Prey for the Hunters

I'm very inspired by this universe and can't wait to learn more about its lore. I honestly have a question I'll probably fire off over the next couple of days just to see what folks think. Anyway, I'm not sure if these characters have ever met but I thought this would be a fun way to have them run into one another.

Hopefully it's at least possible. Let me know what you think in the comments.

Image from Super Fantasy Brawl by Mythic Games. 

Night was falling. Deryn swore. Her prey would be harder to follow in the dark. There would be no moon this evening. It would make finding her quarry nearly impossible.

After four days she was nearly on him. He must be close the tale tell foot prints were getting deeper. The mud was fresher. Not having dried from lengthy exposure to the air. She’d guessed she was near his location.

*Snap*

Deryn crouched down and side stepped into the heavy foliage next to the path. She kept her movements small and precise so as not to draw attention. She moved her bow down from her back and made sure the load was secure. Her eyes never stopped scanning the forest. Looking for any sign of him.

It was a small bit of color; a blue scarf. She could see the end of it past some leaves. She watched it to make sure it was her target. Even with her attention drawn to the scarf it wasn’t her sole focus. She let her gaze move back and forth across the trees. She strained her hearing for the sounds of ambush.  The scarf could be a trap.

She caught a blur of movement off to one side. Not a trap. A diversion. She pivoted in place, raised her bow, and took aim at the retreating shape through the trees.

A cloud of ravens exploded from the underbrush; blocking her view.

“Stay your hand hunter!” the voice was hollow and echoed slightly in the night. A thick mist rolled in around her. It blocked her view in all directions. The cries of the crows made it impossible to hear the retreating footfalls of her prey.

She shifted her balance to the balls of her feet so she could move in any direction at a moment’s notice. The better to avoid an incoming attack from any direction.

The mist in front of her parted and a form poured from the dusky woods. He was tall and gaunt. He wore dark robes covered in black feathers. A dark fog flowed from beneath his robe clinging to the ground and making the terrain hard to discern.

“I have no desire to fight you, Deryn.” The shades voice was deep and booming; with the finality of tombstones.

“You stand between me and my quarry,” said Deryn. “If your words are true, you’ll move and let me pass.”

“Normally I would stop the preying of one person on a weaker target,” said the shade. He made no move to let her leave. “You’re reputation as a good and noble person has reached even my ears here in the deep woods. So tell me. Why do you hunt this man?”

“He’s a monster,” said Deryn. “He murdered a family. He killed them in cold blood. He fled into the night. And right now, you’re letting him escape justice.”

“He is in my woods,” said the shade. “Lost in my mist and fog. He’ll not wander far. But tell me, are you sure?” asked the shade. “I sense neither evil nor malice in his heart. Had he committed the acts as you say, it would have stained him in some way. I would know.”

“There were witness.”

“Still,” said the shade. “I sense no darkness in him.”

“You’re wrong.”

“Am I?”

* * *

Androth stumbled over a tree root. He was moving in a straight line. He was certain of it. He was also certain he’d passed that same tree three times. He stopped and leaned against a tall oak. There must be a way out of this damned fog.

The mist parted and the shade, Nevamor, rose up before him. “Murderer!” shouted Nevamor, his voice booming through the trees.

“No,” cried Androth backing away from the shade. “I didn’t do it.”

“Lies.”

Androth turned and fled into the woods. Branches tearing at his clothes and hair.

The fog before him parted and Nevamor appeared in his path.

Androth screamed, turned, and ran at an angle to escape the shade. He tripped on a root. Slamming down on the ground he crawled. His fingers digging into the soft dirt as he tried to pull himself forward.

The mist parted again and Nevamor stood before him.

“Cease your flight and face justice.”

Deep tears welled in his eyes digging tracks through dirt caked to his face. “Why is this happening to me?”

“The family,” said Nevamore. “The lives you took. Repent now and perhaps I shall find mercy.”

“I didn’t do anything,” said Androth. “I didn’t kill anyone.”

“Do not lie to me.” Nevamor rose higher in the air looming over the broken man before him. “Confess your crime. Tell me of the family.”

“It wasn’t me,” said Androth. “I saw it though. Four men. Large men. Dressed in fancy clothes. They stood over those people with bloody weapons and bottles of wine. I ran. I shouldn’t of run. I should have found the magistrate. But I’m a coward. I just left. I was afraid of what they would do to me. Then that woman came for me in the night. She’s out there now.” Androth’s words fell away replaced by deep sobs. “I suppose I am guilty. I guess I do deserve her justice. I should have tried to help.”

The mist parted revealing Deryn standing a few meters from Androth.

“Are you satisfied?” asked Nevamor.

“Yes.”

“Do you know the men he described?”

“They were the witnesses.” Deryn turned back the way she had come. It would be a couple days walk to get back to the village. It shouldn’t be too hard to find those men. She turned and took a step towards her new goal. She stopped. “I’m sorry. You didn’t deserve this.” Then she stepped into the deep woods and was gone.

It took several minutes but Nevamor waited for Androth to compose himself. He kept looking in the direction that Deryn had walked as if expecting her to change her mind and return.

“What do I do now?”

“There’s a druid enclave to the west of here,” said Nevamor. “I shall guide you to them. They will care for you until you’re able to do so yourself.”

Nevamor reached out a hand and helped Androth to his feet. He turned and began floating into the woods. Androth followed a few feet behind. After a couple of minutes a skeletal crow dropped a blue scarf on Androth’s shoulder. “Thank you.”

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