Blood and Beasts

Chapter 65

They collapsed down in a forest surrounded by trees. Cara's hands pushed through a light layer of snow as they hit the ground. She gasped out, ravenous for fresh air after the drowning sensation that had trapped them. All had been dark red, and then there had been bright white. It took her eyes a moment to adjust, to figure out what was going on, where they were.

It was still night outside, but the full moon made it very bright. Cara no longer felt the pull from it she had felt earlier. The moon was dipping now and too much had happened since then.

Shaking her head from the bright lights that were still dancing around the edge of her vision, she saw the silver dagger glistening on one side of her, and on the other she saw Andie lying in the snow, still cradling her wounded arm. She was sweating and looked very pale now.

The shock started to slide off Cara. A minute ago they had been face to face with Lucifer himself, and now...now she didn't know where they were.

"Cara," Andie said weakly, lifting her head out of the snow. "What happened?" Cara thought for a moment. She didn't know how to explain it. But she did know that Andie was still bleeding from the explosion that had taken her hand.

Cara sat up and pulled her belt off. She delicately took Andie's arm and fastened the belt tight around her bicep. Andie grimaced, but didn't fight it. Her eyes were fluttering and she was nearly unconscious.

"Where are we?" Andie asked, her voice very soft. Cara gazed at all the trees around them, devoid of leaves, a thin layer of snow painting their branches. Nearby she saw a stream, which was mostly frozen over, weaving a path along the ground. Suddenly she knew.

"This is the forest Daniel went when he was a child, on the night he turned for the first time. Logan hunted him through these trees, but chose to spare his life." She didn't know exactly how she knew this, but she was certain it was the truth.

"I need water," Andie moaned. Cara nodded. She carefully scooped her arms under Andie's slight frame and lifted her, being cautious of her footing at she carried her over to the stream. Cara was also exhausted, and heavily battered and bruised, but the stream wasn't far and she had the strength to help Andie. She set her down just off of the bank, and then finding a spot where the ice wasn't yet solid, Cara cupped her hands and brought water to Andie's lips for her to drink.

Andie went into a coughing fit after a few desperate sips. "It's cold."

"Yeah, well what did you expect?" Andie grinned at the smirk Cara shot her. But the grin only lasted a second before her face broke in tears.

"I can't believe they're all gone. It's all over." Cara took her remaining hand and squeezed it tight. "We're doomed aren't we?" Cara felt tears ready to fall, but there was something still burning inside her.

"We might be," she admitted. "But...when we were falling through the pool, I felt something. There was something guiding me." She remembered the flash she'd seen, the endless forest with her and Daniel standing side by side. "It might have been Daniel's spirit." Andie looked up at her through weak eyes. "Or it might have been something more than that. For a moment I had a sense of all the forces at work in this universe. I have to believe there's more because I refuse to give up this fight."

Exhaustion took Andie and she fell asleep. Cara gazed up at the starry sky, and of course at the moon that beamed so grandly.

Softly she said to herself, "I'm not ready to stop fighting yet."

To be continued...