'The Rising...'
The tree in front of Davi exploded in a hail of wood as a large dog came crashing through making Iris, and Davi stare with wide eyes.
"Oh... A monster." Davi said stunned.
Him and Iris stared in shock at the creature. It was tall reaching nearly eight feet in height. It stood on two legs and was covered in dark brown fur. It had a mouth filled with fangs larger than even Davi's teeth, and he had large black claws as well as huge muscles. He was wearing a pair of dirty brown pants and a small cloak with an orange bird on it. He let out a loud snorting sound, smoke coming from his nose as he stared at them both.
"Holy crap there actually was a monster!" Davi said in shock jumping back. He stared down at his hands and quickly put it together that such a thing would likely not do very much to this Oddity Beast. That and the thing was massive and covered in thick fur. It looked kind of like a wolf mixed with a man. A Werewolf? If so that would be a very powerful Oddity Beast.
"That isn't even the Monster I was talking about..." Iris said with wide eyes. "The monster I saw looked like a cat!"
"Wait so there's more than one! Uh... Easy there boy..." Davi said holding his hands out. "We aren't here to hurt you... Though I do know how to throw a mean right hook."
The beast stared at them standing on two legs as he glared at them both. "Did you two... Come to see me?" He spoke in a very weird growling way making Davi and Iris stumble back as they stared up at the dog beast.
"It talks!" Iris, and Davi said in shock.
The dog suddenly began to flex allowing a loud growl to come out of his throat. His muscles grew in size as he seemed to give a smirk which looked weird due to the fact that he had a snout. "It makes sense that the two of you would come to see me!" He barked out flexing over and over again all in new poses.
"It does?"
"Yes! For I am a proud member of Phoenix Flight! The greatest Guild around! I am Bronze! You must have heard of me-"
"Never heard of you."
The dog man fell landing on his face as he let out a small growl for a second. He jumped back up pointing a clawed finger at Davi. "W... What? You mean the legend of Bronze the Werehuman haven't been heard of yet!"
"Were... Human?"
"Yes!" The dog began flexing some more his muscles getting bigger. "I was a young wolf, who was bitten by a human! So now on full moons I turn into a man!"
"That is the dumbest back story ever!"
"Or maybe I was a wolf who was turned into this! Or maybe a former human! I honestly don't recall!"
"How do you not know your own back story!"
The wolf man let out a small growl as he scratched at his chin. "So you aren't here for me... Than... You must have come to steal my prey!"
"Your prey?" Davi asked. He moved in front of Iris ready to protect her if it came to it, though he didn't feel any hostility coming from the thing... "Wait who are you? Anyways?"
"I am Bronze-"
"That's a dumb name and you already said that..."
"-and I am an Arcane Hunter of one of the ten Guilds in Avalon! I'm not here to recruit for my Guilds like others might do! I just came here to hunt the great Devil Fish that swims in the lake near here!"
"An... Arcane Hunter?" Davi frowned. "I've heard of them..."
"Of course you have! They're known all over the world, even a back water village like this in the middle of nowhere would have at least heard of the epic tales that is of the Arcane Hunters! Nearly two hundred years ago King Arthur rose up and created the Knights of The Round Table, a band of powerful warriors who slayed the many demons, and dragons, as well as the great black beast, together with the Angels! Now many Kingdoms have formed their own versions of the Round Table Knights! Adventures who have banded together forming Guilds. We call them Arcane Hunters! Warriors who go on Quests granted magical powers at birth! Mana-"
"Yeah I know..." Davi said waving his hand out. A faint blue glow seemed to come off of him lighting his eyes up for a moment. "I have mana. I use it to increase my bodies power to help my Grandfather hunt Oddity Beasts. Also... Mister 'Fights For the People' you're scaring my little sister." Davi frowned as he crossed his arms.
The man seemed to recoil back for a moment before slowly looking down at the little girl who was hiding behind Davi's leg. "I'm scaring her! Nooooooo!" The man let out a loud howl that seemed to echo out shaking several of the trees.
"Geez keep it down!" Davi's eye twitched as he stared at the strange wolf man. "What's with this guy..."
"I'm sorry if I scared you little one!" The Wolf man who was apparently named Bronze announced. he pressed his thumb and pointer finger together as he snapped. "Tell you what! I'm going to be on this island for the rest of the day. How about I protect her while I'm here!"
"Protect her? Nothing bad ever happens on this island. Any threats that do come me and Gramps handle. We don't normally get Arcane Hunters here so he's trained me to fight off Oddity Beasts." He shook his head for a moment. "Sure... Why not..."
"But it'll cost you!"
"I don't have Bells I can spare-"
"I want cake! Chocolate Cake!"
"C... Can dogs have cake?" Davi asked.
"I'm not a dog! I'm a Hunter!"
Davi eyed the weird man up for a second. "Can I pet you?" Iris asked.
"I'm not dog!"
Iris seemed to warm up to the dog man as she began to giggle. Davi still had a frown trying to figure out what was going on. "So you said you needed help catching a Devil Fish? Never heard of that Oddity Beast." He asked.
"I don't need help!"
Davi ignored the monster man walking over to where a large pond was. A fishing pole rested next to it, which was massive. Likely the one the dog man had been using. He picked it up feeling the fishing pole gripping it tightly. He raised it up his smirk growing. "Bring me luck! I hear there is a really big devil fish in these waters! I want to catch it!" He announced throwing the pole forward.
"Hey! I said I don't need help!"
"Give me paw." Iris said holding her hand out to the man.
"I'm not a dog!"
"And I said give me paw!"
"...Yes Ma'am..."
The line suddenly began to get tugged on making Davi's smirk grow. He tugged on it but nothing happened which made his smirk only grow as he stood up showing his fangs showing Bronze his fangs.
"You actually got something!" Bronze asked with wide eyes. "I've been at it all day... Our Master's birthday is coming up and I said I'd get them a tasty snack!"
"Alright! I found me a big one-" Davi began as he used all of his might to pull on his fishing pole. It pulled up and he stopped dead in his tracks staring at the weird creature on the other end. It was kind of hard to describe. It was like a black puff ball around the size of a small basket ball. It had pitch black fur and a pair of stubby legs poking out of the bottom of it as well as a pair of stubby arms poking out from its body. It had pitch red eyes, and a tiny little mouth twisted into a smile showing off many fanged and sharp teeth, as well as a pair of cat like ears sticking out of the top of the puff ball and a tail coming out the back. "What the heck kind of fish are you!" Davi said with wide eyes. He stared at it, and it stared back at him with its blood red eyes which all blinked. Its maw opened as a large tongue came out and licked Davi's face making him shudder. "Seriously... What the hell kind of creature are you? You're not a cat, though you sort of look like one... And you're not a fish... I have no idea what you are... Make sense God damn it!"
Davi began to violently shake the creature trying to get it to reform into a normal not demonic looking form but didn't seem to be very successful. Instead the weird cat creature just barked loudly and cocked its head at him. It licked his face some more as Davi's eye twitched.
"Yeah I have no clue what this is..."
"Me either?" The dog man barked staring at the weird little creature. "Weird... It's like a baby Oddity Beast? Anyways I should go. This guy is gonna feed me cake, if I protect his sister-"
"Do you have short term memory?"
"Yes. Why?"
"No reason-"
The water suddenly exploded as a massive snake looking fish, with ten tentacles coming out of it, and a large fin, on its back, came crashing out of the water hissing as it flew towards Davi opening its mouth which was filled with razor sharp teeth. This was a Devil Fish! A creature that killed hundreds of people-
"Not in the mood anymore." Davi said swinging his pole out and quite literally splitting the head of the beast open with the line on the pole. Davi held the weird cat monster back up looking it over as it cocked its head at him, and its tail began to wag. "I wonder... Can I eat you?"
"Bark!"
"That's not a no."
"Meow."
"Still not a no."
"No!" The cat said in Davi's voice being a perfect match for him.
"Oh okay- Wait can you talk!"
"No!"
"Oh... Okay. Wait a second... Are you sure you can't talk?"
The cat then began to mimic the same sounds the creature made, and even made the sound of the exploding water when the beast rose out of it. Whatever this thing was it seemed to be able to replicate nearly any sound it heard somehow. A neat trick, though not the first animal that could do that.
"What a weird creature..." Bronze hummed.
"It's cool!" Iris said with stars in her eyes. "I'm gonna call him Cath... Was this the thing I saw earlier I wonder? He looked bigger when I saw him?"
"I need to ask someone what you are... I should go to the smartest person on the island!"
"Island!" The beast barked now in Iris's voice.
Meanwhile back in Wastelands village a small house on the coast could be seen. A girl rested in a chair holding a book. The girl had long blonde hair, and blue eyes. She seemed to be twenty three years old.
The girl let out a small sigh as she slowly rested her book down. She stared out to the vast ocean that was ahead of her. "I'm still waiting on you both to return... Mom... Dad... It's been so long... I'm starting to forget your faces-"
"Sissy!" The voice of Davi yelled out making the girl give a small sigh. "Big Sis Gloria." Davi announced coming to a sliding stop in front of her. Iris was also with him, as well as a strange fur covered man, who was dragging a split in half beast with him. Davi also was dragging a dead sky fish with him?
"Yes Davi?" The girl who was apparently named Gloria asked, her eye twitching slightly. She set her book down as she stared at her little brother, her younger sister, and the wild beast man... "Who's your friend?"
"Look at this weird thing I found in the lake sis! This cat dog which has some kind of sound based magic!"
"An animal with magic? I guess its possible. But where's the dog- SWEET MOTHER OF GOD WHAT IS THAT THING!" Gloria yelled with wide eyes jumping back when Davi held the weird monster up. "What the hell is that Oddity Beast!"
"I think its what you just said? Some kind of Oddity Beast?" The wolf man barked. "Also where are we? I was at the lake? I have to keep some girl safe for cake?"
"Kill it! Kill it, kill it, kill it! Kill it with as much fire that is legally allowed!" Gloria cried
"But sis-" Davi, and Iris both said.
"It's evil!"
"He's cute." Iris cried. The Oddity Beasts, mouth opened as its long tongue slithered out and rubbed against Gloria's face making her shudder and stumble back. "I'm gonna call him Cath. So... Can I keep him?"
"No, no, no!"
"Please?" She asked.
"This one makes sounds! Listen!" Davi poked the weird creature in the side as it opened its mouth and let out a loud whistling sound. The same kind of one the massive boats would make when they were sailing. "Imagine how cool it'll be when it grows up. I bet I could kick Grampa Jin's ass with this thing when it's older!"
"Thanks Davi. I'm gonna be having nightmares about this thing when its and adult now."
"Your welcome."
"It was sarcasm."
"I know. So can I-"
"No! You can't!"
"Can I-" Iris began but was cut off.
"No..."
"Aha! I was gonna say 'can I get rid of him' but you just said no I can't. Now I have to keep him-"
Gloria smacked her brother, and sister, over the head with her book knocking Davi, and Iris down. Bronze who had no idea what was going on just backed up eyeing them all up. "Quit being a smartass." Gloria yelled.
"Why did I get hit?" Davi asked.
"Because you taught her that!"
"Fair... But come on sis. Let Iris keep it." Davi asked handing the thing over to Iris who hugged it tightly. "I mean her last pet Gold fish died after all."
"Goldies dead!"
"Whoops."
Gloria sighed shaking her head. "Davi look... I don't want to take care of that thing."
"You won't have to sis! I will! I'll take good care of him, and feed him, and take him on walks, and teach him howtodevourmyenemiesandbatheintheirblood."
"What was that last part?"
"Teach him how to make cool sounds." Iris said blankly.
Gloria let out a sigh as she folded her arms. "Do you actually care about this thing or are you just putting on a bit?"
"I do! I really do!"
"Come on Gloria." Davi asked giving his shark tooth grin.
She eyed it up as it let out a small yawn and closed its eyes snoring softly. Every time it exhaled a small puff of orange flames came out of its nose. Finally, she let out a small sigh.
"Okay... You can keep him. As long as Grampa Jin says yes..."
"I got to go." Bronze announced. "I need to keep some girl safe."
"Seriously!"