Svenja threw the doors of the Fairylyl Alliance HQ open. Draley went inside with the others and looked around, her eyes big as she noticed that some things were new to her, like the Alliance Nexus.

“Welcome home, Draley!” Svenja said, smirking at the surprise of her companion.

“Interesting…” Draley replied, eyeing the Nexus at the center of the room. “What's this here?” she asked, gesturing to the Nexus.

“Ah, this? That's Chami. She's the power source of our Nexus.”

Draley blinked at hearing Chami's name. “Hold on. Did you just say Chami?”

“Why, yes. What about her?”

“I know who Chami is. I've found the location of her body's whereabouts and was on a journey to find both it and her soul…before I got captured.”

Trixie’s brows furrowed at Draley's revelation. …Huh, she thought. So Chami is a real person? Not just a voice in the Nexus?

It appears so, Piper replied.

“And who might she be?” asked Svenja.

“Chami is an Acolyte, the Acolyte of Possession and Slothfulness. She is one of the eight Acolytes, all of which represent the different human personality traits one would have.” Draley replied.

Acolyte? Trixie thought. I remember Sarolta mentioning them. Something about a war between them that almost saw their demise.

Svenja nodded. “Well, why are you lookin’ for her?”

“It's obvious. She lost her soul. If the soul and body remain separated for too long, then the former will slowly erode into nothingness. We can't let the soul of an Acolyte die, or else all living beings will suffer for it. So, in order to reclaim her soul, I went on a quest to find her body and bring her soul back to it.”

"An interestin’ conundrum. An’ here ye are, havin’ already found out where Chami can be found, is that correct? An’ how did ye find the location of her body?”

"Yes, that is correct. I found her body in the possession of Sylvie, a half demon and half fairy who desires power above all else. And if you are looking for her, she's not just going to give her body away, you will have to take it from her forcefully.”

“I see. Well, perhaps the Alliance and I can help ya in your fight against Sylvie. We are willing to lend you the resources necessary to face her head on and destroy her.”

“Excellent. But I must warn you, she won't be easy to take down.”

She should already know how Svenja will respond to that… Uni thought with a crooked smirk.

Svenja stared at Draley with a smirk. "And what do you say we give it a go? It does sound like an entertaining proposition, and I've been itchin' for a good scuffle anyways."

“So it is decided. We will travel to Sylvie’s domain and challenge her.”

“Hell yeah! Now there's the craic! Lemme give the rest ‘a the Alliance the heads-up an’ we're out the door!”

★

“All right, Nyx! I know we already agreed on the number of our little group being sufficient, but I have just two more!” Sylvie said, walking into Nyx's room with two new individuals. To Sylvie's left was a young woman with purple eyes and long black hair with multicolored streaks. She wore a purple checkered cropped jacket with a matching skirt, cutoff shorts underneath them, and black studded boots. Fishnet stockings covered her legs, and hanging on her neck was a choker and necklace with an inverted peace sign. To Sylvie's right was a maroon-eyed woman in a wheelchair. Her pink hair was so long that it touched the floor. She wore a frilled sepia dress, white stockings and black loafers.

“To my left is Cassie, and to my right is Mariko! We need these two on our side, as their abilities will prove incredibly useful!”

Nyx sized up the two, noting how they were polar opposites in terms of the complexity of their attires. Using Pinpoint, Nyx noted that Cassie's aura was strong around her exposed midriff and her hands, which were adorned in chains. Nyx raised a brow at how powerful her aura was. Mariko's aura was concentrated in her scalp. Her aura wasn't as powerful as Cassie's, but it still met Nyx's needs. After a second, Nyx turned to Sylvie and nodded. “Very well. They both are welcome in our clan.”

“So like, what do you guys do?” Cassie asked, leaning forward at Nyx with a raised brow.

“We are a force dedicated to stopping the Light from dominating the Darkness. There are many more members here who aim for the same thing. We must all work together, even if we may not like some of the other members.”

Cassie scoffed and crossed her arms with a huge smirk. “That's all?! I'm the ruler of the Shadow Zone, and have been for millennia! This is NOTHING!”

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The Shadow Zone, huh? Nyx thought. She could be even more formidable than I thought…

“There's always someone stronger out there… Have you forgotten?”

Cassie waved her hand and chortled. “Yeah, yeah, yeah! I'm not a mindless warmonger, y'know!”

Nyx nodded. “I hope not. We can't afford to succumb to failure.”

…

Nyx and Sylvie walked into the main room with Cassie and Mariko. The Cabal members looked at the newcomers with mixed receptions across the table.

“I would like to introduce two more members to our group, everyone: Cassie, and Mariko. I'm sure they will prove to be very useful individuals in our mission.”

Kaz ogled at Cassie and smirked to himself. Oh yeah. NOW we're talking, he thought, turning to Mathusalem. They both exchanged a thumbs-up and a sly grin. Malika, Iris, and the Animal Dealer were indifferent. However, the other Cabal members are not as welcoming, their expressions ranging from doubt to suspicion.

“Hey, what's up with the wheelchair chick?” Vilho called out.

“Don't underestimate her, Vivi!” Sylvie replied with a cheeky grin. “She can extend her hair hundreds of kilometers and choke the shit out of your mom!”

Vivi? Vilho thought with a scowl. The hell kinda nickname is that? Better not call me that again.

“And besides, she possesses a very powerful aura.” Nyx added. “She's just as viable as you are.”

Vilho shrugged. “That's fair, I guess. The more, the merrier, they say.”

Cassie stepped forward, and she met everyone’s gazes with a confident smirk.

“Hello there, lovely faces.” Cassie says, with a wink and a sarcastic tone. “You know, I gotta say you guys look like quite the ragtag bunch of misfits. So tell me, just how strong are you all, really? If you aren't all that, you're better off giving me your souls as a tasty snack!”

Some Cabal members like Lotte and Danemon are taken aback by her cocky attitude, while others like Brittany and Chelsea are amused by her brashness. Kaz and Mathusalem can’t help but smile at the newcomer’s wit.

Cassie's smirk widens, undeterred by the Cabal's reactions.

“Hmph! I have to say, if y'all plan on defeating the forces of Light, you've got a lot to learn! Don't you know that the Shadow Zone is the place for strong individuals? I'm the ruler there, and have been for millennia!”

“Oh, so you think you're that strong? Well, this ‘Shadow Zone’ just sounds like a playground for children,” Courtney said with her own fair share of ego. “Come back when you’ve actually stood toe-to-toe with the forces of Light because we’re dealing with a whole different kind of level here, sweetheart.”

Cassie rolled her eyes at Courtney's condescending tone.

“You know, it’s really quite adorable the way you all talk so proudly about how strong you are,” Cassie replied with a laugh. “Do you think you can actually compare to me in power or skill? I’ve got more combat experience and raw, uninhibited abilities than you can even imagine. I can destroy this whole room full of pathetic excuses for “Void Magic users” with a flick of my wrist!”

Cassie’s words struck a nerve with Gabrielle, whose face was contorted with annoyance from her arrogance.

Gabrielle gave a mocking laugh at her arrogant remarks. “You’re all talk, aren’t you? Just a little brat with an ego too big for her own good. You’ve got nothing on me that can compete. You think that just because you’re the ruler of this so-called Shadow Zone of yours, you automatically earn the title of being among the most powerful? Think again, hun.”

Cassie covered her mouth with a hand and chuckled, staring down at Gabrielle with her biggest smirk yet. “Oho~! And YOU think just because you're muscle-bound that you can just smack me around with ease, huh? Well, you sure got another thing coming! Keep talking and your soul shall be my meal!” she boomed with a wicked laugh that echoed through the room.

Gabrielle huffed and crossed her arms, leaning back in her seat with a pout.

“Oho~? Where'd all that bravado go? Hehe~” Cassie said, petting Gabrielle.

“Get your fucking hands off me,” Gabrielle spat, swatting Cassie's hand away.

“Calm down, you two,” Nyx intervened, stepping up to them. “We have no room for infighting. We are here to work together.”

“Ah come on! It's just playful banter!” Cassie replied with a hand on her hips.

“Yes, but there's no need to get physical with each other. Teamwork and companionship is key to winning this fight.”

“Okay, so anyways,” Danemon said, looking at Mariko. “You. Mariko, was it? What do you do?”

“My Void Magic ability involves using my hair as a living weapon.” Mariko replied, moving her hair in front of her as if it had a mind of its own. She then turned her hair into a long, sharp blade. She swung her hair at a statue across the room, slicing it clean in half as the Cabal watched the top half of the statue fall to the floor.

Danemon blinked and nodded. “Interesting indeed. So your Aura Type is Interaction, correct?”

“Yes. My hair is all-purpose and can do just about anything imaginable.”

“Well, good,” Brittany said. “We already have someone who can cut things.” she continued before summoning a life-sized pair of red and blue scissors.

Cassie bristled at seeing the giant scissors. “Pfft! What in the world is the point of a giant pair of scissors?”

“She has a point,” Vilho added. “How do you have time to do all that snipping in the heat of battle?”

“Easy!” Brittany said before she split the scissors in two, smirking at Vilho. “I can just turn them into twin blades like this! You thought I'd be THAT dumb?”

“Well that's neat, I guess,” Vilho replied in a nonchalant voice.

“All right now,” Nyx began, sitting down and observing the other members. “Now that we have our team, it is time to get into action. I will give each of you the power of Depravity in exchange for capturing members of the Ephemerals and anyone you believe could give us clues to find them. You can use your newfound powers for your own personal goals and pursuits, but do not forget our primary mission at hand.” Nyx ended with a nod.

★

“So, Draley,” Trixie said. “What’s up with this whole ‘Chami’ thing? Where is her body, exactly?”

“Chami's body is located in the Forest of Remnants, based in northwestern Aberzanthan.”

Trixie stroked her chin. “Forest of Remnants, eh?”

Draley nodded. “Indeed. It is a land I once called home, where witches lived in a land flourishing with life and teeming with Void Energy. That was until the Dark forces came into the picture. Since then, the balance of Light and Darkness there has sent out of whack and made the forest lose its essence. In the Forest of Remnants now is a large castle, where Sylvie resides. She was accompanied by a short, raven-haired woman who wields the power of Depravity.”

Trixie scratched her head as she tried to recall seeing such an individual, but nothing came up.

“I'm getting nothing as well, Trix,” Piper said.

“The goal of Sylvie is to steal Chami's soul and use its power to flood the world in Darkness.” Draley continued. “I tried to fight them, but the combined strength of Sylvie and her companion proved to be far greater than my own, and I was taken down pretty quickly.”

Trixie's eyes went big as she processed this, nodding in understanding. “Yeesh… I wish I was there to help.”

“Well...I've never seen you fight, but I believe that even with your aid, the outcome of the battle would have been no different. They nearly killed me.”

“Well I'll be! These guys must be monsters if even an Alliance member can't stop them.”

“No, they can be stopped, and for good. With a combined effort and good planning, we can put an end to both of them, especially with your help.”

“Sounds like a deal then, I'm in.”

“Glad to hear that, Trixie. Let's see what Svenja has to say.”

…

“Absolutely the fuck yes, we're goin'!” Svenja said with a grin. “We just need the when an’ where, then we'll see what magic that Marla can work for us!”

“Fantastic,” Draley replied. “We must go the the forest of Remnants and retrieve Chami's body.”

“The Forest of Remnants? Grand, let's see Marla straight away before plannin' any further!”

The three entered Marla's room and were greeted with a bright smile from the fairy. “Hello, everyone!” she chirped, her smile widening as she saw Draley. “Draley! It's been so long! How have you been?”

Draley returned the smile and waved. “Very good, Marla. Thank you. Now, we have something we need your help with.”

Marla nodded. “Mhm! What is it?”

“We need to go to the Forest of Remnants to retrieve the body of Chami so that we can transplant her soul back into her body. There are two powerful enemies there that stopped me from doing so before, so we need the help of the entire Alliance to take them down.”

Marla processed everything and raised a brow. “But… If everybody goes to the Forest of Remnants, then who will guard the Nexus until you get back?”

Draley paused and tapped her head with her fingers. “Darn, you're right. Our foes may head this way while we're on our way to the castle, and then we'll be right back at square one.”

“Correct,” Marla replied. “So we need some Alliance members to stay here just in case that happens. I'd recommend some members of the Alliance to stay here, and have the rest go on the mission.”

“All right then,” Svenja said. “So I'll be taking Uni, Marnie, and Fritz with us, and the rest can stay here an' guard the Nexus. How ‘bout it?”

“That's a good idea,” Marla replied with a nod. “The Forest of Remnants is pretty far from here, Svenja.” she added, showing Svenja the location of the Forest of Remnants on the big map behind her.

“Mhm…” Svenja said as she studied the map. Well, let's gather everyone and tell ‘em to leg it! We're gonna have a savage time!”