Chapter 104: Battle of Souls!
Tessa's consciousness drifted through a hazy void, her mind detached from her body, yet her focus was razor-sharp.
She caught sight of Nymff and Ecdy, their hands clenched tightly, as though bracing themselves for an unseen catastrophe. Their bodies trembled with tension, fear rippling through the air like a current.
Tessa's instincts screamed at her—something was terribly wrong. Her eyes darted across the battlefield until they locked onto her own body, but what she saw made her blood run cold.
Her body wasn't hers—.
It was under Ashley Duve's control! And look at what she is doing with my body—
Ashley Duve's left hand was wrapped around Adrian's throat, squeezing the life out of him. Adrian, her half-brother—the realization still raw and shocking—was on the verge of death, gasping for air as the force of her grip tightened.
Without hesitation, Tessa's consciousness surged forward, cutting through the space like a lightning bolt. The force of her movement felt like a thunderclap splitting the sky and slicing through the void to reclaim her body.
'Pppppprrrrrrsssssssssssstttttttttttttt----'
The sound filled the air as Tessa's consciousness collided with her body like a thunderbolt, ripping through Ashley's control with sheer force. She could feel herself fighting to regain control, wrestling with the dark presence that had possessed her.
---
In the physical world, Adrian's body sagged as the pressure around his throat finally loosened. He gasped for air, his chest heaving with deep, desperate breaths. While his alien physiology didn't require as much oxygen as a human's, Earth had altered him, making the sensation of suffocation all the more agonizing.
Tessa's body stood motionless, but her face contorted wildly. Her expressions flickered—rage, sorrow, confusion, amusement—cycling through emotions at breakneck speed. To the outside observer, it was as if a battle was being waged beneath her skin.
The warriors surrounding her, including Ikehara, watched with bated breath, not daring to approach. The raw energy emanating from her was both dangerous and unfamiliar, making them wary.
Ikehara took a tentative step forward but immediately pulled back as a shockwave of power rippled through the air. His instincts screamed danger, forcing him to stay rooted to the spot. What was happening inside her?
---
Inside Tessa's mind…
Two consciousnesses swirled and clashed like violent storms. Tessa's mind burned with fury as she faced Ashley Duve, the deceiver who had hijacked her body. Ashley's presence was a sickening weight, her aura oozing malevolence.
"You traitorous devil!" Tessa's voice echoed in the mental plane, venom dripping from every word. "You acted like my mother, tricked me, pretended to help—but all this time, you were holding me back! Suppressing my power! And now you try to take my life? I'll kill you for this!"
Ashley merely smiled, her lips curving into a wicked smirk. "Tessa, Tessa… why so angry?" she mocked, her tone dripping with condescension. "Without me, you'd still be fumbling in the dark. I'm the one who showed you your connection to the moon legacy. I'm the one who gave you power. You're a child playing with forces far beyond your understanding, and look at me—wielding them like a master."
Tessa's blood boiled. "You're nothing but a parasite! You sent me into that plane thinking you'd kill me, but I survived. I thrived. And now, you'll pay for every second you've stolen from me!"
Ashley's eyes narrowed, the mocking gleam in them flickering into something more dangerous. "That's what puzzles me, you know?" she mused, almost as if talking to herself. "You should've died in that plane. No one has ever returned from there. But you did. And not only that—there's something different about you now. Something... new. What did you find in there, Tessa? What did you gain?" Her curiosity was piqued, her gaze sharpening with intrigue.
Tessa's lips curled into a snarl. "I'm going to tear you apart, and that's all you need to know."
Without warning, she lunged at Ashley, their consciousnesses colliding with the force of a hurricane. The mental space around them shattered as they clashed in a brutal, frenzied battle.
Tessa fought with every ounce of her strength, her fury fueling her attacks. The two of them twisted and spiraled in a deadly dance of wills, neither willing to give an inch. But after what felt like an eternity, Ashley managed to wrestle control back, shoving Tessa's consciousness into the background-temporarily. She stood victorious for the moment, her confidence sickeningly palpable.
In the real world, Tessa's body stopped twitching. The rapid shifts in her expression stilled as Ashley's smirk returned. She had regained control. Adrian, still on the ground, looked up her with a mixture of horror and disbelief.
The person he loved, had almost killed him. He wasn't sure what to think anymore. Ikehara and the Rhemonic warriors stood tense, unsure of what to do next.
The storm seemed to have passed, but it left a sense of unease lingering in the air. Ashley, using Tessa's voice, addressed them with a commanding tone. "We have three more locations to visit. Let's not waste time." She turned to march forward, her movements swift and decisive, but there was a flicker of something else-an underlying tension.
Meanwhile, in the recesses of Tessa's mind, her consciousness stirred, not defeated-only biding its time.
Nyala was panting, her thick covered breasts were bouncing heavily as she regained her self from the tension of what she just witnessed. Adrian survived, however, the battle wasn't over.
(In the Mental Battle):
Tessa, struggling against the mental restraints, glared at Ashley, her voice thick with venom. "You think you've won? This body-my body-will never be yours."
Ashley chuckled darkly. "You're so naïve. You're fighting a losing battle, Tessa. I've already won. Your friends out there can't help you. They don't out there can't help you. They don't even understand what's going on."
Tessa's eyes flashed with defiance. "They don't need to understand. I'II break free on my own, and when I do, you'll wish you'd never crawled out of the darkness."
Ashley sighed, her expression turning almost pitying. "You poor thing. I'm the only one who knows the true extent of your powers. You're not ready for what's coming."
Tessa's anger surged. "I don't need your pity. I don't need you. I'll reclaim what's mine, and when I do, I'll rip your consciousness apart, piece by piece."
Ashley's smirk faded for the briefest of moments, replaced by something darker. "We'll see about that, Tessa. But for now, enjoy your little corner of darkness"
The group hesitated but eventually followed Ashley Duve's lead. Tessa was still in there, fighting, and her rage was like a storm building on the horizon.
It was only a matter of time before it erupted. As they marched forward, the tension weighed heavily on everyone's shoulders. Tessa's body might be under Ashley's control for now, but her consciousness wasn't gone.