The chilling, giggling laughter still echoed through the ruins of Ashwind Post, now as silent as a graveyard. Faint black smoke, still lingering, periodically obscured the view before slowly drifting away, revealing the slender figure of a woman standing prominently on a pile of wooden debris, still licked by orange-red flames in the background.
She was "Viper," one of the Seven Hunters of the Nebula Empire.
Her raven-black hair, long and flowing like the night, was loosely tied, revealing an oval face adorned with a uniquely twisted smile. Her bright red lips curved upwards as if amused by the scene of devastation before her. Sharp, amber eyes, like those of a serpent, with vertical pupils, stared at the newcomers with a gaze full of mockery and curiosity. A tight black leather suit accentuated her curvaceous figure, elegant yet deadly. And most striking was a long, slender, pitch-black tail covered in shiny scales, its tip swaying slowly back and forth, like a venomous snake waiting for the right moment to strike.
"I thought the filthy rats would have scurried away by now... turns out they just ran back to die in their own nest... heehee... how adorable," Viper's sweet yet chilling voice broke the oppressive silence.
"You!" Kiana roared, her fiery eyes blazing with an almost explosive rage. She gripped her twin swords so tightly her knuckles turned white. "You're the one who did all this, aren't you!"
Viper giggled again. "All this? You mean... this little bit of cleaning up? Oh my... I must say... I was just following 'orders,' dear. But I couldn't help but add a little 'color' to it... to make it more 'memorable,' you see." She licked her lips with a small, satisfied flick of her tongue.
Without waiting for Viper to finish, Kiana roared and lunged at her enemy with maximum speed, crimson flames engulfing her twin swords as if to incinerate everything in their path!
"Too slow, little one," Viper cooed, but her body moved with ghostly ease, dodging Kiana's furious attack. Her long tail whipped out like a black shadow, striking Kiana's side with swift and brutal force!
"Ugh!" Kiana cried out in pain, her body slamming into the crumbling remains of a wall. Though her leather armor absorbed some of the impact, the pain from the blow shot through her body.
Bacchus and Taurus roared simultaneously, rushing Viper from two directions. Bacchus's giant fist, enveloped in a dense brown aura, aimed to crush her delicate form, while Taurus used his rock-hard forearms to try and grapple her.
"Oh dear... such bad manners... ganging up on a little lady like this," Viper said, her voice sounding almost plaintive, but the smile on her face widened. Her body twisted, narrowly evading Bacchus's punch, while her long tail whipped around Taurus's ankle, yanking hard and sending the giant crashing down with a thunderous thud!
Ryu seized the opportunity while Viper was focused on Bacchus and Taurus. He closed in with wind-like speed, his katana flashing, aiming for her neck. "Shadowless Sword Dance: Moon Sever!"
Clang!
The tip of Viper's tail, now seemingly "solidified" like a black blade, whipped up to meet Ryu's sword just in time. Sparks flew as metal struck metal. The impact was so heavy Ryu was forced back several steps, his eyes widening slightly in surprise at the strength hidden in that tail.
"Not bad, little samurai boy," Viper complimented, but her eyes were still full of amusement. "But this... isn't enough to 'play' with me, you know."
As the physical battle raged fiercely, Da Vinci, watching from a distance, frantically analyzed Viper's movements and abilities. The golden brush in his hand trembled violently, the black light emanating from it now exuding a faint, chilling aura. He could sense an invisible, terrifying, and dangerous "energy" being released from Viper...
And then it began...
"Ahhhhh!" Kiana, who was about to get up and attack again, suddenly screamed in agonizing pain. She collapsed to the ground once more, clutching her head, her eyes wide with terror. "Leo! No! Don't hurt him! Stop! Stop it now!" she yelled hysterically, staring at the empty space before her, as if seeing a horrifying vision.
"Kiana! What's wrong!" Ryu shouted with concern, still having to watch out for Viper's attacks.
Viper giggled with satisfaction. "It seems the little one is 'seeing' something interesting... heehee... painful memories are so 'sweet,' aren't they?"
Da Vinci's eyes widened. "Illusions! She's using psychic power to attack us with illusions!"
Before he could finish, Bacchus, who was about to charge Viper again, froze. His body trembled, his eyes wide as he stared at the ruins of a hut. "No... you guys... why did you come back... I told you to run!" he roared in confusion and pain.
Even Ryu, with his strong mind, began to feel a strange dizziness, and an image of the village he had left in the past flashed in his mind without warning.
Raven, providing covering fire from a distance, frowned slightly, her pistols momentarily still, as if fighting something unseen.
"All of you... have fears hidden in your hearts, you know," Viper said coolly. "And I... am just 'pulling' them out for you to 'admire'."
Suddenly! A shout came from behind the ruined battlefield.
"Everyone! Watch out! This enemy uses psychic attacks!"
Kairo, leading a small Spark Faction team of about four or five, appeared on the remains of a still-standing wall. They were fully armed, their faces filled with alarm as they saw the devastation of Ashwind Post and Da Vinci's struggling group.
"We're here to help!" Kairo shouted. "Where is Elder Eldrin! Has anyone seen him!"
Kairo's words snapped Bacchus out of his confusion. He looked towards the ruins of Eldrin's hut nearby. "Over there! I saw the Elder fall over there!" He had been knocked near that area earlier and remembered seeing Eldrin's still form under a pile of wood.
"Damn it! We have to save the Elder!" Taurus roared, trying to push through the debris towards the spot Bacchus indicated.
But then... Taurus's body froze, his eyes widening in pain. "Ugh... poison..." He looked down at his leg, where two small fang marks were visible, along with a dark purplish liquid rapidly seeping into his skin! Viper's tail, which had previously been lashing out as a weapon, now had a tip as sharp as a "syringe-like barb," and it had "embedded" deadly poison into Taurus without him noticing!
"Hahahaha! Got one, did I... big guy?" Viper laughed with satisfaction. "My poison... it will slowly eat you from the inside... torturing you until you die, you see!"
"Taurus!!!" Bacchus roared, charging Viper again with even greater fury. But Viper dodged agilely, simultaneously releasing waves of psychic energy at him, causing Bacchus to start seeing illusions of his fallen comrades dying before his eyes.
Meanwhile, Kairo ordered two Spark Faction members to quickly help Eldrin. "Go! Check on the Elder, quickly!"
The two Spark Faction members nodded and tried to push through, but then they froze, their faces pale, eyes wide with terror.
"What... what is that..." one of them murmured, trembling. "It's... it's so dark... help... I don't want to die..."
"Don't meddle with my prey, dears... you extras," Viper's cold voice sounded. She didn't even look at the Spark Faction members, but her psychic power spread out, engulfing the area, causing those with weaker minds to fall into a trance of fear, seeing their worst nightmares. They couldn't move to help Eldrin, only stand there trembling and screaming pitifully.
Kairo saw the situation was dire. He leaped down from the ruined wall, drawing his long sword. "Arbor Power: Iron Vines!" Numerous thorny vines shot out from the ground, aiming to bind Viper. But those vines "withered" and "disintegrated" mid-air as they approached Viper's body!
"Such petty power... you think you can stop me?" Viper scoffed.
The situation worsened with each passing moment. Da Vinci's group was being overwhelmed by Viper's psychic attacks and deadly poison. The Spark Faction reinforcements could do little. Eldrin lay dying alone...
Kiana, slumped on the ground, her eyes fixed on Eldrin's nearby form. Though illusions of Leo still tormented her, the sight of the leader she respected about to die before her eyes... was the last straw...
A single tear rolled from her bloodshot eye... but that tear... it was as scorching as a drop of molten metal...
"Enough..." Her voice was hoarse and trembling. "Enough..."
The aura of heat around her began to erupt again, but this time it was different... it was no longer an uncontrolled inferno... but "condensed" and "darkened"...
Her eyes, once confused and fearful, now turned a crimson red like boiling blood, with a blackish glint flickering within...
Two small, blackish-red horns began to slowly sprout from her forehead...
Fine, blackish-red scales started to appear on her arms and neck...
"You... vermin..." Her voice was lower and huskier than before, but filled with a terrifying power.
Viper, who was enjoying torturing her prey, suddenly paused, sensing the abnormal energy from Kiana. Her smile faltered slightly, her serpentine eyes narrowing as she looked at the red-haired girl with a mixture of curiosity and surprise.
"Oh my?... What have we here?" Viper cooed, but her eyes began to shine with a dangerous excitement. "This little one... still has secrets hidden, does she?"
Kiana didn't answer. She merely lifted her head slowly, staring at Viper with an inhuman gaze. Blackish-red flames began to blaze violently from both her palms. The ground around her started to crack. The heat radiating from her was so intense that even Ryu and Da Vinci, who were not far away, had to turn their faces away.
"You... will... PAY!!!"
A guttural roar echoed from Kiana's throat. It was no longer the voice of a young girl, but the voice of a demon unleashed from hell!
As the roar ended!
An immense aura of blackish-red flame erupted violently from Kiana's body! It shot up into the sky, momentarily obscuring the sun. The explosion of energy sent Viper and everyone else nearby staggering back several steps!
"ARGHHH!" Screams of pain echoed everywhere.
When the smoke and dust from the explosion began to clear, the sight that appeared before everyone still conscious made them gasp in stunned disbelief!
Kiana... or what used to be Kiana... stood tall amidst a vortex of blackish-red flames. Her body looked slightly taller. Most of her skin was covered in strong, glossy blackish-red scales, like ancient warrior armor. The small pair of horns on her forehead now looked sharper and more formidable. Her fiery eyes blazed with an abyssal black flame. Immense, though still somewhat incomplete, blackish-red wings spread out menacingly from her back. Long, sharp claws grew from her fingertips and toes. And most terrifyingly, the immense energy radiating from her body was filled with rage, hatred, and the raw, primal instinct of destruction!
This was no longer the Kiana they knew...
This was... an avatar of flame and fury!
Viper, who had been thrown several meters by the blast, slowly pushed herself up. The psychotic smile on her face was gone, replaced by wide-eyed surprise mixed with extreme excitement. She wiped a trickle of blood from the corner of her mouth with the back of her hand...
"Hee... heehee... HA... HA... HAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!" Viper burst out laughing, her voice no longer mocking, but filled with genuine "satisfaction" and "hunger"! "Excellent! Absolutely excellent! I never thought such pathetic prey... would have such an amusing 'toy' hidden away! Hahahaha! This time... I might have to get a little 'serious' myself!"
Viper licked her lips again, her serpentine eyes fixed on Kiana's semi-draconic, fiery form, her own gaze blazing with equal intensity.
Meanwhile, Kairo, trying to regain his footing after being thrown by the explosion, stared wide-eyed at Kiana's transformation. "Th-that... that kind of power... could it be... the legends told..." He could feel an ancient and terrifying energy emanating from Kiana... an energy similar to "something" he had only heard of in myths...
Da Vinci stared at Kiana with shock and concern. The "black light brush" in his hand trembled violently as if it would shatter. He didn't understand what had happened to Kiana, but he sensed this was an extremely dangerous power... a power that might consume Kiana herself...
Kiana, in her semi-draconic, fiery demon form, no longer paid attention to the sounds around her. Her abyssal black eyes were fixed solely on Viper... the one and only target of all her rage...
"You... will... DIE!!!"
That final roar echoed throughout the ruins before Kiana's form shot towards Viper with unimaginable speed and destructive power!
The real battle... had only just begun!
[End of Chapter 42]