Disclaimer: I don't own Monster Hunter. Blah.

The mountains loomed ahead of them as nightfall covered the land. The group travelled as quickly as they could, trying as hard as they could to avoid the ice covered rocks and frozen puddles in the absence of light. Their only light source came from the greens and blues that lit up the night sky in a beautiful display of colours that soaked the land in its hazy glow.

"Where are we camping, anyway?" Shiroha asked the other two.

"I made a small tent up the mountain," Amy replied, "But there's no way we would reach it by the time the temperature drops."

"I agree," said Aaron, "We should really be making camp about now, or finding some shelter."

The group left the path into the surrounding shrub lands, searching for a suitable place to use as shelter.

"How about here?" Amy shouted out to the spread out trio.

As the pair emerged from the growth, Amy pointed into a small cavern set into the very base of the colossal mountain.

"I'm sure we could fashion ourselves a door or something to keep the heat in." Shiroha said, heading out to collect branches and leaves.

The Hunter returned with an armful of vegetation, and began fashioning a barricade to the small entrance of the cave.

"I'll make a fire," Aaron said dully, searching through Shiroha's armful of flora.

"I'll sort some food out then," the Huntress stated, and set off into the brush just outside the tent.

After a good five minutes of searching, she had a handful of various mushrooms and a few varieties of herbs, and was about to head back to the cave, when a sudden movement caught her attention. The Huntress looked hard into the wilderness, trying to see through the darkness that filled the woods. Something moved again. Her Hunter's instinct told her to crouch down behind a bush, peering between its leaves and branches as she tried to make out the shape of their unknown companion. After a few moments that seemed like eternity, Amy gave up and made her way back to the cave, keeping out of view as best as she could.

"You took your time," Shiroha complained loudly.

"Shhh," Amy snapped back, "I saw something move out there, I couldn't quite see what though."

"Did you kill it?" The elder Hunter asked.

Ignoring him, Amy set about creating some food for the group, while Shiroha and Aaron blocked the entrance to the cave.

After concocting their evening meal, she divided the soup like substance between the three of them and handed out the small bowls.

"This is good, Amy," Aaron said quietly, "What did you put in it?"

"I put a Hot Drink in, some Blue Mushrooms, a Nitroshroom, cut up, of course, ummm, some Herbs, an Antidote Herb, and a few Jungle Onions, which are pretty rare out here," the Huntress replied, "It's a recipe my grandfather taught me when I was in training, he taught me a load of recipes made from things found only out here, in the wild. This soup, Jumbo Soup, he calls it, will keep us warm during the night, and also protect us from any bugs that may poison us during the night, we're pretty lucky I found those onions, without them, this thing is one of the most potent man made poisons without a monster's toxin used as an ingredient."

"Wow," Aaron gasped, amazed, "I remember Laura went through something like that, but we are never out for more than a day or two, so we usually get our provisions from Pokke before we go."

"Well that's not the only thing he taught me," Amy continued, "I got a load of tricks from him, no wonder he beat a Monoblos single handed if he knew all this stuff. Watch."

The young girl stood up from where she was, and headed to the lowest part of the cave, her Hunter's Knife drawn. Reaching up, she sliced away copious amounts of thick, green moss from the roof of the cavern and set it down in a corner and sat on it, leaning against the wall, a clump of the stuff between her back and the wall of the cave.

"On that note, goodnight," she said, mid-yawn.

She pulled the thick Cougrex fur coat around her and closed her eyes, drifting off into the land of dreams.

Amy woke slowly, her eyes closed as her senses got used to being back in use, she felt like something was wrong. Reaching up to stifle a yawn, she felt a thick, muscular hand clasp around her mouth, silencing her. Her eyes snapped open, and Aaron stood over her, his sword drawn. He let go of her mouth and brought his finger to his lips, telling her to be quiet. She nodded and looked around. It was still dark. The fire had been put out, and judging by the smoke that slowly rose from the mound of ash, quite recently.

Aaron stepped over to Shiroha to wake him in the same manner that she was woken, and just in time too, for he had started to snore.

Aaron walked stealthily to the doorway of the cave, followed by Shiroha and Amy. He pointed through a small gap in the foliage. The two of them stepped over, and peered through the gap. No more than ten paces away, stood a colossal being. It stood at least twice as tall as Amy, and was almost as long as a Tigrex or even a Rathalos. Its body was covered in a thick, jagged carapace, the lighting made it impossible to determine the colour. From the tip of the Wyvern's face rose a single, deadly looking horn. Its entire body was covered from head to tail in sharp stubby thorns, and huge, heavy wings rose up from its sides. The unknown creature sniffed at the bushes where it stood and flapped its gigantic wings, and set off on its flight. Amy woke with the sun beaming through the gaps in their makeshift door. She rose from her bed of moss and stretched, yawning deeply. As the other Hunters rose, Amy took down the barricade and stepped into the Forest.

This section of the Forest was unique compared to the surrounding greenery. Being set in a deep valley, and surrounded by geothermal activity, the Forest was similar to a jungle, allowing exotic and tropical plants and animals to thrive there. The sun that shone brightly down on them only added to the effects.

The two Hunters emerged from the cave.

"Ready then?" Shiroha asked.

The others nodded in agreement and proceeded back to the path.

"Wait." Amy said.

She crouched by a bush and began rummaging by the stem of the bush. She stood up and held out her hand. In it was a single, small mushroom, glowing a faint red colour.

"Mushroom?" Shiroha asked, looking shocked. "We stopped for a mushroom?"

"Not just any mushroom," Amy replied, "A Dragon Toadstool. These are incredibly rare, and not just in this climate, everywhere. I hear you can make wonderful things from them, but I never got taught how to."

"Wow," said Shiroha, "You're quite the botanist, aren't you?"

"Here," said Aaron, holding out his hand, "Give me the Toadstool, I'll make you something with it, I made one a few years ago, Laura and I found one of these while hunting Remobra's down in the Volcanic Belt near Kokoto. We were hunting for the village of Jumbo, so that would put us on the south side of the Volcano. Anyway, the Chief there taught me how to make something really useful from it. Luckily…" He paused while rummaging through his pouch, "…I have the items in case I ever found another."

He pulled out a smaller pouch of items.

"Ok, first, you take a Bitterbug; they are extremely common around here, and some Honey…"

He drew a small vial of thick honey, and a small blue insect. Aaron then cracked open the husk of the bug and poured the Honey inside the carcass.

"This makes an item known as a Catalyst. It will greatly amplify the effects of a range of items. We then put the Dragon Toadstool in with the Catalyst."

He emptied the contents of the bug husk into a small mortar and put the Toadstool into the mixture. Then using a pestle, he ground the mixture into a fine paste.

"Now this is called an Immunizer. As the name implies, it enhances your immunity, allowing a quicker natural recovery. However, since the development of Potions and Mega Potions, and due to the rarity of the Dragon Toadstools, it is very rarely used. What we do now though, is take a Kelbi Horn, and crush that into the mixture."

He pulled out the small horn, and added it to the mixture, creating a deep red paste. The Hunter then scooped the paste into a vial, and handed it to Amy.

"That there is what we call an Ancient Potion. It is one of the strongest healing Potions that are currently known."

"Wait, you aren't going to split it between us?" Shiroha said suddenly.

"No," Aaron replied, "It's her mushroom, she found it, and she can do what she pleases with it. Anyway, that Ancient Potion will fully recover anyone suffering from any injury or malady, even if they are practically at Death's door, it will allow them a full recovery. Of course, the process takes time, but it is still a truly wonderful item. And due to the nature of the Dragon Toadstool and Catalyst, it will only get better with age. Unless you absolutely must use it during this hunt, when we return, keep it somewhere, and after a few seasons, you will literally need the smallest amount to heal nearly any wound. Here, take this too."

Another vial was presented to Amy, a slightly larger one containing a runny orange liquid.

"That is a type of Honey unique to the Jumbo region, as you can see, it is far less viscous than most types of Honey. If you need the Potion for a physical injury, smear the Ancient Potion on it, if it is an internal wound, mix it with that Honey. It will make the Potion easier to drink, and it helps it go down too, it is extremely bitter."

"Ok, can we go now?" the Veteran asked.

"Sure." Aaron replied.

They followed the path up the Mountains until they came to the tent that Amy had built on her last hunt. Snow started falling lightly as Aaron told them to climb onto the plateau where Amy had faced the Blangonga. Taking out their binoculars, they scanned the area for signs of the tyrant Tigrex. The snow picked up, and within minutes, they were surrounded by whirling snow and ice cold winds. Amy quickly pulled the thick black coat tightly around her and fastened it. The winds picked up even more, roaring around them. The Huntress felt the ground tremble as a particularly strong surge washed over them. She vaguely heard Aaron shouting them to come to him. As she stood by his side, she couldn't even see Shiroha on the other side of Aaron. Aaron pointed out in the distance.

"I saw a Popo carcass down there." Aaron yelled into her ear, it was still barely audible due to the winds continuous roars.

The ground was still shaking and trembling, the wind was relentless, and the snow blocked their vision.

"I think we should get down from here." Amy yelled into Aaron's ear after another strong quake almost knocked the Hunters down.

The Hunter nodded in agreement, and looked around.

"Where is Shiroha?" Aaron asked.

The Huntress shrugged. Aaron pointed in the direction Shiroha was sent when they came up. As they steadily made their way through the blizzard, a huge dark shape became slowly visible. Aaron drew his sword and charged at the beast, bringing the colossal blade down onto the creature's back, wedging his sword in the mass of the monster. Amy charged the beast too, and when she was almost upon it, she realised what it was. The Tigrex. Amy stopped in fear. She was forcefully pulled from her terrified state as the thick tail crashed into her, sending her sprawling in the snow.

Drawing her long thin blade, the Huntress charged again, fluidly bringing the blade from trailing behind, her around her side, the blade then pointing forward. The Tigrex yelped in pain as the blade sliced through the muscular forearm of the Wyvern, sending deep red blood into the blizzard.

Amy saw Shiroha, laid on the floor, his lance buried deep in the huge beast's chest. The Tigrex was flailing madly as Shiroha tried to stand whilst keeping a firm grip on his lance, repeatedly sending him back into the thick snow.

The Tigrex leapt high into the air, pulling Shiroha with it, then forcefully crashed down to the floor. Letting out a deep, loud roar, the Tigrex launched itself once again up into the blizzard, then crashed down on the top of the Hunter. The beast then leapt down the side of the mountain, and both Amy and Aaron rushed to their companion.

Shiroha lay face up in the snow, his black armour crushed. His limbs were spread out in an elegant pose. His prized lance was broken in half, stained in blood. Aaron quickly pushed his fingers against the Hunter's neck, checking for any sign of life. He picked up the broken lance and removed Shiroha's helmet. He then pulled Shiroha's legs together and placed his arms across his chest, crossing them over and resting his hands on the opposite shoulder.

Taking the Hunter's knife, he carved Shiroha's name into both fragments, and jammed them into the ground at Shiroha's head. Amy wept silently as she realised what was happening.

Shiroha was dead.

Aaron grabbed Shiroha's helmet and attached it to his belt, then picked up his sword and sped off after the Tigrex. Amy rushed to his side and stared down the mountain. The Tigrex, it seemed, had not gone down the mountain as smooth as it had hoped, instead of gliding smoothly, it had fallen, rather unceremoniously, into a crumpled heap several metres below. The Hunters watched as it disappeared into the side of the mountain.

Aaron leapt down to where the Tigrex disappeared, motioning to Amy to enter the cave from the hole just to her left. She carefully dropped into the hole, almost being knocked back out of it by a large blast that shook the mountain. Crawling to the edge, Amy looked down to see the cave filled with smoke.

The smoke cleared, revealing Aaron, stood with one knee on the floor, leaning forward, his thick, heavy blade held along the floor behind him, his other hand supporting his weight in front of him, his head down, his eyes staring at the Tigrex. The Tigrex was a lot worse, and the source of the blast was apparent. Aaron had set a strong explosive by the Tigrex, its left shoulder and its left arm, along with the left side of its face was charred and burnt, the thick scales warped and twisted with the heat. As the Tigrex tried standing, unable to bear its weight on its injured leg, it collapsed with a howl and shakily stood up again, its weight on its uninjured arm, snapping its huge jaws at Aaron.

Amy watched as Aaron shifted his weight forward, breaking out into a run at the Wyvern, his sword leaving a trail in the slushy floor. He approached the beast at full speed, reacting quickly to the lunge of the massive head of the monster by rolling to the side, and then brought his colossal sword up to the monster's throat, causing blood to spill from the huge gash it made.

The Tigrex staggered backwards and let out a loud, fierce roar that shook the room. Aaron recovered quickly and charged at the Tigrex once more, only to have his blade brought down upon nothing but water, snow and gravel as the beast flung itself sideways, preserving its life.

Amy looked down, sizing up the drop to help out her fellow Hunter. Aaron looked up quickly and signalled 'no', then nodded towards the entrance to the cave. What was once a hole in the mountain had become almost indistinguishable from the wall, leaving the hole behind the Huntress the only way out of the cave.

The Tigrex howled, and swept its thick tail towards the Hunter, sending him crashing into the wall. The beast loped around on its injured leg, looking for a way out. Realising it was trapped; it roared fiercely, blood pumping through its body, evident by the thick red veins pulsating on its forearms.

"Look out!" The Huntress yelled, warning her fellow hunter.

"I got this. Go let a flare off outside!" He replied.

Nodding, Amy pulled her coat around her then stepped out into the blizzard, searching in her backpack for the distress flares she had received before heading out. Jamming the support stick into the snow, she tugged the small length of string at the bottom, sending the flare high into the snowy air, a thick trail of bright red smoke behind it. After gaining altitude, the flare exploded in blinding flash of red, a shower of red sparks and thick red smoke.

Stepping back into the cave, the Tigrex had Aaron pinned up against the wall, the only thing between the Hunter and the tooth lined jaw was his colossal blade. The monster repeatedly slammed its jaws against the Hunter, hoping to get at its attacker.

"Throw me your flare!" Amy yelled.

"What? Now? Are you crazy!" The Hunter replied, trying to defend himself from the rampaging Wyvern.

The Tigrex reared back, its forearms rose off the floor, and slammed, mouth first, into the cave wall. Aaron had dodged at the last second, leaving the Tigrex biting nothing but stone. The blunt edge of Aaron's sword connected with the top of the Wyvern's skull, sending it crashing to the floor. The Hunter quickly reached into his pouch and threw three small objects at the Tigrex, one at each massive paw, and the third at its head. As soon as they hit, vibrant pink fluid began to seep out of them. Looking up, Aaron signalled to Amy. She searched in her pouch until she found her rope, and lowered it down. Aaron slammed the blunt edge of his sword into the Tigrex's head again, causing it to once again hit the floor. The Hunter ran and started climbing the rope, dropping small items from his bag as he did so. Each one exploded in a cloud of thick smoke, and soon Amy couldn't even see Aaron on the rope. He soon emerged through the smoke, and they both stepped outside, coughing heavily.

"Now what?" Amy asked between coughs.

"We give it a minute, he isn't going anywhere." The skilled Hunter replied.

Aaron set his flare off, again filling the empty skies with bright red smoke.

"Wow, the weather changes quickly up here, doesn't it?" The Huntress said, looking around.

"Yeah, you get used to it though." Aaron replied. "Right, let's finish this thing."

He looked in his bag, and pulled out five small objects, and stepped into the cave. A few minutes passed and he emerged again, grinning slightly.

"You might want to start climbing." He said.

Confused, Amy began to climb back up onto the plateau. Sitting by Shiroha's body, Amy looked at Aaron.

"What did you do to it?" She asked.

"Put it to sleep, the Guild can have it for training up new Hunters or whatever." He answered.

"What? The Guild has live monsters? Why?" Amy asked again, confused.

"Basically what I just said, to train up inexperienced Hunters in a controlled environment…"

"But what was the 'whatever' bit?" The Huntress said quickly.

"Well, I'm not quite sure, but I heard that in Dondruma, probably the largest city in Minegarde, they have events where they will unleash a monster in a massive arena, while a team of Hunters will slay it in front of hundreds of spectators. Sometimes, they will have two monsters, duking it out against each other." Aaron said.

"That…That's just wrong! There is no need for that! Why do they do it?" She asked, feeling anger rising within her.

"Ha, Amy, you are one of the first people I have met with a decent sense of right and wrong. Out here, sure, people are very trusting; they need to be in order to survive. But in the cities, especially the bigger ones, not everyone is as honourable and as trustworthy as you would like. In the cities, people like things like that. I don't know why, they just do. Why don't you ask the Guild manager about it when you get back?"

"No, I guess I just have a lot to learn." Amy said, staring into the clouds, thinking back to when she was young.

She grew up dreaming of following in her grandfather's footsteps, to become a Hunter of such a high status, respected by all. A cold wind shook this thought from her. The sun was setting, the light fading behind the mountains, the orange glow of the sun fading with it, revealing the dark sky, the luminous patterns of light dancing high above them.

The Guild balloon soon appeared; the Guild Manager and Village chief stepping out.

"Where is the Tigrex?" The Guild Manager asked.

"Sedated in the cave below us." Aaron replied.

"Alright. Good work, Hunters. Our retrieval team will come back here tomorrow for the Wyvern."

The four of them stepped into the balloon, Amy and Aaron carrying Shiroha's limp form with them, and the balloon lifted off, heading back to Pokke.