Lin closed his eyes after taking the fake Water Breather.
He was about to leap into the ocean.
But he stepped back. He could feel it. It's vicious and hideous aura.
The sky around him darkened. Swifty blocking the sun. It was very near. Very near. As if it had waiting.
Slash!
Lin tore through something that leaped at him from behind.
But it was nothing. No blood. No flesh. But he could definitely feel something tear.
He turned right. It came from the left.
Again slash! Kick! Tears!
Nothing. It just kept on disappearing.
" Come on out you bastard. Face me like a man if you can. "
Lin had been bottling up his resentment towards the creature. It was about time for the eruption.
The timing seemed just made up for that. It was happening.
" Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! Take me to Mia. "
Lin bared his fangs as soon her name came out from its mouth. He felt like shredding it to . However that seemed to be never happening.
" Miaaaaaaaaaaaaa. "
Lin paused for a moment. Was this thing aware where Mia was hiding? Was it waiting to be there?.
He picked up his guard again. He needed to lure it away from the shores.
Lin disappeared from his place, only to pop up a little further away from the spot. The creature swift and caught up.
" Miaaaaaa. " It kept on uttering . Then latched on Lin's back.
" Ahhhhhh! "
Lin roared in pain. It burnt. He tried to shrug the creature off himself. It could not be as it had no form. It was the air , it was like the wind.
Lin summoned his core energy. He had no other option. It was going to drain him from the . Perhaps keep him bedridden for a while.
BLAST!
He radiated one pulse.
It worked. The creature flew away a few miles.
" Maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! Give me Mia! "
But it looked unfazed. It scurried towards Lin backwards on all fours, with double the force he been flung with.
It was peculiar how it had lost its physical form so rapidly. Lin remembered it wasn't the case he had kidnapped Mia. The effects seemed to have intensified over a very little time. Lin what might have been the reason behind.
GRAB!
THUD!
"Ahhhhhhh! " Lin fell face down as two pairs of phantom hands grabbed his feet from below, out nowhere.
It dragged him face down, leg up towards the water.
" Is it trying to use me to get Mia inside the water? " Lin wondered even though there was no of this sort.
" Miaaaaaaa! "
The creature yelled as it picked Line up and slammed him against the waves.
As soon as the water touched Lin's body , Lin could feel the creature's essence creeping under vein.
" Noooooo! "
Lin flung himself back on shore with another blast of his core strength. But he needed to escape place. He was getting over exhausted.
In one last desperate attempt, Lin took his true form.
His ever changing eye colors now bright orange, matching his hair, body fur and tail.
He was in his immortal fox form. Invincible, unconquered.
Lin charged towards it this time. He had no time for defense. Though this was the ultimate form by their tribe, it was unfortunately short-lived.
The moment the overflowing energy left the body, it would go into a coma for a few days.
Lifeless and limp.
Lin had to shake this thing off before that and also get back to his nest.
But getting the information across to Mia was also important. But it had to wait for a while.
Atleast, till they figured out a way to appease or subdue this thing. Or atleast trap it momentarily.
It was even more dangerous at the moment because it was out of its physical form. Intangible. It almost taking a ghostly spirit form. Able to take over other bodies.
It was a good thing Lin was able to track and stop the Human king from sending sacrificial to the mer-world. This beast could have easily crept in.
The mere thought made Lin uncomfortable.
He held the creature between his paws and mauled it with his claws. He dragged and dumped it as he kept vanishing and popping in different locations. Everytime, they went a little from the ocean and nearer to the Fox lands.
Lin made it very sure to hold it by its head and hair. As Lin binged inside its remaining fragments soul, he saw its desperation. Desperation because Lin's child was about to be born.
The nearer the due date became, the crazier its urges made him. Lin suddenly let go of it in . The thoughts in its head were making Lin sick. It was unfathomable how this thing was living.
Lin took his final strength and pounced on it on all four. He grabbed it's neck between his teeth.
He knew he was able to hold it momentarily because he was in his beast form. Otherwise it have been impossible to harm it physically. Lin chewed at its veins and pipes.
It beared patiently. Without any sound. Did it not feel pain? Was it acting brave?
Perhaps it was because all his concentration was fixed on his object of achievement.
Lin tried to dismantle its limbs from its body. Piece by piece. Tearing its muscles and tissues. It was no use. It got back within seconds , back to the main body, like magnet pulling .
However there was a little bit of damage. It did not rejoin in due proportions. It randomly fixed at different angles in the main body.
This was worse. Quite opposite to the desired result. The creature now looked even more and deadly. An abomination out to devour.
Lin leaped inside the protective barrier around his palace. His eyes looked at the roaring outside as it slowly closed.
*******
Birthing began
" Aaahhhhhh! "
Mia's voice tore through the serenity of the silent southern sea.
" Aunt Jade. Aunt Ruby. It's hurting. ! I can't take it anymore. "
Mia kept yelling as she held both her Aunts' hands.
" Do you think it's time Jade? "
" Not yet Ruby. She has almost a month left. "
" A month? Then why is her pain already starting? This does not sound very good to me. "
" Should we call the midwives? Just to check.. "
" I think so. "
One of them darted off as she left a few ripples behind. The other was trying to relieve Mia's by giving her some compress.
" Hold on Mia. We will get through this. Stay strong. "
" Aunt, can we not send words to my Lin. He needs to be here if I am really birthing. "
" Yeah. Sure. Sure. Whatever you say. Let the midwives check and diagnose first. Then we will just as you say. " She planted a kiss on Man's forehead.
Mia wanted to close her eyes and relax. But the pain would not let her. She kept shrieking.
" Ahhhhhhhhhh! Momma! ".she suddenly called out involuntarily.
Her Aunt looked a little hesitant.
She held her motherless niece's hand tighter, in hopes of comforting her.
It seemed like the girl was going into premature labor. Though she was technically home, she far from her loved ones.
It was natural for anybody to go into a frenzy.
Mia tried to hold the light stand beside her but it slipped.
" Take it easy. Mia. Take it easy. The midwives are coming. It will be alright. "
" We are here! "
Just then two mer-women came with Mia's Aunt.
" Take this. Hold it between your palms. "
One of the Mia something to squeeze. Was it some kind of a stress reliever?
" Keep pressing it Mia. " Then she ducked right between her legs, without giving her a head .
" Goodness Grace! "
The woman retracted in shock.
" What happened? What's wrong? " Mia asked, pressing the things in her hand harder.
" You are in labor no doubt. That's confirmed... But... "
" But what? "
Jade and Ruby asked in unison.
" The child is coming upside down. His feets first. "
So it was happening. Mia could not believe her time was up. The time she had asked for, for from the Tree of Knowledge. It was all going to be over soon.
" We need to inform Lin and my father. "
Mia was struggling to stay steady. She kept slipping and falling and getting back again.
" That is not possible! "
It was the Queen.
" Long live our queen! " Everybody instantly lowered their heads in respect.
" Why so? "
Mia looked confused.
" The grudge that is after you has turned into a more powerful spirit. It had been lurking at our for days. Today when your husband had tried getting here, it had attacked him! "
" It attacked Line? But Line is too strong? How is he? "
She was both confident yet worried.
" It's not about strength Mia. The thing is the spirit has morphed into so much evil that it is now of possession. We witnessed it ourselves. I mean our border guards. He was able to it away just in time before it could use Lin's body to tread our waters. "
The queen went to sit beside Mia.
" Does it know that I am here? No way? Isn't even this place safe?"
Mia remembered the words of the Tree of knowledge. There would be no place to hide from its .
"You don't need to worry about any of the mess around Mia. We are here to take care of it for . Aren't we? "
The queen asked to look at Mia's aunts. Who had been startled at the sudden appearance of queen.
They knew the queen had been too soft towards Mia. Which was itself very odd given her .
Now she was sitting beside her with the news that they were cut off from the Mia's tribes. At for the time being.
" Mia just needs to concentrate on the birth of her son. Doesn't she? "
The queen repeated herself, getting no response from them.
" Yes. Yes. Yes your Majesty. "
They agreed together the second time.
" Mia, your boy is coming. Our priority is your and his safety. "
Mia had a choking sensation in her pit. Lin would not be around when their baby was coming?
After all they had been together? Will she have to leave without even seeing his face? Maybe it better that way. He would never let her go if he had even the slightest hint of that.
It was all good and settled. Mia had to just make sure she brought her son to this world properly.
He would be the one to unify the three tribes and the four worlds.
The true inheritor . The true heir.
She had never thought she would have the chance of getting to see the hostilities between her gone? But there they were. Now working all together. For her safety, for her son's safe . It was like a true merger. They all seemed thrilled and excited with the birth. The that is. She was sure her father, Nana, Xie and Roe would have been equally excited they been around. Just like her Lin.
The pain building around her clitoris and hips suddenly seemed a little more bearable. It was compared with the pain building around her pit.
It was tremendous. Overwhelming. No matter what she told herself. Her heart would not listen.
She needed Lin. Needed him by her side. Needed to gaze upon the ever changing colors in his . No matter how much she tried to. She could not hide. She was missing Lin too much.
Even too much seemed too little.