The mist thickened around the graves. The air was so cold it hurt to breathe. Mizu staggered forward, his hands trembling, not from fear but from the sight in front of him.
Rika.
Her body glowed faintly with red light, her steps slow, unnatural, as though strings were pulling her. Her eyes were dull, empty, but the faintest flicker of fire burned in them, struggling to break free.
"Rika…" Mizu's voice cracked, heavy with desperation.
She turned her head slowly, her lips curling into a smile that wasn't hers.
**"She belongs to us now. Leave… or be buried beside her."**
Sayos swallowed hard. "Yeah, nope. Not a fan of demon-Rika. Can we get the old version back? The one that yells at me?"
"Shut up," Honkai muttered, his eyes narrowing. Lightning crackled faintly around his arms. "That's not her voice. The Graves are speaking through her."
Lucy growled low, her fur bristling, tail stiff as she lowered her body to pounce. Her blue eyes never left Rika.
---
Mizu stepped forward. "Fight it, Rika. I know you can hear me."
For just a second, her eyes flickered. The red glow dimmed, replaced with faint orange sparks. Her lips parted, as if trying to form words.
"Mizu…" she whispered. Weak, fragile, but it was her.
Mizu's heart leapt. "Yes! That's it, keep going!"
But the mist surged around her, and the red glow blazed brighter, swallowing her again. Her body stiffened, and she raised a trembling hand. Fire gathered in her palm, but it wasn't the warm red they knew—it was blood red, unstable, hissing like acid.
Sayos cursed. "That's not good."
"She's fighting herself," Honkai said grimly. "If she loses… she won't come back."
---
The Graves whispered louder, their voices weaving through the mist:
**"Stay with us… abandon the pain… surrender."**
Rika dropped to her knees, clutching her head. Flames flickered violently around her, switching from red to white to blood-red again. Tears streamed down her face, sizzling as they touched her burning skin.
Mizu took another step, ignoring the cracks forming in the stone beneath him. "Don't listen to them! Remember who you are!"
Her voice broke, half hers, half theirs. "I… don't know if I can…"
Sayos stepped forward, trying to lighten the crushing weight in the air. "C'mon, Rika. You still owe me for saving your ass back in Copaeyris. You can't check out before you pay up."
Her lips twitched. A tiny laugh—hers—escaped before the Graves drowned it out with a guttural hiss. The red fire roared higher.
---
The cavern shook. The runes on the graves pulsed, spilling crimson light into the mist. Shadows crawled across the floor, reaching toward the group like hands. Lucy leapt, tearing at them, her fangs glowing blue, but more kept coming.
Honkai slammed his fists into the ground, lightning blasting outward, scattering the shadows. "She has to choose now!"
Rika's body arched backward, a scream tearing from her throat as her crystal flared. Her voice split—half hers, half theirs.
"I… won't… break—!"
The Graves roared through her, their words rattling the cavern walls.
**"Then you will burn with them!"**
---
Flames exploded from her body, forcing the group back. Mizu barely raised a shield of water in time, but the heat still scorched his skin. Sayos was thrown against a grave, coughing blood. Lucy yelped as she slid across the floor.
When the flames cleared, Rika stood in the center, her crystal glowing a deep crimson. Her eyes lifted, staring directly at Mizu. And this time, it was her voice that spoke—steady, sharp, final.
"I made my choice."
Mizu's breath caught. "Rika…?"
She raised her hand. The crimson fire swirled into a spear, unstable, hissing with power. And she aimed it—not at the Graves, not at the serpent's remains—but straight at the group.