It was now late afternoon, and the sun was beginning to set on the distant horizon. Two weary travelers could be seen pulling around a heavy-looking cart behind them, filled with camping supplies and other daily essentials, as they passed through the grassy hills on their way towards their destination. Occasionally, the wagon would bump over a small rock or get caught in a pothole, somewhat frustrating the teen with snow-white hair. Eventually, they stopped moving altogether once the boy had decided he had enough for the time being.
"Ash, I'm tired! Let's take a break!" Velk and Ash had been trekking through the meadow and grasslands for nearly half a day's time, and the sky was turning dark above their heads. Due to the sheer amount of luggage they were pulling along in the wooden cart they had borrowed, their muscles had begun to fatigue after the long haul, and the tiny inconsequential blips of activity were starting to get on Velk's nerves.
Now stopped in their tracks, the two fell weakly to the ground and rested against the cart. They had taken many short breaks along the journey, and this one will be no different, but one appreciated nonetheless. Velk took a giant swig of water from his waterskin as he tried to calm his breathing. He wasn't actually that tired physically; if anything, the mind-numbing drain he was experiencing due to the lack of exciting activity was exhausting him more than the heavy stress he was placing upon his muscles.
Walking the long-distance without a proper companion to have in-depth conversations with was starting to wear Velk down. Besides the occasional sight of a grazing herd of aptonoth, there was not much to do and see other than having somewhat one-sided conversations with Ash. Velk was grateful to have Ash along with him as he never got lonely, but It still didn't help with his boredom.
During the walk, Velk had tried to keep himself preoccupied with reading books, looking at his new guild card, playing around with his sword, singing, dancing, or trying to play games with Ash. His guild card was of particular interest as it was enjoyable looking at and displayed some intriguing information.
[Guild Card]
Name: Velkhana
HR: 0
Unity: 0
Title: N/A
Squad: N/A
Palico: Ash (Felyne)
District: Rak-Al-Faar
Quests Complete: N/A
Preferred Weapon: N/A
Preferred Hunt: N/A
Preferred Partner: N/A
Quote: N/A
His guild card was currently just a wooden slab with a white sheet of paper over the top of it. The guild card displayed a bunch of information and even his picture, but how they ever managed to obtain that is a mystery.
After a bit of time spent just catching their breaths, Velk started to rummage through his bag in the cart. The guild had provided Velk with a couple of the essentials he may need for the quest, but most of the belongings brought were of his own and Ash's possession. Amongst the items given to him by the guild was a detailed map of the district. It was the map that Velk dug out from his bag, and he rolled it open to reveal its contents.
According to Velk's map, which depicts the various biomes and landmarks surrounding Rak-Al-Faar, they should be getting close to one of the many guild-created campsites that dotted the area they were in. If Velk was right, and he most surely was, they should be located in vast grassland named Melodious Meadow. It was given its namesake due to the bell-like sound produced by the native plant, Heart's Chime, that one may hear when passing through the region.
The duo had unquestionably heard much of the sonorous peals while they were traveling, and Velk had even stopped following the path a couple of times to collect some Heart's Chime along the way to Mistyweather Mountains. Luckily for the two, they had packed empty bottles, of which they could turn into makeshift pots that would be filled with loose grass, soil, and water for the Heart's Chime to sit in so they wouldn't shrivel up and die.
Although the Heart's Chime is cheap to buy in the markets, Velk still believed that Rose would appreciate the gesture if he gave her some; he just hoped they would survive the trip.
"Meow, wow?" Ash voiced his discontent after a rumble in his stomach notified him of his growing hunger.
"In a little bit, Ash. It's gonna get cold tonight after the sun falls, so we should get to the camp before we eat." Despite not actually understanding his partner, Velk, utilizing their years of companionship, was able to clue in on the finer details and identify Ash's basic needs through his body language and tone. Looking more closely at the map, Velk could roughly guess where they were by following the nearby river's pathing compared to their own. "It should only be... uh... maybe around another twenty minutes before we arrive. Do you think you could wait?"
Ash seemed to debate protesting for a hot second before responding dejectedly, "Meow..."
"Okay... Let's start going~!" Velk and Ash moved back to their previous positions and began pulling along the cart together towards the closest campsite.
(---)
"We made it, hahahahaha!" Velk broke out in relieved laughter at the sight of the campground and started to run towards it, outright letting go of the cart and leaving Ash to follow behind with the thing he could barely pull alone. As far as the two could tell, the camp was deserted, which was a common sight, but it looked to have been recently used as there was still some leftover firewood and the tarps over the tents were clear of water and debris.
Velk knew that guild personal would often frequent the camps to ensure that everything was still up and functional, so he wondered if one happened to stop by recently. Whatever the case may be, it was open and available to be used without contention. Going around and making sure that everything was in order, Velk poked his head into a couple of the tents to confirm that they were, in fact, alone. He had not spotted any other carts or baggage, but it's best to play it safe. There was no need for unexpected surprises.
Spotting nothing out of the ordinary, Velk concluded that the coast was clear before turning around to find Ash. Velk expected Ash to be closeby as he usually was, but he was met with no one, and, after realizing his mistake, quickly made his way back over to Ash, who was trying his darn best to bring the wagon into the camp, with an embarrassed smile on his face.
"Hey, I'm sorry about leaving you all alone, buddy, but I'm back." Velk arrived in front of Ash and started to help pull the wagon along into the camp.
"Meow," Ash responded in mockery.
"What? I was only checking to make sure that everything was safe before heading in." He really was making sure that things were clear.
"Meow..."
"I'm honest, though." Velk shook his head in exasperation. The grievances he has caused this kitty due to his hasty nature will not be forgotten easily.
They quickly brought the cart into the campsite together before settling it off to the side where it wouldn't catch fire but still be close enough to not be a hassle reaching in the middle of the night. Ash instantly got to work with pulling things out of the cart while Velk got busy trying to start the campfire. The night was rolling in, and it was about to get chilly.
Once the fire was alive and blazing, Velk grabbed out a couple of the ration packs from the wagon and brought them closer to the fire, and set them down on one of the sitting stumps. Ash had been hard at work preparing the tent they chose so that once they were done eating, they could get right to sleep. It was necessary to get a lot of rest while traveling and expending as much energy as they did, so it was vital they went to bed early, but only after forcing a nutrient-rich meal down their gullet.
Along with the map, the guild had provided several ration packs so that they wouldn't starve to death if worse came to worst. Hunter's needed to know how to sustain themselves out in the wild for many days, if not weeks at a time, so that they could do their jobs properly, but the guild would never let one of their hunters unnecessarily suffer while out on a mission. So, while not babying their recruits, they often provided just enough resources to keep them working and functional.
If Velk had not received any rations, he and Ash would have had to hunt one of the Aptonoths they came across or scavenged for plant life like mushrooms, mosses, and berries to eat while traveling. It would have been difficult finding such plants in the meadow, but if they absolutely had to, they could have always just eaten some edible flowers.
Once Ash was done preparing for the night, he made his way over to the campfire with Velk and snuggled up close. The sun had now set, and the nightly chill had started to creep into their systems. Velk unpackaged one of the rations from a cloth baggie for Ash and gave him the pre-cooked meat cubes inside. Rations were made from varying types of animals, but mostly just aptonoth and mosswine. They are high in calories and nutrients, but they aren't the tastiest, which is why hunters are advised to hunt in groups and bring along someone or multiple people who both know how to find food and prepare it.
Despite having limited skill in cooking complicated food items, Velk could still make the basic and had an even greater understanding of where and how to obtain what he requires. Velk has read enough about endemic animal and plant life to get on with survival in most situations if he is forced, and although unpracticed, he is confident that he would be able to carve into his prey successfully and avoid damaging the essential materials.
Opening up a ration bag for himself, Velk grabbed out the closest cube and popped it into his mouth. The meat tasted rich in fat but was also dry and chewy. Velk went on to chew for a couple minutes on the one singular cube while thinking about what he would do once he got back to Rak-Al-Faar. Even though Velk had massive ambition for exploration, he was already feeling homesick and missed the homecooked meals Rose would prepare.
In silence, Velk and Ash continued to eat their meal while enjoying the warmth coming from the nearby fire. The only noise for miles that filled the night sky was the sound of crickets and other insects chirping, as well as the crackle of firewood burning up and Ash's soft purring.
Eventually, as all good things do, the meal and fire ended, and it was now time to go asleep. As Velk was worried about a potential ambush from any wyverns that lurk in the dark, he opted to lay in bed with his armor still on just in case. Luckily, it was neither big nor uncomfortable to sleep in, so he had no problems laying soundly under his blanket on the cot provided with the tent.
Ash decided to ditch most of his clothing for bed and nestled in a ball as close to Velk's stomach as possible to conserve heat. Both of their weapons were laid aside for the night but still close by in case of an emergency. Since felynes' ears and noses are sensitive to smell and sound, most unintelligent predators would not be able to sneak up on the two while they were sleeping, so it was safe to sleep together at the same time. This was one of the benefits of having a palico, or at least a trusted felyne companion.
Before falling asleep, Velk had spent an ample amount of time trying to read some more from the various books in his collection, but since reading is difficult in the low-light, he never got very far and eventually quit as his eyes were starting to strain. His hand fell from above his head, the book still in hand, and off to the side, as he drowsily attempted to make himself comfortable without bothering Ash. In no time after that, he fell asleep.
(---)
It's the next day, and the duo is still going strong; hunter team number one! After having cleaned up after themselves and packing up their belongings, Velk and Ash set out early that morning in preparation for the last leg of their journey. Of course, that was only after eating breakfast which consisted of more rations. Velk was thinking about possibly going foraging after arriving at the mountain campsite so that their diet for the duration of the stay wouldn't consist of just meat cubes because while there was nothing wrong with that in the short term, it wasn't the most pleasant of meals, for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Velk was knowledgeable about different traps he could make to catch small prey like hares, turtles, snakes, salamanders, and possibly some birds and rodents. While on route to their destination, Velk made sure that he and Ash kept an eye out for edible plants, insects, and animals along the way. Every once in a while, Ash would stop moving and pull out a sizable grub from the dirt or kidnap a praying mantis from its hunting ground and add it to the food pile after killing it. Insects were by far the most common item they found along the path, as while the meadow was filled with flowers of different kinds, the vast majority were not edible for either humans or felynes.
They made occasional stops by the nearby clean water stream to refill on water supply and water the plants they had collected in their time. During these brief moments of respite, Velk would ponder upon the idea that hunting did not necessarily live up to the expectations he had envisioned. He always imagined that he would constantly be in the thick of things and battling deadly monsters from the get-go. You know, maybe the occasional gathering quest like what he was on right now, but he didn't imagine that it would be this dreadfully uneventful. Still, nothing would get in his way of becoming the hunter he always dreamed of being.
The first half of the day passed by much like the latter half of the last day, just a whole bunch of walking and sightseeing, but in the distance, Velk could see the forming peaks of what he believes to be the Mistyweather Mountain. As the duo traveled closer and closer, Velk soon figured out firsthand why Mistyweather Mountain was named the way it was.
High up in the peaks, misty clouds shrouded the tree line covering the mountain's surface and seemed to be rolling ever downward in a never-ending expansion of space. From a distance, one could have easily mistaken the cloudy mist for a raging forest fire's smog if not for the color differentiation between the two compared clouds.
Taking in the breathtaking view, Velk craned his neck up as much as he could, but even then, he still couldn't see the top of the peaks, partially due to the mist and partly due to the sheer height. "Wow! Would you look at that? It's so big!" Velk exclaimed in astonishment.
Ash seemed to agree as he started to chirp at nothing in particular while looking upwards towards the mountain.
Pulling out the map, Velk opened it to figure out where they were and how far they were from the closest campsite. He could see where the water stream snaked upwards along the slope of the mountain, traveling in the path of least resistance, but that's where the map started to be less helpful, as the river disappeared into the cliffside and the entire terrain was replaced with tree and hill symbols. It appears like Velk will have to follow his gut instincts if he wants to find one of the numerous campsites located within the Mistyweather Mountains.
Turning towards Ash, Velk said, "Okay, we're going to have to work extra hard now that the ground will be at an incline. Do you think you need a break before we continue, or do you just want to go?"
Ash bobbed his head back a forth a bit before expressing, "Meow," while exaggerating tiredness with his arms, shoulders, and face.
"Yeah, me too. Let's rest here for a bit, and then we'll continue."