id: 439
name: PTRD Hunter Anon
author: IsekaiSS
date: 19th July 2021
text len: 12622
views: 195

Darkness enveloped Anon as he lay in wait. The worn leather padding of the stock of his PTRD pressed firmly into shoulder. There was a piece of rock in his side that had fallen off the cave wall two hours ago, and it was really starting to get to him. Damned pokey bastard, once he was done, he’d stomp that pebble into dust. The sight potion the client gave him was making his vision go blurry. The goddamn piece of shit, he knew his NODs were better
>but noooooo, he just had to cut costs.
>free stuff is free, but it's usually that way for a reason
>the ground shifted, snapping Anon’s attention back to the matter at hand
>the armoursaurus lumbered forward across his vision.
>the armoursaurus, natural predator of dwarves. Blind, but good hearing and smell, and covered in armour plates.
>he wasn't sure what the armour was exactly, be he did see one eating an iron deposit once
>he assumed it was iron
>Iron or no, every armour had chinks
>and once the dumb beast waddled over to the bait, a great big chink would right in front of him.
>At the shoulder, there was a gap in the armour plates to allow movement
>right next to the creature’s shoulder was it’s heart
>And with a 14.5mm shell from the PTRD, he was going to turn that heart to a bloody pulp
>3
>2
>1
>his sights found the gap, his finger pulled the trigger
>the muzzle flash lit up the the side tunnel anon hid in
>the round crashed through the tough skin of the creature, and detonated just above its ribcage
>the PTRD recoiled, opening the bolt and kicking the spent casing out of the chamber
>the armoursaurus collapsed.
>even with his earpro, his ears were ringing a little
>the creature was going to die, its lungs were definitely collapsing and there was definitely shrapnel in and around its heart
>it screeched and thrashed around with the last of its energy
>but he had places to be
>he slipped another round into the PTRD and took aim
>the thrashing slowed a bit as the armoursaurus’ adrenaline failed to keep up with the pain
>anon lined up the shot again
>it punched through the creature with another great muzzle flash.
>the creature fell still
>he didn't hear any more breathing
>he walked over and kicked the creature in the head
>yep, 100% dead
>he picked up his thermal lance and drew out his firestone lighter
>he didnt have a lot of gas, so he’s shear off the end of the armoursaurus’ brow plate, where it curled up in a stubby horn
>he lit the lance and thrust it into the base of the horn.
>the armour glowed red hot and fell away in molten drops
>soon, the horn was cut free,
>anon put the small gas canister in his bag, it was empty, but it was one of those things that couldn’t be produced anymore. 
>proof of kill secured, he picked up the PTRD and headed back to the surface

>Hunting was a good deal in fankasia
>lots of big, dangerous things, not a lot of men willing to take them on
>Even the fantasy races like dwarves didn't mind hiring hunters.
>the traditional methods of killing armoursauruses deep in the mines had a death toll
>sending Anon and his 7 foot long boomstick into the depths didn't
>Anon got back to the entrance to the mine
>It was a great big door, wide enough for two lanes of carts for hauling ore. 
>the Mine’s manager, Major Rorsch, and one of his men were waiting for him.
“Did you kill it?” he asked impatiently
“Yes sir, the Armoursaurus is dead” Anon presented the horn to Rorsch
>Rorsch handed the plate to the other dwarf and produced a small pouch.
“We could pay you more if you’d let us inspect that weapon” Rorsch looked at the PTRD
“No, i’ve got to be on my way” Anon shook his head
“Damned tight-lipped humans, we’re close to figuring out those infernal devices anyway” Rorsch grunted
>Anon took his payment and continued out of the mine, to the small village outside. 
>the fresh air was a welcome change to the stuffy caves.
>the sight potion has mostly worn off, but he could still see all the way to his truck perfectly
>including the suspicious looking person poking around it
>what kind of fucking moron…
>he psyched himself up to beat the shit the fantasy-dwelling troglodyte 
>he didnt like people near his stuff, especially fantasy people
>they always managed to break shit in the weirdest ways.
>and the next mouth breather who tries to steal his side mirrors is straight up getting PTRD’d
>he quickened his pace as much as his heavy rifle would allow
>before they tried to drink the water out of his radiator or something. 

>he arrived at the truck slightly out of breath, and the person was around the other side
“Excuse me, can i help you?” he asked in a stern voice
>he heard the person gasp, obviously a woman
“I-I was just admiring the craftsmanship of your vehicle” she stuttered
>she is definitely a dwarf
“I see…”
>he put the PTRD into the tray of the truck and walked around the other side to face the dwarf
>she was a lot less stocky than the dwarves he had seen before, but still with that dwarven shortness, coming up to just below his shoulders. Her blue eyes were framed by a set of large glasses. 
“Well, i’m about to leave, so you should probably get out of the way.”
“That's what I came to ask you about, I’m writing a bestiary you see and-”
“A bestiary? What's that?”
“it's a book cataloging animals and monsters, i’ve been working on one for a while now”
>anon thought for a second. He knew there was some weird shit out there these days, he’d killed a few of them.
>giving people a book to explain those things would be good. The old world had its share of dangerous animals, but new world animals were on something else.
>a book like that could sell for a lot, knowledge being half the battle and all. 
“Sure”

>the dwarf’s face lit up, like she was expecting to be refused.
“Thank you! I’ll go and get my things. Oh, my name is Henriette, thank you! ” she raced off before anon changed his answer
>he checked his provisions. He was pretty much out of perishable food, but there were plenty of MREs to get to the next town with his new passenger.
>She came back with a large pack and a stack of books.
"Are you sure that you're okay with just up and leaving with a guy you've never met before? " Anon asked
"I’ve been travelling around like this for ages, and You seem trustworthy" she shrugged
>Anon shrugged back, she seemed alright.
>Anon helped her load up her stuff.
>her books were a mix of her own notes and manuscripts and other people’s research .documents
>she also had a set of surgery tools, and various other instruments he could see would be useful for dissection and measuring various aspects of an animal.

>with everything secure, they started the car and began the drive out of town
>the only radio station that he could pick up anymore was some Kommando in some mountaintop bunker. From his broadcasts, he lived with a whole bunch of harpies who gathered news for him
>in return he was the husband of 8 or so harpies
>poor guy
>he did have some good segments though
“Oh! I thought this was interesting, there have been reports from all over the place of cans of beans saving people. Like just flying out of the darkness and knocking out bandits. Isnt that crazy? I guess they’re pretty good for throwing. I look forward to hearing more about this bean guy. Next is the weather, this time by my fifth daughter, Marie”
>Anon stared ahead across the bumpy dirt road 
>Marie’s chirp-speak managed to convey it would be sunny for the next couple of days
>Henriette hadnt said anything. 
>Probably waiting for him to say something

“So, what kind of help do you need with your book?” Anon turned down the radio 

“Really all I need is to be around new monsters. If you end up hunting undiscovered ones, we can even name them.”
“Have you found one to name yet?”
“No, not yet. ”

>anon nodded,  
>he’d look around the next town for contracts for ‘mysterious creatures’
>they were something either really mundane, or some real fucked up shit
>he turned the radio back up.
“Uuuh, lets see… there have been orcs- what? I’m in the middle of a broadcast you bird-brains! Stop fucki-” the broadcast cut off
>poor guy

>it took anon and henriette a day to get to the next town, driving through the night
>the town was as quiet as a graveyard, all the windows had curtains, plywood or cardboard covering them. 
>it looked like something out of the old west.
>he half expected to see two gunslingers standing off as he turned onto the main street
>Anon parked in front of the largest building, the town hall. 
>was this town abandoned? It happened sometimes
>still, he walked up to the door, Henriette stretching as she followed him
“Its a bit creepy isn’t it” she remarked
"A little, yeah" Anon looked around suspiciously, looking in through windows for any signs of movement
>he knocked on the door
"Hello?" He called
>no answer came.
Anon sighed
"Looks like there's nobody in. Next town I gues-'' Anon was cut off
>the door crashed open sending Anon sprawling 
>when he looked up he found himself staring down a double barrel shotgun.
>anon followed the barrel up to the wielder, dishevelled man in a cowboy outfit
"Who the hell are ya? How’d ya get here?" He spoke with a southern drawl
"I'm Anon, I got here in my truck" 
>anon looked over to henriette, where she and another cowboy were busy pointing revolvers at each other.
>where the hell did she get those?
"I can see yer truck, Idiot. How did ya get past the beast? Are ye in league with it?”
"What beast?" 
"Are ye serious? Day an night that fucking thing is-" He suddenly stopped and cocked his head, listening for something
>anon listened too
>there were the sounds of the wind, a bird chirping somewhere, Henritte and the other cowboy growling at each other and a faint hum.
"It's coming back! Inside now!" The cowboy pulled anon up by his shirt collar and shoved him toward the door.
>Anon and the cowboy pull their respective companions through the door
>Inside is an old style saloon. 
>it was dark, most of the windows were boarded up, so not much light could get in.
A few people milled around drinking or smoking
>the cowboys close the door and sit down on some stools
>when anon tried to speak, he was just shushed, so he listened closter to the hum
>it grew louder, and became a sound Anon recognised as a plane
>everyone sat in silence, some bowed their heads and whispered prayers
>it passed overhead, but the silence continued
>anon flinched as four explosions rocked the building
>He peered out the window
>the buildings across the street had been reduced to kindling.
>and the windows in his truck were gone
>son of a bitch
>the plane passed overhead overhead again, heading back in the direction it came from
>anon felt a tap on his shoulder, it was the cowboy, handing him a telescope
>he took it and watched the plane as it left
>it was a single engine single seater, with wide, thick wings and a solid looking fuselage
>it had a dull green paint job, a light blue underside, and a red nose
>and a red star on the mid section
>some chucklefuck got his hands on an IL-2
“So, is that your Beast?”
“Yes” replied the cowboy
“You know thats just a plane right”
“No! Its a dragon! Ive seen it!” the cowboy shouted, and everyone in the bar nodded in agreement
>Anon sighed
>he looked out longingly at his truck
>he could just get in and leave
>Henriette, however, was looking around at the sorry state of the people
>She looked at him with big worried eyes
>they shone like pools of water in moonlight
>fucking adorable
>anon knew what she was going to say
>and he knew he wouldn't be able to refuse, no matter how much he didn't want to get involved in this shitshow
“Do you think you could kill it with your big rifle?” she asked
>goddamn it
>he tried to work up the nerve to refuse, but he couldn't face the judgement of those big blue eyes
“We’ll have to track it back to its airstrip, but it can definitely kill it” 
>Henriette jumped and smiled.
>the cowboy stood up
“Thank you, but can you really do it?” he asked
“Yes, I'm sure. Oh, i’m Anon by the way” Anon introduced himself
“Thank you Anon, I am Jeremiah, we can't offer much as a reward, but ill try put somethin together”
>Anon nodded
“Alright, henriette, lets go
>Anon walked out to his truck, inspecting the damage
>the windows were all broken, and the paint was all scratched up
>he was gonna beat the shit out of the pilot for this
>truck-chan will be avenged
“Henriette! Let’s fucking go”
>Anon dusted the glass off his seat, and Henriette did the same.
>thankfully, the engine roared to life and Anon peeled out of there faster than a responsible driver should have.
>off in the direction the IL-2 flew off to