"Are you sure this a good idea? As much as we hate them, we really ought to help in the war unless we want Gunlaug to win." Olivia asked.
"Oh, yeah I lied back there. I have something to help win the war." Milo stated as he dismissed his pistol and armor. Leaving him in only the under suit.
"Wait... you're telling me we're going to use-"
"I'm going to use it, you won't have to do anything."
"So that's why you made it?" Olivia stated with a new expression on her face.
"Correction, its why we made it. My flaw, remember?"
"Yeah, yeah. I just help iron out the details, you can hardly call that a joint effort."
"It's still a helping hand regardless. Besides, as accommodating as Nephis' cohort can be, I doubt they'd let us hitch a piggyback ride to the Crimson Spire if we don't help in the war."
"Right, I suppose that's fair... also how accommodating did you expect the cohort to be?"
Milo hummed as he thought, a somewhat nervous smile on his face. "I thought I'd have to kill all of them then and there."
"Would we even have won?" Olivia questioned, staring at the rifle she would've destroyed. After all, the rifle hadn't been given time to recover by the time Olivia had arrived.
"Honestly, I don't even know. It was a huge gamble... I suppose this is the best we can do."
"I see..."
"You see everything, its your Aspect." Milo said in a whimsical tone.
"That wasn't funny dumbass." Olivia muttered, smacking Milo upside the head. Nearly causing him to fall out of the seat he had just taken in the basement forgery.
"Ow... sorry, also, I might actually need one favor."
***
The crowd that was going to storm the Bright Castle was assembled. Eva had to personally make sure that the Fallen Knight was defeated and that Sunny got Weaver's Mask. It was like Master Chief's helmet.
'Actually, that comparison doesn't make sense. Master Chief never takes off his helmet, Sunny on the other hand...'
Eva looked at the banged up boy not to far from her. Perhaps somethings were best left in their bare glory.
Eva was so distracted that she didn't notice the person who slipped into the crowd. Well, anyone who looked it at could hardly call it a person if they didn't know who owned the armor.
The trial by combat was brutal, Eva had to admit this wasn't exactly as she imagined when she read the fight herself. Nephis was practically being tortured, and having experienced the pain of having her hand cut off... Eva could only imagine the pain Nephis was going through.
That was until Nephis had put a crack in the visor of Gunlaug's golden armor. However, before she could even blow the pollen of the Blood Flower into the crack, a wisp of purple zoomed through the air.
It went straight into the crack of Gunlaug's armor. There wasn't the dramatic last moments of the Bright Lord's reign. The only thing that was given was a swift end. Gunlaug hadn't even been able to confess his efforts.
'Milo?!' Eva turned around, and sure enough, at the back of the crowd. There was Milo in his full glorious armor.
Tessai stared at Gunlaug's corpse, then looked back at the members of the Host. "What are you waiting for? Kill them all."
Just like Sunny had described, the grand hall descended into chaos. Eva quickly summoned the [Stone Blade] and gave a whispered command to Sunny.
"Go deal with Harus."
Sunny quickly went and tackled Harus, the two of them having their own battle. With Nephis not getting the final hit on Gunlaug, she wouldn't have absorbed any new soul essence or developed a new soul core.
It was alright in the end, Eva might've spoiled the cohort too much when she had first met them, meaning Nephis should've already been at three cores by now. Eva herself had to make sure she didn't get assassinated by Milo.
While doing so, she cut down any guard or hunter in her way. This battle was an amazing source of enemies defeated for the [Stone Blade] after all. Easy pickings were easy pickings.
Eva also saw Nephis cutting down enemies who charged at her or setting them aflame. Gemma was damn near unkillable. However, an energy filled the hall. An energy that couldn't be seen or heard, but one that could certainly be felt.
It was nearly instantaneous. One moment Gemma was just fine, the next, his face was charred, flesh and bone marked with black ash. Then it happened again, and again. The energy repeated and repeated. Milo had joined the fight and already killed one of the faction leaders.
With Caster free from fighting Gemma and with Milo joining the battle, the tides turned towards Changing Star's side.
Eva dodged the axe blade from a giant guard, and then pierced through his stomach with her sword. She then cleaved a hunter halfway through her waist, following it up with a kick.
[Quiet Dancer] flowed and moved around Cassie as it parried incoming attacks and slashed through anyone who dared approached it's master.
Milo wasn't using his prosthetic... which was strange, but there must be a reason. Despite that, he was using the [Prototype] and sweeping house. Guard or hunter it seemed no one stood a chance against him. Not only that, he seemed to be taking damage like it was nothing.
Chunks of his arm and leg had been destroyed, but he didn't even seem to be bleeding from them. He was moving way too fast for Eva to get a good look.
'Ah, I see now. That was his Dormant Ability after all.'
***
Sunny stared at the hunchback, otherwise known as the Bright Lord's slave, otherwise known as Harus... disgusting, just looking at this bastard made Sunny feel disgusted.
"Harus, how glad I am we are finally alone. Do you know how much I loathe you? How much I've come to wish for nothing more then the splitting of your head from your shoulders. A slave of your own free will? Is that really all you are?! Just knowing you exist makes me want to puke."
Harus looked at Sunny with glassy eyes, eventually a sigh left his mouth. "You talk too much... fellow slave."
Sunny's eyes widened, then he gritted his teeth. Harus seemed to smile at his reaction.
"Ah... the look of a worm caught dead in its tracks."
"How did you-"
"We are kinship, I can smell it on you, the smell of chains." Harus let out a scratchy laugh. "Yours smell... of gold. Kehehehe!"
Sunny threw the [Prowling Thorn] at Harus, who dodged it hastily and dashed at Sunny. One moment, Harus was meters away, the next Harus was directly in front of him. Sunny circulated his essence through his body, making him faster, making him stronger. At the same time, Harus had taken his vision making Sunny rely on his Shadow Sense. Luckily, Eva had made Sunny spar against her with only Shadow Sense.
Sunny punched towards Harus who dodged. Harus allowed the chain around his hand to wrap around Sunny, rooting him in place. Harus then grabbed Sunny by his throat.
"Let you die a slave, worm!"
Sunny punched at Harus' face to no avail, except those weak punches quickly gained a sharp edge. The [Moonlight Shard] pierced through Harus' eyes, and it didn't stop there. Sunny stabbed at Harus' face over and over again. The left side of Harus' head resembled a piece of cheese more then anything. Bleeding holes and the schlick of more being made filled the corridor. Along with anguished cry's of despair and anger. Eventually, Eva's command dragged him away from the corridor where he left a mess of what he wished he had. Sunny wish he had a choice, and he just killed someone who had made that choice long ago.
Eventually the cry of the shadow stopped, for a shadow must always return to its master, no matter how little it wants to.
***
Milo blinked as he sat up from the chair in the basement. His head felt wonky, and all the functions of his body renewed his sense of feeling. Using the shell he and Olivia had built turned out to be a surreal experience. You don't notice your body pumping blood throughout itself until you don't have any for nearly thirty minutes straight.
Olivia was sat across from Milo, eyes watching the stairs that led down to the basement. She smiled as Milo had woken up.
"Destroyed?"
"Seems like it. I couldn't see anything so I'm assuming someone targeted the head." Milo made sure to unsummon the [Mobile Suit] and the [Prototype] which meant only the copper body would be left on the scene.
"Ah, real shame, I did saturate my soul core entirely after killing Gunlaug the bastard.
"Good on you Olivia... good on you."
"So, what do we do from here on out?"
Milo summoned the [Frigid Cooler]. "Bide our time, no reason to intervene any further, besides I'd rather not put our necks on the line."
Olivia reached into the [Frigid Cooler] making her way past some delectable meat and instead opting for the alcohol further down. "I'll drink to that."
Milo sighed. "Of course you will." but his mind was far into the future.
'I'll kill you Eva, I'll kill you for sure. When we siege the Crimson Spire, I'll have your head.'