She ran through the crevice carved open by her own hands, sprinting toward the pure white surface gleaming in her sight.
The sharp end of the blade she had used had snapped upon contact, a clear sign that the surface marked the end of the smooth sailing she'd enjoyed up to that point.
When Blue reached it, and the light washed across her face, she couldn't help but wonder whether Rita was truly beneath it all.
There wasn't much she could think of to do besides examine it.
So she touched it, and the moment she did, her body severed its connection to her mind, and she collapsed, limp.
When her eyes opened, she found herself in a white expanse.
She could neither hear nor see anything within it, so she was inclined to believe she was alone.
Soon, however, she sensed a presence behind her, and when she turned, she broke into a smile.
"I knew you were odd from the start. So you were here, after all," Blue said as she walked toward the figure.
"Hehe, you caught me." Whitney stepped closer as well and met her with a tight embrace.
"Damn it, you should've said something sooner," Blue complained as they finally released each other.
"I'm sorry. I was only hoping you'd prioritize yourself a little more," Whitney replied. "How are you?"
It was a strangely casual question for a moment like this, but Blue could tell there was more behind it than what appeared on the surface.
"Honestly, I don't really know, but I'll figure it out once I see that stupid girl again."
That was the best answer Blue could muster.
And in response, Whitney turned around and began walking ahead.
"Come with me," she said after pausing for a moment to let the girl trail her. And without a second thought, Blue obliged.
…
Tyson's back slammed brutally against the ground, the shallow water doing nothing to soften the impact.
However, he vaulted back up immediately and sprinted toward Cosmo instead of leaping back up toward the spire.
The reason became even more obvious when Cosmo suddenly dodged a strike aimed at his head, one that grazed the ends of his hair.
He followed up with an attack of his own, an attack that could rend anything his hand crossed like a scalpel, but the spire quickly dashed out of its range.
It was able to move without touching the ground by stepping on the very air, a feat made possible by the spatial attribute of its abilities. This further dissolved its limitations as a humanoid entity.
Still, its escape had been anticipated.
Cosmo traced its trajectory through the air with two fingers and triggered a reaction he had been preparing all along.
BZZOOT!
A small but potent beam shot toward it, and the creature had to redirect much of its mass into its arms to reduce the damage.
When the beam proved relentless, it chose to divert it instead, turning aside and letting it scorch the walls behind.
Did you really think I'd let up that easily?
A massive surge of water suddenly enveloped the spire from below. Simultaneously, Tyson closed in, ready to break it by force.
"Tyson! Burn the water below you!" Red came plummeting straight toward it, shouting while gripping two chains.
"What?!"
"Just trust me!"
He plunged into the sphere of water Cosmo had trapped the spire within, swimming dangerously close.
Close enough for the spire to strike him.
However, Red's speed remained intentionally unaffected by the water, and he guarded against the attack with the chains in his hands.
As soon as the spire's limb became entangled, he retreated from the water and leaped back toward Cosmo's position.
In turn, Cosmo passed him and received the other ends of the chains before gripping them tightly.
Those two are always taking the convoluted route.
Tyson thought as he struck the ground beneath him.
Unexpectedly, the water ahead ignited and led a chain of explosions into a massive torch that engulfed the spire.
By rapidly altering the ratio of the water's chemical bonds, Cosmo was able to transform the water into a volatile fuel that amplified Tyson's flames even further.
KRRRAAAAEEE!
The spire shrieked once more before leaping out of the flames aimlessly, exactly what they hoped for.
"Charge."
Cosmo pulled the chains taut before sending an intent directly through them.
Immediately, both the spire and the structure were engulfed by an uncountable torrent of lightning.
Red yanked Tyson off the surface before the spire was forced to drop back down, causing the voltage to surge through the water and everything within it.
"I can't imagine that kind of attack not leaving lasting damage."
Tyson muttered, as even he was unnerved by the heat blazing off the scene.
"Sadly, nothing we've done has been aimed at defeating it directly," Red admitted. "If they could, then it wouldn't have been in a position where those attacks would land anyway. Nevertheless, the only way we can take it out is to destroy its entire being in a single moment."
"By destroying this entire structure," Tyson finished the thought. "That's why he asked us to break whatever we could? How much could that help if it can just regenerate?"
"He probably has something prepared. I'm sure there's a singular point within every possible outcome the spire could shift toward that Cosmo has accounted for. That has to be why he needs Rita to be quickly rescued by someone else. To ensure that the singular point is always within sight, he's resolved to unleash that attack no matter the circumstances at that moment."
Tyson swallowed.
"That's… eccentric."
"True… but it works. By having that intention, he's managed to narrow the spire's vision by a significant amount."
The implication was that their Captain was making a dangerous bet. Gambling on Blue and Yon to free their comrade before a certain moment. A moment, he fully intended to eradicate everything in sight without hesitation.
It was immoral and somewhat cruel, but the effect was that the spire could no longer perceive outcomes beyond that moment, forcing it to devote its efforts primarily to killing Cosmo in a desperate attempt to create or perceive a new outcome.
Red clicked his tongue before looking up.
"I'm starting to think we're not as much help as we could be."
"Oh? Then what more can we do?"
A body flew past them and slammed back-first into the wall of the cocoon with a loud thud.
""Damn!""
"Don't you 'damn' me right now, get your heads in the game!"
Cosmo groaned as he peeled himself off the wall.
The spire was below them, breaking apart the remaining chains and approaching once again as its body grew anew."
"About that, Captain. Is it all right if we take a slight detour?"
Red said as he pointed upward.
Cosmo followed the gesture with his gaze but saw nothing besides the hole he had made to enter. Still, he correctly assumed Red was referring to a certain tactic that would benefit them in the long run.
"Alright, I can buy you a bit of time, but as much as I hate to admit it, my brain can only handle so much."
"Got it."
After that response, the two shot upward while Cosmo dropped straight down to intercept the spire.
BANG!
He countered a full-power strike with one of his own, having his jaw cracked to return a flick that blew off his opponent's head.
The spire regrew its missing parts while his scales mended him internally.
It was an unhealthy tactic he had fallen into, becoming a reactive fighter instead of the initiator.
It was the best way he'd found to adapt to its ever-changing tactics.
Unfortunately, he had to remain one step behind, and he could only wish he could see its intentions ahead of time.
Then again, that kind of power wouldn't help much.
If he became someone who could read ahead in battle, then he would also become the one the enemy adapted to, turning the fight into a race to one-up each other, bringing them back to square one.
Heh, it'd almost be like that paradox about the chicken and the egg. I wonder what would–
Cosmo's mind wandered for a moment before he snapped back in time to dodge a row of wooden spikes erupting beneath him.
This was a side effect of using his gift under emotional strain he wasn't accustomed to. His actions would slip into his subconscious, and he would have to force himself to regain focus.
"We're patching in long-range attacks again?! Good idea!"
The spire leapt away as a row of ice-forged spikes tried to impale it.
As their battle escalated further, Cosmo was suddenly distracted.
Yon? Not this again…
He had sensed a certain disarray in Yon before. And it was on that fateful night. However, he had been forced to ignore it.
He could tell it was more than simple mental distress, but he couldn't pinpoint exactly what it was.
But now it had resurfaced at a critical moment, and it became painfully clear that the boy was in a dangerous situation.