Page 297 of His Sunshine Baby

Despite their several years difference, Sylviana is not letting herself be dominated. She is controlling so many roots and even some nearby tree branches so easily, I realize Nephera was right to be cautious of her. When she’s experiencing difficulty, theground will shake again, and a new crater emerges between her and her sister, putting some distance and destabilizing Nephera and the vampires around. The difference in strength is starting to show between them, but unfortunately, Nephera’s weakness is compensated by the growing number of vampires.

I feel like we have been fighting for hours, but they just keep coming, more and more of them. The werewolves keep fighting back relentlessly, but I can feel everyone’s injuries, and the wolves leaving us… I furiously growl, trying to gather all my strength. I throw my poles into the face of two nearby vampires, shift my balance to send my foot right into their head, right after a round kick, and send them flying farther away from me.

I growl ferociously and shape-shift, jumping into my wolf appearance as easily as putting on clothing. The vampires react strangely to my shifting. Some retreat, others hiss even more furiously at me. I guess my cream-white fur gave it away. I let out a warning growl, extending my aura like a halo around.

To my surprise, instead of reacting to my growl, a lot of vampires step back, terrified.

“Selena, your eyes are glowing!”

Glowing? What the hell is going on now! I feel my aura too, growing wilder like a burning sun in my core. What is that? I extend it again, to reach my friends, the entire pack, and this time, it’s not a feeble mind-link but a strong connection I feel, like a solid chord. I can feel everyone, absolutely everyone. I feel like there’s something else, tickling, some shadows I can’t manage to connect to. Another code I need to crack, something I need to decipher with my aura. It’s ringing in my mind, like a call I just don’t know how to answer.

“Selena!”

“For Moon Goddess’ sake, Levi, go back! Please! You’ll get yourself killed!”

He won’t be able to hold like that for long! There are just too many vampires here! Even the Black brothers and I just can’t catch a break, and Levi is no match!

“Don’t worry about me!”

He is doing okay so far, but one wrong move and he’ll die! I just can’t watch him and fight my own fights! I try to get closer to him, but the dance of the roots around is confusing me. I can’t make any reckless position change without risking hitting one. Sylviana knows our positions, but she probably can’t constantly watch out for us if we move too much! The only one who seems rather comfortable in this configuration is Liam. It’s obvious he’s got some experience in random environments or with Sylviana’s power. He’s like a fireball, jumping from one spot to another, easily adjusting to the roots’ random appearances, even sometimes using them as support for jumping with all fangs out.

Damian and Nate are doing okay, judging by the bodies around them, but they have been careful not to move too much, facing the same issue as me. All of us have the same objective: get to Nephera while eliminating as many vampires as we can on the way, but I can feel the other wolves are suffering from our absence on the rest of the battlefield.

“You think you can win, Sylviana?” yells Nephera. “I can kill any of your little dogs anytime I want!”

“Nephera, please, stop this! You can still come back to Silver City! We don’t have to fight, you’re my older sister!”

“Your older sister that was left and abandoned while you had everything! You grew up with Mother, with friends! I had nothing! Nothing!”

They keep arguing, Sylviana begging her to stop again and again, but I can tell Nephera has gone mad being repair. It’s not like Iris. My cousin was jealous to the core, but she could still hear us, be reasonable. She was smart enough, too smart. Nephera is just… She left all her feelings in one place and won’tlook at it again. She won’t hear, she won’t listen. She’s so sure of her truth, nothing Sylviana will say can get to her. She spent years persuading herself she was right, that she was a victim and we deserved to die for making her life miserable. I can tell just by looking at her. She lives only for her revenge. That’s all she has left.

“Selena!”

Sylviana’s scream takes me by surprise. She made a mistake and, at the last second, I see one of Nephera’s ice peaks flying my way. I try to dodge.

The damn thing scratches my other shoulder, but I throw myself on the ground and manage to avoid it. I’m lying on the mud, and that’s all it takes for two vampires to jump on me. I’m on my tummy, I know I won’t be able to defend myself in time. I try to roll over to at least manage to push them away with my legs, but even that is too late. I see their fangs, coming right at me when a brown silhouette covers me.

I scream internally. I can feel Levi’s pain, the furious bites deep on his shoulder, on his neck.

“Levi! Levi! Levi, move! Levi!”

He can’t hear me, I can’t reach him. I see his body right above mine, but I feel this horrible hole, growing larger and larger as the pain sinks in, giving in to the darkness. No, Moon Goddess, no, no, no, not Levi, please, not him…

I want to cry, to scream, but this is a fight. One of my best friends’ bodies is the only thing protecting me, but I feel the horrible movements coming from above, as the vampires keep biting and biting, killing him in a horrible, painful way. I want to scream in horror, I just can’t bear it.

I push my feelings down and shift into position to jump out, grabbing the closest vampire and ripping its neck in one bite. One by one, I take down all the blood-suckers, those cursed creatures who were attacking him. I know it’s useless, it’s toolate to save him, but I just attack, attack, and attack again, furiously, like some death machine. I’m blinded by fury.

I take all those monsters down, away from my friend. I’m choking up, crying, but I need to release my rage. I can feel Danny and his family, and they all felt him die too, and I’m even more furious and sad for them.

“Get to them! Kill them all, you useless vampires!” yells Nephera. “Get to their Luna’s house!”

More vampires appear. Moon Goddess, is there no end to this? I growl menacingly as the anger gets to me. We are all here, all werewolves fighting to defend our turf, all connected, all standing, growling furiously. We are not letting them in.

The fight goes on and on, I don’t know for how long. I’m tired, my injuries hurt, but I don’t allow myself any rest or mistakes. I know my baby star’s life is at stake, Nora’s and her babies too. I am not letting those damn vampires or this wretched witch touch a strand of hair on them.

“Nora, please tell me you’re alright so far.”

“Yeah, yeah… The nurse says I’ll be ready… soon. Just… give me a minute.”

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