[center][img]https://fontmeme.com/permalink/190924/544c85ab5c75bc61a4bb5ce40dc0caa6.png[/img]
[color=salmon]Word Count: 1010 (+2 exp)
[u]Level[/u]: [b]2[/b] - [u]Total EXP[/u]: 5/20
[b]Location:[/b] Land of Adventure[/color]
[i]Stress Level: 15[/i][/center]
Upon leaving the Guild Hall, Ace Cadet was genuinely excited. He was all smiles as he climbed right into the back of the big truck. The day so far had been full of so many surprises and new information, that the Cadet was ready to roll with just about anything at this point - including motorized monster carts. It wasn't [i]really[/i] the strangest thing he'd seen anyway, not even just including some of things he'd seen back home. As it were, as the vehicle rumbled off towards their destination, the red head simply enjoyed the hum of the motor and the chatter of everyone pressed into the bed. He spent most of the first parts of the trek getting to know his new comrades. Besides Tora, Poppi, and Peach up front who were up front, and The Courier and Geralt who both he had already met (and he'd asked the witcher about a dozen times if he was [i]really sure[/i] they hadn't met before coming to Lumbridge), he managed to learn everyone's names. Cadet didn't have any objections to the "boss," Bowser, taking command of the lot of them. He was the biggest and [i]apparently[/i] a freaking [i]King[/i] back where he'd come from. All in all, it was a swell ride.

When conversation died down a little, perhaps the gathered people trying to sight-see any of the places they hadn't gotten a chance to visit yet, the Cadet pulled out his bag and rummaged around inside. None of them knew exactly what kind of quarry they were after, so it was best to be prepared. He ignored the berries, both the Dragonfell and those he wasn't familiar with, and mentally kicked himself for not pulling them out during dinner. Surely someone could identify them - and the Dragonfell wouldn't be useful on it's own, he had always planned to gather more eventually. Still, now wasn't the time either. What he pulled out were the herbs and phials he had. Crushing the plants in his hands, he got them down to a surprisingly fine consistency. Once they were completely squashed and began to resemble mush, he shoved them into the vials: ta-da! [url=https://monsterhunterworld.wiki.fextralife.com/file/Monster-Hunter-World/item_potion.png]Potions![/url] One might think there was more to it than that, but there wasn't. The mysteries of nature!

A particularly bumpy part of the ground made the Ace Cadet look up from his work, and he grinned at the night time atmosphere of the Ancestral Steppe, another place familiar to him. However, his smile began to fade when he noticed the strange figures dotting the land. His scoutflies flew up toward the front as the truck slowed slightly, and he let them do their thing, catching scent of a monster. He stashed the potions and turned his body, half leaning out of the truck to get a closer look at the area as they traveled through it. [color=salmon]"This is... really weird. The Steppe doesn't normally look like this,"[/color] he said his thoughts aloud, but no more after the Princess' call for silence. 

The whole group exited the vehicle and of course the Cadet was no exception. He unsheathed his sword and shield as he walked, finding his nose wrinkling and the hairs on the back of his neck standing up the higher they got. Yeah, something was definitely wrong here, and "weird" probably wouldn't even begin to cover it. The hunter even managed to keep quiet as they climbed, keeping his eyes straight ahead and avoiding the creepy, weirdly colored growths. 

It wasn't until they reached the top and the Cadet spotted a familiar mass of muscle and scales that he broke the silence. [color=salmon]"Oh, that's - !"[/color] The sudden burst of broken wood and the appearance of a large, disgusting, [i]impossible[/i] being stopped the hunter's words, and quite nearly his heart. He felt his entire spirit gripped with fear. He'd never seen such a creature before, but somehow he knew it was awful news. The green glow of his scoutflies turned an ominous red as they fled back to him, not that the group needed any confirmation that the monsters in front of them knew they were here.

Agoston's sudden cry shook the Cadet from his frozen terror, and as he watched the centurion charge he was grateful for the man's encouragement. Not to be outdone, the hunter prepared to jump into the fray as well. The Thing from the Stars still unnerved him, but it was only part of the problem - there was also the hulking Brachydios to deal with. [i]At least I know what it is and how to kill it, so I'll focus on taking down the Brachy,[/i] he thought, and before he took off his brain managed to remind him that although [i]he[/i] knew what a Brachydios was, the rest of the posse most likely did not. It was too late to warn the centurion, but the rest of them were still gathered together. Cadet pushed his way to the front of the group and spun around to quickly address them, pointing at the blue scaled monster.

[color=salmon]"I don't know what the heck those other things are, but that big guy is Brachydios! It's saliva makes that green slime on it's body [i]explode[/i] so if you get any on you, get it off as quick as you can!"[/color] He'd dealt with many Brachydios in his hunting career so far, and it was a hassle every time. [i]Stupid slime monster with your stupid pompadour![/i] the Cadet thought, turning back to the scene and trying to get the unpleasantness of the encounter out of his mind. He really needed to focus on taking down the Brute Wyvern before trying to deal with the unknown. The Cadet leapt into battle, going the opposite direction as Agoston - making his way toward the Brachydios rather than The Thing from the Stars. He used his shield to violently push the husk-like beings away from him, and what he couldn't reach with his shield he slashed at with his sword as he attempted to get within range of the monster.