Monster Hunter: Puissant.
Svrok waited for dusk to fall. He would move quickly past the night guards and make his way to the Elder Alchemist’s work station. He had an idea of what he needed to do. He just needed to figure out what steps to take to carry out the procedure. If things went right, then he would be able to enjoy the rest of his time just wandering about.
The Elder Alchemist had left her laboratory door closed. She forgot to lock it. Svrok jumped in the air and clicked his heels. This was definitely his lucky day.
A pair of guards were approaching Svrok’s location. He hurried inside and gently shut the door behind him. The guards had not spotted him. They walked past the lab and continued their guarding duty elsewhere.
Svrok- Now what is my next move? Oh, yea. (slaps his forehead) I need to work on the special potion.
He gathered a range of assorted ingredients: a box of gem stones that all had varying properties (some of these stones helped give one more power), a burner, freshly ground black and red pepper, & the other key component was a fragment of a serpent’s fangs.
Svrok mixed all the elements together in a steady motion. The reaction glowed a bright orange. When it was stirred once more, it swirled and changed to another colour- Blue. He poured the potion into a silver tube. Svrok closed the tube right and shook it.
“Hmm,” Svrok pondered to himself.
“This might give me the upper hand that I need.”
Svrok grinned. To make things even better, tonight was the night of the Blood moon. This truly was his lucky day,...or night.
He gulped the chemical that he made. Svrok felt a rush of strength course through his entire body. He felt rejuvenated.
Now he had to act fast. The Blood moon did not last for the whole night. It would only be there for several hours time.
Svrok checked to see if the cost was clear. There were no guards in sight. Excellent.
He ran towards the open road. And there he transformed into a werewolf. His hands grew much longer and stretched like a beast. His mouth became a long snout. His teeth grew much longer, they looked similar to that of a shark’s. Svrok howled and barked. He felt like the world was all his to control.
A little further away in the distance, Caeth heard a chorus of howls echoing loudly through the forest. Voru was right beside him. They each wondered what was going on. And who had started the cry.
Svrok charged through the road like a crazy dog. He soon was by the edge of the forest. There was not time to waste. Svrok ran past the trees. The tree branches brushed the side of his body, Svrok felt so alive. The wind blew with a greater force around him, while he ran. Svrok loved every second of it. All his senses heightened to a much greater level.
Caeth snarled. His nose picked Svrok’s scent. He transformed. Caeth had instructed Voru to stay with Vanessa. He was going to stop Svrok before he got any closer to Vanessa & Voru.
Svrok came to a halt. He changed back to his human form. There before his eyes he spotted Caeth running towards him. Caeth leaped and landed right in front of Svrok. He knew that Caeth would try to stop him. Svrok cackled. Caeth turned back into his human form.
Svrok: Caeth. (smiles) Where’s the rest of the pack? Are you going to face me all by yourself?
Caeth: (snarls) Just best it, Svrok.
Svrok: Oh. Come on. We don’t have to do this you know. Listen, just let Vanessa go.
Caeth: Huh. (shakes his head) Not a chance Svrok.
Svrok: (sighs) Caeth, after all that we’ve been through together. Unbelievable.
Caeth: You’re going down Svrok.
Svrok: (laughs) You are not as strong as I am Caeth. I’ll make you a deal. Let’s go back to the way things used to be. And I’ll forget about everything that you did to me.
Caeth: I didn’t do anything to you. Are you out of your mind? That’s it. I’m done talking.
Svrok growled. The two both switched back into their beastly forms. Caeth barked and advanced towards Svrok, aiming for his neck. Svrok swerved the attack & ducked. This surprised Caeth. Svrok was moving at a faster pace than usual. Caeth blinked and before he knew it, Svrok had pinned him down. They went rolling and rotating on the ground. Caeth tried to loosen Svrok’s hold of him. All his attempts failed.
As the two were caught in a close battle. Vanessa was on her way to their fight. She couldn’t sit around and wait for Caeth to do all the work. Voru did his best. He told her to stay. Vanessa agreed, but the moment Voru wasn’t looking she left.
Caeth felt as though Svrok was going to win this match. Whenever he tried to attack Svrok, the attack was blocked. It was like he was fighting a different person. Svrok has never been able to go this long in a fight during all the training they had together.
Svrok felt great. He smiled. Maybe he was going to win this round. But then he felt a sudden change in his body. The effects of the potion were wearing off. Oh no. This was not good. To make matters even worse, he caught a glance of Vanessa not too far away from their current position.
Caeth began to lose hope. Then he picked up a new scent. It was Vanessa. She was ready to be there for Caeth. Svrok now had one more person that he had to face.
Svrok started to lose control of the battle. Caeth took advantage of the opportunity and pushed Svrok towards a thorny bush. Svrok twisted and in a few seconds jumped over the bush. Caeth growled.
Vanessa had her bow in her hand. She was ready to blast some arrows at Svrok. Meanwhile, Svrok’s strength was depleting.
Svrok leaped over the bush and charged towards Caeth. Vanessa placed her bow in position. She had her eye on her target. Svrok leaped and was ready to break Caeth’s neck. But Svrok forgot about the other person in the battle, Vanessa. Her arrow shot through the air with such an enormous force that when it hit the target, Svrok, it sunk deep into his chest. Svrok thought that it was his end. Thanks to his powerful potion, the arrow did not cause too much damage. And it had not pierced his heart. Caeth looked in shock when Svrok fell to the ground, and he was now in human form. Caeth changed back to his human form.
Vanessa: Is he...dead?
Caeth checked Svrok’s pulse. He looked at Vanessa..then almost gave a nod. But there was a steady pulse. Svrok wasn’t dead. He was still alive.
Vanessa: I should have aimed closer to his heart.
Caeth: (gassps) Vanessa!
Vanessa: What? I mean, he tried to kill you.
Caeth: I know. But he raised me up Vanessa. I don’t think I want him dead, and by my own hands. No.
Vanessa: So,...what now?
Caeth carried Svrok on his back. Vanessa stomped her foot on the ground.
Caeth: Er-..let’s go Vanessa. I’ll carry Svrok.
Vanessa: Ugh. He better not pull any more stunts like this again. Maybe we should put him on a leash.
Caeth: (laughs) You two have to learn to get along. Okay.
Vanessa: Yeah. I don’t think that’s likely ever going to happen Caeth.
The trio were soon back at the cabin. Voru was glad to see them all well.
Caeth: Svrok surely has become stronger.
Vanessa: Are you sure it wasn’t the effect of the Blood Moon?
Caeth: Please. That’s all a myth. I think.
Vanessa: Mhmm. If you say so. But, there is something off about his power.
Voru looked at Svrok and then back at Caeth.
Vanessa: Voru? Did you pick anything off too?
Voru: I don’t know. I only noticed now that Svrok’s mouth has some traces of a blue substance.
Caeth stares closer at Svrok.
Caeth: You’re right kid.
Vanessa: Could that be the reason why he was much stronger?
Caeth: Yeah. It could be...We will have to wait for Svrok to wake up. Vanessa, what exactly did you do to him?
Vanessa: (grins) I used my great knock-out arrows.
Caeth: (sighs) Well,...he’s going to be out all night.
Vanessa: Hey. I saved you. Didn’t I?
Caeth: You did. And I’m grateful for that. (smiles)
Vanessa and Caeth stare into each other’s eyes.
Voru: Um. Okay. I’m heading to bed. See you all later. (heads off to bed)
Vanessa: (smiles) Rest well Voru.