Bounty Board

Helena Markel helplessly peeked through the window of her home’s attic, gazing down at the scene unfolding in her home village. Even a peek showed her a pair of older girls who lived next door and the … creature that was having its way with them. It seemed to be a mass of tentacles, many of which had eyes on them, those same tentacles having ripped the clothes off of the two girls. Now that they were naked, it had inserted a tentacle into each of their holes: mouth, pussy, asshole, and even a few smaller ones in their noses and ears. The girls writhed in the midst of the tentacles as every inch of them was molested, inside and out.

All Helena could do was stare down in horror, her imagination filling in what was happening throughout the rest of her village.

Just then, several of the eyes on the tentacles seemed to lock onto her, and her heart dropped.

***

That was when she awoke in a cold sweat.

Helena sat up in her bed, trying to erase the memories of twelve years ago that still haunted her. Clutching her rapier, which she always kept within reach even when she was sleeping, helped her slow her racing heart. She centered herself, thinking back on all the training she’d done, all the monsters she’d personally slain, just how far she’d come from being a scared little girl unable to do anything but watch her village fall.

After calming down, a simple breakfast of eggs and tea to calm her nerves ensured Helena was ready for the day.

And now she was ready to head to the Mercenary’s Guild to look for another day’s work.

***

The guild was as lively as ever when Helena entered. A crew fresh off a job were drinking at a couple tables, a couple of guys were arguing with a guild secretary over work, and another crew sat around a map discussing strategy. While there were plenty of other mercs around, the crowning jewel of the Mercenary’s Guild was the Jobs Board. Every day Helena walked up to it, perusing for work.

And not just any work: the jobs no one else wanted. Usually ones that didn’t pay enough relative to the difficulty. No one else would end up in the situation Helena’s village had been in, too poor to afford the proper assistance that could have fended off those monsters, at least if Helena had any say.

When Helena entered, all eyes turned to her. She had silver hair worn in a high ponytail, blue eyes, and a lithe figure. She wore a leather chest piece that left her arms bare, elbow length gloves, a red skirt, and grey tights. At her hip was a rapier with sapphires embedded in the hilt. But she was a familiar sight in the guild, so beside a few nods of acknowledgement and welcome waves, she wasn’t given any more notice.