Cackles erupted around us as the magnificent phoenix spread her wings wide.
"Fools, I'll make it a merciful death for Rem's peace!" Midna snarled as Fenris and the boys also shifted into their wolf forms.
I was never much of a team player, but I would try to be on this occasion. Shade was the first to land a blow on her by whipping her tail forward. We had to figure out where Rem's physical body was, as the entire thing smelled of magic, allowing us Lycans to tell that the bird was an illusion made from it.
The problem was that although it was a mirage, it had a physical form. So, any blow from it would hurt any of us. Sadly, I was the first to receive a blow from her feathery tail as she swept the surrounding ground, making everyone retreat.
My injured paw was in agony, trying to move to dodge it, though the tail wasn't what struck me. No, a rogue feather that sliced my cheek slightly, only to be repelled by my aura soon after.
Fuck, I'm rusty.
The sharpness of Midna's feathers was surprising, yet the pain it caused was nothing compared to what Rem had felt. Taking the opportunity, I climbed up her tail and back, only to be grabbed by Shade's tail as she suddenly yanked me away while the goddess's body gave off a blue hue. A second later, her feathers shot out from everywhere in her body.
Ruzgard retrieved the twins while Fenris dispelled everything with a shield he created. The old wolf's power truly differentiated from mine. There was nothing destructive about it, no his was…
Protective…
It was another thing I could never accomplish. A slight chuckle left my lips as working in a team was something I wasn't used to.
"I only did that for Rem." Shade huffed herself up.
Unable to help it, I broke into a more significant laugh. This familiar had a spark to her.
No wonder Rem always calls you mischievous.
"Doesn't matter. That wouldn't have killed me," I announced, freeing myself from her grip.
Rushing past Fenris's shield and his family, I dove into the onslaught of attacks. Midna was destroying everything around me as the ground appeared to have been dying off or burnt off. The moon's power allowed me to repel her deadly touch while the familiars kept the witches safe. Taking a leap of faith, I launched myself onto Midna's back and her head.
Swiftly and effortlessly, I shifted into my humanoid form, smashing my hands down on her, destabilizing the surrounding magic. I could never cancel out Rem's essence even more since I feared hurting her, which made me withhold back my true potential.
A mistake I never made before this moment. Midna's attacks stopped, allowing Vera and Lilith to send out chains from the ground, trying to bind the bird. Her brothers and Fenris caused the goddess to lose balance.
The shackles yanked Midna onto the ground, allowing me to shift back into my beast form and leap off her as the body fell utterly limp. For a minute, it seemed we somehow subdued the rogue goddess; taking the opportunity that she appeared less hostile, I jumped back onto her.
Her entire focus was on freeing herself from the bindings, which gave off a bright blue hue. There was a weird device in Lilith's hands, but I couldn't analyze it further. Though it was one of those items, she had developed to fight the shadow demons that roamed our world.
She was a genius in her art, mixing it with the humans and elves to create many valuable things. The cuff I had endured at the raider's hands was one of them. Though none mattered, I needed to find the core where Rem was before I could take a step forward and locate it.
The scent of blood filled the air when Lilith bled from her nose and ears, making it apparent that holding onto Midna was too much for her body to bear.
"Mom!" Vera cried out to her.
She and the boys were all distracted because of it.
I mean, who wouldn't be? They are barely adults but in war…
Unlike the young ones, Fenris and I didn't momentarily take our eyes off Midna as I tried to sprint to find the core. It was a matter of seconds before everything went erroneously.
"I'm fine. Concentrate!" Lilith warned her children as the twins held onto Midna's legs with something similar to what Fenris had done before.
However, that lapse in judgment was all Midna needed. Fenris, who had joined me on top of her body, seemed wary as the device in Lilith's hands turned into ashes, leaving only a light purple flame in her palm behind.
The oversized bird broke from the chains that bound her instantly as she released a screech while her tail almost crushed one twin. A second later, her movement threw Fenris and me off, but not before I saw a light purple glow from her chest near her neck.
Lilith fell to her knees, causing Shade to rush to her side. Even though he wanted to run to her too, Fenris couldn't. Instead, he kept his eyes locked on Midna, who got back on her feet. On the side, Caden rushed to Aiden, who had received a nasty blow to one of his legs.
He was lucky she didn't cut it in half. In seconds, a gust of wind rushed past us from the flap of her wings when she took flight.
"Shade... don't hold back," Lilith huffed, struggling to get on her feet.
The cat nodded in response as black orbs appeared around her before they sent steady beams of light into Midna. Vera joined her mother to help her, triggering Ruzgard to meet Shade in her magical assault as he shot a blue beam out of his mouth.
Midna responded in kind in seconds, sprouting a purple fire from her mouth and into them, switching Ruzgard and Shade's offense into a defense as they created a barrier around their witches. It wasn't sure if the familiars could keep them up for long.
However, this was the only opening I could see. They fully caught Midna's attention, making her ignore us wolves. One of us was down, leaving only three that could move freely.
"Dad! What do we do?!" Aiden questioned, holding onto his injured leg as Caden helped set it in place.
"I… I don't know." Fenris sighed, eyes darting around to see if he could spot anything to help him find his daughter.
Why… didn't… wasn't that bright enough for everyone to see? Or… is it because… Is everything because of the connection you and I shared? Including… that voice?
If we were still connected, then... I...
"Launch me to her chest!" I commanded Fenris and Caden, who stared at me momentarily only to catch on quickly.
Leaving Aiden behind, the twin joined us as his brother's leg wouldn't heal in time. I bolted to them without considering how wrong this could go, shifted back into my humanoid form, and jumped toward them. They used all their strength to launch me into the sky and towards Midna.
Fire suddenly surrounded the oversized bird as I remained like a projectile, headed to her. Once in the air and distant from them, I no longer had to hold back. The only things there were Midna and me as I let myself smash through her inferno and slam into her chest.
This was going to be a first for me. I had only ever used my power for destruction. So, I was unsure if I would destroy Rem and Midna's body, but there was no time to think.
All I want is to have you back!
With that hope and goal in mind, I pressed onward. Upon impact, my hand had somehow dug itself into her chest, allowing me to feel a loose arm at the end. Somehow, instead of destroying Midna's body, I had phased through it enough to reach the core.
All around me, it was as if time had frozen, as even the flames surrounding me seemed to have stopped in their tracks. Tearing my eyes off the scenery, without hesitating, I yanked whatever I had in my grip out of Midna's body.
The instant I saw what was emerging from it, relief washed over me when I witnessed Rem's face come out of the dark body that had dissipated. The color that had vanished from her face returned as I pulled her into my chest.
Even though we were in free fall, I only cared about her breathing in my arms.
Rem, I'm never letting you go!