Heart Hunt Challenge • 2

Aeric tightened his grip on Sylver's reins, sharpening his gaze as he watched Aryanne and the others approach him with a satisfied sneer.

He couldn't stop looking at her Dreadhound, with its hulking body, rippling muscle and eerie glowing eyes. It continued to growl under her, massive claws digging into the earth as though it was too eager to begin the game. Too eager for battle.

'A Five Star Legendary Beast,' Aeric thought. 'It's more powerful than Sylver. And uglier.'

"You are prepared to lose spectacularly, aren't you?" Aryanne snipped, mockery dripping in her tone.

Aeric forced himself to stay calm, eyeing all of them that were looking at him. Even as Aryanu trotted closer with her beast, her mouth curled in that familiar, taunting smirk. He remained calm.

"You don't think I can beat you, Aryanne?"

"What!" the Daughter's face contorted in amusement, and she started laughing, holding her stomach as her shoulders and breasts bounced. "Ha ha ha ha ha! Oh that is hilarious. You actually think you can beat me?"

One of the Twilight sisters, Nyx, sitting on her Beast Companion, tilted her head thoughtfully. "Well, he does have a very powerful Beast Companion," she mused. "Silverwolves are very rare. We barely find them in our Region now."

Aryanne scoffed. "Please. No beast is more powerful than my Dreadhound." She gave the creature a proud stroke down its massive neck. "Five Star Legendary with a 100% win rate. Zion has never lost a match," she said with arrogance and pride.

She grinned, flashing Aeric a daring look. "You've barely had your Companion for a full day. Zion and I have had months to bond. Good luck, bastard. You're going to need it."

Aeric's eyes narrowed. 'That's true. The element of experience and synergy levels is at play here. Everyone here has had their Beast Companions longer than I have.'

He glanced from Aryanne to the others, each mounted on their respective beasts, a motley lineup of strength, agility, and cunning.

It was then that he was just noticing that the two Twilight sisters were actually twins; Nyx and Nyssa. Both were sat poised atop two completely different types of Beasts.

Aeric scanned Nyx's.

[Name: Viperbird]

[One Star Legendary Beast]

His eyes moved to Nyssa's.

[Name: Thunderstag]

[Five Star Epic Beast]

Both beasts were wild-eyed and powerful, their hides gleaming with battle-readiness.

Aeric then looked at his own sisters, Rosette and Misty, who were both watching quietly from the back of their beasts. Rosette's Owlbear [Five Star Epic Beast], and Misty's Horsesparrow [Three Star Epic Beast].

Then, Melina — who was the cause of all this — smirked down at him from her beast, it had a shadowy form that contrasted with the bright afternoon light.

[Name: Nightpanther]

[Two Star Legendary Beast]

Aeric remembered seeing the Nightpanther in the royal stable and almost choosing it. But seeing that it was only a Two Star Legendary and the Silverwolf was Four Star, he was certain that he had made the right choice.

But then he felt a wave of suspicion, and he looked at all the girls staying together like a group. He raised an eyebrow. "Aren't you all a bit too friendly for opponents in a game like this?"

Aryanne's eyes darkened and her smirk grew wider. "You're the only opponent here, Bastard." She gave him a hateful glare, and spun her Dreadhound around. "Better watch yourself in there, or else you might get hurt. Really badly." And with a swift signal, the others turned to follow her down the path.

Aeric frowned. 'What the hell is wrong with her?'

He lingered for a moment, watching them all turn to leave and he caught a glimpse of Rosette's gaze fixed on him. Her look was mainly unreadable but he could see that it bordered on the same hatred that she had always had for him. However, she said nothing.

With a faint frown, she turned away and guided her Owlbear to follow the others.

"Don't pay any attention to them, Aeric." Celestia rode up on her elegant Winged Pegasus, her voice calm and encouraging. "Come on. Let's get going. The game's about to start."

'Sister of the year,' Aeric thought, watching as Rosette just rode away. Nonetheless, Celestia was right. The best way to win was not to pay any attention to them, or to let their words get to him.

He shook off the tension and nodded, climbing up onto Sylver's back, now feeling a bit more resolved and determined. He glanced at Celestia, and she looked at him, smiles on their faces.

Together, they rode their Beast Companions toward the arena entrance, where the Veiled Maze waited.

This game field was made of walls, some stronger and some weaker. There were grasses as well, separating each corridor. This was to create more difficulty in finding where opponents are, and to give opponents more hiding places.

The Veiled Maze was high, taller than all of them even as they sat on their separate Beast Companions. Only the onlookers from the high chairs in the stands could clearly see what was happening inside the Maze.

As the group arrived, Erebelle of Twilight, Nyx and Nyssa's older sister, stood at the entryway. She didn't seem very into it, but for today she was the game announcer. She held up her hand, her voice ringing out loud and clear.

"Alright, everyone!" she began, while some interested Players and other Daughters sat on the stands to watch. "You all know the rules. This is the Heart Hunt. Each team will enter with one Heart Token, and your objective is simple: keep yours and take others'!"

There was some clapping amongst the growing crowd. Aeric lifted his head to see, and he was surprised. 'How did so many people get here so fast?'

It seemed that they had heard that the Only Son would be challenging in the Heart Hunt and they wanted to witness it.

Erebelle continued. "Each of you is in a team of two—the Seeker and the Protector." She nodded to the Players and their Beasts in turn. "The Seeker, you're the one going after Heart Tokens. Protectors, you're here to defend your Seeker"

"Only Seekers can take a Heart Token from opponents," she went on. "Once you've lost your Token, you're allowed to attempt to take it back or to hunt for others. But once a team leaves the Maze with all five Tokens, they're declared the winner."

She folded her arms indifferently. "There, those are the rules, I'm sure you understand now."

Aeric glanced at Celestia and nodded his head, letting her know he was ready. She nodded back.

"Come on here, mister." Erebelle raised her hand, beckoning to a worker who came forward. The man handed each team a Heart Token, which was just literally a small red flag. Aeric took his, fastening it securely to his arm.

Erebelle glanced over the teams, her expression fierce with no expression at all. "Now… Are you ready?"

The Moonlight Daughters of course flashed with confidence. They gave this predatory look in Aeric's direction as the Beasts prepared themselves too, muscles tensed, wisps of vapor pushing out of their nose.

"Alright then." Erebelle counted down, her unimpressed voice managing to somehow draw them all to the edge of their seats. "Three… two… one… go."

The moment she said it, the arena exploded with movement, and each team surging forward into the twisting labyrinth.

Aeric and Sylver bolted into one of the maze's openings, he already had a set plan for how to do this. He was the Seeker and Celestia was the protector, mainly because of the abilities of their Beasts.

Aeric sped faster, faster, urging Sylver to run quickly, focusing on his path forward. They had barely taken more than a few turns when a sudden prickle at the back of his neck made him look over his shoulder.

His eyes widened.

'This girl is mad!'

Aryanne was right there, right behind him, chasing him. She had stopped her Beast from going through another entrance, just to curve and go after him.

Riding her Dreadhound, she got closer and closer to him, smiling devilishly. "Where do you think you're going, Bastard? You can't outrun me!"