The Eden's Zero and Fiertia were in the midst of a space battle. The two ships were connected by a tube, with Weisz and Blair fighting inside. Shiki, Kleene, Jinn, and Laguna rushed into the Fiertia to get back Homura and defeat Jigan and his crew. Right now, however, Hermit was attempting to unlock the lock on the tube so Weisz could eventually return into the ship. "It's locked with a numeric combination…" Hermit narrowed her eyes.
"How many numbers?" Rebecca asked.
"Only four. I'll have to try every combination to get it to unlock, but that won't be a problem." Hermit was confident in her skills. "You better not die in there, Weisz!"
"I hope you can find it fast…" Rebecca didn't like where Weisz was. If anything broke that tube, both Weisz and Blair could be flung out into space and die.
"Who do you think you're talking to? I can do this." Hermit gave Rebecca a reassuring smile.
Ivry was keeping an eye on the fight between Weisz and Blair. "That maid…I don't know what her deal is, but something about her arm isn't right."
"You think she actually cleans?" Couchpo asked. There wasn't really much she could do in this large battle, since she was far from a combatant. But she would still do whatever she could when the time called for it, even that included being a voice of reason. …Not that she was doing that right now, anyway.
"The bandaged one?" Happy turned to Ivry, and she nodded slowly.
"I'd love to get a closer look at it…and maybe even bring her into my training room. She's not actually that bad…" Ivry somehow managed a perverse smile during all of this, which made Rebecca groan.
Sister never changed, no matter what. Rebecca should've known a comment like this was coming. If it wasn't anyone else, somehow, it always defaulted to her in the end. "There's a time and place…" Rebecca's expression fell and she slumped over.
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Meanwhile, in the Fiertia, the squad of four made their way through the enemy ship. It wasn't as large as the Eden's Zero, but it was still a big ship all the same. "Do we know where we're going?" Jinn asked Shiki.
"I think we'll figure out the right way based on when the welcoming committee decides to show up." Shiki replied while keeping his eyes ahead. Jigan wanted a fight, so there was no doubt in Shiki's mind they'd be met with violence soon enough. As they ran, he felt his foot sink. His weight activated some sort of panel. "Huh?"
"Trap activated!" An automated voice caught everyone's attention and they slid to a halt. "Defensive measures activate!"
"Did it say trap?" Kleene blinked. Her question was soon answered as multiple panels from the walls and ceiling moved to the side, revealing numerous turrets pointed at all of them. Bullets began to release from the turrets, but Kleene was quick on the draw, activating her Ether Gear. A current of wind surrounded the four of them, drawing in the bullets before they could hurt anyone. "Don't worry; my wind will absorb it all!"
"Nice moves, Kleene!" Jinn gave his sister a smile, but they weren't out of the woods just yet. Eventually the turret fire died down and Kleene released the wind barrier.
"Looks like they were more than ready for us…" Laguna glanced around. They were about to approach a hallway that led to the bridge, but they were stopped by Hanabi Watson. "There's one right there."
"Are you going to get in our way?" Shiki asked Hanabi.
Hanabi tapped her chin while staring at Shiki. A slow smile crept up on the blonde woman's face. "Oh! So you're the infamous Demon King! It's so nice to finally meet you. Your power is quite terrifying, you know? But I think that'll be all the more reason to claim the bounty for you. Blair is busy with Weisz, right? So I'll entertain you all in the mean time!"
"There's four of us and one of you." Jinn was ready to fight all the same.
"Are you sure about that?" Hanabi tilted her head very slightly. They couldn't see it under her dress, but blue ether lines appeared, starting from her chest and went along her torso. In the next second, three more Hanabi appeared.
"What the…!?" Shiki took a step back. "She multiplied…!?"
"That's new…" Laguna wasn't expecting this.
"Now we're even, right?" Hanabi and her duplicates all spoke in unison, causing her voice to echo. All four of them then pulled out a pistol and began to fire on them. Everyone split off in separate directions to avoid being shot.
"We don't have time for this!" Shiki focused on the main Hanabi and pointed his hand forward. His Ether Gear activated and a force of gravity pinned Hanabi to the ground. "Sorry, but I'm moving you out of our way!"
"Ngh…wow…are you?" Hanabi smiled. A duplicate emerged in the air in front of Shiki, completely unfazed by the gravity, and kicked him in the cheek.
"Gah!" Shiki managed to flip and regain himself, but there was a bruise on his cheek from Hanabi's kick. "She can spawn a duplicate wherever she wants…!?"
"That's problematic. We'll be surrounded if she keeps making more." Jinn glanced around. There were currently five Hanabi in play, and all of them were ready to fire. "We'll waste too much time if we try to take her on separately."
"My Ether gear is called Duplication." Hanabi explained, even if her powers were already simple enough. "I can create a duplicate of anything…as many as I want to, actually. They may be slightly weaker than the real thing, but as you can see, I'm plenty strong. There's strength in numbers, isn't that right?"
"So this is her plan to take us all on…" Kleene looked around. She met Jinn's gaze and they nodded to each other. Without warning, Kleene twisted her arms, creating a powerful helix of wind that surrounded her. This helix of wind expanded to capture Hanabi's duplicates within it. "I'll take care of her! Homuran is waiting for you!"
"Be careful!" Jinn had to get that out there.
"Thanks, Kleene!" Shiki was grateful for this opening. They were able to slip ahead while Kleene kept Hanabi busy. Shiki, Jinn, and Laguna proceeded forward. When Kleene was certain they were gone, she forcefully dispersed the helix of wind, knocking Hanabi and her duplicates into the walls. The duplicates disappeared.
With a small groan, Hanabi picked herself up and rubbed her back. "After I just said there's strength in numbers, you decided to face me alone? What sense does that make?"
"You were just trying to keep as many of us occupied." Kleene said while narrowing her eyes. "We don't have the time to play tag with you!"
"I see…so you're smart." Hanabi shrugged. "You realized that no matter the odds, you'd always be outnumbered." The woman held her pistol forward, head cocked to the side slightly while there was a malicious tint in her blue eyes. "Do you really think you'll be able to defeat me all on your own, however?"
"I am the Winds of Edens." Kleene said as the wind picked up around her body, staring down her new opponent. "I am going to keep the Eden's Zero on the right path. Since you are obstructing that path, it is my job to blow you away!"
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Jigan was watching from the Captain's quarters. Everything was going according to plan. "Your friends are a little more resilient than I expected, but I suppose that comes with the territory." He was speaking to Homura. She wasn't tied down anymore; it was useless since he knew she could break through the binds with her Ether Gear. But considering her physical condition, they both knew she couldn't put up a fight even though she wanted to. That would just jeopardize Shiki and the others in their efforts to save her.
"I have no doubts Shiki will wipe that smile from your lips." Homura replied. She had just woken up after falling unconscious. She was sitting down, scowling both at Jigan and from her physical injuries. She hadn't been treated in days and felt too weak to do anything. Sheer tenacity kept her conscious, because she had to see this battle through to the end. "Just remember the end result…you challenged the Eden's Zero to a battle."
"I'll remember that when I have that boy crushed under my foot." Jigan said with a menacing grin, crackles of lightning sparking around his body. "You wanna know why I put Blair out in the front lines? You felt her power for yourself, didn't you? While this is our chance to defeat the Eden's Zero, this is also one big feast for her…we have to keep someone that dangerous fed, you know? Otherwise she becomes a real problem…"
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Weisz and Pino planned to cut Blair short with an EMP and a combination to take her out before any fighting began. But to their surprise, the EMP didn't faze Blair in the slightest. While it did temporarily stop the ether supply in her swords, they were still sharp blades. "She doesn't have an Ether Gear…?" Pino asked.
"Pino, stand back!" Weisz warned while Blair started to sprint closer. He aimed a few bullets at her with his assault rifle, but Blair was quick enough to either evade them or just slice through them with her swords. "What is with this chick!?"
Blair ducked low to approach Weisz, lifting her left leg while another blade jutted out from her shoe. "Tearing Thorn!" She aimed for Weisz's face with this extremely swift kick.
"…!" Weisz was fast enough to duck under this kick, but barely. Blair was fast. Weisz then countered as a gigantic metallic arm appeared along his left limb, and he slammed that into Blair's chest. "I can't say I like hurting women, but when my crew is involved, anyone's fair game!" With the physical augment on his side, he was able to push Blair across their confined battle area.
Blair flipped and landed in a crouched position, yellow eyes glaring at Weisz. Jigan told her that was smart and a quick thinker with his Machina Make, but this was a bit different than she expected. "I should've figured his information was extremely outdated."
"Your first mistake was following Jigan's orders." Wiesz said as he was covered in his newly repaired Arsenal Armor. "And your second mistake was hurting my crewmate. Now you'll face the justice of the almighty Arsenal!"
"Uh…" Blair had a sweat drop on her forehead as Weisz suddenly started speaking. "Do you think you're some superhero on Saturday morning cartoons?"
"I am Arsenal! And I will take down all evildoers who try to challenge the Eden's Zero!" Weisz then blasted forward while creating a wing-like blade form his forearm. "Grandee Wing!" He slashed at Blair, but she countered with her own gauntlet blade. The two clashed for a split second, before breaking off an engaging in a fierce flurry of close combat attacks. Weisz slashed at Blair, but she ducked and cut at his armor. It was a hit, but Weisz was able to fire back with a slash of his own against Blair's back. Gritting her teeth, she ducked low and swiped his legs out from underneath him. "Gah-!"
Right at that moment, the EMP wore off on Blair's blades and she felt them surge again. So she made the most of this, flames igniting around the sword on her arm. "Scarlet Edge!" Blair swung her sword horizontally, a ring of flame following her slash to cut across Weisz's chest. She damaged the armor, and Weisz in the process, but he was able to withstand it.
Weisz landed on his back and Blair jumped into the air to pounce on him. Weisz grinned under his helmet, pointing his forearm forward as the blade turned into a small cannon. "Grady-Ray!" From his forearm, a potent laser shot forward. Due to the confined space, and the fact she was already in the air, Blair did not have a lot of room to dodge. In fact, she couldn't.
"…!" Blair had no defense for the laser that slammed into her chest, knocking her out of the sky. It knocked the wind out of her and she landed, coughing a few times in the process.
Weisz may have hated fighting such an attactrive woman, but he was a man on a mission right now. So he quickly stood up and took this opening, pressing his hand to Blair's chest while she tried to catch her breath. "Mortal Crash!" An ether marking appeared on Blair's body and she was consumed by a fiery blast.
"..!" Blair bit down on her tongue to keep from crying out in pain. That direct hit did hurt and her clothes were scorched from the attack. Her back hit the locked door of the Eden's Zero and she slumped over, growling before standing up straight. "I'm done playing games."
"This match is over!" Weisz's palms merged into a large cannon. "Drum Buster!" From that cannon, a powerful, explosive blast shot forward. His aim was to finish this battle as quickly as he could, and this was to be his finishing move. The explosion did hit, but something happened…something Weisz did not expect. The explosion began to funnel into something… "Huh…?"
"I'm detecting a huge spike in Ether…!" Pino reported. But it was odd, because Blair did not give off any ether readings… "But this reading…what is this..?!"
When the explosion vanished, the cause was revealed. Blair's bandaged arm finally came into play, although the bindings were no longer covering it. Blair's left arm was a grotesque, green and black colored claw that could only be described as demonic. With this arm, she was able to eat the explosion and refuel any lost stamina she had. She looked irritated the whole time until this point, where her expression was noticeably less irate. "It's been a while since I've gotten to taste some Ether. I thought I was going to die from going hungry…"
"She…ate the explosion…with her hand?!" None of this made sense to Weisz. Until this very moment, it just felt like he was fighting an extremely skilled combatant with no powers of their own…but now…?!
"W-What is that girl…!?" Hermit was watching the fight while still trying to figure out the numeric combination to unlock the doors. But the sight of Blair's arm was unlike anything she had ever seen before.
"Shocked, aren't ya, Weisz!?" Jigan's voice was heard through the communication from the Fiertia. "Behold, one of the most dangerous people in all of the cosmos! Blair Elfin, the Therion!"
Blair stood with all eyes on her. Her head tilted to the side ever so slightly, her yellow eyes burning with predatory malice. "I'm still hungry…" And it was dinner time, with the crew of the Eden's Zero served to her on a silver platter.