235. Moons and Blood Moons

Devastation was known to follow in the footsteps of a Moon. They were best watched from afar, less one wished to be crushed by their celestial might. Stars fell into a quandary place. The majority were known to act as guides for those that were lost, like a bright star in the cusp of midnight.

But there were others who dominated the skies with their ardent heat. An inhospitable celestial body that knew only how to wreak havoc and to burn the wings of those that tried to reach them. These were known as the Red Giants, and like the Blood Moons, their apparel were dyed solely in the blood of their foes.

Unwashed and tainted, the Blood Moons bared their fangs even to other Moons.

And when two Moons collided, stragglers caught between could only hope that their death was swift.

The land bubbled and molded like putty in the wake of Cer and Res’ mortal combat against the 7 Blood Moons and the leading Red Giant. Turbulent storms of red and blue lightning reduced the urban ruins to dust. Bricks exploded like shrapnel, shattering glass and pulverizing walls as though they were made from plywood.

There were no structures on Elysia outside of the Ateliers that could withstand the breath of the Stars and Moons of the Nexus. Scurrying through the urban wastes, Cer and Res fought a defensive battle due to the number advantage their opponents possessed. Hailstorms of the red electricity whipped in their direction, attempting to maim them as they stuck close, weaving through the ruins as they simultaneously erected their Electric Field.

The red leashes could only survive for 5 seconds upon entering their 25-meter field of electricity. The Scarlet Logic Midnight Team employed hit and run tactics, avoiding entering the zone for more than necessary. Despite their ability to replicate, they did not willingly throw themselves at the triplets. Replication was not an instantaneous process, and it would take a day to return at the very least.

In the meantime, beams of electricity ripped through the cityscape as bites tore down structures and upheaved mounds of debris, showing the world with projectiles.

“Annoying! Demi-human Moons! Speed rivaling ours! Wolves as well. It’s no wonder they want your blood! If Serum S can do that to an inferior race – then imagine what it can do to others higher on the hierarchy!” The praying mantis-like Moon chattered as it scuttled side by side, attempting to whip them with their red rod of electricity.

“Keep that bullshit hierarchy talk in Gnawer!” Cer snapped her jaws into their direction, striking the Moon which chipped away at its chitin armor, and the external red metal it adorned. “It’s no wonder none of you blood ratbags ever show your faces in the Nexus!”

The damage she dealt was minimal at best. Due to the DEF stats of Moons, killing one another was a tall order. This was why Atelier Items and other forms of tactics were required to take one down.

“We could care less about what they think in that complacent state of false effervescence!” The mantis proclaimed as it clipped a wall and disappeared far behind them.

At most, a Moon could deal somewhere between 0 to 1,000 damage to one another, hence why a clash between them would stir the equivalent of an apocalypse. Eclipses were specifically honed to deal as much damage as possible whilst sacrificing DEF. Blood Moons could afford to bolster both, but also adopt pyrrhic battle tactics and debilitating equipment.

The Unstable Capturers were one such weapon. It drained the life force of its user in exchange for its mana-draining tether. Indeed. Moons were too difficult to capture in the traditional sense.

Therefore, draining their mana was one of the greatest alternatives available. Because without mana, all MAG DEF stats become forfeited, making them entirely vulnerable to all forms of attacks regardless of their apparel.

Suddenly, the whips attacked from above. The Dragonid Blood Moon gave chase as they soared the shallow skies with the wingspan of a grand albatross. They rolled and spun, avoiding Res’ attacks as they tanked several, grinning as though addicted to the searing pain of combat.

“Serum G keeps us stable. All of us come from the same blighted regions barring baggage of all fucking kinds! Without it there’d be a lot more lunatics running around!” Res shouted, defending the fluid which had kept them relatively sane during their service as Moons as she and Cer split up momentarily, the red lightning carving a gorge between them and splitting shanty houses in two perfect halves.

“Lunatics? You’re mistaken. This hatred we bare – Is the only thing we need moving forward! And to think you were given a chance to join our ranks and relish in this bloodlust against all that wronged you! We will retrieve that blood! A shame that we couldn’t snatch it from that deceased Jester –!”

Cer snapped the tips of the Dragnoid’s wings with a sudden barrage of bites. They emerged from behind the rising smoke as the distant wildfires approached.

“Cut the crap. We knew what the fuck joining Scarlet Logic meant.” Cer shouted as Res silently fumed at the mention of Ber. “Tch. True. We wanted to blow up Grandis if we had the chance! Scarlet Logic would’ve given us a reason to. But you and I both know how that would’ve turned out! How’s your bloodlust going!? Taking it all out on whoever the fuck you want rather than the ones you want! And you wonder why no one in the Nexus wants you back!?”

“Bzzt!” Ahead, a waiting Bee-Insectid glided into view, extending their arms as tiny black and white-striped larvae spilled from the holes in their palms. These larvae were weak individually, but powerful in numbers. They were an insidious byproduct created by particular Bee Insectids, mostly the Blood Moons, which burrowed into the flesh of their victims to mince their innards.

Bee Insectid could not consume hard foods, after all. Their biology forbade them. Where normal Bee Insectid devoured the golden syrup from flowers, they slurped the crimson nectar from the living.

“… I will admit… Bzzt. Conflict is deeply ingrained into us. But like you, there is a ‘Queen’ you abide no matter the internal animosity. Our discretion forever lays in Scarlet Logic! Bzzt! They are the reason why we can continue to strive forth! BZZT!”

These did not survive long within the Electric Field. But the locust swarm was enough to conceal their vision just enough for several lashes to scar their bodies, leaving behind a red static that temporarily disabled muscles of the afflicted area.

“TCH!”

“CER KEEP MOVING! BITE EVERYTHING YOU CAN!”

“ONE STEP AHEAD OF YA!”

This only lasted for a split second, however. Their Galvanic Blood ability made them virtually immune to all electrical attacks and conditions. But it did not mean they were safe from the Unstable Capturer’s mana-draining effects.

The swarm disintegrated into ash, leaving behind a foul stench as Cer closed the gap with the Bee Insectid, grabbing them from their throat as sparks travelled through its body. They brawled in face to face, tumbling in the jagged wastes. It was clear that Cer possessed the upper hand, and after enough bites and slashes, she claimed two of arms that attempted to ensnare her.

“GGGhhh BZZT! BZZZZZZT –!” They seemed to have underestimated the senses she possessed as a wolf, and the intuition she had honed. It was precisely because she valued her life that her senses had never died down, unlike the Scarlet Logic forces who fought in a predictable but effective manner. “… Serum S’s bestowment of that Galvanic Blood… giving birth to unfounded Original magic, bzzt! Magic infused with the blood itself – BZZT!”

Noticing that there was an attempt to constrict her, she fled the scene and a second later, a mass barrage of whips struck precisely where she was. The Bee insectid was instantly paralyzed and smoldering with charcoaled flesh.

“So you insect grubs reverted back to that way of life, heh. Figures. I always wondered whether Insectid actually have a brain. Turns out they might not. Fighting for a Queen? Letting someone else call the shots and letting their heart beat for you? No pity here. You deserve every ounce of living in hate if you can’t even tell your own worth!” Cer’s words echoed in their desolate battlefield.

“… 5,000 mana gone just like that.” Res sneered. “I don’t get it. Needing our blood for what? You had all this time to get it, but now you decide it’s time!? Coincidence after coincidence. Convenient lies one after another… If they had taken us seriously then Ber wouldn’t have… Dammit. DAMMIT ALL!”

“Res. I’ve got around 10,000 mana left. That thing’s multiplying the cost of our magic. Hah… Tch. Haha… Shit. Ahaha.” Cer, through rapid breaths, struggled to contain her laughter.

“Did you finally lose it!?” Res shouted, noticing a thin strands of silk ahead. “ARACHNID STRING! Clear the way!”

Cer obeyed, clearing glistening a forest of glistening strands. Res immediately focused on levelling their immediate vicinity, reducing the places the Arachnid Red Giant could anchor her strings as Cer’s cackling eventually subsided.

Then, she spoke with a hopeful grin.

“Lost it? C’mon Res. What are you saying? I just imagined Ber laughing at us. because… during moments like these, it was only us who could rely on each other. So if she heard me saying ‘Where the hell is Jury’, then I bet she would’ve parroted me with that stupid grin of hers.”

She then added as their world seemingly fell apart. A wall of flames encroached on their position. Black smoke and toxic dust concealed more than a kilometer’s worth of space. The town that once resided here was indistinguishable from a barren mesa. The sand that made up the ground was all shards of glass, brick and splinters of wood, shaven finely like sawdust.

“… I sure hope she still has that stupid grin…” Res whispered with difficulty, the lump in her throat growing at the mention of Ber. “… Cer.”

“Yeah! They still – WON’T FUCKING STOP COMING AFTER US! Yeah, what Res!? Res!? Need something!? Talk to me!” Cer panicked all of a sudden when Res went silent, but much to her relief, her sister was just fine.