The aura flared crimson around Aria, faint at first, then pulsing brighter in time with her heartbeat. It wrapped her like a second skin, shimmering red against her long twin-buns of hair. Her eyes hardened as she stared at the slobbering man-monster that had nearly broken Serica in two.
"Enough was enough," Aria said to herself as she looked at the deranged man.
"I won't let you hurt them anymore!" Her voice shook the alley walls. She raised her guitar, fingers trembling for only a heartbeat before confidence surged. "Echo Requiem!"
The first strum rippled through the air like a shockwave, vibrating against the stone. Notes poured outward, warm yet sharp, wrapping around Serica's body. Her veins lit blue-white, her muscles thrumming with new life. The ice sword in her grip shimmered, brighter and colder.
