Monster hunter: Wyvern's rising

Chapter 1 : The ambush that is life

Under beautiful spring weather, a magnificent blue sky stretched over the flourishing village of Tardigrade, located about one hundred and fifty kilometers from a village called Kamura, on an afternoon where merchants and hunters alike had smiles on their faces. Some were living their best life, returning home acclaimed as heroes for having overcome danger, others were rubbing their hands with the goods acquired during the mission or the money they made by selling supposedly reasonable offers. This day seemed to be one of the best that the village has ever known. Yet someone seemed to be having the worst day of her life, the kind where you pray it's a nightmare before you accept it or the shock makes you swallow the truth. This person was also fueling an argument at the hunters' guild, to the point of almost being violent and being knocked out before anything else happened...

Asuka woke up with difficulty. Everything still seemed blurry to her and she didn't really remember where she was, like people who, the day after a drunken evening, forget what happened because of a blackout. She observed the room in which she found herself: a sort of prison cell, with the essentials (toilet, bed), a faucet connected to an old stone sink as well as a meal tray placed on the floor.

"I don't usually drink much, don't tell me the others dragged me into the antics that led us here." she said to herself.She noticed, however, that no familiar faces emerged from the darkness in which she found herself.

"Ada? Cristobal?" she called. "Robin?"

But she ends up remembering the last events. She sobbed again for a while, until she realized she was dehydrated. She noticed the glass of water on the tray and helped herself from the tap. She drank 9 glasses before being properly rehydrated. Then she collapsed and waited in silence.

About an hour later, the guards took her out. They looked at her with pitying looks, but she ignored them. The sun was now setting over the village. She went back to her little house and washed herself, but the hot water didn't make her forget her problems. She changed into an identical copy of her outfit at first glance and went out again.

Physically, she resembled her cousins, with a different haircut (for her a long lock on the left side of the face, with slicked back hair and a slight fringe on the forehead) and an equally similar outfit, simply having in difference the bust with some details and the head accessory (for Asuka a sort of white rope crown that goes around her head).

She wandered around for a while, aimlessly, wondering what to do. The people who ignored the rumor, which had nevertheless spread like a virus, looked at her with a curious look, as to why this face. Those who knew looked at her with a saddened look, avoided her gaze or lowered their voices when she passed.

She ends up in a dark alley, watching her skinning knife. She handled it skillfully with her fingers, hesitant. She paused, stood still, and thought. But this reflection was interrupted by someone who called her."Um, good evening." said a young man, obviously a hunter. "May I ask you why are you alone in an alley... with a carving knife?"He looked like he was a bit over 20, like her. He had skin almost as fair as those eyes and wore traditional kamura hunting armor and had strange hair, she couldn't tell if it was in battle or arranged (he wasn't an expert on haircuts so she was not too surprised). Asuka quickly understood the possible misunderstanding and explained herself quickly so as not to have any more problems."So, this might sound weird, I grant, b-but actually... Um..." she bugged.Her brain, exhausted by the day, came up with nothing convincing. But the young man seemed to understand... Or to interpret a bit too much."Even if it's a bad day for you, that's no reason to take away yourself or anyone else.""But I...""I know that face," the young man cut her off, a spark of determination now in his eyes. "You must not let sadness and pain consume you. Come with me.""Hey...Hee." she moaned.He grabbed her hand and dragged her towards the village tavern, without letting her place one.

At the tavern, he sat her down at a table where two other hunters were. There was a hunter in her thirties, with beautiful dark skin and Goss harang* armor, accentuating the beauty of the contrast, and a hunter who must have reached the end of his fifties, with an outfit worn by the explorers of jungles."G-...Good evening..." Asuka said shyly.They were each sipping a drink that seemed more or less alcoholic. The two hunters greeted her then stared at her for a few seconds before the huntress gave the young man a rather bad look. Then she sighed."I guess it's better that something happens to her..." she said quietly. "You're the rumor person, aren't you?" she asked, addressing Asuka.The latter looked down. Everyone looked at her."Wait, what is this rum-" said the young hunter"However, you seemed to have a thriving team. You were getting in the last entrenchments of the novice rank, right?" asked the old hunter. "That is to say threats going up to young diablos** or other monsters which, once older, become a plague to be eliminated""We might seem intrusive, but we just want to know what happened. Maybe you want to talk about it too. If not, did you introduce us to this person?" the huntress asked the young hunter."
...I admit that no. My name is Barak. She is Gunnahmès and he is George. Enchanted...""Asuka. That's my name."A silence settled. He was cut off after about ten seconds by George."Maybe our 'guest' wants something to drink, right?""I can pay for it myself," she replied."I'm the one who dragged you here, let me give you this." Barak suggested."...If you want. A fruit juice cocktail, I don't want to get drunk."He went to take the order. When he returned, he announced that it would take a few minutes. Just as the silence was about to settle down again, Asuka spoke, more or less to her own surprise."We returned victorious from a quest. But we were told that the father of Ada, a member of my team, was having trouble with a young Rathalos*. She immediately accepted and we supported her. We went into the volcanic caverns, well equipped for combat.""Why was his father at the volcano?" asked Gunnahmes. "His father is a geologist, he was looking for minerals." she replied before resuming her story."But what happened next, even the guild's scientists would have had a hard time predicting. Or maybe we just went too fast and they tried to warn, but didn't succeed..."Her voice began to shake, like the last leaf on a tree in the wind as winter comes.

* A kind of ice bear, capable of turning frost into a solid weapon.
****Popular monster. A large wyvern living underground, with two large horns. Extremely aggressive.
***Iconic monster of the series, a large red dragon with claws and a poisonous stinger that can breathe fire. It is recommended that those unfamiliar with the series search for monsters on the internet to get a better idea of ​​their appearance.