“Two names down, and four more to go!” Cer shouted.

“Query. That means what exactly?” Revy questioned like a soldier.

“Indeed. This is one question I couldn’t answer.” Sana spoke in a gentler voice but carried the same crude tone.

“Six attacks! These Eternal Night things have six attacks!” Cer referenced Frost’s observations during their travels, as well as her own experiences in the past.

When she thought about it, the attacks of all the previous Eternal Night Corrupted she had fought could certainly be split into six distinct attacks.

“Get those things over and done with! Res… I can’t stand to see Res like this any longer!” Cer split the sky in half with one colossal claw. It was like a blade swung from the heavens, obliterating the claws of [Fear Attenuation]. “All this fear curled up inside of you… Why couldn’t you say thing!? Is this really how you felt!? Res… ANSWER ME RES!”

 

< “What lies beyond the veil? I’m afraid to know. We all are. That’s why we must stay blind.” >

 

As if hearing Cer’s woes, the Corrupted mused as glimmers of light appeared beyond the veil surrounding them. They were like stars of the night sky, but they carried an ominous glow found on no real star.

 

< [CENSORED: Overwhelming Repression] >

 

< “What lays beyond? It was so clear to me. Before the bloodshed, I always feared the horizons past the oceans. Because I was gifted with the sight that brought hell to us.” >

 

Res revealed a woe that Cer was never aware of. In fact, this was the first time she had heard Res talk about something beyond the oceans. Res had perhaps the best eyesight of them all. She always wondered why the world seemed so infatuated with her, to the point where the Impuritas even wanted her on their side.

Suddenly, the glimmers of light beyond the veil passed through, transforming into more Colors of the World. However, unlike the ones born from within, they were more powerful.

 

 

They spilled from everywhere, causing Revy, Sana and the Cheshire Cat to split their attention as Sana began relaying orders.

Meanwhile, Cer’s eyes trembled with sincerity.

“… Res…? Tch. Who cares about that!? Who cares what you saw!? All that matters is that you have to come back to us! Red, blue, black, white – what does it matter!? They’re just colors! They don’t have meaning! So please – PLEASE COME BACK TO US!”

 

< [CENSORED: Nightmare Fuel] >

 

< “The blood. The flames. The horrors. It plunged me into despair. On that day where we had our body parts severed from us, I had plucked my own eyes.” >

 

“… And you think you saw worse!? I don’t know what you saw out there, but what happened to us on that night… I can tell it hurts you so much. You’ve been hurting for a long time. So Res, just please, if you’re still in there – HEAR MY VOICE!”

Cer knew that whatever she did was futile. But she had seen miracles happen before. Why should the world have to give up on her sister if she could not? Cer didn’t care if the wall was impenetrable, or if the tree was too tall for her to climb.

She would keep barking up at it forever.

Sana and Revy trembled slightly, their phantasia forms wavering for a split second. The Trepidation Stacks seemed to also increase the strength of the Colors of the World. The insidious combination was truly something only a Corrupted could conceive of.

 

< [CENSORED: Sensory Deprivation] >

 

< “I closed myself up. Wore this cold persona. Friends and family constantly slept beneath the flowerbeds. The only way to stop it is to hide it.” >

 

Cer didn’t know what ‘challenging’ her meant to begin with. Before long four of six ‘truths’ were unwravelled much to her dismay. Her emotions had caused her to try to bring Res back before the Condition could occur, but now she was closer to death than ever before.

Even a Moon like her wasn’t immune to Trepidation.

Not when it concerned someone so close to her.

The black maw connected to an umbilical cord shot from her body, attempting to consume Cer. It was larger this time, and she would undoubtedly be maimed if she was caught by it. Cer wove through Res’ body that now towered them at five meters tall and wide.

 

< [CENSORED: Nightmare Fuel] >

 

< “Stirring the madness away, I remain within my cocoon, waiting for the day that this world changes for me to leave.” >

 

< [CENSORED: See No Evil] >

 

< “That’s why… everyone must also be embraced by it.” >

 

Suddenly, the fog from beyond the veil clouded their visions. Darkness Stacks were applied onto them. Cer was thankfully able to rely on her instincts as the corners of her vision were invaded by the intrusive darkness.

The others on the other hand, were overwhelmed by it. Had they not kept their weapons pointed in the same direction, then they would have killed each other. But this darkness was not the end of it. A CENSORED bar taking the form of giant syringe appeared.

Cer’s heart sunk.

It pierced through her chest.

“CER!?” Sana and Revy exclaimed.

 

Cer | HP: 38,000

 

CENSORED | HP : 430,000

 

Cer was thankfully not dead. She felt something flow through her body as she slashed the syringe away and resumed her assault.

 

< “I relied on the liquid medicine to keep it all away. But even that was not enough. I spread the poison to the others. Oh how I wish it worked as well on me as it did on them…” >

 

“Res… you… you were the one who…?”

The realization throttled Cer’s movements, as did the liquid that was injected into her. She was swatted from the air, her body colliding with two of the pillars. They crashed down like fallen spires, shaking the world as the very air vibrated.

Cer barely caught herself before she was thrown into the veil as she stood atop the shattered remains of one of the towers, her electric aura annihilating the spilling Colors of the World.

“It was never Galia’s idea…? Why would she take the blame for it? Res… Hey, Res… RES! ANSWER ME ALREADY! I’m… What the fuck…” Cer felt betrayed. Her emotions were made clear as her mouth curled downwards into a saddened frown.

It was the closest she had been to breaking down into tears.

And when it seemed like she’d drop to her knees and break –

“That… tch… like it matters now.”

– Cer wiped the blood that dribbled down her nose, her eyes filled with renewed vigor.

“We’ve been through enough shit as it is. Blaming each other now won’t do us any good. What the fuck did you think I’d say because of that, Res!? THAT I’LL HATE YOU!? You’re the only one who doesn’t get just how much I love you, Res! It’s not all about sadness or cruelty! Even someone like me can tell people the good about this world, even if it’s just a little! Because… I’ve always had you, Res. You and Ber. That’s why I can see like it’s nothing. I thought you were the same…”

Sparks of electricity fell from Cer’s eyes as she prepared to assault Res once more now that her attention had turned to the others.

“… Res. Please just wait. I’m bringing you back!” Cer’s movements were sluggish now. Her AGI was already lower than the Corrupted, making her an easier target. “Tch… One lapse of judgement. That’s all it took…?”

No matter what, Cer was not going to allow Res to touch the others. Even if they were a liability, she couldn’t help but admire their courage in the face of overwhelming power. She attacked from where she stood, sending waves of electric claws at Res as she slid down the spire.

She was about to shout at Res. To scream more again but she held her tongue. She was ‘truth’ away from opening her eyes.

 

< “There is nothing in this world considering. The colors. The flowers. They are all meaningless.” >

 

“That’s… not true…” The voice of a child spoke, somehow cutting through the thunderous booms from Sana’s weapons, and the silent thuds of the fallen Colors of the World.

Tendrils burst from the ground, attempting to ensnare Alice.

“BEHIND!”

“SHOOT IT DOWN!”

“ALICE!”

Revy, Sana, and the Cheshire Cat could not offer their hand to help. Stella on the otherhand, sensing the urgency in their voice, threw Alice aside and was immediately ensnared by the tendrils. She was dragged underground, re-appearing before the colossal Res’ face as needle-like tentacles hovered around Stella, ready to cut her open.

“RES! Please – No!” Cer could not attack her directly without claiming Stella’s life.

She sluggishly sprinted to Res, attacking other parts of her body in attempt to redirect her attention but to no avail. Desperation consumed them all. Bullets were sent directly at Res now. The Colors of the World grew innumerable.

All seemed lost.

No. It was futile to begin with. An Eternal Night Corrupted was never going to be feasible. Not in a fight like this.

 

< [CENSORED: Surgical Administration] >

 

< “Unblinding myself was the most painful. To blind myself was simple. From then on, I could no longer see red…” >