Bring Her Back (MH)

Roy flicked the blood off of his weapon onto the concrete of the ancient construction. Lying behind him, twitching in its death throes, was a Toa Tesukatora. While the dragon appeared as a Teostra, it was anything but. Using chilling blasts of ice instead of fire, Roy needed a moment to warm up after that fight. As soon as there was no blood remaining on his blade, he sat down, crossed the one leg that was responding, and moved the warm blade of Platinum Dawn to his unresponsive thigh. He was shivering badly, unprepared for the Origin beast. There was only one thing on his mind, at the moment.

Kino Inu. She just... left one day. Not a word to him, despite their relationship growing quite deep. After three years, she just vanished. He had to practically burn every favor he had to even know where she last was. It was here... somewhere. His last contact had come back two weeks ago, and mentioned a sole Wyverian Huntress that matched Kino's description... except her eyes. They were a gleaming red in color, and almost feral in appearance.

Roy was on the first airship here, though there wasn't much of a crowd there to stop him. He was warned that many Hunters simply... disappeared on this road, and many found that as enough reason to stay away. They were hauling cargo for the outpost there, for the most part. The scholars needed to eat, after all.

The road went on for miles, the place lined with ruins of what used to be great, mile-high towers. Even aerial views from Guild balloons couldn't find where, exactly, the damn thing *stopped.*  Some areas were turned into monster dens, unsurprisingly. There were also a few intact buildings, though what was in them was a mystery. Otherwise, it was a very somber and lonely walk for the most part. He insisted on going alone, much to the dismay of the head scholar.

"That's how fools never come back," the Wyverian headmaster muttered.

Roy wiped some frost and blood off of his boot. His new armor, named "Guild Palace" armor by the Arena folk, was doing quite well, all things considered. His Rathalos Soul armor wouldn't have made it this far, even in its upgraded state.

The azure breastplate, made with a new mix of Eltalite steel and presented only to the best from the Arena, had an embossed Rukodiora head painted black, to stand out. Bits of Rukodiora horn were placed near his neck and down to the faulds, giving the plating nigh immunity to electric attacks by making some sort of 'cage' that he couldn't see nor feel. The chainmail underneath was also made of the same Eltalite steel, making it incredibly durable and protective against any piercing attack that made it through the plating above. His cloak, currently covered in frost from the dead dragon, was also deep blue. It had a white Rathalos design in the center, though the brim of the cloak was a bit ragged at this point. Thankfully for him, the Gammoth fur hood was unaffected and, more importantly, still warm. That dragon's breath was colder than anything he'd ever felt, and he drew the soft fur over his head to warm up.

The gauntlets were the same azure as the rest of the set, with the Guild symbol embossed in gold on the back of each hand. They were also covered in frost, but only a small layer. It was thawing out as he watched it. His new slinger, a grappling hook-like device created by the Research Commission and later adopted by the Guild as a whole, was still shining, unharmed.

The tasset was an interesting design that was *not* part of the set itself, but instead a customization he requested. Made from Rukodiora parts and silvered Eltalite, the plates covered his thighs quite thoroughly. Wing membrane wrapped around from behind, giving it flexibility to ward off blunt force. Covering his outer thighs were layered plates of silvered steel, polished enough to shine like the moon. The greaves were also azure in color, to match the rest of his "attire". They ascended slightly beyond his knee, into a mostly decorative winged structure.

After twenty minutes, Roy decided to take a look at the damage. He took the boot off, noting his skin color was slightly pale but certainly not the black of severe frostbite. Removing the armor plating and underlay showed the same. The entire limb was sore now, but that never scared him off before. He put his armor back on, stood up, sheathed his sword, and continued onward.

He had someone to find.

---

Roy choked down a horrible dried ration bar, and almost downed his entire canteen. That didn't concern him much, though. Despite his intent on going alone, a Felyne would occasionally track him down and offer supplies as needed. They would always mention they would be "just a meow away," and scamper off when he was finished picking what he needed.

His next find was a strange, almost mutated Espinas. The horn was extremely large and deformed, with a second equally deformed one resting on its nose. It also had two curved horns behind what could only be described as a spike. He noted he was completely unprepared for this fight, his Daora's Razor back home. He couldn't bring everything, after all. He doubted it had any special reaction to Dragon energies either, so Ebony Evenfall resting on his opposite hip was equally useless.

At least both blades bit through solid steel like it was paper. Platinum Dawn stayed sheathed this time. He also checked his bag and moved the antidotes to the front. This was going to be a nasty fight regardless of how he took it.

With a deep breath, he leapt down into the broken arena. It noticed him immediately, bellowing with a force that nearly deafened him even through the disposable earplugs he had in. It charged, and Roy noticed the corrupted fire building in its mouth. The Hunter rolled to evade, and as it went by it turned its head and spat the massive ball of flame and poison at him. The subsequent impact on his shield nearly knocked him over, but thankfully he avoided the worst of it. The Espinas, seemingly unhappy that it missed, set up another charge. Roy waited, but something was off.

It charged up to him, as he expected... then lifted up with its powerful wings. The wind pressure was so great it picked Roy up, armor and all, and threw him against the wall. It then hit him with a toxic fireball. The armor, thankfully, deflected most of it, but it still hurt. In addition, well...

Roy's limbs were twitching uncontrollably as he laid on his back, and he could *feel* the poison sap his strength away. The Espinas slammed down on the ground, then shrieked again, wings glowing pink.

"I ha-haven't even h-hit you, c-c-c'mon!" The Hunter stuttered, the paralysis thankfully wearing off quickly. He yanked an antidote out of the bag and downed it, sprinting at a hard angle and leaping to avoid being struck again as the wyvern charged forwards, horn lowered to skewer him. The Espinas missed fantastically, embedding the spike into the very wall Roy had hit just seconds ago.

Perfect.

Thigh muscles primed, he leapt forward towards the beast, sword drawn all the way to his side. He landed near its head with a downwards slash, black bursts of Dragon energy ripping the sword wounds open. Twin slashes, in a cross formation, finally pierced the carapace and drew blood. His motions forced him down a bit, and he quickly rose from his near-crouched position, his shield cracked the Espinas across the face, hard carapace and bits of distorted horn flying everywhere.

He finally finished with a forward stab, ripping into the wyvern's neck. Just as it freed itself from the rock, Roy had torn the sword free and used the Espinas' face to leap away, rolling as he hit the ground into a crouching position, shield in front.

The mutated Espinas hurled another corrupted fireball at him, but he simply side-stepped and reflected it back with a mighty slap from his shield. The green-scaled monster hadn't expected it. It took the blast to the spike, which caused it to detonate into toxic shrapnel. It shrieked in pain and anger, but pain won out. It snarled at Roy, and simply... left. There were rough beats of wings, and then the only evidence it had been there at all were the scattered bits of scale and horn.

Roy put the poisonous bits in a separate carving bag altogether, unwilling to mix it in with the carvings he had obtained from Tesukatora. While still sore and honestly still feeling the poison a bit, he decided to continue.
---

The road soon lead to an actual building, though the dull blue stone roof was severely cracked, almost as if it would fall in on itself at any moment. Roy knew, however, that these buildings had Kushala steel bracing them, which wouldn't give easily. Vines covered almost everything, except for the entrance and a few of the windows. The supply Felyne was waiting for him, bag full as usual.

"You look a little rrrrrrough, nya. Trrrrouble with the natives?" He asked, opening the pouch.

"You could say something like that." Roy replied, taking a few potions and rations. "Know anything about that building there?"

"Frrrraid not, Hunterrrr." He paused a moment, then added; "Though, we have seen parrrties come back minus one or two members after rrrreaching here."

"Monster?"

"They wouldn't say, nya."

"I see." Roy muttered, filling his canteen. "Well, I'm good for now, thank you."

"Are you surrre? You look a little scuffed up."

"Absolutely. I'm still on a search and rescue."

"Verrrry well. We're always a 'meow' away, nya!" The Felyne purred, then drew the satchel closed and bounced off. Roy did wonder how literal he was being. It was obvious the Felyne was following him, somehow... not that he minded. Even a small bit of talk did his mind good at the moment.

With a deep breath, Roy stepped into the building.
----

Inside the building were cracked stone pillars, on a stone brick floor. Moss from outside had begun growing inside as well, coating much of the interior green.

However, what drew his gaze the most was a massive mural on the far side, covering almost the entire wall. The floor was a muddy brown, but it wasn't plant life. Roy shivered at the implications.

The mural was also made of stone, but not the same stone the building was constructed of. It was a deep reddish-brown color, with small flecks of other earthen colors within. Had to have been some sort of granite, then. Durable, heavy... somehow wedged into the wall. The Ancient peoples that once lived here were a marvel. Roy then turned to actually look at it.

It showed a dragon, wings spread wide, with depictions of lightning crashing down all around it. High behind it was an eclipse, with a whirling pattern surrounding it. Several humanoid beings were off to the side, bowed to the dragon. What dragon it could be was a mystery, worn as the mural was. That said, he could rule out virtually every known Elder in the Guild's official registry.

Roy knew for a fact that the Guild hid extremely dangerous monsters from the public and from Guild Hunters themselves, so they wouldn't get killed. Of course, hiding things like that caused the disaster of Val Habar just a few years back, where the Guild's airship fleet was almost obliterated by a Dire Miralis and no one knew how to deal with it. Several parties of hunters were lost driving the beast back into the waves, with little to show for it. The Guild was stuck between a rock and a hard place, but it was hardly his business.

While this certainly wasn't a Miralis on the mural, it looked close in stature. On the far right, there was another humanoid, standing up. It was first 'naked,' and then armored with a sword. Something in the mural was *destroyed,* before an arrow pointed towards the mural in the center.

That sword, though...

It reminded him distinctly of the regenerating sword in Pokke. None could say what it was truly made of, but it would always return to its original shape within a week. Some had even said it was made from the legendary Fatalis, though those rumors were always roughly rebuffed by the Village Elder herself. Guild researchers had given up studying the blade... but now that he thought about it, the researchers appeared angry as they left. Like they were being pulled away instead of leaving of their own accord.

...was this related?

Roy crossed his arms and hummed. He certainly wasn't the greatest detective by any means, but he remembered one distinct rumor. Those that used Fatalis gear would be possessed by the beast's spirit... before eventually turning into one themselves. They would simply disappear. Roy had seen this himself, or at least the disappearances. The Guild never placed their names on the Missing in Action board. He didn't think about it much, busy as he was.

Kino never did say where she got that new Greatsword from. She was on a secrecy deal with the Guild. Damn politics.

That Greatsword matched the Pokke Greatsword in shape, but not color. This sword shape was on the mural, as well.

They never put her name on the Missing in Action board.

*...they never put her name on the Missing in Action board.*

Realization hit him like an amped up Diablos. He had to find her and get that sword away from her, then get her home, kicking and screaming if need be.

He reached around his neck and pulled on a chain, pulling a Rathian plate up. He gave it a small kiss, placed it back, and bolted out of the room as fast as his legs could take him.

"I'm coming, Kino, just hold on!"
======

He blew past the Felyne without a word, through another monster den before he could be attacked, and down several miles in as many minutes. His heart was thumping madly, attempting to keep up with his body. His lungs burned, but he couldn't stop now. He could rest when he was dead, as far as he was concerned.

Finally, the Hunter found it. A brilliant white dragon, standing on its hind legs, facing away from him. It had a whip-like tail, with fur running from the tip up through its spine. It had its wings spread wide, as pictured in the mural. The fur on the spine continued on, giving it a beard and a rough mane.

From his position, he couldn't see much else of the dragon. What he *did* see was an Azure Rathalos plate, on a chain, cracked and abandoned in a corner of the... arena, he supposed.

Roy's heart shattered, and he had to bite his tongue to avoid making noise. Eyes burning, he was still determined to bring Kino home, however he could. Maybe there was still time to reverse this...?

Lightning cracked from the heavens, and the monster took it as easily as the shifting air currents. It tipped its head straight back, almost reveling in the thunderstorm that was brewing. Roy could see more of the... Fatalis. Four horns, two of which were splitting into separate horns themselves. There was a dim red hue to them, and occasionally a spark would jump across the gaps in the monster horns. A *red* spark.

The mane stopped right at the bridge of its snout, showing off gleaming white scale and a darker part where its nose was. The rain began to pick up, though it refused to touch the fur of the Fatalis.

"Now or never..." Roy muttered. He drew Platinum Dawn, the heat of the blade making the rain hiss as it struck. This drew the dragon's attention, displaying razor-sharp hearing. It turned to Roy, looking down on him as its tail carelessly obliterated a stone pillar hidden behind it. The chest of the Fatalis was a dull, almost imperceptible red, and Roy finally noticed that White Fatalis had no shadow. Instead, a white glow erased shadows within a few feet of it.

The longer it stared at him, the more Roy noticed something was wrong. For one, it had stopped raining. Then, it shrieked at him, to the very heavens themselves. The moon rose suddenly to block out the sun, covering it perfectly.

The White Fatalis' chest began to spark, red electricity jumping across its entire body. Another cry, and demonic red lightning bolts crashed down from a clear sky, all around them. A purple-black whirl began to circle the moon, covering the soon-to-be battlefield in darkness. Thunder roared, another threat directed his way. A God, warning a Man.

"You have what I want, and I came to collect!" Roy shouted back, completely discarding the warning. He charged forward, rolling instinctively when the floor started glowing a ghostly white. Almost a heartbeat later, one of those red lightning bolts obliterated the stone it had hit. While briefly shaken from the impact, Roy quickly stood and continued his charge. The dragon was actually having trouble keeping track of him as he made serpentine movements, its upward position restricting its movement.

With a cry of rage, it spat a bolt of crimson electricity at where he would have been. Roy sprang backwards to evade, then jumped forward, blade bared to draw blood. It struck its leg, deflecting entirely as a burst of flame scorched some of the scales. Unprepared for the outright deflection, he was struck from the side with an electricity-charged claw.

Despite the Fatalis' arms being quite short, it struck him like like a hammer blow. He staggered, and the Fatalis finally hit him with that lightning.

Despite the Rukodiora parts creating a sort of shield for him, and the defenses of the armor itself, his entire body burned. He couldn't help the choked scream that left him as he sank to his knees, almost felled by a single, massive blow. He couldn't afford to let it happen again, shakily getting up.

As the Silver and Gold Rath sword was doing virtually nothing, he sheathed it. Ebony Evenfall, the glowing orange Rukodiora blade, left its own sheathe and Roy brought it to bare. The Fatalis imperceptibly narrowed its eyes, then tried to fry him with another lightning blast. The hunter slid underneath it, jumping up and using his slinger to draw himself to the Fatalis' face.

He hacked wildly at its face and horns, pleased that the blade was biting deep. Crimson lifeforce dripped to the ground, and Fatalis was unable to shake him off. Roy was so focused on dealing damage to this abomination that he never noticed the Fatalis prepare to drop a lightning bolt *on itself* to get him away. Heaven's fire struck, blasting Roy away for a painful impact on the ground. It spread its wings again, and began beating them. The gusts were enough to keep him floored, as it took off and perched on an upper portion of the building.

It cried, and lightning began haphazardly falling over the entire battlefield... and into the forests surrounding it, igniting a conflagration that hadn't been seen in decades. Another wave of lightning fell like spears from the heavens. Roy successfully managed to evade the few that were a danger to him, and the dragon began its slow descent to the ground.

As soon as it did, Roy launched into a Perfect Rush. Unfortunately, the Fatalis had no intention of letting him cut its face up again. The first swing missed wildly, and the second swing hit the red tinged chest. He suddenly aborted the attack to evade the dragon trying to fall on him. He rolled off to the side, and planted the blade to the hilt into its side.

A scream that he recognized answered.

She was still in there, somewhere.

Something snapped in his mind, and he used the slinger to latch onto the Fatalis' face as he pulled the blade out.

"Give. Her. BACK!" Roy roared, swinging his shield down like he was possessed. Each strike to the head drew ample amounts of blood from the White Fatalis, chipping part of its smaller horn. It tried to blow him off again, but he leapt to a wing and began savaging it with the much more effective Dragon-elemented weapon. A final slash ruined the wing joint, the wing itself going somewhat limp.

A distressed whine came from the Fatalis, before it turned truly angry. It bucked him off, and as he noted the red tinge had grown into a blood-red streak down its abdomen and circling its eyes. He also saw a *massive* white light growing from under his feet. He ran for it, and was distressed to see it tracking him... until it stopped. Lightning so hot and bright hit the ground like a bomb, temporarily blinding and deafening him, and the godly dragon directed a few more his way. He ran across the border of the battlefield, trying to grab the Azure Rathalos plate, but he missed as he shot past it.

Superheated plasma fell down like rain, and all that was left was a shadow burned into the bricks.

Roy ran back towards the Fatalis, swinging down with all his strength... only to find himself being repulsed. His shield strikes were similarly redirected, unable to make contact at all. Red sparks traveled down the White Fatalis' body, reaching out to connect to the Silver and Gold Rath shield. Roy quickly discarded the shield as lightning vaporized it. Clutching Eventide with both hands, he put as much power behind brutal swings as he could.

The Fatalis struck his arm with an almost lazy swing, forcing him off balance. It then *jumped* and pinned *him*, holding him still as he was ground against the rocks and the heavy dragon. Roy slipped his sword upwards, fitting it between scale and plate and into the dragon's flesh once more. It suddenly jerked backwards and up, taking Roy's weapon with it.

Alomar aimed and fired his slinger, latching onto his sword and ripping it back out. Another massive white light lit up under his feet, and in a move of desperation, he lifted Eventide straight up to intercept.

The good news was that it mostly worked. The bad news is it still had enough power to launch him far away from the Fatalis. He couldn't hear, and he was blinded. He instead *felt* the dragon slam into the ground, wing apparently repaired.

His vision cleared to... a very different dragon. Blue spikes stuck out of its neck, nose, and wing tips. It had not only recovered from the minor damage Roy had caused, but had also... evolved. Like that strange Espinas earlier.

He couldn't fight this... this literal God. His body was on the verge of giving up, exhausted as he was. He didn't know where the hell his only useful weapon had been thrown. His armor was toast.

He noticed that the plate covering his chest had been torn open, rent wide by the pin earlier. One final idea struck him, and he dug under the somehow still intact chainmail.

"Hey!"

The White Fatalis had actually heard him, and walked closer to finish him off.

"Remember this?"

Roy held out the Rathian plate, as high as he could. The aggression from the Fatalis ceased, at least for the moment. The red and yellow eyes flickered blue and green, before flickering back. Kino was still in there.

"You know me, don't you?" Roy asked, his voice nearly hoarse. "Fight this. Please. Let's go home."

It stood there for a few moments... before giving a heavenshaking cry and taking flight. She may have convinced the Fatalis to spare him, but...

He failed. Completely and utterly.

She was currently flying away from him, to who knows where.

Anger boiled in his veins. No, this wasn't over. Not by a long shot.

"Hunterrr?"

The meek voice broke his rage, and he looked over. The Felyne was there, this time with a cart. On it was Ebony Eventide, and the twisted remains of his shield. He'll heal, recover. Then come back and find her. As many times as it takes.

Until it kills him.