DiDi's Adventure: The City of Dalia

Chapter 4

The dark figure was shrouded beneath a midnight black cloak, locks of long azure-tinted hair hanging from the neckline. They were a slim figure, their dry fingers curling around an untouched bottle of gin. It was a woman, easily noticeable by the tone of voice and body shape. She was slightly shorter than DiDi, much paler as well. In fact, she was as pale as DiDi's clothes. Her fingernails were long and sharp, prepared to prick at any skin it brushed across. And although her eyes were hidden under her hood, they were gleaming scarlet that reflected back from the bottle of gin. Just those simple features made DiDi realize who she was dealing with. A Vampire. She avoided DiDi's eye contact as though looking at her would turn her into stone. All of the humans in the room were attracting the woman, her head frequently glancing from every moving person that danced by her. She was still in bloodlust, trying to control herself with all the strength and will she could muster. 
After years of constantly sending and receiving letters, they finally had their first encounter. Although, DiDi had always assumed they were a man because of the messy doctor's note handwriting that she gradually got used to.
 
DiDi remembered when she first heard of the Blue Huntress. It was within a tavern similar to the one she was currently in except much more vile and crowded. As DiDi sat along the counter, she eavesdropped on a group behind her as they laughed away about hunting and tracking animals. "I once caught a 20 foot long alligator!" 
"Baby stuff! I once caught a mammoth the size of an elephant!"
"Are you sure it wasn't just an elephant covered in hair?" 
"I'm positive!"
"Liar! They're all extinct!" There was a clamour of bitter arguments that shook the tavern. And one voice silenced them all. "All y'all can gloat 'bout yer catch. But none y'all can compare to the Blue Huntress. She'll chase ya to the ends of time if she has ta... for a good price that is." All eyes within the tavern turned to the grungy man. All conversations ceased. And the music played softer as though the musicians too were listening. DiDi was intrigued, turning around in her seat. A customer from one corner of the tavern barked, "I hear it's a Blue Hunter! Ain't no Huntress."
"It's a Huntress, I tell ya. I saw 'er with my own eyes." The man held two fingers pointing to his eyes as he scanned the room like a snake scanning for prey. His beady eyes widened as he stepped onto his chair and climbed onto the table, kicking tankards off while waving his arms violently.
"I'll tell ya! She was huntin' a pal of mine back in the old days. I ain't had the slightest clue why either until my pal and I were walkin' home on one rainy night after a night out with them boys. And she came outta nowhere! Didn't need no sword or no knife to scare the livin' soul right outta us. We were already runnin' down the alley and there she was again! I tell ya, she was like a ghost. Poppin' up in one place and 'nother. She didn't pay no mind to me. Picked my ol' pal right up by the neck and held 'im against the wall. Y'all know what she said? I still 'member it like it were yesterday." The man held in a breath, drawing in listeners who were leaning at the edge of their seats. DiDi blinked, her jaw slightly drooping as she was sucked in by the vortex of storytelling. "She said these very words," He paused, clearing his voice of his funny country accent. And as though someone possessed him he spoke with a voice that matched the Blue Huntress'. "You are charged with the crimes of murder, theft, and harassment. Anything you say will only add to your crimes. You will not be arrested and you do not have the right to remain silent because what's the use of talking without a tongue?" And that was all it took to make everyone's hair stand on end, their skin tone turning grey from horror. The music in the background ceased, the musicians too shaky to play proper notes. Without another word, the man climbed back down from the table and sat in his seat. There was no further conversation about hunting. Instead, they spoke about their families. It took a long time but when conversation rose again, the atmosphere returned to its normal state. 
DiDi approached, knowing she needed the Blue Huntress' assistance in finding her master's son. She slipped the man a small pouch of coins to bribe him into talking smoothly. "Where can I find her? The Blue Huntress." She asked but the man only cackled, pushing the pouch back in her direction. "You don't find 'er," Once again, his voice switched to that of an old woman. "She finds you. She's got eyes all over this world. Ain't a whisper that go by her." 
When DiDi left the vile tavern, she entered the downpour of rain which soaked her in a mere minute. It was gloomy weather, drowning DiDi's sorrows within muddy puddles. There was no choice but to swim home within the dark and quiet town. For a moment, she felt at peace with the world as her bare feet pressed against the ground. It was as though the rain was washing away her heartaches and throbbing veins. But it ended halfway home when a dark figure stopped in her path. A woman. Not the Blue Huntress, but a woman shrouded in a cloak with two swords drawn at her side. "Who are you? Why are you looking for the Blue Huntress?" They shouted, competing against the sound of raindrops. DiDi conjured a staff of ice in her hand, prepared to fight if she needed to do so. "I'd like to hire her. I'm looking for someone." 
"To assassinate?" The woman was getting edgier by the second, ready to spring at DiDi at any second. "To find. I want him alive and captured. I'm willing to pay any price, just name it." No reply from the woman. It was as though she was trying to process what was being conversed, frozen in place. Then she stepped forwards, walking towards DiDi who remained in her exact position. A few inches away, the woman stopped and tucked away her weapons. DiDi did the same a moment later. "Who is it?" The woman asked.
"His name is Beluar Verglas, son of Ada Verglas and Aronald Davon. He is a Frost Elf with black hair and brown eyes. He is my brother... at least I consider him to be. I have his photograph." DiDi searched through her pockets, pulling out a creased and over-folded photo of a young, smiling boy with his arms waving in the air. He stood in front of a wintry forest and in the background was the childish DiDi, giving chase to the boy with a red flushed face because he threw a snowball at her. The woman took the photo, unimpressed. "Do you have a more recent photo?" "No. This is the only photo that shows him as old as he can be. If I have to estimate, he is twenty years old now."
"You do realize this will cost much more? Yes? Because we will need to put our all into this request. Which means background digging, asking all other locations with his description, vice versa." A moment of silence from DiDi before she nodded. "I'll pay as much as you need. I will need more time to gather all the money, however. The sooner you can find him, the faster I will work." 
"You can pay the Blue Huntress the total when she finds your... 'brother'. You just need to pay for the security of your request. It's 2,000 joules. All in one piece." The bitter sound of money made DiDi crunch her teeth but with a single, yet desperate, handshake, the deal was made and DiDi had to work to find enough money to pay for it all. The request was still on hold but she was sure the woman had told the Blue Huntress about DiDi because for many days, she felt eyes peeling at her as she worked. For months she worked as a hunter, hunting down animals within the forest and selling off their flesh and fur for money. Kuzu was at her side, assisting DiDi with hunts. Often, he would eat his prey and let DiDi keep the fur to sell to the Leatherworkers and Tailors or to anyone who was interested. Sometimes, she would sell it to the Black Market who bought it at a slightly higher price than usual. Then one day, she finally had enough to begin the request.

"I assume you want to cut the light conversation and tell you where he is?" The Blue Huntress spoke, still frantically looking at the fleshy humans until she had to turn a blind eye to them and face the shelf of liquor. "If you don't mind, yes. For your sake." Replied DiDi, spinning in her own seat. The woman sipped from her bottle of gin. "Do you want the good news first or the bad news? Hell, I'll just tell you the good news." The Blue Huntress sat upright, her shoulders tensing with trepidation as her left leg was shaking up and down while pinned to the floor. She was getting more antsy as the bartender whirled past her to serve a glass of whiskey. His cologne whipped across the Blue Huntress' nose, which was fortunate for his sake because it made him smell less appealing to her. "Your brother is here in Dalia. I saw him walking around, roaming the local markets, entering large buildings only to exit again. And I am sure it's him because he's got a real rotten attitude like his father." 
"You know his father? Aronald?"
"You think I don't? He's on the top twenty of Wanted People. Do you know how many heads want his head? I could never find him and now I know he has a son, I can't find him either. I suppose it runs in the family. It's not that he is hard to find, but I can't catch him. He turns around to one corner and then he vanishes like he was never there. I walk up to him and he disappears with a blink of an eye." 
"Then what is the bad news?" This comment put a heavy breath in the Blue Huntress. She drew in a long sigh that was also pained. 
"That I won't finish your hunt. No, I can't. I have other customers waiting, ones who've waited longer than you for their targets to either be apprehended or assassinated. I have been in this line of business for centuries. I've probably been in it longer than you have been in this world. And this is the first time in two hundred years that I've failed a request." She huffed, gulping down the rest of the gin and smashing it against the counter. It disturbed other customers who jumped at the crash and eyed the woman up and down. "Give me another bottle!" She cried, the bartender hastily sliding down another bottle across the counter. "Because I failed the hunt, I'll only take half of what was supposed to be paid. It's compensation for all the hunting and digging that I've done. Then you can hunt your brother for yourself." She popped the cork and took another gulp, her head tilting back to the ceiling. When she set the bottle back down, she set it with a frustrated slam that left a crack at the bottom. "It's understandable." DiDi poked and probed through her satchel for money. She was prepared, knowing that if the Blue Huntress were to call upon her personally then the mission was either finished or incomplete. Either way, money was involved. The total for the entire hunt was meant to be 20,000 joules but since she was asking for half price, that was the new amount she was going to pay. 
She set multiple pouches of coins in front of the Vampire who took a waft of DiDi's hand as it brushed by. Even then, DiDi knew the Blue Huntress could no longer hold back her urges. Especially when surrounded by her temptations, all of which was taunting her as they waltzed by. She opened her mouth, two fangs stretching from the upper set of teeth. But before she could even take a bite, Lionel squeezed himself between both of them with Kenny resting on his left shoulder. "DiDi, who's your friend? Doesn't matter. If I were a cat, I'd spend all nine lives with you sweetheart." He winked, one arm leaning on the counter and the other on his hip. The Blue Huntress was interested but not in his ludicrous pick-up lines. To be inches away from human flesh, from a beating heart which thudded ever so loudly, from blood racing through his veins- there was no more waiting. She was hungry. She was starving. 
He leaned over the counter to beckon the bartender again. Lionel was already tipsy but wanted more booze. And when he was least expecting it, the Blue Huntress pulled him down to his feet and launched herself at him. There was an ear-piercing yelp from Lionel, her fangs digging into the sweet, cold flesh as blood oozed out from her teeth marks. Lionel was frozen in place, leaning so close to the counter that red marks were starting to appear. His fingers were gripped tightly to his stool, squeezing the cushion. It took ages for her to let go and when she pulled back, she found that it was DiDi's arm she had bit into. DiDi had taken the blow for Lionel, her left arm wrapped around Lionel's neck to prevent further bites. It was no wonder the blood the Vampire tasted was so frigid and demonic. Nonetheless it was a first taste at an Ice Demon's blood. She cleared her throat, wiping the frosty blood from the corners of her mouth. Silence between the four of them until the bartender rolled a bottle of liquor beside Lionel. The Blue Huntress took the money, tucking them away in the bag hanging from her belt. She stepped down from her stool, her boots clicking against the floorboard like hammer nails to metal. "Good luck with finding your brother." She said, turning away from the two and vanishing into the humid night. 
Lionel took all the time he needed in the world to recuperate what he just witnessed. He had been made advances on before by women, but not in the same nature as to what he was just victim of. And to think DiDi was the one to unhesitatingly block the Vampire's bite for him, made Lionel's ego smaller than usual. She rubbed her wound, extracting the green venom which swirled with her blood. Had it been on a human like Lionel, he would've turned into one of them in less than an hour. The Vampire was another form of a Demon. To have a vampire bite a demon was to have a human bite another human. There was no effect except perhaps an infection or the flu coming into play. "T-Thanks." Lionel stuttered, sitting upright. Kenny bounced off his shoulder, walking up and down the counter as he admired the shiny glasses. "D-Did you find what you were looking for?" He was still shaken which was rare for him, at least in DiDi's observations. "Yes and no. My master's son is in Dalia but we don't know where he is. But to know he is in Dalia makes me feel more than relieved." Sighed DiDi, rubbing her temples. If the greatest Huntress in the world couldn't find Beluar, what hopes did DiDi have? And to hear that his father was one of the Most Wanted AND with his son- it wasn't exactly pleasing to know. She knew trouble would come.
DiDi turned to the bartender who raised an eyebrow with interest. "How much are your rooms here? I'd like to spend the night." Her words put a twirl in his moustache, his long horse-like face lowering as he stared at her deeply. "Does dis look like a inn to zou?" He spoke with a comical accent so deep it could've been mistaken for a blowhorn. "You don't have rooms?" DiDi asked again. The man only shook his head, muttering something under his breath before turning his back to her. What sort of tavern had no rooms!? "E-Excuse me!? Do you know where I can find an inn in the city!?" DiDi climbed over the counter to yell at the bartender who paid no mind to her any longer. He was occupied with huffing shiny glasses and serving them to customers. 
"We don't have inns in Dalia." Lionel laughed, wrapping his arm around DiDi's shoulder as he brought her close enough to smell the sweat oozing off his chest. Kenny climbed from his shoulder to DiDi's, his tail swinging from side to side. "Kuzu!" DiDi called, awakening him from his rest. He purred, stretching himself like an elastic. His claws scratched against the floorboard and when he was ready, he sprinted to DiDi's side as they exited the tavern. "We have neighbours. And your neighbour, is me." Lionel smirked, the four of them vanishing into the misty fog. Lionel had clumsy footwork because he was tipsy which made DiDi carry his weight as he lead the way with his accusing finger pointing forwards. "Onwards, my trusty Popsicle!" He shouted, his voice echoing into the night.