Hunted

VII

Meanwhile, with Kilo and Phoenix. Kilo was waking up, yawning, and jumping down from the tree. He looked at Phoenix who was still asleep. Merf was no where to be seen. "Hm..?" he muttered, looking around for her. Nothing. "Where could she be.?" he whispered to himself. He narrowed his eye ridges. His black-blue eyes spotted a tall mountain, a hole was at the top. He shrugged and didn't think much of it.

His heart almost stopped when he heard a piercing scream echo through the valley. Merf. She was at the mountain. He started running, Phoenix waking up. "Hey! Where are you-?!" she was cut off by another scream. She got up, but Kilo suddenly said, "Stay here, out of trouble. Merf's in trouble.." he ordered, flying off toward the mountain. Phoenix growled, irritated. "I feel babysitted." she muttered, lying down again.

Kilo flew over the mountain, seeing a big dragon beside a smaller one. Zodiac.. He thought, gliding down at a safe distance. He was at a place some dragons call a volcano. He looked down, seeing the bigger dragon saying something to her. He narrowed his eyes, his vision zooming in on the scene. The bigger dragon was laughing slightly, his big tail swaying. Merf was badly injured, her tail tip was only half, and her wing had a tear in it. He called out her name. "Zodiac!" Merf looked at him, smiling suddenly and jumping to her feet. She groaned, but went to a part where the magma was not there. Kilo jumped down and cut the chain. She regained energy fast, jumping up to the side of the volcano. Kilo looked at the bigger dragon. He was growling and his mouth was opening. Kilo could see he was about to fire. Just then Merf jumped onto the back of the bigger dragon, dragging him to the ground. He roared, trying to knock her off. But she wouldn't get off. Instead she bit his neck, not letting go. The bigger dragon roared in pain. Merf may have been small, but her species was powerful. The bite of one of her species could kill any dragon within a few minutes. She let go, as the venom seeped into the big dragon. "That's for breaking my tail." She growled jumping off. He fell to the magma, dead. Just then the mountain rumbled, shaking. The magma broke and lava started seeping out of some cracks. Merf's eyes widened.

"Kilo!" she yelled. He was on the other side of the mountain, trying to catch balance. "We have to go, now!" Merf screamed. "I know! C'mon!" Kilo jumped down the mountain, gliding. Merf felt her chances to survive up here were nothing. She did the same, though the gliding part was wobbly. It hurt to use her wing. The mountain erupted with lava. The lava poured down quickly. Kilo grabbed Merf and flew away. She tried flapping but it hurt. "Kilo I can't fly!" she yelped, her paws walking on the air. Kilo looked at her and glided down, landing at the pond.

"Phoenix?" Kilo called, looking around. He let go of Merf's paw. She caught her balance and looked around as well. Phoenix was no where to be seen. "Where is she?" Merf asked, looking at Kilo. "I don't know.." he said, looking concerned. Merf growled. Something sketchy is going on here.. She thought, walking around. Her ears perked up to a roar that scared birds off the trees. She looked in the direction the roar came from. "Kilo, did you hear that?" she asked, narrowing her eye ridges. "Yes.." he whispered. "We have to go look to see what that was-!" Merf urged, only to be cut off by Kilo who said, "You're hurt, Zodiac. You can't fly with a tear like that." Merf growled, puffing a ball of smoke. "I can, and I will!" she growled, stomping her paw on the soil. Kilo looked into the distance again. "It's too dangerous." he said, looking to where Merf would have been standing. His eyes widened as he saw her running off down the cliff, and toward the place where the roar had come from.