Chapter 1341: All's Fair In Women and War (6)
Chapter 1341: All's Fair In Women and War (6)
The main difference between Summoners and Tamers was the creatures they were capable of beckoning to them. Tamers could only subdue creatures within Aigas while Summoners could only make contracts with creatures trapped within Stagnant Space or the Abyss, as the Cavern called it.
Summoners had to traverse to the Abyss with their consciousnesses and attract beasts that would be interested in joining hands with them; which meant their Class was rather costly. Even when they succeeded, Summoners needed huge energy reserves to summon the contracted beasts; these creatures couldn't be stowed somewhere in Aigas, after all. They had to return to the Abyss after the terms of their use or cooperation.
Some would say these costs were worth it, though. After all, a strong enough Summoner could reach the Stagnant Space bleeding out of Aigas, where some beasts which had been stranded in the great void had been trapped. And indeed, the calibre of such beasts, when compared to Cluster beasts and guardian beasts was a lot higher.
Franceesta was riding a bizarre beast, a large blue horse with a massive, muscular frame and four eyes that blazed with a red hue. On its forehead was a strange mark, squirming like water, but also like fire. The horse lunged once, its head prepared to ram into a target with the mark, and it was already upon Yuyui.
But she was faster. She surged, quicker than the horse could see, but she was intercepted by tens of large, cawing humming birds that moved as fast as Nigerra. They whipped at her, faster than light, and one of them managed to graze her with its wing. The feathers sliced Yuyui's leg halfway through casually.
'That's dangerous,' the lime-haired girl thought, but her [Tenacious] attended to her injury. As the birds rushed her, a great school of airborne fish numbering a hundred flew in, attempting to impale her. They were just as fast, not to mention coordinated. They could easily skewer thousands of Incandescent Stagers.
Yuyui evaded them all while also avoiding the charge of a strange, large palmed monkey, a jellyfish livid with cutting winds and a queer jade blob that looked suspiciously ordinary.
But then Franceesta was falling on her, her hands interlocked to drive a fatal blow into her head. Yuyui was fast enough to dodge, but the enemies were plenty. She stepped over some of them as she flashed away, but died immediately when she 'accidently' made contact with the jade blob.
She respawned, confused and wary.
'What in the world was that?' she thought, before retreating even further away.
But then...
"Majestic Territory Expulsion..." Franceesta cried from the distance.
'I knew you were going to try it!' Yuyui thought and she was gone. She went far out of the range of Franceesta's Territory, and the beast of a woman was left to roar in frustration. She had wasted her mana.
Some of her summoned, contracted beasts rushed after Yuyui, however, as did Nigerra. "Come now. You still haven't given it all, have you?" she said as her arrows stopped Yuyui's retreat. Soon, the summoned beasts were upon them both. "I told you. Don't get comfortable."
Yuyui clicked her tongue. Bubbles came blazing to her side. The enemies swarmed them in different formations.
She took a breath.
She was already exerting herself plenty, yet what she had to do next was even more draining. Yet she didn't hate it.
Bubbles was again engulfed by a bizarre orange-pink flame, Grand Flame, and his form dissolved and condensed, changing shape. He turned into a great pair of flaming scissors that Yuyui skilfully brandished against the enemies.
And then Yuyui was suddenly a blur with wisps of orange-pink. She cut down a hundred and fifty of the summoned creatures, including a part of the school of strange, impaling fishes to bits!
It wasn't a matter of strength, but speed. Even the creatures with the toughest skins were sliced through like butter, and those with vague forms also succumbed to the quick, flaming blade!
But Nigerra was hot on Yuyui's tail. The lime-haired girl noted it and flung the giant pair of scissors and it went on a rampage at ten times the speed of light, cutting, killing!
Then she turned to Nigerra. She pointed at the woman with her index finger.
Nigerra had already been bracing for an Aggrante. She recognised how deadly it was.
But she misjudged.
Yuyui's finger detached from the rest of her and zoomed towards Nigerra at a speed she had not expected at all.
What in the world...?
Before she knew it, her heart had been pierced. Yuyui's finger had borne through her chest and made its exit from her back. It had bypassed her defenses.
But how?
Nigerra was bewildered, but she also didn't expect the leg which smashed into her face, sending her spinning through the air. It too had detached from Yuyui to attack, catching Nigerra off guard. The limbs blinked back to Yuyui - connecting with [Tenacious] - as did Bubbles whose form changed from a pair of scissors to three hundred little, flaming butterflies.
This was Bubble's special property, taught to him by Skullius' fourth Apostle, Beyrmir! Using the Eye of Moving, Yuyui forced the butterflies towards many of the beast targets at more than ten times the speed of light. They struck true and killed brutally before releasing intense detonations of Grand Flame!
"RAAAAAAR!" Franceesta rushed in from behind Yuyui while Aizel surged from below. But the two women couldn't catch Yuyui by surprise. Not anymore.
Four fingers stabbed through Aizel's neck before she understood what was going on. Yuyui's hand, detached from her arm, had struck, ignoring her defenses. Aizel choked, again staggered by how this was possible.
How was Yuyui suddenly able to deliver blows that ignored her defense? This was different from when she wrenched an unsuspecting Porria's head off! She (Aizel) was prepared for that! But the answer came right as Yuyui's hand withdrew.
...!
Aizel saw it!
She saw the Eye of Dispersal attached to the hand!
...!!!
'So, that's why...!' she thought.
But almost at the same time - indeed, almost - Franceesta experienced the same. A disembodied fist smashed through her beetle armour, dispelling it, and bashed her chest in, destroying her ribs, and puncturing her heart!
After dealing with Aizel, Yuyui had immediately moved the Eye of Dispersal to a different limb in order to attack Franceesta.
And indeed, this was how she was doing it.
The interpretations of the word 'move' were endless by the Eye of Moving's standard, and as long as you could come to terms with another vague interpretation of it, you could actualise the effect, even if it meant 'moving' separate limbs to different locations! Yuyui, through Skullius' help, had made it so that Bubbles was an excellent conduit for the
Eye of Moving. He was no different from an extension of Yuyui's body, capable of
withstanding the intense powers of the eye!
The Unlimited Star had successfully immobilised both Franceesta and Aizel - if only momentarily and she meant to finish them off right then.
...!!!
But she was suddenly forced to turn behind her, immense fright in her eyes.
She had sensed something vast and potent. It was like Nitros, but bolder and fiercer. It had
sprung up for a moment and then died down. Yet, it caught her attention all the same.
'What the hell was that?' Yuyui thought, a drop of sweat sliding down her temple.
And then suddenly, arrows had appeared on her legs, immobilising her.
"Damn it!" she cursed, and attempted to free herself immediately.
"Majestic Territory Expulsion...!"
But it was too late. Even while spitting blood, Franceesta had managed it. With the opening
she had seen, she had managed a Territory Expulsion, and lucky for her, Yuyui hadn't
managed to escape this time.
"...Sovereign Beasts' Crystallice!"
The Territory engulfed everyone, including the summoned beasts.
For it was meant for the summoned beasts.
Before the GeoScape even finished forming, they grew and were drenched in immense
volumes of power that reminded Yuyui of the Stolen Angel!