Roar of the Anjanath

 "Flint, are you sure we should be doing this? We could hunt literally any OTHER anjanath!" A stout hunter carrying a heavy bowgun declares, voicing his opinions on the operation he found himself on. A blade nears the speaking gunner, causing him to sweat at how close he was at getting decapitated. "OF course i'm sure! With no one else to get in the way, we can take down the large creature and make a fortune! Fame like no other would come with taking down the variant others couldn't!" Flint, the wielder of the long sword declares, greed flashing through his eyes.

 He was a short man, being no taller than the palicos work with. Though his short stature wouldn't fool any of the hunters he is working with. His swordsmanship is second to none except the huntsman himself, an enigmatic figure respected by the commission. Yet his reputation truly comes from his ruthlessness towards others. Rumors spread that he had even killed another hunter who had made the mistake of calling him short. None can confirm this however as the body retrieved had the makings of a hunt gone terribly wrong.

 Flint turns to the other hunters in the group and asks, "Anyone else have something to say?" The other hunters quickly shake their heads no, not daring to look flint in his eyes. "Good. Now from what intel I have gathered, our target likes to reside near the center of the ancient forest, so we'll have to go deeper." The five man squad make their way to the heart of the forest, with those using bladed weapons chopping any vines that get in their way. "I'll show them that Flint pottner should have been the commander's right hand man. It should have been ME in that position, not the so-called 'huntsman'!" Flint fumes to himself, still bitter at losing the position that should have been rightfully his. His thoughts are interrupted though when one of the frailer hunters yells out, "Boss! We've got movement at the front!"

 The hunters get into formation, ready to confront what is approaching them from the bushes. Leaves fall to the ground as the group comes face to face with... a kulu-ya-Ku carrying an egg. The creature looks like its been through the wringer, evidence by the dust marring its once pristine feathers and exhaustion beginning to set on it's visage. The bird wyvern pays the group no mind however as it leaps over their heads, sprinting into the distance. Two of the hunters in the group attempt to take shots at it, yet they miss due to how far the wyvern had gotten by the time they could draw their weapons.

 "Well that was...something." The heavy bowgun hunter says. The group is majorly unfazed as it was common to see this type of bird wyvern run throughout the ancient forest and Wildspire waste. "Yea but what was it running from?" The frailer hunter asks, loading up the light bowgun he brought with him. A large boulder suddenly crashes into the ground nearby, startling the group. Flint looks to the group as he states, "Looks like we're about to find out."

 Trees in the distance topple to the ground, their distant crashes coming closer to the group by the second. "What's that!?" The woman of the group points out, drawing the attention of the others. Flashes of black appear in their vison, with the smell of burnt ozone wafting into their noses. The earth begins to rumble with growing intensity as the thing draws near. "Dammit, spread out! here it comes!" No sooner had Flint said that, he dove to the side, and not a moment too soon. Out from the towering trees appears the anjanath variant known as Evans. The Heavy bowgun user leaps to the opposite side, using his weapon's heft to move a bit quicker. Unfortunately, frail hunter and the lady were not as fortunate as Evans' talons tore through the two, turning into chunks of mincemeat splatter on the oak of the towering trees nearby.

 Flint and the remaining two hunters of the group watch as Evans tears a path through the ancient forest, coincidently in the same direction they saw the Kulu-ya-Ku fled. The first who came to his senses was Flint who roared out, "What are you waiting for!? our target just ran by! AFTER HIM!" And so, the three set off after Evans, following the destruction he left in his wake.

 POV shift: Evans

 Evans paid no mind to the squishy sensation under one of his feet or of the distance shout he barely could make out. His mind had one focus and goal: to retrieve the egg and slaughter this bird! Evans picks up his pace as the scent of the bird wyvern draws near. Not long after, Evans sees it, running with the egg nestled in its arms.

 AugGRAWWWWWWWWWWhh!

 The kulu-ya-Ku's feathers stand on edge hearing the all encompassing roar. Turning its neck, the kulu squawks in panic as it sees an angry mountain of scales gaining on it, flames spewing from the sides of its mouth and a red hue in its eyes promising an agonizing fate. Evans draws close enough for the bird wyvern to feel the scorching heat and unbridled malice form behind it. As Evans jaws loomed close by, the bird wyvern spots a large boulder up ahead.

 With the threat of death right on its heels the bird wyvern made its choice. The creature leaps onto the rock's slanted side, and, using its powerful legs, springboards to the side as Evans crashes into the rock it was on moments ago. Bits of stone fly into the air, forcing the kulu to weave through the stone hail. Evans' head burst out from the other side as he continues the pursuit.

 The afternoon rolls in as the chase is nearing its end. The kulu-ya-Ku can feel its elf slowing down. Its muscles ache from having to avoid Evans' constant gnashing, with the wounds it obtained in the process throbbing. The Bird wyvern digs its talons into the ground as it sees what's up ahead. A dead end. The ground trembles as Evans appears. Knowing its end is near, the kulu rolls the egg to the side and shrieks at Evans, ready to take a final stand, with the slight chance of making it out alive.

 Yet the bird overestimated itself as, seeing that the egg, the one thing that was holding Evans back from truly making the kulu suffer, was out of its grasp, He blasted out an inferno strong enough to harm the wyvern, yet weak enough to keep it barely clinging to life. Evans then tears the legs of the kulu, then the arms, and eventually rips the head straight off of its neck. 'There. once I secure the eggs, I will make sure the ancient forest no longer has any egg thieves left!' Evans, now cooling from his frustration, turns to retrieve the egg. Yet, before he could bring the egg into his grasp, a net launches out from the underbrush, dragging the oval object with it.

"Well look what we have here. quite an interesting find huh?" A voice is heard from the bushes, Evans turns to the plants, a growl settling in his throat as three men appear into view, the short one being the one to have spoke.