Hether couldn't stop herself from staring at her Hunter, who was currently unconscious on a medical cot.
She watched like a hawk as his chest rose and fell rhythmically, his muscles contracting and relaxing as needed.
She had to resist the urge to set a hand on his bicep and feel the muscle in her palm, which she thought deep down would feel somewhat like an uncooked steak.
After a few minutes of staring, she silently thanked the medical staff for installing curtains and reached out, allowing her fingers to brush over Eclipsen's shoulder.
"Woah!..."
She whispered as the muscle flinched when she touched it before relaxing. She gave a squeeze to the muscle, continuing to be amazed by how stiff the flesh was depite being alive.
She then moved her hand to his hands, inspecting the limb. She noticed that his body temperature was normal, if not lower than what was required to live.
She then pressed her ear to his chest, listening to his heartbeat. The Hunter's heart maintained a slower beat than other people, most likely due to the body trying to conserve energy and heal.
"Trying to get your doctorate in human anatomy?"
Hether yelped as the Third Fleet Master pulled back the certain.
Hether snapped back to her seat and brushed off her clothing before waving her hands in a dismissive manner.
"No Ma'am!"
The Third Fleet Master chuckled, moving fully into Eclipsen's space in the medical ward.
"You know dear, that makes it sound like you are doing something worse."
She taunted, making Hether blush as red as a tomato. Hether stumbled and staggered over her words in an attempt to deny the implications while the Third Fleet Master laughed quietly at her embarrassment.
"I'm joking dear, relax."
Hether plopped back down onto her seat and took in a deep breath of relief. The older woman sent her gaze towards the unconscious Hunter, before shaking her head.
After Hether had regained her senses, she gave a questioning look to the Third Fleet Master, who replied with a kind smile.
"If I can ask, why are you here?"
Hether asked. The Third Fleet Master sent another sorrowful look towards Eclipsen before replying.
"I heard about his battle with Nergigante. Some of the crew actually watched it take place from the observation deck."
The older woman turned back to the Handler, her arms crossed like they normally were. Hether noticed the lack of her pipe.
"I came to offer help in defeating Nergigante, but we need to brief him on how to use the weapon we've prepared."
Hether gave an understanding nod. Silence reigned after that, with both women watching the Hunter closely and carefully.
Hether stood after some time, motioning to the refreshment area with her thumb.
"I'm gonna get a drink. You want something?"
The older woman waved a hand and gave an apologetic smile.
"No thanks dear, I was thinking about heading down to the gathering table anyway."
Hether nodded and moved away, watching from the corner of her eye as the Third Fleet Master departed.
-Transistion-
Eclipsen floated in a void of darkness, his vision unable to pick up anything but pitch black.
His crimson eye peered away at the darkness while his body flexed and tensed in an attempt to move.
His efforts were for naught, as two hours had passed since he woke up in the void.
He eventually allowed himself to go limp and relax, actually enjoying the feeling of weightlessness.
Then, he saw a glint of light in the distance. The figure was small, and was not shaped like anything he had seen.
It grew closer as time passed, with the figure enlarging every five seconds. When the shape became large enough, he recognized it.
The moment he had looked up while he was under Nergigante, he had known that he made a grave mistake.
The shape began to rush towards him, opening up to reveal a set of teeth that Deviljhos would be intimidated by.
He quickly began to making swimming motions in the other direction, to no avail.
He screamed into the void as the shape swallowed him and his vision went black once more.
-Transition-
Hether sat back down after retrieving a small cup of tea from the refreshment area, taking a small sip from the cup before setting it down.
She glanced at her Hunter, who was breathing heavily. His chest moved up and down quickly, and his hands were white knuckling the edge of the cot.
Hether bent down to wake him only to jump when he shot upwards like an arrow loosed from a bow.
"I HAVE SEEN TERRIBLE THINGS!"
He screamed, giving Hether her second jump for the day. Maybe third if she counted her alarm clock in the morning.
Eclipsen quickly looked about the room, his crimson eye glowing fiercely in the dim light of the medical ward.
Soon, his breathing evened and he regained his coherence. He glanced over at the Handler, who was thoroughly confused.
He signalled to the woman, asking her how long he had been asleep.
"Um, about five hours. You had some pretty deep cuts."
Eclipsen nodded. Understandable, as Nergigante had body slammed him full force with already hardened spikes.
He swung his legs over the edge of the medical cot and winced when his side sent a disagreeing shock through his abdomen.
Hether rushed to his side, gently helping him stand off the cot. After Eclipsen had gained his balance, he signed that he needed his equipment.
"They sent it to smithy to have it repaired. It had a few nasty gashes in it too."
Eclipsen grumbled as he slipped on a set of clothing Hether had given him behind the certain.
It was a simple brown cloth shirt paired with black trousers and a set of black boots.
Eclipsen grumbled at the lack of his armor, but he could live without it for now.
After getting dressed, he gave a look to Hether. After her time working with the silent Hunter, she understood the look easily.
"The Third Fleet Master wants to see you. Probably everybody else too. You came in with a good amount of wounds."
Eclipsen nodded as she helped him walk out of the medical ward, limping most of the way.
-Transition-
"How can we know that the weapon won't backfire?"
The Commander asked, his arms crossed tightly. The Third Fleet Master shrugged in response.
"We can't be sure, but we have to try. At this point, Nergigante is just getting more and more agressive, and starving it is hardly the best option."
This conversation had been taking place for nearly a half hour now, and the Commander's worry was still not alleviated.
The Commander cared for the hunters like his own grandchildren, and Eclipsen was no exception.
The Huntsman, Field Team Leader and Ayla simply stood by and watched as the Commader threw question after question into the air, with each one carrying the premise of 'what if something goes wrong?'.
They all snapped their gazes toward the steps when they heard the familiar sound of metal on wood.
Eclipsen limped slightly as he walked, and there was traces of a grimace on his face, showing that he had not fully recovered.
Ayla jogged over to her fellow Hunter, joining Hether in helping him walk. Ayla gave a worried look to Hether, who returned the same look.
The Commander gave a glare to Hether before speaking.
"I thought you were supposed to look after him. He isn't even walking right."
Hether shrugged and Eclipsen took a step to the left, sheiding her from the Commander's gaze.
"You know Eclipsen, he can't stay still!"
Ayla proclaimed as she moved back to the barrel she had sat on previously.
Hether sighed. The Commander met Eclipsen's glare with an equal one, before both men silently called it a tie.
"Either way, it's good that you're here. Obviously, your battle with Nergigante didn't end well. Thankfully, your Palico gave us valuable materials that helped the Third Fleet Develop a weapon."
The Commander stepped to the side, allowing the Third Fleet Master to withdraw a long object covered by cloth.
She pulled back the covering, revealing a long silver arrow with a black tip.
She set the arrow on the table, allowing Eclipsen to lean on the table for a closer look.
"This is what we managed to craft from the materials your Palico gave us. All of the tests we've run indicate that it completely seals an Elder Dragon's abilities. It makes Kushala Daora unable to conjure a breeze, not even when it breathes."
Eclipsen reached out to touch the arrow, but pulled back mid-motion. Something about the arrow made the Hunter's chest itch, and it grew worse when he tried to touch it.
"We know that Nergigante does not possess any abilities, so we theorized that it would simply kill it."
Eclipsen nodded. It was a sound theory, as Nergigante's ability seemed to be simple strength and battle prowess.
The entirety of the group at the table jumped when Eclipsen spoke.
"I will not fail a second time."
He said, crossing his arms and staring intently at the weapon on the table.
Ayla hopped off of the barrel she sat on, patting Eclipsen on the shoulder.
"I'm coming with you! For all we know, you haven't used a bow before."
Eclipsen set a hand on his face and sighed. She was not wrong about that. He was terrible with a bow.
Ayla gave a determined nod, looking straight at the Commander.
"Then it's settled! We'll be off as soon as Mr.Wounded over here is healed up."
Eclipsen glared at the magenta haired girl, who seemingly was in league with Hether as they began to usher him towards his room.
He hated waiting, and now he was being forced to wait and heal.
This was going to be a long few days.