Monster Hunter: The Telepathic Hunter; Ch33: A Troublesome Pair
June 25th, 2098. Arcolis Forest and Hills, Area 4. 3:00 PM.
Alex and Ai happily carved materials from the defeated Elder Dragon's body, Mirage the Chameleos. Alex was especially overjoyed at his second triumph over an Elder Dragon. Even he considered his win over Raiden the Kirin as more like a tie, as he had narrowly avoided death by a hair's breadth. Alex took special notice to collect Elder Dragon bones.
"Hey, Alex."
Alex stopped working and turned to Ai. "Ai? What's up?"
Ai hesitated, before saying, "I'm sorry for snapping at you, before. I was just flustered, maybe a little angry." Alex shuffled his feet uncomfortably. "This wasn't the first time I've had my heart broken, but I can say it was especially painful." Alex gasped at that. "I've calmed down now, and as difficult as it is, I will respect your decision. At least you didn't take a whole year to let me down, like the last guy did." Ai chuckled a little to herself. "As long as we're friends, I guess I can live with that."
Alex was not sure how to take this, but he knew there was no going back. So, he opted to just smile. "Thank you, Ai. Now, let's finish up here so that we can return to Kokoto."
"Sounds good to me."
Kokoto Village.
"Welcome back," greeted Anna and Kotaru at the north road of the village just as Alex and Ai were coming.
Anna went over to Alex and hugged him. "How was it?"
"It was very difficult, but we eventually won," replied Alex with a smile. "I got a ton of materials, including the much desired Elder Dragon bones!"
Anna released and stepped back. "That's great. You must be tired. Let's return to Chief Koto's."
"I sure am."
Anna took Alex by the hand and led him off.
"Um… am I missing something?" said Kotaru to Ai.
"Please, don't ask me," replied Ai with a huff. "Why don't you ask them?"
"Whoa. Something must have happened, if you're this mad."
"I'm not mad!" Ai replied angrily. Kotaru reeled slightly, unnerved. "Ugh. Let's just go home. I'll tell you everything there."
"Sounds good to me."
"De ja vu…"
"Huh?"
"It's nothing."
Koto's house.
"I am thankful you won. But, do you now have a greater understanding and respect of and for the power of Elder Dragons?" Koto said.
"I do," Alex replied.
"I don't suppose you two will be staying here much longer."
"No, Sir," said Anna. "The Pseudo Winter will be over by tomorrow, so we can leave as early as tomorrow afternoon."
"I see." Koto played with his beard, before assuming a mischievous look. "Miss Frost, please look after my Alex. He's a bit clumsy, but he means well."
"MASTER!" Alex exclaimed in uproar. Koto and Anna just laughed.
"I will try," said Anna, still chuckling.
"Hmph!" Alex folded his arms and turned his head to the side.
August 1st. Pokke Village.
A few days passed after Alex and Anna returned from Kokoto. They had immediately learned from Treshi how to make the Elder Dragon Pickaxe. They spent a few days at the farm mining for materials. Curiously, the Fatalis Buster only gave out a certain amount of materials each day, to the both of them, and the mined areas would magically grow back within 24 hours. There was probably an incredible amount of latent Chikara energy in the sword, even in its dilapidated state. When Alex imagined the kind of power a real living Fatalis held, he was terrified by the thought.
Alex and Anna were making their way to Vance. By now, they had gathered enough materials for a full set of armor and one weapon, each. As usual, Anna was opting for a Dual Blades set, but surprisingly Alex was leaning towards the Sword and Shield. Within the Long Sword class, the weapon was more like a reaper scythe, and Alex wanted nothing to do with it, even if it meant he would miss out on the chance to use Dragon Element enhanced Spirit Sword attacks.
"Yo, yo, and hello, you two!" greeted Vance as the couple came to his smithy. "What can I do for you?"
"We're here to give you materials for the Fatalis gear we ordered," answered Anna.
"Oh, perfect! I finished redesigning the blueprints Guild Headquarters sent to me just last night. With your mats, I can get to work on the articles right away. Please, place the items on the counter."
"Roger!" said Alex. He and Anna each unloaded three full sacks of weird, dark shards. There were big and small pieces. To the untrained eye, they looked like useless stone shards. But they were anything but useless. Vance would have to smelt these down along with some Iron ore, Machalite ore and even some Dragonite ore.
"Thank you… Oh! I almost forgot!" Vance looked sheepish, then serious. "As you should know, the Fatalis armor doesn't grant defense against the Dragon Element. You see, all Elder Dragons besides Kirin are somewhat weak to the Dragon Element. However, I think I have found a workaround."
"What is it?" asked Alex. "Does it have to do with the redesign you were talking about?"
"Right you are, Alex! Monoblos are strong against the Dragon Element, so in theory I could use parts from this wyvern to offset the Dragon weakness, maybe even reverse it."
"Cool! So that means I can give you my…"
"Hold your horses. I don't think regular Monoblos will work. This is a tall ask, but I think you'll need to hunt and slay the rare subspecies, the White Monoblos."
"White Monoblos?" repeated Anna. "I've heard of them from Maxwell. They're only rare because they hardly ever appear into the legal hunting areas of both the Sekumeaya and Dede deserts. Of the few times they do, they do so at night, which is the time most hunters hate hunting in."
"That's just great… Well, at the very least, you can make the weapons, right?"
"I can. Just so that we are clear, the Black Sword for you, Alex, and the Black Twin Daggers, for you, Anna?" The couple nodded. "Okay, great. And, concerning the Monoblos, I wish you the best of luck."
"We will probably need it," Alex remarked. "Well, we'll leave you to it, now."
"Come back in three days," said Vance.
"Thanks. See you then!" said Anna as she and Alex began to walk away. "Hey, Alex."
"Yes, my dear?" Alex replied.
"How about you come to my house? We've been so busy at the farm, we haven't yet taken the time to inform my brother Mathew of our new relationship."
"Whoa, you're right. Let's go right away."
"You should go home and freshen up first. We did go straight to Vance after leaving the farm."
"Okay. Well, see you in a bit."
"Meet me outside the gathering hall. You've never been to my house before, so I will have to lead you to it."
"Huh… You don't say." As Alex started for his house, he began to consider how long he had been in Pokke and how much of the village he had actually seen. Now that he thought about it, even his first 'tour' was not much of a tour. I need to visit the homes of each villager and improve my relations with everyone. I barely know the very people I live with… What a misstep on my part. No wonder I still can't call myself a great hunter… Say, I haven't even been to Corra's house! Speaking of Corra, where is she? I haven't seen her since I got back."
Mathew was not at all surprised at the news, Alex was shocked to learn. Anna had confided her feelings of Alex to her brother a long time ago. Mathew was very accepting of Alex, knowing the Head Hunter of Pokke could very well protect his treasured one-year-younger sister… At least most of the time. The trio shared a meal Alex brought with him, keenly insisted on by Apple, and had an overall good time.
Alex spent a few days learning more about the villagers of Pokke between going on quests with just Anna. Pokke currently had a whopping 114 inhabitants. Several mining families that left during the months after Maxwell retired came back some time after General Tiggy had been defeated.
Corra returned on the 2nd, and explained she had been on back to back quests. About a few weeks back, she earned a Rank Up by defeating a One Horned Diablos all by herself. It should not be understated how strong and dangerous this type was, so for her to solo it meant that she had taken being a hunter even more seriously and was becoming stronger.
On the 3rd, Corra actually agreed to help Alex and Anna look out for a White Monoblos on a night excursion in the Sekumeaya Desert. They found and fought some Genprey, Cephalos, even a surprise Daimyo Hermitaur, but had no such luck on their target wyvern.
August 4th, 7:45 AM.
Alex and Anna met before Vance's workshop. "Yo, yo, and hello, you two! Come for your weapons, have you?"
"Good morning Vance, and yes we have."
"Give me a moment." Vance turned and went into the workshop. A few seconds later he reemerged with two boxes tucked under his arms. He placed the boxes on the table. "To Alex, your Black Sword. And to Anna, your Black Twin Daggers."
"Thank you very much," said the two in sync as they received their orders. They opened the boxes and took out the weapons. Alex examined the strange blade of this sword, and Anna looked at her dark dual blades.
"Awesome job, Vance," said Alex.
"I'm glad you like it," Vance replied.
"Oh! There you are!" called Corra's voice. Everyone turned to her as she approached. "Listen, I've just gotten a wonderful opportunity for all of us. The Guild is offering Rank Ups to anyone who is brave enough to tackle a Rathalos and Ratihian pair that has appeared in the Arcolis Forest and Hills."
"Really!?" asked Anna.
"That sounds challenging… I'm in!" said Alex.
"This is a good opportunity to test out your new weapons," said Vance. Alex and Anna turned back to him. "Rathalos and Rathian are weak against both Thunder and Dragon Element, especially the latter."
"Really? Well, I guess we could do that. But, if they're weak to Thunder, then I should probably just use Grace."
"Do what you feel is necessary, Alex," Vance replied. "The choice is yours, after all."
"In anycase, you two should get suited up so that we can leave quickly," said Corra. "Come to the gathering hall to sign up."
"Got it!" said Anna.
"Roger!"
Hunter Stats
Kasai (HR4)
Weapon: Black Sword Sword-and-Shield (Dragon Element)
Armor: Kirin EX
Skills: Telepathy, Kasai Potential, Element Attack Up, All Resist, Item Usage Decline, Elder Dragon Influence.
2. Corra Kasai (HR4)
Weapon: Khezu Horn Hunting Horn (Thunder Element) {White, Yellow, Blue}
Armor: Khezu 'D' Blade Master
Skills: Telepathy, Kasai Potential, Recovery Level Up, Wide Area, Thunder Resist, Water Damage Increase.
3. Anna Frost (HR3)
Weapon: Black Twin Daggers Dual Blades (Dragon Element)
Armor: Kut-Ku 'D' Blade Master
Skills: Element Attack Up, Reckless Abandon, Fire Resist, Ice Damage Increase
4. Ai Shiki (HR4)
Weapon: Sakura Parasol Light Bowgun
Armor: Battle Gunner
Skills: Strength Up, Reloading Speed Up, Precision Up, Hunger Increase.
5. Kotaru Shiki (HR3)
Weapon: Khezu Shock Sword Greatsword (Thunder Element)
Armor: Garuga Blade Master
Skills: Sharpness Plus, Earplug, Reckless Abandon, Poison Resist.
6. Katie of Rekusara (HR4)
Weapon: Grenade Launcher Light Bowgun
Armor: Diablos Gunner
Skills: Vitality Down, Reckless Abandon +2, Wind Pressure Breaker, Ice Damage Increase
Arcolis Forest and Hills Basecamp.
Just in case you were wondering why six hunters were being allowed for this one mission, let us just say that the Hunter's Guild was carrying out an experiment. Even if five was the cursed number, what really dictated that any higher numbers of hunters would be just as bad? After all, Shen Gaoren and Lao Shan Lung Sieges often required the cooperation of many hunters more than just four and the Guild Knights in order to be successful. Besides, this was an urgent quest, with two level six threat-level Fire Wyverns on the plate. There was no such thing as "being too cautious" on Planet Macha. That is why the "Taboo of Negligence" existed.
"Alright everyone! Listen up!" Katie had self appointed herself as leader of this operation, and no one objected. "I think I can safely assume that everyone is in agreement that fighting the pair of Fire Wyverns together at once will be too dangerous." Everyone nodded, except for Ai. "I propose that we split up the wyverns and wage two 3-on-1 battles."
"I don't think it will be that simple," objected Ai. "Rathalos and Rathian mate for life and are very loyal as couples. Splitting them up will be an impossible task. I vote that we should just stay together. We already have the numbers advantage, so we can diffuse their teamwork with our own."
"What? But…"
"Let's not argue over this," said Alex. "Katie, I trust Ai's judgment. In any case, we're just burning daylight here. Let's get started."
"... Fine." Katie gave up immediately. "At the very least, three of us need to fight one of each." Everyone nodded.
The hexuplet of hunters set out. Team A consisted of Alex, Anna and Katie, while Team B was Ai, Corra and Kotaru. Immediately upon entering Area 3, everyone spotted the Rathalos up ahead. The proud Fire Wyvern was chowing down on an Aptonoth. The Rathian was nowhere in sight.
"Everyone, stop," whispered Katie. "We may be able to go with Plan A after all. I bet the Rathian is in Area 5, preparing a nest or keeping watch of any young they already may have. Let's split now while he hasn't noticed us yet."
"I want to take him," whispered Alex.
"Then, let's head back to Area 2," said Ai to her team members. "We can go to the hill through Area 6."
"Be careful, Corra," said Alex to his Aunt.
"Worry about yourself; I'll be fine," Corra replied.
From here, Team B left the area. Team A advanced cautiously.
"Don't think I didn't notice you lot back there, hunters," said a voice to Alex. Alex took that as a cue to set up the mind link with Anna and Katie, even amidst his shock. Everyone stopped as the Rathalos turned to them. "I assume the others are going after my wife? What a worthless gesture. They are really going to get it for disturbing our new nest. As for you three… I, Rouge, will burn you to cinders!"
"That's not going to happen, buddy," Alex replied. "Everyone… get ready."
With a roar, Rouge took flight towards the trio. Everyone ran out of the way as the wyvern swooped down, his claws poised to rip into someone as he passed. He landed into a short slide. Kotaru took the opportunity to fire off a few shots, while Alex and Anna took the fight to the wyvern. Alex blocked a headbutt with his shield, giving Anna an opening for a dual thrust attack. Flashes of black and orange static occurred. "Ow!" Rouge flew backwards to reset his position. "You're wielding Dragon Element weapons? Just great. Then I cannot afford to play around." Rouge went up into the air.
"Hey! Get down from there!" demanded Anna.
"Fire Element: Raining Fireballs!" Rouge fired out three flaming projectiles, one at each hunter.
"Whoa!" The spot where Alex just was after dodging exploded into flames and smoke.
"I'll knock him down!" Katie loaded Crag Shots. "Take this!" She took aim and fired.
Boom! The Shot exploded after lodging into Rouge's belly. "AAAHHH!" Rouge fell straight down.
"Now!" Alex did a jump slice, followed by a combo of slashes.
"Dragon Element: Dual Blades Dragon Dance!" exclaimed Anna. Using Dual Blades Power Up, she attacked with deadly grace. A flash of black and orange electricity occurred on both of the Blade Masters' attacks.
"No! I will not let this happen!" Rouge got up and did a 180 degree spin, sending Alex and Anna rolling with a smack of his tail. Rouge turned and set his sights on Katie, who swallowed. "You're going to pay!" Rouge fired a ball of fire at her.
"YIKES!" Katie threw herself out of the way.
"Hey! Leave her alone!" Alex charged at the Fire Wyvern.
Meanwhile, in the mountain cave of Area 5, Team B was facing off with the Rathian.
Kotaru blocked a charge attack with his great sword. Ai fired some shots, and Corra was playing White-White, reapplying Movement Speed Up on everyone. She then ran towards the green wyvern.
"Take this! Thunder Bash!" Corra smashed her Hunting Horn into the wyvern's side, damaging the left wing. A huge flash of blue static went off on impact
"Gaah!" The Rathian turned to Corra and did a backflip, sending Corra flying with a smack of the tail.
"Whooooaaa!" Corra screamed before landing hard and rolling to a stop. She coughed purple bubbles, having been poisoned by the spikes on the wyvern's tail.
Kotaru prepared a Charge Slash. "You're gonna pay for that!" Kotaru unleashed his attack and severely damaged the Rathian's right wing.
"GRAAAHHHH!" The Rathian roared loudly in pain.
Area 3.
Everyone faintly heard the Rathian's roar. "My queen needs me!" Rouge launched a fireball at near point blank range, leaving Alex to block it with his shield. As the explosion occurred, Rouge took flight and left the area.
"Darn! He fled!" said Alex.
"He's going towards Ai and the others!" observed Anna.
"We need to hurry!" exclaimed Katie.
"Alright, let's roll." The members of Team A drank Potions to heal up and then set off to aid Team B.