Another weird morning.

Once again, Alisha woke in unfamiliar circumstances. Her bedroll was spread on sand the size of raw gemstones and about as friendly to walk on; a single ray of sunlight pierced through the veil of Malevolence clouding the entire island. As if in defiance of reality, this one ray had decided to fall right into her eyes as they opened. She squinted and turned her head away. In turning however, Alisha found herself face to face with Margaret. The other girl slumbered peacefully, Symonne no longer draped over her but rather nestled against her side.

Alisha's tail swished a little under the blanket, but she managed to hold it still before it pulled the whole thing away. It was not like a dog's tail that just began to wag based on her emotional state, but sometimes it just did something. She would have to get used to that, like many other things.

This was her second day as a hellion, more or less; technically the third, considering the time difference between Lastonbell and Hexen Isle. Either way, it would be an eventful day; they only arrived, but might leave in a handful of hours if they were found wanting. She did not want that; all of this, becoming a hellion, a therion even, had been for the purpose of gaining power. She wanted it, wanted the strength to bring change. No matter how strong the hellions here were, she would not leave today. Even if that meant putting her life on the line, Alisha vowed to herself that she would stand victorious; no, they would. For she was not alone. This young woman and the seraph she bonded with, they would take part in this glorious day.

Alisha merely had to convince herself of that glory yet; so far, it was just a little chilly. She never slept close to the sea before, but even that she could not enjoy; all the water was black and none of the ocean surrounding them could be seen through the Malevolence. Then again, she was a therion. It might be unfair to the other two, but Alisha could wash off the sweat, blood, and dirt from yesterday's failures. They managed to get most of it off without touching the water, but, well. It was tempting. Seeing that neither of her companions seemed to be waking up yet, Alisha quietly rose and put the blanket aside. She then stripped down and left what was more rags than clothes behind; it was a shame about the garments, they barely protected her modesty after but a single day.

A refreshing dip in the black water later, Alisha strolled out and left behind a patch of clear blue; she took the Malevolence surrounding her as a snack. Not that it lasted, seeing how more darkness immediately began to seep into that spot, turning it just as black as it used to be. She paid it no mind and dried off with a few rags, the rustling of which woke Margaret. The younger blonde blinked up at the sky and closed her eyes again. Then she jerked and sat up, the motion in turn rattling Symonne awake.

"Good morning, Margaret, Symonne."

"Hey."

"Hrm."

Symonne immediately turned immaterial and flowed back into Margaret after grumbling at them. The girl chuckled weakly and winked at Alisha. "Someone is not an early bird."

She could not help but join into the laughter, mouth hidden behind her hand. "But neither are you."

"And neither are you."

Alisha inclined her head and took to putting their bedding to air out while Margaret warmed up the food Velvet left with them. Only the two of them ate that morning, Symonne using the time to snooze a little longer, safely hidden within Margaret. Their conversation over breakfast was basically nonexistent, neither woman in the mood for chit chat. At least, for most of it. Margaret ended this toward the end of their meal: "May I do your hair again?"

It startled Alisha a little, but she liked the idea well enough. "Of course, but I would like to do yours in exchange."

"Sure."

The work was quiet again, but it helped Alisha find some calm. Margaret seemed to be much the same. When both of them were done, Symonne flowed out of Margaret. She formed wearing a mixture of frown and pout, eyes directed on the black sea. Her only comment to that was a muttered "can't even swim here," which made Margaret take a thoughtful look at the water. Then she glanced at her companions.

"Do you think we could take some time to swim here, once the island is cleared? I would love to try."

"We do not have unlimited time, I am afraid. But I am rather curious about the experience myself." Alisha did not mention that she already took a dip earlier, merely looked at the beach in contemplation. "I never had time for such things before." Always practicing, patrolling, attending court, and so on. It was a novel experience.

Margaret, unaware of those thoughts, smiled brightly at her companions. "Alright then. We are going to go above and beyond today to make progress, will destroy all the hellions on this island and cleanse it thoroughly, and finally take a break to swim in the ocean. How does that sound?"

She stood and held out a hand to Alisha, who took it with a somewhat feral grin. "That sounds like a marvelous idea," the older blonde agreed.

Symonne slapped her hand on top of theirs without hesitation, grinning much like the resident therion. "I'm in! Let's get to it, what do we kill first?"

"The tree." It had only taken a moment for Margaret to respond; Alisha nodded at her, agreeing with the choice. The tree, the tree was their first opponent on this island. Fitting, then, that it would also be the first to fall against them.

The three returned to the previous day's formation and headed out, anxiety in their hearts and determination in their souls. No one spoke. It was far too soon that they reached the passage through solid rock, seeing how it lay just a few hundred metres from their camp. The tree remained in its spot, perfectly happy until it saw them; Alisha noted how the lowest of its eyes was open. She pierced it the previous day, but the creature apparently regenerated.

Curiously, the monster growled at them and turned away; Alisha studied it for a moment, then threw her companions a look. "Is it, um, emoting to leave it alone?"

"It seems so. Be that as it may, please wait until Symonne and I-" "Wait."

Margaret stopped when Alisha interrupted her; the therion had one hand raised, though she too ignored the annoyed hellion. "I need to prepare myself first, if you would give me a moment."

The tree was still watching them with its leftmost eyes, but seemed uninterested in another battle. Alisha felt that its gaze was on her more than the others, especially when they gave her room. She glanced to her left and right, making sure the walls were far enough away. A dozen metres in either direction, as well as up. That was acceptable, though she had to be careful if their opponent got around her.

She took a deep breath and focussed, grasped for the darkness within once more.

Behind her, Margaret watched a familiar yet new transformation. She remembered them from before, but even Artorius had never seen one from up close like this. Darkness flowed from Alisha, a hint of blonde in the black all that they saw of her. The tree had turned back in alarm and watched with them, beheld the therion's body contort and grow. And grow. And grow. Alisha fell onto all fours and Margaret saw the vague outline of a muzzle grow from her 'front'. Sand-coloured fur grew out of the dark shape, covering it; the darkness released itself in a cloud which pushed Margaret herself back.

It had happened within a single second, but that was enough time for everyone to ready themselves; the tree leered at the fox facing it, twice the width and thrice the length of a horse. If Alisha raised her head the slightest bit, Margaret would be able to stand beneath it. A menacing growl thundered out of the therion's throat, answered by their mark's own. Then however, five long tails opened and turned into monstrosities of spittle and teeth; the hindmaws began to suck Malevolence out of the air in thick streamers while the fox howled.

Margaret took a moment to behold the intimidating yet majestic creature in front of her, then someone tapped her shoulder. "More of a wolf," Symonne threw in casually while she stepped next to Margaret, who heard her voice shaking. Regardless, they nodded at each other and stepped forward, Symonne already losing coherence. Margaret kept her ears open in case Alisha lunged at them from behind, but she doubted it; the tree's attention was focussed on the fox behind them, which suited her just fine. The drool running down its vertical maws she could have lived without, though.

Margaret put her hand on the dagger and pulled at their bond to initiate the arte; Symonne followed her call and spread through the human girl's body. They needed no more words, bar two.

"Kyurib Ishuk!"

With Symonne's true name as their catalyst, they became one once more. The light drew their mark's attention from Alisha and even the fox watched in awe. Eight floating daggers arrayed themselves in two wings of four as what was more than just Margaret plus Symonne revealed herself. Without hesitation, she marched forward and drew Margaret's sword with a swishing noise as it cut the air.

The tree braced itself for a charge, which was obvious to expect. So she charged. Her daggers arrayed themselves in the split-second between lunge and impact, forming a circle and shooting off like arrows. The tree bent aside as she charged for its lowest eye like Alisha had before, but the motion was expected and accounted for. Reinforced steel slid into her target perfectly, eliciting a grunt. Then the daggers struck all its other eyes and gouged them out, making the monster howl; she took one step back before it swung around, slamming her into a wall. Stone shattered violently and she felt something break in her right arm.

Undeterred, she switched the sword to her left and grabbed the broken one's sleeve with her teeth. Arte circles formed in front of her, pointed at the thrashing tree; it was hammering its top at the ground all around to sweep the intruder away, no longer able to see her. Alisha watched the daggers continue to stab at the hellion, though they gave it little more than scratches. Looking up, she decided to change the target; mental commands went to the weapons, which quickly adjusted their course and rose to assault the thinner branches. They were arms, one and all, trying to whip at whoever held the daggers; sap rained down from dozens of small cuts, then, silently, a pillar of ice slammed into the creature's face.

She was a radiant figure amidst the darkness of Hexen Isle, standing before the wall she had just helped break, now quietly stepping away from her opponent. When the tree's maws began to glow, she immediately threw herself sideways; a beam of searing heat ran through the wall and cut it apart, its excess heat washing over both her and Alisha, who shied away.

Ignoring its outburst, the daggers continued to harass their blinded prey, two of them now diving to cut at its root-legs instead. More sap began to coat the greyish black ground, turning it into an odd sort of brown with pink dots. Admittedly, she had expected to fight the monster more closely, but she could live with this. Arte circles formed all around the tree and she added an illusion of herself standing on its opposite side.

The beauty of illusions, she knew, was that if they felt real enough, they could injure. It was not her, yet the tree's body felt the nonexistent sword carve into its bark and was hurt by it. Tiny blades of water slashed forward to engulf the creature from every side, tearing off a few chunks of its thick hide. The eight real daggers continued to dance amidst branches and roots. Throughout it all, the hellion kept hammering its body into the ground where the illusion stood, furiously trying to kill something that kept attacking even though it felt the impact and knew it should be crushed. She watched on, careful nonetheless. Silent as well, to not tip the creature off.

Daggers danced, water and ice flowed around, and the tree stopped howling. The hellion seemed to crouch and... struck its roots into the ground, becoming completely stationary. Then it continued to slap at the annoying daggers, though several of its branches had been cut off by now. She tried to ignore the painful pulses running through her broken arm, shifted her weight ever so slightly. Pushed her foot sideways to compensate. And the tree turned around, facing her once more. Her eyes widened and she took a full step, but the maws already lit up.

It lined up on her perfectly and let loose another beam; the fire ran into a shield of ice and melted it in an instant, the very instant it took for her to drop. Heat seared over her back and peeled off skin under her torn shirt, then she was up and changing position. The tree followed her motions perfectly, this time sending a stream of flame at her feet that sent her flying when it blew up the ground. She tried not to bite her tongue and alighted in the air, a rail of water forming for her to land on. She slid along and waited for the next attack, but none came. The tree was turning this way and that, toward where various rocks landed on the ground.

A larger one slammed into the ground and it turned that way, sending out another beam; that was when she understood: the creature's roots were feeling for vibrations in the ground. Clever. She just hoped it would not have a way to find her in the sky, too. Slowly, she began to slide along and tried not to make any sounds once the latest explosion's echo faded. Her daggers rose from the tree's top where they had landed earlier; now that she had the presence of mind to focus on them, they got back to their gruesome if effective work.

Then she slid by and took off another two branches with a single swipe of her blade. A large block of ice rammed itself in the creature's maw as it opened wider, the beast turning its attention upward. Its spine bent and snapped back, trying to smash her out of the sky; the tree missed. It need not have hit either way; not just her arm was throbbing now, but rather her entire being. The Armatus would not hold any longer.

But she forced the arte under control, pushed herself just a little further. Two souls sang as one and within their song, they held together but a moment longer. She turned on her rail of water as it extended itself before her feet, by her command. She dove lower and aligned her blade, all eight daggers following. All the mana she had left flowed into the weapons and formed a sheen of water around each. The tree did not notice her approach; it tried to bend when the sword cut into its side, but the rush of fluids pushed it back, uprooted it in part. Then the daggers rammed into the opening, releasing high-pressured jets of water; they tore the wound open further and further, then fell. The rail faded and she fell with her weapons.

Then it was Margaret falling, with Symonne not even materialising; her partner remained within, the dagger safely returned to its sheath.

She tried to bend her body and felt burns ache on her back, but it bent far enough. Margaret lost her sword as she caught the fall on her good arm and turned it into a roll that ended on the wall. Her bloody back made her shriek in pain when it hit the stone, but the sound was strangled by the explosion of sensations in her broken arm. She came to rest where she lay and watched the tree; cut all over, bleeding droplets of sap from uncountable wounds, half of its 'face' ripped off by that last charge. But it still stood and was slowly digging back in. It already turned toward Margaret, though much slower than before.

It never got the chance to finish them off.

Alisha barreled into the monster with a savage howl, bodychecking the larger creature off-balance once more. It bent backward and made to strike at her, but the therion's maw closed around its weakened bark; wood splintered noisily and Alisha continued to charge away before it could grab her. Two tails tore parts out of the ever growing wound as well.

Margaret sat and breathed and watched; she felt Symonne's hand land on her own and hissed softly to acknowledge her.

The tree managed to dig most of its roots back into the ground by the time Alisha finished her turn; its spine bent sideways and the creature turned, visibly wincing when its gaping wound was rattled. A rivulet of pinkish brown sap ran down its side right below one of the two great maws. Alisha charged again without hesitation, slamming into the disoriented creature and pushing against it; her speed and weight bent the tree again, but it was still heavier than the fox and pushed back with all its strength. With her momentum stalled, Alisha was now pushing against her opponent with her frontlegs.

The onlookers saw cords of muscle move, clench, shake. The fox buckled and took a step back with one hindleg, the tree bending closer to a straight position; then however, her tails became active. They jerked at first, then tapped around and stretched toward the tree's one great wound. It pushed her back another step and a third, an ominous glow already in its maws; the hellion merely needed to align itself properly for a killing blow. Alisha knew it, too; she took a half step and braced herself once more, her tails sliding over its bark as if to feel without looking.

Then one found the wound and dug into it, a hell of teeth biting into the vulnerable flesh beneath the bark. Sap sprayed out of the wound and the tree yowled in pain; it only grew louder when a second tail found its way into the hole. Then a third joined in and took up the remaining space. All three slowly slid further inside as they ate into the living monster; the renewed and excruciating pain finally made the tree relent. Alisha took a step forward as it gave ground. Then another.

Her opponent bent backward as if to give, so fast that Alisha stumbled forward and down; the tree bounced back and hammered into her head. Something cracked audibly and the fox was thrown back, into the air... and halted, for but an instant. Yet the force behind the strike was stronger than the tree in the end; Alisha's tails tore out a large trail of innards from its wound, which led to another spray of sap and a howl. The fox herself flew until she impacted the wall with her broken skull and dropped there, falling limp.

Margaret had to help. She needed to force herself up and do something. Symonne's hand squeezed her arm gently, maybe to agree. But before they even got to their feet, they noticed that Alisha was not yet beaten. Her tails kept eating, pulling in the gore trailing all the way to the rattling tree, pulling on it; the monster wheezed, showers of sparks shooting out of its maws. A wave of hot air followed.

Seconds passed and the creature continued to fail at using its powerful attack. It wobbled in place, roots grasping at empty air and arms jerking erratically as they kept bleeding. Margaret watched it grow slower still. Then she watched Alisha rise. The fox winced and jerked, even limped, her left hindleg injured. But she stood. Her eyes were focussed on the other hellion; she was a therion and, so Margaret and Symonne saw from her stance alone, she was the predator today. Before her sat prey. She limped forward, spittle flowing down her actual muzzle and all five tails. The tree swirled her way but missed, uprooting itself and falling sideways.

Alisha limped toward the fallen giant and put her frontpaws onto it. Once more her tails dug into the wounds, this time sinking in far faster; the tree wheezed again and tried to shake itself, but a hard tug made it fall still. Another tug from all five tails and the bark became brittle in places. A third one and it tore open. A tearing sound rang out and the tree came apart in the middle, falling in two and lying still.

For a moment, Margaret expected the fox to howl over her victory; Alisha did not, though. She simply lowered her head and tore into their fallen foe. With all six mouths she dug into every squishy bit she could get.

As she devoured the flesh and innards, Alisha's head slowly realigned and seemed to heal. Her bad leg shifted ever so slightly and soon stood firm once again. Malevolence continued to flow into her maws, both from their surroundings and the hellion. When nothing soft was left to be devoured, the fox's attention turned to its bark; Margaret was still reeling from her part of the fight, else she would have been more affected by the sight of a giant fox nibbling on wood. Successfully so, even; bit by bit the exoskeleton broke off and was ground to paste with loud crunches. Patches of torn fur regrew alongside the therion's other regenerations.

Human and seraph watched the spectacle for many minutes, breathing slowly and nursing their own wounds. Symonne absently cast a few minor artes once she absorbed enough mana from the area to cast again; they used all of her reserves in that final blow against the tree monster.

Margaret groaned softly at her friend. "My back first, please. The arm is-" "Broken, I know. I felt it." Symonne made a face at her, obviously not enthused about having to share that particular sensation during their Armatus. Margaret just nodded; a being as malleable as a seraph could not break anything, so this was an unwelcome first for Symonne. She idly felt for her pendant, ran her fingers over the slightly rough wood. It was still in one piece and undamaged, thankfully.

To the background of loud crunching and the occasional squelching sound, Symonne began to treat the worst of the damage her partner took. It was an arduous task that would take hours to complete, but they were both in a better mood than yesterday; the plan worked. Their therion was feeding.

In time, Alisha finished her meal, taking a step back from the torn up ground where a tree used to lie dead. When she reverted to her human form, all that remained of the monster were the signs of battle, a few crumbs of bark, and a carpet of sap-like blood. The surviving hellion stood and turned around, naked after her borrowed clothes were destroyed entirely; Alisha did not even notice her state while she stumbled over to the other girls. Though, admittedly, Margaret's clothes were more strips of cloth after this last fight. She paid little mind to it and rather laughed up at her new companion, who grimaced back and sank to the ground with a groan.

"I, I think I ate too much," Alisha muttered in response to Margaret's curious look, beginning to rub her belly; only then did she realise her nudity, but dismissed the fact much like Margaret had. She groaned again, tired and miserable for a much different reason than the other two. "Please give me some time to digest."

Time was something they had. Margaret just nodded, but Symonne added to it in a chirp: "Can do, Maggie needs treatment anyway."

So they sat and breathed. The fight was over, they won. Margaret winced every once in a while and felt her arm throb, Alisha patted her belly, and Symonne was busy channeling her artes.

Once she grew bored with her own injuries however, Margaret's gaze strayed to Alisha. She knew it was rude to stare, but curiousity got the better of her; perhaps there was also a memory or two of Celica in her mind, but that may just be her own conscience trying to find a justification. In the end, it did not change the fact she let her eyes wander over the older woman's fit form. The blonde fur intrigued her at first, but something else became far more interesting to a fourteen-year-old. "They're a lot bigger than they look normally."

It took Symonne snorting for Margaret to realise she said it out loud. Alisha turned to her as well before looking down and sighing. "I can not keep destroying the clothes people gift me," she muttered, but then threw a blank look at her companion. "That aside, is now really the time to compare bust sizes, Margaret?" The therion paused there and her tone changed from reprimanding to intrigued: "Is that something commoner girls actually do? I thought that was just in the books."

Margaret fidgeted a little, unsure of what answer to give; she had no idea. Symonne saved her this time, leaning over with an impish grin. "Oh? What kind of books would that be?" She got no response, even after a playful poke into one of the small patches of fur. Once it was clear there would be none either, the seraph made a dismissive motion. "And no, it generally isn't. Maggie is just fourteen and horny; think you'd let her touch?"

Alisha calmly shook her head while Margaret bopped Symonne's. "No. Bad Symonne."

"Perhaps once we know each other better... and are not in lethal danger."

"You're surprisingly calm about this whole situation, you know?"

Symonne's comment was made with a nod toward Margaret, whose cheeks had begun to turn red by this point; she had not expected Alisha to answer as she did. In difference to their youngest, the therion did not appear fazed at all. "I was taught to remain calm from a young age," she explained with a shrug. "But more than that, I see nothing worthy of embarassment. I was fourteen and curious not so long ago as well. I understand. So if you were to have any questions," she added with a smile to Margaret, "you can ask me anytime."

"...thank you."

"And, well, I guess I have little to be embarassed about when the only people present are an exhibitionistic seraph and a girl whose clothes are so torn I can see everything anyway."

"..."

Margaret sighed even while her cheeks grew hotter and a shade darker; Symonne laughed though, with Alisha joining in. Then the seraph girl grinned and made her own clothes dissolve. "There, now we match. Three naked girls on an island full of hellion beasts. Huh, that makes me think, do those things still pro-" she was cut off by another bop on the head. Margaret gave her a stern look.

"No."

"You're no fun."

"No. We are not going there, unless you want to volunteer for a field experiment." Symonne fell quiet and pouted at her; at least Alisha found amusement in the whole matter, going by her smile. Margaret left it at that and leaned back the slightest bit, at least her back now free of pain. "I guess I should have expected you to... bind your chest? That was definitely no corset, so I would guess bindings."

"You are quite correct. Have yours been growing recently?"

"Only a little. I asked my mother why hers are bigger, but she said it only happened when she was pregnant with me. Before that she had about this size, too." The younger girl cupped her breast for a moment and shrugged at her companions. "I'm not going to cry about it. My body type is better suited to an active life."

"I concur." Alisha may have wanted to continue, but her stomach grumbled and she pressed a hand to it with a grimace. "This feels incredibly odd, I admit. I feel so warm inside. As if-" she burped out a tongue of fire and stopped to look, as did the other two. Alisha blinked and breathed in deeply, then out; flames flowed out of her mouth and heated up the area around their group. Beads of sweat formed on Margaret's forehead when her companion let out another fiery breath. Symonne reached over to clap her shoulder, at which point the mesmerised therion's attention snapped back to them; she cut off the flames and ducked her head. "Ah, apologies."

"I, er, take it the fire breath is new?"

"Indeed. I could not do so before, this is definitely the odd warmth in my belly. It is spreading through my body at the moment, but I presume this will not be an issue in the long term. I feel quite well, all things considered." Alisha's gaze went back to where she devoured the tree, perhaps only now realising what she did.

Margaret could not help but lean a little closer. "What was it like? You know, the taste and stuff." The other woman did not turn back, she simply looked at the dried blood.

"I can not say," she answered absently. "I was so focussed on my new body, on the fight, I barely remember the taste. On my tongue I still have this vague impression of dry bread, or something else with little taste of its own. That may have been the bark. I am uncertain if I like this sensation." A pause, then Alisha did turn back to them. "Perhaps Velvet was lucky in a way, having lost her sense of taste. She can eat these things without needing to taste them."

They lapsed back into silence after that, spending minutes and then an hour just recuperating. Margaret slowly returned into her own head now, running through shock and panic for a short time; she almost died. They all almost died. But then she relaxed, knowing they were all still alive.

As if to spite her, the next horror came crawling through the pathway in that very moment; her breath hitched when she saw it coming from the main island, feelers sensing for the area they were in. An array of seven mantis claws scrabbled ahead of the beast, all attached to the forward-facing side and covered in thick, golden fur. These claws were followed by a bulbous body in the same colour with no other limbs and no eyes; at least, none of either Margaret could see. But fangs it had; fangs as long as her arm, arrayed around the limbs with those seven claws. The body was as big as Alisha's fox form and with it came a smell usually associated with lightning. Sparks crackled along the fur.

Alisha rose to her feet immediately, holding out her arm in front of them. "Stand back, you need to recuperate further. I will do this on my own." Margaret made to protest, but Symonne clapped a hand over her mouth and helped her up. They glared at each other for a quiet moment, but the human girl relented quickly; her arm was still broken and needed treatment.

Thus they retreated under the protection of an illusion while Alisha changed form again; the fox and... thing sized each other up, Alisha doing so mainly to give her allies time. Margaret glanced back from time to time, but Symonne did not keep her around to watch. So she sighed and called out to the therion; just a simple order: "Retreat if you can't win, yes? Don't forget that!" The fox huffed and one of her tails waved at the two girls, which Margaret took as acknowledgement. She slowly vanished in the fog and around a corner in the path; only moments later, the sounds of battle began.

Growling, clicking, thundering steps, the buzzing of lightning. A number of crashes and swishing noises she could not figure out what they were about. Then a column of bright, orange-golden flames lit up the darkness ahead. A wave of heat followed, making Margaret sweat once again; the air was almost too hot to breathe for a moment, burning in her throat and lungs.

Then followed more buzzing and crackling, crashes, howls, and more fire. It continued for a while and ended only when Margaret and Symonne had already reached their camp; they watched and listened, perfectly able to follow the fight... until it ended, with a familiar beam of flame scything through the air a few dozen metres to their right. Followed by five more of the same kind, fanned out around the first one.

After that, silence reigned, excepting an idle comment from Symonne: "Looks like she won." Margaret nodded to her friend; she gingerly held out her broken arm as best as she could and Symonne began to mend it.

By the time Alisha returned, still naked but with a beaming smile on her face, the bone was mostly put back together. The princess skipped in joy and flopped onto her face in front of them, transitioning into a groan. "Augh. Your plan worked, Margaret. I was victorious. We can make proper progress no-augh!" She actually managed to sound chipper toward the end, but finished groaning again. "Ugh, just not now. I, I am so full, I need to rest. Maybe take a nap or something like that. If I eat any more, I might just, well, either pass out or throw up."

Margaret leaned over and gave Alisha's shoulder a sympathetic pat. "It is just as well," she consoled the other blonde. "I will need some more rest. Symonne looks better than I do, but that doesn't mean much. Another hour or two to recuperate sounds good. None of us should go alone."

The therion nodded, but did not look up; she continued to lie on the ground, perfectly happy where she was. Then her head rose. "While I am still coherent, Symonne, could you explain how I weave clothes for myself? At least, if the principle is the same between using mana and Malevolence?"

"Sure, just let me finish this here."

"Of course. Margaret's health takes priority."

They fell quiet again, the silence rather quite companionable until Margaret broke it; she felt it needed to be said: "Congratulations, Alisha. Even with just what you ate so far, I would presume you surpassed Symonne and I in raw power. Not just either of us, but both of us together. The number of people capable of dueling you will be fairly limited; once we are done here, there will be close to none." The words tasted a little bitter and she could not help but add: "being a therion is kinda unfair, honestly."

"Thank you." The older woman raised one hand to wave at her, though she was reluctant. "But we are on the same side, are we not? I do not think there is any need for envy or jealousy."

"It's not that. It's, well, urgh." She almost waved her arms, but Symonne quickly held the one she worked on still. Margaret sighed. "Perhaps it is, envy at least. You deserve the power without doubt and you will use it well, but I am looking at my own path. The only way we can still compare is with our Armatus, through cleverness and teamwork. The only way I could still match you, as you are now, would be to bond with one of the Great Lords. Maybe an Armatus with one of them could still surpass you at the power you will have in a week. Even if I spent a lifetime honing my skill and growing more experienced, I could never match you on my own again." She hesitated and tried to put her feelings into words: "I am not going to stop just because you had an easier time of it, and I am aware you will have to face different challenges than those of strength going forward, but I still feel a little bitter right now. It will not last, I can promise you that... I'm sorry for ruining the mood."

"It is quite alright, I understand." Alisha raised her head and offered a weak smile to Margaret. "Truth be told, I am still not believing that I just managed to fight back this creature on my own. I think I melted a crater of glass into that passage earlier. Just three days ago I was confined to a small room and waiting for my execution. I do not begrudge you these feelings. It feels unfair even to me, as the one benefitting."

Symonne cut in there, nonchalant: "Life isn't fair, it's as simple as that." Then she grinned at them both. "And we all know that."

"Aye."

"Indeed."

The seraph girl huffed; her arte winked out and she gave Margaret's arm a clap. "There, all better. It's good that you work through those feelings of yours, Maggie. We will get some good practice in going forward; Alisha can no longer be beaten in raw power, but there are other ways. So we need to work on the assumption that Alisha wins unless someone can stop her otherwise, and build our team based on that."

The human girl nodded in agreement and settled next to Alisha, who had turned onto her back by now. Margaret nodded down and spoke at the group in general: "Agreed. I think I will take it as a challenge to get better and fast, and together we can always leverage greater force if all else fails. Our duty is to prevent others from taking you down, Alisha. Let us work on that with the other critters on this island, later."

The others voiced their agreement and they began to chat about strategies in-between bouts of comfortable silence. Symonne imparted the basics of creating clothes to Alisha and soon, another two hours had passed. Margaret discarded the scraps she wore before, having turned them into bindings for her chest and shorts more in line with Symonne's preferred style of clothes; Alisha stepped forward in a basic, monocoloured tunic and Symonne herself decided to remain naked for the time being.

As comical as they looked, their intentions with the occupants of this isle were rather quite sinister. It was still their second day and they all agreed that Alisha would be feasting like an empress for the rest of their stay.

So they headed out again, for there was still much work to do.