She was one step ahead of us.
Always one step ahead. I squinted my eyes, staring out the window of where I stood, engulfing my arms around myself, trying to focus my senses. Anything but my senses was a distraction. The snow that fell outside dropped with heaviness that could almost match the grieve and death that filled the room.
We had made it out of Rhea just in time to be attacked by her armies of Akutas. I still haven't figured out how she knew about our escape. I never saw any cameras installed in the vacinity of the lap and I found it hard to believe it all just a coincidence. We fought through them but we lost each other in the fight. King Asteroid was drained in energy. Storm and Zuka had to take care of him. Darren and Hadrian took off to rescue my father. Shelby couldn't stay, she was out looking for her sister Cat. If we survived all this. I was not going to leave those two.
I was going to take them to the Astral realm.
Rhea's throne room that once held all trace of glory and beauty now laid in the ruins of the dead bodies of Akutas. We had thought of the Akutas to be immortal but that was wrong, I realized otherwise by one stroke of my fireball at them. As the goddess of the Astral realm I had the power to extinct and create. I chose not to extinct the Akutas because if I did that then that would mean no more Storm and Darren.
I would never think of losing my best friend. Storm.
  Rhea was no where to be found. I had search everywhere. Including her word room, but nothing. One would think she had just set the trap and scurried off like the scared dog she was. But I knew Rhea. Fear was not in her vocabulary. Only revenge. Hatred.
 
It was almost time for the blood moon appearance. She was suppose to be here. At least try and capture me. Such disappearance was not appealing to me. I couldn't help but think; what was she up to? --- no good, I presume --- I shouldn't be standing here. Doing nothing and thinking she was going to just show up with a knife in her chest, dead. Rage exploited my inside boiling my very core like lava ready to exploit from a volcano.
  " Easy there Luna. You don't wanna try this place with such heat." Storm said suddenly from beside me. I turned, stunned.
" The hell, Storm, don't ever do that again." I complained, startled. Touching my chest for emphasis.
  " Considering we are in a warzone and dreading for our lives. I wouldn't blame you for such reaction. Are you scared?" He questioned with a thick british accent that was admirable and only noticable when he took on his real form,Storm.
  I sighed hesitating because damn I wasn't sure anymore. Was I scared? To fight? No! To lose? Yes. The fate of my people would be determined by whatever result that is gotten from this fight. I was afraid of the unpredictable. The uncertain. What if I failed? What if I disappointed my people. There was so much to be afraid of! So much much to watch out for! So much to expect!
  " It's okay to be scared!" Storm encourage, eyes not leaving the view outside the window. Fingers adjusting his lense. " The fear is an evidence of your love. Your love for your people! But.." his gaze now fell on me and I stared back watching those blue eyes sway with the patterns of truth. " .. let the fear not limit you. Let it drive you. We're gonna get out of this situation and it's gonna be because of you, Luna. Your bravery. Your love. Your strength. Your powers. Your everything. So cheer up. Go out and there. Look for Rhea and when you see her. You will give her a big scare. Kick her butt and beat the shit out her fucking self. Send her back to the source or cut her hear off. Your choice." He chattered.
  I smiled widely. Storm never cursed even as Amelia, they avoided it as the plague but here he was giving me a pep talk and compromising his standard just to make me understand that I wasn't gonna be a failure. Infact I wasn't a failure and Storm was right. My fear was for my people. My family. Our generation. Love. I stepped forward engulfing Storm in a ferocious hug. We were the same height so it wasn't hard to inhale his comforting scent of earth and vanilla? I giggled at that. His hands hovered on my back hesitating before there softly patted it warmly.
   He cleared his throat. Pulling away.
  " Don't let Hadrian see us do that! He is gonna think I'm trying to steal his wife. Which we all know is never to happen." He mumbled.
I chuckled.
" Definitely would do it again." I teased.
He groaned exasperatedly.
 
  I tapped his shoulder. " Don't worry I'll tell him to expect our little hugs I'm the future. " I suggested trying to placate him. He sighed in relief.
  " And aye. Don't tell anyone I said those words!"
  " What words, did you say anything." I chimed feigning ignorance. He smiled.
  " Luna" a sudden whisper of my name resounded in my ears .
" Did you hear that?" I inquired.
  " Hear what?"
  " My name."
  He shook his head and we both took little turns to search for any strange activity. I suddenly stopped in my track as an image displayed before my eyes ; Rhea standing in the woods, with hands on the back of a creature with green eerie eyes --- the creature from the egg --- and from what I saw she was not in anywhere near her realm but in the Astral realm. I became alerted. She was calling me. She was waiting for me.
   " I know where she is!" I bursted out, staring deep into Storms eyes.
   " Rhea?"
   " Yes. Get the king and Zuka, find Hadrian and the others. Save those who are ready to surrender. You all return to our realm." I instructed.
   " Wait, where are you going to? Don't even think about doing this alone." He warned in worry.
   " I have to. Tell Hadrian not to come after me!"
   " You know I can't do that!" He retorted.
   " You have to."
   " I don't have to do anything.." he snapped. " I'm not gonna let you go out there alone and get all superheroic, we do this together okay?" He quaked. Shaking his head. Unshed tears pricking his eyes
  " Storm do as I say. Now!" I ordered. Wiping the tears that threatened to fall. He nodded vigorously. I summoned the potion that was given to me, taking his hand and placing It there giving him a sad smile, " Give this to my father, it'll help with his distorted energy core." He winced a little whisper of okay. I took that as my cue to leave and so with that I teleported out of the realm into the Astral realm, and specifically where I saw Rhea.
    The weather in the Astral was totally different from that of Rhea's empire. The sky an ever glowing red with the moon giving a little peak of it itself above. It's red was visible from the little exposure and I knew it was almost time for whatever ritual Rhea wanted to carry out.
   She had her back to me and I immediately marched towards her. Time was not in my side. The moon now casted a crescent with the shade of the clouds casted a coverage on it other parts.
  Almost time.
  The creature turned towards me snarling with a low growl. It was not as hideous as I imagined. Or saw. Standing on all fours with the body of a wolf about five feet tall with eyes ever green and eerie. It growled loudly again. I stood on guard, alerted. I wasn't going to harm him. It looked alone. Eyes held nothing but a cry for comfort and since Rhea offered it. He had no other choice but to serve her. It looked at me with familiarity looming in his eyes. He hesitated coming forward.  Something told me I knew this creature. I just couldn't...
  " Do not even touch it!" Rhea boomed. I looked at her. And her eyes ever fuming with flames of hate. " I hate this twist, but I wouldn't complain. Don't you remember?" She beamed in mockery. " You created it. I just brought it back. What do you think?"
  I was confused at her ambiguous questions. Did she know?
  " Oh sorry I didn't inform you. Your royal highness of all creation in all of our beloved  Astral realm."  She confirmed my suspicion. 
  "  How did you...."
 
   ".. know about you being the wood goddess?" She requested with a finger on her cheek feigning a ponder. " I've been suspecting it but my suspicions were confirmed when your energy brought back your little puppet .." she pointed to the creature. " You see I lied about the whole needing your energy core as a pure blood. I only wanted to confirm my suspicions. I shouldn't have looked to far. You were just there, like they say beside me." She blurted laughing hysterically.
   The creature growled not at me this time but to her. Marching over to stand beside me. It bounced forward attempting to strike her in my defense. A swift gesture from Rhea projected him aside as it collided with a tree, the impact causing him to fall to fall to the ground unconscious.
  I felt a lump in my throat. She was playing with my fire and was going to get burnt. I darted impatiently towards her, desiring to this game already. The moon has only few minutes until it's becomes full.
  A few minutes to determine the fate of us all.
  I projected a fireball at her but she swerved it towards a tree that immediately gushed fire, withering spontaneously. I flared up putting more energy this time, the heat of it almost consuming but I was relentless. Engulfed in the rage that choked me a little too strong than expected but mostly avoided. I projected a much stronger attack of fireball and this time she could only do so much to avoid. She side stepped holding her arms that had been bruised. She glared up at me from the injury. Fury visible in her eyes, one more obvious than any other I had seen.
   The moon was now full.
She smirked.
  She suddenly vanished and I darted my eyes frantically in search of her. But I couldn't find anything.
  What was she playing?
Suddenly I felt sharp pain on my neck. Like needles penetrating my skin.I gasped in pain, raising my right hand to check whatever was inflicting those. But was unable to do so as my hands refused to move from beside me. Paralyzed and subjected to an unknown force, my inside raced with paranoia as I tried fighting back whatever this was.
 
Rhea appeared beside me with an empty injection in her hands. I collapsed to my knees and watched as she mumbled words in languages that I couldn't understand like a sinister psalm of death and all sorrow that lurked the universe.
   A beam descended from the moon piercing my chest, I screamed from the impact of the sudden penetration. My insides was filled with the heat of hell and my head pounded as though I was hit with a truck. Heart tight and my breathing was becoming painful. It wasn't easy to breathe anymore, death was much better than what I was feeling. My body shoke vigorously, I was having a bad seizure. A very bad one.
Please let me die already.
"It's okay to be scared." Storm words rang in my ears like a beautiful alarm.
" I love everything about you." Hadrian confirmation on our escape day sat in my heart like that one music we refuse to stop singing.
  " You are stronger than you think." Hadrian first encouragement rang softly like little taps on my dieing soul.
  " You are the saviour of your people, you are your mother's daughter." Grandma voiced beckoned.
That did it.
It was all I needed to push through. To take back control of my body. To create a new beginning to all that was ended by Rhea. Peace.
  I yelled internally.
   Taking back control of my body. Starting from releasing my hands from it's paralyzed state. I used my hands, pushing back up to my feet. Losing my balance as I staggered like one who drunk. The beam that pierced my chest, reversed, disconnecting.
Rhea stopped whatever she was doing and glared at me.
  " What have you done!!" She snapped with rage.
  " No more games. Let's end this." I retorted.
   Creating a gigantic fireball with all the fight in me I projected it towards Rhea who countered it with a much bigger fireball. I put in more strength and core pushing forward the fireball and it  added more pressure pressing in and almost overcoming hers. But she added in more force and I watched as her blast was pressing in to overcome my blast.
I was too weak to push again.
  If only...
I never had the chance to finish through my thoughts as I felt the warmth of a presence behind me, hands supporting mine. And I knew who they belonged to, Hadrian.
  I stared up at him.
" You didn't think you were gonna do this without me, did you?" He said asked smugly.
    " I knew you would come." I mused.
     I knew it somehow and somewhere inside that Hadrian was going to disobey my instructions of him not following after.
  But something was happening where our hands connected. A green bright orb was made instead of a normal fireball. The mateball. Hadrian and I stared at each other in astonishing familiarity. The mate ball that was created the day of hands first came in contact with one another. We took this as our moment.
A blessing.
We pushed forward and this time although Rhea's effort at countering our attack, it made it's way through. Blasting with tremendous impact on Rhea, causing a great growl from beneath like an earthquake. The blast emitted a bright light that stabbed our eyes causing us to hold our hands upwards in an attempt to block it off. Through out the chaos. I could hear Rhea's scream. A struggle for help and safety but wasn't offered any.
  It wasn't supposed to end this way.
  We tried so much to bring her back. Even to this moment, I wished for nothing than to help her, set her free from the torture of the source pulling her soul back to where it belonged.
Hell.
  I suddenly felt light headed and had the urge to throw up. And I did. Hadrian rubbed my back in circles helping me to stay calm. I smiled at the warmth of his touch.
Finally. I can be calm. Then I fell into the dark abyss of my unconsciousness.