Chapter 3: Initiation
We clashed forearms. That was the standard monster hunter greeting, or so I was told by Asch. It had been eight years since that life-changing night.
"I'm heading to my father's post," I told him, gesturing for the sword to be put away. He did so and then crossed his arms, nodding.
"I wish to accompany you," He said with a strange pride in his voice. I tilted my head, looking strangely at him, then nodded. Everyone was silent. Then, Eamon broke the silence.
"Today's the day, isn't it?" He exclaimed, looking at me then Asch. Asch nodded then looked at me. I blinked then looked at the ground, my eyes half closed. I raised my arm so it was perpendicular to my body, half way up my body, and clenched my fist.
"The day I become a monster hunter, huh…" I said to myself, looking at my fist, "I never thought the day would come." And with that, I began walking away towards the center of the village. Asch followed. The walk was mostly silent between the two of us. The only sound being the village's locals, working. And there were also some kids that were running around. We passed multiple houses that were made of a variety of materials. Some were made of wood, some were made of sand and mud, and some were actually nicely built with clay brick. I always loved this village for its variety.
We arrived in the middle square of the city where all of the merchandising occurred. There were many, many people from all over the region. It was strange. Though this village is pretty much smack dab in the middle of nowhere, it has a great reputation for desert trade. Blimps flew in and out daily. Including the Argosy airship, which Asch favoured due to the fact he was a hunter. He would always buy me things to experiment with.
My father was at his booth, or what we call a kiosk. But it was attached to a 'building' within the square. He was what you'd call a banker. He, along with a select few, managed money. To think his job would be dangerous, but it wasn't. This village is a peaceful village where everyone knows and loves each other. The only threat is the outsiders, but they themselves know this village's rep and don't screw around with it.
Beside my father was a woman that I had a HUGE crush on when I was a child. It was funny. She was our guild representative, and Asch knew her very well (not like THAT.) She wore red guild robes along with a red hat. It was her uniform. My father saw us and waved. We walked to him. Asch leaned against the booth.
"So, today's the day, ain't it?" said my father, slowly leaning onto the top of his 'desk' which was the top of the booth exchange. Asch nodded, "Your son's reached the age. It's time." He turned to the girl beside my father. She looked at me, and giggled softly. God, was she cute.
"How are we gonna do this?" Asch asked, leaning towards her now. She nodded then lowered out of sight, then she came back into sight with a few papers.
"Take these home and read over them carefully," She advised, "then sign your name on the final page." She pointed at the line. The one line that was again going to be another life-changing point. I looked at it for a minute, processing these thoughts. Then, I nodded and took the papers, smiling back at her. Asch tsked, then waved goodbye to my father, "He is coming with me to my home."
My father nodded, then placed his hand on my shoulder, "Good luck, m'boy," he said, with a newfound pride. I smiled, my eyes closed, then walked along with Asch to his home.
We arrived at his home. It was a very familiar place to me, considering I've visited almost every day of my life since I was 8. His home wasn't special or anything. It was as common as everyone else's, except he had a red drape as a cover for the doorway. He told me that in Loc Lac, he has a big, white home that was fitting for that of a prince. I found it very hard to believe and thought he was joking.
And now I bet you're wondering: What is this Loc Lac place? Loc Lac City is a city of merchandising and most importantly, hunter meetings. Monster hunting, that's what the city was purely about. It's based on another oasis in the Great Desert, far away from my home. My home village is situated closer to an area called the Sandy Plains, which is an approved hunting ground.
Loc Lac is where all new hunters go to become full monster hunter elites. In the past, it was home to every official monster hunter under the Guild. However, due to something called the Hunter Revolt, hunters were given permission to stay in their assigned villages and call them home.
The city operates 24/7. Many hunters from all over the world go there for days on end and increase their standings. It's practically like a game. A monster hunter's dream.
Asch gestured for me to sit at his round table, which was only about 4 feet in diameter. He was still in his Rathalos Armour. Or shall I specify, Rathalos+ Armour. That will be explained later on. I sat down and leaned back in my chair. He sat down with a drink of ale, giving me a mug and pouring some into it. I took a sip then swallowed. He then began to talk.
"You know, 8 years goes by quite fast," He explained, looking at the table's center. He then looked up at me, and stared me in the eyes for about a full minute. He nodded, "You're ready. Now what I'm about to say is going to be long. But, I'm sure you don't mind listening to my lectures. You do enjoy them after all, don't you?" I nodded, paying my full attention. He grinned underneath his Rathalos+ helmet.
"After you sign that slip that the guild representative gave to you, you will be sent to Loc Lac the following day. You'd depart via my ship and will arrive in about ten hours time." He stood up and pointed at an area labelled Loc Lac on his giant world map on his wall. It was old-fashioned and on parchment.
"There, you will be given your hut and get your night's rest. The next day, you'll meet the Guildmaster and he will appoint you as an official monster hunter… but only after his test."
"His test?" I questioned, staring at the label of their village on the map. It was a great distance, with Loc Lac at the center of the map.
"Yes," Asch responded, "however, I cannot help you or give you any hints. It's a lone quest, and is different for every hunter." He began to walk towards his closet that was to the left of me.
"I'm sorry, Dariue, but that's all I can really tell you. The Guildmaster will want to tell you the rest. In the meantime…" He opened up the closet. It was very familiar to me. It was Asch's special storage closet after all. "Sign that page where required! Use my quill…" He yelled out with a muffled voice. I nodded and looked back at the page, grabbing the quill and dipping it in the ink. I read the writing:
'I, _, agree to pledge allegiance to the eternal Loc Lac and forever hold loyalty to the Guildmaster and his colleagues. My duty, as an official Loc Lac Hunter, is to fulfill any given urgent quests, and will do whatever I can in my ability to complete all requirements of them. My signature signifies the bond between all inhabitants of the country of Loc Lac and I. Signature: _'
I chuckled lightly and then, without hesitation, signed my name in Wyverian. Dariue Godrick. I sighed lightly and happily and held up the page. "I've signed."
"Good. Then this will be of use," Asch said, with the sound of chains crackling. They were slightly less dense than the chains of Asch's armour. This made me turn around almost immediately. I gasped and looked in awe. Asch was holding a full chainmail suit of armour.
"I'm sure you know what kind of armour this is? If not, then you've already failed me." He laughed, knowing I would never do so, "Whatcha think? Made it especially for you a couple weeks back. It's come fully equipped with Aquavian dust good enough to boost your energy the moment you put it on."
Aquavian dust. These were 'decorations' that you put into your armour to increase certain physical and mental abilities. I never experienced it before. I knew about Aquavian dust for sure. Asch always bragged about the strength and heat resistance that his Rathalos+ armour had. Yet I always made fun of Asch due to the fact that along with the dust, he had lowered defense. This was caused by an internal conflict with the dust and their accompaniments. Aquavian Dust consisted mainly of two things: Aquaglow Jewels or Aquaglow Dust, and a certain commodity or material.
I grinned and stood up to feel the chainmail. I was absolutely mesmerized by the feeling. It seemed really thick and heavy to put on, just by the feeling of it. I took hold of it and confirmed that it really was heavy. The name was misleading though; the armour was made of iron and had a hard, flat plate for a mail. Asch said it was more of a vest. The headgear looked very cool, and so did the gloves.
"Wanna try it on?" Asch asked me, his arms crossed, looking at me with pride. I immediately looked at him and nodded quickly. "Yes!"
"Okay then. Here's a muscle undershirt, and some hunter briefs. Don't worry, they're not used." He laughed, and then handed me the new clothing. I walked into the other room of his home to put them on. This room had a little bit of a different hemisphere. He had a window high up the far wall, and his walls were laced with shelves of random objects. There were whetstones, kelbi horns, blue mushrooms, and many other things. I gave a little 'hm' in acknowledgement. Then, I began to put on the undergarments. Hunters require a suitor to put the armour on for them, so I returned to the room Asch was in with my new hunting clothes on.
"You are going to be wearing these a lot. Take them off and wash them frequently. Make note of that, or else it'll get quite gross." He took my armour and placed it beside us on a table. "Are you ready?" I nodded without any hesitation. We're crossing the threshold, no turning back now.
He nodded as well then started by placing the Chainmail Belt on me. It wrapped around very tight, but I still felt comfortable. I put on the Chainmail Pants myself. He then put the Chainmail leggings on me. Luckily, I have been trained to be slightly stronger than normal, so the armour was manageable. He looked up at me after fastening the leggings on, "How do they feel?" I moved my legs for a few seconds, attempted shaking them out and such to get a feel for the armour. I nodded and said that they were great. He smiled then placed the Chainmail gloves on me. There were a few layers of each armour piece, and he finished each by snapping them into place. I felt really powerful and protected by these.
He placed the iron plate on me. Both my back and front sides were covered. He also put a strange shoulder piece on my left shoulder that had a little edge pointing upward. I then looked at the headgear. Asch grinned, then grabbed it from the table beside us, holding it in his hands.
"I've been waiting for this day for 8 years, bud," He chuckled lightly to himself, then slowly placed it on my head. It was a shiny helmet that covered the sides of my jaw. It also had a long piece of iron that went down my nose slightly. The inside of the helmet was all soft, and it also had a rather familiar slot in the inside, at the back. That slot was to be used for the Decorations I spoke of earlier. However, it already had a decoration in the slot. Think of decorations as sort of like transparent orbs with energy in the form of dust swirling inside it. The dust was orange and gave off an ominous glow.
Asch placed it fully on my head, and told me to lock it the same way Asch unlocks and locks his helmets. I locked it successfully and grinned, hyped up. I was finally wearing my own personal set of armour!
"Now the REAL reward is when you make armour from the monsters that you kill yourself. Then you'll feel even better." Asch exclaimed, placing his hand on my shoulder piece, looking down at me. "Now, I have one thing for you. Ya gotta guess what it is though." He quickly moved back to the closet and I said, "Um, more decorations?"
"Nope."
"Trap tools?"
"Nuh-uh!" Asch made a sound of struggling as I heard jiggling of metals and such in the closet, and then I heard something drop and he cursed out loud. I couldn't help but laugh a bit to myself. He laughed out from the closet.
"Is it a sword?" I asked, as the jiggling suddenly stopped. It was quiet for a quick second, for what seemed to be forever, then he broke the silence: "Almost." He then walked out of the closet. My eyes widened.
What Asch had in his hands was a Great Sword. It was made of Ludroth sponge and a strong blade. "Normally a hunter would be given a Sword and Shield for a beginning weapon, but after seeing you practise with the wooden Great Sword I made for you… I think it's truly the weapon for you."
I slowly walked to him and hesitantly attempted to touch it. He chuckled, "You can touch it, you know. It IS yours. If you hadn't noticed, there's a ring buckle to be used as a sash on your back." I quickly felt the back of my armour. On the upper-right side of my back was a buckle that was made for storing weaponry. I then placed my hand on the Great Sword.
"It's the Ludroth Bone Sword. Pretty basic, but it works. You obviously know that." Asch forwarded it to me. I took it from his hands and held it, embracing the weight.
"Come take a look in the mirror!" He walked me towards his mirror in the back, and I looked at myself for a very long time. I placed the great sword in my sash and then wielded it. I looked so… powerful. Yet, I knew that this was only the beginning; the beginning of a dreadful experience. An experience of TWO lives.