"You're strong, Mara," she whispers. "You're... so, so much stronger than many of us. You need to guide them. All the witches, the ones that have been lost, like me. Teach them about how precious that balance is, teach them how to love wolves again, and to live in peace with the humans. Witches were never meant to wage war, Mara. We love all kinds. Humans, werewolves, animals. All of them. We are the healers, the protectors of this world. This is our most precious gift, and it comes in different shapes to each one of us. ...We shouldn't be afraid to love ever again."
Gently, she presses her forehead against mine, and I feel... something opening. For a second, I'm terrified that my own head is being split in two, but it's not. I just feel... as if my mind expanded all at once. So many things... no, even more magic than I had ever dreamed of suddenly comes to me, bursting inside like a tornado. I feel like I've just stepped into the most gigantic library in the world, or inside the head of a supercomputer full of knowledge. Moon Goddess, there's... so much!
"Teach it all," she whispers, "to our daughters, our sisters... teach them everything I'm giving you. Bring our kind to what it was always meant to be, and let them teach others next. You will be the last one to carry so much power, but we can start over, to bring a new generation the peace I never had, Mara."
"That's... kind of a lot of witches for me alone..." I mutter, a bit worried.
She chuckles.
“...Who do you think taught the werewolves how to mind-link in the first place?”
Oh... Oh. Now that she mentions it... that probably wasn’t an animal trait. I chuckle nervously, in a bit of a weird state after all that crying. I guess I have a lot to... learn from that knowledge she gave me. I take a deep breath, and finally nod, my head full and my heart heavy.
Luna closes her eyes, holding my hands a bit tighter.
"...Moon Goddess, I can finally go," she whispers.
Suddenly, her eyes move to somewhere over my shoulder, and she gasps, her eyes filled with tears again. What is it? I glance back, but I see nothing but the wall... Yet, Luna keeps staring at something I can't see, and she slowly lets go of my hands, stepping away from me and turning back into her wolf form.
“...Go back, Mara. Don't stay trapped here like I did. Go back to your family, to your pack. To your people. To... your mate.”
She moves to walk past me, and... slowly, she disappears. W-... What just happened? I stand up, but she's really gone, I can't even feel her anymore. There's nothing where she stood a second ago, just... some traces of snow, melting on the ground. I look around, a bit lost. I'm alone in that cabin, but things around me start to change. Moss appears under my feet, covering the ground. The walls and wooden furniture all start to rot at an incredible speed, it decays. I have a bad feeling.
I run out of the cabin, and turn around, to see... ruins. Just ruins, where that old cabin stood a second ago. There's no roof, no walls, just a few... rotten planks left there. I look to the side, and the magic circle's gone too. I realize I hear... the birds. The birds, and the wind in the trees too. It's back. This place is back to normal, this is the real world.
Wait, if this is the real world, where am I? How the hell do I go back now?!
No, no, calm down, Mara. You're not clueless, you're a witch and you can do this. I take a deep breath. This is definitely the modern world, my time, just... the wrong place. Where the heck am I? Luna, you fucking old witch, you could have sent me back before you freaking left... No, no, no, focus, Mara. I take a deep breath and look inside, channeling my inner wolf to feel Nora and Selena. No matter the distance, I should be able to feel them...
I got them! It's very faint, but I can feel their position, like a compass inside me... Oh, well, now, time to get there. You're a witch, Mara, you got this. I look inside, searching for something to help. Wait... is that a teleportation spell? No, it can't... Oh, Moon Goddess, it really is! I take a deep breath, a bit nervous, and trace the circle in the ground beneath me. It's a bit scary how easily I can do this now, in... literally two seconds. Powerful witch, she said. No kidding... I take another deep breath and, as soon as that circle is done, I use my magic to activate it, bringing me back to Silver City. This better work...
"Moon Goddess, Mara!"
"Mara, where the heck did you come from?!"
I open my eyes. Wow... I'm back at the site of the battle, on the ravaged East Point Ground, but... it's later. Night has fallen, and... everyone around looks exhausted. Nora runs to me, in her human form, wearing some clothes but looking like she didn't get a shower or a nap. Her black hair is stuck to her temples from the mix of blood, mud, and sweat.
"Thank Moon Goddess you're back," she suddenly sighs before hugging me.
Selena arrives behind her, dressed too, with a sour expression.
"How long has it been...?" I mutter.
"We came back an hour ago, and... for them, a bit more than that," she sighs. "We're just... trying to... find the bodies. That makes it one less, I guess..."
After her sentence, I hear Nora letting out a cry next to me.
"Nora? What... Who did you... find?"
She sniffles and steps back.
"Many wolves," she mutters. "We just... we just found Tonia and Bobo. Tonia... She didn't make it, and... Bobo just left for the ER with... a lot of other people. I did what I could, but..."
She breaks down in tears again, and I hug her again, unable to say anything else. Oh, Moon Goddess... Selena looks restless too.
"Can you help?" she asks with a tired voice. "The whole... fight stopped as soon as we came back, but there's still a ton of people buried. Perhaps there are more we can find... and save."
I nod. Of course I'll help... Moon Goddess, I'm terrified, but we have to find all those bodies...
