Chapter 2 - Erkenntnis:

Author's Note:

I'm so happy that so many of you were excited about the last chapter. I'm also very happy that the long wait for the sequel to Weltschmerz didn't cause anyone (or at least too many people) to abandon hope. I know that posting seems a bit slow, especially when compared with how quickly Weltschmerz updated, but I have early classes every day, and that makes it difficult to find time at night to write when I'd rather be sleeping. Ah… I remember the days when I had no reason not to stay up until four in the morning, just writing stories…

On another note, despite not actually having Monster Hunter World, it looks great. Amazing, even. Unlike a lot of people, I don't care at all about spoilers (especially since I won't be able to get the game for another half a year), so I've been watching walkthroughs and let's plays so I can prepare myself for when I finally get the game. And so I'm not kept out of the loop.

Anyways, I can chat all day about MH World (or any Monster Hunter game, for that matter… I have sunk almost two thousand hours into the series as a whole), but I doubt many of you came to this story to hear me yammer on about a game I don't have yet. But, if for some reason my thoughts do interest you, drop me a PM, or ask in a review or whatever and I'll PM you, and we can chat until the sun sets. And with all that being said, we can actually get to the story! Please, enjoy!

XXX

Erkenntnis: A type of realization or discovery

Zim's eyes snapped open as he sat up quickly, entering the apex state out of reflex. Black mist surrounded his body, his eyes going blood red as he glanced around the area, scanning the clearing for threats. However, all he saw was Shiro and a campfire that she was holding her hands over.

"You're awake," the white-haired woman noted as she spotted the hybrid glaring at her. She didn't particularly care that he wasn't happy with her at the moment. Though the scientist in her was very curious as to what had happened to him.

"Awake… I was dreaming," Zim growled, though mostly to himself. He let the black mist fade as he deactivated the apex state. He pushed himself off the ground and stretched. He had not fallen in a particularly comfortable position.

"Dreaming? About what?" Shiro asked, instantly intrigued. She took a step back from the fire and plopped down onto the ground, crossing one leg over the other.

"It's… it's not important," he sighed, shaking his head as he made his way closer to the fire, before sitting down across from Shiro. "Because what is important is whatever the hell you injected me with. And why you injected it into me!"

"I was experimenting," she shrugged, as if it was no big deal. "And besides, you said that you wanted to learn how to control electricity under any circumstance… and that means being subjected to experiments. As that's the only way we'll be able to unlock this power within you."

He let out a low sigh, bringing his hands up to his head to rub his temples. Technically, he had promised he would be her lab rat… after they had caught or killed the old guildmaster. Sometimes it felt like she was using him as a lab rat despite them having zero success in their mission.

"Anyways… if you're not going to talk about your dream, and if you're not going to yell at me for injecting you with something that could've easily killed you-"

"Hold on, what?" Zim asked, renewing his glare at Shiro. He was unaware that he could've been killed.

"Then we should be heading back to Bherna," the white-haired woman finished, ignoring her son's concerns. She pushed herself off the ground and stretched, cracking a few century-year old joints as she did.

"I suppose so…" Zim grumbled, realizing that she was never going to bring it up again. She was so difficult to deal with sometimes. But nevertheless, he helped her kick dirt over their fire, before leading the way back to Bherna.

XXX

Bherna was one of the first cities the Harmony Guild managed to gain control over, besides Dundorma itself. Bherna was relatively unknown among the hunters of the Hunter's Guild, and Malakai was the only hunter permanently posted there. He had spent months gaining goodwill from the people and Wyverians who lived there, so much so that when it came time to take Bherna from the Hunter's Guild, there wasn't a single battle.

The Wycademy was a different beast, however. Despite Dr. Steele being the headmistress, many of the older students had trained and studied their whole lives to become hunters. They resisted the change in curriculum, and they quickly learned of what was going on outside the Wycademy's walls. They were too far gone for anyone to save, and Dr. Steele was forced to expel all of them.

They revolted, of course, but their little revolution didn't get very far. What little remained of the Knights of the Wolf and what strength Dr. Steele herself had put the revolt down and forced them to abandon Bherna. They ran away with their tails between their legs, hoping, praying to find the secret hideout of the Hunter's Guild so they could help bolster their forces. Dr. Steele had doubted many would be able to make it, as they weren't quite full-fledged hunters yet, and most would probably have been picked off by monsters along the way.

Once the Wycademy was completely under Dr. Steele's control, and the Harmony Guild's as well through her, a new curriculum was put in place. The younger students knew very little of the outside world, and those that did actually notice the change in subjects didn't voice their complaints. It was indoctrination, but it was no different than what the Hunter's Guild had been doing.

Now all that was left to do was deny the Hunter's Guild any territory to hunt out here. The Jurassic Frontier was home to many different monster species, both old and new. It was the reason Bherna was even founded, it was a home base to not just hunt monsters, but to research them as well.

Destroying the Hunter's Guild wasn't just about taking their cities, slaughtering their hunters, or even just killing the Guildmaster. It was about denying them places to hunt. Already they've lost many hunting grounds, including a huge section of the Jurassic Frontier. But all that's managed to accomplish was pushing them out of the mapped out hunting zones and deeper into the frontier.

Which was why Zim and his mother were here in the first place. If the Hunter's Guild was using the Jurassic Frontier as their hunting grounds, then there was a chance that they were hiding somewhere deep in the frontier. And Zim was there to root them out. Or at the very least, restrict their hunting grounds even further.

Zim made his way into the main square of the small town of Bherna, Shiro right behind him. The moment they entered the town, a hush fell over the usually chatty townsfolk. They were wary of him and his mother, they could tell something was wrong with them. As if they could sense the power hidden beneath their skin and the danger they could pose.

"You're back," a female's voice split the silence, drawing the two former hunters over to a woman with pinkish-red eyes and dark brown hair, wearing an unknown gunner set of armor. A bow was slung around her back and she carried a quiver by her waist, where her hands were currently sitting. A pure black Palico leaned against her legs, waving at Zim as he walked towards them.

"Indeed," Zim replied, walking past the female and the Palico, heading straight towards a small house. He had a stern frown on his face and a slight bite to his tone, but other than that, it was nearly impossible to tell he was annoyed.

"Uh… no luck then, I suppose?" the female asked as she followed Zim into the small house. She managed to shut the door in time to lock out both the Palico and Shiro. The two exchanged glances, Shiro rolling her eyes as she did, before they went their separate ways.

"No luck," Zim echoed as he sat down on a bed, leaning back against the back wall as he did. He shut his eyes and let out a tired sigh. "I'm not sure if I'm capable of the lightning, Ruby."

The woman designated Ruby took off her bow and quiver and set it off to the side, before leaning against a wall. "Well, as disappointing as that may be… I do have to ask," she said carefully. "Do you really need the lightning?"

The hybrid's eyes snapped open to glare at her. "What kind of Rajang would I be if I couldn't summon the lightning?" he growled.

"You're not a Rajang, Zim," Ruby's eyes narrowed as she crossed her arms. "You're not even half Rajang, if I'm forced to be your voice of reason. Maybe it's time to face the fact that you might not be able to use lightning… and you're plenty scary enough without it."

"This isn't about fear!" he snarled as he leapt off the bed and made his way over to her. They were practically the same height. "And even if I was only one percent Rajang I should be able to use their lightning! I… I just don't know their secret yet."

"Their secret?" she asked, resisting the urge to get angry. Though she could feel the frenzy within her screaming at her to lose control… she would not let it win. "What does that even mean?"

"I don't know… not yet at least," he shook his head, calming down as well. "Shiro explained to me Rajang anatomy… to some degree. The point is, Rajang gather their lightning through some external means… they don't make it inside of them."

"That's nice, but you still don't know how they do it… or whether or not you can do it too," she rolled her eyes as he made his way back over to the bed. "Once again I raise the question of why you need the lightning."

"When we find the guildmaster, I'm going to fry him before he ever gets a chance to escape," Zim replied, sitting back down on the bed, and leaning against the wall. "I won't give him a second to move or react… I'm just going to fry him."

"As noble a cause as that might be… the guildmaster is already backed up against a corner. He had nowhere to run," Ruby reminded him. "Besides, killing him from a distance with a Rajang's lightning beam seem rather cheap. If I were in your position, I'd rather kill him with my bare hands…"

"Yes, yes, I know you would," he chuckled, finally letting a smirk play across his face as she clenched her hand into a fist as if she was smashing a skull in her palm. "And while I agree it would be rather cathartic, I'd like to remain cautious. I don't know what kind of tricks the guildmaster has up his sleeve."

"Hiding seems to be the only thing he's good at," she rolled her eyes. "If he was any good of a fighter, he would've faced us head-on. But no, he ran and he hid… and even if he manages to escape when we find him, he'll only run and hide once more."

"That being said, it's a game of cat and mouse that I'd really rather not play," he shook his head. "And the sooner this is over, the better… no matter how much I would enjoy smashing his skull with my bare hands."

"Fine, fine… when you're right, you're right," Ruby chuckled, rolling her eyes again. "But there's no guarantee that you'll even figure out the Rajangs' 'secret' before we find him."

"True, though I doubt the guildmaster would let his hunters hunt so close to his hideout… this is probably all just a diversion," Zim sighed.

"Then what's your next move?" she asked.

He paused for a moment, remembering the dream he had less than an hour ago. "I think trying to come up with the solution on my own isn't going to work. Not even Shiro knows the answer to the Rajang's secret," he frowned. "I think my only option is to actually make contact with a Rajang."

"… What?" she asked, cocking her head.

"I've been trying to figure this out with humans helping me, when really… I need a Rajang's insight," he repeated, another small smirk spreading across his face.

"Oh, okay… why not just tear your own head off, then?" Ruby asked, sarcasm strewn throughout her tone. "Rajangs are dangerous!"

"So am I," Zim chuckled. "And I'm part Rajang… if anyone can make contact with one, it's me."

"Rajangs are violent even towards their own kind… they're elder dragon level monsters!" she exclaimed.

"And I've tangled with plenty of real elder dragons, I can handle one or two Rajang," he smirked.

She glared at him for a moment, before letting out an exasperated sigh. "If anyone can deal with Rajangs, I suppose it would be you…" she admitted a moment later.

"And I've got the Apex state to fall back on," he reminded her. "I'm pretty much indestructible."

"I guess that means you never want anyone to worry about you again?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. All she got in response was a soft chuckle, to which she snorted. "And I'm guessing there's no chance you'll let me go on this… mission of yours with you?"

"Absolutely no chance," Zim shook his head as he stood from the bed again, his mind made up.

"As fair as that might be… you should at least take Shiro with you…" Ruby suggested, rubbing her temples. "She's nearly as indestructible as you are…"

"I'll consider it," Zim rolled his eyes, clearly not happy about Ruby's suggestion. Why she would ever suggest such a thing was beyond him… he was under the impression that she hated Shiro as much as he did. "But I'm not leaving immediately. We still have a mission here, and I plan on seeing that through."

"Speaking of our mission…" Ruby trailed off as she seemed to remember something she should've brought up earlier. "Blast found a few slaughtered Larinoths during his patrol after you left. He said they looked suspicious."

"Suspicious?" the hybrid asked, raising an eyebrow. "Suspicious how."

"He said that they were killed in such a way that he was supposed to believe that a monster had killed them," she explained. "But the cuts on the Larinoths' body are far too clean to be done by claws or teeth."

"Have you seen the bodies yet?"

"No… Blast wanted to wait for you and Shiro before showing the bodies."

"Really? Well… Shiro and I are back now… let's regroup and see these bodies for ourselves," Zim growled as he made his way out of the house, wishing that Ruby had brought this up sooner.

Ruby grabbed her bow and quiver on her way out, racing after the hybrid as he headed straight towards a pure black Palico lounging in the center of the town. Shiro was standing near the gate of the town, chatting with a different Palico who was watching over an air balloon of some sort.

"Blast, Shiro!" Zim called out, his voice echoing through the small town. The pure black Palico and the white-haired woman turned to look at him. Blast couldn't help the excited expression on his face while Shiro raised an eyebrow. She had no idea what was going on. "We're moving out!" the hybrid commanded, gesturing towards the gate leading down into the Frontier.

XXX

Yeah, I know, a really short chapter for how long I made you all wait. Ugh, like I said, working on this story is going to be rather difficult in the upcoming weeks… and it's looking like I'll be busy most of the summer too. No rest for the wicked I suppose…

Anyways, despite how short the chapter is, it sets up a few rather important things. Hopefully you can see what those things are without me having to point them out. In any case, next chapter should be longer, I hope… and I hope it doesn't take quite as long to finish either. Stay tuned until next time to find out what happens when the group heads out into the frontier!