Chapter 8- Not so Easy

As Kain walks out of the ship, he is immediately met with an intense heat, as if the planet he had arrived at was stuck in a permanent summer. the scene in front of him feels entirely alien. Stretching in front of him is a vast prairie of orange-red grass. There is an occasional tree jutting out from the landscape, reaching towards the sky. The sky is a familiar blue, but Kain is amazed as he sees that this planet has 3 moons fully visible in the light of day. He stands there in a daze, amazed by the entirely new landscape.

Pulling himself out of his reverie, Kain notices signs of life in the large stretch of land. It is evident that Cortex's landing scared off most life, but the fresh droppings scattered around the ground hints at a thriving wildlife. Turning his gaze to the horizon, he notices movement in the distance. He immediately climbs atop his ship for an advantageous position and lies down, looking through the magnified scope of his rifle. After searching for a while, he spots the source of the movement he had witnessed. He immediately recognized it to be a large mouse, a common rodent in the poorer regions of earth. However, after a closer look, he saw a few distinct differences. Its fur was a distinct maroon color, its claws were a dark red, and shone with a dangerous gleam, and as it ate a nut from a nearby tree, he saw that its teeth chewed through the shell as if it were butter.

Kain imagines what it would be like to get bitten by the thing, and can't help but shudder, asking Cortex through his bracelet, "What is that? It looks like a mouse, but not at the same time."

Cortex wastes no time in answering, "That's an Ember Mouse, the main inhabitant of this planet. They feed mostly on vegetation, and are capable of making their bodies so hot as to severely burn someone just by toughing them. Mouse type beasts are very fast at reproducing, but are also considered to be the weakest individually. Ember Mice especially are territorial animals, so they do not form groups, making them even easier to deal with. That's why I chose this planet to start with. Remember, though, the Ember Mouse may be weak compared to other beasts, but it is very violent, and could still kill you if it gets your head, so be careful sir."

"I know, that's why I chose a ranged weapon."

Kain looks through the scope at the Ember Mouse once more, moving his finger to the trigger to prepare to fire. The rifle feels clunky in his hands, uncomfortable. He adjusts his body slightly trying to get a comfortable grip. After a few seconds, he gives up on that pursuit, trying his best to aim at his target. In his focus, his face gets so close as to touch the scope, as Kain finally gets the beast in his crosshairs. Kain's breathing speeds up, and he fires. However, his breathing had messed up his shot, and it veers past the beast, piercing through the tree it was next to, punching a baseball sized hole all the way through it. Meanwhile, Kain is quick to regret placing his face on the scope, as the kickback from the shot slams the scope into his face, causing him to reel back in pain.

"Ah!" Kain rubs his eye, which begins to bruise, and frustration boils inside of him.

Kain swears he can almost hear Cortex chuckle as it pipes up "Sir, the records recommend keeping the face from the scope to avoid kickback, and to breathe out as you take the shot. It says you need to adjust for distance and wind as well, perhaps you should do some practice to improve your aim before trying again? I can make a simulation room, if needed?"

He shakes his head, rejecting the offer, frustrated that Cortex had not informed him of this earlier. He adjusts his body again to look back into the scope at the Ember Mouse. The beast had noticed the attempted attack, but was not easily scared. It seemed to be looking around for the source, standing upon its hind feet smelling the air. Kain smirks, this was a clean second shot, and he intended to take it. Taking Cortex's advice, he distances his head from the scope more, and breathes steadily while taking the shot. once ready, he fires off a shot. His hopes are high, and he sees that his aim had improved greatly. However, his lack of training is still apparent, as the shot misses the beast all together, piercing into the ground beside it.

The mouse had been paying attention to its surroundings this time, and Kain's shot alerted it to his position. Just as he was about to set up another shot, the Ember Mouse screeches, and bolts towards his position. He tries to follow it with his scope, but it is far too fast, and he is forced to give up the rifle, standing up and pulling the pistol from his waist. Looking through the sights, he fires off a number of shots at the beast speeding towards him. The gun had no kickback, but his aim, especially under pressure, was simply abysmal. His shots don't even come close to the beast, leaving many scorch marks on the ground around it as it runs to him. Quickly, the Ember Mouse reaches the ship, and Kain takes some solace in the thought that he is high up, and the beast shouldn't be able to reach him.

The beast soon destroys this hope, leaping easily through the air as it glows a faint red like hot embers, slamming directly into Kain's stomach at high speeds. He gets no time to be astonished at this feat, as the pain causes him to open his mouth as if to scream, but no sound escapes his mouth. Kain flies backwards, the contents of his stomach pushed out in the collision, creating a trail in the air. He skids across the smooth metal of the ship for a while before coming to a stop, gasping for breath. He can feel an intense burning from his skin on his stomach, but his opponent leaves him no time to breathe. No sooner than he looked up does he see the Ember Mouse rushing towards him. Instinctively, he holds his hands in front of his face, closing his eyes and flinching, unresigned to death.

It fearsomely chomps down on his left hand, causing intense pain once more. Luckily, the glove prevents its sharp teeth from piercing his skin, but a cruel cracking noise can be heard from his bones and an intense smell of burning flesh fills the air. Kain screams at the top of his lungs from the unbearable pain and, in a desperate fight for life, reaches to his waist with his right hand, grabs the knife, and swings it wildly at the beast.

The knife cuts through the Ember Mouse with zero resistance, the only hint that he had won this battle for his life being the splash of blood hitting his face, soaking him and his clothes in seconds. The beast is cut cleanly into 2 uneven pieces and as they flop to the metal roof, Kain joins them. As he holds his left hand close to him and clutches his stomach, he takes ragged breaths wracked with pain, collapsed on the floor staring directly at the broken body of his opponent. If he were to have anything left to throw up he would, as he feels a deep uncomfortableness within him. He had done it, he had survived and defeated his first elemental beast. However, he had also killed for the first time in his life, and as he looks at his doing, he is deeply disgusted.

His vision fades to black, his injuries and pain too much to handle, and the roof opens up to take in Kain and the dead body. As his consciousness fades, he hears the worried voice of Cortex calling out to him as his body is gently moved to a prepared medical bed, "Sir, are you okay?! I'll get you patched up quickly-..." and the darkness takes over.