CRACK!
Velkros' blade collided with Tekio's knife with brutal force. The impact sent a shockwave across the ground, carving a makeshift crater. Fragments of concrete and dust swirled in the air like a storm of ashes.
Velkros laughed, his face smeared with blood, eyes glowing like embers.
— That's it, Tekio! Give me more! Let's see how long you can last before breaking, just like your little sister!
Tekio growled, his eyes sparking with lightning. Each second, the knife vibrated more intensely. The energy flowed better. It was as if… it knew him. As if it were training him in real time.
He spun, dodging a lethal thrust from Velkros, and drove the knife into his shoulder—the blade sinking with an explosive lightning surge.
Velkros screamed, not in pain, but in ecstasy.
— HAH! THIS IS LIFE!
With a tug, he freed himself, the open wound emitting black smoke that coalesced into floating blades around him.
— Want to see some tricks? THEN TAKE THIS!
He raised his arms, the marks on his skin glowing intensely. The black blades spun, launched at Tekio like a demonic storm.
Tekio leapt backward, but not fast enough to avoid all of them—one slashed his shoulder, another grazed his ribs.
"Focus. Empty your hatred."
The voice returned—Serena, firm.
He gritted his teeth, body in pain, spirit in focus. The energy around the knife expanded, forming a protective aura. He spun through the air, and with a shout, unleashed an electric wave that dissipated the blades.
Velkros remained standing, laughing, but now his expression was tense.
— You're evolving… becoming more fun to kill.
---
From above, Dan and Stella watched intently, eyes glued to the battle.
Dan exhaled heavily.
— Are we going to have to fight like this forever?
Stella didn't respond immediately. She watched Tekio as if willing him back with her gaze.
— I thought saving the world would be… different. Like a journey full of hardships, but with rewards. But…
She clenched her fists.
— It's just pain. Just loss.
Dan looked at her, the blue flame around his fingers flickering softly.
— I get it. We kill one monster, another appears. We save one, lose two. But there's one thing that keeps me going…
She turned to him.
— What?
— The three of us. As long as we're together… we still have something to protect. Tekio… he's down there giving everything because he knows we're here. If he falls… I swear, I go with him.
Stella swallowed hard, then nodded firmly.
— Me too.
---
Down below, Tekio dropped to his knees for a moment. Blood ran from deep cuts. The ground around him lay in ruins. Velkros' energy now was wild, distorted, animalistic. He moved like a beast, arms shrouded in living smoke, claws forming from his hands.
— Enough games, Tekio! I WILL SHRED YOU TO PIECES!
Tekio breathed heavily. The knife trembled. His eyes closed for a moment. Then… something changed.
An image crossed his mind—not a memory, but a sensation. A young woman with white hair. A steady gaze. Lightning splitting the skies.
"Fear slows you. But pain… pain can be a catalyst."
The energy around Tekio erupted into a new form. His electric aura grew like a miniature storm, coiling around him like serpents of light. The knife took a new shape—longer, more alive, pulsing with the sound of thunder.
Velkros froze, astonished.
— What is this now…?
Tekio rose. His eyes were not just his own. For a second, something ancient inhabited them.
— I am no longer the boy you thought you could torture.
He charged.
The blade cut the air with unparalleled speed. Velkros retreated, but Tekio was there, strike after strike, like thunder incarnate. Each movement was cleaner, fluid, instinctive.
Velkros screamed, wounded by multiple cuts.
— THIS IS IMPOSSIBLE!
— You never understood what it means to fight for someone — Tekio replied, voice calm yet furious.
One final explosion. A bolt of lightning descended from the sky, striking the knife at the exact moment of the final blow.
Velkros was hurled into a wall, leaving a trail of blood and smoke.
---
Dan rose where he stood, eyes wide.
— Did he… make it?
Stella remained silent, a tear tracing her cheek.
— He… is changing.
Dan nodded.
— And we have to stay with him until the end. Even if it hurts.
---
The silence after the impact was heavy. Velkros lay buried in the rubble, blood running from his forehead, body trembling. Dan and Stella stayed still, waiting to see if it was over.
Then… a sound.
A hoarse, suffocating laugh.
— Hah… hahahaha… DO YOU THINK THIS IS ALL I HAVE?!
Velkros emerged from the debris, staggering, body covered in open wounds and smoke. His demonic marks pulsed dark red, like veins ready to explode.
— I AM THE RESULT OF PAIN! I EMBRACED HELL! YOU WILL FEEL EVERY SECOND!
He raised his arms and the sky darkened abruptly. Fragments of black energy swirled around him, forming dozens, hundreds of blades, spears, chains, and distorted specters. It was as if he tore a rift in the abyss itself.
— I WILL TEAR YOUR BONES WITH MY TEETH, DRAG YOU THROUGH THE GROUND WITH MY SHADOWS, AND BURN YOUR SOUL WITH THE CRIES OF THOSE I HAVE KILLED!
The energy condensed into a devastating roar.
Tekio remained standing, exhausted, his electric aura unstable, taking a deep breath. He felt fear. Felt pain. And also… something new. A silent acceptance. This was no longer just a fight. It was a lesson. A forge.
Velkros roared, unleashing everything at once.
The black storm crashed down like an untamable sea. Attacks from every angle, impossible to track with the eyes. Each impact a bomb, each shadow a trap.
Tekio was struck. The first blow ripped through his leg. Another nearly pierced his shoulder. But he did not fall.
He felt. He observed. He learned.
The knife's energy responded—firmer, more connected to his heart. Tekio's movements began to adjust. He twisted at the perfect moment. Raised his electric aura at precise points. Even his pain… was guided.
"Let the pain shape you. Be like lightning. Swift, inevitable… and stronger with each fall."
Velkros lunged with his claws, Tekio parried with his flaming electric knife, sparks slicing the air like blades.
The exchange intensified. With each attack received, Tekio became faster. With each fall, he rose sharper.
A kick from Velkros sent him crashing into a wall—the impact cracked the concrete. Tekio spat blood, but his gaze was no longer resistance… it was mastery.
He rose again, wounded, trembling… but invincible inside.
— You… cannot break me.
He lifted the knife. Lightning descended from the skies as if answering his call.
— You taught me something, Velkros.
The villain panted, visibly exhausted, yet still sustaining madness in his eyes.
— Oh yeah…? And what's that?
— That pain does not define me. But it can transform me.
Then, with a roar that sounded like thunder itself, Tekio exploded forward. The aura around him surged abruptly, his body moving between the bolts.
One strike, then another, then another.
Velkros tried to resist, but his attacks began to fail. His shadow crumbled. His corrupted energy screamed, trying to hold shape.
— NOOO! I AM THE END! I—
— No — Tekio responded, driving his knife deep into Velkros' chest with a violent discharge that shook the ground — you are just another obstacle I overcame.
Velkros screamed… and everything around was engulfed in a final explosion of light.
---
From above, Dan and Stella watched in silence, the wind carrying dust and electricity.
— Did you see what he's become…? — Dan asked, almost in shock.
Stella nodded, tears in her eyes, a faint smile on her lips.
— He… is becoming who he was always meant to be.
Dan looked to the horizon, thoughtful.
— Maybe that's who we are. People who bleed… but never stop moving forward.
---
To Be Continue...