A mountain of flesh.
A single omen.
A rhythm to die with.
Incipents swam around Sonera like a school of fish, waiting patiently for her to fall from the mountain of corpses she stood on. With nothing but her growing insanity keeping her alive, the assasin climbed her way to the top, dueling every bold Pennant she came across. A radiant sword in one hand, along with a revolver in the other, her breath fell silent.
Sing for me.
The waking world froze in place, causing Sonera to jolt with fright. She stared down at the gnashing jaws of her enemy, realizing they had become harmless so long as she remained in her stupor. Even Yrix was unedetectable, merely a figure in the distance, cemented in a moment of glory by the mindscape.
Only Sonera knew what it felt like to be transported. That familiar sensation was absent, save for the chill down her spine. Wherever she was taken was far closer.
My angel.
The assasin clutched her head. She half expected it to be riven with searing pain. But to her dissapointment, all she could feel was an oddly relaxing sensation.
"You-..." Sonera muttered.
Last she heard from the mysterious voice, she was fighting like an animal within Rena's dream. It seemed whoever she spoke to cared little for what she killed. All that mattered was the taste of battle.
"Who are you?"
Survive.
Find me in the deepest pit of your heart.
"But-." Sonera stammered.
Sing to the deep.
Or fall to the Euphony.
Sonera woke to a loud drum, its deafening sound shaking her very bones as she nearly tumbled to the ground. The waking world had been revived, and with it, the hunger of the Infestare. This time, however, it seemed matters had escalated, given the presence of a strange musical beat beyond the horizon.
Drums and strings.
"Seems we got their attention." Yrix chortled, her voice reaching Sonera after what felt like a week of nonstop combat. "They bring out their warchants only for the worthy."
"What?" Sonera nearly threw up her arms as she kicked away an Incipent with her sharp heel.
The assasin was about fed up with her frustrating situation. She may have signed up for battle, but the relentless happenings of the past few days had begun taking their toll on her. For the first time since she entered the Aerie, she felt lazy and impatient.
"Infestare rituals," Yrix explained. "Music is one avenue they use to explore their death-worshipping magic."
The horizon lit up with a sickly green as an entire army of Infestare emerged from the soft dirt around the Aerie. From Incipents to Tillers, every manner of creature began converging on the Arch-Flayer's position. Sonera herself seemed like nearly an afterthought, her efforts potent yet unmistakably minor when compared to Yrix.
"What do we do?" Sonera's breath hitched.
"Getting bored? We fight. They're your people now, too."
The assasin nearly flinched. "What?"
"Revel in their blood." Yrix laughed. "Your marriage to Lunae has already sealed your fate."
The music of the Infestare seeped into Sonera's body, filling her with an excited energy. If Lila were there, she would have equated the feeling to "crack". Such details meant little to the Arch-Flayer, however, who seemed overjoyed to have someone to share the moment with.
As if heeding the voice within her heart, Sonera began to enter the musical trance willingly. And as her wings sprouted from her back, gliding down from the mountain of corpses and onto the battlefield below, she felt herself hum a tune. Her radiant sword, basked in a flame far greater than before, began to reshape itself.
Gone where the simple craftsmanship of humanity, replaced by a curved edge adorned with strange runes. Sonera barely had the time to take it all in, swinging her new weapon at the Infestare and slicing through them like butter. But once she earned a moment of retrospection, she felt the sting of disdain.
Her sword was of Consortium make.
"The great Psions of legend used blades like that." Yrix gleefully explained, using her own copy of the blade, albeit awash in a purple glow. "See, your hilt even bears our cultural markings."
"Shut up." Sonera retorted, using her own Psionic voice to jab back.
She had never managed to speak to Yrix like an equal before, especially not through the mind. But Sonera was becoming bolder.
Stronger.
What little regrets Yrix may have faced with allowing Sonera to join the fight were long gone. She had gotten exactly what she wanted out of the invasion. In fact, the most cunning aspect of the Arch-Flayer's mind suspected the entire situation to be a hoax.
And she was right.
"Your enjoyment brings out your true self." Yrix mused.
Sonera hissed with her tounge. "They aren't my people."
"Well, they are Lunae's."
That truth had been exposed long ago. Yet for reasons she could not begin to contemplate, Sonera had run from it. She wasn't ready to face the consequences of her passion.
"Cats out of the bag now, I respected her privacy as long as I could." Yrix continued. "She's Infestare."
"I said shut up!" Sonera screamed, grabbing an Incipent by the skull before caving it in.
"What's the matter?"
Sonera had no clever response. In fact, she couldn't even come up with something blunt anymore. She was in complete denial.
It was somehow easier to stomach her own ailing condition than Lunae's identity. Imagining the perfect angelic girl who had so easily stolen her heart as some sort of all-devouring monster was simply out of the question. To avoid such thoughts, Sonera shut her mind, focusing only on the emotions of the fight ahead.
Numb satisfaction.
By the time Sonera reclaimed her ability to think, she had moved far past the fringes of the Aerie. The sheer ferocity of her battle, as well as the constant pressure from the Infestare, had forced her away. Though, as was expected of Yrix, it was all part of the plan.
"We're clear. Initiate bombardment on my position," Yrix spoke calmly as she stared up at the stars.
High above in his lofty warship, Executor Premus stood at the ready. He was expecting an absurd request from Yrix, yet unlike a commander unfamiliar with her style, the tall Daragen was eager to comply. With one single wave of his monstrous hand, he signaled for the vessel's entire underbelly arsenal to open fire.
"Do prepare yourself." Yrix snickered as she pulled Sonera to her side with a tight grasp.