1891-1892 eng

1891 Negative Power

Earlier...

On the highest floor of the ancient Citadel, Nephis was standing in the middle of a blooming garden. All around her, heavy branches leaned under the weight of scarlet flowers, and a sweet fragrance permeated the air.

Three women surrounded her — one of them was Moonveil, the Princess of Song. The other two were most likely Reflections created by Mordret, the estranged son of the King of Swords.

Drops of blood were falling from the cut on her cheek.

Nephis looked at her fingers, which were smeared in blood, with a frown.

'They prepared well.‘

The current situation was troubling enough, but what dismayed her more was how thoroughly the daughters of Ki Song seemed to be informed about Godgrave and the movements of the Sword Army.

Venturing into the Hollows should not have been an easy task — otherwise, she would not have needed an army of Awakened soldiers to carve a path through the scarlet jungle. She could have simply led a team of Saints on a clandestine excursion.

But she had not. That was because while Saints could brave the perils of the Hollows, they could not do it for long. Sooner or later, they would meet something that they could not defeat or escape from — and even if they didn't, their essence would run out, leaving them stranded in the heart of the ancient jungle. Then, they would die.

Even with a guide like the Lord of Shadows, her own forces had only dared to descend into the Hollows after reaching the vicinity of the Second Rib ~ and that was already a much more dangerous plan than the initial one.

Knowing where exactly the Citadels were located was supposed to be an advantage of the Sword Domain.

However, Lightslayer and her sisters had reached this Citadel first, and without an army. Gods only knew how they had managed that, but they had... was it because of the Beast lineage? Or something else entirely?

Worse than that, they seem to know too much about the champions of the Sword Army. Song definitely had spies among the warriors of Valor, but were they that capable? Or was it all due to Death Singer, the blood oracle? After all, although the future could not be glimpsed anymore, the same could not be said about the present.

Or was it all the fault of the Prince of Nothing? Had he done more than just fight his way to the Nameless Temple when visiting the Lord of Shadows before the war?

Nephis did not know, but she did know that the Sword Army — her army — had failed to outmaneuver the enemy.

Now, her Saints were being slaughtered down below. The Lord of Shadows was fighting Dark Dancer Revel, whose powers seemed to directly counter his.

And she herself was cornered by Moonveil, somehow robbed of her powers.

The situation was dire. Not only had Song managed to take control of the Citadel, but they could very well deal a fatal blow to the Sword Army by eliminating fourteen of its Saint, including two of its strongest champions — herself and Sunny.

Sunny...

The image of him bleeding on Revel's sword flashed in Neph's mind.

He did not really bleed, but still...

The corner of her mouth curved downward, and her gaze grew cold.

She looked at Moonveil and said in an even tone:

"Your power is to negate the Aspects of others."

The princess of Song just smiled silently.

'What a potent Ability...‘

Nephis strained against the imperceptible barrier that prevented her from summoning her flames, but it was all for naught. It was as if her Aspect did not exist at all... or rather, was subdued. She did feel a sense of resistance, but the force of suppression was too great to overcome.

Even her Memories seemed to be weakened. Perhaps that was why the moonlight arrow had pierced the armor of Saint Sagramore so easily.

Perhaps if Moonveil was alone, Nephis could have broken through — her Aspect was of the Divine Rank, after all, and she was of divine lineage. Her soul was that of a Titan. But the power of two Reflections seemed to have been added to the geas, making it nearly indestructible.

Lightslayer's power directly countered that of the Lord of Shadows. The Saint of Sorrow could prevent Sir lest from playing with the minds of Ki Song's daughters.

And Nephis herself was countered by Moonveil — or rather, Moonveil was a natural counter to any Awakened. That delicate woman, with her slender build and soft features...

Was probably the most dreadful for any Awakened could face.

There had to be some limitations to her power, certainly. Otherwise, she would not have transported Nephis away from the rest of the Saints — she would have simply negated all their powers, turning them defenseless.

Nephis looked at her bloodied fingers once again.

'The arrow.'

She had only discovered that her Aspect was sealed after the moonlight arrow cut her cheek, and some of its radiance seemed to linger in the cut.

Nephis remained motionless for a moment, then turned her gaze back to Moonveil.

"You said that the name Black Moon suits you better."

The Princess of Song smiled softly.

"Indeed."

Nephis took a deep sigh and circulated her essence.

IIer Aspect was sealed, but her essence could still move.

Therefore, the situation was not too dire.

It could still be salvaged.

Because she had noticed that Moonveil... Black Moon... was not using any of her Aspect Abilities, either. So, suppressing someone else's powers must have come at the cost of suppressing her own.

Which meant that Nephis was still a Transcendent Titan facing three Transcendent Beasts. Although her body was still that of a human, she was stronger and faster than most other Saints. She would not lose to anyone in a conquest of pure physicality and skill.

No...

Those Reflections could have been mirroring a Transcendent being, but she could feel that they were much more powerful than Moonveil herself. Supreme Beasts, then.

It was still not impossible for her to win.

And even if it had been impossible...

She would win somehow, anyway, because defeat was not an option.

"Thank you for telling me, Black Moon."

Saying that, Nephis dashed toward the daughter of Ki Song without wasting another breath.

And as she did, she burned her essence and spoke the Names, channeling them into a crude Phrase.

In that Phrase, the name of Black Moon was woven together with the name of destruction.

1892 Purity of Steel

Moonveil was armed with a saber. When Nephis attacked, her own sword — the Kinslayer — fell on it like a bolt of silver lightning. She had activated one of its enchantments, infusing the somber blade with elemental damage, and, at the same time, called upon the Nameless Sun and the Testament of Malice.

The former gifted the mirror sword with the ability to damage souls, while the latter augmented its edge with a corrosive quality — not too potent, but cumulative.

Nephis had activated the enchantments of her armor, as well — those were mostly defensive in nature, supporting her body in its lunge.

The more enchantments she used, the more of her essence would be drained. But without the demanding expenditure of her Divine Aspect, essence was the only thing that Nephis had at her disposal — there was no point in trying to conserve it.

All her Memories were augmented by the Crown of Dawn, which she had worn since the Forgotten Shore. And yet...

The suppressive force of Moonveil and her Reflections was so powerful that the Memories still felt weak and impotent. It was as if her armor was made of paper, and her sword was made from rusty steel.

The Kinslayer still held, but Nephis had a feeling that she would have to request another suit of armor from the enchanters of Clan Valor after the battle was over.

Sadly, they could not craft her a new body.

Despite Moonveil's soft appearance, she was a skilled fighter — Nephis would not have expected anything less from a princess of Song. Additionally, her delicate body seemed to possess fierce, bestial strength. She deflected the Kinslayer easily, shifting her weight and placing her saber at an angle that would both channel and dissipate the force of the impact.

Moonveil's expression was calm.

However, it changed the instant the two blades met.

Nephis had barely started to construct the Phrase, but it was already starting to Shape the world. The blade of the saber was chipped deeply and almost shattered, while Moonveil's bones almost snapped. The Queen's daughter reeled back with a stifled hiss, and looked at her opponent with a stunned expression. Nephis had no time to enjoy her shock.

The two Reflections were already upon her.

There was a swarm of sparks swirling around her arm — the Memory she was trying to summon only took a few short seconds to manifest. However, in a battle like this one, a few seconds could become an eternity.

The world exploded into a whirlwind of violence.

Nephis was strong and swift, but fighting against three enemies was a losing affair. Neither Moonveil nor the Reflections were weak, and they had the priceless advantage of being able to attack her simultaneously from all directions, working together to mangle her body and end her life.

All Nephis had was her swordsmanship... but that was what she knew best. Everything seemed to disappear into the melodious song of steel. Her mind was cleansed of all unnecessary thoughts, entering a state of absolute, transcendent concentration.

A million observations, conclusions, and calculations were being conceived in it at the same time.

Nephis knew her every muscle, every tendon, every bone, every nerve. Her essence flowed and raged, enhancing her body just at the right time, and in just the right amount.

The length of her sword, the tensile strength of its silvery blade. The multitude of forces affecting what each impact did, and how it was resolved. The movements of her enemies, and those of her own — all of it was like a complicated dance that followed a beautiful logic, and one who understood that logic could set the pace and cadence of the dance.

Above it all was another, much more labyrinthine layer. The layer of skill and intent. Nephis understood them well, too — granted, her insight was inferior to what Cassie was capable of, and Sunny seemed to be as well. But it was enough to read what the enemy would do, most of the time.

So, she held on.

Her sword was like a flowing stream of silver metal, moving so fast that it almost seemed to turn into a sphere around her. Her every step, every move were flawlessly calculated and optimal, allowing her to defend against the three enemies at the same time. She blocked, deflected, and evaded a suffocating onslaught of blows, preventing Moonveil from making her bleed.

For now.

It was... strange, to fight without using her Aspect.

Nephis had almost forgotten what it was like, to only rely on her trained body and her skill as a swordsman. True, she called upon her powers as scarcely as she could, always attempting to win without resorting to her Aspect — but the circumstances rarely allowed it, and even if she managed to hold out, the knowledge that her flames were hers to command was always there.

She had expected that having to fight without them, and even without the possibility of summoning them, would be limiting and suffocating.

But, in fact, it was liberating.

It was almost euphoric, because for the first time in a long, long time... she was free of pain.

Such a simple thing, but it changed the feeling of this battle completely. Nephis should have been tense, somber, and on the verge of despair.

She should have been clawing at the chance to turn the situation around.

She should have been missing her powers bitterly.

But instead, she was relieved.

The relief washed over her like a tide, and the simple delight of giving herself completely to the sword put a faint smile on her face.

Her smile seemed to surprise Moonveil.

The princess of Song hesitated for a moment, then asked between two graceful slashes of her saber:

"Why are you smiling, Changing Star?"

Nephis blocked an attack from one of the Reflections, caught another blow on her vambrace and staggered back, feeling a stream of blood flowing into her palm.

Her smile did not waver.

"It's just... refreshing. To be powerless, for once."

With that, she released the hilt of her sword with one hand and outstretched her bloodied palm outward.

At that moment, the swirling sparks finally manifested into a Memory.

That Memory was a torch of black wood, a mass of ghostly blue flame burning in a silver cage on its top.

The blue flames reflected in the placid depth of her calm, grey eyes.