Hunter, Shifter's Mate

1

Chase awoke from his dream with a cold sweat. This wasn't the first time. He'd been having this same dream for years, ever since he was a small boy. Ever since he'd first heard the story of the very first Hunter... his ancestor. But it always felt so real. Just as real as... No. He shook his head. He didn't even want to think of that. Rolling over he glanced at the clock. 3:30am. He still had a couple more hours before he had to get up but he knew from experience there was no getting back to sleep. So, rubbing his face he crawled out of bed and headed to the bathroom for a cold shower.

Rubbing his dripping hair dry with the small towel draped around his neck, Chase made his way to the cabin's small armory. A dim light shone under the door telling him that his father was up too. He paused a moment in the entryway, leaning casually against the door frame, to watch his father clean and inspect the weapons.

"Ready for the hunt?" Artemis asked, not looking up from his work.

"Of course." Replied Chase tersely.

"You sure? You've seemed a bit... off lately. Something bothering you?" His father continued.

"I'm fine." Chase affirmed.

A few hours later the two men arrived at the checkpoint. Three other hunters were already there waiting.

"Alright, we've all been over the mission file, but since we've got a newb. on the team today we'll go over a few things again." Announced Artemis.

"The target is a small vampire coven a little ways out of town. We are striking at midday when they are at their weakest. Make no mistake though, just because they are not as powerful as they would be at night does not mean they are not a threat. They are still extremely dangerous so do not let your guard down even for a second! It has been confirmed that all hostiles were present on the sight this morning. We'll do a quick scan to reaffirm before our strike."

"We all know the safety rules. Follow them and you should be alright. Keep close to each other, if anyone gets turned do not hesitate to deal with them on the spot. They are no longer who they were. There is no cure." He continued "I trust we all know our positions." He gestured to a the map on the table. "Does anyone have any questions? No? Good. We'll have a quick weapons inspection then head out as soon as we get the go ahead from our scout. Once we're ready, we'll go on my signal. With any luck, at this time of day we'll catch them all asleep."

Chase didn't pay much attention after that. He knew the drill. While the others talked to pass the time he withdrew to a quiet corner to mentally prepare himself for the task at hand. It had become almost like a ritual for him, to get himself in the proper place. He didn't have to do it before every hunt, mainly just the ones with vampires... although he was finding he needed to do it more and more with other creatures too lately (and he had a certain redhead to blame for that).

His mind tried persistently to turn and dwell on those beautiful green eyes. Beautiful, but sad as she pleaded with him to stop hunting. It tore at his heart... but then he focused on other, less pleasant things. Forcing images from his past to the front of his mind, one especially painful one in particular, he knew without a doubt why he did this. Why he must keep doing it. It was these images, these haunting memories, that kept him going. It was also these images that often kept him up at night.

"Hey" came a sultry whisper, as small hands wrapped themselves around his arm.

"Go away Em." Chase said flatly, not sparing her a glance. "You know how I like to meditate before a hunt... Alone."

"Mm." He could practically hear her purse her lips before she pouted "I just wanted you to know I've got your back out there."

Reluctantly releasing her grip she walked away slowly, obviously giving him time to change his mind. Thankfully she didn't try to push the matter or bother him any more after that. She knew there was no use. They'd known each other far too long for that. Still, he'd have to do something about her soon. While he'd never shown her any interest of his own, his neglect to refuse her outright (coupled with his lack of interest in anyone else) had given her false hope. Therefore, he knew he wasn't himself without guilt in this entirely.