June 16th, 2098. South Elde District, Volcanic Belt. Basecamp. 8:50.
"Just hang on, Anna! We're almost there!" Alex was carrying Anna, who even after drinking a Mega Potion was not out of the woods. Even with Fire Resist, she had still taken quite a lot of damage from Hot Stone's attack. Alex took her straight to the water edge. "I'm not sure if this will work, but for both of our sakes I sincerely hope it does!"
"So… do I…" replied Anna. "I hope the sea isn't too cold…"
Alex carefully lowered himself to place Anna into the shallow sea water. "Here goes nothing. Water Element…" Alex focused intensely. "Healing Spring!" A light green flash occurred.
"Whoa! I feel better already!" exclaimed Anna. Alex helped her to stand up. "This is amazing. It's like I was never hurt at all! Thanks, Alex!"
"It was my pleasure. Now, let's head back to Jumbo so that we can get the Blimp."
"Sounds good to me."
June 17th.
The next day, after a goodnight's rest, Alex and Anna made their flight to N'ganga Village. During the flight, Alex was fascinated at the view of the entire Volcanic Belt. The flight was very short from Jumbo, less than an hour.
"Wow, we're already here." Alex looked around at damaged homes under repair. He then spotted a landing pad and steered the blimp to land on it.
Just as the two disembarked, they were approached by two people. One was a wyverian hunter with pale yellow hair, and the other was a human old man with a full head of white hair. "Greetings, hunters of Pokke," said the old man. "Thank you for coming to visit us."
"I'm Alex Kasai, and this is Anna Frost. It is a pleasure to be here," replied Alex.
"I am Chief Giro," said the Village Chief.
"I'm Qilin Kaminari," the hunter identified himself.
"Qilin? Why, that sounds just like Kirin!" joked Alex.
"Hey, I didn't name myself!" replied Qilin rather heatedly.
Alex waved him off. "Sorry, sorry. I didn't mean to be rude."
"Anway… here are the things you ordered," said Anna. In her hands were bags of minerals and metals taken from Hot Stone's body.
"I'll take those to the Smithy right away, Chief!" Qilin took the bags and went off without another word.
"Please, come with me to my house. I'll give you your hard-earned reward, there."
"Thank you, Chief Giro."
The trio set off. Alex and Anna took the time to observe the various repair work going on. A few homes were already restored, while the vast majority were either in progress or untouched. The walk took ten minutes.
"Welcome to my humble abode," said Giro. The Chief's house was not any grander than the homes within the village proper. "Qilin and I live together here. I have taken care of him since he was pretty young."
"Wow, you're just like my Master, Chief Koto," commented Alex.
The trio went inside, and made themselves comfortable in the living room. "Allow me to get straight to the point. There's a reason why I asked you to visit us, Alex."
"Really? What is it?"
"Well, you probably have not heard yet, but the Hunter's Guild is finally allowing lower ranked hunters to visit the Ancient Tower over in the far east continent."
"Wait, really!? The Tower to the north west of the Bateyubatom Forest, or Great Forest!? I've been fascinated by that place ever since I was still in training. But even I know that place was only allowed to be visited by HR7 level hunters or higher. There's quite a concentration of dangerous monsters over there."
"Let's forget about the forest for now, and focus on the Tower. Qilin wants to visit the Tower, but even if he is HR4, just like you, I would be worried. So, I was hoping to recruit you and any comrades of yours to accompany him."
"Hmm… My whole squad has four people, and you know the Guild only allows groups to head out in no more than four members. Do you know why that is?"
"It is because of a certain incident, known as 'Five.'The first Chief of Kokoto, two generations before Koto Kasai, was a top hunter in the Guild. He and his four friends went out as a group of five to face off with the first ever defeated Lao Shan Lung. One of the group was the Chief's fiance. Sadly, though the battle was won, she was killed by the great wyvern."
"Oh no!" replied Alex and Anna in unison.
"The number five is a number that represents bad luck to the Guild. HR5 ranked hunters are given Urgent quests quickly so that they can Rank Up again, lest they are visited by misfortune. Even relatively easy quests have mysteriously found ways to lead to disaster when five hunters set out on them."
Alex put on a serious face. "If this is a curse, then I'm going to break it."
"Alex?" Anna voiced worriedly.
"One day, my friends and I are going to save this world. Chief, please entrust Qilin to my Squad for this expedition. I'll bring him back safe and sound."
Giro gasped. "You… You… Alex, you really are an enigma. You are so unadulteratedly passionate that I want to believe in you. I accept."
"You know, Chief, you didn't have to go through all this trouble. I can handle myself just fine." Everyone turned to see Qilin, who was just entering the house. "However, I would like to see "Sir Alex Kasai" in action. I'm a member of a clan too, the Kaminari Clan."
"Whoa! That's awesome!" exclaimed Alex, dismissing the slight formality used.
"We're not as popular or even as gifted as the Kasai, but I wouldn't look down on me if I were you."
"Hey, he doesn't look down on anyone," Anna spoke up, not liking Qilin's tone.
"Anyway, how about we meet up in Jumbo a few days from now?" Qilin suggested.
"Fine by me," replied Alex. "I need to explain this to the others."
Hunter Stats
Alex Kasai (HR4)
Weapon: Eagle Cleaver Long Sword (Thunder Element)
Armor: Garuga Blade Master
Skills: Telepathy, Kasai Potential, Sharpness Plus, Earplug, Reckless Abandon, Poison Resist.
Ai Shiki (HR4)
Weapon: Monoblos Spear Lance (Fire Element)
Armor: Gravios Blade Master
Skills: Sleep Resist, Endurance Up, Fire Resist, Guard Increase
Qilin Kaminari (HR4) (Guest Hunter)
Weapon: Viper Bite Sword and Shield (Paralysis Attribute)
Armor: 4/5 Ioprey Blade Master and Chaos Cap Helmet
Skills: Vitality Up, Poison Negate, Abnormal Status Up, Fatigue Reduction, Thunder Damage Increase
Anna Frost (HR3)
Weapon: Snow Poison Dual Blades (Ice Element, Poison Attribute)
Armor: Kut-ku Blade Master
Skills: Vitality Up, Strength Up, Fire Resist.
Kotaru Shiki (HR3)
Weapon: Bone Katana Dragon
Armor: Monoblos Blade Master
Skills: Vitality Up, Strength Up, Heroic Comeback, Cursed Protection
June 19th. The Ancient Tower Base Camp, Bateyubatom Continent. 10:00 AM.
Ai and Kotaru were not fond of breaking Guild rules, but surprisingly enough they were basically forced to agree when Master Koto put in a good word for Alex's sake to them. So, here they were disembarking a large, official Guild Blimp. They were ordered by the headquarters to spend no more than three hours here. Any longer, and they would run the risk of catching the attention of something truly terrible, such as a Yamatsukami, or if they were especially unlucky, a White Fatalis. It should be a no brainer to you why a White Fatalis was bad. Literal Lao Shan Lungs feared regular Fatalis, which is why they kept moving from place to place, so it goes without saying that a variant would be just as deadly if not worse.
Alex looked around. The camp was inside a gorge with a small waterfall and pool. The sky above was very cloudy. "Well, is everyone set? Then let's head out. Time's a wastin."
"I agree. Lead the way, o fearless leader," said Qilin.
Alex sighed while the others laughed a little. Then, the Quintet set out. Area 1 was a fairly simple zone. The path went up and out of the gorge into a more open area. A few Aptonophs could be seen grazing on the short grasses. Then everyone got their first glimpse of the tower.
"Wow, you can't even see the top of it from here!" exclaimed Anna.
"So, it's very tall, big deal," said Qilin disinterestedly.
"You can't see much of it due to that thick cloud cover," observed Ai.
"It still seems pretty far away," said Kotaru. "Let's keep moving."
The path between areas 1 and 2 took twenty minutes. Once they were there, they could see how high above sea level they were even without entering the tower. However, the ridiculously thick cloud cover made it difficult to see very far. Anyway, blocking the large entrance to the tower was a pack of three small flying wyverns.
"Hey, I've seen those before," said Ai. "They're called Remobra, and they live in places where Elder Dragons can be found. Also, if they appear suddenly, then it means an Elder Dragon is coming to your general area. Because of this, they have gained the moniker "Omen to Disaster."
"Well then, let's take them out before they spell disaster for us!" Qilin unsheathed his sword as he charged at them.
"Hey! Be careful!" warned Ai. "They can spit poison and it is quite strong!"
"That's worthless against my armor choice!"
"I'll back you up!" exclaimed Kotaru as he rushed to join Qilin, who was obviously having trouble with three cunning opponents at once. The Remobras showcased an excellent ability to work as a team. Even Kotaru's intervention proved little to tip the scales as the wyverns hovered out of harm's way and attacked only when necessary. "Grr! Get down from there!"
"Kotaru, Qilin, just hold their attention for a bit." Alex busted out Khezu Cloak. "Ready… Set… Go!" Alex charged at the group the moment the wyverns were swooping down for an attack. "Seize the day! Hi-yaa!" Alex easily sliced through two that were heading for Kotaru.
"I won't be outdone!" Qilin dodged the attack of the remaining wyvern and slashed one of its wings. A flash of yellow electricity occurred, and the wyvern was paralyzed. Unable to fly, it crashed onto the ground.
"Take this!" Kotaru finished the wyvern off. There, that wasn't so bad."
"Don't count your fish just yet, brother," said Ai. "The tower must be naturally infested with them. We'll need to be on our guard at all times."
Alex, Kotaru and Qilin were each carving up a Remobra. "Noted. Now, let's advance from here."
Area 3 was an old dilapidated room at the bottom of the tower. The floor was covered in ankle shallow water, and weedy plants snaked all over the place. A nest of Great Thunderbugs called this area home. The group took the opportunity to obtain Thunderbug Juice from them before moving on.
Area 4 was another room. There was nothing interesting here besides various gathering spots for plants. Needlessly to say, the group did not spend long here.
Area 5 was outside on a rather large balcony with a stunning view. Curiously there was a small pack of Giaprey here. Alex and Anna were surprised at this, while Kotaru and Qilin made short work of them.
Area 6 was a winding spiral that went up several tens of meters. As expected, there were lots of Remobra flying idly about, minding their own business. That all changed the moment they caught wind of our group.
"They're quite a fiercely territorial bunch, aren't they," commented Kotaru as everyone drew their weapons."
"Let's just try to push our way through," declared Qilin as once again he was the first to enter combat. "I'd like to see the top of the tower before we leave!"
"No need to be hasty, now. We still have another hour and fifty minutes of time left," exclaimed Alex as he went to back him up. The others followed suit, swinging their weapons only to keep the nimble wyverns at bay as they kept on the move. All Ai could do was duck and dodge, however, as it was impossible to run and attack with her heavy lance.
After the fight and run, the group came out to another balcony, Area 7. This time, there was a pack of Velociprey and Genprey waiting for the group. Let us not mince words; against a group of five hunters, the bird wyverns stood no chance.
Area 8 was a continuation of spirals. Because the tower was old and damaged, this part of the spiral was cut off from Area 6. As you would expect, there were more Remobras here.
"Okay, I am starting to get a bad feeling," said Ai, after the group had cleared them all out. "I am starting to think we should not go any further."
"Oh, is the proud huntress scared of the tower?" jeered Qilin.
Ai assumed a ticked-off look. "Now listen, you. This isn't a laughing matter. I think we might be in danger. This many Remobras we've been seeing is too much of a red flag to ignore."
"Actually, I think you're right, Ai," said Alex. "As much as I would like to see the top, I think it's time we started heading back anyway. It's been well over two and a half hours since we started."
"Huh? So, even the great Sir Alex Kasai has reached his limit? Well, allow me to show that we Kaminari are no such wimps! I'm going all the way to the top, you scaredy-cats!" Qilin took off.
"Hey, stop! Wait! Get back here!" exclaimed Anna.
"It's a pain, but we have to go after him," said Kotaru.
"I promised the Chief I wouldn't let anything happen to him. Darn it. This must be what I'm like when I don't think straight."
"You hit the nail on the head," said Ai with a chuckle as the group began giving chase.
Area 9 was a similar room to Area 4. The group did not stop.
Now Area 10 was top of the world, pun definitely intended. It was a huge circular platform. The sky was absolutely thick with dark, foreboding clouds. Alex and company found Qilin engaging a last pocket of Remobras. Alex stopped the others from helping him, and just observed the young hunter's skills.
"This guy's a natural fighter," commented Kotaru.
"Hey, don't just stand there, slowpokes! Help me out here!" Qilin exclaimed. Their presence was not lost on him.
"Fine, but who's the wimp now!" Alex shot at him as he drew Grace. But suddenly, the Remobras went up into the air, out of reach, and began circling. "Huh!?"
"This… could be a problem," said Ai.
A familiar pressure came over Alex. "Oh, no! This… feeling!"
"Something's coming!" Anna warned.
Suddenly, strong wing flaps could be heard approaching. A lion-like roar sounded. "What the!?" exclaimed Kotaru.
"Look over there!" Qilin shouted. Everyone turned their attention to an azure beast descending from the clouds. It landed, and let out a powerful roar. "This is… an Elder Dragon…"
"I am Queen Luna, a Lunastra!" proclaimed a female voice to Alex.
"A Lunastra, HERE!?" exclaimed Ai. "Everyone! RUN!"
Qilin held his sword resolutely. "I'm not running. A chance like this doesn't show itself often. I'm not scared!" Qilin charged at the wyvern.
"Hey! STOP, YOU FOOL!" Alex activated Khezu Cloak and ran towards Qilin in hopes of stopping him.
"Hmph! What an arrogant child!" Luna the Lunastra leapt forward.
"HUH!? CRAP!" Just as Alex knocked Qilin out of the way, he took the Fire Dragon's attack. "AAAHHH!" he screamed as he was sent rolling, Grace being sent elsewhere.
"ALEX!" exclaimed Ai and Anna in unison as they threw away all reason. Luna turned her attention to them.
"Fire Element: White Hot Haze." Luna blew out a stream of flame at the approaching Huntresses.
"Anna, get behind me!" Ai put up her shield, and Anna obeyed. The flames licked and parted before Ai's shield, but the heat was sweltering.
"So, so hot!"
"Hey, knock it off!" exclaimed Kotaru as he got in a slash at Luna's head.
"Argh! How dare you strike me! You're next, human!" Luna jumped back, and began releasing yellow sparkles of light from her rhythmically flapping wings. "Better yet, I'll just blow all of you away in one fell swoop!"
Alex got up upon hearing that. There was a bleeding gash on the left of his abdomen. "Not on my watch, you fiend. Everyone, let's attack together. We have to stop whatever it is she's doing!"
"Best thing I've heard from you all day!" exclaimed Qilin, who was the first to charge.
"I don't like this, but…" Anna rushed off.
"I have pride, too!" Ai began charging with the business end of her lance pointed dead ahead.
"Poor choice, foolish humans. Fire Element: Explosive Surprise." Luna snapped her jaw shut, her four longest fangs releasing sparks which set off a chain of explosions all over the venue.
"AAAAA!" screamed everyone in pain. When the smoke cleared, it was revealed that everyone was down on the ground, covered in soot.
"What's wrong, my dear Hunters? This is my first time taking on five at once. I thought you would provide more of a challenge than this."
Kotaru shakily stood up. He was grasping his longsword with trembling hands. "I… Won't let things end here. Okay, let's… give this a try. My body is battered, and so the conditions have been met. Heroic Comeback!" Kotaru began glowing red.
What's going on? Kotaru seemes just as hurt as all of us, but his Chikara feels like it's overflowing. What kind of Skill Power is he unleashing? Alex struggled to get into a sitting position.
"Hey, share the fun… Kotaru." Qilin was the next to stand. "I know things look dire, but if we work together, we can win."
"So only the threat of death makes you get serious, huh? You should try to break that habit," Kotaru replied with a weak chuckle. "Anyway, let's save our comrades."
Alex focused to allow the two into his telepathic mind link with Luna. "Go get her, you two!"
"Alex, you disappoint me! I was somewhat impressed by your fight with that bumbling buffoon, Hot Stone. But now… You're next after I'm done with them!"
"What is this!? Telepathy? How cool. Hey, ugly! Don't look down on us!"
"You won't get to touch the others!" exclaimed Kotaru. He and Qilin ran to meet this most dangerous of opponents.
"You disrespectful apes will know your place!" Luna roared fiercely.