"Who is Tany to you?" Abigal asked. Sous and Abigal walked with one another bundled up and out of the village. Sous didn't know where they were going. She was told but she still hadn't a clue.
"A good friend I met ahen younger. When we became teenagers, we- we became intimate and then, um, I went to prison. Came out and, and we had a daughter," Sous explained.
Abigal nodded her head. She could tell there was some type of emotion there with Tany. The way Sous was touching her, almost soothing her.
"My hands are freezing," Sous complained. "Is there a place we can stop and rest for the night?"
They came upon an inn just outside the village. They got a room with just one bed due to it being cheaper. The next morning, they got up before dawn and continued their walk.
There was a portal they were heading to that was open. The witches had scatter when Hacate exited from the portal. Sous looked at Abigal, feeling there was something the medium wanted to say.
"What's wrong?" Sous asked, pulling her gloves back on.
"Hacate isn't a beast. She was locked away for a reason," she said to the Alpha. Sous kept her head low, not knowing the situation behind Hacate. "Did you know what they were planning?"
"I knew they wanted to bring Hacate out and they needed to open a portal," Sous explained. "I knew if she opened the portal then she wouldn't be able to close it-"
"No witch can," Abigal finished. They continued walk on ward in the snow toward their destination.
Sous felt the cold seep through her boots, each step crunching on the frozen ground like broken glass. Her breath misted in the predawn gloom, the scent of pine and damp earth sharp in her nostrils. Abigal moved with silent purpose beside her, the tension radiating off her in waves, tight shoulders, hands gripped tightly into one another.
Sous watched the medium's eyes dart toward the treeline where the thick depth pooled thickest, her own wolf senses prickling at unseen threats. The silence wasn't peaceful; it was coiled, waiting. Frost feathered the edges of Sous's hood, melting where it touched her flushed skin. She flexed her stiff fingers inside worn gloves, remembering Kara's hands warming hers by the fire long ago, rough from herb-gathering, of thyme and woodsmoke. That memory felt fragile now, brittle as the ice underfoot.
Sous smiled though remembering the love the made just a few days ago. Kara, her kids were always her motivation.
The crunching snow beneath Sous' boots echoed like cracking ice in the stillness, each step sinking deeper into the drifts that swallowed the path ahead. Abigal's silhouette cut through the grey dawn, her breath visible in sharp bursts, shoulders hunched against the biting wind that clawed at their cloaks.
Frost clung to the pine boughs overhead, glinting where the first pale light touched it, casting long shadows that seemed to twist and writhe in Sous' peripheral vision. Her pulse hammered against her ribs, not just from the cold, but from the pressure of Abigal's unspoken dread, a tangible thing, thick as the forest's silence.
Crack, spark, crack!
"Do you see that?" Abigal pointed.
Sous held her hand over her eyes. It was becoming difficult with the snow, but she could make out a purple, pink portal. She also could make out what appeared to be demons attempting to claw their way out.
Sous' eyes became wide. She looked at the medium. "You didn't tell me there were going to be demons," the Alpha said stepping back.
"That's why I wanted you here."
Sous shook her head. "I-I-" she wanted to say she wasn't what she was before, that she wasn't strong.
Slap!
Sous and Abigal flew back into the snow. Sous sat up and found herself bleeding from the lip. There in front of her was a dark demon walking toward her and Abigal. It threw its large claw up and slammed it back down.
Sous grabbed Abigal by the collar and pulled her back. She dropped the medium and dashed toward the demon. Sous jumped into the air, doing a spin. She landed a tornado kick to the demon that blocked it.
The demon pushed Sous back, having Sous glide back in the snow, flurries soaring up to the air. Her canines grew, her fangs sharp, and her claws extracted. The demon charged at her once more.
Sous blocked its arm with her forearm. She grabbed its arm and slammed it into the snow. She pinned it down with her claws digging into its chest. Sous attempted to rip its chest open, but the demon grabbed Sous's arm and pulled her off. The demon kicked Sous in the stomach, causing Sous to cough up blood. The demon grabbed Sous's neck and lifted her up, choking her.
Abigal stood up slowly. She saw Sous being choked. Her eyes widened. She looked around frantically, searching for something to help Sous. Her gaze settled on a large stone protruding from the snow. She rushed toward it and lifted it as high as she could. Abigal hurled the stone toward the demon's head. The stone hit the demon's temple. The demon stumbled back, dropping Sous. Sous gasped for air. She crawled away from the demon as it regained its balance.
Abigal ran to Sous and helped her up. She placed her hand on her stomach, remembering she had a seal there and when she used it last, she turned into a giant, titan thing. She shook her head. It might cause too much damage; however, she had two seals on either side of her neck.
"Stab me in the neck!" She yelled to Abigal.
"What?!"
"DO IT!"
Abigail took out a pocket knife and stabbed it on the side of Sous' neck. A large bright light enveloped them. Sous appeared before the medium; the Alpha's hands completely turned into swords and blades.
Sous was breathing heavily, haven't used this seal in decades. She popped her neck.
The demon charged at her, claws drawn. Sous blocked the claws with her forearm blades. Sparks flew off them. She kicked it back and rushed forward, blades slicing through the air. She cut off its arm. Purple blood sprayed everywhere. The demon screamed as Sous grabbed its head and twisted it. She ripped its head off, turning to ash.