The arrival of the male viera was unfortunate but it wasn’t unforeseen. His presence had been felt for a while now. He entered the most eastern part of the Sandsea with Aloa and the Angel of Truth had entered the Tomb. He wasn’t that far off from their trail, though the Collective had been entertained that he wasn’t slowed by the Reckoning first stage. That high amount of evil mist must’ve been appalling for the viera, since they normally have a high sensitivity to the mist due to their connection with the Wood.

And yet, as Vlyn had shown up in top form, there were no signs that he had been fatigued or slowed in any way. It was of no consequence. Honestly, Vlyn was hardly a threat. While true he and Aloa shared co-ownership of the Death Seraph, they were hardly equal. One would reckon that Aloa was the dominant owner, whereas Vlyn could easily be compared to the female corpse that Zalera used as a distraction from his real form. Of course, no one on Ivalice would dare make that comparison.

Until now.

But that was left for a later date, of course. The Collective had more important things to worry about, such as the concern of Aloa’s magicks running wild towards them. 

Her power was undeniable. She cut through the tendrils as if they were nothing and froze the ones that still persisted. If they came at her, the powerful magick at her disposal would cause them to explode. This action alone caused the representative of the Collective to let out an approving chuckle. It would even bring further approval from them as Aloa’s magicks flowed from her body and exploded around her, though it seemed to come for the shadow figures, too. 

They all gathered around their leader and a wall of black mist formed as high as the ceiling and not only fended off the oncoming magicks, but it absorbed them into the veil, then shot it back out, this time converted into a wave of darkja. Additionally, behind her, other tendrils came for Aloa. With both attacks in such close proximities, the likelihood of her escaping both was slim to none.