"Ahh…"
Maria felt her heart sink the moment all the pieces began coming together.
She had gotten the major gist of the situation from Virgo, her Constellation, but that didn't mean she completely understood Legris and his abilities.
It also didn't help that her connection with Virgo was on the fritz, so she couldn't properly utilize her Constellation's powers, or even communicate with her smoothly.
She only happened to arrive in Serah's dimension because she desperately wished for it. When she did, and saw that Serah was in danger, she also instantly wished for her salvation.
These two consecutive wishes—one which transcended the barriers of dimensions, and the other that forcefully saved Serah from certain doom—were very intense uses of her abilities, especially given the current situation.
She couldn't always rely on that ability, which meant she had to suppliment it with her own capabiltiies.
Unfortunately…
"Magic doesn't work on Legris…"
Those words echoed in Maria's mind as she considered the situation.
She was no good at Martial Arts, so Magic was all she had going for her. Close quarters Magic Combat was also out of it since she was more effective in long-range battles.
In conclusion, she had become a liability on the battlefield.
"I know what you're thinking. Don't you dare think that way, you hear me?" Maria's eyes widened as Serah's words sharply woke her from her thoughts.
"We don't have the luxury of doubting your abilities right now."
Serah's face displayed utter seriousness as she spoke. Her gaze was fixed on the Legrises beneath them, but it was clear that her focus was on Maria.
"It can't be helped that your abilities follow a particular path. However, that should not lead to despair. Instead, find a route in which your abilities can become useful in this situation."
Serah was well versed in offensive Magic, but she knew her limits in commonplace or more versatile Spells.
That was why she embraced her destructive nature and dealt the most damage in fights that required it. However, having been in situations where brute strength wasn't enough to win, she had also used her intelligence to be more versatile in her approach.
That was what she needed from Maria at this moment.
A way to use Magic against an opponent whose darkness prevented him from being damaged with Magic.
"Can you do that?"
As the question echoed in Maria's head, her brain instantly went into overdrive.
All the doubts that had begun to accumulate dispersed, leaving room for her thoughts to freely manifest.
The conclusion was simple.
With a broad smile on her face, Maria gazed hard at the dozens of foes that stood before her and her mentor, having only one thing to say.
"I can!"
******
'Surely they've realized they're at a disadvantage now…'
Legris silently watched the two women who seemed to be getting ready for combat.
He reckoned they would be using Telepathic Magic to communicate with each other, or perhaps [Resonance], but that didn't make their plight any less predictable.
'Maria is the weak link among the two of them. Her over reliance on Magic makes her the perfect prey.'
The problem was Serah.
She was still too fast for him to properly intercept, and Legris knew it was impossible for him to succeed in using the same trap from earlier.
He had to think of something else.
'But, if Maria ends up rescuing her like last time, it'll end up being another frustrating bust.'
That meant the most optimal method he could use in order to defeat his enemies was by first taking out Maria, while keeping Serah occupied.
With Maria eliminated, he could use Serah's shock and grief to his advantage and catch her off guard.
Even in a situation where Serah wasn't distracted by Maria's elimination, Legris reckoned he would be able to overwhelm her with his numbers if he positioned himself well.
'I just need to cage her in, and then—'
~WHUSH!~
The next thing Legris was was Serah's face directly in front of his.
Her brilliant crimson eyes shone like rubies, and her wild smile was enough to drive anyone crazy.
The fact that she had suddenly appeared in front of him with no signs of spatial distortions or even distance closure from her part made Legris flustered beyond words.
His thoughts came to a halt, and his body jerked backwards.
"W-what the—?!"
~BOOOOOOMMMM!!!~
That variant of Legris instantly exploded violently, it's bones and flesh eviscerated by her powerful blow.
Before any of the twenty-eight could even move in response to Serah's sudden appearance, she vanished from her position and appeared before the next Legris.
"W-wai—!"
~BOOOOOMMMM!!!~
He too erupted without being able to complete his words.
~FWISH~
Serah vanished once again, soon appearing right behind another random Legris.
He could not see her blood becoming as his skull was crushed by her powerful downward chop.
The only sound that proceeded from his position was that of his body being torn apart by the pressure of r powerful attack.
~WHISH!~
~BOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMM!!!~
~WHOOSH~
~BOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMM!!!~
~FWISH!~
~BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMM!!!~
Like whispers lost to the wind, followed by deafening roars of demolition, Serah kept up her consistent but random path of carnage.
None of the Legrises knew what was happening, and her overwhelming speed was too much to keep up with at this point.
Being slaughtered mercilessly pushed them to a point of desperation, and that was when they stared above them.
'It's her… she's the one behind this!' They all looked at Maria Helmsworth.
She appeared to be concentrating her energy, and Legris instantly linked it to Serah's teleportation.
"Serah can't use spatial Magic, and since Maria was able to teleport her to safety earlier it only makes sense that she's the culprit.'
Legris still found it strange that there was no sign of spatial interference before and after each teleportation, but he chalked it down to her Constellation's ability and decided to cease their teamwork.
'I have to kill her… and fast!'
*
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[A/N]
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