[A/N: I added about a thousand words to this chapter to complete it. Be sure to look out for Chapter 2 , which should be posted by the end of this weekend.]
Chapter 1
Blood in the snow
The shrieks of whetstone and metal sung as Eki sat in the nesting grounds inside the snow capped mountains sharpening his Black Katana Longsword. Around him were the bodies of three Blangos, but they were all but invisible as he slid the smooth stone against the edge of his weapon. Sharpening always put him at ease, but the Blangos bodies had already gone cold, and he was fastidiously wasting supplies. Realizing that no matter how sharp his weapon, the coating would not have anything but a faint blue glimmer to it. Added to the fact that in all the epic tales he heard as a boy, no hunter had ever slay a beast hiding from it. "Calm down Eki… a sharp sword doesn't kill unless swung at something…," he said to himself, repeating it as if it were a mantra. Lowering the stone, he placed it back in his bag, resting the sword on his shoulder.
Sighing and realizing the cold was starting to nip through his near complete Tigrex armor, Eki took another sip of his Hot Drink. "Did I have to talk so much when I got back to the village…?" Eki muttered to himself as he shouldered his weapon, walking out of the cavern. Up ahead were three Giaprey, but Eki ignored them, dodging the petty swipes of the one brave enough to confront him. The other two watching from afar, no doubt put off by the smell of his armor, something he notice as he peered through the summit opening, "Let's hope this works on our striped friend."
At the top of the mountain, the wind howled fiercely, a flurry of snow and ice brushing off his armor, melting onto the few exposed parts of his warm face. He found himself wishing the blood that ran through his veins were half as cold as this breeze. He could see the edge of the range from where he stood, its serene beauty lost on the macabre feeling lingering from his walk from the village. Eki considered pulling out his map for a moment, but reconsidered, the horrid weather conditions making it all but impossible to see anything, let alone hold on to a flimsy piece of paper.
Turing to see some more Blangos, Eki noticed the Ballooner. If he could see the eye in the sky, then surely he had already been spotted as well. With much reluctance, he placed his hand in the air, keeping an eye out for anything foolish enough to attack. A customary gesture, the Ballooner pointed him in the direction of his quarry, the beast at the base of the mountain stalking smaller prey. Confirming his fears that this was in fact real, and there was no running, the armor acted in a way that allowed him to sense the monster's location without the map.
Doing a last minute check for supplies, he realized he had wasted a lot of stamina lounging about and stalling so he reached for a piece of barbequed meat. His search yielded the fact that this was indeed the last of his meat, an item he always neglected to bring. Having skipped the rations in a foolish last minute act of bravado, Eki ventured around the summit, looking for a stray Anteka or Popo to make a last minute carve. He made a left, following the widest open trail to the east face of the mountain, the Blangos doing nothing more than watching as he passed.
The weather was marginally better on this side, but there were no Popo's in sight, the account of the sole surviving hunter proven true. He considered scaling back down the mountain until a stray Popo made its way up a side trail. The beast seemed frightened from afar, its movement were spastic, as if it were on the run, or separated from its pack. "Not a very big Popo, but three carves is three carves." Eki said, devouring the sole piece of meat to regain his lost stamina and clear up the item space. Finishing, and not even taking the time to clean his fingers, Eki reached for his sword, heading toward the disoriented beast. The beast was in his line of sight, and he prepared to slice into the Popo when his armor began to prickle against his skin. It was just like when the Ballooner pinpointed the monster, and grew more intense as he got closer. "Something's not…" was all he could mutter before he stopped in his tracks. The large shadow behind the Popo seemed to vanish instantly, and a Tigrex materialized in its location, smashing the ground with its heavy body. The arched eye ridges, the chiseled frame, its definitive stripes, tremendous sweeping tail and large mouth filled with serrated teeth were often the last thing many smaller monsters and hunters alike ever saw.
Eki's heart seemed to swell and in his chest, his breath gone he watched in horror as the Tigrex effortlessly smashed the Popo's side with a powerful swing from its razor sharp claws. The poor creature smashed into the exposed side of the mountain, dead before its wooly body slumped to the ground. Looking at its prey, the Tigrex caught view of Eki in its peripheral vision, its beady, bloodshot eyes staring straight into the core of the petrified hunter. The effects of the Hot Drink were seemingly rendered moot, the ice water Eki so wished for replaced by the cold, dead emptiness of terror. Eki could feel it under his feet as the beast dug its bloody claws into the fresh powder, it powerful neck muscles writhing as it unleashed a blood curdling roar no doubt heard all the way back at the village.
It was the fury of the monster's roar brought back him to his senses. The Tigrex's vocal attack made more offensive by the sickly-sweet odor of flesh and blood on its breath. Lowering his sword to offer himself a more tactically sound position, Eki would seem to have steeled himself, knowing that failure was not an option here. The screeching of the gale would either sing the splendor of victory, or screech a somber tale of his failure. That is if the Tigrex left anything to sing about, the best launched itself at Eki at full speed, trampling the slain Popo underneath its advance.
Seeing the trampled Popo's misshapen form made Eki reconsider his original plan of attack, choosing to sheathe his weapon and move than make his stand and be trampled. Eki sprung into the air, his arms outstretched as he dived to the left of the beast, who lunged at the spot where the hunter no longer stood. Quickly regaining his bearings Eki curled his toes, snug in his Tigrex Greaves, and slightly bent his knees as he retrieved his weapon. Hoping his previous efforts added the necessary spring to his step; Eki dove at the turning beast and began his offensive with a hard downward slash. Following through, Eki proceeded to stab the monster, whose growls grew louder with every wound. Before Eki could make a side slash, the beast turned its large head, snapping at the hunter who only deftly escaped its maw at the last moment. Eki noticed his breath was shorter than usual, his anxiousness causing him to exert himself further than he would have like to.
The Congalala's and Yian Kut-ku were novice fare compared to the Tigrex, and this particular specimen seemed to eye Eki more fiercely than he had liked. "It's this damn armor; it thinks I'm mocking it…" Eki said, clenching his hands on the hilt of his Longsword. Preparing another set of attacks, Eki moved in close, only noticing at the last second that the Tigrex had flexed its claws, taunting. It was then, with blinding speed that Eki watched the beast's body spin, Eki making the move to partially retreat only to be slashed across the chest by the Tigrex's tail. He could not decide what would hurt more, the lingering sting of the tail across his chest or the inevitable collision with the ground. His question was soon answered as his body smacked the ground, the snow providing little to no cushion as he tumbled backward. Using his sword to stop his movement, plunging the blade into the cold ground he lean his body onto his weapon for leverage.
"Damn it, is that all you got?" Eki asked defiantly, spitting a thick glob of both blood and saliva in between him and the monster. Taking cues, the Tigrex continued to growl, its beady sapphire eyes aimed square on Eki. The monster drew its left arm back, bringing it back to the front with a swing powerful enough to unearth three large and heavy stones on the ground in front itself. Eki dodged to the right, missing the rocks but utterly horrified by the damaged they left in the wake of the collision. "I've seen Large Barrel Bombs do less damage…" Eki muttered to himself, realizing that this monster was far more dangerous than he had previously assumed. Sheathing his weapon again, Eki thought to put some distance between him and the monster.
Reaching into his bag while searching for a decent stretch of land, Eki found what he was looking for, a small spherical sphere, still buzzing from the movement of the creature inside. "Hey, you ugly, striped freak, come and get it." Eki said aloud, making sure the Tigrex was still in pursuit of him. Indeed, it was, snarling and treading for its prey, Eki palmed the hollow stone for the extended trigger. Sure that enough ground was available for himself, Eki increased his running speed, pressing the button he crushed the Flashbug stuck to the small Sap Plant inside. Counting a second or two, Eki threw the Flash Bomb in front of himself and directly in the Tigrex's line of sight, diving again head first into the snow with his eyes down. The detonation was immediate, Eki having timed the explosion precisely, the sting of cold on his face was no match for the happiness he felt from hearing the cries of confusion from the Tigrex, now blinded shortly. Standing to his feet, Eki took the opportunity to catch his breath. His hands on his knees, he panted and counted down as the Tigrex flailed about, attacking the empty air indiscriminately. Eki drunk a Mega Potion quickly and again went to fetch his weapon, checking the glow of its sheen. "Green already… there should be a lot more of your hide on this weapon." Eki said, moving over to the monster's tail. With a quick succession of slashes, starting at the top and moving to the sides, Eki reddened the snow with the monster's blood and striped skin. Bringing his sword over his head, he prepared to attack again until he saw the monster blinking profusely, shaking its head as the effect of the Flash Bomb had worn off. The Tigrex turned about to face him, receiving a slash across its snout as Eki cut a swath while leaping backward, staggering the beast. Eki could have seen himself smiling at that deft maneuver, but the Tigrex seemed to grow infuriated by the hunter's attacks. Eki watched as its claws and skin around its neck grew red, with the outline of its eyes becoming blood shot to match. "Enraged… Dammit not now…" Eki groaned as the Tigrex rushed toward him, its speed and size increased with its anger.
It lunged forward with a fearsome bite attack, which Eki tried to parry with his blade, having no other recourse. The extension of his arm seemed only to aid the Tigrex, who went for a secondary bite, something Eki had not planned for. The monster caught him on his side with its mouth, its powerful bit crushing down on his chest and torso despite his armor. His sword still in hand was worthless at this point, and before he could even attempt to fight back, the Tigrex swung its neck around and launched him into the air. Crashing against the side of the cliff, Eki rolled to the ground, broken and battered, his eyes as clouded as the summit sky. All he could see as he slipped into unconsciousness was the monster roaring, and making its way to turn toward him, everything growing darker as the monster drew closer. Not even having enough strength to clench his weapon's hilt, Eki swallowed painfully, and fell into the darkness, the sound of small, squeaky wheels ringing in his ears was the last thing he heard besides the monster's approach.