Kelpie

"Ah, careful." Darragh pressed a hand into Ronan's chest before dragging him behind a bush, staring intently at the horse-like figure that he had spotted moments ago. The rain poured and soaked the boys down to the bone, causing both of the young men to shiver from the cold.

Ronan huffed, glaring at Darragh for keeping him out longer than he had to be, before he turned his attention back to the silhouetted figure that stood close to the lake. "What's th’ craic? Looks normal ta me."

"It's a kelpie—bastards'll drag ya down to drown if ye ain't careful." Darragh whispered, slowly pulling an arrow out of his quiver and aiming his bow. "One shot to th' neck should do it." He took in a breath, feeling his muscles tense as he pulled back the string, the rain making the gloves slip just slightly.

Ronan paused, squinting his eyes and trying to take a closer look at the horse without getting physically closer to the creature. The pitch black coat and the way its mane looked like wet kelp became more obvious as his eyes began to adjust to the darkness—maybe Darragh wasn't lying. He took a small glance towards his friend, seeing the pure focus in his eyes as he aimed before looking back at the creature.

Ronan had heard about Kelpies, they looked like normal horses and usually appeared during storms. They waited until a human would mount, and then drag them to the bottom of the nearest pond or river and eat them once the poor bastards drowned. He never thought he'd see one in the flesh, though. Legends said its skin was as sticky as tar, trapping the souls so they couldn't get off before it was too late.

The silence was palpable, the only sound being the rain hitting the leaves, thunder, and an occasional snort from the creature. And then, in a single flash, the arrow struck. The kelpie reared back, letting out a blood curdling neigh followed by thunder—it was almost like the creature summoned the storm. It soon fell to the ground, motionless, after struggling for what seemed like ages.

The two watched the kelpie die, the blood flowing out of the creature's fatal wound, both of their breaths were shallow as the cold of the rain restricted their breathing. “Is… Is it dead?” Ronan asked, taking the chance to edge closer to the kelpie’s corpse, seeing the water slide down the monster’s skin, and life fading from its eyes. He wanted to touch it, just to see what it felt like, but the legends kept his hands close to his chest.

Darragh let out a soft sigh before meeting up with Ronan, placing a hand on his shoulder as he looked at the arrow protruding from the kelpie’s throat. “Ta yoke’s likely ain’t comin’ back… We should ge’ on outta ‘ere before we fin’ on ou’, righ’?” He gave Ronan a pat on the shoulder before stepping over the corpse and continuing onward, back towards the kingdom outside of the forest.

Ronan paused before following behind, being more cautious and slowly stepping around the body and catching up with the hunter, staying by his side as they walked in silence, neither wishing to talk about the experience they both just had.