Ronin sat cross-legged in his room, his Rathalos Longsword resting on his lap. His eyes were closed and his breathing slow as he meditated. A crash sounded behind him, causing him to wince and growl quietly. A nervous chuckle sounded off behind him as he rose to his feet, placing the longsword against the wall. He turned to the black-haired young man. The wood carved figures of monsters he had slain were strewn about next to his student, Kain. Kain was a new student from the mainland, and Elder Fugen told Ronin to train him, not Utsushi. He wasn't a bad student, just excited and full of energy that he couldn't seem to get rid of. Which led to him being quite reckless, though it made sense considering his fondness for great swords.
"Pick them up." Ronin ordered simply. Kain bowed quickly and got to work placing the monster carvings back on the shelf. Once the figures were all placed back Ronin gestured to the young man to sit beside him. Kain hurriedly walked over and sat heavily next to Ronin.
"Yes Master?" Kain asked. Ronin glanced at him before gesturing to his posture.
"Calm yourself, there is no need to be antsy. We are here to meditate, to center ourselves and calm our nerves." Ronin spoke gently. Kain frowned slightly but did as he was told, taking a deep breath and closing his eyes. The silence only dragged on for a few moments before Kain groaned, causing Ronin to wince.
"Alright, something is clearly bothering you. Speak." Ronin ordered simply. Kain stood up and paced back and forth for a moment.
"I've waited to become a hunter for most of my life. And all you've done is show me things I already know. Why don't we go on a hunt and let me show you what I can do." Kain complained. Ronin sent a small glare before sighing.
"Fine. If you wish to prove yourself. Grab your armor and weapon, then meet me at the gate with your Palamute." Ronin ordered. Kain smiled before bowing slightly and running out the door. Ronin rose slowly and cracked his back before grabbing his longsword and putting on his master rank Rathalos armor. He placed the helmet on a hook on his belt before hefting the large longsword onto his back and leaving the house.
As he left his house the bustling sounds of Kamura graced his ears, bringing a small smile to his face. He looked right and spotted Hinoa sitting with Yamogi whilst they both ate dango. Hinoa caught him looking and waved the hunter over. Ronin made his way to the wyverian with a smile. Yamogi's face lit up before she quickly hugged Ronin and left the two adults.
"Yamogi, I'd like some of the spicy dango you made last night!" he shouted. The girl smiled and saluted before running off to the kitchen. Ronin heard a giggle behind him and saw the joyful wyverian smiling at him. He smiled back before sitting on the bench next to her. Hinoa rested her head on Ronin's shoulder, barely avoiding the spikes, and let out a comfortable sigh.
"What's on your mind?" Ronin asked. Hinoa said nothing but hummed lightly. Ronin rolled his eyes with a smile and sat with Hinoa in silence for a few moments.
"Are you leaving?" she asked suddenly. Ronin nodded.
"Kain is being difficult, said we needed to go on a hunt." he informed her. She giggled slightly.
"Sounds familiar." she joked. Ronin chuckled quietly. Hinoa quickly got off Ronin's shoulder as Yamogi pranced up to the two with two sticks of dango.
"Your spicy dango," Yamogi said cheerfully, "and some more for you Hinoa." Hinoa and Ronin thanked the young girl before digging into their respective dango. Kain walked up to the two just as they finished their food.
"You ate without me?"
"Your hunt, you go tell Yamogi what you want." Ronin said simply while chewing his last bite of dango. Once again Kain groaned and left the two. Hinoa laughed quietly, causing Ronin to frown slightly at her.
"What's so funny?" he asked. Hinoa looked at the hunter.
"You were just like Kain when you were growing up." she teased. Ronin held back an embarrassed blush before chuckling himself. The two sat in silence once again. Ronin placed his arm around her shoulder, causing her to croon and lay her head on his shoulder once again.
"I want you to set an expedition for Kain and I." Ronin told the quest maiden. Hinoa nodded before grabbing her ledger and writing down his request.
"Where to?" she asked. Ronin rubbed his bear for a moment.
"The Shrine Ruins, it should be a good place to start for him." Ronin answered. Kain arrived soon after with a pleased smile on his face.
"Man, that was good. Alright, me and Rex are ready to go." Kain stated with a wide smile and a thumbs up. Ronin gestured to the gate before standing up and whistling into the air. A happy bark was heard, followed by a purple and white striped palamute wearing Rathalos armor. The palamute ran up to Ronin with a goofy dog smile, causing Ronin to smile back and scratch his neck.
"Good boy Nero." he said before pointing at his student. Nero barked and ran to the two at the gate. Ronin smiled at Hinoa and placed his head against hers.
"When I get back, I would like to tell you something." he whispered before walking towards the group forming at the gate. Hinoa nodded and waved at them as the two hunters rode off on their palamutes.
It was sundown when the two hunters arrived at the Shrine Ruins. Kain hopped of his palamute and began making his way to the camp, only to stop when Ronin grabbed him by his cape. He turned to complain but saw Ronin holding a finger to his lips. Kain nodded quietly and crouched down as Ronin slowly walked towards the waterfall just north of the camp. The two hunters watched the sun set over the expansive forest. A calm serenity came over the two as day turned to night. Kain stood up but was pulled back down, much to his irritation.
"Why are we being quiet?" Kain asked. Ronin turned his head slightly before pointing at his ears. Kain gave his master a confused look, which irritated Ronin.
"Listen." he whispered. Kain nodded in understanding and sat quietly. At the edge of the waterfall. Through the sound of crashing water, he could hear the distinct roars and barks of a Bishaten. Ronin pointed to the field on the shores of the nearby river revealing said monster, but something was wrong. Black smoke seemed to radiate off it.
"What's wrong with it?" Kain asked. Ronin didn't answer, instead pointing out two other monsters following the wounded fanged beast. They were small, black, and wolf-like with skull like faceplates. Ronin frowned as he placed the Rath helmet on his head.
"Follow, stay quiet." Ronin ordered quietly as he lept off the edge of the cliff with Kain following soon after. The sound of rushing water covered the splash the two hunters made when they dove under the water. Making their way to shore, they noticed tracks all along the shoreline that didn't match anything they would usually encounter. As the two crept up to the wounded monster three more of the black ones arrived, as well as a larger version with spikes and red markings. Ronis slowly drew his longsword before looking at his student.
"I'll handle the larger one. Be careful we have no idea what these monsters are capable of. Attack once the flash bomb goes off." Ronin ordered. Kain nodded and snuck behind a rock only a few yards from the monsters. Ronin climbed to the top of the pillar and threw the flash bomb, letting out a shout. The larger monster looked up to the source of the shout, only to be blinded by the bomb. It let out a cry of pain as Kain and Ronin began their assault.
Kain brought his great sword up over his head and slammed it down onto one of the blinded monsters, cleaving it in two. Two of the monsters had regained their sight and growled at the newcomer as Kain killed another with a wide slash. One leapt at the hunter only to be intercepted by Rex. The dog grabbed the monster by the throat with his iron jaws and kicked it away, leaving two more of the smaller monsters. One leapt at Kain and bit down on his shoulder pauldron. Kain grimaced and grabbed the beast by the scruff of its neck and threw it away from him and into a nearby rock. Rex and the last monster were circling each other growling. The two charged each other, Rex got a slice against the monster's leg before he was grabbed by the neck and tossed away. Kain let out an angered roar and tackled the monster to the ground. The monster looked up in time for Kain's boot to smash through its head. Kain quickly ran to his palamute to assess the damage done.
"You okay boy?" he asked. The dog let out a soft whimper before getting up and barking happily. Kain smiled and hugged the dog before remembering his master. He turned quickly and was awestruck by what he saw. The monster and Ronin were exchanging blows like a pair of experienced fighters. Ronin would slash down, to which the monster would parry with its claws. The monster would send a jab with its clawed hands, which Ronin would riposte jabbing out with his own sword and piercing the beast's chest. The monster let out a roar and let out a flurry of swipes and slashes at Ronin, who blocked and parried, leaving an opening which he quickly took advantage of. In one rounded slash, Ronin severed the monster's arms at the elbow. It roared in agony before Ronin quickly beheaded the monster. Ronin slowly sheathed his blade and turned to his student.
"Are you hurt?" he asked.
"No, I was about to ask you the same thing." Kain said. Ronin bowed slightly in thanks before turning to the kill, which was slowly disintegrating. His brow furrowed as he turned to the monster's Kain had slain. They too were disintegrating.
"Odd." he murmured before gesturing to his student. Kain quickly walked to his master as they made their way to the Bishaten corpse. The black mist was gone, and replaced with black fur around its paws, tail, and neck. One of the eyes was now glowing a bright red just like the wolves they fought, though the Bishaten was dead.
"Master?" Kain asked as he looked down at the monster. Ronin looked at his student and saw what he was seeing. Black liquid was pooling beneath the monster. Ronin pulled a phial out of his pouch and knelt to the puddle, but his student caught his eye. Kain was reaching for the puddle. Ronin reached for his student, but the puddle came to life and grabbed Kain's hand and began pulling him in.
"Master! Ronin help!" Kain yelled fearfully as Ronin grabbed his other arm. Ronin pulled with all his might but found himself being slowly dragged with his student. The black liquid crawled up Kain's arm and wrapped around his shoulder, grabbing onto Ronin's own arm. Before they could react, the two hunters were pulled into the puddle. Nero and Rex began pacing around sniffing the ground, looking for any sign of their owner. But none was left, all that remained were two panicked palamutes whimpering into the night sky.