-Chasm of the Abyss-

Seiko came to slowly. For a while, she wasn't sure her eyes were open because everything was black. Once she could sit up, she found herself still in the Abyss, where Manus had fallen. Sif was nearby, also unconscious, and so was Dusk. Now that they chamber had begun to clear of the Abyss, she could also make out an unlit bonfire. She got up to light it and gather her thoughts.

-Darkroot Basin?-

"Wait, you're going alone? You say that like you can do anything to keep me from following you," said Tetsuro.

Jinta put his helmet back on and started to say something, but someone else interjected.

"He certainly could," said Zaubrei on a ledge above, "But he is too kind to think of fighting you as an option to protect something as trivial as his honor, I'm sure."

Zaubrei jumped down, between Jinta and Tetsuro, keeping Tetsuro from both Jinta and the ravine.

"I, on the other hand, have grown curious about you. Watching from a distance, I have seen you perform strange techniques that I myself should know."

"I wasn't called Weaponmaster for-"

"No, not your fighting. Making weapons appear and disappear at will. You seem to be reaching into a Bottomless Box no one can see, drawing what you wish. You will teach this to me, or you will not pass."

"I think you're still forgetting-"

Jinta stopped listening and jogged ahead to go down the ladder. If Zaubrei was going to keep Tetsuro out of the fight, that worked in his favor. He hurried to challenge Kalameet before the dragon could escape the ravine.

A/N: Aliens Conference from BRS The Game, composed by Manabu Namiki

Zaubrei drew his Moonlight Greatsword and a short chunk of wood that almost looked like a C-shaped knob. Tetsuro drew Murakumo and his Iron Round shield. Zaubrei swung from a stance that was as neutral as could be, feet shoulder width apart and firmly beneath him. When Tetsuro blocked, however, he felt a wave of magic wash over his body. Mundane as he was, it gave him both caution and excitement.

He pushed back and swung with Murakumo, but Zaubrei's arm seemed to give way easily. Zaubrei ducked the swing and thrust forward his lump of wood, held in his hand like the hilt of a sword, knots in the wood curving out of his hand above and below his grip. There was a blue flash and Tetsuro was thrown backward. He moved to get up, but was too slow. He was forced to block with Murakumo as Zaubrei pounced at slashed down with the Moonlight Greatsword. This time, he could see the magic, like a dome where the two edges of their blades were the outermost point.

Zaubrei fired Soul Arrows into Tetsuro's armor at close range, blue flashes each time marking the hits. Tetsuro's titanite infused armor didn't give way, but he had no defense for the flesh underneath. It felt like his insides were melting and he coughed blood onto his visor. He kicked Zaubrei off and got up. With a sweep of Murakumo, he changed his weapon to Lucerne, a halberd with a lucerne hammer head, with a piercing side and a blunt side.

He and Zaubrei watched each other, pacing to their right around a fixed point. Zaubrei raised his sword in this comfortable walking position and slashed at Tetsuro. Tetsuro instantly moved in to attack, as his opponent should be open after swinging that weight and missing what was obviously a target too far away…

But the Moonlight Greatsword released a wave of magic that scarred Tetsuro's steel armor and stopped him in his tracks. What was more, Zaubrei quickly shifted the sword to swing backhanded, like it weighed as much as a dagger. Tetsuro punched down with the lip of his shield to stop the blow, felt the magic rush up his arm and numb it, but spun with his momentum and stabbed the piercing head of Lucerne through the side of Zaubrei's iron mask.

In a spray of blood, Zaubrei went down, surely dead. Tetsuro was up only a few seconds longer before falling to his knees and coughing up more blood. He let go of Lucerne, took off his helmet, and drank Estus just as someone else arrived…

And paid him no mind at all, running straight for the cliff.

A/N: NieR: Automata - Dark Colossus - Kaiju (metal cover by FalKKonE) - Keigo Hoashi and Keiichi Okabe

Great Magic Barrier flared around Jinta as Kalameet's black fire washed over him. Jinta crossed his swords in front of him and ran forward. His barrier was a time sensitive spell, and it didn't completely block the heat or the physical presence of the black fire. He pushed through close enough to slash up at Kalameet's nose. His sharp blades split scale and flesh, but couldn't bite deep because of how far Jinta had to reach to strike.

Kalameet stemmed his fire breath and snapped at Jinta. Jinta rolled back, stepped forward, and slashed across Kalameet's face. The dragon whipped its head forward, smashing into Jinta and throwing him onto his back. Kalameet reared up on his hind legs and opened his mouth to cook Jinta alive. Great Magic Barrier again saved him, but he was lightly burned through it where his armor was thinner.

Jinta sheathed his swords and drew his talisman to use Emit Force, nearly bowling over Kalameet in his unbalanced position. The dragon steadied himself with his tail, then slammed his forelegs down to crush Jinta before he could get up. Jinta rolled aside and got away, drew a sword in his right hand, and used Sunlight Blade to coat it in golden light.

Kalameet swiped a claw at Jinta which Jinta sidestepped and slashed at, then he ran to approach Kalameet's side. Kalameet happened to still have control over the wing on that side and used it to cover himself before snapping the wing open to throw Jinta backward again. The wing, though vulnerable to being cut or pierced, had strong bones and even stronger muscles, breaking a few ribs low on Jinta's chest that weren't protected by his plate.

Jinta hit the ground, recited a Heal, winced as his bones snapped back into place and the internal bleeding reversed, and jumped to his feet. He immediately had to dodge away as Kalameet pounced to crush him under a foreleg. Kalameet turned and roared at him, at once a vicious yet metallic sound. Jinta turned his right ear away and covered where his left should be on reaction with his left hand. His helmet was in the way, though, regardless, so he had no defense against the sound.

The roar gave way to a gout of flame and another leap. Jinta was shocked by the attack, that Kalameet knew his barrier had worn off. If he dodged the fire, he would be crushed by the dragon, one claw or the other. Instead of either, Jinta charged forward, hiding his head as best he could under crossed arms. He was scorched, and it was harder to push through the black flames that carried the force of a hurricane wind, but he came out the other side right beneath Kalameet's tail.

Kalameet whipped his tail down, missed, then swept it aside to throw Jinta halfway across the ravine. Jinta landed far enough away that he took off his helmet to drink Estus, but he wasn't as safe as he thought. Kalameet jumped, lopsided, flapped his wing to extend his airtime and right himself, and raised a foreleg to slam down on Jinta. Jinta scrambled out of the way, helmet in one hand, sword in the other.

He turned, no time to put on his helmet, and dodged Kalameet snapping at him. He slashed at Kalameet's head, but the dragon pulled back too quickly, then lashed out again. Jinta was caught in his jaws, arms pinned to his sides, and he felt his entire body strain under the pressure of the bite. His armor barely held, keeping him from being crushed…

A/N: 進撃st hrn egt20130629巨人 from SNK Attack On Titan, composed by Hiroyuki Sawano

Until Kalameet suddenly relented and dropped him. The black dragon immediately sidestepped over to the cliff and slammed its side into the rocks. Seiko was dislodged from Kalameets back, but landed gracefully on her feet, sword in hand.

"Seiko?!"

"Helmet! Dragon! Now!"

Jinta put his helmet on and drew his other sword. Kalameet roared again, a sound that gave Jinta goosebumps and Seiko a headache. The grating, metal-on-metal sound was unlike anything either of them had heard before, or ever would again. They both found it hard to react to Kalameet's next rush because of the stunningly loud noise. Kalameet charged at them, smashed Seiko aside with a swing of his head, and spun as he stopped, swinging his tail at Jinta and missing. He swept his head from Seiko's position to Jinta's, breathing black fire at them both and lighting the grass of the ravine on fire.

Seiko launched a Fire Arrow with her free right hand, the recoil throwing her hand back as she was used to bracing with two hands. It was Chaos fire, and it flew true to hit Kalameet in his side. Kalameet spread his wing and the Pyromancy was blown out as it struck the membrane, appearing to do nothing to it at all. He roared again, stunning the two Undead, and jumped at Seiko. He slammed a foreleg down and Seiko dodged. He slammed down the other to try and catch her, but she dodged again. He reared up and slammed both down, with all his strength, and the stone beneath his strike was blown to chips and dust.

Seiko breathed fire for the second time in her life, a scream of black and azure Chaos fire, right into Kalameet's face. The dragon opened his mouth, jaws poking out above and below her own stream, and breathed back. Seiko covered herself with her gold-hemmed robes she kept about her neck, a present from her beloved teacher that still saved her life. As the flames passed, Kalameet seemed surprised to find Seiko still there, completely unaffected by his attack. She jumped and slashed with her Black Knight katana and cut off the end of his pointed nose.

Kalameet opened his mouth to roar again, but it turned to a shriek of pain as Jinta cut into the tendons on his back left leg. Kalameet kicked with that leg, but the kick did the rest of the job and his tendons ripped in two. Kalameet nearly fell over before adjusting to balance on three legs. He hopped back, then spun to swing his tail at Seiko, dodging another attack of hers and bashing her to the ground. Now he faced Jinta, who he knew was susceptible to fire, and let loose more black flames.

Seiko got up, drank a little Estus to cure the damage, and stabbed her sword into the ground. She raised both hands to use her Fire Art, took a steadying breath, and let it loose. Jinta, on the other side of Kalameet, had sprinted to the side to try and avoid being burned to death. He didn't have Great Magic Barrier, and after using Sunlight Blade, he had one major cast left to him before he was risking mental breakdown. He didn't expect it when the fury of a volcano erupted around Kalameet as Seiko cast her Art.

Kalameet was hidden behind the tornado of blue fire, this one more controlled and much shorter. Kalameet roared from inside, but Seiko managed to hold the Art. Kalameet roared again… And flew from the fire in a leap at Seiko. He jumped clear over her, wounded as he was, and turned to face her. In the shadow of the ravine, his eye glowed deep orange and a new sound rang out. Metal-on-metal like his roar, but higher pitched. Not a sound that reached the ears, even. It was as if Jinta felt this attack directly and his brain only told him there was a sound.

Seiko lifted off the ground, powerless to stop whatever was happening, and floated in midair in front of Kalameet. Jinta ran forward, but he had a lot of distance to cover to reach them. Before he could, even before he could reach the shadowed section of the ravine, it was too late. Seiko's body contorted, armor and all, unnaturally until joints dislocated, tendons snapped, then bones shattered and armor dented. Seiko hit the ground dead in a puddle of her own blood, never once even able to cry out in pain.

Before she could fade to ash, Kalameet stepped on her body as he walked toward Jinta, eye still glowing. Something about the scene struck deep with Jinta. In a passing thought, he recognized his reaction as irrational, but that alone didn't let him overcome his emotion. He was flooded with anger. A focused rage for Kalameet and how the dragon appeared to understand very well who was superior. Who was more important. Stronger.

Kalameet, even with one useless leg, managed to step forward with a menacing aura and looked down his nose at Jinta. Jinta tensed up, swords in hand, and roared out his anger at the ground before running forward. Kalameet snapped at him and he slid under the attack and back into a sprint and slashed at Kalameet's ribs. He slashed up with both swords, down with both, sheathed the sword in his left hand, dodged to stay under Kalameet as the dragon tried to turn, and drew his talisman.

Kalameet jumped back, then jumped in to crush Jinta. Jinta noticed as he dodged that black blood fell across his helmet and chest - from Kalameet's eye. He realized as he recited Sunlight Blade that Kalameet very much knew he was losing and had tried to intimidate Jinta after his powerful psychic attack. The dragon was weakened, and he would finish it. The thought was just that simple.

Jinta got under Kalameet again and stabbed up, between two ribs, and pierced Kalameet's side with the help of his miracle. Kalameet howled in pain and sagged as Jinta slashed the sword down, opening a huge gash and freeing a gallon of blood. As he ran under Kalameet to change sides, Jinta caught sight of exposed bones. Black bones like rough hewn obsidian. He turned and stabbed Kalameet in the opposite side, between different ribs, and repeated his attack.

Kalameet roared and tried to turn, but his damaged leg made it difficult to do so and still attack. Jinta, sword and talisman in hand, shouted in wordless anger as he stabbed his sword at a point above Kalameet. A bolt of lightning flew from the sword, stopped above Kalameet, and split into many arcing bolts to rain down on the dragon. Scales were blown off where the bolts struck and Kalameet was thrown to the ground. Jinta's sword no longer glowed with Sunlight Blade, and he felt unfocused, but it wasn't enough to keep him from moving in to finish the dragon.

Kalameet tried to stand, but fell limp to the ground and could only watch Jinta approach. Jinta heard that high pitched sound in his head again, but Kalameet seemed to weak to stop him. He put a boot on Kalameet's nose and stabbed the dragon in the center of its eye, and the fight was over.