G-Rank

Disclaimer: Monster Hunter is copyright Capcom. Most of the characters in this story are mine. Noxramus belongs to Noxramus the Almighty

Edited by: Hoenn Master96

This one-shot is CANON with The Lost Civilization

Eleven Years Since the Fall of the Alatreon

"Hey! Hey, big brother! Hey Crezzy!" Crezant sighed wearily at the prodding voice and the nickname, looking up from his paperwork to see two pairs of big eyes staring at him intently over the edge of the desk, belonging to two rambunctious girls.

The girl on the left, hovering a couple of heads taller than the other, was none other than his younger sister, Sami. She had shining blue eyes, and bright blonde hair covered her head, trailing down to the middle of her back, though it was tousled by her constant playing and running around. She was twelve years old now; Crezant found it hard to believe it had already been well over a decade since the girl had been born. Her face was split in a wide, devious grin as she stared at her brother, and Crezant frowned; he knew that look, and it rarely meant things were going to made easier for him in the near future.

The other girl was Sonia, half Sami's age at six, a small girl even for her age. She was less accustomed to the cold as Sami, and was wearing a thick Popo fur coat and mittens. Her vibrant green eyes and fluffy tuft of short brown hair seemed to match her boundless energy and enthusiasm, however. She had made fast friends with Sami in the last week since they'd met, despite the age difference, though it could be because she seemed to be one of the few girls could manage to keep up with his sister. The two had certainly done their level best to be constantly running around the family business complex, playing their games as they darted around in search of other things to keep them amused.

But that begged the question as to why the pair of them were here. In his office. Far from anything remotely resembling their definition of fun.

"What do you want, Sami?" he asked wearily.

"Can we play in your study?" Sami replied quickly, grinning vibrantly and glancing towards a side room connected to the Crezant's office.

Crezant sighed at the question. "Why would you want to play in there? I thought you and Sonia were playing in the empty warehouse."

"That nasty old coot Brooks kicked us out," Sami huffed, puffing her cheeks and crossing her arms. Crezant hummed at the words; Brooks was one of the oldest employees of the company, and was not nearly so accepting of Sami darting around the complex as the others working for him were. "He said we'd break something, but there's nothing in there to break!"

"Were you playing 'Hunters'?" Crezant asked, though he knew the answer. The two girls were trying their best to keep a couple toy swords behind their backs, but weren't keeping them hidden very well. "You have a reputation of roughhousing while you're playing, Sami," Crezant chided. "You could have broken a window, or damaged the building itself."

"Nuh-uh!" Sami retorted. "We were just playing! We wouldn't have broken anything! It's not like we could break a whole warehouse, Crezzy!"

"Oh, really?" Crezant replied, the ghost of a smile flickering at the edge of his mouth. "As I recall, you said something similar a few months ago, and the next thing we knew, one of the exterior sheds had collapsed in on itself. I'd like to avoid that happening to any of our warehouses, even if they are empty."

Now Sami was fidgeting where she stood, an embarrassed and slightly guilty look on her face. Sonia was looking at her in questioning wonder. "It was a really old shed…" Crezant leaned back it his chair, tapping his fingers together and hiding his amusement. The shed really had been old, erected even before Crezant had been born as far as he knew. But it was still a mystery how Sami had managed to so spectacularly destroy the structure, considering her age. It was little wonder Brooks made an effort to keep her away from the complex whenever he could.

But Sami snapped back quickly. "So can we play in your study? If we can't play in the rest of the warehouses, can we play here? Otherwise we'll have to leave the complex, and Sonia wants to wait here."

"I'm very busy, Sami…" Crezant began, but his sister cut him off.

"We'll be quiet! Promise! You, uh, you have some monster books from the Guild, right? I can read them to Sonia. She likes those kinds of things, right Sonia?" The younger girl next to her nodded fervently.

Crezant sighed, glaring irately at the two girls, only to be met by two sets of puppy-dog eyes, pleading for permission. Such things didn't work on Crezant… usually. But with Brooks on their case right now, Sami was right in assuming they wouldn't be able to keep playing in the warehouses and yards as they had been…

"Fine," Crezant muttered sourly, and the two girls giggled happily. But he pointed a finger at them stern. "Keep quiet though. I have work to do, and the last thing I need is to be distracted by you two. Understand?"

"Perfectly!" Sami said excitedly, grabbing hold of Sonia's hand and darting towards the side room. Already, the toy swords they had were out, clearly showing what they planned to do once they were out of sight of Crezant. Crezant sighed as the noise of play began to echo back into his office. They were being quieter than he'd suspected they'd be… he supposed that was better than nothing. He supposed this was just a part of what he could expect from his sister, considering the far more lax upbringing she'd received, courtesy of Crezant's father, Noi.

His father had said once, right after Sami had been born, he would one day return to his former self: the harsh, coldly-calculating businessman he had been during Crezant's own childhood, the man who had taught him everything he knew of business. However, it seemed the man he had once been had failed to reappear, and the Noi of old seemed gone from the world forever. Sami's presence in the house seemed to have produced a perpetual calming effect on the old businessman, and now few in Hearth were as kind and jovial as he.

There had been worry in Hearth over the condition of the family company, Rimestone, for a couple years after Sami's birth, but his father's business was going just as strong as it had been before Sami was born, and actually seemed to have been expanding a little in the last few years… though Crezant was almost certain it had nothing to do with the change in his father's attitude. After all, it was only a couple years after Sami had been born that Noi had retired from running the company, leaving it in Crezant's capable hands, to spend time with his wife, Mu, and his daughter, Sami. He had maintained an advisory role, of course, but for the most part left everything to Crezant. Crezant had taken it all in stride; he was competent in running Rimestone, and had kept everything moving along swimmingly since he'd taken over.

It had even improved further with the influx of Lost Hearth had taken in during the last decade. Those who came usually had one or two good ideas which could be used to improve the work of the company, and were welcome. And in the last couple years, Crezant had been spreading feelers into some of the Lost towns and cities in the south, in hopes of picking up more information. There had even been talk of signing a contract with the airship company which had sprouted up in Nastre, called Rising Dawn, in hopes of getting better transport for Hearth's goods than the Popo-drawn wagons they used now.

So, needless to say, even without Noi at the helm, and despite the old man's change in attitude, Rimestone was doing just fine.

Crezant wasn't sure how to personally feel about his father's change, however. Honestly, part of him was angry at the old man for changing so much, and part of him was pleased. On the one hand, Noi had been just as described, cold and calculating, when he was a child. It had made for a very… challenging childhood, being raised under such a man, who had judged his actions with harsh scrutiny. And now he was so kind and doting, just because Sami had been born, just like that? He knew it was childish of him, but it seemed so unfair!

But on the other hand, Crezant found his life had gotten far simpler, and far… happier since Sami had been born. The girl was loud and exuberant, and seemed to act almost entirely on simple emotions rather than any sort of reason or calculation; a near-perfect opposite of Crezant himself. The girl's attitude seemed to have rubbed off on Noi, and the old man had become far kinder towards Crezant ever since, and was far more apt to telling them how proud he was of Crezant's work. It was something Crezant just wasn't used to, and even after twelve years, it felt so strange to him.

And as for Sami herself, despite the clear difference in their personalities, the girl didn't seem to hesitate at all when showing her own affection for him. Crezant had to admit he was baffled; he knew he was an austere, sharp-tongued man, and yet the girl seemed drawn to him somehow, looking up to him as a brother despite his demeanor. Despite outward appearances and the stern hand he had when dealing with her, somehow or another, the two of them had ended up having quite the affectionate relationship. He did love her, and did his best to take care of her when she was under his charge, though he had to admit the work in raising her was exasperating.

His father and mother trusted him enough to take care of Sami, despite his work, so much so that they'd decided to take a short vacation with each other, to see how the world had changed since they were young. A 'second honeymoon' they'd called it, some Lost term Crezant didn't know the meaning of. And honestly, with the way his mother and father had been going on with each other the last few years, Crezant half-expected them to return with the news that he and Sami should be expecting another sibling…

A light rapping sounded at his office door, just barely audible over the shouts and scampering of the two girls in the next room. "Enter," he said simply, and the door opened, revealing one of his company's many employees.

"Apologies for the… interruption, sir," the woman said, her gaze glancing over towards the entry into the next room, where Sami and Sonia's playing could still be heard. "But we've received word from the town guard: it would seem the hunters have recently returned from their hunt, victorious. They should be arriving back at the complex in a few minutes."

A yelp and a clattering could be heard from the next room, and a moment later, Sonia appeared in the doorway, her eyes wide and excited. "Mommy and daddy are back?"

"So it would seem," Crezant replied, pushing himself to his feet. "Has the Guild been informed?"

"They have," the woman replied. "They're gathering up carts to go and collect the remains of the monsters now."

"Excellent," Crezant said with a nod. He looked over at Sonia as Sami appeared behind the younger girl. "Shall we go and greet them?" The vibrant smiles from both the little girls were answer enough.

The Rimestone compound had grown since Crezant had taken over, so it was a good five minutes or so of weaving through halls and across snow-covered paths before Crezant and the two girls reached the front entrance. But, soon enough, the three of them reached the entry hall. It was a broad, well-lit, and well-heated building which stood at the front of the complex. It also served as the family home, of course, so effort had been taken to make it feel comfortable and welcoming. But now it would serve as a waiting room, as Crezant and the two girls waited for the arrival of the hunters.

They weren't long waiting, and the sound of shouting coming from passerby could be heard coming from outside. It was a familiar noise to Crezant, usual for the people of Hearth to welcome back returning hunters. But there was an odd tone to it, one he was having trouble placing, despite his many years working with hunters… But the muffled sound of armored boots striding through the snow was getting closer to the entrance, and Sonia and Sami were growing more and more excited in their expectation. A blast of cold air seeped in from outside as the wide front doors of the building slid open, and the glaring light of the sun reflecting off the snow blinded Crezant for a moment. But not enough to see the two hunters he'd sent out to step into the building, sliding the door shut behind them. Crezant's eyes were forced to readjust to the interior lighting, but even so he was able to make out the shine of the two hunters' armors, one wearing bright Silver Rathalos armor, while the other wore brilliant Gold Rathian armor. Sonia yelped excitedly, darting towards her parents, Levin and Eleanor.

But before the girl could get to the pair, Crezant finally realized what was off about the whole situation. As his eyes readjusted to the dimmer light of the building, he realized the hunters' armor, while still impressive, was beaten and battered. Dents coated the silver and gold plating, and countless scrapes and scratches lined the scales along the hunters' arms and legs. And the hunters themselves looked just as worn; their faces showed clearly their fatigue and aching, and a large bandage was patched to Eleanor's left cheek. Sonia was still rushing towards them excitedly, and the gold-armored hunter stepped forward to greet her.

However, before Sonia could reach him, Levin's legs suddenly buckled under him. The hunter toppled to the ground with a loud crash, his armor clanging loudly against the wooden floor. His helmet came loose as well, the golden-scale armor falling from his head and clattering across the floor and ricocheting off one of the nearby chairs. Levin gasped in pain, coughing a couple times, but didn't try to push himself back to his feet.

Sonia yelped in horror, rushing to Levin's side and looking down at him despairingly. She nervously prodded at her father's cheek with her toy sword, before looking up fearfully at her mother. "Is daddy dead?" she asked, and Ellie chuckled slightly.

"I'm fine, I'm fine…" Levin groaned from the floor. "I'm not dead, sweetheart, just… tired. Let me lie down here for a little while."

Sonia cocked her head curiously at her father, before turning and skittering off down the hall. A few moments later, she reappeared from one of the side rooms, dragging a few large pillows under her arms. She knelt to next to Levin, poking at the gold-armored hunter's head. "I got you pillows, daddy."

Levin grunted painfully, pulling his head up, and Sonia shoved a couple of the soft Peco-down pillows under his head. "Thanks, sweetheart," he sighed wearily, earning a bright smile from his daughter. Ellie smiled at the pair gently, but only walked a few steps more before slumping down into a chair and releasing an immensely weary sigh.

"Tough battle?" Crezant asked, looking down at the hunters curiously. Ellie turned, giving Crezant a withering glare, and pointed a gauntleted finger at him.

"Never. Again. You understand? Hire someone else next time."

Crezant shook his head in confusion. "I'm afraid I don't understand what trouble you could have had. They were only a pair of Great Baggis… weren't they? Noxramus used to kill them for fun, not challenge. The Guild may have classified them for only six star or higher hunters to hunt, that new G-Rank classification, but I didn't think they would prove to be much of a challenge."

"They were Great Baggis, I'll grant you that much," Ellie sighed. "They hit hard too, about as much as I thought they would. But… sweet mercy, it was like they'd been doped up on speed or cocaine or something!"

"Speed? Cocaine? What are-"

"Never mind," Ellie replied quickly, waving her hand. "They just… moved so fast! They could've outrun Barioths at those speeds! Even when they were limping - limping! - they were still running at least three times faster than either of us could at a dead sprint! Mercy, I thought it would be good practice to bring my sword and shield instead of my bowgun, but if I hadn't, the damn things would be too fast for me to even shoot! I mean, I guess could have used Pellet rounds…"

"No," Levin grumbled emphatically from his place on the floor. Sonia was still next to him, struggling to help him pull off his armor. She'd managed to unfasten his gauntlets, as well as the greave and poleyn of his left leg. "No more Pellet shots. The last time you used those in a fight, you hit me as often as you hit the Rathian we were hunting… My armor deflected most of the buckshot, but I had to get stitches in by backside thanks to-"

"Levin!" Ellie snapped as Sonia and Sami giggled.

"I'm just saying! There are some wounds a hunter can get, where there is no way to weave it into a decent story. And there's no Hippocratic Oath in this world, so mercy knows the doctors and nurses have no reason to keep my less glamorous injuries a secret. Not every hunt ends with a flattering story to tell… Like the time we were going after that… what was it called, Great Wroggi? And you ended up falling face-first into that big pile of-"

"Shut up!" Ellie yelped quickly, her face blooming a vibrant red. Sonia giggled even more, as Crezant and Sami glanced at each other, both confused. "We don't need to tell that story any more than it already has been!"

"But it's such a great story! Always good for a laugh or two!"

"So are most of the ones you have involving Harker," Ellie replied, "but you don't tell those very often, now do you?"

"To be fair, that's because I'm legally bound to silence by the Guild," Levin muttered. "Well… for most of them, at least."

"Not for the fun stories."

"Yeah… but for the fun stories, I usually can't remember all the details… and that's not even an excuse! My memory gets kind of foggy when I try to remember what happened in some of them… One too many concussions, I think…"

Ellie smiled when Levin grunted in pain, as Sonia and Sami managed to unlatch the armor for the hunter's other arm. Both girls tumbled backwards as the golden armor pulled loose, clattering across the ground, and Sonia darted off after it. The girl tumbled a bit though, the thick Popo coat and pants throwing her off and tripping her to the ground, but she was back up in a flash, collecting the golden armor with a wide smile on her face.

"I don't think we can afford to do any more of these G-Rank hunts," Ellie muttered quietly to Crezant.

"What do you mean?" Crezant asked. "You're more prepared for such hunts than most other hunters. Few hunters can say they've taken part in an elder dragon hunt, much less managed to kill one. And your armor and weapons have been classified as G-Rank classification as well. Silver Rathalos and Gold Rathian armor… it is hard to find more sturdy armor in this country. And your weapons…"

Ellie nodded sullenly, reaching down and patting the hilt of her short sword. It was an ancient, refurbished blade, made of dark, blackish-green metal. The blade was a crooked sort of design, splitting into two separate edges which curved around a glowing orange gemstone, embedded right into the metal just above the pommel. The shield was made of similar materials, but the center had a wide, pale green stone of some kind, which glimmered and glowed softly with an eerie light. A gift from a friend, she'd said it was, a recovered and restored weapon from some ancient tower in the south. It made for a fierce-looking weapon, and between it and Levin's Deviljho switch axe, the pair of hunters had quite an imposing air about them.

And yet they'd both come back with wounds and damage. From Great Baggis, nonetheless… Perhaps this G-Rank the Guild had created had more danger behind it than Crezant had initially believed.

"Either way," Ellie said, shaking her head, "I don't think Levin and I will be doing any more of these G-Rank quests for you. I mean, if it's an emergency, maybe, or if it's helping out Kerry and Harker with their research, but…"

The huntress gave a poignant look in Levin's direction. Both Sonia and Sami were struggling to help Levin back to his feet, pulling on his arms while the hunter intentionally acted as dead weight, making them work for it and laughing at the girls' protests. Sonia skittered around behind her father and began shoving forcefully against his back, though it seemed to be doing little to help, and her feet slid wildly on the wood flooring. Though their daughter had managed to remove the armor covering Levin's legs and arms, his chest plates and faulds were still attached, and were weighing the switch axe user down almost as much as his own weight did.

"Sonia's only six years old…" Ellie said quietly, and Crezant began to catch the meaning behind her words. "A part of me would revel in the challenge of hunting down these G-Rank monsters, and savor the knowledge I'd managed to hunt and kill something few hunters even have the qualifications to attempt to go after. I guess that's the part of me which had me becoming a hunter in the first place. But Sonia's still so young, and Levin and I are both hunters. I've seen what happens when children with hunters for parents are orphaned at a young age. It happens too often… almost a cliché, to be honest. I couldn't do that to her, Crezant."

Crezant nodded solemnly at the words. Hearth had its fair share of children missing a parent or two thanks to the dangers of hunting. Of course, the townsfolk made sure they were seen to and taken care of… but the loss always left behind scars, mentally if not physically.

"Very well," Crezant said. "If that is your decision, I will abide by it. Your names will be taken off the roster of hunters for hire, at least for the most difficult hunts. There are other hunters who would come at our call. Hopefully we'll be able to find one or two we can rely on as we have with you two the last few years."

"Thank you," Ellie said with a grateful sigh. Her attention turned away from Levin and the girls, before looking down at her armor with a resigned, exasperated look. "I guess Levin and I are going to have to hunt down Shinra again… Damn it, this armor's such a pain in the butt to get repaired. The old bastard's work is great, but we have to go find him every time it gets too dinged up."

"We could have a smith here in Hearth take a look," Crezant offered, but Ellie shook her head.

"Don't bother. Shinra's work is too precise. I've asked a lot of really good smiths, and they all tell me they'd be more likely to ruin the armor than repair it if they tried. The old Wyvernian is the best at what he does, I'll admit that, but that means he's probably the only one out there who can repair his own work… Never thought a couple Great Baggis would be the reason I have to get it repaired, though."

"Well, you're perfectly welcome to stay and rest for a couple days before setting off," Crezant told her, and Ellie smiled thankfully. He glanced in Levin's direction, where the two girls had managed to get the hunter to his feet, and were darting around gathering up all the gold-plated armor pieces Sonia had managed to scatter about the room. "I suppose Sami would enjoy the company, and you did mention some… proposition of a kind. Something about a trade agreement with your sundries shop down in Perir Town."

"Ah, yes," Ellie replied, her eyes lighting up a little at the words. Crezant frowned concernedly at her tone; he'd heard its like in the voices of other businessmen and competitors with Rimestone. He'd heard Geisel Sundries had been growing well over the years in the south, apparently quite popular with hunters. Despite her occupation as a hunter, it seemed Ellie had become quite an apt businesswoman in her own right. Crezant would need to show caution when dealing with her.

"But that can wait for now," Ellie quickly said, her expression sagging as she groaned and flopped back into the chair. "I'm tired and sore… and hungry too."

"Food!" Sonia suddenly called, perking up and darting over to her mother, leaping into Ellie's lap and crawling up until she was eye level with the huntress. "Can we have Bullfango meat, mommy? Please?"

"Blech. How do you like that stuff, Sonia?" Ellie asked, her expression souring. "It so tough and chewy…"

"I like it! It's yummy!" the girl replied adamantly. "With garlic and honey!"

"Mercy, but you take after your father… at least in terms of taste," Ellie sighed, glancing over at Levin, who merely smirked. "Well… if Crezant will provide us…"

"Of course," the businessman replied quickly. "I'll tell the cooks to do what they can."

"Thank you. Now come on, Sonia. Let's go back to the room and you can help mommy get her armor off and packed up. And daddy's too, though it looks like you're already halfway done with that. And be sure to thank Mr. Crezant for taking care of you while we were off on our hunt, sweetheart."

"It's the least we could for coming so far to rid Hearth of such dangerous creatures. Though, I suppose I will need to be more cautious in my selection of hunters for future endeavors into G-Rank hunting. We cannot risk deaths against such dangerous creatures."

"Oh, definitely, especially if today's hunt was any indication," Ellie agreed. "Things will only get more difficult, I'm sure. I mean, it's not as though Great Baggis could be the nastiest monster this G-Rank could throw at us. Right?"

Author's Note: Please Review!

What has two thumbs and doesn't like G-Ranks Great Baggis? This guy. I'd almost rather fight the event Brachy or the event Ivory Lagi than these annoying bastards. Though, I can't be the only one that shares that sentiment.

Also, WOO, bought the MH Illustrations books! They're amazing!

Reading: Monster Hunter Illustrations 1 and 2
Playing: Animal Crossing: New Leaf, MH3U
Listening: Mika, Mudvayne, Jimmy Buffett, The Album Leaf, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Uncle Kracker
Watching: The Avengers