Iceborne Wyvern

Chapters

Chp. 1 - The Place Where Winter Sleeps
Chp. 2 - The Iceborne Wyvern
Chp. 3 - Proof of a Hero
Chp. 4 - Clashing Swords Upon The Rime

Chp. 1 - The Place Where Winter Sleeps

Snow crunched underfoot, but I barely felt the cold, perks of this lovely Lucario body, so no complaints here. Scanning our surroundings after walking off the station platform, the sky was completely enveloped in dark clouds, snowfall was gentle at least, but there was an unmistakable aura of fear and despair in the air, saturating the land and the village nearby at the foot of a snowy mountain.

Thick walls of sturdy logs and large gates, reinforced by steel braces could be seen at the end of the road, smoke trailing up from many rooftops covered in a blanket of white. "Guess this is the place." I surmised.

"Be pretty embarrassing if it wasn't." Yui smiled jokingly beside me.

At my side was a grey-coloured bat pony with beautiful, smooth-lilac hair, messy with bangs draped over the left eye, leaving a single, light purple eye visible to the world. Most notable of all was the single, leathery wing folded on her right side. Glistening regardless was armour fashioned from two types of Kirin. A mesh of the standard Kirin's white and blue scales with a transition of dark purple and black fur for a jacket collar. Straps for the flank plates and bracers sat on the table behind the stands. The most notable piece was the helmet fixed with a sub-zero horn.

Lastly, a single, silver ring with an amethyst strip through the middle hung from a necklace around her neck, sparkling in the light.

Just several hours ago, everything was about as normal as things can be. Well, for a human-turned-Lucario that is...

"I believe that settled all necessities," Never before have I been so glad to hear those words. These meetings were such a drag, even if for my own benefit. And I could tell the ruling monarch shared the sentiment. Celestia gave me a warm smile, like a mother would, sliding the documentation over to me. "I'm proud to declare that your requests, not only for funding, but construction, as well as authenticating your title have all been approved."

"Finally..." I sighed, quickly shaking my head, sensory beads rising in panic. "Ah, with no disrespect-"

Celestia giggled, raising a hoof. "Now-now, no need for formalities between us, you've done more for this kingdom than I can ever begin to repay. So let me use a little of my power to help you for a change, Zen."

She really is too nice sometimes, but, who'd complain in my shoes? Taking the quill, I effortlessly signed the documents, and what felt like a heavy burden lightened a little more. Funny, how such a simple task was so stressful. But it was done, Equestria's very own Hunter's Guild was now officially signed and recognized by the monarch herself.

"You did it!" Of course, I was immediately assaulted with two forehooves around my neck, pulling me into a bear hug that was hard not to laugh and embrace equally. Yui pulled back, looking as elated as I was. "See, all that pessimism for nothing."

"Old habits, love, what can I say?" I held my hands up in defeat, turning to Celestia who was enjoying the show. "I still have a lot to do, but with this... it means a lot, thank you so much, Celestia."

"To aid a friend who wishes to aid the world? I'd be more than happy to help." She bowed her head elegantly, that same, radiant soul hiding nothing from me, I'm convinced she's capable of reading auras too.

*Bam!*

Our attention was quickly torn away when one of the doors to the throne room were pushed open sharply, it was one of the Royal Guards, but his armour was lighter than the others, a scout? "Your Highness! M-my apologizes, b-b-but I have an urgent report, I-"

She brushed a wing gently as if to dispel the stallion's fright. "There is no need for apologizes, if its urgent, then formalities can wait. What troubles you?"

"Th-thank you, ma'am," Bowing his head quickly, he pulled with his magic a scroll, sending it our way as I caught it for him, unfurling it. "Ah, i-its you, Master Zen! This is perfect, maybe y-you could help!"

"A monster?" Yui whispered beside me, worry crossing her features.

"Likely..." I answered back, reading its contents as my fur stood on end, and even as I read silently, biting my lip, Celestia's scout spoke, nailing that confirmation home.

"It's one of the border towns nearest the Frozen North, it-it's been hit with severe blizzards, like n-none we've ever seen before!" The scout exclaimed, taking a moment to catch his breath, he must've ran far after receiving this letter.

Report;
-Urgent Aid Requested
-Storm's ferocity increasing
-Weather Ponies unable to effect cloud layer- too thick, chaotic
-Reports of disturbances in wildlife
Notice: Immediately report to Princess Celestia

"A blizzard's ravaging a town to the north, no one there can dispel it, whatever it is, the weather's growing worse by the day," I expressed through telepathy to those present to spare time. It was worrisome, and I didn't need to look down at Yui to know the kind of face she was making, I wore the same. "Well then, Celestia, I think I have my first role as Guildmaster."

Despite the grim news, she did crack a small, hopeful smile. "I suppose you do; thank you for your report, I will be sending Zen and Yui to personally investigate the matter."

The scout's eyes lit up, almost teary. "Th-thank you, Princess, and you two also! Please... help them." From the pain digging into his aura, these people must be family, his home maybe. Then his hysterics made sense, all the more reason for us to go.

"Don't worry," Approaching the young stallion, Yui placed a wing on their shoulder, offering a confident but kind smile. "Your home will be safe, we give you our word, for now, you've done a good job to bring this to us, so rest."

Tears caught in his eyes, forcing him to hide them behind his leg, drying them. "..." But he nodded, grateful.

"-Zen?" Snapping back to reality, I glanced down at Yui lightly tapping my leg, giving me a small, curious smile. "Lost in thought again?"

"A little... just..." Looking toward the gate, being here, surrounded by snowfall, brought back memories from a long time ago. "...feels nostalgic."

"You've been to a town like this before?" She questioned as we approached the gate, but I shook my head.

"Not necessarily, the atmosphere reminds me heavily of a place called Seliana, is all." At the foot of the gate, we heard someone on the other side, followed by the groans of heavy logs shifted against the ground. Soon enough, the gate split in two, parting to allow us entry. "Huh, perks of arrival, automatic doors."

I heard her snort. "If you say so."

"It totally exists, this has magic, who doesn't want automatic doors?" I argued. I mean, villages like this would definitely benefit if given the chance, better than manually operated ones.

"Ah, you must be those Canterlot sent, my greatest thanks for the aid," Bowing their head the moment they saw us, we came to greet a young earth pony. The stallion had white fur and an ice-blue mane that was cut short, say for the unruly tail, and matching, deep-blue eyes.

He came dressed in attire befitting those of a colder climate, thick wool and cotton, giving the coat and boots worn a gradient of whites with hints of blue for accents. Topped with a cap that reminded me of trooper hat. From the looks of things, those I could see within the village wore similar attire for the weather, likely now more than ever given the storm above.

"Don't thank us yet, we still have plenty to do," Yui brushed her wing to the side. "Please, tell us everything that's happened since the storm appeared."

"Ah, of course, come with me, I'll show you... something important that I feel will point you in the right direction," Immediately, his expression turned a little grim, his emotions bore sorrow and fright, he was mourning. I kept it to myself, opting to let Yui do the talking whilst I scoped out the emotions in the air. Plus, less questions to answer about my appearance and abilities; hey, you get asked the same things nearly a hundred times, and tell me it doesn't start to tire you?

"Before I forget, I'm the chief of Snowfall, Ice Skate, or just Skate." He greeted, offering a hoof to Yui who accepted it with a modest smile, I knew that look, she's in business mode.

"Yui Amadeus, pleasure," She then gestured to me as I gave a polite bow of my head. "And this is Zen, my husband." It was hard not to grin whenever she announced it like that, I could tell she was awfully proud to admit as much herself whenever she could.

Skate gave us both an intrigued expression whilst escorting us, his eyes larger with wonder. "Yes, I recall your name, Zen, another from Canterlot spoke of you, perhaps you'll meet them in the field, they are the ones that sent the request for us."

That prompted Yui and eye to clock eyes, someone we knew was already here? Celestia and that scout never mentioned who, nor was the report signed, in fact, it looked to have been written down in a hurry. That all but confirmed the situation was far more dire than the letter let on, we had work to do, and fast.

Pine trees dominated empty spaces between houses or off the roads, dusted in layers of snow. The streets were wide enough for a cart to travel by, paved with a mix of stones and timber, though unicorns were covering them with salt to lessen the ice.

The buildings themselves reminded me of a rustic, medieval village from a fantasy novel, built to withstand the winter. Their wooden beams dark against whitewashed plaster walls. Roofs sag under the weight of heavy snow, with thick icicles hanging from overhanging eaves. Small chimneys puff steady streams of smoke. Some buildings, particularly larger buildings, had steeply pitched roofs.

Chief Skate recounted what happened. "It all started nearly a week ago..." Peering into his soul, I could feel those memories take on faint forms within the flames.

"At the time, everypony assumed it was a mere freak event, as weather in Equestria has changed in the last two years, so our people thought nothing of it, but my mentor, the former chief... he wasn't as convinced..."

The flames formed into shapes of ponies going about their lives, even as snow drifted down almost endlessly from above, just as it was in the present day, calm, quiet. But a figure, the chief, stood out from the rest, watching the skies.

"But soon, the storm grew ferocious, our pegasai attempted to dispel the weather, but the clouds were colder, their winds cut like blades, they said. So the chief and those most skilled with braving the mountains, travelled up to discover the cause of this blizzard... but they... then many heard the yells of combat..."

Embers flickers and scattered into visages of panicked ponies, the snow was harsher, battering their homes, a darkness in Skate's soul beginning to overtake the brighter shades.

"I did not see the conflict, only its aftermath... none survived the journey up the mountain pass, those that made it back, succumbed to hypothermia, my mentor among their numbers... b-but, with the last of his strength, he told me... 'winter's wrath has become a monster'..."

The only image that I could perceive in his aura, was that of a great shadow with eyes, formless, a blur of darkness. Pulling back from his soul, Yui looked to Chief Skate with a solemn expression, bringing her wing to rest on his back, seeing the young man trying to remain strong, drying his eyes in protest.

"I'm so sorry we couldn't be here sooner," She answered quietly, and I felt just as bad for not knowing too, if we had been here when this all started... ah, then again, how could anyone know what this storm meant?

He gave a shaky laugh to dispense with his sorrow. "Heh, thing is, he never looked afraid at the end, he only regretted not throwing the lot back down the mountain sooner; he was quite blunt, even in the face of death." Skate seemed to look fondly on the memory.

"Your chief fought to the end, and you sought aid, so we won't let his hopes be in vain, I promise." Transmitting my words, I saw Skate turned sharply in surprise at me, but it soon melted down into a kindness.

"I thank you, Zen," He cleared his throat, marching with more gusto up the path, leading us toward a valley pass at the back of Snowfall. "Come on, we're not far now; this passage is what connects Snowfall to its supply cache, the mountain forms a secure overhang that's shielded our town's resources from avalanches and blizzards for years."

"Definitely Seliana." I muttered, passing under sturdy support beams and roofs, torches kept some of the cold at bay whilst providing light in the darker corners of the pass.

"Is that why you use telepathy? All I heard you say is 'Lucario'." Skate questioned, my expression falling a little whilst my lovely partner giggled, patting my hip.

"I'm the only one who can understand it, unfortunately." Though she certainly liked being the only one to be unburdened by the limitation. Focusing again, she eyed the open space ahead, now stepping onto a wooden floor. "So, what makes the supply cache so important?"

"You'll see, it's why I believe my mentor when he gave me his warning," Skate's face grew worrisome as we stepped out onto the highest level of the cache.

It had a U-shaped level hugging the mountain, its natural walls formed on either side into the shape of a horseshoe, the earthly ceiling curling overhead, keeping snow away from the buildings. The platform lowered down in sloped gangplanks on both sides, reaching other levels and doorways that fed into the mountain, containing all the village's supplies.

Most impressive were two large towers with massive, waterwheel-like contraptions, and two steel strips across the snow-covered ground. Was it a massive gate beneath the snow? Then again, once I studied what laid beyond the gate, I soon realized why they'd need it, my heart almost going cold as I and Yui gasped.

Large chunks of ice covered the ground, as if flicked up from the ground up, frozen in an instant, some... were black. "What happened here...?" I projected, walking down the right-hand gangplank to reach one of the large clusters of rime, just being near it felt chilling to the bone, my paw coming to brush against its surface... it felt empty, pressing against my skin.

"I've never seen black ice form like this..." Yui whispered, looking to Skate who shared a similar, unsettled look on his muzzle. "Skate, what exactly happened here?"

Sadly, he shook his head. "All we heard was the shouting, then... this awful wave of cold, the kind that cuts through your fur and straight into your bones, if not for the unicorns having thermal magic in place to aid in combatting the blizzard, it likely would've felt as though we had been frozen in place."

"Zen?" I heard her call to me, my claws scraping down the ice that chilled me to my bones. I've never seen ice like this, not even from a monster I knew of... if it was a monster that did this, what could produce black ice in such large amounts? Folding my arms, I pinched my chin, trying to wrack my brain for an answer that never came.

"Sorry, I don't know of a monster that does this... and that worries me more." If it was a new, unknown monster, this village might not have seen the last of it. "It purposefully came here and ignored the village..."

It didn't take Yui long to catch on, her ears shot up with shock. "It was targeting the cache!"

"Could a monster be that intelligent?" Skate questioned, more so out of denial of an awful truth. I don't blame him.

"Not most monsters, but some, definitely," It was unsettling to think about, it gave me all the worst feelings, but, I came here to help them, and I'd be damned if I fail this first task as Guildmaster. Wouldn't be much of a good example, would it? "We'll continue to investigate, right now, things are calm, so let's use this time wisely."

Now, my gaze fell upon the mountain pass, leading toward where the storm circulated, I can see why the chief before headed there first, eye the storm was just begging to be investigated.

"You go on ahead, Zen," Turning around, I was met with that bright purple eye and gentle smile under a false mane of white and dark blue hair, the wind tugging at the decorative accents of Yui's Kirin armour. She brushed her wing to one side, giving me a fake look of annoyance. "I don't want to hear any excuses, you know fine rightly I'm not combat-orientated like you. So I'll stay here and help the village prepare for whatever's up there, on the off-chance is comes back for round two."

"Are you sure? You've been acting weird for a while now, well, weirder," That earned a light jab to the gut.

"Jerk, I have my reasons, but you know yourself, if we want to help these people, we're better off splitting up for the time being, just..." She softened her face, her hoof coming to tap against my abdomen. "Be careful, dork."

"Now that just felt unwarranted," But before she could hit me again, I caught her hoof tightly, both paws clasped around it with a fanged grin. "You have my word, we'll divide and conquer, like always."

"Ditto." She winked, kissing the top of my right paw before I let go, eyeing Skate who stood up straighter.

"Yui will do everything in her power to help your people, have faith in her, and you'll see your way out of this storm in no time." She certainly did so for me plenty of times.

"Ye-yes, I trust you both," He placed a hoof to his heart. "And you have my word, no harm will come to her either, though, I doubt she needs such protection, I imagine."

"Stubborn women aren't ones to underestimate," I smirked, the two of us chuckling whilst Yui raised a sharp brow.

"I'll take the compliment, even if it felt like an insult," She huffed, shoving me forward. "Alright, you cute, weird-weird Pokemon, get moving!"

"Yes ma'am." Saluting her, I turned and dug my feet into the snow, feeling heat rush through my muscles in an instant. "Quick Attack!"

With a burst of snow and ice behind me, I leapt across the cache's open flatland, landing on the mountain pass, immedately picking up speed to charge headfirst toward the storm raging above. Even from here, I could feel it in the wind brushing against my coat. It was winding up...

<>To Be Continued...<>

Author's Note

Surprise-surprise, while I'm only back for something important to do with W from Renegade, I got a little bit of inspiration for a final addition to the Indomitable universe. Another Christmas gift for all monster hunters.

Zen's on the cusp of starting up a Hunter's Guild, but it seems nature itself wants to postpone such an occasion, but what will he and Yui find? I hope you enjoyed, I appreciate the support as always; see ya in the next chapter, Hunters!

Chp. 2 - The Iceborne Wyvern

Zen embarks up the mountain alone to uncover the source of the endless blizzard, with some unexpected surprises...

Chp. 2 - The Iceborne Wyvern

The wind howled in my ears with every stride I took, clawing at my fur as my feet's claws acted as anchors to sheets of ice, scaling up the mountain, and thankfully, into its woodlands to shield me from the harsher winds, snow crunching underfoot, even if my steps were light to cover more ground.

I tugged the red scarf closer to my muzzle, even with my literal arsenal of abilities, the cold was still nippy, I tried to use Sunny Day, but the clouds are too thick, this hurricane wasn't something I could dispel, something kept it tethered to the mountain. Looking forward, the skies above were darker, a heavy promise of more snow, and the distant peaks were half-shrouded in a veil of mist.

Slowing to a stroll, my eyes caught something nearby, rather, directly in front of me. A tree had been felled, something had cut through, leaving behind only shards of dark blue rime in its wake. Studying my surroundings, parts of the treetops had been broken, as if something had flown down and smashed through by accident. Something big.

Eyeing the ground, deep, clawed footprints marked the snow, a quadruped, so it was a monster after all, a wielder of black ice. Again, I knew no monsters that controlled black ice, or was that just an effect due to Equestria's environment? Some monsters I did know of had subtle changes, not enough to class them as subspecies or variants, but ways their bodies adapted to this new world, like me.

"I'm really overthinking this..." Yui would tell me as much, so I shook my head and kept walking-

Something was behind me, so in an instant, I drew from my aura a long staff in the shape of a thin bone, Bone Rush, brandishing it against the clean, silver edge of long blade as it rang against the staff, creating sparks in their tension. Wait, a longsword? My expression relaxed, seeing the equally amused face greet me.

"Knew you'd get my little memo, Wolfy." The actual, human woman, winked at me.

A woman adorned by armour made from a Nargacuga; her stomach was lined with only a fish-net weave. Her legs were the most equipped with wide greaves with a red hem, the inner thighs exposed, revealing only a pair of black short-shorts. Her breastplate only protected her breasts leaving her sides and armpits exposed. Her gauntlets did the same down to the forearms where bracers were wrapped around with a pink fabric like her waist's bow. Last, her snow-white hair with two ponytails was covered by the raven fur of the helmet, but her soft expression was revealed alongside a pair of piercing crimson eyes.

"Wait, you sent the report, Ren?" I blinked, lowering my weapon as she mirrored.

"One and only, thought the upcoming Guildmaster would want to show the world a little of what he's made of," The girl gave a cheeky grin and flick of her hand in greeting. Then she jabbed a thumb behind her. "Oh, also brought Topaz along too!"

"You did what now?" I blurted out through telepathy, looking a little astonished at the mare marching forward with a displeased expression.

The mare in question was Topaz, a unicorn with a peachy coat and honeycomb mane and tail sticking out at odd angles, and a pair of smooth, orange eyes. She was dressed in reinforced, golden armour for a Royal Guard, namely due to mine and Ren's work modifying the armour with Gold Rathian parts, adding scaled layering to the existing plate metal. Most notable was the silver helmet attached to a belt on her hip, made from pieces of Valstrax itself.

Giving the clearly bemused Captain a humorous smile, I decided to pull the pin. "So... how did she get you out here?"

A grumble left her lips, Ren just stifled a laugh behind her hand, walking past her. "Oh yeah, tell 'em how you came to accompany me, hm~?"

Her cheeks turned a faint pinker, embarrassment and annoyance going hand-in-hand for the mare. "...I lost a stupid bet..."

"What bet- actually, y'know, I don't wanna know," I pointed toward Ren. "Last I said that, you went ahead and told, so this time, I'm tellin' you, I don't wanna know."

"Pfft, not that bad..." Ren rolled her eyes, but hid a mischievous streak in her aura and sharp smile. "...well..."

Topaz groaned louder, running a hoof down her face. "Can we just focus on the blizzard currently freezing me to my armour? Zen, what have you found so far?"

"Tracks of a monster that controls ice, but... I've never seen one that's done what it did in Snowfall, Yui's back there, helping them to prepare for any other attacks." I abridged for the pair whilst we walked, following the trait through the woodlands. "Anything on your end?"

"Not much more than you guys," Ren shrugged, hand catching a few snowflakes. "I've lived near mountains back in the Old World, but I've never seen a monster that could control the weather like this, or even weaponize snow and ice this way." She didn't say it, and I didn't want to. Only one monster category could dictate dramatic changes in an ecosystem like this...

"Could really use that monster girl about now," Topaz pointed out, referring to Mira.

I gave a slight smile, shaking my head. "Mira's a Mizutsune, they don't like frigid environments and mountains."

"Damn, imagine having a monster to ride into battle, that'd be a sight to turn a few heads back home," Ren chuckled, only for her amusement to die in her throat, holding up her fist to have us pause. She jogged ahead where the path split either way, narrowing those blood-red eyes. "Tracks."

Approaching her sides, we knelt down as she picked up... a solid chunk of frozen magma? It was hardened by ice, a few scales attached to it, forming a volcanic texture within the ice. Ren stared at it, unsure of what to make of it, even Topaz was at a loss for words.

"Ain't seen a formation like this, you?" Ren gestured with the chunk in her hand.

"Not to my knowledge, its definitely magma but... its been rapidly cooled in this state." Topaz murmured. "A sibling of mine is the rock expert, but I know that much."

"Right-right, Quartz, wasn't it?" Ren hazard a guess, earning a confirmation in the mare's nod.

"...its the Iceborne Wyvern..." Out of all monsters, I didn't expect to see one here, then again, I never anticipated seeing any monsters when I wound up in Equestria. My response came out like a cool breeze, a part of me was cautious, but the other couldn't help but feel a rush through my veins, an anticipation building in my chest.

"Now that's a name I ain't ever heard of, Wolfy." Ren admitted, tossing the chunk to me as I stared at its glistening texture, a perfect state of tempered magma cooled by only the sheer cold one monster could produce.

"It's a monster of the New World, a creature said to inhabit only the coldest edges of the world, making it a rarity to be seen... the Lord of Ice, Velkhana." Just saying name had the wind give out a timely howl between the trees. Raising my head off to the rightmost path, I could see them, creatures frozen solid on the spot, birds that had been frozen mid-flight without warning.

"Sounds like King Sombra's wet dream." Topaz snorted, looking at the corpses that had been obscured from our sight, the mare looking a little unsettled. "And, uh, we can beat it.. right?"

"I don't know, but, I've also seen how it fights, so don't worry," I gave them a confident grin, standing tall, flinging the moulted scale high to catch in my left hand. "I'll tell you everything I know, and we'll bring this so-called Lord down for good."

Relaying what I knew from memory wasn't difficult, some fights against monsters were engrained in my mind even two years later, Velkhana was a fearsome Elder Dragon, her ice was deadly and would cut us down if we falter at all. But she wasn't infallible, we could beat her before she ever set foot near Snowfall again.

Following the warnings left around the area, those frozen entirely by ice, we persevered to the mouth of a large cave overlooking a sharp slope down the mountain, the land below shrouded by the mists whipped up by the growing storm, rumbling could be heard, and the snowfall was starting to accumulate.

The entrance was covered in ice of all shades, ranging from white, to blue, all the way to black. "Almost be a pretty sight if not for the carver." Ren remarked dryly, drawing her longsword whilst I led the charge, using Aura to map out the route ahead, a feeling of isolation is all I received.

Despite the large opening, the path down into the mountain wasn't long, winding a little, the ice becoming more frequent with each turn, even my breath was visible in the air. At any moment, Velkhana might make her appearance, so far... nothing, an unsettling silence say for our feet clanking across the ice.

"Hey, got another of those drinks? Freezing my flank off here," Topaz asked, and was happily rewarded with a small jar from Ren, filled with a thick, light-red liquid. "Ah, lifesaver, thank you."

"Always prepared." The human winked as the Hot Drink quickly warmed Topaz up, indicated by how she sighed in sweet relief. I too carried them, especially in dealing with a monster that controls ice and frost.

Up ahead, I could see the cave start to widen a little, a pale, blue light bleeding into the tunnel. We marched down, finally gaining a clearer view of the wide, tall cavern they've arrived in. A solid flatland under the mountain peak with another way in at the far end of the cavern. A few, thick pillars of stone supported the ceiling, some jutting out with large, crystal formations, providing a brilliant shade of light to refract the blue of the ice.

But what took our breaths away crunched underfoot. Crawling across the ground, arching into wide crescents and coiling into helixes around each of the pillars, eventually coming to form a webbed canopy of dark blue ice, layers interwoven, drooping from the ceiling and forming a rough, circular formation on the ground, only a glaring glow refracting through the dark rime.

The air grew colder...

"She's coming..." I whispered, a biting aura soon came crashing against mine.

"About time!" Ren grinned, just as Topaz threw on her helmet.

From beyond the cavern, a powerful wall of white mist came cascading through, bracing the cold, frost and ice spread over the ground, cutting into our bodies. Large chunks of ice formed and broke from the ceiling, forcing me to sweep Metal Claw to shatter the ice, in time to spot a shadow looming over us, dispersing the mist in a wide ring around us.

Her head slowly came to rise. Scales shimmering with ethereal frost, expelled a cold vapour so intense that it was almost life-threatening to stand so close. Her wings expanded, their semi-opaque form refracting light across her gradient of icy scales, creating a mesmerizing backdrop against its frozen cavern.

The wings folded against the slim body of the creature. It had the look of a traditional, slim, upright body of a dragon. Its scales and shell made from a unique, crystalline blue material, some of its scales and jagged point iridescent in colouration, similar to molten glass grafted to its scales. Its head has a tiara-like crown of small horns. But most notable was its thin, lance-like tail made from dark blue ice.

The Iceborne Wyvern, Velkhana, had finally come out.

But... it was different, its appearance had changed a little. No, that doesn't matter right now, its still the same Elder Dragon I've fought numerous times! Summoning Bone Rush, I heard the girls draw their weapons too, spreading out as Velkhana stared solely at me, then, let out a high-pitched roar, twirling backward, its jaws wide.

"Dodge!" I projected sharply, diving away from the vertical beam of cold air, leaving behind a brief row of ice chunks in its wake.

Through this, she flew backward, thrusting her tail forward to pierce the ground an inch shy of my feet, forcing me to swivel around to bring down Bone Rush across the tail, slashing across the sturdy rime that withdrew only to thrust again in an instant, throwing me back when a third lunge attempted to pierce me, only to ring off Quick Guard at the last second, sending me skidding on my heels.

Distracted, Velkhana was caught off guard by the white slashes climbing from the tail to her chest, Ren kicking off her scales to draw her longsword down in a clean, vertical cleave, leaving a thin, red line through her throat. Despite this, Ren gasped and held her weapon high in time to brace the sudden plunge below sub-zero, the ice breath leaving a thin layer of ice over her body, shattering as her back struck the snow. Rolling to evade Velkhana's slam, Ren swung her sword to bear, barely parrying the sweeping tail from the left side, her joints clearly stiff from Iceblight.

A flash of amber enveloped a shield of golden scales, catching the brunt of an ice beam, Topaz leaping over Ren to deliver two parallel lines with a finessed twirl of her sword, the parallel lines diverting the deadly tail skyward, leaving the beast stunned for my approach, Sword Dance dispelled as I sent a electrified fist through the chilling mist, cracking Velkhana across the jaw, using the leverage to spin, sending an spinning flurry of Metal Claw lacerations down the length of Velkhana's body, the dragon screeching in pain.

Landing, I felt the warm pull of magic throw me sideways, Topaz knocked backward by tailing beam of frost, Velkhana repeated the action, but Ren narrowly avoided the barrage of ice crystals that formed like a frozen wave, vaulting off the tip of her longsword to carve down the hindlegs and the dragon's flank, sheathing her sword with a backstep to avoid a tail thrust, entering Iai to sweep all four limbs, a rippling flash of red breaking apart pieces of Velkhana's frost armour.

"Hit her, Wolfy!" Ren called mid-slide.

"Dragon Pulse!!" Roaring its name, the shockwave of dark purple energy tore through the air, shattering the ice clusters forming in the air around Velkhana to crash against her side, the drake diving with her wings into an elegant backflip, landing to spray a horizontal sweep of frost.

Twirling on a heel, I swept side-to-side, then flicked my wrists to sweep Metal Claw through her scales, sliding underneath to avoid the stabbing tail. Despite that, I could raise Quick Guard in time, but Topaz's shield spun through the air in her magic, allowing me to catch and parry the heavy thrust that threw my sideways. I couldn't however, prevent the formation of three rings of ice from appearing, shattered by Velkhana's trample over me, burying me in the snow.

"Ow..." I grumbled, shaking off the snow atop my head as I was tossed another Hot Drink from Ren, the huntress diving back from several tail thrusts into a foreleg slam, herself downing another as a curse slipped from her throat.

"Starting to run low on Hot Drinks!" She warned.

"I got some too, just keep laying on the attacks, break her armour down!" I relayed, tossing Topaz her shield to slam it against Velkhana's side, followed by a flurry of slants.

Velkhana landed a few feet away, threshing her tail as if to inspect it. "The way she fights, even before she was sizing us up, these monsters really are crazy..." Topaz shook her head in disbelief, it was terrifying if not impressive in person, even two years on.

Velkhana was a regal, ferocious, elegant monster in every sense of the words.

Taking the charge, I waited for Velkhana who swung back on her wings, breathing a cold mist in a crescent, a sudden eruption of ice forming as a wall before her tail punctured through the middle, straight into the sharpened hail of silver stones. Releasing Stone Edge, the silver shards tore across her tail like buckshot.

Using her momentary loss of momentum, there's a rhythm, I swept forward in a blur of black and blue, pummelling her body with a combination of Extreme Speed, and a newer skill, one that had my fists rapidly assaulting her hardened scales like a hail of bullets, cracking and shattering that rime armour of hers. Bullet Punch.

Rolling backward to narrowly avoid a downward breath attack, I stepped back again, three rings of ice forming under the dragon before she shattered them with a stomp, digging her rapier-like tail through the snow to flick toward my face, grazing my cheek with her rigid blade. But Ren vaulted dove over us both, a vertical cleave swatting the tail sideways before digging her crimson-tinged blade upward, kicking up the snow to mask mine and Topaz's forms.

She turned and sprayed a cool mist in a funnel wide, forcing us to dive under the blast that left a wall of dark rime at our backs, cornering us. Ren stepped forward, gritting her teeth as the wyvern's tail slashed in a pirouette that ended with a sharp thrust that rang in my ears. Yet, Ren kept her feet pressed deep into the packed snow, sword held high to block the ferocious blows.

"Glavenus... hit... way harder...!" She grunted.

Velkhana recoiled when a shield shoved her tail back, forcing her head forward to spray us point blank, or until Topaz performed a backswing with her shield, smacking Velkhana across the jaw into an uppercut, the mare using her magic to form a barrier to land against, leaping to deliver a downward slam, the brunt of her glimmering shield stunning the Elder Dragon as I threw two Aura Spheres aimed for the drake's head and neck, the blasts only matched with another Iai slash from Ren, peppering the great Lord of Ice in accumulating wounds.

That's when Velkhana finally took to the air, avoiding our assault to swivel around slowly. "Looks like she's backing off!" Ren smirked.

"She'll likely enrage now, get ready!" Just as planned, if we kept it up, we'd keep her from ever setting foot near Snowfall again.

A triumphant sensation began to build in our chests, or... until something stabbed me in my chest, a cold, dead feeling filling up my aura, attempting to smother it. And my grin fell, my fur slowly standing on end. The blizzard that had dispersed at Velkhana's presence returned tenfold, wrapping her whole body like a thick blanket of snow. Her scales seemed to grow, forming a layer of ice over the edges of her limbs, the temperature dropping further and further until even ice began to form on our bodies from this distance.

I stood back a little. "Wait... this isn't how she usually transforms..." No, this wasn't like Iceborne.

"What do you mean by that?" Topaz called to, almost skeptically. Then, she saw my face fall and pale. "Zen..." She asked worryingly.

...o-oh no...

Suddenly, Velkhana's wings curled around herself, the cold air was immediately drawn in towards her, the sound of crystals breaking and chattering filling the air as a pulsing, baby-blue light emanated from behind her crystal wings. Immediately, I ran and hooked an arm under Topaz, throwing her into Ren as I raised Quick Guard instantly, putting all my aura into it in time for a sudden, blinding eruption of sub-zero winds.

Frost formed on the tips of our armour and hair as the atmosphere took on a darker, blue tinge. Gritting my teeth, I felt my barrier and even Topaz's give out, shattering like glass and sending us tumbling across the cavern floor. Catching myself quickly, I righted myself and could only feel dread wash over me.

Velkhana had entered a new stage of evolution, no, she already had the moment she set foot in Equestria. Cracks of black veins stretched from her chest, pitch black rime forming at the tips of her original frost armour and creating a jagged, unruly edge to her shimmering wings. Her eyes moved with a crimson contrail as a jagged, black array of ice formed along her spine towards a larger, onyx-coated tail. Black snow fell around her form as she stood taller than any of us.

"Zen, the hell just happened!?" Ren yelled, her hold on her weapon beginning to quake.

"I... I don't know... she... she's never had a form like this!" Then it finally sunk in, the words rolling from my mind like lead. "...its a new variant..." I miscalculated...

"We need to fall back, now!" It was Topaz who found the strength to speak, shaking her head. "That means, NOW!"

"Go- GO!!" I screamed, quickly pivoting when Velkhana began to draw in all the cold around her, a great blizzard forming around her body.

Discarding the notion to fight, we each scrambled toward the original path we took to get here. Behind us, I heard Velkhana's roar shake the whole cave system, large deposits of moisture crystalized, dropping small payloads of ice we narrowly avoided, zig-zagging between one another, kicking up snow at our backs as the air grew unbearably numb to my skin.

Large arcs of wind and snow stretched through the air, like a black hole, the cold air was drawn towards Velkhana who spewed white mist far and wide, adding to this cacophony of prickling, popping ice. I kicked my muscles into high gear, nearly passing the girls, seeing daylight further ahead, but also the roaring storm directly behind us.

"Hold on!" With my arms wide, I scooped up both of them, immediately forcing Quick Attack to engage, burning through my legs and splitting the ice beneath me, feeling the tip of my tail starting to freeze over.

Picking up speed, something loud shattered behind us with a tremendous blast, all of us peered over our shoulders and I honestly wished I hadn't, a massive nova of white was closing in fast. "Faster!/Holy shit!" Topaz and Ren gave off two very distinct reactions.

"This might huuuurt!!" Caution thrown to the wind, I broke free of the cavern in time, but overshot the cliffside entirely, and like a stone to water, the second I lost momentum, the three of us plummeted down the side of the mountain, screaming as we fell toward the trees.

[Yui's POV]

Preparations were coming along nicely, it had been about two-to-three hours since Zen left, hope he's doing fine. I snorted at that, knowing him, he's doing something completely reckless again. Inspecting the cache, those large towers operated a massive gate the village used to combat heavy avalanches, using it to keep their storage safe and clear. Which, against a monster, is perfect for active defence.

"Let's see, Skate has all the mares and children being moved closer to the station in the event of an emergency evacuation..." I listed off on a clipboard held in my wing, toying with my ring on its necklace. "Rations have been moved from the cache too... ongoing defence preparations are still in effect... okay, should be ready by daybreak." Implying this monster doesn't hunt at night.

Grunting in annoyance, I kinda wish I could do more, but unfortunately, life has a funny way of circumventing expectations. Rubbing my forehead, taking deep breaths to settle myself. "Easy, Yui, vent later..."

"Hey, I think I see somepony!" One village guard called out.

"It looks like that wolf creature!" Another exclaimed, rousing a collection of murmurs and chatter, some heading down the walkways to inspect the group returning from the pass.

"Zen?" Getting up, I trotted down to the base of the gangplank where he... he was limping! In his right arm, Topaz looked to be out cold, Ren hoisted over his left shoulder in much the same predicament. And all three were roughed up, covered in twigs and leaves, as well as a thin patches of snow and frost peppering their bodies.

Zen looked exhausted, did he run with them from the top of the mountain? Or rather, did he tumble down it? Running up to him, I saw him form a weak smile, panting heavily. "H-hey, Yui... think I... messed up..."

"What do you- Zen!" I managed to catch him with my right hoof, but the girls collapsed to the snow, a number of ponies gathering round to help me move them out of the cold, they were freezing to the touch. "Zen... what happened?" I whispered, even if it fell on deaf ears.

<>To Be Continued...<>

Author's Note

The hunt is far from over yet, Velkhana isn't going down so easily, and she has a whole new form! More on that later, I enjoyed writing about a monster hunt, nice to take a tiny break from my usual work. And going back to look at all the references to Lucario's move set, I got options!

While their first hunt was unsuccessful, I wonder how the next will turn out? I hope you enjoyed, I appreciate the support as always; see ya in the next chapter, Hunters!

Chp. 3 - Proof of a Hero

Velkhana will be coming for Snowfall, but without a leader, how will they prepare to face the coming storm...?

Chp. 3 - Proof of a Hero

[Yui's POV]

After Zen returned with Topaz and Ren, the morale of those who'd stand to defend Snowfall had been dampened considerably, it took Skate to get any form of momentum going to keep up with preparations before the blizzard picked up again, cutting visibility down to unsuitable conditions. Whatever they fought up on the mountain, it was worsening the storm, I didn't have the abilities Zen possessed, but being around him, you tend to pick up on the flow of energy in the air, not unlike magic.

Looking around a large gathering hall which had been turned into a shelter for those whose homes had collapsed or needed medical attention, the warmth of a great fireplace kept everything cosy against the howling winds battering the walls. Coming to a pair of bedrolls, I smiled sadly.

"You two doing okay?" Between me, Topaz and Ren were resting, both with thermal patches on to help accelerate their body temperatures.

"Stopped shivering a while ago now... other than that, just some minor bumps and scratches," Ren held up a thumb. "We'll live for a drink when we're done, Batty, don't worry about us."

"We'd been turned to popsicles if not for Zen, how's he holdin' up?" Topaz asked but I lowered my head, that seemed to be enough for her to hum quietly at, staring up at the ceiling. "That bad, huh?"

"He woke up before either of you, but... he's kept to himself for the remainder of the afternoon," I knew why, I doubt it was a mystery what he was thinking. This was his first big show of what the Guildmaster of the Hunter's Guild could do, and he likely blamed himself for not doing enough.

"Well? Go knock some sense into him," Topaz pushed up into a sitting position, wrapping her blanket around herself with her magic, pointing a hoof firmly in my direction. "We're the ones that called him out here, and if we hadn't, well, wouldn't be here discussing it, would we?"

"We'll bounce back for round two," I felt Ren ruffle my mane, giving me a smug grin with a wink. "Think someone else needs a pep talk more than us."

Hard to argue with that logic, I just was worried I didn't know what to say, more than some empty words and pleasantries, no, Zen needed to hear what I'd say, what everyone around him believes. Curling a hoof around my ring, I smiled, adjusting the Kirin mane over my own. "You can count on me, after all, we still have a job to do, don't we?"

The pair chuckled at that, so I took that as my cue to leave, heading out into the blizzard, steadfast and determined. I didn't just want to cheer him up... I... had something important to tell him too...

[Zen's POV]

Skate was kind enough to let me use the chief's building as a staging area to plan for a counterattack, but I suspected he knew no one would come here to bother me. It had a second floor, where I sat and stared at a fireplace crackling before me softly. This hellish winter battering the windows and doors, I could feel Velkhana's fury within every gale, she knew we're here, and she'd come for us by morning without question. All we did was abate the inevitable.

The house was more like a cabin, rustic and cosy, fitted with rugs and carpets of all textures and patterns, same for the thick, wooden furniture and the soft glow of lanterns. It was a really nice place, given any other circumstance.

I couldn't face them, even if I tried, Topaz and Ren nearly died because I let arrogance pull the wool over my eyes. Calm Mind did little to quell my anxieties and embarrassment, it didn't help the greatest reminder was currently pelting the mountain side with an endless blizzard.

So much so, I didn't pick up on someone's presence until they were already behind me from the short staircase. "Hey," It was Yui, her voice soft and tender.

I kept my eyes to the fire. "Hey..." I managed, unable to meet her gaze as she walked around to sit beside me on the carpet.

She didn't say anything else, instead, I felt her move around me, careful and quiet as a mouse, only for my body to stiffen when her forehooves came to wrap over my shoulders, embracing me from behind, feeling her forehead rest against the back of my head. My paw came up to press against her hooves, biting my cheek.

"...some leader I was... I failed, I thought since I knew what we were up against that everything would be fine, like always... even when I saw it wasn't the same Elder Dragon I've fought in appearance, I... I should've called it off, o-or study it further, I... I don't..." A sigh left me, my emotions nearly overtaking me. Her hooves squeezed tighter, never speaking up.

"Having this new life has been like a dream-turned-reality for me, I'll always miss my folks, my sister, my friends... but I made so many here, I didn't waste my second chance, but... but today, I feel no smarter than the person that wound up in that damn forest two years ago... I haven't changed..." Zen Amadeus wasn't a Hunter, he was just a human... or was...

Finally, I felt her breath on my nape, and her body moving around to sit in front of me, those twilight eyes glowing in the dusk. "Two years doesn't seem like a lot of time has passed, but, in the time I have known you, fought with you and beside you, laughed, cried... loved, I have only ever seen you grow; every obstacle set your way, I watched you defy the impossible and come out on top. From the strongest Elder to the smallest Wyvern, you alone have changed so much before my eyes... it always takes my breath away,"

I felt her one wing push my chin up, fixed to her gaze again, feeling her hoof brush above my chest spike to the ring nestled on its necklace, same as hers. Her expression was warm, brimming with pride and love, more than any other day. "You took your experiences from games, applied them here and saved so many lives, you changed my life, Zen; maybe you weren't a Monster Hunter like Ren, or a Treasure Hunter like me, but you..."

She smiled, the kind I had only ever seen twice until today, the day we became real partners, and... the day I could call her my wife. "All you done for me, to me, without a shadow of a doubt, is proof you are a hero, and a Hunter worthy of the name."

My eyes remained wide, and my heart clenched, hung on every word. I spent all this time working to make a Hunter's Guild for Equestria, to combat the permanent changes to their world with the knowledge I and Ren shared. I wanted people to face danger and embrace it, to find balance, just as those from the Old World would. I... I wanted to be someone I could be proud of.

So to hear it said to me, without a shred of pity or skepticism... it felt like the final nail had been hammered home. Feeling my eyes starting to water, I stifled a gasp for a shaky laugh, drying my eyes. "S-sorry, I... thank you... thank you..."

Brushing the bangs away from her left eye, I saw one squint with a sly smile. "Hey, as your amazing wife, I like to think my role in cheering up my darling husband is essential, thank you very much." She tilted her chin up, hoof to her chest. Only for her composure to break when I started to laugh. "Hehehe, hey, you're not supposed to freakin' laugh!" She shoved my shoulders.

"S-S-Sorry, hahaha, but... well, I can't argue with your logic," Not when it was true. "Thanks, Yui, I feel... well, still pretty shitty, but... better."

"Then that's good enough for me," She nodded firmly, but, something was off, her aura shifted a little, a similar tremble of uncertainty, a pinch of fear too. It had been frequent the last week or so, but Yui always found a way to supress it or side-step my question. Now? She didn't seem to hide it at all, rubbing her forehooves together. "Um, so Zen, I, uh, had... something else to tell you."

My brow quirked. "I'm all ears, since you listened to me too."

She nodded, but looked away, her bangs falling over her left eye again, a faint hue dusting her cheeks. "Okay, okay... um, sorry, heh, this is... been really hard to put into... proper, reasonable... words, and stuff, I, pfft, hehehe, really nervous..." She squeaked, coughing into her open hoof, her heartrate was spiking.

So, extending my hands, I held them to her shoulders, a soothing warmth and pink veil washed down her grey fur, noticeably relaxing her form. "When you're ready." I offered a kind smile, whatever it was had to be important if she was fumbling with basic vocabulary.

Maintaining her silence, she almost didn't breathe, only to exhale slowly a moment later, finally meeting my eyes, a strong, intense emotion filling her eyes with a smile. "...well, I was going to tell you, after we finally made your Guild official, but I really feel now is a good time to say... I... well, to put it one way... while I prefer my life as a Treasure Hunter first and foremost, I'll... probably be very busy come next year..."

"Busy? With what ex... act... ly..." Whatever I could say bled into nothing on my tongue, and for a moment, my heart stopped when I saw her look away shyly, a hoof gingerly rubbing her abdomen.

I focused my Aura Sense immediately, a tremble shivering down my whole body, but not from the cold. I searched the sea of lavender that made up her aura, sharpening my sight harder than ever before. And in a flash, I saw it... within that ocean of twilight...

A tiny, azure spark was hidden within.

Opening my eyes, I saw her eyes glistening with nervous but joyful tears. My claw rose to point toward her, breathless. "Y-you're..." She nodded once, and my claw curled toward me. "We're..."

"Mmhm, y-yeah," Yui's voice trembled with happiness I couldn't begin to describe, and I gasped a laugh.

"Hah... haha... I'm, uh, gonna be a dad?" That's... definitely not something I've, uh, learned to do... either of us. "But... but how...?"

"Because... just like you... this child defied the impossible," She closed her eyes, freeing those tears. "I'm really scared and excited, and I'm not really sure which emotion to go with- ah!"

Rising to my feet, I pulled Yui into a quick spin, and I have never felt as happy as I did now. We were told that conceiving a child wasn't possible, given my origins as a human, and the fact I was a species that never existed in this realm. That was okay with us, but as Yui said, seems I'm not only one going against what's considered impossible. And I couldn't have been happier.

Yui giggled, embracing me tightly as I did the same, brushing our foreheads together, braced by the warmth of the fireplace beside us. Pulling away, our eyes met, my left paw rising to gently cup her cheek as the tip of her wing flicked a tear of mine away.

Neither of us said it, bringing our lips together quietly, that warmth only continued to kindle and grow, just like the small spark growing inside her.

Within an hour, the chief's home was filled with as many bodies as it could comfortably contain, the storm outside maintained its harsh bombardment of Snowfall, but that didn't bother any of those I called forward, including Topaz and Ren who stood to the left-hand side of the large, rectangular table on the main floor.

After Yui's unbelievable news, it was what I needed among everything else she said to finally screw my head on straight. Velkhana was going to come back, I couldn't afford to make another misstep now. Skate helped me find what I needed to set everything up, maps, blueprints, stock lists, the works. Now, it was time to finally make good on everything Celestia helped me to achieve.

Expanding my telepathy to everyone present, I stood at the end of the desk, Yui right by my side. "Thank you everyone for coming on short notice; its time to discuss how to banish this storm for good," Taking a deep breath, I could feel her wing curl around my paw, offering me a pinch more confidence. "Before we start, if anyone here wishes to back out now, I respect your wishes, and I won't allow anyone to criticise their choice."

I waited, not a single hoof moved from the available seats or up on the balconies overlooking the ground floor, just the muffled howl of the blizzard and the crackling fire behind me. Remaining stern, I nodded. "Very well; to start, the cause of the weather's drastic change is due to a powerful monster, an Elder Dragon; these creatures, with just their presence alone, can cause significant changes to an ecosystem, as you've all seen this last week,"

Murmurs carried around, looks of confusion but also tension and sparks of fear. I don't blame them, this wasn't some run-of-the-mill monster. "However, when myself and two others engaged, we found that it has grown stronger than its standard form I am familiar with, so henceforth, this new Variant will be called; Blackrime Velkhana,"

"Catchy," Ren crossed her arms, humming in approval.

A pegasus raised their wing. "How do we plan to deal with such a beast?"

Leaning my paws onto the table, I gestured to the large map of the supply cache. "It's smart, Velkhana is aiming to likely destroy and/or pillage your food for its nest, so we'll use it as our staging ground to confront in; the homefield advantage," With an ink and quill, I drew a line between the two towers. "We'll raise the gate, that'll at least buy us time for last-minute preparations and to defend the supply cache,"

I drew three circles outside the gate. "Myself, Topaz, and Ren will directly engage Velkhana whilst the gate it raised, we're the most equipped and experienced against powerful monsters like these, and now that we're aware of its new form, we'll be better prepared,"

Next, circles around the exterior ramparts beyond the gate's line. "These are where cannoneers will be placed, Yui and Chief Skate found some in deep storage, meant to clear thick ice that forms after avalanches, they'll help in breaking Velkhana's frost armour. Those of you here who are experienced in manning such equipment will play a vital role in supporting us," A saw a number of them nod in agreement.

"If the gate falls, use everything you've got to wear Velkhana down, but do not engage at close-range, its black ice could freeze you instantly. But given our battle, it'll focus on removing us before daring to attack the cache, a gamble, but its all we got on short notice," And it was more than enough to make this work, standing tall, looking around, taking in their fears and doubts, those looks of conflict, determination flickering between a few.

"Look, I know you've lost people to this monster, and I failed to realize the threat, almost resulting in two more casualties... but mark my words, no one else will die, I swear to you, tomorrow, the skies will clear once more," Closing my fists, I took a deep breath, my scarlet eyes burning with an indomitable will like never before. Maybe because I didn't want to fail them again, because I wanted to help, because... I have something new I want to fight for.

"Its only official in name... but for this moment, all of you who are willing to fight, are Hunters of the Guild in my eyes. Fight not just to slay, but to protect. The world of Equestria has changed forever, so learn from it, adapt and embrace its dangers head-on!" Raising my telepathic voice, I could see their heads rising, many looking amongst themselves with conviction. "Each of you tomorrow, stand with me, stand with each other, and show Blackrime Velkhana what you're made of, and why you're here!!"

Thundering my thoughts, it didn't take long to rouse a reaction, from every direction, hooves, magic, and wings shot into the air, a chorus of chants and defiant hollers shaking the building to its foundations like its own, mighty roar. It was impossible not to feel my heart racing, nor the smile from pinching at my cheeks.

"Okay... then rest and prepare in anyway you can! Tomorrow before daybreak, we make our final preparations! And... May the Sapphire Star light your way!" I threw my arm wide, only encouraging them further, even whilst heading out into the cold without an ounce of worry, for a while, at least.

Topaz gave me a light huff, smirking. "Now that was inspiring, even woke me up a little more." She joked, giving me a quick salute. "Be seeing you guys in the morning then, nice not being the one leading for a change, I could use the shut-eye..."

Scooting closer to me, Ren nudged my side. "Sooo... how much of that colourful speech was pulled out of thin air, Wolfy?"

I leaned in too, keeping a lax expression. "Eh, about 45%, give or take." I see-sawed my paw.

"It took a couple retries for the introductory," Yui rolled her eyes, gesturing up at me with her wing. "He couldn't think of a good name for Velkhana."

"What? The name's are important." I excused, arms wide. I swear, everyone's a critic. I thought Verglas Velkhana was a good close-second contender. "Better than 'Permafrost'." I air-quoted.

"'Better than Sub-Zero' That's you," Yui sneered back in a terrible impression of my voice.

"Sephiroth." I shot back.

"Hah, that's a compliment- Furry." Yui cut back, I really shouldn't have told her that name...

I was quick to rebuttal with a grin, jabbing a claw to her chest, her own grin etched into her muzzle with those beautiful, slit eyes. "Hah, you married one!"

"Geez, I can feel the sexual tension from here," Immediately, mine and Yui's heads snapped toward Ren, the blood rushing throughout the entirety of our faces as Ren gave us a curt wave over the shoulder. "See ya bright and early, love you guys~"

"Ren!!" We yelled back, she merely laughed. Point to her...

Dusk remained, but light was beginning to creep through the dark clouds swirling above, though it was hard to tell at first. Regardless, those fighting to defend Snowfall worked tirelessly; drawing out the cannons and having ammunition set and ready to be loaded. What armour the village had was given to those most at risk, layering them with thermal crystals.

Myself and Ren sat for nearly two hours, grinding and mixing together Hot Drinks that seemed to act as a counter-agent against what I dubbed as Black Iceblight. Other potions were made for myself, Ren, and Topaz for the battle ahead, checks were made for all siege equipment, what little the town had to offer, but any and all would be sufficient.

"Zen?" I stood beyond the edge of the gate, turning to see Yui trot up to me, using her wing to hold onto the strap of a flask. "Here; milk and two sugars."

Immediately perking up, I took the flask and unscrewed the lid, catching the sweet aroma of tea inside. "Ah... you're a Goddess, truly."

She giggled. "Well, I do try," While I carefully sipped the enriching elixir, Yui's gaze rose to the misty mountains ahead, to where Velkhana was nesting. "So, your odds?"

"In my favour as always, for better or for worse," I remarked, smacking my lips with a sigh. Kneeling down to her level, she didn't say anything and merely bumped her wing against my chest, as my knuckle did the same. "You handle things in the rear."

"And you handle the rest," She finished, pecking my lips with a worried but soft smile. "Happy hunting, you dork."

"With pleasure, love." Winking, I stood up and enjoyed the last of my tea, the hot sensation felt as empowering as a Hot Drink's spicy kick. After a moment, I handed the flask back. "Thanks, needed that pick-me-up."

And not a moment too soon, a cold front, ripe with anger, struck my soul. The second my face fell, Yui knew to retreat, trotting lightly but raising her voice. "Velkhana is coming, raise the barricade now!!"

"Raise the barricade! Everypony in positions now!" Skate relayed to those around the battlements as I stood with my back to the border of the gate, soon joined by Topaz and Ren at either side.

"Round two, Wolfy, Topaz." Ren grinned.

"Let's not have a repeat of yesterday, thank you." Topaz chuckled self-deprecatingly.

"Not this time," I relayed to them, drawing my fists together, pulling them apart to summon Bone Rush's thin staff, giving it a sharp twirl into my right paw.

The girls each steeled themselves, Topaz slipping her helmet on, magic raising her golden sword and shield, whilst Ren merely withdrew her longsword, but downed a red and amber jar each, Armourskin and Demondrug, same for Topaz a second later, both giving off a mystical shimmer of amber and scarlet.

Focusing on my aura, I triggered a veil of pink light, followed by four, sapphire swords overhead, coupled with silver wind and a rise in steam over my fur. An accumulation of Calm Mind, Sword Dance, Agility and Bulk Up, sparing no expense as my whole body roared with amplified energy.

A strong, frigid gust of wind flew down the mountain pass and across the snowy flatland before us, blasting up the edges of the ramparts like a wave of white mist. From the stormy sky, something swept down, forming ice crystals across the ground, I could feel snow form in my fur as two large wings threshed wide, shattering all the ice crystals in an instant, the body of the creature landing before us under the blizzard.

Standing proud, two, ice-blue eyes peering down at me in particular, the Black Iceborne Wyvern, Blackrime Velkhana. She was sizing me up as she took a few steps forward, rapier-like tail swiping the snow behind her dangerously. She was ready to settle the score, even as the barricade rose sharply from the ground behind us with a loud, metallic clank.

It was made from solid log beams in a grid formation, joints reinforced by steel braces, it would take a lot of punishment for anything to break the gate down, and I had no doubt Velkhana could, not that we'd give her the chance. "I've beaten you before... and I'll do it here!"

Because I have something else worth fighting for...

<>To Be Continued...<>

Author's Note

This, this right here was one major reason for this winter special! The reveal of who will become Akira in Indomitable's future! And because of that little spark, Zen has finally stepped firmly into his role, not just as Guildmaster, but as a true Hunter. But one battle stands between him and that future.

I hope you enjoyed, I appreciate the support as always; see ya in the next chapter, Hunters!

Chp. 4 - Clashing Swords Upon The Rime

Daybreak had arrived, and with it, the full might of the blizzard's conductor come crashing down on Snowfall...

Chp. 4 - Clashing Swords Upon The Rime

I barely got the last word out before having to dive sideways, evading a beam of frost that formed a jagged line of ice. Velkhana didn't even give us a moment to organize, whipping her head from left to right, spraying another blast of mist, conjuring an arc of rime that had us scatter, Topaz cut off by the ice wall.

Sweeping my staff in two vertical slashes, I felt them catch Velkhana's spear-like tail before thrusting against her chest only to narrowly fall sideways, avoiding the tail as it speared the ground beside my head, dragging it through to force Ren and Topaz to a standstill, the pair dodging from her gliding slam as the dragon spun around and continued to take stabs at whoever got too close.

With so many to eyeball, Ren closed in from her left flank, longsword gleaming white, whipping her lithe body into two horizontal sweeps into rising verticals, carving a square through Velkhana's side, raising her weapon in time to slide back from a forceful head charge, sparks flew as I and Topaz swept by, sweeping through the Elder Dragon's legs, using her own ice to manoeuvre and slide to safety, using a lingering ice wall as cover from another vertical breath attack, Velkhana taking to the air.

Spraying downwards, three rings of ice formed and shattered, the air growing cold enough to form clusters of ice to descend upon us. Diving forward, I threw my staff high and channelled aura into my paws, firing off multiple blasts to shatter the crystals as they formed. Topaz's shield hovered in front of me, catching the horizontal sweep of Velkhana's tail for me as I caught my staff and sent a staggering blast of air pressure into Velkhana's side with Vacuum Wave whilst retreating.

Velkhana kicked off her claws, tail jutting forwards as it scraped against the floating shield, protecting me as Topaz spun her sword, sweeping across Velkhana's stomach and neck, adjusting her shield as she passed me, bounding over an ice wall to evade another beam of frost. Overhead, Ren dove in a slow arc, drawing down Spirit Helm Breaker, several slashes ripping across her scales.

I slid under the Elder Dragon, hooking my Metal Claws to the underside, dragging them across Velkhana's stomach, leaving her rime armour cracked. Glancing to the cannoneers, I sent forth my voice. "Fire now!"

Heeding my call, they slapped the loading racks shut with their magic, and instead of a singular cannonball, Velkhana was rocked by a pair of five from both cannons, pulverizing her armour across both forelegs and her chest, the great wyvern reeling in pain, howling loudly as the moisture crystalized above the ponies, each erecting a barrier to quickly shield themselves from the descending rime.

Growling, Velkhana galloped toward the cannoneers, so I leapt and ran perpendicular with the barricade, vaulting overhead to send a wave of draconic energy cascading atop her crown, drawing the dragon's ire as her tail nearly skewered me, had I not used Quick Guard, but my back slammed into the gate sharply as a result, ow...

Four thrusts piercing along Velkhana's throat, her head thrust forward, missing Ren by a hair when she doubled back, weapon sheathed only to sweep forward using Iai. Velkhana evaded with her wings, landing beside Ren only to be assaulted by the solid face of Topaz's shield, followed in quick succession by her blade. She guarded with a magic barrier whilst Ren rolled to avoid the sweeping tail as the wyvern flew behind them to reel back and spray a haze in front of Topaz that instantly erupted with a small glacier of dark ice, throwing the girls on their sides. And judging by the frost licking their armour, they were afflicted by that deadly Iceblight, both reaching fast for a Hot Drink to starve off frostbite.

That's when Velkhana took to the sky, the temperature dropping considerably. Oh not again...! "That's her big attack, move!" I warned, sprinting to close the gap, grabbing the girls as I kicked my muscles into high gear, throwing us behind a fallen ice wall in time for the very atmosphere to turn a tinge of blue briefly.

Velkhana spewed frost in every direction, the air dropping in temperature dramatically as dozens of ice crystals formed, several walls erupting from the earth as four massive rings grew at her feet. With a deafening roar, Velkhana slammed the center of the ice rings, the walls erupting outward in a frigid blast, shards of ice spearing the ground and all solid surfaces in range. Her armour remained, wings fanned high triumphantly.

"Hah, t-thanks, Wolfy." Ren's teeth chattered, even after downing the Hot Drink.

"I-I-I could use a-a-a hot bath a-and a d-d-drink after." Topaz was faring no better, but at least they were okay.

Leaving them to recover, I pulled back my right fist, sparks of electric running up my fur before releasing the pressure, charging forward through several rime walls as Velkhana yelped, Thunder Punch twisting against her left shoulder, followed by a flip into the devastating Bulldoze, the sturdy heel of my right leg slamming into her nape, bringing the great dragon down to earth.

I think I just pissed her off.

Turning sharply to charge towards me, I kicked off the small ice ledge to dive past her tail, riddling her with a combination of Aura Spheres and Dragon Pulses, rippling across and through layers of ice and frost accumulating on her body. One pulse managed to splinter her scales along the right foreleg, and in diving in a zig-zag to evade her streams of frosty breath, I swung an uppercut swirling with fiery energy, cracking her jaw and seeing her horn snap in two, sending Velkhana falling backward onto her side, all her subsequent frost armour crumbling to dust.

"Nice hit, Wolfy, dig in!" Ren cheered, weapon gleaming yellow.

"Don't let up now!" Topaz hollered as I closed in fast.

Taking advantage of Velkhana's downed state, bit-by-bit, her scales and armour were chipped and broken, although, a deathly-cold mist soon forced us back, her tail inches from slicing my chest open as it dragged through the earth, whipping sharply as her wings threshed, helping Velkhana to rise again, now, a distinct, crimson contrail followed her eyes, I could feel the moisture on my fur starting to crystalize.

A low growl left her lips, but she studied us critically, reorganizing ourselves between the labyrinth of ice she had created. Suddenly, her wings curled around herself, the cold air was immediately drawn in towards her yet again, turning the sky that distinct, icy-blue. She was going into Blackrime form! And it wasn't going to be as minor as last time... the very air pressure was accumulating, building up to something bigger...

Looking sharply, I threw my arm toward the ramparts, where the cannoneers finished reloading, and to the small corridor that led behind the barricade. "Quick, retreat before she unleashes that attack!"

"Damn, alright, move it!" Ren shared the same look of annoyance as me, but we couldn't run the risk now, ice starting to form overhead, forcing us to watch our pathing and evade the falling clusters, the wind pulled past us.

Leaping onto the ramparts, the cannoneers fired off the last cannonballs they had, the rampant pelting from the explosions throwing Velkhana off only a little, practically reducing the explosions to mere sparks in her growing tempest. I glanced at the unicorns was haste. "Fall back, go, go!"

The sound of her deafening roar reached my ears, turning to see the great wall of wind, snow, and serrated blades of black rime swirling outward, and toward us. Ren ran past me when I saw the ice forming above the doorway, so, without hesitation, I grabbed the last cannoneer and Topaz, and threw them toward Ren, knocking her down and through the archway, just as ice crashed down, cutting off my means to escape the oncoming torrent.

So, I swallowed a lump in my throat, my claws turning a faded, brassy pigment. All or nothing!

[Yui's POV]

Everyone, including myself, had to brace or hide behind crates, barrels, and makeshift barricades to withstand the chilling blast of rigid wind that cut through the air like a razor blade. When the cracking of ice subsided, large spikes of black rime were left in Velkhana's wake, dawning her onyx frost armour, but what's worse, is the state of the barricade.

Thick layers of ice had frozen the towers on one side, including the chains that hoisted the gate upright, so with a single sweep of her tail mid-air, she shattered both the ice and the chains in tandem, causing our one means of defence to slide back beneath the earth with a violent slam that rang up the mountain above, Velkhana roaring sharply as she stepped over the threshold.

"Get on the interior cannons, now! Magic too, use everything!" Skate quickly rallied. "Do not let Velkhana take a step further!"

Looking around, I spotted Ren leaping down onto the ground, drawing her longsword to meet Velkhana alongside Topaz, but... Zen was nowhere to be seen. My gut twisted into a knot, did he get caught outside by that blast? For a second, I honestly felt my body close to shutting down, and feeling helpless to lend a hoof to in the conflict.

"What happened to Zen?" "Is he...?" "How can we beat this monster now?"

Doubts, fear trickling in, crawling through the cracks in their confidence. If one started to doubt our chances, our final stand will fall apart in a matter of seconds. Cannons thundered in my ears, blasting Velkhana whilst her tail slashed in rampant arcs, forcing Topaz back whilst Ren simply shrugged off the biting cuts I could see along her armour and exposed skin. Neither of them had given up... and neither have I.

"He's fine!" I snapped, drawing the stares of those who began to doubt, placing a hoof against my chest and my ring, keeping my eye fixated on the desperate battle below. "Zen... Zen hasn't lost yet, which means, none of us have either!" I know that, with every fibre of my being.

"Agreed," Beside me, Skate was anxious, gritting his teeth against the biting winds blown our way. "I... I have faith too."

I smiled at the sentiment, feeling a warmth swelling in my chest, drawing my gaze away from Velkhana, and to the ground directly under her claws... it was rising?

Then it clicked, a tear catching in my eye as I sighed a laugh of sheer relief. "You jerk, making me worry again..."

From below, cracks of bright gold split through the snow and rising earth, Ren was thrown on her heels by a thrust of Velkhana's tail, narrowly rolling out of range of a large, crescent veil of mist that expanded instantly into a crumbling glacier. In that single frame, a flash of light broke through the rime, drilling a golden fist up her lower jaw, snapping Velkhana's head backward sharply with a wail, tumbling onto all fours again with a snarl.

And through the dissipating ice and mist, I couldn't peel my eyes away from the bipedal wolf of black and blue.

[Zen's POV]

Using Dig to avoid the blast might've just saved my ass from becoming a Pokemon-theme popsicle. But, it also provided me time to plan and adjust accordingly using aura to track Velkhana's movements. Dusting off the snow, I clenched my fists; this put a strain on my bones, feeling them creaking under the pressure, but now wasn't the time to hold anything back.

"I'm going to stop you... using every ability I've got in my arsenal!!" Like a rapidly expanding galaxy, my aura began to change and shift, refracting into a variable of colours and shades over my shivering body.

I released a howl, raising my attack power, followed by my anger rising with Nasty Plot, bolstering special attack, Calm Mind harmonized with that to raise special attack and defence. My coat felt as sturdy as steel with Iron Defence, tempered with Swords Dance's attack values, Bulk Up strengthening me physically, a rush of wind accompanying Agility. Last, Metronome had cleverly picked out a storm of glimmering gems to encircle me, Diamond Storm.

My own storm had finally gathered, of everything I've learned in the last two-plus years in this world. My fists trembled with a fiery light seeping between my fingers, my eyes felt like they were on fire! "This ends now. I have someone in the future I have to meet!!"

She seemed very accepting to that threat.

Throwing a cascade of ice in my direction, so I met it in kind, my fist bulldozing through the rime, crashing against her thin jaw, sending her body stumbling away from the cache with Focus Punch, the air puckering with a sonic boom to follow, splitting apart the dark rime covering her head.

Black snow fell around her form as she barrelled toward me. "Come on!!" I roared, kicking into Extreme Speed, leaving a dust cloud in my wake, riddling the length of her body with a flurry of Metal Claw-tipped strikes, puncturing and lacerating her hide, appearing on her left.

Velkhana flew back to puncture the air only to swivel forward from the strike that was followed by three diagonal slashes down her legs. She sprayed in a line from top to bottom under herself, a large wall of blackish-blue ice forming as it caught my arms. Yet, she wailed in pain when I tore through the chilling ice, demolishing the wall, carving through every obstacle with Cross Chop, feeling my claws ring off her shoulder, sending her sideways through her own rime.

Taking a deep breath, I felt my power fluctuate so I rejuvenated it in tandem using Life Dew, unleashing a coppery-tasting blast of steel, hearing it shred against Velkhana's body. Detect forced me sideways, cutting off the beam's flow when her tail slit my left cheek open, feeling it freeze over and numb the surrounding skin. Performing a handstand, I leapt high and swung my Dragon Pulse into a halo around me, decimating the crystals forming in the air to surround me.

Crystals fell around me, but Velkhana's mist bled into the ground, so I raised Protect, warding off the shattering glacier, coupled with a surprise tail thrust. In turn, I kept my calm, channelling a concentrated ball of blue spiritual energy between my paws, sending it hurdling through, Focus Blast erupting in a nova, dispelling the mist and shards of ice, clearing the way for her to charge toward me.

Rising above the crumbling ice, Velkhana's glowering gaze fell solely to me. Exhaling a cold breath, my eyes burned, seeing her readying another of those devastating explosions, puffing my chest out, sucking in that frigid, cold air. If I used this, coupled with all the effects afflicting me, I should still be able to fight, but I'm definitely going to feel the repercussions for a week.

"Hakai Kōsen!!!" A spark of blue snaked across my muzzle with a highlight of purple, followed by a concentrated beam of dark-violet to collide with Velkhana's onyx ice beam, the volatile reaction set off a double-ringed explosion mid-air, showering us in black and purple snow, the air punctured by a brief silence.

My heartbeat pounded in my ears, feeling the recoil catch up to me from the usage of a handful of Lucario's strongest moves, but Velkhana wasn't fairing any better, no, I had to finish this now! But, it was hard to move my legs...!

A pat ruffled the fur between my ears, peeking up to the smug grin on Ren's cheeks. "We'll buy ya a minute, this is a team effort, bud."

"Honestly, no reason to fall back into old habits," Topaz snorted, raising her weapons.

"Thank... you..." I spoke aloud, even if they didn't speak Pokemon, they both seemed to get the memo.

Taking the vanguard, Ren closed in, weapon pulsing red between her fingers as she swept her weapon to counter and parry every, wild slash from Velkhana's vicious assault, splitting ice from her tail. Ren slashed in two downward strokes, bashing her tail into the earth, leaving her wide open to the devastating, rising vertical that split from Topaz, through a newly erected wall to act as a shield.

Velkhana reeled her head forward to spew a hail of ice only for a bright, gold shield enveloped in amber to catch the brunt of it all, Topaz digging his hooves in as ice formed at the sides of her shield and magic barrier, her horn crackling. "If I wanted a breath mint, I'd have asked, you overgrown turkey!!"

From the sides, Velkhana whipped her tail, digging it through the earth as two verticals, followed by black ice. Sailing over both, Ren drew her longsword high for an overhead cleave, flipping into an Iai a second after landing, carving through her scales, the duo rolled sideways to evade another glacier eruption, leaving a myriad of walls in her wake to shatter under the force of her legs.

Topaz's ducked beneath the wings to rend through the underside of the dragon, tossing herself out of arms way as a bright flash of light stunned and confused the wailing beast, Ren flinging a few, poison-tinged knives between the cracks of Velkhana's hide, drawing her sword for wide, sweeping strokes, running and bouncing off Velkhana's own legs into another Spirit Helm slash-

Only to cut through a thick wall of ice, the tail piercing through to cut across her left shoulder. "Ack... cleaver girl, ngh!" Dousing the area with a Hot Drink, she fell back behind Topaz's magic barrier, the unicorn keeping on her toes to evade the falling ice.

Fist to my chest, I took in a deep breath, my abilities from before persisting still! "Okay, I'm ready, switch out!"

Ramping up all I could muster, I tore across the cache, fist igniting into a brilliant, cerulean flame over my whole body, "Meteor Mash!" The force of my fist struck like its aforementioned name, sending a tremor through Velkhana who flew back to spray the area in waves of ice, rings forming around us, so I brought my hands wide, and slapped them sharply, sweeping wide in two, silver streaks, Cross Chop shaving them down.

Landing, Velkhana tanked another deadly Iai from Ren who rolled immediately after, the tail exposed to a bombardment of cannon fire from the side-lines, the cannoneers awarded by seeing Velkhana roar painfully, her mighty, onyx tail piercing the ground, severed from the limb itself. Enraged, she didn't get the chance to retaliate, my Metal Claws rending across her wings in a spinning flurry of silver flames.

Both wings slammed the earth with a blast of ice as she took flight to evade Ren's thrust. Topaz raised her shield for me to bounce off of, sweeping the air with my foot dripped in venom, Poison Jab applying another coating of poison, using the leverage to spin and deliver a quick Thunder Punch to the wyvern's jaw, cracking her scales into pieces. Swinging myself away from her sweeping breath attack, the ice cascading upon the duo below.

Her attacks had grown more vicious, uncoordinated and sloppy. The once elegance and grace Velkhana displayed had almost withered away, this wasn't just a battle to put an end to the raging storm above ground, this was Velkhana's last desperate attempt to claim this whole mountain range as her domain. Her rage was sickening, a corrupt king that needed to be brought down for good.

"One more time, we're going for a flawless victory!!" I yelled.

"Yeah!!" Ren and Topaz gave as much to my cry, spread wide before the Elder Dragon of ice.

"Hyraaaaah!!" With a wordless cry, Ren charged and drew her longsword high, striking hard and fast with a back-to-back verticals, each strike sending a ripple of electricity through Velkhana's swaying head, the dragon barely able to swing her tail that tore across her left forearm through her armour. Instead of retreating, Ren dug her nodachi into the ground next to her and grappled the tail with her bleeding left, feeling the dragon nearly throw her back as she wrestled it. "Take 'em down, Topaz!"

Like an amber blur, two, fiery-orange eyes burrowed through Velkhana's hateful red, a spark of light as bright as a shooting star filling the blue atmosphere in a light yellow haze. Topaz slammed her shield into Velkhana's throat, using her own body to run and vault off as ice crawled up her hooves from just making contact alone, seeing the same nearly freeze Ren's arm off before she threw herself back.

Clasping her Gold Rathian blade skyward, Topaz poured all her magic into its edge as she screamed and brought the full brunt of it down on Velkhana's head, a cacophony of shattered ice and billowing winds with a hint of roaring flames filled the air, akin to a meteor falling from the sky, dealing a tremendous blow to the beast. Flames licking the mare's armour as she tumbled onto her side, shield raised in preparation for a counter attack that never arrived.

Instead, to all our surprised, shocked expressions, a single bat pony stood in front of Topaz with a firm scowl, the wind billowing through her armour. Even as that deadly cold grazed at her armoured hooves, the glistening fur warded against it, the crackling ice in the air barely earning a flinch from the unwavering mare who gave a small, almost smug look of satisfaction.

"Meditor." In her left hoof, she flung the crushed remnants of a moon opal before her, Velkhana inches from slashing her with its wings.

The pale-blue mist shrouded Velkhana, and even for a mighty Elder Dragon, Yui's magic still sent it sailing away from the girls, directly into my sights.

Extreme Speed closed the gap in a heartbeat, and I concentrated Metronome. As far as I knew, the move it chose was completely random, so I tossed my coin and prayed it'll land in my favour. I could feel the energy changing inside me, coursing through not to my fists, my tail, nor my legs. Instead, a blazing inferno erupted from my forehead, washing down over my sensory appendages, casting them into four, flaming extensions.

And a sharp grin overtook my muzzle. "Man, I love gambling!" Rising above Velkhana, I threw my head forward, feeling it connect and melt through whatever means of defence she had left. "V-CREATE!!!"

In the wake of our contact, a four-pointed star of flames erupted beneath us, letting out a crackling roar. A large blast of snow rose only to quickly evaporate, hearing the blizzard give out a final rumble of defiance.

Landing dizzily, the myriad of colours faded from my fur, my body heavy and lethargic from overexerting all I could muster. Stumbling back, I felt Ren catch me with her good arm, the two of us breathing heavily, staring up at Velkhana who stood back on her hindlegs... was it not enough...?

I almost drew upon a weak Aura Sphere... only for Blackrime Velkhana to finally come crashing down at our feet in a last, dying gasp. Above, the swirling storm steadily began to clear, the air returning to its natural hue as the Elder's influence quickly dispelled in a gentle, befitting, snowfall.

Several seconds passed before any sound was made, starting with cheering from the back of the cache, which set of a chain reaction from one pony to the next, a tentative, trembling sound that grew into a resounding roar. Earth-bound ponies raised their hooves, unicorns let off what little magic they had into the clearing sky, and pegasai flew high, voices joined in a chorus of jubilation. Tears streamed down the faces of the old and the young alike, mingling relief flooding my own aura.

"Well, that went wel- oh, there we go," And I fell onto my backside, Ren simply flopping onto her back, each of us sighing heavily. Topaz just didn't bother to sit upright at all, content to lay in the snow like a dead fish.

"Zen!" And I nearly joined them both as Yui tackled me into a bone-crushing embrace, expertly avoiding the spike on my chest, nuzzling the underside of my jaw with a giggle that vibrated over my neck, forcing my own, tired chuckle to follow, holding my less aching arm around her back. "...you ass." She swiped my right ear.

"Ow, deserved," I winced, pulling back to meet her captivating face with a stupid grin. "How's that for a Guildmaster, huh?"

Snickering a little, Yui brushed some of her mane back, she wasn't crying out of joy or ready to scold me more, instead, I was met with only a strong sensation of affection behind that face of hers, her eye twinkling with love I had know for over two years. And just now, a fearsome resolve that could even leave an Elder Dragon in disbelief.

Leaning in, her lips came to linger on mine for few seconds, sending a delightful buzz down my sore muscles. "Just what I already knew you could do and more." She answered softly, her forehead coming to rest against mine. "I'm glad you're okay..."

"Ditto, should've known you'd risk everything to have my back." I'd scold her for it, but I was both tired and just relieved to be holding her.

"Was there really any doubt?" She giggled, winking... or blinking, always hard to tell with her bangs. "To the ends of the earth, I recall."

My paw lightly slapped my forehead. "How could I forget?"

"Three cheers to the newest Guildleader of the Hunters!" We turned our heads to Ren, who merely raised a fist to the sky, not bothering to move but wore a toothy smile all the same.

"I think the blood stopped flowing to my legs..." Topaz groaned, which got a light laugh out of my lips, all that weight finally releasing my shoulders.

"Everything is just so crazy now,"

Surrounded by the cheers of Snowfall, holding the woman I loved, I leaned my head back toward the clear, blue skies starting to emerge, rays of sunlight pouring down on the snowy mountains. Equestria's changed a lot in two years, and it'll continue to do so into its future.

"And I don't know what my future holds, but..."

Looking to Yui who laughed at something Ren was saying, the human pouring the contents of a mega potion into Topaz's mouth, I couldn't take my eyes off the purplette for a second, or that azure spark blanketed by her lilac aura.

"...I can't wait to find out."

<><><>Quest Complete!<><><>

[Several Years Later...]
[Akira's POV]

"-Carving knife? Check. Aaaand... yeah, should be everything..." Murmuring to myself, I packed up the last of my gear and tightened the straps of each buckle, hoisting the saddlebags on comfortably.

In doing so, my eyes caught the reflective, blue sheen in my left eye, coming from the little bracket clutching a thick scale, its surface like volcanic rock petrified in blue ice. I had a whole bunch of keepsakes and gifts my parents gathered on their travels, my Dad said it came from a powerful Elder Dragon, and a new Variant he's never seen no less!

Moving closer, I adjusted it slightly on my table, causing the rays of light to bounce toward my bedroom ceiling, smiling in satisfaction at the adjustment. Trotting over to my door, I picked up my sword and buckler and headed out, I had a Hunter's trial waiting for me, after all, and I'll have plenty of my own keepsakes to gather once I join the Guild.

I wonder if I'll ever face a Velkhana like that?

With that, I gently shut the door behind me...

The End.

Author's Note

And we once again reach the end, my final addition to the Indomitable world. The beginnings of the Hunter's Guild that would help to reshape Equestria, a land now filled with monsters. I really enjoyed this, especially in making my own Variant on Velkhana, so I, of course, went all-in, bringing almost all of Zen's strongest feats into play.

Also, Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, even if you don't celebrate, have a Happy New Year! 🎄🎉

I sincerely hope you enjoyed, I appreciate the support now and forevermore; and may the Sapphire Star light your way, Hunters!