Disclaimer: I do not own the characters from Monster Hunter, only how the story goes. The characters and world of Monster Hunter belongs to Capcom. The only thing that I do own are the OC's of the story. I do apologize for any errors in grammar and/or if I was not accurate in reference to something.
A/N: This one might be a bit different than the other training. Mostly because I plan on a little more content and maybe a surprise visit from someone. Plus, maybe a little frustration as well. And with that, enjoy the show and have a Happy Thanksgiving, everybody!
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Chapter Forty-Nine: Master and Apprentice
Part One – First Day Difficulties
After returning to the plateau where Ares had taken them after their first meeting, the two stood in the middle of the trees at the top. Hardly any sounds other than their breathing could be heard. The sun had long set over the horizon as Jacob sat on the ground. He watched as Ares looked amongst the trees for something before moving towards one. Then lifting himself as tall as he could, the Glavenus grabbed a tree branch with his maw and ripped it off, resulting in a loud snap. He turned back to Jacob and set the branch down in front of his pupil. With a turn of his body and accuracy, the Brute Wyvern cut off the end of the branch where it had snapped from the tree. Ares lightly nudged the rest of the branch towards the human before backing away.
Getting the idea of what his new friend was wanting, Jacob removed his carving knife, moved onto his knees and started chopping the extra limbs from the main branch. He piled up what he cut off to the side to use for later. Then Jacob used the knife to whittle pieces of the stick away to give it more of a sharp edge to it. It took some time but when the stick was ready, the teen held it like a sword. Ares seemed content with how the stick was looking and gave a huff of approval. Jacob then asked, "Alright? What's next?"
But Ares was quick to surprise him by gently nudging him towards the overhang of stone with his head. The two walked over to the shelter and Ares laid down to where he blocked the wind off the human. Jacob honestly thought that they were going to start their training, but seeing how late it was he guessed that it would have to wait until the next morning. With a small yawn, Jacob moved to where he could lay down and his back was pressed up against the wall. He placed an arm behind his head and closed his eyes to sleep. As he watched the boy sleep, Ares then looked into the wilderness for signs of trouble before laying his head down to get some rest.
…
A little time just before a new dawn came the next morning, Jacob felt something nudging him awake from a dreamless night. He figured that sometime during the night he must have turned onto his side while he slept. The teen turned his head to find Ares looking down at him. With a yawn Jacob rose onto his feet, grabbed his stick and hoped that he was ready for what may come.
The two made their way down to the next level with the teacher up front. When they stood on level ground, the Glavenus turned around to face the human. Jacob held the branch as a sword again and prepared for what his master was about to teach him. The Glavenus moved closer to the human and carefully grabbed the stick with his teeth. Jacob didn't fight as Ares moved the sword to where the end pointed away from the human, almost like a Glavenus' tail. The Glavenus released the branch from his maw before taking a step back.
He saw that Ares looked a little unsure of how to start, but Jacob watched as the Glavenus turned his body. Then moving his sword-like tail into position, he glanced to see if the human was paying attention. Jacob paid close attention to see what his friend would do.
The Glavenus started by making a simple swinging motion of his tail and then looked over the teen. Jacob held his stick at the ready before simply swinging it. Ares then followed up with a round slash and then looked over to his pupil. Jacob twisted his makeshift sword in a certain way before swinging the stick in a wide circle. But after the spin, the human felt a little dizzy from the action and swayed a bit. Giving himself a moment to calm down he commented, "May take a while for me to get used to that one."
When his mind cleared, he looked up to the Glavenus when Ares gave a grunt that seemed to be like a laugh. The Brute Wyvern made a few more motions of his tail that Jacob did his best to copy them. When Ares didn't do any new things, Jacob took it upon himself to practice what he had been shown. It went on for a few minutes with the teacher watching his pupil. And just as the sun started to come up, Ares looked out to the horizon while Jacob swung the branch. The Glavenus glanced back to the teen with a look that said to keep practicing.
Not knowing what his friend was meaning, Jacob thought it would be best to do as his teacher wished. The human continued swinging the stick the way that Ares had shown him while the Glavenus walked down the slope and left the human to his practices. Ares glanced back to the human with a look of content before disappearing down the slope.
…
Jacob continued the Glavenus' lessons well into a few hours after the sun had risen a good deal over the eastern horizon. Though he was tired and had taken at least a couple of breaks to catch his breath, he kept going with the forms. As he swung the stick, the human wondered where Ares had gone and if and when he would return. While he knew that the Glavenus could take care of himself, Jacob couldn't help but worry about him. The teen lightly laughed about how quickly Ares had grown on him, considering their rough beginning.
But thoughts of other inhabitants of the New World came across his mind. The thoughts of the Rath family, the Jagras pack, Grumper, Calypso and even Boltia made him lower the stick for a moment. Jacob still planned on trying to reconnect with Boltia, but he knew that he would have to do it when he finished helping Ares out. But he figured that some of them might be getting worried about him by now.
Jacob raised the stick to start practicing again when he heard something in the distance. From what the boy could tell, it sounded a bit like flapping wings and roaring to him. He looked over to where his sword laid and then remembered his promise. Holding the stick in one hand, he then readied his shield arm and carefully made his way to the top of the plateau
When he reached the top, Jacob looked about for what was making the flapping sounds. He didn't see anything at first and moved for the mound to get a better view of things. When he made it to the top, he saw not one, but two shapes flying in the direction of the plateau. He reached for his pack to pull out his binoculars to get a better look.
After pulling them out of the pack, Jacob took a look to see what was coming. He saw a Rathian that he didn't recognize and what appeared to be the creature he saw on the Captor. That Flying Wyvern with the sharp, yellow scales that had made its escape with the other Flying Wyverns, including the young Azure Rathalos. The two flew over the plateau and the second flying beast moved above the first. Jacob watched as it came down with one foot out like a kick and struck the Rathian right in the back. The Rathian cried out from the blow as the two fell from the sky. The teen gasped as they came down for a crash landing and the Queen of the Earth took the brunt of the impact. The impact created a large plume of dust in the middle of the plateau. While wishing that he at least had his Dual Blades since his promise to not touch the Iron Katana still lingered in his mind, Jacob thought it best to use his shield, carving knife and the stick.
Quickly putting the binoculars away, Jacob took the stick with both hands and rushed down the mound. Running through the trees, the teen saw the yellow wyvern standing over the Rathian who weakly groaned from the crash. Jacob moved a little closer to get a better look. And he wasn't liking what he was seeing in front of him. The yellow Flying Wyvern seemed to take delight in the poor female's suffering as it growled and started to lower its head towards her. The Rathian weakly tried to fight back as she was still dazed from the kick and the fall. While disputes over territories were one thing, Jacob really didn't like bullies of any kind.
He looked around him and found a rock on the ground by his feet. Quickly bending down to pick it up, Jacob applied the stone to his slinger. Then with a yell he rushed out of the trees. The sound drew the yellow wyvern's attention and Jacob fired the rock at it. The stone smacked against the beast's face and it earned a pained squawk from the yellow monster. It looked to Jacob with a glare as the boy shouted, "Leave her alone, ya big bully of a beast!"
On the ground, the Rathian looked to the boy with a surprised expression. Jacob held up the stick like a sword, before moving it the way that Ares had shown him and waited to see what the yellow monster would do. The yellow Flying Wyvern growled as it stepped away from the Rathian while keeping its glaring gaze upon the human.
Jacob and the beast waited to see if the other would make the first move. The beast's talons clacked against the hard ground while the teen's foot scraped through the dirt. The monster made the first move when it gave a roar and charged forward. Jacob waited for the right moment and dropped down when the beast spun around with its tail. Quickly getting back up, Jacob swung the stick, not to strike the beast, but to get it to move back. It seemed to do the trick as the yellow monster backed away from the branch as it was swung.
But soon the branch didn't work to distract it anymore when the yellow Flying Wyvern managed to catch it in its jaws. With a snape of its beak, it snapped the branch in two. Jacob took a step back while dropping his half of the broken branch before whipping out the carving knife. Though the blade wasn't long, Jacob hoped that it would be enough to defend himself from this thing. The Flying Wyvern really surprised him by whipping its tail at him and firing some of the scales. The teen held up the shield and some of the scales bounced off the metal while a few others stuck in the ground.
Lowering the shield, Jacob cried out when the wyvern came at him again and lashed out with its foot. The appendage struck against his shield and knocked the boy off his feet. Jacob grunted when his back hit the ground and groaned when he lifted his head. He quickly moved the shield in front of him again and the beast's foot crashed down on it. Jacob did his best to use his strength to keep the foot from crushing him underneath the shield. But the yellow scaled beast seemed to delight in the human's struggle as it slowly lowered its foot. Jacob cried out as the metal started to touch his skin and the increasing pressure was starting to hurt.
…
Down below on the lower level, Ares had finally returned with a meal that he planned to share with his pupil. A plump and scratched up Jyuratodus that had put up quite the fight he dragged up the path. He knew that neither he nor the human would enjoy trying to get all the mud off of it so Ares had taken it up to cleaner water so the mud would wash off after a little while. But as he came onto the level where he had left the human, the Glavenus was surprised and worried not to see him there. It was then he heard the boy cry out from above. Dropping the tail of his catch, Ares lifted his head and took a quick sniff. His eyes widened when he smelled two other scents with Jacob's. With a growl he rushed up the slope to see what the heck was going on.
…
Back on top of the plateau, Jacob continued to struggle with his shield as it was slowly being used to crush him by the monster standing over him. From her spot, the Rathian shakily rose onto her feet. She turned as if to leave and make her escape, but she looked back to the human who was struggling against her attacker. The Rathian took a deep breath before turning towards the two and unleashing her roar at them.
The yellow scaled beast looked over to her and she shot a fireball at it. The yellow Flying Wyvern jumped out of the way to avoid the flaming projectile. The fireball struck a tree and caused to erupt in a blaze. Jacob breathed a little easier without the beast's foot and sat up. He coughed a little before finding his breath again. The teen looked up to see the Rathian and the yellow monster charging towards one another. Their skulls crashed together with a loud crack and it made the boy jump in fright. The two shook their heads with the Rathian able to clear her mind first. She was the first to strike at the yellow Flying Wyvern by jumping into the air with a back flip and smacking the other monster in the chin with her tail. It staggered backward before looking to the two with a snarl. Both her and Jacob were greatly surprised when it didn't seem like it got poisoned by the attack.
The yellow wyvern was quick to retaliate by spinning around with its foot extended. The foot managed to grab the Rathian by the head and the other monster harshly slammed her down to the ground. The Rathian gave a pained squeal from feeling the crushing pressure to her skull and Jacob quickly got back onto his feet and rushed to help her.
With a stroke of his arm, Jacob managed to slash at the beast's more tender spot around its wing. The yellow beast shrieked from the pain and turned to the boy with another snarl. The human quickly backed away from the wyvern as it slowly approached him. The Rathian gave a small groan as the beast's foot released her head and with a wince she looked towards the two. Jacob raised his shield arm as he tried to think of a strategy against the Flying Wyvern. But just as the yellow wyvern was about to swing its tail at him, a fireball smacked into it from the side. It yelped from the flames before shaking itself to get rid of the affliction. The three looked over to see Ares standing at the edge of the clearing, mouth still smoking from the projectile that he just shot. And from the look in his eyes he wasn't happy.
The yellow Flying Wyvern shrieked at the Glavenus before taking flight, still wanting to battle. But before it could even go on the attack, another Rathian roar sounded, making them all look up into the sky. Another green Rathian descended from the sky and shot straight towards the yellow Flying Wyvern. She adjusted her body and with a shove of her talons she pushed it against the earth. Jacob and the first new Rathian braced themselves from the shower of dust before returning their gaze to the two. The teen was very surprised when he saw that the newcomer was, "Mama Rath?"
The Rathian he knew glanced towards the teen and was greatly shocked to see him there as well. But their focus quickly returned to the invasive creature when it gave a shriek and flailed about. The action caused Mama Rath to back away from it and the yellow Flying Wyvern quickly rose onto its feet again. It looked between the four different fighters as the new Rathian picked herself back up while Ares circled around to join the human. Looking like it had a chance against the four it stood ready to fight.
The two Rathians quickly charged up a fireball and shot it towards the yellow Flying Wyvern. It quickly jumped out of the way before turning its head to see Ares jumping through the air. The Glavenus twisted his body and brought his sword tail down at the enemy monster. The yellow wyvern squawked as it scrambled to move out of the way and Ares' tail crashed down where it once was. The Glavenus' tail seemed to be stuck for a moment as Ares tried to pull it out of the ground. The yellow Flying Wyvern looked to move to attack its foe, but Jacob removed the shield from his arm and flung it at the creature. The shield smacked into its head and it backed away from Ares. The two Raths were quick to come in on the attack by charging for the enemy beast. They managed to tackle into the yellow Flying Wyvern and they all fell to the ground. The enemy monster managed to shove the two females off of it and got up onto its feet. It wasn't expecting to see Jacob run up one of the Rathian's backs with his shield on his arm again. The teen jumped off the female monster's back and smacked the broadside of the shield into the beast's face. The blow was enough to make the monster stagger back again and Jacob ducked down when all three blasted a fire ball at it when he landed on his feet. The yellow wyvern jumped back to avoid the flaming projectiles and the resulting explosion knocked it and Jacob off their feet. The human landed on his back and sat up with a groan. The four allies waited to see if it would get back up, and with a pained groan it did.
It panted from the intense fighting and seemed to be really tired. The yellow Flying Wyvern looked over to the four who seemed ready to keep fighting. It grew wary when he found itself both outnumbered and outmatched. It turned its gaze towards the boy and narrowed its eyes into a glare. With another shriek it quickly spun in a circle and fired its sharp scales at all of them. While Jacob and Ares managed to shield themselves with either their shield or bladed tail, the two Rathians tried to jump out of the way. But the sharp scales managed to get every single one of them. Jacob cried out when one cut his leg, Ares grunted when some hit him in his side, Mama Rath and the other Rathian shrieked when the scales cut into them. The yellow Flying Wyvern took the opportunity to take off with a shriek. With a flap of its wings, the enemy monster flew off to the northwest of the plateau.
When they were sure that the danger had passed, the four relaxed a little. Jacob grimaced as he looked down to the cut on his leg. Blood leaked out from the wound and he knew that he needed to treat it quickly. He turned his head to the other three to see that they needed some attention too. Looking around, Jacob noticed some bushes with large leaves and thought that they would do for now. While he trusted Mama Rath and starting to with Ares, Jacob wasn't so sure about the new Rathian. He carefully made his way over to the bush and used the knife to cut some of the leaves off. Rummaging through his pack, he found some healing potions and opened the cork to one.
Applying the potion to the leaf, he tied the makeshift bandage around the wound and hissed when the leaf and the potion touched his skin. When he felt that the leaf was tight enough to avoid falling off, Jacob moved to help the three that needed attention. The human approached Mama Rath first and she greeted at him with a calm grunt. Jacob laughed when he said, "Yeah, wasn't exactly expecting to see you out here as well.
"But I am glad that you showed up when you did." He said while applying more potion to another leaf. Mama Rath gave a small growl of agreement when she moved her head to nuzzle the boy. Jacob then moved to a cut and started to place the leaf on her side. Mama Rath gave a pained growl from the stinging feeling from the potion on the wound. It made the new Rathian growl at the boy and she started towards him. But Ares started to move in between them while Mama Rath gave a roar towards her fellow Rath as if telling her that she was fine. Jacob was grateful that it seemed to be enough to calm the new Rathian, but Ares was still a little wary with the two fliers. When he felt that it had been long enough, he removed the makeshift bandage from her side. Mama Rath gave a thankful sounding growl and Jacob turned to the other two wyverns who needed some attention.
The second Rathian seemed to be greatly wary of the human, even with her fellow Rathian standing there. With a small, proud growl, she jumped and spun in the air. As she started flapping higher and higher, the new Rathian looked down to the human with a grateful look before turning and flying away. Jacob looked back to Mama Rath and she could only give him an uncertain look. She gave the human teen one more nuzzle before looking over to the Glavenus with narrowed eyes and a low growl. Ares seemed to return the sentiment with a distrusting look of his own. Jacob placed a comforting hand on the side of her muzzle and said, "Easy there, Mama Rath. I know that it must be a little uneasy to be here with him, but Ares is a trustworthy fella."
Trusting the human, Mama Rath took a step back before copying her fellow Rath's movements to get airborne. She looked down to the human once more with a small growl before turning and making her way southwest. Jacob guessed that she's had enough excitement for one day and was heading back to the Ancient Tree to be with Papa and their young. From the side, Ares watched the Rathian fly away before lowering his gaze to his pupil. His gaze turned into one of great anger and frustration.
Turning his attention back to his teacher, Jacob looked to where the sharp scales had struck him and saw that they were mostly stuck against where the back plates were. The human slowly started to make his way towards the Glavenus. But before he could even apply some healing potion to him or figure out a way to get the sharp scales out of his mentor without hurting him too badly, the Glavenus took a threatening step towards the human. Jacob looked up into Ares' eyes and saw that he was looking rather upset. The Bladed Tail Wyvern gave a really loud roar and it made the teen back up in fear. Tilting his head in confusion, Jacob asked, "What's wrong?"
With a frustrated snort, the Glavenus then moved towards him and with a bit of a harsh nudge, he moved Jacob towards the slope that would take them down the plateau. The teen stumbled when he stopped himself from falling and looked back to the Brute Wyvern. But Ares gave a sharp motion with his head for Jacob to keep on going. Not knowing what was going on, Jacob thought that it was best to do what Ares wanted.
The two walked down to the lower level of the plateau, and the teen saw the corpse of the Jyuratodus laying there. But he couldn't dwell on it when Ares gave him another harsh nudge past the body. Moving quickly, Jacob walked over and stopped before going down. He turned to the Glavenus as Ares made his way over to the sword. The wyvern looked down at the sword for a moment or two and Jacob wasn't sure what he would do. The Bladed Tail Wyvern picked up the Iron Katana in his maw before throwing it towards the human with a turn of his head. The weapon clattered along the ground before stopping at Jacob's feet. Jacob was greatly confused about this as he stared down at the thrown weapon before lifting his gaze to the Brute Wyvern. Ares motioned to the sword with his head as if for saying Jacob to pick it up. But the teen shook his head and started to move around the weapon, "But I promised I wouldn't pick it up until you thought I was ready."
But this only seemed to irritate the Glavenus even further when he walked up to the human. With a snarl, Ares gave Jacob a rough shove with his head and the teen fell to the ground. The boy looked up to the wyvern standing over him and got back onto his feet. With a quirked brow, Jacob questioned, "What? Are you telling me to go?"
Ares gave a small roar as if to confirm it followed by a snort. Jacob looked at the Glavenus in disbelief. Shaking his head, "But… but I-"
But he wasn't able to finish his sentence when Ares got up in his face and gave another fierce roar to tell him to go. It made the teen stumble back a bit before composing himself and looking at his new friend. With a defeated sigh and not even going to try, Jacob picked up his sword and turned to leave. But before he walked down the slope, he gave one last look to the Glavenus. The Bladed Tail Wyvern only had a firm look as if his decision was final. Feeling a little hurt and greatly confused about what just happened, Jacob turned away and walked down the slope. But as he went around the bend, the human heard a fierce roar behind him and wondered if he should go back. But something told him that it might be better if he didn't. With another sigh, Jacob continued on down the path.
…
About nearly an hour later, Jacob had slowly made it down the plateau, across the stone bridge and deep into the forest. The teen was so lost in thought as he made his way through that he hadn't realized where he was. He glanced at the sword still in his hands and thought about what happened between him and Ares. A moment later, Jacob looked up and noticed that this was the same way that he and Ares had come the day before when Ares showed him his past and reason. Continuing onward, Jacob soon found himself before the thicket where Ares' tragic past lay. Carefully making his way in, the teen looked amongst the tragedy and moved to the skeleton of Ares' mate. Kneeling down next to the Glavenus' skull, he sighed, "I don't get it. First he wants me to let him teach me, and now he's sending me away.
"Just what did I do wrong here?" He asked while turning his head away from the bones, though he knew that no one would answer him. But as he sat on the ground, he looked to the skull again before turning his gaze to the broken eggs shells. Lifting his head he asked, "What should I do, God? I'm really at a loss here."
With another sigh, he lowered his head. An idea soon came to him and he lifted his head and looked over the thicket and all that laid within it. Jacob thought about it a lot more. A look of determination formed on the teen as he stood up again. Coming to a decision, Jacob looked back in the direction of the plateau, where Ares was.
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Author's Note: That's right, not only was the Seregios from the Captor featured in this chapter, but I was already deciding to have Mama Rath come out to the desert and meet with Jacob and Ares. The Seregios will make a return later in the story, but right now we'll keep moving through Jacob and Ares' arc. The new Rathian we might see here and there, but right now I don't know. This chapter was going to be a lot longer, but I've decided to split it into parts with the next couple of chapters of the mini-story arc. And Ares sending Jacob away is something that I hope to explain soon in the future. I look forward to reading your reviews. Be sure to leave a comment either about if I've done something wrong or if you want something specifically to happen. See you all next time.