• It was a bright, sunny day in the city of One Star. A young man walked along the bright silver streets towards an old building shaped like a medieval castle. In front of the graying stone building, there stood a sign that was barely legible. “Hall of Scholars”, it read. The young man looked at the ancient sign as though he was making sure that he’s in the right place. He stared at the large building and sighed. He walked up the many stone steps and entered the castle through large wooden doors. A butler greeted him at the foyer, bowing and gesturing for the young man to follow him. The young man obliged and slowly followed the butler.

    What am I doing here? The young man thought as he walked through a dark hall-way filled with small torches that barely gave light.

    “High Lord Callen is quite anxious to see you, my lord.” said the heavy set butler as he guided Ickerus through the great hall.

    “Y-y-yes, I-I’m sure” replied the young man. It’s so cold in here! Would it kill Callen to add in some minor thermal insulation? He thought to himself, wrapping his arms around his chest. The butler and the Scholar reached the end of the hall. In front of them was yet another set of large wooden doors, only much narrower.

    “Wait here, my lord, I shall announce your arrival,” said the butler. The young man silently nodded a curt reply.
    “My lords, Baron Ickerus Gotem, Lord of the Twilight Forests” announced the butler. Ickerus, the young man, walked into a large library. In the center of the room, stood a table where three old men sat. At the head of the table was the infamous High Lord Callen, a Scholar so old and willowy, but with great power. On his right and left were two other powerful Scholars. One of the Scholars was of medium build and contentedly smiled at Ickerus. The other Scholar was plump and scowled at Ickerus.

    “Ah, Ickerus, so glad that you could join us,” said High Lord Callen with a grim smile.
    “My lords,” Ickerus replied, bowing at the three Scholars.
    The plump Scholar muttered something. It sounded like “Humph”
    “Ickerus, do you know why you’re here?” asked the smiling Scholar.
    “No, my lord,” Ickerus respectfully replied.
    “You don’t know why you’re here? Bloody hell, why didn’t you tell him, Callen?!” cried the plump Jameston
    “Be silent, man,” said the second Scholar
    “Oh, don’t tell me to be silent, Bithaniel, you stupid old windbag!”

    The two old Scholars started yelling at each other, completely oblivious to Callen and Ickerus.
    “Silence, please!” Callen exclaimed, quite annoyed with the bickering. “I was just about to tell him, but of course you two can never shut your mouths. It seems you only use your focus for fighting rather than knowledge. I wonder why you two are on the Council.” Callen glared at them, silent daggers reaching their eyes.

    The two men looked at each other, and sighed.
    “I’m sorry you had to listen to that, Ickerus, it seems they both forgot their manners,” Callen said after a moment of silence. “Now then, let’s get down to business. You are here because of some rumors. These rumors are saying that you are getting in much deeper with the Mythologies and Prophecies. Is this true, Ickerus?”

    “Yes, your lordship, it is true. I haven’t told anyone, which obviously means someone is spying on me and spreading these rumors.” Ickerus said, not surprised by the rumors.

    “So it is true! I thought no one would ever get this close! I just can’t believe it!” Bithaniel exclaimed with delight, clapping his hands together.
    “I’m glad to see that this pleases you, Lord Bithaniel,” said Ickerus calmly.
    “But there is more, my friend, much more,” said Callen distantly. “Not only did these rumors reach the Scholars and other students of magic, but the mob fathers, war lords and gang leaders. Those criminals would do anything to get information like the ones you’ve obtained. They will locate you. When they find you, they will hire the Bounty Hunters. Pray tell they may even hire the infamous Z. I suggest that you make friends with the Bounty Hunters, they can be powerful allies.”

    Ickerus nodded, processing the information slowly. There was a long moment of silence.
    “Yes, High Lord, I will remember that,” Ickerus said “Is there anything else that you need to know or that I need to know?” The three men exchanged looks.
    “No, my boy, there is nothing else. You may leave now.” replied Jameston with a cruel smile. Ickerus turned to leave.
    “Good-bye, my lords.” He said with a small backwards glance. Ickerus walked through the doors. They immediately closed.
    …
    “Should we have told him that we hired a Bounty Hunter to protect him, my lord?” Asked Bithaniel after the young black haired man left the room.
    “No, Z told us that she would meet with him in secret, and take him to a safe house in the forests.” replied Callen, looking blankly at the door in front of them.
    “What, she? Z is a woman!” exclaimed Jameston “No Bounty Hunter is a woman! It is unheard of!”
    “I heard Z is young, my lord, how young?” Bithaniel asked as he changed the subject before Jameston could go on complaining.
    “Fourteen or fifteen, I believe. She’s as deadly of a fighter as she is clever. I have hired her from time to time. After certain missions, she erases the memory of her clients, only having them remember that they hired her and that she completed the job.” Callen said, pride brightening his eyes.
    “Will she erase our memories, my lord?” Jameston asked with fear in his eyes.
    “No.” Callen said, still looking distantly, as if wondering what will happen in the near future.

    He suddenly stood up and walked over to the hologram communicator. He typed in a communication code. After a few minutes, a pixeled image of a young woman covered in black, her face hidden by the hood of a cloak.
    “Yes, milord?” was the girl’s greeting.
    “Ickerus Gotem is on his way home to the outskirts of Foxtail Village; intercept him two miles at the edge of the village, he lives four miles from that spot.” said High Lord Callen “I will meet you at the safe house in three days time. Wait for further instructions. If I do not come by then, I will send your friend Kerlyle to give my instructions. I have spoken with him, and he agreed to do so. Do not fail, Z.”

    “Yes, my lord. Your instructions shall be followed.” Z replied and then disappeared.
    “Are you sure we can trust this Z character?” Bithaniel asked, fear coloring his tone.
    “She has proven herself to be very trustworthy. I believe that young Ickerus Gotem will be very safe with her.” The willowy old man replied to his fat companion.
    …
    In the outskirts of One Star, a run-down inn sits quietly in the shade of large trees. On the second floor of the old inn are two figures. One of the figures was using a portable hologram communicator, the other was sleeping.
    “Come on, Abel, let’s get this over with.” A girl’s voice said in the dark room.
    “Aw! I was finally able to get some sleep, and now we have to work!” another voice replied “Why the hell did you decide to work for High Lord Callen again? He almost got us killed the last time!”
    “I decided to work for him again because he pays better than those rich criminals. But during that private meeting we had, he said that this Ickerus Gotem knew who I was, what the characters on my forearms really mean and, possibly, the long black scar on my back,” The first voice replied, pulling off her hood as she said this, revealing a young woman’s face. She had a beautiful oval shaped face, with sharp, blue eyes, like that of a wolf. “And why I turn into a Fallen Angel.”

    Her companion only nodded and yawned. He stood up and stretched.
    “Whatever, Z, I didn’t really care anyways. Let’s just pack up.” Abel said, walking towards the window to open it. The sun revealed a young black wolf with similar blue eyes, only fiercer and more menacing.

    “Don’t forget, you need to transform into a human,”
    “I know, I know, so no one in this s**t pit of an inn can know who I truly am, I get it! You told me that a hundred times!”
    “Ah yes, but you do forget these things. Remember the last time? We were lucky that I was able to persuade those stupid Security Robots to leave you alone! Do you know how long that took?”

    Z walked towards the window as well to gather their weapons. She was wearing a large grey turtle neck sweater with a long sleeved black shirt underneath. She was also wearing black leggings and black calf high boots. Around her waist was a black utility belt. Over her dark clothing was a black cloak. The wolf looked at her and sighed, annoyed with the smell of the inn and their conversation.
    After they finished packing, the black wolf transformed into a tall, lanky but muscular man with long, dark hair and a black traveler’s cloak, tunic, pants and boots. The man and the girl left, leaving money behind to pay for the room.