Grogar had to admit that simply walking through the Ancient Forest, not to mention using one of the Barnos to travel between their camp and Astera, was exhausting work, enough though he didn't feel it until he, Sherry, Patches, and Jaya were back in the Canteen, sitting at the table Sherry had picked earlier.
"Yo, Grogar, what's up?" a voice asked, where they found Aiden and Erica walking towards their table, both looking happy with whatever mission they must have completed after he and Sherry left Astera earlier, though it was possible they might have been stuck with unloading the ship, before they stopped at the table, "So, how was your first day?"
"Oh, went out to identify why the Jagras population was higher than normal, learned some things from a pair of Jagras we found, and watched the Anjanath wreck the area," Grogar replied, thinking back on everything he had done since arriving on the New World, or at least since they left Astera to tackle his first official mission, which ended up being two when he took a moment to think about things, before he focused on his friends again, "the Anjanath also wrecked the Kestodon herd that we went out to deal with... even if I was planning on asking them a few questions before trying to get them to return to their home."
"You've been studying the New World and it's monsters, haven't you?" Erica inquired, as she knew that Grogar wasn't like all of the other Hunters that were in Astera right now, he wasn't as violent as the others were and preferred to study what was around him, while having the common sense to get to safety, and Grogar nodded a few seconds later, "Yeah, I had a feeling that you wouldn't willingly harm them, even though it sounds like that Anjanath might have to watch it's back in the future, as it seems like you don't like it very much."
"He might teach it a lesson, but I don't think he'll actually kill it," Sherry remarked, where she returned to the table with a platter of food, meats, rice, vegetables, fruits, and all sorts of things, meaning the Meowscular Chef really liked to cook and prepared good portions for everyone who came to the Canteen, though she smiled as she fed Jaya a piece of meat, who chomped on it as Patches collected something as well, "Honestly, it's refreshing to have someone like him on the team, as we can learn more about the New World and the zones that the others have been studying since their arrival, including a few things about how every monster lives in harmony with everyone else."
Grogar wasn't sure that what they had seen was harmony, rather it seemed like the Anjanath had done that purely out of a desire to show it's dominance to everything else that was in the Ancient Forest, but he agreed with his friends, he wasn't the type to actively seek to do harm to those he encountered, despite his past. It was likely that if he was assigned to deal with the Anjanath he would unleash all of his magic on it, in an attempt to drive it away before it dealt any damage to the main gate or even Astera, but there was always the chance that Commander Shepard might give it to someone else and have him do something else. As he thought about that Aiden told them about how they had spent the day moving all sorts of things off of the ship, allowing the people of Astera to gain new supplies that weren't from the New World, as they had to be missing certain foods and other items from the Old World, while Erica helped make sure everything was moved to their proper locations, giving her time to learn the layout of this place. They made a wonderful team, experience and well tuned based on everything Grogar had heard about their missions, and while he was interested in the fact that Aiden had no ally, like how he had Patches, he suspected that his friend didn't need a Palico following him around, or maybe there was one and it didn't like being out in front of too many people.
In the end the six of them shared dinner, just like what they had done in the past, though once night was upon them they walked down to where their bunks were resting, where Grogar found that his friends seemed to sleep in their basic attire, as any armor was taken off and set to the side for the rest of the night, though since he wasn't wearing armor he slipped into his bunk and fell asleep in no time.
When morning arrived Grogar found that Astera, much like the day before, was an incredibly busy place with all sorts of people running from place to place, making him wonder if this was what happened whenever an Elder Dragon like Zorah Magdaros made landfall, everyone scrambling to make sure the island was fine before figuring out what was going on with all of the Elder Dragons. As he did that he made his way to where Commander Shepard usually worked, though as he did that Grogar discovered someone new standing near the figure in question, a lady with an athletic body that was more on the lean side, likely a Hunter when he thought about it, though she was wearing a metallic bra on her chest, instead of a chest piece or the normal attire. The reason why became clear a second later as she had a pair of majestic dragon wings, with brilliant green scales, attached to her back, making it hard for her to wear a normal chest piece, though she also had three fingers and a thumb that were almost claw-like, with scales on them and the backs of her hands, while he found that her feet ended in sharpened claws, much like a dragon's foot. In addition to all of that, and the scales on her legs, feet, and arms, he found that she had a pair of brown shorts on that had a hole in the back for a dragon tail to fit through, one that shared the color of her other additions, and he was sure she had a pair of small black horns growing out of her hair, as he spotted what might be the points in her neck length brown hair.
She also carried a weapon on her, as she carried a black iron looking sword that had two points and a round shield made of the same material, maybe an enhanced form of steel when he thought about it, so she was like Aiden, she preferred to stick to the sword and shield style, though as he took all of that in he found that the conversation had stopped, as both of them had noticed Grogar walking towards them.
"Ah, Grogar, it is good that you're awake, as I was about to send someone to wake you," Shepard said, a smile appearing on his face as he and his friend stood there for a few seconds, though his words informed Grogar that he had something he wanted to tell him, no doubt a new mission that was likely tied to the search for Zorah Magdaros, who he was sure had gone underground after hitting the New World, "Allow me to introduce Alexia, one of our Hunters that also doubles as our only line of communication with the Third Fleet Commander, who is stuck in another part of the New World with the rest of her fleet. Alexia, this is Grogar, who I just told you about."
"The monster whisperer, who can talk to monsters and learn more about them," the lady, Alexia, stated, where Grogar could tell that she was interested in him, mostly because he was rather unique when one thought about those who lived in this world, and she seemed rather friendly, without a hint of arrogance in her voice, before she noticed the figures who were behind him, "and this must be 'Jaya', the Jagras that you befriended... it's amazing to think that you are capable of such a thing."
"She helped me and Sherry when we first landed in the Ancient Forest, along with everything else Commander Shepard told you about," Grogar replied, as he had a feeling that everything that had been in his report, about the overpopulation of the Jagras and the fate of the Kestodon herd, had been told to her upon her arrival, though as he said that he noticed that Alexia's ears were pointed, making him consider something, "Forgive me for asking, but aren't you a Wyvarian?"
"You would be right, while also being partly wrong. I'm what's referred to as an 'Advanced Wyvarian'," Alexia said, where he got a feeling that anyone who knew about the Wyvarians asked her this same question whenever they encountered her for the first time, meaning she must have changed her story in some manner to make it easier for her to tell, though as she said that Alexia flexed her wings a little, like they were getting stiff and the slight movement would make sure they didn't lock up, "You've likely encountered some Wyvarians in your travels, people with digitigrade legs, four fingers instead of five, and pointed ears, though when they reach a certain age they start to shrink, like the Tech Chief for example, and there have been instances where certain members of my kind don't follow what's normal for us, as there was one of my kind that grew to an immense size. As you can see I'm different from the rest of my kind, because I'm not growing or even shrinking, rather my body is changing to become more like a monster's... by our estimates I probably have a year or so left before we figure out which one I'm becoming, though we've narrowed it down a bit thanks to the wings and tail, even if the scale color is throwing us off... of course there's a chance that we're all wrong and this is as far as the changes will go, but I'm not holding my breath."
"I'm sorry to hear that." Grogar said, as Alexia seemed like an interesting individual and he was sure that she didn't like the fact that her body was like this, that it was possible that her normal life might be over in the very near future, but he now knew there was a chance that she might remain in this state and he would have latched onto that hope if he was in her position, before he considered something, "I'm sure that you've heard about me, from the letter Erica sent some time ago, but that only scratches the surface... when we have time, and aren't chasing Zorah Magdaros, I'll answer any questions you and the others might have for me."
"Wingert and the others will hold you to that, just so you know." Shepard remarked, as the Researchers loved new things and right now Grogar was the newest thing for everyone that called Astera home, because his magic and skill were brand new, no one had seen anything like them, and he knew that the Researchers were pushing for time alone with Grogar, to ask questions, which he was vetoing for the time being, "Also, after considering the information your team brought to me yesterday, I've decided to send you and Sherry, along with Johnson, back into the Ancient Forest, as Alexia spotted a piece of Zorah Magdaros and I would like to confirm it's location before moving forward."
Grogar knew that Shepard trusted Alexia's report and that this was just standard protocol for the Commission, and even the stranger didn't seem upset by it, rather she turned her body so she could move over to an open area and took off, no doubt heading out for a mission she had been given before his arrival, though it was interesting watching her fly through the air as she left Astera. He had no idea that there were other varieties of Wyvarians out there, though speaking to her for a short period of time had expanded his knowledge on the subject, though once she was gone he bid Shepard farewell as he headed for the Canteen, where he spotted Sherry, Patches, and Jaya walking over to their table, having awaken after he got up and decided not to bother him while he talked to the Commander. Sure enough the food was already on the table as he reached the area that his partner and companions were sitting in, where he informed them that he had a chat with the Commander and, more importantly, that they had been given a new mission to tackle, a simple scouting mission that would be taking them back to the Ancient Forest. Sherry was surprised that they were already being sent out again, after a night of rest, but she guessed that the New World was less forgiving than the Old World and that everyone worked at all times, especially since they were trying to figure out why the Elder Crossing was happening in the first place, hence why all of them dug into their meal, to be ready for their mission.
Once they were done eating Johnson met them near the Barnos and they departed for the Ancient Forest once more, but this time around all of them were planning on departing from the camp and did so as soon as they arrived, finding that all of the other monsters seemed to be sleeping. That was good for them since it meant they didn't have to worry about the Anjanath, though as they walked Grogar made sure to have Sherry and Jaya keep their eyes open for the monster that had nearby ambushed them yesterday, while he and Johnson carefully made their way forward as Patches kept an eye out for any other monsters. Part of the area they ended up exploring were some of the tunnels that the Jagras used when he and Sherry first landed on the island, finding that one of them eventually lead to an area that seemed to be far wider than the others they had been in so far, but everyone kept their guards up as they made sure the area was safe, as no one wanted to run into that Anjanath. As the Scoutflies carefully scouted out the area, finding a few small puddles of water along the way, Grogar also noticed that there were a few tree trunks growing in this area as well, not that he was surprised, and he was sure that something could knock them down if they were hit hard enough, as they were hollow and seemed to be an area for someone to hid in, to get away from the monsters.
As Sherry discovered some green feathers on the ground Grogar noticed what they were looking for, a smouldering rock that was definitely from Zorah Magdaros, though before they could get close Johnson had them stop and he found a new monster walking out, a bird wyvern that resembled a chameleon and had eyes that resembled a frog's, with feathers that matched the trail they had found, and it had a long tongue.
"Of course a Pukei-Pukei would show up, and it's agitated about something," Johnson said, though he kept his voice low as they watched the monster for a few seconds, where it spat a glob of poison at the area around the fragment the walking volcano Elder Dragon left behind, confirming the story that they had heard from both of those Jagras they encountered the previous day, before he noticed Grogar step forward, "I know what you're thinking, and it's not a good idea to approach a monster when it's agitated... it might attack you, and you'll have to defend yourself."
"That might be so, but I'm going to try anyway." Grogar replied, as he had a feeling that the Pukei-Pukei was upset due to the molten fragment, either due to it resting on where it's nest was resting or it was blocking the way to where it's nest was located, and there was a chance that his power might be able to help him here, to calm it down so they could figure out what in the world had happened and what might be done to clear the area, "Hello there. Might I ask what's wrong?"
"My nest! The way to my nest is blocked!" the Pukei-Pukei stated, where she shook her feathers for a moment, where it was easy for Grogar to determine the gender while he spoke, showing him that the monster was annoyed by what was in front of her right now, before spitting another glob of poison at the fragment, which sizzled for a second before burning all of the poison away, "I was out getting some food, and when I came back this was here, blocking the way back to my nest! I'm trying to break it, but nothing is working!"
"Maybe we can help?" Grogar inquired, where the monster turned her head and spotted Johnson, Sherry, and the others, though she took a step back when she noticed Johnson's weapon, no doubt wondering if he was coming to come at her in the next few seconds, to which Grogar raised his hand in a calming manner as he lowered his staff, showing her that none of them meant her harm, and it worked, "Johnson, can you go back to Astera and get some of the Researchers out here to collect the sample?"
Johnson raised an eyebrow for a moment, once more reminding Grogar that he was dealing with people who usually used weapons to fight the monsters of this world, though he sighed and nodded his head as he turned around and departed for Astera, allowing Grogar and Sherry to stay near the Pukei-Pukei as both Patches and Jaya kept an eye out for the Anjanath that was in the Ancient Forest. Once their supervisor was gone Grogar turned towards the feathered monster and told her that they weren't here to cause her harm, rather they had come looking for one of these fragments and were planning on moving it back to their base, allowing them to explore another part of the forest as they tracked down the monster that it came from. The Pukei-Pukei tilted her head for a moment, surprised that both of them came to the same area at roughly the same time, but she sat off to the side and waited for the Researchers to come out, though it was easy for them to see that she was still annoyed about something, where Grogar found out that it was her mate, who happened to be constantly challenging the Anjanath and was missing, that was annoying her. Such a thing meant that the other Pukei-Pukei might have run into trouble after leaving the nest yesterday, according to her information, and could be anywhere in the Ancient Forest, wounded from facing off against the monster in question, so it wasn't annoyance she was feeling right now, rather it was worry.
Grogar thought about it and wondered if they could get a message to Alexia, to have her scout out the forest and see if it was possible to track down the missing Pukei-Pukei, as there were cuts on his legs from the Anjanath's teeth, though as he did that Johnson and a trio of Researchers came up the way with a large wooden cart, though when they stopped he raised a hand to stop them... where he levitated the fragment with his magic and placed it on their cart, even if it was heavy and he had to be careful with it.
"Well, it seems that you made a friend," Johnson commented, where he watched as the Pukei-Pukei, who seemed happy, tapped Grogar's back with her head before wandering down the path that had been opened, heading for her nest based on what he told him when she was out of range, though there was something else for them to talk about, "While I was in Astera the Commander told me that we should also look into rebuilding one of our camps, as we built several over the years and most of them, save for the first one you found, were destroyed, so we'll need to find a new location to build it in, as it will aid us in researching the rest of the Ancient Forest."
"Understood. It'll be nice to have another camp, deeper in the forest, so we won't have to worry about running into that Anjanath, for some time anyway," Grogar replied, though he waited for a few moments, just to make sure the Pukei-Pukei was gone and the Researchers departed with the fragment that would aid their efforts to understand Zorah Magdaros and understand him, and once he was sure they were fine the group got moving.
While they walked Johnson told him that when a Hunter went out, without a mission or quest, it was considered more of an expedition, allowing them to explore as much as they want, even though most of them only stayed out for most of the day they departed and returned before nigh fell. Grogar was to learn more about how things operated, as he was sure he would go out on my expeditions when he wasn't being sent out on missions, especially since there were other monsters out there and he didn't know a lot about them and the places that they called home. Such a thing would allow him to aid the Commission in better understanding this part of the world, and as he followed Johnson he discovered a doodle resting on a large stone they passed by, to which he paused and made a few notes on it, just in case he and Patches discovered whatever tribe or monster made them. A few moments later Johnson revealed that the way to get to the campsite, or the closest one to their position, was to climb up a vine covered tree trunk and Grogar followed after him, with Patches and Jaya doing the same thing so they could see what they were working with, before they reached the top and found an old camp waiting for them.
In addition to that there was another monster hanging out in it, a bird wyvern that resembled a dodo since it didn't have feathers, save for a few orange and yellow ones on top of it's head, and it had light brown scales on it, though right now it was using it's beak to pull out a vase that had been buried at one point in the past, though once it had it's treasure in it's hands it turned and found them standing nearby.
"Calm. We mean you no harm." Grogar said, trying the same method that had allowed him to speak to the Pukei-Pukei, all while Johnson informed them that this was a Kulu-Ya-Ku, which usually lived in the Wildspire Waste and that meant it must have wandered into the Ancient Forest on accident, where he found that the monster was rather calm, possible docile, as it wasn't scared of him or frightened by Johnson's weapon, "What are you doing out here, in the Ancient Forest?"
"Stones... looking for new stones," the Kulu-Ya-Ku replied, where he held up the pot that he was holding in his front limbs, as while he was a bird wyvern he didn't have wings like the Pukei-Pukei, so his front limbs were arms and hands, for a few seconds before tilting his head and set the pot down, like he was disappointed in it, "Stone not good, too soft. Need better stone."
"How about this? We'll help you find a 'better stone' and then escort you to your home," Grogar inquired, as he knew that there had to be a gate somewhere in the forest that connected to the wasteland, allowing people to travel from one to the other without having to return to Astera, and since the Kulu-Ya-Ku was supposed to make his home in that area this would allow him to get the stone he wanted before heading home.
Sure enough the Kulu-Ya-Ku agreed to the idea and Johnson just sighed, as if he couldn't believe that they were doing this, though he followed after Grogar and his newest friend as they headed for the beach, as there were some good boulders in that area, where they should be able to locate a stone for the bird. As they did that Jaya and Patches kept an eye out, as he wanted to make sure that the Anjanath didn't surprise them again, while Sherry, who had been silent and observed him work with the monsters, joined Grogar in studying the stones on the beach, which brought an excited look to the Kulu-Ya-Ku's face, or at least he assumed that was the case. It wasn't long before the monster yanked a stone out of the ground, a somewhat smooth grey boulder which happened to be the same size as the pot that the Kulu-Ya-Ku had found earlier, and with it in hand the monster told Grogar that he was happy and that it was time to head home, to which they left the beach and headed for the gate that rested between the Ancient Forest and the Wildspire Waste. During their trek, however, they had to stop and hide as the Anjanath emerged once more, no doubt looking for food or threats to it's territory, though no harm came to them as Grogar ground that his companions and the Kulu-Ya-Ku kept silent as it passed by where they had decided to hide, only moving once it was totally gone.
Eventually they reached the gate between regions, where Grogar found that it changed into a desert area in no time, but he and the others stopped as the Kulu-Ya-Ku thanked them before heading home, causing him to smile for a while as he wondered what the future might hold for him, Sherry, and the rest of the Commission.