The Darkest Hour

     Charlotte and Will stood before the Vampire wolf, its menacing form somehow silhouetted by the darkness of the cave passage. It was as if it were even darker than the inky, pitch-black environment that surrounded them. Blacker than black, darker than the darkest shadows of night, its sinister red eyes its only discernable feature with their nightmarish glow. Its form seemed almost amorphous in shape as their vision struggled to adjust to the stark difference in lighting from the bright world outside. Their hearts sank, sitting like stones in their bellies as they grasped the dreadful nature of their situation. They felt as though time itself had slowed down for them as the beast slowly crept closer with the terrifying grace of a predator that had its prey within its clutches. Their arms felt heavy, their legs weak as the distance between them and the beast grew shorter and shorter. Their minds were completely and utterly blank, empty save for the unbearable fear that seemed to sink its horrid fangs into their very souls.

     As the vampire wolf took yet another step closer, now hardly more than six feet away from the pair, Will slowly directed his gaze at Charlotte. He was not entirely sure why he chose to gaze at her at that moment, his body simply acting without a clear reason in mind. His gaze landed on her face, taking in the way her features scrunched and twisted as fear seemed to consume her whole. He attempted to speak, but no words came, as if his own body could not make sense of what it was he desired. As his eyes traced Charlotte's face, his heart began to pound in his ears, loud and resonant like war drums signaling the beginning of a great battle. Thoughts suddenly raced through his mind, most of them forgotten the moment they disappeared as if they never existed. Despite all the rash decisions he had made up to that point, he was no fool. He knew their current position spelled almost certain doom, that the two of them alone stood little chance against the beast. Still, something had to be done.

     He shifted his gaze to the vampire wolf, locking eyes with the creature as his mind slowly grew clearer. His emotions began to shift—from anxiety to frustration, then to outrage, and finally… to defiant determination. He refused to allow himself and Charlotte to meet their end at the hands of the mangy beast. They were tasked with saving the world, sent there for that sole reason, and letting things end there would have been nothing short of idiotic. With that in mind, he began to focus. He focused with greater intensity than he ever had before, returning to the image he had conjured up the first time he had ever used his power. The reason was unclear, but he was certain that doing so would yield something of value, or perhaps it was simply wishful thinking.

     The wolf stalked ever closer, now within range to tear them apart at any time, but Will continued to focus. He did not allow the creature to disturb him as he recalled the imagery he had conceived that fateful day in the forest. He imagined his own body, and the shining light that dwelled within. Just as he had previously, he began to channel that light into his limbs and throughout his body. He was not gentle by any means, almost forcing the power to travel through his body's passages until it coursed through the entirety of his form. However, that was simply not good enough. He had pushed his ability to this extent before, and he knew it would not output nearly enough power to slay the vampire wolf. His current output would not even allow him to avoid the wolf's impending attack, so he pushed himself further. Further than anything caution would suggest. An intense pressure and heat built within his body, growing stronger by the second as the light within him seemed to shine exponentially brighter. It was a dazzling light that seemed to blind even his mind’s eye as he continued to look inward, and still he pushed further.

     Meanwhile, Charlotte looked on in terror as the wolf lowered itself into position to pounce. Nothing she could think of would get the two of them out of their current predicament, but still her mind raced. She wanted so desperately to think of a way out, growing increasingly frustrated by her repeated failure to come up with even a single possible solution. She had not even noticed that Will was occupied with a solution of his own. In that moment, she truly believed their end was upon them.

     The blazing heat building within Will's body reached a fever pitch as he began to visibly strain while maintaining focus. He could already feel his power taking a toll on his body, yet he pushed further still. When his muscles ached, he reinforced them—when he thought the heat unbearable, he supplied yet more fuel. He would push his physical enhancement to its very limit. He continued until he felt as though he would burst right then and there, his body practically begging to release the incredible pressure. Then, his eyes opened at last.

     In that same instant, the vampire wolf surged forward with a harrowing snarl, its jaws primed to rip the two of them limb from limb. Charlotte shut her eyes tight as the end approached, seemingly forced to accept that their fates were sealed. However, her conclusion was quickly proven false when Will suddenly snapped into motion. He dipped down and moved toward Charlotte with unbelievable speed, swinging one arm under and around her knees while the other found its place on her back. With that, he hoisted her up and dashed around the beast as it followed through with its lunge toward their previous position. It almost felt as if the very world around him was slowed as he went. His feet moved across the floor as swift as the wind, practically sliding along the stone as all friction seemed to disappear. Having spent time with his eyes shut as he looked within himself, his vision had adjusted to the darkness of the cave's interior, allowing him to navigate without much issue. In seconds, he and Charlotte were in the cave’s main chamber. He twisted his body, rapidly turning around to face the wolf again, and he skidded along the floor in a circular arc before coming to a stop. He had done it.

     Charlotte, having been completely unprepared for what Will had done, was left incredibly dizzy and disoriented from the abrupt and expedient movement. It was so fast that she would normally have risked hurting, or perhaps even breaking, her neck from the force if not for Will holding her so close to his chest. Her head was thankfully cradled in such a way that little harm befell her as a result of his actions. It was remarkably sensible of him, though whether it was done consciously was indiscernible in the moment. She was simply grateful the precaution had been taken, deliberately or not.

     Will set her down and kept his gaze trained in the direction of the vampire wolf, taking his makeshift stance again as he awaited its approach. Charlotte shakily got to her feet, managing to stand up despite the weakness in her legs. Looking over at Will, she was not even given the chance to speak before he addressed her.

     “Charlotte,” he began, his tone grave. “I need you to come up with a plan. I think I can fight that thing like this, but I can't beat it unless we lock it down. There's no way I’ll last long, so I need an idea fast.”

     Charlotte blinked repeatedly as she both registered the information and did her best to shake off the dizziness she felt. With a hand held to the side of her head, her palm lightly pressed to her temple, she nodded.

     “I can hold it down,” she replied. “but I need you to keep the wolf occupied. I need about a minute. Can you do that?”

     Will simply smirked, chuckling to himself before finally answering.

     “I'll be damned if I don't try!”

     With that, he crouched slightly and prepared to fight with all he had as the vampire wolf bounded forward ferociously to meet him. It let out another cacophonous howl as it made a mad dash directly for them. Will did not allow it to make the first move, however, surging forward with incredible speed before swerving to the right of the beast and leaping forward to strike it with tremendous force. The wolf was thrown a considerable distance from the blow before catching itself and landing on its feet. It shook its head as if to rid itself of any dizziness the shock had caused it before locking its gaze onto him with a predatory gleam in its eyes. The true battle had officially begun.

     Will and the vampire wolf clashed repeatedly with considerable speed, dashing about the spacious cavern chamber. Will was able to deftly avoid the beast's wild lunges and swipes with his greater speed, but the amount of focus required to do so rendered each of his subsequent strikes weaker and less effective. It was clear he could not maximize the potential of his attacks until the wolf was rendered completely immobile. And, if his focus wavered for a moment, it would likely have been the end of him. That was where Charlotte would come in.

     While Will kept the wolf occupied, Charlotte closed her eyes and began to expand her senses outward. She had already found viable targets for her ability while waiting for Will and his team to exit the cavern earlier, so it was simply a matter of forging a connection with them and putting them to use. Under normal circumstances, finding viable plant life within a cavern such as that would have been impossible. However, they were fortunate enough to be in a cave located within the deeper reaches of the forest, surrounded by those same enormous trees she had come across the day she discovered her own ability. She had not informed Will of what happened that day, as she did not want to draw attention to her power until she was certain she could use it effectively. Now, she could hide the truth no longer. She could not afford to wait until she was certain. She simply had to act now and succeed, for the sake of them both.

     Her senses spread outward through the very ground she stood on, and she made contact with the roots of those gigantic trees nearest to the cavern, forging a connection. Sending her own mana through the magical channels she had created, she met the vast systems of roots with warmth, almost as if in greeting. She then began to guide them, shepherding them to their required destination as Will continued the fight. She was making good progress when suddenly, she heard the grunt of Will, followed by a pained cry. Looking up from the floor, her eyes darted about to locate him and found that he had been struck by the beast. Despite his advantage in speed, the fact remained that he was inexperienced, and he had never pushed his physical enhancement to such heights previously. Unable to fully control his movements, he had made a slight misstep, giving the vampire wolf an ideal opportunity to capitalize on his weakness. Before he could react, the beast closed in and tore deep gashes in his right arm with its long, sickle-like claws. His arm was immediately disabled as a result of the attack, but the wolf’s assault had not finished. With a powerful swing of its foreleg, it swatted Will directly into the nearest cavern wall, injuring his left arm and nearly breaking it on impact. He let out a gut-wrenching cry as the pain, combined with his built-up fatigue, hit him all at once. His voice rang in Charlotte's ears and dashed any hopes she had of their plan coming to fruition. At that moment, all seemed lost.