FSE

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Crow mumbled his frustrations at the late-day chill of the Coral Highlands. The winds sapped the heat from his body like the wings of an angry Legiana. Hours he had spent out here, surrounded by the coos and calls of the alien environment. The young hunter felt so out of place, a tiny human amidst the giant wyverns and beasts of the New World. His boots crunched against the soft sand of broken down coral

Just a little further…

He had a purpose out here, any good expedition starts with a goal. His goals, unlike many of his companions, were intellectual. Sure, he could hunt with the best. He had whittled countless monsters down with his vicious dual blades, and had earned scientific recognition for his excellent capture rate. Today, there was no capture or hunt, at least if everything went right.

Would be so much easier if he had his ghillie suit.

Crow had traveled all this way alone, to see if he could catch a glimpse of a monster that had captured him first. He stepped into a clearing, nestled high above the Coral. Here, the air was clear enough to see for miles. Perfect conditions for Monster watching.

He found the most comfortable Coral structure to sit on and whipped out his researchers journal and began noting down the bounties he had completed.

"Heading to see your pet Cuga?" He recalled the Fiver who gave him a hard time on the flight out from Asterea. He smirked, imagining the Chaos it would be to try and bring a fully mature Nargacuga back to his house. Cleaning up the feces alone would take a team of Felynes. No, the Nargacuga he had been documenting had been his long-time passionate hobby.

He still remembered how his 'relationship' with the Nargacuga started. That Odogaron nearly gutted him in its dastardly ambush, leaving him winded, dazed, and bleeding. The Odogaron stalked him, circling and looking for the perfect chance to finish off its human prey. A flash of black fur and scale slammed into the side of the Odogaron, preventing Crow's untimely death. Trails of angry red streaked through the air. The Nargacuga, enraged at the trespassing Odogaron with the gall to hunt on what the Cuga no doubt saw as his territory.

Crows' ears rang from the recollection of tree-shaking roars and shrill cries of a turf war. Trees cut in twain, like twigs before the Nargacuga's wings. Two sets of harrowing claws and teeth fought over territory and dominance.

Crow recalled how quietly he managed to crawl away, and used the opportunity to bandage himself and chug his last potion. A stomach-churning sound of ripping flesh and pained howls sickened his stomach even today. The Cuga's sliced through the Odogaron's side, nearly disemboweling the leathery predator. The Odogaron relented to the Nargacuga and bounded away into the depths of the Coral to no doubt nurse its wounds.

Crow recalled the trepidation in his heart as the Nargacuga roared its victory to the heavens, daring any other challengers to meet their fate. The eardrum-bursting volume of such a close roar made him thankful for his earplugs. The monster's eyes illuminated and brilliant red with seething rage, its fangs and wings bloodied from the conquest. The Nargacuga craned their silken-furred neck to regard the human, Crow shrunk into the dirt, praying to the Sapphire that the Nargacuga had not come this way for a meal.

Much to the human's disbelief, the Nargacuga's eyes returned to their calm brilliant yellow, rage ended as if soothed by the sight of the Hunter. Brilliant yellow eyes regarded him, framed behind an obsidian beak that could cut him in half and ears held high in curiosity.

It was then he noticed something that he should have noticed a long time ago— where most Nargacuga sported red scales around their ears and eyes, this one sported brilliant purple.

Crow fumbled for any reaction, but his sluggish body and mind tripped over itself. His dumbfounded brain could only think of croaking out a pained "Thanks."

A moment of worrisome silence, the normal company of the small wildlife silenced by the scuffle of giants. The monster regarded him, boring down at his diminutive form with piercing yellow eyes. The Nargacuga broke the silence, a deep rolling chuff graced Crow's ears. A sign of acceptance.

Just as the Odogaron did, the Nargacuga bounded away up the cliffs and into the distance. Crow had been left alive, at the grace of this purple Nargacuga.

That was months ago, and now their little game of hide and seek continued.

Months of hoofing it around the New World. Months of tracking and watching and on occasion, hunting. Yet the Purple-eyed Nargacuga evaded any attempts of prolonged observation. Even with his scout-flies, the Nargacuga proved masterful at concealing its tracks. They always left just enough evidence to keep Crow moving: a gouge in the ground, the blood and fur from a kill. The Cuga was always present, but never around.

"The Purple Shadow." The folks at Astera assigned the name after hearing Crow talk about them so much. Some accused him of being obsessed, but he knew better. The scientists were eager for any proof, a new subspecies would be a miraculous discovery after all.

He hoped his practice of leaving out cuts of meat would pay off soon. He had been meticulous with his 'offerings' for two weeks. With what data he had, he learned some of the patterns of the Cuga. They drank from the stream in the morning, they hunted at night and preferred the high ground. His heart lifted when the first pieces of meat were gone by the morning, and in its place he found one of the Nargacuga's molted tail scales. Sadly, not enough to prove a subspecies, but a keepsake none the less.

He reached into his bag and pulled out the tail scale, marveling how even now its edges remained sharp and glistening like well-cut obsidian. Terrifying, but captivating— same as its owner.

"Alright, enough reminiscing." He chided himself, replacing his scale for his camera. He'd have to keep an eye on multiple routes, but with any luck the Purple Nargacuga would be heading around this way to its hunting grounds. Crow whistled while he worked, a snazzy tune he heard some of the fourth fleet seeking. At least in his head, it made the set up go faster. The Tripod came first, then the Camera atop of it. Crow got behind the lens, adjusting the focus upon a generous cut of Kelbi meat set up down into the Coral crevices.

He took a test shot, and scrutinized the quality. "Crystal Clear..." He praised his own work, and flopped down on his Coral seat.

The waiting game began again. An hour faded away with nothing but the whisper of the winds through the foliage and the distant cacophony of the wildlife, including the distant shrieks of the Legiana nesting nearby. The meat remained untouched, not even a Shamos picked at it. Maybe he got his smell on it? He wore his gloves, didn't he?

Crow pushed himself to his feet with a heavy defeated sigh. He did not want to return empty handed, so perhaps he could document the Legiana nest up the hill a ways. He set himself up behind the lens one last time.

Trees, birds, coral, and spores. Nothing worth the film. Besides the chill, at least the day had been pleasant. The fresh air up in the highlands was always refreshing, even if the oxygen became sparse this far up. A tingle ran up Crow's spine, yanking him out of his reverie and back from the Camera.

The hairs on his neck stood up, the electrifying sensation that he was in great danger. Some called it a Hunters survival instinct, Crow called it the 'Prey Response.' His nostrils flared, and a new aroma defined itself in his nose. Blood, crushed berries and... something unplaceable, a raw powerful aroma that reminded him of a rack of pungent spices. He held himself perfectly still against his camera. His mind racing through scenarios.

Something near him had its eyes on him, and the last thing he needed to do was provoke without knowing what he'd be up against.

"Okay Crow," He instructed himself, "Slowly turn and be ready to roll."

He craned his neck to check behind him, and held the rest of himself still as stone. His heart skipped a beat, and his stomach dropped in a conflict of fear and excitement as his eyes took in the Nargacuga, its sleek form hugged the foliage, frozen mid step on its path to get even closer to the Hunter. How did something so large and powerful move that silently? The sight of the Nargacuga so close took his breath away. The yellow eyes that bore into him framed in glorious purple, made him feel so... small. No way he could pull his blades before the Nargacuga would be on top of him.

"Alright you win, Clever Cuga." He called out and turned to face the Wyvern fully. They were small as far as any Nargacuga could be considered 'small.' Crow only measured up to the beast's hips at best. The hunter prepared himself to roll out of the way in case of a pounce, but it never came. Instead, the Cuga released a sound that warmed Crow's very soul. The same chuff that he heard many months ago. Straightening up, the Wyvern gave up their game of hide and seek. The Cuga stood tall, a victorious pose over the little human. Now standing up straight, the Cuga flaunted the kill it had been carrying in its maw. A recently killed Kelbi hung limp between beak and fangs.

"You showin' off?" Crow's voice raised an octave, cautious on speaking in a tone that could be seen as challenging the Apex Wyvern. Crow knew full well the Nargacuga had snuck in close enough to do the same neck-snapping move on him.

Never breaking its eye contact, the Nargacuga released the kill from its jaws. The limp Kelbi thudded against the coral sand. A soft chuff followed the bleeding gift. Before he could formulate his response, the Nargacuga dashed backwards. The Wyvern's legs thumped against the earth, launching itself up a nearby coral tree. Crow struggled to keep up with the black blur as it dashed away.

The jet black beast hid remarkably well even in the daytime. Several agonizing seconds of trying to locate Nargacuga in the Trees passed. Crow chided himself for losing track so quickly. His heart skipped a beat when he caught the reflection of those predatory yellow eyes locked on him from the opposite end of the clearing.

They were still here! His trepidation boiled over into a jittery excitement. He had never seen a monster act like this, he could only speculate as to the Nargacuga's intention behind their 'gift.'

Crow stepped forward towards the Kelbi corpse, the fresh kill still wafting steam from its internal heat. Plenty to carve at least. A sidelong glance at the Nargacuga showed that the human had a rapt audience.

"What a switcheroo this is." With a practiced twirl, he readied his blade. Dressing the Kelbi was easy, the Nargacuga killed the beast with a quick bite to the base of the neck, so the meat below was pristine. A practiced bow hunter couldn't have made a cleaner kill.

Minutes passed under the watchful eye of the Nargacuga. Crow's fell into his pace of gutting and cleaning the corpse. Satisfied with Crow's reaction, the Nargacuga leapt down from its perch and approached. The heavy footfalls were a far cry from how silently Crow knew the Wyvern could sneak. Unlike the first time the Cuga did not stop when Crow turned his head to look. It rumbled instead, and took step after tentative step forward.

"Are you trying to tame me right now?" Crow asked, his soft voice incredulous at the concept. The distance between them shrank away, until Crow felt the powerful jets of breath exuding from the Nargacuga's beak against his bare skin.

"Wow, okay..." Crow marveled at the sight of the Nargacuga standing but a foot away, observing him with those curious but foreboding eyes. He controlled his shiver of excitement, he could never imagine such a Nargacuga existing. So calm, and so interested in a lone hunter. Everyone had heard rumors of intelligent monsters existing, and they were waved off like crackpot conspiracies. Now, here Crow was, face to face with something that under any other circumstance would have him retreating to camp. How could he pass this off for anything but intelligence?

The Nargacuga stole his attention once more. They kneeled down until their haunches fell to the dirt with a heavy thwump. Intense yellow eyes never left Crow's own. The Cuga nosed the dressed corpse towards Crow with its beak.

[i]'You like?'[/i] Crow could sense the Monster asking.

"Oh right. Uhm. Uh." His words fumbled out of his mouth. For once during his tenure as an A-list hunter, Crow felt truly out of his league. The Cuga's ears twitched at the human's odd vocalizations, eyes staying on him with curiosity. "Sorry, I'm a bit flustered here."

The Nargacuga replied with a rumble from deep within their chest. He couldn't shake the feeling that the Nargacuga felt the exact same apprehension of this meeting, Crow noticed the tail spikes rattling on occasion, whipped back and forth by anxious energy. Not hostile energy, not yet at least.

He looked behind him to his Camera, still focused on his failed experiment. The Cuga nudged the dressed Kelbi again, yanking Crow's attention back. "Alright, I'll eat but you gotta stay around for a picture, yeah?"

Whether or not he had a deal was up to the inquisitive purple-scaled Nargacuga.

Crow kneeled down by the corpse and set his knife to work once more. Unable to risk getting his fire set up and ruining the moment, he trimmed out a chunk of fat and rinsed it with his canteen. Not the most appetizing, but considering how close the Cuga watched his hands pull out the cut, exactly what the Wyvern wanted to see.

"Cheers." He lifted the flesh to the Nargacuga in toast, and sunk his teeth into unrendered lard. He ripped off a chunk and chewed it until it turned oily in his mouth. He forced it down before he could rethink the situation. The Nargacuga's approval came immediately, that constant rumble turning into a purring content growl. "Mmm!" He made a show of his satiation, even as the fat settled into his stomach like a gelatinous iron ingot.

"Hmm?" Crow held up the remaining cut of flesh to the Nargacuga. "Don't bite my arm off, I beg you."

The Nargacuga's eyes flitted between Crow's own and the offered cut of flesh. Full of surprises, the Nargacuga pondered the offered meat instead of gobbling it down. Their head tilted multiple angles to try and figure out the best way to take the offering from the outstretched palm.

Seeing the hesitation, Crow held the length of fat from one end, dangling the rest down. Now with a much clearer target, the Nargacuga leaned its long neck forward. A broad dexterous tongue darted from behind the beak and thin black lips to wrap around the fat and pull it back to the much more eager palate of the Wyvern.

"Wow!" Crow's excitement skyrocketed to levels that he struggled to contain, "No one will believe I just fed a Nargacuga from my hand!" Crow watched in awe as the Cuga chewed the flesh once, twice, and then down the throat it went. The visible bulge in the Wyvern's neck scutes sank to the chest and then disappeared from existence. More fuel to feed the friendly killing machine.

"Amazing." Emboldened by the success, Crow reached forward with his palm up, holding it inches from the sleek keratin of the Wyvern's beak. The Nargacuga eyed the hand up and, with only a moment of hesitation, leaned forward into the contact. The weight of the beak settled on his palm, and the Nargacuga's eyes closed. enjoying the contact as much as Crow was. Air flowed around his fingers, drawn into the

Nargacuga's beak by a long scent-gathering breath.

"You are just fantastic," Crow bathed the Nargacuga in praise, adding his other hand to trace the grooves of the Nargacuga's beak until it faded into fur around the cheeks.

"Your fur is so soft and full too." The black fur flowed around his hands like silken strands, refracting the light as it was ruffled. Nothing on the Wyvern was just for show, another amongst endless points for Crow to marvel over.

The affections continued for what must have been an entire minute with nothing but the soft ruffle of fur and the low rumble of the Nargacuga's pleasure. A shrill and bone-chilling cry tore through the clearing, breaking the Hunter and Wyvern from their trance.

An Odogaron again? Crow could recognize the howling call anywhere. No doubt the beast was being drawn in by the dead Kelbi between them.

Crow removed his hands and turned to pack up his equipment. He expected the Nargacuga to retreat to the treeline for cover. Crow took a single step forward, but his back didn't move with his feet. He craned his neck, and his heart sank. The Nargacuga's beak had sunk into the collar of his armor and pinned him in place.

"What are you doing?!" Crow's voice cracked with uncertainty. He was unable to move with the Nargacuga immobilizing him. His feet departed the ground not by his own accord, lifted upwards like a feather. His stomach flipped in misdirection. He struggled to get out of the grasp, but he was being held firm like a troublesome cub. "I gotta get my stu—AAAH!"

The Nargacuga paid no attention to his protests. The Wyvern leaped away from the clearing at a nauseating pace, and took Crow with him through the underbrush. Only Crow's camera and dressed Kelbi corpse remained, an interesting scene for whatever Hunter came along next.

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[Cheers for getting through it all! Hope you enjoyed! I'll post the next chapter here within the week! It does eventually get lewd just as a teaser/warning!]