Elizabeth felt it was Right, this was her. It was who she was supposed to be, who she was destio be, she felt the Thunder course her veins, it invigorated her, and each muscle was just waiting for her i. It was almost as if her whole body was ready to fulfill her whims.

  As if just a thought…. was all it would be needed for her to move from her spot on this pce to the other side of this forest.

  As if...

  “Elizabeth?” A small voice asked from her side.

  Elizabeth had barely registered the voice when her body shifted to turn and stare at the one who spoke. The movement was so fast that Elizabeth almost wihinking she would pull a muscle, that didn’t happen. Instead, she found herself staring at Rossie.

  “I am okay.” Elizabeth tried saying, but her voice sounded closer to Thuhan to what a normal human should, it was almost as if her voice had been eling the Lightning, it made her back shiver. “Sorry, setting used to this.”

  She reeled back the mana and tried to focus it inwardly, to make it settle within her Core, but it was too hard, the Thunder Mana didn’t behave like the Shadow Mana. Where one would settle calmly at the bad reel in rage at the provocations.

  The Thunder Ma more like it was a raging tinuous storm, and it would turn icy cold when angered. It was a weird feeling.

  “What happeo your clothes Eli-Eli? Why do you look like….well, you.” Rossie asked fused.

  Elizabeth took this time to settle more into herself and…examine herself.

  She noticed a few things, first…She no longer could use shadows to expand her senses, or more accurately, she had a pseudo-awareness of what was happening around her, but it wasn’t like before, when every shadow gave her information.

  No, this was more like…a radar? a sonar? Something like that, she was getting data from the eleagic waves her body was radiating as some kind of radar, or was it lidar? Either way, she was aware of what was happening in a 360o radius around her, but it wasn’t as good as to let her look at herself…Unless?

  “Partial Shift - Electria inton eyes.” Elizabeth shifted part of her electria into a sphere and threw it into the air, it shifted into a eye for a sed, just long enough for Elizabeth to take in her new image.

  –

  https://i.imgur./n8qR9xI.png

  –

  “....A.” Elizabeth couldn’t say anything else, she was literally herself, it wasn’t as much as how she usually looked like herself iher shifts. No.

  This was different, her [Elemental Weaver] shift was closer to how she looked when she was twelve but with a fancy magical girl regalia.

  Her [Stardust Weaver] Shift was closer to how a younger Elizabeth would look, but this?

  This.

  This was…Elizabeth Starbright top to bottom, her blonde hair, her blue eyes, her chest, her figure…her Aura. It was what Elizabeth looked like; it was closer as if she had just donned new clothes.

  And that was the hing, she was…not wearing a Magical Girl Regalia, no. She was wearing what a modern [Heroine] would wear, and her hair…it wasn’t as much as that it was blonde, but more like it was Golden, and to be ho, it was closer to energy than hair at this point.

  Same as her eyes, instead of pupils, it looked closer as if her eyes had been turned into a tes coil as her iris seemed to radiate small discharges of electricity, and if that wasn’t the worst of all…

  She remembered what name she had said whehought of this…”Thunder Queen.” She had not shifted into a Magical Girl version of herself that wielded Thunder. She had shifted into…The Thunder Queen is the Heroine persona of Chloe Ashcroft.

  And worse of all, it felt right.

  “Are you okay Eli-Eli?” Rossie asked from the side, “What happeo your…minions?”

  Her what? They were….

  Elizabeth couldn’t feel them anymore, she could barely feel Beatrice, but anyone else? She returned bnk.

  “Rise.” Elizabeth ao her shadow, but nothing came. She still could feel her e to the [Shadow Haven] of course…

  No, it was more like she still could feel the e to her [Soulscape], but the e to the [Shadow Haven] was veiled, as if a shadow membrane had covered it whole and was hiding it. Instead Elizabeth could feel a sting in another pce of her [Soulscape].

  Iing. “So what else ged?” Elizabeth wondered aloud as she tried to run through the spells. She knew she could…create some of the magic circles, but it was harder, not in the sehat the spells had bee harder to make, but in the sehat her Shadows seemed to be more attuo spellcasting, while her Thunder was more like something that was desigo bludgeon her problems away.

  “Okay, yes. I work with this.” Elizabeth said as she stretched herself and turo look at the minions all around, she could percieve their faint pressences almost as if they didn’t had as much purchase upon the world.

  Most still mao remain, but those that had been wounded no leed and instead had to retreat, they stayed wary of her, always keeping a wide margin. Elizabeth hadn’t uood why till oray shadow spear from [The Shadow Tide] went flying in her dire.

  Elizabeth hastily tried to summon a [Shadow Shield], but the same motions had totally differes.

  Instead of a shadow wall raising in front of her, a couple pilrs of Thunder rose, between them several lightning bolts started darting from one side to another, making a web of Thunder. Elizabeth was too surprised to react till the Shadow Spear stuck her hastily made barrier, it was at that moment that several tidbits of information resurfaced into Elizabeth’s mind.

  Number one, her reflexes had ged what would usually happen, her reflex to raise a shadow shield made a thunder shield.

  wo, her thunder manipution skills costed as much as her Shadow ones, she had quite literally shifted her skills and mastery into another element. Now, she only o acclimate to this ge.

  hree, this Lightning wasn’t normal. They were ao the Shadows, she now uood why her [Shadow Haven] had made that barrier to isote itself from her. Why her Minions gave a wide berth to her mana, why they didn’t came to her.

  Number Four, a memory also rose to the very top of her mind, the memory of Chloe expining her life, her suffering…These…these were not only her [Heroine form], no, these were her Lightning too, her Thunder. Elizabeth did not only ge into a ve form to el Thunder.

  Elizabeth had turned into what Chloe could have bee, nay. Elizabeth had turned into what she herself could have bee if not for her iance, if not for the meddling of the world. If not for the maations, the ges. This was…

  “My Divine Right.” Elizabeth whispered the st part, it felt right. She was sure of this. This was the real way to use her power, her shift.

  Not what she had done before, not what she had used it in a time of need, no, to return to who she was supposed to be. It was thrilling, the feeling of Lightning c her veins as if it was mana instead of blood. Was this the reason why Chloe and Alexanders always acted so sure of themselves when they eled the Lightning?

  She wasn't sure.

  But even so, she raised her arm and poi the [Shadow Tide], the almost gigantic tide made out of shadows, the anathema of all that was living, a stark trast with her own shadows.

  "Railgun." And eling the superiority feeling she was experimenting right now, she focused her power into her shoulder, theo her elbow, her hands, her fingers. The electricity danced around her, and as the skill came into fruition...

  Nothing happened, Elizabeth was sure it had activated correctly, a...

  No, wait a sed. She could perceive it, a tunnel of highly porized magic for front of her. But something was missing, she needed something else.

  Following her Instics, she pulled into the earth below them, pulling the iron sand from within the nd and densing it into marble. Elizabeth focused on that small marble and pulled it straight into the maginel her skill had made.

  *BOOM!*

  Elizabeth felt the thrill as her power turned into a hurrie, as the small marble came in tact with the maginel Elizabeth felt the magic forces be excited beyond reason, the marble ied with the primal ford it shot at almost five times the speed of sound.

  Elizabeth felt the sound of barrier break as the marble flew straight at the [Shadow Tide], too fast for Elizabeth to process the power behind this attack. She had been at the other end of it once, when she was weaker. When she didn’t uaer.

  She had thought that the attack would be a good way to probe the defenses of [The Shadow Tide], for it had been used on her before, she had thought she uood it.

  She was wrong.

  What Alexanders had used against her was not like what Elizabeth had used, what Chloe had used to stop the fight between her and Akira almost two years ago… It was not what Elizabeth had used.

  If Alexanders Railgun was someone using a slingshot, then Chloe’s Railgun was someone using a bow.

  But Elizabeth’s Railgun?

  This was the jump straight into siege ons.

  “[Raise and defend! Raise and block! Raise and TAINT!]” [The Shadow Tide] scream somehow was uood by Elizabeth, even though he shouldn’t had enough time to say all of that.

  But it was meaningless.

  *SCREEEEEEEEEEECH*

  Her attack hit true, and now, where oood a wall of [Shadows], there was a nice window.

  It allowed Elizabeth to see into the [Shadow Tide], as it didn’t punch through all the way in.

  “[Almost scared me there for a sed ‘Thunder Queen’, you are indeed a worthy heir for one of my former coworkers.]” [The Shadow Tide] smirked at her as he worked c the hole within his Shadow Tide. “[But that is all, you are merely reinf the fact that you will be worthy to use as a sacrifice to get my sister back were she belongs….with me.]”

  …Somehow Elizabeth thought that it sounded creepy.

  “Eli-Eli?” Rossie asked from the side, Elizabeth had noticed how the Shadows had stopped trying to encroaear her. The same could not be said of Rossie.

  “Rossie? I need you to be safe.” Elizabeth didn’t want to say this, she knew Rossie would hate it.

  “Please…” Elizabeth heard someone else speak before Rossie answered, “...I don’t want to see you suffering again Mom.”

  A single plea that made Elizabeth stop.

  “Don’t…don’t make me hurt you.” It was the voice of a broken girl, followed by the sound of ons being drawn.

  Elizabeth was then painfully aware…The Valkyries surroundirice had turheir ons not toward Rossie but toward her, and…she was seeing the beginning of sparks flowing through those ons.

  Elizabeth doubted that these little girls would be weak against her Thunder.

  “......We will speak about this ter young dy.” Rossie said n at Beatrice, but still Elizabeth could see that she was angry. “Eli-Eli if I even think you are hurt I will unleash everything and e running towards you.”

  Rossie said, kissing her ring as she was surrounded by Lightning and disappeared.

  Was…was that her [Shadow Step]? Or perhaps it was now [Lightning Step]?

  “Thank you…Mistress.” Beatrice said as she winced and clutched her chest.

  That was weird.

  “Don’t mind it, but we will o talk about this…and them.” Elizabeth said pointing at the group of Valkyries, they never once sheated their ons, and while most of them stood ich making sure [The Shadow Tide] didn’t use this ce to attack them.

  The most powerful-feeling ones kept guard on Elizabeth.

  “That we will.” Beatrice said turning to look at the spot that no longer was a hole on the [Shadow Tide]. “ you do that again? Or are you missing power?”

  Elizabeth looked at her hands, she had enough power, most of the might of this attack hadn’t been exhausted. The maginel colpsed a few sed ter after the iron marble flew throught it.

  Then why had it dissipated?

  Elizabeth took a sed to think, it was not her mastery htning, it was not a problem with her Mana Manipution or her Lightning Mana Manipution. No, was the marble the problem?

  Elizabeth extended her hand towards the floor and called upon more iron sand, it reacted instantly and rose to her hand a if it was a whip made of livial. It felt….ordinary, it was normal Iron sand, not reinforced in any way or form, it was versatil, it otentially powerful yes.

  But it was also mu was not special by any measure of the word, and the only thing that made it stand out was the fact that it was dang around Elizabeth, ready to react to her input.

  “[Is that your thrump card? Mundane Iron?]” [The Shadow Tide] spoke, more and more shadow spikes bloomed on his [Shadow Tide], “[It will not work, you may be able to dispel and even vanish part of my shadows, but you will not be able to defend from all of rievances. I only need one flesh wound, that is all it will take. You will not survive this.]”

  And sure enough those spikes started raining towards Elizabeth, only now that she didn’t o worry about Rossie, she had an easier time dodging. Of course her mortal limits wouldn’t allow her to weave out of all.

  But her mind had the answer ready for her “Lightning Speed.” Her whole body energized and once again her hair turned from golden like bloo golden energy, her world slowed to a crawl as all the information started flooding into her mind. Now that she didn’t have the advantage of a e to her [Shadow Haven], she o parse it manually.

  So first she discarded the information she didn’t need, she didn’t o know the amount of grains of sand in the air, she didn’t o know how many grams of iron sand she had avaible.

  She did not o know how much of her skirt was moving with the wind, she did not o know how her hair was moving.

  All she o know was how to move her body. How much clearance she had and how much she o make sure her mana wasn't overwhelmed.

  So she followed the remaining data and moved how it told her to move, raise a little the left arm, do a half step forward, duck, jump, side step, kneel, jump again, move the head to the right, extend the arm forward... Elizabeth danced as the Lightning her body was emanating reduced to ashes the Shadow Spears that she hadn't been able to dodge. Even so, Elizabeth couldn't help but feel presured, she was surviving right now because she had used a spell simir to what this one achieved.

  The speed was exhirating yes, but she couldn't help but be painfully aware how much she was outcssed in the dominioheir respective elements, the fact that her most powerful mastery over a had been eclipsed and she had then o turn all of that into an alternated one. Yeah, that didn't felt good.

  Even though she felt as if Thunder was a sed skin at the moment. She would o study more the limits of these Shifts. Even so, she tinued moving, dodging, and soon enough she was done.

  "Is that all?" Elizabeth asked as she smirked, not a single drop of sweat or a wound on her body. Her clothes also looked pristine, but that was less of an indicator about how much that had been dangerous, since her clothes would remain pristine as long as she had enough Mana.

  Or as long as she was able to use her mana anyway, her current one didn't seem that good for [Mana Clothes], she had noticed that her current ones were less fabrid more metal. Was Lightning Mana more attuned with metals and meic things?

  Was that why Alexanders surrouself with so much teology? And why Chloe's HeroSuit was like that?

  More things to delve into and check ter, now? Now she had more w things to do.

  "You had your ce, I didn't want to have to do this. Not now, not after I just got another one a few days ago...But well, desperate times desperate means." Elizabeth said as she raised her hand to the skies. "Beatrice, don't tell your Mother about this."

  And with dedicated focus Elizabeth called something from the depths of her Soul, something she had stashed as far aossible from everyone, she had stashed it in the most secure pce possible, a pce where she could notice immediately if something was to happen.

  If someone wao tamper with it, or if this thing wao do anything.

  "Hello. It is not good to see you again." Elizabeth said to the small object that maed on her hand.

  "[Is that your ultimate on? Jewelry?]" [The Shadow Tide] mocked her as the small gem-like objeded in Elizabeth's hand.

  "No, this is just the beginning," Elizabeth smirked as she read the blue box that maed in front of her. Without much thinking, she threw the orb into her mouth and swallowed it in one go, as if not to taste it more than needed. "Now...We get to see if that bug left is useful or not."

  Notice:Hero's Envy:

  A hero is supposed to be someohat stand above the rest, they extend their hand to those in need, do they need money? Food? Medie? You are the one who will willingly extend their hand and give what they need, should it be within your purview to do so. That is a Hero.

  You seized from a fallen Hero his Armory; he was supposed to use it as a way to empower armies to fight a losing battle. So as to turn a on rabble into an Army of Heroes. He was to lead; instead, he hoarded it all for himself, be the treasures of this doomed World or the gifts from the dead gods.

  Now, you hold the keys of his Armory. You hold the keys to the Armory of Heroes. Will you give these ons and armor to those in need? Or will you use them to tinue h treasures like a greedy dragon?

  That is up to you, Ior.

  [Grants you the key to the Hero's Armory.]

  [Allows you to summon any on that has been stored within this Armory.]

  [Allows you to summon any armor that has been stored within this Armory.]

  [Allows you to summon any shield that has been stored within this Armory.]

  [You may ect this Armory with your own personal ste, iory, or World.]

  [Anything that is stored within this Armory may be resumoned again once destructed, so long you grant the materials for the restru. Be this muerial, Mana, or prana.]

  [All ons summoned from this Armory will return to it if their Mana is expended.]

  [Anything summoned from this Armory may not be destroyed by normal means.]

  [You may summon the objects from the Armory anywhere within your Domain.]