What ye are is a lump o’ metal. It ain’t ‘til me hammer strikes that metal takes shape. Ye do well ta ‘member it. Yer nature ain’t revealed until life’s hammer beats ya out o’ shape.

~Goibniu, The God of the Forge and Brew

Crow could only twitch as he lay sprawled out on the ground. He looked like a bird that had just flown into a window. The only thing missing was the blood pouring from his beak and eyes.

*Rest and recover. I’m prepared now, so it’s my turn to be your shield, you fool.* Lily ordered before escaping his Soulscape. The bit of lightning she already absorbed almost doubled her size, and now she stood at almost thirty centimeters tall. Lily flew over and kissed Crow on the beak before flying into the sky. Crow watched as her petite but shapely body defied the Heavens in his place. It terrified him, watching as she took on the wrath meant for him. Each bolt came down faster than the next, and when struck, a ring of light blasted out from her as it pushed her toward the ground. Crow knew he couldn’t rush his recovery, but every strike was like a blow to his soul. All he could do was wince and feel inadequate.

This was an opportunity for her, and he knew that, but it still pained him to see her struggling for his sake. Crow watched on and felt guilty because the only thing she wanted from him was treated as a joke. It never really struck him that she had that capability to be one of his wives, but seeing her guarding him woke him up to reality. This little princess was special to him.

Caaawwww!

Crow called out to her, and while she didn’t understand, he filled the sound with emotion. The nymphs claimed all fae had empathetic natures, so he knew Lily should sense his encouragement. She’d already taken five lightning strikes, and he felt she was nearing her limits. This should be the ninth bolt by his count, but something wasn’t right. It had taken longer this time, and he could see the Scath edging closer to him. Now that the lightning wasn’t striking him, they felt it was safe to attack him. But they weren’t foolish enough to rush him, mainly because that’d attract the tribulation toward them too.

Lily was barely maintaining her altitude. Crow condensed his body, so he was ready to fly. Even if it would cause internal damage, he’d recover later. While preparing for action, Crow watched the sky and the trees simultaneously, which his bird form easily managed. Once he was roughly half the size of an adult, he stopped condensing his body. It was because going any smaller and the mana drain would be faster than he could draw in.

The lightning in his body would take a week to cleanse but until then—

What the hell is that? A spark of bright light interrupted Crow’s thoughts. It was gathering in the clouds, and it looked like the brightest star he’d ever seen. Feeling his feathers prickling from the overcharged air, Crow’s stomach dropped. While he’d never seen this phenomenon before, he knew this was ball lightning. The spherical shape grew as it accumulated Lightning Mana and Crow stopped hesitating.

Launching himself into the sky, he flew toward Lily. Unused muscles struggled as he flapped his wings as fast as he could. Ahead of him, the light became so bright that it turned bleached most of the lightning’s color white. The purple corona was still faintly visible, and it was that crackling element that was causing Lily’s body to flicker erratically. Panic filled him because he could no longer make out Lily’s body from within the growing light.

Within his overworked emotions, a thick line of the most beautiful crystalline coloring appeared. Crow’s mana sense touched it, and he felt the connection between him and the fae. It was filled with overwhelming warmth and trust and lacked any guile. It pulsed with pain as he grasped onto this lifeline and pumped his wings harder.

Caw-caw! He screeched at Lily. The bird-speak filled not with fear or despair but encouragement. It was a call that caused the line to thicken and mutate. Lily sensed the change too, and suddenly she could hear Crow’s voice in her mind.

*Family.*

Lily’s eyes teared up, and Crow suddenly knew what he had to do. Lily was not yet consumed by the slower moving ball lightning despite the light surrounding her. He activated his Ghostly Aura and felt it merging with his Bestial Aura. His beast form changed as the feathers lost color and turned a semi-transparent white. The edges were still dark and filled with Night Fire, giving him a unique look that had never been seen before. Not even taking a fraction of a second to admire his new look, Crow activated Ghost Form, and immediately, all wind resistance ended. The whistling wind went silent, and he shot forward like a streak of light. His speed doubled, then tripled, and even as he went closer to the ball lightning, he refused to slow down.

Crow’s talon reached out and snagged Lily as she fell from the sky. It felt like he’d grabbed onto a lightning bolt but refused to let go, even as her body practically crippled his claw. Banking sharply to the left, he nearly snapped his wings off, but still pulled them against his body as he plunged toward the ground. No matter which way he went, the ball lightning followed closely behind. Crow knew it was impossible to outrun it but kept struggling. It was time to use the massive brainpower provided by his Shield and Mind combination.

Caw-caw! Crow screeched at the Heavens, and while ordinary people couldn’t understand bird speech, the Heavens did. Not even Lily knew what Crow said but could tell the Heavens were infuriated. The power within the storm was decreasing rapidly as its massive ultimate attack drained the storm of all its Lightning Mana.

Lily was filled to the brim with Lightning Mana but kept siphoning off the ball lightning’s power. It was a futile attempt to decrease its overwhelming power, but Crow could see her arms blackening under its wrath. He tossed her into his Soulscape because they both knew her fight was over. It was then that he spotted where the Scath entered the valley. Not even the wood nymphs knew how those evil creatures were entering this place, but Crow saw their large portal in the distance. It wasn’t far from the hidden door on the side of the cliff.

Suddenly, an epiphany struck him as he saw a series of events lining up. The sun was about to rise, and the Scath rushed back to their portal. Crow knew his plan was a gamble and reckless, but it gave him a smidgen of hope. Pumping his wings to speed up and adjust his dive, he aimed at the large ring.

Crow knew this portal was nothing like Acco’s. The gold ring surrounding the seven-meter wide portal somehow kept the opening stable. Inside the ring was a shimmering image of a subterranean world filled with shadows. Because of his beast form’s sight, he could make out the sight of a town on the other side.

He spread out his wings to catch air and glide close to the surface as he approached the ground. The ball lightning was at his back, causing his tail feathers to curl and burn away. Even though it hadn’t reached him, electricity still arced between the ball and his beast form. Lightning turned the Scath to ash as it tore through them and arced to any nearby. They tried to flee, but none had the speed to do so.

Timing it to the last moment, Crow activated Ghost Phasing and crossed through the portal. He went through without transporting because he lacked a corporeal form, but he was momentarily blinded. Unused to flying, he wasn’t sure how to handle the approaching cliff, so he tried to fly upward, knowing his forward momentum would force a collision. Regardless, he could accept this, so he disabled hit Ghost Phasing, fearing that if he passed into the mountain, he’d never escape.

Thwump!

Crow did not know what that sound was, but the shockwave slammed him against the cliff a lot hard than he’d intended. Only it gave way, and he tumbled through some doorway and triggered several traps that couldn’t touch him because his body was moving too fast. Unable to move, he laid on the ground with a clear sight of the portal below. It was then that he realized his crazy plan actually worked. Scath were screaming so loud that he could hear it from the other side of the portal. Worrying about whether the ball lightning would try to cross back over, he saw the ring flicker a few times before disappearing.

Silence filled the clearing, and Crow looked up toward the Heavens. Even though he couldn’t move, he still smirked at the dissipating clouds while his body transformed back once more. His body was completely empty of mana, so he couldn’t maintain Myriad of the Beast, nor either of the auras.

Flying was a skill he’d have to master over time, but as he laid on the ground panting, he was ecstatic because he survived. Despite avoiding the lightning ball, he couldn’t completely dodge its wrath. He sent some of the lightning into his Soulscape. Crow could only keep his cultivation going as he tried to minimize the impact on his body.

The feathers hid the worst of his injuries, and while he couldn’t see his body, he knew his skin was charred and cracked. Nor did he know that his hair had turned snow white because of the lightning. In time, it’d grow out, and his normal color would return. Looking up, he saw the Heavens still roiling but rapidly dispersing. Crow no longer sensed its oppressive nature, so he laughed. Then laughed harder.

Zap!

A feeble bolt of lightning came from the clouds and struck Crow, but it lacked the fierceness from before. His entire body tensed and arched as the electricity arced through his body.

“Petty,” Crow spat blood and sighed before blacking out.