Monster Hunter Legends

The Tigrex's Rage – Chapter 4

The Rathian's wail filled Kai and Tenma's ears as it charged at them. My Wailing Cleaver will make short work of it, thought Kai. Kai moved into an attack stance, but before he could strike Tenma ran forward. Tenma was slicing wildly with his sword, making the Rathian flinch a little. Unluckily, it realised that Tenma was missing with most of his attacks. Kai went in to strike again, but he was caught with a tailspin that flung him off his feet.

Tenma struck out at the Rathian's face, making it yelp in pain. "Ha!" Tenma cried, thinking he had the Rathian under control. The Rathian brought its head back to look at Tenma, who realised it was in rage. "…Awww, come on!" he cried, running towards the river as the Rathian aimed a fireball his way. Reaching the riverbank, he spun round with his shield up, and noticed Kai getting up again. The Rathian was focused on Tenma, but for how long?

Tenma dared a taunt. "Come get me yah stupid wyvern!" At that, the Rathian charged. As it ran on, Kai came in from the side and sliced down with his katana, severing the Rathian's tail. It tripped in pain, stopping dangerously close to Tenma. Seeing an escape, Tenma ran towards Kai.

Kai had his katana levelled at the Rathian as it got up. It roared, and Tenma covered his ears, but Kai kept a steady gaze. The Rathian seemed to be confused for a moment, then yelped and flew off. Kai watched it go until it was safely out of sight. "Whoa! That was good as Kai! You just came in, and WOOSH! Off with its tail! Heheh… Kai?" Tenma queried, looking up at Kai. Kai lowered his eyes and glared at Tenma. Tenma made a sort of whine sound, and said, "No wonder the Rathian flew off…" No sooner had he said it, the crimson colour of Kai's eyes faded away. Kai coughed, and muttered, "Let's go."

The duo continued their trek down the river, and eventually made it to the huge hunting ground known as the Jungle. It was spectacular in the sun – shining waterfalls cascaded into a gigantic lake, and the green islands where vibrant with colour and life. "Amazing…" gawped Tenma, taking in the surroundings. "Take a long look kid, we can't stay here long." Remarked Kai, seeing Tenma's amazement. "What? Why not?" replied Tenma, shocked.

"We have to cut across it. We're heading for the Tower."

"But- where is the Tower exactly? I know you said he would be there, but I don't know really what it is."

"It's deeper in the Jungle. Far from the Giant Lake. That's why we can't stay for long."

"Oh…" Tenma sighed.

They headed towards a patch of dense jungle on the mainland, following an odd trail. Tenma stepped in something, making a squelch sound. "What the heck was that?" asked Kai, fuddled.

"Urm… I think its Congalala poo."

Later, in the dense foliage of the jungle, Kai and Tenma had had no more trouble from monsters. "It's rather strange. There is usually a lot more monsters around…" Kai looked at Tenma, a sneaky smile on his face. "Maybe it's your Congalala poo." Kai snickered, and stifled a full laugh. "Hey, for all you know, it probably is the poo! Most monsters are afraid of Congalalas! This marks their territory! It's a sign of power!"

At this, Kai broke out into hysterics. "When he recovered enough to a slight giggle, he said, "Your walking around with its territorial dung! Bwahaha!" Tenma's face went serious, but Kai just fell to the ground clutching his sides. "Keep walking." Tenma spat, and marched ahead. "Awww, come on Tenma! Don't get shitty with me!" Kai said, then realised his pun, and began giggling again, but trudged on because his sides hurt. Catching up to Tenma when he thought his joke had worn off, Kai asked, "What kind of sword is that?"

"This? Oh, it's not mine. I use sword and shield, but I kinda borrowed this from Makoto. It's an upgraded Princess Rapier. Works wonders against Tigrex."

"Cool. We should be nearing the edge of the Tower's region soon." Kai commented, seeing the sun start to go down.

An hour later, Kai and Tenma trudged out into a clear space. Looking up, dark rock walls loomed ahead. Smoke was coming from somewhere, but the rocks hid wherever it originated from. Tenma stopped, unsure about the place, but Kai kept walking. "Come on. It's just around the corner." Tenma cautiously followed Kai, wary of the rock. He could see some kind of moss covering the top edges of the cliffs. Sure enough though, just around the corner of the rock was a small village. People bustled about, moving baskets of food to and fro, taking wood to the fire, and talking. Someone stopped, and noticed Kai and Tenma. "Heyyy! A hunter! Haven't seen one in these parts for awhile!" the man called, seemingly friendly. "Well, I'm not a hunter per se…" Kai called back. The man walked up to Kai, and shook his hand. "Wow. It's really been five years? It's great to see you Kai." The man smiled.

"Great to see you to, Thomas. Is the Guardian here?"

"Humph. Just like you, you come back here and the first thing you ask is whether the Guardian is here. Well he's not." Replied Thomas.

"What! That's not fair! We came all this way an-" Tenma cried out, but stopped short as he saw Thomas smiling.

"He's not here at the moment, boy. He'll be back tomorrow morning. Now, what is your name?"

"Tenma. I'm Makoto's younger brother."

"Tenma… you stink. What'd you eat, kid?"

Kai cracked up, and Tenma glared at him, but explained the story to Thomas, who was soon in the same state as Kai after he finished.

Night had fallen, and the little jungle village had given Kai and Tenma shelter and food. They tried to be as hospitable as they could, as they didn't get many visitors. Kai, Tenma and Thomas sat by the fire and told stories of hunts from years passed. Tenma changed subject, asking, "Who is the Guardian?"

Thomas glanced at Kai, and then turned back to Tenma. "I think, only he can tell you that himself. We only know that he's our saviour, our protector. Tomorrow, your questions will be answered."