"He is with us. Let him go," Hazel's voice repeated in their minds.
Certain it was Hazel's will, they obeyed without question. Alexa yanked her dagger from Darwin's shoulder, and Oscar helped him to his feet.
"I thought you were actually going to end me there," Darwin said, a hint of relief in his voice.
"What's going on? You better start talking," Alexa demanded, her voice still laced with anger.
~Battle between Torn and Mia~
"Oh, you also have regenerating abilities," Torn observed Mia.
"Yeah, I must say, it really proves useful," Mia replied, a hint of sarcasm in her tone.
"Fine then, I will just rip you to pieces over and over until you can't regenerate anymore," Torn threatened.
"We will see about that," Mia retorted, her grip tightening on her sword.
Mia charged again, this time with greater caution. Torn began to sprinkle her sweat around the battlefield, and upon her mental command, the droplets solidified into sharp iron thorns. Realizing the danger, Mia maintained her distance whenever Torn began to sweat.
Mia then devised a plan to secure her victory. She used her sword to destroy nearby objects, creating a cloud of dust. As Torn continued to sweat, the dust clung to her body, turning to abrasive sand.
Predictably, Torn leaped out of the dust cloud. Just as she did, Mia appeared behind her, sword raised for a decisive strike. But Torn whirled around, spitting a concentrated glob of saliva that instantly hardened into a sharp thorn. The projectile pierced Mia's chest, striking a vital part of her heart, causing significant damage.
Mia plummeted from the air, crashing into the ground with enough force to crack the earth. She struggled to rise, coughing up blood, her regeneration noticeably slowed by the heart wound. The system issued a warning of excessive bleeding and potential death. Despite her efforts, Mia collapsed back to the ground, losing consciousness.
"Hope not to meet me again in hell," Torn said, turning to leave.
Suddenly, a strange and oppressive aura filled the air. Torn felt a dark presence, her heart lurching with fear at the immense power. She looked back to see Mia standing, radiating a murderous aura far beyond human comprehension.
Mia stood and ripped the thorn from her chest. Instantly, her wound healed completely. She summoned her sword, and a black shadow erupted from her hand, engulfing the weapon entirely. Mia seemed no longer in control, the terrifying aura intensifying, affecting every living being within a considerable radius.
Torn, mistaking this display for a bluff, scoffed. "Oh, don't start with drama. I defeated you once; I can do it again."
Just as Torn finished speaking, Mia, who had been standing motionless before her, vanished. Torn felt a strange numbness spreading through her body. Her head detached and fell to the ground. Torn was dead.
Mia had moved with such speed and precision that she had shredded Torn's entire body, atomizing it completely, leaving no trace of her existence. Then, Mia stood unconscious, the menacing aura dissipating, the black shadow receding from her hand. She swayed and fell, but just before she hit the ground, Darwin appeared and caught her.
~The Battle Between Ashton and Invincible Blade~
"Surrender now, and perhaps I will grant you a painless death," Invincible Blade said, his voice a low, menacing rasp.
Ashton stood still, a silent defiance in his posture.
"Has fear finally claimed you?" Invincible Blade taunted.
Hahahaha! A sharp, unrestrained laugh erupted from Ashton, cutting through the tension. "Not quite," he said, a dangerous glint in his eyes.
"Then die," Invincible Blade hissed, his hands lashing out towards Ashton in a swift, deadly strike.
In a blur of motion, Ashton's sword intercepted Invincible Blade's attack, the clang of metal echoing in the tense silence.
"What? How?" Invincible Blade exclaimed, shock etched across his face.
"Surprised, aren't we?" Ashton said, a hint of triumph in his voice.
"Don't get cocky because you blocked one attack," Invincible Blade snarled, launching another relentless assault.
Ashton effortlessly evaded every strike Invincible Blade threw at him, his movements fluid and precise. A flicker of nervousness, of anxiety, crossed Invincible Blade's features.
"Come on, don't be scared," Ashton taunted, a devilish smirk playing on his lips. "Save the fear for when you gaze into the pits of hell."
"I will kill you!" Invincible Blade roared, his attacks growing more frantic, more intense. Yet, Ashton continued to block and evade them all with infuriating ease.
"How? How? How?" Invincible Blade screamed in utter frustration.
"Well, it's quite simple, really," Ashton said calmly. "It wasn't long before I realized the nature of your weapon. It's a vibrating iron string, isn't it? That's why your attacks felt... invincible."
"It doesn't matter if you know what my weapon is! You will die either way!" Invincible Blade bellowed, attacking with unrestrained fury.
"You are quite wrong," Ashton replied smoothly, sidestepping a lethal strike. "I can see a few seconds into the future. Before, I couldn't avoid your attacks because I didn't understand their true nature, how to anticipate or evade them. But now I know. You are dead meat." Ashton's features sharpened, his eyes glowing with an unnatural intensity as he transformed into his vampire form.