Chapter 2: Mission

Nova and David return from their mission and are given their greatest challenge in the form of an anonymous letter.

It was late in the morning when David woke up in the makeshift campground he had made after Nova fell asleep. He put on the rest of his uniform and went to the corpse of the Artificial to see Nova straddling its neck and sawing at the throat of the beast. She looked towards David who was confused at what was happening.

“It’s already dead,” David stated. “I think you’re going a bit overboard.”

“How do you suppose we prove we took care of the Udpist then?” Nova continued to saw with the teeth of her sickle. “Like I said, the Mercenary life isn’t glamourous. To show that we’ve done our job, we have to bring the head of the target to our contractor.”

David stood in awe and disgust as Nova worked hard to cut through the bone and tissue of the Artificial until the head fell to the ground with a wet splat. Nova dropped down from her perch and examined the cut. Satisfied, she left briefly and came back with some rope that she stored in David’s pack and tied it around the trophy. She was beaming. David’s face was twisted in disgust.

“Since you got the kill this time,” Nova said cheerfully as she clasped her hands together. “You’ll have the honour of carrying it back to the mayor!”

David tried to smile but he was not pleased with having to carry the slimy severed head of an Artificial. He walked up to his appointed prize, gagging in the process. He looked over his shoulder to see Nova encouraging him to go for it. Grabbing some of the rope, David lifted the dripping trophy and shuffled quickly to the rest of his gear, immediately dropping it and wiping his hands on his jeans. Nova followed him back to the campground and placed the last of her things into David’s pack. Once everything was inside, she took the pack and threw it around her shoulders.

“I’ll carry this to Amxei,” she said eagerly. “That way, you can spend some quality time with your first kill as a Mercenary.”

“Lucky me…” David mumbled as he picked up the head once again, wincing at the stench coming from it. This is going to be a long walk, David thought to himself, glaring into the eyes of the Artificial.

The hike back to Amxei only took one day. In David’s mind, however, that was one day too long. They entered the town just after the 14:00 position to a celebrating group of residents that cheered and applauded at the sight of the Udpist’s head. Nova waved back to them, shaking hands with those who approached her. David didn’t smile or patronize with the residents. He just wanted to be free from the burden of carrying the head.

The town itself was slightly bigger than the others they had visited. There were houses of various sizes and heights on either side of the dirt road carved into the grass beneath their boots. David counted a total of twenty-two houses with three more under construction. The thick trees surrounding the town were excellent for construction, with the polished stones of the Aby Stream, a nearby river, being used for the same purpose. These two materials were Amxei’s main exports to the rest of the nation and the residents were very proud of that.

The mayor’s office was located in the large building in the center of town, directly behind the Nenroc Well. It towered a few stories over the rest of the houses with the Magraanian flag flapping on the top pillar. The steps were made of the finest stones of the Aby Stream and the wood of the structure was polished so the beams glistened in the daylight. Nova and David gazed in awe at the building before entering to take care of business.

The two Mercenaries walked into the mayor’s office where Nova greeted him with a firm handshake. David closed the door and immediately dropped the head down on the burgundy carpet, causing the mayor to shutter at the wet noise it made. The office was wide with a lot of room, though most of it was taken up by the bookcases and shelves scattered along the walls. Near the back of the office was a large mahogany desk coated with polish. David wiped his hands of the Artificial’s blood and sat down next to Nova in front of the mayor, who sat behind his desk. A plaque on the desk read “Mayor Fredrick T. Seaword”, he noticed. He never learned the mayor’s name, though he never asked about it. All he knew was that he wasn’t expecting the mayor to be so old and large. He also dressed somewhat well but reeked of after-shave.

“I must say,” Mayor Seaword bellowed. “You two lived up to your reputation as some of the best Mercenaries in the Magraan nation. In record time, you took down the biggest threat to our great town. For that, I thank you.”

“It was no trouble at all,” Nova replied, blushing from Seaword’s compliments. David stayed quiet, as he didn’t want to say anything he might get in trouble for. He tapped his foot instead.

“That’s excellent to hear!”

Mayor Seaword reached into a drawer of his desk and grabbed a cloth bag that was tied up with a small amount of rope. He then placed it on the desk in front of the two Mercenaries. “As for your reward, here are the 10,000 Dertics that you were promised…” He then walked over to the bookshelf behind him and pulled out a blank envelope from inside an unmarked book, placing it beside the sack. “…and this is also for you.”

“What’s that?” David blurted out, placing his index and middle fingers on the envelope.

“I’m not sure,” Mayor Seaword replied. “A gentleman dropped this off to me a couple of days ago, requesting that I give it to you two when you returned from your mission. He said it was of great importance. He did not give me his name, I’m afraid.”

David picked up the letter and examined it. Nothing about it seemed too suspicious, other than it being an unmarked letter from an anonymous source. Nova took the bag of Dertics and thanked the mayor for his generosity. They all then shook hands and the pair left the office with their belongings. As they walked out of the building, Nova placed their Dertics into David’s pack, keeping one hundred in her pocket.

“Now that we got ourselves some pay,” Nova spoke as she tossed a couple of coins into the air, catching both of them. “How about we have something other than berries and quail for a change?”

              David nodded eagerly. There was only so much small bird he could eat before he went crazy. Cheerfully, Nova led the way to the café in the small market district of the town. She had heard many things about this café.

It was a humble place, with enough room to seat only thirty guests at a time. There was always a lineup to get in because of that so when they got there, Nova and David weren’t surprised to see people waiting outside of the door. However, the people in line were quick to move the pair up until they were next to be seated. Grateful, Nova bowed to the waiting patrons as David followed the hostess to their table. They were seated in the corner so they could eat in peace, by David’s request.

Their meal was on the house, according to the manager, so David wasn’t shy in having the Luuxion tenderloin. Nova, however, asked for chicken soup and a bun. Throughout the interior, chatter of other customers dominated the sound of sizzling meats and clanging pots coming from the kitchen. Nova’s senses were being invaded by so much activity, along with the smells of various dishes but she was able to keep her composure despite having to plug her ears every now and then. David’s constant tapping of the table and fiddling with the letter, however, wasn’t helping her. Within twenty minutes, a server delivered their food to them and thanked the two of them for their services, winking at David as she left. David grinned from ear to ear. Nova rolled her eyes and split her bun in two. As the two ate their lunches, David continuously eyed the letter.

“The wait is killing me,” David quickly said with a mouthful of tenderloin as he reached for the envelope and opened it. He swallowed the food in his mouth and scanned the letter. As Nova was dipping the last of her baked good into the soup, she noticed David’s expression drop gradually as he read the letter. His eyes widened and he placed a hand over his mouth.

“What’s wrong, David?” Nova put her spoon down and wiped her mouth. David continued to stare at the letter, flabbergasted at its contents. He shook his head and took a long drink from his glass of water.

“You need to read this,” David said quickly as he reached across the table to hand Nova the letter. He leaned on the table with his elbows, hands over his mouth as Nova began to read the letter just loud enough for the two of them to hear.

“To whom it may concern,

I write to you as I have heard many things about your endeavors. I believe that I may have your greatest challenge in the form of my request.

The capital city of Taplica has slowly been becoming corrupt since the death of Lord Olif eighteen years ago. The leader that has taken his place since, Lord Dyterag, has allowed much manipulation and chaos to ravish the once utopian city. The civilians are becoming more terrified as the security is increasing, the police are becoming more unlawful, and there appears to be no stopping this unwanted shift. With that said, here is my request: I am hiring you, through this letter, to enter Taplica and assassinate Lord Dyterag.

              I only ask this of you because I am aware of your exceptional skill as a Mercenary. I understand that you are usually contracted through a face-to-face conversation and that you only hunt Artificial so it may interest you to know that there are strong rumours and implications that Lord Dyterag is ultimately responsible for the Artificial outbreak that began the night of Lord Olif’s passing. Should Lord Dyterag be killed, retribution for the anarchy the Artificial have caused will be achieved, avenging those who have fallen to their monstrous killing sprees.

              If my calculations are correct, you should be in Amxei at the time you are given this letter. Should you hear my pleas and accept my contract, you will need to head north towards the village of Noam. You will then meet with one Ms. Carthy Von Ethoros. She will guide you to the city and help you infiltrate Taplica to achieve success in your mission. You will be rewarded royally should you accomplish the desired request.

Best of luck.”

              At the end of the letter, Nova stared at the sheet of paper. David looked at her nervously, waiting for her to respond. Abruptly, Nova got up and, after placing an overly generous tip of thirty-three Dertics on the table, quickly walked out of the café. David grabbed his pack and chased after her as she stormed towards the town’s gate.

“Nova! Wait up!” David called out as he ran. Nova stopped in place and turned to face David. He stood in front of her as he panted slightly. “What was that back there? Where are you going?”

“I’m going to Noam to look for this Carthy person,” Nova snapped back. She was holding the letter tightly in her hand, crumbling the paper.

“Are you serious? You mean you have the full intention to…” David looked around to make sure no one could overhear them. He then began to whisper, even though there was no one listening in. “…kill the Lord?”

“You read the letter, didn’t you? The people in Taplica need our help.”

“So you plan on assassinating the Lord? Do you know what could come of that? People could end up wanting us dead.”

“You’re right, we could be put on a Wanted List after this. But you know what? Those people need us, David. Mercenaries are to eliminate anything that threatens the human condition, other humans included.”

“Never have I heard you say that,” David crossed his arms as he began to get more irritated. “Are you sure that’s why you’re wanting to do this? You’re acting weird, Nova.”

              Nova grinded her teeth and sighed. She looked David in the eyes and shook her head.

“If this letter is true,” she spoke quietly. “Then the Lord is responsible for all the Artificial out here. He could be creating more for all we know. He’s why we’re Mercenaries. If we get rid of him, the Artificial crisis could end that much quicker and we won’t have to do this anymore.” Nova’s eyes began to tear up. “Freeing Magraan from Artificial is my main priority so by eliminating Dyterag, the biggest player in the crisis will be out of the picture. Please David, let me do this. You don’t have to join me if you don’t want to, I’ll understand.”

“After what happened a few days ago, I’m not leaving your side. It’s just like you said, we’re partners. And that’s how it’s going to be from now on.” David shot Nova a sensitive smile to ease her worries. She laughed a little and embraced her friend. “If you go on this mission, I’m coming with you.”

“Thank you…” Nova sniffed as she held David close. The two released one another and after Nova teased David’s hair, they began their trek north towards Noam.

Author's Note

Please let me know if any of the character dialogue or battle writing is poor, as these concepts are the core of this story. If they do not work properly, this story will be doomed to fail.