I observed the obvious couple training with their wolves under the trees just a few feet away from me. Casper was sitting with them, a little farther into the woods, but he kept an eye on me while the couple "trained" their wolves. They were playfully teasing each other. However, I felt distant from them; I was far away from everyone.
Now, everyone had a wolf.
The sessions began to drag on, and I started to lose hope. I couldn't understand why I was having such difficulty with this. My patience was wearing thin, and I was on the verge of giving in, just like Casey did. I struggled internally with this decision; I didn't want to resort to the same actions he had taken, especially since I had already made fun of him for it.
I could tell that the other warriors would talk about me, that they would look my way down this field. I was the only one left with no wolf, and it wasn't very comfortable.
Arden and Apollonia's gazes met mine, sending a wave of nervousness down my spine. It became so overwhelming that I ultimately abandoned the slow approach and decided to take action.
While in the field, I ensured that most of the warriors were occupied training their wolves before I made my move. I didn't have any particular wolves in mind; they all ignored me whenever I kept a reasonable distance. However, I intended to change that. During this session, I was determined to bond with one another.
It didn't matter which wolf I chose; I picked one at random and made my move. I had no idea how to start; all I knew was that I was filled with nervousness at the thought of approaching a beast and forging a connection based on trust and patience. Part of me understood that this might not work efficiently; I had to earn this connection. But I was tired of waiting.
That was a mistake.
Before I could even get close to the wolf I was focusing on, its eyes shot open. I stumbled slightly, watching as its hackles raised at the sight of me. I had to gulp away this fear; it was holding me back. So I stood my ground, looking the beast in the eyes to show I was not going to be afraid of it.
The wolf let out a loud snarl, attracting my attention, which I forced my mind to ignore. It then took a few sniffs of the air around us. I was close to it, so it was picking up the scent of whatever was on me. I noticed the beast's pupils dilate, and it jumped to its feet, keeping a distance from me while slowly moving its body like a stalking predator.
All of this was making me increasingly frustrated; I didn't have the patience for it.
I wanted it over with.
With my wings raised, they buckled while I forced my body forward with the boost of the wind. The wolf, even with its enormous size, jumped back to evade me. I kept an eye on it, giving the same low growl it was threatening me with. I wasn't going to back down to this.
With my energy boosted, it seeped into the beast's body just as much as it did to me. We were two forces in a state of constant conflict, battling for dominance. I had the confidence that I could control the animal, but I had underestimated it.
I managed to dodge out of the way when the wolf made a sudden bound in my direction. My wings flattened, allowing me to slide on the ground. The dirt picked up, flying in the air along with my frantic spew of feathers. I was then forced to waver under the giant's paws that came slamming down at me. I was small enough that I could duck under the wolf's body before pushing through on the other side.
When I had a firm hold on the ground, I could hear the slight murmurs and voices from the eyes watching me. My fight with the wolf had caused some attention.
It only motivated me more. My eyes clashed with the wolf's, who swiftly held its stance, teeth gnashing at me. It bolted up, claws outstretched in my direction. I flew up, jumping in the air and swinging my arms onto the wolf's neck to grab hold of it.
The beast let out a yowl, thrashing around to get me off. I could feel the air wipe through my skin. My arms felt like it was losing its strength during the aggressive struggle.
Even with my hands dug into the beast's fur, it still managed to rip me off. I frantically pulled back, trying to keep a steady hold on the animal. I then noticed that we were no longer on the ground. The wolf had flown into the sky. It snapped its wing out, smacking me in the face.
I bit my lip to suppress a cry from the shocking pain that came with the blow. I closed my eyes, feeling tears and flashes of color blur my vision. This was starting to wear me out; my body trembled as I struggled to keep hold of the animal.
The beast must have felt it, too; I could feel my will to let go and give this fight up. My arms began to dangle when the beast flipped us upside down in the air. I still kept a stern hold on its fur, earning a loud and annoyed chuff that was followed by a howl.
With my eyes still clenched closed, the wolf made a bold move. I was suddenly ripped from its fur with the claws of its hind legs making contact with my chest. With a muffled cry, I was flung onto the ground a few feet below.
I hit the ground hard, unable to make a sound as blinding pain surged through my body. I felt several things inside me break, and the lights at the corners of my vision flashed wildly, matching the chaos in my mind. I tumbled in the dirt, my wings bending under my crushing weight until I finally came to a stop in the middle of the clearing.
The claws had dug into my skin, ripping right through the white tunic where blood could seep through. It was difficult to breathe, my mouth gaping wide in hopes that air could reach my desperate lungs. The tears stung in the corners of my eyes, building up as the lights helped blur my vision.
The pain was intricate and scorching, making it hard to breathe. Even with the pain, I could still make out the prominent figure stalking right for me.
The wolf licked its lips, landing on the ground with loud steps and heading straight for me. My heart raced, and my eyes opened wide at the cloudy figure making its way towards me.
The beast could smell it; it could smell my fear, and as I slowly grew weaker, I failed at trying to prove myself to this animal, giving up in a heap of despair that it could breathe in. The emotions rushed through the brooding beast, with its hackles raised and wings flared up like a looming shadow overcasting me.
My fear was trying to force me up, to force me to at least try and give a bit more effort. But my body felt crushed and beaten; this pain was complicated and overwhelming enough that my body began to seize up and freeze.
What was worse was how... strange it felt.
That was horrible; I had felt so much pain before that I was practically foaming at the mouth in the middle of this clearing where all of the warriors were able to see.
With my ears still ringing, I could pick up voices; they were far away, feet stomping on the ground along with paws. But they all felt so far away from me.
The wolf wasn't far away; it was now close enough to leap and land right on me. I fought back, reaching up to hold its muzzle just inches from my face. I could practically smell its breath as drool dripped all over my crumpled body. The stench was overwhelming, and I could sense the power emanating from its massive paws.
I tried—really tried—to keep the wolf's mouth from latching onto my neck. It didn't intend to hurt me; its goal was simply to assert its dominance over me. However, I was frightened and desperate to get it off, so I used my remaining strength to grip its muzzle and kicked into its throat with my back legs.
The beast tumbled slightly, giving me an effort to try and push my body away. I knew I was getting nowhere; every move caused crashing pain to stop all my efforts.
Since I was not going to give this fight up, the wolf let out a loud snarl, jumping on its back legs before it came, slamming its body down on me. I could only see its shadow, the slight brush of its fur, before I closed my eyes and expected to feel the horrific pain from the blow.
Only, it was stopped by a bounding rush of white light. It was bright, large, and loud, pushing the wolf off of me with a loud, pummeling tumble. The wolf was thrown away, sliding on the ground on top of its wings before it had a chance to sink its claws into the ground to ground itself.
When its large head looked up to let out a snarl, it was stopped by a loud, deafening growl.
I curled up, and to my body's distress, I moved to cover my ears. The world seemed to shake, the ground seemed to be at least, and I could feel the vibrations underneath me. My ears buzzed. The slight darkness swarming my vision buzzed with the loud snarl being so close to my petite body that I completely blacked out and dropped entirely to the ground.
. . .
—
The large Heaven Pup stood protectively over the small angel beneath its body, astonishing all the warriors who had rushed to the scene. The commanding officer paused for a moment, and both she and Apollonia stared in disbelief. They had never seen a Heaven Pup demonstrate such power, growing to the size of a Heaven Wolf to defend itself.
Casper kept a low stance, making sure he could feel Vienna under him with the graze of its fur while its mouth bared at the wolf who stared back at him. The wolf let out a muffled growl, her feet shaking while she tried to keep a confident stance against the pup.
The growing scent of rage and power overwhelmed the she-wolf. Her eyes gradually lowered, and her ears dropped in submission, revealing her neck to the large pit bull. His scent was so overpowering that all the nearby Heaven Wolves fell to the ground and lowered their heads in deference to the largest predator in the clearing.
The warriors halted, captivated by the sight of the grown pup in the field. The surroundings fell silent as Casper appeared to communicate with the she-wolf. When he took a step toward her, the dominant female recoiled and dashed away toward her den. The other Heaven wolves quickly followed her lead, jumping to their feet and retreating into their dens.
Arthur and Casey watched Flint and Kingston bolt off into their dens. But his attention was soon pulled back to his friends crumbling from under the giant Heaven Pup. He feared Casper would accidentally hurt her more, but to his and everyone's shock, Casper slowly moved off of her.
His lower body dropped down so he could sniff her, letting out a whine from his throat while nuzzling the blacked-out angel below him. He laid on his stomach, keeping his nose pressed against Vienna's head with wide, fearful eyes.
The surrounding warriors in the field began to make their way over, murmuring shocked words about what they had witnessed. It was shocking and new to them.
Arthur rushed over to Casey right beside him. "She had to be alright, right!? No one can get hurt that bad.."
"Why would a Heaven Wolf even do that…?"
Arden came over with the group, her bright blue eyes never leaving Vienna's face. She answered the murmuring angel's question with slow, sneering words: "It was a female. They are much more aggressive and harder to tame than the males. To make matters worse, she was dominant."
"That doesn't explain how a Heaven Pup can.. do that…" Apollonia whispered while motioning to the large pup.
Arden gulped, unable to answer everyone's question. The warriors were soon jostled to a stop when a light flared in front of them behind Casper's body. The flare was quick, and the golden light soon faded away in a pattern that showed the Gate Goddess in her full glory.
The warriors had to stop where they were; none of them dared move when the goddess had made her appearance. She didn't look at any of them, her eyes so manly looking down to Vienna. She walked beside Casper, who lit up at the sight of the goddess. He sat up while she kneeled to pick Vienna up in her arms.
She turned, cradling the small angel in her arms while using her large wings to shield Vienna from everyone's gaze. She glided gracefully over the grass, but the look in her eyes was different. They held a dangerous glint that made even Arden gulp in fear.
Janus finally removed her eyes from Vienna, trying hard to ignore the stinging sensations her blood felt as it trickled down her arms. She took in deep breaths, her body shaking at a quick rate; she had to get a grip on herself before her mind lost its restraint.
When Janus had her mind a little calmed down, it opened back up to be faced with Arden, who came quickly over in front of her. Apollonia was right behind her, kneeling to pay her respects to the goddess before them.
"G-Gate Goddess!" Arden gulped, having to hold back her trembling wings, which shook under the growing pressure of the goddess's eyes. "I can explain what happened."
Janus looked down at the warrior chief with stern eyes, unable to form any emotions or even a bit of strength to speak to her. The goddess felt her arms tighten on Vienna; she could feel the shattered pain of the angel's body that lay limp in her grasp.
Janus hadn't felt pain before. Not until now when Vienna had come to her.
Now, as she held her, seething in silent rage that the pain she felt consumed her beloved angel overtook her, she had no energy to put up with Arden. To put up with anyone, any of the angels that looked up at her in shock at what had taken place.
Janus was not supposed to feel this way. It was wrong, and she knew it, but Vienna had ticked off that side of her until it was no more.
Arden finished speaking, rambling about what had happened. The goddess wasn't really listening; she already knew the events that transpired. She had been forced to watch as the creature harmed her angel and was powerless to intervene. Due to the Mother Goddess's power, the goddess was unable to interfere with the creatures, so all she could do was channel the overwhelming emotions she felt while watching into Casper.
The poor pup was already jumping on his reins when he realized what had happened. Mixed with the goddesses' emotions, his feelings grew larger and larger until Casper became a towering figure of rage in the face of an aggressive beast.
The poor pup was already bouncing on his reins when he saw what had happened. His emotions, mixed with those of the goddesses, grew stronger and stronger until Casper became a towering figure of rage in the presence of an aggressive beast.