Ximena struggled to move as she froze and snapped another one of the foul tongues clinging to her.

Things were going well for her at first. The snake hybrid turned out to be a pretty formidable foe and forced her attention on it most of the time, allowing some to sneak by. However, all in all, Ximena had still been able to take care of a sizable number of enemies and keep them at bay while reducing the harm to herself.

The current problem was…

After the bastards realized they couldn't kill Ximena by conventional means and that their shoddy projectiles weren't working too well, they switched up their tactic.

In short… the Chameleon Warriors began sacrificing themselves...

They were using their tongues to latch on to Ximena, even though such a thing almost meant certain death. Then, they'd try to survive as long as possible while using their body weight to slow her down.

Ximena's only option to be free of the warriors clinging to her was to charge them and kill them or freeze and break off their tongues, which would leave her with the tips sticking to her skin and slowing her down as the amount increased.

Not to mention the slippery snake just wouldn't die.

The Praxian was expertly staying at just a survivable range and prodding Ximena with its halbard, and even managed to land a few blows with the spike that caused a few thin red lines to mar Ximena's arms. But any wound was quickly frozen and sealed.

There were also other Champions who joined the fray and assisted the snake-headed beast, but they weren't too challenging to deal with. The problem was just how much time it was taking Ximena to get rid of the snake.

Plus, there was a significant drawback to Ximena using her whole unrestrained power.

Because her Aether was no longer being reflected inward, there was some runoff that she lost and was unable to get back, meaning her reserves were no longer infinite, and she could feel that limit approaching at a steady pace.

It wouldn't be too much longer until she was forced to shelve her power and flip her crystals back.

Ximena jumped around as best she could, but she wasn't too agile and failed to dodge the next wave of tongues as they attached to her legs, arms, and armor.

At the very least, Ximena was able to unsummon the surface layer of the crystal to get rid of those tongues, but all the other ones were there to stay.

As for why she wasn't blocking with the fabric…

Being able to control the light fabric was the main factor in her ability to deflect the various projectiles. If the fabric were slowed down, with a damned chameleon beastperson attached to it, her biggest weakness would be exacerbated.

Ximena flapped her crystal wings and jumped in the air just enough to dodge a tongue, then she flapped them again and launched herself toward the Praxian.

Even in its battered state, the Praxian jumped away swiftly and maintained its distance well.

Ximena's moving allowed for a group of Chameleon Warriors and even a Champion to sneak by her, forcing her to retreat so more didn't get through. As she jumped back to the middle of the pass, she noticed another tongue slinging toward her, which slammed into her arm, joining the already 20 attached to her body.

Ximena watched as the extended tongue froze. Then she clasped her hands around it and crushed it, sending shards of the frozen tongue falling to the ground, causing the Chameleon Warrior in the distance to writh in pain.

"Disgusting."

The snake, watching from a safe distance, hissed in enjoyment at Ximena's suffering.

"Pshhee."

It seemed the snake could sense it… the limit of Ximena's power approaching.

Knowing she only had enough Aether to spare for one more worthwhile attack. Ximena knelt, tilted her head down, closed her eyes, and placed her fist in front of her. Then she withdrew the sash and spread it out straight behind her and rested on her back, which allowed the rocks and bones being thrown at her to hit her body freely.

A multitude of tongues also shot from the horde and clamped onto her delicate skin before quickly freezing. She didn't waste her time snapping them, letting the pitiful warriors latch onto the beautiful crystal owl. It was the last favor they'd be allowed in life – touching a gorgeous princess with their vile tongues.

The snake laughed, then asked:

"Giving up?"

Ximena wasn't one to give a witty retort during battle. Instead, her actions would tell the answer.

Ximena's blue eyes shot open, and a cold torrent from Frostbite instantly shot forth and attacked the Praxian, slowing it down to a near halt.

Then, Xiamen flapped her wings while simultaneously using the fabric like a slingshot and exploding a crystal she'd been filling with Aether under her heels to launch herself at the warrior.

The crystal owl shot through the air and barreled into the Praxian, grabbing onto its right arm, freezing it.

While leaving her spot would have usually resulted in a mass passing her, they were too stunned to do anything.

The snake screamed as it forced itself to jump away, tearing its own arm off, letting the shattered bits fall to the ground like glass, and losing its precious halbard.

"AArgh!"

Ximena gave the bastard no time to rest, instead opting to pursue and manage to freeze its right foot just before she was forced to restrain her power.

The Praxian again jumped away to create distance, but in doing so, it was forced to separate its own foot at the ankle, which had been glued to the ground.

Ximena, bloodsoaked and battered, fell to her knees and inverted all of her crystals. Her outfit, armor, and eyes were now ruby, just like the frozen blood splattered all over her. The lagging fabric shash soon caught up and began revolving around her and blocking projectiles once again, but there were noticeably fewer than before.

The serpent-chameleon screamed as it jumped around on one leg.

"Youuuu icy bitchhh!"

Ximena forced herself to stand and look the Praxian in the eye.

With her Aether Reserves at an all-time low, Ximena could no longer use Frostbite outwardly. So, she was forced to walk it down.

With how injured she was, it was simply a slow shuffle; yet her foe could barely move with most of its body frozen, plus a missing foot. The Praxian tried to hobble away, but fell on its back and resorted to crawling with its one arm.

Yet its injuries proved too severe for escape as Ximena caught up and loomed over the shaking beast, looking down at it.

The remaining Chameleon Warriors watched from a distance in horror as their greatest general cried.

"S-s-ssstop!"

Ximena, with her usual impassive expression, descended upon the beast and held her hand to its neck, freezing it before clenching and exploding it in a fountain of blood.

Drenched in the nasty red, Ximena stood up and looked toward the remaining Chameleon Warriors, who began backing away from her.

At this sight, Ximena couldn't help but feel joy.

She was going to survive… not only that, they were going to win. Assuming the whoreoness and Awilix won on their front.

Ximena was fine dying for Master Vale — it's not like she liked living too much anyway — if she could give her life to the one person who saw the warmth in her cold exterior, she wouldn't hesitate.

However, Ximena refused to die until she set things right.

'I must save Master Vale from the whore's Charm!'

Ximena gave a blood-stained smile to the entourage, who all began backing away from her slow approach, afraid of the psychotic owl.

Even if her ability to project Frostbite had faded, Absolute Zero was still affecting the immediate radius around her. Not to mention… she could still use Frostbite if she got ahold of a target.

With their only hope of killing Ximena gone, the Chameleon Warriors began to chirp and rapidly change color while jumping around, swiveling their heads looking for a lost hope.

Unfortunately for them, it didn't seem that any Champions remained.

Ximena wasn't nearly fast enough to catch up with the nimble chameleons, but the chameleons had no means of dealing any damage to her. With their numbers thinned and projectiles spent, Ximena could walk nearly unimpeded toward them.

Lost in fear, the masses began to retreat from whence they came, giving up on their assault on the core. Moving much faster, they disappeared down the hall and raced toward the exit.

Ximena didn't care if no enemies remained in her sight; she continued her saunter, putting one foot in front of the other, tearing the bits of tongue off her flesh as she walked, until she reached the end of the hall.

After her long stagger, when she peered around the bend, she bore witness to a glorious carnage.

She saw the death brought by the eclipse.

She saw what lay in the dark.

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