It was a defending roar he'd never heard in his life. Maybe on Tv? Films? But this, this was something else.
"I just hope she doesn't set my caravan on fire," the Duke frowned as flames were now seen through the cracks in the wood.
"Just what's going on?" Ethan frowned as the birds screeches started to die down if only a little.
"Alcina!" a voice like thunder was now heard.
"Who is that?" he questioned again.
"Mother Miranda," Elena answered him as the caravan now stopped rocking.
Ethan pressed his face to the wood, trying to see through a small slit.
"Just what's going on out there?"
Alcina kept up the onslaught, fire breath still cutting through Miranda's birds with ease as they now circled her before dive bombing her now.
"So, he couldn't kill you after all!" Miranda is heard once again as the crows stop circling and attacking Alcina.
Most fly over to Miranda, who's standing at a safe distance from Alcina's flames.
"You think by transforming into that you're going to win?" Miranda is heard followed with a mocking laugh.
Alcina steps forwards, her fangs bared. "You're nothing, Miranda! Nothing but a fool! You really thought that you could use us to bring your daughter back?"
Miranda's seething, her crows flying around her.
"I was stupid to want your favour!" she continued. "But I have to thank you, if it wasn't for this gift you gave me, I would have never been able to welcome my newest daughter into the world!"
Miranda looked positively livid. "What?! You're spewing nonsense, Alcina!"
"Then see for yourself," Alcina turned to look up at the window.
There stood her three daughters and one extra.
"You're lying! You stole that child!"
"She's a baby, Miranda! And you know it!" Alcina growled.
Miranda didn't want to believe it, but the look and size of it told her different. She had to double check to make sure, sending a crow up to inspect it through the window. Bela and Cassandra readied their sickles just in case Miranda tried anything.
The crow screeched at them before flying back to Miranda. "It's impossible! You never had any intercourse! You could never bear children! Your body would never allow it!"
"Your research failed you, Miranda! Deal with it!"
"I will not let you win! You all need to die in order for the ritual to take place! Don't you dare fuck this up for me, Alcina!"
Alcina lunged, her great jaws snapping shut upon thin air. Miranda had fled into a flock of crows again. However, this time she reformed with all the crows becoming a large giant bird creature with six wings and three eyes.
"You dare to disobey me!" Miranda screamed, forcing Alcina to grimace at the sound.
Just as soon as she raised her head again, she felt the sting of claws cut into the flesh on her face. Hot blood splattered to the ground as Alcina took a moment to comprehend what had just happened. Pain blossomed from the wounds on her face and now had her roaring up at the bird woman.
"Oh, I'm sorry, my dear. Did that hurt?"
Alcina lowered herself to the ground to unfurl her wings before pushing up to get air born, only Miranda was quicker. She swooped down, claws tearing through the membrane like wet paper.
Alcina cried out, snapping her jaws shut again only to catch a few feathers.
"Ha ha! Don't try to take me, Alcina. You know you'll never win!"
"MIRANDA!" Alcina roared, this time getting herself airborne.
She dove at the bird, but Miranda was far more agile. Her claws tearing through the air before coming into contact with Alicna's back. She let out a cry once again, blood was now staining her pure white skin.
"I don't think she's gonna make it," Ethan now thought from inside the caravan.
He raised his hand to the door once again, but Elena grabbed him.
"Ethan, you can't go against them! You'll die!"
"But what about Alcina?"
Elena turned to the Duke.
"She's helped me with Rose," Ethan stuck up for her.
"I see both sides of this," the Duke sighed.
"It's time you learned your place!" Miranda laughed as she tore into Alcina more.
The white dragon now found herself falling through the air at an alarming rate, but she couldn't think straight. Her body was failing her, blood loss was setting in and she hadn't done a damn thing to her opponent. She was going to die, die by the hands of Miranda after just giving birth to her child.
"I need to fight!" she now tired to turn, only to notice her wings were torn beyond repair and were as good as a torn parachute.
And as it was now, Miranda was now closing in on her. Claws cutting into her unprotected chest, she willed herself to stop crying out and lunge at the woman, her legs cut through the air, trying to find something to cut into and hopefully throw off. Only Miranda's claws cut deeper into her chest, snapping bones and possibly damaging vital organs.
"You'll die, Alcina!" she smirked as the ground now greeted the younger woman rather harshly.
Alcina found herself slam into the hard surface, back first. Miranda had unhooked herself just in time. Leaving Alcina to skid across the floor, her neck twisted as horns caught in the ground and she was sent tumbling over herself. Her tail spun through the air to come crashing down right on top of the Dukes caravan, caving the roof in.
"Ahhhh!" Alcina groaned lowly, her body a broken bloody mess.
She couldn't move at all, she felt paralysed. She knew her daughters were watching and they'd push themselves to help, but she'd strictly warned them if they did try to help her she'd kill them all.
"Well, what now Alcina?" Miranda smiled as she stepped closer to the laboured breathing dragon.
She lifted a clawed foot to latch onto Alcina's shoulder. The white dragon really didn't have much to give her any more only a few heavy sobs.
"This is the most pathetic, I've ever seen you!" the bird woman smiled with her long razor sharp beak coming dangerously close to her neck.
"You're...You're a...heart...less...woman...Miranda!" Alcina barely managed to have a go at her.
Miranda smirked as she raised her beak to attack.
"I can't stay and watch this! Mothers going to be killed!" Cassandra stepped back, tears streaming down her face.
"But what can we do?" Bela sniffled.
"We have to do something!" Daniela screamed.
The three hadn't even realised that Donna had disappeared until seeing her outside.
"Donna!"
The three quickly headed downstairs after leaving their new born sister on the bed. Quickly forming a shield, they stood in front of Donna.
"What are you doing?" she asked as the three stood their ground.
Alcina closed her eyes, she couldn't stop herself from shaking as the tears came hard and fast. Miranda stopped to look at the display.
"Aww, how cute!" she mocked as Donna now sent her pollen directly at her.
Miranda shook her head, the stuff getting into her system right away. Her crows now started to break away from her, leaving her to go back to being her normal looking self.
"I'll not allow you to..."
Building up the strength, Alcina snapped at her, taking a huge chunk of one of her wings. This time Miranda was forced to cry out before quickly bursting into more crows to disappear.
"Is everyone alright?" the Duke now asked as he'd used his body to protect Ethan and Elena.
Elena nodded.
"I'm fine," Ethan told him as he headed for the doors, throwing them open he dropped down to now see just how bad Alcina really was.
"Please, mama. You have to get up," Bela was now heard as she cried loudly.
Cassandra was at her other side, head hung as the tears kept on coming.
"Mama!" Daniela sobbed as Donna held her hand.
"Please, Alcina." She silently begged as she sniffled under her veil. "Please be alright."
"Fuck!" Ethan thought as he collapsed to his knees, right near a pool of blood.
Alcina opened her eyes, they were dazed and unfocused.
"Alcina!" Donna ran over. "You're not healing!"
"I...I need to be...human...to heal."
"Then can you change back?" Donna sniffled again.
"Too tired," Alcina sighed as her eyes closed again.
"Please, mama!" her children begged, just as she now heard the shrill cry of her child.
"My baby!"
The three looked to each other before Daniela swarmed back in to quickly come back out with the new born.
"Please, mother. Who's going to look after her?"
"You three are quite...quite capable. If...if anything were to happen to me!"
"No, mother! Don't say that!" Cassandra glared at her.
The baby now started to scream and thrash about wildly.
"Dani, what are you doing?" Bela frowned.
"I'm not doing anything," Daniela fought to keep hold of the little one before eventually placing her on the floor where she continued to kick and scream.
Alcina was forced to listen, her body would do nothing to help her and the sounds of her baby's cries were not helping.
"Come on!" she growled at herself. "Change!"
The baby continued to cry, louder and louder.
Alcina could take no more. She pushed with all her might, her head was forced up followed by one fore leg which she brought down to anchor into the ground. This was followed by the other foreleg before she dragged her broken body forwards.
"Come on, mother!" Bela smiled. "Dani, move her back a little more."
"Why?" the youngest asked in disbelief.
"So Alcina can push herself harder," Donna now realised, knowing it was cruel, but it had to be done.
The baby stopped crying once she saw her mother approach, only when Daniela pulled her back did she start to scream once again.
"If I'm forced to crawl to you, so be it!" Alcina snarled as she pushed herself up.
Her hind legs were useless, unable to support her weight and so she pushed herself to change. The world grew larger as she grew smaller once again.
"Yes, it's working!" Bela cheered as Cassandra wiped her nose to now laugh with joy.
Alcina carried on dragging her body across the floor until she finally made it to her baby. She took hold of her to then lean up against the wall, exhausted.
"Thank you, girls. And thank you, Donna. I don't think I would have gone another second if it wasn't for you."
The four gathered around her. Ethan and Elena had watched the whole thing and were quite happy to see she'd pull through. Though now it did bother him knowing just what he was up against.
"Shall I get you a drink, mother?" Cassandra asked as Alcina nodded gratefully.
The brunette was quick to swarm off, quickly returning with a glass of blood. Bela helped her mother drink it back and it wasn't long before her body was going full regeneration mode.
"More!" she demanded. "Quickly!"
Cassandra swarmed off again as Donna offered up her arm, seeing Alcina fight the urge.
"No, Donna. I won't take it from you!" she grimaced.
Thankfully Cassandra was back again with a glass and bottle, for which she quickly drained both.
"We have a tough battle ahead of us," she now frowned.
"Mother, you're not going through that again!" Daniela warned.
"We'll never be free until that bitch is dead!"
The three looked to each other with worry.
