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In the distant world known only to outsiders as Welten, a war rages on. The survivors called it the Infinite War, for it had been going on for thousands of years. It all started with a ruthless band of killers, called the Band Of Draikov, who had terrorized every village, country, and continent of Welten. They were more like bounty hunters, and there were about seventy-five of them, constantly roaming the land in search of new bounties. You didn’t want to make enemies in Welten, because, if you did, you would be dead within days. The Band of Draikov, as previously stated, started this Infinite War, because, they had kidnapped the Ruler’s son. The Ruler, known only as Shigure, reigned over the land in a kind fashion, always thinking of the people rather than himself. He married the Princess of Vulkar, a city in the Eastern Provinces of Welten, and, within but a few months, she bore him a son. This son was named Atton, and, when he was but five years old, he was kidnapped by the Band Of Draikov. No one knew quite why, all they knew was that suddenly a war had broken out between Shigure and the Band Of Draikov, and, no matter how many men Shigure sent to seek out the Band Of Draikov, none ever returned to their families. Only one of the band had ever been captured, and he disappeared before anyone knew he was in custody. Some villagers began calling them the Band of Draikov, hence their name. ‘Draikov’ in their language on Welten meant ‘Phantom Hunters’, and that became their name, for they were indeed the most cunning of their kind.


Chapter 1: Hunter in Training

“Atton!” A voice called out to me, “You are needed downstairs!”. Judging by the voice, I would say it was my father, Draikov. I am seventeen now, quite a bit older since my training started when I was five. It’s a very rigorous training, to become a Bounty Hunter, in fact, I can’t remember anything from the time before I started training. My father, the leader of our group, is like my best friend. I never knew my mother, my father said she died in a raid when I was seven, which is odd, because the Band of Draikov doesn’t allow female members, but, I guess since it was his wife, he made an exception. I reached into my closet, and began dressing in my suit. Not a suit like a royalty suit, but the suit of the Hunters, the clothing style that, once you saw it, you were dead. That’s how quick we were. No one could ever catch us, because no one could ever find us. We lived in a cave you see, on the outer West of Welten, in an un-named province. The cave was quite airy, because the only entrance was halfway up a 100-foot-high waterfall. But, we were the Hunter Elite, and it was simple for us to get in and out. Though it was a cave, it was incredibly light, because we lit a candle in memory of each ‘Bounty’. Yes, even though we were ruthless killers, we had our morals. “Atton! I know you don’t HAVE to wake up at the crack of dawn, but you COULD attempt to get up at a DECENT HOUR!” Draikov called for me again. I quickly slid on my numerous belts containing my weaponry, and flew out the rocky door of my bedroom. All bedrooms were carved into the sides of the cave, and, instead of ladders leading from level to level, path ways leading downwards were carved into the rock as well. Our clothing was complicated, but we didn’t wear armor. That was one of the codes of the group, ‘You shouldn’t need armor, because you shouldn’t be able to get hit.’. In fact, the only truly complicated thing about our uniform was our belts. An advanced member, such as myself, would have about fifteen belts, lined with knives, swords, smoke screens, etc. Recruits would only have about five, and my father, being the leader, had about twenty. Sometimes I have heard people, while looking for a particular bounty, talking about how impossible it is that we have such incredible stealth. It’s an old Hunter’s secret. You see, we don’t recruit members because they’re good fighter’s, we recruit them if they have the Gene. There’s a specific gene that sometimes surfaces in families, usually found in men, an advanced gene. This ‘advanced’ gene allows the Hunter to use the earth around him as a shield. Our weapons are only for intense battle, or killing. We can morph the earth into any shape, in fact, that’s how our cave home was created. We can use the earth to disguise ourselves as a simple boulder, or conceal ourselves in a common landform. And the best part is, no one knows of this gene but the members of the group. That’s how were able to make quick escapes, or track our bounties moves. And, ever since the war started, that’s how we’ve been able to track Shigure’s movements. As I rounded the corner of the walkway, I rammed into Draikov, my father. “It’s about time.” He said, his cold, dark, eyes staring at me, as though they were seeping into my soul. He turned away and proceeded to the oval-shaped table in the center of the room. About five other members, my friends, were grouped around the table. Once you were a hunter, you only made friends with the other members in your band. My best friend, Nobuo, who was also seventeen, leaned, in a hunched-over kind of way, over the table. He was observing a piece of paper with blue sketching all over it. His brother, Noriko, who was twenty, stood leaned against the wall, his headband covering his left eye as usual. Every member of our band of hunters wore a specific headband with a silver plate in the middle, displaying our symbol. Noriko always wore his over his eye because of and accident that had happened when I was nine. He would never tell me what had happened, and I never bothered him with it. You didn’t want to get on Noriko’s bad side, because, if you weren’t a band member and you were on his bad side, you were as good as dead. To Nobuo’s right, there stood Izumi. He was the eldest of my friends, at the age of twenty five. In fact, my five friends grouped around the table, were all under twenty six. We were the youngest of the group, which is probably why we made such great friends. The other two that stood to the left of Nobuo, were Matsueda and Carsh. They were both nineteen, and came from the same village. The other sixty-eight of the Band of Draikov were all out on raids, because they were more skilled and had more experience then us. “Okay,” my father said, moving the earth beneath my feet so that it came to a stop next to him at the table. “The reason I have called you all here so early in the morning,” here he took the time to stare impatiently at me, “Is because I am going to be preparing you for a dangerous mission.”. Matsueda’s eyes opened to the size of dinner plates, “Really?!” he exclaimed. “Yes,” Draikov replied, his demeaner softening somewhat, “I have been observing your training sessions, and you boys have something in common.”. “I am not a ‘boy’,” Noriko said in his monotonous, emotionless voice. “Fine then, ‘men’” my father corrected himself. Noriko was not only a very malicious sort of being, he was also very stubborn, but he was an excellent hunter, the best in our group. “As I was saying, you have a lot more in common than just your age,” my father continued, “You all seem to be advancing faster than I would’ve expected, you all have talents beyond your age.” Carsh smirked in a satisfied sort of way. Carsh had this ego problem, the kind where he thought he was so above everyone else, but he didn’t go off bragging about what he felt, which was good that he kept it to himself, but you could still tell he thought it. Nobuo just stood there and looked like he was going to pass out with excitement. “So, with a few more weeks training, you boys should be ready to go on a raid, but mind you,” Draikov continued, a depressing look coming about his face, “This may not only be your first raid, but also your last.”.