The injured Kulu-Ya-Ku clutched the massive egg with ecstatic energy, scurrying down the wooden pathways toward the lower levels of the Great Tree.
Strangely, no Rathalos or Rathian descended in pursuit. Instead, the sounds of battle from the canopy above only grew more violent.
"Something's wrong," Arlow thought. "The wounds on that Kulu-Ya-Ku are clearly from the earlier run-in with the Anjanath. That means it stole a Rath-egg completely unscathed!?"
"Then who—or what—are the Raths fighting up there?"
Arlow watched, dumbfounded, as the bird-wyvern trotted past his hiding spot, looking quite pleased with itself.
The Kulu-Ya-Ku cast a wary glance at him, but seeing that Arlow made no move to attack and was simply staring in shock, it let out a chirrup that sounded suspiciously like: "Pretty impressive, huh?" before continuing its descent.
ROAR!CRACK-BOOM!
The sounds of the aerial skirmish snapped Arlow out of his daze.
"Unbelievable! A Kulu-Ya-Ku with guts like that... taking advantage of the chaos to snatch an egg!" Arlow didn't hesitate. "After it! We need to get away from this danger zone anyway."
"What could possibly provoke both the King and Queen at once?" he wondered as he gave chase.
"I can rule out Elder Dragons; most monsters would simply flee their presence. It's likely not a terrestrial monster either, since I'm on the only main path to the canopy and the Scoutflies haven't picked up any other ground-based tracks. That leaves a powerful Flying Wyvern."
Arlow's mind raced. Would this unknown intruder threaten his exploration? How would its presence shift the ecology of the Ancient Forest?
"Could it be a Bazelgeuse?" Arlow immediately thought of the New World's infamous "airborne police."
"Mmm... no. The roar is wrong." He shook his head.
Most monster roars were distinct, but the "B-52" Bazelgeuse was special. Its high-pitched, nasal shriek, usually accompanied by the sound of falling bombs, was an auditory trauma Arlow would never forget.
"Then what is it?" He tucked the mystery away for later.
Following the Kulu-Ya-Ku's trail, Arlow and Lucerne eventually arrived at a narrow, hollowed-out section of a branch.
"This looks like its temporary nest." Arlow signaled for Lucerne to stay low.
Peering around a bend in the tunnel, Arlow saw the Kulu-Ya-Ku carefully place the Rath-egg into a bed of dry leaves. It then began to sift through several other eggs it had stashed there, as if picking which one to have for dessert.
Arlow felt a surge of excitement—and a massive headache.
"How do I take down the Kulu-Ya-Ku without breaking that Rath-egg?"
He was desperate for that egg. Not to eat, but to hatch. This was the closest he had ever come to obtaining a Rathalos or Rathian as a Monstie.
"I haven't gathered any Sleep Herb materials yet..." Arlow thought, then suddenly smacked his own forehead.
"I'm not just a Hunter. I'm a Pokémon Trainer!"
Arlow released Chansey.
"Lucky!" she chirped energetically.
"Meow!" Lucerne waved a paw in greeting.
"Chansey, I need your help. Use Sing!" Arlow commanded, recalling the move set he'd seen in the Hunting Manual.
"Lucky~!" Chansey swayed, her voice lifting in a gentle, rhythmic melody.
The soothing tune, laced with hypnotic energy, drifted into the nest. The Kulu-Ya-Ku gave a startled squawk, looking toward the tunnel entrance.
Gah?
It tilted its head, blinking as drowsiness began to wash over it. It started to waddle toward the source of the sound.
Meanwhile, just outside the hollow, the Anjanath arrived, sniffing the air with its flared nasal crest. It let out a low rumble of excitement; the scent it had been tracking was coming from inside this very branch.
Just as the Kulu-Ya-Ku spotted Chansey around the corner, a deafening BANG echoed through the woods. Splinters flew as the Anjanath smashed its massive head through the relatively thin wall of the hollow.
Screee! The Kulu-Ya-Ku's drowsiness vanished instantly in a surge of pure terror. It instinctively grabbed the nearest egg and bolted toward the back exit.
"It's that brute again, meow!" Lucerne cried.
"The egg!" Arlow's sharp eyes caught the flash of red scales. In its panic, the Kulu-Ya-Ku had snatched the Rath-egg.
ROAR! The Anjanath ignored the bird, its predatory gaze locking onto Arlow. It lunged, teeth snapping inches from his face.
"Seriously?! What do you have against me!?" Arlow recalled Chansey and turned to run for his life, with Lucerne right at his heels.
CRASH!
The Anjanath tore through the hollow, its sheer bulk splintering the ancient wood as it gave chase.
"Still following? Fine! You want a snack? Have some of this!" Arlow pulled a specialized item from his pouch and loaded his Slinger.
"Eat it!" He pulled the trigger, launching a dark, pungent sphere toward the Anjanath's face.
ROAR! The Anjanath jerked its head aside, and the Dung Pod missed, splattering harmlessly against a tree.
"You're actually dodging now?!" Arlow was stunned by the beast's increased wariness. He quickly reloaded.
The Anjanath's throat began to glow a fiery crimson, and sparks sputtered between its teeth.
"Now!" Arlow aimed again and fired.
The Dung Pod struck the Anjanath squarely on its flared nasal crest. A horrific stench flooded its sensitive nostrils, completely overwhelming its ability to track by scent.
The monster's eyes filled with murderous light, but it didn't stop.
"I don't have time for this!" Arlow loaded one last item. "Lights out!"
He fired a Flash Pod. A brilliant, blinding burst of light erupted directly in front of the Anjanath's eyes. The creature let out a pained howl, stumbling as its vision was momentarily wiped out.
While the "Tyrant" roared in impotent fury, Arlow and Lucerne vanished into the foliage.
Once they were a safe distance away, the Scoutflies began to glow again, but the trail was fragmented and weak.
"Can we still find it?" Arlow frowned. He started to lose hope for the egg. A panicked Kulu-Ya-Ku was likely to find a quiet spot and eat its prize immediately to regain its strength.
"Bad luck..." he muttered.
"Meow! Yellow feathers, meow!" Lucerne's keen eyes spotted a tuft of down caught in some vines.
"Great job!" Arlow urged the Scoutflies to latch onto the new scent.
As they followed the trail, Arlow realized something strange. "We're going in a circle?"
They tracked the Kulu-Ya-Ku's footprints right back to the original hollow it had fled from. Peering inside, they found a few broken shells, but most of its original "collection" was gone.
"It actually doubled back to move its food stash. This bird is smarter than it looks."
Following the trail once more, Arlow arrived at a wide branch where the Kulu-Ya-Ku was tucked into a small knot-hole, frantically eating one of its lesser eggs. Next to it lay several other reserves.
"It's still there!" Arlow spotted the largest, most ornate egg—the Rath-egg!
"Lucerne! Go!"
"On it, meow! Palico Deployment!" Lucerne leapt from the shadows, his bone knife glowing with energy as he dove toward the distracted thief.
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