That next evening I was woken by the sound of knocking on my door, very few people dared to knock unless there was an emergency so I rolled over and groggily croaked "Come in". I heard the door open but couldn't see anything because of the curtains around the base of my bed. Heavy footsteps made their way towards my bed and a familiar body appeared in front of me. "What?" I groaned and covered my eyes, simultaneously pulling my blanket closer around me. I felt the figure sit on my bed whist gently pushing my bent legs out of the way.
"There have been sightings of Venators near the cliffs, a group of us are going to check it out..." he said, and then paused in anticipation. I quickly pushed the blankets off my torso and then remembered that I was only wearing my bra and pulled them back up again. I slid myself back on the bed and sat up, feeling heavy and sleepy. The man on my bed was Dan, one of the youngest Cerberi on the island and one of the only people whom I actually managed to get along with. He smiled, knowing that I would want to join the scouting party.
"Always so eager," he said with a breathy laugh, "You know, it's not good for you to be so up for a fight."
"You know it's not that" I replied
"True, I mean you do have a lot to prove." he said jokily and I have him a harsh glare. He chuckled once again and got up "We're going from the underground entrance in about ten minutes." he informed me and then, after throwing a small pot onto my bed, showed himself out. I signed and leaned forward to grab the pot. Inside it were tablets, the food on the Island isn't the most desirable, so a few years ago Dan and I decided to take some supplements that we originally bought from the local supermarket, but after reading the ingredients, Jean-Paul, our alchemist friend decided that he could do a better job. These supplements also helped us keep up with the older, stronger Cerberi and if they knew we had to take tablets we would be shamed.
I took a tablet and then stood up, leaving the tablet pot on my bed. I lazily got dressed and messily put my hair in a loose ponytail. I slid on a sleeved cloak and grabbed my sword off the wall, buckling it above my large hips; I then positioned it so that it was hidden by my cloak. I put on my fighting boots; a light pair of boots that have tiny spikes coming out of the steel lining on the front stitching.
Making my way down to the entrance, I saw a small group of five Cerberi stood there, barely speaking a word to one another. The group leader, Kuri was talking to two attentive guards, he glanced sideways when he saw me but didn't stop talking. One of the older Cerberi stopped talking to his friend to glare at me. I gave him my best 'yeah, get over it' smile and he narrowed his eyes and turned away. Hurried footsteps from behind me signalled the arrival of Dan who stopped just behind me to the right. Everyone looked at him to see why he was running but he just shrugged, "Ready?" he asked me, still staring the other Cerberi out.
"Of course." It was at this moment that Kuri turned round and addressed us all,
"This is everyone. We're working as a scouting team tonight because there has been a potential Venator sighting. As well as the usual shift guards, these two will also be positioned in the tunnel should we need back up" he motioned to the two guards behind him "This should be pretty routine, we may split up into groups of two or three, but as always follow my orders. Should you spot a Venator, you must attempt not to engage, but at least one of you must find me and assemble the rest of the group. It is however, unlikely that we will see any action this evening, despite this, ensure that you are equipped with your weapon or weapons of choice." he finished speaking and turned to face the tunnel. "Let's go!" he said and began marching briskly along the dank underground path.
Following along behind him I noticed one Cerberi who had obvious disdain for me, constantly glancing back over his shoulder. Dan had noticed this, too and elbowed me and smiled every time he looked away again. I shook my head in amusement, we had learned to just laugh at the traditionalists as it is better, we believed, to laugh at something that trivial than let it affect you.
