"Ivy! Sonera!" Lila signaled with her flailing arms as she zipped past the Harrow. "Spinny band!"
Rena watched with amazement as the girls pieced together a combined attack using Ivy's baton. She hadn't yet seen their fighting prowess since before she fainted in the battle against Omizen. But it soon became clear just how much her comrades had progressed.
Both Sonera and Ivy flew up into the air, their backs adorned with their well-earned wings as they began to focus their Psionic energy. Together, they called forth a horde of spinning knives and batons, multiplied greatly by Lunae's replicating powers. And with a snap of their fingers, they called down the hail of projectiles, consuming the Harrow in an unavoidable storm of Psionic fury.
The creature spun its staff with lightning speed, dismantling each projectile before it could find its mark, all the while returning the favor with a series of yellow orbs that protruded from its body before hurtling themselves towards the girls. Fortunately for Ivy and Sonera, their wings gave them unrivaled mobility as they managed to both avoid the Harrow and maintain their barrage.
They couldn't sustain it forever.
"Rena!" Lila darted over to the girl. "Grab my hand!"
The Earthling had planned on using her own abilities to initiate a surprise attack while the Harrow was precoupied. But Rena had another idea entirely, utilizing her new technique. Suffice it to say, Lila was left bewildered when she found herself transforming into a ball of misting fog.
"The what!" Lila spoke with her Psionic voice, her magenta-colored form bouncing alongside Rena. "Why am I a ball!"
"Just shut up and use your speed," Rena responded with a growl. "We need it."
"Speedy balls!" Lila cheered. "I like it!"
The Earthling blinked herself into position alongside Rena, their new round bodies making contact through an invisible static field. Using her grapple, she latched onto Rena as the two began to spin each other around like a pendulum. By the time they reached the Harrow from behind, their bodies resembled a complete circle of Psionic power.
"What?!" Ivy raised an eyebrow as she watched the rotating balls make contact with the Harrow from high above. "That's absurd."
Sonera didn't seem to care what Rena and Lila had come up with. What mattered was that the Harrow was staggered, if for the briefest of moments. She turned to Ivy and nodded silently, using her expression to call for aid.
"Lunae!" Ivy called out, pointing her hand towards Sonera as her wings evaporated, sending the heiress floating gently down to the floor.
Ivy searched through her memories, latching onto the weapon she had used against Imura just as she made contact with Lunae's mind. The story was shared, and in a fraction of a second, had been passed on to Sonera. It would be another temporary gift for the assassin to enjoy.
"Done!" Lunae responded with her Psionic voice. "Now Sonera!"
The determined girl beamed with radiant energy, her wings lit aflame as she dove towards the Harrow with a smouldering scythe in hand. The moment Sonera made contact with the creature, she swung the edge of her blade with as much strength and vigor as she could muster, cutting deep into its scaly flesh. It was a close-run thing, as the Harrow narrowly missed Sonera with the tip of its spear as she charged straight towards it.
A few inches to the left, and she would have one less eyeball.
Sonera fell to the ground, her wings shattered by efforts as she felt blood run down her cheek. Such was the impact of her swing that the radiant scythe fell to pieces in a single hit, as the vapid memories left her mind. It wasn't her story to keep.
But it found its mark.
Lunae gasped as she stood a fair distance from the Harrow, watching as a bright yellow liquid poured out from its chest. The strange substance, more akin to a muddy tendril than a river, flowed upwards toward the sky as if ignoring gravity. The enemy had been wounded.
"Yea!" Lila cheered. "It's all uphill from here!"
Ivy didn't even have enough time to yell at Lila for her arrogance before the ground began to shift, causing her to nearly fall to the ground as she struggled to balance on her heels. It was one of the few moments she was grateful to have learned to skate. Such feminine talent seemed to apply to Lunae and Sonera as well, using their background in dancing to maintain their posture as the floor slipped away from their feet.
Lila and Rena, of course, tumbled to the ground in a heap.
"What now?!" Ivy complained, stumbling her way towards Lila in a bid to assist her.
The Harrow, ignoring its wound, clutched its staff with both hands before plunging it into the earth. The entire dream began to alter itself into something entirely foreign, and after a flash of bright light, the landscape was gone.
"Shit!" Lila covered her eyes from the blinding sensation.
By the time she could see again, her surroundings were completely different. The Harrow was there, its presence felt just as distinctly as her comrades. But the arena had changed.
"What is this?" Lila pondered with a gasp, darting around in an attempt to find Ivy. "Another dream?"
From what the Earthling could tell, she was in a damp chamber of sorts, lined with hospital beds and church pews. The walls resembled rotten wood, and the carpeted floorboards appeared torn asunder as an arrangement of blackened tendrils seeped out from their cracks. She looked up to see a flickering sign, its text referring to something she knew from Earth.
"Rena..." Lila stammered. "You...were pregnant?"
The Earthling shook her head, refocusing her efforts on locating her allies. She was soon overjoyed to find the other girls mere feet away, standing upon a long red carpet that ran down the center of the room. They all seemed equally perplexed, observing the room as best they could.
All but Rena.
She knew that place. It was an exaggeration of her memory to be sure, tainted by the Harrow. But she understood well enough what it represented. And when she looked at the empty cribs that bordered the room, and the Harrow that stood silently amongst them, she fell to her knees.
"I'll find him." She pleaded. "My son. Just let me go. Let me take care of him."
The Harrow didn't respond. All Rena could hope to do was kill it and end the nightmare. But she was too weak.
Rena turned her head to face Lila, desperate to learn what she had planned next. But before she could open her mouth, the world around her froze to a standstill. It was a familiar sensation, one she remembered from days ago.
Lunae's mindscape.
"You...you again."
Lunae tilted her head, leaning on her crook with a faint smile. "You've grown."
"Have I?" Rena sighed. "My fears came to me. That's all."
"I don't beleive so. You could have run from them. Even now." Lunae explained as she stepped closer to the girl. "And on top of that, I hear you're growing fond of someone."
"You don't know me." Rena scoffed.
"I was aware of your child long ago."
"What?!"
"You yearn for him."
"He's just a child."
"Your child." Lunae nodded.
Rena grimaced. "My child."
"You considered ending his life."
"I was...desperate."
"You saved him in the end."
"Saved him from myself." Rena cursed at herself. "I shouldn't have even considered it."
"And yet still...you saved him."
"Only to abandon him once Yrix showed up." The hooded girl looked down in shame, her tiny chest stained with tears. "He's out there. All alone."
"Your guilt is what makes you alive, Rena." Lunae caressed her face with a gentle hand. "There are creatures out there that would never feel remorse for a child."
"You mean like the one I made?"
Lunae shut her eyes and nodded. "Like the one you made."
"Tell me...since you seem to know a lot about this..." Rena shuddered.
"Yes?" Lunae's breath hitched.
"Is there ever a chance for redemption? For people like us."
Lunae never had a child, yet she fully understood Rena's meaning.
"Redemption is just a word. But until we get what we deserve..." Lunae bit her lip. "We can still fight for those we love."
"You do realize you're part of that list now...right?" Rena smiled. "All you guys."
"Well." Lunae joked as she placed a hand to her chest. "I am quite charming."
Rena chuckled. "Your fat rack wouldn't mean a damn thing if you weren't so sweet."
"It means a little..." Lunae huffed.
"I'm not Sonera."
"Then again...you apparently prefer petite and chocolate."
Rena giggled for a moment before returning to her solemn self. She brushed aside her pink hair and, after looking Lunae in the eyes, nodded at her with renewed determination. There was a child to get back to. And a nightmare to slay.