AWWWW WILDFLOWER'S SPIRIT MADE IT BACK, THE GANG'S ALL HERE!

Cough, cough. Sorry, got excited. I made YOUR heart hurt?? What do you call this then?

~CL1 had a good morning and a good couple of tears reading this :')

Waning Unity

Chapter Thirty (2/2)

[If you haven't read part one first or if this posts before part one, please don't read this yet. It contains spoilers for the first part and ruins the storytelling ;-;]

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The beast took Milkweed's taunt to heart, lunging at the she-wolf. Milkweed remained planted in place, and then dashed to the side suddenly, leaving her pursuer to crash into and through the bark of the dead tree that she had been standing in front of. The monster was stunned for a moment, but by the time it had come back to its senses, the tree was already coming down on it, the pieces that hit its body breaking open and leaving it trapped under the heavy half-trunk that was left.

"Not finding a good place to die," Milkweed said through her panting, appearing in front of Lume, "Just thinking of what Fraser would do. Desert trees... not nearly as solid as the kind you see in the forest," she remarked in a way that would have been smug if she weren't so tired.

The beast tried to snap at her only a few times before it realized it was mostly immobile and too exhausted right now to get out of Milkweed's trap. "So what?" it snarled, "You kill me now?"

"No." Milkweed shook her head. "I just wanted you to see. Look Lume." She forced the monster's head to the side until it was facing Fraser, still lying on the ground in the distance. "Look at what you did."

"I know what I did."

"Do you, Lume?"

The monster snarled, "Lume is gon-"

"No, she isn't!" Milkweed snapped. "I know you're still there. I know you can hear me. LOOK AT HIM." She pushed its head again, and the monster snarled but cooperated.

"I've seen you," Milkweed continued. "The way you look at him and stand by his side. I saw how you watched over him when he was hurt. This isn't the loyalty of a pack-mate, it's something else. He's something more, isn't he?"

The monster roared and fought at the log again, but Milkweed shouted over the noise. "Isn't he? Is this what you want? Is this want you want for him?"

The roaring became screaming as the essence streak on its shoulder reappeared, shining a blinding white. Milkweed stepped back with her ears flattened for a moment.

And then the screaming stopped, and there was sobbing.

"No," Lume said quietly. "No, it isn't."

(How to win an overpowered bossfight: The power of love.)

~CL1

Waning Unity

Chapter Thirty (1/2)

[I'm sorry, I didn't want to do parts in a collab, and normally if it's too long I just shorten it, but in this case, this whole interaction would have either been a rushed fight or lacking a lot of emotional weight.]

Boa was fast. Maybe too fast, since the monster could hardly see where she was going. The smaller wolf zig-zag aged ahead, leaving the beast little room for error if it wanted to keep up. Then without warning, Boa ducked into a small opening made by a fallen log and several large rocks, a space too small for the monster to fully squeeze into. It snapped its jaws shut, just short of the she-wolf's tail as she pressed herself to the very back of the small opening.

It continued to snap for a moment, struggling to wriggle its body in but quickly gave up with a frustrated snarl. A deep, guttural cry like a roar broke from its lungs, and though Boa flinched a bit, she knew the beast could not reach her.

With a final frustrated snort, the monster fought out of the enclosed space, its eyes quickly landing on an immobile shape in the distance. The frown on its face quickly grew into a smile as it remembered why it was here. "Fra-ser..." it taunted singsongishly. Milkweed planted her feet at his side, staring at the beast defiantly. As it bolted towards them, Milkweed quickly tried to push Fraser out of the way again, but the monster had learned its lesson. It wasn't going for Fraser.

It bolted directly for Milkweed, ramming the stunned wolf and throwing her to the ground before turning back to Fraser, still frozen with his eyes widened in disbelief. Without Milkweed to pull him away again, It easily snatched him up, shaking back and forth ferociously for a moment before tossing him to the side.

He was panting and bleeding profusely, but he was faring much better than he had the last time Lume had tried to kill him... for now, at least.

"Finally..." it breathed with a crooked smile, stepping towards him as the toothy maws in its neck opened again, snapping at the open air in anticipation of more flesh.

It hadn't gotten far before it was thrown to the ground and pinned. Mushroom and Harrier stood over it with bared fangs, silva dripping down into its face. "Stay down, rot," Harrier hissed through gritted teeth. The monster snarled in response, and one of its pseudo-mouths opened, snapping down suddenly on Mushroom's ankle. The she-wolf whimpered in shock, and before Harrier could come to her aid the beast had twisted her head around, shutting its jaws around his neck and lifting him into the air slowly, picking up a scrambling Mushroom in the process.

"It's time..." it said to Harrier over a mouthful of his fur, "that I finish what I started with you." its eyes narrowed as it tightened its jaw, and the panicked wolf went into utter terror as he attempted to claw himself free.

"NO!" Boa shouted across the dusty clearing as she darted towards the beast. The monster wolf flicked an ear before swinging its head back and releasing its grip on both Harrier and Mushroom, sending them flying into a large overhanging rock in the distance. Their heads struck first, knocking them unconscious completely.

The monster then swung back to meet Boa fangs-first, intercepting the wolf's blow and slamming her into the ground on the head repeatedly before dropping her and preparing to finish her off.

"Hey!" a voice called from behind. It had only caught sight of Milkweed out of the corner of its eye before a set of claws met with its face. The monster roared in pain, turning and dashing after the fleeing wolf in fury. Oddly enough, Milkweed didn't seem completely focused on running. She slowed down to inspect the trees she was dashing past before bolting to another and doing the same.

"Finding a nice place to die?" the beast taunted. And then Milkweed stopped suddenly, turning and facing it with that same defiant look in her eye. "Today's not my day to die," she snarled.

~CL1

Waning Unity

Chapter Twenty-Six

"Lume!"

No ...

Her paws halted immediately and her ears perked at Fraser's voice.

No, no, no, no ...

It could hear him. It could smell him right behind it. It wasted no time turning to meet him face to face.

She had held on to hope as the monster failed to locate Fraser in the forest before it found its way into the desert and climbed up the dusty cliffs to his old home. She held on to hope even as her body searched the ground for any sign of the wise little wolf. Maybe Fraser hadn't come back after all? That alone sparked new fears of just where Fraser could be; where a wolf in his state would turn... what he would do in a moment of broken grief.

She didn't know how to feel, seeing him alive and well here. Even if he was still breathing now, she was undeniably afraid he wouldn't be for much longer.

Again, she tried in vain to work her mouth into forming words, but her vocal cords locked against her, refusing to betray their new master. The thing in control of her body was smart. It had sewn the edges of her unhinged jaw back together and pulled her teeth back into their proper place and size. It was putting on a show for Fraser, making sure the hopeful wolf felt comfortable before it tore his throat out.

But Lume had yet another hope, and that was in Fraser's wisdom. If anyone could see when something wasn't quite right with Lume, it was the one who had spent so much time at her side, the one who knew her better than she possibly even knew herself.

Lume's mouth pulled back into a distorted smile. "Fras...er," it choked out in a manner that made it sound like a snake was wrapped tightly around her neck. It seemed even Lume's body wasn't entirely sure if it was willing to cooperate with Fraser's death.

Please Fraser... you're smarter than this.

Fraser's excited smile fell to a look of concern as his ears lowered. "Lume," he half-whimpered, stepping towards her. "Are you okay?"

Stay back. Don't come any closer, please.

"P...erfect...ly... fine."

Then something crossed Fraser's face that terrified Lume: joy. He was happy to see her, so happy in fact, that he might not have seen the clear signs that something was wrong.

So Lume turned to something primal, as primal as breathing and blinking; something that control had no part over. She poured all her strength into the one move and shut her eyes, just for a moment. There was just a tingle at first, then a small stinging, and then her vision blurred with tears as they poured down her face.

"... Lume?"

I'm sorry.

"Are you sure you're..."

I can't let you...

Recognition filled Fraser's face just a second too late. Lume's body was already back to its deformed, monster state again and looming its fangs over Fraser's head.

And then she heard them, a chorus of howls just over the ridge. Then she smelled them, familiar scents that blended with the perfume of the desert in such a natural way. The colored scar of essence went fully blue with their arrival. It was her last hope, a final failsafe. In her desperation, as she began losing control back in the forest, she turned to the very last place she could and sent a plea to the sky with only two words: "Send help."

Whether the ancestors had truly heard her or not, she would soon find out.

(That's the pain of dramatic irony...)

~CL1

To the guy that said arks the worst game why are you on dododex- how do you know what dododex is unless you played the game long enough to need it? And also why are you saying it in the dyes section- some fiction writers are the only ones that will see it and why magenta- complain in silver cause more people will see it 😂

Waning Unity

Chapter Twenty-Two

(Sorry this one took me a bit, was struggling to think of ideas. But I think I fixed the spacing issue!)

Lume didn't know how long it had been. She hadn't bothered counting the hours, days even. Eventually, the faint sounds of snarling wolves in the distance died away completely, and the battle's end was marked by the sound of one of the packs howling in victory. Milkweed disappeared now and then, likely to check in with how her pack was doing. Whether her pack had won or lost, she didn't show it. Her full attention, like Lume's, had gone towards watching over Fraser.

He would occasionally wake to cough out spurts of blood and scarf down whatever budding plants milkweed had brought. She had led their other pack-mates of the past to visit him once or twice, and a healer a bit more often to make sure everything that needed to be done was done for Fraser to have a quick recovery.

Lume never moved, however. Mornings had come and gone, but the ethereal guardian didn't sleep. She sat and waited, either for Fraser to wake or stop breathing. She felt powerless for once, and she despised it. During the hours when Milkweed was gone and Fraser was still unconscious, Lume was left to her thoughts. With nothing else to distract her, the moment of her attempting to tear Fraser to pieces replayed again and again in her head. She tried to block it out with other things; memories of the past and happy times escaped her, running away at full speed from the evidence of her feral nature.

It was a new type of torment, one that would not let her forgive herself, if even Fraser could decide he would. And then, one night came with a new thought to occupy herself with.

'You can stay no longer.'

She hadn't heard those words in a while. She normally dropped everything and did what the voice asked of her. It had always been right before, pulling her from the jaws of hysteria to save those around her, yet this time Lume wanted nothing more than to resist.

Fraser had claimed her as one of his own, as his pack. Why did she have to leave now? Why couldn't she stop wandering for once? She finally had something good and it was being ripped away.

The voice responded to her retaliating thoughts. 'What you have done here was the bare minimum. Next time you will try to kill him and everyone else once again. You will not fail.'

The memory of her attack played again, this time under the tint of, "What if?" What if she HAD torn Fraser to pieces, broken his neck, or crushed his heart? She felt sadness and anger and confusion and understanding all at once. She had made her decision, however.

Eventually swishing of a wolf making its way back to them became clearer, and Milkweed's scent floated into the small clearing. With the assurance Fraser would have a trustworthy wolf at his side, Lume stood and bolted into the trees, not daring to look back for fear she would stop herself and go back. Milkweed called her name in the distance, and the coughing sound Fraser made when he began to wake sounded behind her.

For the second time in Lume's life, she began to cry.

~CL1

HI, JOY!

CL1…

1: I see you use Apple Pages which therefore means you have an Apple device, hmMM? Most profitable.

2: Why don’t you just get Grammarly. Or… just be good at grammar

3: Whatever made you think writing that chapter was okay is going to die a fiery death. Okay? Okay!

- President Loki is sad now :(

I think you’re just gaslighting me into believing that the spacing is my issue. I refuse to be manipulated.

Oh, great, you can just write my chapter for me, then! I’ve just got a couple more paragraphs to go… almost there…

- President Loki

Chapter One

Fraser lifted his head, ears shifting forward, pricking in search of sounds that the wind may carry in his direction. He had heard something just a heartbeat before.

Nothing.

He waited a moment longer before dismissing it as the wind or his imagination, bowing his head to once more rip away branches and earth from the shrub at his paws, yanking to reach the richly-flavored roots prominently buried beneath the soil.

As he unearthed the roots, a sound interrupted him, and he lifted his head once more.

A rattlesnake was coiled barely a tail-length away, small eyes narrowed, tail-tip rattling dangerously as a hiss shuddered out of its throat. As he stared at the serpent for a long moment, he saw it shift, coiling backwards, bracing itself to strike.

Fraser made a quick calculation: the snake’s small eyes were fixated on his ankles, and it would be striking low. He leaned back into his hind legs, tensing the muscles in his haunches and preparing to leap over the snake while it was lunging for him. Just a moment longer… almost… almost… now!

The snake shot forward, wide jaws unhinging and speeding towards his forelegs, long venom-tipped fangs seeking out his flesh. Instantaneously, Fraser leapt, sailing high over the snake’s head, landing with a thud where it had been seconds before. He quickly whipped around to face the snake again and found that it was already twisting to strike again. He made an attempt to dodge, but the serpent was too quick, coming for him right as he moved to the side. Sharp pain zipped through his hind ankle and he let out a cry.

Fraser limped along a beaten, sandy trail, his hind leg lifted from the ground. The pain of the snake bite still assaulted him, and every step made his veins sting. The hot sky was growing dark now, vibrant blue giving way to darkness, magnificent streaks of colors and clusters of ancestor-representing stars painting the sky. He lifted his head, staring up at the white specks that filled the night sky, and as he did so he felt a pang of loneliness stab into his heart like a cougar’s claws. Was his family up there, with the ancestors now? Had their mission to find a different home failed and caused them death?

He hung his head as he trudged the rest of the way back to his home, sadness making his paws as heavy as rocks. Abandonment accompanied him as he circled twice and then laid down in his usual spot, tucked away beneath the ragged tree. He tucked his nose away beneath his tail, and as he sank into sleep, a whimper slipped out of his throat. “I miss you,” he whispered to his absent family.

-President Loki

CL1- I swear, if you don’t stop making me cry-

I love Fraser and Lume together so much they’re just so cute, heeeelp- that ending is precious-

Anyways, yes, epilogues. Mine might take me a bit because I’m not entirely sure what to write for it since it won’t be as easy as Bone’s and Outlander’s, but we’ll see

- President Loki is very emotional about this ending

This is me getting my revenge. Obviously. If I have to be hurt over this collaboration, so do you. That’s how it works here in Revenge Town.

…thanks for chainsawing me out of the box. You’ve always got my back!

- President Loki

I love Waning Unity ngl. Such a good story😊 Keep up the great work!!

Yeahhhh I kinda realized I'd locked you in a box with no conceivable way out without completely derailing some stuff. Sorry 'bout that, hehe. But it's okay, I brought the chainsaw of love and the box is in pieces now :D

~CL1 got carried away with the body horror and forgot you'd have to figure out a solution to that...

No, thank you for doing a long chapter because there wasn’t much I could do to make Fraser survive Lume while furthering the plot. And also, you made my heart hurt- so thanks-

- President Loki WILL NOT cry

Waning Unity

Chapter Twenty-nine

Fraser usually had a decent idea as to what was a danger and what wasn’t. His perception was often quite accurate, all throughout his life.

He was pretty sure that fang-lined mouths ripping into visibility from inside of Lume’s throat was a danger.

Lume’s head sagged to one side or the other, unable to hold her neck up any longer. A continuous, gargling snarl was wobbling out from inside of her, carrying out of each mouth that pierced its way through her pale red fur. Her pale eyes were glossed over, crackling with rage and bloodthirst as she stood on shaky feet, lips drawn back in a shivering snarl.

“Now would be a super good time for your idiot brain to work, Fraser,” Boa snapped as she appeared at his side, fur bristling all over as she stared up at Lume, who had grown considerably since they had first come into contact with her.

“I like that idea,” Harrier’s fear-laced voice attested from behind them. “A lot. Fraser, be smart. She’s your freaky monster wolf.”

Fraser opened and closed his mouth for a long moment, unable to keep his gaze anywhere but Lume’s contorted face. He was incessantly filing through his own mind, thoughts running crazed circles as he strained for any form of idea as to what to do. He had been determined to stay with Lume, prove that he cared for her, yes. But that was before she had several new mouths and had effortlessly dismembered Fawn in front of them. “I… got nothing.”

Milkweed sidestepped and pressed herself into Fraser’s side, her fur brushing comfortingly against his as she tried to ground herself. “Think,” she urged in a soft whisper, skin shivering underneath her pelt. “You’ve got to have something.”

Fraser worked his jaw, heart pounding within his ribcage as he struggled to calm his mind enough to use it. As if growing tired of their delay Lume lunged forward, jaw unhinging as she sped toward the gathered wolves, struggling to keep her head at the correct angle to catch one of them. Immediately Boa and Harrier lunged sideways and away from her gnashing teeth, Mushroom peeling off the other direction. Milkweed began to move but then caught that Fraser was still rooted in his place, whipping around and seizing his scruff to drag him out of the way as well before Lume slammed down where he had been, paws thundering in the sand.

Fraser tumbled sideways across the ground, sand flinging into his eyes. He jumped back to his feet quickly, shaking his head and spitting sand from off of his tongue as he regained his footing. Lume didn’t give them more than a moment to recompose themselves before she lunged again, teeth gnashing as she lurched forward and snapped at any of them who looked within reach.

“Fraser!” Boa shouted as she dodged away from the mighty wolf’s paws and teeth, legs carrying her swiftly. “I’m not kidding anymore! Now would be a great time for you to use your brain!”

Breath caught in Fraser’s throat as his paws once more seemed to solidify to the ground, legs stiff and unmoving even when Lume thundered closer in pursuit of his pack mates. Nothing in his head would line up, no plans would formulate, even as he racked his brain furiously for even the faintest scrap of an idea.

For once in his life, Fraser had no idea on how to cheat death of a savory and bloody victory.

(This chapter was way too much work)

- President Loki

HI JOY FROM ZOOPIX, NICE TO MEET YOU!

Also, Pres I promise I FIXED that spacing before posting! I write these in pages and then put it through google docs to catch any grammar mistakes pages didn't, then copy and paste it from there which is why the spacing gets all weird. Gonna try something different next time, so just bear with me.

~CL1

What on earth is going on with your spacing, CL1

It went from

Looking like

this to

looking like this

now and

it’s really difficult

to

read

- President Loki

WWT I think jerboas are cool there one of my favourite shoulder mounts bbbuuttt now we need to name them maybe rose (one of my own jerbs I had on scorched really bootiful red and pink I got her near Valentine's RIP my bootiful rose she died during a wyvern attack thankfully my army of 50 wyverns DESTROYED them I am the wyvern Queen)

Hi I’m back sorry I haven’t been on in a while. Been busy.

-President Loki.

Get a lot of berries so then you can be ready if you want magenta dye.