Lunae ran as far as she could, the impending dread within her ticking down like a bomb. She didn't want to abandon Lila and Ivy. But the princess knew exactly what was brewing within her.
She had to get away.
"Go away." Lunae stumbled upon a patch of rock.
Her senses were overclocked, allowing her to detect all nearby lifeforms perfectly. She could practically smell the hundreds of Infestare crawling about the place, and was even able to spot the aura of her fellow peers.
Alia and Rena.
With those twins.
Their own team.
Yet Sonera was nowhere to be found, a fact that gravely vexed Lunae once she began to feel Yrix's presence. The only comfort she could hold onto was the fact that if her partner was truly dead, she would have certainly felt it by now. In fact, Lunae wasn't sure her consciousness would even survive such an event.
"Getting tired?"
"Shut up." Lunae panted.
She was somewhere near the old cellar Lila had invited her to, the warm memories of it all filling her with a scrap of hope. But her mother didn't feed on such emotion. She preferred the warm taste of irony mixed with helplessness.
"We both know there's no way out."
"I said shut up!"
Lunae could feel her mother's influence prying its way out of her mouth, threatening everything she had built up. But the worst part of it all is that the influence felt invigorating more than anything. Perhaps it was not the best idea to wander into a basement full of artifacts.
"I always did like humans." Lovatte's voice began expressing itself through Lunae's throat.
"You could never understand them," Lunae growled.
"On the contrary, much of your lust for them came from me."
"Ack!"
Lunae fell to her knees on the cold iron walkway, blackened smoke pouring out of her mouth. By the time she mustered the strength to look up, her mother was already standing in front of her. Only this time, it was no visage.
"Look at you." Lovatte cocked her head with her usual bony smile. "Did you get a trim? Must be for that Sonera girl. You've gotten real close with her."
Lunae could barely withstand her mother's presence. Even though her current form was still far from the prime that dwelled in deep space, the Infestare princess was compelled to kneel. All she could do then was pray nobody found her.
Lovatte giggled. "Making out with mimics, too, now are we?"
Lunae merely shook her head as a response.
"It's alright. I knew my daughter would be a...hmm...how do humans call it? Promiscuous?"
The princess managed a croak. "I love them."
"Of course you do. I'm the Goddess of Love. You're my daughter."
"Then why torment me?"
"Because I hate to see a flower refuse to bud. Embrace your heritage. Show Sonera what you really are." The Queen cracked her bony knuckles.
"Never. She deserves better." Lunae snarled.
"Does she?"
"You don't know her."
"Oh, but I do. An old acquaintance is taking root in her, remember? Sonera deserves a kindred soul. A monster."
"I can fix her."
"Now you sound like Lila."
Lunae stood on her feet, pressing a hand against her chest as she spoke. "Can't you understand?" She winced. "This is about more than power."
"Hasn't it always? Without it, you can't protect her. And she will need you. So will your friends." Lovatte taunted. "You claim to love them all, and yet you refuse to seize your potential and ascend."
"You sound like Yrix." Lunae retorted.
"Well, in another life I'd like to think we'd be gal pals."
"Think again."
Lunae spun around, relieved to find the last person she'd think to expect. Lovatte, on the other hand, was thrilled to see Yrix, almost as if the pair had been separated for far too long.
Within the Arch-Flayer's clutches slept Sonera, whom Lunae quickly tried to reach.
"Pff." Lovatte flicked her daughter on the back of the head. "So desperate."
"Ah!" The princess tumbled to the ground.
Yrix responded by dragging her student towards her with a Psionic grasp, reuniting the pair before placing herself between them and the Infestare Queen.
"Your fight is with me," Yrix spoke with an unusually calm tone, as if knowing better than to fall for Lovatte's ragebait, as Lila would call it.
"Oh, please." Lovatte snickered, placing a hand to her mouth. "Is that any way to speak to an old friend?"
"I'm afraid our relationship is rather one-sided.
"A shame too. You're the only soul in that bloated empire who gets it. You gamble with her yet refuse to become a pawn. I can think of only one other person like that. Oh, right, me."
Sonera had been placed on the floor alongside Lunae, her breath shallow and weak as the princess hovered over her. Fortunately for them both, Lunae had her fair share of violence that day and was able to utilize her healing abilities to their fullest potential. That still didn't stop her from worrying.
"Sonera..." Lunae muttered with a frown, resting the girl's head on her lap. "My Sonera..."
"You gave me your daughter." Yrix shrugged. "You claim to favor me. So why this."
"I just really wanted to test my daughter. Give your students a good first impression as well. Consider me a collaborator." Lovatte teased. "We're all on the same page I assure you."
The Arch-Flayer rolled her eye. "Is everything a game to you?"
"Want to find out?" The Queen smiled. "Just kidding, I don't want to kill you."
"Don't be so cocky. This isn't your true form."
"Cocky?!" Lovatte laughed loudly. "I'm not the one tangling around with Neirophen. Poor Sonera. Just another sacrifice. I wonder, how many students have you burned through?"
"We both know these are different." Yrix chided. "You wouldn't be here otherwise."
"Right. They're all in love. Real sensual shit, I tell you. Who would have guessed mind powers could be stimulated with emotion? Riveting concept. I know."
As if to prove the point, Lunae had begun rubbing her forehead against Sonera's, gently probing for signs of life. Her tail, in the meantime, was wrapped around her left leg, smearing blood from all the minor cuts along the girl's thigh.
"You know, if you weren't so butt-fucking ugly, I'd ask you out on a date." Lovatte continued her rant. "Yrix."
"Are you leaving soon?" The Arch-Flayer sighed. "I have your daughter to teach."
"You mean kill. If she doesn't grow."
"The Infestare Queen can always breed another."
"Well excuuuusssseeee me, princess. She took quite a lot to craft. Those curves don't come free."
"Of course you would waste a thought on that."
"And you don't?!" Lovatte gasped. "All these years and you never fell for one of your students?"
Yrix shrugged almost comedically. She just didn't think like that. And in many ways, it just made Lovatte like her more.
"Surely you must understand they get some of their horny from you."
"Lovatte." Yrix squinted. "What are you getting at."
"I'm just saying...you mind probed them all into having powers. Well, except my daughter. She was already crazy. But the others must have been changed in some ways."
"You were just about leaving..." Yrix huffed, losing her patience. "Someone in your position surely has other matters to attend to."
"Why not stay?" Lovatte winked. "Meet the other girls."
Yrix turned, pulling Lunae into her clutches with a snap. It was a sudden, violent movement, causing even Lovatte to flinch if only a smidge. She was done playing games.
"Leave." Yrix squeezed Lunae's throat. "Now. Don't pretend you don't care about her."
"Ngh!" Lunae ignored both figures, reaching out towards Sonera as she began to choke. "Uh-....S-Sonera..."
Lovatte produced a rather peculiar expression, admiring and loathing Yrix all at the same time. She wasn't even sure if she was impressed or offended. Either way the point was made.
"You always were tenacious." Lovatte grinned toothily, unveiling what appeared to be a long, bony whip from her open back. "Yrix."
The Arch-Flayer squeezed tighter, causing Lunae to convulse, her elongated tongue slipping out of her mouth and writhing about like a snake. And even though the princess didn't seem to care about the pain, Lovatte was noticeably affected. There was quite a lot someone of her stature could attempt to free the girl, but it was a risk, even if negligible in scale.
And that mattered.
In a twisted, maternal sort of way.
She didn't want Lunae to die.
"When Sonera learns of this." Lovatte sighed with a smile. "She's going to be the death of you, you know."
"Maybe. One day." Yrix cocked her head. "Until then. Deal with your choice."
The Infestare queen waved. "I'll be seeing her."
She disappeared in a puff of black smoke, leaving behind a trail of what appeared to be acidic goop. By then, Lunae was unconscious, forced into a state not unlike Sonera's.
"Hmph." Yrix huffed. "Bugs."