Chapter 4
For the rest of that week, Hermione, Draco, and Ben worked hard on winning the trust from the Elastic Greyhounds. Eventually, they all managed to emotionally bond with them, as they learned to master what came naturally to Rey: unintrusive loyalty. Only when they stopped trying to show how trustworthy and loyal they were to the Greyhounds were the canines able to feel more secure around them.
And much to Hermione's disappointment, Draco beat her at bonding with the canines. Somehow, that self-inflated, manipulative prick managed to get those Elastic Greyhounds to like him and feel safe around him, before they grew to like and trust Hermione. And what made her even more frustrated was that Rey had beat all of them at bonding with them, without needing to have put any effort into it.
Ugh…come on….Hermione thought silently as she walked away from the outskirts of the Elastic Greyhounds' territory. Why is it that those who work hard don't get what they deserve, and those who don't do shit get whatever they want? She clenched her fists as the image of Draco's sneering face popped up in her head. Then she scolded herself for feeling the way she was feeling toward Rey. I shouldn't be envious of her….it's not like she's rubbing it in my face or anything…but then she clenched her fists again and frowned. But she DOES have a dangerous motive for embarking on this Elite Quest. She's here for the same reason Ben Solo is. To retrieve those Boundless Orbs….for those diabolical Genomorphs who have taken over their colonies.
As of right now, Rey had obtained the Boundless Orb of Resilience, the orb that was hidden within the most dangerous depths of the Elastic Greyhounds' territory. Since she was the first to have bonded with the Elastic Greyhounds, she was able to receive their blood transfusion and obtain the ability to transform into an Elastic Greyhound and traverse the most dangerous areas and obtain the Orb.
Hermione was now torn between wanting to prove to Draco that she could best him, and wanting to stop Rey and Ben from obtaining the rest of the Orbs for the Toxicspot Leopard Genomorphs. Either way, she had to persist and bond with the remaining four Elite species if she was to obtain the powers to do either.
But before she could make another move, a violent wave of water crashed into her from behind, washing her down a steep hill. Hermione reactively transformed into her Whirlpool Otter form before she could drown. She twisted her body aside and landed on a nearby ledge, facing the falling water down the steep. She gasped, realizing the water was falling into a vast sea of crashing waves. She looked around and saw various trees and rocks jutting up across the sea in the distance, many of which were being bombarded by the tumultuous waves. Majestic forms of blue-feathered owls were soaring over the waves-- some were causing the tumultuous waves to rise and crash around.
The territory of Rainfeather Owls. Hermione realized she was already in the territory of another one of the Five Elites.
She looked around, and saw Rey standing atop a giant branch of a giant tree that jutted from the sea, just a short distance from her ledge.
"Rey?" Hermione called.
Rey was in her human form, looking around analytically. But then her eyes widened as she turned to face Hermione.
"Look out!" Screamed Rey.
Hermione gasped and jumped aside, barely avoiding the giant talons of a magnificent barn owl that attempted to snatch her. She scurried beneath a rock, watching as the barn owl's white face and surrounding blue feathers illuminated just slightly under the moonlight sky.
Oh great…..she felt a surge of dread sweep through her. While the Elastic Greyhounds are on the flighty side, these Rainfeather Owls are on the fighting side. They attack, rather than flee….
Hermione braced herself as the Rainfeather Owl released spurts of water from between its blue feathers, sending spurts in Hermione's direction. Hermione swished her tail, sending the water to move aside, but the Rainfeather Owl was too strong. Hermione was immediately washed up into the water and tossed around like a piece of dead fish. She could barely scream from all the water getting in her mouth.
Rey jumped forward, transforming into a steel-feathered, steel-beaked crane, since she figured attacking the Rainfeather Owl in this form would be easier than trying to use any other form to counter the Owl's attacks.
But another Rainfeather Owl-- a great-horned owl completely covered in blue feathers-- zoomed nearby and sent a huge wave that knocked her entire steel-heavy body into the sea. Rey transformed into a Daggerfin Dolphin and leapt out toward the owl that had knocked her out, flipping around rapidly in attempts to slice at it with her tailfin. But the owl's talons grabbed her fin. Rey felt its sharp talons sink deeply, causing her to scream in agony in through both dolphin and human screams.
She then transformed into her human form reactively, as she was in too much pain to have anymore willpower to maintain her animal form. And as soon as she transformed back into human form, she felt wet, cold claws wrap around her entire body. The Rainfeather Owl had grabbed her in its talons, and was now soaring over the tumultuous waves below. The Elite hoxian animal landed on a great rock that was merely a flat platform. Rey gasped, realizing why it was headed this way. She noticed Ben was there, in human form, his legs frozen in an iceberg. But then he transformed into a fire-pelted tiger and broke out of it. He whirled around and faced Draco Malfoy, who was standing just a few meters away, smiling sassily.
"Next time, think twice before you get dirt on my slacks," Draco sneered. He then transformed into Snowfur Ferret form, sending sharp daggers that dodged the balls of flames Ben purged at him.
Rey watched as the two of them transformed into various forms of animal species, fighting each other physically, before the Rainfeather Owl sent a wave of water that washed them toward the end of the rock. Draco was suddenly back in human form, having barely managed to grab the edge of the rock. Ben, however, was washed off with the water.
Draco gasped as he saw Ben get swallowed up in the crashing waves. He widened his eyes at the incoming Rainfeather Owl that had washed them aside.
Crap….I gotta get outta here…he transformed into an Inkblood Squid and fell into the water, releasing a bunch of noxious ink so that the owls wouldn’t dare grab him.
However, the owl easily washed the ink away after swirling him and the water around, diluting it within seconds.
"Ahhh!" Draco yowled and transformed into a white shark, escaping the swirling water and racing away. Forget about attacking….and forget about defending. He just had to flee.
He swam and swam, not looking back. Eventually, he grew exhausted and he leapt onto a tree branch of one of the trees that rose from the water. He transformed into human form, panting and weak with exhaustion. He looked around, relieved that the waters were more tranquil here, with just gentle movements of waves against the tree he was settled on. And best of all, there was no sign of those nasty, aggressive owls.
Then a screech pierced through the sky. Draco felt a wave of dread as he looked over his shoulder and saw a Rainfeather Owl flying his way. His shoulders slumped. He had no more energy to morph. And there was no way his puny human form could ever cope with whatever this animal could do to him. Draco looked away and shut his eyes, preparing for the worse.
He felt the owl's talons stab his back shoulder and he let out a quick yowl. But then he widened his eyes. The stab felt painful….yet at the same time, he felt something rush in his blood that seemed to lessen the pain.
Then his heart leapt with surprise rather than fear.
The Rainfeather Owl was transfusing its blood to him.
When it took its talons out of his shoulder, Draco turned to the owl, looking confused and surprised.
The owl chortled and spoke in hoxtongue through a series of gutturals and hoots. "You were the only one of the four who didn’t try to fight back at us. It's nice to see a human humble themselves for a change."
Draco was taken aback. If he wasn’t so shocked, he would've burst into laughter. Me? Humble?!
Yet, he found himself feeling both grateful and humble at the same time. He gave the owl a slow nod. "G-glad to hear that I've pleased you…."