Monster Hunters

The Start

My arms pumped hard, I had never run so fast in my life. My lungs burned as I took hard long breaths. My legs burned and ached with every step or lunge I took. I slowed to a stop after I cross the finish line, breathing heavily. I turned and watched the other boys cross. I was a good fifteen seconds in front of all of them. Track was my passion, and this was the last race I'd be running. I had no idea at the time. 

After the race I went to the locker room and showered, changing into jeans and a t-shirt. I checked my phone, noticing a message from my mom. 

'Good luck today sweetie! We love you!' she had sent me an hour and a half ago. I rolled my eyes. She said her and my step-father were going to be at the meet today but neither of them were. I grabbed my backpack and my gym bag before leaving the school. I slipped earbuds into my ears and started playing music as I walked down the hall and out of the school. I zipped up my hoodie and put the hood up, not in the mood to talk to anyone. The walk home was quiet, or as quiet as New York City can get...

My name is Daniel Ryder, I am 17 years old, and I am a Monster Hunter. When this story starts, I had no idea that I was. It sort of just happened that way. My father was one, and he died in battle. I don't intend on doing that, but you never know.  I'm about 6'1" with dark hair, long on the top and short on the sides. I'm fairly muscular due to track and field, swimming, and baseball. I have a few tattoos on my arms and back. One is a norse dragon, coiling on my arm, its head on my collarbone. Another is a reference to my father who was a skilled swordsman. It's a sword going down my back with a rose growing up the blade towards the handle. Lastly on my other arm is a lion seemingly made of glass, it looks as though the glass is broken and is falling down my arm. Those were my only tattoos at the age of 17, I'll be getting more.

When I got home the house was empty, and I was not surprised. My mom and her husband were often working or out. So that's why I wasn't shocked when neither were at my meet. I took my earbuds out and turned my music off. I turned the TV on, some movie I wasn't too concerned about, just some background noise, and found the note my mom left me. 

"Danny! I'm so sorry about missing your meet! Here's some cash so you can order dinner. Keep the change! Love Mom and Steve." I crumpled the note and tossed it into the trash. I dumped my bags on the floor and flopped down on the couch, rolling through the contacts on my phone. I found the one I was looking for and hit dial. It rang twice before someone picked up. 

"Thank you for calling Café China, may I take your order?" the person said. I couldn't help but laugh a little, Mark, my best friend, worked for his parents after school and on the occasional weekend. So hearing this bored teenage boy made me laugh. "Screw you, Daniel, I have people on hold," he snapped. 

"No, Mark, no wait," I said still holding back my laughter. "My mom left me takeout money."

"The usual?" he asked. I nodded, though he couldn't see.

"Yeah, the usual, thanks," I said. "See you in twenty."

"See you in twenty," he confirmed and hung up. I tossed my phone aside and got up. I went to the bathroom and stripped off my dirty clothes, I turned on the shower, letting the hot water run before climbing in. I rinsed the sweat and grime from the day off of my body. I washed my hair before climbing out. I went back to my room and slipped on a pair of boxers and sweatpants. I was pulling on a t-shirt when I heard Mark calling to be buzzed in. I pressed the button and let him in. I opened two cans of Coke as he came into the apartment, setting the food down and taking off his helmet. You could say his parents were a little strict. 

Mark was a bit shorter than me, standing at about 5'10". He was half white half Chinese on his mother's side, he had dark black hair and a stubbly chin. He was a bit muscular himself, he did the same sports as me and more. Plus his parents made him ride his bike for deliveries. I got plates and forks, we dishes out the food and went to the couch. He began bitching about the restaurant which I didn't mind.

"How was the meet?" he asked with his mouth full. 

"Same old same old," I said shrugging as I ate some chicken and rice. 

"Ah, you totally destroyed the competition..." He smirked at me. I shrugged and looked down at my food. He pulled his phone from his pocket, it was buzzing angrily and I assumed it was his mom calling to scream at him. He opened his mouth to say hello, but was cut off by a female voice on the other line. "Uh-huh, I see..." he said running a hand through his hair making it stick up even more. "No, no, I'm with him right now..." he glanced at me and stood up walking down the hall so his voice was muffled. The conversation continued for a minute before he came out of the hall. "Hey...Dan..." he said and I turned my head to him. He looked nervous. I cocked an eyebrow at him.

"It's okay if you need to go back to work, I understand, Mark," I told him with a small easy smile. He just shook his head quickly. 

"That wasn't my mom," he said. He tapped his phone against his fingers. "Uhh..." He scratched the back of his head. "There's a girl on her way here...she's looking for you..." My eyebrow cocked again. "I-i-it's not what you think though, she's here to take you...to your destiny..." The speaker buzzed requesting permission into my home. When Mark buzzed her up, I knew that this was nothing that I was expecting.