Dead to rights

"That sounds fair enough," Rebecca admitted. "Iliya here is a skilled illusionist, and I'm a necromancer, so we can use magic against the beast. However, we need someone who can track it, as we have no talents in that particular area. That's where you would come in. Do you know any places the bear likes to frequent?"
 
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While the man didn't seem particularly impressed or surprised by Iliya's illusion magic (her subrace were known for it after all) the mention of necromancy got his attention.
"A powerful art indeed... I would be careful miss, there are no laws against it here, but nothing to stop someone slaying you over it either...".
He warned.
"And I have tracked it's movements, I believe I know it's lair".
 
"Then lead the way." Rebecca felt more than a little trepidation at the whole scenario- she'd never actively sought out a fight before, with man or beast. Still, she and Iliya needed the money, and this seemed to be the best way to get it. "Is the lair far?" she asked.
 
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"No, it's actually close to town, otherwise I doubt most people would care about it's presence, and I would have to wait until someone died to get any help...".
The hunter told them.
Soon he stopped them moving and pointed out a clearing near a small cave, where a monstrous horned bear with a blood red coat lay devouring a smaller bear less than half it's size... This thing was a monster!
 
Rebecca gulped as she saw the beast. "That's... a tad bigger than I expected." Still, she got to work. A few arcane motions and an incantation later, her plague was in motion. "I have no idea how effective it will be, between the increased size and the mutation, but I did put a lot of mana into it. In a minute or two, his muscles should start to ache and he will hopefully become lethargic. Then, we can take care of business in relative safety."
 
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It took nearly ten minutes for the great beast to be visibly affected, and it let it's displeasure be known, actually knocking down a tree... Before sniffing the air and turning towards them! It shouldn't have been able to find them beneath Iliya's complete illusion, it was almost like it could smell the magic!
They didn't have time to ponder though as it charged them, unsteady and slow but still dangerous, the hunter managed to put an arrow in it's head, not even slowing it.
 
Rebecca's eyes went wide as her plan began to unravel. As the beast charged, she conjured up a hastily improvised shield of black energy, further draining her already-depleted mana reserves. "Hurry up! I'm not sure how long I can hold this damn thing off!" Her voice was beginning to crack from the strain.
 
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The hunter began peppering the bear with arrows as Iliya circled around, jabbing with her sword and using magic to make it seem like there was three of her... This seemed to distract the bear so much that it quickly changed it's focus to her, Apparently seeing her spell as more of a threat, this left it's rear open to attack.
 
Wasn't the target I was hoping for, but any port in a storm... Rebecca reached into her pocket and drew her ritual knife. It was a poor excuse for a weapon, yet it seemed to be her best option. She stabbed the bear in the back of the thigh- the ass seemed to be too undignified a target- then withdrew, waiting to see what Iliya and the hunter would do to try to finish the job.
 
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The blade went in with remarkable ease, it seemed there was less protection on the rear of it's body, and the bear reared it's head up in pain, that was all Iliya needed and she dashed forwards, her blade slicing through the air so fast that the bear didn't even realize what had happened till blood spurted from it's throat, the bear soon fell to the ground, dying within another couple of minutes.
"Ugh... I need a bath..."
A now very bloody Iliya declared, wiping her face clean.
 
Rebecca wiped her brow- sure, Iliya had done most of the physical work, but the necromancer had cast more than her share of spells, and magic could be quite exhausting, even for experts. "I quite agree with you, Iliya. I don't like being this sticky. And sir huntsman, thank you." Rebecca took some of the bear's fur as proof the beast was dead, then headed back to town with Iliya.
 
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"No problem... Glad to help, I'd say you two should take a dip in the river down that way before heading back into town... Don't wanna freak out the townies too much... If that's too cold the Inn might let you take a bath".
The hunter informed them, taking hold of the massive corpse and beginning to drag it back towards his house, damn that man was strong, though even he struggled just a little.
"Ugh... As much as I want to get clean fast... The rivers are freezing this time of year, the inn might let us in and subtract the bath fee from our payment".
 
"There's a good chance of that, considering the fact that we should have a good bit of gold coming in. And I don't want to freeze myself to death- the baths sound like the best option to me." Rebecca saw a sign for the baths just outside the town gate; seemed they were trying to avoid unwanted visitors. The redhead peered into the house, barely able to see through the steam. "Hello, is the owner in?"
 
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In answer to her question an older looking human woman appeared, she was wearing a light robe and while she was grinning at first, it quickly turned to a look of horror at the sight of the two.
"I... Gods what on earth happened to you two?!"
She shouted, nearly fainting before Iliya explained their situation.
"I... Okay... But don't get blood on anything! And you, Vana, no bothering the other customers".
Iliya didn't seem to take offense at the woman's suddenly hostile tone.
 
Rebecca went into the main area of the baths. Thankfully, it seemed they separated men and women in this house; the last thing she needed was stares from ogling males. As she slipped into the waters, the crimson-haired witch let out a deep sigh of relief. Willowby had never had a true bath like this- it was a new sensation, and one she knew she could get accustomed to.
 
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Iliya slipped in next to her with a quiet, grateful sigh and watched as the blood and grime vanished, the bath enchantments whisking it away to who knows where.
Clean and nude she really was quite the sight, of course her whole clan were supposedly descended from a succubus, so that was a given.
"Mhh~ I love baths... You humans need to invest in better bathhouses!"
Iliya declared.
 
"Oh, Willowby's a small little village," Rebecca responded as the magic washed over her- she seriously needed to learn that particular spell. It would certainly come in handy. "You need to go to a big city like Greensford, where they have hot baths that can fit a hundred people." She looked the elven girl up and down. "Not that they could ever match the view here."
 
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"Ahh... That explains it... We elves tend to have a bathhouse in every village, cleanliness is important after all".
Iliya explained, before raising an eyebrow and giving an appraising look of her own.
"My view isn't so bad either~"
She declared after a minute.
 
Rebecca's eyebrows nearly climbed out of her head when her little flirting was returned in kind. She hadn't pegged Iliya as that kind of girl at all, and the two had spent a little time together by now. "You know, most human women would keep such to themselves, if they were to feel that way. Seems that elves think a little differently, which is a good thing. Us humans are slow to change and accept differences, I fear."
 
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Iliya smirked upon seeing Rebecca's reaction, clearly amused.
"Aye, I'm well aware, and don't get me wrong, in human territory I keep quiet, but us elves care a lot less about gender than you might think, especially my tribe".
She explained.
"And I guess being the new, different thing for so much of our history made us more adaptable".
After all, elves had been created long after humanity.
 
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