Chapter 17 – Into the Woods of Stone
The sky was still a bruise of indigo when sixty first-year recruits stood in the frost-bitten field, breath rising like smoke.
Their hunting armor gleamed faintly under the torches - reinforced leather layered over chain mail, pauldrons marked with the crest of the Lodge, and iron-thread bracers etched with basic warding sigils. Each had a short cloak, more ceremonial than useful, fluttering against the cold wind. Boots caked with dew. Eyes full of restless dread.
They stood in rows of twenty, divided into groups of three. The morning felt too quiet for what was about to begin.
Auron adjusted the strap of his gauntlet and glanced to his sides.
On his left, Rin, a dark elf with pale silver hair and ink-black eyes, checked the tension of his bowstring. On his right, Milo, a hooded boy with a scar cutting across his left eye, nervously rolled his short sword in his palms.
Their instructor Instructor Halbrecht strode forward, boots crunching over frozen grass. His wolf-hide coat swayed as he stopped before them, the morning light barely touching his scarred face.
"All right, boys and girls," Halbrecht growled, voice like gravel dragged over steel. "You have the next forty-eight hours to hunt the fifteen gargoyles I've released into the eastern woods."
A murmur rippled through the recruits.
"But remember," he added, pacing along the line, "just because I said gargoyles doesn't mean that's all you'll find out there. The woods have teeth, and not all of them answer to me."
A nervous-looking youth near the back raised a trembling hand. "S-sir, what about teams that don't get a kill?"
Varric turned toward him, expression flat. "Then they pack up their little satchels and get the hell out of my Lodge. Permanently."
The boy paled.
Another voice piped up a fat noble with gilded armor too polished for this place. "C-can we die in this?"
"That," Varric said coldly, "is your problem to deal with. Not mine."
A commoner shouted, "But we already passed the academy exam!" His tone carried both defiance and fear. "We earned our place!"
Varric's smile was thin and sharp. "You became students of the Academy through that test. This trial decides whether you get to dream of calling yourself hunters." His gaze swept the crowd, voice rising to a thunderclap. "Now — any more questions?"
No one answered. The field was silent except for the wind.
"Didn't think so." He turned, lifting a hand toward the woods. "Your forty-eight hours start now. Move!"
His final word cracked like a whip.
The recruits broke formation, boots hammering against dirt as they poured into the treeline. The forest swallowed them whole — a vast sprawl of mist, pine, and unseen eyes.
A Team of Three
"Okay, guys, strategy," Milo said as they slowed near a stream glimmering with early light. His voice was low but anxious. "We can't just wander and hope."
Rin crouched, dipping his fingers into the mud. "I can handle tracking. My senses will pick up mana trails faster than human eyes can. Milo, you stay mid-range with that sword of yours. Keep me covered. And Auron…" She glanced at him, studying his posture, the calm in his eyes. "…you take the front line. seem like someone who can hols their own."
Auron gave a small nod. "Agreed."
He tightened the strap on his sword hilt. If I want to survive this, I can't do it alone. thought to himself
He remembered his mentor's voice Humans built kingdoms because they couldn't do everything by themselves.
"Let's move then," Rin said, rising in one smooth motion. "The longer we wait, the more prey gets taken by someone else."
"Right," Milo muttered. "And I'd rather not be the one packing his bag home."
Auron allowed himself a faint smile. "Then stay close."
The First Hunt
Two hours passed. The forest grew darker, thicker. The light dimmed under towering oaks whose roots bulged like veins through the soil.
Rin crouched suddenly, eyes sharp. "Tracks."
Auron and Milo froze behind her. She brushed away fallen leaves, revealing deep claw marks gouged into stone. The air around them felt colder.
"Quick," she hissed. "I can feel its presence moving east!"
Auron's muscles tensed as they sprinted. Branches snapped. The forest seemed to close around them,every rustle, every shadow whispering danger.
Then he saw it.
The gargoyle perched on a broken arch of stone . seven feet tall, wings folded like jagged blades. Its skin looked like molten granite, veins glowing faintly with ember light. A long, ridged tail coiled behind it, dripping dark ichor onto the ground. Its face was almost human, almost beast his eyes burning with dim intelligence.
When it moved, the sound was like stone grinding against bone.
"By the twelve Gods…" Milo whispered. "It's huge."
"Stay behind me," Auron said, drawing his blade. The steel shimmered faintly as mana coursed into it. His training with the Knights of Arvel had sharpened his control over his mana. his body felt light, focused.
The gargoyle turned, shrieking a sound that cracked bark and made the air tremble.
Auron pushed mana into his feet and dashed forward, faster than before.
The ground cracked beneath his boots. He leapt, twisting midair, his sword glowing faintly blue it was an imitation of sword aura, crude but potent.
The gargoyle lunged to meet him, claws outstretched.
Auron jumped over 8 feet, he twisted his boy mid air and positioned his sword
Steel met stone with a thunderous clang. Sparks burst.
The impact sent Auron tumbling backward, rolling through dirt and roots. The gargoyle's claws left deep furrows where he'd stood moments ago.
Rin's arrow whistled through the air striking the creature's shoulder. The gargoyle shrieked, snapping the shaft effortlessly.
Milo darted in, sword thrust aimed for the joint of its leg. The tip hit, then skidded off as if striking iron.
"It's like stabbing a wall!" Milo shouted.
Auron steadied himself, eyes narrowing.
He darted forward again but this time, he used the terrain.
Sliding beneath a root arch, he slashed upward in a diagonal arc, striking the gargoyle's knee. The blade bit deep.
A gout of molten blood hissed onto the ground. The creature roared, backhanding him hard. Pain exploded across Auron's ribs.
Rin's chant rose quick, sharp syllables of Elvish. Frost spiraled from his palms, coating the ground around the monster. Steam burst as ice met molten veins.
The gargoyle staggered.
Now.
Auron gritted his teeth, flooding mana through every fiber of his body. His sword pulsed brighter unstable, flickering between blue and white. He stepped in, channeling both control and desperation.
He slashed.
The blade tore through the gargoyle's chest. A shockwave of heat and mana blasted outward, scattering ash and feathers of light.
For an instant, the world froze. Then the creature let out one final, shattering cry, before collapsing, body crumbling into smoldering rubble.
Auron stood over it, chest heaving, the scent of scorched stone in the air.
Milo stumbled forward, sweat dripping down his face. "By the gods…" He bent, pulling a small knife from his belt and cutting into the creature's chest. The stone flesh gave way to glowing residue and there, nestled within, was a mana core, pulsing faintly like a heart.
He lifted it, awed. "So this is what keeps them alive."
Rin exhaled, lowering her bow. "Equivalent of our magic circles or dantains," she murmured. "But this one's unusually small. It must have been a scout not even one of the true fifteen."
Auron didn't answer. His arm trembled slightly the mana backlash burning under his skin. He could still feel the echo of the fight inside him.
Rin glanced at him from the corner of her eye. "You moved… differently, back there. Not just aura. Not just magic."
"Training," Auron said quietly.
"Training doesn't make the air hum when you swing."
He looked away. "Then maybe you were hearing things."
Rin smirked faintly, though her gaze lingered too long. "Maybe."
Milo sheathed the core into his pouch. "Well, that's one down. Fourteen to go. Let's find somewhere to rest before we—"
A sound cut him off.
A soft crack echoed through the woods.
They froze.
Rin's ears twitched, bow half-drawn. Auron's hand found his sword hilt again.
The sound came again a twig snapping under a boot. Slow. Deliberate.
From the shadows between the trees, a silhouette emerged tall, broad-shouldered, armor glinting faintly red.
A voice drawled, half-mocking.
"Didn't think anyone else would get a kill this early."
Auron's heart sank as he recognized the crest on the stranger's chestplate.
Another Lodge team. But not allies.