The mirror lay before Blue, fractured and weeping ink onto the silver, metallic street. Blue’s breath hitched as she knelt beside it, hands trembling as she reached forward.  “No…no, no, please—”  She carefully lifted the jagged mirror, its once-pristine surface marred with jagged cracks, shadow bleeding from them like an open wound. The inky black seeped into the curling around the blades before sinking into the earth. It wouldn’t stop. The more she tilted it, the more it spilled, an endless stream of darkness pooling at her fingertips. Panicked, she pressed a hand against the cracks, hoping—somehow—to stop it. The man she had bumped into was talking to her, but his words were background noise to Blue’s rising panic. A small crowd had gathered, murmuring amongst themselves, eyes flicking between Blue and the black stain expanding from the shattered mirror.  Blue finally looked up, opening her mouth to speak, but she didn’t get the chance. A low, unnatural hum pulsed through the street, vibrating through the metal like a heartbeat. The colors around the mirror twisted unnaturally, as if something unseen had latched onto it, pulling. It spread slowly at first—then violently. A jagged crack split through the air itself, a web of multicolored fractures spreading outward in every direction. Light bled from the break in reality, twisting in hues that should not exist, colors too sharp, too wrong, as if the world itself was screaming. Then, the corruption surged. It lashed outward like a living thing, tendrils of color spiraling toward the nearest bystanders. The man who had spoken barely had time to react before the corruption swallowed him whole. He let out a strangled grasp—then nothing. No body, no remnants. He was gone. Screams erupted as the corruption leapt from person to person, distorting their shapes before pulling them into itself. The air and buildings cracked and warped, the city’s light flickering violently against the onslaught of sudden energy. The metal beneath Blue’s feet fractured, breaking apart into shards, some dissolving entirely into the creeping void of colors. Blue leapt away, her body crashing hard into the cold ground. Her hands still grasped the mirror’s frame, her reflection flickering violently between its shattered shards. It had stopped bleeding, but the damage had already been done. She looked at the growing chaos around her. *What had she done?* Was this… the corruption Pandæmonium spoke of? But she hadn’t found it, it had come from the mirror. Or… the mirror caused this? Blue stumbled back, nearly losing her grip on the mirror’s handle. More screams echoed as the corruption surged higher, tendrils snaking up the buildings, ripping apart the sky. The city itself was breaking, and it was her fault. *There… must be some kind of mistake.* Blue thought. *This wasn’t what I-* “Finally found you.”  The words crashed into her like a thunderclap. Blue froze, her body jolting as her form flickered erratically. The icy dread settled into her stomach before she even turned around. A few feet away, emerging from around a corner, was a figure cloaked in fire and fury. Connie stood rigid, her sword drawn, embers of fame cracking along the blade’s edge. The glow cast sharp shadows across her face, her orange eyes burning like molten metal. Her stance was unwavering, poised between restraint and violence—like a predator waiting for the perfect moment to strike. Her gaze locked onto Blue with something cold, something furious. “You’re not getting away this time.”  ☀̷̲̞̯͌̒͆︎̴͈̈ ̶͙̼̊̊̅☀̴̧͓̰́̉͆︎̷̀̃̓ͅ ̵̞̳̀̐☀̴̳̏̈́︎̶̘͉͖͠ The world was ripping at the seams. Euphie hovered above the chaos, eyes wide as she helplessly watched the corruption surge through the streets below. It spread like wildfire, tearing through structures as if they were made of glass, swallowing the roads and buildings in an ever-expanding web of flickering, broken light. The glow of the lanterns shattered into static, warper fragments of the world flickering in and out of existence.  “Euphie!!” She barely heard Purée’s voice over the deafening hum of collapsing space, but when she spotted them, her heart nearly stopped.  Honey and Purée were still near the ground, doing their best to evacuate the citizens away from the corruption. The streets around them were already beginning to twist, warping unnaturally as the spreading color devoured everything in its path. Panic slammed through her. “Get out of there!!” She tucked her wings, diving toward them— But she never made it. A jagged fracture of light and color ripped through the space between them. A wall of flickering, unstable energy burst upward like a living thing, stretching high into the sky, erasing half of the world. The sheer force of it sent Euphie reeling backward, her wings beating frantically as the energy hummed with an unbearable pressure. She gasped, righting herself midair. The city below was still shifting, still crumbling. But where Purée and Honey once were was no longer visible. They were gone. “Honey!! Purée!!” She surged toward the wall, pressing her hands against it, but the second her body made contact, her body recoiled, a violent suge of pain rattling through her bones. She tried again, the pain worse this time, but she persisted. “Can you hear me?? Please, say something!!” Nothing. She sucked in a shaky breath, wings trembling, tears pricking the corners of her eyes. They were gone……. *No… No, no, no.*  Euphie squeezed her eyes shut, breath coming fast and uneven. She focused on the light she could still feel in the spreading hellscape. She still felt a faint connection of light, a sliver that still felt like them. They weren’t fully gone, not yet. Her eyes snapped open, locking onto the origin of the corruption. If she could stop it at its source, if she could find a way to close it, then maybe… maybe she could bring everything back.  Her wings glowed and she surged forward, slicing through the sky in a streak of iridescent light. The air itself trembled around her, fractures blooming like splintered glass, the sky flickering between moments of stability and total distortion.  The city below had become an impossible labyrinth of shifting streets and collapsing buildings. Structures twisted in on themselves, roads bent at sharp, unnatural angles. Euphie had to weave between them, dodging falling debris and cracks of color as entire sections of the city collapsed into the swirling void of corruption. A tremor rattled through the air—a high-rise to her left groaned, its foundation cracking before it gave way. A massive chunk of metal and glass hurtled toward her, spinning wildly.  Euphie sucked in a breath and hit her hand forward, pure, white light bursting from her fingertips. A beam of energy lanced through the falling debris, slicing it clean in half. The pieces crashed down on either side of her, sending shockwaves through the fractured streets. Her wings burned with effort, her body protesting against the rapid movement, but she didn’t slow. The sky above rippled like disturbed water, more pieces of reality falling away, but she kept going. The source was close now. She could see it—pulsing, writing, expanding like a living thing. Wait, was it actually… *alive?* Then—a guttural roar cut through the air. The sound wasn’t just loud, it ripped through the world, a deep, jagged cry that sent a shudder through the very fabric of reality. It was raw, wounded, filled with something indescribable.  Euphie hovered for a moment, staring at the mass of writhing corruption. *What was that?* ☀̷̲̞̯͌̒͆︎̴͈̈ ̶͙̼̊̊̅☀̴̧͓̰́̉͆︎̷̀̃̓ͅ ̵̞̳̀̐☀̴̳̏̈́︎̶̘͉͖͠ Blue’s static flared as she floated backward, hands raised in a feeble attempt at placation. “W- wait, I—” But Connie didn’t hesitate.  The demon general lunged, sword flashing as a fiery arc of light tore through the air. Blue barely managed to flicker out of the way, her form distorting as the searing blade cut through where she had been just seconds prior. The shockwave from the swing sent her reeling, her body flickering erratically as she tumbled through the air.  “Please! I- I’m not- I don’t—” Blue stammered, but Connie was already closing the distance. Another strike. Another near miss. The sheer heat of the blade seared through the space beside her, sending a jolt of terror down her spine. This woman wasn’t just attacking her—she was trying to cut her down without hesitation, without a single ounce of mercy. Blue’s breath hitched. She scrambled to form words, to explain, to do *something*—but her voice cracked, useless beneath the weight of Connie’s fury and the sound of the collapsing world. She moved instinctually as a chunk of metal fell from above. It crashed into the ground, sending dust and debris into the air. What Blue thought was a momentary escape was but a mere distraction.  The chunk of metal glowed red before melting in two as the general’s blade sliced through it with a fiery fury that knew no bounds. “Stop running!” she barked, slamming her blade down again, the force sending cracks through the street below. “P-please! Let me explain, I don’t want to—” Blue gasped barely twisting out of the way of another strike.  “Then stop making me chase you!” Connie’s eye’s burned, her stance unwavering. “You think you can spread corruption, try to *destroy* our worlds, and just walk away?!”  Blue’s test tightened. This happened to… multiple worlds? Was it because of her…?  The thoughts clawed at the edges of her mind, sharp and suffocating. Blue’s body flickered erratically, mirroring the colors of the surrounding chaos. Pandæmonium’s words echoed in her head. ***They*** *cast us out.* ***They*** *condemned them to solitude and darkness.* ***They’d*** *rather forget we exist.* *Unworthy of light, of the life* ***they*** *live.* Blue’s vision swam. The light of Connie’s blade burned too bright, the world too sharp, too hostile, too *wrong*. It was overwhelming. Her breath came in shallow gasps, her form glitching wildly. Her entire body screamed at her to run, to flee, to disappear. But where? Back to the mirror, which lie shattered on the ground? Back to Panæmonium empty-handed?  She clenched her fists, nails digging into her palms. No. She wouldn’t go back with nothing. She couldn’t… Blue’s flickering gaze snapped to the writhing corruption nearby. The light around it dimmed, bending unnaturally. Her stomach churned at the sight, but her pulse pounded with desperation. Connie moved to strike again, her blade igniting like wildfire—but Blue moved first. She lunged toward the corruption. Her hand plunged into the mass of chaos, flickers of light swallowing her arm to the elbow. Static surged through her body, the sensation burning cold, sinking into her skin, her core, her very being, as it absorbed into her. The last thing she saw before the colors swallowed her whole was Connie’s expression—eyes wide, burning, furious. Then everything split apart. ☀̶̛̠͖̬̦̜̈̇͗̓̐̉̾̽̈́͘͝︎̵̨̧̛̛̪͍̬̮̦̳͓̙̙̺̻͓̃͆͒̀̃͂̈́͝͠ ̸̧̧̭̝̯͖̪̯̫͔͚̖̣͔̱͌̃☀̵̢̧̮̟̖̩̖͕̟̪̀̽͗︎̴͎̱̞̝́ͅ ̵̫̭̽́͊̓̈́̎̾͠☀̶̨̢͕̯͔͈͍̱̫̖͔̩͓̓͐̈́̓̈́́́͆͜͠ͅ︎̸̡̡̢̣̯͉͎̬͎̦͍̤̰͓͐͊̀̚̕͘ [(song that inspired this scene](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L9XoivaEz5A&list=PL4L0rix_iY_WG2aLAICrk5xcJ9vlt_QTh&index=6&ab_channel=StevenUniverseMusic)) The world around her twisted, the colors bleeding like spilled ink. Connie stumbled back, narrowly dodging as the very air cracked apart, veins of corruption spreading like jagged wounds in reality. And at the center of it all—*her.* The girl's form was no longer her own. The corruption consumed her, threading through her glitching body like veins of raw, fractured energy. Her limbs stretched unnaturally, her entire figure distorting between jagged, geometric shards of color and something grotesquely organic. Her once-soft glow had been replaced with a seething, multicolored void, flickering chaotically between colors too wrong to belong to any world. Her arms had elongated into sharp, clawed appendages that scraped against the shattered air, her fingers curled into grasping talons that dripped with inky static. Her lower half dissolved entirely, merging with the corruption like a living extension, writhing and pulsing, shifting between amorphous tendrils and jagged spikes. Her face—if it could even be called that anymore—was hollow, gaping, a void of static where her features once were. Then it roared. Despite the fire surrounding Connie she felt a sharp, cold pain shoot through her as the sound reverberated all across the world. Her grip tightened on her sword’s hilt. Her wings opened, flames licking along them, embers spirling from her fingertips as she steadied herself. Suddenly, the beast lurched forward, its body flickering in jagged, violent motions, glitching between different forms. One moment it was all limbs, elongated and deadly, the next, her shape collapsed inward, folding like a fragmented reflection of broken glass. The air around her rippled with static, warping as she moved. Connie barely had time to react before a claw appendage—longer than it should have been—came crashing toward her. She kicked off the crumbling metal floor, launching herself into the air as the limb shattered the ground where she had stood. The metal burst apart on impact, instantly corrupting, the force sending cracks in all directions. A second tendril of corruption lashed toward her midair. Connie twisted, flames bursting from her wings as she spun out of the way, landing on the side of a partially collapsed building. She steadied herself for only a moment before leaping again, dodging another sweeping strike that sent a nearby car flying into the abyss below. It was fast and impossible to read, never once giving Connie the chance to recuperate, to come up with a counter. Her only hope was to distance herself. She gritted her teeth and, with a single, sharp motion, slashed at the beast as it charged her once again. Her blade struck at the corrupted mass with a force that sent it reeling back. The beast shrieked—a fractured, glitching sound that sent chills up Connie’s spine—but the attack barely slowed it down. It slammed into her, sending Connie flying. She landed hard on the remnants of a broken bridge, skidding back against the smooth metal. As Connie blinked it was suddenly on the attack yet again. She braced as blades of raw corruption slashed at her from all sides. Connie weaved between them, but she could feel sharp, cold pangs of pain as some of the corruption sliced into her skin. The pain was immediate, sharp, spreading like ice through her veins, her limbs starting to go numb. *Move.*  She threw herself backward, slamming her sword against the ground. A fiery explosion erupted from the impact, sending a wave of heat outward and pushing the corruption away for a brief second. It gave her just enough time to regain her footing. But the beast wasn’t stopping. It lurched toward her again, its body contorting into pieces folding in and out of existence. As she prepared to dodge, the ground beneath her gave way. She threw out her wings, catching herself mid-fall as the bridge below collapsed into the abyss. Gritting her teeth, she launched herself forward, sword raised, consumed by flame. If she didn’t end this now she risked being stuck in the collapsing world, consumed by corruption. And worse—the beast would break free. Connie dove, her sword a streak of fire cutting through the fractured air. Heat coiled around her blade, embers trailing her like a pair of second wings. Connie swung her sword downward, a wave of flame crashing through another attack and into the corrupted mass. The fire cut through the corruption’s form, searing it with burning arcs of flame. But the moment her attack connected, something changed. The roaring fire curled into the creature’s mass like a breath drawn inward, its body drinking the heat, absorbing it. Tendrils of corruption writhed along its body, and where there had been flickering void before, now there was fire. With a harsh snarl the beast roared, its face splitting apart, and unleashed a torrent of corrupted flame right back at her.  The heat of it was overwhelming, warping the air as it tore through the space between them. Connie barely had time to throw herself sideways as the flames carved a molten trench through the city’s remains, metal liquifying, structures melting into smoldering ruin.  As Connie attempted to think of a counter the creature was suddenly beside her. Something slammed into her side—a writhing limb of pure corruption. The impact crushed the breath from her lungs, sending her body hurtling across the corrupted void, crashing into the remains of a structure floating over the ever-shifting chasm.  Metal and stone shattered beneath her, the world spun violently, static filled her ears. For a moment, all she could do was breathe. She tried to move but her limbs screamed in protest. Her grip on her sword tightened as she forced her body to respond, but she knew—she was too slow. The air grew heavy as the static in her ears became louder, a shadow looming above her. There was nowhere to run, and even if there was, she didn’t have the strength. It was over. Connie looked up just in time to see the beast rear back one of its elongated limbs, its body pulsing with unrestrained energy, as it swung downwards.  ☀̷̡̜̮̦͔̙͌͒̇̽̂̃̈́̈͆͊̈̔̐̂̐̿̎̏̆͘͠͠͠︎̷̩͖̞͗̈́̈́̉̒ ̴̣̦̹͙͕̲̺̣̣̤̮͔̹̜̝̯̲̲̰͔̤̘͙̦̱͕̎̐̉͜͝ͅx ̶̛̜̦͔͎͍̯́͂̃͌͂̽̓̂͋̒͐̚̚͝͠☀̵̭͎̮͈̪̤̥̖̳̟̗̎︎̶̧̡̛̜̺͓͙̥͓̼̣̠͙̻̘͇͖̤͖͍̹͔̘̳̮͈͋̐̕̚͜ͅ☀̷̡̜̮̦͔̙͌͒̇̽̂̃̈́̈͆͊̈̔̐̂̐̿̎̏̆͘͠͠͠︎̷̩͖̞͗̈́̈́̉̒ ̴̣̦̹͙͕̲̺̣̣̤̮͔̹̜̝̯̲̲̰͔̤̘͙̦̱͕̎̐̉͜͝ͅx☀̵̭͎̮͈̪̤̥̖̳̟̗̎︎̶̧̡̛̜̺͓͙̥͓̼̣̠͙̻̘͇͖̤͖͍̹͔̘̳̮͈͋̐̕̚͜ͅ The world had gone silent. Then, a sharp crackling sound jolted her awake. For a moment she couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe. Everything was still—eerily, unnaturally still. The ground beneath her was solid, but only just. Jagged edges of the sundered world flickered with unstable light. The city—its lights,its streets, its people—was all gone, lost beyond the massive crack that had split reality in two. Purée groaned, pressing a hand to her head as she struggled to sit up. Her antennae twitched from the sharp static buzzing in her ears. She blinked slowly, gaze heavy as she tried to make sense of the scene around them. Another crack—a burst of pink light flaring and immediately sputtering out. Purée exhaled through her nose, shaking her head as if it would clear the ringing from her skull. She squinted. A few feet away, Honeys flew with one arm raised, her fingers crackling with residual energy. Her wings fluttered with frustration as she tried again, sending another pulse of sparkling pink toward the wall of corruption. The light barely reached before it was consumed, absorbed into the writhing void. Honey cursed under her breath, shaking out her hand as if that would help. She tried again. The same result. Purée sat up, rubbing the heel of her palm against her forehead. “...Ugh. What… happened?” Honey’s wings twitched. “Oh y’know, the world broke in half, we got launched who-knows-where, and now we’re completely stuck with a lovely view of the apocalypse.” Purée groaned. “Yeesh. Sounds bad.”  She finally looked around properly, taking in the shattered, unstable ground beneath them, the endless walls of colorful void creeping closer, the sheer isolation of where they were. Her tone had been aloof but… yeah. This was bad. “No *shit*,” Honey hissed, sending out another blast of energy, the light flickering out uselessly. “We’ll need to find another way out.”  Honey continued flying about, looking for something—anything—that looked like a crack in the closing space. Purée looked down to her wrist, bathed in the indigo light of her communicator. “Light Girl, you there?” Static.  She tapped again, voice a little sharper. “Light—er… Euphie? Connie? Hellooo?”  More static. No pulse of connection, no faint warmth of Euphie’s presence, nothing but the cold, empty crackle of dead air. Purée swallowed hard, her normally half-lidded gaze flickering with something rare—urgency. She turned to Honey who had now returned to land, breathing labored. “Honey they’re… not responding—” “Don’t you think I know that??” Honey snapped. “What do you think I’ve been trying to do since we got separated?” Her words were filled with irritation, but tinged with something else. Genuine worry. Frustration. Purée shrugged, her usual aloof demeanor settling back into place. “Idunno. Was kinda hoping you had some brilliant plan instead of yelling at me.” Honey let out a sharp exhale. “Well, I *don’t*, okay?! We’re stuck here! We don’t know what’s going on, we don’t even know if Euphie is—” She stopped herself. Jaw tight, hands clenched into fists, facade cracking. “Would you stop acting like this isn’t serious?” Purée met Honey’s gaze, her eyes half-lidded but steady. “I *know* it’s serious.” She gave a vague nod toward the creeping corruption, which had slithered inches closer while they stood there. “I just don’t see a point in panicking.” “So what? You’d rather just give up??” Purée yawned, stretching her arms overhead with a lazy sigh. “Not like there’s anywhere to run to.” Honey’s wings flared. “That’s not funny, Purée.” “It’s not supposed to be,” she replied simply. Her gaze drifted back to the walls, even closer now. “Besides, there are worse places to be…”  Honey had no response, and Purée didn’t push for one. She simply let the silence sit between them as she watched the corruption. It flickered like static, erratic and chaotic. Under any other circumstance she might even say it looked pretty.  Suddenly her antennae twitched as she watched the corruption. There was something familiar about it. Not just its presence, but the way it felt. Her eyes narrowed slightly. It… it’s made of light? She looked harder, delving deeper into the corruption with her mind. She thought she had imagined it but no—it was undoubtedly made of light.  The light inside the corruption was tangled, frayed at the edges. It wasn’t being consumed—it was rearranging itself, warping in ways that didn’t make sense. Her memory flickered before all this started. She had felt it, hadn't she? The sudden drop in the light levels. The way everything seemed to dim right before the cracks began to form. The last time they encountered corruption she had been able to balance the world’s light levels, forcing it to retreat—a feat only possible from outside the gate with the Everhub’s power. But if she could do something similar from inside…could she manipulate the corruption *directly?* She tilted her head toward Honey, finally breaking the silence. “Hey, y’know how we’re trying to get outta here?” Honey had stopped her assault on the corruption now, her expression defeated. She responded uncharacteristically sluggishly. “Yeah, yeah. There’s no way out, I get it.”  Purée leaned forward slightly, gaze locked onto the flicking wall ahead. “Forget everything I said—well like… most of it. I think I see a way.” --- A sharp pulse of energy crackled through the air, sending shivers up Honey’s spine.  “Purée, this is a *bad* idea!” Honey shouted, her wings the only thing keeping her from plummeting into the abyss below, the remains of the street crumbling away. Purée stood at the edge of the crumbling space, arms outstretched, arms plunged into swirling mass that pulsed around them. Wisps of multicolored energy coiled like living things up her arms. The corruption felt like ice, sending pins and needles up her arm. She could feel the imbalance of light, the chaos that flickered within as the world attempted to make up for the lost light. A bead of sweat rolled down Purée’s temple, but she didn’t waver. “Ngh, yeahhh, probably,” she murmured. “But it’s kinda working, so…”  Honey clenched her fists, watching as Purée’s body flickered, her normal glow barely visible beneath the static crawling across her skin. She looked… wrong, her color draining, like it was being pulled from her body. Honey gritted her teeth. “Then *stop* before you—” A deep shudder ran through the corruption, a noise like a distant chime echoing through the void. And then, it shifted. The wall before them broke open. A passage, thin and unstable, cut through the swirling mass, remnants of the city still visible beyond it.  Purée exhaled slowly, shoulders shaking. “Hah… told ya.”  Honey stared at the opening, then back at Purée. “You’re insane, you know that?”  Purée smirked slightly, wobbling on her feet. “Yea. I know.” She took a step forward, but Honey grabbed her arm before she could fall. Honey’s grip was firm, steadying Purée as the moth girl wavered.  “Alright, alright, let’s not collapse before we even get through.” Purée leaned in slightly to the hold. “Daww, do you care about me?”  Honey rolled her eyes. “Of course I do.”  Without another word she guided Purée forward, their steps quick but careful. The passage pulsed around them, barely holding itself together, the restored light corrupting once more.  The moment they emerged on the other side, the air was different. The remains of the city stretched before them—fractured and torn at the seams, crumbling into the abyss and corrupting before their eyes. But worse than that, looming in the distance, was a shifting mound of corruption, its form pulsating, twisting, writhing. Honey sucked in a breath. “Oh give us a fucking break.”  ☀̷̡̜̮̦͔̙͌͒̇̽̂̃̈́̈͆͊̈̔̐̂̐̿̎̏̆͘͠͠͠︎̷̩͖̞͗̈́̈́̉̒ ̴̣̦̹͙͕̲̺̣̣̤̮͔̹̜̝̯̲̲̰͔̤̘͙̦̱͕̎̐̉͜͝ͅ☀̶̛͓͚̱̰̗͓͎̯͚̟̬̲̗̇̌̀͋̑͂́̈́̋̋̕︎̴̫̖̻̊̽̅͛̄͆̑̓̓̔̎͛̏̆̄̃̌͂̇̕̚͝ ̶̛̜̦͔͎͍̯́͂̃͌͂̽̓̂͋̒͐̚̚͝͠☀̵̭͎̮͈̪̤̥̖̳̟̗̎︎̶̧̡̛̜̺͓͙̥͓̼̣̠͙̻̘͇͖̤͖͍̹͔̘̳̮͈͋̐̕̚͜ͅ☀̷̡̜̮̦͔̙͌͒̇̽̂̃̈́̈͆͊̈̔̐̂̐̿̎̏̆͘͠͠͠︎̷̩͖̞͗̈́̈́̉̒ ̴̣̦̹͙͕̲̺̣̣̤̮͔̹̜̝̯̲̲̰͔̤̘͙̦̱͕̎̐̉͜͝ͅx☀̵̭͎̮͈̪̤̥̖̳̟̗̎︎̶̧̡̛̜̺͓͙̥͓̼̣̠͙̻̘͇͖̤͖͍̹͔̘̳̮͈͋̐̕̚͜ͅ The city blurred beneath Euphie as she flew, wings burning with effort. The world was breaking apart faster than she could comprehend. But none of that mattered. Not yet. Because she saw it. A massive, writing shape, its body shifting like it was barely holding form, tendrils of corruption spilling from its limbs. And at its base, motionless, was Connie. Euphie’s breath caught. *No—no, no, no, no—* She dove, faster than she ever had, light trailing from her in a streak of iridescent glow. Honey, Purée, and now Connie? She was alone again, memories of the frozen land and fear clawing back into her mind. *No.* The beast’s twisted form Loomed above Connie, its distorted limbs shifting and curling inward, raising as if to finish her off. **“HEY!!!”** Euphie threw out her hand, a blinding blast of light streaking from her palm, slamming into the creature’s side. The moment the beam connected the corruption buckled, writhing away from the light as if burned. The beast screeched, its voice warping between something inhuman and human. Euphie landed hard beside Connie, skidding to her knees. She didn’t register the cracking metal street beneath her or the surrounding corruption, her full focus was on Connie’s unmoving form. Her heart pounded as she grabbed her arm, pouring light into it with her hand.  “Connie! Hey—hey wake up!” She shook her, desperation creeping into her voice. “You’re okay—you’re—”  Connie let out a ragged breath, her fingers twitching. Euphie felt relief rush through her, but there was no time to linger. The beast shuddered, its body distorting wildly as it struggled to right itself. The place where Euphie struck looked unstable, shifting, healing, *growing.*  Euphie hovered midair, breath caught in her throat as she stared at the place she’d just struck. The threads of light crackled along its flesh, not purifying, but twisting, the corrupted tissue pulsing brighter, bolder. Like it had been fed. What? Before she could think, the beast’s head snapped toward her, its jagged maw splitting open in a static-warped howl. It lunged—not for Honey, not for Connie—but straight for her, through crumbling buildings and fractured air, as if pulled by gravity. Euphie’s heart lurched in her chest. Still, her instincts fired—she raised her hands and unleashed another burst of radiance, a blinding beam that tore through the air and struck the creature dead-on. It screamed again—a chunk of the corruption being blasted away. Then, through the shifting mass, she saw something. One of the limbs struck by the light morphed into a pale, blue arm. Then—she saw its head. She met its eye, wide and full of terror.  Euphie’s fingers trembled. There’s… someone in there? The split second of hesitation cost her. The glow in its body bloomed like a fire stoked too hot, limbs fracturing and multiplying as the corruption bloated outward from where her attacks hit.  The creature finished its expansion, corruption warping anything that might once have looked human. A tendril of corruption lashed out, striking before Euphie could react. Pain exploded through her body. She cried out, flung violently into the air, crashing into the remains of the street. She struggled to move. Her entire body ached, her wings trembling.  She couldn’t get the image of the eyes out of her mind. *There was someone in there.* The beast let out another grating roar, the same inhuman, corrupted cry that had ripped through the world before. The beast lashed out another tendril, sharp and deadly. And then—a streak of pink and violet cut through the air, followed by a burst of dazzling, pink light. The beast lurched, snarling, as two figures landed from above. Euphie barely had time to register the movement before a familiar voice cut through the chaos.  “Oh, great,” Honey drawled. “We finally catch up and you’re already getting your ass handed to you?”  Euphie blinked in disbelief. “Wh- you… you’re okay—”  “Not for long if we keep standing here,” Honey interrupted. Her usual smirk was gone, replaced by sharp focus. “What the hell *is* that thing?”  Another monstrous, glitchful shriek split the air. The beast’s form shuddered, twisting in and out of existence. It had nearly recovered. Purée was still slumped against Honey’s side, arm around her shoulders, unmoving. Her breath was slow, her form paler than before. Still, her tone was as dry as ever. “Hate that.” “There… there’s someone inside,” Euphie said, breathlessly. She kept her eyes on the shifting mass, scanning for any trace of the girl she had seen before. “I saw her. It looked… human?”  The beast wailed again, raw and pained. More cracks appeared throughout the sky. The realm was barely anything now, hardly more than the ground they stood on. “I… I think we can help her.”  Honey snapped her head toward her. “Are you out of your mind?? We don’t even know what that thing is!” “She’s *suffering*, Honey, and she’s terrified. I... I felt it. She’s in pain…” Honey looked back at the mass, eyes narrowing as if to study it. As it moved and wailed, her face softened ever so slightly.  “Okay,” she finally said. “What would you have us do?”  Purée finally lifted her head, her gaze flickering toward the beast. “...So, I think I’ve got an idea.” Honey’s wings twitched. She already knew what Purée was going to suggest.  “Oh, no,” her eyes narrowed at Purée. “Don’t you even *think* about—” “I found out corruption is basically distorted light,” Purée continued, ignoring her. “Like the last time—I can see the imbalance. Sort of manipulate it too. If I can touch it, I can kinda stabilize it.” Honey’s stomach twisted. “So, what, you just go up and *touch it??* What if it kills you!” “Relaaxx, I did this before,” Purée responded, the nonchalance in her voice masking the worry she felt. Honey grabbed her by the arm. “Yeah, and you nearly—” She took a breath. “I swear to every force out there, Purée, if you get yourself killed I’ll—” “You’ll what?” Purée’s tone was light but her eyes were steady. Honey opened her mouth, but nothing came out. Purée looked to Euphie.  “Look, Light Girl. If you can knock it down while I work, I might be able to balance it out.”  Euphie nodded. “I.. I can do that. Honey, can you distract or restrain it somehow?”  Honey let out a sharp breath, glaring between the two of them. “You’re both *insane.*” Her frustrated tone dropped. “But.. Yes, I can do that.”   Purée pushed off Honey’s shoulder and cracked her knuckles.  “Let’s save a monster.”  The ground trembled as the beast let out another shriek. Euphie took a deep breath and exchanged a look with Purée. She nodded. “Alright,” Euphie yelled. “Honey, go!”  With just a little hesitation, Honey shot forward, pink sparkles crackling at her fingertips. She darted around the beast, light streaking behind her as she unleashed a barrage of rapid, dazzling strikes—not at the creature, but at the ground near its feet, blinding flashes keeping its attention split. The beast lurched, its hulking body twisting mid-motion. It struck out with jagged limbs, corrupted spines slicing the air where Honey had been—but she was already gone, flitting like a wasp through static. “Come on, come on…” she hissed. Purée, steading herself, took a step forward. She rolled her shoulders. “Light Girl,” she murmured. “Hit it.”  Euphie gave a sharp nod and extended her hands. Light surged forth in a radiant blast, a beam so bright it turned the battlefield white-hot—slamming directly into the beast’s chest. It shuddered. Then it screamed. But not in pain. Its form convulsed—then expanded. Tendrils of corruption split outward from its body like wild roots, surging toward the source of the radiance. Toward *her.* “What—?” Euphie stumbled back as the light curled inward, dragged into the creature like oxygen into flame. Her glow sputtered as the beast roared again, no longer distracted—its gaze locked entirely on her. Before she could even finish, the beast moved. Faster than before. Sharp and direct. Its whole body convulsed toward Euphie, massive limbs tearing through the crumbling terrain, drawn by her light. Euphie reeled backward, panic rising in her throat. Her wings flared hard as she shot higher into the broken sky, eyes wide with realization.  Her attacks hadn't been cleansing it. They were feeding it. She was the brightest thing here. And it wanted her. Honey shouted, swerving between corrupted tendrils. *“Euphie, MOVE!”* Euphie’s wings flared wide, her instincts screaming as she launched backward—just in time to avoid a massive tendril slamming into the ground where she had stood. The impact shattered the steel beneath it, sending fractured pieces of street spiraling into the void below. A second tendril followed, streaking toward her like a jagged whip of static and shadow. She spun to the side, breath hitching as it narrowly missed her shoulder. The corrupted air burned against her skin, the world blurring as she pushed her wings harder, faster. She could feel it in her chest now—that pull. Like her own radiance was being siphoned away. The closer it got, the heavier her wings felt. As if the corruption wanted to consume her light completely. Devour her. Meanwhile Purée dashed forward anyway, distancing herself between its attacks and aiming for the beast’s core. She surged toward the main body reaching forward. Her hand plunged into the writhing, seething mass of corrupted color. The moment her skin connected she felt it—the raw, churning mass of fractured light within the beast. It was chaotic, fragmented, tearing itself apart. But deeper within, something else flickered—something familiar.  “Oohhkay,” she said, biting her lip. “I can work with this…”  The beast shrieked, its form buckling. The moment Purée’s influence reached it, it halted its assault on Euphie, its body warping, flickering between forms. Purée’s vision blurred, her entire body vibrating with static as limbs of corruption lashed outward. One of them shot toward her, twisting violently, aiming straight for her head. “Wuh-oh,” she mumbled, bracing for impact. Steel flashed. The tendril severed, disintegrating into corrupted light as Connie slashed through it. Purèe blinked in mild surprise. Connie, still bloodied, still breathed hard, only met her gaze with a sharp glare. “Keep going,” Connie said, less like an order, more like a push of support. She twisted her blade and dove back into the fray. Despite the increasing pain, Purèe didn’t let go. She exhaled slowly, adjusting her hold, her voice steady. “Not today.”  The beast shuddered violently, an ear-piercing, echoing shriek tearing from its fractured form. The sound warped the air, a dying static that bled into the collapsing sky. Its limbs convulsed, massive and grotesque, folding in on themselves with sharp, jagged motions. The colors of its body sputtered like the final flickers of a dying star. Light flared from deep within its core, burning wildly as if trying to hold it together. But the corruption was unraveling, or rather, healing faster than it could distort. Cracks split through its body like glass under pressure, each rupture casting out bursts of distorted light and shadow. It let out one final, anguished cry—half-monster, half-human—before its entire frame buckled, collapsing inward with a rush of air and energy. The mass folded smaller and smaller, each pulse of light tighter, more frantic, until the form was no longer monstrous. Where the beast once stood lay a small, fragile shape curled in on itself. A girl, her body trembling, weak, flickering with unstable static and the remnants of corruption. She barely seemed conscious. As the last of the monster faded, Purèe collapsed.  “Purèe!” Honey shouted, wings buzzing as she swooped down to her fallen body. Meanwhile Connie was already moving, sword raised, a decisive and swift final strike to the ghost girl who had— Euphie lunged between them. **“Stop!!”**  Steel halted inches from Euphie’s throat. Connie’s grip on her hilt tightened. “What are you *doing?*” she snapped.  “She’s not a monster,” Euphie said, voice firm but breathless. “She—she’s someone.”  Connie’s expression didn’t waver. “Exactly. *Someone* who is behind the Gates corrupting. The reason this world is breaking? That was *her.*”  Blue twitched at her words, her flickering form curling in on itself further as she came to. Euphie hesitated. “We.. we don’t know that,” she said, though doubt gnawed at the edges of her voice. Her eyes caught the shattered black and gold mirror lying nearby. The same from the other Gate… Connie’s wings snapped outward. “I *watched* her cause this,” she snarled. “You saw what she became. This isn’t something we can fix—people are *dead.* This world is *gone.* I won’t let it happen again.”  Blue let out a shuddering breath. Her vision swam, her body still tingling with static. Everything was spinning and overwhelming, the sounds of nearby voices muffled by a harsh ringing in her ears. Her eyes flickered up and locked onto Euphie. She… she was standing in front of her. Defending her. The girl from the mirror—it was her… Pandæmonium’s voice echoed in her mind. *Stay far away. They want nothing more to capture you—their* ***mistake.*** Blue’s fingers twitched. Euphie, holding firm between Connie and Blue, slowly extended a hand toward her. “I… it’s okay,” she said gently. “You’re safe now. I—” Blue’s body jolted as the light emanating out of Euphie reached her. Her entire form wavered, static crackling wildly around her. It *burned.*  *No no no no no no*—She couldn’t be here. She couldn’t be near *her.*  Her gaze darted past Euphie, lay just a few feet away. With one final flicker of unstable light, she lunged for it, her form flicking out of existence before reappearing beside the mirror.  Blue’s shaking hands wrapped around the fractured mirror, holding it close like a lifeline. She squeezed her eyes shut, praying—pleading—that it still worked. Suddenly, the air around her warped, bending inward like a vortex of shattered glass. Connie lunged forward. “No—!”  But it was too late. The mirror pulsed once—twice—before swallowing Blue whole. In an instant, she was gone, leaving only a single trickle of inky black behind, curling like smoke where she last was. Silence fell over the group. Connie’s breath was ragged, her hands trembling as her sword dissipated. “Damn,” she muttered under her breath, gaze glancing at Euphie, daggers in her eyes. A deep groan trembled through the realm, the very fabric of the realm cracking apart in earnest. Connie grit her teeth, stepping back to assess their surroundings—what little remained of them. The city was gone. The Gate was gone. She looked back to Euphie, eyes sharp. “Well? Any more bright ideas?”  Euphie swallowed hard. The weight of failure pressed into her chest, suffocating. Her fingers curled at her sides, but she forced herself to nod. “If… if I can reach out to the Everhub, I think I can make a new Gate….?” Connie’s gaze flickered with doubt, but she didn’t argue. Euphie took a breath, raising her hands. Light swirled around her fingertips, gathering, twisting, forming into something tangible. The air shimmered, fragments of broken reality struggling to reform. And then, with a final push, the light solidified.  A new gate. Euphie let out a shaky breath. “Go, before it collapses.”  The others didn’t hesitate. Honey was the first through, picking up Purèe’s unconscious body. Connie lingered a moment longer, casting one last glance at Euphie before stepping through. Euphie turned back to the collapsing world. The last remnants of the ground crumbled into the endless, shifting, multicolored void, one she didn’t have the power to stop. She had failed. Her wings drooped, the weight in her chest growing heavier. She turned and followed the others, stepping through the Gate just as it, and the world behind her, shattered completely. --- ← [[03 The Calm Before| Chapter Three: The Calm Before]]