A Foxgirl's Cry

'How did you even predict this? It feels like you are controlling my life.'

[ I don't know! I just listed the most cliche thing that could happen and it happened. Don't blame me. ] 

Currently, Lex and Rio were falling down to the ground. A dome-shaped top was present above their head as they fell towards the ground full of sand.

Lex could make out three familiar figures standing in the sand below. He immediately used his ability to prevent himself from falling. Rio did the same thing to stop her fall.

"ParaDox and Mahiru." Lex muttered.

"Be warned. The twins were under orders to not harm or attack me and that's why they behaved that way. This environment favors their battling style and they will harm you this time." 

"You take the twins then. I will handle Mahiru."

"She is an ungradable ability user though. Let me handle her." Rio protested.

"I will be fine. You deal with the twins."

"But…"

The duo began to argue in the sky, baffling the three opponents who stood on the ground. None of them expected that their opponents would start arguing in the sky.

"You know, Para."

"I know, Dox."

"If not for Mr. Allen."

"We wouldn't be fighting them."

"I kind of like their bickering."

"And I kind of like their bond."

""But oh well."" 

Mahiru gave the twins a weird look. Despite hearing them talk throughout the years, Mahiru was still got weirded out after hearing them complete each other's sentences.

"You handle Rio. I have a score to settle with Lex." Mahiru ordered.

The twin brothers exchanged a glance and nodded. Simultaneously, Lex and Rio came to an agreement.

"Let's go!" Rio shouted. "Lightning Meteor!"

Purple lightning shot out from Rio's body, covering her from head to toe. She dived towards the ground, heading for the twins. Crackling sounds followed her movement.

'Might as well copy her entrance.'

"Psychic meteor!"

[ You even copied the skill name. ]

'This is a serious fight. Don't distract me.'

Lex shot towards the ground at a blinding speed. He gathered force at the bottom of his legs and headed towards Mahiru.

The latter immediately summoned multiple bubbles made from water and used them to bounce away from the attack.

Lex hit the ground at full speed but didn't injure himself. Standing straight, he stretched his body and stared at Mahiru.

"We meet again," Mahiru commented.

She stood a few meters away from Lex and was dressed in a black bodyguard's suit. Her brown hair was tied in a bun whereas her red split eyes observed Lex's movement.

"Do you remember me?"

"Of course, I do. You managed to take me by surprise."

"I am not talking about that." Lex sighed. "I wonder what made you forget everything. My father must have been involved in this."

"What do you mean?"

"If you don't remember there is no point. I will have to knock you out."

Lex suddenly flicked his index finger in Mahiru's direction. Something invisible hit the latter in the middle of her abdomen, making her gasp.

'What was that…' Mahiru wondered.

After training with Rio for the past month, Lex now possessed greater control over his ability. He could even launch long-range invisible attacks that most people wouldn't notice.

"Don't get cocky just because you hit me once." 

Multiple water needles appeared beside her and shot toward Lex. Lex narrowed his eyes but didn't move from his spot. 

When the needles were inches away from hitting him, they burst up. Not a single one of the needles touched him.

"My turn."

Lex brought his hands closer and joined them by the base of his wrists. He then formed a claw-like shape and pulled his hands back. Lex began to gather power inside his hand, manipulating a ton of force.

This caused the wind around him to swirl aggressively. Mahiru had a bad feeling about the attack. She brought her hands closer and began to create a blue ball of swirling water between them.

Lex was soon finished and thrust his hand forward.

"Aura Blast!" 

A blast of force shot out from his hand, tearing through the air. Visible movement could be noticed in the air, indicating the attack.

"Lull Of the Sea!"

Mahiru threw the sphere of water forward and began retreating backward. Her sphere clashed against Lex's blast.

The water and force expanded at the same time, causing a huge explosion. The explosion didn't faze Lex and immediately dashed forward.

He increased his speed with his ability and immediately appeared behind Mahiru. The brown-haired woman gritted her teeth and quickly turned back.

Lex threw a punch at her which she blew with her elbow. It counter, Mahiru threw a kick which Lex dodged easily.

The duo began to launch physical attacks but neither of them managed to land a blow.

'Aura Blast exhausts me a lot. She countered that easily with her attack but it definitely cost her some energy.'

Lex was using physical attacks to think of a strategy to knock Mahiru out while receiving minimal damage.

[ You can't kill her, can you? ]

'Try killing your childhood friend when you just remembered about their existence.'

[ Yeah, I understand. Use 'FOD' on her legs to prevent her from moving. You can do that from a distance and don't shout the name of the move. Whisper it. ]

'On it.'

Lex moved backwards with his ability and distanced himself from Mahiru. Mahiru narrowed her eyes and upped her guard, expecting another long range attack.

'By the way, how is Rio doing.'

[ She is handling things pretty well. Para and Dox keep changing the ground structure and are attacking her with those weird pink objects. ] 

'Tell me if she gets in a pinch.'

[ I will. ]

Raising his hands forward, Lex began flicking his fingers are Mahiru. This time, she expected his attack and summoned a shield of water in front of her to block his attacks.

Unfortunately for her, this was only a distraction.

"Force of Destruction." Lex whispered, aiming for Mahiru's legs.

"Huh?!" a gasp escaped Mahiru's mouth as she found her lower half being paralyzed.

Her eyes widened when she realized that her legs were cramped and that her ankles suddenly felt twisted. 

"What is this…" she murmured.

"You lowered you guard." Lex simply replied and appeared in front of her body. He pulled his hand backwards, ready to use another Aura Blast to knock her out.

Mahiru's tried to move yet her body remained struck to the ground. 

'I can still use my ability to… huh?' Mahiru blinked in surprise as her vision began to blur. 'Wait, no!'

That was the last thing that entered her mind before her body began to shake tremendously. Lex notice this and immediately moved back.

With the Aura Blast in his hand, he launched the attack at her from a safe distance. But something strange happened just as the attack was about to make contact.

"Arghhhh!" a cry escaped Mahiru's mouth, throwing the Aura Blast away and making it vanish.

"What the…" Lex's mouth opened slightly as he noticed changes appearing in Mahiru's body.

A blood red fluffy tail appeared out from her behind, resembling a fox's tail. Two fluffy ears appeared on her hair, matching the color of her tail and eyes.

Her eyes locked with Lex, giving him a bloodthirsty look.

"Argh!"

With another cry, Mahiru shot towards Lex…