The Ruby Empire

Pike the Hydra

Male Monster x Female Reader

A few years ago, your brothers had been hired for a hunting job near the Deploris Cliffs by the sea. The man who has hired them has promised them a lot of money should they kill the creature that was living there, but only if they killed it. That was ages ago. Your brothers never returned home and you never saw the man or his money again.

Unsatisfied with any answers that had been given to you, you set out to the Deploris Cliffs yourself to seek the truth. Had your brothers died fighting whatever it was the man sent them to kill? Or had they fallen for a trap? You had been training with your brothers since you were young, but they made you stay home for this one trip. You suppose you were glad they did, but you couldn't help but feel guilty at being left in safety.

The closer to the ocean you got, the more the area became buried in fog and cloud. The sky was gray and you could barely see the hazy glow of the sun. People walked around like shadows in the mist. It was as if you were walking into a village of ghosts. You find a pub and inside life seems a little more normal, less spectral.

You take a spot at the bar and wave down the barkeep. "I need information," you tell him. "I'm trying to find out about something that happened three years ago, possibly at the Cliffs."

The barkeep sighs and points to the back of the bar. There's a woman sitting there with an oddly shaped and dressed man. You order a pitcher of beer and take it to the table. The woman looks up at you. She's obviously a mercenary. It's easy to read on her face. She's strong looking and there are scars on her hands and face. The man, or whatever he was, sitting beside her was hunched over. He was wrapped in cloth and wore a mask.

"Can we help you?" The woman asks.

"I need to know about something that took place here three years ago," you start. "Three men died hunting something at the Deploris Cliffs."

The woman scans you with dark eyes. She then turns to the man beside her. "Malachi," she murmurs.

"The Deploris Cliffs are no place for any man. Hunter, mercenary, or otherwise," Malachi answers with a cryptic voice. "Someone led them there under false pretenses."

You stiffen and your eyes widen. "Who?" You growl.

The woman sighs. "Three years ago Malachi and I nearly fell into the same trap. Some man promised money but only upon completion. We investigated first before we accepted since Malachi felt nothing but ill intent from the man."

"What did you find?" You ask.

"Something big," the woman murmured. "Something hungry."

"You won't find your brothers I'm afraid. They're long gone to whatever has taken over the cliffs," Malachi replied.

You slump down. The answer was a little too much to swallow.

"We came back to this place for another job," the woman's voice is sympathetic. "My name is Amara. This is my husband, Malachi."

You glance at Malachi, wondering how such an amazing looking woman like Amara was with such an odd looking lump like him. "Hi," you murmur and lean forward to shake both their hands.

"I'm sorry for your loss," Amara continues. "But it's best that you do not go looking any further."

"Is there nothing at all that can be done?" You ask. "Can no one find what's down there and finish it?"

"Not without an army," Malachi answers. "And no army would be foolish enough to go into the ocean to fight something they have no knowledge of."

"Your job here isn't to find out?" You ask.