//------------------------------// // Chp. 10 - Amethyst of the Forest // Story: Dragonhearted // by Slendy //------------------------------// "What an... 'El...der Dra...gon'?" I stretched the word out as best I could. My Dad's personal notes were all written in a completely different language called 'Japanese'. It was really tricky to learn but some words were easier to translate when I saw them frequently. My Dad stopped mulling over his notes with a fond smile, his soul was bubbling with nostalgia. "Elder Dragons are powerful monsters, they can either change an ecosystem with their power or be a species no one's ever seen before," I nodded eagerly to his every word, even if I didn't get all of it now, it was still really cool to listen to. "The Emperor of Flames, Teostra. The Steel Dragon, Kushla Daora. The Phantom Beast, Kirin, just to name a few." "Are they really that strong?" I asked, feeling his paw ruffle my mane. "You bet, although not as tough as me," He grinned sharply. "And someday, you'll be just as strong too." "Really?" My body didn't always work right so being told I could fight an Elder Dragon made my body buzz with excitement. "Would I lie to my adorable little girl?" He sat back in surprise. "Nope!" "Then you have nothing to worry about." Overwhelming darkness swept over my mane, colliding with the ground with a sweeping wing-talon, leaving a streak of frenzy behind. Magala spun around on its attacking arm, facing me to fire three payloads of frenzy in a similar fashion to Rathian, so evasion was easy as I drew near, pumping my aura through my Tigrex scimitar. In two arcs, my edge tore between the horns, evading another direct wall of frenzy by the tip of my tail. The dragon growled, and I saw it with a bewildered stare. "My blade... it's not broken? And I..." Snapping my head back, I saw it, two scars ran across the crown. I did it, I can deal damage now! This resurgence of confidence brought me back around only to cry in fright, twirling between a sweeping wind attack as Magala landed behind me, releasing a heavy stream of frenzy that slammed into my wings, throwing me through the river and across the grassy flatland. A strange sensation riddled my body, leaving a pungent purplish-black mist over my coat as I hacked up some of the vapor, this was bad, I've been infected! Blinking away tears from the foul stench, I flew backward from Magala's tail swipe, leading into both wing talons slamming the ground, uprooting dirt and stone with resounding force. Inspecting myself in a panic, I felt pins and needles all across my body, but I wasn't overcome with anger or a bloodcurdling need to attack. But I did feel strange. Did it not affect Equestrians after all? I'm not a biologist, even my own body was a mystery to me for years, I'm not sure what part of me was warding off the worse of the virus but it kept me alive so I wasn't going to start complaining. Releasing Swords Dance, I swept low, evading three more frenzy blasts as the enraged dragon barrelled in my direction. Knowing I'm somehow immune, I found myself charging straight back myself. I won't run away this time, I can fight, I can survive, I can win this! "Metal..." Once Magala's right wing-arm came digging through the earth, I dove into a spiral, silver light manifesting around my back hooves. "...Claw!" I swept underneath the left wing, carving my claws across the amethyst-tinted membrane, leaping over its head as it bent around and fired a large blast of Frenzy in my face, I embraced the blast with my shield, bringing it down as I collided with Magala's forehead. "Night Slash - Square!" My body pivoted with a sharp flap, swiping across the Elder Dragon's jaw with a contrail expanding between us as Magala reeled back and fired three blasts to kite me. I gasped, seeing it dive onto its right wing-arm, sweeping the ground with that large tail as I braced with my shield, seeing sparks fly while I skidded backward. My body still burned with Swords Dance, so I lunged forward, slashing at his side before diving up and bringing the full weight of my shield down on its side, knocking Magala into the treeline. Unfortunately, I didn't see the right leg sweep from behind its wings, slamming into my right side as I gasped, my vision sent flying as I winced, feeling my Tigrex armour hold up but that was definitely going to bruise. Spitting blood off to the side, I turned to meet the beast's glowing form as it snarled, watching me hesitate as I downed a small jar of thick, red liquid that tasted like hot peppers. But the second I did so, the drug overtook my muscles, causing them to burn with raw power. With a tremble in its wings, Magala unearthed a mighty roar once more, clearly ramping up himself, fine by me. "Swords Dance!" I ushered more of my stamina as I bit down on a rations bar to keep myself from passing out, I had to end this now! "Come on, show me what you got!!" He seemed to understand, launching himself into the sky before sweeping down toward me with its claws brandished. I felt my heart in my ears as I burst into Quick Attack, leaping to meet him head-on once more. Claws struck my shield and sword as I swept underneath Magala and struck at his chest down toward his stomach and groin. I flew sharply beside the tail as it swept wide to crash into my torso. I felt my steel bones creak as I sputtered a cough but roared back, slashing wildly at the tail with Night Slash in two vertical incisions. "Raaaaah!!!" I zipped forward, sweeping the wings, bashing the face of my shield against the horns as they nearly impaled me in the process. Magala flew backward, firing several orbs of raw Frenzy that I slashed my way through, causing large vapour spheres of the virus to blot out what little sunlight was breaking through the darkened skies. Wisps of Frenzy were coating my fur and armour as I struck back relentlessly, weaving between his sharper strikes mid-air while prodding away at the Dragon's scales. One backswing with my shield made him cry in pain, falling from the sky into the basin below. This was my chance! I aimed for the softer underbelly now exposed, if I could clip its wing that'll make this fight much easier. With a wide loop I dove into a swan dive, sword poised downward as dark purple energy swept over its edge, but then I realized that my body no longer felt compressed and tingly from the Frenzy Virus. "Did it dissipate? How?" My internal question seemed to reach Magala as I felt overwhelming anger shoot through my aura. I gasped but with how quickly I was diving I couldn't adjust my posture in time. Magala roared, and all I could see was both wing-arms closing in either side of me, was he going to try and crush me? I couldn't move away, and at this velocity that sharp loss of momentum could be too jarring to recover from. Now I started to panic, I can't evade this... ... ... ... "Hyrah!!!" Something much more jarring struck my side, and both of Magala's limbs simply clapped the air as I and someone else tumbled away from the Elder Dragon, followed by two large explosions that knocked the monster backward. In my haste, I ignored the throbbing in my head to peer to my side to find my saviour. I almost burst out laughing if shock wasn't overwhelming me. A iron-grip held my shoulder from moving as two unblinking white eyes burrowed into mine. "You're not covered in that virus anymore, so don't go falling for its trickery, you want to die like a damn fool!?" "Garu...? How...?" I think my brain's gone and left the station without me this time. "Hah, I was coming back from my quest when the sky turned all dark suddenly, and then that roar, hehehe," He shivered with delight. "It sounded powerful, and whadda know, I was right!" He pointed one of his thunder cleavers at Magala recovering from the blast that came from nowhere. Maybe now we did have a certain shot to win... "Thanks, Garu, I owe you," And I meant that as he helped me up with a prideful sparkle around his head. Collecting my weapons I glared back at Magala now reeling his head back to attack. "Let's combine my unique moves with your wind attacks, and send him flying!" He nodded with a grunt as three orbs of Frenzy raced toward us, followed by Magala flying up only to lunge down in an attempt to crush us. The two of us dived back from the three blasts, using the trees to vault over Magala as he tore down the treeline with one claw swipe. Landing behind it, we readied our bodies, then with a nod, we charged forward as Magala dove off one leg, slamming the ground with his right wing-arm, splitting the ground and tossing boulders in our direction. I took the lead, flying with my wings tucked tightly. "Night Slash - Pentagram!" I struck the rocks and debris with sharp, wide arcs of violet light, pulverizing the stone as the dust was brushed aside by Magala's tail sweeping the ground under me. Garu hopped onto the tail, running up Magala's back while slashing madly from side to side. A frigid wind curled around his forearms again, bending to his blade's sparking edges. "First Form - Air Cutter!" With a cross-slash to the nape, the air force slammed Magala's chin off the ground where I spun around and struck his left cheekbone with Metal Claw etched over my hooves. The Elder Dragon stumbled and wrapped around into a winding slash of the ground, overturning dirt and rock in our general direction before Frenzy vapour built between his jaws. "Tch, Third Form-" Garu stepped ahead of me, then, with both swords risen over his head, I heard the wind pinch and whistle. "-Roar!!" Bringing both down onto the ground, I had to brace with my shield as a great blast of wind dispelled the debris. Sweeping low, I grabbed his tail and threw him over Magala's Frenzy blast, tossing him down at the monster as I too followed from above. "With one blow, all the strength I have left!" I sucked in a long breath, then, exhaling my own sinister breath, I wrapped my sword in Dark Pulse, seeing the blade vibrate from the strange fumes, then, that faint dark aura expanded and burst into a purple blaze, a strange reaction I had never seen before. But I held my sword tightly, eyes locked to the monster that was preparing to blast us away with a massive circulation of Frenzy around his body. "Night-!/Second Form-!" Garu jumped forward, twisting his scaly form sharply as the darkness reflected off his golden helmet. With a striking combination between us, my blade swung with so much tension that I felt my bones vibrate in agony from the blow while a massive whirlwind of ice-cold wind shot through me, and I swore I saw blades of ice crystalize in the air as they dug into Magala's roaring head. "-Slash!!/Saw!!" There was a crackling shockwave of lightning upon contact, and suddenly, Magala's sinister aura completely died out into shock as its whole body was jerked sideways, crashing into the ground behind us as something that glowed faintly punctured the ground at my hooves. I didn't spare it a glance as we spun around to face the would-be Elder Dragon only to pause as I gasped slightly. The monster ceased its glow, that intense state of enrage fading away as the sky slowly returned to its original pigment, but most strikingly of all, only one horn covered his eyes, the right-hand side that is, a clean cut across where the left horn used to be. With a roar that forced us to cover our ears, I watched bitterly as Magala spread his wings and quickly took off with a single breath, leaving us with only a broken horn and several discarded scales as proof he was ever here. And the possible trauma but that's a personal thing. "I think we scared him..." I muttered, falling onto my haunches as the last of my strength disappeared. Garu just fell onto his back, kicking his legs up in dramatic fashion. "Not so tough, I bet he'll think twice about coming to fight us again!" I had to agree, but, we may have dealt a good blow to Gore Magala today, but there was always next time. "He came straight for me when there are other hunters in the Forgotten Oak too..." That made a pit in my stomach widen. Magala would be back, and next time, I'll be sure to finish what I started. "Good work, Garu." "Hehehe, my pleasure!" He bumped my curled wing, and the two of us just sat back down to gather our lost strength. <><><>Quest Complete!<><><> When we returned to Kalao, when it came time to report that my test was complete but that I also had a second run-in with the infamous Gore Magala, I had been dragged away from Garu and Argo to speak with Godmother Ren and my Dad. I couldn't really make out how my Dad felt, he just stared blankly like he was looking for something while Ren practically smothered me in her arms. "Are you sure you're okay?" She knew the dangers, of course, but that didn't stop her for worrying about family, it was nice. She let me go and then scoffed. "Right, sorry, dumb question." "It's alright, I can take a punch... from a fleshy freight train," I sighed anxiously, then blinked up at my Dad. "Dad?" "Huh?" He seemed to snap out of his trance then transmitted his thoughts between us. "Sorry, just idle thoughts," He replied then pressed his paws to my chest, then a baby blue effect like water droplets trickled across my fur, and gradually, the aches and pains a Mega Potion can't soothe became much more manageable that I sighed at the refreshing sensation. "I'd say your Mother would have your head for this but considering Magala didn't give you much leeway I think it'll slide... for now," "Gee, way to make a girl feel safe at home," I deadpanned as he chuckled, then wrapped an arm around me as I leaned against his side. We were out of sight of the Hunters so I got the privilege to be treated like his daughter and not some other Hunter. "Honestly? Garu saved my ass, and we only managed to break a horn to give that Frenzy-spitting nutcase the message I wasn't interested," Ren chuckled at that, "Always a way with words," "Runs in the family," I winked then paused to look at my hooves. "Dad, did you ever fight Gore Magala? Like, in those vi-de-o games you liked?" Big shock to the legacy of the Guild of Equestria, my Dad is not actually a Hunter, I know, heart attack of the century. He is now, and that won't change, but when he was Human his life was about as average as you can get, the monster that have changed the face of our world are in his world a game people play on these technological marvels called 'console devices', that's how my Dad knows what he knows. That still didn't change anything about him to me. Sure, he may not have been the real deal like Ren was but he used that knowledge and his Lucario body to not only fight the very monsters he had only seen behind a game, but saved Equestria alongside Mom and their friends. He was my hero for a reason, they both were because... it proved anyone could become someone even in the most disadvantageous situations. "Nope. I've seen and watched how they fight but not once have I confronted one before coming here," He admitted. "Fortunately, it appears the Frenzy Virus doesn't affect you, but I'm not willing to risk putting other races in the firing line just to test a theory, even if it's in the nature of every Hunter this side of the Realms," Dad shook his head, then ran a hand down his face. "God... sometimes I really do wonder what Trinity was thinking sending me here..." I felt a pang of guilt rise inside him so I scooted closer to hug him tightly. That atleast made him relax as a hand combed through my mane. "Well, may not be the situation we wanted, but you can't really say things haven't improved with you bein' here, Wolfie," Ren smirked, flicking his nose. "Afterall, you got yourself a pretty cool kid, what more could a guy want, right?" "Once more your valuable pep-talk keeps my awful pessimism at bay," He smiled then kissed the top of my head before standing up. "We'll worry about Magala next time around, for now, you and Argo should relax, especially now that I can do this," Ren then pouted, "Aw, but I wanted to announce it~!" She whined. "Hey, you got to handle the trials this year, it's MY turn to hand out rankings!" Dad jabbed a claw at her before Ren huffed and handed something to him as I giggled at their antics. "Why do you even have... nevermind, I'm not pulling the pin on that grenade," This was it. Sure, it hasn't been long but still, it felt rewarding to finally be moving out of a limbo. I felt my whole body shiver with anticipation as I quickly held out my Guild Card as my Dad laughed at my eagerness, causing my face to redden slightly. Keep it cool, Akira. "With the success of your latest Urgent Assignment, I'm officially signing both yourself and Argo to be eligible for Two-Star quests, congratulations, Hunters," He recited while trying to hide his mirth as he handed my card back, and to my erupting positivity, I had two stars under my name. "You can geek out now," "Oh My God, Oh My God, Oh My God~!" I flew above their heads with a bump of my right hoof. "We did it, we did it, we - eh?" Blood crawled from my neck to the tips of my ears as I landed, coughing into my wing. "Th-thank y-you, Guild Master," Dad just had his eyes closed as he spoke to me alone in Poke-speak. "That's great, sweetie..." Then he put his hands together and bow his head. "Uh, you okay, Dad?" I blinked, looking to Ren who patted my head with a 'well done' under her breath, leaving to probably smother her son next with praise. "Oh, yep, definitely, just having a momentary realization of my abundance of appreciation for Bat Ponies as the greatest species in Equestria, that's all," With a heavy breath, he stood up straight and returned to... well, as 'normal' as my Dad can be. "This is the dumbest thing you've agreed to," Argo's voice in my ear. Wasn't. Helping. "I've... done... much worse," I groaned, feeling a bead of sweat roll down my cheek. "Yes, that much we agree on, but I feel this ranks within the top ten," He was seriously doing this now? "I... get it... trying... to win... here!" I heaved as my hoof buckled against the strong grip belonging to a grey-blue-scaled arm. Currently, in part with our celebration, myself, Garu, and Argo sat around the canteen as now we were all the same rank but soon, Garu would go for his own test to rank up and we'd be playing catch-up again. So, how are we testing our strength? Simple. Arm Wrestling. "I'm not... even tired...!" He clearly was but refused to budge himself. It was the might of an adolescent dragon and a bat pony with steel bones. Essentially, the world's longest stalemate. I felt my right hoof starting to push his down only to nearly trip when he exerted even greater force to push mine back into an equilibrium. I could feel the tension in the air, it was hot and potent like sunlight, and if not for the light meal I had prior I might've run out of juice by now. Garu wasn't easily bent, that much I've known from the short time we've known each other. If anyone could best me, it was him or maybe someone really smart like Myst. Neither of us showed any other sign of crumbling from the weight of our pride, so much so the barrel we used as an arm rest suddenly splintered in several directions, frightening some other customers while Argo barely blinked and held my Tigrex shield up to block the blast. Through the dust, I saw Garu's white eyes burrowing into mine as his fist remained clenched to my hoof even while on the ground. "I'm not done yet!!" We barked at each other. "Jinx! Double Jinx!" "Dear Twilight..." Argo ran a hoof down his muzzle at our awesome backbone. When I thought this battle for the ages would last all night, I felt a familiar presence approach us, standing next to Argo. "Um... sorry, am I interrupting something?" I peeked to my right slightly and suddenly a big smile crossed my muzzle as my grip on Garu suddenly went through the roof and he soon found himself tumbling several feet in the other direction after I slammed his arm into the ground to stand and dust myself off. "Ah, sorry-sorry! Ahem, did you need something, Myst?" I perked up as she gave me a sideways glance, peering to where Garu sat, his head spinning. "Is he okay?" She whispered to Argo but he too cocked his head for a moment, then returned to his journal. "He just met a power nopony can best," Why did that feel like a jab at me? Brushing it aside, I faced Myst directly. "You were saying?" I asked as she nodded a thanks. "Firstly, congratulations on ranking up," She offered, "One more rank and we'll be the same," "Yep, that's if scale-brain over here doesn't rub it in our faces first," I jabbed my wing back at Garu. "But thanks," "Hm," Now this was a face I haven't seen often on Myst, anxiousness. She ran a hoof from the base of her horn to her brown mane while avoiding eye-contact. "I know I shouldn't be asking you this, and you're fine to decline! But, I could use your... help with something, if that's alright?" She asked hopefully. I glanced at Argo who shrugged, not taking his eyes off his notes, then to Garu who hadn't even realized Myst was here, so I guess he's neutral, great, my choice then. "What's the request? Actually, why are you asking us? I mean, aren't there like tons of hunters our age who'd help you?" Myst looked to bite the inside of her cheek. "Yes, that is true... it's why I'm asking you first," That made me pause with genuine surprise. Myst, the top of our classes, aside from Silver and his lackeys, was asking a newly ranked Two-Star, the very girl that got her into trouble more times than I'd admit. "...I know we're only just on better terms recently, so I feel awful having to ask you to help me of all ponies, but-" "Sure," I replied without even a second to consider it. "I'm sorry, what?" Myst did a double take while I chuckled, rubbing my nape with my right wing. "When you said you wanted our help I kinda already thought to say 'yes', I just wanted to hear you out first," I gave her an honest smile. Sure, we weren't best friends, not yet anyway, but Myst wasn't a bad pony, she just mingled with them and unfortunately had the bad timing to run into my antics. "One thing to know about Akira," Argo finally spoke, not looking away but his book couldn't hide the tiny smile on his muzzle. "She will help anypony that asks," "I..." She took a second to compose herself and then bowed her head. "Thank you so much, Akira." That felt nice hearing her say my name instead of an insult or scornful look in silence. "What are friends for, am I right?" I joked, waving toward an empty table. "We can talk over there, I just need to make sure Garu's pride isn't too shattered. "Hah, you wish!" He yelled, tossing a small plank of wood from the destroyed barrel at me. "You got lucky with whatever strange power you have but I will win twice as many rounds next time!" "Did you seriously hit your head that badly?" I frowned then shook my head. "Why in the Realms did I think fighting you would shrink your pride with all that ego to cushion the blow?" If we survived the night, maybe Myst will get our help after all. To Be Continued...