The Hero of Ryza

A hundred fifty kilometers northeast in the Skedar mountains approaching Ublaneth, a monster hunt was underway. The local population had been assaulted by an invasive bird species from the equatorial jungle called Monssoo. A team of hunters were dispatched to the surface, each clad head to toe in sun-blocking robes and scarves. The party hopped from ridge to ridge on the back of their Kukchi, slowly making their way up from the shady caverns underneath to the exposed red mountainsides. Soon, one of them caught a glimpse of a nest resting atop a spire a few dozen meters from the ridge trail. A hunter unholstered his military bolt action rifle, using his custom scope to analyze.

"We have four eggs," he said. "That's one for every four days. Can I take the shot?"

"I'll help you out. Save the reload."

The two aimed up, and with two shots each, the eggs exploded with a visual splat. They were practically bombs.

"Keep searching." The Captain made a gesture in his hands in the form of three-pronged claws. "I sense another nest not too far away."

The journey continued, and so did the pack's banter. "Where do you think the Monsoos are at right now? Not like them to leave their nests like this."

"These are altered beasts. Who knows what they're thinking?"

"Imagine if we could alter our livestock? What if sweet little Bitty here stayed baby-sized forever?" The hunter scratched his furry gerbil mount.

The Captain slowed his pace and let his mount handle the brittle rock face with caution. "They're still around here. Lord, the havoc they do on these rock surfaces." He felt out the walls, their smooth surfaces interrupted with harsh grinding slashes. He peered ahead. "Another nest. Line up for a shot."

The five men set up a firing line, mimicking the formation used by the military when it had musket rifles. Their weapons were fresh, new, reliable, and easy to maintain, although derivative of the superior Ublanethian. At 200 meters, they would hit with no issue.

"Aiming, aiming," said Wyzzel. "Target lined up, opening-."

The hunter screeched. A bird the width of a bus had caught them from behind, its specialized wings dampening the sound of its approach. One man was snatched by its talons while his Kukchi was thrown into the ravine, where a second bird caught it mid-flight. The other hunters redirected their aim.

But before anyone could fire, their Captain sprung off his mount toward the escaping bird. The jump distance of a Pandemian was far but not enough to reach the target at first. However, the Captain flew as if gravity no longer affected him, propelled by a force crackling beneath him before he gave a fatal kick to the back of the Monssoo's neck. The megafauna dropped from the sky toward the ravine, but the Captain grabbed its back and held its locked wings into a glide. The towering creature slid onto the mesa and crash-landed, releasing the wounded hunter and throwing the Captain off.

Meanwhile, the other three hunters laid fire into the male Monsoo as it swooped on their position with intense ferocity. Bullets that would've taken down a normal Monssoo pattered off the monster's tougher foliage. It scraped and slashed with its talons, carving out the brittle land they were standing on. With little time, the men and their mounts scrambled up the collapsing cliff face as the bird rotated for another kill.

"Dozae-Rae, heed me," the Captain prayed, shaping his left hand like a talon. "Lend me your heat, your strength. Let me smite our enemies before us." He pulled back his hand. Energy enveloped and accumulated between the three points until it became a glowing ball of lightning plasma.

The shot was instantaneous. From the Captain's hand, an arc of pure electricity cracked across the ridge right through the Monsoo's heart. Less than a millisecond had passed, and the monster crashed into the mountain, its body so charred it was almost edible.

Wyzzel regained consciousness and got back on his feet, grasping at the puncture wound in his side. He limped over to his leader. "Kalin!"

"Are you alright?"

"I'll be alright. Not the first time this has happened." He showed his side. With quick care and stitches, it would heal naturally.

"It seems to be the case. You keep bathing your Kukchis in Merio Dust. That only makes them smell better, Wyz."

He laughed at first until he realized his Kukchi was also incinerated. "My Bitty!"

The other three and Kalin's steed made their way to the hill. "That was some sharpshooting there, brother. Care to use that to finish the nest up there?"

"Not against something so defenseless." He clenched his hand as he felt its searing heat. "Set some explosives instead."

The hunting party would return home by nightfall. The camp was a small outpost carved into rock on a vantage point overlooking the Ryzan-Ublanethian border. They dismounted and penned their Kukchis, where they piled up with their pack on mounds of dust. The men felt like doing the same, heading straight for the bunks, tails dancing across the low light of the fat oil lantern. There was peace at last, and the young men took the time to relax. Kalin sat in a corner and soothed his parched throat with a water canteen.

A foot soldier came to greet him. "Sir, Aurslee was looking for you. He said there was something you'd be interested in in his quarters."

"I'll go visit him right away." Though he did not move immediately. His body needed some rest, and his mind a moment to reorient himself from traveling. "Tell him I'll be late."

"Of course."

On the other side of the barracks and around the mountaintop, the outpost's blacksmith had his furnace going at all times, creating glass, iron, and silver tools every hour of the day, though assembly line work had taken some of the fire out of the forge. Aurslee was asleep at his desk when Kalin came to check on his old friend. The racks beside him were full of trinkets and gear, primarily refurbishments. The old man had gotten fatter, so there were some benefits to less work. He moved in to shake him but noticed a strange device lying before him, a fragile and wiry-looking critter with 8 long twigs for legs. Curiosity overtook him as he reached out to touch it.

"Don't touch that!" Aurslee shrieked. "Oh, it's you, Kalin. Don't you know how to treat your elders?"

"Is this what the problem is?" Kalin asked, snatching the strange bug and holding it in his palm. "This is a pretty big Zreu. Funny-looking wings."

"I thought so, too. Folks down south have seen them around for about a week. They're hard to catch."

"First I've seen of them."

"But I caught this one by surprise, and look!" He took the bug back and peeled back the 'skin.' He gave it some prodding, and like magic, it twitched and jittered as if alive. "This isn't a living creature! It uses electricity to move! And see? It has metal limbs like the iron we use, but this is light as a feather."

Kalin's brow furrowed. "Have you tried to repair it?"

"I've taken a look at it, but it has these wafers." He pulled it into the lamp light and pointed out the complex computer hardware inside. "This level of complexity is too much for me to understand. Whoever made this made everything as small as humanly possible."

"So this isn't just a random bug."

He put the bug away, and Aurslee pulled cloth scrolls from their containers. "There's more to this, but I think you should call him up."

Aurslee pointed out the telephone on the wall, prompting Kalin to go and pick it up and order the operator to patch him to the palace's office. His code and passwords put him on a fast track in Rydia's central command. His order went straight to the top. The call was approved, and a man appeared on the other end after a few minutes.

"Kalin, my brother," the voice on the other end said. "You've returned late. Are you eating well?"

"My Lord, am I being mobilized?" Kalin asked, hoping he'd say no.

"You are, but not to the Black Obelisk. Not yet."

"What do you mean?"

"A rumor is spreading in Rydia that the bugs are manufactured by certain people, by who we don't know, but given the creature's complexity, we have a couple options."

"I wouldn't be surprised if it's her work." Kalin picked up the container. "Although if this keeps up, we'll be in serious trouble."

"That's not why I wanted you, though." The man paused to clear his throat. "The rumor started from a strange, ghastly-looking girl in Redstreak Valley. She's living at your manor."

Aurslee could feel the shift in the air, the goosebumps on his skin, and the chill across his brow. His Captain stood there silently for a long minute, his posture slowly turning more and more feral. Soon, what was once an affable, if disciplined leader became something more lizard than man.

"Is she still there, Szeer?" Kalin asked.

The Emperor could feel the bloodlust oozing through the connection and scowled. "Find out for yourself, friend. I leave it to your judgment. For Ryza."