Erdos: The Monstrosity

"Beautiful day for monster huntin'," Alexis said. His oily beard shined nearly as bright as his sword did from the sunlight that beamed down.

"Aye. It'll be a good harvest," Orion said. The two men were high off the memory of killing an Erdos the year before. They wandered through a small village, the last place of civilization that had any sighting of the monster, with their hands clasped together in healthy unity.

Alexis waved to a stranger as if he were a celebrity. "That beasty last year stood no chance. The wet, slow thing. It was basically ooze with a face and bones."

"You mean a face and money!" Orion corrected and gave an obnoxiously loud belly laugh.

"Quite right! Hopefully, this next creature is more of a challenge." They followed the smell of freshly grilled meats to a stand where a few locals loitered. They passed the merchant a few drachmae more than was necessary and began to consume the food as if they had never eaten around polite company.

"Aye, merchant," Orion said with a mouthful of pork. "Have you any news of the Erdos that was spotted near here?"

The merchant and a few bystanders stopped what they were doing and stared at him, wide-eyed. Except for Alexis, who drowned out the silence with his open-mouth chews. "E-Erdos?" the merchant stuttered, putting a hand over his mouth. "Not since our hunting party went out two nights ago. They went north into the forest and haven't returned."

Alexis and Orion looked at each other and nodded. "That's good enough for me," Alexis said. They put their half-eaten meats on the stall next to the yet to be sold products and walked away. "North it is."

"Wait!" the merchant called out. "Don't you want to know more about it?"

Orion turned and winked. "We like surprises." The small town that housed maybe a hundred people shrunk behind them as they confidently walked towards the treeline to the north. The grass shook off the morning dew and dried.

Orion took out his solar pistol and examined it. It held an acceptable amount of charge. The sleek, dark-steel plating had lines of hard glass meant to capture the sunlight. "You thinkin' you're actually goin' to use that?"

Orion laughed a little. "Maybe. It depends on if things get crazy enough. You know how expensive this thing is. It cost most of my share of the bones from last time. Using it would be a double-edged sword. The more I fire it, the more it wears down. It's a novelty and a last resort."

"Oh, come on. I've been so excited to see one of them in action. I've seen powder firearms ad they're alright, a bit loud for me, but solar? The world is gettin' crazy. What's next? Solar lights indoors?"

"I'm pretty sure you can't have solar light indoors. Don't get wild ideas like that."

Alexis playfully nudged Orion in the side with his elbow. "You know what's always reliable, and cheap enough to replace? This trusty sword and shield! You just can't beat it. If it ain't broke, don't replace it."

"I don't think that's the saying," Orion said.

"Maybe not, but it's better."

"It's better when you say it." Orion leaned over and aggressively kissed Alexis' cheek. They stopped a dozen feet from the treeline.

"Oh, now, don't start what you can't finish," Alexis said and pulled Orion in by the hips. Just before their lips touched, a monstrous sound came from the nearby trees, and they readied their weapons. "Ready!" Alexis pulled up his shield and sword, and Orion brought out a knife in each hand.