Hellwalkers

Painful Truth

A few hours earlier...

Wrathian Hellbeasts, as their name implies, are native to the ring of Wrath. These highly social animals are very territorial and have been known to attack hunters and loggers who go too deep into the forests they inhabit. Their scaly hides are so thick that regular bullets or blades cannot wound them. They must be taken down with angelic weaponry.

In recent years, their numbers have dwindled over habitat destruction, illegal hunting, or trafficking. Some mobster gangs in Greed are known to employ these creatures as guardian dogs despite the hellbeasts' classification as XXXXX, extraordinarily aggressive and unfit for domestication. 

Octavia pushed the book aside, huffing. Not this one, either.

So far, her search hadn't bore too many fruits. She found many books about hellbeasts but few mentions of Hellwalkers— let alone what kind of magic they use or how it works—that weren't just folktales and legends. 

She did, however, find some interesting sources of info in the form of old newspaper clippings from a few years back. 

ALBINO HELLBEASTS SIGHTED IN THE FORESTS NEAR LAMIAN IN THE WRATH RING

JANE BRISONT PRESUMED DEAD AFTER HELLBEAST ATTACK DURING HER ENGAGEMENT PARTY

HELLBEAST ATTACKS ON LIVESTOCK INCREASE. 

ARE HELLBEASTS BECOMING SMARTER? HUNTERS' GUILD PERPLEXED

These clippings might look just random notes meant to sell more newspapers, but when put together, and knowing what she now knows, they painted a very different picture: it's a clear sign of Hellwalker presence in an area. Brash told her that they've been around Lamian for a few decades now... his family, at least. 

Octavia checked her phone. 23:38. Man, time flies when you're focused. Her parents must be asleep now. It's time to see Brash.

Before leaving the library, she grabbed one of the photography books. She had promised the Hellwalker she'd show him one. 

As usual, Brash was pacing around inside the cage. At times, though, he seemed trying to peek his head out of the cage to look at the window toward the forest. Sadly, his snout was too big for that.

"Hey." 

"Hey." Brash finally gave up and lay down on the cage. "Did ye find anythin' useful?"

Octavia sat down with a huff. "Nothing other than folktales and the sorts. Oh, and a few newspaper clippings from a few years back." 

"I told ya, girl. Ye won't find anythin' about Hellwalker magic in those 'books.' No one's ever bothered to learn about our way of life, and the few who did have to abandon their own to assimilate into our people fully."

"Your people have never considered writing things down? It's more reliable than just passing it down orally." 

"Writing is a town Imp concept, girl. Stories are alive; paper is dead. As simple as that. Besides, a book wouldn't last a day in a den full of hellbeasts." Brash chuckled.

Octavia laughed. "I guess that's where 'the hellbeast ate my homework' thing came from." 

"Homework?"

"It's schoolwork that you do at home to reinforce what you learned at school. Before you ask, a school is where you learn with other kids." 

"Hey, I'm not that ignorant, girl. We just have a different name for it."  Brash said, offended. "We call it ciorc' foghlam. All children above seven years old in the tribe would gather around a fire, where an elder would teach them magic and how to better communicate with hellbeasts."