Alitia: Welcome to Millenia

XLIX: Clash of the Stars

To put it simply, the longer the fighting went on, the more exhausted everyone got.

Cessair had swept away so much sludge that it was starting to exhaust her, and she had barely even fought physically in all the time the battle had been going on. Nebula's inexperienced blasts of Moonlight were taking their toll on her too. Even Minerva, known for her sheer power and indescribable magic, was starting to look tired. Her eyes threatened to close on her as she fired down meteors of flame from above. Altina was getting tired of protecting her as well, not that she would openly admit it.

Lianna didn't know how much longer she could go on. Most of the cantor army had been depleted by now, and her entire body throbbed with each movement she made. Alistair was doing his best to keep her going, but it still wasn't enough to keep her from feeling like she was going to throw up. In the end, Lianna wound up staring at her feet as attacks clashed over her head, unsure of how else to continue the battle in her dazed state.

Zylphia seemed to be the only one who wasn't bothered by what was happening, though none could say for sure if she was legitimately not exhausted yet or just hiding it well. Zylphia was a master of hiding her emotions, and that included her exhaustion. None could tell quite what was going through her head as she stabbed blue lightning into another dozen Shadows. She breathed heavily after slashing the blade vertically, frowning to herself.

"I don't know how much more we can do here," came a voice from behind Lianna and Alistair. They turned to see none other than Caius standing behind them. He had his arms crossed and a dagger in one hand. Standing next to Caius was Lewith. A stone clapped above Lewith's head, slamming a Shadow in the face. Lewith nodded their thanks to the twin mercenaries behind them before returning their focus to Lianna and Alistair.

"They're starting to slow down, but I don't know how much that's really worth. It means that Luce and her pals have reached the monster, but none can say how far along they are in taking him out. I just want this to end already," Lewith grumbled.

"We're going to get out of this alive," Alistair cut in. "Don't let yourselves lose hope. There is life after this, and we will all live to see it."

A flare of light rose up from nearby, and the group turned to see what it was. They saw that it was a student earning Inlustris, and Caius sighed. "I don't even know how many that makes for... Twenty, maybe," he mumbled. "It's unnatural to see so many of them here at once, but I guess that's what happens in war."

"Any students that didn't have Isolis before definitely do now," Alistair remarked. "I know for sure that every student at Alitia has transformed at least once."

"I pray that this will be over soon," Lianna murmured. Her vision was starting to get fuzzy. There was only so much of Moonlight she could take directly. She had Moonlight flowing through her, but it wasn't dominant enough to keep her Starlight from going off like a siren when she made contact with one of the possessed cantors. Her Starlight was simply far too dominant, and it was biting her hard.

"It will be. We just have to trust in the kid. You know Luce just as well as I do. She's not going to give in until she knows that everything is fine. She's just that determined type," Lewith said to Lianna, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. They reached to their hip, pulling out a small battle and handing it over to Lianna. "Here you are, Lia. Some medicine. It's pretty good. Sinin and O'Rourke sure do know how to brew a mean all-purpose medication."

Lianna smiled to Lewith briefly before taking a swig of the bottle. It didn't do much to replenish her lost energy, but it did help to lessen the pain that had made her whole body throb a mere few minutes before. She wiped at her neck and handed the bottle back to Lewith. "Thanks for that, Lew," Lianna said, unsure of what else to say. Part of her wondered if she could even force any other words out of her mouth in her weakened state.