Roots Of Ruin (Monster Hunter Fanfiction)

The jungle was alive again—but not in the way it should be. The silence that had gripped the forest before had shattered, replaced by the rustling of leaves, the snap of twigs, and the steady, unnatural thud, thud, thud of something moving in pursuit.

Alden and Mara ran.

Their breath came in ragged gasps, their boots pounding against the damp earth as they weaved through the dense undergrowth. Behind them, something followed—not just the infected Pukei-Pukei, but Jorren. Or what was left of him.

Alden risked a glance over his shoulder.

Jorren's gait was wrong—his legs moved as if his body wasn't fully his own, jerky and uncoordinated but still fast. His longsword dragged along the ground, the blade screeching against roots and stone. His mouth hung slightly open, and from it came something far worse than a growl, worse than the guttural croaks of the infected monster still lingering somewhere in the dark.

It was his own voice.

"Steady… steady…" Jorren murmured, the words broken and uneven.

Mara let out a choked gasp, nearly stumbling over a gnarled root. "No—no, that's not him!"

"Move!" Alden barked, grabbing her arm and yanking her forward.

But Jorren didn't stop.

He followed.

His head twitched to the side in an unnatural motion, his vacant, cloudy eyes locking onto them. "This doesn't feel right…" His tone wavered, as if struggling to piece the words together.

It was what Mara had said earlier.

Mara let out a strangled sob.

Jorren's lips moved again, forming another phrase from their hunt, but his voice was hollow, fragmented, as if something was rifling through his memories and discarding what it didn't need.

Alden forced himself to focus, to push away the horror creeping into his chest. They had to make it back to base. If they stopped, they were dead.

But the jungle was shifting against them.

The infected Pukei-Pukei was circling. Its glowing, bioluminescent veins flickered between the trees, moving in tandem with Jorren, cutting off their routes one by one. And worse—the smaller infected creatures were emerging, too.

Shapes moved in the shadows—Jagras, Mernos, even insect swarms, their bodies twisted by the same creeping infection. They didn't attack outright. They were waiting. Herding them.

Jorren let out a sickening, choking sound, half a laugh, half a garbled croak. His grip tightened on his longsword. He took a slow, dragging step forward, the muscles in his arm tensing for a strike.

Alden's stomach turned cold. He didn't hesitate.

He grabbed Mara and shoved her forward. "Run."

"What—no!"

"I'll hold him off. GO!"

Mara's face twisted in anguish, but there was no time for argument. Alden turned to face Jorren.

Jorren tilted his head, mouth opening just a fraction wider. "We've seen monsters act strange before…"

And then he attacked.

The jungle swallowed the sound of clashing steel as Mara fled.