Sonia had only been on the ship one night, but had already fallen in love with the sea.
Her bunk was cosy, nestled in a corner of the room, with a curtain she could draw across for privacy. A window allowed a single beam of light to shine through onto her pillow, where Sonia was gently nudged to wakefulness by the rocking of the ship. The cries of gulls and the whooshing of the ocean filled her ears, and she took a moment to enjoy the bliss that she was, finally, awaking somewhere other than Port Tanzia.
She had made it no secret to her superiors she wished to leave, and they where happy to oblige her. After Gossfrid…No, he is gone, and I am away from that dreaded place. The Port held little appeal for her after that, she had few happy memories there.
She rose from her bed and threw on her garb, hoping to catch breakfast and maybe the sunrise as well. It must be beautiful out here on the open sea. She made her way through the bunk room silent as she could, aware that most of the crew where still sleeping. Erick was snoring softly, wrapped in his sheets in a vague imitation of a fetus. Hirio was nowhere to be found. Must be an early riser. It didn't surprise her.
Sonia entered the canteen and was delighted to find it stocked to the brim, palicos darted in-between tables laden with all manner of exotic dishes. Ericks father must have paid for a lavish pantry aboard. She was only too happy to take advantage.
"Ho there lady!"
Sonia nearly spat out her breakfast in fright, she turned to see whom the bellowing voice behind her belonged to. A wall of blubber chuckled upon seeing her startled face. "Ha! Didn't mean to scare you none, my apologies lady." He smiled, and came to sit across the table from her. The bench protested, but held firm.
"Names Mill, I'm captain of this fine vessel, and may I extend my warmest welcome to one of her newest passengers." Mill grabbed a fistful of berries and began shovelling them into his gaping maw with terrifying speed. "Uh, thank you, captain. It's a, fine vessel. I'm Sonia" She managed, watching the man eat with fascinated horror.
"Ah, but she is Sonia! The Red Maiden. That boy's father, what's his name, Erick? Fitted her with all the goods. Got enough firepower to take on a mountain, and enough food to last us a whole winter!"
"I see, are we likely to be taking on any mountains captain?"
Mills paused in his ravenous crusade to take a breath. "What with the Elder Crossing and all that…But I wouldn't worry lady, I imagine that big ol' hunter you come aboard with would carve em up good."
That he would. Sonia had been looking through his records and would certainly have to go back and finish them, luckily she had brought them onto the ship beforehand. They certainly make for fascinating reading.
"Where is Hirio? Do you know?"
Mills nodded. "Up on deck swinging that great big sword of his last I saw him. Didn't seem like he wanted to chat."
"Yep, sounds like Hirio. Doesn't use his manners for anyone"
"Even for a beautiful lady like yourself?" The captain asked.
"Oh…" Sonia blushed. "Well I…"
He was at the desk again, watching her work. "Smile Sonia, you look beautiful when you smile."
Sonia bit a retort on her tongue, she knew the captain was only trying to be charming, but…I didn't leave one nest of hungry men for another did I?
The captain seemed to notice it troubled her, and quickly apologised. "Sorry lady, was only meaning to be polite."
"Its alright, I must learn to take compliments better I suppose"
Sonia smiled. That seemed to put the man at ease, and he continued to devour his breakfast.
No one likes a grumpy receptionist Sonia, smile, be polite, be a lady. They'll give you less bother if you give them what they want. His words still rang in her head like a mantra, if she had known at the time how insidious they were…
"If you will excuse me captain, I would like to see the sunrise."
"Of course! Beautiful out here, on the open ocean." Sonia stood and left, speeding up the steps to the deck, she needed to remind herself that Port Tanzia was far behind her. The wooden confines of the Red Maiden opened up. Wind swept across Sonia's face, and she felt its gusting fingers play with her hair. She looked out from the bow and gasped.
The sun was just peeking it's golden brow above the horizon, shafts of orange scorched the cobalt sky and crimson rays bled into the ocean, creating a shifting mirage of dazzling light. The water seemed to come alive, a dancing court of garish colours, attending their monarch as it rose from the waves. The sight took Sonias breath away, and she quite forgot about Gossfrid and Port Tanzia. For a moment at least.
Her reverie was broken by a grunt and the whoosh of a sword through the air, Sonia turned to see Hirio going through his forms on the deck of the ship. Sonia doubted she could lift his monstrous great sword, but Hirio swung it with a grace and precision that defied belief. Always stopping short of the deck so not to damage the wood. When the boat rocked, Hirio would adjust his footing in perfect rhythm with the ocean. If not for his sword, one might have assumed he was dancing.
"Quite a spectacle, isn't he?" Sonia turned and was amazed to see Erick standing on the deck. He stank of booze, and he looked as though he had one foot in the grave, but he was on his feet at least.
"Erick, I'm amazed your standing!" He gave a wry grin.
"I'm no stranger to a hangover I'm ashamed to say, it no longer bothers me as it once did." He took a step forward and nodded towards Hirio. "How long have you known him?"
"I met him a few weeks ago." She remembered that meeting well, when he first entered the Guild Hall like a beast at a banquet. He received a dozen challenges that night, and bested every single one. "You where an idiot to hit him, you know that?"
Erick laughed. "Well, I couldn't let his insult go unchallenged."
"You should have, he could've killed you."
"If he had, he wouldn't have his passage to the New World, which he seemed very eager to obtain I have noticed, what's that about?"
Sonia wondered if Hirio could hear their conversation, then wondered if he would even care. "I'm not sure, he just arrived at my desk one day insisting passage to the New World."
"You have his records?"
"I do, I'm still reading through them."
"Perhaps they will hold more answers." Erick turned to face Sonia. "And what about you? Why are you here?"
Sonia faltered, unsure of what to tell him. "I'm Hirios handler."
"Yes, and I don't envy you the task. I imagine it will be akin to leashing a mad dog, but why you? Why did you want to do it?"
"Your so selfish Sonia" He said "the hunters risk their lives in the field, you just sit at a desk all day. You think it matters what you want? Just smile, be polite, and do your job."
Sonia smiled.
"The guild asked me to go, so I went. I work for them after all!" It was enough, and Erick seemed to buy the explanation. She didn't want to tell him anymore. He probably wouldn't care anyway, just write me off as some weepy weirdo.
"Fair enough, I suppose it's part of the job. Now, shall we go and see these records? I have questions about Hirio, and getting answers from him will be harder than drawing blood from a stone."
The two went below deck to Sonias bunk, and sat flicking through a huge leather bound book. The sheer volume of Hirios record went great lengths to show his astonishing career, even without reading its contents. Hirio had enlisted with the hunters guild in Loc-Lac city at age 16, and it seems he returned there only once, to participate in a Diablos hunt alongside two other hunters who he appeared to have frequently worked with. Bron and Lira.
After this hunt, Hirio and his companions upped their antics to incredible heights. With some of the most dangerous contracts Sonia had ever seen as a Guild Receptionist signed and completed by their hunting party. "Good lord." Erick whispered. "Three Deviljhos, in a single day?!"
"After he went home, his work just, skyrockets." Sonia wondered about that. Did something happen? Did he get some sort of weapon from his home? Or did he just plain stop caring about his life? And what about those other two, where are they? The record left Sonia with innumerable questions, but she kept reading in hopes of finding answers.
When she turned the next page, her eyes widened. "My god, this is-he fought the Crimson Fatalis!" Sonia dove into the entry. Sure enough, the trios signatures where marked as accepting the contract. Erick stared wide eyed. "To fight one of the Three, how many hunters can claim to have done that? To have even survived such an encounter, let alone triumph!" Sonia carried on reading. "Wait, look." She pointed out. "Only one of them signed it as completed." Erick grabbed the page. "Bron, only Bron signed the contract closed, what about the other two?"
"I'm not sure." Sonia pondered. "Maybe-"
"What's that?"
Sonia nearly jumped out her skin. Hirio was standing in the doorway, sweating and panting. Sonia trembled. "Um, its just, your hunting record, I, I'm your handler, s-so I thought that, maybe…"
"Stupid girl" He said. "Just smile and do your job."
Hirio walked over to the bunk. "It's just closed contracts. Not worth reading."
"Not worth reading?!" Erick exclaimed. "You fought the Crimson Fatalis! How did you defeat it? and those other two you worked with! where are-"
Once again, Sonia was astounded that such a big man could move so fast.
Before either of them could blink, Hirio had torn the book from Sonias grasp and thrown it out the window. With his other hand he gripped Erick by his throat, and lifted the boy clean off his feet.
"If you want to survive your time in the New World, never, speak of this again." Erick nodded frantically. Hirio turned to look at Sonia still sat on the bed, fury in his eyes. She wanted to cry, to shout and scream at him for being so difficult. To yell at him for scaring her and to put Erick down.
Instead, Sonia smiled.
"Of course Hirio. We were just curious, that's all." Hirio held a moment then slowly lowered Erick to the ground. The tension in the room eased somewhat, and Erick rubbed his throat as colour returned to his face. "You should never have read that." Hirio told them.
"We're sorry Hirio, we just, wanted to know more about you." Sonia told him.
"Why?"
Good question. Thought Sonia. Was it because she was afraid of him? Not knowing who he was? Or maybe she just being plain nosy, did she want reassuring that he could keep them safe? She realised he was still waiting for an answer.
before she could give it, a bell started tolling.
Sonia froze, Erick looked up the stairs in panic, Hirio gritted his teeth and stormed up to the deck. Sailors ran from port to starboard frantically while the gulls left their perches and soared away. Mills was bellowing orders from the helm, grappling with the wheel.
"Captain, what's going on?" Sonia shouted.
"Something in the water, not sure what. It's big, and it's circling the ship." Mills eyed the Red Maidens flanks warily, never looking at one spot for too long.
"Did no one manage to get a look at it?" Erick asked. Mills pointed to a sailor hefting a cannonball across the deck. "Him there, he spotted it, Just said it was big and coming our way!"
Hirio snorted. "Could be a damn whale if that's all we've got to go on." He marched over to the sailor and gripped the poor man by his collar, causing him to drop the cannonball. "How big was it? What did it look like?"
The sailor looked at him helplessly. "Huge sir! Big as the ship it seemed! Only saw a little bit of it as it broke the water. Weren't no whale, I'm sure-" He stopped mid-sentence and his eyes glazed over, fixated on something to the starboard flank. Sonia followed his gaze.
A shadow was moving through the sea, twisting and turning as it approached the ship. A burst of foam spat upwards as it broke the surface, showing a thick mass of bright blue scales and bony protrusions before it dove again.
"Lagiacrus." Erick whispered.
Hirio drew his sword. Letting it slam on the deck with a resounding thud, baring his teeth and wiping sweat from his brow before donning his helmet. He's still exhausted from training this morning! Sonia realised.
Alarmed, she asked him. "Hirio, will, will you be able to-" He waved her off. "You can stop panicking, I've killed plenty of these oversized geckos." He took a deep breath, and then hefted his great sword onto his shoulder with a grunt. "I'll be fine, get below deck!"
Sonia could tell he wasn't fine, and Erick as well it seemed. "Sonia, this ship is well armed. He may not even have to swing his sword." He reassured her. She hoped so, watching the cannons being loaded.
"I could help." She blurted out suddenly. "I can carry cannonballs! I can load-"
"You can sit below deck and not get killed!" Hirio snarled. "This isn't a place for a receptionist!"
"But-"
"He's right Sonia." Erick interjected. "We've got plenty of helping hands already, no sense in putting yourself in harms way." Sonia looked between them both helplessly.
"Stupid girl" he said "Just smile and do your job."
Sonia looked at her feet, dejected. "Okay." She said. Sonia turned and headed below deck, perhaps she could stop the records from getting damaged. Apparently it's all she was good for.