Nordic Tracks

Premise
Drip, drop, drip drop.

Vacuo. The great desert which lies west of Vale, home to Shade Academy and many who live in strife. An inhospitable desert in which only the strong survive. However, on this day, the blazing sun which dominates the afternoon sky has been replaced by dark clouds, pouring rain across the desert plain.

On this desert patch, nothing can be seen for miles, no camps, no caravans, nothing to display any signs of life, however, a single figure wearing a cowl wrapped around their head can be seen lumbering on, leaving nothing but a footprint trail to mark their existence on this plain.

Cheng Leclerc raises her head to the sky and her face is immediately washed by the drizzle pouring in. Grabbing a canteen, she silently opens the lid and drains the contents before replacing it back onto her belt, fastening it in place before pushing herself forward despite her dislike of the downpour urging her to seek shelter.

Towards the dying city.

Two Weeks Ago - Vale
"Jian!" the call came from behind her.

Cheng "Jian" Leclerc turned around in surprise to face a woman with flowing brown hair and eager green eyes, waving profusely from a half-block away.

"Almond," she said plainly as the woman bounced over to her.

"I just wanted to thank you for helping fix up my bakery the other day, it's rare for someone to offer their services and refuse to take pay, so I decided to bring you these!" Almond exclaims and holds out a paper bag towards the woman in front of her.

Surprised, she opened the bag to find two baguettes, freshly made and warm, the bread soft with a block of cheese on the side. She raised her head, eyes showing surprise and Almond squealed in delight.

"Do you like them? I remember you saying that you enjoyed eating them and so I thought I'd make a few as a way of saying thank you, I didn't make the cheese though..." Almond said, slightly downtrodden.

With a light smile, Cheng grabbed the first baguette and took a bite out of it, chewing it slowly before swallowing it, the bread soft and the spices she had added to the bread gave a pleasant tang, she swallowed, delicious.

"Well Jian, do you like it?" Almond asked, smile unfaltering.

"Yes... Thank you Almond." Cheng said and turns around to continue walking before Almond speaks again.

"Umm... My husband would also like to say thank you, if it isn't too much trouble, would you mind coming over for dinner tonight? We're going to be having our first proper meal now that the bakery's up and running again... And to celebrate the fact that the hooligans who ruined it in the first place have been arrested..." Almond stated somewhat downtrodden, knees slightly bent and her smile now gone only to be replaced by an expression of pleading.

Cheng looked down before raising her head to speak.

"I'm sorry, but I can't tonight, I'm leaving Vale soon and as such must be packing my things."

Almond's disheartened face almost made Cheng change her answer, almost.

"Okay Jian, promise to drop by next time you're in Vale alright?" Almond said, smile on her face again.

"Yes Almond, I promise" Cheng replied before turning around and continuing down the street, not bothering to say that she may never be in Vale again.

Continuing down the street, she opened the door to a bar proclaiming the name "Thirsty Beowolf" and walked right in. It was midday, and thus the bar was mostly empty except for a few old men reeking of booze and a few punks snicking to themselves.

"Should I ask if you're finally going to have something to drink Miss?" The bartender asked with a husky laugh, cleaning out some glasses.

"Should I ask if you're finally going to change the name of your bar?" Cheng replies, a light giggle escaping her mouth as she sat down on a stool in front of the bar table.

It had become the greeting between the two, regardless of the other knowing the answer to their own question.

Cheng slowly slid a Lien card towards the bartender and put her head on her hands on the bar table, legs resting on a lower rung and looked at the bearded man in front of her.

"Alright, news is that there's a city somewhere along the east of Vacuo in which a virus is rampant, destroying the resident's bodies from the inside out." the bartender who boasted the name Coal Brighner said.

Cheng raised her eyebrows in surprise and looked at the barkeeper. "What does this virus do?" she asked.

Coal gently put the glass he was holding down and looked Cheng right in the face.

"You know about aura, how it manifests, how people control it. Well, this Virus forces the aura of anyone over the age of twelve to unlock and then over the period of what can be a few months to over a decade, just, eats away at the person's soul before destroying their body."

Cheng's eyes widened too, although her mouth remained in the slight frown it had been in ever since she entered the bar. "And...?"

Coal shrugged before turning around and grabbing a bottle of scotch from the rack behind him.

"Rampancy in late stages, hosts of the virus almost turning Grimm-like before having their bodies decay. Nasty stuff. No one's allowed to go into the city or they immediately become infected, odds are, the place is under quarantine so that the inhabitants kill themselves and any remainder of the virus, it's unlike anything I've ever seen before though."

Cheng frowned slightly before looking Coal straight in the eyes. "And you're sure of this."

Coal chuckled, "Jian... Jian... When have I ever been wrong?"

He had a point, in the few weeks she'd spent in Vale, Coal's information had been very accurate, almost scarily so. It was him who had given her the hideout location of the men who'd destroyed Almond's store so she could go give them her own brand of justice.

"Alright, thanks Coal, know anyone who might know more?" She asked.

"Yeah, dusty old man by the name of Grouse. Retired hunter, but very paranoid, just got back from Vacuo, I'm sure he'll know something. Just be careful, he lives by the docks in a run down blue house," Coal warned and poured a drink of scotch, handing it to one of the men who had lumbered over to the bar table.

Waving bye to Coal, Cheng walked out the front door and headed to the docks, already planning for the trip to Vacuo.

"Grouse? Yeah, just be careful, if he doesn't recognize you then he automatically goes for his weapon," one of the fishermen laughed.

"Alright, thank you sir." Cheng stated and walked down the docks. All the houses here reeked of saltwater and were in some form of disrepair or another, however, fact of the matter was, the house which had been listen as Grouse's looked far worse than the rest. Broken windows, mold growing on the side of the house, and instead of smelling like saltwater, smelled more like rotten fish.

Nose wrinkling slightly, Cheng knocked a few times on the front door.

"Grouse? My name is Jian. Coal sent me here saying you may know about a city in Vacuo which has been experiencing a plague. Hello?" she asked, sentence longer than she would've liked it to be, rapping the door smartly with her knuckles again.

As a way of response, the door opened slightly with a creak and she looked at it surprised. She hadn't expected it to be so easy.

Opening the door, Cheng stepped in and her eyes widened in surprise as a blade attached to a razor sharp chain came flying and stuck itself to the framework.

"That...." a rusty voice stated from the far side of the dark room. "Is the only greeting you're going to get, next time the blade is going between your eyes."

Cheng took a light step forward before a "Don't come any closer!" came from one of the dark corners.

"Mr. Grouse...?" she asked tentatively.

"So they call me." the reply came.

"So that isn't your name?" Cheng asked hesitantly, every nerve in her body screaming at her to leave.

"I've had many names, they gave me that for me newfound love of eating the things. I'm too old to dispute it," Grouse answered and gave a wheezy cough afterward.

Cheng hesitated, he obviously didn't mean to kill her, but his tone wasn't fully welcoming, eyes darting between the room and the door, uncertain.

"How's Coal?" the question came quick, unexpected. Composing herself, Cheng responded.

"He's fine," Cheng responded.

"Now... You want to know about that forsaken place in Vacuo..." Grouse stated flatly, voice showing no emotion.

"Yes please, if you cou-" Cheng started.

"Shut up girl, only speak when asked a question. Otherwise you're going to listen." Grouse stated, Cheng immediately fell quiet.

"Now, I know the place, but I didn't go there. Lord knows I don't need my life being shortened and being turned into a beast before I die. And you're stupid for wanting to go there."

"I don't wa-" Cheng started again.

"What did I say about speaking. And yes you do want to go there otherwise what would you be questioning me about it for? Writing a paper for someone working at the establishment? Maybe something around the lines of a little R&R?" Grouse asked snidely.

Cheng remained silent, eyes searching along the darkness for the presence, but the chain gave no possible leads.

"That's what I thought. Listen girly, the city's name is Amaranthine, quite ironic seeing the condition now." Grouse said with a wheezy laugh.

"Everyone there is affected, except for one lad who managed to avoid getting it and is leading the cure development team there. And as for the months to decade thing which Coal told you, those are estimates received from that man, seeing as many have already died and he's taking samples from the decaying and estimating how long they have. But I already know that if you go there, you wont succumb to this like the rest."

"How do you know?" Cheng spoke rapidly to avoid being cut off.

"Your aura, it's massive, and I can tell that you didn't get it naturally." Grouse said matter-of-factly.

The girl could only stare at the shadows, mouth agape in shock.

"What, surprised? I wasn't made a Hunter yesterday, it's easy to tell what aura is and isn't for me, almost as natural as breathing. Girly, you have a gift, and that gift may help save that forsaken place. Head through to the east of Vacuo and then when you reach the oasis head north and continue walking. You'll reach Amaranthine within a half day of leaving Vale. When you reach there, look for the man named Kelvin. I think you'll be able to help each other."

"Thank you... Grouse." Cheng said and turned around, foot out the door before Grouse spoke again from behind her.

"You wonder why I didn't tell you my actual name?" Grouse asked, and Cheng paused, unsure of how to respond.

"Because you didn't give me yours, isn't that right girly?"

Unable to keep the shock off her face, Cheng walked out of the house and slammed the door behind her to a booming laugh.