Night HunterNight HunterBy: Erika AslysaBy: Erika Aslysa

Normalcy?If only...

My name is Claire Willhart.I’m sixteen, and I’m a Night Hunter

But, as I’m here to tell you, life doesn’t always work out the way you want it to.

Now I know what you’re thinking...

She was probably born with some super power that would allow her to defeat some

of the most evil creatures on Earth.

Or at least some awesome fighting skills and reflexes

Unfortunately that’s not the case

I was born with nothing but a small mark on my wristand a whole lot of bad luck

First day of sophomore year was just like the first day of freshmanyear. I sat through my classes, bored out of my mind, watching the

minutes tick by.

I’m the kinda girl who isn’t going to run into a lot of friends. My mothersays that I could make some if I change my attitude, but if I have to

change myself for my friends, then are they really my friends?

Well, that’s what I told her to get her off my back...

As I mentioned earlier, my luck is horrible. Not like tripping every once ina while horrible. More like I’ve broken nearly every bone in my body

from my clumsiness. For some reason I always seem to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. This was one of those times...

“Sorry,” I mumbled after bumping into a stranger in the hallway. I bent down to pick up my books, which had scattered across the crowded hallway.

It was a good thing everybody was doing me the favor of walking around them...

“It was my fault.”

I had never been one for guys

But Erik? He even made me take a step back

Bright blue eyes stared down at me from the top of his massive sixfoot seven frame. His jet black hair was in a crew cut that looked

surprisingly good on him. He wore a navy blue t-shirt that not onlymatched his eyes, but it also hugged his perfectly sculpted chest that

any supermodel would have did for.

“You got a name?” he asked.

“Claire,” I managed to stutter. “Claire Willhart.”

“Erik Dodge,” he said after handing me the last of my fallen books.

“I’ll see you later Claire.” With a wink he shifted back into the crowd of kids, making his way towards the library. I stood frozen for a

moment, then shook my head, trying to clear it and began walking towards my next class.

The rain pattered gently on my window as I peered outside. The only light came from the tall street

light that casted yellow circle onto the now empty street. My parents had driven away a while ago,

but I couldn’t help staring out the window into the rain.

I glanced down at the small mark on my wrist and traced it lightlywith my index finger. The swirling pattern was dark against my fair

skin, making it look like a tatoo. My mother had always swornit was a birthmark, but I knew it had to be more.

A sudden screech caught my attention and I jumped back from the window. More screeches followed as the glass in

the window began to shake.

Someone, or something, was trying to break into my room.

Before I could react, the window slid open and I heard myself scream as I scrambled away from the window.

A horrible creature had climbed up the side of my house and into my room. Its skin was brown and

wrinkled, and looked like it had the complexion of sandpaper. It was about four feet tall with long arms and legs, which had claws sticking out of the ends.

Coal black eyes stared at me menacingly as the creature began to advance.

“Claire!” a voice called from behind. I didn’t have time to react before the horrible little monster lunged itself straight at me

What I expected was one of my neighbors.

Or maybe my parents

Even a policeman...

What I didn’t expect was Erik wielding a sword!

The creature dodged the first blow an Erik used his other arm to shove me out of the way. The creature and Erik locked eyes as I watched, dumbfounded. As much as I

wanted to help, I was too confused to do anything at the moment.

Finally Erik began to swing his sword to the right. Just as the monster began to dodge, he changed course and

struck the thing’s neck. Its head came clean off and rolled on the floor right to my feet.

“Are you alright?” Erik said. I didn’t get to respond before the ground came rushing toward me and the world went dark.

“Claire?” a voice cut through the blackness. “Claire? Can you hear me?”

I felt myself return to my body as my eyes fluttered open. Erik was incredibly close as he held me in his

arms. After helping me sit up, he proceeded to examine me from head to toe.

“Did he hurt you?” he asked frantically. “Are you ok?” I couldn’t move. I couldn’t react. All I could do was think about the thing that had tried to attack me. The sight of its head laying at my feet made me feel sick. Only Erik’s presence prevented me from hurling that very moment.

I risked a glance downward to see if there was still a dead monster on my floor. However, to my relief, it was

gone. I tried to regain my composure so that he wouldn’t think I was hurt.

“How did you get in my house?” I asked curiously. This seemed to take him off guard and he laughed.

“Good to know you’re all right,” he remarked. “Come on, I’ll explain everything.”

“This is your house?” I asked as we entered the small cave. It was cold and damp inside, making me pull my jacket closer to myself.

“No,” he said. “But this is much better for discussing secret information.”

“What was that thing in my room?” I blurted.

“A Narigog,” he responded casually. I stared at him like he was crazy.

“A Nari-what?”

“Narigog,” he corrected. “Nasty creatures they are. A descendant of trolls and ogres. They live to create trouble.”

“So why was one of them in my room?” I asked, impatient. Will sat down on the cold ground and crossed his legs. I noticed for the first time that he was wearing the same thing he had worn earlier, but without a single

drop of blood from that.. thing

“Why don’t I just explain from the beginning?”

“Narigogs are creatures that consist of basically pure evil,” he began after I sat across from him. “You wouldn’t believe how many disasters in today’s world happen because of them.”

“How?” I asked, interrupting.

“They have a sort of black magic. It allows them to move objects, use spells, even control people sometimes. For example car

crashes? I’ve seen instances where Narigogs have simply stopped a car or made it move through an intersection.”

“So they just reek havoc for the fun of it?” I asked.

“Not for fun,” he explained. “Narigogs get their magic by feeding off dark energy. Whenever people are hurt, or angry, or

anything like that Narigogs gain energy.”

“So how do you stop them?” He smiled at me.

“Well that is where you come in.”

“You are what is called a Night Hunter.”“A night hunter?” I asked. The name sounded so dark...

so mysterious.. so not me...“You were born to slay Narigogs,” he said in the same casual tone he had earlier. “That is what your mark is for.” He gestured to the

swirls on my wrist.“What if I don’t want to slay Narigogs?” I asked. Gore

had never been up my alley. Heck, I had fainted at the first sight of a Narigog killing. Now he wanted me to do it

myself?“It’s in your blood,” he said as if it were an indisputable fact that I would want to be a Night Hunter. “And now that they have revealed themselves to you, there is no turning back. They know who you are and they will come after you. As of

now, you are the biggest threat to their existence.”

“So I have to learn to kill these things or they will kill me?” I asked incredulously. Within one hour I had gone from an awkward social reject to a soon-to-be monster hunter.

“Training starts tomorrow morning at 7 am, sharp.” He said, getting up. Without another word he jogged out of the cave, leaving me

behind with nothing but my confusion.

“The only way to kill a Narigog,” Erik began, his words drowning out the sounds of bugs and animals around us in the woods. “Is

with a sword.” I barely heard what he had said. My eyes drooped and I emitted another yawn. Last night had granted no sleep. In

fact I had spent the entire night sitting up in my bed thinking about Narigogs and Night Hunters. “Afterwards the body disintegrates into matter, well energy

really. I don’t know the science explanation for it. Just that it disappears.” He handed me a sword and picked up his own,

taking a defensive stance. I attempted to shake off my exhaustion and lift my sword up to attack.

“Are you a Night Hunter?” I asked. He lowered his sword for a moment.

“My mother was,” he said solemnly. “She taught me how to kill a Narigog, though I’m not very good at it.

“You seemed to handle it well,” I remarked. He smiled at the compliment. “It was a weak one,” he said, his voice once again serious. “They

didn’t think you were trained so they didn’t bother sending anyone powerful. Claire you are the last Night Hunter in existence. They will stop at nothing to kill you.” I could feel the responsibility weighing down on me. I was all that was left to protect people from those

horrid creatures. “Then we had better get started,” I said, picking up the sword

and lunging towards Erik.

After a few weeks of training with Erik my muscles were sore beyond belief.

It seemed as if I would never make progress for a while. However after the first week I was able to block most of

Erik’s blows and land a few touches on him. “I think you’re ready for your first pop quiz,” he said one sunny afternoon. I had just beaten him in a round with the swords and

was feeling worn out. “Meaning?”

“We are going hunting!” he said enthusiastically. We drove into town, which was crowded as it usually was

on a Saturday afternoon.“I don’t think I’m ready for this,” I said nervously as we stepped

out of the car. “Don’t worry about it,” he said reassuringly. “Just find one and

lead it away from the people. I glanced around the busy street until my eyes caught an

irregular movement. I saw a brown, wrinkly figure standing outside a grocery store. He pulled out a sharp object and slit the tires of a nearby car. That would certainly make somebody mad

later.“Gotcha,” I said under my breath.

“So how do I get him to follow me?” I asked, my eyes never leaving the Narigog across the street.

He grabbed my wrist and ran his fingers along the symbol. I felt a tingle begin, whether it was from having my very attractive instructor hold my hand or from the

symbol was up for debate.l

The thing immediately whipped its ugly head around and locked gazes with me. In a flash he was running towards

me, a horrible look in his eyes.

“Show time,” Erik whispered as he lead me away from the crowd and into a dense area of trees where we had stashed the swords.

The creature came bursting through the trees with a horrible roar and lunged straight at me.

For a moment I was frozen in fear, remembering the first night I had been attacked.

Then my training kicked in...

I spun out of the way of his attack and then swung my sword back towards him.

A piercing scream filled the air as my blade made contact and the Narirog’s head fell to the ground.

I attempted to catch my breath as the body in front of me began to disappear. Turning, I saw Erik staring

at me with awe.

“Wow Claire, that was... wow...” he said breathlessly. I stared down at the fading Narigog that I had killed in one swipe, remembering how long it had taken him to kill the

one in my room.

There was something in his eyes that made me wonder if he felt more for me then the usual student-mentor relationship

consisted of.

“Thanks,” I said with a smirk. Of course, standing in front of a dead body was hardly the place to have a conversation about our

feelings, but I couldn’t help but wonder what was going on inside his head.

The next day I received a note that was slid under my door.

“I’m coming by to get you at 6. Be ready.”

It was obviously from Erik, but what did he mean “be ready”? Were we going on another mission.

“Hey mom!” I called into the kitchen. “I’m going to go out with some friends tonight, ok?” I hadn’t told her parents anything about the whole Night Hunter thing. After all, I

assumed my very conservative parents would have problems with me killing sentient creatures on a regular basis.

“Ok, have fun! And be safe!”

I smiled. “Safe”? Probably not...

“Fun?” Most likely...

“So where are we going?” I asked as I slid into the passenger seat of Erik’s Civic.

“There have been a lot of... disturbances in the down town area,” he said, his expression serious.

“Disturbances?”

“Claire,” he began with a sigh. “I told you that the Narigogs would be after you, but I never imagined anything like this.

I didn’t respond, afraid of whatever he had to say

“There is a very powerful Narigog causing trouble, as in people are turning up missing, and... if my sources are correct he’s looking...

For you...”

“So we’re going to meet him?” I asked, anxiously. How could Erik think I was ready for this?

“No, I’m going out to meet him,” he said, much to my relief. “I’ve had more training. Besides, he brought along a few friends for you to take

care of.”My relief instantly turned to dread.

What if Erik got hurt?

What if I couldn’t handle the Narigogs?

What if Erik got hurt!?!?!?

What if I realized that I really did care about him...

What if he didn’t care about me?

I attempted to shake aside my petty teenage drama and focus on the task at hand.

“Are you sure we can do this?” I asked as he parked the car in an abandoned lot.

“Of course,” he said. However I could see through his casual facade.

“Just promise me you won’t do anything stupid,” he said. “I don’t want you to get hurt.

I felt a desperate urge to ask him how he felt about me. I wanted to tell him that I might feel something for him to. I

wanted this moment to be perfect.

But as discussed earlier, life doesn’t give you what you want.

A small buzz in my wrist snapped me back to reality.

“They’re here,” Jake said as dark figure began to emerge from the shadows.

Four Narigogs stepped out of the shadows and into the dark parking lot. I couldn’t tell if one of them was the super powerful

one that was after me.

They all seemed to be after me...

I tried to make my expression look fierce as I swung my sword out at the first monster and watched it

pierce his heart. The second fell just as quickly, making me think that this would be a piece of cake.

“Ah!” Erik cried. I turned to see him floating in the air! I remembered what he had said about Narigogs having black magic.

Right as the Narigog was about to fling him across the lot I ran over and with one swift

move sliced his head clean off. Erik dropped from the sky and landed with incredible grace.

Then a horrified expression crossed his face as he saw what was coming out of some nearby bushes.

Before I could react I was flying backwards.

I emitted a large grunt as I hit a bunch of trash cans, which actually helped to break my fall.

“Stay back!” Erik called. I knew what it was now.

This was the powerful Narigog that had been searching for me.

The Narigog who had just taken me out with one wave of the hand.

The Narigog that Erik was going to try to face.

Alone.

Erik swung his sword forward at the Narigog, which was slightly larger then normal and therefor almost his

height.

The Narigog not only dodged the sword, but in a flash an invisible force pulled it from Erik’s hand.

In another moment Erik was laying on the ground, the Narigog standing over him with a sword, laughing cruelly.

“No!” I cried from across the parking lot.

The Narigog saw me trying to make my way towards Erik and laughed bitterly again. He took the sword and took aim at Erik’s

heart. He managed to roll out of the way, the sword only cutting his side.

Erik’s cry of pain was what did it.

Now I was angry...

I ran forward, sword in hand, not sure what I was doing.

All I knew was that this thing had to die.

Had I been more clearly, I would have realized that my fury would only make the Narigog stronger. Unfortunately that thought didn’t pop into my head until after the thing back

handed me and sent my one again flying across the parking lot.

I felt anger flare up inside me again as the Narigog laughed. I could almost see him getting larger as my hate grew stronger. I tried to control my breathing, but it didn’t

help. I was an unstoppable force of nature.

“Claire,” a weak voice called. I saw Erik staring at me, pain in his eyes. I knew what he would try to tell me. I needed to focus. I

needed to calm down.What I didn’t expect was for him to look at me like I was the most beautiful thing in the world. What I didn’t expect was for him to

say,

“I love you,”

I could feel my heart swell as his words sank in.

He loved me?

He loved me!!

And at that moment,

I knew I loved him too.

Forgetting about all the pain in my body, I stood and faced the Narigog, unable to stop smiling. I felt as if I was draining power

from him as I ran forward, sword ready to strike

And strike it did.

The Narigog roared in rage before it fell

to the ground.

Finally dead.

“Erik!” I called, running over to him.

“Claire,” he said weakly. “You did it!”

There was blood pouring out of his chest and he winced in pain. Tears slid down my cheeks and landed on his.

“Claire, about what I said...” he began.

Then I realized it. He had said it to calm my anger. He knew it would make me happy, and therefor better off

when facing the Narigog. I tried to convince myself that it was simply a good military move, and nothing more.

My tears started to flow for a different reason.

“I just wanted to know if you felt the same way.”

I smiled, happier then I ever had been. He did love me! He wanted me!

“Of course,” I said, leaning down to kiss him.

Erik was taken to the hospital and is doing fine nowadays. In fact he enjoys flaunting his battle scar to me whenever I beat him at

something.

We’ve been dating ever since that night, and I’ve never been happier.

As for Narigog hunting? It’s still a favorite hobby of mine. Although we haven’t been truly challenged in a while...

You know, even though life doesn’t always work out the way you want it to,

Sometimes it’s for the best.

And what makes me happy is that I know,

The best is yet to come.

The EndThe End