BANG!
"The gates have opened–!"
A shrill screech sounded as metal slammed into metal, and a moment after, 14 umamusume charged out of the gates.
And immediately, Blossom Star shot forward as she employed her world-famous Great Escape, her blue eyes leaving behind a contrail like the tail of a passing comet.
A small smile curved her lips as a dozen notifications sounded in her ear, each signalling a unique Passive Skill that'd activated the moment her legs stomped onto the Turf. Her Speed and Power were immediately pushed beyond their Limits, and she rocketed forwards at record-breaking speeds.
"Blossom Star takes the lead–!"
But before she could fully savor the electrifying sensation in her legs, her ears perked up as she heard laughter just behind her, accompanied by a notification showing that her {Competitive Spirit ◎} had been triggered.
"You're–?"
"I-I can't believe it!"
"Thiefcrow is right behind Blossom Star!"
Thiefcrow grinned with teeth as she ran just behind her.「Ya' think y'er the only Escape Artist here!?」Her smile was wide with confidence that almost bordered in arrogance.「Ya ain't gettin' away that easily–」
But,
「Ohoho~! I beg your pardon, everyone~!」Haughty laughter interrupted Thiefcrow before she could even finish her words.「The true Strongest is coming through~!」
"No-, wait! Eve Binti has taken 2nd place!"
「Hey, you!!」An annoyed scowl stretched across Thiefcrow's lips.「Stay on the sidelines, ya' damn princess! Who'd ya' think ya' are, tryna' ignore and pass me up!?」
Eve only laughed.「Oh!? So you'd like to accompany Lady Blossom and I on this voyage to the finish line?」Her cheerful smile had only grown as she sped up, slowly closing the gap between her and Star.「Impressive as always, Lady Thiefcrow!」
At the lead, Blossom Star could only breathe in awe as she heard the two umamusume closing in on her. Of course, she hadn't reached her maximum speed by a long shot, but the fact that these two could easily match her pace was impressive enough.
And unconsciously, a playful smirk came onto her cheeks.「Well, I wouldn't mind traveling with companions for once.」She leisurely said.「But that would necessitate that you could catch up me, right?」
The moment she said that, she called upon her {Tyrant's Advance}. Power flooded into her legs, her white outfit seemed to glow unnaturally beneath the sunlight, and the air around her seemed to be warped by some unseen source heat as Blossom Star suddenly shot forward.
Thiefcrow's jaw fell open as Star suddenly sped forward in a move that seemed remarkably familiar.「That's–!」
But once more, she was interrupted by Eve's haughty laugh.「Ohoho~! As expected of the Shining Star of Japan! You truly are a fitting companion!」Sparks lit from the corners of her eyes, trailing behind as clover-shaped formations.「Then I shan't keep you waiting, Lady Blossom!」The earth trembled as her foot smashed into the earth, and her figure melded into a blur as she lunged forward.
"Blossom Star and Eve Binti are flying even further ahead!?"
A nerve bulged on Thiefcrow's neck, and her expression darkened in rage as she too began accelerating.「YA' PIECE O' SHIT! YA' THINK IT'S GONNA' BE THAT EASY!?」Each of her steps sounded like explosions as she chased after the two.「THAT THRONE BELONGS TO ME!」
"No! Thiefcrow's moving further as well! All three leaders of this race are leaving everyone in the dust! They've already reached the first corner…!"
Dicta Striker whistled softly. "Holy shit." She couldn't help but say. What other words could she'd used? Dealing with one Great Escape was already enough to destabilize an entire race's pace. Dealing with three who were actively pushing each other to go faster?
No, this was no time for excuses.
She took a deep breath, and as her eyes lit a brilliant amber, she fired her first {Yellow Bullet} and shot past Folkqueen, surging into 4th place.
"Dicta Striker is in 4th!"
To most of the other foreign representatives, it became clear that this record-setting pace was one that'd likely remain until the very end of the race. Most of them had already prepared for Star's Great Escape, but none of them could've imagined the sheer difference in speed compared to what she showed in the [Takarazuka Kinen].
But before that fact could even fully register in their minds. A literal bolt of lightning slammed down onto the track. A brilliant storm of foxfire followed it a moment after. And as if called on to join the dance, threads of shimmering nebulae suddenly spiralled across the Turf.
An oppressive pressure forced itself down onto the entire stadium. An unholy screech sounded throughout the air as the skies began ripping apart.
And a moment later, the thin veil of normalcy was shattered once more.
Domain Awakening—
{Foxfire Flare}!
{Descent of Susanoo}!
{Wild Joker}!
Dicta grinned as she felt that familiar oppressive weight. The last time, she'd been caught completely off-guard, but things were different this time. She took a deep breath, and the moment she felt that pressure wash over her, she immediately fired her second {Yellow Bullet}. Whatever speed she would've gained was lost, but she'd saved herself from getting dragged down.
But Dicta wasn't the only one.
Super Creek's {Pure Heart} had activated moments ago, letting the oppressive pressure wash over her as nothing but a harmless wind. And she smiled softly as she began to accelerate. Her relatively light gallops suddenly turned into earth-shaking stomps as she bent forward, suddenly mimicking the gait of America's Big Red.
Oguri frowned slightly as she felt the combined weight of three Domains, but the feeling lasted only a moment before she forcefully pushed past it. And spurred on by the discomfort it caused her, the deep hunger churning in her gut turned into something painful, and her eyes glowed an eerie blue as shadows began coiling around her legs.
Sunday Silence's grin looked almost deranged as she saw everyone suddenly speeding up, more than willing to match the pace the three Escape Artists had set.「Yeah, this is it…!」She grinned with teeth.「I'VE BEEN WAITIN' FOR THIS!」And with joyous laughter, the Turf behind her exploded as she lunged forward.
"T-This is…!"
"What a ridiculous pace! Dozens of records are being broken at this very moment!"
"Blossom Star is in the lead, but Eve Binti and Thiefcrow are right behind her!"
"Dicta Striker is in 4th, with Tamamo Cross, Inari One, and Obey Your Master vying for 5th!"
"Can this pace really continue like this!?"
"No." Blossom Star answered, smiling deeply as she entered the halfway point of the second straight.
"It can get much worse."
Her foot stomped into the ground, and fire burnt within her veins as she employed the set of Skills designed for Mid-race. {Playtime's Over!}, {Attack Stance}, {Leap Premonition}, {Steady Advance}, and her first {Starlit Crown} activated at once, and she saw her world narrowing as she sped up even further.
"B-Blossom Star accelerates further! Eve Binti and Thiefcrow are getting left behind…!"
Thiefcrow's eyes widened as she saw Star's lead expand even further, and for the first time, she truly understood why an emo like Sunday Silence admired her so much.「This is fuckin' insane…!」She bit out with a scowl.「But ya' ain't leavin' me behind that-!」
"Coming through!" Thiefcrow and Eve startled slightly, and suddenly Dicta Striker ran past them, sparks flashing behind her as she fired her third {Yellow Bullet}.
"Dicta Striker is 3rd-, no, she's 2nd! She's taken 2nd place!"
Nerves bulged across Thiefcrow's neck.「STOP INTERRUPTING ME, YA' ASSHOLES!」
Dicta just grinned as she ran past them. "Sorry, can't understand you!"
「You–!」She shouted, but her eyes widened as she finally realized just how close everyone had gotten. Inari, Tamamo, and Obey were in a dead-heat—and all three of them were closing in on both Thiefcrow and Eve. The combined pressure of their three Domains fell on them both, and Thiefcrow barely stopped herself from gasping as she felt her legs literally shake.
「Ohoho~! Japan truly is terrifying!」Eve said with her usual haughty laugh, but there was a clear panic in her eyes.「It seems this might be the end of our voyage, Lady Thiefcrow!」
Those words snapped Thiefcrow out of her thoughts, and a burning rage followed right after?「Ha!? Are ya' givin' up now, ya' shitty princess!?」She grit her teeth as she fought through the oppressive weight, and with a bellowing roar, she stomped down with all her might as she surged ahead.「Cause' I ain't waitin' for ya'!」
Eve gasped, before her smile returned.「Ohoho~! I shan't make it that easy, Lady Thiefcrow!」
"We're approaching the third corner, but no one is giving up! Even now, the pace shows no signs of slowing down!"
…
Blossom Star; 1st place.
Dicta Striker; 2nd place.
Thiefcrow and Eve Binti; fighting for 3rd place.
Tamamo Cross, Inari One, and Obey Your Master; fighting for 5th place.
Sunday Silence; 8th place.
Oguri Cap; 9th place.
Folkqueen; 10th place.
Super Creek; 11th place.
Satias and Return to the Top; fighting for 13th place.
The third corner was approaching. The 800-meter mark has been passed. The pieces had been arranged as best as they could be despite.
The moment of Destiny was swiftly approaching.
Unnoticed by anyone, a pool of gold slowly bled into a crimson red. The chaotic winds blowing across the racetrack abruptly died. The short grass growing across the Turf seemed to shrivel, and an unnatural chill hung in the air, almost as if the world itself was holding its breath.
Then, Folkqueen smiled as her lips parted.
At that moment, Oguri felt a deep sense of wrongness, and she couldn't help but glance behind her to see what was wrong. Her eyes went wide as she saw the empty smile that stretched painfully across Folkqueen's face, almost as if she'd been possessed. And driven purely by instinct, she suddenly leapt to the left towards the outer lanes.
Then, just a second later, the whole world went dead.
Domain Awakening—
{Ņ̸̢̧̰͙̦̝̣̗̞̱͓̺͖̖̈́͛̆̂̈́̉̐͆͐͐̊̐͘̚͝e̷͉̲͔͚̗̣͚̹̣̓͆̐̀g̷̺̟̯̊͐̉̍̂̋͑̉͐̒a̵͓̭̯̹͇̥͎̮͓̖̟̎̀͑́͐̓͊̂̄̐̈́̆̿͘͜͜ͅ ̷̢̖̞̲̤͚̜͋̂̓̾G̶̝̪̙̤̳̟͖̠̰͙̉͋̄̑̿̑̽̾̌́͜ę̸̧̜͓̯̯̊̍͒͂n̴͎̙̿́̽͗̑͑̚e̷̡̨̡̨̙̭͉̖͈̫͈̼̳̋́͆̍̈́ͅş̷̼̪̟̻̜̗̰͙͍͉͈͇̯̃̔͗͒͐ͅî̴̯̬̦̪š̵̙̣̋͠ͅ}
The entire world lost color. The entire world went quiet. The entire world went still.
The white rings pulsing around Creek's torso—gone.
The shadows clinging to Oguri's legs—gone.
The blinding foxfire burning behind Inari—gone.
The brilliant weaving nebulae swirling around Obey—gone.
The towering giant of lightning shielding Tamamo—gone.
The clover-shaped sparks trailing from Eve's eyes—gone.
The bursts of orange light exploding behind Dicta—gone.
The unseen heat warping the air around Star's legs—gone.
At that very moment, every Blessing of the Three Goddesses had been completely extinguished, leaving not even an ember.
"W-What? What's happening!? Every runner is slowing down!?"
In that lifeless world, a single person began moving. They ran ahead, slithering around the weakened runners as she surged towards the lead. No one could stop them. No one could even attempt to.
And though they were alone in this hell of their own making, F̸̧͍͍͆̏̂́̂̈́̈́͠o̴̢̪̖̭̺͔̩̥̾̅̏͑̍͘͜͝l̵̥͔̪͕̦͌͐ǩ̶͔͍͖̃̀̔q̸̻͇͉͇̋́ư̶̢̞͉̞̂̋̈̊é̸̪̖͙̦̫̄̾̒͜ͅě̷̢͓̩͖̯̟̭̤̽̏̅̀̚ň̷͎̝̞̌̈́̀̀ was smiling as she passed the severely slowed Dicta Striker. There was only 7 lengths between them and Blossom Star, and it was inevitable that they would soon take the lead for themselves.
In front, Star was gritting her teeth as she tried activating her Skills, but nothing was working. The Active Skills she'd saved for late-race, her unused {Front Runner Savvy ◎}, even her {Starlit Crown}—none of them came to her aid.
Her System was entirely quiet.
F̸̧͍͍͆̏̂́̂̈́̈́͠o̴̢̪̖̭̺͔̩̥̾̅̏͑̍͘͜͝l̵̥͔̪͕̦͌͐ǩ̶͔͍͖̃̀̔q̸̻͇͉͇̋́ư̶̢̞͉̞̂̋̈̊é̸̪̖͙̦̫̄̾̒͜ͅě̷̢͓̩͖̯̟̭̤̽̏̅̀̚ň̷͎̝̞̌̈́̀̀ was just 4 lengths behind her now. If nothing changed, she would be passed in just a few seconds. And from there, her chance for victory was practically nonexistent.
"Please!" She screamed in her own mind, incapable of even parting her lips. "Come on! Activate! Something! Anything…!"
Nothing answered.
Nothing answered.
Nothing–
Something answered.
She blinked, and suddenly the phantom she'd been chasing for the past few months suddenly appeared in front of her. This time, it wasn't actively running away. It ran right in front of her, waiting for her to accelerate by any means. And though the phantom said no words, she couldn't help but feel like it was begging her to take a step forward in this motionless world.
So she tried. She tried pushing forward. She tried speeding up, even though her legs cried out in agony with every attempt. Even though her lungs felt like they were collapsing on themselves with every forced breath she took.
F̸̧͍͍͆̏̂́̂̈́̈́͠o̴̢̪̖̭̺͔̩̥̾̅̏͑̍͘͜͝l̵̥͔̪͕̦͌͐ǩ̶͔͍͖̃̀̔q̸̻͇͉͇̋́ư̶̢̞͉̞̂̋̈̊é̸̪̖͙̦̫̄̾̒͜ͅě̷̢͓̩͖̯̟̭̤̽̏̅̀̚ň̷͎̝̞̌̈́̀̀ was 2 lengths behind her. They were about to take the lead. Star wasn't speeding up. No one was.
It was hopeless.
.
.
.
Suddenly, a voice filled with barely restrained rage broke through the stillness.
「So it was you.」