'Hold on, Lyra, I'm begging you; hold on! I'm coming, I'm here, and I came for you. I came because some strange girl told me you might be in danger. I followed that girl into the unknown because she said you might die. I broke our promise, but now I know she wasn't lying, so I have no regrets. Lyra, please, hold on just a bit longer, I'm begging you. Don't leave me in this world that is not mine. Don't leave me. . .alone. . .'
Will's teeth were gritted. His hands were locked in Solstice's mane. Kirjava held on to his jeans, glaring at those who passed them as they reached the outskirts of Oxford. She trembled with fear, and also with rage and many feelings she couldn't yet associate with words, through her fury.
Before them ran Equinox, strong and proud, like a black cloud with fiery eyes, and with a terrible storm of a girl on his back. The look in Aurora's eyes was frightening enough to make even Will twinge.
The two horses dashed like no horse had ever dashed before, and the foot of the mountain was coming into view.
'Hold on. . .'
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Tenebrus flew down onto his human's shoulder, in a large raven form. He cawed warningly.
"She is near. I saw her in Oxford." He announced. Aurore nodded, looking down at the blond girl with a smirk distorting his pale features.
"I'm not worried: I have far more than enough strength to face her. I don't have all the girl's Dust, but what I have will do. I have no more use for her." He looked down at her coldly.
As if on cue, Tenebrus leapt down from his shoulder, and transformed into a large black panther. He trotted over to Pantalaimon, and quickly grabbed the small daemon in his jaws, careful not to hold him too tight, but squeezing a bit all the same.
Aurore reached for a leather case at his belt, and grabbed the hilt of a dagger. He pulled the blade out slowly and let it sing.
His gaze landed on Lyra's neck and he smirked wider.
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Aurora and Will passed the last house of the city, and instantly, both horse daemons leaped into the air, neighing wildly, and in the blink of an eye, transformed into hippogriffs, stunning the boy.
They flapped their wings and rose quickly into the air. People below pointed up at them in awe and talked quickly together, but the riders had not even a thought for them; they simply continued towards the place where Aurora had seen the Dust flowing.
Will's knuckles hurt and the wind stung his eyes, and yet he ignored it all. Kirjava was no longer afraid of the height they were at; she simply twisted her head around to try and find Lyra.
Aurora's eyes were fixed on a spot they were quickly approaching. Her strong eyes saw the glimmer of a blade. . .
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Aurore withdrew the dagger, and the light of the sun reflected on it.
He took a few steps towards the girl in the grass and kneeled next to her, dagger tight in hand, smirk revealing his white teeth.
Tenebrus growled, amused, Pan still locked in his jaws.
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Aurora screamed something and both her daemons flapped their wings at an insane speed.
Will felt his stomach jolt when they suddenly did a dropping plunge towards the ground. It felt as if he had simply fallen out of the air, and Kirjava, for a moment, was scared again.
But right then, the two huge hippogriffs landed on the soft ground with a heavy thud and a wild screech. It took a moment for the boy to understand what was happening, and where they were.
He saw, in a flash, a raven-haired man kneeling near Lyra, dagger in hand, before Solstice reared on her hind paws and threw him right off. Will hit the ground heavily, as did Aurora, having been thrown off her steed, by her steed.
Amazed, Will saw Equinox leap towards the man's daemon, becoming first a sparrow to rid himself of the luggage he was carrying and the rope around his neck, and then into a large lion, taking on Tenebrus.
Solstice morphed into a lioness, and tackled the evil daemon as well. A limp form came pelting from his mouth, and it was Kirjava that realized that it was Pan. She went to fetch him quickly, and dragged him away from danger, as Aurora got up and faced her brother.
He let go of Lyra, leaving her unharmed, and got up to full height, glowing with power.
Will scrambled up as well, looking at both parties, as Equinox and Soltice backed away slowly from Tenebrus, joining their human.
"Will, get Lyra." Aurora ordered. She sounded so severe that the boy did not dare say anything. Not that he had anything to say.
He slowly walked up to the girl, who lay in the grass between both parties, and grabbed her around the waist. His eyes never left the man and his daemon, and theirs never left him. Will was stricken to see how much Aurore looked like his sister, considering he was evil.
He picked Lyra up, and since she was very light, he had quickly gotten her back behind Aurora.
"Wake her up." The girl ordered, glaring at her brother, who continued smirking. She undid the leather case containing Forseti at her belt, and threw it behind her, for Will to catch. He did, and laid it down beside himself, knowing he would have to give it to Lyra and explain a few things to her when she woke up. She would have to know she needed to call on her powers to use the blade on Aurore.
Will shook the girl, as Kirjava licked Pan's fur, trying to wake him up. But neither would budge. They were breathing all right, and their hearts were beating, but they seemed to be in a kind of a coma.
As he tried to wake her up, Aurora at long last faced her brother.
"This is where it ends." She told him calmly.
Aurore smirked.
"Oh really? I think not; my power is far stronger than yours, and I can easily defeat you. I have the upper strength here." His eyes twinkled insanely.
"Perhaps. But my strength is my own, and it is pure. And that is far more than anything you can ever have, because you are stained and consumed." She answered.
His glare became harder and his lip curled, showing his teeth.
"So we shall see."
Tenebrus bucked, roaring, and a great light of black exploded around him. There was a huge wind, and for a moment, Will saw the Dust of the world: he saw it just as Lyra had a few hours earlier.
And the golden Dust that swirled insanely around Aurore and his daemon suddenly became black, and concentrated around Tenebrus.
And then, his sight returned to normal and what Will saw truly scared him: there was a huge, morphed wolf where the evil man's daemon should have been.
It stood eight feet tall, on its hind paws like a human. Its great head was adorned with mighty horns and long blades had burst from his shoulders. The wolf's hands and feet were large in comparison to his body, and tipped with deadly claws. He pulled his head back, black mane rolling and bellowed so loudly the mountains quivered.
Equinox and Solstice also exploded in black light, transforming into large wolves of black, and yet, their huge power did not match Tenebrus's, and they were not morphed like he was.
But that did not stop them from striking with all their might, for their human and for Will. Equinox flew through the air at Tenebrus, but the large beast knocked him aside with a paw, throwing him into a large boulder. Yet this allowed Solstice to bite the wolf's leg.
The evil daemon hollered, and snapped at the female wolf, but she was already out of the reach of his jaws. Equinox came up from behind and jumped, plating his claws in the beast's back. . .
Meanwhile, Aurore was fighting his sister, who was fighting back with as much fury. She threw a punch at him, her knuckles connecting with his jaws, and he planted a kick to her hip.
He tried punching her, but she dodged out of the way and kicked the back of his leg.
Will, for his cause, was trying to wake Lyra up, yet she seemed determined not to move an inch. The boy was getting desperate, and his daemon kept licking Pan, trying to wake him. . .
It seemed all in vain.
The boy looked up and saw Tenebrus thrown Equinox off. The male wolf hit a tree and fell to the ground, yet with a pained roar he got back up, and flew to help Solstice out. Aurora fell to the ground with her brother, and both were trying to choke the other, rolling around in the dust and dirt.
He looked back down at his love, which slept soundly. He didn't know what to do, as the battle raged around them.
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Ok, I know you hate me all now. But I just have to stop here, to leave the final scene for the next chapter. It's very long and possibly very touching, therefore, it stays a secret until its reveal. Please forgive me.
I'll try to post sooner so you don't want to hurt me too much.
Unnamed; Actually, they aren't exactly releasing their Dust. That'll be explained in the last chapter. Thanks for pointing it out, though.
FoxofRoses: Lol.
Lobsstaceyters: You're probably gonna hate me for stopping here, then.
Ellidiot: Even more suspense coming up!
Kaiame: God, you are just gonna flame me for this chapter! I'll go hide in my hole.
Next chapter, Lyra finally wakes up and in the heat of battle, Will tells her what she has to do. And yet, she feels she has failed them and been a fool and brought him into danger with her own stupidity. . .will Will be able to convince her otherwise, before time runs out?