[Transformation, Corruption, Tokusatsu Themes]

“We should’ve brought an umbrella, sheesh…”

The somber tone of one young Hiro Fukano echoed throughout the homely diner, the sound of sizzling pans muted by the heavy rain pouring down outside. The woman was drenched, most of the white in her outfit having soaked up a ton of water from the lack of any sort of cover, but…

“Eh. It could be worse. It could be way worse.” Her superior, Tsukiko Tsurugi, muttered as she grabbed ahold of her scarf and wrung the equivalent of a big puddle out of it, making an enormous wet spot on the floor below. “Come on. They’re waiting for us.” She said, her trademark cheery tone completely gone from her voice as she stepped passed several tables.

Hiro narrowed her eyes a bit as she followed behind the silver-haired woman. She didn’t say anything, she just watched her carefully. Wondering where the woman that had taught her so much had gone. She had heard she had fought against the weird girl that tried to eat her yesterday, but that didn’t explain why she was in such a terrible state of mind…

When she woke up from that fight, she was in bed. And her superior was laying with her head resting at its side, tears running down her cheeks. She didn’t ask why, nor could she even believe a woman like her could feel this sad. Thus it lingered on her mind as she went back to sleep, the question ruminating inside her head as long as she slept.

Even now, after they had sat in silence together before they came to the diner… They didn’t talk to one another. Unless it was absolutely necessary, and even then the usually spirited woman didn’t give her any kind of reassurance. It was chilling to see her act this way, but more importantly…

It just made Hiro feel like she had done something wrong. Why else would she be like this?

As the two made it to the end of the diner, they saw three figures. Two of them were familiar, as they had talked with them during yesterday’s escapades. Haruhi Kaneko, the golden partner of the silver-haired woman, and ‘Rose’, the Monster that had tried to terrorize them during the incident three days ago. And between them…

“Tsukiko and Hiro, I presume.” The brunette clad in a green sweater, making her utterly unassuming compared to her two compatriots who were wearing their much more extravagant and easily identifiable casual outfits, chimed with a bit of warmth to her words. “Take a seat, if you’d please? We have a lot to talk about, given what Hopper told me.”

Both the black-haired woman and her silver-haired companion nodded, the latter looking out the window as she held her scarf in one hand. She didn’t seem to be present, at least not mentally.

“If Kaneko-sensei’s Hopper, and Rose is a Bat, then…” Hiro tried to use logical deduction as she pointed her finger to the golden woman and then the blonde in the red dress, slowly pointing towards the brunette as she tilted her head to one side. “Theennnn..?”

The brunette chuckled and shook her head. “I’m not a Monster, Hiro. My name is D’Or. I’m what you might call the brains behind the operation.” She explained, bowing respectfully towards the two women. “Or, if you want something less formal, you could consider me their guardian. Not in the literal sense, but more in the caregiving sense.” D’Or continued, smiling warmly just like a mother would.

“Guardian’s stretching it, D’Or.” Haruhi spoke up, glaring towards her ‘leader’, only for that glare to intensify as she noticed that the blonde was leaning into her beautiful body. “Bat. You’re not helping. We’re supposed to be working to give people a chance to live the lives that they deserve.”

Rose stuck out her tongue at her companion, causing the older woman between the two to laugh at their antics. “It fits, Haruhi. As long as we keep working with one another, you need somebody to keep you on a short leash. Your temper’s gotten the better of you, more than once.” The oldest of the three ‘villains’ rebutted her companion’s mean remarks, slowly rubbing a hand along her back…

Tsukiko didn’t pay attention to the antics that were going on in front of her. Not when her mind was still on what happened the day before. Not when she still heard the sound of blood dripping off her hands. Not when she still heard that chilling laugh as the girl disappeared into nothingness…

Hiro frowned a little as she looked at her superior, grabbing her by the shoulder. “Tsurugi-sensei… You have to say something. You can’t just stay silent the entire time, what happened yesterday? What’s got you like this? Why aren’t you smiling?” She asked several questions, her heart sinking with every ask.

“She’s thinking about what she did to that weird monster.” Rose spoke up, still nuzzling happily into D’Or’s side with a bit of a somber smile. “Hopper couldn’t believe it either. It was like there was a real person inside of her, or that she had been twisted in the first place into that form. And because she was so real, the shock of her passing away got to Tsukiko.” The blonde explained, sighing. “You both saved us, I don’t see why you gotta be so worked up about it.”

The way she just brushed aside the loss of life caused both the golden and silver women to slam their hands into the table, the latter immediately broken from her somber state as they shouted in unison. “TAKING A LIFE IS NOT JUST SOMETHING YOU DO ON A WHIM, ROSE! IF YOU DO IT, YOU HAVE TO LIVE WITH THE BURDEN THAT YOUR LIFE WAS WORTH MORE THAN THEIRS!” Both of their faces steamed red with emotion, such a stark and sudden shift in demeanor from both of them.

“SHE… She was a monster, you’re not wrong. But that didn’t mean we had to kill her. We could’ve made her see things the right way. Just like Haruhi wanted me to.” Tsukiko muttered, burying her head against the back of her hands. “It’s not right for me to decide if she should live or die…”

D’Or nodded. “It may not have been, Tsukiko. But if you didn’t act, several more would’ve died before she did. If not worse.” The brunette offered her perspective, gently running her hand through Rose’s hair and letting the blonde locks interweave with her fingers. “Rose could’ve been eaten. Your little Hiro could’ve fallen just the same. It’s because you two chose to act and defend them that they’re still here.”

“Still, if I could’ve, I would’ve-”

Hiro tightened the grip on her superior’s shoulder. “Tsukiko-sensei.” Her voice lowered an octave, while her eyes merely pitied her. “It’s all well and good to think about what you could’ve done. But… You said it yourself. You have to live with that burden. You can’t just run away from it by wishing you could’ve done things differently.”

“...Since when did you learn about morals, Hiro-chan?” The silver-haired woman muttered, her mood slightly improving as she saw her subordinate stepping up to the plate.

The black-haired woman smiled. “I learned by watching you, Tsukiko-sensei. You may not take your own advice and you might simplify things a bit too much, but you have a good head on your shoulders. You don’t need to worry so much about what you have done, just don’t forget it.” Her words came from the heart, accentuated by her smile reaching from ear to ear.

Haruhi nodded along with her subordinate’s peptalk. “She’s right. You’re weak like that, Tsukiko. You give into your emotions and let yourself be driven by them. You accept the status quo as it is and work to keep it like it is, while also driving others to take their own stand. You’re a walking paradox of morals, and..:” The golden woman closed her eyes. “I wouldn’t want you any other way. Because it’s that two-faced way of looking at things that makes you so attractive.”

“Who are you and what did you do with Hopper?” Rose chimed as she looked out from the brunette’s side, causing the golden-haired woman’s veins to pop and grow visible as her anger started filling her heart. What a teasing little shit…

Tsukiko couldn’t help but laugh at the antics of her friends and enemies, the tears slowly streaming down her cheeks. “You three… How come I ended up with people like you?” She said, a smile slowly creeping onto her face. A sincere smile, one that came straight from the heart. “Thank you all. I can’t believe I tried to shut you all away, just because of that…”

“Just remember, Tsukiko.” D’Or spoke up, keeping her supportive and motherly smile on her face. “You have to always remember what you’ve done. Even if the three of us end up against you, should you choose to fight against what we want for the world… I would want to know that the woman that I fight against can be trusted to keep the world safe. And if you know what you can do with all of that power, and how much of a danger it can be, then I’m certain you’ll be able to avoid any more unnecessary casualties.”

The silver-haired woman nodded. “Yeah. I’ll try and do that. Can’t guarantee I’ll be good at it, but I’ll try what I can. That’s all you guys can ask of me, isn’t it?” She chimed, and all four nodded in unison. All of them were smiling at her, happy to see that the woman they had grown to respect was back.

“Yeah. Thanks, everyone.” Tsukiko chimed, only to climb up over the back of her chair and onto the chair behind her, letting her shimmy out towards the path that led out of the diner. “You guys order something, I’m going to go outside and clear my head a bit after all of that.”

The three ‘Monsters’ each nodded and waved goodbye for now, but Hiro stood up and followed behind her for a moment. “Tsurugi-sensei. Are you sure you’re going to be alright?” She asked, wanting to make absolute sure that she wasn’t going to go outside and do something stupid.

“When’d you end up being the one checking up on people, Hiro-chan?” The silver-haired woman chimed, tightening her grip on her scarf as she whipped it around her, wearing it as normal despite the water still weighing it down. “I’ll be just fine. Keep Haruhi-chan and Rose company, I’ll be back after I get some fresh air.”

She walked outside, leaving her subordinate behind as she took the deepest breath of air she had taken in a while. The weight of a death… The weight of what she had done, lifted off her shoulders. It wasn’t gone, but it was safely and snugly stuffed away inside her heart. Forever engraved, forever ensuring that she would never forget it.

“Knowing that I didn’t do anything wrong, at least comparatively, is great… But it’d be even better if this damned rain went away.” The silver-haired woman muttered as she stood underneath a bit of roofing that jutted out from the diner, allowing her some cover as the rain kept pouring down and around her…

Tsukiko kept standing there, closing her eyes and letting the sound of the rain take over for a bit. It was relaxing. refreshing. She couldn’t really worry about anything with it drowning out everything. Whether she had killed somebody or not, it didn’t matter as the falling droplets smashed into the ground and muted it…

“Hey! Cool miss!”

A familiar and excited voice echoed around her, as a sandy-blonde girl ran up behind her and nearly bumped into her shin. The same girl had been at the Amusement Park just a couple of days ago, when the silver-haired woman had managed to save everyone on the ferris wheel.

“Hm? Oh, wait, you’re that kid with the mom and the boy. How’re they holding up, kiddo?” Tsukiko recognized her, grinning a little as she kneeled down to be at eye height with her. “And what about you too, kiddo? Are you doing your best? Tryin’ to keep your own family safe so they don’t end up like that momma did?”

The young girl nodded rapidly. “He’s still kinda mad about Monsters and all, but he’ll get over it. He’s always gotten over that stuff. His mom’s good too, but she’s a bit green. Like, more green than her hair. But it should be fine soon!” She explained, blushing as the older woman ran a hand through her cute bangs. “I’m doing good too! I told my Mom about everything that happened, and she was impressed that I tried to keep my friend calm! She also told me to not get into trouble again, and I’ll do my very very best!”

“Glad to hear it, kiddo. Heading home now?” Tsukiko’s heart audibly beat in response to the relief she felt from hearing the kid out. Yeah. What D’Or and the others had said was right. She fought to protect people, and sometimes she had to accept that somebody had to die to save them. Otherwise, more people would die.

The girl nodded, giggling a little. “Mom let me eat at the nice diner today, but I have to be home soon. Otherwise she’s gonna get worried, thinking I spent all of Dad’s money.” She chimed, turning towards the road leading away from the diner as the rain finally died down. “I won’t be all wet either, it’s gonna stop soon!”

“Better head home soon then, kiddo. Don’t want to get soaked by another rush of rain.” The silver-haired woman chimed, patting her on the head before standing tall, watching the sun slowly poke out through the grey clouds above.

Her little fan nodded rapidly, waving as she started running backward. “Byeeee Cool miss!” She shouted, quickly disappearing into the distance as the sun shone down on her.

Tsukiko grinned. The fact that a little girl like her, who didn’t know her or cared about her like either of those four inside, treated her like she was a hero… Yeah. She needed that just as much as the talks from her friends. Now, it was about time to… To…

...Why was the sky starting to turn black?

The rain had stopped, and yet right after the sun shone down, everything was turning literally black. Like the world had been blanketed in a thick sheet of darkness, just like…

Her memories flashed before her eyes. The words the monster named Luna had left them with. The foreboding premonition that they both felt after all of that. It… It wasn’t real, it couldn’t be real… And yet, if this very same darkness that was blanketing the world was real, then-

“Tsurugi, what the hell is that?” Haruhi came out of the diner, joining her partner in looking up at the blackened sky. Her expression was a lot more serious, as she had paid full attention to what the girl had been babbling about when she passed away.

A shrug came in response, the silver-haired woman knowing just as little as her golden partner. “Whatever it is, it can’t be good. It’s probably related to that Luna gal. Maybe that Mama she spoke of? Who knows.” Tsukiko chimed, trying to downplay the way that she had begun to shiver. Her memories were doing a number on her.

“Great. I didn’t have time to repair the Hopper System because of your little episode yesterday, so I’m going into battle with lessened abilities. It’s just one woman, but I’d rather…” The golden woman started whining, only for her eyes to narrow and quickly pull the silver woman closer to the doors leading into the diner.

Before Tsukiko had a chance to really question what the big deal was, she noticed something out of the corner of her eye. People were getting out of their homes, and all of them were looking up at the black blanket that had covered the world. And while some of them were naturally just as bewildered and even angry as her, some…

Some were spasming. Some of them were breaking into fits, their bodies convulsing as a shade of black started to cover them. Just like the shield that had tried to stop them from piercing through the girl. It was like a cocoon had swallowed them, and once it finished processing them…

They were replaced. With girls that looked almost identical to the one that they had defeated, each of them equipped with slightly different outfits. But the maniacal expression and tentacles were still there, ready to be used against anybody that would dare stand against them…

“Oh my god…” Tsukiko muttered. Screw her guilt at killing a single girl, having to deal with all of these would literally traumatize her. Not only that, but this was corruption on a scale that couldn’t be compared. “Haruhi, this is… This is terrible!”

Haruhi nodded, gritting her teeth a little. “...Tsukiko, I’m going. My abilities might block out the influence that the darkness has on people. You stay here. I don’t want you to fall, not yet.” The golden woman explained, her body shining for a brief moment as her carapace formed, taking on her true Monster form. The one that hadn’t been enhanced by the Hopper System. “It’ll buy us some time to figure out how to stop this, at any rate.”

“Yeah, I getcha. Stay safe and don’t overdo it.” The silver-haired woman patted her on the shoulder, and the grasshopper-themed woman nodded in return before practically disappearing from her sight, using her jumping skills and her antennae to protect herself from the influence of the black sky above…

...Tsukiko couldn’t just stay there. Her heart had been dipped in too much heroism to just let people get corrupted like this. Her best bet would be to find the source of all this corruption, and then beat her up. Sure, she’d be killing somebody again, but… This time, she had no other option. If her continued existence was causing people to turn into girls like Luna, then…

She heard the doors to the diner open, and she turned around to see a black-haired woman standing there, watching her carefully. A woman that had been watching ever since she went to take a breather.

“Tsukiko-sensei…” Hiro said, slowly trying to step outside, only to be blocked by the silver-haired woman. “W-Why are you stopping me from… seeing… the sk-”

Her words were cut off as the heroic woman’s scarf popped up in front of her face, and her body got shoved into the diner with the doors shutting behind her. “Sorry, Hiro-chan. Not chancing you getting turned into anything.” She muttered underneath her breath as she pulled her scarf back, closing her eyes as her body started glowing with energy.

She had to do something. Before her friends got turned. She could feel her belt materializing, as she raised her hand into the air…

‘Do not worry, Jõtaider Shadow.’ The voice of a certain brunette projected through her head. A voice that made her heart be at ease. ‘We will ensure the safety of your protege. You do what you think you need to do.’ It continued, bringing her further relief.

To think that she could rely on the people that were just recently her enemies. “People really can change. Especially me, huh?” Tsukiko chuckled a little as the energies swirled around her, while she held her hand as flat as a blade…

Only to cut through the air in front of her, chopping the multicolored energy into two separate streams as she screamed out her signature phrase, mobilizing into action in the process-

“HENSHIN!”

---

“Seiryu, Byakko, I need to ask you two something.”

The voice of Atlas Grimwald echoed through his communicator as he looked out at the black blanket that had seemingly been pulled over the entire world, to the point where it was above even the highest floor of his beloved main building. All he could see outside of the windows of his Penthouse was a black void, seemingly unending.

“What the hell am I looking at, and why-” His question was cut off as a massive array of static started flowing through the device, causing the short albino boy to narrow his eyes and toss it away. “Great. Fantastic. As if this day couldn’t get any worse. First the rain, now this shit.”

Just as the youthful looking CEO started complaining, a hole opened in the middle of his Penthouse, a black-clad white-haired girl climbing out with a devilish gleam in her eyes. “Food, food for Luna!” The monstrous girl giggled, the tentacles that replaced her legs spreading apart and multiplying as teeth upon teeth lined the edges of those limbs…

Atlas looked at the one who had invaded his private office, adjusting his tie slightly as he felt his blood boiling. “The universe is playing a joke on me.” He muttered underneath his breath as he stepped calmly towards the invader, keeping remarkably calm with every step he took.

The tentacles that kept the girl standing lashed out, all of them trying to grab the boy with speed that no human eye could predict or anticipate. “Eat, eat!” Luna cried out with demented glee…

Only to yelp in pain as she hit the ground, the boy having not only caught his assailant’s limbs by the teeth but also prevented even a single drop of blood being shed from his fingers. Her expression of confident hunger quickly shifted into one of fear as he pulled her close.

“I’m in the mood for some stress relief. Let me show you a thing or two, little girl.” Atlas said, his eyes briefly flashing between red, blue, white and black as his physique radiated power. It was time to work out a bit of his tranquil fury on her…

The last thing that version of Luna saw was a fist coming down on her face, and the rest was nothing but pain…

---

It hadn’t been long since Hopper went off to try and solve the issue by herself. Thanks to her gauntlet breaking the day before, her abilities were severely limited, to the point where she had to use nothing but her Monster Abilities to deal with any of these outbreaks. And considering how quickly somebody could turn should look up at the sky above, it was an exercise in futility.

“So many of them just go out and look…” The golden-suited Monster panted as she came to a brief stop, leaning up against a tree as she tried to catch her breath. She had just managed to knock out two bystanders before they started to transform, and stun another with her antennae and the illusions they could make. She couldn’t afford to slow down, but she couldn’t afford to keep going without taking a few moments to breathe either…

Unfortunately, because she couldn’t act like a machine who could save anybody at any time, her need for a break let her witness her failure in action. Not more than a few feet ahead of her were a pair of lovers, both of them seemingly unaware of what was happening around them…

“Darling, there’s something I’ve been wondering…” The lovey-dovey woman said, her gaze slowly turning towards the sky. “Why’s the sky turned all black?” She asked, her eyes slowly losing their color the longer she stared straight up.

Her lovey-dovey boyfriend shrugged a little. “Maybe it’s because the sky knows your eyes are that beautiful, and it didn’t want to impose?” He chimed, though as she didn’t respond he slowly started to look up as well, wondering why she had gone silent… Only for his eyes to turn deep and black like the sky above…

“Aaahh… That’s why it’s all black…” The woman’s voice distorted as her irises started turning yellow, just like everyone else that had been transformed. “Mama is calling… Mama wants us to grow…” She chimed, a demented giggle leaving her lips.

Her boyfriend nodded slowly as if possessed. “That’s right. Mama wants us to be whole. Mama wants us to be hers.” He said, though his voice sounded distinctly feminine as it distorted. “Mama wants Luna to eat!” He giggled, just like his beloved.

The two squeezed one another tight as they melted together, each of them letting loose a delightful and demented moan as they practically turned into a mushy mixture of flesh and desire. A mixture that was coated in an additional layer of black, as if they were turning into the filling of an egg as they incubated within that black space.

Hopper had to watch as it slowly hatched, only for two identical twins to pop out. Both of them young, both of them clad in that same black dress as everyone else that had transformed, and both of them equipped with a variety of deadly tentacles that were ready to bite into anything and everything they saw. Two brand new Lunas, ready to tear into everything that they could see.

Especially the golden lady that had been watching them. “Look, Luna! There’s some food!” “Yes, Luna! Food for us to eat!” They cried out one after another, virtually indistinguishable. To think that the two had been lovers just moments ago, now seeming more like a pair of identical twin sisters…

The golden-suited woman grit her teeth underneath her carapace as she stood back up, taking a deep breath to compose herself. All while feeling the danger and dread that came with the approaching girls being ready to eat her at a moment’s notice.

“HOPPER SPLIT!” Hopper cried out, her antennae twitching rapidly enough to the point where they could break apart, only for several copies of herself to appear besides her. The other selves looked almost like perfect copies, with the only distinction between them and the true self being how rapidly they flickered and vibrated.

The two Lunas giggled as they saw their prey increase in number, only for their expressions to dampen as the clones multiplied again, surrounding them in a miniature army of Monsters. They let their guard down for just a moment, and that meant certain death against such an experienced woman.

Both were left unable to defend themselves against the assault that followed, all of the Hoppers leaping into the air and coming straight down upon them, each kicking them with all of their might. Only as the two collapsed onto the ground and were purged of the influence of ‘Luna’, did the clones finally disappear…

And consequently, the main Hopper herself fell onto her knees, a bit of blood running out of her mouth. The technique that she had just used was actually a mental one, making the brain think that there were many more of her than there actually were before slamming it with a mental assault comparable to so many physical attacks. Pulling off such a maneuver, in the state she was currently in, was too much for her to keep up…

“Just… Gotta…” The golden-suited woman coughed, slowly getting back up as her vision started blurring. She wasn’t in shape for further combat, that much was certain. And yet…

She could see many more, just like those two lovers, getting transformed into more copies of Luna. And all she could do was bite her tongue and muster up as much stamina as she could. She said she’d buy her friend some time, and she was damn well going to do it, even if she had to overload her Abilities to the point of permanent injury..!

“One more time… HOPPER SPLIT!” Her body started vibrating, and her heart pounded in tune as she dashed down the street…

---

There was something terribly wrong with everything. Shadow knew that. And it wasn’t just because of the sky above that threatened to turn everyone into copies of the girl that she had killed. No, it was something worse than that…

“Where is everyone!?” The armored heroine shouted to the sky, dread filling her silver-coated heart as she kept running. She thought she would’ve seen SOMEBODY while running, even somebody that was on the verge of transforming, but she couldn’t see a single soul.

There was just her and the empty sky above. It didn’t sit right with her. “SOMEBODY! ANYBODY! CRY OUT IF YOU NEED HELP! OR EVEN CRY OUT IF YOU WANT TO KILL ME, THAT’D BE FINE TOO!” She shouted to the world around her, hoping that somebody would answer. Anybody! Literally anybody would be preferred to the silence that had fallen around her…

“My. My my.” A voice echoed around her, and by looking up at the sky she could see the source. A massive gash, with eyes poking out from the edges, pointed directly down at her. “What a tasty looking morsel… And…” The voice continued speaking, as the gash spread further and further…

As a single head slowly started to emerge. A woman with tentacles for hair and tentacles for legs, as well as a dress that clung to her like it was a part of her body, slowly descended through that gash in the air. “What a tasty looking thing that dared kill my beloved Luna…” The feminine humanoid said, not a single sliver of sorrow dripping off her lips.

“Beloved… You’re her Mom!? Then why don’t you sound sad because of what I did!?” Shadow shouted up at the woman whose words and actions were at dissonance. “Why is everyone turning into her!? EXPLAIN! NOW!” She wasn’t about to mince words. Not when everyone was in danger.

The womanly creature just smiled from ear to ear. “Why, you managed to kill the worst Luna I’ve ever made. So now I have to make more beloved ones. It’s what I do, it’s what any Mother would do.” She explained without even flinching, sinking further down towards the ground as the gash in the sky continued to widen ever further. “In fact, there’s plenty of Luna to scoop up and make a part of my family… But you, I want you more than anything…”

“You’re a MONSTER!” Tsukiko’s blood was boiling underneath her black-and-silver armor, the energies that fueled her desire flaring into action as her Shadow Saber appeared in her hand. “SHADOW SLASH!” She cried out, sending a shockwave the size of the street flying down towards the tentacled woman…

Only for her to grab it in mid air and crush it with one of her tendrils, a demented and maternal giggle leaving her lips. “Oh, what a childish thing to do. Strike at your Mother like she’s deserved a beating. You foolish, foolish little thing…” The malevolent entity chimed, not yet going on the offensive because of how little she thought the suited heroine could do.

Shadow grit her teeth as she dashed forward, coating her blade in energy. She had to put in everything, make it grow to the lengths and heights that it had reached when she cut the ferris wheel in half!

The creature watched as the heroine came closer. As the energy grew, making her expression slowly grow more smug with every passing second. “Such desire, such brilliant desire. And yet so childish still, thinking that it’s right to hurt your Mother…” She mused, closing her eyes…

“SHADOW DREAM!” The armored heroine cried out, her blade piercing through the heavens as she tried to slash it straight down. The damage to the world could be healed, if she managed to stop the woman from doing any more damage to the people…

But it didn’t do anything. The blade didn’t even make her bleed. It just crumpled into ashes, courtesy of a mass array of tentacles stabbing into the sides of the blade and completely swallowing every trace of desire that had powered it. Even the handle crumpled into nothing more than trash in the heroine’s hands…

“How… HOW?!” Shadow cried out, trying to lash out a bit more as she jumped forward. A tentacle quickly seized her throat, stopping that motion and letting her limply flail around in front of the woman that had just made a mockery of any and all of her attacks. “Let… me… go!”

The malicious entity laughed in the face of her protests, tightening the grip around her neck. “You want me to stop? You killed that waste of a daughter of mine, and you want ME to stop? What do you think you are? You’re nothing more than a speck of dust compared to me, for thinking you deserve to live after doing that. No. You will come with me, back to the realm I live in. And once I’m done with you, Luna will be so much happier.” Her words, her voice, her very way of looking at the prey in her grasp was enough for any onlooker to call her insane…

But there wasn’t a way for Tsukiko to wrestle free. Every second that passed meant that a part of her body lost control. She could feel her energy, her very will to live, being drained as the seconds ticked by. What could she do to stop this? Was there any way for her to stop it?... Should she stop it, considering what she had done?

Maybe this was the karma she deserved. Maybe she should just give in and let herself get taken away. Even if she’d be disappointing Hiro and the others, it’d probably stop her from doing anything else to everyone. She’d take her home to wherever, and then everyone else would be saved…

Shadow slowly let the lights in her veins, the ones that were usually filled with power, die down. She was giving up. She couldn’t think of a way to turn the tables. She should just let everything that she deserved come to her. Then-

“Let Cool Miss go!”

A lone voice. A hopeful voice. A childish voice. A familiar voice. The voice of a girl that had placed all of her trust in the lady before… A girl that she had just said goodbye to, not long ago.

The sandy-blonde girl that had shown her appreciation for the heroine was standing not far away from the two, picking rocks from the grass or the road to toss at the tentacled woman. “Let her go! Meanie! Baddie!” She shouted as loud as she could, wanting to show her support for the older woman…”

“R-Run! You can’t stop her! RUN, KIDDO!” Shadow shouted as she felt her energy slowly returning to her as she watched this hopeful display. She had to stop the monster, NOW! She’d never live with herself if she let a fan die!

The tentacled woman laughed, violently tossing her prey to the side as she slowly turned towards the youth that had decided to show a bit of spirit. “What desire burns within you, little one?” The maternal creature chimed, taking step after step, ignoring all of the things that the girl tossed at her.

“Go! Away!” The girl cried out, reaching down to grab another rock, straining as she picked it up with both hands and tossed it at the bigger woman that intimidatingly crept closer. A woman that should’ve been making her feel dread beyond all belief…

The monster laughed even further, one of her tentacles coiling around her arm as it stretched out into the form of something portable only to transform fully into a parasol, one that the monster used to smack the rock out of the air and creep even closer. “Such heroic spirit, such passion. It makes me sick to my stomach to see, but at the same time… Such a wonderful daughter you’d make, once I’ve stripped it all from you…”

Her tentacles slowly started encroaching on the girl, demeted giggles leaving the larger woman’s lips as they wrapped around her and squeezed her tight, the little girl being utterly unable to fight back due to the difference in size and strength between the two…

Shadow slowly got up, having crashed into a wall after being tossed. And the first thing she saw was her fan, squeezed into those terrible tentacles, a foreboding substance being suckled out of her. “Damnit… damnit!” She muttered underneath her helmet. Because she gave in, she had to watch the kid get ruined…

No! She didn’t plan on giving up, no longer! She was going to save this child, no matter the cost. Repent for her indecision, repent for her lack of willpower that kept her from doing what was right!

The veins that had been drained of color turned bright silver and black once more, her body filling with energy. It didn’t matter that she’d experience any sort of recoil from this. She was going to save her!

She could hear the voice in the back of her head. Her rationality. Begging her to just lie down and disappear. The villainess would disappear. Everyone would be saved. She didn’t even know the kid’s name, why did she need to save her!?

Tsukiko grit her teeth as she shut that voice up. She knew better than to listen to her in a time like this. It was just like the bullies when she was younger. Telling her that it’d be better for her to lie down and take it. Back then, she got up and beat them all down. That’s what they deserved. And the woman who dared hurt an innocent, an innocent that she had bonded with… She deserved to eat everything she could muster!

She could feel her body audibly breaking, every part of her glowing with pure energy as she jumped into the air. Everything was flashing before her eyes until she saw the black-haired woman that she had taught as much as she could. The kid… the kid was just like Hiro. If she let the kid die, she’d let Hiro die by association!

“OVER HERE, YOU FIRST-RATE DISASTER OF A MOM!” Shadow screamed as she put all of her power into the back of her body, propelling her forward. In that split second, when she descended with all of her might towards the monster… the moon shone through the darkness, illuminating her body and empowering her for this desperate attack.

The maternal creature let go of the girl for a split second, letting her fall and hit the ground with an unemotive thud, as she brought up every single one of her tentacles to form a defensive wall…

A wall that was rendered null and void by the kick. Like mother like daughter, in the face of overwhelming desire, both were dealt a decisive blow. Tsukiko’s feelings overpowered the wall of wriggly flesh, screaming as she buried her foot straight into the woman’s cheek.

“SHADOW SAVIOR!”

Her armor dissolved, the energy that composed it turning into silver and black wings on the heroine’s back further propelling her forward. Forward, forward, ever forward. Into the sky itself!

The monstrous woman was gritting her teeth, regenerating in response to everything that she was taking. “Pesky little child, cease this at once..!” She cried out, a blanket of darkness covering her and threatening to cover the heroine just the same...

Tsukiko grabbed ahold of her scarf, tossing it aside alongside any regrets as she screamed even louder, her wings flapping as they stretched across the sky. The very ends of her desire grabbed ahold of the gash as she closed her eyes, letting a single thought pour across her mind.

 ‘Sorry, Haruhi-chan. Guess this is it for me. I hope we see each other again…’

Her voice gave out as she and the monster were pushed into the gash in the air, only for her energy to slam it shut behind her. Not only closing the path that led to this world, but dispelling the blackened skies above in the process…

Everywhere around the city, those that had been turned into Lunas and hadn’t departed for the world beyond the gash turned back to normal. The connection to the matron, whoever she had been, was the sole thing that had forced them to transform...

Hopper, buried under a pile of them, slowly transformed back to normal alongside the humans laying on top of her. She could see nothing, she could feel nothing. Everything was pain, and she passed out from the strain of everything she had gone through…

‘Tsukiko…’

The kid, who was laying on the ground after the fight with that monstrous woman, slowly looked up at the sky above, as the scarf of her heroine slowly drifted to the ground…

A tear ran down her cheek as she watched it fall down on her, though her heart didn’t understand why.

Little by little, the rain began to pour down again, as a heroine to many disappeared for the last time…

---

The next time Haruhi awoke, she found herself looking up at a pristine white ceiling. A hospital bed, she could deduce that much. Whether it was because of the lack of any contaminants in the air, the dull fan spinning on the ceiling, or the fact that she hurt all over her body…

“...Tsukiko…” The golden-haired woman muttered as she looked to her side, hoping to see the silver-haired woman laying there. Just like she always did when she wanted to see her getting better. But she couldn’t see her. She couldn’t see anybody. There was just an empty space where a friend should be…

She heard the door to her room slowly open, and a different face showed up. A black-haired woman, wearing a silver scarf around her neck. Hiro Fukano. “...Where is Tsurugi…” Was all that the golden woman could mutter in response to her arrival, her eyes refusing to look at her. Not after everything she had done. Not after how horribly she had failed.

“...Tsurugi-sensei has disappeared, Kaneko-sensei.” Hiro said as softly as she could, tears starting to roll down her cheeks. “She… She knocked me out, and after the black stuff in the sky disappeared… We couldn’t find her. The only thing we could find was her scarf.” She mumbled, the tears making it harder and harder to hear her.

Haruhi listened, slowly turning to look at the ceiling. This was what she had earned for doing everything she could to save people from their fate. The desperation, getting her friend involved… All of it led to her being in perpetual pain, her eyesight growing dimmer, and her body in general being broken. “...What are you going to do now, Hiro..?” She asked, not expecting any good answer. Not willing to argue against a terrible answer either.

“...I want to make sure that she comes back. Somehow.” The black-haired woman replied, looking down at her feet as the tears kept coming. “Pay her back for everything she’s done for me. For you. For all of us.” She explained, her heart beating loud enough for anybody to hear. “And… Because of that, I’m staying here. Until I see her again. I’m sorry.”

The golden woman slowly closed her eyes, gritting her teeth as she sat up in bed. Her body ached and screamed at her, but she couldn’t stay here. If she did, she knew what the higher ups would do to her. “...You’re a good soul, Hiro. Keep her in your heart. I’m sure…” She coughed, a little blood dripping onto her knuckle as she got up from the bed. “I’m sure she’ll respond to those feelings. One way or another…”

“Kaneko-sensei, you’re in no condition to be standing, much less walking! Please, rest-” Hiro tried to make her sit back down, but as soon as she moved to do anything, she felt an intense pressure on her mind paralyzing her in her seat. “K-Kaneko-sensei…”

Haruhi reached over and grabbed the scarf from her subordinate’s neck, yanking it away as she wrapped it around her neck. Then she started walking away. Slowly but surely stepping away. Making her way out of the hospital room. Walking to where she should’ve gone ages ago.

“...Sorry, Hiro. I need to think all of this over.” She muttered, tears running down her cheeks. Her heart was aching over what she had done, what she was still doing. She needed to think everything over.

And so, she left. Leaving behind her subordinate. Leaving everything, even her allies, behind. Until the day when she could live with herself again.

Until Tsukiko would make her return…

---

“She’s really gone. She really went and did that, didn’t she…”

In the hideout belonging to Rose and D’Or, the same place that was so lively whenever Hopper came around… It felt so lonely now that they found out about her departure. About what she thought of everything she had done, and how pointless it all felt now that an external threat had proven itself such a vile wrench in any of their plans.

The blonde Bat snuggled into her green-sweatered friend, sighing. She had lost a… ‘lover’, and now she lost a friend too. Things weren’t going great for the youthful and elegant Baroness. “...What do we do now, D’Or? How are we going to get around that..?”

“We keep going. But we take steps to prevent this from ever happening again.” The brunette said as she slowly caressed the broken Gauntlet that the Monster had left behind. “We can refine the Jõtai. Repair the Hopper System and limit its power. So we can fight back. So we won’t attract whatever attacked us. And maybe, once we’ve got everyone on our side… We can save her life.”

Rose slowly nodded, leaning into her taller friend. “You’re so smart, D’Or. But… Everyone will know me now, won’t they? With how I went out and…” She muttered, looking down at the floor. She felt regret over how reckless she had been.

A kiss landed on her cheek, courtesy of D’Or. “Then we will wait as long as it takes for them to forget you, my little Rose. Once you’ve matured, once they’ve forgotten… We can start back up. With the slate wiped clean, with everyone at your mercy. Until then, it’ll just be the two of us. You can handle that, right?”

The Baroness nodded, leaning into her friend’s arms and closing them. Whatever it took to make her friend happy…

---

“Genbu. What’s the girl’s condition?”

Atlas paced around in his office, grimacing because of the loss of two very valuable assets. Not only that, but other workers had been abducted by whatever those creatures were. It put a damper on his operations for sure. Hell, most of his assistants had been turned into them, and now he had exactly 0 left. So of course he was curious to hear about the girl he had taught a lesson.

“...She wants to see me?” He paused, closing his eyes and nodding a second later. “I’ll be down there after this interview. Just give me a little while.” He concluded, closing his call as he cleared his throat. He never enjoyed this part, considering how much he had to butter his employees up…

A ping echoed through his penthouse, and a black-haired woman came in through the elevator. A young woman with a bright future ahead of her, who bowed before her CEO with a somber smile on her face.

“Hiro Fukano, sir. What did you wish to speak with me about?” She maintained as dignified a stance and voice as she could, hands kept in front of her as she looked at him. She was tired, given the bags underneath her eyes. Who wouldn’t be, considering what she went through.

Atlas smiled gently. “Hiro. I would like to have a little chat with you about something very important. It involves those skills that you’ve been cultivating.” He explained, as he beckoned her closer with a single pen in his hand.

“How would you like to be my direct assistant? A woman like you would be perfect for the job.”

---

Finally, in a single home in the outskirts of the city, a young girl was staring up at her ceiling. The dark colors were trapped up there, just like the day before. Just like her mind whenever she tried to dream. Emptiness. Darkness. An utter void. Just like her heart.

She couldn’t feel anything. Emotionally, she was dead. Just a husk wearing the skin of a girl who had been so bright just a day ago. A girl who was going to live through life doing the mere minimum to survive. All while staring out into nothingness, not understanding why she felt this way… or how to fix it.

A voice rang out from the floor underneath. A motherly voice. A voice that tried its best to break past her emotional barrier, to no avail. And she wouldn’t be successful, not for the next decade…

“Mikai! It’s dinnertime!”