The Blue Bomber was racing across the sky as fast as he could, sweating the entire time. "Whoa, kid! What's the rush? Where's the fire? Do you know how hard it is flying this fast for this long?"

"Sorry, Mega, but we don't have a choice." The Blue Bomber responded, gritting his teeth. There was a knot in the pit of his stomach. Something felt wrong. "I don't know what this bad feeling is, but I have to chase it. I can't risk anything happening…" That's when he came to a halt, eyes widening as he looked at the Echo City Defense Gate. "W-What the…!?"

"Holy hell…" Mega was just as shocked as the Blue Bomber. What was it that they saw? Something the primary team didn't…or rather, couldn't see when they arrived. There was a thick black mist surrounding the entirety of the Defense Gate…

.

.

Kamara Goldstone was the only obstacle between the strike force of Weisz, Homura, Asuka, Lowell, Sarisse, Stella, and Aiden. There was faint black mist oozing off of Kamara that seeped into the air. But there was only one of her against many of them. They could take her. "I'll lead the charge!" Homura said while rushing towards Kamara, intent on slashing at her. But the closer she got, the more Kamara seemed to vanish. The moment Homura brought her sword down, she hit nothing but air. "What…!?" She quickly turned around…but the others were gone too. It was just her alone in this empty room. "Where did you all go? Everyone?"

"I thought I taught you better." That voice chilled Homura to the bone. It was…Valkyrie. She appeared in front of Homura with a disappointed look. "That was a simple slash and you missed."

"T-Teacher…!?" Homura's eyes went wide. But she shook her head. "No, this must be some sort of illusion. You…you are not with us any longer. So I will not be fooled!" Homura then brought her sword down on Valkyrie, but to her shock…that sword was blocked by her teacher's own. "…!?"

"Still doubting your senses? I am…very real." Valkyrie said while kicking Homura away, causing her to stumble back a few steps.

"You always were a bit of an idiot, weren't you?" The next voice caused Homura to snap around again, only to see Kurenai Kogetsu, her birth mother.

"Mother-!?" Homura instinctively held her sword tighter. "I recalled I wanted to never see you again!" How could her mother be here…!? She hadn't seen her since the Sun Jewel, and she intended to keep it that way.

"Brushing people aside?" Next was…Creed. He appeared next to Kurenai with a frown.

"N-No…" Homura's grip on her sword then loosened. Why was Creed here!? He…he died. She saw it with her own eyes! She felt that guilt burning in her heart again from when she stood idly by as Jesse's bullet pierced Creed's heart. "W-What is this…how are all of you..?" Two dead people and her mother lingering around her. Where were the others!? "This…this mustn't be real…"

"I trained you better than that!" Valkyrie rushed Homura with a flurry of slashes. Homura was doing her best to defend, but her teacher was just as fierce as she remembered. Perhaps even more so. This was far different from the type she battled the Valkyrie copy. This was more real.

"Ngh…!" Homura was forced to take several steps back to keep her defenses. But suddenly, Kurenai reached out to palm her, which she was hit by and grunted.

"Ether Lock!" Creed extended his hand, trapping Homura within a cage that completely sealed the use of her Ether.

"What?!" Homura gasped.

Valkyrie then charged her sword with ether before lunging forward. "Dragon Flash!" She broke through Creed's cage, slashing Homura in the process for a direct and powerful hit.

"Kyaaah!" Homura cried out and was thrown backwards, tumbling against the ground before coming to a halt in a crouched position. She winced, feeling the injury and the blood leaking from the wound.

.

The room was empty for Stella as well. Not a soul was around despite her calls for them. "Sis? Aiden…? Are you here…? Where'd you go?"

"Why did I bring you here?" Sarisse said with a groan. "You've always been lingering in my shadow, Stella."

"W-What…?" Stella turned to her sister, eyes widening. "What's gotten into you? Why would you say something like that? We're a team…?"

"I carry most of that weight." Sarisse scoffed.

"It's always been like this." Richard appeared next to Stella, causing her to gasp. "Everyone else always have to do a bit of the heavy lifting around you to make up for your lack of effort."

First her sister and now her husband!? This didn't make any sense. They would never say things like this…yet Stella felt her heart hurt and her eyes water. "I-I know I'm not as good as you all…but I'm doing my best…!" She was so distraught by their comments she couldn't even fathom why Richard was in front of her in the first place…

"You could've saved Dad. But you didn't." Geno said.

The words coming from her own son hurt the most. Stella felt her knees grow weak and she collapsed to the ground. "I…I'm doing my best…I swear…! I can't help that it's not enough…! Don't you think I want it to be? I just want to protect what I have left! I don't want to lose anything anymore…! All this fighting is horrible. I never wanted this…"

.

Everywhere Sarisse looked, she could see the faces of people she knew. She grit her teeth, unsure what was happening. It felt like her head was swimming but she couldn't understand why. "What is this…? Why is everyone here…you should be…back at the base. Where is Kamara…?"

"Always so worried about things…" Aiden said with his arms crossed. "The fact you are our most capable leader is truly a detriment to the humans fighting for their lives."

"Come on, Sis. You're so naïve sometimes. I can't believe I'm the one who has to tell you this." Stella waved her hand. "How much longer are you going to pretend that you can do this?"

"I…" Sarisse grit her teeth. "That's…."

"You're no leader." Aiden shook his head. "Just a fraud. Your life doesn't hold nearly as much meaning as you think it does. We fought with you because we thought it would make a difference, but we're losing more and more by the day. Can you really afford to keep going on? Tell people this fight means something when there may not even be people left when it's over?"

"So just end it all." Stella said. "This resistance, this fight…everything. It's what you want, right? You told me yourself…"

Sarisse's hands slowly went to a pocket knife she had in her pocket. "Has everything…really been for nothing…?"

.

Weisz's Arsenal suit appeared on his body shortly before the black mist Kamara exuded covered the area. He could see and everything he saw shocked him: everyone was yelling and shouting into the void. Despite nothing being there, he could see Homura, Asuka, and Lowell sustaining injuries. "What the hell!? Guys, snap out of it! There's nothing there…!"

"They can't hear you." Kamara said. "How are you fine in this mist?"

"Arsenal has an air purifier in it." Weisz explained. "I saw what you did to Shiki and made precautions, but that doesn't explain what the hell's going on here."

"It's simple." Kamara said with her blade drawn. "They are in a waking nightmare. Everything they see and hear is real to them." The secret to her powers was no shocking revelation. It was simple.

"That…doesn't make any sense…!" Weisz said while rushing towards Kamara. He knew if he stopped her this would come to an end, so he threw a punch, but she blocked it with her sword. "Your mist is hurting them, isn't it?"

Kamara held her ground and slashed at Weisz, but he dodged. He then began to zip around and open fire, but she was able to block with her sword again. "Yes and no. My mist isn't doing any damage to them. But everything that they are experiencing now is real to them. Have you ever had a dream that felt so real before?"

"…" Weisz wasn't going to humor that question. Instead he lunged at Kamra with a Grandee Wing, but she was able to easily parry this with her sword and push him back, much to his chagrin. "Tch…"

"My Ether Gear fires up a particular set of synapse within one's brain." Kamara explained. "It fires up the senses and stimulates the brain. So what they see before them is real to them…and their brain registers everything from that point as real. So, if they sustain damage while in this nightmare, their body will sustain damage. I'm sure you know what happens when a body sustains too much damage. They will die."

"…!" Weisz's eyes widened under his helmet. That was Kamara's Ether Gear? Creating nightmares so real, so tailor made that it could kill someone? No wonder she was feared. She could, quite literally, kill everyone in this room without needing to lift a finger herself!

"Sometimes nightmares clash." Kamara gestured to Homura, where she was fighting Lowell and Asuka, while Aiden was shooting at her from afar. "Sometimes a single person's nightmare can completely break them." She then gestured to Stella and Sarisse, who were paralyzed with fear from their nightmare. "As for me? All I have to do is get my hands a little dirty for the best results. So, if I cut your helmet off, will you succumb?"

"You're free to try, but it won't be that easy!" Weisz shouted. He knew the situation. He also could tell that Kamara was only divulging this information because she intended for him to take it with him to an early grave.

"That's what they all say." Kamara said as her sword lit up in a violet hue. "But my mist has this room surrounded…and not just that, but this entire building. You were doomed from the start!" She swung her sword down, sending a shockwave towards Weisz that struck him and sent him skidding back. Kamara's single slash completely broke off the armor around his right arm.

"Damn!" Weisz grunted before switching to offensive tactics. He could repair the damage, but used his left arm to attack, firing off a gigantic ether beam at Kamara. She quickly jumped into the air to avoid it, and Weisz followed her. "Heat Upper!" Flames ignited around his fist and he swung at her chest, landing a direct hit.

"Guh…!" Kamara grunted, flipping around in the air before landing on the ground. She stuck the landing and looked up, only to see Weisz pursue her. He tried to slam his fist onto her skull for a quick KO, but she jumped to the side. This meant his fist collided against the ground. She was fast enough to slash at his helmet and shatter it in the process. "Got you."

"…!" Weisz was quick to repair that damage with his Ether Gear, but it was burning through his Ether and the suit's power supply. Kamara wasn't looking to actually fight him and he realized this now. "…Ngh…damn…" He could feel his head get a little fuzzy. He was a little exposed to Kamara's mist and he was feeling it.

"Don't you see? I intend for all of you to suffer despair. Humiliation. The same feelings my sister was put through mere hours ago." Kamara said. "I don't need to fight you. I don't have to fight you. You will destroy each other."

"HAH!" Homura suddenly lunged at Weisz, causing him to narrowly evade her attack. "Begone with you!

"Homura! Damn it, snap out of it!" Weisz said. His vision was getting blurry. "I need to snap out of it too! This stuff is strong! But…now that I know what's causing it…I can finally put my plan into action!"

"Your plan?" Kamara said with doubt.

"Feast your eyes!" Weisz began as multiple yellow lines began to spread out from the floor along the walls. The ventilation system turned on, sucking the black mist from the room.

"What!?" Kamara gasped.

"I knew something weird was going on the moment we stepped foot in this place!" Weisz said triumphantly. The moment I saw you, I had this ready. Even if you've got mist all over the place outside, it doesn't matter if I can just vent it out to another area where I know nobody is." Soon enough, the room was cleared of Kamara's mist, and anymore she attempted to put out was sucked in by one of the numerous vents that appeared out of thin air. "I modified this entire room just in case…looks like you and I weren't really looking to fight each other, huh?"

"You…!" Kamara grit her teeth before rushing towards Weisz in a fit of fury.

"I've got one more surprise for you, too!" Weisz said while pointing his index and pointer finger forward, moving his thumb as though it were a trigger. "Bang. MILLION BULLETS!" Multiple turrets appeared all over the place, much to Kamara's shock, opening fire upon her. She was overwhelmed by the sheer amount of Ether Bullets pelting her, but she was able to deflect a large majority of them to decease the damage done. "Not done yet! WING BLADE!" Weisz kept his offensive momentum going, flying forward and slamming into Kamara with a bladed wing he formed.

"AGH!" Kamara grunted and slid along the ground, coughing up some blood from that impact.

"Had enough yet?" Weisz said, ready to strike if Kamara tried to attack again. But his head…it still felt a bit off. "Huh?"

Kamara picked herself up. "Just because you got rid of the mist doesn't mean anything. Once you're exposed to it, it still affects your brain!" She then closed the gap between herself and Weisz, shattering his armor with two slashes and even cutting into his body. She kicked him away and even through his mask, it was clear he was having trouble now. "The mist is the easiest way to expose a person to it, but I can also imbue it within my blade. Just look around, your allies are still struggling." Albeit, a little less than before…but that wasn't a detail Kamara would divulge.

"Damn…" Weisz thought he had her, but this was more troublesome than he anticipated. Plus, he could feel his head acting up. He'd start hallucinating like the rest of them soon. "Gotta stay in the game…"

"This game is over." Kamara said while rushing towards Weisz, planning to cut him down first. But she was stopped by a few bullets coming her way, which she defended. "Huh!?"

It was Sarisse. There was a bloody wound on her side…because she stabbed herself. "This game is only just beginning."

"How!?" Kamara looked at Sarisse's wound and it clicked. "You…stabbed yourself?"

"Those words cut deep." Sarisse explained, grimacing from her open wound. "Not as deep as that knife. The people I love and care for would never say such cruel things to me…those things they said were only things I thought of myself. As their leader, I will not falter!"

"Glad to see you back." Aiden adjusted his tie. "That stuff is funneling out of my system now as well…"

"The others?" Weisz asked.

Homura, Asuka, and Lowell were slowing down. They were starting to come to their senses because Stella was hitting them on the head while they were distracted. "They're okay…!" Stella said, tiredly.

"W-What happened…?" Asuka glanced around. "I-I was fighting my mom, but then…"

"…I was fighting a ghost and didn't even realize it…" Lowell was struggling. The injuries he sustained were very real, despite the fact he was ultimately fighting nothing. The same could be said for Homura.

"I am….alright…" Homura panted. She looked worse for wear.

As infuriating as this way, Kamara kept calm. They were wounded and exhausted, and she had yet to lay a finger on them. "This is doable. You've escaped the worst of it, but I still have plenty up my sleeve."

"You've got nowhere to hide!" Weisz said.

"I don't need to hide." Kamara was seriously about to take everyone on, but then a number of androids started to flood into the room behind Homura and the others. "Huh-!?"

That's when Athena appeared on the screen behind her. "Hey sis! I figured you might use a little help. I know you get a little reckless when our name is on the line…but what kind of big sister would I be if I left you alone against those crafty people? There are strength in numbers, you know this!"

"Backup!?" Asuka gasped. "We had trouble just dealing with her."

"They're Skeleton androids. We can take them easily." Aiden said. "Sarisse, shut this place down!"

"On it! Asuka, Weisz, cover me!" Sarisse said while making a beeline for the control panel. All she needed to do was get there.

"Got it!" Asuka and Weisz nodded in agreement. They rushed the incoming androids trying to stop Sarisse, taking them down easily.

"It's too late." Kamara said calmly, walking towards Weisz, Asuka, and Sarisse. She was standing in front of the panel while the others were busy fighting the androids. "I've a mission to do, and I will see it done."

"I don't think so! Raijin Tempo!" Lightning exploded off of Asuka's body and she rushed towards Kamara with a kick, but she simply tilted her head to the side to avoid it. "No w-!?" Before Asuka could voice her shock, Kamara grabbed her leg and threw her into a wall. "Ugh…"

Black wisps started to form along Kamara's body, the ether lines growing more intense. "I told you. I would let you all experience some type of despair." Kamara's body was soon covered in darkness and her Ether levels spiked. In mere seconds, she was a walking shadow, her eyes pure white while the rest of her was shrouded in pitch black darkness. "Behold. My Overdrive."

"She can OD!?" Weisz was shocked. "…Well, so can we!" Weisz was about to enter his Overdrive, but something happened. Kamara and the others vanished. "What!? No…shit…!" The earlier hits he sustained were finally catching up to him. He was starting to have a nightmare, losing sense of his surroundings despite chaos happening all around him…or was that just a dream!? He couldn't tell anymore…

Weisz was standing still, frantically looking around as he tried to regain his composure. Sarisse was trying to shake him. "Weisz! Weisz! Damn…!" She then turned to the approaching Kamara. The others realized the more pressing threat of this Goldstone as well and turned their attention to her. "If you think I'm scared of yo…" Sarisse was about to shoot, but she couldn't finish her sentence. Everyone stared in horror as Kamara's sword pierced straight through her chest, specifically, her heart. She coughed up blood because of this. "…."

"I told you. Today would be the day I killed you." Kamara's voice was a little distorted from her Overdrive. There was just a pitch black entity standing in front of everyone. "That look in your eyes…shaking with fear…that's what I wanted to see. But that's not true despair. Far from it."

"SARISSE!" Stella cried out, rushing over to try and stop what she feared would happen, but Skeleton androids got in her way. They were flooding in by the second.

"Ah ah!" Athena waved from the screen. "This place is completely surrounded! There's no end to the reinforcements!"

"Kamara! Don't you dare!" Lowell shouted, trying to leap over the androids, but they caught him and tossed him to the ground. "Shit…!"

Sarisse could feel the life slipping from her quickly. All Kamara had to do was twist the sword and finish it, but she hadn't yet. Not that she could do anything about it. All of the strength in her body was gone the moment she was stabbed. "Y….you…"

"I'll leave you with one final secret before you die. There is a traitor in your group. That traitor has told us everything we need to know regarding your every move." Kamara said, leaning in to her ear. "And that traitor's name is…"

Sarisse's eyes widened when Kamara whispered it to her. But that was the only physical reaction she could have. Her body couldn't move, her voice couldn't carry…she couldn't even look back in horror. She just wore a horrified expression. "…"

"There's that despair." Kamara relished in this a little. "The despair of uncertainty. You don't know what's going to happen to the Resistance after this moment, do you? I'll tell you. It will cease to exist. There is no need to fear for your family and friends, because they will all meet the same fate as you today." She then twisted her sword and swiftly pulled it out, Sarisse coughed blood one last time before her body crumpled to the ground, lifeless. All everyone could do was watch in horror…

"No….NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Stella's heart broke and she started to sob on the spot. "SARISSE! SARISSE! PLEASE NO…..!"

"…." Aiden had no words. His jaw was just dropped in disbelief….

"No….." The color drained form Asuka's face. She couldn't move a muscle. She watched the whole thing…powerless.

Suddenly an explosion of red occurred on the area, strong enough to snap even Weisz out of his nightmare. He had no response to the dead body of Sarisse before him. But Homura exploded from her position in her Overdrive, aiming to cut Kamara down there and then. But Kamara's sword clashed with her own, tears stinging her eyes. "YOU MONSTER!"

Kamara's expression held. She knocked Homura away with ease, drinking in the heartbroken expressions of the people all around her. "…Today is a momentous occasion, friends. You all have witnessed the beginning of the end of the Resistance."