The Winners' Loss

Deli looked like she was out of blood, her silver hair turned even lighter but her eyes were on fire. Lady was somewhere in that dust storm fighting her greatest enemy and I figured Deli was itching to join her soon.

We started our assault on the mutant as strongly as we could. Sight put a barrier on him to muffle his sound and also on our ears to muffle out his magic. Instead of taking different sides, we decided to go head on. First, I cut through the sound wave and Deli then went in for the attack.

We were successful at the time as Deli slashed the guy and ripped him in all sorts of ways possible. Her monstrous strength alone was enough to pummel that guy's face that tried to surface and so once she had caught him, he was done for.

"Get back, Seraph!", just when we thought we had got him, Chopper called out and both Deli and I quickly retreated.

The two of us made it to a safe distance but nothing happened.

"Chopper-san?", I wondered what had happened to him.

Before he could answer, Deli dropped to the ground, writhing in terrible pain as she held her hands out. I quickly turned to her, her hands looked like they had just been dipped in boiling oil. I could tell the pain was maddening for her.

Chopper nodded to Sight who started performing some sort of magical remedies on her. Chopper himself kept an eye on the mutant.

"Chopper-san, what just happened? She looked fine just now", I asked him.

"We can't touch that thing. That thing isn't complete. Its a failed experiment, its sucking magic from anyone that comes close to it. But it doesn't know how to process that magic. I suppose it just comes boiling back to the surface."

"Huh? Well...if we can't even touch it, then how...?"

"At least there's one thing we know for sure now. That thing has a core, though it could be anywhere in that massive body of his. Also, he might be able to move it at will. We can't rely on continuous attacks because that thing regenerates. We need something that would finish him off in one blow."

"Where are we going to get something like that?", I asked concerned as we looked at the mutant regenerating, the destructive sound wave leaking abruptly from time to time but it just wasn't strong enough to reach us yet.

"Well, in any case, we do have Sight. If need be, I'll-"

"No!", Deli interrupted once again, "I'll do it."

"But you can't-", Chopper cut through to give her an answer himself before I could finish.

"Why are you so against the idea? We might have no other choice, you know", Chopper said.

"Might! But you do know other choices. Lady said...she told you to never use 'that' again."

"That's probably because she's too afraid of it herself."

"Oi!!!", I think Deli might have killed him right then if she hadn't been held back by Sight.

"Hold your horses. I didn't mean that. What I'm saying is that all of us need to survive enough after this. Well, anyways, times up. That thing is back in business."

Noticing the mutant was getting ready to attack again, we had to get ourselves together.

I looked at Chopper who seemed to have resigned for the time being.

"We'll go again", Deli stepped up.

"But-", she stopped me before I could say further.

"Sight, put the best protection on my legs and arms. The strategy works. Don't focus on muffling his magic, just give me all the protection when I go in", she instructed him before we moved in to execute the same plan.

The plan worked better this time and Deli lasted longer but in the end she had to retreat when the magic density kept getting higher and higher until even Sight couldn't repel it anymore. Deli had to retreat and with her, I had to do the same.

The mutant would flail about and regenerate once more. Deli didn't stop. She would go in again and again and rip him out until she looked no more than a wild beast. Sight and I realized it wouldn't work but she wasn't listening.

After a countless times, Chopper finally decided to step in. He dragged Deli away. Sight had a nosebleed, though he didn't seem to realize. I was huffing and puffing out of my mind and Deli was just a loose beast.

She struggled against Chopper but he managed to settle her down.

"It's useless...isn't it?", I asked as I helplessly looked over at the dust storm. I wondered how long Lady was going to last.

"No", Chopper replied, "It wasn't for nothing. That regeneration slowed down. And that thing needs a face to attack. When that face has completely surfaced, it doesn't move. I'm supposing at that time, the core is stationary."

I realized what he was meaning to say but it was hard to believe he really meant it.

"Chopper-san?!"

"The only time we can beat that mutant is when its attacking us. That wave is our red carpet all the way to the core."

"Ah...and how does your haywire brain intends to walk on that carpet?", Deli uttered.

"I'll do the walking, you just destroy the core. Sight put everything you got into this. Cover Deli with the best of your protection", Chopper said as he readied to attack the mutant one last time.

We stood right in front of the mutant as it recovered itself and shaped the face. We were all bruised and battered and this was our last straw despite the fact that Deli wasn't happy about it. I grasped Ebony and went up first.

Sight reinforced Deli as I cut through the wave. But the continuous wave didn't cease, I had no time to get away. That's where Chopper came in.

With one wave of Ivory, he had pocketed the air around him and Deli and they hurried towards the mutant. They were piercing through that extreme pressure in that air pocket. I could see even from the distance that Chopper's left arm was strained as he held up Ivory causing the air to pocket. His left eye began to bleed soon and it looked like Chopper's blood vessels were rupturing. He was under extreme pressure. Sight kept his best barriers on Deli as the two closed the distance.

Soon as they had reached the face of that mutant, Chopper looked back at Deli and gave her a heads-up. He then released the air pocket from him but gave Deli enough window to attack. The sudden impact sent him flying. But Deli had made it through. She dug deep into the face of that mutant and the expression on her face screamed, "Found it!".

She used all the strength she had to destroy the core which ruptured the whole body and as Deli retreated the mutant flailed about before dropping dead on the ground, right at her feet. We hurried over to Chopper who seemed like he'd survive...probably.

Deli stood where she was looking at the mutant who was still writhing. Its face looking at Deli's as it slowly went motionless.

"Ma..."