Dimensional Descent

Leonel stood in silence.

In the skies, the lines of red-black grew thicker, the leaches become less and less illusory.

Leonel's gaze shifted down from the skies, landing on Aina who still seemed to be immobile. Though it now seemed to be in part due to struggling against the Puppet Master's growing control, a large majority of it seemed to be fear.

Leonel found it hard to believe that this was his Aina. Fear was never an emotion he had seen her display before. At the very least, not for the sake of an enemy.

It could be said that the first time Leonel saw Aina's façade crack was that day in the bathhouse. He could still remember the path every tears that fell down her cheeks took. He remembered the exact hue of her reddened eyes, the way her wet hair had stuck to her face, the way she trembled through each and every one of her clumsy actions.

The emotions she experienced that day were all seared into his mind.

But, that was that and this was this.

The Aina he knew charged into war with her ax brandished and her blade bloodied. She had no fear, none of the shyness she usually displayed, and the valiant nature of a Valkyrie.

But Aina, his Aina, stood here shaking simply due to a voice.

Leonel remembered back to the time he asked Aina what happened that day. She reeled back, trying to pretend as though everything was fine. Yet he, instead of trying to understand where she was coming from, pulled back instead.

feeling, the anxiety or the trepidation. He didn't grasp the fact that just

still seemed to be lost in her own world, clenching her fists and staring down at the ground hard as though to push the emotions she was feeling away. She didn't want to experience such a reaction, she didn't want this Puppet Master to have such control over her,

moments later. It was as though the

finally realized that Leonel was standing right before her, she looked up weakly, her gaze tinted with a

even him. It was rage she pointed toward herself for being so weak, for allowing

can't move

responded, his hand gently

They hung in the air like a spring breeze, riding the wind. There was no

had always hated to kill. But for Aina, he could speak such words as though they were

she did have to lean her head onto Leonel's palm. Her eyes closed and her breathing

see

smiled. "As my Queen

of iciness that left

down from above, speaking of taking his woman… The Puppet Master

her such a thing,

away, ripping the tops of his robes off to reveal a muscular frame. He carried Aina onto his back, tying her to

closed. She didn't want

still hadn't properly recovered. It had only been a day since the battle at Dark Cloud Prison, so how could it? However, at

thumped like war drums, his blood flooding through his veins and

sky began to converge on Leonel's position. When Leonel saw who they were, he wasn't very surprised. In fact, his gaze was cold and indifferent, a fury within his