Chapter 11: Great Beasts Within the Mountain
The Yasha Ape was an animal. A beast of great strength that no mere man could challenge themselves against, without falling to their doom under his crushing fists nor survive his wild savagery, nimbleness, and brute strength that could kill a bear with his own hands. The Yasha Ape was known as the Beast of Yasha Craig, following a line of previous great apes that lived before him, and one who will live after him.
The Yasha Ape has only ever faced two losses in its whole life, his first defeat at the hands of a boy with bright red-orange hair, wearing only his red shorts, bandaged wrists and ankles. His defeat by this boy, who had been thirteen years old at the time, was a declaration of how strong this young human was, and how much stronger he will inevitably be, and had earned the Yasha Ape's respect, as well as his like.
His second defeat was by the hands of that boy's father, the same father who had vanquished the previous Yasha Ape. It was by those same hands that also kills this Yasha Ape, without mercy, and taken his head to taunt his son with, to bring ire in the boy's strong blood.
Murdered by the hands of the Ogre that murdered his wife, the Yasha Ape had been enraged to his last breath. A corruption that mutated his form, his body rotting but his strength unhindered, to challenge or be challenged as an obstacle yet still declared animal to throw off any competitor. He had lived in a mountain, and found his way into the valley.
But his hatred has influenced him severely, for the murderer of the previous Yasha Ape - his wife, and leaving the next ape - his child, to take charge as the Beast of Yasha Craig, no matter his infancy. It scorched into his mind and soul, molded his body with a restless angry spirit.
The Yasha Ape was no longer an animal capable of human thought.
He had become a monster of pure animalistic rage.
/.\
Heavy fists of gray skin smashed against the ground, broken chunks scattered from the cracked ground. With all her might, Emma ran through the forest, her legs carrying her through the bushes and over boulders with all of her humanly strength as each obstacle were easily torn and crushed through by the power of the Undead Ape that chased her from behind. She took turns and rounded trees, ways that would keep her from getting caught and instantly killed by the monster beast, the continuous howling that sounded to be just at the back of her head.
The terror of the pursuer pushed her to a sprint, her mind keeping clear as she rounded a large tree with a hasty breath. The Undead Ape punched it, breaking through the wood and some of the side. His left shoulder exposed and Emma took this opportunity, pulling up her bow and releasing an arrow. A strike to the skull of the Undead Yasha Ape, but he merely had his head recoiled back by a slight, grabbing the arrow embedded in its forehead and yanked it out. Black ooze seeped out from the wound and tainted the sharp end of her arrow, the Undead Yasha Ape easily snapped it like a twig, and roared at the girl who quickly turned back and resumed her flee.
This was a beast of tremendous strength, Emma had to understand this. An arrow to the head did nothing, but that did not mean her fighting chance were hopeless, it's possible that there was another certain way to kill this monster, but until she may figure out how, she must flee while she still can. One hit that could take a chunk of a tree will be a fatal for her.
Sprinting through the bushes, she came upon a very spacious clearing surrounded by bushes and trees, several large boulders around, a cave nearby. She looked up briefly and nearly stopped in her tracks out of shock. Nothing but a massive, indistinguishable height of stone wall. The mountainside, perhaps the very wall surrounding all of Beast Valley.
The ravage roar behind her, Emma ran across the area and behind the closest boulder. The Undead Yasha Ape leaped onto the clearing, right onto the girl he spotted the orange hair of, and he swung down his arms, crushing the boulder and beating it down brutally until it was nothing more than pebbles. However, no blood was spurted from his fists. A single glance shows that the girl was no longer there.
From the second boulder she was able to reach, having felt the dreaded descent of the Undead Yasha Ape, Emma carefully peaked around the edge. Covering her mouth to muffle the exhausted breath of her sprint through the woods, the beast surveyed his area for its missed prey. She could take this chance to flee and find the others, but this beast was agile, having traversed the woods through climbing of the trees and swinging across branches sturdy enough to carry its weight. A shot to the head seem to wound it, should she keep attacking that spot? Or was there another weak point she has to look for? She might be able to blind it, distract it with her four barrel pistol and then escape. But if this beast is determined to chase after her, she'll have to stand her ground here and now.
Wait-!
Taking her eyes off of the rampaging Undead Yasha Ape as he searches for the little girl, Emma removed her backpack. Opening it quickly, she pulls out a couple of long arrow-sticks that were tied together by a long string of a thin rope. The tip of the arrows covered by a velvet-purple pouch also tied closed by a tiny rope and she hurriedly unraveled it.
The sharp stone that shimmered like silver, carved embedded red stones at the base of the arrow heads. The thank-you gift from the ogre child, now grown leader of the Kijin clan. Promised to be enchanted with magical elements that will leave impending effects on whatever target she uses this against. Alongside the other pointed ammunition that were the Banana Fish needles. She was unable to reach these arrows for when that large Devil Serpent appeared, but now this may be her chance - although, how affective would it have against a decaying beast such as that?
Today was the final day, there may never be another chance. She must win her fifth star now.
The boulder behind her was suddenly lifted and ripped from the ground, ground dust spilled as she spun around. The Undead Yasha Ape growled with a horrible breath and vicious animal teeth that protrude from his own rotting lips. A screech at it's finding, Emma ran once more, grabbing her opened backpack with the special arrows and bow she clutches.
The boulder was brought down with a fierce throw, shattering it into several pieces and shattering the ground beneath it. Emma wasted no time, wearing her backpack at once as she skidded to a halt, she sets down all but one of the enchanted arrows as there was no time to properly secure them in the side pocket of her pack, pulling by the bowstring the end of the enchanted arrow and released it.
It stabbed below the left collar-bone of the Beast, right where the heart is likely to be. The Undead Yasha Ape seemed to care little of it at first, as he believed none of her arrows could harm him effectively. However, an instant eruption of heat changed its expression. Fire swarmed and spilled out from the arrow, bursting from the wound and swarming his chest and spread throughout the rest of his body.
The Undead Yasha Ape screamed, wildly flailing its limbs, harshly patting flames away from himself and rolling across the ground, the fire gradually burning, and eating away its rotten flesh and hair.
It's weak to fire! Emma grasped the reaction of the Undead Yasha Ape, and immediately went for another enchanted arrow. Upon firing, a second wave of flames engulfed the top half of the monster as the arrow struck it's right shoulder, like a volcanic burst. The screams of the Yasha Ape pained her heart with sorrow and guilt, but adrenaline kept her calm and unhesitant. A moment of pause could mean her life.
A chunk of the crushed rocks was grabbed by the engulfed-flamed Undead Yasha Ape, throwing a handful of them for Emma with incredible projection that could pierce flesh and bones. Emma jumped aside and reached for her next arrow on the ground, but just as she does so, she witnessed a horrifying display
The Undead Yasha Ape's fingers clenched into his flesh and started tearing it off from his body and the flames with it, screaming all the way while the enchanted flames consumed the remnants of his own torn pieces that fell upon the ground, even the deceased blood that spilled have also burned up, staining in charred black. The flames have burnt away some of its silver hair, the strands from his limbs and under his chin.
And from what the burning flames revealed, a long scar that seemed to reach all around the neck of the Undead Yasha Ape. Like a dark red-gray fleshy blister he wore as a choker.
A weak spot?
Emma armed herself with the third enchanted arrow, acting quickly. Aiming at the neck scar while the Undead Yasha Ape wailed itself in ripping away its own flesh. Even for the spurting flames and the flailing of the beast, the wounded point between the exposed jawline and the clavicle constantly moving, her steady focus on the moving target.
Hit it!
She released the arrow. A dead-point accuracy that would meet the end of her enchanted arrow to the neck wound.
But the arrow was stopped mere inches away. In brisk movements, the Undead Yasha Ape tossed his hands up in front of his neck. Guided by his perilous instincts that sensed the coming arrow, his hands slammed together, capturing the fired stick and its enchanted arrowhead in between his huge palms.
The quick grasp of her arrow shocked Emma. The flames of the beast dying out as most of its burning flesh have been torn out, granting him better bearings. The stick of the enchanted arrow snapped in between his fingers, and a vicious roar erupted from the Undead Yasha Ape's throat. Emma urgently grabbed the remaining enchanted arrows as the monster launched itself with a push of his fists against the ground, white jagged teeth baring.
Emma sprinted for one of the boulders, running around it as the monster reached near her and swung its fist, breaking the boulder in a single hit. It thrash and attacked wildly, she remained on the run while the rampage behind her destroys whatever boulder she passes for cover, the beastly howl so extraordinary that it could be heard for.
I have to take the shot now!
She hurriedly pocketed the enchanted arrows to the side-pocket of her backpack. Readying her fourth arrow, she turned with her bow and string held for the beast, but horror widened her eyes as a shadow gradually darkens over her entire small figure. She sprinted away. A large boulder fell behind her, smashing against the ground and crumbling into rubble, chunks of rocks scattered everywhere. Another shadow fell over Emma's head and she continue to pursue for safety, barely avoiding being crushed by the second thrown boulder.
The Undead Yasha Ape howled as he picks up boulders from the area, and tossing them for the little girl as revenge for her shot arrows. Emma ran left and right as boulders rain down around her, rushing as much as she could humanly muster for an athletic eleven-year-old, enough to keep herself from staying under the smacking weight of these large rocks that were far bigger than her. She mindfully debates if she should enter the cave for cover, but uncertain of what awaits there, either a dead-end that will leave her trapped or more monsters, and for all that can be assumed, it was the home of the Undead Yasha Ape, a place he would be far more familiar with than she.
Another descending shadow appeared, this time in front of her and she abruptly stopped. She bounced off of her feet as the boulder landed in front of her and her escape route. A second hard impact against the ground beside her, then a third that was enough to trip her, and something slipped out from her backpack that had not been fully closed. It was another closely tied and thick rag-covered sets of special arrows - the Banana Fish needle arrows.
Several boulders fell around her, Emma bracing each quake until it finally ceased, and she found herself mostly enclosed by nothing but boulders. She hears the vicious yelling of the Undead Yasha Ape, and felt the tremor of his approaching feet.
Get up! Get up!
She grabs one needle-arrow from the set released from her clutch, pulls it by the bowstring and taking aim after a swift turn, she fires it. The Undead Yasha Ape raises its hand to grab, but the narrow stick shape of the arrow head slipped between its fingers and stabs into its palm. At its pause, Emma abruptly stood up and bolted towards the opening in between the bottom of the ground-embedded boulders, small enough for someone of her size to get through.
She presses on as the needle-arrow was snapped under the clench of the monster ape's grip, and pounded through the boulders, smashing through and barely missing Emma's head, smacking the long strand standing up and grazed the top of her head that she stumbled. Like a burnt single rub whizzed over her head.
The Undead Yasha Ape readies his next punch, Emma's mind screamed to move but she has already fallen. If she can just avoid a fatal hit, if she can just bear with the pain once it comes-!
The punch of the monster ape collided with the injured palm that faced its strength. Kr-ck!
Emma's face-smacked against a rugged wall of some sort, backing quickly and looked up. round green eyes widened at the figure in black, feet firmly in place despite the crack of the ground beneath it.
Garou silently revved up his next baring hand. With a twist of his wrist, he slammed it right into the stomach of the Undead Yasha Ape, putting forth all of his power, and knocked the monster ape far, pained howling right to the other side of the area. Emma looked back to the monster seeing how far it was pushed before eyeing back at the dark hunter in stunned silence.
"...You still awake?"
The emulated roughness in his asking that did not reveal any pain, yet Emma was certain she heard the unmistakable sound of a broken bone, looking at his held forth arm, "Y-yeah, but you're-"
"Get ready to move," he added, gilded eyes on the rising beast ahead of him.
The Undead Yasha Ape recovered, a nasty puke of its saliva from the attack of Garou. The monster roared in fury, and pushed himself forward with a powerful leap. Garou quickly grasped Emma by the back of her sweater with his uninjured arm and he moved, dashing to the side while the Undead Yasha Ape gives furious chase. Backing away constantly to keep himself from the pursuing rotting gorilla, but the feisty monster was persistent. When he rounded behind a boulder, the Undead Yasha Ape grasped it and swung himself around with a powerful kick.
Garou ducked and brought up his broken arm, pushing away the leg with his hand he puts into with a growl, and deflecting the kick though not superbly, a sheer sharp jabbing pain in his shoulder from this effort. He quietly snarled through his teeth, forcing his fingers to a close as he shot forth another strike of his baring hand. The uses of the limb was valuable to a practioner of the martial arts, he'll just have to fight as if one arm is tied to his back. Not something he's used to, but he'll learn. He always learns.
He backed away some more and swiftly moved behind another large boulder. The Undead Yasha Ape followed, but Garou had already quickly took to the next tree, and hid together with Emma as the ape monster roared in search for them.
"Hey. Can't that tracker tell us what this guy's weakness is?" Garou recalled the little girl mentioning this. It would be helpful to know how to defeat this beast quickly.
Recovering from the sprung around carry under Garou's hold, Emma answered calmly, keeping her mind on the current situation, "Right... but I dropped it after that giant bird took me."
Oh. Well, so much for that then.
"But I think I know where his weak point is."
Boulders being smashed from aside by the Undead Yasha Ape that sought for the hidden competitors. Garou looked down and awaited her elaboration.
"There's a wound-scar around his neck, like it was torn all the way through or something," the way that ape monster's scar was rigged and wretched, it was not done cleanly by any normal sort of bladed or blunt weaponry.
"Even after I shot an arrow in his head, he could still move, so the neck might be where we're supposed to hit to kill it. It might even mean that it has to be decapitated," she includes with a grim look in her small face. "He's also weak to fire. I already used a few arrows that were enchanted with explosive flames, but his reaction got better and caught one of the arrows. I think a few more hits of it should be enough, but I left all the enchanted arrows back at that clearing near that cave."
Garou breathed out thoughtfully. Today was the last day, and they still needed their fifth star before time runs out. Which means he will have to fight this monster now, or potentially lose the Preliminary after being so close to succeeding it, and if there's one thing he sought out of anything, it's his desire to never lose to anyone. A sharp kick might even do if all it takes is for him to strike that area in the neck, if he swung it hard and fast enough, he might just knock that head of the monster ape right off.
Time was running out for the both of them, he has to make his hunt now. Hunting monsters was never his interest, but beyond this was what he was really after. There were still other heroes in this competitions to hunt, he's going for a new record of two hundred body counts this time.
"Alright," Garou affirmed, "I'll handle him. You keep yourself out of sight."
She looked up at him, worriedly. "But, your arm. It's broken, isn't it? We have to fix it-"
A sudden burst of wind hits them, and a loud eagle-like monstrous screech resounded the air. Garou looked up the sky in aggravated disbelief, "Oh you got to be-"
The black silhouette of a winged creature, entirely out of literal darkness, soared overhead. The rage of the Undead Yasha Ape had attracted the Grimm monster's attention, and with its attention to the familiar preys down below. A harsh flap of its wings, and the large black sword-feathers were shot down like raining bullets.
Garou grabbed Emma, his arm around her waist, and carried her like luggage. His swift figure dodging the feathers that cuts through the boulder with ease, and piercing the ground.
"Behind you!" Emma yelled as she looked behind Garou's elbow. His eyes widened and teeth clenched as he felt the presence of the Undead Yasha Ape, having backed up to avoid the sharp feathers and ending up close to the ape monster. He cursed under his breath and lunged himself to the side, avoiding a punch to his back that would have also shattered his spine, and instead the ground suffered this in his place.
"Garou!" The girl then screamed, fearing eyes directly towards the sky, and the approaching Nevermore that glided downwards for them. Garou gritted his teeth, pushing the balms of his feet and kicked to dash backwards. The beak of the Nevermore opened with a screech that rattled Emma's eardrums. He hurries to prepare a kick directly underneath the chin-beak of the Grimm, moving Emma in his hold away as she grasped his arm.
"Thunderbolt!"
A white flash of lightning struck the side of the Nevermore's head. The Nevermore recoiled and lost momentum, tumbling to the ground and prompting Garou to take a big leap back. The Undead Yasha Ape does the same, observing the creature with careful assessment, and an anger of being intervened by another monster.
"Hah!" A fierce yell from the other end of the area. The Undead Yasha Ape sensed an incoming attack and turned. A boulder smashed into his entire front and pushed him to the other corner of the area, moved from a punch the young Hunter unleashed.
"Emma! Garou!" Gon said in happy relief, waving his hand at the surprised girl and older teen.
"Finally found you guys," Killua landed on his feet after jumping from a tree to launch his attack. "I couldn't keep up with either of you."
It wasn't a surprise that the huge bird could gain such a distance with those massive wings of it. What did surprise him, however, was Garou's own speed that had been much greater than even Killua's, and the boy would think he was a nimble person as it is. Added to the rough terrains, twist and turns, and wall running canyons in trying to keep up with the fleeting silver hair and the captor Nevermore, Killua ended up losing both targets until he was met up by Gon, who was able to lead them here.
"Gon! Killua!" Emma called to the boys in happy relief as Garou backs away further from the frantic wings of the Nevermore. Killua quickly takes up close to the Grimm creature's side, rounding it in such remarkable speed that Emma could not keep track of his figure at all. Garou had no issue in following the ex-assassin's movements, the gilded orbs in his eyes flickering all around, trained to catch up with a few speedy opponents he met in his world and some here in this competition. He saw the boy jump and landed on the back of the Nevermore, slamming down both hands.
"Lightning Palm!"
There, he saw. Although faint in his eyes, there was indeed a flash of white-blue static energy that tackled the back of the Nevermore. The dark creature screeched, its body frozen stiff with sparks and statics worming over. Killua pushed himself off and met Gon alongside.
Gon began revving up power in his fist to unleash Jajaken, but the enraged roar of the Undead Yasha Ape pulled his focus away from the Nevermore and he yelled, "Watch out!"
A round and massive boulder was lifted from the ground that was beside the cave entrance, carrying over his shoulders was the Undead Yasha Ape, and he throws it. Garou instantly moved, carrying Emma. Gon and Killua ran as well. The boulder crashed into the body of the Nevermore, knocking it into a couple of trees and damaging it, but otherwise freeing the Nevermore from it's stunned state, and the black-winged creature immediately took flight.
They embraced the harsh wind of its flapped wings. Emma watched the Nevermore take to the sky again, circling the area that they were on. Now it was two monsters they have to deal with, one from above and one right here with them.
"Gon!" Killua warned the other boy, prompting the both of them to dash as a round of bullet-like rocks were thrown by the Undead Yasha Ape, and some being thrown for Garou and Emma also. The young Hunters strengthened their Ken, protecting themselves from the impacts of these powerfully thrown stones, and even knocking them away with their arms and kicks, destroying them.
Garou did not move. An intense focus in his gaze, he lets go of Emma and she fell in surprised. Raising his uninjured arm and tossing up his leg, he catches and kicks the bullet-like stones, not missing one. His hand swerved with the clutched stones, and he returned them to the ape monster with undiminished weight in their speed and power.
The Undead Yasha Ape was surprised at the returning thrown stones, but he reacted quickly, and threw forwards both his fists, smashing and destroying most of the stones while the rest of his body endured the ones he was unable to dodge, and he let out a terrifying scream of anger.
"You still got your other arrows?" Garou asked the girl behind him, keeping his eyes on the ape monster who stood there in assessment. Emma just about stood up when she was suddenly grabbed again. A hail of black sword-like feathers fell and pierced the ground, he and the other boys swiftly dodges all of them, Emma honestly could not keep up with how amazingly reactive all of them were.
Taking a brief moment of breath, she affirmed, "Yes. I should have enough for the ape monster and that giant bird."
Gon's fishing rod and Killua's yo-yo, from what she has seen, would not stretch far enough to reach the Nevermore. She was the only one among them to have the weapons needed against that flyer of darkness, but these enchanted arrows were also essential to defeat the Undead Yasha Ape, so she will have to mostly use her regular arrows and the Banana Fish arrows, fight both monsters at once.
"Alright. You're with those two."
Without further elaboration, Garou pushed the back of Emma, a push that lifted her somewhat and had her air-born by half a foot from the ground. She nearly tumbled on her feet but found her footing quickly, turning back for the back of Garou.
"Go help your friends deal with that bird. I'll handle this monkey," he said.
Emma stood there for a brief moment. He's really going to keep fighting? With his broken limb? He doesn't even have a cast yet! "Wait-!"
Gon rushed her way and yanked her aside by the arm as he and Killua avoided another hail of large black feathers. Garou sprinted their direction, sprung forward for the large black feathers. He struck each and every feather away from himself and from the children, sending few of them for the Undead Yasha Ape far behind him. The Undead Yasha Ape saw the incoming projectile, and with quick punches, he slammed each feathers away with his fists. One feather struck its shoulder, and in another blood-curdling screech, yanks out the feather and threw it back for Garou like a spear.
"Fine, wanna play catch?" Garou catches the large black feather as the Nevermore soared far over the forest, and with the feather held in his hand like a massive sword, he lunged for the Undead Yasha Ape. "Then here I come!"
Stopping at a tree, Garou sprung for the Undead Yasha Ape as he held the feather sword in hand.
/.\
Gon and Killua takes behind the several trees in the forest, each one they passed stabbed into by the large black feathers. Gon had carried Emma under her arm before stopping together with Killua under a cover, the black feathers grazing by their surroundings, and the howls of the Nevermore above them.
"Emma, here," Gon reaches his back, removing the strap from himself and handing her the rifle, as well as the Monster Tracker.
"Ah! You got it!" Emma said as she retrieved the items, though having gained back her most effective weapon, her worries still hovered for Garou and his injured state, but if there was one thing she acknowledged in that young man, is that he was surprisingly if not scarily tenacious. It was inspiring in a way, but she still knew all too well the detriment of a broken limb, they'll have to finish off this Nevermore before rushing back to help Garou!
"I can get that giant bird's attention, if it comes down for me, we can ambush it," Emma offered. "We have to hurry. Garou's hurt badly and I don't know how long he can fight against that monster ape. I need both of your help to take down this monster."
The boys glanced at each other, a brief message exchanged between their looks and then an agreement. Gon accepted, "Okay, you can count on us."
"We'll take it by surprise from the side, just be sure to make a run for cover. Be careful with those feathers," Killua cautiously advised.
A bob of her messy orange hair, "I still have about two Net bullets left. If you guys can knock that bird monster down, I can use it to get it tangled."
"Sounds good," Killua said, Gon agreed. "Alright, let's do this."
They separated then. Gon and Killua took a hiding spot somewhere in the trees, and Emma takes her position next to one, assuring her cover and open view of the flying Nevermore. The Grimm creature was circling their current placement in search of the little tykes, and with her rifle armed, she opened fire.
With careful aiming, bullets assault the bottom of the Nevermore and gaining its attention. A flap of its wings and it sends down several of its blade-feathers. She sprinted behind the trees, taking them as her barrier that prevents the feather from piercing all the way through, stuck into them as she hurriedly traverse to another spot, turned to the flying Nevermore and resumed firing.
The Nevermore suffered, and dove down for her. She remained firing and in the open, her nerves tough as steel even as the winged monster grew closer. At it's closing proximity, Emma ducks to another tree, and Killua emerges from the top of it. Tossing a yo-yo and slamming the heavy-ton weapon against the Nevermore's face. The Grimm's head reared back from the attack, and lost its momentum, tumbling to the ground.
"Now Emma!" Killua shouted at the girl as he pulled and retrieved his yo-yo.
Emma hurries to wield her four-barrel pistol, switching the barrel to cast Net. However, the Nevermore had quickly recovered, and flapped its wings immensely. A powerful force of gust that was braced by Emma, shutting her eyes in protection, but forcing one to peek through as she tries to hold up her pistol.
A hook was launched and grasped the edge of the Nevermore's white skull mask. "Take the shot!" Gon shouted with his armed fishing rod that startled the Nevermore at his great heave, jerking the Nevermore's head back.
The wings having briefly ceased, Emma points her pistol and pulls the trigger. The bullet launches and expels the net, it captures the right wing of the Nevermore and traps it against a tree. She quickly switches to her rifle, This is their chance!
But alas, the Nevermore, who has the experience of a long life of survival in this valley of dangerous beasts, was a cunning creature. The Nevermore rolled itself around, further pulling along the hook line of Gon's fishing rod, a surprise but he remained footed on the tree branch. The Nevermore grasped its talon feet against the tree just as Emma hurries and fires with her rifle, as a hail of bullets pierced its back, it lets out a screech, and pushed itself against the tree that had trapped down. Tearing it down, the stick substance of the Net was unrelenting, but with its strength, it yanked the tree right off.
"Whoa!" The fishing line reaching its limit, Gon was forcefully heaved by his rod. Emma immediately stopped shooting. Aghast in her eyes.
"Gon! Let go!" Killua yelled, but it was too late. The tree broke apart and became a bulky addition to the Nevermore's wing, the bird of darkness leapt and flapped its wings, a stumble in its rise, its wings even mightier than Gon's strength, and it takes to the air.
"GON!" Emma and Killua screamed out.
The Nevermore takes to the sky as Gon was pulled along by his rod. The Nevermore however did not fly so far up, spiraling in an attempt to remove the Net and the remains of the tree it broke free from.
Emma switches back to her pistol, "If he falls! I can catch him with my net!"
But the Nevermore was too wild in its flight pattern, she cannot find a secure aim, nor can she use her rifle or bow, she might hit Gon by mistake, and she does not want to risk making a decisive shot by using her Net again, or Gon may end up being tangled along the monster and if they fall, he could get crushed.
Killua quickly goes to her side, looking up for his friend with trepidation eyes that managed to keep its composure. "My yo-yo might be able to reach that monster. Gon should be able to handle his fall just fine, but just in case, we'll look out for him."
However, Gon had an idea of his own. As he was flung around by the desperate flight of the Nevermore, he calmly and determinedly reeled himself closer to the Nevermore, putting focus in his Nen and extending it to his rod, preventing from its immediate break that is strained by the pull of the Nevermore and his line from snapping. A hefty amount of effort that Gon inputs all of his strength into.
When the Nevermore ducked briefly and went back up, he was pulled along and with a great luck of timing, and his own intention, he landed upon the Nevermore's back.
"Perfect!" Digging his nails onto the Nevermore's back, latching onto it so not to fall. He releases one hand, inputting aura into his other so to keep himself from losing grip of the Nevermore.
Furious orange energy spiraled Gon's raised and clenched hand. "Jan!"
"Gon!" Emma cried out when she saw the boy on the Nevermore's back, she could barely make out what was happening. "What is he-?"
Realization widened Killua's eyes as he saw the familiar, and expanding orange glow. "Uh oh. Stand back."
"Ken!"
Upon Killua's words, Emma follows with baffling understanding as they moved away from underneath the Nevermore. Though trusting the young Hunter in white.
"GUUUUUN!"
Gon's fist slammed against the back of the Nevermore. With a pained caw, the Nevermore was force back down upon the ground and crashed upon the trees, pierced by the sharp points of it, but it still struggled furiously. Gon pushed himself off from the Nevermore and upon ground, he sprinted aside to avoid the flailing wings and body of the Nevermore, tangling itself in the net now utterly, and rendering its wings nearly useless.
Hails of bullets returned as Emma reemerges and saw Gon's distance enough for her to fire at the creature. Killua appears to the side, tossing another yo-yo and a yank of his string, striking the head of the Nevermore. The Nevermore was dazed, prompting him to send his second yo-yo and wrapping it around its neck.
Infusing his Nen, he send forth a trail of electric waves, sparking and travelling through the string of his yo-yo and shocking the monster with great power.
"Stand back!" Emma tells the other boys, setting aside her rifle and armoring her bow and special arrows, at the boys heeding her call with Killua retracting his yo-yo and Gon readying his next attack, but waiting on Emma's cue, she pulls the Enchanted Arrow and fires.
At the arrows pierce to the neck of the dazed and exhausted Grimm, a spew of flames engulfed its torso and lower beak, it tried to fly once more, but it was too heavily injured. "Now!" Emma shouted.
Hearing her, Gon rushed for the back. Exhausting a breath as a drip of sweat fell from his chin, Killua rushes to the side, his palm emitting another charged up energy. "Gon!"
"Got it!"
From the side of the Nevermore that wasn't spewing fire, he slammed another Lightning Palm against the the Nevermore, and above, Gon had leapt with a surge of Nen that propelled him from his feet, his fist swarmed with yet another glowing orange energy. "Jan! Ken!" He landed on the back of the Nevermore and rushed for the head, he throws his fist forward, "GUUUUUUUUUN!"
He punched the head of the Nevermore, a great power that shattered its mask apart, a reaction that instantly takes the light from its eyes. Gon forced his fist to push the head of the Nevermore into slamming against the ground, and drops to his feet back upon the ground, turning instantly.
The Nevermore's wings slumped, and laid there, moving no more with a slackened beak and its head hung against the dirt. The children eyed the creature cautiously, Gon taking the bold initiative and walked up the shattered masked Grimm, unfeeling of its breath. Killua joins alongside him, looking at the Nevermore cautiously.
"Is it...?" Emma said quietly.
Killua carefully goes closer to the Nevermore, raising a hand and pressing his hand against the feathers in a slight push, as if to stir awake the creature, while prepping himself to bolt the minute that there was still a sign of life. When nothing came from his touch, he nodded at the other children, "Yeah. It's dead."
Gon releases another breath, leaning forward with hands resting upon his knees, "Thank goodness..."
Emma ran up to the boys, checking over the creature. They have done it, they were safe now. Indeed, thank goodness for that...
She then startled at remembering something vital. Her experience of the last Grimm creature that had been killed, and what became of it later. "Gon! Killua! We have to take a piece now!:
Gon and Killua looked over to her as Emma dashed for the body of the Nevermore, plucking a small fragment of its white bone mask from the ground, "There was another monster that was just like this one. It disappeared soon after it was killed. We have to hurry while it's still here!"
A reveal that surprised the boys, they immediately acted upon her word and collects a piece of its bone mask. At this moment, the Nevermore's body began to disappear and they backed away, watching as the enormous winged monster dissipates in black ashes. In their hands, the bone-mask fragments shone white and shrunk into a certain shape, and their gold stars was morphed. The Grimm continued to break apart, its pieces of itself fading in the wind until there was nothing left.
"We have to get back to Garou," Emma turns back for the remaining monster in the area. "Come on!"
A nod from both Hunters, the children hurried through the forest, following the howls of two monsters in battle that shook the leaves of the trees.
/.\
As it turns out, the monster ape really is good at catching, just as Emma warned.
Large feathers lay across the ground in broken and faded fragments, the first that had been used as a sword against the Undead Ape was broken in half by its powerful punch. A startling achievement, though Garou quickly recovered, and a series of powerful punches and kicks were brought about by the fierce hunter in black. Said attacks were braced by the Undead Yasha Ape with the guard of his beefy arms covered in silver fur. However, it was evident enough that the monster was becoming weaker, having embraced its weakness of fire, the injury he received from his opponent's attack after stopping his fist from reaching the little girl, and the effects of the Banana Fish needle finally kicking in.
The Undead Yasha Ape was beginning to fatigue to the poison from the needle-arrow, and all of its other injuries, but its mind was strong, refusing to give in to the mental-degradation of the Banana Fish. It swung its fist for Garou, but Garou quickly retreats, baring with the feeling of his broken arm while keeping his remaining perfectly functioning arm ready to strike. The beast is getting tired, he noticed. All he needs to do is break it down further, enough until he can land a good hit at the neck somehow-
A rock prodded his feet when he takes a step back and he offered a side-glance, a single glance then turned to a full-look and complete turn of his head, the audacity to do this in front of an enemy. The rock was actually a distinct shape of an arrow, with runes marked upon it. Was that-?
The Undead Yasha ape lunged for Garou. The Hero Hunter cleanly kicked up the arrow with the back of his heel and grasped it quickly, retreating back further and rounding the ape monster to the back. He side-examined the arrow, "Wonder if this is the thing she was talking about."
Well. One way to find out.
The Undead Yasha turns and started its sprint for the fast-footed human. In a bold, and unprecedented move for the Undead Yasha Ape, Garou sprung forward, ducking himself, and then short forward his left arm with the arrow in his fingers that pointed for the monster. The ape instinctively blocked his neck, but Garou was not aiming for it, however, it did confirm that indeed, that place was something the beast did not want to be hit at. Kid was right. That neck is special, which means I got to give it everything to hit it.
With a push of his fingers and a quick thrust of his left arm, he jabbed his fingers and the arrow into the nose of the Undead Yasha Ape and backed away at once. Blood spilled from the Undead Yasha Ape from his attack, and then, flames.
The entire head of the ape monster was engulfed by a furious red orange blaze, swallowing every bit of fur and burning its flesh charred black, his eyes shadowed and his jaw wide open.
There! An opportunity to finish this fight, Garou sprung back in, his left hand thrown once more but this time with a curved swing, his fingers together, a sharpness at the tip like a blade. One slice across the-!
His eyes sharp with intent suddenly gawked. A violent lurch of his stomach and his hand immediately drops before he could inflict his strike at the screaming ape, and clutched his stomach as if acid was tossed, and within seconds, not just his stomach, but the rest of his body screamed. "What-! The hell-! Is happening-?!"
The screaming ape wildly patted his head as if punching it to die out the flames. Garou's knees wobbled in resistance to keep himself from standing until they could not hold any longer, and he drops. An audible gasp and a sudden break out of his sweats. His left hand grasping his agonizing stomach, his right arm with its pain seemingly nothing now as the hand grips the ground tight enough to crack under its pressure.
Side-Note (In the Voice of HunterxHunter Narrator): Nen is a life energy all life-forms possess. There are several methods to unlocking Nen, but among these methods, there are three that have been mostly utilized.
One: Mediation, concentrating one's mind and body to manipulate one's life-energy, the safest form of unlocking Nen - the process is long and requires dedication to the training.
Two: Initiation, the process of forcing one's "Aura Nodes" to open, a much more dangerous method as the aura unleashed will be extensive and rapid, and the person would risk immediate exhaustion that could lead to death from the great expelling of their life-energy until they can control its outburst flow.
Three: physical contact from a Nen-based attack, the most dangerous method. If a person survives from a Nen-infused strike, the body will suffer a trauma from the attack, and the "Aura Nodes" will be forced open. The immense pain can last up to several hours or days until eventually...
A white glow emits from the body of Garou as he held back the urge to bellow from this pain.
Their Nen will unlock.
But Garou's will was disturbingly strong. So much so that he continues to beat down this abnormally strange and immense pain in his gut. The white glow on his body was yanked back down into his skin by his will alone, refusing to give this phenomenon that he has yet to understand.
A tight grasp of his ankle in the midst of his biting-back pain, and Garou was yanked from the ground.
Mind boggled with this sheer discomfort of a stomach ache, he still had some comprehension, and could only think, Oh crap-
Maddened by the insufferable pain as the last bit of fire finally dies out, thrown over the ape's face by the dirt from the ground the monster buried its head in, the Undead Yasha Ape screamed in total fury, pulling Garou's ankle and lifting the dark hunter over the monster's self, and swung him back down. A slam that broke the ground, a loud grunt through the clenched teeth of Garou as his back suffered, the Undead Yasha Ape slammed Garou against the ground again and again, and again.
At one final slam, Garou's mind was dazed, but he still moved to get up, a struggle that made his whole body twitched that he barely even rises from his back. And then he saw the two fists of the ape, and he found himself unable to move enough.
A beat down of the angry monster ape's fist while the monster screamed all the way through. The ground shook, cracking under the pressure of each unrelenting and unmerciful hits that buried the body of Garou and pushing him further into the earth.
Emma, Gon and Killua arrived, they looked upon the scene, and were wide-eyed in shock with a gasp. As if Emma's fears could not be confirmed, the Undead Yasha Ape broke that false comfort in shattering sessions. The ape monster relented his beat down, reached down and grabbed through the pound-in huge indent of the earth it made, and yanked the body over his shoulders, and threw Garou to the side of the cave entrance, where he crashed through and disappeared in a cloud of dust and crumbled rocks.
"GAROU!" Emma screamed in horror. Such a beat down from such a strong and angry beast. No human could live through that, said the little part of her mind, and even if he were, even as she would hope, from that beat down, his whole body must be absolutely shattered beyond repair - beyond saving.
Gon shouted, "Guys! Get back!"
The children quickly moved out of the way when the Undead Yasha Ape started banging against the ground, punching through the boulders and tossing them everywhere without a clear target. Rampaging. It takes two halves of the boulder it punched and broke, and then tosses them at the same time.
Gon leapt forward, dodging the first boulder in time. At the second one, he stood his ground, revving up strength in his arm, and threw forward a punch. The thrown boulder was shattered on impact.
And what appeared was the furious gaze of the bloodied face ape.
"GON!" Killua reacted without thought, tossing both yo-yos for the back of the Undead Yasha Ape's head. The yo-yo reaches the beast's head, bu in a shocking twist, the beast without even turning around, threw back his hands behind his head, and grasped the yo-yo in immediate catch.
"Wha-?!" Killua was in disbelief.
The Undead Yasha Ape was forced forward by the force of the yo-yos, with a howl of feeling the weighted pounds of the yo-yo, but angered beyond acknowledging any pain. He tightly grasped the yo-yos and pulls them over with a fast swipe.
Killua was yanked from his position and over the head of the ape beast. He immediately releases his hold of the string by slipping his fingers out from the rings but the momentum of himself being thrown could not be adapted in time. Gon was shocked at the sudden sight of Killua, and braced the other boy as the ex-assassin slammed into the young hunter, and barreling them into the forest.
"GON! KILLUA!" Emma acted fast, pulling over her rifle with a fierce gaze, she started firing at the beast. What would normally graze the skin of such a terrifying monster, her bullets meant to kill demons pierced the flesh of the ape, and it only drove the beast mad.
Raising both fists, the Undead Yasha Ape brought them back down with an incredible heave, and punched the ground. The aftershock sends a ripple-like effect of the ground and Emma lost her balance. Falling on her back with her rifle by her side, she looked at the beast who then, with all terrible intent, rushes for her.
With a daring and quick-minded reaction, Emma gets up and ducks under the thrown punch of the Undead Yasha Ape, but it was much faster than she anticipated and she stumbled. The ape turned abruptly, its head reared for her, and its mouth opened, teeth barred with a wild scream as they grew closer and closer, to bite off the head of the little girl.
Her eyes then broke to terror, and the imminent death that awaits before her. But she knew inside to act, to do something at once. Anything. Anything!
Memory surfaced of Garou's slick movements of brute force delivery, against Gon and Killua, against the King Taijtiu she has witnessed him fight. Movements that stayed in her mind because of how incredible, ferocious, and beautiful they were. The child genius reconstructed that scenario with her body the map of those movements, she could not perfectly remember all those moves, let alone perform every one of them. But...
If it was enough power, a technique that could save her life, there was no room for doubt. With that, she sprung her foot up, kicking underneath the chin of the Undead Yasha Ape with all her might, and with her other foot swung up, she steps onto the nose of the Undead Yasha Ape, a double kick the swerved like short river streams and pushing her away from the monster ape's face. She rolled across the ground and lunged for her weapon as she stood right up, her bow and arrow aimed for the beast.
She should have fired, but she stopped herself from pulling the trigger. A surprised look on the Undead Yasha Ape's face. An incredulous look, as if lost in thought. The intensity of his ferocity shallowed into a bewilderment, was he that surprised by her kicks? She personally didn't think they were strong enough to actually hurt a beast like this one, just that it was enough to save herself.
She looked at him cautiously as he began to stare at her, his small red eyes widening as Emma's toes hurt from kicking under his chin. She was surprised to see him suddenly looking... looking as if he had just remembered something.
Through the eyes of the Undead Yasha Ape, from that strike he felt hit underneath his chin, he suddenly had a flash of memory. A boy with bright orange-red hair stood before him. His body of muscles scarred with training. Yes, he remembered that boy, and the fight he had against that human with a determined soul, a strong body, and a gentle heart. It was this boy that the Undead Yasha Ape met his first defeat. The fight that earned his respect.
"Emma!"
Gon and Killua rushed out. The Undead Yasha Ape blinked back to awareness. The boys reached to Emma and quickly goes in defense, standing in front of her. But they were unaware. Emma's confused eyes looking back at the ape's long gaze.
A fist to the face, the ape recalled. A kick to the chin, he remembered. And then there was... there was...
Ah. Yes, of course. That happened too.
The Undead Yasha Ape lifted his finger and touched his face, drawing up to his between his temple and the bridge of his nose.
He jabbed his fingers into his left eye.
The children competitors looked on in surprised, confused. Witnessing with lack of comprehension to this mad scene as the ape ripped out his own eye, and held it in front of himself, tossing it into his mouth and he began to chew.
The Banana Fish Needle had indeed compromised his state of mind. It must have, or perhaps the ape was aware of his own already lost sanity. Yet, he still recalled. The defeat at the hands of the human whom he acknowledged out of every other human who had challenged him, at their second match when his eye was jabbed into as that boy's first move. He will never forget.
Come.
The ape swallowed, and when down the piece of himself goes, he takes an intake of a deep breath, and screeched the loudest roar to the very last air of his lungs. The children winced at his terror-resounding yell, and backed away when the beast raised his arms.
Let us have our bout, one last time.
The ape pushed his fists against the ground and launches himself forward. The sight the children's widened eyes before him as they prepared to fight.
Snap!
In the eyes of the Undead Yasha Ape, the world suddenly flipped over. The upside down expressions of the surprised children as he felt an abrupt loss of control to the rest of his body, halting him in place.
Garou sat pver the shoulders of the unknowing ape, his hands grasped each side of the Undead Yasha Ape's head that was abruptly twisted around, an instant sound from the neck and the befuddled upside face of the monster ape.
The Hero Hunter had better days. His stomach was in unbearable pain, because of said pain he did not get enough sleep last night, his right arm broken to near unsuitability, and he missed breakfast.
Garou had better days. But he could still fight.
A swift cut of the ear from the side of the Undead Yasha Ape's head and he catches it. The beast was lost in his confusion and mind it did not even register the pain, Garou gripped the head even tighter, forcing his broken arm to follow his demands, and with a fierce and vengeful roar through his baring clenched teeth. He began pulling the head of the beast, the rotten flesh of the monster's neck ripping along the scar line, until the head was completely removed from it's shoulders.
The body of the Undead Yasha Ape stood in place, its head held up high by the champion of this hunt, and then it slowly leaned back. Garou leaped off of the shoulders, and watched as the monster fell on it's back, its head still in his hand.
The children and he watched the body of the ape monster for a moment. Waiting for it to come back up at any second. But nothing came of it. The body of the undead lay there motionlessly. It was done.
Emma looked at the beast's body for another moment longer, wondering what caused it to suddenly hesitate like that, but her mind for that went as soon as she saw Garou and she ran around the boys to reach the older teen. "Are you okay?!"
Garou gives a deep breath out, gasping for a moment before silencing his exhaustion at the approach of the girl. He offered her brief attention, and then looks down at what was in his hand. The ear of the Undead Yasha Ape. It soon glowed white, and like the others, it transformed into a small gold star.
Fifth Star Point Achieved.
"You got it," Emma stated, she lets out a little smile. "Your fifth star."
He looked at the star for another moment with a blink, and then inserts it inside his pocket along with the rest of his stars and patch. "Mm," he said. "Guess you're off the hook for now."
Her face wavered at that in innocent understanding, and the smile returns. Gon and Killua looked to each other, a heavy sigh of relief.
"We did it... We got our fifth star..." Gon started, and his eyes shone, "Wait. We got our fifth star...? We did! We did it, Killua! We all finally got our fifth star!"
Killua nodded at his best friend's repeat as if to grasp that absolute understanding, a smile breaking through. "Yeah. What a relief. I guess now, all that's left is..."
A sudden chill runs up their spines, theirs, and Emma and Garou's. They heard rummaging through the cave and turned to look.
Several red eyes glows from the darkness of the cave, the carriers stepping out into the sun. The skeletal bodies of many, many apes, all growling with vehemence. The previous line of what was once the Apes of Yasha Craig. It probably didn't help that Garou still held the head of one of the Apes own in his hand, and the family line of monsters lets out their terrifying roar.
A/N: I will now be responding to reviews. By the way! I forgot to include an answer in the last chapter, I already PM an answer to the reviewer but this is just in case anyone else is wondering the same thing.
The Devil Serpent that was presented two chapters ago was a Large Devil Serpent, or the Demon-Devil Serpent according to the anime (as redundant of a name it was), but in manga it's generally known as a Large Devil Serpent.
We've seen how Toriko and Coco defeated the first Devil Serpent, but that was actually a small one, there was a much Larger one that Komatsu came across in that cave they were all in. We've never actually seen how Toriko and Coco would have dealt with this larger creature until the Knocking Master himself came to the picture, demonstrating his strength as leagues above Toriko and Coco.
Toriko and Coco were of course holding back against the first Devil Serpent so to collect its meat, but even for a small one which was the one Garou first came across with in his debut chapter of this story, it was a relatively tough opponent. It's also noted that after that arc in the manga, the next Large Devil Serpent was seen at the arena where Toriko met the Battlewolf. The Large Devil Serpent was on a rampage and Toriko faced against it, but he was having a tough time due to the Battle Fragrance the Devil Serpent endured which made it stronger.
It took the Battlewolf clone (Rest in peace Mama Wolf), to defeat the rampaging Large Devil Serpent in a single attack AFTER having just given birth to the baby Battlewolf, which demonstrates her strength to be leagues above Toriko's or the monsters of the Human World in general.
Emma's group was just lucky to not come across a Devil Serpent from the Gourmet World, which in this story, is hiding at the low, low, lower levels of Beast Valley, think Made in Abyss kinds of levels. Devil Serpents from the Gourmet World are far, far stronger than the Devil Serpents from the Human World. Those from the Human World, I imagine, are not Elder Centipede level though, since Elder Centipede can fly and is a lot more durable than the Devil Serpent.
Chimera Ants like the King's Bodyguards; Pitou, Pouf, and Youpi, could probably handle the likes of the Devil Serpent with Pitou and Pouf's intelligence and Youpi's raw strength and durability, though they might also be aware of its savage nature. Meruem would have no problems, that or I might just be over-hyping him.
Garou was just surprised by the size and wild nature of it but I might go back and adjust that reaction, and Gon and Killua hadn't quite crossed monsters of that size except maybe on Greed Island, which even then, those monsters were meant to train Gon, not kill him. The kind of blood-lust the Large Devil Serpent definitely took them by surprise, with Gon having a habit of briefly freezing under the gaze of a strong creature like the Zoldyck family guard dog and Pitou as well.
Emma has the most experience in fighting creatures bigger than herself but even she was scared by the Intimidation aura the Large Devil Serpent showed before she would force herself to gather her bearings and fight. So, yeah, Devil Serpents are pretty tough, especially the Large ones. But once Garou got used to it he pretty much dealt against the Devil Serpent fairly well, he'd be a decent Gourmet Hunter, though the power level standards of Toriko's world are seriously something to compare to OPM (unless you're Saitama or Goku, it be paradise for Goku especially. XD)
Maxim7: Yes, this story will be a slow-burn and I can understand why people will be put off by that. Evidently, I had somewhat of a coherent plan before I decided that it would take too long and cut down some sections and get the story moving. What I am intending to do is complete this beginning arc of the Preliminary Round and then leave the story to settle and cool for a few weeks perhaps. I wish to make every moment I write in each chapter to take its time but I also wish to get to the exciting parts quickly without rushing too much.
After the Preliminary, hopefully I can calm down and write the story in a comfortable pace. I should also work on making the chapters shorter, as writing long chapters tend to drain me of writing energy. With my desire to show everything in one go, I always end up writing longer chapters than I actually intended to and constantly overestimate how much is being written. So, next time, I shall be taking my time and write only shorter chapters, limited amount would be up to 5 thousand to around 10 thousand words... If that's any shorter.
As I'm already this far ahead I think I'll leave the chapters I have already uploaded as it is, will likely go back and edit a few things but perhaps not add in chapters, I have made my due now I must live and learn from it. This should also help me feel less strain in writing out so many words. I should just take a deep breath and take my time, not to expand it so much, and that way any reader will not feel tired after reading such long chapters.
Thank you again for you review. It means so much to me as a writer still in practice.