Private Tales S.A.P.

[Kiara]

After entering the forest, 'Hellius' appearance changed, revealing his true form. The dust lady. As the lady walked through the forest, she carried Kiara over her shoulder, as if the elf was a sack of potatoes. Only one idea crossed over the lady's head. Revenge!
If she was no longer able to return to her world, thus, not having her happy ending, then no one else would! She would make everyone that had interfered with her plan regret for it! The kid that worked with her was already dead, and Killian's party died due to the demon. But there were still people for her to redirect and place her anger.

At her destination, the woman dropped the elf on the ground, not even bothering to be gentle. She was back to the place where she first landed. The farm where Jaken had found the primitive looking golden flower. A bit cliche, but this would give a symbolic meaning to her actions.
First, she would need to redecorate that place. An easy task. She killed every single living beings, the farmers and all the animals, turning the farm into a slaughterhouse. Once the job was done, she turned to the sleeping elf. All kinds of ideas popped into her mind, as she gazed coldly at the elf.
<"I can cut her ears first, I don't fancy pointy ears. What if I disfigure that pretty face of your's? Would he still like you? Hmm... I could also chop you into pieces, then send to him over time. I would love to see him receive the first pack, such a pretty gift! After the first one, he would be trembling on each new package that he would receive, until the "collection" was completed!">
All the new ideas were darker and malefic than the previous ones. That's the most scary thing in women. If one is hurt, then you can count that she will search for a way to strike and damage you in all possible ways, not only physically, but also mentally and sentimentally. All for the sake of causing as much pain as possible. A creepy grin adorned the woman's face as another idea came into her mind, a very twisted one.

She wasted no time, working on her plan, preparing the farm for the guest of honor. The woman was not stupid. Surely Jaken wouldn't come alone, but this was a private party.
The lady set traps around the farm perimeter, bear traps, land mines, etc. To keep away unwanted guests. But the most important one, was a magic trap, an invisible barrier placed around the barn, that would only allow the werewolf's entrance, while keeping everyone else on the outside, and once Jaken had crossed the barrier, he would not be able to cross it again, at least until the lady canceled the spell.
The sun was almost threatening to rise, and there was still one last task to deal with. This would not be a problem, in fact, it would be an advantage, since Jaken couldn't turn into his wolf form during the day.
For the final detail, the lady returned to the barn. Taking Kiara once again, she manhandled the elf like she was a porcelain doll, positioning the elf and seating her on top of a bale of straw.
Kiara was under a mind control spell. Although the elf had a certain resistance to mind spells, she was too tired to fight it back. Her mind was clouded and dormant, waiting for new orders. Now the lady didn't no longer need to use Hellius' appearance or voice to control the elf. It was time. The lady gave the command.
"Wake up." Kiara opened her eyes, still in trance. "Lure the werewolf, bring him to me!" The living elven puppet started to sing, her voice filled the barn, echoing on the farm and spreading into the forest. The invitation had been sent. Soon the lady's prey would fall into the trap. She hid in the shadows, laughing evilly one last time, waiting.

As Kiara kept singing, the lady could hear the traps being activated. Well, even if no one died due to traps, she would deal with the unwanted guests later.
Soon someone was coming in the barn direction. The lady knew who it was. Her heart was already pounding with excitement! She couldn't wait to see what kind of face the werewolf would display. It didn't matter who would survive, she would be the winner anyway!

When Jaken entered the barn, finding the elf. Kiara stopped singing. The elf only stared with empty and emotionless eyes back at the bounty hunter that stoop few meters in front of her.
Indeed, Kiara was like a doll, waiting for her master to come and play with her. Before Jaken could make any move, the lady chuckled, revealing herself, stepping out of the shadows, the malefic grin never left her lips. She moved closer to the elf, standing behind her, taking out a dagger and placing on Kiara's throat.
"You came wolfy, such a good boy!" She said in a mocking tone.
At a slightest Jaken's move, she pressed the dagger on the elf's skin. Making a light cut, drawing a little blood. "Careful now! You don't want me to get nervous and slide open her throat by accident, wouldn't you?" She threatened, before continuing with her speech.
"You know... A lot of ideas crossed over my mind. So many things I could have done to her. Hear her screamings and begging for her life would be a delight! And see your raging face would be even better, once I described to you, all the details of her death." The lady paused, her tone of voice becoming darker and bitter. "But that would not be enough... It wouldn't even compare to what I feel right now!" she screamed at the end. Then her grin only grew.
"Why not make you or her, who knows, hate yourselves! Break you in every possible ways! That would be priceless!! MAKE YOU FEEL THE SAME AGONY THAT I FEEL!!!" She laughed. Then she leaned over Kiara's shoulder, lowering the dagger and placed it in the elf's hands. Her gaze glued on Jaken, her eyes sparking with anticipation and pleasure, as she gave a new order to her marionette.
"Kill him, or die trying." She spoke in a soft manner in the elf's ear, but loud enough for Jaken to hear.
At the new command, Kiara stood up, with the dagger in her hand. Ready to attack.

 

[Adriwolf]

The werewolf, nargacuga and lizardman made their way through the forest. It was still dark, close to dawn, bu still dark. However, Jaken had no problem making his way through the green area. Roots were not a problem, branches would be way up high to be even be a disturbance, bushes were not on his way. He knew that he would have to check if his party was ok, but this was Kiara they were talking about: Jaken's love. What could be the worst thing that could happen to the party? That they step on a log and just fall to the ground? They were grown-up, they could take care of themselves. Jaken could hear his own heart race with every step he took. They had to be close. They had to. Fafurion would find her through scent. He knew it. His guts were telling him so.

He heard something. A faint whisper. A beatiful one. It had notes and tones going up and down in perfect coordination: it was singing. But not any type of singing. He could recognize that voice even from kilometers away: it was Kaira's. He had found her!! Was Kiara calling for him? Was she in trouble??!! WHAT HAD HPPENED TO HER???!!! Jaken made a sudden move and followed the source through the woods. His body vaulted obstacles as if they were not even there. Someone would say he flew over them, like a hawk going as fast as it could to reach its destination. Merkl accidentaly kicked a big rock, that went straight into a land mine, making it dissappear into dust. As Merkl hissed in pain, holding his foot, Jaken analyzed what just happened: a trap. Someone had rigged the place with (probably) lethal traps. They had to go carefully. "Who would knew that the one of the worst pains imaginable would save our lives." he told Merkl. Merkl flipped him off. Jaken ran through the woods, using trees to gain altitude and avoid possible land traps. Fafurion and Merkl stayed behind, having to watch their steps and use different means to detect traps, like using branches to activate bear traps or rolling rocks for it to activate a land mine. Some traps were triggered, but no one got hurt. They eventually arrived at a certain place. A place that Jaken could barely remember. Way back at the motel, where Jaken had to leave to go find some food in his werewolf form, he stepped into this barn, he found a primitive golden flower. He remembered the witch telling him that this wa the place where the lady arrived to this reality. DId it had something to do with the lady? Did she had Kiara as a hostage? What would she do to her if he had not shown up??!! Jaken was the first one taking a step into the barn, not knowing about the forcefield tha lady had enchanted. However, Jaken noticed that Merkl and Fafurion were not following him. He turned around to face them. "What are you doing?" he whispered "Stop playing and move it!"
"We can't."
"Are you afraid of a fucking barn?"
"No. We ccccaaaaannnnnn'ttttttt go through." Merkl placed a hand on the air, where a dim blue light shined over the lizardman's claws. Fafurion tried the same, only to get the same result, only this time, in his nose.
"A forcefield..." he thought out loud "It appeard just when I came in. Someone knows we are here." he slightly growled, then turned back to duo outside. Maybe they could help by getting this forcefield to dissappear, but they wouldn't know how. Neither Jaken nor Merkl knew about magic, and Fafurion was just a nargacuga, he couldn't even speak. Jaken had to think on something...
"Ok. Listen up." he told Merkl "Go back to the college. Ask to speak with a guard named Joshua. I think you should be able to recognize him. He's just a kid, not over 25. When you have located him, ask him to escort you back to a cave where someone named Hellius was last seen. Tell him 'Jaken, the werewolf' sent you. Then bring them here. Make this force field go away."
"You want mmmmmeeeeee to sssssuuuucccckkkk your feet as wwwwweeeellllll?" he asked.
"You wanted to help, didn't ya? NOW DO AS I SAY!!!" he roared.
With that Merkl nodded and gave Jaken his back, re entering the forest.
Jaken was now alone.

The bounty hunter made his way through the barn. Going as stealthily as possible, with his crossbow always on his hands. He would sometimes call for the elf whispering. But he would get no answer. Her song was getting closer. He ccould hear it more clear. Every step made the song become stronger and more clear and his heart beat faster. Eventually, he saw a place that had what he was looking for: Kiara. There she was. She seemed beatiful, but Jaken couldn't help but to feel that something was wrong with her. The moment the elf saw the werewolf, she stopped singing. "KIARA!!" he called out, running to her, but before he took 3 steps, someone laughed and appeared behind the elf.

"You came wolfy, such a good boy!"

IT WAS THAT BITCH!! She had Kiara at her mercy. Not anymore. Jaken would do whatever he could to kill this lady and end this once and for all. Jaken was so enraged, he didn't even noticed when the lady placed a dagger under the elf's throat. Instead, the bounty hunter aimed his crossbow at the lady, but before he could shoot her in between the eyes, he finally noticed the dagger pressing against the elf's throat, threatening her life. "DON'T!!!" he rised his hands to the air. "DON'T HURT HER!!!" he slowly laid the crossbow on the ground, kicking it far away.

"Careful now! You don't want me to get nervous and slide open her throat by accident, wouldn't you?"

"You know... A lot of ideas crossed over my mind. So many things I could have done to her. Hear her screamings and begging for her life would be a delight! And see your raging face would be even better, once I described to you, all the details of her death." The lady paused, her tone of voice becoming darker and bitter. "But that would not be enough... It wouldn't even compare to what I feel right now!" she screamed at the end. Then her grin only grew.

"YOU WANT SOMEONE TO FIGHT??!!! FIGHT ME!!!! I WAS THE ONE WHO RUINED YOUR PLANS, NOT HER!!! LEAVE HER OUT OF THIS!!!" he thought on something that might save Kiara's life "WE NEVER GOT THAT REMATCH YOU AND ME!! ALL THE TIMES I BEATED YOU OR YOU HAD TO ESCAPE FROM ME, THAT MUST HAVE BEEN REALLY HUMILLIATING FOR YOU, RIGHT??!! YOU HAVE ME HERE, NOW LET'S FIGHT!! YOU AND ME, LAST MATCH!! MANO A MANO!!" he teased her.

But the answer Jaken got from the lady was nothing he had expected. The lady, instead of dropping the dagger and fight the werewolf, she laughed. She laughed and gave the dagger to the elf, to which she whispered some commands.

"Kill him, or die trying."

Jaken could not believe it. Why was SHE talking to Kiara? Why was she commading Kiara? And worst, why was Kiara obeying??!!! Taking the dagger and approaching the werewolf. "KIARA!! WHAT ARE YOU DOING??!!!" but then Jaken noticed the elf's eyes. They were... blank.... no emotions were coming out of them. Those were not Kiara's eyes. Kiara would always have somme emotion sparkling on them, but this weren't. Jaken connected the dots immediately: her waking up and wandering off without telling the werewolf, her lack of shoes, her emotionless eyes, and obeying the murderous intentions of their foe "KIARA. SHE'S CONTROLLING YOU!! YOU DON'T WANT TO DO THIS!! WAKE UP!! YOU WERE ABLE TO FREE YOURSELF FROM A CURSE!! YOU CAN FREE YOURSELF FROM THESE AS WELL!!" but the elf did not respond. She kept walking towards Jaken, with dagger swinging back and forth. Even though she was being mind controlled, Kiara was moving normally. She was moving like she would if she was herself. Jaken took steps back as he begged "Please.... don't so this...." he was at the edge of tears. He recognized this situation, only with the tables turned.

Kiara was the werewolf and Jaken was the elf now. It was the inverse situation back when the witch took control of Jaken's werewolf form and made it try to kill the elf. Before he could say something anymore, the elf ran to him and tackled him to the ground. Jaken reacted immediately at Kiara's handling of the knife. She was about to stab him. The werewolf swiflty placed his arm in the knife's trajectory, amking it slighty cut his arm multiple times, the last stab Jaken received in one of his arms was one that went through his hand when he tried to stop a stabbing that was intended for his face. Jaken kicked her away and stood up. He tore off some of his already torn clothes to improvise a bandage for his arm and hand. They should heal in a moment. But for now. He had to find a way to make Kiara break free from the spell. But how? He knew that slapping her wouldn't do the trick. What if-what if..... what if it was like a hive mind? Like all those creatures that obey a single entity, who gives orders to their minds from far away distances? If you kill the brain, you kill the body. His objective right now was the lady. Kiara would be an obstacle, but if he could find a way to reach the lady, snap her neck, or juat KILL HER. Kiara got back up and ready to attack.
"Shit." he whispered.

 

[Kiara]

The dawn was a couple of hours away. Back at the cave, someone was starting to wake up. It was Elaine, the female teacher. She looked around a bit stunned, trying to remember what had happened. She turned her head to look for her teammate, finding all of them still unconscious. Elaine got up, checking all males, waking them up and asking if they were ok. Hellius was the last one be to check, but he wouldn’t awake no matter what.
“He was closer to the Altersphere. He received a direct blast, but he is ok. Don’t worry Elaine.” Claude placed his hand on the woman’s shoulder.
“He is strong, and too stubborn to die.” Then he turned to the rest of the party. “Ok guys, someone please help me carry Hellius back to the college. Elaine, bring the sphere and the other pieces. Let’s return, the sooner the better. Our job it's done!”
At the order, everyone got on the move. Returning to Elbion magic college. Once there, Claude brought Hellius to the male elf’s room. Leaving him there to rest. There was still stuff that needed to be attended, like report the mission to the high council, who was not pleased to know what had happened to the Altersphere. But things didn’t end there. No. Soon enough, the party discovered what happened while they were gone. Joshua was dead, the lady was missing, and Kiara and the werewolf, were nowhere to be found. Claude thought on wake Hellius up and report to him about Kiara’s missing, but he changed his mind. The male elf needed to rest, and so far, there were no evidences that Kiara was in danger, so better not make a ruckus over it. As far as they knew, she could be with the werewolf.

Jaken’s words wouldn’t reach the elf. The lady had total control over Kiara.
Even though Kiara had no weapon fighting mastery, she managed to deliver some blows on Jaken's arms. As she was about to strike his face, the bounty hunter defended, kicking her away. The elf rolled on the ground, getting up in a few moments. It didn’t matter if her body hurt, she was not in control. On the other hand, the lady was just enjoying the show. Laughing at each strike that the elf managed to land. Even teasing the wolf.
“You wanted a fight! Now fight! It’s either you or her! Kill or be killed!”
Sensing the wolf’s intentions, the elf would deliberately place herself in the middle of his path, if necessary, she would even receive a direct hit. Blocking the bounty hunter’s route, thus, stopping each attempt of him to get closer to the lady. Kiara kept trying to stab him, aiming for his throat, face, arms, torso, any place that she managed to reach. It was no use to kick her away, or dodge nor try to hold her still. Kiara would put up a fight, getting up and thrashed to break free from the grip. No matter the consequences that her body would take! The order was simple, KILL or DIE!
It was impossible for Jaken to reach the lady. Kiara wouldn’t allow. In the lady’s mind, there was only one possible outcome and winner, her! It didn’t matter who would survive, the elf or the werewolf. The result would be the same.

Everything was black, total darkness surrounded Kiara. The elf was too tired to even open her eyes. But something wouldn’t let her be. A faint noise. She slowly opened her eyes. Still pitch black.
“Hello?” the elf called not knowing where she was. The same faint noise reached her ears. This time the elf concentrated on her hearing, trying to figure it out what it was. A woman’s voice. First it was just a whisper, then it became clearer and louder.
“kill… Kill… KILL... KILL. KILL. KILL!” Kiara got up in a flash. What was happening! She was scared. Then other voices joined.
“Do something little one…” “Or we will take something from you!” Kiara recognized theses voices. It was Lamb and Wolf! She desperately looked round to find them, but it was too dark.
“What do you mean?!” the elf asked.
The lady’s voice never left, making almost impossible to hear anything else. “KILL KILL KILL”
“Shut up!! I can’t hear!!” Kiara screamed back at the voice.
“LAMB?! WOLF?!” Nothing, she couldn’t hear anything. Just that word over and over again. Her head was aching. Kiara screamed in agony.
Finally, a dim light was ahead, she placed her attention in the light’s direction. Only to freeze in fear. The elf could see Jaken covered in cut, and a knife swinging in his direction.
“JAKEN!!!” she called. Then she noticed something. Jaken's attacker, it was her. She was the one that was attacking the werewolf! Why!? Why she couldn’t stop her actions!? Why her body wouldn’t listen to her!! She needed to stop herself, before she ended up killing him! She needed to do something fast!

 

[Adriwolf]

Merkl had no idea what Jaken was about to encounter, he could not have known. All he could was obey Jaken's orders: go back to the college, ask for the guard, get Hellius and drag his ass all the way back to the barn and remove the barrier. Simple as that. The forest was quiet and peaceful. Even though it was not urgent, Merkl a fast pace, jogging to get to the college with the nargacuga by his side. The lizardman had not have much time with the nargacuga. Merkl didn't even know the creature's name. He barely saw him while Jaken was not around, he didn't even cause trouble back at his basement, the lizardman even forgot he was there. The streets were still empty, the sun was barely shinning from behind the mountains. The college was close, from afar he could see a party dragging someone else inside the college. He recognized the one being dragged: Hellius. This was good. At least he wouldn't have to look for that kid Jaken told him about. He had found his target, but maybe this was not the best situation. He looked pretty beat up, as if he had barely survived an explosion. Fafurion noticed Hellius and sprinted towards the knocked out professor, recognizing the person that brought Kaira to play with him. The party reacted with fear and went straight into the college. Fafurion jumped towards the party, but was thrown away by the forceshield. What would he do? He got closer to one of the members of the party, telling Fafurion to step back.
"Wwwwwwhhhhhaaaaatttttt is going hhheeeerreeee?" he hissed
"May I ask who are you?" said one of the teachers while the others dragged Hellius inside the college.
"Jaken ssseeennnttt me. Hhhhhhheeeeee needs backup aaaaatttt aaaaaa bbbaarrnn."
"Right now we are busy, I'm sorry to not help you."
"It concerns Hhhhheeeelllliiiuuusssss. It's about Kkkkkiiiaaaarrrraaaaa."
"SSSSHHHH!!!!" the teacher hushed the lizardman, switching looks between Hellius and the lizardman "Please follow me." the teacher walked with Merkl far away "Look, I don't know if you are aware of this or not. But that teacher we were carrying is-"
"Hhhhheeeellliiiuuussss. Yeah, I have an iiiiddddeeeaaaa of what Kiara mmmmeeeeaaaannnnsssss to him."
"Then you understand why he can't hear about this. He needs rest. If he forces himself again, who knows what would happen to him. I'm not sure if we can send back up for your friend. I'll see what I can do, where does he need backup?"
"Aaaaaattttt a barn. Over there." he pointed south.
"Fine. I'll see what I can do." the teacher glanced at Fafurion "Aren't those illegal?"

The knife slash almost sliced Jaken's left eye. The werewolf could not get the courage to be too hard on Kiara. It was not her fault. She was uunder control of the lady. It was something like that time the witch trapped him in his subconscious while the Wolf tried to kill the elf he loved. Jaken would counter attack Kiara, grabbing her arm and tackling him down. Giving him time to get closer towards the lady, only to be knocked down by iara grabbing his legs and stabbing him. Jaken grunted and kicked her arm away. He then got up and limped away. But still, Kiara was going for the kill. He attempted to slash all parts of his body. Jaken barely avoided her attacks. Kiara went for a direct attack, going for his face. Jaken grabbed her hand and struggled to keep it away. He could easily win in this combat, but he was exhausted. His force was almost done for the combat. "I'm sorry...." he whispered at her face, continued by kneeling her on the abdomen, making her go back. But before he could walk away to the lady, Kiara made something that Jaken wouldn't have thought about. She used a wind spell to send him flying for a few meters. He landed on his nape, stunning him for a while. Long enough for Kiara to jump on top of him and attempted to stab him in the head. Jaken reacted immediately, grabbing her arms and redirecting the attack away form his face. But since he didn't think it through, he redirected the attack to his abdomen. The blade went through his stomach, making the bounty hunter scream in agony.

He tried to fight it. He tried to not let it get to him. But that last stab was the last straw for his resistance. His eyes turned blue, kicking Kiara away. He stood up slowly, breathing heavily. Kiara would not surrender. She went for another attack, once again to Jaken's face. The werewolf put his unpierced hand on the trajectory of the blade, going through it. Now he had both hands pierced by the blade. Jaken didn't even flinched. He took the attack. And in front of her, Jaken's face started to disfigure and transform into the werewolf. It was still nightime, he still had time to fight back and kill the lady. As he transformed, Jaken grabbed Kiara by the neck and squeezed it a bit, not enough for her to struggle to get air. He rised her to the air and snarled, but knowing this was not her fault, the werewolf threw her away. Enough distance to kill the lady. Even though he was weak, he could still end this. The wolf struggled to even walk. But before he could take 5 steps, he felt something grabbing onto his back and a sharp thing beggingin to stab him on the chest. It was Kiara. She had gained enough speed and momentum to jump onto Jaken from the back and continue stabbing.

The werewolf roared in pain as he kneeled to the ground, suffering the wounds that Kiara was giving him.

The lady was close to achieve her plan.

 

[Kiara]

As time went by, the lady had Kiara more under her control, until the point that the elf used a magic spell against the werewolf. All the stabbing, blood and pain, the torture that Jaken was submitted, the damage he was suffering on all levels. It was a delightful scenario for the woman, and his scream, music to her ears.
Whenever the bounty hunter managed to get free from the elf and tried to reach the lady, the woman would make a mocking face, knowing that at any second, the elf would jump to stop him. The fight was really entertaining for her, seeing how much the man would hold back, trying to not hurt badly the elf, even though she was aiming to kill him. His despair, pain and agony. Priceless! This was only the beginning of her revenge!
As Jaken started to change into his wolf form, the lady got even more interested. Would he lose control and break the elf’s neck? That would be fun to watch! The guilt and misery he would have to bear, after realizing what he had done, he would even welcome his death! But instead, the werewolf threw the elf away, going once again to the lady. This time Kiara jumped on his back, stabbing him multiple times. The lady couldn’t resist such a sight. A powerful werewolf being torn by a little elf! That made her laugh as if she had heard the best joke ever.

Kiara tried to regain control of her actions, but nothing worked. And hearing the same word over and over again was driving her crazy. Why wouldn’t the voice disappear!?
The elf was trapped inside of her own body, watching helplessly, what she was doing to the man she loved. She would end up killing him, and that would break every bit of her soul. The lady was about to achieve her goal. A wild idea came to the elf's mind. This didn’t have to be a kill or die situation. No. Kiara would create a third choice! She wouldn’t kill Jaken and neither she would die! If she couldn’t control her body, then Kiara would make sure that no one else would! But there was a little detail. The moment she was no longer useful to the lady, without doubt, she would be killed. Kiara needed not only to neutralize, but at the same time protect herself. That way, the lady wouldn’t have anything to use or threaten Jaken. There was no other way and just the thought of it hurt her, but at least, she wouldn’t break one of her promises. Jaken would be fine, he was strong. Her mind was set, she could handle the consequences of her acts later. Kiara would make sure to ruin the sadistic lady’s plan.

The werewolf kneeled to the ground, while being stabbed. Tears started to fall, the elf was crying, although her eyes had no light. Suddenly, the temperature inside the barn dropped drastically. Kiara stopped the attacks, her hands had become numb due to the cold, and the dagger fell from her grip. All her body was becoming dormant. The elf fell on the ground, not being able to keep herself on top of the werewolf’s back. The elf struggled to get up. She still had to finish her task. Her target was right in front of her. At each little step she took towards the wolf, the moment her bare feet touched the floor, it would freeze, leaving a trail of ice behind her.
The lady stopped laughing, realizing the small steam leaving her mouth, noticing the sudden temperature change. The laugh died in her throat, as she slowly lowered her head. Her eyes widen as she looked at the elf. The elf’s magic was getting out of her control! She empowered the spell, trying to keep her control over the elf. A huge bluish magic circle appeared under the elf’s feet. A blizzard erupted, freezing the barn’s floor, ice crystals appeared on the floor and walls. Then something odd happened, the magic imploded around the elf, huge crystals of ice started to engulf the elf’s body, trapping her.
For a moment the lady got astonished. There was no longer any trace of joy in her face. In fact, she was showing terror. This couldn’t be happening to her! Not AGAIN! She wouldn’t lose everything on the very last minute! Wasting no time, the lady took a dagger, rushing at the elf’s direction. No, she wouldn’t lose! Not this time! And with a swift movement the lady trespassed the elf’s chest, removing the blade and backed away, right before another ice crystal erupted, engulfing the elf’s body completely.
Kiara was trapped in the ice crystals, her last moment frozen in time, in the same way when insects are preserved after being swallowed by amber. The woman’s face lighted up, once again. She made it! It didn’t matter if she couldn’t use the elf any longer. After that lethal blow, for sure the elf was dead, even if she was inside of all that ice. Who cared? Not the lady, for sure! If her doll had no longer use, then better get rid of it. Still holding the dagger, the lady turned to face the werewolf. Analyzing her next move. Now that she had disposed of the elf, she needed to finish the job. For a second it crossed her mind to retreat, but seeing the werewolf's wounds. This was a chance in a million. How hard could be to kill him in that state?

Not 10 minutes had elapsed since the male elf had been put on his bed. His eyes opened in a flash. Something was wrong, he could feel it, already forcing himself to leave the bed. But someone pushed him down onto the bed. Hellius turned his head to find Elaine by his side.
“Easy, there. Everything is being taken care of. So, rest.”
“Where is Kiara? How is she?” Elaine didn’t know what to say.
At the lack of an answer, Hellius only grew anxious, his child could be in danger. He forced himself to get up, despite Elaine’s efforts to pin him down. In the end, Hellius stormed out of his room, Elaine chased after him, calling for the elf’s name. Hellius almost fell due to exhaustion, but ended up colliding against Claude, that was making his way, to check what was happening, since Elaine’s calls could be heard from afar.
“What do you think you are doing?” Claude inquired Hellius with a stern look, while holding on the elf’s shoulders, not only to give him some support but also to stop him from leaving.

Merkl had been waiting at the college front gate for almost 8 minutes, when he noticed three figures approaching him. It was a pissed Claude, following an extreme tired Hellius and a worried Elaine, trying to make everyone stop and think things through first.
Noticing the male elf making his way, Fafurion sat with a regal stand, as if greeting the elf and waiting for an order, ready to serve the elf.
Once Hellius was in front of the lizardman, he noticed Fafurion. Locking eyes with the nargacuga, Hellius noticed that the creature had been wounded but was rather fine. A lot of questions crossed the elf’s mind. What was Fafurion doing there? But right now, was not the time for that.
“Take me to her.” Hellius said in a firm tone. His eyes never left Fafurion’s. Making Merkl a bit confused, was the elf talking to him or to the nargacuga?
Claude only sighed. “You are not going alone. We are going too.” Elaine only nodded in agreement. There was no use trying to reason with Hellius, at least, if it was something about Kiara. Both of the teachers knew what Kiara meant to the male elf.

 

[Adriwolf]

Every stab was painful. In adittion to the blood loss and the tireness, the werewolf could barely stand even more. He gave up on his knees while getting stabbed by the elf he loved. He could feel the dagger going through his body, his muscles, even some of his organs. He should be dead. Any normal person would be dead, or close to be. But not him. The advatnage of the werewolf gift (or curse) had him covered for some time. He would have to act fast or his efforts would have been for nothing. If he died, Kiara would probably die as well, since the lady had nothing left for her toy, she would most likely kill her. He wouldn't let that happen. But how could he? He was weaker than ever. Of all the battles he have fought on, this one the one that eas taking the most of him. This could be the ONE battle he wouldn't escape from. But before anything else could happen, he felt the temperature drop. From a normal weather, it changed to a freezing one. The bounty hunter felt Kiara getting off his back, and that was it for the werewolf. He dropped on the ground, almost dead. If he had luck, all of his wounds would heal by themselves in no time, but the pain would still be there. The temperature kept dropping, making his already cold body due to blood loss even colder. His fur could still provide him with some warmth, but it was not enough to keep him in a stable temperature. He breathed heavily, trying to remain conscious. He could barely look at his surroundings and processing them. His vision was blurry. He saw Kiara getting closer to him. Jaken tried to get up but he couldn't, his body would not obey his orders anymore. He thought on using Wolf Strenght, but once that ability gave up, he would REALLY be vulnerable, having passed out.
Jaken gave up.

For every step the elf took a step towards the nearly dead werewolf, the grass beneath her would freeze. Why? What was going on? Why would she waste magic like that. Was it to show off while the werewolf was bleeding out? The werewolf spitted out blood ".....please..... you don't..... have to do this......" he could barely speak, his consciousness was fading away. All he could do was battle between life and death. All he could do was pray to whatever God was out there, or if there even was one. The temperature became colder, making the werewolf shake. And before he could close his eyes to give up and let the elf kill him, he saw spikes of ice trapping her feet. Then ankles. Then her legs. WHY? "....what.... are you doing?" he asked. He couldn't understand why would Kiara be doing this. She was trapping herslef. As if.... as if.... she was restrainging herself. Could she..... be breaking free? Could the Kiara he loved might still be in there and was using her magic to trap her physical self to keep him safe and buying him some time to figure out a solution? The lady did not take this lightly. She grabbed the dagger and sprinted towards the elf. Jaken yelled in panic. Before he could rise one fo his hands to try to stop her (which he wouldn't achieve, even if he tried his best), the lady stabbed through the elf's chest, and she didn't even let the dagger in there. She pulled it back, making the wound worst. "NO!!!" he roared. His biggest fear had come true. The elf would die. A wound like that can kill anyone. It could have gon through vital organs, like the heart, or the lungs. Those were lethal blows. The elf could die any second now. The one promise he gave to Kiara: keeping her alive and takinng her out of this situation. That promise would be broken. He didn't even care anymore. For all he cared, the lady could kill him now for she had broken his spirit.
The werewolf started to cry tears of sadness, anger, regret, fear, and loss.
After the stab, Kiara did something that neither Jaken nor the lady could have guessed. She trapped herself completely in ice. Her body was trapped in a shard of ice. This could be an advatage. It would make the bleeding stop, but that might put her in danger. For some reason, Jaken knew that the fact that she was trapped in ice would not kill her of hypothermia. But maybe she was on a clock right now. He had to do something. WHERE THE HELL WAS MERKL???!!!

The nargacuga and the lizardman had been waiting at the gate, waiting for the teacher's response in regards to their request for back up. Fafurion noticed Hellius running through the campus, to which the creature reacted by standing up and ready to receive orders. Merkl was ready to inform Hellius about the situation, but before he could open his scaly mouth.

“Take me to her.”

"Uuuuhhh...." how could he have known what was it about? He was about to ask him how he knew about it, but instead, the nargacuga sprinted at the direction Merkl had pointed out to the teacher, followed by Hellius and several teachers. Merkl stayed behind, picking up the pace as the teachers followed Fafurion and Hellius.

"Your turn wolfy." the lady said, taking the dagger into her hands and wlaking slowly towards the wolf "Got rid of one now. Now it's you."
"fuck you...." he said.
"Now, now, wolfy. Let's not be rude." she kicked Jaken, making him roll, his face looking to the stars "Being rude is not good."
"you fucking hypocrite." the lady got on top of him, with the dagger still on her hands.
"Just close your eyes, everything will be over." she raised it to give the final blow.
Jaken heard something. I familiar sound: a heartbeat. It was not his nor the lady's. It came from his right: it was Kiara. SHE WAS STILL ALIVE!!!
He heard the lady screaming while letting the knife go for his heart. Jaken roared at her face, stopping the blow with one of his hands. The lady wa no match for the strenght the wolf had. They were struggling to get the knife the job done: Jaken, to take it away, while the lady, forcing it into Jaken's heart.

Jaken kicked her far away. He got up and looked at Kiara's state. She was alieve, and he will protect her.
The promise could still be completed.
He looked at Kiara again.
"I love you."
He then turned to the lady, growling.

 

[Kiara]

The werewolf's questions went unanswered since it didn't reach the elf.
As the dagger pierced the elf's body, Kiara reacted to the pain, a little muffled yelp escaped from her lips, as she arched her back, in an attempt to escape the sudden pain, moments before the ice trap her inside. The elf was locked on that ice prison. She slowly closed her eyes, taking her last breath, as her consciousness started to drift away.

It was like the elf was sinking into a dark, cold lake, being pulled down, slowly, into the darkness. Her body was becoming dormant. At first, Kiara felt a burning sensation in her chest, it was like lava was devouring her lungs, followed by an excruciating pain. Then the cold came, and the elf welcomed it since it numbed all her body, taking the pain away, making so much easier to bear with all that. Her mind lingered for a moment. <"... I failed... again... Will I... die?... I'm sorry... Jaken... I couldn't stay with you... for a bit longer..."> she was even struggling to keep her thoughts flowing, she was fading away. Her metabolism became slower at every second. The last thing the elf heard was her own heartbeat, it was so faint and paced. The elf's body was ceasing almost all functions. And soon silence fell, taking Kiara into the void.
There was no pain, nor suffer. In fact, there was nothing. The elf was neither alive or dead, she was somewhere in between. Her conscience was dormant as in a deep slumber, where there were no dreams, no nothing! Leaving the elf in a profound state of suspended animation.

Luckily, the backstab only punctured the elf's left lung, missing Kiara's heart by a millimeter. Not everything was lost, since Kiara's current situation was what kept her alive. The fact that Kiara's time had stopped, the moment she was swallowed by the ice, gave her a chance to survive.
The extreme cold slowed down the internal bleeding, avoiding the elf to suffocate in her own blood, keeping her life by a thin thread, while her body struggled to start to heal and regenerate from that lethal wound. It was a fight between life and death. Her soul intertwined between live and death, both sides racing against each other. Would her body be fast enough to surpass and regenerated all the damages caused, reclaiming her body and soul back? Or would she lose to the internal bleed, and everything would be taken away from her?

Hellius forced himself to kept walking, his fuel was his determination and willpower. As he moved, the male elf fought against a sick feeling, that threatened to make him faint. But what worried him the most was that dread feeling in the pit of his stomach. His instincts screamed to him to rush to the spellsinger's side, forcing him to go far and beyond his limits.
Deep down Hellius was scared. What if he arrived too late? No, no, no, no no. Even though the elf didn't believe in gods, he prayed to heavens to keep his little girl safe and sound for just a little longer. Soon he would be there!
After what seemed an eternity, the farm entered on their sight. Fafurion dashed, scratching frantically the magic barrier that reacted shining with a dim blue light over his claws. The winged creature meowed deeply, giving the hint that Kiara was on the other side, and urging Hellius to come closer. Now, only that obstacle kept the elf separated from his beloved child.

 

[Adriwolf]

He then turned to the lady, growling.

For all he knew, this could be the last stand. No, not his... THEIR last stand. Kiara was protected by the ice shard, and he was the only thing between her and the lady. Jaken swore to protect Kiara and take her out of the dire situation Jaken dragged her into. And he would fulfill that promise. He curved his claws into combat position, ignored all the pain from his body, felt his wounds close, and stared deep into the lady's eyes. The lady got the message, giving a smug chuckle and getting in combat position as well, flipping the dagger in a way that the blade was pointing outwards and to the floor. Jaken and the lady got closer to each other slowly, every step in the grass gave away that this was a dance of the death, where only one would come out alive. The first step for this dance was going in circles. Werewolf and lady made a perfect circle while facing each other. Jaken was the one who moved, breaking the circle and commencing the second step of the dance: combat. Jaken attempted to hit her with a fist, which the lady evaded with agility and went for a stab. Jaken crouched just in time to avoid the razor-sharp blade sliding on his body, cutting the tip of his fur. The wolf, taking advantage of his position, made his legs act like springs, tackling the lady to the ground. Before the werewolf could pounce on her chest, the lady kicked Jaken on the chest while rolling backwards to get back on her feet. She jumped to her right, turning into dust in mid-air, disappearing in the night.
"Are you afraid bitch?!" he yelled, looking for any dust trail. Wherever the dust was, the lady could be hiding in there. Not only that, he also used his hearing sense. If the lady was using his dust-camouflage to move, the dust moving with the wind should warn him where could she be.
He heard something move from his back, he turned around to see the lady jumping at him, dagger up high, ready to make a stabbing action. Jaken grabbed it at the last second, leaving the lady floating. He kneed her, taking the breath out of her lungs. He thought that would stun her and give him chance to deliever the lethal blow: impale her with his claws and finish the job. But no. The lady reacted and kicked him in the face, then, on his exposed throat. Jaken threw her away as he coughed and struggled to get air back. He recovered after some seconds. His rival invoked a dust spell on him, making particles run through him, blinding him for a some seconds. After Jaken could see again, he saw the lady's boot kicking him in the nose, stunning him. Before she could stab him in the gut, the beast stopped her and kneed her on the nose as payback. He grabbed her by the neck, rised her and threw her out of the barn, making the red boards break and letting the nightshine in. The werewolf saw dust manifestating at the hole, revealing the lady once again. She had the dagger on one hand and in the other, she had an improvised spear made out of the barn wood. She threw it towards the lycanthrope. Jaken leaned to his right on the air, grabbing the spear as it made its way above his snout, and returning it to its master. The lady did not move. She vanished into dust and manifastated once again when the spear had passed her dust self. His rival ran through the barn. Running around the barn was something that Jaken would have expected. She was up to something, maybe setting up a trap, or grabbing something to defend herself with other than the dagger. She transformed into dust again, flying up to the second floor, where Jaken did not noticed that there was a pulley system, with heavy looking bags right above him. He knew what was about to come. The lady cut the rope, making the bags fall. The werewolf evaded them by dive rolling to the side. The bags made a heavy thud as they struck the ground. The lady jumped down and started to run towards the wolf. The werewolf found himself in the middle of some tools, amongst them, a shovel. He grabbed it and hit the lady with an uppercut movement, sending blood away from the lady's mouth. He struck the lady's head with it again, this time, with a movement that went down. He thought that this would stun her for good, but turns out, this lady was stronger than he thought. She rolled backwards and disappeared into dust again, reappearing on the second floor.
"You are cheating. That's not nice wolfy."
"Says the one who disappears in dust. You have that advantage plus the dagger. I have improvised weapons." he snarled "You want me to stop cheating? Then let's do this, claw to dagger."
The lady smugged, disappearing into dust and reappearing on the first floor, few meters away from Jaken. "Get ready." she got in combat posture.
Jaken threw the shovel away and snarled.

The barrier separating the party and the combat was in front of them.
"Wwwwweeeeee can't get ttttthhhrrrrooouuuggggghhhh." Merkl hissed "Only Jaken ccccoooouuulllldddd eeeeeennnntttteeeeerrrrrr. How do we rrrrrreeeeeemmmmmmooooooovvvvvveeeeeee it?"
"Only magic, but this is a rare spell. Might take us some time to take it down. Once we take it down, we go in and look for your friend. Where is he again?"
"Aaaaaaaaaatttttttt the barn." Fafurion kept his eyes on the barn, spotting something. The nargacuga hissed at the barn, where he could see the conmotion "Wwwwwwhhhhhaaaaaaatttttt?" he looked at where the nargacuga was looking, noticing what was happening.
"That's your friend?"
"Yeah. You nnnneeeeeddddd to act quickly."

The lady charged with a swift knife attack, which Jaken evaded and landed a punch on her cheek, to which he continued with an uppercut. The wolf ran towards the lady, drop kicking her in the chest, sending her far away into the barn. The werewolf stood up with a kick up. The lady recovered and sprinted towards the werewolf preparing for another attack, but before the wolf could stop it, she released the dagger in mid air, confusing the wolf for a moment. In that time of confusion, the lady spin kicked him in the snout, stunning him. The lady took the chance and kicked him in the spine, making the wolf go down. The wolf reacted and rolled away from the axe kick the lady almost landed on his skull. Still on the ground, the bounty hunter kicked the lady's leg, making her fall to the ground with a hard thud. There, the wolf kicked her in the skull. The lady retreated and recovered from her stun. The wolf stood up again, with his guard up. So was the lady.
They went back to step one of the dance: circles of glare. They were both bloody, exhausted and sore, but this dance could only have one same ending: one of them would die. Wether succumbing to their injuries and blood loss or one of them killed the other. Jaken went for it again, landing a brutal punch on the lady's face, then kicked her on the leg, making the lady kneel to the ground. There, Jaken tried to knee her again in the face or chest. But the lady blocked it by pushing the wolf's kneecap away with both of her hands. That broke Jaken's momentum, which the lady took advantage of by punching him on the abdomen, then an uppercut to his snout.

"Hhhhhhhhooooowwwwww much longer?"
"We are working on it."
Time was running out for the party. They had to intervene and back up Jaken wether by fighting alongside him or by taking Kiara away form the dangerous scene.
The rare spell placed by the lady was something the proffessors were not entirely prepared for.

One of them would die tonight. The fate of the other would decide the fate of, not only Kiara, but perhaps the entire world.
Everything was at stake.
And the match seemed balanced.

 

[Kiara]

Noticing the dim blue light under Fafurion's claws, the teachers got closer, placing their hands on it, trying to figure it out what kind of spell it was.

"Wwwwweeeeee can't get ttttthhhrrrrooouuuggggghhhh." Merkl hissed "Only Jaken ccccoooouuulllldddd eeeeeennnntttteeeeerrrrrr. How do we rrrrrreeeeeemmmmmmooooooovvvvvveeeeeee it?"

"Maybe I can break it with a powerful offensive spell..."
"Save your magic, Hellius. It will not break that easily! This is a selective barrier not a defensive one" said Elaine.

but this is a rare spell. Might take us some time to take it down. Once we take it down, we go in and look for your friend. Where is he again?"
"Aaaaaaaaaatttttttt the barn."

"Is Kiara there too?" The elf asked to the Lizardman, before turning to Elaine "If we cant pass by force, then what options do we have?" he asked since healing, buffs and barriers was Elaine's expertise field.
"The fastest way would be an anti-magic spell, but that is not a real option since none of us possess that kind of magic...." she paused for a bit, trying to find another solution "Claude! Could you try to overwrite the spell if I give you assistance by telling which parts you need to change?"
"I'm on it!"
That said, Claude took a few steps back, raising both hands, starting to work on an overwriting spell. layers and layers of runes and arcane symbols started to surround him. Elaine started to read the barrier proprieties, giving Claude instructions the remove or add new characters, changing the barrier spell.

Fafurion kept a close watch at the barn, suddenly the creature started to hiss. That caught everyone's attention, turning their heads to look at what was happening.

"Wwwwwwhhhhhaaaaaaatttttt?"

Then a lady flew out of the barn. The impact of her body broke some boards and Jaken came into view.

"That's your friend?"
"Yeah. You nnnneeeeeddddd to act quickly."
"Hhhhhhhhooooowwwwww much longer?"
"We are working on it."

A few seconds later and after some changes, Elaine exclaimed.
"It is not complete! But at least the Lizardman and the nargacuga can cross over now! Go and help your friend! We will join you soon!"
"Look after Kiara!" Hellius commanded the narcaguca.
As if getting what was being said, Fafurion dashed, crossing the barrier without a problem, making his way to the barn, followed by Merkl.
"Why can't we cross yet!?" Hellius was getting impatient, and the nervousness was taking the best out of him. And that scene of the fight only added up to it, besides, there was no sign of Kiara.
"You think this is easy!" Claude yelled a bit frustrated, he was trying his best, but it was a very complicated spell with a lot of properties to be edited.
"It's almost done. Just give us a few more minutes!"

 

[Adriwolf]

"Is Kiara there too?"

"Yyyyyyyyeeeeeeesssssss. Theoretically." the lizardman answered.

A few seconds later and after some changes, Elaine exclaimed.
"It is not complete! But at least the Lizardman and the nargacuga can cross over now! Go and help your friend! We will join you soon!"
"Look after Kiara!" Hellius commanded the narcaguca.
As if getting what was being said, Fafurion dashed, crossing the barrier without a problem, making his way to the barn

Merkl did not say anything, instead he followed the nargacuga in the barn, preparing an arrow for the bow: a regular one.

"<<Screw this.>>" she grabbed the shovel that Jaken left behind and threw it towards Jaken. Jaken was stunned by the uppercut the lady had given him that he realized too late about the incoming shovel to his head.
However, before the shovel could hit his face, the trajectory of the shovel was interrupted by a force pushing it to Jaken's left shoulder. If the force made the shovel go to his left, then the force had to come from the right. He looked towards that direction to see Merkl with his unloaded bow rised and going for another arrow from his back. The lady growled in frustration and disappeared in dust.
"How'd you manage to get through?"
"Yyyyyyyooooouuuuuu aaaaaaarrrrreeeeee welcome." he greeted the werewolf "Backup is on iiiiiitttttttttssssssss wwwwwwwaaaaaaayyyyyyyy."
Jaken nodded. The nargacuga hissed at the sight of the werewolf. Jaken knew why. The nargacuga hadn't seen this side of Jaken. Fafurion had always seen his human self. He had never seen his werewolf side. It was something completely new. It was a savage beast stannding in front of him and close to the elf he used to play with. Fafurion hissed. The werewolf tried to calm him down "Easy there buddy." he stepped closer slowly and crouched. Connecting eyes with the nargacuga, the werewolf stared deeply into the creature's eyes. Fafurion seemed to understand what was happening. Even though the eyes that were staring back at him were blue instead of brown, Fafurion seemed to recognize whose eyes belonged to: Jaken. It was Jaken in a different form. Fafurion seemed to relax and drop his guard. THe creature understood who was that he was seeing. "There, there. It's ok. Help me protect her." he pointed at Kiara.
"Calling for backup wolfy? Are you afraid, bitch?" the lady said from second floor.
"Not afraid. Just calling for help in case someone decides to cheat and throw a shovel at me." he flipped her off.

Jaken snarled.
Fafurion hissed.
And Merkl aimed with his bow at the lady.

 

[Kiara]

"There, there. It's ok. Help me protect her." he pointed at Kiara.

After Fafurion recognized the werewolf as Jaken, the winged creature positioned himself in front the huge ice shard, taking a defence stance. The nargacuga lowered his gravity center, bristling his back fur and scales, displaying his claws and fangs as he hissed, his pupils were a thin slit in those piercing yellow eyes, giving him an even more menacing look. Fafurion was ready to fight, he wouldn't let any threat come near the elf.

Claude's magic level was running low, that spell was draining him out, and he was not the only one. In fact, from the three of them, Elaine was the one that was in a better shape, since Hellius magic pool was still at a very low level.
Five more minutes had elapse since Merkl and Fafurion had crossed the barrier. Claude was struggling to stay on his feet, his trembling legs threatening to give out at any second. He was panting for air, but he kept working, following Elaine's instruction. The moment he added the last rune, his body gave up. Claude fall on the ground, exhausted.
"Please tell me it is done..." he asked between breaths.
Elaine nodded her head. Hellius once again raised his hand and placed on the barrier, but unlike the previous attempt, his hand passed throughout it. The elf wasted no time, running in the barn direction, only warning his teammates.
"I'm going now!"
"I will just help Claude, then I'm going to join you!" Elaine said, already giving a hand to Claude, helping him to move and seat under a tree so he could rest and regenerate a bit of his mana.

Hellius' heart was pounding in anticipation. He had no idea what he would find inside that barn. All he asked and cared was for Kiara to be ok. The moment the male elf reached the door, his eyes scanned the area, ignoring all the fight, then he spotted Fafurion hissing and defending a particular spot. That was when he noticed the ice shard and who as trapped inside of it. His heart tightened in pain. Was it too late?
Hellius wasted no time, his priority was Kiara. The male elf vaulted over some straw bales, taking the shortest way while avoiding the fight. When he got closer, the male elf notice the spellsinger's state, her body was covered in blood and bruises, but the worst was that nasty wound on her chest. It was too painful to him, see her last moment frozen in time. A whirl of emotions took over him, concern, distress, sadness and sorrow, but also, anger and rage. Who did this to his little girl? He knew the answer to his own question, but now was not the time. That lady could wait. Right now, Hellius needed to hurry in order to save Kiara. Even if she was frozen and the cold had slowed down the bleeding, if she was not attended shortly, her chances to survive would be slim. Even though he shouldn't be using his magic, Hellius ignored his own well being and started to invoke a healing spell.
The fight kept going. Fafurion would provide safety so Hellius could focus on keeping the spell, allowing the healing magic to flow into the ice, but the cold was not helping since it would not only slow down the bleeding but also the healing process. It didn't take too long for Elaine to join the group. For a moment the teacher got shocked as she saw Kiara locked in that ice prison, and Hellius pushing his limits to a very dangerous level, he looked nauseous and pale. The woman rushed to his side, aiding him on the healing spell, boosting the spell and accelerating the process. Finally Kiara's wound was starting to close at a very slow rhythm, but at least it was a steady one.

 

[Adriwolf]

Merkl was the first one to take the shot, shooting an arrow towards the lady, which she evaded with ease. The lady ran through the second floor, looking for something to drop on the trio. If one was injured, it would increase her chances to win this battle and achieve her goal. But there was nothing to drop on them. The only thing that could have dropped was already on the ground: the heavy bags that almost landed on Jaken. Fafurion was aware of his surroundings, looking at every direction, protecting the comatosed Kiara. If it was up to the nargacuga, he would fly to the second floor and take care of the lady, but that was not his mission. His mission was to protect the elf that used to play with him all those years ago. Merkl reloaded and got ready to shoot again.
"Do you have any special arrows?" the werewolf asked the lizardman.
"Ssssssssssooooooommmmmeeeeeee." he hissed.
"Be ready to use them. And use them wisely. Use normal arrows to buy us some time.
The duo saw a cloud of dust flying through the air, descending to the first floor and materializing in front of them. The lady casted a dust cloud that blinded the lizardman for a bit. Taking advantage of that distraction, the woman went for Jaken, jumping and aiming her boot to Jaken's skull. The wolf crouched, dodging the boot for almost nothing. He then tackled the woman and pinned her to ground. He started to hit the lady in the face with 2 brutal punches, however, before he could give the third, she disappeared in dust and manifestated at his back, her arms wraped around his neck and started to apply force backwards, with the intention to choke him. But it would take a lot more to choke a werewolf than that. Jaken complied to the lady's backwards movement, running backwards and slamming her body in the wall. Then slamming her to the ground, falling backwards on top of her. He saw an opportunity to land another hit. He elbowed the lady in the nose. She disappeared in dust. By now, Merkl had already recovered, grabbing his bow and loading it with an incendiary bow, shooting it to the could of dust, in a chance for it to make some damage to the dust. If the dust was part of the woman, then it should damage her in some way. Once the arrow exploded in flames, some dust particles seemed to suffer from the affect of the arrow. The dust went to the second floor, where it manifestated in the woman again. She patted her burning sleeve out of flames. She was so focused on her burning hoody that she didn't noticed an arrow hitting her shoulder. It almost hit her where Merkl was aiming for (the head), making the lady back off so that the lizardman could no longer hit her with another arrow and grunted in pain. She took the bow out and applied pressure on the wound. Meanwhile, Jaken observed the nargacuga guarding Kiara. She was still there. The wolf focused on his hearing sense. Her heart was still beating, barely. There was still a chance. Reinforcements should come anytime soon. Just some more minutes and backup could take Kiara out of the battlefield. If that happened, Jaken could unleash himself as he would not worry anymore of Kiara's safety.

The wolf felt his energy starting to decrease. He looked at the mountains. The sun was nowhere to be seen, but the skies were starting to adapt that golden color of dawn. He needed to hurry, or he would shift back into his human self. He needed something. Something to deal the final blow. But the lady would always disappear in dust and back off to treat wounds. He heard footsteps getting closer. The wolf switched his look to the entrance of the barn, where Hellius came in running. Jaken was about to inform him about the situation, but instead, he was tackled by the lady from behind with a brute force, proceeding to stab him in the back with a small piece of wood. Merkl fired at the lady, getting her on the right side of the abdomen. Jaken took the chance and shook her to the ground, where he pinned her down and broke the arrow, the wooden arm of the arrow was now in his claw and would act as a stabbing tool. Jaken went for the strike, being stopped by the lady, who placed both her hands in the werewolf's wrist. They were both tired and sore, their strentgh was almost the same. They struggled to meet their goals. Merkl reloaded and aimed the bow towards the wolf and the lady. Only problem was that they were very close at each other, and their movements were not helping to get a clear shot. He could hit Jaken by mistake. One part of him told him to leave them be, see if a chance appeared, but on the other side, he needed to help his werewolf friend. What if the lady won and took the chance to harm the wolf and kill it this time?
"IIIIIIIIIIII can't get a clear ssssssshhhhhhooooooottttttt!!!" he hissed.
Both werewolf and human were struggling, but then, the nargacuga stepped in. Seeing how Hellius and the other teacher were taking care of Kiara, he felt that he could jump in the fight. The nargacuga mauled the lady's leg, breaking her defense. Jaken dug the wooden piercing weapon in her chest.

The lady screamed and her eyes turned red. She blew up in a powerful dust cloud. The force of the explosion was so powerful, even the teachers got thrown away by it, but Kiara remained where she was. Everything had been blown away. Everyone was stunned by it, except for Kiara and the lady, who manifestated in the middle of the arena (everyone had been blown away to the corners of the barn). She looked at Kiara.
"THIS IS WHO YOU ARE PROTECTING??!!!" she roared "THAT LITTLE ELF BITCH???!!!" she limped towards Kiara, badly wounded over the stabbing "IF YOU CARE SO MUCH ABOUT HER, YOU CAN WATCH HER DIE!!"
Jaken looked around, his vision was blurry, after all, he took the blow first and had to suffer the most impact. He had to find something to get that lady away from Kiara.

The sun was starting to shine. Jaken could feel his werewolf powers slowlt fading away. It was either that or his consciousness fading due to the exhaustion. The wolf looked around and saw a tool that could help him: his trusty crossbow. It had a bolt in it. He could end this. He found Merkl slowly coming back to his senses. And at his side, the bow. Jaken attracted his attention and signaled him to grab his weapon and load it with an incendiary arrow and shoot it to the woman. Merkl nodded.
"WHY DO YOU RISK ALL OF THIS FOR THIS WORTHLESS ELF???!!!" she kneeled to the ground, but then went back up "SHE'S WEAK!!! I COULD CONTROL HER THIS FAST!!" she snapped her fingers "BUT YOU WOLFY??!!! YOU ARE FAR MORE STRONGER THAN THIS!!" Merkl had grabbed his bow and loaded it with an arrow. Jaken saw someone crawling in front of the ice shard: Hellius. It was his last stand. The only thing between the lady and Kiara was him "Y'know." she said to Hellius "Being disguised like you was not worth it. I fooled your little elf and that dog over there, but it was not worth it." she laughed as Hellius tried to stay on foot. Jaken grabbed his crossbow.

"NOW!!!" Jaken roared to Merkl.
The lizardman shot the arrow. Before the lady could react, the arrow struck her clothes, sending flames on them.
"HELLIUS!!!!" he called.

He tossed the crossbow at the elf's feet.

"END HER!!!!"

 

[Kiara]

Once Hellius, with the assistance of Elaine, had healed Kiara, he focused on the ice shard, trying to figure it out what kind of spell Kiara had cast on herself. It was an imprisonment spell, but things were not on their side. That crystal of ice was not going anywhere, it was too big and heavy, besides it was reenforced magic ice. Hellius couldn't break or melt the ice, it wouldn't work anyway. Even if he forced his way, things could go terribly wrong.

Fafurion kept his guard up, defending and protecting Kiara and the teachers from any threat. Once he noticed that Hellius had finished the healing spell, Fafurion jumped into the fight. The nargacuga knew that the male elf was aware of his surroundings, even if he looked focused on analyzing the ice.
The winged creature leaped and sank his fangs and razor sharp claws on the lady's leg, causing her pain, breaking her defence and giving Jaken the opportunity he needed.

Hellius wouldn't risk Kiara's life. A sudden heat could damage Kiara cell's, making them to burst due to the sudden temperature change, and break the ice could also break Kiara's body, since she was frozen untill the core. There was nothing more that he could do for her. The only option was to wait for Kiara to undo the spell herself. Even if her body seemed to be fine, the real problem was her mind and soul, if all pieces were not together, then she wouldn't wake. She couldn't be lost in the limbo, right? Hellius didn't know for how long she would stay on that ice. Could be hours, days, or even years.
Hellius' blood started to boil. He couldn't do nothing more for her. All he could do was wait for her to be ready to wake up. No, that was a lie. He could do something. He would punish the lady for doing this to his little girl, and he would make her regret until her last breath. The elf turned on his feet, ready to join the fight, when a powerful shock wave threw him and Elaine away. Elaine slammed against one of the barns wooden pillars and Hellius hit a wall.

"THIS IS WHO YOU ARE PROTECTING??!!!" she roared "THAT LITTLE ELF BITCH???!!!" she limped towards Kiara, badly wounded over the stabbing "IF YOU CARE SO MUCH ABOUT HER, YOU CAN WATCH HER DIE!!"

Hellius shook his head, trying to recover from the stun. The lady was making her way to Kiara, when Hellius put himself between her and the ice shard, blocking the path. That woman wouldn't come any closer to the spellsinger. He wouldn't let her, only over his dead body, if she was capable of that feat, that was it. Hellius was exhausted, but gathered his last strength. He didn't need magic to finish her. It would be in the good, old, fashion way. The lady had her tricks and so did he.

Being also a magic user, the lady knew that Hellius' magic was running low. Nothing that she should worry about. The battle was already won. The only obstacle between her and the frozen elf was a pathetic male elf that couldn't even stand up. The lady was upon him, casting her shadow on him, laughing.

"Y'know." she said to Hellius "Being disguised like you was not worth it. I fooled your little elf and that dog over there, but it was not worth it."

Hellius stayed on the ground, waiting for her to come closer. She was expecting Hellius to fight back with some kind of spell, a small one, taking into account from his' state. That was her first mistake. She was not expecting a magic teacher to engage in a close fight combat. Hellius sudden move, caught her out guard.
He kicked hard, twice, on the lady's left knee, as a result, the leg broke, bending backward in that joint, in an awkward manner. The woman screamed in pain, kneeling in her good leg, being unable to remain standing. Hellius didn't need much to force her to be at the same eye level as him. He glared at her with his cold emerald green eyes. So she used his appearance to trick Kiara. That only made his rage grew.
Hellius noticed Jaken and Merkl's moves. He knew what was coming next, the lady would try to disappear into dust. But Merkl was faster shooting his incendiary arrow, that ignited the lady's cloths.
She wouldn't go anywhere, at least while she was on fire. She wouldn't dare to turn into dust since it seemed to be very effective against her dust form. She panicked, trying to extinguish the fire. Giving enough time for the elf to grab the werewolf's crossbow. He took aim and shoot at close range at the lady's chest. A little courtesy and retribution for the wound she had delivered to Kiara. For a second the lady stopped, looking at her chest, a red stain tarnishing her clothes, she was exhausted and her body gave up. She fell on her side, hitting the floor.
Hellius struggled to stand up, almost falling, but managed to keep his balance. He stared at the lady in front of him, now the table had turned. A pool of blood formed and increased in size under the woman's body. She was choking with her own blood, struggling to breathe and get air into her lungs. Hellius kept eye contact, watching all the emotions that were consuming her as she realized that this was her last moments.

 

[Adriwolf]

The werewolf saw the male elf shooting the lady in the chest. He knew that Hellius had landed the bolt, seeing the lady's corporal movements. She had frozen. She was not moving. Was that it? Was she about to bite the big one? She fell to the ground. Not even a scream of agony, or a grunt of pain. No. Just dead silence, nothing. The only thing that Jaken could hear was his heavy breathing and his heart beat. The lady was gurgling in her own blood. She made eye contact with Hellius. Then she looked at Kiara. The lady finally realized: this was it for her. She was already dead. She could feel her heart beating while the bolt was resting on it. She could feel the heart's struggle to keep bumping. Her consciousness was slowly fading away as she could feel the cold, bony fingers of death reaching for her. In fact, she could feel them on her shoulders. But the last thing she will do before fading away is to apologize.
She would apologize even if it was the last thing that she could do.
She looked at Kiara.
Everything fell in silence, literally. Jaken, Merkl, Elaine, Hellius had become silent. The lady opened her mouth while still looking at Kiara.
"Forgive me.... mother....." she closed her eyes and laid on the ground.
She died.

Jaken was confused. Why would the lady call Kiara 'mother'? Was she apologizing to her ACTUAL mother? That doesn't make sense. Why the hell would she attempt to kill her own mother? Why make a fucked up plan by tricking her, controlling her, hell, even stabbing her in the chest, just to apologize at the end, calling her 'mother'? Or was she raving? The fact that she was dying made her mind trick her, making her believe that her mother was where Kiara was? WHY WOULD THE LADY CALL KIARA 'MOTHER'?

The lady started to decompose into dust. Her skin adapted a dust-like color and to sink inside, turning her into the element she had relied on for the past battle.
Dawn was upon them. Jaken felt his body burning up as he was shifting back into his human form. He crawled to where his ripped clothes where and hid behind a stack of hay. Once dressed up, he stepped out. His face was covered in blood and bruises, especially his left eye. It was swollen and black. He had one lip cut, his right cheek was governed by a purple bruise, and , even though his torn clothes covered it, his body was full of dirt, dust, cuts and bruises. He could barely stand.

He limped towards Kiara position, losing balance and force to sustain himself, falling to the ground, and placing one hand on the ice shard. He looked at Hellius.
"What's wrong with her?" he started to cry "How can we help her? Please! There must be something we can do!" tears started to fall down his face.

Kiara could not end up like this. After everything she's been through.
Not like this.
It couldn't.

 

[Kiara]

Hellius glared at the lady, noticing that her eyes had moved, landing on Kiara. He stayed silent, trying to guess what was going on inside the lady's head. Then she opened her mouth slightly, her eyes still locked on the spellsinger.

"Forgive me.... mother....."

Her words caught everyone by surprise. Hellius was shocked for a moment, he glance at Kiara, then back at the lady. The elf rapidly recovered and ignored those words. There was no way, and clearly the woman was delirious. She finally died and turned into dust.

Hellius looked directly at his little girl. The ice glittered as the first sunbeams hit on the cold surface, making Kiara seem even more innocent and pure, if it wasn't for the blood on her cloths.
It was as beautiful as painful watch her. The sun was rising on the horizon, starting a new day, but not for everyone. Not for Kiara. Hellius' hands turned into fists. A massive feeling of lost, pain and sorrow fell upon him. It was like someone took away his light and left him in the dark. Kiara was everything to him.

"What's wrong with her?" he started to cry "How can we help her? Please! There must be something we can do!"

Hellius only noticed that the bounty hunter was by his side, after he talked. That triggered the male elf, who rapidly concealed his emotions, turning his back to Jaken and the ice crystal, facing the barn door, not even making eye contact with him. Hellius held back his tears. For the male elf display such emotions were a signal of weakness, that was how he was trained. He wouldn't break, at least not in front of others, but Jaken's cries were making the task almost impossible. Hellius clenched his teeth, his lips turning into a thin, hard line. He forced his voice to come out without breaking.
"There is nothing we can do for her." He paused, closing his eyes, sinking his nails into his palms, causing them to bleed. Saying that out loud hurt him more than anything, making everything more real, as if that was even possible. He opened his eyes again.
"Elaine, take care of him. Heal him and his friend, if necessary." Then his voice turned to a commanding tone "Fafurion, stay and guard!" With that said Hellius walked towards the exit.
As the elf was about to leave the barn, Claude made his way in.
"Where is Kia..." He closed his mouth, not finishing his question, realizing the situation. Claude moved to open a path for the elf to leave. But Hellius stopped briefly, speaking one last thing, still not looking back.
"Werewolf... meet me tomorrow at the college." Hellius said and left.
"Hellius, wait!" Elaine rushed, trying to stop him, but Claude stopped her, grabbing one of her shoulders, shaking his head in denial.
"Let him be. Clearly, he wants to be alone." he then released Elaine.
For a moment she watched the male elf disappearing between the trees, then turned to assist Jaken.

On the next day:
Hellius spent all day in Kiara's room, waiting for Jaken to show up. Sometimes he would find himself lost in that room, with one of her books in his hands, just staring at its cover, or looking aimlessly at her desk. Recalling conversations and memories that they had spent together. Only a day had passed and he already missed his beloved child so much.
A knock on the door brought him back to reality.
"Professor Chronos, Mister Larsten is here to see you, sir." The guard spoke on the other side of the closed door, not even daring to open it, leaving right after.
Hellius heard footsteps going away. He ordered Jaken to come in. Again the elf hid his emotions behind a neutral expression. He knew that if there was someone that would know what he was feeling, would be the bounty hunter, but still, he didn't want to comfort others and neither be comforted. He just wanted to finish quickly and be left alone.
"I know that you didn't ask, but here, take it." Hellius gave a bag of coins to Jaken. "It's to cover Kiara's expenses, plus a bonus, for taking care of her." Hellius turned his back, looking through the window, thinking for a bit. Slowly he reached his pocket and took something out, opening his hand and analyzing it. Then he turned once again to face Jaken, revealing two little crystals. He sighed deeply before speaking.
"I think that Kiara intended to give you one of these." His voice cracked a bit at the end, not being able to conceal his sorrow. "I don't know if you are aware of what this is or how it works." he placed one crystal in Jaken's hand, keeping the other for himself.
It would be faster to show than to explain, besides Hellius was not in the mood to explain or teach a magic lesson. The male elf opened a bit more his hand, then whispered "Resonance".
The crystal reacted, glowing faintly and a song could be heard. It was Kiara's voice, it was one of her songs. Hellius swiftly closed his hand. Canceling the crystal effect. Hearing Kiara's voice was hard for him, but also it gave him some relief.
"This crystal is directly linked to Kiara's magic. It will activate as long as she is alive..." Hellius turned once again to the window, letting Jaken take his own conclusions of what the elf had just implied. And at the same time give him the hint that Hellius had nothing more to say, and that it was time for him to leave.

 

[Adriwolf]

Seeing the elf that he loved trapped in an ice shard made Jaken feel loss. She was trapped on ice, literally, she couldn't do anything at all. She couldn't move, she couldn't talk, she couldn't feel anything. What was going on in her mind? Was she even thinking? Was her consciousness asleep? What would happen to her in this state? It crushed his soul seeing the elf he loved unable to do anything. It made himm cry. He had cried other times out of fear when Kiara was in danger. But now, his worst nightmare has become true, Kiara had not escaped danger this time. And Jaken couldn't help but to feel that it was his fault, and his only. If he had been more aware that night, he could have detected Kiara wandering off in the night. He could have stopped her, restrain her and seek for help. But no, while Kiara was being controlled by the lady, where was Jaken? He was sleeping and resting, while Kiara was exposed to the dangers of Elbion. He cried at the ice shard, and Hellius answer did not help him to stay calm.

"There is nothing we can do for her."

"BULLSHIT!!" he roared "There is something we can do!! There must be something!! We-we-we can't just leave her like this!!" he looked at Elaine "Please!! I beg of you!! I'll do anything!! Just help her please." but his body gave up, he kneeled down and cried at the shard's feet. But instead of someone telling himm that there could be something that could help her, no one said anything. This was it. Kiara was trapped.

"Werewolf... meet me tomorrow at the college." Hellius said and left.

Jaken did not respond.

Elaine talked him away from the ice shard, telling him that she could still survive. Jaken asked him if there was any way to relocate Kiara. Move her fromm this horrible barn, but there was no way his wish could become true. She was stuck in the barn. ELain then proceeded to treat his wounds with spells and some medicine. He would be fine, all he would need were some bandages and painkillers. His healing ability will make things easier for him, at least on the outside. On the inside though, he could feel his heart shrink and die.

The next morning, Jaken was on his way to see Hellius. He had a new set of clothes. The exact same one that he wore the first day he met..... Kiara..... Just the tought of her name hurt the werewolf. But there was nothing he could do about it. He had new clothes, that covered the bandages he had underneath them. The black eye was covered with a white eye patch. He had left his weapons at the motel room. There was no need for them now. Elbion was not an active city right now, after the chaos, Elbion was nothing but a city barely standing. People were helping reconstruct buildings and giving aid to others, wether by healing others, or giving them supplies like food and water. Children were playing on the street. It was a city that was slowly going back to normal.
He arrived at the college and asked for Hellius. Instead of going to Hellius' office, the guard guiding him arrived at...... Kiara's room. Jaken stopped breathing at the sight of it. Even though he had seen that room only once, he could feel her presence there. But it was sad. He knew Kiara was still at the barn. Sure, Fafurion was there to protect her, but..... it felt...... different....

Jaken struggled to place a foot in there, where he met Hellius. The guard left them alone. Jaken took a seat on a chair. He received the bag of coins without a word. He knew that this was legit. It was not the lady or someone else disguised as Hellius. It was REAL Hellius.

But the worst was about to come.
Hellius showed Jaken two crystals, giving him one. And he said a word that somehow, would burn in Jaken's memory for a long time.

"Resonance".

Jaken's eyes opened wide as he heard that angelical voice. But got interrupted when Hellius closed his fast, barely containing the tears.

"This crystal is directly linked to Kiara's magic. It will activate as long as she is alive..."

He looked again at the crystal, it was like holding a part of Kiara's escense. She was still there. In a way, she was still there.

Hellius left Kiara's room after a while of complete silence. Jaken was allone with his thoughts. He stood up and looked outside the window. The back at the crystal.
"Resonance" he whispered.
The shard illuminated and started to emit those beatiful notes, it echoed in the room. Jaken struggled to not close his fist. Hearing her voice was painful.

Tears started to run down his face, leaving the shard on the desk. Jaken broke in a silent cry, slamming the desk once with his fist. He was angry, sad, frustrated, despaired, confused, and most importantly, he felt empty. When he recieved the terriblle news that Kiara could not move, a part of Jaken's soul stayed with her. At least a part of him is with Kiara. Even though it was not as physical as Fafurion, that part of Jaken's soul will protect her.

He cried.

And so:
Day 1 begins...

 

[Adriwolf]

Day 6

The night took over Elbion streets. The city was slowly rebuilding. People were roaming in the streets, building the ruins and giving aid to those who needed.
But that was not Jaken's priority. His priority was elsewhere, in a barn. He was walking through the forest and encountered it. The barn were the lady died, but also a part of him remained there. Alongside someone. Jaken entered the barn with a hard step. The hard thud on the ground gave away both the silent and dead environment of the barn and how empty and heavy Jaken's mind was. He could not bare to see what was in front of him. An ice shard that erupted a week ago and trapped a body.... and his soul.
Kiara was still there. Frozen in time. In a cold coma. It was painful for him to see. At her feet, a winged creature was laying down. Fafurion was still there, protecting her like Hellius had commanded him days ago. He reacted when Jaken entered the scene, standing up and running towards him, going in circles around his compannion, brushing him with his fur and purring.
"Hey there." he greeted with a slightly forced smile "How are you?" he petted the nargacuga like if it was a dog. Jaken made eye contact with Fafurion for a long time, for him, it was an excuse to.... not look....
But he was a werewolf. Werewolves were strong. He had to be strong and face what he had done. He glanced at Kiara, then back at Fafurion "Why don't you go and hunt for a while ok? I'll take care of Kiara." he suggested. The nargacuga dashed towards the woods. It seemed like he was excited to finally move around and have some fun.

And so, the werewolf and the elf were left alone. The wolf gathered the will to look at the elf he loved. There she was. He reyes closed, her golden hair frozen in the ice shard, her clothes teared apart by the stab wound. He sighed in anguish, leaning his head and his right hand on the ice shard. He then looked up to face her.

"Hey." he said after a long time, he didn't know how to continue "Things in Elbion.... have been slow. Rebuilding is slow, civilization is restoring itself slowly... time is slow...." a tear started to run down his face "But people are helping each other. Giving food, water, shelter, medical attention. I wish you could see it, it's a beatiful sight." he sobbed, wiping tears away "I know you would help others." his voice cracked "Because you have such a kind heart." he started to cry "Too kind. This world is not for you. You are far better than this." he closed his eyes and leaned his head on the shard "And I hate this stupid world. I hate this world becasue it is against kind spirits and hearts like you. It's not fair... It's not fair for you... And I hate it." he sobbed "I miss you. So very much."

"I'm sorry... I'm sorry for not being there..... I'm sorry for not noticing..... I should have been better........" he started to weep inconsolably "I should have swallowed my pain and put myself in front of the attack..... I should've..... I should've KILLED THAT BITCH WHEN I HAD THE CHANCE!!" he growled. Sadness turned to anger, then to fury. That lady, she deserved worst. She didn't deserve to have any last words. That motherfucker. She should've suffered to her last breath.

However, that anger turned into sadness again. He gave up at the feet of the shard, crying. "I'm sorry..... I dragged you into this...... I should've forced you to stay at the college. I should've forced you to stay away from me..... but I can't do it now. I proised to take you out of the situation....... but I couldn't..... I couldn't keep that promise...." he weeped.

He weeped for some time, but then faced up to her. "I made something." he reached below his shirt and took out a necklace with a shard that meant so much for him "I made someone attach this shard to a necklace....." he held it close "So it's always with me. It reminds me of you...... it's the only thing I have from you......" he sat at her feet and stared at the shard "Resonance." he whispered.

Her voice filled the barn, making him cry even more. Was it torture? Was it guilt? Was it Jaken reminding himself of what Kiara's voice sounded like?

Jaken did not know.
But he felt it necessary.

 

[Adriwolf]

Day 11

Jaken had sent Fafurion for another hunt. He was alone with Kiara. But Kiara could not do anything, she was still trapped in that god damn ice shard. The bounty hunter placed his hand on the shard and sighed, leaning his forehead on the shard. He still missed her. It has been 11 days since everything went quiet. Sure, his life before her was quiet. But now... it was another type of silence. And he did not like it. It didn't had the same energy. It felt different. It was haunting him. He sat at the feet of the shard and leanned his nape on it.

"Elbion is slowly repairing itself. The city is starting to look a lot like itself before the chaos. I decided to start help around. I get paid, not that much, but.... guess my time is worth it. However, people try to avoid me because I am a werewolf. And they have seen my werewolf form. Anything that is heavy to carry around, I help out in my werewolf form. I have noticed people trying to avoid me since and I have heard people complaining about my activities in my werewolf form. Everytime I hear them, I do my best to not scream at them. I do. I do try. And I suceed at staying quiet and ignoring them. I just..... I just.... I just know you wouldn't want me to fight. I know you would tell me to not listen to them and that I am better than what they are saying. Because I know that you wouldn't take such comments, you would support me.... you would tell me that I'm not the monster they think I am." he sighed, then he stripped and transformed into his werewolf form "I know taht you wouldn't be afraid of me on this form. Even though you survived a true werewolf. You survived a werewolf that tried to kill you annd I couldn't help it, and still.... you managed to forgive me. Why? Why did you forgive me? How could you forgive me? After all that I made you go through......" a tear started to run down his cheek "I miss you. I miss your voice, sure, I have the shard with your voice on it, but.... I want to hear YOUR voice, I want to hear your emotions." he started to cry "Because I love you. I love your emotions. I love your voice. I love the way you move, feel, react. I love everything about you." more tears started to run down his face.

The werewolf eventually laid on the ground and closed his eyes. He would sleep there that night. He would sleep next to the elf he loved, protecting her like he couldn't do 11 days ago. The wolf whispered that word that would kickstart the shard's magic, her voice echoing in the barn and rocking his to sleep. He eventually fell asleep, breathing peacefully and forgetting the sorrow he's feeling over Kiara. Eventually Fafurion would wake him up in the morning by cuddling besides him. He would great the nargacuga, feed him some of the food he brought and leave the barn to continue helping the reconstruction of Elbion.

Even though he visited her every night, he would only remember the days were he would tell him what was happening in the city while she was trapped. The days he visited her, he would stay quiet and sit besides her, but theese days were special. It not only helped Jaken to keep track of the days, but also, it would make hs sanity keep stable.

All of this started 11 days ago.

 

[Adriwolf]

Day 22

Another day, another night. A night of loneliness. That was how Jaken felt. Sure, he had Fafurion sleeping next to him, but still, he felt lonely. Sure, Kiara was behind him, but, it doesn't feel the same. 22 days ago, Jaken lost Kiara to an evil lady who in her last moments of life called Kiara 'mother'. He was still confused over what that could mean. Was Kiara really the lady's mother? Maybe the lady, being from a parallel universe, is indeed Kiara's daughter. Maybe she came from a universe where Kiara had a baby. But how could the lady had ended up here with the objective that she had throughout Jaken and Kiara's adventure.

But that was not important now. What was important right now was Kiara's protection. The ice shard protected her very well, but..... it also protected Jaken. The shard would still sing lullabies for Jaken to fall asleep in a feeling that was a mixture between relief and sadness. It was a confusing feeling, but it helped him fall asleep. Once again, Jaken was in his werewolf form, sitting at Kiara's feet. He began to inform.

"Yesterday I got a day off." he started "People were telling me that I had done such a great job that they decided that I should take a break from helping reconstructing Elbion. I'm not sure if it was generosity from them, or was it an excuse to make me go away. Even though I have been helping a lot, people are still afraid of me because of what I am." he caressed his furry arms "But I deciided to look beyond the horizon. What do I mean by it? I decided to look away from the destruction of the city and decided to look into the civilians. How were they handling the situation, or how are they after the incident." he took a deep breath "I went to the asylum to look around. 27% of Elbion's population had to go to that place. The incident left them so fucked up that they went insane. You may say that 27% may not be that much, but take into account that 57%, according to the college, of Elbion's poopulation died during the incident. So it's 100-57=43. Now that minus 27. That equals to.... hold on,.... uuuhhhh.... 16%. 16% of Elbion's population is healthy. Anyway, back to the asylum. People really lost their shit. People were cradling themselves on the corner, others were laughing maniacally, non-stop. Some were catatonic. Others became aggressive, at the slighest sight of a shaodw, they would scream and slam themelves to their doors. Others would scream in fear and run away, hiding in the corners of the room, panicked and shaking like a puppy. It is a sad sight, but what is done, is done. We can't go back...." he sighed.

"Then I wondered what would've happened if we weren't ready. What would've happened if you and me were in the middle of the begginning of all of that. It scares me to think what would've happened. We wouldn't had been ready. You could have gotten hurt, and I wouldn't forgive myself for that." he sighed "I'm sorry. I'm sorry for not being there. I promise to protect you from now on. My life is yours.... I prmise."

The werewolf stayed at the feet of the elf he loved.
He would never her alone.
That, he promised.

 

[Adriwolf]

Day 42

The ice shard on Jaken's back did not make him feel cold. He felt cold, but, not physically. It has been over a month since Kiara froze in time. Froze in a critical moment. All he could do was wait and hope for the best. He hated that. He hated leaving things by chance, he wanted to be certain about what was going to happen, and this did followed what he had hoped. He had a bottle of beer on his hands. The first he had taken in 3 weeks. He missed the flavor of it: bitter, but comforting. He would never get drun, he knew that if he got drunk, then everyone would be at the mercy of an angry drunken werewolf. And that probably was not the best idea, not after everything he did..... that would just make him look worse.

"I got kicked out from the reconstruction team." he said as he took a sip from the beer "It wasn't my fault. I was carrying some logs to rebuild a store when I heard someone talking behind my back. They were talking shit behind me. Saying how werewolves should go back to be slaves for the human, that we are pets and how we should be put down if we ever disobeyed our 'masters'. It made me sick, but I ignored it. I have heard worse and in front of my face. Even though it made me sick, I was enjoying that. I mean.... how coward do they have to be to not tell me that in my face?" he chuckled, then took another sip "But..... the problem was......" he sighed "I don't know if they were too stupid to do it, or they just wanted to look brave. But they grabbed my tail and pulled it. Then they laughed. Of course I didn't take it to kindly. I didn't killed them, but I did...... punched them and kicked them away. Literally. My strength was too much that the others got scared. They thought I killed him. But I listened his heartbeat and breathing. He was still alive. He was just pretending to be knocked out or dead. Then the guards came and stabbed me with spears. I actually got a scar because of how deep one silver spear went. It's on my leg. Then they tried to settle things down. But of course, seeing how I am the Big Bad Wolf, and they are Little Red Riding Bitch, guess who got kicked out." he took the last sip and threw the bottle away "It's bullshit. I was standing up for myself. Imagine if your spine was being pulled. It doesn't feel nice. And it was my instinct: someone attacks me, hit back. If it was an accident, then I apologize. Sure, this one was deliberately..... but what should I have done? Let them pull my tail like they would do to a pet. FUCK THAT!!"

He turned to Kiara and leaned on his shoulder with the ice shard "Fuck all of them. There are less than 5 people that treat me right. You are the number 1...... and that is some of the reasons why I miss you....." he closed his eyes, tearing up.

People were not nice to Jaken, only because of what he had become unwillingly.
But this is his reality, there was no way he could escape it.
But even though, his reality was a shitty one....
There was hope for Kiara to come back.
The number 1 person that treated him right.....

His number 1......

 

[Adriwolf]

Day 86

Jaken was again in his werewolf form, sitting at the feet of the elf he loved and has not been able to talk for the past..... how many days? He lost track after the the month and a half. His mind had lost track of everything around him. He had nothing to do. No one would hire him over that incident he had with those kids, and there were no jobs taht took place inside of Elbion; no bounties. And,, even if there were, he couldn't take themm. He didn't knnow for how long would he be gone. He promised to stay besides her until the day that her fate would be sealed. The bounty hunter did not cared if his resources like food and water were scarce, he could feed himself all too well, there was some cattle neraby and a lake few kilometers away. The werewolf could easily live off that. After years of experience and practice, he knew how to survive in the wold. He knew which plants to consume and which ones not; how to clean water with a homemade filter. He knew a lot of things that right now.... he wanted to show Kiara to improve her survival skills. But.... he couldn't... how could he teach an ice shard about botany or cleaning methods? Ice shards couldn't talk back or do something, ice shards could... just be there. Static, silent, cold. It crushed him. If he could, he could lick the entire ice shard down, melt it away with his saliva, but he knew it was worthless, noothing would change. She would still be there.

"I don't know if you can hear me." he said "I don't know if you are conscious in that state, but if you are, I want you to know that I have never left. I have always been here. When you froze yourself in time, a part of me stayed with you, for the better or the worse. But a part me is here with you,, and I'm sure that whatever part of me is here, it is prtecting you. Sure, Fafurion is also here, but..... I just....." he sniffled "I just kow that a part of me is still here with you. And now I am here.... god...... I just wish I can hug you and keep you wamr.... I don't know if... in there, you feel cold.... if you do, I swear, I will do anything to keep you warm, I'll hug you in my werewolf form, wrapping you in my fur and keeping you warm besides a fireplace while giving you some hot tea. I will do anything to make you comfortable and stand back on your legs. I promise." he pressed his forehead on the shard, he sighed.

"I have lost count of how long have you been trapped there. I can tell by the beard I'm growing." he scoffed "If you could see me in my human form. I have grown this beard that looks.... well... I have never been a beard guy, but... I guess I'm kinda getting used to it. it's a short one, not too long. You wouldn't be able to see it in my werewolf form, it's a.... human-form-privilege-only type of thing." he chuckled "Also... my body hair has been growing, guess I'm not taking care of it. But... I don't care. I'm not a furry bear, I just have a bit of it on my body... I'm sorry. I really shouldn't be saying this, but... I have no one else to talk to.... you could say I have come again to my loner status... and I hate it. I don't want to be alone. I want to have someone to talk to and someone to.... show off my body hair?" he chuckled again "I'm sorry, I have no idea what am I saying."

For a moment, he laughed. For a moment, he forgot about what was happening. He was lost in his own thoughts and stupid jokes, but at least... that made him smile and laugh for a while.

It made him forget.
Was that good?

 

[Adriwolf]

Day 119

By then, Jaken was losing hope, barely hanging from it, he was holding on it with his pinkie finger in the thread of hope. He was close to let it go and give up, his sadness, frustration and regret had gotten the best of him. He would usually do whatever it takes to achieve his goals, but this one.... it may have pushed him too far. He lost the count of days, but it didn't really matter to him, as the days seemed eternal. He just wanted to feel her, hug her, kiss her, just having her besides her. He knew that it was a selfish wish, but... he couldn't help it. The ONLY person who was kind to him was the ef frozen in time, an elf that would sing him to sleep through a purple shard. Her voice...... her sweet voice... he just... couldn't anymore. He just wanted to bring a flamethrower and melt the bastard down, but.... that would never work, he knew that. All he could do was stay by her side and protect her from whatever thing is out there, althoug, it wouldn't really be necessary, as nothing would go through the ice armor that Kiara placed upon herself. He remembered why she did it: to protect him.... to protect him, after his stupidity, after leaving her to her own. He couldn't forgive himself for that. He would NEVER forgive himself for that. And that made him cry. He cried at the feet of the ice shard and howled howls of sorrow in both his human and werewolf form. He couldn't help it.... that was how he could keep himself sane.... or did he?

The bounty hunter was on his human form, sitting at her feet, by then, a short scruffy beard had grown on him, his beard was rough at the slightest touch, but it wasn't rude to anyone. You would just feel that the beard is pointy, aand that would be it. He drank from the bottle of beer he bought, it had becomme a habit, every 4 day, he would buy a bottle of beer and drink it with its... her..... its company... he threw the bottle away and leaned his head on the shard. He sighed. "I don't know where am I going..." he started "I don't know where am I going. I don't know if I am going to a better place, or a worst place, or am I neutral? That scares me... not knowing where I am. There have been times that I just want to snap and rip EVERYONE to pieces, just... fuck everything. Fuck everyone. Fuck Elbion. Fuck everything. But.... I knew you wouldn't want me to do it.... I know that you would look at me differently. You would look at me like a monster.... a horrible monster... merciless, boundless, emotionless... with nothing more than rage controlling him.... but..... I want to defend myself.... I want to argue that my actions are justified, but they are not. But still..." he started to sob "I just want something to validate my actions. Something that I can get away with... but they wouldn't care, would they? No. They wouldn't. Why see the whole picture? You can just see the wolf and accuse it of destruction. Yeah.... that's how everyone would be..." he stripped and morphed into his wolf form "This being that I can become, this being that can destroy.... I can only destroyed.... the ones I care about... I destroyed my parents, my home, my life, everyone that came across me and now you. Why has this happened? Why is it always me? This is not fair!! IT'S NOT!!!" he roared "I DIDN'T ASK FOR THIS!!! I DIDN'T WANT TO BECOME THIS FUCKING MONSTER!!! THOSE MOTHERFUCKERS BIT ME AND TOOK EVERYTHING AWAY FROM ME!!! WHY??!!! WHY ME???!!!!" he roared and whimpered "I never thought... I would become this monster.... this monster that can destroy EVERYTHING it touches.... it's not fair..... i feel damned.... i feel doomed... is it even worth it?" he looked at the elf "Is it even worth to go on like this, if I know what will happen to everyone... then why going on? Why make everyone suffer when I can end it? If you see a poisonous plant in the garden, you wouldn't leave it there, would you? If it has the potential to kill all your other plants, why would you keep it there? You would just cut it off and save the rest.... I am the poisinous plant.... I should just give up..... just stay away and not let anyone else suffer.... but.... I still know that.... if you ever come back, I will be attracted to you, I would want to be besides you and protect you, yet, I know that I will bring you sorrow..... why is that? Why do I want to be with you to protect you, kknowing that I am the reason of your dismays? Why do I do that? I don't want to hurt you..... but..... I don't know..... god... why is this tormenting me?!"

He sat at he rfeet and sighed, tears still falling. He looked at the crystal.
"Resonance"
The voice started to sing him to sleep, he layed down and soon enough, he fell asleep.

Was it worth it?
Will she ever come out?
He just want her back.
Start a new story.....
make a prologue....