She never knew why her father left with Lucas, as he never returned from across the Meridian. She gave up on becoming a rider, content to live her life from the ground. However, many years have passed, and now the Rangers are preparing to cross the Meridian to find answers to the Encroachment. Her chance to follow her father's footsteps. And unknowingly allowing the one who rooted for her all these years to guide her back on the path of riding.
Pt. 1
Author’s Notes: If you hadn't noticed, I avoid using Y/N and prefer writing in the third person. It's been a minute since I played the beginning sections of this game, so please forgive any inaccurate timelines or details! I'm trying to keep this going before my hyper fixation burns out!
Disclaimer: AI was not used at any point in the writing of this story. I do not consent to my work being scraped for AI. If you scrape my work to train AI, that is theft.
Warnings: MHS3 spoilers, Afab Reader x Gaul, character death, FMC x Simon implied, self-edited on an Ipad so please give me grace🙏
The afternoon sun tucked her beneath a blanket of warmth where she stood in the courtyard. None of the rangers were present, but if last night’s operation went to plan, the Field Researcher knew they would be back soon.
It was Maury, one of the other identical Furtive Five members, who let her know that her information had been passed along. He informed her they were going to act tonight, using it as a chance to teach Thea and the Vermeilian Princess, Eleanor, how they handle invasive species. Ogden identified it as a Yian Garuga, a species of bird wyvern he’d seen on his travels. And from what she read in the notes the old ranger left her, she didn’t mind missing out on that fight. She hated dealing with poisonous creatures.
She stood in the grass behind the ranger base, flipping through Ogdens notes when she heard large wingbeats. Looking towards the landing strip, she saw the vibrant scarlet and blue of the Princess’ Skyscale Rathalos dip towards the castle. Ratha was closely followed by his entourage of flying monstes- two Legiana, a Pukei-Pukei, and a Gravios. Smiling to herself, she walked back into the base to meet them out front in the courtyard.
She watched the Princess of Azuria slide down Ratha’s side, giving him a scratch under his chin with cooing praise as she passed. She seemed in high spirits. She saw that Thea had hitched a ride with Kora, given that the young girl’s monstie wasn’t capable of flight. A blonde woman sat behind Gaul on his Legiana, and she figured it must be the Princess of Vermeil, Eleanor. The Researcher ignored the twinge in her chest, knowing he must want to keep as close an eye on their guest as possible. And why would it matter if he gave another woman a ride?
“So, I take it went well?” The Field Researcher called out to the Captain of the Rangers as she walked towards the base. She was met with a friendly smile and call of her name in greeting.
“I don’t know. You tell me,” The Princess responded in a gleeful tone, gesturing back to the Gravios where Kora was helping Thea down from its saddle.
“Big sis!” Thea called out when she saw the Field Researcher. While not related by blood, Thea was very fond of her; as she helped the young girl learn to use a bow. The pink-haired ranger bounded towards her. As she came closer, she could see a small, green form tucked in her arms. The Field Researcher gasped, a hand over her heart in shock.
“Is that-? It can’t be…” Thea stopped just short of her as she spoke. In the young girl’s arms sat a small green monstie, wings and tail curled up around it like a baby’s swaddle. Yellow eyes gleamed at her as it chirped a high-pitched squeak. “A Rathian?!”
“You betcha!” Thea grinned proudly at her obvious awe. “The invasive Yian Garuga had an egg quartz with this lil’ cutie’s egg inside! Cap’ says we’re going to reintroduce them to the ecosystem!”
The Field Researcher couldn’t help but fawn over the young creature. She rubbed its snout carefully with the back of her finger, gushing over how she pressed her head back into the Researcher’s palm with a purring sound.
Behind them, the Captain of the Rangers observed the two of them lavish the baby Rathian with affection like it was a newborn human. The Princess smiled at Simon who stopped beside her. He crossed his arms, observing them for a moment as well before it seemed something caught his peripheral. He nudged his friend and gestured with a tilt of his head and a chuckle.
The Princess and her friend watched as the Lieutenant Captain stood by his Legiana’s side, watching the two- now three as Eleanor had joined them- coo at the baby wyvern. He was smiling. But it seemed he was focused on only one of the three playing with the Rathian’s small talons.
The two young adults snickered together as they saw Ogden walk up from behind Gaul. The older gentleman looked around his shoulder and laughed after following his line of sight. He shoved the silver-haired man’s shoulder playfully, watching him jolt and try to compose himself with a cough.
It seemed Gaul wanted to cover his tail, as he approached the three adoring girls with a stern look and crossed arms.
“Alright, you three,” He chided in a gruff voice. They turned to him curiously, the Rathian now cradled in the field researcher’s arms like a baby. “Let’s not get it too attached to us. We still need to be able to release it to the wild, where it has to be able to fend for itself.”
Eleanor, Thea, and the Researcher all cried in disappointment. Gaul sighed with exhaustion as they fought futilely to continue cuddling the newborn wyvern.
“C’mon, Gaul!” Thea tugged on his arm. She gave him her best puppy eyes, like a little girl trying to persuade her uncle to let her up past her bedtime. “It’s not everyday we get to see an endangered species. An’ a baby too!”
While Thea’s eyes didn’t dissuade him- nor Eleanor’s hopeful stare, he found himself almost folding at the way the Field Researcher’s face fell mournfully.
Seeing her hold the infant monster made reminded him of how he felt when Legia hatched from his egg, back when he became a rider. She had been so happy for him back then. Legianas had been endangered in Azuria for a while now, despite being the most commonly used species in the royal guard. She’d been unable to find an egg herself, and was dead set on having one as her first monstie like her father. She never got one before she gave up becoming a rider. And he knew she never got to experience the joy of new life emerging from an egg like riders had.
He grimaced, rubbing the back of his neck with an agitated sigh. He held out his arms to her, watching her reluctantly transfer the Rathian into his hold carefully.
“…Fine.” He couldn’t bear her crestfallen eyes, and folded under the facade of it being the work of all three of them. “You three can help me prepare it’s stable. It’ll have to grow a little bigger before we can release it anyways. But we are not. Cuddling. It.”
He felt they ignored how he spoke those last words firmly. Thea leapt with joy, linking her arms with the Field Researcher and tugging Eleanor’s hand to the stables. Gaul followed, ignoring the loud laughter of Ogden and the snickers of Simon and their Captain. The Rathian squawked as it looked up at him, cocking its head at his more distant attention.
Thea was already explaining the process of monster reintroduction to the Vermeilian Princess, with her senior guiding her crash course while gathering branches and leaves from a reserve pile.
“-I see,” By the time Gaul caught up to them, ‘Thea’s Intro To Monster Reintroduction’ lesson was already underway. Eleanor was listening with rapt attention, nodding along and repeating certain points to make sure she understood. “So, you have to replicate a wild nest so they know how to make it for their own eggs? Fascinating!”
“Indeed,” The Field Researcher hummed, picking a stable towards the back and dropping the supplies on the stone floor. “One day, this Rathian will hopefully produce a clutch of eggs on her own. She’ll need to build a nest for them and keep them warm. We’ll let her watch us and see if she can pick those instincts up.”
“Yeah!” Thea waved her hands about excitedly. “An’ we’ll need to teach her how to fly, an’ hunt, an’ breathe fire-“
“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves,” Gaul cut the pink-haired ranger off as he set the baby Rathian down on a plush pile of straw. “Monsters grow faster than we would consider normal, but she won’t be ready for that for a while yet. Besides, all that will be Ratha’s job.”
The Field Researcher paused weaving branches together to give him an approving smile. He gave her a nod of acknowledgment before he began to help her, doing his best to ignore the way the tips of his ears began to burn.
“Oh yeah,” Thea laughed bashfully, fiddling with some straw. “She’d probably learn better from a fellow monstie…”
“That’s amazing!” Eleanor was in awe. The blonde woman clapped her hands together, grinning. “This is absolutely unheard of in Vermeil! To think there are riders who live so closely with the ecosystem- it’s incredible!”
The Researcher gave her a puzzled look.
“You… don’t do much of this kind of work over there?”
“Well, no.” Eleanor’s energy shifted, no doubt from the distress she felt about her homeland. “The Encroachment is a much more dire situation over there than this verdant country. We have a very different relationship with our monsties, and monsters in general. It’s… very refreshing to see it so differently here.”
The Researcher nodded, knowing she did not wish to continue. Before Thea- oblivious to the Princess’ inner turmoil; could keep asking questions, they were interrupted by a scratching sound.
Bewildered, the four of them turned to watch the baby Rathian scratching together a pile of straw. It paused, looking up at them as if to observe their actions at building a nest, before she scraped her talons across the stone floor to gather more straw again. Thea squealed, the three girls once again fawning over the baby wyvern gleefully.
Gaul sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose as the Researcher next to him stopped weaving plant fibers to record and sketch the behaviors in her field journal. She noticed his actions and gave him an apologetic look.
“Sorry…” Her words blended with the scratching of a quill tip on paper and nearly drowned out by Thea and Eleanor’s excited conversation. “Old habits die hard, I suppose.”
“Hmph,” He shrugged, continuing to fluff piles of leaves and straw. “You know, for someone who refuses to be come an official ranger, you sure make a good one.”
Gaul almost openly winced. He wasn’t sure how much of a touchy subject that was to her still, and he worried about driving more of a wedge between her and the idea. And between them.
But when he gathered enough courage to glance at her from the corner of his eye, he saw that she wasn’t offended. She seemed…Thoughtful. She shook her head like she was coming out of a daze, and he hastily returned his gaze to the straw bunched in his hands before she had the chance to notice he was staring.
“Thank you,” he heard her say softly, her the scribbling of her quill continuing. “Though, that ship has sailed, I’m afraid.”
“Has it now?” A hole was burning in his pocket, a heavy weight he’s had on his person for nearly a decade. “It’s never too late, in my opinion.”
She never knew why her father left with Lucas, as he never returned from across the Meridian. She gave up on becoming a rider, content to live her life from the ground. However, many years have passed, and now the Rangers are preparing to cross the Meridian to find answers to the Encroachment. Her chance to follow her father's footsteps. And unknowingly allowing the one who rooted for her all these years to guide her back on the path of riding.
Pt. 2
Author’s Notes: Hello! It has certainly been a while! After a long hiatus, I finally decided to give writing another go! This series is going to be a small passion project I’m going to use as practice for another much larger project. Please enjoy!
Disclaimer: AI was not used at any point in the writing of this story. I do not consent to my work being scraped for AI. If you scrape my work to train AI, that is theft.
Warnings: MHS3 spoilers, Afab Reader x Gaul character death, FMC x Simon implied, self-edited on an Ipad so please give me grace🙏
It rained hard that day. The rolling meadows and glassy lake of Azuria fell victim to roaring winds and thundering clouds. Night had fallen, darkening the usually peaceful country further. While most remained inside their homes and even the Skyscale Rathalos was tucked safely away from the sky, a piercing screech drew out a select few who recognized the cry. A mother, a wife, a young girl and boy who watched as a travel worn legiana flew against the deluge towards a small home just outside the castle.
The mother cried out as the legiana landed on the soaked grass harshly. It’s weary wings could not support it’s body any longer as it collapsed into the soil with a hoarse breath. The wife ran forward, past the mother on the porch as a lone figure slumped off the back of the winged wyvern. Long blue curls, the color of the lightning that crackled above their heads, was instantly soaked to the woman’s skin as she rushed to the monsite’s side.
“Lucas!? My Lucas-?” The woman caught the haggard body of the man as he fell from his Legiana’s saddle. She couldn’t see his eyes with the way his honey-brown hair stuck to his forehead. Lucas groaned into her shoulder, too weak to respond or hold himself up on his own legs.
“Oh gods-“ The mother gasped from the porch, covering her mouth with her hands as the young gray haired boy beside her leapt over the porch. “Kora, is he-?”
“No-he’s still breathing! Gaul-“ Kora turned to yell over to the younger boy, finding he was soaked to the bone by her side and pulling one of her husband’s arms over his shoulder.
“Caretta!”Kora and Gaul ferried Lucas towards his mother’s home. “Prepare a bed, please!”
Caretta sobbed, thoroughly distraught as she disappeared back into the hearth-warmed home. The young girl had yet to move. Not when Caretta’s muffled voice called her to fetch supplies. Not when Kora and Gaul dragged the battered form of the long lost Captain of the Rangers past. Not even when the gray-haired boy returned, quietly calling her name to where she stood on the porch in the pouring rain.
No, not even then. Her eyes remained on the sky, squinting desperately through the storm. Hoping, waiting for another legiana to dive through the clouds towards them. Waiting for her father who’d disappeared from Azuria with Lucas a year ago to fly back home to his daughter.
He never did.
…
Many years had passed. Nearly a decade had come and gone in the blink of an eye. Still the young girl, now a young woman, would stand and watch the sky. No matter where she stood in Azuria, whether in the castle’s town, the lush forests or snow dappled mountains, she’d watch the clouds with bated breath.
Even though she knew he wouldn’t return. That was all but confirmed when her father’s kinship stone rolled out of Lucas’ hand that night, long ago. When through weary words and a crystal-scourged body, he’d managed to tell her he was sorry. After she’d begged for answers at his bedside, after hours of waiting through the storm. All she could do was clutch the stone to her chest and cry.
The sky above her beloved home is much clearer than it was then. White fluffy clouds framed sunlight as morning dew glittered on the grass. Her boots crunched gravel and dirt with each step. The green of her cloak matched the verdant leaves of the canopy above her. The air, crisp with the scent of pine, filled her with each breath.
She and her father loved Azuria. He, former Lieutenant Ranger to Queen Amara, and then the younger Captain Lucas, taught her to pride her home from it’s wilds. He’d fly her on his legiana, Shaulk, showing her their beloved country from the sky before she could even walk. He never stopped showing her his love for their country in his work. And yet, he left. With Lucas, leaving her and their home for a year.
Back then, as an immature young girl, she couldn’t understand why he would leave. She stayed with Kora and Lucas’ mother during that long, lonely year. Listening to Caretta blame her absent husband and now ranger, Ogden, for leaving Azuria first. For inspiring her son- and by extension the young girl’s father, to follow in Ogden’s footsteps and leave Azuria to explore beyond it’s borders. That long year, the young aspiring ranger couldn’t understand why he would leave his home and daughter he loved more than anything.
The night Lucas’ returned, when she cradled her father’s kinship stone to her chest alone on the cliffs of Mirror Lake and sobbed, her grief was overwhelming. Why did he have to leave? Why didn’t he tell her where he was going, when he’d be back? Why would he transgress and leave Azuria, never to return?
Young and foolish, grieving and angry. She blamed anyone she could. The rangers, Lucas, her father. She vowed that night, never to follow her father’s footsteps. Never to abandon her home and betray her country. She promised herself to never become a rider, even though she had always dreamed of it since she saw the world from the back of her father’s legiana. Overwhelmed by grief and betrayal, she threw her father’s kinship stone from the cliff’s into Mirror Lake. A young, foolish girl’s promise to herself.
And foolish she thinks she was today. She sighed, marching along the game trail she was following through the woods. Even if she no longer planned to be a rider, she could’ve still held onto the stone as a memento from her father…
She’d grown much in the past years. When Lucas passed and Ogden returned and became a ranger, she learned to understand the world from a more mature perspective as she grew. Kora was also a huge factor in her growth, becoming a motherly figure in her troubled life. She helped explain her late husband’s reasoning for leaving, teaching her what a young girl wouldn’t have known about the world her father protected her from. About the harsh reality of the encroachment. And looking to the world around them for answers.
Even though she wasn’t a rider, she still ended up following her father’s footsteps anyways. To a point. She focused her work on smaller, endemic species. Though, as one part of an ecosystem, her work was not limited to small species alone. In her long journey for answers she came to understand the connected threads of the world, how small and large life alike weaved together in the most beautiful way.
Maybe one day, she could finally make peace with her father leaving. While she didn’t have all the answers, she could never blame the man she adored so much forever.
A twig broke somewhere above her head and she froze.
“Are mew lost in thought again, Milady?” A purring voice echoed, and the young field researcher released a relieved breath.
“Murray, you startled me,” She looked up to the pine branches above, spotting the gray felyne that disturbed her. Green eyes stared back down at her, and she watched the twig he purposefully broke drop from his paw. “There’s a nicer way to let people know you’re there, you know.”
“My apologies, my lady. I simply wanted to make sure you were still aware of your surroundings,” He dropped down from the tree, landing without a sound.“I believe someone would disapprove of that persistent habit. It’s dangerous to zone out in the wild.”
She rolled her eyes.
“What Gaul doesn’t know won’t kill him. Besides, you lot know I like clearing my head in the field.” She crossed her arms.
While close in age, the current Lieutenant Captain of the Rangers and her were never exceptionally close. They had friendly chats when they were both in training to become riders. But their relationship was nowhere near as close as the Princess and her companion, Simon. Still, his incessant need to know every little thing happening in Azuria, down to a single picked herb in the Blightstone Woods had always been a habit for him. Perhaps that was what he learned from his own father, a former close friend and guard to the king.
Still, the field researcher knew he wasn’t sending his five palicos to check in with everyone like her. She sighed in irritation. She may have been a reckless youth, but she’d matured so much since then. She wasn’t a little kid anymore, damn it.
“I know you’re not just here to test my reflexes. What does he want?”
Murray shrugged, his tail swishing behind him letting her know he was amused.
“Sir Gaul wanted to know if you had any updates on the ‘invasive’ situation,” the palico reached to a pouch behind him, producing a leather-bound notebook and quill. “You’ve spent a long time out in the field on this one. Should we be concerned?”
She rubbed the back of her head, pulling out her own field journal with her findings.
“No, at least, not so far,” She flipped through the pages. “Whatever it is, it’s stayed fairly close to one area in the outskirts of Sunpetal Plains. I’ve narrowed down a few locations where it may choose to settle. I’m fairly certain it possesses poison of some kind. It’s footprints are similar to a Yian Kut-Ku, but I haven’t been able to catch Ogden to see if he’s seen a monster like this on his travels. “
She could hear Murray’s quill scratching furiously in his book, recording each word to report back to Gaul, and by extension, the rangers as a whole.
“It’s loud. While it’s our typical nocturnal invader, I’ve been able to hear it roaring throughout the night. It’s already trying to claim a territory, and the aptonoth have stopped following this game trail for a few days now. Too much longer and it’ll be too comfortable to remove easily.” She finished with a weary sigh, squeezing the bridge of her nose. “What a pain…”
“You’re telling me,” Murray shared her tired look, pausing his notes to give her a sympathetic look. “Sir Gaul and all of us Furtive Five have been up to our whiskers with the Vermilian negotiations.”
“Negotiations… Ah,” she closed her field journal, giving him her full attention. “That’s right, that was yesterday, wasn’t it. Any news on how that went?”
“Mm, about as well as you would expect. However, the Princess of Vermeil has offered herself as a hostage, and she is now under the care of the rangers.”
She gawked, staring at the palico like he’d grown two heads.
“Oh my,” laughing lightly, she grinned at Murray. “Bet Gaul is thrilled about that.”
Murray gave his own exhausted sigh, pawing over one of his eyes. “You have no idea… I’ve tailed both princesses more than anyone or anything else these past few hours.” He paused, thinking aloud to himself. “You’d think two girls of equal standing would take a minute to get aquatinted before running all over Azuria…”
The field researcher found herself laughing again, tucking her journal back into its rightful pouch.
“Wouldn’t be our Princess to stay in one place for too long. Especially with a new friend to show our ecosystem to.” She pulled out a folded map and handed it to the palico. “Here, I’ve marked the general area where I’ve seen unusual tracks and the like. The area in red is where the shepard hares have been particularly agitated.”
“Mew-any thanks, Milady,” Murray gratefully accepted the map, holding it carefully between his paws. “Are you heading back to the castle?”
She nodded, putting her hands on her hips and inhaling a breath of fresh air. “Suppose I should, my work on this case is now in your paws. I need to repair my bow as well.” She gestured to the large, folded bow resting on her back.
“Would you like Sir Gaul to escort you back?” Murray pocketed the map, giving her an oddly hopeful look. “He’s in the area. I’m sure it wouldn’t be any trouble to give you a ride back.”
“Thats not necessary, thank you.” She put her hands up almost instantly, rejecting the offer. “I can make it back just fine on my own. I know my way around well enough.”
She turned back the way she came, preparing to head down the hill and into the plains below.
“Oh, and tell him that patch of gloamgrass patch he’s had his eye on may be in peril. The river beds in that area are becoming awfully treaded than its usual traffic. Monster related.”
“Of course,” Murray bowed his head, even though her back was turned to him now. “Thank you for the tip, I’ll make sure he’s informed. Safe travels.”
She waved to him over her shoulder, already following her own tracks. After a few moments of watching her disappear into the forest, he rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
“How ever did she know about that…?”
…
Cool, crisp morning air brushed against his face. The wind blew along the face of the cliff and into the trees above it, delivering a welcome breeze to the man and his monstie who stood atop it. The needles of the pine trees whistled as they shuttered in the wind.
The legiana was poking through a patch of foliage while his rider crouched at the cliff face, watching a speck of green and flashing silver descend the hill. He was too far above to make out any details, but there was only one field researcher that was camped out in this part of Azuria at this time.
His eyes squinted in a look of displeasure. He’d already warned her once about polishing the silver of her field gear too much. If a flying monster saw, they might want to investigate for the potential of a quick meal. Not that Gaul thought she couldn’t handle herself. It would just be unnecessary trouble without a monstie.
A twig snapped above him. He stood from his crouched position, watching the distant form of the field researcher maneuver through the forest towards the castle. Behind him, Murray dropped to the ground.
“Sir Gaul, I’ve returned.”
“Report,” He ordered briskly. “Did she have any leads?”
“Yes, Sir Gaul.” Murray padded to his side, handing him the map and pulling out his field book. “She marked a good area to start looking. I have her observations; however, she’s been unable to locate Ogden for his thoughts on the identification of our invader.”
The lieutenant captain groaned, clicking his tongue.
“Of course. For an old geezer, he sure gets around. And never where he’s supposed to be, either.”
Murray snickered, knowing his words were not backed by vitriol. Those who knew about what happened with Lucas and Ogden’s travels thought that Gaul would harbor distrust and hatred for Ogden. That he would blame the man for his best friend’s disappearance and eventual death. He never had. How could Ogden have known his son would want to follow in his footsteps?
Legia, bored of nosing through shrubbery, leaned his head over to Gaul’s other side. When he caught sight of the person that his rider had his eye on, he crooned a purring chirp. His eyesight was far better than any human, and Gaul knew that his legiana had been spoiled in secret by the field researcher whenever she was passing through the stables. Perhaps, her way of trying to fill in for Shaulk’s absence. He wondered if she blamed Ogden or Lucas still. For her father.
He patted Legia’s neck, finally unfolding the map and looking at her notes annotated on the side. In some spots, she’d drawn little shepards hare and scowlbills where she noticed they were agitated. Personally, Gaul believed that was just an excuse to doodle.
“Detailed, as always…” He trailed off thoughtfully, thumbing over a line of her hand writing. Murray hummed beside him, listing off details from her report. He should be paying attention to that, he thought. But her sketches had him lost in nostalgia.
They would’ve both been rangers by now. They were training at the same time, their fathers working together to prepare them for the day they would have their own legiana. Between lessons, he’d catch her scribbling in her field journal, showing him her sketches of endemic life, monsters and flora from Azuria. She’d gotten good.
But, he was the only one of them to become a rider. And to join the rangers, after the request of the king himself. He understood her feelings. After the death of his own father, passing away in an attempt to protect him on his inaugural mission, he’d sworn off becoming a ranger too at one point.
A hole was burning in his pocket, burdened by a heavy weight. He peaked over the edge of the map to see her distant form breaking through the tree line and walking towards the road. If she had someone to guide her back, like he had, maybe she still could be a rider too. But he knew they were never close. Not close enough for him to impose on her choice. Had he not been so nervous to talk to her back then, maybe…
“…And I think that about covers what she found,” Murray chattered beside him still. Ah, crap. Well, it’s more so for Ogden’s specialties anyways.
“Great, thank you.” He folded the map back up, passing it back to Murray. “Do you think you could find Ogden and pass that along? Once he has an idea of what we’re dealing with, tell him to find me back at the base. We’ll talk game plans before we inform the Captain and the others.”
“Of course! I’ll see it done.” Murray moved to leave, before stopping short. “Oh, right. Before she left, she warned me that our gloamgrass supply in the fields was in danger. We should look into it.”
Gaul hummed, watching the speck of green begin to blend in with the plains. Then, he jolted.
