"So, what exactly is coming after you?"
Soft grass crunched under Niko's feet. The dew wet her shoes, and Niko shivered slightly.
"Ritzu, ari."
Sollari pressed themself against Niko's chest, their body soft and warm much like a cat.
Niko was slightly alarmed at how fast she had grown to care about Sollari, if only a little. Maybe Sollari's species of so-called messengers had evolved to look so cute and helpless so people would instinctively protect them.
Though that was assuming all species were drawn to cute things as much as humans were. The whole idea of alien species made Niko's head spin.
"And who is...Ritzu?"
Sollari whimpered, whatever their answer was muffled into Niko's chest.
"Sollari, please. I want to help you." Niko didn't actually know if she wanted to. It would depend. She didn't want to get dragged into anything supernatural again after what happened six months ago.
No! Be quiet.
Niko squinted, a dull pound wracking her head.
Why? She thought back. Even when suspicious, it was better to be safe than sorry.
Don't think. You're not quiet enough.
"God, that hurts," she hissed under her breath. Sollari looked at her with wide eyes.
Niko, please!
"Sollari, stop it. We're fine." Panic was seeping into Niko's thoughts, leaking from Sollari's words and dripping into her own psyche.
No, you don't understand! You're despairing!
"What?"
Sollari jumped out of Niko's arms, landing clumsily on the grass.
They'll-
Sollari froze, eyes locked on the sky above. Niko looked up to try and follow their gaze, but only saw the overcast sky above.
"Sollari, what's wrong?"
"T-they...they'll…" Sollari stuttered over their words, choking on their own fear.
Niko suddenly realized that Sollari wasn't looking at the sky. They were looking at - no, they were looking past Niko.
Niko turned way too late.
The first thing her brain told her was that it was a harpy. Honestly, that wasn't a bad guess. Wispy light blue hair cascaded down the figure, pushed back by some sort of plague doctor-esque mask. There were no holes for its eyes, and the little skin that wasn't hidden by an oversized purple scarf looked deathly white.
The other thing she noticed were the large, dark blue wings in place of arms. Like an owl, perching in the rafters.
The figure said nothing, striding towards Niko. She squeezed Sollari to her chest harder.
"St-stay away." Everything seemed so much colder now.
If the figure heard her, it didn't react. One wing extended outward, and Niko's eyes widened at the sight of two dark, spindly arms under it.
Four armed birdman. It'd be funny if Niko wasn't so terrified.
"Ritzu, ari."
Sollari peeked out of Niko's arms. The stuttering had vanished - they must have practiced what they wanted to say, like when they had met Niko.
A smile cracked under the hooked 'beak' of the mask.
"Messenger." The voice was monotone and even, but there was a hint of malice. Yet, the voice seemed to hide almost...happiness. Anticipation. The birdman - no, Ritzu - was waiting for its chance to hurt Sollari, and it wanted it.
And yet Sollari's voice hadn't been scared at all. They were terrified - Niko could feel it in her head. But Sollari had expected it, and they were ready for it.
Niko felt very out of place.
"Stay away from me, ari."
Ritzu laughed.
"And why would I do that, messenger? You hold a dangerous power. And it seems you found your precious little hope…"
They eyed Niko from top to bottom. Niko shivered, pulling Sollari close to her.
"Seems you're too much of a coward to make her transform into Pretty Cure. Though I'm not one to complain about easy prey."
Niko took one step back, and then another. Her body seemed to be responding to her mind sluggishly, like it was disconnected. She almost tripped over her own feet.
"Scared, human?" They laughed again, and Niko could hear no humor in it. "You should be. That messenger you're holding is very dangerous, and very inexperienced. One wrong move and...well…"
Sollari squirmed.
"Let's just say there's a reason that particular little messenger never had any surviving Pretty Cure."
I burn people with my own arrogance, ari.
Niko shook her head. This guy was obviously adept at head games, and she didn't want to be more messed up than she already was.
"Don't try to trick me."
Ritzu chuckled, shaking their head slightly.
"You catch on quick, little hope. Sadly, it won't save you."
This should be a dream. This had to be a dream, Sollari and Ritzu and everyone, and she could just wake up and repress what Chikara said to her about people in her head and gods and ghosts and stars…
"Save me from what?" she got out.
Ritzu smiled, but only with their mouth. Their intention was hidden along with their eyes.
"You can't transform into a Pretty Cure without any stardrops, little hope."
They rushed Niko.
Sollari was screaming in her head to run, creating a dull, aching pound of run, run, run.
Run, run, run.
"Ni! NIKO! Just RUN!"
"Can't," she said. "Can't run."
"I won't leave you behind."
In Niko's vision, pink lights danced around Ritzu, around Sollari in her arms, around the world. Somehow, she knew that they weren't real. The lights were in her eyes, inside of her. And she had to try.
Sollari squeezed their eyes shut, golden light pouring out of them like tears, the stripe on their head glowing bright and the red tail separating into five distinct stands. If Niko didn't do something right now, then Sollari would do something rash.
For a second, Niko only despaired.
But the second passed, and Ritzu was reaching out for Niko's face. The fear had melted away into pure determination. Determination to do what, Niko didn't know.
But she did know what to say.
"Glimmering blue light of love! Protect me from despair!"
Sollari twitched as Niko recalled the memory, as if they could hear the words inside their own head.
"Blessed pink light of hope! Protect me from despair!"
For a heart-stopping minute, nothing happened.
Ritzu didn't freeze, and a spindly black hand grabbed Niko, and that horrifying smile cracked across their face-
A glimmer of light from Niko's chest.
"Messenger," hissed Ritzu. They yanked their hand away, wings outstretched. If the mask had eye sockets, Niko knew she would have seen fire in their eyes, burning with hatred.
And that was the last Niko saw as her world exploded into pink light.
"How did...did you do that, ari?"
Niko blinked.
The world around her was pink and blinding, Sollari perched on her shoulder with a grim expression.
"Was I….unconscious?" Sollari shook their head.
"Time works differently right now, ari. You're currently between two states of being, ari - mortal, and Pretty Cure, ari." Another perfectly-rehearsed answer. But Sollari's lip quivered.
"Where did you hear those...um, those words, ari?"
Niko thought for a second.
"From Chikara. Wait, did you say I'm not mortal or-"
"Chikara Oshiro, ari. I should have...should have known, ari."
Sollari hopped off of Niko's shoulder, floating gently in the ethereal light.
"Hold on a second-!"
Niko reached for the fairy, but with no ground to push off of, she ended up only tipping over and flailing a bit.
"I'm sorry to have to...to make you do this, ari. I don't think that...that we have any other choice, ari." Sollari's eyes were wide and glimmering.
Suddenly, their eyes were blindingly bright, gold light shining from the stripe atop their head. A ball of light appeared between their hands, and Sollari seemed to shape it into some sort of disk.
"Take it, ari."
Niko gingerly grabbed the disk. To her surprise, it wasn't hot at all. The light slowly dimmed as she held it in her hands.
There was a star shaped dial on the front, against a pink disk-like top. It was similar to a make-up compact, in fact.
The star itself was white, with a different colored stripe on each end - pink, orange, blue, purple, and yellow. A gold jewel was inset on the center. In fact, the rest of the compact was gold, including the polished latch and trim around the outside.
"What is this?" Sollari took a breath.
"That is a Cosmic Compact, ari. Technically, it is my own Solar Compact, created from the power of a messenger, ari. As I hold the power of golden light, it is reflected in my compact, ari. This compact draws upon your stardrops' power to transform you into the legendary Pretty Cure, in order to fight against the Outer Limits and protect the Vertex Core, ari."
The words blended together. Pretty Cure...Sollari had mentioned that before. So had Ritzu, actually. That didn't help to calm Niko's nerves.
"Was Chikara a Pretty Cure?"
Sollari seemed to have to think about that.
"I don't know, ari."
Of course.
"I do know that she has some connection with the previous Pretty Cure of this world, ari. Cure Star, ari."
Niko looked back at the compact.
"What will I be?" she asked.
"That is up to you, ari," Sollari answered.
For a second, no one moved.
"What do I do?"
Niko didn't take her eyes off the compact.
"You make your choice, ari. You either become a Pretty Cure, or you do not, ari. It is not my decision to make, ari."
"But you sought me out."
"You are our last hope, ari."
Niko shook her head.
"That's what that Ritzu guy said too. I don't want to be anyone's saviour. I just want to be strong enough to avenge Chikara."
Sollari looked crestfallen.
"That didn't mean I wouldn't do it, Sollari. I asked, what do I do? How do I activate it?"
"Oh, uh, right, ari!" Sollari leaped up, rehearsed answers all but forgotten. "Um, um, repeat after me, ari! Pretty Cure, ari!"
Niko pressed the compact to her chest, then opened the compact. Three buttons were inside - red, green, and blue. Another jewel was inset above them, pure white.
"Pretty Cure!" Niko caught her eye in the small mirror. Three tiny pink stars shone in her gaze. A star outline appeared on the mirror, glowing softly pink.
"Infinity Reflection, ari!"
"Infinity-" Niko pressed the buttons from left to right. With each button press, a corresponding color of light shone through the jewel, flashing three times before glowing a bright white.
"Reflection!" The star shape on the mirror blinked three times with a soft tone before the jewel turned a pink color. The mirror itself shone white, a bolt of light emerging from the mirror's lense.
The light shot towards her like a comet, her free hand grabbing the light and spinning with it, watching the trail spin around her body.
Without warning, the ribbon-like spiral Niko had made filled into a white amorphous shape as she kicked herself back into the air, fitting to her school uniform and creating a shimmering pink dress.
Niko snapped the compact closed, and pressed it to her chest with both hands. She bent backwards, feeling as if she was swimming in air. Almost reacting to her movements, the dress solidified into a dark pink leotard.
A robe-like cloak materialized above Niko, and she slipped her arms into each sleeve, pulling the cloak around her.
Light swirled around her waist, and a dark pink skirt appeared, white tulle filling in the space.
Niko took one step in the air, staying perfectly upright without any visible floor, a far cry from when she was floating with Sollari. She twirled with a small grin on her face, and the small sparks that appeared when she stepped in the air swirled around her ankles and calves, creating silver boots.
Niko grabbed first her right wrist, then her left, 'shaping" bracelets of white light that became silver accessories.
The compact flew open of its own volition, another bolt of white light bursting into the air. This one, however, exploded like a firework into a hail of sparkles.
Niko pulled out her ponytail and let her hair flow.
Defying most laws of physics and matter, Niko's hair lengthened in the blink of an eye, sparkles cascading down it and bleaching it pure white. Part of her hair gathered in a side ponytail, a pink orb keeping it in place.
Compact now closed, Niko pressed it to her chest, and blinked and smiled in surprise when it merged with her cloak so that only the star shape was visible. White light surged from the star shape, a silver cape flowing around her.
Niko closed her eyes for a few seconds before opening them. Nothing appeared different to her this time, but she knew something had changed.
It appeared tiny star-shaped earrings had appeared on her ears, and that was all.
The pink light around her began to dissolve into bright sparkles as her transformation finished.
"The promise of meaning in the stars!"
Niko didn't know why she'd started speaking, but the pure hatred in Ritzu's eyes fueled her words.
"Cure Celestial!"
She walked towards Ritzu, leftover light still glowing around her.
"With the power of courage and the light of hope, I will be your opponent today."
Her script stopped there, and Niko came out of autopilot barely a foot away from someone - something that wanted her dead.
Celestial was vaguely aware of Sollari's concerned gaze on her. Niko was not.
But they were the same person. And right now, Niko played the part of Celestial, guardian of Earth and the stars above.
Thanks, Sollari.
I'm here to guide you, after all.
Cure Celestial took a deep breath, still glaring at Ritzu, who seemed very much like a enraged bird at this moment.
"Cure Celestial," they said, as if they were trying the name out on their lips. "Not one I've heard of before."
Ignoring Celestial, Ritzu faced Sollari, who was still a few feet away.
"Did this one even make it out of training, messenger? I hope so. I don't want another one of your rejects."
Sollari shivered.
"Training?"
The question escaped before Celestial realized she had said it. Ritzu snapped back to look at her.
And then they started to laugh.
"You didn't train her at all, did you, messenger? This is how desperate you are? Your hope was just some earth girl with pink stardrops?"
The laughter stopped dead, and Ritzu sneered.
"Pathetic."
They lunged, and the fight was on.
One of the spindly dark arms from earlier now carried a rapier, thrusting towards her from out of Ritzu's wing. Celestial planted her feet and slid to the side of it.
Two more thrusts in quick succession, appearing to go for where the Solar Compact had merged with her chest. On the third, Celestial clasped her hands and grabbed the rapier.
She allowed herself a moment's satisfaction with the surprised look on Ritzu's face, then hardened and attempted to twist the sword out of their hand.
Ritzu quickly caught on, however, and slid the rapier out of her hands, leaving red cuts in the process. Celestial hissed in pain.
Well, if tactics weren't her strong point-!
Celestial rushed towards Ritzu, dodging the swings of the sword and drawing back a fist.
Was her fist glowing pink? She gave it a moment's thought before she slammed the fist into Ritzu's chest.
Ritzu was thrown back quite a ways. Celestial stared at her fist in surprise.
"You have the power of the stars, ari!" Celestial turned to see Sollari, eyes sparkling with pride. "This is far beyond what humans can do, ari!" The bunny alien jumped into her arms, nuzzling up against her chest.
Celestial wasn't relaxed just yet.
"What do I do now?" she asked. "Everything I've managed has been mostly surprise attacks. I don't think I can beat this guy one-on-one."
"Ritzu is...formidable, ari. We will have to force them to retreat, ari."
"How?"
Speak of the devil, and he will appear. A shadow passing over Celestial caused her to look up, and it appeared Ritzu's wings weren't just for show.
Celestial jumped backwards, conversation forgotten in the panic of getting-the-hell-out-of-there mode.
It took a few seconds before she realized she wasn't going down.
"Sollari?"
"Yes, ari?"
"Does that power of the stars apply to everything?"
"Yes, ari."
Celestial was suddenly very high up, and the ground was very far below her.
"I'm afraid of heights, Sollari."
"It'll be okay, ari. The stars will protect you, ari."
Celestial began to fall.
Squeezing Sollari to her chest, the wind whipping around her, only one thing came to her mind.
"I don't think I signed up for this!"
Feet first never seemed like a good landing idea, but the vague "power of the stars" seemed to be helping her with that.
Aside from sliding backwards across the dirt, Celestial appeared to be unharmed overall, despite falling from a ridiculous height.
Unfortunately, Ritzu also seemed to have recovered from the few attacks Celestial had managed.
"Sollari, if you have a plan, I'd love to hear of it!"
"We have to purify them, ari! Ritzu won't be able to stand that light for long, ari!"
"Alright!"
Celestial rushed forward once again, this time swerving to the side and punching Ritzu in the ribs. Well, where the ribs would be on a human.
Ritzu seemed unfazed, flapping his wings and knocking Celestial back.
"Repeat after me, ari!"
"Got it!"
She pushed herself up from the grass, ready to try again.
"Pretty Cure, ari!"
"Pretty Cure!"
Her Solar Compact began to glow softly with white light.
Ritzu jabbed their sword forward once more, Celestial jumped over it this time, doing all she could to keep herself at a reasonable altitude.
That, however, meant she missed whatever Sollari had said. Celestial attempted to copy the word as best she could.
"Silver!"
The Solar Compact shone bright.
A punch to Ritzu, and they were pushed back once more. Celestial drew an orb of light out of the Solar Compact. She clapped, and the light separated into a mass of sparkles.
Celestial smiled.
"Vortex!"
Celestial flung her hands forward, and the rain of sparkles followed. Swirling together, they created a bolt of light, not unlike what transformed Celestial in the first place.
The light enveloped Ritzu, creating orbiting rings around them.
Celestial turned away, and pumped her fist into the air.
"Liftoff!"
Behind her, the rings focused into a single point.
And then exploded.
Clenching her eyes shut against the harsh light, Celestial heard Sollari's voice in her head once more. This time, it was more halting than usual.
The Pretty Cure of courage and hope…
And then, it was as if Sollari was whispering. Celestial didn't miss a word.
My Pretty Cure. Cure Celestial.
"Liftoff!"
The girl on top of a building overlooking the park squinted.
Even from here, the light was still incredibly bright.
She squeezed her hands into fists.
There was undeniably a surge of happiness, of hope bubbling up within her, but she willed it to stay suppressed.
Any wrong moves, and her transformation would burst just like that singular bubble of hope. She had kept it for so long - she couldn't lose it now. Not without Lune.
Not after what they had done for her.
"With the power of courage and the light of hope, I will be your opponent today!"
Yet...she wasn't alone anymore.
Cure Star would allow herself to believe that. No matter how unlikely it was to last.
