Monster Hunter: The Telepathic Hunter; Ch16: Attack of the Poisonous Wyverns!
February 11th. Location: Unknown. Time: Unknown.
"Urrg," groaned Alex as he stirred awake. A few things became apparent as he blinked his eyes open. He had a massive headache, he was cold and wet, and lying on water logged dirt and mud. "Ugh, what happened…?" He was lying on his stomach, so he turned over. The sky was dark, night time, and it was raining softly. "I remember heading home to Pokke… then I hit a bad storm out of nowhere… ow, it hurts to think." Alex nursed his head as he got into a sitting position. By listening, he could hear what sounded like waves. "Where… am I? Did I… crash land!?" Alex got up and checked himself. Besides his aching head, he seemed to be fine. He had most of his Cephalos Armor, save for the helmet. Grace, his Iron Katana Gospel Longsword, was missing. A quick 360 sweep of his surroundings revealed that he was in… a swamp. "Am I… stranded and defenseless in the Kluputios Marsh!? Is this place… the Still Swamp!? Oh, no! Out of all the places to crash land… I need to find the base camp. I'm a sitting duck out here!"
Steeling his conviction, Alex calmed himself down and began to move. Without a map, he would most likely get lost. Actually, he was already lost, so it could not get that much worse for him other than running into a few monsters, such as Congas and Bullfangos. He decided to go in the direction he believed to be south. He somehow had his Hunter Pack on him, so he rummaged through it and ate a ration to fill his energy.
After some walking, through the cold air and unforgiving soggy ground, Alex found himself in disaster. He stumbled onto a pack of Velociprey relatives. They were red raptors known as Ioprey. These cousins were known for their life sapping poison that they inject into prey with their fangs, or spit out in a ball.
"Of all the worst luck…"
"Oh, look guys! It's a hunter!" exclaimed the first to notice Alex.
"He doesn't have a weapon," pointed out another.
"He looks lost!"
"Let's sick 'em!" said the fourth.
"My only option is to run! I can't afford to get bitten, or I'll surely die!" Alex needed no further invitation to flee as the Ioprey pack tried to converge on him. He could have escaped to the Swamp's base camp if the path was not blocked by the very hungry raptors chasing him. He was forced to go east to another area. There, he had to weave his way through a horde of more Iopreys and some Congas. He also noticed murky purple pools, being very careful to avoid them as the noxious contents they possessed would do him in just as badly as the Ioprey's poison.
"Where do you think you're going!?" said the voice of an Iodrome, the alpha leader of the pack, just as Alex entered into a cave.
"OH, NO!" Alex now had no way out. He had fallen into the worst case scenario, having been led and herded here by his very pursuers. It was their plan all along. Realizing this, Alex to his credit put on a look of defiance. If he was to go down, he would not go down in despair.
"Alright boys! Show no mercy!" ordered the leader. Alex only saw a blur of red. The sounds of snarling and scuffling filled the cave, but Alex did not cry or scream even once. At the end of the ordeal, he was on the ground and covered in wounds. He coughed violently, letting out purple bubbles. He was slowly dying. "Now, let's finish him!"
"Reckless Abandon!" cried a voice. The group turned to see another hunter entering the cave. They were armed with a Bone Katana Wolf Longsword, which was glowing red. Quick as a flash, three Ioprey were defeated.
"What's going on? Is someone else here? I can hear fighting…" Alex was too hurt to open his eyes and watch, but he could still hear that something was up. There were a few retreating footsteps, followed by a brief silence. Then it sounded like someone in heavy boots was approaching.
"Hey, hey! Are you still alive?" asked a familiar voice.
Alex could just faintly recognize it, but nothing was coming to mind. He just let out a heavy breath. "Uhhh…"
"Good, you're still with me. Here, drink this antidote."
Alex felt himself being rolled over, and a bottle being placed near his lips. He opened his mouth and the taste of bitter Antidote herbs and Blue Mushroom extract filled it. Down the hatch. And once that was done, as the refreshing, healing feeling spread throughout his body, he promptly passed out.
"Poor guy, barely escaped death by the skin of his teeth. Now, I'd better get him out of here before I resume my mission. You sure have become strong, Alex."
"Uhhh…. Huh?" Alex stirred awake once more, this time on a bed. He was dry, inside of a base camp tent. He looked outside. The rain had stopped, but the sky remained white with thick clouds. "I'm… alive? How did I…" Alex looked at himself. He was bandaged all over, and his armor was laid out at the foot of the bed. His head still ached, but not as badly as last night. "Oh, yeah. I found myself stranded here in the Still Swamp. I was attacked by a pack of… Ioprey. Did someone save me?"
Alex got out of the bed and walked out into the open. "Oh, you're awake! Thank goodness!" said a voice. Alex turned to the left, eastwards, and there was a face he had not seen in a while.
"K-k-k! Kotaru!? Is that really you!?" Alex was elated. Kotaru was a childhood friend of Alex from Kokoto as well. They had both trained together under Master Koto, but he had a headstart and became a Hunter first. Kotaru was a year older than Alex.
Kotaru came up to Alex and pulled him into a bear hug. "Of course it's me! Man, I was sure surprised to find you out here. What happened? Why were you without a weapon to defend yourself?"
Alex pulled out from the hug. "I… crash landed here. My balloon hit a storm and… the rest is kinda hazy. Next thing I know, I'm being chased around by an Ioprey pack. They led me into an ambush."
"That's insane. It's a good thing I stumbled unto you when I did. I took out a few of them, but most of them and the Iodrome leader got away. I then tended to you and brought here to base camp to rest."
"Thank you, Kotaru. You saved me… again."
"No problem, man. Best bud forever, right?"
"Yup. So, what kinda quest are you here for?"
"I'm here to hunt for a Gypceros, a sneaky wyvern that also spits poison."
"Yeesh! I've had my fill of poison for one season."
"Well, seeing that you're in a bind, I can take you back to civilization once I'm done. I'm sure you know that this place is only accessible by boat."
"Sure. That would be great. But I can't leave until I recover my Longsword. I'm sure it must have fallen somewhere around here."
"Well, I guess I can look for it for you. What is its name?"
"Iron Katana Gospel."
"Nice. You must have worked hard to get that crafted. Now, I know it's hard for you to stay still, but I think it's best if you wait here and rest some more. Let's not have you visit the brink of death twice in "one season."
"Can't really argue with that," replied Alex. "I'm only pretending to be a hundred percent, I'm afraid to admit. My bites still hurt. Well, off you go. Oh, be sure to look out for the wreckage of my balloon. Perhaps I'll pay for a service to recover it for me later…"
"Alright. Anything you for, bud. See ya." Kotaru turned to leave.
Alex trudged back into the tent and sat down on the bed. "Ow…"
Alex had encountered some of the most terrible luck, even almost losing his life in the process. He was grimly reminded that, above all else, he was still human, and that not everything will be smooth sailing. But, he was fortuitously able to meet up with an old friend.
3:00 PM.
"I'm back…" said Kotaru's voice wearily. Alex got up to go meet him. "I found your sword and helmet, here."
"Thanks a million!" exclaimed Alex as he took the items. He placed his helmet on the bed and hugged Grace to his chest. "Oh, I almost thought I'd never see you again! I promise I'll be more careful with you!"
Kotaru looked at Alex with a funny look for a few seconds before shrugging. "Well, that was interesting… Um, I found the balloon as well. It's a total wreck."
"Man. Nathan is going to flip if he ever hears about this…" Alex shuddered. Before Kotaru could ask who Nathan was, Alex quickly cut in, "So, did you find the Gypceros?"
Kotaru let out a sigh. "Nope. Not a sign. And I search the entire place from top to bottom three times. My tracking skills still need work, I guess. Or perhaps there were none here today."
"I see, well, how about I join you this time? I'm much better now, and I can fight now that I have Grace in my hands."
"Well, I'd rather not… But also, I guess one more search couldn't hurt. I don't like the idea of returning empty handed. Sure, suit up!"
"You don't have to tell me twice!" Alex began doing just that. First was his leg parts, then boots, the chest piece, then his arm pieces, and finally his helmet. He strapped the sheath of Grace onto his back. He was ready to go. "Alright, let's do this!"
"Great. Here, look at this map. Where would you like to check first?"
Alex took the map and studied it for a few seconds. "Zone 2 seems to interest me. That's close to the area of the cave where you found me, right?"
"Yes. Really? I basically just came from there. Oh, well. Let's just give it a try."
The two friends thus set out.
The Still Swamp, Area 1.
Alex and Kotaru walked through a small thin wood, with the lake to the south. There were Aptonoths and Kelbi grazing here. But what caught Alex's attention was a toppled over, dead tree trunk. He saw the markings of a wild Felyne drop point, a place where the Lynian cats would store their spoils, which mostly included human junk and curios, like lost umbrellas and barrels. He even saw a Felyne carrying a large sack of loot towards it.
Then… "Kotaru, I sense something up ahead. I think a boss monster has arrived before us."
"Huh!? How can you tell? Where exactly do you think it is?"
"This will surprise you, but I seem to have developed the Telepathy Skill. I am a Kasai."
"Whoa! And I thought you were special enough already!"
"Thanks… Let us hurry to Zone 2. I'll bet it's your quarry."
"I like the sound of that."
The Still Swamp, Area 2.
Stomp... stomp... stomp... stomp... stomp, went gray, three toed feet. The creature suddenly sped up, making a silly 'Aah-Aar!' vocals with each step. Its wings flapped like a chicken as it ran and its pink flexible, club-end tail swayed left and right behind it.
"What the heck?!" thought Alex and Kotaru simultaneously. The dull gray wyvern stopped not two meters in front of them and started pecking at a large white flower. With each peck, the hammer shaped part of the crest struck a hardened fixed part, which flickered slightly with each strike. Alex and Kotaru exchanged glances. The wyvern had seen them, but was now ignoring them! The two unsheathed their swords and became ready for battle. Alex placed a hand on Kotaru as he tried to establish communication.
"Hey, what's the big deal?" asked Alex telepathically. "We know you saw us!"
"Huh? Oh, sorry about that, I'm hungry!" replied a half happy, half dull voice. Alex visibly twitched at that. "Hey! You're that new guy who can speak to wyverns! Are you a Kasai?"
"Yeah, so what if I am?"
"Well, I don't really wanna fight right now. I'll leave you alone if you don't interfere with my snack time."
"Sorry, but that just can't happen," answered Kotaru. "You are my target."
"Urg! Darn it, fine! Here I come!" Before the hunter duo could make a move, the gray wyvern struck his crest, producing a brilliant blinding flash!
"Ahhh!" Kotaru and Alex were left dazed and open. The wyvern charged and head butted Alex flying!
"Alex! Grrr! You're gonna pay for that, freak!" Kotaru recovered and charged. He did a downward attack which bounced right off. "HUH?!" While he was reeling back, the wyvern nailed him with his pink club tail. "Aaahh!"
Alex got up just to see Kotaru land onto his stomach. "No!" He turned to the dull gray wyvern, which was charging at him again. Alex just held his ground.
"I'm Grey the Gypceros! Never forget it!" yelled the wyvern. He was just about to tackle the hunter when Alex rolled forward with perfect timing! "HUH!? Aah!" Gray crashed headfirst into a tree that was behind Alex, causing his crest to be shattered. The tree itself was also knocked over. Grey was stunned.
"Take this!" Alex wasted no time to attack, building up power into Grace.
"Alex! I'm coming to help you!" Kotaru charged in and joined in the attack. Together, they slashed away with all their might. Some of their attacks would bounce off, and some were clean hits, causing actual damage.
"AHHH! OW! Ouch! AHHH! OWW! THAT HUURRT! NOO! OWW! AHHH!" By the time the Gray had recovered, the duo had scored considerable damage to their foe. Bleeding cuts and scrapes dotted and littered his body. They backed away as the wounded wyvern entered rage mode. 'RROOAARR!' "Now... you've done it!" Purple breath could be seen coming out of his mouth. You won't escape THIS! Wide Area Toxic Spit Barrage!" The wyvern started running about while swaying his neck. With each sway, balls of concentrated poison flew out all over the place. Alex and Kotaru did their best to dodge them, and got separated.
"Huh?" Alex turned to see Grey charging straight for him. Instincts told him to run, but he stood firm once again. When he sensed the time was right, he rolled forward under the beast and in the space of a few seconds made what he thought was the finishing blow.
"Gah-ack! N-no!" Gray collapsed under the pain, defeated.
'Huff... huff. Huff..." Alex caught his breath as Kotaru ran up alongside him.
'Huff, huff.' "Is it dead?" he asked, a little less tired than Alex.
"I'm not sure… It looks like it. But, even I know that these wyverns often play dead when they get in trouble."
"Well, I'll just make sure. Better safe than sorry, Master Koto always used to say." Alex nodded and Kotaru went forward. His longsword was glowing red, fully charged for a Spirit Sword Attack. "Prepare to…" Kotaru got to say nothing further as the not-so-defeated wyvern got up almost explosively and spat out a big ball of poison. It sailed through the air and splattered all over Kotaru.
"Aaahh!" Searing pain inflicted him as the toxin began to spread through his being. He fell and thrashed about on the ground.
"KOTARU!" Alex became alarmed. But he had no time to tend to him as in his moment of distraction, he was smacked clear across the ground by Gray's club-end tail. Alex rubbed his aching side until his senses warned him of more pressing matters. He saw the dull gray wyvern standing menacingly above the still thrashing Kotaru. "Say good night, you blow hard!"
"One move and he's history!" threatened Grey. But Alex knew he was lying. He had read the sneaky wyvern's true intentions.
"He's gonna kill him while expecting me to do nothing. What should I do!?" Adrenaline pumped through Alex's system. His Chikara was raging inside him, such that the Dragonite triangle of his necklace was glowing. "I have to save him, no matter what! Just like how he saved me!" As Grey reached down to crush Kotaru's skull in his jaw, a ghostly term came to Alex as his body started glowing. "Thunder Element: Khezu Cloak.!" Suddenly, blue electricity enveloped Alex's body! It did not numb or shock him. It did the opposite, giving him a rush of adrenaline and power. "Whoa! This... is incredible! I feel amazing! Lightning Step!"
'WHOOSH!' Alex charged forward at inhuman speed! "WHAT THE!?" Grey received a powerful horizontal slash that left a blue line of static in the air. "Ack!" He reeled back and shook his head. Then he looked around to see Alex placing Kotaru down a few meters away. "How?! How did you...?!"
"This must be one of the special Kasai abilities I've vaguely heard about. I'm going to finish you!" declared Alex as he quickly fed Kotaru some antidote before returning his gaze to the now astonished wyvern. Alex flared up his lightning cloak, causing electricity to dance about his body more vividly. He took a deep breath, held Grace more firmly, leaned back on his left foot, let out the breath and, pushing his weight on his left foot, dug back the ground as he shot forward at the speed of a charging Bulldrome!
"N-no! Stay away!" Wanting no part of this, Grey prepared to fly away and escape. But it was too late.
"Oh no, YOU DON'T! THUNDER ELEMENT: LIGHTNING SPIRIT SWORD ATTACK!" Upon nearing the fleeing wyvern, Alex delivered four lightning fast strikes, creating an eight armed star of lightning.
"GRAAAARRRRHHHH!" roared Grey in pain.
"The final blow! Be gone!" Alex plunged grace into the center of the star shape, impaling Grey in the neck. A flash was released as the 'star' exploded.
The finally defeated wyvern collapsed. His body was in continuous spasms as he slowly bled to death. Alex removed his blade and stepped back, his lightning cloak receding, its job completed. "Gah! A-haa! Hack! Gah! How…? My rubbery hide resists… the Thunder Element…! I should have… withstood this…!"
Alex was running on fumes now. Even his necklace had stopped glowing. "That's what happens.. when you try... to fool others. Your lies, they come back... to bite you... in the end."
Author Note.
A glaring error has finally been fixed. I mistook the Jio Terado Marshland (Gen 1 Swamp) for the Kuruputiosu Wetlands (Gen 2 Swamp).