"A Rajang, huh? Let's hope there's not any…. Monkey business!" Tyson said. Ephra faceplamed, Ven grimaced and Andrew shook his head.
"Alright, I can see this is a no fun zone."
"Everyday with you is a no fun zone."
"HEY!"
"Come on, you losers." Ephra said, shaking her head similar to Andrew as they walked out of base camp, into the Primal Forest. A swirl of pink birds flew past them as they walked into the marsh, with Slagoth sending them dirty looks but not yet looking to attack. Ephra took the lead, short red hair shining in the sunlight and dual blades in hand as she strode forward confidently. Ven took her left side, his great sword swaying slightly on his back. Tyson took the right, slightly slower than the others due to the weight of his hammer but still in front of Andrew, who was the gunner of the group.
It was a sweltering day in the forest and Andrew was glad to be a gunner; sweat poured down Tyson's and Ven's faces. Ephra fared a little better as her lighter Tetsucabra armor was built with airy materials, made for a speedy dual blades wielder to dart about the monster. They walked past the initial marsh and went deeper into the swamp areas of the forest where the water came up to their ankles. Though the water was slightly murky, Ven and Tyson enjoyed the feel of the cool water around their feet.
Ephra was the only one who had fought a Rajang before and since she described it as 'a fucking headache' none of the group were particulary excited.
Onward they pressed however, with the sole motivation of money pushing them forwards into the swampy conditions. Ephra pointed towards the side of a cliff face, indicating that the group had to climb up the vines to reach the domain of the dreaded Rajang. Once again, Ephra and Andrew passed by relatively untroubled with their lighter weapons safely packed away onto their backs. Andrew had to admit that these frequent climbs, while annoying were actually shaping his arms up quite nicely, where before there was soft muscle. Light Bow gunners normally didn't strain themselves in terms of strength, usually excelling in terms of speed and agility but these forays into increasingly unstable areas were coming in handy. He was still quite a ways off from Ven's lean but deadly biceps, which propelled him up the cliff face despite the heavy great sword clanging away on his back. Andrew noted with a twinge of jealousy that Ven completed the climb only slightly slower than he had. Ven noticing the look, smirked darkly at Andrew, wiping sweat off his dark skin. Andrew huffed and moved away from the warrior, playing with his blonde strands of hair that had escaped out of his ponytail during the climb up.
Tyson however, was a completely different story. His short, stocky and bulky stature was meant for bashing and pounding monsters heads in, not flinging himself up the side of a cliff. It definitely didn't help that he had the heaviest weapon, a hammer made of Akantor metal that bore into his back every inch of the vertical climb. Ephra actually ended up going back down slightly down the cliff to take the hammer off his back and chuck onto the top where Ven and Andrew waited, so he could climb the last few inches without the extra weight. He took a moment to regain his breath while the rest combed through their packs one last time, checking they had everything they needed for the fight. Ephra had decided on laying a shock trap, as she had the most mobility and the easiest weapon to put away in case the Rajang charged her mid-setup.
They looked at the map one last time, Ephra noting that the beast usually prowled a space marked 'Area 5' on the map. Looking at each other with a mix of trepidation and adrenaline, they strode towards the entrance way to the new area. Directly in front of them, they saw the back of a hulking yet lean beast with gold stripes running down its end. They looked towards Ephra for confirmation of whether this was the correct target. Ephra nodded shakily, her eyes fixed on the back of the monster. Then, with a sigh of finality, she reached into her pouch and threw the paint ball as hard as she could onto the monster. The Rajang turned around with a snarl of rage and roared horribly, the echoes of the otherworldly sound echoing around the area as the four hunters covered their ears. The beast's wild eyes locked onto the four humans before it, glowing with a deadly red shine. The hunt was on.