Cryptid Hunting!

If Ajay was completely honest with himself, he didn’t have the stomach for cryptid hunting.

Ajay was used to the wilderness, sure, having spent many summers on his own in the great outdoors. He was no stranger to meandering through mountains, swimming through swamps, wandering through woods and climbing through caves. He had made his first fire as a young kitten, and he and Sabal fearlessly leapt over chasms, ravines and into deep waters. When it came to nature, Ajay just loved to explore anywhere that his feet could carry him.

However, when it came to things that went bump in the night...Ajay was not so confident. To make matters worse, Ajay found it hard to say no when people asked him to help with things. So when it came to a chilly October afternoon at Geralt’s house, where he, Pagan and Sabal had been invited for tea and to swap stories, the older Kebanzu remarked that he was going on a monster hunt at the end of the week. Something, Geralt had divulged, had been scaring the locals, and there had been reports of luminous, gold eyes appearing in people’s sheds and basements.

Sabal, who was much braver than Ajay, had kindly offered to help search for the source of the disturbance, and had turned to Ajay with a broad smile, saying “We’ll all help, won’t we Ajay?”

“I...I guess?” Ajay smiled nervously in return, looking to Pagan for support and receiving a smirk in return. He wasn’t half as capable at slaying monsters as Geralt was. Geralt had been hunting monsters his whole life, trained to fight and kill and be strong enough to protect others. And Pagan, Pagan wasn’t afraid of anything, except maybe clowns, and he laughed at what others would usually find terrifying. Geralt hadn’t looked convinced by his mumbled reply, but didn’t say no, obviously appreciating the extra three pairs of eyes.

So that was how Ajay found himself at the back of a party of four, trailing behind and spooking at every sound as they walked through a pitch-black forest. Geralt, who was holding a lantern to light the way, had a general direction they were headed in, having picked upon the scent of something (“Smells sweet, floral, like a Kebanzu but stronger.”). Sabal had fallen into step beside Geralt and was listening to Geralt’s occasional anecdote about clues he saw: fur on the trees, footprints, even the crushed remains of a piece of candy. It appeared what they were hunting had a sweet tooth, was mischievous without being harmful, and had only started lurking recently. Ajay had a bad feeling about this.

Suddenly, Sabal laughed up ahead, and Ajay all but leapt into Pagan’s arms at the bark of noise. Sabal had a nice laugh, it usually warmed and boosted Ajay’s spirit, but with the fog rolling in and the trees seemingly growing closer and closer around them, Ajay was too on edge to be in good spirits.

“Relax Ajay, we said we were going to help Geralt with his hunt,” Pagan reassured him, removing his jacket and wrapping it around his mate’s shoulders. “It won’t do to be startling at every noise, will it? I’m sure it’s just a regular Kebanzu, playing a harmless prank.”

“Says you.” Mumbled Ajay in response, wrapping Pagan’s coat more firmly around himself. “If it was bigfoot, the mothman, or a werewolf, you wouldn’t be so relaxed.”

“You’re right, Ajay. That would be rather dangerous indeed, but we have Geralt here to look after us, don’t we?” Pagan’s slow, soothing voice got through Ajay’s nerves, and he took a few deep breaths before shaking his hands out.

“I guess. The sooner we find it, the sooner we can get in and have a warm bath.”

They walked for another half an hour, with Geralt occasionally stopping to survey some tracks on the ground or sniff the air for a clearer direction. They were getting close, and before long, they had reached the mouth of an enormous cave, the stalagmites and stalactites looking like teeth. Wind whistled through the entrance, and even the hair on the back of Sabal’s head was stood on end.

Geralt passed the lantern back to Pagan, who wrapped an arm around Ajay’s waist. Geralt ventured in first, readying his claws for the first sign of trouble. Sabal followed close behind, and Pagan started after him, Ajay all but dragging his feet.

“I don’t know if I can do this.” Ajay whimpered a minute later, his tail tucked between his legs. He swore he could hear heavy breathing from deep inside the cave, but that could have just been the wind.

“We’ll stick together, alright Ajay?” Sabal paused, doubling back to Ajay’s other side and giving his shoulder a firm squeeze. “Try to be brave.”

“I’ll... okay... I’ll be brave.” Ajay nodded, squaring his shoulders and squinting into the gloom as best as he could. He had Geralt, Pagan and Sabal here, there was no need to be frightened.

Suddenly, the lantern in Pagan’s hand blew out. Ahead of them, a bright pair of gold eyes opened less than 10 feet away, and a row of gleaming teeth presented themselves. A figure, larger than a bear and slightly darker than the blackness of the cave, stood up on its hind legs. Just when Ajay wanted to turn tail and run, the stony walls of the passage lit up with a semicircle of torches, that cast away all of the shadows. Before Ajay’s eyes, stood a familiar, laughing figure. It was Sam O’Hain!

“Well done, heroes! Well done.” Sam’s rich, deep voice echoed in the cave, and Ajay felt his pulse start returning to normal. Sam O’Hain, or Sam, had previously met Ajay and Pagan at Newt’s house, where he had scared him once already, before they carved pumpkins together. The immortal Kebanzu was a fearsome mischief-maker indeed!

“Well done? What do you mean?” Sabal recognised Sam from Ajay and Pagan’s description of the pumpkin night, and he looked amused to have been caught out in this prank.

“I devised a quest, to see which of the local Kebanzu would be brave enough to go cryptid hunting. You followed my clues, used your wits, and for that I shall grant you a reward.”

“What kind of reward?” Geralt folded his arms, unwilling to show any fear, but his tail was still a little bushier than normal.

“Candy and treats, of course, such is the season.” Sam was still laughing a little, and he turned to the back of the cave to retrieve a large, leather bag that was glowing faintly from within. Reaching inside, Sam produced a handful of shimmering, radiant candy corn. Sam gifted three to each of the Kebanzu, before producing individual bags of sweet treats, handing them out one at a time.

“Thank you, Sam.” Pagan grinned wickedly, having a bite of a pumpkin shaped biscuit. “So the fog, the noises, and the spookiness, that was all you?”

“All me, yes, all to make it that much more convincing. It wouldn’t be much of a quest if I made it easy, would it?”

They chatted for a while longer, and Ajay felt at ease as they enjoyed their spoils with Sam. After they had eaten their fill and stored the rest for later, Sam walked them back through the trees to the edge of the forest. The trees, which to Ajay had seemed so dark and scary earlier, swayed

gently in the wind. The rolling fog, which had sent a chill down his spine, had receded, and no glowing eyes peeked out at them from the bushes.

Hunting monsters, Ajay thought to himself, was definitely a fearful business, but it wasn’t so scary when you were with friends.