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8 - The Elder Dragon

It was raining by the time we got to the camp. The sky had grown dark as small droplets fell from the sky. I glanced over at the rest of my party. They were quiet. Even Malcom was silent. No talk about the weather or what they were bringing. It was all business. All we could think about was the battle ahead. The fight with the Kirin, one with a chance of death. We set out from the rest area, walking over wet grass and flowers into the hills. I fastened the last of my gear, trying to start a conversation.

"What is a Kirin? I mean, I know it's an Elder Dragon, but what does it look like?"

"The first thing that comes to mind is a unicorn."

"A unicorn? Really?" Cal asked.

"It's like a Kelbi, but bigger. It moves like one, charging and kicking back. One blue horn, and a white and black body. Electricity moves around it as it attacks. It can summon lightning to strike down around it and create a large electrical explosion in front of it. During its normal state, the front of its body is hard like stone, but when it's enraged, that area becomes soft. Try and plan your attacks based on that."

He was talking about it like it was a regular monster. Elder Dragons are anything but. They're older than anything else and have more power than any monster can hope for. He might have just been trying to not make us worry so much.

We walked for what seemed like forever. The rain continued to pour down as we made our way over the hills and over the cliffs. We searched all over and found nothing. Even the nesting area was empty, and that was the only dry section we saw. However, that didn't mean the Kirin wasn't around.

"Nothing..."

"Meow, I noticed," Malcom said, stretching.

"No," Tusk said slowly. "I mean there's nothing. No Kirin, but also no other monsters. I haven't seen any sign of life. No birds, no Aptonoth, no Bullfango. There is nothing."

"Why is that you think?"

"I'm betting they knew it was here, and they cleared out as quickly as possible."

I looked around the small section we were in. I pulled on my metal Rathian armor. It felt too tight. It was starting to get difficult to breathe. I thought it might just be nerves or my body adjusting to the new suit, but that wasn't it. I noticed Cal and Malcom having the same issues. The air around us seemed thicker. It had an odd taste to it, sharp and metallic. The sky lit up in the distance in a flash of lightning, followed by thunder. A growing sense of dread fell over me. Tusk turned to face me, but he didn't say anything. He stood like a statue, peering out from the eye holes in his red helmet.

"Tusk?"

He wasn't looking at. Malcom turned to face me, but stopped short, his little eyes going wide. Everything grew still, and Cal and I took the hint and slowly turned around, looking back to where we'd been.

And there it stood.

It was like a unicorn. A white and black horse body with a sharp blue horn on the front of its head. A pale mist surrounded its body. Small flashes of energy went off around it. I froze, looking into its eyes. The Kirin had been following us the whole time, watching our every movement. It didn't attack. It just stood there. It's black eyes examined us. It didn't seem to like what it was looking at. The Kirin stepped back and swung its head upwards, letting out a loud neigh. There was a flash from the sky, and a long line of lightning struck down in front of us, stopped just short before it hit me. We broke up around it, startled by the sudden attack.

"Holy crap! What was that?!" I yelled.

"It can summon lightning! Watch out when it roars like that!" Tusk called out.

Cal instinctively pulled out his bow, loading an arrow in and shooting it off. The arrow flew through the air before hitting the Kirins face, but it bounced off and fell uselessly to the ground. It looked over him, blowing a gust of air from its nose. Cal started to run as it charged, aiming at him with its long horn.

"Cal! Keep going, nya! I got it!"

Malcom rushed up behind it, swiping with his weapon. The tips of his shuriken struck its backside, making it stumble. Tusk was right about it's weaknesses. As long as we payed attention to its state, we could deal some good damage to it. I started to move when there was a red blur beside me. Tusk was moving incredibly fast, sprinting in his heavy armor. He reached back and pulled out his Duel Blades, swinging them over his shoulders. Once behind the Kirin and without breaking stride, he sprung counterclockwise, slashing across its hide. It cried out and ran forward as he rolled to the side. I was impressed by the speed of his attacks, just like when I first saw him wield them.

The Kirin stopped in the middle of us. We'd formed a circle around it, cornering it. It remained still for a brief moment brief turning its head up to the sky once again. There was a low rumble, and lightning started to strike all around it, spreading out down from its head. I dodged to the back, narrowly avoiding another strike. Malcom recovered quickly and threw a boomerang at it. It swooped around behind it and cut off part of its white tail. I came in after, aiming for its back, only my attack had no effect. My blade bounced off like it was nothing. I noticed the contrast of colors on its body started to grow deeper. Electricity surged through it, sparking off and striking the wet ground. It had become enraged.

"This area is too small!" Cal called. "I can't get any good shots with it so close!"

"Alright, let's try leading it back to the other area! It's got a bit more room!"

We started to pull out, moving around it. It looked at us for a moment before giving chase, rushing at us with its horn pointed low. Cal reached into his pouch and pulled out a Flash Bomb. We all saw him and knew what he was planning. The Kirin was closing in, but Cal didn't throw it. He set it off and tossed it gently behind him. It barely went three feet before going off, blinding the Kirin. It stumbled and stopped, shaking its head. We made it out into the next open area. However, there was problem; it was right beside a sheer drop to the river that ran through the hills.

"We'll have to try and avoid going too close to the edge," Tusk said, taking a quick drink of his mega potion.

"Shouldn't be a problem," Cal said, drawing his bow.

There was a rustling as the Kirin came through into the clearing, no longer blind. We spread out and moved to separate corners. I peered behind me and saw a large tree, waving slightly in the storm breeze. I had an idea on how to pull off a spirit combo, but I needed it to target me. Cal hadn't put a paint coating on his arrows yet, so I figured I'd use one of my paint balls, just in case we ended up losing it. I threw it and the pink ball, splattered on the side of its neck, drawing its attention. I looked over and shook itself, it turned and started to charge forward, just like I hoped it would. Once it started charging, it couldn't really stop. I quickly side stepped, sending it plunging into the tree horn-first, sticking fast.

"Nice thinking, Ria!" Tusk called out.

I pulled out my Long Sword, ready to start my attacks. It was still enraged, so I aimed for its head. My cuts tore at its neck, slashing through its skin. It looked like it's blood was even glowing. I finished my combo with a wide sweeping ark just as it pulled out from the tree. My blade sliced through the horn, cutting it clean off. I even managed to cut through part of the tree as my power level went up. The blue horn fell to my feet as it neighed, running out of my way. I quickly stooped over and grabbed the horn, stuffing into my materials pouch.

"Nya! Awesome!" Malcom cried, hoping up on my back. "Looks like we got it on the run now!... Oh, or maybe not."

There was as of light as a bolt fell from the sky on top of me. Fortunately, I was still standing beneath the tree. It acted like a lightning rod, protecting me and catching fire that would quickly go out in the rain. I ran back, pulling Malcom around me. He ran to the side, getting ready to attack if needed.

"Guess it can still call on lightning attacks even if its horn is gone," I said.

Tusk came up beside me. "True, but we've dealt it a major blow. Not many can say they've severely injured an Elder Dragon. Keep up the pressure and we'll finish it off!"

I looked up, wiping the water off of my face. The rain and wind were starting to get stronger, making it hard to focus with it battering me. The Kirin, even though it glowed, seemed to hide within the falling water. I started to move forward when I felt the air grow hot and thick. The monster was suddenly in front of me. It held its head high as electricity moved off its body towards me.

"It's going to do the big boom, nya!"

"Ria, get out of the way!"

I turned and ran back, moving as quickly as I could. I wasn't as agile as Tusk when it came to moving in my armor. The Kirin called out and a massive explosion of light went off behind me. It pushed me forward, straight off the side of the cliff.

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