Up in Pokke Village, hunters where sitting and conversating with one another, enjoying hot drinks and warm meats to keep themselves warm on the top of the snowy mountain. Merchants were doing what they do as well as cooks and the smithy. The cold wind and gently snow flowed through the area as everyone was enjoying a peaceful time in this village. One of the cooks was a beautiful red haired girl named Nicci. Her eyes where red and shinned in the light and her hair was in a long ponytail with one curly strand of hair dropping to the left side of her face. At this moment, she was cooking with her white fur felyne friend, Nito. Together, these two cooks were the best that this village has ever had. The two even called cook masters by hunters. At this time, Nicci was preparing a large breakfast and Nito was taking more orders from hunters that were about to take part on a hunt.

"How many orders do we have so far, Nito?" Nicci asked as she stirred a bowl of soup and rice.

"Nya, busy busy busy," Nito meowed running for table to table taking orders.

"All right, let be bring this breakfast to my father and I'll start making the orders. I'll be right back," Nicci informed Nito as she was carrying the warm soup she had just finished.

"Do not drop the soup this time!" Nito joked, keeping his attention on the hungry hunters.

Nicci stuck her tonged out at her friend as she continued towards her home. Thankfully, her home was not far from the cooking area. Her home was a nice and pleasant wooden home, it was not large but it was enough to keep her and her father happy. She placed her hand on the cold outside door and carefully opened it, not wanting to drop the soup. upon entering, she closed the door behind her and once it was closed, the house was quiet and dark. No light for windows or lanterns were illuminating anything. Nicci new her father was home but she did not know if he was awake at all.

"Father, are you awake?" She asked happily as she search the house, "I have your breakfast,"

There was no answer from anywhere but Nicci heard a creek from the floor boards in the next room. She peeked the corner into the next room and saw her father standing with his hands on a desk with a chair just behind him, he must have just stood up which caused the creek. Nicci approached her father and placed the bowl of rice soup on the desk. Her father said nothing but ruffled his daughters hair as a thanks to her. She smiled and left her father alone. Her father was never much of a talker, he was all ways the quite type but he was the bravest hunter she knows. Leaving the house and returning to cooking she was piled with orders from many hunter waiting for food, some patiently and some not so much. Likewise, she rushed back and began cooking the many meals that needed to be prepared. The morning was quite busy for Nicci and Nito but Nicci enjoyed every bit of the cooking, despite rude hunters and such. They bothered her. While cooking, out of nowhere, the ground started to tremble and shake causing Nicci to spill some soup before she knew what was going on. She was not the only one who noticed it of course, All the hunter in the area noticed that everything was shaking. Nito fell off the counter he was standing on, spilling a pan of noodles on top of himself. The ground did not shake for very long but it was long enough to cause minor distress among the hunters. Once the ground censed to shake, Nicci stood confused as she started to clean up the spilled soup on the ground. Nito in the meantime was running around with his head in a pan, leaving a trail of noodles everywhere he went.

"Nya help! Help!" he shouted, his voice very much muffled because of the pan.

He continued shouting until he ran into a wall which made a "ding" sound when they clashed and he fell to the ground with a thud. Nicci quickly went to help him as everyone around were standing confused.

"What just happened? What's going on? We do not get earthquakes up here?" hunters starting asking one another.

Nicci was asking the same thing, stuff like this did not happen. She stood up once Nito got is balance and when she did, she noticed that the clouds of the sky where opened up, by something powerful most likely. It was a fair distance away but it was still strange, but she did not have time to think about it at the moment. Nito and herself went back the cooking area and start to clean and resets dishes and meals for the hunters. As she did that, she saw her father wearing all his Rathalos armor.

"Father, are you okay? W..why are you wearing your armor?" Nicci asked worried.

He did not say a word and just stared at the large hole in the clouds. Nicci really wanted an answer but she did not get one. Her father was all geared up and ready to leave, several other hunters noticed this and they all knew something was wrong. Nicci's father walked to the smithy not saying a word to anyone. The smithy, who was a muscular man with a brown beard and hair, saw him approaching with a bit of surprise. Nicci's father had not been to the smithy in quite a few years. So the smithy waited until the Niccis father was directly in front waiting. Nicci's father did not say a word, he just stood there. The smithy paused for a moment until he realized what he wanted.

"Ah yes, right! I have one ready, It have been a while since your last hunt I guess I forgot about it. I'll bring it right out," The smithy laughed as he stood up and took and step into his tent.

Hicci's father waited patiently until the smithy would return. In the mean time Nicci rush to her father still confused as to why her father was wearing armor. Just before she could speak a word the smithy returned holding a gauntlet.

"Here it is, made from the shard you collected and gave me. Still have no idea where you got it." The smithy answered as he handed the gauntlet to Hicci's father.

The gauntlet was a dark mechanical arm mainly made from blue, black, and grey scales. Hicci's father took the item with his right arm, nodded in gratitude, and waked away from the smithy. Nicci approach her father confused of the item.

"Father! What are you doing? What is that?" Nicci asked frustrated with her father.

After receiving no answer, she placed both hands on her fathers chest to stop him in his tracks, which he did. He just looked down at her with no answer.

"Tell me what you are doing!" Nicci demanded, placing her hands on her hips.

Her father stood silent for a moment. He did not say a word, he pointed towards the large hole in the clouds. Nicci turned to see what he was talking about and she caught it quickly. After that, she turned her attention back towards her father, he gave her signs with his hands. Nicci was able to understand the sign language.

"Danger, Elder Dragons," is what Nicci's father signed.

Nicci just looked into her father eyes. She did not really understand why he signed that but it worried her. Nicci's father ruffled her daughters hair again as he walked past her and towards the cliff in the direction on the large hole in the cloud. Nicci wanted to stop her father again and took a step forward to do so but she new that she would not be able to stop him. He placed her hands on her hips again as her father stood at the edge on the cliff. Nicci's father stared at the clouds below the mountain. He took a moment, took a deep breath and attached the left armed gauntlet to his missing arm. He attached it by connecting several hooks and straps together. Inside the gauntlet were several gears that worked with his machinal upper armor. When attaching the machinal gauntlet, the gears gridded with each other and he was able to move his machinal arm like it was a normal arm. The gauntlet did not match the armor style of his Ratholes armor but was similar with its spikes but not its colors. After some simple test moments of the machinal arm, Nicci's father was ready to leave. Without hesitating, he jumped from the mountain and into the clouds below which scared Nicci extremely. She ran over towards the edge of were her father jump, she looked straight down and her father disappeared into the clouds below. Nicci new her father was going to be just fine but she was still confused about his signing.

"Nicci, get back here and help be cook!" Nito yelled annoyed at his cooking partner.

"Oh yes, right right!" Nicci answered uneasy .

She hurried back the her kitchen to help her cat friend with thought of her father and what he said still in her mind, something was very wrong.

Meanwhile in the dark of night in a forest, four hunters were sitting around a fire. Xandra, Aaron, Qudira, and Nuria. They were all sitting quietly. Quidra was writing in her notes about what she had seen, a monster of power, Nakarkos. Xandra in the mean time handed everyone a bowl of warm fresh soup. Aaron was examining items and equipment and Nuira was staring into the fire. Xandra looked over at Qudira's notes as she wrote. Qudira also drew a photo of Nakarkos with amazing details.

"Wow, I did not know you could draw so well," Xandra said kindly.

"Thank you, its easier to draw a photo of the monster instead of writing down every detail in words. For me at least," she thank her friend as she continued drawing.

After a moment for silence Aaron spoke.

"So what do we do?" he asked as he continued with the items.

They where all silent until Nuria spoke.

"Well, I have unfinished business with my sister. So I believe this is where we part," Nuria announced as she stood up and away from the fire.

Aaron nodded and walked towards Nuria and reached out his hand. Nuria stared at it for a moment and hesitated to shake it.

"Its been an interesting time knowing you Nuria," he said kindly.

Qudira and Xandra did not stand as the two others shook hands. Qudira and Xandra were still uneasy about her sharp smile, and again they did not know her very well at all. But they did know she was known as "Death". Aaron and Nuria dropped their hands and Nuira picked up her equipment, which was her Gunlance and item pouch. She turned her back and started to walked from the light of the fire. As she walked from the fire, Nuira grinned with her sharp smile, the warmth of the fire steaming off her as she entered into the cold of the forest