Mother….your daughter may die today….

Alexa….had really changed, or well, not changed, but literally turned into someone else. That was, while surprising, not outside of the possibilities; it wasn't odd for some Shapeshifters to develop some type of quirks with the use of their power. One of such changes was more pronounced with the Beast Core and Insect Core users who turned less Human the more they lost control over their powers.

Some shapeshifter refused to change too much of their body for that reason, limiting their changes to either non sapient animals or to objects. A shapeshifter like Alexa who could do full body shifts was rare, one that could extend their power to others?

More so.

Her excuse of being able to interfere with DNA was wild, but it fitted with what she had done before with Alan and with her…But now?

Now that she had seen a twelve (Allegedly) girl show up as Alexa's body shifted, how that girl had materialized a set of clothing from thin air. That meant that Alexa's power was more, so much more, and yet…

Glory couldn't celebrate, why? Because she was being pushed against a wall, both literally and figuratively, whatever personality or alternated person that surfaced was angry, Glory could see it clear as day.

This…this was not going up as she had planned.

Part of her upbringing had been in the….less than ideal world of manipulation; one needed to always have their friends close and their enemies closer; danger could lead to opportunity and all of that, Alexa…

Alexa was a good girl, a simple girl, a dumb girl….a….manipulable girl.

Glory knew it, the girl was a bundle of joy, a cute little girl….with more power than she knew what to do with, remaking a whole body? Triggering a Core? That was the kind of thing that whole families would kill for if Glory could make all the Blackthorn trigger…

She could earn the favor of Father and perhaps change the dynamics of the relationship between the Harmonia and Blackthorn. She….Glory didn't hate Alan, he was a good friend, but she also didn't want to be his second.

No, she deserved more, her family had been a part of the Saintsworths clan, and while Alexa was one, she was not….properly trained as far as she could see, while she brandished the bracelet of a heiress, it was probably more as a favour to her parents.

It was simple, the way to get someone to do something you want, was by pulling at their needs, Alexa had shown what her needs were from way early, she wanted friendship and love.

Glory had merely hinted at that, and it worked. Alexa spoke more and more…till she didn't. Till one of the presences within Alexa flared in golden light, and the next second…it cracked… till a new presence took hold of Alexa's body…

Till this new person, Ale Saintsworths made her appareance…having none of Alexa's personality traits as far as Glory could see, instead of looking like a goofy bird brained girl, she looked more like one of her elder sisters. Her eyes looked cold and calculative…

Worse, she was obviously glaring at her.

And if that wasn't enough….

The girl wasn't adverse to use violence against her, Glory knew that Alexa was strong, she had shown as much both in and out of the exam war so far. But she had never pointed that at them, or really at anyone in the school, she had used some degree of violence in the dodge ball match yes.

But that was using a ball, against a Core User, it didn't really qualify as violence, not really. But this?

This girl had straight up hurt her, she had felt a pain that she hadn't felt before, one that almost made her ball up into fetal position, if not for the girl keeping her straight that is.

And then, instead of claiming to be a monster she brightly said that she wasn't neither monster or Human. But a Weapon of all things…

A weapon made in a Saintsworths lab…Glory was…not stupid, she knew of those type of places, legacies of the former head some said… Others said that they were sites set up by the Saintsworths Council, the group of leaders that were formed by the branch leaders to keep the main clan in check.

Glory hadn't paid much attention to it, thinking that it was impossible for anyone carrying the blood of a Saintsworths to have done something that awfull, she had assumed before that it was most likely someone trying to tarnish someone else.

Alexanders, the current scion of the Saintsworths, was one that had dismantled a few such facilities when he was on his rise to power. After all, the idea of one surviving….and experimenting on humans… It was anathema to the image she had of the man.

But…

"...... I'm sorry…" Was all that Glory could say when confronted with such an ugly truth.

"Sorry?" The blonde girl asked, an amused tone in her voice, "For what? For abusing the trust Alexa foolishly put in you? I get now how Main Core felt when speaking with Eleanore….you truly are….foolish."

Eleanore?

"I…I didn't have bad intentions…" Glory said, putting more weight on her back; she wished her Core Power was more useful, as it was all she could see were the words that defined this girl…

The words that defined Alexa and the words that defined the third person, albeit those seemed to be slightly grayed out.

Eldritch….

Mother had spoken about those, mostly from literature, fictional kind, the type she was supposed to read to prepare for high-level conversations, a topic to entertain dignitaries who liked the more esoteric type of entertainment.

The definition that Glory had of it was that it was used to refer to something weird, strange, unnatural, usually when depicted in any story she had been able to read, it was always used to refer to creatures of unfathomable power and appearance that induced madness upon those that looked at these creatures.

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More often than not, these entities were made of, or used in some way, tentacles.

Alexa…did fit the bill for that last part of course.

But that was all…

"So?" And this girl? The girl who Alexa had become…would become, or was becoming? Glory didn't know how to parse this; according to her Core Power, this was someone else, Glory could see it too; she acted differently, behaved differently, even saying, "Why did you do something this stupid? Alexa likes to think of you and the Harmonia brat as smart people, but this? This was stupid beyond any reason."

…..That hurt her pride, and also made her stomach churn, she was aware of the wrong she had attempted to do. But why did this girl speak like that? As if there was an underlying reason for what Glory had done?

"Hubris," Glory decided to answer, unsure of what this version of Alexa wanted.

It looked more mature, unlike how Alexa behaved; this one didn't strike her out as playful at all. Her words had been [Edgy], [Tsundere], [Sister] and [Chuunibyo]? Glory wasn't sure what the [Tsundere] and [Chuunibyo] meant, but she could get the idea behind the other two.

This girl was meant to be an older sister, probably a protection mechanism to Alexa's more free-willed spirit….And if she had been indeed raised as a weapon instead of a normal girl… It made sense, was this the form that Alexa had used to survive?

"Can…Can I ask a question?" Glory decided to test her luck, the worst she could do was say no…right?

"I am tempted to say no, since you didn't answer my question. But sure, go ahead…." The girl said, shrugging, her finger still firmly rooted against her forehead.

A promise of violence…If she could use Alexa's Core power…and that finger was but the tip of an iceberg of flesh tendrils spread around her head…

Glory couldn't help but shudder.

"What do you mean that you are a weapon?" Glory decided not to think more about it and just asked, "Alexa wears the bracelet that symbolizes her spot as a current Scion of the Saintsworths. How could someone who was allegedly experimented on wear that?"

The girl smirked at Glory's words, Glory couldn't help but shiver as she saw the girl raise the other hand "You don't think we are a weapon do you?" The girl said in a mocking tone, "You think I'm playing with you? I mean sure, if all you know of us is Alexa it is understandable that you would think so. So a demonstration is in order."

Glory had attempted to say the opposite, she didn't doubt it, not after what the girl had done, how she moved, how she looked down on her, she didn't doubt it for a second, to Alexa Glory may be a friend, but to this girl? To Ale?

Glory was aware that the girl saw her as nothing more than a nuisance.

"Here, pay close attention," The girl said as she took a step back, then turned her back on Glory, instead of feeling relief from the opportunity, she felt dread, she felt as if the girl was still paying attention to her, even while she walked around in the shower room moving from place to place, as if searching for something. "....This will be for later.."

Even while the girl stopped by a box, one that was meant for Alexa, one that had her clothing. The girl carefully placed it beside the changing area and returned to where Glory had remained with a metal stool.

"This will have to do, this is metal right?" The girl said, Glory of course nodded, it was more than metal, probably some alloyed variation that was highly resistant to water, "And this is a normal [Human] hand."

The girl raised her other hand and show of it, nothing abnormal…till it was, the hand quickly changed, going from human flesh and bone into a set of metalic claws, very sharp metal claws.

Ones that the girl waved in front of the metallic stool….the same ones that cut through the metal stool as if it was nothing, making Glory gulp, as she imagined how her own body would fare against that…how Alan's body would fare….Alan!

"See, that is the face of realization I had thought you would have when you started formulating your plan to bully Alexa into giving information!" The weapon girl said, pointing at Glory with the clawed hand, "That is the face of someone who fully understands the risk and should know not to."

Glory couldn't see her face but could imagine how it looked, regret, frustration, shame probably too.

"And this of course is only the tip of the iceberg," The girl said as her hand returned to normal, "Combat tests, time attack tests, survival tests…..you name it we did it, from the simplest one vs one to one vs many. From human opponents to other biological weapons and a few, what do you call them? Ants? Yeah, those insects."

ANTS?!?!?

"Alexa fought ants?!?!?!?" Glory couldn't help but scream at that, "That's reckless! A single one of them could kill the average Hero!"

"So?" The girl said tilting her head to the side, such an Alexa response….out of place in the face and body of that… Weapon, "That's a [Human] problem, not a [Weapon] 's problem, we are designed to fight and fulfill our [Prime Directive]."

The girl spoke as if it was obvious, "As for the bracelet and Saintsworths inheritance….you will need to ask Alexa's brother." The brother? Right…she had said before that there was a brother!

"What about her Mother?" Glory asked, "Surely she would have raised complaints to the Saintsworths?"

"We don't have one of those," Ale answered waving her hand in dismissal, the hand returned from a claw to a normal human hand in one of those motions too, "That is a [Human] 's privilege, to have an older [Human] to take care of you. We got made into a Weapon, we don't have [Human] 's perks…or at least we didn't use to have, most of what we have was given to us by Alexa's brother."

"Who….Who is that then?" Glory couldn't help but ask.

"Why would we answer that?" Only to be stumped by that answer, "You are a [Enemy] in my eyes; the only reason you are even alive is that I haven't found a good enough excuse to kill you and your boyfriend."

That chilled Glory to the Core, "You….you would kill us if Alexa didn't mind it?" That….that made her tremble, the cold calculative look that this girl gave, it was so…anathema to Alexa.

"Hah!" The girl barked a laugh, it wasn't…it wasn't something that was normal, such…such….villain-like….oh… "Alexa got rescued by Villains, didn't she?"

It made sense, how someone who was supposed to be part of human experimentation like what this girl, like how Ale claimed had ended up free, then whoever was this big brother to Alexa probably found her interesting and adopted her into the Saintsworths.

It should be someone high within the echelon, someone who could forge the familiar link…or perhaps someone whose child had been abducted before? It wouldn't be the first time someone had attempted to kidnap the sons of a Saintsworths.

"Close enough, you are free to think whatever you want." The girl said shaking her head, "As for killing you if Alexa didn't mind? You overestimate your worth too much; if I killed you, Alexa would probably throw a tantrum but I wouldn't mind it too much. No, the reason you get to keep your life is more simple, it is…useful to teach Alexa a lesson."

A lesson?

"A lesson in that those that she thinks are her friends can be bad to her," The words…hit more than she wanted to admit, "And now you cry? Really? Do you think the waterworks will work? At this time? Don't make me laugh."

Crying? She wasn't crying. She had made sure to not pull those nerves…

"I'm…*sniff*...not…*Sniff*?" Glory said trying to defend herself, only to stop when she heard her own voice wavering, and felt the need to pull in more air, she…she was crying? That… shouldn't be possible.

Her body wasn't able to cry by itself, it was part of…

"Truth? are you sure?" The blonde girl said speaking to…something? Was she speaking to Alexa? No, the presence of Alexa was still enveloping the other one, and if Glory's Core Power was working right, she got the feeling that Alexa was not paying attention to the outside. "Well I'll be….why? Oh…yeah that makes sense."

The girl turned to Glory, and her eyes held…pity? Why?

"Alexa did a number on you, it seems; it is kind of poetic; you tried to play her. But she played you first," The girl was smirking at her in derision, "She truly made you… [Human], she got rid of all the fancy pulls and plugs, and you can no longer control your emotions. It seems that even your mind will not last long either, while your body has changed first."

What?

"What do you mean she made me human?" Glory asked trying to tone down her tears, to no effect. The feelings that she usually managed to keep down floating to the surface with no control.

"She removed all that would have made you able to control your emotions, the quirks that allowed you to control your facial expressions, the dampeners that prevented your emotions from going out of control…what allowed that out of place maturity…." The girl smiled evilly while kneeling in front of her, "Alexa took all of it. The Harmonia brat may be able to control his body manually now, but you….you are delightfully….[Human], Alexa did a number on you. Way better than anything I would have been able to think, I was thinking of removing one of your arms and making you eat it only to regrow it manually…but this?"

The girl eyed her as if she was less than human, as if she was merely food in a table… That…that was not the look one would give a fellow man…Had…had she truly been raised as a weapon?

"This is wonderful." The Weapon in form of a little girl said, "Now…what will I need to do to Alan Harmonia?"

Alan?

She…she was going to do something to Alan?

No….No!

NO!

Glory wouldn't, she wouldn't allow it! Alan was innocent! He had done nothing wrong! He hadn't made anything against Alexa!

She wouldn't let the Weapon do that!

"....Do you want me to kill you?" The Weapon said, narrowing her eyes at Glory.

"No…" Glory said, trembling under that gaze…those empty eyes…. "But I'll not let you do anything to Alan, he didn't…He didn't do anything."

She could feel it, her Core answering to her wish, the world losing color as she could see what truly made that girl Human, even though she behaved more like a monster than Alexa had before.

The knowledge of what to do was obvious to her; she only needed to pluck at it…A touch, a prod…She couldn't do anything permanent…not yet. But she could do something, she could "...smother,"

"Motherf-" The girl said as Glory saw the words form and weave itself into Alexa's body. Glory felt some kind of phantom sense envelope the Weapon's body, and as if it was trying to put out a fire, she felt the girl slowly sink back into unconsciousness, just like how the other presence within Alexa had been.

Unmoving.

"Everything okay?!?!" The voice of Alan sounded as the door was open, "I heard a thud!"

Alan's face flushed red as his eyes focused on her, then his eyes turned confused as he looked to the body of the blonde girl in the floor, then to the shower room.

"And Alexa?" Said the black-haired kid.

Glory couldn't contain herself and ran at the boy, clinging to him as she cried, her fears and regrets flowing in her tears, "I'm sorry!" Said the girl once, twice, thrice, again and again.

All the while the black-haired kid was confused and let his first aid kit fall to the side, confused as he merely hugged Glory and whispered comforting words.

Everything would be alright….

Glory would…would….try to make ammends, with Alexa….and then….and then….would ask Alexa to speak with the girl again….

To apologize….and make amends with her too….

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