Ride On!

A Monster Hunter & Pokémon crossover role-play blog for multiple original characters. Independent, selective, and dashboard-only. Written and maintained by Panda🐼.

Please go over the guidelines and character pages before interacting, both below the "Keep reading" cut.

Please like and/or reblog if interested. Personal blogs that interact will be blocked (with exceptions, e.g. hub blogs).

Gonna be honest, gang, I've been feeling real bad about this blog for a while and I have no idea as to why.

So, uh.

Take this as a semi-hiatus announcement. I'll still be here to lurk every now and then, but threads will be put on hold until I get over this slump.

I got my Discord username below the read-more in case anyone wants to contact me directly. Of course, make sure to let me know what your usernames are as well so I know who's who.

Sorry, y'all.

Y'know what, after taking a good, long look at my blog, I figured that there are some things about it that I'm not 100% happy with and want to change (e.g. characterisations; "He/She/They would NOT say this").

Dragon to dragon, for a first meeting.

Adamantia sputtered, utterly bewildered at the fact that he left her side just like that. Not only that, he was also approaching the Jin Dahaad! How would Professor Fabius react if he found out that she just let Lance get himself killed?! Would would it affect inter-regional relations?! Undoubtedly, the death of a Champion would lead to severe political consequences!

Groaning in frustration, she could only look on in abject horror, aware of the fact that her presence would send Priscus flying into an even worse rampage.

Unsurprisingly, Priscus swiftly caught on to another presence. Slowly, like an unstoppable glacier, his vast form twisted around to face the random intruder. A metallic growl escaped his jaws, his ridges began to rub against one another and glow red in obvious agitation. However, he did not attack, not yet. There was something about this intruder, this human, that was...off-putting? Not in a negative sense, no, and yet...

His growling ceased and his jaws closed, the red-hot glow of his ridges abated. Needless to say, Priscus was confused.

... And so was Adamantia, whose horror melted into bewilderment. Where she expected a slaughter there was silence, the howling winds of the blizzard the only thing cutting through the silence.

. . . Well, he felt it wrong to try and find out so soon. For now, the youth trusted in Chantilly's word. Though, if events started to recur, Nata might feel tempted to prod for more information. He wanted to understand. He wanted to help.

There's already so much on his young shoulders. His stare towards the tent entrance is long-drawn and thoughtful, and it didn't waver until the felyne's statement: "That look in your eyes…I know it well."

"U-uh, oh," That came as a surprise to Nata, but he shouldn't have put it past either one of them to be so perceptive. Blinking away his arched brows as he looked back at Chantilly, and then to Alma, the youth looked briefly stunned.

Was it really that obvious?

"Well . . . I have been thinking about it for a while." He began. " . . . When I first met you all, I wouldn't have even considered the possibility. I mean, people coexisting with pokemon? Riders? I didn't believe it at all at first . . . and I'm sorry about that . . ."

It was no secret by now; Nata used to hate monsters—pokemon—whatever the greater world referred to them. Not that he could be blamed, given everything he had gone through, but he had let his own fear and anger control him. " . . . But, now I think I understand it. And, I think its something really special! To be able to form a bond with something like that . . . I don't know if I'd ever be worthy of learning, but if I am, then . . . I'd like to try. I'd like to become a rider."

"That's awesome!" he exclaimed, smiling from ear to ear and his joy infectious. "It's always great to see others wanting to become Riders!"

As he stepped away from Nata, Chantilly would close his eyes and put a paw to his chin in obvioous reminiscence.

"Ahh... I remember the beginning of Ada's Rider journey like it was yesterday..."

Alma chuckled, "That's because she tamed Lazarus only a few days ago."

At that Chantilly whipped around to face her, and he pointed one of his pink, soft beans at her.

"I'm not talking about Lazzy, I'm talking about her Kinship Stone!"

The Felyne turned around again, hopping onto Adamantia's hammock for some extra height. There he turned yet again to address his two friends, placing his paws on his hips.

"You see, Ada got her Kinship Stone from her momma! She herself's a legendary Rider, so big and strong she'd make a Blangonga look like a Blango!"

Alma's eyes lit up in recognition. "You mean Rubina Drakos, the Ruby Reckoning?"

"Yeah, that's her!"

"Well, I already knew about their relations, but..." Alma gave a thoughtful pause before looking to Nata. "Chantilly's right. Adamantia's mother is a massive woman, taller and more muscular than even Professor Fabius, and you've how big he is."

"Frighteningly powerful, too," Adamantia interjected, nearly causing Chantilly and Alma to leap out of their skins! "My apologies for startling you."

Adamantia stepped through the tent's mouth, looking a little more unkempt than earlier. Her gloves especially, which were coated in a light layer of fur and just a hint of gore. She made sure to take them off before touching anything, turning them inside-out as she did.

"Ah, it's alright..." Alma murmured, a hand over her chest to calm herself (an action Chantilly mimicked).

An awkward pause followed, Adamantia still standing by the entrance while shifting her gaze between the three. It was only after several heavy seconds did she finally force out a sigh, briefly hanging her head limply before standing straight again.

"I would like to apologise for my earlier behaviour," Adamantia began, suddenly a little stiff in how she carried herself. "I shouldn't have snapped like that, none of you deserved to witness it."

She placed a hand on her chest as well, then gave a deep and apologetic bow. 

"I promise, it won't happen again."

Another awkward silence followed, this time cut short by Chantilly hopping off of Adamantia's hammock and waddling up to her, stating, "Nata wants to talk to you about becoming a Rider!"

Her eyebrows raised, making her mild surprise obvious. She cast her gaze upon Nata, casting her dirtied gloves aside.

This girl maliced them out of pure envy of Rubina's adoration, or so Church believed. Mari would take his word for it, but that was besides the point she was here to make. Adamantia's sarcastic use of 'monstie' only serves to embitter the Champion of Mahana further, and she cracks.

"BULLSHIT!"

CRACK. The sound carries throughout the camp following her even sharper yell as her knuckles strike, hot and fast against the hunter's cheek. Despite Mari's lacking height, the applied force should be enough to knock the unsuspecting Adamantia onto her back. Mari was bristling. The once restrained anger is now unleashed to full on fury, and it shows with the fire burning in her eyes.

"YOU'RE A GUILD KNIGHT AREN'T YOU?! Act like one!" She roars. The rider could elaborate, but her words should be clear enough. This wasn't just about threatening her loved one, though it certainly made things personal. This was the fact that Adamantia, a ranking superior, had acted unprofessionally and abused her title to intimidate someone who had done nothing worth stirring such ire.

"BULLSHIT!"

She made no move to dodge, only passively closing her eyes as Mari hit her mark. A gasp rolled over whoever was watching; Chantilly yowled in alarm; the Knight was forced to step back.

Even though it was a good punch, Adamantia did not even flinch. It was not the first time she was struck; she faced bigger, stronger opponents before. Compared to them, poachers and crooks whose every attack was fuelled with killing intent, Mari's strike was lacking.

And yet, a part of Adamantia wanted this to happen all the same.

She recovered quickly, sliding the foot used to brace against her fall back to a steady posture. Slowly her eyes opened, her expression unnervingly calm and unreadable. It would be difficult for others to tell if Adamantia was taken aback by this sudden assault or woefully unimpressed, yet those who knew her would figure out that it was most certainly the latter.

Slowly, a frightening frown sneaked its way across her lips. A horrifying glint shone in her eyes.

"You want me to act like a Guild Knight...?" she questioned, her voice suddenly grave. "Alright."

Adamantia's movements were a blur; her hands shot out to grab Mari's shoulders and pull, her knee shot upward and forced itself into her gut with thunderous force! Mari was strong, yet Adamantia would quickly prove herself stronger.

She let go, letting Mari collapse. People yelled. Chantilly screamed.

A debilitating blow, to be sure. One that Adamantia used before, one that made even hardened fighters of greater mass crumble to the floor. Adamantia kneeled down beside her collapsed foe and placed an arm on her raised knee, almost lackadaisical in her movement. "I'm genuinely sorry about what happened to your Rathalos," she admitted, this time showing at least a hint of sympathy, "and it's completely unacceptable that a branch of the Hunter's Guild failed in checking those Hunters' backgrounds. But, whether or not you think I 'abuse' my authority is irrelevant."

Adamantia leaned down, closer to Mari's face.

"HI." UNLIKE ADAMANTIA, HER FACADE IS HONEST, and its clear that she's upset, disappointed even. The snide curl of her lip and the crinkle of her scarred nose and eyes made her disdain easily apparent. Despite being significantly shorter than the other teen, Mari did not seem the slightest bit intimidated, even in the presence of an alleged 'Guild Knight.'

At first, the rider keeps her tone low, bordering a hiss for emphasis, almost as if she was doing her best to keep the conversation from immediately blowing up base camp. "What was that you pulled with my partner the other day? I try to give you advice on how to wrangle your monsties, and you repay me by threatening my significant other?"

She didn't even offer two winks towards Chantilly. To her, the felyne was practically invisible, despite his efforts to be present.

Why was it that he and Mari so readily received mom's praise while I have to struggle for even so much as basic recognition!?

Her hands clenched into fists, then unfurled and stretched wide -- Adamantia's nervous tic.

"I didn't know that he's your lover," Adamantia lied, keeping her tone steady. "Regardless, he unfortunately looks very similar to a wanted criminal, so I had to interrogate him."

Whether or not Church shared an appearance with a Guild target meant little when one knew why Adamantia confronted him in the first place; it was pure envy, a demand for knowledge as to how to be acknowledged by such a legendary figure. Little did she know that she already had her mother's adoration in spades -- Mari would surely know of this -- yet Adamantia herself was unable to see it.

Chantilly continued to look between the two Riders, hoping to calm them before things could turn ugly. "C'mon, girls, c-can't we talk about this someplace-"

Adamantia's eyes narrowed as she interrupted, "Besides, my 'monstie' still tried to attack me even after doing everything you said, so your advice ended up being worthless."

Her Palico winced. Other people looked amongst themselves nervously. Even Adamantia felt as though she crossed a line, though only for barely a second. A lapse in judgement brought about by a sudden flare of rage, of indignation, a feeling that the two Riders did not even deserve to have been included in the expedition.

Only when se mentioned Rubina did he perk up slightly, blinking in mild surprise.

"...oh. You're one of Rubina's kids?" he asked, scratching the side of his head. "Sheesh, you two don't have much in common, do ya..."

He'd puff out his chest in pride at what was apparently Ruby's description of him, but he was still baffled by this whole situation. Still, it was nice to know she at least had a good opinion of him.

"Uh... I helped her capture a Zinogre?" he said with a shrug. "When I first showed up here, one of the bastards was chasing me and my monstie. She helped turn the tables with Rex."

"One of?!" Adamantia hissed, now genuinely considering cutting Church down where he stood. "I'm an only child; my-"

She purposely bit her own tongue, silencing herself. Agitated as she had become, she knew better than to pour her heart out with so many eyes on her. Truly, that would have been no less embarrassing and pathetic than collapsing and breaking into ugly tears. Instead she would exhale through her nose, slowly yet loudly. Her gaze had shifted from accusatory to downright murderous.

She almost scoffed when Church spoke of the Zinogre incident, remaining silent. Indeed, that was something her mother had written about as well. It was obvious that Adamantia remained unimpressed, however.

"That would've been noteworthy had you done that yourself," she pointed out, heavily implying that such a task would have been child's play with Rubina and Rex to lend aid. Her blade was pointed at his chest again in an accusatory fashion. "Go on, tell me something you yourself-"

"Hey, Ada!!" a shrill voice called out!

Adamantia's tore her attention away from Church, her expression flipping to one of genuine surprise. The spell appeared broken; everyone who had gathered to watch from a safe distance was forced to look at the sudden intrusion.

Even Puzo was caught off-guard, her tentacles a writhing mass as she turned to face the source of the yell.

Huffing and puffing as he ran on all fours, Chantilly entered the scene! The poor Felyne appeared almost out of breath as he stopped just a few feet shy of the confrontation, paws on his hips and doubled over as he struggled to gather himself. A few deep inhales later he stood as straight as he could, his eyes pleading as he looked up towards Adamantia.

"Hey, partner, c'mon, there's no need for that!"

Chantilly was one of the few people alive Adamantia trusted with all her heart and soul, and one of the few who could so swiftly curb her indignation. Still, her expression remained severe -- her brows were furrowed and frown wide -- turning her gaze to glare at Church again, her blade still aimed at him.

Again Chantilly attempted intervention. "Ada, buddy, you and Puzo roughed him up enough! Don't we have better things to-"

He was silenced by a sudden flash of her blade! Yet no flesh was rend, and with a click Adamantia sheathed her sword. Her withering glare remained on Church for several more agonising seconds, the Knight silent the entire time. Then, without warning, she turned on her heel and marched off, towards the base camp entrance and out into the field.

Her poor Palico and Xu Wu were left behind, unsure what to do. Ultimately, Puzo began to glide across the ground and after her Rider, pausing only to give Church one more "glance" and a cursory poke of a tendril. As the Cephalopod left the scene so too did the gathered crowd peel away to continue on with their day, muttering amongst themselves.

Chantilly heaved a sigh and wiped the back of his paw over his forehead, relieved at having averted disaster. He turned to look up at Church, giving him an apologetic bow.

"... Hm, might stretch my budget a bit." Pity. Feeding six or seven dragons already was expensive though, so one that could eat even more than they did now probably was a bad idea. At least for his wallet.

Maybe in the future.

"Jin Dahaad are primarily Ice-type and secondarily Steel-type," she explained, matter-of-factly. "They can crush virtually anything in their path, and their Ice-type attacks are...devastating."

Indeed, she vividly recalled her first encounter with Priscus. Back when he was still a wild Pokémon, blocking her and her companions' path to Suja, blocking them on their mission to learn of the Guardian Arkveld's true nature. He attacked them out of nowhere, even with Rove's earlier assurance that he was absent, and pursued them relentlessly. The following battle was terrible and exhausting; Adamantia knew it was only thanks to Olivia's assistance did they survive to escape and reach their destination.

Priscus raised his head, scanning his surroundings with his dark, black eyes. Vigilant as ever, the uncontested ruler of the Iceshard Cliffs.

Adamantia inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly, focusing on Lance again. Although a Champion, the fact still remained that he appeared out of nowhere and demanded to see the endemic Pokémon of Venalos. Professor Fabius, in his wisdom, figured it could only improve international relations to at the very least accompany him. Of course, Adamantia would never doubt Fabius' judgement, and yet...

"I must let you know, sir, that the Hunter's Guild has put a strict ban on the exporting of the region's endemic Pokémon, as well as any materials yielded from them."

She huffed a quick sigh.

He didn't get to finish his sentence before Puzo dropped him, practically on his head. He was only halfway up to a sitting position before Adamantia's blade was in front of him, and he winced at the feeling of metal against his skin. Hunters were forbidden from using their weapons on other humans... he was pretty sure. That had to apply to even a high-ranking Guild member, right?

He was, to his credit, equally silent as she stared him down, masking his own anxiety behind an almost petulant glare. Not nearly as intense as her own, obviously, but it was not for lack of trying. He was just at a bit of a disadvantage here.

When she withdrew her weapon, he jumped to his feet in irritation.

It was painfully clear which of the two would walk away alive if the two were to ever cross weapons...

She bristled again as he rose and spoke to her in such an accusatory tone.

"Who am I?" Adamantia fired back, her voice arguably sharper than her blades. "I am Adamantia Drakos. Guild Knight. Hunter-turned-Rider. Trusted associate of Professor Fabius. Overseer of the Forbidden Lands Expedition."

She paused, (unintentionally?) adding dramatic effect.

"Daughter of the Ruby Reckoning, Rubina Drakos."

Adamantia raised her ultramarine sword again, this time pointing the tip at Church's chest; his heart. Her intimidating air did not relent for even a millisecond, and some onlookers shifted uncomfortably as though she were ready to run her blade through him at any second.

Her tone softened ever so slightly as she explained, "My mother thinks highly of you." Her eyes narrowed, her frown deepened. "She wrote that you have a strong character and a good sense for right and wrong. That you don't back down easily, and that you're the kind to put his life on the line for those you care about."

Behind her Puzo gurgled and raised her many tentacles threateningly, also growing to dislike his demeanour. Her tentacles twitched and bulbous mantle pulsated. She crawled closer and closer, before being stopped by Adamantia whipping her sword away from Church and holding it squarely across Puzo's intended path. A swift and effective blockade, and decidedly blood-curdling as well.

Adamantia never took her eyes off of Church while halting her Xu Wu.