My Hero was sealed behind some strange spell, as were all the reinforcements I might have had, and my MP had already been partially spent keeping him alive. My only saving grace was that my enemy was equally spent, as I charged her, shifting my Replica Weapon into a defensive state, the strongest shield I had, just in case she decided to get cute before I could get to her, and then beat some answers out of her.
Not that she was going to make that easy. Therese was a skilled warrior and mage. I'd seen that in our battle before, and from the stories Naofumi had shared with the other Heroes about his 'friends'. Regardless, she braced well, two head sized crystal orbs appearing around her, orbiting about one meter from her body, and glimmering with menace as she eyed me up, obviously intending on using them to attack.
She was slower than myself, however, and even with no boosts, I quickly changed the angle of my approach, shifting from Shield, to Spear, and screaming as I let loose a flurry of attacks not at her, but at the sealed Hero of the Bow. Bard would be of great assistance in this battle, and better, she would lose her bargaining chip with him freed of her prison, which drove my hands to go faster as I laid into the barrier.
Not that any strike I landed seemed to do anything to the glowing field, Therese forcing me to leap backwards as the two blue orbs sailed at me, not quickly enough to hit but with enough force that I knew if I was careless, they'd utterly devastated my HP. Therese, looking towards her barrier, placed her hand on it, and I saw the silhouette of Bard inside, pounding on the barrier, and even firing his Weapon at it, to no avail.
"She was right, your power here, it is so much different than where we come from, but since we wield both, you are helpless before us," she said, speaking more to herself than to me, and I chose to change to her as my target, drawing out one of the Bow Forms that shot lightning power, figuring it would be hard for her to dodge. To my shock, and sadly not hers, she did not need to dodge, as the blow was intercepted by one of her orbs, which had turned a dark color for an instant, absorbing the blow easily.
The next moment it turned crimson, and a crackling flame began to dance along the surface of it. The companion did likewise, and with a flick of her wrist, the woman sent both flying towards me, their bodies 'dividing' into two, creating four flaming spheres headed my way. I was quick enough to shift the Weapon into a shield form that absorbed fire, but shockingly, the impact of the orbs still felt hot, their power piercing my defense.
Knocked backwards, I slammed into the railing of the ship, my back screaming at me that that was not fun, even as I rolled to the side, avoiding another pair of flaming orbs as I shifted into a Spear, Sword, and Bow form in rapid succession, sending blasts of fire, ice, and light towards the woman, hoping one of them would be fast enough to get through before her orbs could defend her.
And they did, all three shots were timed just so that her own, slightly slower moving weapons didn't have time to intercept them. Each shot hit perfectly into her chest, knocking her back, her feet scraping along the deck, even as she fell to her knees. But when she rose up, I took a moment to observe her, and realized that my attacks, while they had done SOME damage, hadn't done much.
"If that was your best, I would advise you to cease. We aren't here to hurt you, but we cannot allow you to defeat us either," she said, as she held up her hand, and her weapons, the two crystal orbs, changed again, going from fiery red to a deep green like a forest. She then charged at me again, her feet leaving the ground briefly, like some force was propelling her forward.
A slicing motion with her hand saw one of the green sphere shoot towards me, the surface shimmering brilliantly for a moment, magic singing across its surface. I moved before it could hit me, but even without being able to see the attack, I knew that what she'd tried to hit me with was some kind of wind power. It still hit home against part of the ship's railing, and blew it apart to show how strong it was.
I countered, the Replica Weapon turning into a spear with a swirling motif on its head, and I spun it before me. It was a drain, but the move I was using had a lift effect to it, and I was gratified to see it work, her body being pulled off the ground, and then shot backwards, slamming into her own barrier that surrounded the ship, leaving me to rush towards my Hero again, to free him from his prison.
I got only a few steps before a sound had me jump back, just as a projectile made of magical energy flew by where I'd have been a moment ago. Looking towards the source, I found Therese leaping back onto the deck from the frozen sea below, looking put out. One of her orbs appeared to be like one of the weapons that Faubury was so proud of, a hollow tube of metal. Though hers fired magic instead of bullets.
The orb spun in the air, curling itself into a red orb with a crescent of grey metal on one side, before it and its twin turned again, becoming a much lighter shade of green, as she charged towards me, and then swung. The orb uncurled again, this time into a long straight sword, not until a larger version of Ray's twin blades, longer than Therse was tall, as it swept in a powerful arc towards me.
I blocked it with the Replica Weapon, shifting it to a blade with a defensive boost, hoping to counter, but the blow resonated through my block, forcing my body to take damage even though nothing hit me. It wasn't the first direct damage I'd ever felt, but it was odd to see it come from a human. Worse, she swung the other blade towards me, having it loop around her from the opposite side, forcing me to leap backwards, even as she charged again.
She flew into a sword frenzy, her swings wide and wild, not like a true master at all. If she'd been up against Ray the panther demi-human would have skewered her without fail. I, however, was no sword master. I was, at the absolute best, a novice of the craft. Still, even that small experience was enough to let me block, swinging my own Weapon around, turning it into a round shield that took every blow.
Interestingly, it was as she kept her routine up that I began to notice how…slow she was. Her reaction speed was great, she adjusted her angle of attack with split second timing, but her swings themselves were far slower than most adventurers I knew. It was an edge I had on her, and as she went into another routine, I pressed that small advantage, letting one of her blades cut into my side a bit, just to get up close and personal with a Spear, that I drove into her gut.
The tip was stopped by her clothing, which one would expect given it was like my own robe and made for protection. However, what I didn't expect was the blade, as it slid, to not even touch her skin, leaving only a small red mark rather than drawing blood. Luckily, despite her reaction speed, I was able to drop to the deck and roll away from her before she could bring the other blade around to do damage.
Looking at her, I glanced at the top of my 'HUD' as the Heroes had called it. Outside, the others were doing well, I thought, as both the others, presumably L'arc and Glass, had taken damage. Not a huge amount, not even as much as the Whale had in the same timeframe, but it was still more than one might expect. Hopefully, they could continue that streak, as I resumed my own fight.
My Weapon shifted into a shield form as Therese did something new, her green blade unwinding, and metallic teeth appearing all along its length, slamming into my defenses, and then grinding against them. Sparks flew from the impact, and as the other blade came by, with similar extras now, I dove away from her, using my greater speed to dash towards where Bard was still sealed, and then diving behind it.
Metallic grey came next from her orb color, and this time, when she swung the things, they formed into massive warhammers, bringing them together in front of her, trying to box me in as she got around the wall, avoiding hitting it. To avoid damaging the barrier? Would it have protected him against the blow? My mind raced with that, even as I ducked under the attack, and then scrambled away, shifting into a bow form and using the slower swinging weapon to my own advantage.
The moment she let loose another attack chain, I fired half a dozen arrows two at a time, these designed not to do much damage, but to pierce defenses. To my delight, the arrows shimmered against her skin, and tore into her body, literally tossing her backwards, and nearly off the ship again, even as I started to think on what forms to use next, as I was running low on MP, and needed a decisive move to win this quickly.
Loading another arrow, I shot it out, only for her orbs to shift again, this time in a strange way. They shattered, turning into small stones that began to orbit about a meter or so from her body. The shards proved a problem, as they formed a barrier that intercepted my arrow, the tip of it passing through as a piercing attack should, but then being pulled backwards by the orbiting shards, which tore it apart.
Smiling as my attack wiffed, Therese charged again, her body spinning as she drew one orb from the orbiting shards, causing it to fuse together into a stoney grey thing that flew at me, slamming into my chest hard enough that I was certain I felt a rib crack, even as I was thrown backwards. I shifted my weapon to a spear, using it to catch myself like a staff, and then glaring at my enemy, who smiled as her attacking orb returned to become part of the field of debris slowly rotating around her.
"That's enough, don't you think? You can't beat me, and I don't actually want to hurt you. None of us do, I hope you understand, but this contest…we can't afford to lose, and your Heroes…they are so good, we've seen that over the past few days. We won't…we can't simply stand by," she said, sounding out her words, stumbling over them, the conflict in her soul present on her face.
The moment I saw her flinch, her eyes closing, I reacted, and with a shift, I turned my spear into a shield, one with a very special purpose. I braced my feet, spreading them wide, and then let loose a cry, literally being dragged forward like a comet by the shield's power. This skill, (Charge) was one of least damaging I had in my arsenal, the description was clear it was more of a move to make an opening, but that was just what I needed.
Therese reacted quickly, but like I had seen before, her reaction speed was supreme, clearly better than mine, but with (Charge) boosting my own movement speed, I seemed to barrel my way through her defensive field of shards, slamming through it so quickly there was a moment you could see the gap left behind, as I came within one meter of the woman who was looking at me shocked, before I shifted my weapon again.
Now a sword, one brimming with Light element, but also with an inherent piercing effect, I let loose a furious series of slashes. I was no expert swordswoman, nor a duelist or any other such class. What I was, was desperate, and watching marks appear on her skin, cuts in her dress, it was gratifying, especially as I could see her HP finally drop by an appreciable amount, showing it was working.
Then she gathered the shards close to her, the orbs reforming, but I didn't stop attacking her, even as she tried to get away. I noticed out of the corner of my eye as the orbs turned colors again, flashing for instant as their surfaces went from cracked to gleaming and whole, and also turned pitch black, midnight manifested in the form of a weapon, and I braced for whatever it was they did, even as I plunged my blade into Therese's belly, hoping it was in the same way that Raphtalia had done to Bard to injure glass all those weeks ago.
"Enough!" she cried out, and I was blasted away as fists, huge and made of umbral darkness, unfurled from the orbs, the blows smashing into my form, and driving me backwards. I could taste blood in my mouth this time, and shifted my weapon into a shield for healing, calling on my robe to help me do this, only for Therese, staring at me to grind her teeth, and then leap upwards, her orbs shifting again, this time to a deep violet color.
"No! I tried to tell you, we don't WANT to hurt you, but if you throw away that mercy, we won't hold back either!" she shouted at me, and then one of her orbs stopped as she held out her hand, floating in the air as she released a power through the orb, one that visibly had to come from her body, but when it was processed, the attack turned into a bolt of lightning, moving far faster than I could.
If she had tried the swords again, or even the Faubury type weapon, I could have dodged it, I was ready. A flash of thunder was too fast though, I barely knew it was coming when it hit home, my shield providing zero protection, as the bolt smashed into my side, snaking around the defensive item, and instead hitting me where I was vulnerable. I felt the sharp retort across my form, even as the Robe tried to protect me.
The Robe took the brunt of the damage, and I saw her charging up another attack, so I tried to anticipate where she would strike from, moving the shield I was using into the path of the bolt, and while the bolt struck it hard, it did not stop the attack completely. Arcs of electricity danced from the shield into my arms, leaving them weak, as I tried to move aside, only for her to strike again, then again.
She hammered into me, laying on bolt after bolt, each one striking my shield, giving me no time to plan or adapt, until finally, I felt something, and went wide eyed as the shield in my hands started to crack. I tried to pull it away, tried to protect the treasure, even if it cost me my life, but Therese seemed to be waiting for this, and actually laughed to herself as she loosed one final bolt at the Replica Weapon.
With a sound like shattering glass, the weapon in my hand broke, turning into a thousand motes of light, all of which faded in front of my eyes, even as I tried to grasp them, tried to will them to come back together. But they refused, stubbornly winking out one after another, until they were completely gone, leaving me laying on my knees, just staring into space while Therese finally heaved a sigh of relief.
"That's one less advantage you'll have over us in this contest, Mage. Now if you want to keep your life st-ARGH!" she cried out, in pain, shock, or just general surprise I wasn't sure, as I climbed to my feet and began to chant quickly. No weapon at my side to make casting faster, and my MP used up with the Replica Weapon's powers, I could rely only on my own skill, my own power.
Luckily, that power was not of the young woman who had started this, not of the same type that had been scared she would die to a Nest Mother. I could slay dragons now. My magic had helped slay countless monsters that had struck fear into the hearts of adventurers for centuries. I was not some hedgewitch to be ignored, I was a woman wielding the power of creation magic itself, and I let loose all the fury I had.
I ignored the elements save those I was skilled with, to reduce the cost and speed the casting, but with those four, I began to hammer my enemy. She shouted back, trying to form words, but ice froze her foul lips shut, rending her mute. Fire struck at her feet as she tried to take a stance, breaking her root. A stone appeared and knocked into her orbs, preventing her from channeling her magic through them, and finally lightning leapt from my hands onto her body.
She twitched, the lightning pierced whatever strange defense she had, and it made her HP go down, just a little, in my HUD. I was grateful to still have it, honestly, it gave me hope, as I saw that Glass and L'arc outside fared not much better than her, and so I struck out again, and again, hitting her with each element, draining what remained of my MP until finally I spread out my hands, and called fourth all four at once.
Lighting, Fire, Earth, and Ice. Together, these four elements make creation, according to my power, and I used them to shape a massive blade, one that sparked in the light, whose edge caused a fine mist to spill from one side, while the other seemed to distort the air with its heat, all mixed with the weight of the earth itself, and with a cry, I sent it forth, Therese, finally having a moment, seeing it coming, her reaction speed giving her that second, but not giving her enough time to do anything about it.
The blade shattered as it struck her, the power of it flying into her body, causing her to shoot backwards, slamming into the ship's aft section, hitting just to the side of the door to the cabins, cracking the wood beneath the force of it all. She sagged to the ground, her once nice, neat hair, looking ragged and stringy as it covered her face as she hit the ground, leaving her just laying there, face down for a moment.
But it was only a moment, with a scream of frustration, she rose, and I had nothing left to give, so I just stood there, watching as she shifted her orbs through seemingly a hundred forms, before turning them, of all things, into a set of tomes that shone with magical energy. The books, molding together for an instant into a grimoire the size of my torso, flipped open, their pages flying, before a sword, larger even the one I'd managed to make, came shooting out of it.
I could have dodged it easily, had I been fresh to the fight. I would have simply stepped aside, even with how fast it flew, but I was tired, and damaged. Even as I attempted to move, I knew it was too late, and so instead, I fired one final bolt of lightning, barely a bit of static charge, at Therese, as the weapon struck home, right into the center of my chest, and sent me flying backwards this time.
Smashing into the bow of the ship, I felt the blade vanish, Therese's orbs returning to what I assumed was their default blue state, as she walked towards me, laying there, unable to move. I was…dying, I could feel the blood in my mouth, the numbness in my limbs, and the cold entering my fingers and toes. It was…a new experience, one that I hated, as I set myself up, and looked up at her, at the woman who had killed me…who still had my Hero trapped.
"I told you, I wanted…I didn't want this. But we can't have you winning so easily anymore. So please just…just die quietly," she said, holding out her hand, a slight glow at it. Magic? Healing perhaps. Whatever the case, I spit in her face, causing her to leap backwards, possibly thinking I had more in me, but that was it, as I slumped to my side, the sound of cracking in my ears as I looked towards where Bard was sealed…where I had failed to free him from, seeing his silhouette inside, fists pounding on the barrier. All I could do was whisper I was sorry, before I knew no more.
(A/N: I'm aware this is not how Therese fights. When I started this fanfic, I'd seen season 1 and part of season 2 of the anime, and was disappointed by her magic constantly being called 'unique' when it really wasn't. Even casting through bracelets the way she does is something Myne and Raphtalia had done before. So I'd planned on giving her this style instead.
I have now seen up to season 3 of the Anime AND read the manga, along with some of the Light Novel and Web Novel chapters…I still don't get how her magic style is so unique, that it's described as being on par with a Hero's power at one point.
As such, I kept my old plan with this, and just gave her the fighting style of Timespinner, a metroidvania game, which uses crystal orbs as the main character's weapon, along with channeling magic through them.)