Hunter Session 14

Previous: Hunter Session 13

Though they had added Randy to their group, many of the hunters were unsure of what to do next. Melba, however, knew exactly what she wanted to accomplish. She'd spent the past few weeks going through Marta's notes and resolved not to let all of her friend's work go to waste. Melba decided to collect the information on the Hebedites and the guardians, along with the group's own experiences and their knowledge of how to succeed on the hunt, into a sort of "Hunter bible." Paladin (who looked a lot healthier now but still insisted upon living in Melba's apartment) agreed that it was a good idea, and Melba began work on it in earnest, with input from Charlotte and Randy. Melba then noticed that the files Marta had taken out of the compound, thought blank before, were now filled with information about the scientific processes that had gone into creating the Zodiac Crysalis. Intrigued, Charlotte made copies and decided to investigate them further, hoping it might lead not only to more answers about the guardians but also provide a path toward her own goal of finding a scientific explanation for the existence of monsters. As for Arie, he decided that he wanted to learn more about explosives and started out trying to teach himself. In the process of doing this, he blew up the kitchen in his apartment.

However, Charlotte's interest in the material stopped there. In contrast to Randy's immediate acceptance of the story of the Hebedites and the guardians, Charlotte remained skeptical. She considered herself to be first and foremost a scientist, and she told Melba that her reason wouldn't allow her to take this outrageous story of magic and time travel at face value - or to believe that Chet and Saria were supposed to be hunter gods. She clarified that Marta's observations of the Hebedites and the guardians weren't necessarily inaccurate, but she thought there had to be a more reasonable way to explain their connection than the one Marta’s work proposed. Melba took offense, Charlotte refused to budge, and they got into an argument. Randy eventually broke it up by inviting Charlotte out to a movie with Arie, Charlie, and himself, effectively separating her from Melba. The fun evening served well to cool things off a little, but no one could deny that a rivalry was brewing between Melba and Charlotte.

Charlotte spent the next day trying to find more evidence to back up the claims in the files but came up completely empty-handed. That evening, she went back to the apartment building after Randy invited everyone out to dinner at a Japanese restaurant. Saria decided Charlotte was underdressed for the occasion and took it upon herself to give Charlotte a complete makeover. The entire process made Charlotte a little uncomfortable at first (especially after she caught Charlie checking her out - and spacing out), but she found herself enjoying it before too long.

Dinner at the restaurant proceeded more or less calmly until Randy decided to liven things up by challenging Chet to a drinking contest. Arie, who was already completely drunk after consuming an entire case of beer throughout the course of the day, also joined in. What neither of them could have known was that Chet was immune to toxins, so there was really no contest. The hunters realize this until they'd all downed six cups of sake apiece, Randy could barely stand up, and Arie was displaying the early signs of alcohol poisoning. Somewhat disgusted at their companions' immaturity, Melba and Paladin called it a night, while Chet and Saria took the drunk Arie and Randy home to the apartment building to be sick.

That left Charlotte and Charlie alone in the restaurant. Not wanting to end the evening already, they went dancing together at Gower's Nightclub, then walked around Bde Maka Ska and had a long conversation. They had such a good time that they made plans to go out again soon. The rest of the group was more than a little perplexed by this development when they heard about it (as was Jonas, for reasons that may or may not have had to do with Charlie being a vampire), but Charlotte was head over heels.

The next few days consisted of more of the same: Melba working on the hunter Bible (with a little help from Randy) and staying in with Paladin in the evenings, while the rest of the group wandered the streets of the city without really finding anything interesting (at least, not in a supernatural sense). But one morning, Melba found a small scroll in the PO box. It was written in Saigow's handwriting and said only, "We request a meeting to discuss the status of our agreement." The group made plans to meet at Chino Latino the next night, not entirely sure what they'd hear when they got there.

Next: Hunter Session 15