Between The Realms

Thirty

                                  Atticus

                         Secrets Within The Mountain

  We shot down the gap of the entrance, our wings beating the stale air, rocks crumbling in our wake. 'What do you think that howl was?' Sera said down the bond. I shook my head, the bone-chilling howl we'd both heard made my blood run cold, I'd never heard a sound like that in my life. I have no clue what could even make a sound that horrifying.' I replied, the shadows in my palms flickering nervously.

We landed at the bottom of where stone stairs once stood,  now they sat broken and crumbling. We were met by a massive tunnel stretching into the distance.

The long tunnel was damp, the only light was tiny blue mushrooms, their glowing spores sparkling and shimmering, generating an atmosphere of ethereal majesty. I glanced at Sera, her eyes alight with awe and wonder. Who could blame her the mushroom spores alone were awe-inspiring.

"I read in a book once that these are called Bluesparkle Shrooms, they're commonly used as a natural light source in the Sporefolk kingdom. These types of fae are famously known for their countless types of magical mushrooms, hence their name." I blabbed, my love of nature tearing its head. "Ok, nerd."

Sera teased, her cloud-gray eyes shimmering with mischievous amusement. We walked down the dank corridor, and the only sound was our loud footfalls.

We had come upon a massive opening in the tunnel, flowers blanketed the cavernous space. Moss and vines with pretty purple flowers that glowed eerily covered the giant stalactites above us. Despite the beauty that surrounded us, I couldn't shake the terrible feeling of something strange in the air.

  As we continued through the massive opening, we suddenly heard the strange howl, only this time it was a lot closer but equally terrifying. Sera and I glanced at each other, understanding sitting between us. We launched into a sprint towards the noise, our footfalls slapping the stone floor and crushing sticks and leaves, not caring about how much noise we were making.

  Suddenly, a giant black wolf standing over 20 feet tall appeared before us, its silver eyes narrowed. A crescent moon symbol resting in the center of its massive head glowing faintly.

"What in Vale is this thing?" Sera whisper-shouted at me, trying desperately to not provoke the godly creature standing before us. It howled again, stomping its city-sized paws, rattling the entire mountain "I don't know, but I think it's in pain." I observed, Its tail crushed under a massive boulder the size of the wolf itself.

  The wolf eyed us warily, its moonlit eyes never straying. "Sera, I think it's trapped here," I said glancing down at the glowing pulsing shackles chained tightly to its ankles. "How do we release them?" Sera asked, worry shifting her beautiful features. She took a tentative step toward the massive beast, a glowing palm outstretched.

"Grrrrr!" a low growl rumbled deep in its throat, a warning to stay away. I bristled, my anger rising. How dare this lowly mutt show animosity towards my mate. I glared deep into its eyes, daring it to do it again. Shadows curled around me twisting and curling their tendrils reacting to my heightened emotion.  Much to my surprise it backed down, its massive onyx body bowing in submission.

I stared at the wolf in bewilderment, its silver eyes were as soft as molten silver. Sorrow seemed to emanate from the nightmarish creature. Suddenly feeling bold, I walked up to the wolf's snout. Hot steaming air blew my hair away from my face. My anger vanished as I grinned like an idiot.

I touched the wolf's nose when suddenly my palm began to heat up, an unnatural silver and black glow pulsed underneath like a second heartbeat, beating in tandem with mine. Then it faded as quickly as it began.

"Hello, master my deepest apologies for offending your mate. I have been trapped down here for several millennia, so my senses aren't as sharp as they once were. My name is Levana I am the anima of the moon and stars." A slightly gruff female voice sounded in my head.

I glanced at Sera her gray eyes glancing warily between me and Levena. "I heard that, you know how our bond works right?" She said, her arms crossed and an eyebrow raised. I shrugged nonchalantly. She rolled her eyes and smirked as she finally stepped beside me, placing her palm on Levana's snout. A strong golden and ruby glow pulsed underneath her hand exactly the way it did mine.

Suddenly Levana began to glow her black body lifted into the air, and the chains snapped, the boulder crushing her tail crumbled to ash as another giant animal appeared before us. Its golden fur shimmered and shone with godly power. A tall strong lion stood 30 feet, ten times the size of the wolf.

"I am known across the realms as Soryn, the anima of sun and healing." A deep proud voice bellowed heartily. Its ruby eyes glinting with humor.  "How'd you get down here and how do we get you out?" I asked, mind racing. I paced in thought, moss, and leaves crunching underneath my boots. Sera walked up to me, placing a gentle hand on my shoulder.  "I believe they have a way to escape, but I don't think you'll like it." She said softly, squeezing my shoulder reassuringly. When did I have a choice at this point? I thought, turning to face Sera and the anima that stood deathly still, their eyes glowing in tandem.

"I don't think so, you've protected us from the demon hordes for centuries, and as soon as your true powers awakened you abandon us? No, I will not stand for it." A cold female voice said from the shadows.

A woman with long green hair and piercing jade eyes stared at us with a fire in her eyes, smoldering with an intensity I'd never seen from a member of the Sporefolk Kingdom. The beasts both snarled, a sound that shook the walls of the mountain, and bits of jagged rocks tumbled down, cracking the stone where they landed.

"That is no fae children, I don't have time to explain but we must run if we want to live," Leavana said nervously. I looked closer at the strange woman, her skin seemed to shimmer with sickly scales, and green claws had grown from her fingers. "Damn, and I thought I had you fooled." She sneered, black teeth glinting eerily in the soft glow of the mushrooms surrounding us. We back away slowly, I'm not sure what dangerous powers she has and after what happened with the last demon we fought I'm not ready to find out.

"You'll not escape me alive, I'll drown you all in the depths of your blood and drink myself drunk on it." She snarled, bearing those gruesome black teeth.

I summoned all my rage, allowing Ombran's power to seep into my veins. Shadows as black as the depths of hell itself billowed out from my body,  my nails lengthened into claws, curling dangerously.  I've changed my mind, no filthy demon dares threaten me and those close to me and lives to tell the tale. "I'll take you down then you wretched demon scum." I spit, my voice cold and filled with icy rage.

She took a tentative step back but her pride denied any further. "What are you?" She said, a small hint of fear in her tone as I stalked towards her, my vision blackening at the edges.  I said in a voice as cold as death: "I'm the last thing you'll see alive." I lunged, claws outstretched.