The Cold She-wolf

Chapter One Hundred One: awakened

Lynn's POV

   The rhythmical sound of water dropping on water echoed in the cave. The cave had water on the ground rising to our calves, so it rippled and splashed as we walked. I continued to look around the cave, brushing my finger along the smooth, cold wall while Krystal quietly led the way. The walls were… well, not made of rocks. It looked more like water whose surface was frozen so it wouldn't leak. The gurgling and bubbling inside the wall made it clear.

   "Don't fall behind," Krystal's voice drew my attention. I looked ahead of me and looked at her back. Her hair was disheveled, her clothes torn and her feet bare. She looked like someone who'd been stranded on an island for a long time.

   Krystal held out her palm, a big white light floating about it. We didn't necessarily need the light since the water in the walls seems to be light itself, but she still created it. "How deep is this cave?"

   "We'll be there soon," she said briskly.

   "Can we just run?"

   "If you run, you'll never be able to stop for the rest of your life. Be patient, it's just around this corner," she had been talking to me like that since we took off for the cave. I knew she was just worried and afraid of failing, so I didn't push it.

   Krystal disappeared into a corner and I jogged to catch up with her. I rounded the corner too and met a dead end. Krystal wasn't anywhere to be seen. There was a small hole in the ground so I walked closer and looked down. Water ran down through the hole to the lower space which had even more water, glowing water this time. Krystal stood below, staring up at me silently. I stepped back a bit and then jumped into the hole.

   Krystal stepped aside so I wouldn't jump on her head. I landed on the ground, causing the water to splash roughly. Without a second spared, she turned and continued walking. This space was like a room, a very big room. There was a flight of stairs leading up a bowl-shaped rock. It wasn't a large bowl but it was as large as a small cottage.

   "Come, Lynn," I nodded even though she couldn't see me and followed her up the stairs to the top of the bowl. "Look down, what do you see?" The bowl was filled up with water, unclear water. I couldn't see what was inside except the greenish-blue liquid. "Look closer," I crouched on the ground and peered at the water. At first, I didn't see anything, but then I saw what was underneath.

   There was an altar under the water, a howlite altar or something like that, I couldn't see it clearly. On the altar was a woman. Even under the green water, her snow-white skin couldn't be mistaken. The lid of her eyes and her lips were dead gray, but a hint of blue was on her lips. Her off-white hair floated in a spiral around her hands which were crossed over her chest. Her face might have been drained of life, but the resemblance couldn't be mistaken. That woman was the mother of my mate and best friend.

   "I thought her body was dismantled,"

   "Stealing the pieces from the grave and recreating it is not a problem for Raquelia," my neck made a small snapping sound as I turned my head abruptly to look at her with surprise. "Yes, she kept the body here with hopes that I'd be able to bring her back by using the wish the guardian of Altan gets after his or her acceptance. That way, she won't be violating any law." Who's Altan?

   "So, how do I come in?"

   She stretched out her hand once more and the white light from earlier appeared, then slowly dimmed. It was actually an orb. "This is the orb from the scepter of the queen, the scepter that rightfully belongs to me. Altan has created an opportunity with my wish. Mother is a personification of winter under me and the scepter is used to govern minor personifications. Thanks to the wish, the scepter is no longer needed to control them, instead, the authority lives in me. Still, the orb has enough energy in it—"

   "So you're going to convert that energy to life force and use it on her!" I exclaimed with realization.

   She shook her head. "Close. You are going to turn this orb into a heart and attach it to her chest. I don't have the magic to reshape organs or alter life as a wizard can. Plus, your strange energy will help too. It's going to drain you for everything you have got. Will you still do it?"

   I laughed. "Is that a question?" I'd do anything for her. She was my world. She didn't even need to ask. I stretched out my hand to her. She looked at me with worry and hesitation for a few seconds before she pushed the floating object into my palm. Unlike hers, mine didn't float. The moment it made contact with my skin, I felt my energy deplete in a second.

   I groaned as I fell to my knees, quickly using my other hand to hold up my hand to prevent it from touching the ground. I couldn't feel my legs and could barely feel my body. She wasn't joking when she said it would drain me from everything I have. Still, I couldn't give up knowing that if we miss this opportunity, we'll never be able to bring my future mother-in-law back to life without any consequences.

Convert the orb to a heart.

   I'd only tried creating an organ and body parts twice. When I was ten, I had a pet tiger but he had a terrible kidney disease. I remembered trying to create a kidney for him but it didn't work. One, I simply created the organ, I didn't put the magical energy to finalize its purpose. Two, creation spells that deal with a living thing that is already dead are more difficult to maintain as bringing the being from the dead was crossing a line. Three, my powers weren't strong enough then. I learned about that flaw later when I was fourteen, the time I finally learned to accept and love my baby sisters.

   Emma and May were conjoined twins. Seriously merged babies. To make matters worse, May was weak as her heart was in Emma's body while Emma had a heart of her own. I still wonder how she managed to survive a year. She was dying then and her death meant Emma's. How was she going to live with a dead body that couldn't be removed from hers? That was when I decided to perform a magic experiment with them. They were going to die anyway so I was better off trying. With the help of different doctors and two necromancers who helped me understand where I went wrong with my pet, I was able to separate and re-create their bodies.

I went into a coma after that for two months.

   I could only imagine how long I'll be out after doing this. Notwithstanding, I reformed the orb into a heart and allowed it to drain off my powers like a vampire sucking a human dry. The heart, which looked more like a golden beryl stone shaped like a heart, released beams of light and entered the water, latching onto her body.

   The cave started to rumble and shake. The altar slowly rose from underneath the water, causing the water to wave and clash against each other. It felt like I was hanging onto my life by a thin thread with every second the object spent on my palm. Then the same beam of light zapped Krystal, piercing through her chest. The lights retracted, pulling out the bead of energy Frost gave to her and sucking it into the heart.

   With the speed of light, the gem heart moved towards the body and disappeared underneath her crossed hands. The yellow light started turning white. A cloud formed above her body. It turned blue and lightning formed in the cloud. The light uncrossed her hands, revealing a large hole in the place where her heart should be, where the new heart was. I watched with awe as the gem heart turned into the deep red color of blood and slowly morphed into a real heart. It was horrific and fascinating how her organs reformed and reconnected before my very eyes. I didn't get to see it back then with the girls because my eyes were closed.

It was truly marveling.

   The hole started closing up and the charge of the lightning increased and multiplied in the cloud. "Merlynn, run!!!!" Krystal screamed. I couldn't move my body. If anything, I was slowly losing consciousness. Her voice sounded so far away. "Merlynn!!!!" I felt her wrap her arms around me and saw feathers spreading behind her before my vision went black completely. Before my hearing toned out completely, I heard the sound of thunder and lightning striking something hard.