This morning Mamoru met me at the enterance of the caves to do some training. I did a lot of reading last night and got really excited about it. I even adjusted the photon frequency of my weapons to be stronger against the A. Beast type of monsters that are usually inside of the caves. I hope he's impressed by my studying.
He didn't really have all that much to say to me when he met me though, infact he looked kind of tired. I wonder if he'd been doing any sort of training last night. Momma says "when he's not doing something related to his job, he's always fighting anyway. You can't get that man to sit still for anything! Except for maybe Presea."
Again I wonder about Presea... it's hard to tell what exactly is going on. Momma talks sometimes like Mamoru and Presea are always together, and then the rest of the time she talks like Presea is no longer with us. I'm just curious about the truth, but I don't know how to ask Mamoru about something like that. I wish Momma would be straight forward with me.
Back to the caves... every time I go in now, I don't feel so scared of the sharks and assassins as much as I used to. Mamoru showed me some great places to strike at them to make them easier to take down. "The sharks have a weak waist, so you should strike there, but be careful if you're using a shorter weapon, if you're not precise with your blow, then you're leaving yourself wide open to lose a limb in their jaws."
He's a great instructor, no wonder Mom and Dad are so great. Dad will deny that though, saying "I never was much of a hunter...I was more interested in the arts and because of that I was never really able to peak my abilities as a force, not like your mother."
"Oh sweetie...you're just trying to flatter me now!"
It's so cute seeing my parents flirt, even at their age...although they aren't that old .;
I wonder what Mamoru and Presea are like together? He doesn't really seem like the romantic type, always so cold and mysterious. Maybe that's Presea's type though...dark...mysterious...you know. I have to admit that it's an attractive quality, but I need some romantic content as well, hehehe.
I havn't thought about romance much since I started school. I just don't know if anyone would like to be with me that much, and besides, studies are more important right? I don't know who I would be with anyway. Sometimes when I talk to Rodney, I get butterflies in my stomach and my heart beats a lot faster. I think I like him, but he seems too good for me. He's handsome, and looks kind of cocky, but at the same time he's really very friendly and open, and very generous too!
Nyah! The caves... I'm so sorry diary, I get side tracked so easily. So we finally got back to the machine looking area, and to the room that the HUcast wouldn't take me in. I was kind of scared, mainly because I have no idea why the HUcast wouldn't take me, was it really that dangerous.
"Okay Shinobu, are you ready? Do you need to go back to town for anything first?" he asked.
"...Mamoru! Do you mind posing for a picture? I just realized that I don't have one of you, I like to have pictures of all of my friends." (I'll bet I sounded like an idiot)
"...You have the worst timing imaginable...you know that?" he laughed, "we're already beat up from fighting now. If you can catch me before I go back on duty tomorrow morning then I'll let you get a good picture."
"It's a deal!"
After that embarassing conversation was over, we finally stepped into the teleporter. "We've been tracking this stray De Rol Le for a while now, it's time we stopped it."
"De Rol Le?"
"They're a species of parasitic beasts that roam the underground streams of the caves. The sharp needle at the end of their tale secretes a poisonous sap that mutates it's victims. The theory at the lab is that the sharks used to be Boomas who had been taken by De Rol Le's sap."
"Mamoru I don't want to be a shark!"
"Don't be rediculous! I wont let it touch us!"
Finally Mamoru activated the teleporter. We rematerialized on a raft, sailing down the underground channel at a high speed. "Ready? He should be able to sense our photon energy and then he'll attack."
"Hoo boy..."
After only a few minutes, I was able to see the huge creature rip out from beneath the water. The beast was a grotesque giant worm, fitted at the head with a giant human looking skull. At the far end, I could see the razor sharp poison needle thrashing through the waves, along with a dozen or so whipping tentacles.
"AIEEEE!"
"Shinobu, calm down..."
How can Mamoru stay so calm in the face of such beasts? Obviously I've got a long way to go until I can call myself a great hunter.
De Rol Le was fast, he quickly caught up to the boat and launched a series of energy blasts at us. "Get down!" Mamoru ordered and took me tumbling to the ground. De Rol Le didn't look very pleased that we dodged his attack, so he leaped into the air high above the raft to try and crush us!
"Now's our chance!"
De Rol Le landed on the raft, but his overgrown skull had become stuck on the cornered edge. Mamoru charged the beast's head, and so did I. "Smash it's skull Shinobu! The only way we can defeat it is if we can pierce it's brain!"
I swung my DB's Saber as hard and as fast as I could, busting off little piece by piece of the beast's skull. Up above, I could see the snakey tentacles slithering around, and at the ends were the poison tipped needles!
"AIEEEE!"
I shreaked as they struck downward, but Mamoru saved me by slicing them out of the way with his sword, the Last Survivor. "Just keep hitting him, I'll keep these things away!" Eventually I smashed a hole at the base of it's skull, where the skull met it's neck. I worked the blade inside quickly and pryed outward. The beast erupted a deep moaning scream as the shattered skull ripped from it's head and bounced off of the raft. By this time, Mamoru was getting overrun by the tentacles.
"There Shinobu! Finish him off!"
I didn't waist any time and quickly jabbed the long blade of my sword into the slimey mouth of the beast. I felt a vibrating crunch and then retracted. The tentacles that swipped at Mamoru quickly slithered away and he was free. "That's it! We've got him!"
De Rol Le's body slid off of the edge of the boat and crashed into the water. He leaped into the air again, perhaps to not yet admit defeat, but it was too late for him. He crashed into the water again and his body was submerged.
"That's it, it's over...great job Shinobu. You see, if you don't get scared, you can do anything. Being strong is one thing, but if you don't have the courage to use that strength, you're nothing."
I'll always remember that, and try not to be so scared when facing such a big enemy. I'm really amazed at what we as newmans can do. We may even be stronger than any beast on Ragol.
We went back to town and imediately Mamoru took me to the Hunter's Guild. He explained what fight I had just won and had my student license altered to allow me permission to investigate the Mines beneath the caves. The government still hires lots of Hunters to investigate them and to collect the missing data that was lost after Pioneer 1's crew dissapeared. Mamoru also says that it's a great place to train. The machine factories deep in the mines are still automated and still manufacture android security drones to secure the place. The governments goal is to find the machine A.I. and destroy it to prevent the further manufacturing of the drones. I'll look more into it myself and ask some people around the Hunter's Guild about it.
"I don't want you to enter the Mines until you've gained a few more levels Shinobu. It's an interesting place to see, but also very dangerous. So my next assignment as your instructor, is for you to level five more times and then begin your investigation of the caves."
Five more times?
Of course I didn't say that to Mamoru though, he knows best after all, so I'm going to continue training in the Caves and VR environment back at the dorm. He goes back on duty tomorrow, so I need to get some good sleep now in order to get up early enough to get the picture.
I'll let you know how that goes tomorrow diary, until then!
Shinobu