Yanoku City, Commercial District: Summer of the red moon.

Clamor and laughter filled the Lady Bug’s tavern. It was almost midnight. The western city of Yanoku is famous for its Hunters’ guild. Hunters from all over the continent gather every year for the Festival of the First Hunt. From scrawny young men to brutishly strong veterans, one could hear the sound of music filling the damp streets of the port city.

Three brawny men sat in a booth at the farthest corner of the tavern. They each sipped their ale as they whispered to each other. The noise and festive environment in the tavern didn’t seem to bother them. They needed a noisy place to keep curious eavesdroppers from listening in to their conversation.

“We must find the witch before the festival begins. We can’t allow those magic users near Ulmir’s gate,” a white bearded man named Alistair said. “We must find her before Viraldo comes back.”

“A cheap trick she played, the master will be angry if we don’t find her on time.” This time, it was Garland who spoke, the strongest man in the guild.

“I say we ask the Rats to track ‘er for us. Rumor has it they got a good sniffer among ‘em now,” intervened the third man.

“I don’t like it. Nothing good comes out of partnering with those thieves.”

“Al’s right,” said Garland. “Those thieves’re just a buncha greedy opportunists. There’s no world where the Three Headed Dragon becomes friends with them rats.”

“I may have a better idea,” Alistair said.

“What is it?” asked Garland, anxious. Both men leaned forward, interested in what their companion had to offer. They were desperate. The witch had stolen an important artifact from the guild then ran away. Garland was the main culprit in the matter. He called his two old comrades to help him solve this delicate situation.

“I met a young man in this tavern about a month back,” Al started. “He has no affiliation to any guild but he’s very resourceful. I introduced him to Dismas and he offered to pay me back whenever I called on him.”

“How’ll that help find the witch?” asked Garland who started getting impatient.

“This young man, as I said, is resourceful. He knew things about this city, about our guild, I never even thought existed. His words were: If you ever need something, or someone found, I am your man,” Al went on, aware of the impatient nature of his friend.

“How do we contact this new friend of yours Al?” asked the third man.

“He gave me this candle,” Alistair took the item from a pocket inside his jacket then showed it to his friends. “All we need to do is light it near a window in a high structure. He’ll see it and come find us.”

“What strange thing. You sure it’s a candle?” asked Garland.

“The wax moves about like a live snake!” The third companion looked fascinated, scared to some extent too. “You gone and found a strange fella, Al.”

“I told you, he’ll come in handy. I don’t know what kind of power he has. But I know he’s the man for our job.”

“How so?” asked Garland.

“What’re ye three talkin ‘bout?” a drunken man approached the group, shouting at the top of his lungs.

Silence suddenly fell. Everyone stared at the poor drunken fellow who dared interrupt the three hunters. Garland slowly got up, held the man from the scruff of his neck then threw him out a window. Laughter filled the tavern again and the festivities resumed.

“He shoulda known better,” some could be heard saying.

“Never talk to Garland unless yer invited to his table,” others murmured.

“I don’t even know what those heroes are doing here. They got their own pub at the guild.”

“Don’t let them hear you say that, Garland will fling you to the city gates.”

Talk about the three hunters went on for a while before the subject got reverted to the festival. Bards resumed their singing and the barman was compensated for the broken window by Alistair.

The three hunters left the Lady Bug a short while after then headed towards the guild watchtower.. It was the highest structure in the Guild district and also Alistair’s personal quarters. The man was the Three Headed Dragons’ brains. His job was to compile data on legendary monsters that inhabited the eastern continent.

“Let me do the talking,” Al said as they walked towards their guild headquarters. “This young lad is strange. Please don’t lose your temper Garland. We don’t want our only hope to refuse us.”

“Hah! He’ll listen to reason, one way or another,” replied the brute.

“Not this one, old friend. He’s stronger than our most mysterious hunters. The man gives me the creeps.”

“What makes you think he won’t betray us?” the third companion asked.

“He has a certain moral code he abides by. I got to know him pretty well. He’s a man of his word Zorah.”

“I trust your instinct, friend, unlike others who doubt everything,” Garland addressed Alistair as he shot a suspicious look at the man called Zorah.

“You know Garland, if you could think with your brains instead of that thing between your legs, we wouldn’t be in this mess.” Zorah was the Three Headed Dragon’s scout. Together with Al, they lead the guild intelligence team.

Despite his large body, Garland was pretty quick to reach Zorah and placate him against a wall. “If you learned to keep your mouth shut, you wouldn’t have your skull bashed against this wall now.”

“Enough both of you!” Al intervened. “That witch will hand the star back to us. There’s no need to get into senseless arguments now.”

“I hope you’re right Al.” Garland let go of the scout leader, albeit with great reluctance.

“Zorah is right friend. That witch didn’t even need to charm you with spells. You fell right into her natural charms the moment she joined the Sol hunt,” Alistair resumed.

“My contact will find her for us. Just let me do the talking, alright?”

“Why are we tagging along then?” asked Zorah.

“That young lad functions in a strange way. He’ll know that I’m not the only one involved in this matter. He’d want to see us all.”

“What’d he want with Dismas anyway? The way I see it, this friend of yours can find anyone,” asked Zorah.

“He’s looking for Mr. Smith,” Al replied. At the mention of this name, the two men’s faces changed.

“Why’d anybody look for that monster of a man?!” asked Garland. The strongest man in the guild was clearly shaken by the mention of that name.

“I didn’t ask and I prefer to stay out of it.”

“Wise decision,” commented Zorah. “Nothing good comes out of dealing with the devil itself.”

“Al, you sure it’s wise to team up with someone like that?” asked Garland.

“It’s either him or the rats.”

“Bah!” Garland answered, frustrated. “Follow your guts. I just hope he’s the lesser evil.”

“We’re here,” interrupted Zorah. “Let’s get this over with. Master can’t come back and find the star missing.”

The three hunters got into the old watchtower and inside Al’s private study. Al lit up the strange candle then put it near the window after which the three sat down, waiting for the mysterious man’s arrival. The chandelier that hung above the study was the only source of light in the room, save for the green flame emitted from the candle.

After a short while, the candle fire turned bright red then suddenly got extinguished. The three hunters stared at the direction of the extinguished candle, surprised at this sudden change. A gentle knock on their door brought them back to reality. “I’ll open it,” Alistair whispered, unsure why he spoke faintly.

“Hello dear friend,” a deep voice reached the other hunters’ ears.

“Zedd, please come in. Have a seat wherever you please.”

“How did he get in unnoticed?” Garland whispered to Zorah.

“I snuck in here of course,” answered the young man, surprising the two hunters. “I assume you have some urgent matters to deal with Al.” Zedd seated himself beside the window that overlooked the Akhari castle, the largest structure in the city. He took the strange candle and pocketed it.

Alistair filled some cups with ale then handed them to his friends and guest. The faint light from the chandelier barely illuminated the young man’s face. “You must be Garland,” Zedd started. “The strongest hunter in the guild, it is an honor to meet you.

“And you’re the famous scout, Zorah. Your work is quite admirable. How can I help the Three Headed Dragon’s legendary hunters?”

“Legendary is but a title forced upon us by the guild apprentice hunters. We’re but men who dedicated themselves to doing their job without losing any limbs,” Al started.

“Or our lives,” Garland intervened.

“Three wise men looking for a fool’s help, I’ll do my best to assist you. How about you tell me about the reason you’ve summoned me?” Zedd asked. The tall hooded man eyed the hunters who called for his help. From under the hood he wore, Garland could only see the young man’s golden shining eyes. ‘Strange doesn’t even do him justice. That man gives me the creeps,’ he thought as he felt the young man’s penetrating gaze read through his soul.

“Have you heard of the Purple witch?” Al asked.

“A headache to anyone who deals with her, what did she steal?”

“The azure star,” said Zorah.

Zedd let out a long whistle before replying. “She’s hit the jackpot this time. Master Viraldo won’t be too happy to hear about this.”

“He’s in Helton now. He’s due here in three days. That witch has vanished without a trace. I was hoping you’d help us locate her,” Al said.

“I can do that. Dealing with a magic user is no easy task even for hunters. You can rest assured friend, you’ll have your star before Master Viraldo makes it back to the port.”

“We’ll come with you. I wanna make that bitch pay,” Garland said.

“I’m afraid I can’t allow that. I prefer doing the tracking alone. Besides, I have a great use for that witch. You’ll get your star back and you’ll never hear from that woman ever again.”

Garland turned to Al with a worried look in his eyes. Zorah didn’t try to protest. He trusted Al with the decision making. There was no time to argue about the matter anyway. They needed to solve the situation quickly before their master came back with a foreign envoy.

The Azure Star was the most valuable artifact the guild has ever possessed. It was actually an ancient dragon’s eye. It represented the might of the guild and losing it would deal a great blow to their reputation. The three hunters were desperate for a solution.

“Very well, our priority is to get the star back. I don’t care what happens to that witch as long as she never sets foot in this city anymore.” Alistair trusted Zedd to deliver on his promise.

“You’ll have your star in two days. But I’ll need the witch to be in the city for a few days.” the young man stated.

“What d’ya mean?” Garland asked, agitated.

Alistair shot a cold look at Garland before he composed himself then said. “That witch has insulted our guild. We can’t allow her in the city anymore.”

Zedd smiled, revealing perfectly aligned white teeth. “Surely, no one knows of what she’s done. Otherwise you wouldn’t have called me here Al. Besides, the witch won’t show her face in the guild district. I’ve rented a place at the Commercial District. She’ll stay there. Her magic won’t reach you since I will seal it while she resides here. Does that put your minds at ease friends?”

Alistair looked at Garland, the restless. “I guess,” the brute answered.

“Then it is settled. I’ll depart at once.” Zedd revealed a final smile from under his hood.

A chilling breeze suddenly engulfed the room. The candles were extinguished and darkness ensued. The moon was hiding behind the dark clouds. Alistair headed for the window then closed it. He was used to Zedd’s unusual ways of dealing with negotiations.

“He’s gone. Zorah, please light those candles.”

“That man chilled me to the bones,” Garland noted. “How can you trust him so easy Al? Are we s’posed to sit in ‘ere waitin’ fer some miracle?”

“You’re restless, I understand that friend. But have faith. I’ve seen this young man in action. He’s not like the rest of us.” Alistair closed the windows and got back to his seat by the big oak desk in his study.

“How’d you describe him then?” Garland asked. “There’s evil in ‘im. I could feel it in me soul.”

“I’ve stopped labeling things long ago my dear friend. Zedd has an unusual power. I’ve seen him take down ten of Dismas’ men in a matter of seconds. I barely even blinked before they were all knocked out cold.

“His power is mysterious. It’s better if he goes on his own. We’ll only slow him down or alert the witch to our presence. You can rest assured friends, the star will be brought back to us.”

“As long as we get that damned eye back, I’ll sleep like a baby. We’ve no other choice but to trust that gut feeling you have. It never failed us before.” Garland finally gave up on his protests. “I’ll go drink myself senseless, you two get back to your educated conversations.”

Garland left the two hunters and headed for the guild’s common area. As the Bounty Master, his presence at the common area was required at all times. “You don’t trust me. But you can rest assured. That star should never leave this place. You know not of its true value. I will deliver it to you safely, you have my word.”

The message reached his head, not his ears. Garland looked around, confused. There was nobody around, but Zedd’s voice kept ringing inside his head until he reached the common area. ‘What terrifying monster have we invited in our lives?’ the thought kept coming back to Garland as he drank his fill, trying to chase the thought of the young man with the shining eyes away.