Holding his sword with both hands, he lowered his body and bent his knees slightly. His gaze followed the wolf in front of him. It was the first of many – the one that reached him first.
His left eye ached slightly as he glanced at the damaged section of the Veil. More and more wisps entered their world and hurried off somewhere deeper into the woods. This wolf, and the others he had faced were all a result of that. The wisps – spirits from the Other side – took over the wolves’ minds. That was what had supposedly happened during the Bareon disaster, so he assumed the same was happening here.
With a tight jaw and tense muscles, he lunged forward. His blade descended from above, digging into the wolf’s fur. He twisted his blade until the wolf’s body collapsed, then pulled the blade away and retreated towards Lillia and the fused tree trunks she was leaning against.
Her eyes were shut, and she covered them with the hood of his cloak. Visibly shaking, she pressed her left palm against her mouth in an attempt to be silent.
“It’s alright,” he lied. It wasn’t alright, but at least they were still alive. The girl nodded in response, calmer than just a few moments ago.
Midhir turned his attention to the mist, and the damaged section of the Veil again. He could see the far away silhouettes of approaching wolves, but they were slow, sluggish – just like the one he just killed was. They were nothing like the agile and deadly wolves that forced him and his classmates to separate.
He pondered why. What was different? Perhaps the strength of the spirit invading their bodies was different. Or maybe it was just the time spent here, on this side. If those beasts were the equivalent of weapons to the spirits, then the latter made more sense.
Unsure of his conclusion, he wiped his left eye. It still ached despite there being no reason to.
His gaze turned south. Or at least where he assumed was south. It was impossible to tell with this thick mist, and the forest canopy blocking all sunlight.
He could try to carry Lillia out of the forest, towards Lohssa. Assuming Arwen had succeeded at recasting the resonance, the airship would be safe. There were enough able bodied people to help fend off the wolves and any other creature the wisps possessed.
But would he even make it so far? There were wolves prowling in the woods, visibility was incredibly low anywhere but right around the tear, and he needed to carry her there, so he wouldn’t be able to defend himself against anything if he was caught off guard.
No, it made no sense to get moving unless Lillia found the strength to walk. He shot her a glance. Seeing how small and weak she was, he didn’t think she’d be able to find such strength any time soon. Not only was she malnourished, she also was possessed by a spirit from the Otherworld. He couldn’t even imagine how she felt right now.
A low growl brought his wits about him. His gaze snapped to the source of the noise – a wolf that had approached them from the side. As soon as their gazes met, he felt his blood freeze, and a cold shiver ran down his spine.
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The wolf’s lips curled up, revealing sharp, bloody teeth. This was a large wolf, much larger than the others. It moved with grace, every step, every motion intentional and deliberate. It’s fur was black, and each of its paws as large as Midhir’s head.
Whispers echoed in his ear as they watched each other. His left eye ached, and he felt something warm run down his cheek.
The wolf sniffed the air. It’s bushy tail swung from one side to the other. It almost seemed like it was mocking him.
“You’re not like the others,” his voice was but a whisper as he clenched his fingers around the hilt of his sword. His sweat seeped into the cotton wraps around it as his mind raced to try and find a way out of this. “You’ve been here a long time,”
The wolf didn’t respond. It was a wolf – how could it? But the otherworldly glow in its eyes did seem to glimmer with intellect. “You didn’t cross through last night,” Midhir continued. He needed to somehow protect Lillia. Keep its attention on him, so it didn’t notice the frightened, defenceless girl. “In fact, I think you came to our side before the tear was first repaired, didn’t you?”
The wolf watched him silently. Midhir took a shallow breath. “You’ve been here for a very long time,” he continued, “Not just a day, but a week even. Maybe more?” he gulped, trying to calm his racing heart. “When the Veil here was first torn, you passed through – you were one of the first.”
He glanced at the Veil, where the tear was ever so slowly growing. Soon it wasn’t going to be just a few spirits passing through. It was going to be a flood of them, like it was in Bareon all those years ago. He needed to get himself and Lillia out of here before that happened, but looking at this gigantic, powerful wolf made him despair.
“Why are you after our lives?” he asked, only for the whispers to grow louder. He winced and pressed his palm against his eye. Now really wasn’t the time for random pains. “Why attack Lohssa?”
A low, guttural sound emanated from the wolf’s throat as it took a step forward. It’s bushy tail restlessly moved as it’s lips curled up, and it snarled. It’s ears lay back as it growled.
Then, it pounced.
Teeth snapped at the air, but Midhir leapt back. Without hesitation, he tugged at the thread of spiritual power within. He steadied himself, preparing for the sudden exhaustion that followed Resonance Casting.
His blade burst into flames as the wolf leapt towards him. The flames burned bright as he swung his blade, cutting through flesh and tendons as the wolf’s teeth dug into his legs. A pained groan escaped his lips, while the wolf immediately let go as its beautiful black fur caught on fire. Midhir stumbled forward, summoning even more power.
The flames burned bright as power passed through him like a raging river. It flowed through his arms to the blade, filling the crystal embedded into the sword’s hilt with immense power. With one hand, he grabbed the wolf’s fur below its chin, and with the other, he dug the blade into its chest.
Its howls soon turned into whimpers as the blue light in its eyes vanished, floating away in a wispy form to find another host.
With a swift strike, he ended the wolf’s pain. The adrenaline rushing through his veins subsided suddenly, as soon as the flames on his word vanished, and all the pain returned.
He collapsed as blood gushed from his wounds. The wolf had gotten him good, pierced his clothes, skin and flesh and probably bit all the way to the bone on his left thigh. “Lillia,” He called to her. “I need your help.”
The sound of leaves crushing under something’s weight startled him. His heart sank as he raised his gaze. Three pairs of blue, glowing eyes watched him with hungry gazes.
He had no strength left to fight.
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image [https://drive.google.com/thumbnail?id=1AE26oxRJ1VLUwn9TY2qt61ati41Cd6bv&sz=w2400-h400]