#fintin

Fintin ran his eyes over the rough board, looking at the notices the townspeople posted. This is often how he got his work; folk posted their demonic or monster concerns and he answered. As usual there were many people looking for farm hands or advertising their inns, but one notice caught Fintin’s attention. It was a small notice, pinned to the board with a nail.

The title read “Investigator wanted.” He scanned the paper quickly but got all the details he needed; a local shepherd had his entire flock killed over night, something not even a pack of wolves could accomplish. Folding the letter and placing it in the rough pocket of his pants, Fintindecided to seek out the man and become his Investigator.

He found the man just where the letter listed, on top of a nearby hill. As he approached the smell of death grew, and he found the shepherd sitting in the middle of hundreds of dead sheep. His eyes were glazed over, and Fintin put a hand on his shoulder. “Excuse me sir, I’m here to answer your posting” he said, pulling out the notice. The man looked up at him with dead eyes, nodded, and gestured to his dead flock. Fintin immediately concluded the man was in shock, and taking wouldn’t help much.

“Right then,” Fintin sighed, “let’s take a look.” The sheep all appeared to have similar injuries, long, deep claw marks on the side, one single bite indentation on the neck, and the wounds seemed to be…burned? Wolves hunt for food, but these sheep were not eaten, just hunted for sport. Fintin had enough information now to know what he was going to be up against, and he knew it was gonna be tough.

“Hell hounds…"Fintin whispered. His hand slowly moved up to the large claymore on his back, and it began to crackle with lightning. Fintin looked back at the man, “Get back to town, now.” The man just started at Fintin. “Get back to town, now!” That’s when the first portal opened, a tear in time engulfed in flame. “But my flock…” the man whimpered. “Listen ya thick skulled bastard, you’re gonna end up like your flock if you don’t get your arse up NOW!”

The man finally ran when he saw the beast come from portal. It was at least seven feet tall, with skin like a bed of lava. It’s claws were the size of daggers, and it’s teeth like iron spikes. It’s black and yellow eyes glared at Fintin. Fintin looked directly at the hound, staring it down with his own fierce eyes as he removed his blade. The thunder cracked and lightning hit the hybrid steel/silver tip, and danced all the way down to the hilt. Fintin gabbed the sword with both hands and placed it on his shoulder, he was calm.

The beast roared a fearsome roar and charged him, the grass around its paws burning, yet Fintin did not move. He waited, the beast got closer and closer, he could feel it’s heat. He waited, the beast was even closer, it’s breath smelled of death. He waited no longer, and in one fluid motion Fintin twisted, crouched, and swung the blade upward. Thunder clapped again, and there was silence. The beast’s glow faded and it’s heat subsided. It’s massive head hit the floor with a thud, and it was over.

Fintin made a quick motion with his right hand his ring lit up. A ball of light emerged seemingly out of nowhere and slowly made its way to the hound. It hovered over the limp body, and with a flash, both the ball and body were gone.