(WotH) The Scouts

    “You rang?” came a casual voice from the office’s corner. Venea turned to see a brown-haired young woman with piercing yellow eyes. She was wearing an unzipped orange hoodie with a plain black shirt underneath. The woman’s hands were in her pockets, and she leaned her back against the wall.

    “Kate. I didn’t see you there. Thanks for coming.”

    “Soooo… what exactly do you need help with?”

    “One of our Ghost Scout troops is going on a wilderness hike tomorrow, but those particular woods are known for the presence of a myriad of monsters. While I want the scouts to be challenged and to work together to face threats, I must also ensure their safety. Therefore, I need someone powerful to accompany them and intervene if anything goes wrong.”

    “Ah. That’s where I come in, aye? Well anyways, which troop is this?”

    “Troop 13’s three highest ranking members: Auburn Graycastle, Lily Vane-Thornton, and Isabelle Wendel.”

    “Is that so? I wouldn’t exactly call myself an adventurer… but I know a couple of those girls pretty well, and tagging along on their journey might be a bit more entertaining than hanging around and doing nothing all day.”

    “I’m glad to hear it!”

Ì

    “Did you hear about what happened at the midterm?” chuckled Auburn, a thin, athletic young vampire with ruby eyes and flowing hair that matched her name. She wore a set of dark and practical, yet finely appointed, adventuring clothes under a long red, hooded cloak.

    “Yeah, I was there when it happened,” Lily smirked. “They had to get a priest to regrow Kyle’s hand. Guess that’s what happens when you spend most of class period asleep and don’t study.” Lily was garbed in a dark brown duster with a deep blue vest underneath. Her brown hair was neat and shoulder length.

    “Hey, Red,” Isabelle interjected, “speaking of midterms, didn’t you have a run-in with Barthalomew the Braggart? He seemed to have it out for you after you outscored him.” Isabelle was dressed in an elegantly practical black dress with rich purple trim and a hood, and her neck was adorned with a silver necklace that sported an exquisite amethyst. Her hair was pulled back into a neat, black ponytail.

    Auburn grinned widely. “Yup. He found me after class and arrogantly explained how it was just a fluke and I didn’t really deserve the win. Luckily for me, I love the taste of elf blood,” she quipped, sharing a giggle with the other scouts.

    Kate ambled a few feet behind the others, listening to them chat with an amused grin on her face. All three scouts wore matching purple sashes, each decorated with badges signifying various accomplishments. Each girl also sported a backpack containing whatever supplies she chose to bring.

    “Anyways…” Isabelle began, her thoughts interrupted as an echoing howl split the night.

    “Wolves,” Red’s fanged grin widened.

    “You girls think you can handle it?” Kate asked.

    “We’ve survived worse,” Isabella replied, clutching her necklace.

    “Perfect. I’ll be over here if you need me.” Kate moved to lean lazily against a nearby tree, watching the scouts with half closed eyes and a slight smile.

    Growls and howls began rapidly approaching from the east. Lily’s eyes glinted with determination as she drew a gleaming revolver from within her duster. A gray blur lunged from behind a tree, a shot rang out through the woods, and a wolf lay dead. Lily cycled her revolver to a loaded chamber and stood her ground, waiting for more of the vicious canines to emerge.

    Several more wolves soon charged out of the woods, howling and snarling. The first of them was struck in the side by a gleeful swipe of Red’s claw-like fingernails, the force of the blow flinging its wounded form against a nearby tree. The vampire dug her claws into the next of her growling assailants, hoisting it into the air and sinking her fangs into its throat. Three more wolves lunged for her, but they fell to the ground as a trio of gunshots split the air.

    Isabelle clutched her amethyst necklace with one hand while holding out her other and uttering one of the chants she had memorized for the midterm. Energy from the soul contained within the gemstone infused three of the wolf corpses, each standing up, zombified, and rejoining the fight, this time on the scouts’ side. In short order, the remaining wolves lay dead, slaughtered by Red’s claws and their own undead brethren.

    A much larger gray blur darted from the woods. The dire wolf leapt through the air, suddenly being enveloped in a silvery glow and losing most of its momentum, sailing through the air at an unnaturally sluggish pace. Red dove out of the way as the beast flew past, immediately regaining its speed as it landed. The scouts turned to see Kate wink as she placed her faintly glowing hand back within her pocket.

    Before the horse-sized canine could attack again, Lily fired her last two rounds directly into its side. The dire wolf stumbled but maintained its footing and prepared to charge. The beast was abruptly tackled to the ground by Isabelle’s trio of zombie wolves. Red laughed gleefully as she leapt atop the fallen creature, tearing into its neck with her claws. In moments, the fight was over.

    Red stood and cheerfully returned to the path, using a minor charm to wipe the blood from her clothes. Lily retrieved a handful of bullets from one of her duster’s interior pockets and reloaded her revolver, returning the weapon to its hidden compartment afterwards. Isabelle allowed the lifeforce to drain from the zombie wolves, returning them to lifeless corpses, and the group set out once more.

Ì

    As the scouts trekked deeper into the woods, a peculiar structure came into view. It was like a small, cozy cottage, but comprised entirely of gingerbread, icing, and assorted candy.

    The girls curiously approached, Red savoring a final sip from her thermos of wolf blood before returning it to her backpack.

    “Who on earth lives here?” Lily wondered aloud.

    “Based on the stories Aunt Mara tells me, probably nobody good,” Red warned.

    “I guess we’ll just have to find out.” Isabelle strolled towards the door, intent on trying the handle. “It’s locked.”

    “Not many people leave their doors unlocked, you know,” Lily retorted. 

    “If we could get some measurements of the lock, I would be able to use my art magic to create a key.”

    As her companions began to form an intricate plan, Red sprinted at the door and kicked it with all of her vampiric might, smashing it into shards of gingerbread and royal icing. “Door’s open,” she cheerfully announced.

    “I… guess that works too,” Isabelle replied.

    The scouts filtered into the strange house, and after a quick sweep for traps, began investigating the quaint, cluttered one-room cottage.

    “This place can’t be abandoned; these cookies are fresh,” Lily informed them.

    Isabelle frowned. “I don’t like the smell this oven gives off… Has the owner been baking more than gingerbread?”

    Everyone froze as they heard footsteps outside. A kindly-looking old woman stepped through the door’s wreckage.

    “What’s this? Are you sweethearts taking refuge from the elements?”

    “You could say that,” Lily replied cautiously, her eyes scrutinizing the elder.

    “In that case, how about you girls follow me to the oven and help me bake a nice pie?”

    “My aunt told me not to trust old women who live in gingerbread houses in the middle of the woods,” Red pointedly replied.

    “Well, that’s . . . specific. What’s a sweet old grandma gonna do? Give you too much candy?” the woman laughed heartily, her gaze failing to reflect the same mirth.

    “Your oven smells weird. What kind of meat are you putting in those pies exactly?”

    “It’s a family recipe.” The old woman fastened an apron around her plump waist. “It calls for . . . dire turkeys. Yes, that’s it.” She reached for a cutting board.

    “No, that can’t be right,” Red interjected. “I’ve eaten dire turkey at banquets. It doesn’t smell like that. If I had to guess, I’d say that’s the scent of baked human. And I’m telling you now, we aren’t on the menu.”

    “They really don’t make ‘em like they used to,” the woman mused, her tone wistful. A moment later, the kindly grandma transformed into an emaciated, warty old crone with moss-colored skin and gnarled fingers ending in sharp claws. “I’m afraid you very much are on the menu. You’re the main dish, in fact.”

    “Square up, ladies!” Red barked, dropping her backpack to the ground in unison with the other scouts.            

    Lily hefted a double-barrel shotgun from within her bag and stoically took aim. Isabelle unzipped her pack and turned it upside down, shaking several animate skeletons from within its extradimensional space. Red pulled out a pair of wickedly sharp sickles and twirled them in her hands as she strode forward.

    “There’s no need for violence. Perhaps we can make a deal?” the hag pleaded as she slowly backed towards the ruined door.

    Kate, who had been watching impassively from the corner of the room, pulled one hand from her pocket and held it out in front of her, a faint silvery glow surrounding the extremity. The shards of shattered gingerbread became enveloped in the same glow, rising into the air and re-winding to the state they were in before the scouts had arrived. In moments, the door was good as new, which the witch discovered as her back struck it.

Ì

    Venea’s door swung open, and the scouts filed into the office, their attire smelling of freshly baked gingerbread. “We’re back!” Red announced, slamming a lumpy burlap sack onto the desk.

    “You’ve brought back some spoils of the forest I see.” Venea carefully untied the sack, revealing a heap of gingerbread chunks, icing fragments, and assorted candies.

    “There was no way we could enjoy so many sweets without sharing some.” Isabelle held out a chunk of frosted gingerbread. The door creaked open again as a slightly-maimed zombie hag entered the room behind them.

    “You three have done a great job, indeed. You’ve certainly earned these.” Venea pinned Monster Slayer and Deception Conqueror badges upon each girl’s sash.

Epilogue

    Kate lounged in a plush chair, enjoying a cup of tea and reading a book. “Come in,” she lazily called as a knock came from the door’s opposite side. The door swung open to reveal a tall and lean man who was wearing a long indigo cloak with its hood pulled up. His face was covered by a white porcelain mask, the sole feature of which was a pair of black dots representing eyes.

    “I’ve had a vision. The entities are gearing up for another great war, and Herobrine has been hiding in plain sight,” he began, urgency and determination evident in his voice. “We must-” He was cut off by a silver glow enveloping the door as it re-wound shut in his face.

    “Remember what I told you last time, Randal?” Kate scolded though the door. “Don’t bother me until things get out of hand. I’m not dropping everything over a vision that might not come to pass for months, or perhaps longer. If you want help preparing, go find Steve and Alex.”