Zodiac Hunter: The Spirit Equine

The skies were rumbling with thunder and heavy with rain. The rain was no longer falling in reverse. It fell all over me but I did not seem to get wet, not even a little. The thunder intensified, startling me but then the more I paid attention to it, the more I realized that it was neither coming from the sky nor was it even thunder.

I turned my eyes from the sky and almost fell after realizing where I was standing. The air was hard and cold. The ground below me was white, entirely covered in snow. I was standing on a mountain, at its very peak where the clouds were but an arm's length away.

The thundering sound broke out again, causing the clouds to dissipate and the ground beneath me to shake. I followed the sound and my eyes landed on an opening at the mountain's peak. A cave. I walked towards it. It was darkened. I could not see anything.

The cave's walls vibrated from the sound which had now become clearer. It was like a roar. More than a lion's but as that of some unspeakable creature. I knew this because I could feel its breathing. It was deep and hot, warming up the entire cave.

I then heard voices. A lot of them but I could not quite make out what they were saying. They were all silenced by another roar. I was ready this time, following the sound to its exact source and there it stood.

It must have sensed my presence because its breathing had reduced. The air had grown more tense. I waited.

"Their souls will be ours to claim yet again. . ." the voice with the roar spoke, sounding almost like a man, but one that was not at all human.

My right arm started to act up. The arrow symbol was glowing, its light illuminating the cave, allowing me to see who that voice belonged to.

I gasped and the source of the voice turned around. I only caught its eyes—two bright red spheres that looked like fire was burning within them. Fear must have gotten the best of me because I started taking several steps back and out of the cave.

The source of the voice was coming for me. I could hear its thundering roar once more which shook the ground so hard that I lost my balance and tripped over the edge. . .

I awoke with a start, instantly checking my body for signs of fractures or bruises. Luckily for me, nothing was broken, no red-eyed monster was coming at me and the only mountain I could see was several miles away, towering over an island as streaks of bright yellow light cut through over its peak. It was daylight. The skies were clear, with no signs of there having been a storm.

I discovered that I had been sleeping as I sat up and propped my back against a rock. Water splashed against more rocks a few yards away from me. Somehow I had made it back to shore and not drowned, again.

Still trying to figure out how the hell I was still alive, I got up on my feet after which I wished I hadn't. My whole body was sore, probably from sleeping on the rocky and sandy ground. I tried to spot Jon but there was no sign of the magnificent white stallion, save for a couple of pelicans swooping down for fish at the shoreline.

I wanted to call out but thought better of it. I was pretty sure I could not open my mouth, which felt dry. I traced my eyes back to the place where I recalled the horse had been feeding on grass earlier on. Nothing.

I traced my eyes further, doing so in a panoramic fashion such that I was sweeping over the entire rocky shoreline until I came across something odd.

It must have happened in a fleeting second but I was sure I had spotted something move. It looked kind of white, maybe it was Jon? But why would he be hiding?

It was several meters away from where I was, further down the shore where there were more rocks and boulders.

"J-Jon?" I cried but my words came out more like a croak.

I decided to get closer and get the horse out myself. Perhaps he was stuck or something.

I had almost made it there when my arm started to act up again. I had had it with that weird symbol. It had been pretty cool the first couple of times but at that point, it was just getting irritating. The thing was glowing even in my dreams! It was like being a human LED.

Anyways, the glowing seemed a bit different this time. There was kind of a pattern to it. Its intensity would rise and fall like a beacon, going from bright neon green to dim. The frequency of the pattern increased the closer I got to the boulders which had created a sort of cave.

Given what I had just experienced in my dreams, perhaps it was best to not go in there. Maybe that was why the symbol on my arm was glowing. Maybe it was trying to warn me? But something felt strange; stranger than everything I had just recently seen.

It was like I wanted to go in there, just like back in the dream. I had to see what this was. And just like that, curiosity got the better of me. I walked over to the cave's entrance and what I saw was clearly not what I had expected.

There was no horse in there either, instead, huddled on the ground, back against the wall and hands wrapped around knees; was a woman—or at least I thought it looked like a woman. It was difficult to tell, especially when her skin was literally glowing, her complexion somewhere between blue and white. She had thick locks of hair that flowed down to the floor, partially covering her face with bright curls of blue and purple. She was in a long gown that had a surreal sapphire hue, which matched her skin but glistened in the light, making it appear crystalline.

I would have remained there standing, lost in awe, had I not noticed her eyes. They were big but not in a creepy abnormal way, more like in a mesmerizing fashion, exuding some kind of mystical aura to them, which was only emphasized by their blue glow.

Her eyes then met mine and I had to stumble backwards. I had seen far too many glowing eyes so far and I was almost beginning to regret why I had walked into that cave.

Strange things had been happening on this island ever since my arrival. There was no saying what this-this woman-looking—whatever she was—would do to me. But I can tell you that it was not giving off a smile and going on to say, "You're awake."

When she had spoken, some of her hair fell away from her face and she did not look bad. Okay, I'm being modest here; she was really pretty. Her face looked so timeless, it was hard to tell how old she was but looked to be just about as old as I was.

I was about to ask how she had known I had been asleep but then another more plausible thought crossed my mind. "Wait, did you—did you pull me out of the water?"

"Looked like you needed a hand," the woman replied. Her voice was soft and, dare I say it, weirdly dreamy.

I took a moment to try and see if I could recall what had happened after the wave had taken me down. I could only see bubbles and the eerie bright blue light but nothing else.

"You saved my life then," I said, "thanks."

"Well, it was the least I—" the woman started but her face contorted into a frown as she shut her eyes and let out a low hiss.

"Are you okay?" I asked, noticing her hands clasped over what appeared to be some kind of wound at her side.

"Oh me?" she humored, opening her eyes and I was once again looking into their mystical glow. "I've never been better. . ."

The words seemed to trail off, followed by her eyes shutting again. She let out a small sigh and gently fell back against the wall.

Panicking, as I always did every time someone was in distress, I rushed over and knelt next to her. The symbol on my arm was now glowing wildly and even brighter. I tried shaking her awake but her body had gone limp. I looked at her face. Her ethereal skin was no longer glowing but had taken a paler and more human complexion. There was something on her forehead, something like a symbol, but I was more concerned about the wound on her torso. It was big and appeared to have been gashing with some kind of bluish liquid that I assumed was her blood.

I knew I had to do something and fast, otherwise my apparent hero would soon bleed to her death.