[center][url=https://fontmeme.com/cursive-fonts/][img]https://fontmeme.com/permalink/181015/5ceecc7538164d6fcf8526b3db450793.png[/img][/url] [img]https://i.imgur.com/r0kQiuz.png?1[/img] [@almalthia][@marrok][@webboysurf][hr][hr][/center] Aya had never felt so small in her life. Not when her mother left, or her father died, or Kainoa -- The Sluagh loomed over her, all scythe-teeth and wicked-eyed. Aya was small. Fragile. Weak. She didn't belong here -- not among mutants and monsters. The ruined wreck of the club was all around her, evidence of a fight that she had no right to be a part of. She was shaking. She couldn't stop [i]shaking.[/i] She couldn't move. She could only stare up at the Sluagh as it eyed her like a snake would a mouse. Its voice wrapped around her, stopping her breath, squeezing her throat. She had to think. She had to... but her mind was frozen with fear, the after effects of the last time she'd used her powers still weighing her down like lead. Her mind still ached, her body still didn't fit right. Her power -- Her [i]power[/i]. This monster... it wasn't one of UnĂ¡'s normal illusions, not really. She'd been talking about... about a fairy court or something. Maybe if... And even if it [i]was[/i] an illusion it still might work, right? If not... she was going to die. Aya was going to die here, in this ruined club murdered by a monster. She... Maybe she deserved it. Aya forced herself to stagger forward a step. [color=aquamarine]"N..."[/color] Her voice came out tiny and broken. Aya swallowed around the cold lump of fear in her throat. [color=aquamarine]"Nocturne,"[/color] she managed to whisper. She glanced at Nik to be sure that he'd heard her. But she didn't dare look away from the Slaugh for more than half a stuttered heartbeat. Another step forward. Her legs touched against Drake's back, where he was kneeled between her and a table he'd hoped to use as a shield. They hadn't spoken much. Not since the library when she'd come face to face with another monster. But she [i]missed[/i] him and his easy friendship. She hadn't realized quite how much until now. Her legs pressed against his back, the cloth of his shirt acting as a barrier between them. The ability to touch someone else, to lean against them, seemed like something rare and precious. The Sluagh towered above them, smiling down. [color=aquamarine]"I'll show you."[/color] Then Aya's trembling hand reached out to touch the Sluagh's grey arm. The moment she made contact, Aya activated her power, hoping to rip the Sluagh from the mortal plane.