As soon as Meloetta had been revived, and we had all cast the charm to speak English like the other humans, we exited the large, glass cage to meet the other Ventils. Once again, upon meeting Ela, Meloetta quickly sagged against Araidne, who hastened to wake her again.

"This...this is incredible," she whispered in awe as Ela laughed and introduced her to Cephas. "More incredible than the fact that my entire juvenile life was spent speaking to them in my mind?" I asked with a grin, and she turned pink.
"I...I didn't really think you were serious about them having physical forms..." she trailed off, and Cephas bleated out a laugh.

The minute Mystere limped out of the container, Krel's gaze immediately hardened and he went to wrap his arms around me. It was unneeded, however, as she recoiled the moment we made eye contact, and even more so when Scales slithered up to her and snorted smoke in her face.

"So, this new Alpha has been the one sending Ventils out to find Lunalis?" Claire asked, once everyone had been caught up on what had happened. "Not specifically," Raven murmured from where she was clinging to my side; she was still quite wary of everyone else, though she had taken a liking to Archie, who was now sitting on her shoulders instead of mine. "Our brother did not care much for us. I think that is why he sent us out, instead of a more experienced tracker."

"Hoping to be rid of us, I suppose," Pythia sneered. "After all, we did not take to his new leadership nicely."
"I believe gathering a large group of your kind to fight Ramos in the Arenam would provoke a more than hostile reaction," Callista scoffed. Pythia hissed at her, eyes blazing the color of molten metal. "Do not speak of 'my kind', when you yourself are a stain in the bloodline of Ventils," she snarled back, and Ela stepped between the two to settle them.

"As much uneasy earth you two may share, we have more urgent matters at hand," she spoke firmly, gaze daring either one to question her. Both of them resigned silently, though I could tell each one was fuming by the way they held themselves, fists clenched and Pythia's hood still puffed. "For starters, why exactly your Alpha wishes to find Lunalis."

"Not find," Raven whispered. "R...he wants her dead."
"We were sent out after Kuga failed to return with results," Meloetta explained, and I felt my stomach turn. Kuga was the Proditorus who tried to kill me?! At least now I felt a little less guilty about Insanity draining the fluids from his body like one of those squeezable plastic tubes Toby told me were called "Go-Gurts".
"He was quite delicious," Insanity mused, picking at a fang with one long claw on her smallest finger for emphasis. Everyone in the room collectively shuddered.

"We were to find you, and then report back to one of the Elders about your whereabouts," Raven continued. "After Kuga's failed retrieval at the adolescent's den–"
"The pixies were from you?!" Douxie exclaimed in disbelief, Archie promptly dismounting from Raven's shoulder to return to his wizard.

"Is that what you humans call them?" Meloetta wondered. Almost everyone nodded. "We Ventils call them visum lumos; vision lights. They are known to cause illusions and wild hallucinations to whoever gets too close. We see them as vermin; a mild nuisance, nothing more. Apparently, you humans were better equipped to handle the pests than Ramos anticipated."

"Wait. If Lunalis knows what they are, why didn't you tell us you knew about them the first time they attacked?" Claire asked, confused.
"Yeah, man," Steve agreed. "We could've used that info before I got slapped seven times!!"
"I thought they were different things altogether," I replied. "You don't exactly make a connection between 'vision lights' and 'pixies', now do you??"

"We are straying from the matter at hand," Aquarius spoke up, silent until now. "What truly matters is finding out what this Alpha wishes to do with Lunalis. And, better yet, what the rest of our packs have to do with the upcoming conflict."

"Ramos has recruited the sea and sky Alphas to join his quest for power," Pythia said gravely, coiling in on herself; a less-noticeable sign she was distressed. "All of them. They have gathered in our den, just beyond the borders of Arcadia, waiting to strike." I felt my stomach drop even deeper at the news. Just my own pack would be lethal against my friends, even with the help of magic and witchcraft. But now, with the entire population of Ventils against us, along with an army from the stars? We would be slaughtered, destroyed as easily as dry timber catches fire from a spark. I began to feel faint.

"But...but what will he do when he has this power?" I croaked out, not realizing how dry my mouth was. I swallowed, hoping to rid myself of the sensation. "Idonio would get what he wants, but then what?"
"Ramos wishes to expand our borders," Meloetta said gravely. "Idonio has promised him that the Ventils will rule the surface of the Earth once more, so long as he gets what he wants."
"What?" I asked, even more blood draining from my face, to the point I was surprised I was still standing. "But that...that would mean..."

"The extinction of the human race," Mystere sneered. "Don't act like you're that clueless." Insanity screeched, flapping her wings and sending loose embers scattering all over the floor. Instantly, Mystere cringed and curled in on herself, ears pressed tight against her head.

"Do not degrade Lunalis like that," she snarled, wings clattering as she let them drop back to the floor. "That is my task." Zephyr sighed, patting her arm as she shook her head. "I suppose it's a small improvement from before," I heard her mutter as Raven snuggled closer into my shirt.

"So, Ramos wants to wipe out the entirety of humankind and restore the surface world to what it was in the Magical Age," Cephas summarized. "And he wants our blue friend here, along with his apparent twin sister, dead. And we also have to deal with a creature from a realm we have no knowledge of, who may or may not be controlling this entire plot. Sounds like fun."
"For one of the ancient Ventils, you act awfully like a human," Araidne said accusingly. Cephas just shrugged.

"How long has this been his intent?" Zephyr asked, eyes hardened and stormy. I hadn't realized it before, but now, I could have sworn I saw little flashes of lightning within the thunderhead color of her irises, brewing and steaming with her emotions. "Ramos has been waiting for years to enact this plan," Ariadne said. "He said so himself. Lunalis leaving was the perfect opportunity to overthrow Luporis and reinstate himself as the new Alpha."

"Why only after Lunalis left, though?" Jim wondered aloud.
"Maybe so there wasn't anybody to share the throne with," Toby joked.
"You might be onto something, there, Toby," Douxie said, walking up to me. "Lunalis, that memory you showed us, way back when. Wasn't that of you and your brothers?"

"Yes," I said slowly, the pieces falling into place. "Yes, it was. He...after Ramos attacked us, no one ever saw him again. I assumed he had either died or become a lone Ventil, but...maybe, maybe he was just biding his time. Waiting until I was no longer a threat to his power."

"Our brother has always been greedy," Raven agreed. "I believe that is why he was so eager to accept Idonio's proposal to kill the Tarron twins and overtake the surface. It would make him the most powerful creature on Earth."
"I have never heard of this Idonio," Krel said, pacing back and forth across the lab. "Perhaps Stuart will know about this strange, new tyrant, and we can get a message to Aja and warn her."

I nodded, remembering the burrito truck man that had treated Krel like family. "We should go, then."
"Ramos plans to enact his plan at the next full moon," Pythia said. "That is when Idonio will kill the Tarrons, and give the surface to us."
"Oh, fuzz buckets," Douxie paled. "That's two days from now!"

"So, we have two days to stop an incredibly powerful, magical being from taking over and destroying Arcadia, find out about this mysterious enemy Idonio, and send a trans-universal message to my sister in hopes that she will know about the threat in time," Krel counted off.
"So, basically an average Saturday for us," Toby summarized. "Now, we just need to find out how to stop Ramos."

"Right now, Ramos commands our entire pack," Meloetta explained, ears drooping. "We cannot stop him. It would be easy for him to direct us to cease."
"Unless..." I trailed off, and Raven flung herself at me.
"No," she cried, clinging desperately to my waist. "I know what you are thinking, and I cannot let you!"
"Cannot let her what?" Krel asked, looking at me. I took a deep breath, a steadying breath, to ease my pounding heart rate.

"...I've beaten him once," I said slowly, wetting my lips. "Before. With Eclipse. I...I can do it again."
"Absolutely not," Krel said, crossing his arms. "Before, you were just using her to free other voices in your head. Now, what's stopping her from taking over your body and never getting it back?"

"I've been getting stronger," I countered, gently prying Raven's arms away from me. "We've become closer. When she took over me to stop Pythia—"
"She took over you again?!" Krel yelled angrily.

"—I was able to communicate with her," I said, trying to placate him with my hands. "It was less of her taking over, and more of a...a mutual agreement. As if we shared a body and mind, versus one of us using it at a time."
"And how do you suppose she will act if you try this method without people around to ground you, and in front of thousands of Ventils?! You could be killed!!!"
"We're all going to die if we don't attempt to stop him!!"

"I hate to interrupt this...lover's quarrel," Araidne said slowly, approaching. "But I don't think sentimentality will help us in this particular situation." Krel was silent, locking eyes with me, silently pleading with me to reconsider. And for a moment, my confidence wavered. Was this really the smart decision? I would have no backup; no cover whatsoever. I haven't seen Ramos in years. What if he's grown stronger? What if the other Ventils refuse to listen to me?? What if–!

A calming sensation overtook me, and I froze, unfamiliar in the gesture. It was as if a soft, gentle person were comforting me. I immediately thought of my own mother, placatingly placing her own hands over my shoulders in exactly the same way the presence was in my own mind.

Have faith, Lunalis, Eclipse told me. You are my champion. My chosen avatar. We cannot be defeated. We will not be defeated. Not today, and certainly not by him. He may have grown in the time since his defeat, but you have strengths one hundred-fold in places he cannot begin to imagine. You have all the power you will need to face him inside of yourself. Do not shy away from it; embrace it. Seize hold of it. And make it yours to command.

Everyone was silent, waiting for my reaction. It was in the following silence that I noticed everyone was still, watching me with different expressions on their faces. With Eclipse's assertive speech, I felt a new wave of confidence overtake me, and I made eye contact with my love.

"Krel, all three packs are gathered in one spot for the first time in thousands of annos," I told him. "If there is ever a time to strike against Ramos, it is now." He took a deep breath, slowly bringing his first set of arms up to my face and cradling it oh-so-gently. "Promise me you will return safely," he whispered, brushing his lips over my forehead. I rose onto the balls of my feet, pressing my forehead against his own. "I promise on the power of the moon and stars," I swore, putting my hands over his lower pair on my shoulders and squeezing, making sure to drive away any doubts of my assurance in this plan.

"If we're going to pull this off in time, we're going to need to split up," Jim said once Krel and I had pulled apart. "Lunalis and her friends should go and try to get rid of Ramos. In the meantime, everybody else will head to Arcadia and prepare for the fight."

"We'll need more people than just us to protect Arcadia," Claire chimed in. "Sergeant Costas should be able to employ Area 49-B to help us."
"Aaarrrggghh!!! go find Blinky," the large troll rumbled. "Smart. Know things. Know trolls."
"And we will need to find Stuart and see what he can tell us about this Idonio," Krel added.

"Are we all in agreement?" Douxie asked, and one by one, we all nodded. Cephas extended his hand outwards, palm down, and we looked at him, puzzled. "What?" he questioned, confused. "Is this not what humans do when building comradery?" Toby grinned, slapping his hand down on top of Cephas'. "Awwww yeah!!" he whooped as more people moved in closer. "Time to slay some creeps," Steve hollered after he, Claire and Jim slapped their hands down on top of his. "For Arcadia once more, then," Archie said, Douxie nodding as he too joined.

"For the good of Arcadia," Ela exclaimed in agreement, her sisters all joining in with her. "I have been longing for the taste of battle once more," Insanity snarled as she joined in, her mangled claw a clear outlier in the sea of hands. "Now, the hour is finally at hand!"
"We will not lose this war," Scales swore, tail lashing as he crowded in close.
"We cannot," Araidne agreed, my friends bunching together to reach.

The camaraderie amongst these people are...remarkable, Eclipse said, slight awe shining through her voice. How do they find it in themselves to keep going??
I suppose that is their own sort of magic, I smiled, placing my hand on the pile to complete the circle. Friendship. Love. Passion. And their devotion for their kind. With Aaarrrggghh!!!'s pinky finger placed in the middle alongside Toby, Cephas let out a wild cry and lifted his hand into the air. With our own shouts, we all launched our arms skyward, crying out and yelling. Instantly, my chest warmed, and I smiled.

"I suppose humans are not as weak-willed as you first thought, Mystere??" I asked, turning to where she had been. Instantly, dread filled me when her spot, along with Daruk and Callista, were found empty and devoid of their presences. "Mystere?"

Hey Snowflakes!!

So, uh....it's been a while...I'm sorry!!!! School was a literal NIGHTMARE after January started. I had finals for the semester to work on, then we switched classes in March, and I had Math (AKA my weakest point in school), and struggled for a bit finding the time to write. Plus, I had little to no inspiration up until maybe last week for this story, and I've been trying to finish other ideas outside of this story for a while as well.

But, on a slightly happier(?) note, I have a YouTube now, so feel free to check that out if you guys wanna see some more content with my OCs. It's a bit of a different universe than the books I write, but you'll be able to see all of them at some point or another.

That's all for now! Peace out, Snowflakes!!!