Chapter seven. Immortal.
The moon didn't moved from its place in all the night. Fortunately, it was on its higher point. The sun started to rise in the horizon, giving Equestria the first lights of the day.
The blue sky now showed two huge orbs: the moon in the center of the sky and the sun in the horizon.
In the cave, one of the sun rays entered. It came to a direct angle to John's eyes.
Opening his eyes, he looked around. He instantly remembered the moments of the last night. And then, he saw Luna. She was sleeping deeply, her head laying in his chest. Snoring softly, she moved a little.
John could feel her warm. Even now, she wasn't heavy. He could feel her weight: almost like a feather.
However, something bothered him.
A sharp pain in his left shoulder made him to realize something: He should be dead at this point. Obviously, Luna did something to him... but what?
Moving a little, he tried to wake her up in the most delicate manner he could. However, Luna awoke in a hurried way. Opening her eyes in a quick motion, she saw that wondrous sight: the human was alive.
"Oh, you're alive!" Luna said at the time she jumped from her place to John's neck, hugging him with all her might.
"ugh, Luna..."
Suddenly, realizing what she was doing, she let him go.
"Oh, sorry! I didn't mean to suffocate you!"
"No... it's okay..."
"How are you?"
John started to think about it deeply. And then, turned to Luna.
"... Alive." He said with a confused look.
"And I am happy to see that." Luna said, smiling to him.
However, John didn't smile. He just stood in there, thinking about it.
"What's wrong?" Luna asked while seeing his confused look.
"Nothing... it's just that... well..."
"What?"
"... I was wondering... I should be dead at this moment." He said at the same time he looked at his blood-coated jacket. Specifically, to the huge hole on his left side.
Luna was taken back by the last sentence.
"My wound was one of death. However, I am alive. So..."
Suddenly, she turned away.
"That's the how you thank me for saving your life?"
"Of course not! Yeah, I admit it. It was a stupid decision of you. In my state, I might be just a burden for you."
Luna felt her eyes watering at his words. She turned from him.
"But still... thanks." He said at the very last moment.
"You're welcome..." Luna said without turning to him.
Both kept silence in all that while. John stood on his feet and started to walk. At first, it was difficult for him.
While he attempted to walk, he tripped over a stone. Luna rushed to help him, catching him in her back. Luna felt his warm, signal of his evident recovery.
"Arg! Sorry, Luna. I just don't know what's going on with me. I feel all weird."
"What are you saying?"
"I don't know. I feel... different. Like if I could take the whole world by myself."
"Then, what's wrong?" Luna said grinning.
"It's just... didn't felt like this before."
Luna, happy to see her friend getting better trotted to the edge of the cave. John stood on his feet and went along with Luna. At the time he got at her side, he could hear something: a grumbling.
Turning around, he saw Luna looking to another place and her cheeks blushing.
"You're hungry."
Luna didn't answered. She just looked at another place.
"Don't worry. I remember that I saw some kind of settlement in the outskirts of the forest."
Luna remembered the village which John was talking about: Ponyville.
After a while, making sure that both were able to walk normally, they got out of the cave. The sun was at a perfect 45 degrees angle in the sky, while the moon stood on its higher point in the sky. Suddenly, Luna saw this.
"Wait." Luna said.
"Anything wrong?"
"No, it's just that I need to low the moon."
"Oh, right. Do it, i'll see the surroundings."
While Luna stood in there, casting the spell, John went to another part of the forest.
The trees surrounding Luna didn't seemed to be dangerous, so Luna focused at full in her task. She couldn't see that some timber sticks were starting to move on their own.
Meanwhile, John walked in the forest at a few meters from Luna. He inspected the forest with an eagle eye, searching for any danger.
While seeing none, he just started to walk back to Luna. However, he felt something moving under his foot. Seeing down, he saw a small timber stick, moving like if it had a life of his own.
Releasing it from under his foot, John could only see how the stick, along with many more, magically started to build a wolf-like figure.
Luna was too focused in the spell to realize the danger she was in. The Timberwolf behind her started to crawl toward her. Just as she finished her spell, she saw the worried human running toward her. He scared her.
"John, what are you doing?"
"LUNA, GET DOWN!"
Luna did as he ordered, just in time to see him jump with an extended leg and hitting a figure above her, completely breaking it. A rain of sticks and mud fell over her. It was then that she realized what he was doing: he had saved her life again.
Luna was speechless. He was really taking care of her.
While Luna stood in there, John turned to her and saw the expression she had. It was a mix of many feelings. Just as he started to wonder what she meant by that, he felt something moving under his foot. Looking down, he saw a stick moving on its own. He instantly recognized what was going on.
"Oh, crap."
Luna got back to reality by John's sentence.
"What is going on?"
"That thing is assembling again."
Luna saw the sticks moving again to assemble again the timberwolf.
"We need to go."
Luna just nodded. Just as they started to walk, John spotted a pair of eyes seeing them. A growl could be heard from the eye's direction. Just as John started to guess, another timberwolf showed up.
Luna was afraid. She never fought anypony else in a physical combat. She had read somethings about combat tactics, but she never needed to use them. Just as she started to try to remember what she read before, she felt something in her neck. Not a rough action, but a protective one. It was John's hand trying to get her behind him.
"Luna, stay behind me."
Just as the second timberwolf started to crawl toward them, a third timberwolf showed up. Luna got even closer to John. By that moment, the first timberwolf was assembled again, back to the action.
They were surrounded by the three wolves. John was getting nervous, too. He had to get Luna out of there.
The first timberwolf jumped toward them. John turned in time for his leg to break apart the head of the wolf. It was then that his mind started to work.
"Luna, run!"
Luna didn't need him to tell her twice. She turned around and run toward the direction John pointed to her. Almost instantly, the first timberwolf's head assembled again and turned to the human.
The three timberwolves started to crawl toward him. Even on guard, John didn't noted a fourth timberwolf stalking in the dark. It jumped toward John.
John could turn in time to catch the timberwolf's jaw in his hands. He was surprised: Timberwolves seemed weak and easy to defeat. But this one showed such a strength John didn't thought they would have. Forcing to keep the Timberwolf's fangs away from him, John could only see how the other three timberwolves turned around and ran toward the forest. Just in the same direction as Luna.
"So that was their plan from the beggining." He thought to himself.
Suddenly, he felt one of the Timberwolf's fangs breaking apart, freeing the superior part of his jaw from John's grip. The timberwolf narrowed his eyes while closing firmly his jaw, stabbing the other fang on John's shoulder. John lose his grip in the lower part of the jaw, allowing the timberwolf to use all his jaw.
The timberwolf opened all his jaw and bit John's torso. John struggled to free himself. The timberwolf, feeling his struggling, opted to throw him away. John hit in a tree. With a sharp pain in his left shoulder and his torso bleeding from many parts, John could only see how the timberwolf ran toward him and stretched a claw toward his chest.
The three claws got directly onto his chest, stabbing him to death. John let out a soft gasp while feeling the three huge claws entering into his body. He started to feel dizzy, tired. He was having difficulties to even keep his eyes opened.
He was preparing to die, feeling his heart beating even slower at each second. His eyes started to close.
"This is it..."
"Aahhh!"
John's eyes suddenly opened at the sudden scream that sounded. It was Luna.
"Luna..."
Suddenly, he felt the strength returning to his body, reviving him. The fear gave him the need to get out of there and see if she was okay.
Slowly, his arms started to move. His hands took the timberwolf's claw and he started to put strength on them. The timberwolf, suddenly aware of the strange creature's grip, tried in vain to focus. But its claw suddenly got smashed into bits. The human had used his free fist to rip apart the claw.
It was like a lightning, the human was so fast that even when the timberwolf was processing how that could happen, it only could see both of the human hands around his head. Turning his sight, he saw that the human was already over him.
"You didn't knew who you were fighting off, you dumb beast."
With a loud grump, the human tore apart the timberwolf's head and throw it as far as he could. The rest of the body simply fell apart. John turned around to see the bunch of sticks falling to the ground. After that, he instantly ran toward the forest, hoping that Luna were safe.
Luna had her own problems. She could fly and use magic, but still, the three timberwolves were though to defeat. Each time she took one down, it simply assembled again and got back into action. Meanwhile, the other two timberwolves still tried to take her to the ground.
Luna got tired quickly, allowing the timberwolves to easily reach her. One of them hit her with a claw and sent her toward a tree. Luna got dizzy by the hit. She was easy prey now.
One of the timberwolves found her quickly and started to crawl toward her. Soon, the other two joined him and trapped Luna. In her actual state, she could only watch how the main of them jumped toward her with its jaw totally open, ready to eat her in one single bite.
She could only scream in fear. Just at a few inches, she only saw a quick movement that took out the beast's head. The rest of the body simply fell apart. She turned to see her savior. It was none other than her human friend.
Almost instantly, John backed up and stood in front of Luna.
The other two wolves started to growl at him. Both of them jumped at the same time.
John also jumped forward them and made a quick movement. He took the left wolf's claw and tore it apart, while he punched in the face the right wolf. Both wolves fell to the ground. One, without the help of his fourth paw, didn't was able to even stand. The other wolf tried in vain to fix his face. When it turned up, he saw the human falling toward him. In a quick motion, his head was smashed out.
The last wolf simply tried in vain to run. However, a strong hand took his head. The wolf turned his eyes to see it. The angry human simply stood in there, holding tightly its head. However, just when it thought that he was going to tear apart his head, the human let it go.
"Go away."
The wolf simply ran away clumsily, leaving the pony and the angered human behind.
Luna finally recovered and stood up. She turned to the human, seeing him totally coated in blood. On his back, many bite marks. As she trotted to his front, she only got more worried. Multiple bite marks on his chest and a deep wound on his left shoulder.
"Oh, no. You are hurt." Luna stated, her fear only increasing more.
"You don't say." John simply deadpanned.
John turned around and sat below a three. A sun ray passed through the tree and light up the place where both of them were. Luna got closer to inspect his wounds. John took off his jacket and his shirt, just to reveal his wounded chest.
Luna touched it with her horn, causing John to flinch at the contact.
"Ouch!"
"Hold still! I can't help you if you don't allow me to."
Luna started to cast a spell to help him to heal. However, one of John's hand stopped her. Luna turned to him just to see something amazing.
She remembered last night when she gave him her capability to heal, as well as her gift of immortality. She still had it, but it was like to share it with him.
John's chest was starting to magically heal itself. John's face showed nothing but confusion. Luna sighed, happy to see her spell working well.
After a few minutes, John's wounds were totally cured. He got on his feet to see his chest, covered by tiny scars. He then turned toward Luna.
"Luna, seriously... What did you do to me?" John asked while showing up a serious face.
"I-I... I..." Luna tried to answer him. But her voice betrayed her. However, she tried her best to answer him. "I... I cast a spell on you that gave you part of my immortality."
"You WHAT?"
Luna didn't answered. John let out an exasperated sigh while turning around and sitting next to a tree. In the distance, he could see a clear space, showing up the green plains.
"Luna, I can see the plains over there. We must be near of the forest's end." He said at the time he stood and started to walk, being followed by a sad Luna.
However, he stopped all of sudden, making Luna to hit against his back.
"... Thanks." He said before continuing his walk.
Luna just stood in there, realizing something. He was terrible in his manners. Especially at thanking to other ponies. That was her savior.
That was her protector.