The cliffs south of Vinewall were like a natural gate to the wilds, a forested entryway in a deep valley leading up to mountains that only barely earned their name. Dark rocks jutted out of the muddy earth, and were lashed against by the fast-moving and broad white waters being drawn to level ground by gravity's call. The animals and beasts were much less numerous than the Cobarlian forests, and the tree cover in the valley was inferior, sparse and dotted in comparison. The hermit's shack laid on the eastern cliffs as a remote hideaway, a place the deceased man picked due to it's difficulty of access. Braving the sharp inclines that gave the only proper access to the flat top was no easy feat, being nearly 45 degrees in some places. The west cliffs, by comparison, were lush and full, and a soft incline to the top was accesible from outside of the valley's domain.

The expedition had commenced. Cameron and Mindikalata had left the main gate before dawn, hoping to reach a vantage point at sunup. The roads were empty and long, taking them 4 hours to reach the pathway that led up the western cliffs. Mindy shot out questions rapid-fire, mostly innocent things like his favourite food, and 'if you had these clothes, then why did you wear that weird stuff frrom before?'. Cameron let her talk. He knew she was just talking to keep her nerves down. They were pursuing a dangerous criminal who had no qualms about violence after all, and would kill them if he got the chance. If Cameron hit his mark, however, he wouldn't even see them coming.

The well trodden and worn roads faded and meandered into wilder territory as the two neared their destination. They spent an hour navigating the gradual gradient of the barely existant path up the western cliffs. Cameron had tried to call up a flashlight, only succeeding when he focused on a mountable flashlight meant for rifles. Mindy showed no concern, presumably believing it to be Magitech or some such. It helped them stop stumbling over the rocky obstables on the way to the top. The cliff itself was a thick wooded area, yet quieter than the two had expected. They expected to be greeted by growls, some rustling in the undergrowth and maybe even a aggressive roar or two, but the difficulty that anything with legs would have with skirting the flat faces of the cliff created a pseudo-biodome, restricting the area to small, light marsupials and roosting avians.

Cameron's compass was pointing east, the two following the steady needle to reach the edge of the land. They had no troubles navigating the untamed greenery, only stumbling over the occasional troublesome stone peeking out of ground cover. The chatter had stopped now, as Cameron reached the vantage point, Mindy following along still curious about the mercenary's plan of action. The outworlder laid next to a bush, close to the lip of the cliff, and told Mindy to do the same. She complied, although confused, and finally popped the question that had been on her mind for a while.

"Uh, why are we laying down? And why did we come here, in the first place?"

"Ask me again when I'm done. Now keep quiet, I gotta concentrate."

He slowly crawled forward in cover of the greenery, and laid eyes on the neighbouring cliff. The terrain was much more empty there, the grass short and patchy, and only populated by stone rocks and small mounds of earth. Cameron called out his rangefinder, and scanned the horizon for the hut. He found it almost instantly, even in the dark. The small construction was surprisingly rugged, a storybook stacked-log cabin with a triangle plank roof, and various utilities sprinkled around the centre like an outhouse, and what appeared to be a meat smoker. Cameron frowned.

"You guys said this was a hut? That place is a bit more held together than the word 'hut' describes."

"It IS a hut. That place is nothing compared to our longhouses back home."

He sighed. Lost in translation, maybe? Or maybe the Ogres just have a higher standard of architecture. Still, it didn't mean much to Cameron. It wouldn't made a difference if he hit his mark properly, which he fully planned to do.

"Whoa. What is that!" Mindy excitedly exclaimed at the firearm Cameron had summoned from thin air.

"It's... Magitech. Throws metal at long ranges." His lies went unnoticed. He's theorised how to explain his choice of weaponry, but it always came down to the old agade: It's magic. I aint gotta explain shit.

The 'Magitech' in question was a millitary sniper-rifle, the L115A3, which was the British designation for the iconic Accuracy International AWM. The .338 lapua rounds it utilised had been designed from the ground up to have a great balance between muzzle velocity and weight, making for a fast, stable bullet that could cut through wind and put down a human in a single shot. The marksman this time wasn't targeting a human. The wolfkin man in the Cabin would have access to magic, making his skin tougher and more resilient, and Cameron considered using heavier Armour-Piercing rounds, before thinking better of it. A .338 round could stop an elephant, and if well landed, could kill it as well. If that shortsword got through, then he shoudn't need a heavier round to get the job done with. Cameron was relatively competent with long guns, but a more aerodynamic round would make his task simpler.

The reading from vantage point to cabin door was roughly 930, being 130 metres away from the edge and 800 on the dot from cliff to cliff. He was impressed at the good eye of the two warriors. The rifle sat comfortably against his shoulder, supported by the extended bipod on the front. He adjusted for wind every 30 minutes, laying in wait for movement. The sun was cresting the horizon, still obscured by greenery and rocks but making it's presence known all the same. Cameron was patient. There was no guarantee that the wolfkin would even leave the Cabin, or that he was actually inside, but the plan afforded perfect safety, and only required him to wait and see. His perfect job.

As the ruby orb ascended, the chatter and coos of the surrounding wildlife came alive. Mindy was keeping a good eye on their rear, but wasn't too worried about ambushes. She had a basic mana-searching spell in her repertoire, and lazily called out the critters she could see from 100 metres away. The trip had essentially descended into animal watching for her, with nothing else to do besides sit on the ground out of sight and be quiet. Cameron was alert, training the optic on the door, and sweeping over the cabin's surroundings with his rangefinder. The hours passed like this with no interruption, save from Mindy's complaining and expressions of boredom. Before what Cameron felt was around 8:00am, he saw movement. His patience had paid off. He passed the rangefinder to Mindy, and asked her to confirm the target, just in case. Her face went slightly pale as she scowled.

"That's the bastard. Kill him." Her voice dripped with venom.

Cameron confirmed the order, and depressed the trigger slowly as the wolfkin cleared his sleepy eyes. The rifle kicked back. The round sailed through the lazy morning winds, over the chasm between the two rocky heights, accelerating from the tip of the muzzle brake, and bulldozed through the wolfkin's upper right chest a little over a second later. The shot was accurate, and the effect immediate, rending his lung and heart and piercing out of the other side into the dense wood trunks of the cabin. He had woken up not five minutes ago, hungover and needing to visit the outhouse, only the lower half of him clothed. The outworlder could see the life leaving the man from his long-range optic, and felt nothing. His blood flowed from the mortal wound, dribbling down his chest and wetting the black fur on his back and arms, and he collapsed, crumpling onto the porch. The last thoughts in his head were of bewilderment, and anger. How?! I was so careful!

The western cliff fell silent. The loud report had scattered the wildlife, and they fled from their branches and flowers away from the sound.

Mindikalata looked on at the body with fading anger. The one they chased for so long was dead, just like that? The sisters had chased the man so far from their home, and continually came up empty, while the mercenary only spent a morning ending their blood feud. The young warrior gazed back at a satisfied Cameron, curiousity in her eyes. Who is this guy...?

"Come on, then. Gotta get your weapon back, right?" His smug countenance blasted the tension from her shoulders, and she nodded back with an equally relaxed grin.

Cameron wasn't happy. The only feasible way up to the hermit's homestead was through the valley south, and then east, to the treacherously steep path that lead to the top of the cliff. The trek through the valley was a long three hours until they reached the foot of the path, and the two of them acted like children, complaining and wanting to be picked up. Both of them were exhausted, and their feet complained with each tread and step. The job was done, and they still had to work. The outworlder cursed the lack of a zipline in his armory. He daydreamed about demolishing the cliff face to make a closer slope, or tunneling through it to reach the top. He stressed over the walk back with a mouth full of travel rations. Wonder if I've got a hangglider in the armory...

Mindikalata reached the top first, with a pump of her fist. Cameron arrived a few minutes later to a smug teenager poking her tongue out in victory.

"Yeah yeah, whatever. Who landed the shot, eh?" The mercenary wheezed, out of breath.

"Whatever. old news." She continued walking, crossing the flat plain with a skip.

Cheeky brat. He smiled at the sense of normalcy it brung him.

The homestead was in sight, as well as the thankfully unmoving body of the sword thief. Mindy fell behind Cameron at request, as he summoned an M4A1 in his hands to be ready for surprises. His combat stance threw off the warrior, the unfamilliar positioning alien to her as he kept the muzzle pointed at the cabin, his shoulders ducked down into the stock of the weapon while he rapidly closed the distance. She followed along, with a plain iron dagger in tow. The wolfkin was definitely dead. His chest had opened up on the front, and the organs inside were visible, as the blood had drained out of the bloomed exit wound on his back. His eyes fell to the entrance of the cabin, and he fell to the wall of the entryway, before kicking in the door with his heel and sweeping the interior. Much to his relief, it was empty as he expected, warm and musky as the fire and liquour vapour floated and coalesced in the air.

The cabin was larger than it looked. A brief glance over the interior revealed a double bed adorned with soft, thick animal fur in the back center, and a lit stove crackling gently with a pot of some liquid on top that had long since burnt out unattended. Storage in the form of cupboards, chests and drawers lined the walls, which were themselves decorated with 3 animal heads in a line above the headboard of the bed. All of them were foreign, and terrifying, to the Earthling. I guess the hermit was a hunter? He'd have to be I guess, to survive out here. Resting on a hook hammered into the logs at the entrance, was a familiar bag hanging, with ornate threads decorating it's drawstring. Bag of holding? Or whatever they call them here. It was important, but it didn't hold his attention for long. He couldn't use it. Mindy would have to. Wait. Where is she?

"Mindy? What are you doing out there?" She hadn't entered the building, and was presumably still outside nearby. He pushed aside the heavy cabin door to see a distraught teenager punching the wolfkin's face, again and again with bloodied fists. She was screaming in anger and frustration as she gored the corpse further, her punches hitting with a tonne of force as her arms glowed white. The wolfkin's skull was cracked, and concave, her hands hitting and spraying brain matter over her leathers. He rushed to her and pulled her off, having no luck at all in the face of her magically-reinforced rage, shortly before her tears leaked and she fell from his carcass.

"Jesus Mindy, what is this! He's dead!" The mission had clouded his judgement. This was always going to happen. The man had haunted her for months.

"I hate him!" She screamed at the top of her lungs. "He almost killed my sister! I spent days wondering if she was going to wake up as her ripped throat turned grey, and weeks after nursing her back to health. I wanted revenge, not this! You were too clean. It was way too quick. He deserved pain! I wanted him deboweled! Castrated! He might as well have gotten away with it!" Her tears dropped from her cheeks as she struggled to recollect herself. The wolfman was dead, but her pain still remained. Why? She had revenge, didn't she? Nethertheless, the fear in her chest still resounded.

Cameron could have punched himself. All the talking about saving a teenager from doing something that would haunt them, and he brought them straight to the body. He'd been swept up by the job, and forgotten that he was supposed to protect Mindy, and to him that should have included her mental state. She seemed so carefree that he had pushed away the fact that the dead man infront of him had nearly killed her sister. He felt lost. He was nowhere near a counsellor, but he shared his words regardless.

"He is dead, Mindy. He'll never escape, never hurt Tealeato again, never hurt and steal from innocent people ever again. I wouldn't be here, taking this shitbag from the living, if you had not talked to me and taken me here. The revenge is yours, but it's not the end. It's not going to take away the pain he inflicted. Only time and effort can."

Mindy looked at him, her lips quivering as they attempted to arrest the sound of her emotions leaking out.

"You came out into the world to train, right? To be a better person, and fighter, and add to your community? Now you can. He can never get in your way again, and you will be stronger for it. Be the person your sister knows you can be." He felt uncomfortable. He had no idea how to calm her down, and only spoke of what he believed, his voice rich with conviction. Revenge doesn't do shit. You've got to push past the fear, and the pain, and the memories yourself.

Mindikalata fell to the steps of the porch, having pushed the wolfkin to the side with her boot, as not to breathe the same air that surrounded it. The effect of her crying had emptied the dam of her flaring emotions, and the comforting feeling afterwards had sobered her rage somewhat. At least, she wasn't beating the corpse any more. Cameron took a seat next to her, sighing as he adjusted himself. Mindy cracked a single laugh.

"You're weird, you know that? What kinda mercenary says that stuff?" Her trademark smile took over habitually, only haf as bright as usual. Still, it was a good sign for him. Cameron looked over the plains in front of them, embarrased.

"I never really imagined myself as a mercenary, you know. I used to be a soldier. That doesn't really answer your question, but it's all I can think of right now. If I could pick again, maybe I'd be a therapist."

"A therapist? What do they do?" She wiped the remaining tears from her face. Her back straightened as she recollected herself.

"Talk to people, calm them down. They kind of... explain people to themselves. Why they feel certain ways. I've heard it's helpful to hear your worries said out loud so that they can work with you in solving them."

"That... sounds kind of nice. Although, you're a bit shit at 'therapying'. Don't count on it as a fallback, yeah?" Cameron laughed out loud. He was glad she could banter again.

"You really are a little bugger, aren't you?" The two shared a shit-eating grin. They spent some time in introspection. The deed was done. All they needed now was Mindikalata's shortsword, and they were homeward bound. Unaware, they both dreamed of the satisfaction of ale touching their lips.