Chapter 168: Her Name Is Maya

Winnie’s paws barely made any sound as they hit the beach over the sound of the water rushing toward them. Maya moved into a sitting position, holding on tightly to keep from slipping off.

Her heart pounded in her chest as fear and pain threatened to rip her apart. She fought through them as she tried to concentrate on what she needed to do.

What if my powers don’t work?

She hadn’t used them in years, let alone something of this scale. What if it didn’t work? She looked back, but she could barely see the town.

However, it was there. If this massive wall of water passed them, it would head for the town. She had to protect her hometown. She had to protect Winnie.

Keenan.

Winnie’s loud howl pulled her attention to see that they were right against the water. The wall was terrifying. This close, she could barely see the top. It was going to fall on them.

Winnie halted, fear made her eyes wide. She whimpered, her paws shaking on the sand. It was sheer willpower and her trust in Maya that stopped her from turning around and fleeing back the way they came.

Maya stretched out her hands, past Winnie, leaning over her head. She ignored the strain on the bandage and the pain that made her hands shake.

Now was not the time to hesitate or to worry that it wouldn’t work. The time was upon her, she had to act right now.

She felt the cold seep out of her fingertips even before she touched the water wall. It spread all over her body before it burst forth the instant she touched the water.

A sharp crack pierced the night as the surface froze. The crack echoed as it moved fast, swallowing up the water like a hungry whale.

She shivered, but it wasn’t completely frozen yet. It was a large wall of water; her ice was fast, but she needed to keep channeling her power, and her weak body was failing her.

There was a pressure in her head, and she felt warm liquid pour out of her nose and stain the front of her shirt.

She fought not to lose consciousness as she kept her palm against the wall of ice, feeling the cold steam blast against her.

Her power felt strange, it had been a while since she used it but right now it felt like she was emptying herself. She forced the thought out of her head. She didn’t need the distraction.

Freeze. Freeze. Freeze.

She chanted in her head as she pulled out all her powers. More blood poured out of her nose and she felt her head squeeze into itself.

Her hands slipped, and she fell off Winnie’s back. Her eyes were wide with fear, but her expression softened as she hit the sand with her back.

Her job was done.

The ice had formed a cave-like shape around them, but it was completely frozen and holding its shape. They were going to live.

Winnie whimpered and moved to her, putting her nose against her face. Maya chuckled; it was colder than before.

"Did you put your face against the ice?"

Maya blinked as she realized the words didn’t leave her lips. She couldn’t move her jaw, and there was no feeling in the tips of her fingers. This was worse than the cold she felt before.

Am I going to die?

It did feel like it. She could tell this was not something she could fight. She couldn’t stop herself from losing consciousness this time.

Will I wake up again?

"Maya," Winnie cried, her tears dropping on her face as she lifted her head off the sand.

She didn’t even notice when she shifted. She could see the panic on her face, and she could only imagine how bad she must look.

She wanted to tell her she was fine, but all she could do was stare until her vision turned blurry, then black, and everything went quiet.

Winnie let out a scream as Maya went limp in her hands. Her heartbeat was slowing down. She shook her as she yelled.

She tried to lift her as she had done before, but there was barely any strength in her body. All that running and the terrifying horror that she would be swallowed up by the water had taken whatever strength she had left.

Winnie froze as she heard it—the sounds of paws hitting the sand. Now that it was quiet after the loud rushing of the water, her ears were sensitive.

Relief flooded her. Someone must have noticed the water and gotten here fast enough. Whoever they were, they should be able to take Maya to the physician.

She pressed down on the fear in her heart. Maya had lost too much blood, she might have also lost the baby, and now she had used a strange power that was clearly too much for her body.

Winnie didn’t think too much about what just happened as she pulled Maya out from under the cave-like structure the ice had formed.

She could ask her questions later and get her answers. Not that it mattered—all that mattered was making sure Maya didn’t die.

A gray wolf stopped in front of her, and a figure jumped down from its back in a swift movement. Winnie’s heart skipped as she realized something about this gray wolf and this figure was very unfamiliar.

She lifted her head just as the figure in black marched closer. Her black hair framed her face, and tears made her blue eyes shine with such intensity that for a moment Winnie forgot what she was doing.

Something about the blue eyes was very familiar. It wasn’t just the eyes. Her face, her expression, her movements.

She ignored Winnie and dropped to her knees on the sand, her expression a mix of horror and relief.

"Maya," she cried as she touched her pale face.

"You know her?" Winnie softly asked as her body moved to give this strange woman more access to the unconscious Maya.

She didn’t know why she did that, but right now, it was really hard to make sense of what was happening, so she followed her instinct—that didn’t require thinking.

"She is so cold," she cried and dropped lower, placing her head on her chest. "Rudor! Her heart is beating so slowly."

Panic flared up on her face as she gathered Maya in her arms, placing her forehead against hers and easily lifting her off the sand.

She walked closer to the wolf and placed her on the wolf’s back. She looked reluctant to let go.

"She is unconscious, Rudor. Be fast but be careful."

"Where are you taking Maya?" Winnie asked as she pressed down on the sand to lift herself.

"Maya?" She turned, confusion etched on her features.

The instant she pulled her hand away, the gray wolf took off as if waiting for just that moment. She turned towards the direction the wolf was heading with a sad expression.

She took a staggering step forward. "You called her name."

She narrowed her eyes as she turned to look at Winnie. "Her name is Maya?"