Chapter 10


A few months pass. Patchy completes her recovery and is accepted as a full blown hunter. Craig recovers sufficiently to make a return to hunting. Jess's recovery isn't quite so smooth; but she's offered a place amongst the research team and gladly accepts. Greg returns to active hunting and retrievals, and to his surprise Hans decides to join him. Marie recovers from her encounter with Katrina, and remains as part of the Loc Lac defence unit; mostly due to having her requests for promotion rejected by the guild. Leona, Mickle, Patchy and Katrina end up relocating to Tanzia, due to the transfer of responsibilities away from Loc Lac. Not long after this; Leona makes G rank, and gains a reputation for excellence in both her abilities in hunting and leadership.


Tanzia Harbour, canteen seating.

Leona is kicking back with a light meal and some drinks. She's joined by Katrina, Mickle and Saul a few moments later.

"Hey guys; and...is Manny okay Saul?"

"Yeah, he just had some bad memories brought back up; He'll probably be back in the Arena by tomorrow."

"You two really saved my bacon back there."

"To be fair, I think you almost had him; but I figured better safe than sorry under the circumstances."

"Well, at least you can acknowledge you were in a spot of bother. I'm still trying to instil some sense of danger into Patchy; she might be doing a fine job of terrorising the low rank beasties, but once she makes high rank she's gonna have to improve her technique."

"I take it she's keeping you busy then Mickle."

"That's an understatement; she's currently the most active low rank hunter by some margin. I see her every day; if not for new gear, then for repairs."

"You worry too much; the Tanzia guild staff have paid close attention to the issues faced at Loc Lac, and believe me; they'll make sure she doesn't end up out her depth."

"What, like that time I ended up facing down a Rust Duramborous while I was still at high rank Katrina?"

"Yes Leona; the Tanzia guild have made it very clear that in the event of such an emergency; they'll dispatch only G rank hunters to address the situation."

"Good that lessons are being learned; heh, I feel like a bit of a hypocrite saying that mind you."

"Well, I had a word with Aisha after you'd headed out, and to our complete lack of surprise the Guild hadn't informed her that an Alatreon is in fact classified as a black dragon. I doubt you'd have been willing to head off on your own if you'd have known that Leona; and to Aisha's credit, she didn't let any of the normal rules get in the way when it came to having us follow you out there."

"I hope she didn't get in any trouble."

"We made it pretty clear to the guild staff we wouldn't take kindly to any kind of punitive action against her; and I think they got the message."

"Keeping to that subject Saul; now that the Alatreon has been dealt with, the guild should be able to consolidate resources regarding the tainted sea creature, and the red star entity."

"Anything you can tell us about either of them Katrina?"

"Not an awful lot I'm afraid. I am willing to commit to Valstrax being real though; I was able to examine the finds from the Loc Lac crash site; and there were materials present that were from an as of yet unidentified creature. As for the tainted sea; the more we find; the more apprehensive the researchers get."

"Is grandpa still assisting them?"

"Thankfully yes; he's about the only thing that gives them any kind of morale at all. We're starting to suspect that actually hunting the creature simply won't be a realistic prospect."

"what are the alternatives though?"

"Staying out of its way if it doesn't start targeting settlements. If it does start to come after us; a naval fleet heavily outfitted with siege weaponry."

"Bloody hell; sounds like this is one creature that's well and truly gonna live up to the black dragon status."

"It's really quite odd though; all the evidence we can find indicates some kind of enormous, intensely hot, and flightless elder dragon; yet we can't actually find it. How can something like that stay hidden?"

"...It'll be like with Ceadus."

"Like Ceadus...oh! I see what you're getting at Leona. That'd make perfect sense; the Tainted Sea's not far from a deep ocean trench."

"You think it's hiding in the depths of the ocean then?"

"There's pretty much nowhere else it could Saul. Those trenches plunge down for miles; some are even too deep for the measuring equipment; they'd be able to swallow something the size of Lao Shang Lung hundreds of times over. Even if it was in relatively shallow waters; we still could have missed it. Underwater observation gear still doesn't provide particularly good visibility; and given that the sea bed in this area's tectonically active anyway, we might just have mistaken its presence for a cluster of volcanic vents."

"Not all that bad of mistake to make if you think about it though Katrina; Shipping tends to steer well away from such things; and that's probably saved more than a few vessels from being sent to Davey Jones locker."

"Good point Mickle...and I think I know what we need to do now. I'll have a word with the research staff regarding undersea volcanic activity; if we piece together a map of locations experiencing sporadic activity, maybe we could get some idea of it's movements."

There's some activity around the launchpad as an airship makes landing.

"I'll bet that'll be Patchy."

"What was she up against this time Katrina?"

"Well...I think the actual hunting target was a Gobul, but given how long she's been gone; and given that the airship was moving like it was carrying a pretty heavy load; I think she might've bagged something else as well."

A few moments later Patchy makes her way over to the group; she appears to be covered in mud, lightly burnt, and some of her hair is somewhat comically standing on end.

"Aw no; what happened this time?"

"Whatdya giving me that look for Mickle? I'm perfectly fine; just had to deal with a hunt crasher, that's all."

Katrina sniffs the air.

"The sort of hunt crasher that specialises in electrocuting its prey by any chance?"

"Okay, a Lagaicrus sneaked up on me and gave me a bit of a shock. No big deal though."

"Heh, no big deal you say; the guild aren't supposed to let you anywhere near a Lagaicrus until you've gained at least another two ranks."

"He did take quite a lot of punishment to bring down Leona; but I still completed the hunt in an acceptable time frame."

"Well, go and see the medical staff to be on the safe side; Jaggi armour doesn't provide a lot of protection from electricity...and get a wash while you're at it, you look like those creatures used you as a dredging tool."

"Okay Leona, I'll let them to check me over, and then-"

"-Skinny dipping in the harbour does not count as a wash!"

"...Spoilsport…"

Patchy makes her way to the guild tavern.

"How'd you guess that she'd do that?"

"Do you remember what I was like when I started out hunting Katrina?"

"Enthusiastic; but I don't remember you being an outright lunatic."

"The guild covered for me a bit. Privately they'd give me a bollocking; but they'd make sure knowledge of my shenanigans didn't go public."

"Anything particularly noteworthy you'd like to confess?"

"Erm...no."

"Must've been pretty spicy…"

"Anyway...actually, has Patchy got a set of Wroggi armour put together yet Mickle?"

"Almost; all the materials are in, it's just a case of putting everything together."

"Good; make sure she doesn't attempt a Gigginox hunt without it."

"Don't worry, she knows. She might throw caution to the wind once she gets going; but she always prepares properly."

The corpses of the Gobul and Lagaicrus are transferred from the airship hold to some waiting flatbed carts.

"Hmm, full set of breaks on both of them; good to see she's attentive; and it's pretty difficult to pull that sort of thing off on a solo hunt."

"That reminds me Saul; there's some hostility towards her amongst her peers, so she almost always hunts solo."

"Ah, how could I forget Mickel; the joys of year one 'professional' hunters. The guild management secretly refer to them as 'the company of twats' for good reason."

"Any serious problems Katrina?"

"It's mostly pranks and slander at this point; the former she takes in her stride, and the latter no one takes remotely seriously. There was one attempt at something a bit more serious, but after they saw how she actually hunts, they figured messing with her wasn't a great idea."

"Hmm, I seem to recall the first formal reviews are due; that ought to separate out the hunters by performance a bit; and with any luck outright get rid of some the genuinely malignant individuals."

"They've rarely done that in previous years Leona."

"It'll be different this time; Tanzia's taken on a good portion of the Loc Lac hunters; and given how successful their own training programs have been, there's now a significant surplus of manpower. They can afford to be picky now; so anyone causing problems will probably find themselves in real danger of losing their licence."

"'Bout time that happened. The old method of getting rid of those arseholes was setting them up to hunt a problem monster; usually a Diablos for low rank, or a Rajang for high rank. Chances are they'd find out the hard way they weren't the hot stuff they though they were; but it wasn't a foolproof strategy. They'd sometimes turn out to have rather better friends than they deserved; and sometimes said friends would end up as collateral."

"That reminds me Saul; Marie ended up staying in Loc Lac. Any idea why she didn't make the jump to Tanzia?"

"That's technically my fault; she attempted to assault me during an encounter on the streets of Loc Lac."

"Whoa, I didn't hear anything about that! Were you okay Katrina?"

"Absolutely fine Leona; her talents for fighting monsters didn't translate very well to fighting people, so I was able to incapacitate her with a minimum of fuss. Needless to say, the whole thing was kept out of the public eye; probably on account of being extremely embarrassing for the guild. This in turn led to her effectively having her hunting licence frozen and her guild card impounded; which meant that, amongst other things, she wasn't able to transfer to Tanzia."

"No great loss from our perspective; although I do wonder how the others are doing."

"From everything I've heard, reasonably well Saul. Greg and Hans both volunteered for retrievals, which means they get sent all over the place. They're both pretty close to the point where they'd be able to take a shot at a G rank promotion, but neither of them seem to be in any rush. Jess got an offer from the research division while she was still recovering, and took them up on it. Smart move on her part; she's still got some problems from her injuries that'd interfere with hunting. The last I heard of Craig; he'd accepted a transfer to Val Haber. Thanks to the nomadic nature of the settlement; they see an extremely broad variety of monsters, but not with any great frequency; so Craig's experience should prove beneficial, while at the same time it's unlikely he'll have to deal with the strain of rapidly successive hunts."

"Sounds like they've all got decent plans in place then Katrina."

"And on that subject; you might want to make some plans of your own Leona. You're hitting your stride in G rank; and that means the guild are gonna take serious notice of you. Chances are they're gonna drop something pretty major on you sooner rather than later."

"Any advice you can give me Saul?"

"Yeah, it'll probably be one of two things; both of which'll permanently change your role as a hunter. Given that you've shown some real flair for leadership, I'd say they're gonna offer you some kind of administrative or managerial role at the guild in addition to your hunting."

"Okay, what are the other possibilities?"

"Hmm; I'd have ruled it out altogether if you hadn't gone head to head with that Alatreon; but the other real possibility is that they'll offer you research hunts. Now, these carry one hell of a lot of prestige, but they're about as dangerous as it gets; since you'll find yourself up against creatures with either next to no information about them, or with frighteningly high failure rates for their hunts."

"Sigh; I like my hunting as it is right now Saul."

"Don't feel pressured if they approach you; they're fully aware that either choice is a pretty major step; in fact, they'll usually start out relatively small and work their way up; and they'll have no issues with rejection if you don't feel ready."

"About how dangerous are these research hunts?"

"I've been on a few; and take it from me, they can get pretty damn hairy. Chances are they'll start you out with something reasonable though; usually some kind of deviant creature where they've decently gauged its threat level. One other good thing about them is that success doesn't necessarily require you to bring down the beast; they'll often be happy with just information gathering."

"That's all well and good Saul but...something you need to be aware of now Leona; is that there's a chance you'll hit your limit soon. Its something just about every G rank hunter has to deal with at some point, but you'll eventually end up on a hunt, and you'll realise that anything more will be too much for you."

"That's a bit of a pessimistic thing to say Katrina; I mean, I've managed to keep improving the entire time so-"

"Katrina's got a point Leona; and its something you can't ignore when it happens. If you try to go past that limit; chances are you'll end up on your last hunt."

"Has it happened to you Saul?"

"Yes. In my case it was a one on one showdown with a Rusted Kushala Daora. I won, but the second after he collapsed; I passed out. I woke up in Dundoma hospital; turns out I'd given myself stress fractures and muscle tears in all four of my limbs, and pushed my lungs so hard I'd given myself a pneumothorax. I'd pushed my body to the point of destruction to beat him. As you can see, I recovered; but nobody was under any illusions that I'd hit my limit. The guild still offer me research hunts every now and then, but they've taken notice of what happened, and refuse to send me out alone."

"One positive that came out of that Saul, is that the guild now strongly discourage anyone from trying to go solo on a G rank elder dragon hunt."

"They still let me go after that Alatreon on my own Katrina."

"Well, that was technically not a G rank creature Leona. Based on all the observational data, and the duration of the hunt itself; that particular Alatreon wasn't a mature specimen."

"I thought so; it hit pretty damn hard, but it took a lot less punishment than I was expecting; and our weapons seemed to be effective on just about every part of it."

"So, what would a fully mature Alatreon be capable of Saul?"

"I reckon it'd still have something of a glass jaw; but it'd probably shrug off attacks to anywhere else; and that'd make it completely unfeasible to hunt solo. The one we took on was pretty much relentless; the only breathing space we got was when we managed to actually hurt it."

"Well, there haven't been any more sighted if that's what you're worried about Leona."

"While that is reassuring, I take it there're other things I should be worrying about Katrina?"

"Probably; I doubt the management would even consider sending you out against the either of our major unknown creatures; but we already have some significant problem beasties positively identified. The three most serious ones are the Amatsumagatsuchi in the misty peaks; the Akantor at Ingle isle, and the Ukanlos at the polar limit. I expect they'll wait until you've gained at least another promotion before asking you to take any of these on though, and they'll doubtless advise you to form a team before taking them on. None of them are directly threatening any settlements either; although the disruption they cause to their locales has resulted in problems with displaced monsters."

"I can probably help with some of those; the Akantor lack for nothing in terms of raw power, but they ain't what you'd call skilled fighters. Me and Manny ended up taking one of them down a few years back; it took a lot of punishment, but we were able to keep pounding it just about the entire time. The Ukanlos is gonna be a different story though; it ain't quite as aggressive, but its every bit as powerful, and it fights smarter. Make sure you pack some dash juice for that one, 'cause it likes to come at you from below, and getting out of the way is easier said than done. As for the Amatsu; that's unknown territory for me. From what little I've been able to find out it can manipulate wind and water; comes with its own personal monsoon, and it's one of, if not the, most graceful creatures in flight."

"Thanks Saul; I'm pretty certain I'll be needing all the help I can get when the time comes. Anything else I need to worry about Katrina?"

"Some of the more recently discovered species are proving to be real nasty. Given how many hunters they've wiped the floor with, the guild are considering moving the Stygian Zinogre and Brachidios to a higher threat level; namely on par with that of a Deviljho. If you happen to get a hunt for either, be on your toes. Other than those; there're a few creatures that while powerful, aren't considered a significant threat. Metallic Raths have been sighted in skies around the ancient towers, but nowhere else as of yet; and likewise, a Lucient Nargacuga appears to have taken up residence at one of the towers. Other than that, one of our oceanic observation vessels was able to detect what appeared to be some kind of huge, bioluminescent Lagaicrus; but the creature was at a considerable depth, so we suspect it'll not likely be an issue. Lastly, there has been a sighting of a Hallowed Jhen Moran near Loc Lac; but given the concentration of expertise in hunting the Jhen Moran found in Loc Lac, I suspect they'll be able deal with it themselves if does become aggressive."

"Sounds like I should get busy; for all that none of those issues are absolutely urgent; that's still a large portion of trouble brewing."

"Don't rush it Leona; all of those monsters are tougher than anything you've faced to date. Akantor, Ukanlos and Amatsu already have contracts out on them, but none of the other G-rankers are keen to take a shot at them. We're actually between generations of hunters right now, so while we've got a surplus in terms of raw numbers; we've got a shortage of peak form G-rankers. The fresh G-rankers don't have the necessary experience; and the veterans like me typically have age and old injuries hanging over them, so they won't risk it unless they either know they've got solid backup, or they can convince themselves that they're back in peak condition; and the pain's just in their head."

"I hear ya Saul; might as well take a look at the quest board."

Leona leaves the table to examine the list of available hunts. A hunt for multiple Plesioth has a significant quantity of profane graffiti scribbled next to it. A hunt for a single Qurupeco with an unusually large reward has a mockingly cute doodle of a Deviljho with note simply saying; be ready. Mickel joins her in examining the available quests.

"Lemme see...thought so, they've forgotten to post it. There's supposed to a request for powderstones up there."

"I would've thought that'd be a high rank mission."

"Not this time Leona; the quality ones are in a part of the volcano that's home to a Stygian Zinogre, so we can't send anyone outside of G rank to fetch 'em."

"Well; since I could do with some improved dragon element weaponry; and Stygian Zinogre are supposed be a decent source for the required materials; maybe I could kill two birds with one stone?"

"Time might be an issue; but it is the sort of job that can work out great with a bit of preparation. How're you off for supplies?"

"Heavily stockpiled across the board Mickel."

"Good, as long as you pack a full stack of dash juice and cold drinks, getting the powederstones down to base camp shouldn't prove too much of a hassle. The only real complication'll be Stiggy; so make sure you pack nullberries to counter the dragon blight. Don't forget that the powerderstones are the real objective; so if per chance things start to look a bit dicey, just give Stiggy the old one two with flash and dung bombs; that ought to send it packing."

"I think I'll take the job then."

"Cheers; you'll have to wait until the evening to set out though. I'll still have to get the paperwork cleared with guild admin, and the next airship to the volcano ain't due until sundown."


A few more months pass. Leona is steadily promoted, and successfully neutralises the Akantor, Amatsu and Ukanlos with assistance from Saul and Manny. Patchy succeeds in being promoted, earning both respect and ire amongst her peers.. Katrina continues her research into the unknown creatures; but things come to head when she receives a visitor.


Tanzia Guild hall, research wing.

Katrina pours over her notes; she's disturbed by a shadow being cast over her. She turns to face a woman dressed in a full set of Brachydios armour, who absolutely towers over her and possess one of the heaviest builds she's ever seen.

"Heya; are you Katrina by any chance?"

"I am indeed; and would you happen to Big Sally?"

"The very same."

"What brings you Tanzia? I thought you were working with the fangster hunters these days."

"Ah, those twats. They're decent hunters, but they think the sun shines outta their arseholes, so I figure its high time they got a lesson in hubris. Fangster Blue's formerly quit; she's got bigger fish to fry right now; and they're just gonna have to manage without her. Well, the main reason I'm here's probably got everything to do with the subjects of your research."

"Any one in particular?"

"The tainted sea creature; I've got a hunch it'll make a move soon. I met Old Man Vangis on the way here; and he was getting the same feeling."

"He's not out with the research team?"

"No; he sent them back to base, said he wasn't happy about the situation out there, and felt they were in too much danger."

"Oh shit...did he mention any signs in particular?"

"Yeah; dead sea creatures have been washing through the tainted sea for the last couple of days; some have even carried as far as Tanzia harbour itself. I think its coming home; and given how close it'll be; that's gonna spell trouble all round."

"This is not good; and I still can't believe we haven't even been able to make sight of the damn thing."

"There's good reason for that as well; it actually has been sighted several times from considerable distance, but in each case it was mistaken for emerging volcanic landmass. The reason we can confirm this is due to the new islands disappearing as quickly as they emerged. As for where its been the rest of time; your speculation regarding it inhabiting the ocean depths appears to be on the mark; as many of the dead lifeforms were creatures normally native to significant depths."

"So...it's heading this way; do you think we've got time to send out an S.O.S?"

"I don't think it'd help much; Tanzia's probably the best supplied hunting centre we have."

"Still, some kind of naval power would help us no end."

"I'm not so sure about that; given the effect its presence has on sea life; and the condition of shipwrecks found in the tainted sea, I suspect it could severely damage the majority of shipping we possess simply through proximity."

"Okay, well; if it does show up at the tainted sea, we have clear observations of the area from Tanzia lighthouse, so that ought to give us some warning."

"Both myself and Old Man Vangis have already advised the guildmaster in the strongest possible terms to evacuate all civilians from Tanzia; I suspect he'll be initiating this shortly."

"Thanks, that saves me having to persuade him. Any other advice you can give me?"

"Just keep it together; Tanzia's in a much better position than either Minegarde or Dundoma were during the Fatalis incidents, and in both cases the guild pulled through."

"I understand. I'll ensure the entirety of both our medical supplies and ordinance are available."

"Good; we've already had a word with senior smiths, and they're planning to give the hunters on the ground unrestricted access to the arsenal. It's technically against the rules but; we've got a black dragon level threat incoming, so; the rules can get fucked."

"How're the hunters dealing with this? Do they know?"

"Don't worry, Old Man Vangis is getting them organised as we speak; and we are going to prepare for every eventuality we can."

"By every eventuality, I take it you mean…"

"Yeah, a direct attack on Tanzia; which might be the worst case scenario from the point of collateral damage; but from the perspective of taking the creature down...it might just be in our favour."


Meanwhile, at the Tanzia canteen…

What appears to be the majority of the hunters currently stationed at Tanzia are getting arranged in the central clearing. A fairly large individual in white scaled armour is commanding the situation. While the armour completely conceals his figure, long, white hair cascades from beneath his helm, and this combined with a gruff voice indicate him to be of an advanced age. His weapon of choice is what appears to be the salvaged remains of a dragonator that has had a great sword grip forged into what was formerly the axel of the device. At first glance it appears rusted, but on closer inspection it is fact deeply stained with monster blood.

"Okay; I won't mince my words here. We've got a major threat incoming. I expect we'll gain a visual confirmation of it when it reaches the shallows of the tainted sea, and the lighthouse will give us a signal as soon as they spot it. We'll verify its behaviour for hostility; but unless we're extremely lucky, we'll need to intercept it before it advances on Tanzia. So, to all the G-rankers; you need to arrange yourselves in groups of four. Make sure you're with hunters you're familiar with, as I doubt we'll have much room for error."

"What about the rest of us?"

"Everyone in low rank; join the civilian evacuation. If nothing else, you'll be able to provide them with some protection out in wild. As for the high rankers; anyone with experience of operating siege weaponry should take the opportunity to visit the arsenal; you can help with setting up weapon installations. Whatever you, do not engage the creature yourselves though; your equipment simply won't have a chance of providing you any kind of effective offence or defence. As for the rest of you; keep your eyes open for any incoming vessels and make to sure to warn them."

The hunters separate into their relevant ranks and get to work. Before long multiple ballista emplacements have been set up across the port; and any boats or airships that were present have left the immediate area. A mix of signal flares and beacons are set up to warn any incoming vessels of the potential threat.

"Good work. The low rankers are already on their way with the civilians; as for the high rankers...I'd personally recommend you follow them; but if you want to stay and operate the weapon emplacements I won't stop you; just bear in mind you will be taking a pretty major risk-"

A huge explosion rocks the port, with the shock wave knocking several hunters off their feet. The source of the blast appears to be the lighthouse; its been reduced to charred ruin, and several large chunks of masonry cascade down into the waters of the port.

"-Actually, scratch that. Anyone not G rank; get out of here; right now. It looks like its coming to us. Does anyone have a visual?"

"...the tainted sea's boiling…"

"Keep it together man! Can you see it?"

"...Visual confirmed. Its heading this way."

"Okay; anyone below three star G-rank, you'd best hang fire until we've established its attack strategy; and get on a ballista if you can. For the three star plus hunters, make sure you're in your groups. Gunners, find yourselves vantage points and cover; melee hunters, try to distribute yourselves about town; that should give you a chance of staying out of its sight, and possibly a shot at flanking it."

Three hunters approach the commander; leading them is Leona, now clad in a set of Vangis mail and equipped with Brachydios dual blades. She's accompanied by Saul, who's clad in a Silver Rathalos armour set and armed with a Kushala Daora heavy bowgun; and Manny, who's clad in a Black Dragon armour set with the accompanying gunlance.

"You okay Grandpa?"

"I'm alright Leona; I'm a bit worried about everyone else though. I see you've brought the full finery this time Manny."

"I can't afford to mess around here. I can feel the armour resonating; it knows it's about to face one of its own."

"How're you feeling?"

"Like its high time I stopped running and faced my demons. The very reason I can wear the hide of Fatalis today is thanks to the sacrifices made by my old friends; so I'm either gonna visit their graves with my head held high...or I'm gonna end up in good company on the other side."

"How about you Saul?"

"I guess just one more fight past my limit isn't too much to ask. It's not like I'm alone this time either."

"Leona...look after them; and make sure you survive this."

"I will Grandpa, you can count on that."

"Heh, good to hear it; and don't worry about the others. Katrina and Mickel are stationed at the medical centre just outside of the city grounds; and since its both heavily fortified and has an emergency escape route, they'll both be fine. As for Patchy; she's currently out on a hunt; and those warning flares'll be visible to any incoming boats or airships from miles away."

The four of them head to the harbour side. Leona spots a large number of barrels floating in the water.

"Huh, what are those?"

"Big Sally predicted the creature would take a direct shot at Tanzia, so she reckoned trapping the harbour might give us a head start. They'll blow if they're exposed to heat, so with any luck-"

A substantial wake bears down on the harbour entrance; accompanied by the outline of something huge just below the surface of the water.

"-well, here we go."