After confirming Hotaru's true identity to be Aston; Princess Emeraude's and Zagato's son, Clef had been devastated by the news. A child, of whose existence he had no idea or recollection of, had been born to two of his closest friends. He had always known his career as Pillars' attendant hadn't exactly been perfect. Nor did he hold it against himself, as it was the second most demanding job in all of Cephiro. But even he couldn't have foreseen himself making a blunder of this caliber.
Even as he had retired to his apartment to sleep for the night, he had been wracking his brain for answers to what he had missed. What possible opportunities did the princess and the high priest have to conceive a child behind his back? Was it a prayer? A wish? World wide memory alteration of the events? An illusion to hide Emeraude's true pregnant self while her child-like body acted as the Pillar? To any layman, these options could all seem possible for someone with the powers of the Pillar of Cephiro. But as Princess Emeraude's attendant, Clef knew that all of these possible answers would only bring up more questions.
After six hours of nightmare-filled sleep, Clef woke up with a splitting headache and no peace of mind. But despite all of his personal troubles, he knew his duties to the Sanctuary took priority. After a quick breakfast of tea and crackers, he teleported to the throne room, forcing himself to start a new day.
As he was using magic to inspect the integrity of the Sanctuary and Cephiro, his attention was caught by a powerful magical presence. At first, he recognized it as Alcyone casting a powerful spell, before sensing something more ominous and sinister. When the magical power spiked, he could tell it was coming from up above. His guess was confirmed as he felt tremors and heard something above the throne room being crushed to pieces.
What is going on!? This feeling of dread… It is overwhelming! Is this what Hotaru warned us about?
(Master Mage Clef.)
Hearing a deep voice in his mind, Clef immediately recognized who was contacting him telepathically.
(Lantis. You felt that too?)
As the former student and master concentrated on the dark and ominous feeling, images began to flash before their eyes. Broken crystal walls, a messy apartment, giant monsters, and a tall dark stranger, all situated in a place they both recognized.
(That's…!)
(Hotaru's and Alcyone's apartment!)
(That's not all. Who was that man with the horns…)
Before Lantis or Clef could think on it more, another tremor struck the central tower. They could hear several heavy footsteps coming down the stairs and more crystal walls being knocked down. Hearing the unnatural and dissonant roars of the monsters behind the golden doors of the throne room, Clef knew there was no time to waste. Gathering his magical powers, Clef sent a telepathic message to the Sanctuary's elite.
(Attention everyone! Monsters have breached Sanctuary's central tower! Everyone to arms!)
(Clef-san! We have a problem!)
(What is it, Hikaru?)
(Umi, Fuu, Ascot, and Ferio haven't returned yet! They are still at Bravada and Dome!)
Clef's eyes widened as he gasped, finding out nearly half of their best fighters were gone. However, the situation wasn't hopeless. While they were missing two out of three Magic Knights, they still had Lafarga, Lantis, Alcyone, and Hotaru to rely on. In addition, it wasn't like they were the only ones capable of helping.
(Lafarga, I hate to ask you for this, but we need the guards to participate in the battle as well!)
(Those men have been training specifically for a situation like this. They know the risks involved.)
Finally able to take a sigh of relief, Clef was quickly alarmed by Lantis who spoke once more to him via telepathy.
(Master Mage Clef! Have you heard back from Hotaru and Alcyone? I cannot sense them anywhere!)
(Nani?! Where could they have—)
Before Clef could finish his question, a grim chill ran through him, causing the hairs at the back of his neck to stand up. His grip on his staff tightened as he looked up at the Ceiling of the throne room, expecting to see a monster hanging down from it. While the ceiling was the same as always, it was like standing below a storm-cloud ready to discharge lightning down onto him. It was like sheer fear and terror was being rained down onto him and everyone else below in the sanctuary.
It's that ominous presence again. But it is coming from within the castle. Could this be…
(Master Mage Clef. It's here…)
Hearing Lantis's confirmation, Clef knew things had turned from bad to worse. While he may have failed to protect Cephiro during the past fifteen years, he would not fail the Sanctuary.
(Attention everyone! Monsters have breached Sanctuary's central tower! Everyone to arms!)
Despite having been in deep slumber, Clef's alarmed voice rang through Hotaru's head like a bell, albeit slightly muddled, as his head was spinning. As he slowly woke up, he pushed the blanket off of him before rubbing his face, trying to remember all that had happened yesterday. As the memories slowly returned to him, he quickly regretted his decision to try and remember.
As he propped himself up to get off the king-sized bed, Hotaru noticed that his legs didn't quite reach the edge of it. With his eyelids still too heavy to open, he figured he had rolled to the other side of the bed during the night. After all, he had shared the bed with Stella, so maybe he had slept on Alcyone's side as she had spooned him from behind. Shimmying over to the edge of the bed, he heard voices coming outside his apartment.
Right… Clef mentioned something about monsters. I better go before things get ugly— ACK!
Misjudging the distance from the top of the bed to the ground, Hotaru quickly found himself face down on the floor. Fortunately for him, the fall didn't hurt as much as he had expected. As he stood up, his body felt both lighter yet weaker and the bedroom looked a lot bigger than he remembered. As his boxers fell to his knees, Hotaru realized what had happened and he rushed to the bedroom's wall mirror. A familiar sight of his, or Aston's eight-year-old naked self, stared back at him.
"H-How!?" he gasped in English, looking at his young and smooth body. "Did this… Is this because I…"
Before he could continue figuring things out, a loud noise outside the bedroom caught his attention. It was the screeching roar of a large monster which sounded hauntingly familiar to Hotaru, but this wasn't what worried him. The walls of the Sanctuary were soundproof, meaning if he heard it through the door, it was right behind it. Feeling the ground beneath him shake as well, it was all but confirmed.
Looking around the room, Hotaru quickly spotted the gauntlets of his Double Armor. But as he reached to grab one of them, his body was paralyzed by fear. From behind his back, behind the door, he could sense an overwhelming presence, the likes of which he hadn't felt since his first fight with Zagato.
Turning around carefully, his fear and curiosity guided him over to the door, which he opened ajar quietly. Peeking through the gap, he could spot a huge black sphere with a dark red outline. There were familiar looking reddish-brown crab and insect-like monsters with singular green and blue eyes standing around it. Right in front of the door, wearing her usual gray ballgown, stood Stella, who now towered over Hotaru. He couldn't see her face, as her ankle-length black hair with red streaks covered it.
But as Hotaru slowly peeked around Stella, he could see his worst fears come to life. From inside the black and red orb, emerged a delicate yet large, light blue arm, clad in a black sleeve, with over foot-long purple fingernails. This was followed by a pale blue face with solid blue, alien-like eyes, framed by a golden, bejeweled headdress. Soon, the full body of an immensely tall woman emerged from the orb, dressed up in a black and gold dress, and a white and blue cape.
Throughout his life, Hotaru had never been afraid of Debonair before. To him, she had always seemed like a cheesy over-the-top villain, who he knew would be defeated in the end. When he had arrived in Cephiro, his biggest fear had been that Debonair would get her claws on Alcyone, not actually facing her. In fact, he had looked forward to fighting her when first being given home in the Sanctuary.
But now, that same she-devil was standing in his home. With Debonair so close to him, he could feel the immense pressure and terror she exuded. It truly was like he was experiencing the collective fear of all the people of Cephiro, from which this monster had spawned from. And if that wasn't enough, he was unarmed, naked, and ten years younger than he would have liked.
Too afraid to even think, Hotaru slowly closed the bedroom door, barely avoiding the eye of his most recent house guest. Debonair gazed around her surroundings, amused by the broken remains of her foe's home. The desolation and destruction left behind by her minions here was but a taste of things to come.
"Welcome, Lady Debonair," Stella bowed her head at her, speaking in a subdued manner.
While her eldest daughter's reception was lukewarm, Debonair was in such a good mood she didn't care, "You have done well, my beautiful Stella. You have played your part admirably."
As she said this, Debonair could feel a twinge of guilt in her daughter's heart, which wasn't too surprising. Stella was competent and powerful even without her own Mashin, having only received a buff to her magical powers from Debonair. However, her mind was far simpler and one track than one could imagine.
I'm sorry, Hotaru. I'm sorry, Hotaru. I'm sorry, Hotaru. I'm sorry, Hotaru. I love you, Hotaru. I love Hotaru. I'm sorry, Hotaru. I'm sorry, Hotaru…
Such a line of thought persisted within the mind of her eldest daughter, whenever Debonair peered into it. She was such a tragic existence, forced to love but a single person yet easily manipulated into acting against them. It was sad enough to almost want to make Debonair laugh. Just as she was about to head on forth to claim her prize, she sensed something nearby. Turning towards the door, she could hear a slight anomaly in her daughter's mind.
I love you, Hotaru. Please don't hurt Hotaru. Stay hidden Hotaru. I love Hotaru…
Realizing her daughter was trying to hide her beloved from her, was almost amusing to Debonair. She should already have known that she was all seeing, all hearing, and capable of sensing the locations of all she wished. Being able to read her mind was but a bonus, really.
"Step aside Stella," Debonair gave a soft yet strict command. "I promise not to hurt him, yet."
Timidly yet reluctantly, Stella slowly moved out of the way of the bedroom door. Her heart ached due to being unable to protect the man she had been made for, but this only added to Debonair's glee. With a single wave of her clawed hand, Debonair opened the crystal door with golden decorations, before leaning down to fit through it.. Expecting to find a warrior ready to pounce at her, Debonair was unable to hold back her laughter as she saw what was behind the door.
"Aaaah-hah-hahahahahahahahaaaa! Aaaah-hah-hahahahahahahahaaaa! Is this what has become of the last remnants of the Pillar of Cephiro?"
A small child of four and a half feet tall was hopping on one leg, trying to put on pants far too large for him. He had already managed to put on a tunic around a dozen sizes too large for him, with his sleeves rolled up all the way to his shoulders. Debonair wouldn't have believed that this little boy was the man who had given her so much trouble, if not for one thing.
Just like Romeo. I cannot peer into his heart, for it is obstructed by darkness. I thought it was due to the protections placed by the former Pillar, but would her blessings cause something like this?
While the child looked small and innocent, there was a mass of darkness in his chest, that seemed to wriggle and writhe. She had seen the same darkness in her eldest child, which had dispersed each time they had grown and matured. To see the same on both halves of the Pillar's child was unexpected, as she had expected this half to be obscured by light or something else.
As the child spotted Debonair, she could see his eyes widen in fear for a moment, before narrowing out of aggression. The child rushed over to a nightstand and grabbed a pair of gauntlets that might as well have been his mother's oven mitts.
"Fufufufufu! Are you going to face me in that state? So brave," Debonair chuckled, finding it almost cute.
"I ain't going down without a fight!" Hotaru stated, putting on the gauntlets.
Although the gauntlets were far too large for him, as soon as Hotaru activated them, the Double Armor resized itself around him. The silver and gold armor with lime-green orbs fit him just as well as always, covering all of his body aside from his head. His rolled up Cephiroan clothes left the fit slightly snug for him, as if he were wearing thick winter clothes underneath the armor. Gritting his teeth and ignoring how adorable he looked, Hotaru rushed at the monster.
Ready to kick Debonair's grin in, he was interrupted by a quick spell, "Black Binding!"
Five, black, rubber-like rings wrapped around Hotaru's body with enough force to knock his young body back. Since he was much shorter than usual, the black rings covered more of his body, as they wrapped around his chest, waist, hips, knees, and ankles. Flung onto his back on the floor, he had been thoroughly cocooned by the rings.
"Please Hotaru, do not resist!" Stella pleaded, not wanting to hurt the little warrior.
Ignoring the vampiric shadow's warnings, Hotaru yelled, "Steel Strength! Silver Speed!"
Pushing against the restraints as hard as he could, Hotaru's arms and legs didn't budge an inch. At first, he thought his younger body was too weak to break the bindings even when enhanced by Steel Strength. But as he continued struggling, he noticed something. The orbs on his armor weren't glowing and his body didn't feel any stronger than when he had woken up.
Are… Are my spells not working? Maybe I should just try again but… Debonair is right in front of me. If she finds out I cannot use magic, what then?
Continuing to wriggle around and even rolling onto his front and back, Hotaru eventually gasped, "Alright, it seems your magic is too strong for me, Stella."
"Mhmhmhm-hah-hahahahahahahahaaaa," Debonair laughed subduedly, pressing the back of her hand against her cheek. "Well done, Stella. Make sure that you keep him here till the end. Then you can do whatever you want with him."
"Thank you for your mercy, Lady Debonair," Stella bowed deeply, a sense of relief washing over her.
Debonair glanced down at the tied-up boy, her solid blue eyes narrowing down until their whites could be seen. Her thin purple lips widened as she grinned, showing off her sharp teeth and wide mouth.
With a sadistically smug expression, Debonair chuckled, "Fufufufu! I hope you do not mind if I claim your crown for my own, Prince of Cephiro. Aaaah-hah-hahahahahahahahaaaa!"
As Debonair laughed, her body turned transparent before sinking through the floor beneath her. Hearing her words and remembering the original plot, Hotaru waited till the giant woman had left, before rolling his eyes.
As if I was ever going to wear that stupid thing. Who in their right mind would want to be the Pillar if they knew what it entailed? Besides, she is just going to be stop— …Romeo. What has Romeo told Debonair!?
Clenching his abdominal muscles as hard as he could, Hotaru looked Stella straight in the eye, "Stella, where is Romeo right now!?"
Like a rockslide rolling down a mountainside, Debonair's monster minions were making their way down the Sanctuary's central tower. Their sharp spiky feet, strong and powerful claws, and tough exoskeleton covered bodies, made short work on the walls and doorways of the crystal castle. Unobstructed and merciless, the monsters seemed to ignore certain parts of the tower, as they were taking the shortest possible route to where the people were. But before they could reach the residential quarters, there were a couple of obstacles in their way.
"Flame Arrow!"
"Call Lightning!"
A powerful fireball and lightning bolt struck a group of one-eyed crab-like monsters, blowing two of them up while injuring the others. Despite their injuries, the monsters continued on forward, charging down at a little red-haired girl and a tall dark-haired man. As the two of them pulled out their swords, the monsters didn't get much further.
"These things are… Quite tough!" Hikaru grunted, before doing a jumping forward slash on another monster.
Cutting down his foes with his magic sword, Lantis admitted. "Considering who made them, I am not surprised."
"You sure you sensed Debonair in Hotaru's apartment?" Hikaru asked worriedly, before extending her hands. "Ruby Lightning!"
Blowing up another monster, Hikaru inadvertently created a smoke screen among the monsters. But as the monsters charged out of it blindly, she and Lantis continued cutting them down one by one.
"Yes," Lantis grunted, splitting a flying monster in half from below. "But I cannot sense Alcyone or Hotaru anywhere in the Sanctuary!"
"I hope they are alright…" Hikaru said worriedly, before jumping back.
She was about to bring her sword down for a flaming wind cutter, when she saw debris falling down from the ceiling. Realizing more monsters were trying to come down through the floor, Lantis also took a step back so as not to be flanked. But despite the two of them retreating, the monsters they had been fighting didn't come after them, but instead, respectfully stepped back.
Just as the implications of this sunk in for Hikaru and Lantis, the ceiling caved in as fine rubble. As the dust settled, they were standing face to face with a pair of eerily familiar faces. One of them was a short, pink-haired elf in a black cat-suit and silver armor who stood next to a much taller figure. Dressed in all black with little bits of gold, stood a man even taller than Lantis, with long black hair and dark purple eyes. Despite having long curved horns and pointed ears, the resemblance was uncanny.
"Zagato!?" Hikaru gasped, raising her sword.
"B-Brother!" Lantis stuttered, unable to believe his eyes.
"Uncle," the man in black leather jacket smiled.
"…Romeo!" Hikaru's eyes widened.
"Auntie," Romeo chuckled.
"Auntie?" Lantis blinked confused.
"Nova!" the elf yelled with a smile.
With everyone staring at Nova awkwardly, Romeo cleared his throat, before speaking in a deep tone of voice, "It is great to finally meet you two. Who wants to die first?"
Despite the bone chilling casualness and steadiness of Romeo's voice, Hikaru and Lantis stayed vigilant. They knew from Hotaru's tale that Nova had only been misdirected by Debonair and she had eventually been reunited with Nova. The same should apply to Romeo and Hotaru as well, which is why they didn't want to kill either of them.
"…Romeo," Hikaru addressed the Zagato-looking demon, "we don't have to fight like this. Debonair only wants to bring forth fear and total destruction upon this world! I know Cephiro or even life itself isn't perfect, but there are so many wonderful things that we will all lose out on if we just let it all be destroyed!"
With both Nova and Lantis staring at Hikaru at a loss for words, Romeo nodded slowly, "Truly, a beautiful sentiment…"
Before Hikaru could continue her speech, Romeo appeared before her in a flash. Faster than Hikaru could gasp, Romeo wrapped his left hand around her throat and lifted her up to his eye level. Barely able to hold onto her sword, Hikaru tried pulling away from his grip, while being stared at
"…but I just really need you dead," Romeo said with a wry smile.
"Hikaru!" Lantis and Nova both yelled out.
As he was about to crush Hikaru's windpipe, Romeo felt a sudden draft against his back, as a blindingly bright white flash struck him. A massive blade of wind had carved its way through the monsters behind Romeo and left a deep gash in the floor and ceiling. Despite all the devastation, there wasn't as much as a scratch on the back of Romeo's full-length leather jacket.
Turning around amusedly, Romeo looked past the fading remains of the monsters, "Ah, Lafarga, so nice of you to join us. I suppose sparing you was never an option."
The captain of the royal guard was gritting his teeth at Romeo while holding up his sword aggressively. He had hoped to wound this Zagato-lookalike with a surprise attack, or at least make him drop Hikaru. But despite all his training, his foe truly was as tough as Cephiro's greatest fighter. Even as Hikaru tried to slice at his arm with her fully evolved Escudo sword, the demon didn't even flinch at the impacts.
Before Romeo could taunt Lafarga any further, Nova tugged on his sleeve, "Onii-san! Hikaru-chan is mine!"
"Hmmm?" Romeo looked down at the short elf, before sighing. "Oh, fine~."
Faster than either Lantis or Lafarga could blink, Romeo threw the redheaded Magic Knight against the only intact wall around. Hikaru barely had time to catch her breath, before the wind was knocked out of her body by the impact that almost buried her. With the broken white crystal wall unable to hold her up, the immobile Hikaru fell over. Just as Hikaru was about to lose consciousness from the pain of her injuries and broken bones, she heard a high-pitched voice.
"Futura!" Primera yelled, having only now managed to catch up with Lantis. "You better appreciate this, Hikaru!"
As the blue-haired fairy was spinning above Hikaru, Nova gritted her teeth angrily and summoned her yellow glowing energy swords. Attempting to dice the gnat dressed in pink into small ribbons, her swords were stopped by the white energy blade of Lantis's sword.
"Get out of my way! Only I am allowed to play with Hikaru!" Nova snarled viciously while slashing at Lantis with her swords. "You may not have her heart! I will kill you!"
With Primera slowly healing Hikaru and Nova keeping Lantis busy, Romeo was trying to come up with a creative way to dispose of Lafarga. But before he could make up his mind, an angry figure jumped down at him from the split open ceiling.
"Haaa!" Caldina shouted, having launched herself off the walls of the upper floor.
Holding curved daggers with golden handles in both hands, the scantily clad Chizetan dancer aimed directly for Romeo's neck. Skillfully wrapping her blades around Romeo's throat like a pair of scissors, Caldina pressed her entire body weight against him. With her best efforts, her blades only left small indents on Romeo's throat. Seeing her assault had failed, Caldina pushed herself back off of her foe's neck to get some distance.
Before the dark-skinned beauty's feet could touch the ground, Romeo chased after her. Just like with Hikaru, Romeo grabbed hold of Caldina's neck, before slamming her against a wall, making her drop her weapons. Bearing the brunt of it better than Hikaru, Caldina tried prying the demon's hand away from her, but he only smiled at her.
"You should really take better care of yourself, Caldina," Romeo scolded her playfully. "If you damage your beautiful body now, there will be less for me to defile later."
Seeing the way Romeo stared at her, Caldina broke a nervous sweat and her eyes narrowed in fear. As long as she had worked with Zagato, she had never seen him look at anyone in such a carnal and sadistic manner. Almost as if on instinct, she covered herself up while turning pale, before a bright flash caught both her and Romeo off guard.
Instead of being attacked by Lafarga like Romeo had expected, he was attacked from behind. Using his speed, he managed to avoid most of the attack, but the flaming wind cutter still managed to cut his left forearm. Being forced to let go of Caldina, Romeo turned around angrily at Hikaru, who had stood back up, despite still being staggered.
Receiving the running Caldina into his arms, Lafarga gasped in amazement, "She… She cut him!"
"La… Lafarga! Caldina!" Hikaru panted; her body still sore. "Romeo can swap his spells around wordlessly! Try to attack him when he doesn't have Tungsten Defense active!"
"Hmph! Spoil sport," Romeo clicked his tongue, realizing Hotaru had informed her already. "You really had to ruin the magic trick for everyone. I had hoped to do this without ruining my clothes this time."
With the wound on his arm still stinging and burning, Romeo swapped his spells back to Tungsten Defense and Silver speed, before spreading his arms. Several parts of Romeo's anatomy bulged out, making his tall and broad form look even larger. Tensing up his muscles, Romeo's skin-tone horns turned pitch-black, causing the demon's clothes to burst open in several places. Each protrusion extended into long, thick, black horns that curved upwards on his back, knees, and elbows, and inwards on his shoulders. Growths on Romeo's hands burst open into black, three-foot-long, curved, forwards pointing spikes.
While Lantis and Hikaru had heard of this ability too, it would've been a lie to say it didn't make them nervous. Not only was Romeo even more imposing and larger looking with all the extra horns, but each of them was a lethal weapon. If approaching Romeo had been dangerous before, now it was a matter of life or death.
Caldina and Lafarga, who hadn't been told of this ability (and couldn't use offensive magic like the others) were having second thoughts about fighting the demon in melee. Even Nova, who had been engaged in a fight with Lantis just a moment ago, was frozen in fear seeing her big brother like this.
With quick and swift movements, Romeo circled around Lantis before delivering a powerful kick in the magic swordsman's back. The kick sent Lantis flying towards Lafarga and Caldina, who managed to catch him mid-flight. While the damage done by the kick wasn't enough to cripple Lantis, it had successfully separated him from Hikaru.
"Lantis!" Primera yelled.
Before anyone else could respond, Romeo turned towards the elf, "NOVA! Take care of that annoying human half yours already!"
"Y-Yes, big brother!" Nova nodded while bowing.
"Oh, but, don't destroy her body completely," Romeo instructed her, before shooting a baleful glare at his three remaining foes. "I want to know if the flesh of a Japanese girl tastes the same as one from Cephiro."
Five shocked gasps echoed throughout the white ruined corridor, as the implications of these words sunk in. Stunned by Romeo's confession of cannibalism, they were unable to react as Nova raised her left index finger into the air. In a flash of light, the elf and the Magic Knight were gone, leaving the others alone with the demon.
Even as the swarm of monsters surrounding them started moving down into the lower levels once more, they couldn't take their eyes off of Romeo. To do so meant ignoring their foe, who was far more dangerous than all the other monsters present, bar except one. Not only to those directly in front of him, but for every living Cephiroan citizen in the Sanctuary.
Lantis, Caldina, Lafarga, and Primera, were face to face with a true monster.
Transported away by Nova, Hikaru found herself in a familiar yet ominous looking world. The ground beneath her was pitch-black and rocky, while the sky above her was dark crimson. At first, she thought that Nova had brought her to the dimension where her magic was halved, but this wasn't the case. The clouds or the sky were black instead of red, only colored by the light shining the horizon. In addition, there were different sized rocks floating in the air, as if suspended in time and space.
This coupled with the fact that her magical powers still felt the same, convinced her of Nova wanting a fair fight. However, as the only ones outside who were able to break through the dimensional wall were Umi and Fuu, Hikaru knew she was alone.
"This time, there will be no interruptions," Nova said with a wicked grin, resummoning her swords. "Today I will play with Hikaru-chan until I have had my fill and made you all mine!"
Calming her mind and suppressing the pain of her still unhealed injuries, Hikaru took a steady stance with her sword. It was a pose she often used during her kendo practices, which helped her concentrate and keep an eye on her opponent's center line.
"You really, truly, honestly, won't believe that we don't have to be enemies, do you?" Hikaru asked, her heart feeling cold and distant. "Even if I were to tell you that I would like to be your friend, you still will not stop trying to hurt everyone?"
For a moment, Nova felt a shiver run down her body, as if a cold breeze had blown through her vertically. Trying to judge the feelings in Hikaru's heart, Nova was uncertain what to make of them.
Sadness? Regret? Anger? It is hard to tell… What is this feeling? Is she… Is she finally getting serious? No, it feels different from last time. Not that it matters, right?
Snapping out of her thoughts, Nova smiled before taking a stance herself, "Everything will be destroyed regardless of what happens and everyone will suffer. I may hate everything that you love, Hikaru-chan, but me, Romeo, and my sisters killing them all, is an act of mercy!"
Having received her answer, Hikaru's aura flared bright red, making the horizon behind her seem pale in comparison. Ethereal flames flared out from the edges of her aura and Escudo sword.
"…I can't do it," Hikaru sighed, staring at Nova sternly. "While I don't know how my heart created such a despicable creature, I can't bring myself to hate you. But if this is what you want, then I will make sure you will never hurt anyone else!"
Taking three quick steps forward, Hikaru jumped high into the air before swinging her sword down. A flash of burning light shot out from her sword, sending a shockwave down towards her shadow. Although Nova managed to jump out of the way of the attack, it still left a burning gash into the black rocky ground.
Seeing the devastation Hikaru's attack had caused, Nova knew Hikaru wasn't holding back this time. Before Hikaru could land, Nova combined her swords and pointed her left fist at Hikaru, firing a beam of yellow energy directly at the Magic Knight's chest. But just as the beam was about to hit, Hikaru kicked off from one of the floating rocks, before cutting the beam in half with her sword. Despite being impressed by Hikaru's reaction time, Nova quickly sent out the second salvo, by throwing her swords at Hikaru. But as the cross of light came within reach, the leader of the Magic Knights swung her sword down, slicing through the thrown weapon.
With both of her attacks deflected and her weapons crushed, Nova quickly jumped back before Hikaru could land. She extended her left arm forward, aiming for where Hikaru would touch down.
"Flame Arrow!"
With a mass of flame rampaging towards her, Hikaru calmly threw her arm forward. The spell she was all too familiar with was dispersed at her touch, exploding around her harmlessly. With her foe barely even singed by her attack, Nova's eyes widened from rage and frustration.
"How… How did you become so strong!" Nova snarled, resummoning her swords.
Despite the uproar of her shadow, Hikaru calmly walked towards her, "I didn't. I always was."
[About nine hours ago]
After being told to leave the throne room by Master Mage Clef, Hikaru and Lantis had done as requested. While Lantis had been ready to turn in for the night, Hikaru still had something she needed to ask Hotaru about. She had almost fallen asleep standing up, leaning against the wall of the throne room, before Hotaru came out.
"Hikaru? What are you still doing here? Need to talk with Clef?"
Closing the throne room door on Hotaru's behalf, Hikaru shook her head, "No. I need to talk with you, Hotaru-san. About… the story."
Tilting his head back a bit and raising an eyebrow, Hotaru asked, "What do you need to know?"
"I-I wanted to know if I w-was… I mean, w-were we h-heroes— no…" Hikaru stuttered, trying her best to word it properly.
With Hotaru giving her all the time to think she needed, Hikaru eventually asked sheepishly, "…Did the story have a main character?"
An amused yet warm smile spread on the corners of Hotaru's mouth, before answering, "The main characters were you, Fuu, and Umi. But if you want to be more specific, yeah, it was you."
"B-But why me?!" Hikaru stuttered, blushing from embarrassment. "I'm short, I'm weak, I'm plain looking, and childish…"
"Perfectly relatable then," Hotaru shrugged while smirking. "But let me tell you something."
Taking a more serious tone of voice and expression, Hotaru looked Hikaru in the eye, "You may be an innocent and naïve little girl, but you are also braver than most adults I have met. You are more determined and compassionate than anyone in our group. While that does mean you make mistakes sometimes, you are responsible enough to always correct those mistakes. And most of all, you are not weak."
Slightly taken aback by Hotaru's change in tone and compliments, Hikaru swallowed deeply, before clenching her fists, "B-But I'm… I'm constantly having to rely on others. I can't win any fights alone like you can. I can't fight off my own shadow like you. I can't protect others or confess my feelings like you could! I cannot even sleep alone… OW!"
Hikaru recoiled back from a sharp pain, as Hotaru had flicked her on the forehead. Rubbing her forehead, she looked up at Hotaru, who had crossed his arms impatiently.
"Listen up and listen well," Hotaru said in a drill sergeant-like voice. "You need to stop putting yourself down. Because guess what, I wasn't there the first time around! I wasn't here to protect you girls or to fight by your side, and I wasn't here to give you advice with all the answers."
Although Hotaru's earlier delinquency still stung, Hikaru listened closely to her teammate's words.
"You protected Umi and Fuu. It was you who charged first into battle and faced Lafarga, Inouva, and Zagato," Hotaru exclaimed in a proud yet stern voice. "Hell, you call me strong? I couldn't defeat any of those guys alone! And I didn't beat Romeo either, he just left..."
Despite Hotaru's earlier confident demeanor, acknowledging the string of his defeats seemed to get even him down. Hikaru was about to try and comfort him, before Hotaru lowered his arms to his side and pressed his index finger against her chest.
"You possess an incredibly powerful heart, Hikaru. You just need to have more self-confidence and motivation to really let it burn bright. Because the Hikaru Shidou I know, never gives up, never surrenders, and never stops fighting to save others."
Amazed by Hotaru's compliments, Hikaru found her heart warming up slightly, "But… I don't know if I can live up to those expectations, now that everything has gotten so out of hand…"
Crouching down slightly to look Hikaru in the eye, Hotaru smiled confidently. "I know you can. I have at least that much faith in you. Because if I am not around, I know you will do just fine without me. I know you will protect everyone in the Sanctuary."
Holding her sword up and taking the kendo stance once more, Hikaru breathed calmly, before her outfit changed. As Hikaru donned her Magic Knight armor, Nova saw and felt Hikaru's magical powers and flaming aura grow. Back when Hikaru's eyes had been full of confusion, self-doubt, and reluctance to fight, Nova had found Hikaru to be so cute, like a cornered mouse. But now, she could barely recognize her own creator.
"I've held back because I didn't want to hurt you," Hikaru confessed, waiting for her foe to get ready. "I was told you were being misled and that you barely knew right from wrong. But if you won't listen to me and this is what you want, then I will fight you with all my heart till you listen!"
Trying not to shiver in fear, Nova tried to gather up her anger, focusing on all the people Hikaru loved in her heart. As she went through Hikaru's feelings, she was shocked by how strongly Hikaru was thinking of one specific person at the moment.
"Hikaru… even you are thinking about that man!" Nova gritted her teeth, her aura flaring up again. "Romeo, Mother, Stella; all they ever do is keep talking about him! They never pay attention to me! I thought… I thought that I could at least be number one on your mind instead of him!"
With the dimension around Nova trembling from her jealousy and anger, the pink-haired elf's hands started cracking with yellow energy. Just like flames of Hikaru's aura, Nova's yellow magical energies flooded out of her, causing her body to crackle with yellow lightning. But despite the light show, Hikaru still stood her ground confidently, her heart not faltering even an inch.
"I hate him! I hate him! I truly especially loathe him!" Nova screamed in blinding rage, before summoning her swords. "Once we are done here, I will make sure not to leave even a memory of him alive!"
With her swords crackling with energy, Nova charged at Hikaru while yelling a blood curdling battle cry. As if completely possessed, her shadow wildly swung her swords at Hikaru, as if trying to beat her to pulp with a pair of lead pipes. While Nova's movements were erratic, Hikaru could tell they were planned and deliberate. Each swing, thrust, and lunge was aiming for the gaps in her defense so that even if they missed her vitals, they would slowly whittle her down.
As the yellow energy swords crackled angrily, Nova's attacks felt almost ten times heavier than in their previous clashes. Regardless, Hikaru managed to hold her ground and counter with her Escudo sword, matching Nova's dual wielding with her greatsword. Knowing she couldn't easily break through the guard of a foe with two swords, Hikaru instead kept her distance. While she only had a single weapon, her greatsword was longer than Nova's energy swords, giving her the reach advantage.
Unable to close the distance between her and Hikaru, Nova eventually broke out of the clash with a backflip. Combining her swords together mid-flip, Nova threw the cross of light while using her momentum to increase its speed and power. Expecting Hikaru to block the attack again with her sword, Nova brought her hands together to fire a massive beam of energy. But as the cross of light reached Hikaru, the red Magic Knight clenched her fist, before backhanding the center of the cross. The pink gem on the back of her hand flashed, showing off an invisible barrier around Hikaru, protecting her from the attack. While the barrier had protected her, she was still cut, but Hikaru didn't seem bothered by this in the slightest.
Shocked by this, Nova lost her window of opportunity to fire, not noticing this until Hikaru glared back at her sternly.
"Are you done, Nova?" Hikaru asked, taking a stance once more. "You cannot defeat me, for I refuse to back down anymore. We can continue this fight for as long as you want, but the result will always be the same!"
"You…" Nova gritted her teeth angrily, still holding onto her charged attack. "You still keep thinking about him! Well, my big brother helps me too! Ruby Lightning!"
Spreading her arms a bit wider, a ruby red ball of lightning appeared between Nova's yellow glowing hands. As the ball of red energy solidified, Nova directed her already prepared energy beams into the spell, causing it to swell like a balloon. Seeing the crimson ball of energy take on an ominous orange color as black lightning crackled around it, even Hikaru had to take a step back.
"Heehehehehhe! Do you like it, Hikaru-chan?!" Nova asked, laughing maniacally. "Big brother Romeo told me to try this combination, if I were to find myself overpowered!"
"Nova, stop!" Hikaru yelled, as the combination spell grew ever larger. "That spell looks way too unstable! You will hurt yourself!"
"I don't care!" Nova roared, before firing. "Plasma Collider!"
The black and orange crackling ball of plasma shot out of Nova's hands like a cannonball, pushing the elf back as well. While the attack was large, it was also slower than the spells Hikaru had seen so far, allowing her to dive out of the way. But even as the plasma sphere flew over her, she could feel its energy against the barrier around her. While the sensation was electrifying, it paled in comparison when the Plasma Collider struck a floating rock some ways away from them.
The floating stone was reduced to ashes, before a tremendous and violent shockwave burst throughout the dimension. The heat and pressure of the explosion swept over Hikaru and knocked the still standing Nova flying. Both swordswomen cried out in pain, as they were swallowed up by a blinding yellowish orange light.
With Debonair having made her exit, Hotaru had tried multiple times to activate his buffing spells. He had spent around five minutes struggling on the floor of the bedroom, testing out different combos. Steel Strength couldn't break through, Aluminum Flight didn't lift him off the ground, and combining it with Tungsten Defense didn't make him grow larger. All the while he was struggling to get out of the black rubber bonds and checking if the orbs on his armor glowed, Stella had watched from the side.
Eventually when he tired his now eight-year-old body out, Stella calmly picked him up off the ground. Held up like a small child by the vampiric woman, Stella sat him down on the bed, before sitting down next to him. While the way she treated him was pleasant, Hotaru couldn't help but feel the humiliation of being treated like a child, while his friends were in danger.
"Please Stella, let me go," Hotaru pleaded after swallowing his pride. "My friends are out there fighting for their lives. Even if I cannot help them in a fight I must at least try and let them know what the enemy is after!"
Looking down at him with her crimson eyes, Stella gently shook her head, "I cannot allow that, Hotaru darling. You will only get yourself hurt and complicate Lady Debonair's and Romeo's plans. This is for your own good. After this, we can be together forever."
Yeah, like Zagato and Emeraude I bet! Here I thought I could trust this blood sucker, but she is even crazier than Alcyone! …I guess I cannot find enjoyment in that fact in this body.
"If I promise not to run away… Can you please untie me?" Hotaru asked, trying to sound cute, looking at her with still flushed cheeks. "I just want to give you a hug."
Stella's heart skipped a beat as she looked into little Hotaru's big lime-green eyes. She had to use all of her self-restraint in order to not undo her spell. To release her pent-up feelings, Stella pulled Hotaru into her lap and started hugging him tightly from behind.
"Hnnnnnng! You naughty little boy!" Stella squeezed her eyes shut while nuzzling against the back of his head. "You tempt me, but I won't fall for it!"
With his plan foiled with such affection, Hotaru couldn't help but scrunch up grumpily. While being babied in this manner went against his nature, there was something oddly comforting about it. After all, he had never been hugged as a child in this lifetime, so his body seemed to naturally accept it. Maybe Aston was more love starved than he was? Knowing this might be his last opportunity to feel love before Debonair and Romeo managed to reach the crown, he decided to make the most of it.
"If you're not gonna let me go, then may I have some breakfast?" Hotaru asked grumpily. "I want to choose my final meal…"
"Hmmm… Alright, but I won't cook you anything new," Stella eventually answered. "It will be yesterday's leftovers."
With Stella setting him back on the bed and leaving, Hotaru could see that the flood of monsters hadn't stopped as she opened the door. Left alone, Hotaru tried breaking out one more time, using his own natural strength, but it was like trying to rip through truck tires. Shrunken, tied up, unable to use magic; it had been years, possibly even a decade since he had last felt so helpless.
Why is this happening now of all times! All my life I have been only looking after myself, stubbornly going forward with letting nothing stop me! And now that there are people who actually need my help, I am powerless to do anything! Why can't I do anything! …Why should I do anything?
With his heart growing cold and hard, Hotaru laid down onto his back, staring at the ceiling.
Alcyone is gone, I've essentially orchestrated Debonair's victory, and I have taken over the body of a child abandoned by his parents. What purpose do I have to live in this fantasy world, if all is lost and all I do is create pain and misery? And even if this isn't the end, even if everyone manages to pull this off without me; do they even need me? They never did in the first place…
Remembering back on the day he arrived in Cephiro, Martin remembered himself being so eager to come to this world. To finally get to go on an adventure in a fantasy world that he was familiar with. Sure, Cephiro wasn't his first choice, but he could have done worse. But now, that simple selfish desire to run away from the troubles of adulthood had turned into a disaster of epic proportions.
I should never have joined them… I should have either stayed back in Tokyo or just left the girls alone when I first got out of the Forest of Silence! But no, I had to go and try saving Alcyone! I had to go and get myself Escudo! I had to go and fuck things up for everyone involved! I should've just gotten out of everyone's way and been a forgettable side character, instead of waltzing my way across a story with so much at stake!
"And now, here I lay, surrounded by my mistakes…" Hotaru sighed out loud in English. "…At least I had fun while it lasted."
Before long, Stella returned to the bedroom, carrying a large tray with several plates stacked on top of each other. Helping Hotaru back up, the vampiric woman started slowly feeding him, smiling sweetly while doing so. With nothing left to lose, Hotaru accepted this treatment, enjoying his final meal. Although the food had gone cold, Stella's cooking was still excellent. From the fried fish, to the baked vegetables and grilled meat, it all tasted lovingly made. Yet, as he ate, he could only stare forward longingly.
"Are you all right, Hotaru darling?" Stella asked worriedly, her arm wrapped around him as she held out a piece of pie in front of him. "…Silly question, I know."
Staying quiet for a moment, thinking how to respond, Hotaru eventually looked Stella in her eyes, "Stella, out of all the mistakes that I made, I am glad one of them resulted in you."
Taken aback by this, Stella blinked at him in confusion, before forcing a smile. Before she could respond to this backhanded compliment, a loud explosion outside shook the room they were in. They both froze up as they heard several of the reddish-brown one-eyed monsters screaming in pain, followed by yet another explosion.
"W-What was that!?" Stella yelled in surprise, getting up off the bed before opening the door.
As she did so, another blindingly bright explosion surprised her, as another group of Debonair's monster minions were blown away. Seeing the flash of lightning and the roar of thunder light up the room, Hotaru tried his best to see past Stella. As the debris from the monsters faded away, Hotaru and Stella could both see a short, lilac-haired figure standing outside the destroyed apartment.
"Master Mage Clef!" Hotaru yelled out, happy to see the now taller mage.
"Alcyone's doppelganger… and Hotaru!?" Clef's eyes widened. "Is that really you?"
Before either of the kids could continue their conversation, Stella quickly picked up the still bound Hotaru. Turning her back to the Master Mage so that he couldn't cast spells without accidentally hitting Hotaru, Stella stared directly into Hotaru's eyes. Before the still bewildered child could tell what was happening, Stella's crimson eyes began to glow brightly and his eyes started to feel heavy.
"Right… vampire…" Hotaru mumbled, before falling asleep.
"…Please forgive me, Hotaru dear," Stella apologized.
With the little boy fast asleep, Stella placed him gently down on the bed, before tucking him in and exiting the bedroom. After closing the door, she could see the person she recognized as Alcyone's former master, staring at her in confusion.
What did she just do? She silenced Hotaru in almost an instant, while being gentle with him? I sensed no Magic and she didn't cast anything…
"You there! Who are you and what did you just do to Hotaru?" Clef asked, holding his large staff in front of him defensively.
Summoning her scythe-like silver staff, the vampiric woman bowed deeply and respectfully, "My name is Stella and I have simply made sure that he will not be in harm's way."
Raising her head, Stella looked at the short mage sternly yet patiently, "Despite the loathing that my progenitor feels towards you, Master Mage, I do not see a reason to harm you. If you would so kindly sit back and wait for us to be done, I will gladly spare you."
Feeling the guilt of his former student still hating him jabbing at his heart, Clef pushed back those thoughts before asking, "If you are Alcyone's shadow, then where is Alcyone herself?"
"…She has left the Sanctuary out of her own volition," Stella answered directly, choosing not to betray Alcyone's secrets. "Right now, she is somewhere far from here and…"
Stella's train of thought froze suddenly, as she noticed something that had been missing ever since she woke up. For as long as she had lived, she had felt a connection to Alcyone in her heart, from which she had been born. She could feel her emotions and desires through this connection, even where she was located. But now, there was nothing. Like an empty void at the back of her head.
"W-What's going on… where is she?" Stella asked herself, her eyes widening.
Could she… Is she… dead? No… she couldn't have died so easily! Maybe she has already gotten so far that our connection doesn't work anymore… Could it be that she is truly gone from mine and Hotaru's lives? I didn't think she would abandon us both to such a degree, but she would know what is for the best… Please be safe, Alcyone.
"…Is something wrong?" Clef asked, seeing Stella shiver slightly.
"…Yes," Stella nodded, before brandishing her scythe, "you are still here!"
With minimal warning, Stella pointed the staff-tip of her scythe at Clef, before the crimson gem on it started glowing white. A large white orb of crackling lightning formed around the gem, before being fired at Clef.
"Astra!"
Seeing the spell coming, Clef teleported out of the way of it. But despite reappearing three meters away from where he stood, he was still blown back by the shockwave, as the ball of lightning struck a wall. The crystal wall was shattered, exposing the apartments on the other side of the corridor, before large quantities of smoke and dust filled the area. As Clef struggled to see or breathe in the dust cloud, he quickly conjured a gust of wind to blow it away.
Prepared to see Stella ready to attack him again, the old mage was surprised that the vampiric shadow was standing still where she was earlier. But as the smoke cleared fully, he could see a silver cloche and a tray neatly arranged next to his feet. He hadn't sensed the gray skinned woman using magic, so she couldn't have teleported her or the cloche over to him. Though it was hard to believe, Clef could not think of any other solution, than that Stella had run to him and back when he was blinded.
"That was a warning shot," Stella stated strictly, holding the scythe in her hands like the Grim Reaper. "Leave now or you won't know which reached you first. My spells or my blade."
Taking a deep breath, Clef calmed himself, before looking at her sternly, "Apologies, but I cannot leave Hotaru behind. He is important to the people of Cephiro and has done too much for us, for me to abandon him."
Knocking the butt of his staff against the ground, Clef yelled, "Creature Summon!"
The blue gem on Clef's staff glowed brightly and sparked, before two pillars of blue light erupted from the floor. The light solidified and then turned into two large wolves with white fur, blue eyes, and a noble presence. Though the wolves looked friendly as they sat politely next to their master, as soon as they got up on all fours, their ferocity became evident.
"While your speed is impressive, do not underestimate Amarok and Lupo," Clef gave warning to his student's lookalike.
Instead of replying, Stella turned towards the bedroom door again, before pointing her scythe at it. With nary a word, a cold breeze blew from her staff and sealed the door behind a thick sheet of ice. Clef clicked his tongue, annoyed by his opponent's insight.
She figured I was going to have one of my wolves retrieve Hotaru while she was busy fighting me. I believed I could beat her with experience but this might be more difficult than I thought!
"Ice Spear Attack!"
A barrage of long sharp icicles flew towards Clef and the wolves at high speeds, this time aimed directly at them. As the wolves ran out of the way of the attack, Clef raised the tip of his staff in front of him.
"Barrier Circle!"
As the large icicles smashed into pieces upon impacting the bright blue barrier, the short mage could feel the power and weight behind them. It felt completely different from Alcyone's attack on the day the Magic Knights had been summoned, in both scale and intensity. However, as the barrage continued to focus on Clef, Amarok and Lupo ran past it to Stella.
With the wolves approaching at high speeds, Stella interrupted her spell before swinging her scythe at Lupo. Without hesitation, the white wolf bit down on the scythe blade, holding onto it tightly. But while Lupo thought it had caught the weapon, it was unable to stop it. Using her supernatural strength, Stella continued swinging her scythe, throwing Lupo into Amarok, before both wolves crashed into the frozen wall. But as Stella was busy with the wolves, this left an opening for their master.
"Lightning Bolt Onslaught!"
Several white bolts with thin tails appeared around Clef's staff before soaring towards Stella.
"Barrier Circle!"
The compact bolts of lightning exploded with great force upon impacting Stella's dark crimson barrier and the surroundings. The explosions caused the ice barrier to crack and the wolves to retreat, but Stella's defenses held admirably. So as not to damage the Sanctuary too much, Clef was forced to stop his spell early, as he saw there was no getting past his enemy's barrier.
"Naruhodo," Clef stated in a grim voice, before grabbing hold of his staff with both hands. "It seems this will be a far more even match than I anticipated."
Umi, Fuu, I apologize for not being able to help you against foes like this. I hope you two are staying safe outside the Sanctuary.
High in Cephiro's upper atmosphere, a battle was being waged in the shadow of Fahren's giant red mech dragon. Two Mashins of avian design were clashing at full force, accompanied by a bird riding prince.
After Debonair had left to reunite with her forces in the Sanctuary, the battle between Terra, Fuu, and Ferio had heated up immensely. Terra's assaults had only grown more and more intense and erratic, as she used Wingroad's sharp talons and wings at high speeds. And if the giant harpy-like mech's feral attacks weren't unnerving enough, the screams of its pilots added to the experience.
"DIIIEEE FUUU DIIIEEE!" Terra screamed like an eagle, charging in again.
"Terra, stop! Please!" Fuu pleaded, before bringing her hands in front of her again. "Winds of Protection!"
As soon as Fuu managed to conjure up her emerald green barrier of wind, Wingroad slammed against it at full speed. The evil Mashin's silver talons pierced the barrier, almost reaching Windam's abdomen and leaving green cracks throughout the barrier. Knowing what came next, Fuu flew away from her spell before Terra smashed her way through it, by stabbing Wingroad's sharp wings through it.
"STOP RUNNING AWAY, FUUU!" Terra continued screaming after tearing her way through the barrier.
This is bad! She cannot hear me through her own screaming!
Upon learning Terra's true motives and the reasons behind her birth, Fuu's mindset on Terra had changed from fear to sympathy. Her own guilt had created Terra, either to punish her or for some other reason. But after having talked to her, it was clear that Terra wasn't as bad as she had assumed.
"Terra, you are truly an honest and pure person. You have a strong sense of right and wrong, but have been misguided in how to pursue justice and show mercy! If only I had been here for you, I could have taught you myself, but instead you were taken in by Debonair!" Fuu pleaded with her shadow, while evading Terra's attacks.
As Fuu's heart ached, she hoped to get through to Terra through words, but she wouldn't listen, "DO NOT SPEAK ILL OF MY MOTHER!"
"She is only using you to achieve her own goals!" Ferio yelled back, flying atop his four-winged white bird.
Although Ferio didn't have many ranged options, he had obtained weapons from Mokona before leaving. He had already tried out a bunch of magical grenades, but their effectiveness seemed to vary from silly to horrifying. However, one of them had proven useful so far. Throwing another yellow grenade at Terra, Ferio quickly covered his eyes with his cape, as he prepared for a sudden blinding explosion.
But as Terra spotted the grenade, she closed her eyes and folded her left wing, covering her from the bright explosion. The only one who was affected by the flashbang was Fuu, but was saved from the worst of it due to being on the other side of Wingroad.
Lowering its wing, Wingroad stared up at Ferio, the look in its owl-like yellow eyes unnerving him. So far Terra had mostly ignored him since her gripe was with Fuu, but with Debonair's interference, he knew he wasn't so lucky anymore.
"You… Ferio, you were all in on it!" Terra's voice spoke out. "YOU DESERVE DEATH TOO!"
"Ferio!" Fuu yelled in horror, as Terra charged up at Ferio and the bird.
With no time to waste, Ferio quickly reached for a grenade on his bandoleer and threw it, not paying attention to what it was. As a green grenade struck a quickly approaching Mashin, there was a loud clang as the grenade exploded, revealing a massive boulder. The boulder was longer than Wingroad was tall and as wide as its wingspan, making it far too heavy for Terra to carry.
"TERRA!" Fuu yelled in horror, seeing her shadow plummet to the ground.
In order to save the peri in peril, Fuu and Ferio quickly flew after the giant boulder. They were just about to throw everything they could in order to break apart the rock, when they saw it starting to crack. By using all of Wingroad's strength and leveraging its bladed wings and talons, Terra managed to slowly break away from the rock. Eventually the boulder cracked in half, freeing the dark gray harpy mech.
"Oh, thank goodness, she managed to free herself," Fuu gasped in relief.
"Yeah…" Ferio also sighed.
"…She managed to free herself!" they both yelled at once.
"I WILL KILL YOU TWO!" Terra screamed, rocketing up towards them with her wings spread.
Bringing her legs in front of her, Terra positioned Wingroad's talons ready for grabbing Ferio's bird mount and Windam. As soon as she would have them in her talons, she would snap her wings shut around their necks, delivering a swift and painless execution. Though Terra was angry at the two of them for setting her on fire, lying to her, and badmouthing her family, she didn't want them to suffer. Although the entire world was suffering due to their actions, Terra would not bring forth the same fate to anyone.
When she was at about halfway point of her ascent, her targets turned tail and started running, but this would be too late. She had already accelerated to top speed, and in mere moments she would catch up to them and end it all. But although her eyes were fixed on the two dots of fleeing green, she couldn't help but notice something reddish orange at the top of her field of view.
Thinking this was just another load of tomato sauce coming her way, Terra kept flying straight as an arrow. But by the time she realized her error, it was too late, as she was engulfed by flames and heat. In her rush, she flew right through a massive exploding fireball that scorched and knocked her aside, disorientating her.
Seeing the fireball fly past them and feeling the heat erupting from behind them, Fuu and Ferio quickly looked in the direction of Terra. The evil Mashin was badly damaged by the direct hit from the explosion, and stunned by the force of it.
Reminded of the dancing lion they had fought before, Fuu gasped, "But… I thought Ms. Aska had passed out…"
Looking in the direction of the attack, they could see the flaming dragon head of Dome looking down at them. Its glowing yellow eyes stared at them fiercely and its many horned crown looked ready to skewer its opponents. Although the mechanical Chinese dragon looked as intimidating as ever, it was easy to spot the change in its structure; its mouth was open.
"Apologies for the delay!" the voice of a young boy echoed. "It took a while to fix and charge up Dome's main weapon!"
"Mr. Sang Yung?!" Fuu gasped in surprise.
"That little kid?" Ferio blinked in confusion, hearing the high-pitched voice coming from the dragon.
Finally getting her head straight after the explosion, Terra gritted her teeth before looking up at the dragon, "DO NOT INTERFERE WITH THE EXECUTION! EMERALD TYPHOON!"
Two enormous green gusts of wind were launched from Wingroad's wings, flying towards the Dome at high speed. The updraft caused by the spell was enough to push Fuu and Windam back quite a bit and Ferio a lot further. But as the wind spell was about to reach the dragon's neck, its maw began to glow yellow hot.
"Dragon Scroll Cannon!"
A second ginormous fireball was launched from the mouth of the dragon, accompanied by the sound of a massive black powder cannon. The two typhoons headed for the dragon were quickly swallowed up by the mass of fire, after which the blazing projectile flew straight towards Wingroad. Seeing the Mashin react to this, Sang Yung, who was watching the battle through a scoped telescope in the dragon's forehead gem, knew it would evade the fireball.
Pulling away from the telescope, Sang Yung looked to the side, "Respectable elder, please hurry with the next scroll!"
"I'm drawing as fast as I can!" Chang Ang griped. "This is the third great illusion scroll! You better make this shot count!"
Drawing a series of symbols on the side of an unwrapped great illusion scroll, the scroll began to glow bright red. While the illusions that the scrolls were used for were only for the royal family, Chang Ang knew how to use them as well. However, due to lacking the latent powers of the royal family, his illusions weren't as powerful as Lady Aska's. But, by drawing these symbols to the side of the scroll, he was able to draw out the scroll's full potential in one go.
"I hope our new allies know how much we are sacrificing for them!"
Loading the glowing scroll in the back of a massive brass cannon, Chang Ang plugged his ears, "Fire in the hole!"
Back outside, Terra had just finished flying out of the way of the second fireball, when it exploded right next to her, "AAAAAAAAHHHH!"
"Terra!" Fuu screamed in horror, seeing her shadow swallowed up by the flames again.
As Wingroad emerged from the flames, the damage was obvious. Its armor plating was cracked in several places, two of its bladed feathers were missing and half of its owl-like helmet was gone. The rest of the Mashin was covered in burns and soot, and some of its spikes were warped by the heat. In addition, just like after being burned by Ferio's white phosphorus grenade, Terra was covering her eyes while crying.
"Uuuggg… It hurts…"
"Dragon Scroll Cannon!"
Before the smoke from the second blast had time to dissipate, the Dome had already fired. This time, neither Wingroad nor Terra were in any shape to avoid the incoming giant fireball. Fuu's eyes widened and her face went pale, knowing that the crying Terra couldn't see her impending doom.
She… She is going to die!
Acting almost on instinct, Fuu rushed in front of Wingroad, before extending her arms forward.
"Winds of Protection!"
With a barrier of wind appearing before the two Mashins in a nick of time, the fireball struck against it with great force. Instead of exploding immediately, the fireball seemed to push against the green wall, with Fuu barely able to hold it back.
Seeing the fireball refusing to explode, Ferio remarked, "It must be distance sensitive… that's why the previous one blew up early!"
Reaching into his pocket, Ferio pulled out his magic orb, "Hey! Stop firing already! You are about to fry Fuu as well!"
"Terribly sorry, but we cannot unfire the Dragon Scroll Cannon!" Chang Ang yelled. "It is destined to explode when it gets close enough to the target!"
With his expression growing pale, Ferio gasped before yelling, "Fuu! Get out of there! Once it gets close to Terra, it will explode!"
"NO! I cannot leave her!" Fuu yelled adamantly, desperately feeding more magic into her defensive spell.
Withdrawing her hands from her face, Terra looked at the back of Windam through her teary eyes. As she blinked, she could see the figure of Fuu standing before her, holding the miniature sun away from her. While she knew this was the perfect opportunity to finish her off like her mother instructed, she couldn't bring herself to do it.
"Why… Why are you trying to save me?" Terra asked, trying to talk in a formal manner despite sobbing.
"Because you do not deserve to die like this!" Fuu yelled, struggling as the barrier began to crack. "You are a good girl, I know it! I abandoned you here in Cephiro all alone when I left, just like Ferio, but you still came out as such an honest and dutiful individual! So please, let me do at least this much for you! Heal yourself and get away from here while you still can!"
"But I… I…" Terra stuttered, her heart a tangled mess of emotions.
I tried to kill her, but she is still sacrificing herself to save me, to make up for what she did. I must go, I must survive, but I cannot… I cannot let a heart as beautiful as Fuu's to perish!
Pointing her aching arms forward, Terra yelled, "Winds of Protection!"
A second layer of green wind formed around Fuu's barrier, strengthening it noticeably. While the fireball was still pushing them back, the combined spell seemed to hold.
"T-Terra?" Fuu stuttered, shocked to see Wingroad's arms extend past her, almost as if being embraced. "Why are…"
"I do not want you to die either!" Terra yelled, tears dripping down her cheeks. "I see it now! A person like you *sniff* would never have abandoned me or Cephiro if given the choice! Please, Ms. Fuu, teach me how to be like you!"
"Terra…" Fuu gasped, before smiling, a small tear dripping down her cheek. "I will!"
Feeling a familiar reverberation in her heart, Fuu could hear new words echo from deep within her. Crossing her arms over her chest, she quickly pointed them forth once more, speaking with a loud and clear voice.
"Emerald Cyclone!"
From between her closely held hands, burst forth a powerful series of green gusts of wind and glowing, sickle shaped blades of wind. The wind spell first pierced the Winds of Protection without harming it, before striking the fireball. At first the spell seemed to do nothing to the roaring mass of fire, but eventually, it began to shrink. Little by little, the magical winds whittled away at the fireball, shredding it to pieces and scattering the flames into the winds.
"Amazing…" Terra gasped, feeling the calmness and caring from Fuu's heart.
Once the danger was averted, both Fuu and Terra got out of their Mashins, reuniting with Ferio atop the four-winged white bird. As they all sat down, the two Cephiro's defenders couldn't help but smile at Terra's sheepish expression. Although the tan, minty-green haired peri looked the most mature of the group, it truly felt like a child was getting ready to be scolded by her parents.
"I'm… I'm sorry for all I did," Terra apologized, looking down at the red gems on her green silk robe.
Not sure how to respond to this, Ferio rubbed the back of his head awkwardly, "I guess it's fine, we all make mistake—"
Before he could finish, Fuu pressed her palm against his chest, signaling him to stop. Turning towards Terra, she looked at her shadow sternly but sympathetically, fixing her glasses slightly.
"What you did was irresponsible and could have gotten a lot of people hurt," Fuu spoke in a solemn tone. "I know you only aimed to harm me, but you also endangered plenty of people from Fahren in your attack."
"I'm truly sorry…" Terra nodded shamefully. "I… I understand now that I should not have judged you so harshly for what you did. There… must have been a lot of factors related to what you did. The idea that you could feel guilty despite having done the right thing, never crossed my mind."
Listening to Terra speak, Fuu smiled in a motherly fashion, "You do not have to speak so formally to me. I know it can be hard for someone of your age."
Terra shook her head, before smiling, "No thank you. I like talking like this since it reminds me of you."
"She really is your shadow," Ferio said casually, before straightening his posture. "But before we get any further off topic, Terra, could you please tell us what's going on?"
With even Ferio getting serious, Terra nodded, "Very well. I was born in the volcanic wastelands of Cephiro and was flying around looking for Fuu, until big brother Romeo and big sister Stella spotted me. Sister Luna joined us later and Romeo promised he would help us find you all, but after killing… the battle against Emeraude, you were all gone. Instead, Romeo managed to find Nova and soon Debonair found us all, saying she would take us in…"
"Uhh… not what I meant," Ferio interrupted her awkwardly. "What did Debonair mean by you keeping us busy?"
"Ah…" Terra perked up, before clearing her throat. "She wanted me to keep Fuu away from the other Magic Knights while she obtains the Proof of the Pillar."
"EMERAUDE'S CROWN!?" Fuu and Ferio yelled simultaneously.
Author's Afterword: Not the best spot to leave a cliffhanger but this seemed close enough to middle of this chapter.
