up and struck against Norva's armor. Some pieces found the gaps in his defense and cut through his skin. He gasped a little, the pain surprising him. "Gah! Dammit!" Norva cursed, launching himself at the bear.

The bear swiped its enormous white paw at his head, snarling the entire time. However, Norva's speed gave him the advantage over the bear's rage-filled strength. He ducked under and swung both Shang Gou right into the bear's head. However, they only embedded themselves by an inch or so. Norva pulled the blades out quickly, but was too slow as the bear swiped him away. He tumbled through the snow and grasped his side, immediately getting up.

Norva wasted no time running back into the bear. However, he felt more confident this time. Unbeknownst to most, the revolver rounds he fired were coated with a special venom that would clot and solidify blood inside of the any nearby blood vessels. The wounded area was more than likely to go limp and turn a sickly pale color... well, save for a few deep red spots where the blood built up.

This became apparent in the bear, as its front legs gave out and it fell on its face. The shots he delivered earlier were placed specifically where blood was pumped to the entire limb. Throw a little venom there, and the target was sure to suffer major handicaps. Fortunately, they would not suffer it for long. Norva leaped up onto the bear, hooking his left Shang Gou into its shoulder, then repeatedly slicing into the head with the other. The snow bear tried to resist, but struggled to even raise off of its front feet. After no more than five hits, the bear twitched before going still. Norva waited for a few seconds, his weapons at the ready. However, the bear was no longer breathing, Norva would be able to feel it.

The hit-man pulled both of his hookswords free, jumping off of the enormous beast. He admired his handiwork. The meat was still good, and its fur was in pristine shape with very little blood, albeit a few holes around its shoulders and head. Norva spent a few minutes working out a plan to bring the behemoth back to the village. However, ten minutes after he encountered the bear, a group of hunters came through the trees to notice the scene. In their eyes, they saw a strange metallic being standing next to a bear five times his size, with a pack of dead foxes tied up a few meters away.

Norva noticed the group a few minutes before they actually appeared. They seemed to be empty handed as of now, but they had what looked like a pack mule with them. Perhaps they could help Norva. "Frostfire Village?" he asked. Most of the hunters were still, only exchanging a few glances. However, one or two of them nodded their heads. "Good. Do you think you can take this back?" Norva motioned to the bear and the foxes.

The hunters murmured among themselves, unsure of whether they could do it or not. They were all very fit men, and their pack mule also seemed like it was in a perfectly healthy condition. Norva just looked at them as they discussed it among themselves, his mask hiding any trace of emotion. After a minute of talking, the hunters turned around and nodded their heads.

"Thank you," Norva said, bowing his head in gratitude. "If you don't mind too much, then I'd also like you to meet me back here in four hours for another batch of game. Does that trouble you all too much?" Most of the hunters thought for a few seconds before shaking their heads. "Thank you. I appreciate it." With that, Norva went back to hunting, turning his back to the valley. A little more than thirty minutes in, Norva noticed a few white specks running around in the snow.

Rabbits.

He dashed forward and used his Shang Gou to hook one in. It squirmed, but Norva was quickly able to cease its movement with a swift chinning. The other rabbit had tried to run off, but Norva could still sense it around him. He spotted it and repeated the process, chinning it for a painless death. Once he subdued both rodents, he held them by their legs and continued on his hunt.

The member 'Norva Odenias' has done the following action : Dice Rolls

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'Monster Dice' :

Norva continued moving through the landscape, his boots barely making a sound as the snow beneath them compressed. He had attached the two rabbits he caught to the back of his pack and now he was searching around for more prey. About an hour had passed, and Norva spotted two more rabbits hopping through. He repeated the same tactic, hooking one in with the Shang Gou and chinning it. However, the second rabbit was much faster and already bounding away. Norva ran after it.

He was going to catch up, but he could feel another source of blood, and it was closing in quick. He skidded to a halt as the rabbit in front of him was violently grabbed by the neck and snapped by a fox. Another pack of foxes. Five more came out of the trees and growled at Norva, and the one who grabbed the rabbit dropped it, following closely behind. Norva hooked his weapons to his hips and took an intimidating stance. Nonetheless, the foxes leaped at him.

"Quippon, Dragon Breath." The front of his chest flashed green, then died out as a shotgun fell into his hands. He aimed it at the closest fox and pulled the trigger. An enormous cone of sparks snapped through the air, hitting the fox everywhere in its front. It did not catch fire, but its skin singed as the sparks burned its skin. The canine whimpered and fell onto its side, trying to cool off by rubbing its front in the snow.

Norva pumped the shell out, then quickly unloaded three more shots at the pack. Almost all six foxes began to whimper, a couple of them even trying to escape. However, Norva was prepared for that. After the shotgun disappeared in the green flash, Norva himself flashed green and disappeared before appearing in front of the two foxes that tried to escape. Using the sudden surprise of the foxes to his advantage, Norva grabbed the Shang Gou at his hips and swung both into the heads of the foxes. Both hit their marks, and both foxes immediately dropped dead. The other four foxes relocated Norva and rushed him.

All four of them leaped at him at the time, aiming for his feet, neck, and arms. The immediate coordination of attack was unexpected, and Norva wasn't prepared to dodge. Instead, he lifted his Shang Gou and swept aside two foxes. The other two bit down on his shoulder and his leg. Norva brought his free foot up and stomped on the fox's head, then hooked his Shang Gou onto his hips to deal with the one latched on to his shoulder. It pulled him down with its weight and attempted to pin him for the two that got swept away. Norva used both palms to strike right into the sides of the fox's head, then used the disorientation to quickly snap its neck.

The fox fell to the floor, leaving Norva to deal with the two that were now up. Norva lifted his foot up off of the slightly crushed skull of another fox, then grabbed his Shang Gou.

Low on the snow, prowling around, the two foxes circled Norva, snarling aggressively. Norva backed up, and made sure they weren't able to get one two sides of him. Initiating the attack, Norva repeatedly swung his weapons at one of the foxes. It dodged and receded, avoiding his attacks, until one caught the neck. Norva's Shang Gou lodged itself in the fox's neck and severed its spinal cord. He tried to pull the weapon out, but it was in there pretty good. The other fox leaped at him while he was trying to get his weapon. Norva just let go of the hooksword and swung the other. It connected with the fox and flung it off to the side. Norva dropped his remaining Shang Gou and tackled the fox, wrapping his hands around to snap its neck. He jerked his hands, and the fox laid still.

With another pack of foxes subdued, as well as an additional two rabbits, Norva used what he could to drag all of the animals back to his meeting point with the hunters.


Norva finally made it back to the same place he saw the hunters, then dropped the foxes. He was starting to get tired. The hit-man fell into the snow, taking slow and deep breaths. All this hunting was exhausting, and he wasn't even done yet. After several minutes of taking a break, the hunters showed up again for the load. One of them walked up to him and gave him his rope back. Norva sat up and took the rope, putting it back in his pouch. "Thank you, the next group is right there, along with these," he pulled the rabbits from his pack and handed them to the hunter while the others loaded up the foxes.

21/30 carcasses
83/100 HP
90% MP
"Quippon: Dragon Breath" cooldown for 1 more post
66/90 HP Armor Durability

The member 'Norva Odenias' has done the following action : Dice Rolls

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'Monster Dice' :

Norva suddenly got a sneaking suspicion. It may have been false, but it was still a possibility.

The hunters had secured the foxes and rabbits, and were ready to make their way back to the village. They started down the hill, but before they went, Norva grabbed the closest one and turned him to look in the eye. Of course, the hunter was frightened by the mask, but stayed there, forced to look into the green orbs. "Don't you dare think of taking those anywhere other than the village," his voice was unusually malicious. "Take those to the elder, and if you try to pull something," Norva pulled close. "Then all of you will be in the pile with those foxes... got it?"

The shocked hunter's eyes went wide and he nodded his head ever so slightly. Norva released him and allowed him to follow the others back to the village. "Meet me back here in another four hours! I'll have the last batch of skins!" Norva shouted towards the group. A few of the hunters waved their hands, letting him know they understood. The notion may have been a bit harsh, but it was his way of making sure they didn't try to steal the skins and the meat for themselves. Once the hunters were out of sight, Norva walked away from the village to continue his hunting. He was more than halfway done. By now, the sun had already crawled up to the top of its arc and it was barely on its way back down. Fortunately, Norva would most likely be done before it hid behind the mountains.

He walked for about an hour in a new direction.

Norva walked through the frosted landscape for a while. His fatigue was starting to get at him. However, he was almost done hunting for the village. By now, he must have gathered more than enough to feed a good portion of the village. A couple more packs of foxes should be good, although Norva would be surprised to see that many more foxes. Perhaps they were in abundance around these woods. That would solve the dilemma of damaging their local population, so the village wouldn't suffer lowered numbers of foxes.

It was a little past noon by now. Norva had caught a rabbit by now, and he was carrying it on the side of his pack. The little bugger moved more than he wished it would have, and it got a pretty big gash in its belly when he hooked it in with his Shang Gou. Fortunately it wasn't bleeding anymore, but it was kind of annoying. Nonetheless, it was good meat and skin.

Suddenly, Norva's senses went off again. Another source of blood was nearby... it was closing in fast. Norva reached at his hips for his weapons, but then the source got closer, and he realized just how large it was. It was more than the packs he saw before, but it wasn't quite a bear. The source was spread out, and moving much faster than the bear... and it was moving right towards him. Norva unhooked his Shang Gou and took a readied stance.

Things were going to get harsh.

There were way too many of them to handle all at once. Norva could sense at least ten, maybe twelve foxes heading right towards him. His hands tightened on the hard leather grips of his Shang Gou as they reflected the grey sky through their blades. Unless these foxes were magic, then he did have one thing that would allow him to catch them off guard. The large pack was about 75 meters out and closing at about ten meters per second, giving Norva about seven seconds before they were on him. He gave it about five seconds before they saw him through the trees.

While there was still time, Norva hooked one of his Shang Gou on his waist and snapped his fingers. His entire body flashed green before disappearing from sight. The foxes continued moving towards him, even though his presence was gone. That's when he realized that the rabbit he had killed earlier had dripped a little blood onto the snow where he once was standing. Norva was in a mirrored reality at the moment, so the reality he was in seemed like and did exactly the same things his original reality did. He could see the blood on the snow and the foxes coming out of the trees. They were drawn by the smell of the rabbit's blood.

Well, it made Norva's job easier. The foxes stopped in their tracks and began sniffing around until one of them came across the drops of blood. However, since the mirrored reality did exactly what the original reality did, Norva was not seen by the foxes.

Norva had the advantage now. He dropped his right hand back down to his waistline and grabbed the Shang Gou hanging there. Fighting twelve foxes wasn't going to be easy, so Norva would have to take it one step at a time, constantly keeping himself on the outside to avoid getting surrounded.

The foxes kept sniffing around, confused as to where the blood came from. It was the most recent place and the rabbit's trail just disappeared. Norva could understand why they were so confused. He walked over to the closest fox and prepared to make a quick flash attack. With his Shang Gou up in the air he flashed back into his reality. However, he swung down and killed the first fox, quickly pulling his weapons free before flashing back into the mirrored reality. As expected, all of the foxes jolted and turned their attention. Only a few already looking the same way saw Norva and were instantly spooked. However, they didn't flee. That was their loss, their funeral.

With the same plan, Norva relocated to the fox furthest from him, the one that no other fox was looking at. His Shang Gou were up in the air when he flashed into reality and killed the fox. However, this time he was fast enough to avoid catching any other fox's eyes when he flashed away. They all turned to see the other dead fox. That's when a few of them started to spook, slowly backing away. Norva wouldn't let them.

A group of about three foxes started backing away in the same direction. Their instincts were telling them to run away, everything was too different and unfamiliar for them. However, they wouldn't have enough time to get away. Norva sprinted through the mirrored reality to the front of those three foxes. His body flashed green back into existence as he swung his Shang Gou right into the heads of the two on the outside, then kicked the other one down, keeping his right foot on the shoulders of the fox. Quickly and efficiently, Norva pulled his Shang Gou from both foxes and swung one down on the last fox's head. It embedded and killed the fox.

Five down, seven to go.

Norva hooked his Shang Gou to his waist and took a stable stance. No more reason to go into the mirrored reality. "Quippon, War Shot." His right hand flashed green as the familiar jet black revolver materialized in his gloved hand. Norva quickly fired two quick shots into the head of the closest fox, killing it before it hit the floor. By now, the rest of the foxes were well aware of Norva's presence. All six foxes moved to surround Norva. However, the hit-man was well prepared for that, breaking into a sprint to re-position himself from the center to the outside of the group. Another fox leaped towards Norva, aiming for his throat. A quick shot to its own stopped it dead in its tracks.

Seven down, five to go.

Norva had two more shots in his revolver, which would take down two more foxes if he placed them right. The last three he would deal with using his Shang Gou, easy enough. Before he even gave the foxes a chance, Norva lifted his revolver and fired his two shots at the closest foxes. The first shot hit and took down one fox, but the other fox scurried back just enough to dodge the hit. Norva cursed under his breath as the large steel revolver disappeared from his hands in a pure green flash. Just a minor change in plans now. Instead of three foxes to kill, it simply went to four now. The three foxes that weren't shot at were quick to react, launching immediately at Norva. Before he could even grab his Shang Gou, one latch onto his forearm. Another bit down on his calves. Norva was able to catch the third attacker though, using his free foot to catch it by its neck and snap it quickly.

Before the other fox that dodged his shot attacked again, Norva ripped the fox off of his arm and reached for the fox on his leg before it unlatched and fell back out of his reach. However, the hit-man had time to reach for his Shang Gou now. He firmly grabbed the leather grips and launched forward. The fox he missed with his revolver was the first to die as his right hook sword embedded in its skull. The other two that were still alive simultaneously leaped again, aiming for the same areas. Norva stepped forward and swung his Shang Gou right into both foxes, dropping them right to the ground, dead.

Norva pulled his Shang Gou free and wiped the blood off with his glove. That had to be enough skin and meat for the village now.

After a little bit of struggle, Norva was able to get all 12 foxes back to his and the hunter's meeting spot. It took quite a while, a little more than three hours, but he finally made it with his final shipment of skins. The mask was starting to get hot for him, so he unlatched the front of the helmet and pulled it off with his hand. For the first time in 24 hours, Norva's lips took in the brisk, fresh winter air, exhaling it with a fogged breath. The sun was about an hour or two from disappearing behind the mountains. He learned that the days were especially long in Iceberg, so Norva guessed that it was around 7:00 or 8:00.

Soon enough, he could sense the hunters returning for the final batch of game. Norva reattached his mask and stood up, making sure that the foxes were ready to be loaded up. The hunters arrived and they loaded up the final delivery of skins and meat. With this, the village was surely going to do well for a while. Norva walked with the group and sure enough, they had delivered everything to the village, where it should be. Norva thanked the hunters as they left to handle their own business, then met up with the village elder. The woman thanked him, giving him the coat and a sum of jewels as thanks, then allowed him to sleep in the hut.

In the morning, Norva would continue his search. When he arrived, he didn't sense her or her specific blood signature. Perhaps he'd find her in the other Iceberg villages.