Regus had heard it asked, though not personally, what would happen when an unstoppable force met an immovable object. There seemed to be no definitive answer, because there was no such thing as a true unstoppable force, and there was no immovable object. Even if there was, somewhere, it would be hard to convince the holders of both to meet together, especially without lying. After all, if you were the strongest, not by any sort of status, but simply by indomitable force, then why would you make yourself vulnerable if there was a way that you might be stopped? But Regus had never heard it asked what happened when an unstoppable force met itself.
Well, it was about time to find out.
Regus activated Rekhard's ability as the man came at him again, setting his feet and bracing himself subtly against the ground.
Rekhard noticed. But instead of dodging to the side, as he should have, or pausing his approach to feel out Regus's strategy, he kept coming. He was arrogant, and didn't believe Regus could actually defeat him.
For Rekhard, this was reputation too, Regus realized. He saw it in the movements, in the careful strikes, in the seemingly reckless charge. He had worked hard to make the students both overestimate and underestimate him. Overestimate his power, and underestimate his intelligence. It made him seem dangerous, so people were less likely to mess with him, but it also hid his true power quite handily. Aside from that, Rekhard was no stranger to hand-to-hand combat. He was a dangerous foe, and if he were facing anyone other than Regus it might have mattered.
Because Regus recognized ambition when he saw it. And he knew exactly how to twist it.
Regus shifted his stance to the side, feeling the ability's heat coursing through him. Some of it was being taken away on the cool breeze flowing through the place, and Hashim seemed grateful for that, but he was still uncomfortable. Not that it really mattered. The response to heat was largely physical, but the part that came from Hashim wasn't small, either, so Regus was able to ignore it easily enough by reminding himself that Hashim wasn't in control.
Regus lunged forward and threw out a fist, slipping around Rekhard's guard and attacking. But Regus didn't go for the head, or the heart, or anything vital at all. He attacked Rekhard's fist.
General Rekhard could recover from a blow that would have been fatal on the battlefield. He could shake off the shame of his overwhelming force being defeated by a child's quick, fluid movements, the like of which Regus had displayed throughout the fight so far. He could call Regus a coward and push off most of the disgrace by blaming it on Regus's superior speed.
But Regus didn't intend to let him get off that easily.
As they hit each other, Regus poised to blow past him and Rekhard still trying to get closer, something snapped. Regus wasn't sure whether it was his or his opponent's bone, but it was distinct and clear.
Regus continued his lunge as Rekhard staggered, nearly grounded by the impact. He hadn't been expecting that, not even close. He had thought that Regus would hit him somewhere more vital, which was a fair assumption. But he had made one severe miscalculation.
This wasn't the battlefield. Regus had no reason or intent to actually kill the man.
Regus smirked. The contact had given him yet another surge of power, and he hadn't even used up the power from the first yet. What Regus had just done was a basic enhancement, but Rekhard's power was so much better. Its capacity went far beyond just that. If the general were a student, Regus would probably recruit him. He intended to eventually recruit nearly everyone with decent attack power or abilities, at least by the time that he extended his influence past the Academy's bounds.
Unfortunately, Rekhard was management. So he was one of the top people on Regus's hit list.
Regus stood, silent. He concentrated Rekhard's power in his hand and lower arm, overriding the throbbing pain that was coming from there. Regus had only heard one crack, but the impact might have broken both of their forearms simultaneously, or Regus's arm could be merely pained from the intense strain and not actually broken.
Or maybe Regus's arm was the one that broke.
His back was towards where Reckhard was, and there was a faint hint of steam rising from his fist because of Rekhard's ability.
Regus turned his head, tilting it up to see over his shoulder.
Rekhard was on one knee, one arm cradled in the other against his body, and he was hunched over. Regus didn't see which arm it was, because Rekhard was turned away from him as well.
What's the first tenant of battle in the military? Corpse broadcasted. Regus, keeping his face carefully impassive, sent Corpse acknowledgement. He was right.
The first tenant was 'never assume an enemy defeated'.
And Regus didn't intend to.
He turned around, slowly, and began to walk towards Rekhard.
The easiest way not to assume an enemy defeated was to keep an eye on them as you moved on. Regus hadn't ever intended to do the easy thing.
And there was another way.
Keep hitting until they were dead.
Of course, on the field, he would stop when Rekhard cried out, or when he surrendered. Any sort of intentional protest was considered a surrender at the Academy.
Regus briefly pumped more power into his arm, the same one that he had just used to hit Rekhard, and attacked again.
Rekhard spinned, a furious glint in his eyes, along with a smug expression. He thought he had baited Regus.
He didn't understand. He was still treating this as a fight against a student.
Regus didn't even try to keep Rekhard from catching his fist. He just pushed harder.
Theoretically, Rekhard's experience would allow him to utilize his ability better than Regus could. But that didn't matter. Even if someone else could take other people's abilities, they would need to build up the proper pathways before effectively using newly acquired abilities. Regus didn't, because their body had plenty of experience transferring power everywhere, in enough different formats, that even if he obtained an ability that used power in a way that he had never seen, their body could figure it out and build pathways pretty quickly.
And aside from that, Regus had another large advantage. He was on top.
Regus was still pushing his fist down at an angle towards Rekhard. So while Rekhard had to reinforce his entire body to properly defend himself and push back, Regus didn't bother, and kept the enhancement focused heavily on his fist and arm, all the way to the muscles spanning his back that pulled on the bone of his shoulder.
That meant that Regus was absorbing energy quickly enough to replenish his supplies fully at the same time as he was fighting back, and Rekhard was using his faster than that. Regus wasn't entirely sure whether or not Rekhard's energy generation was enough to keep up. He assumed it wasn't.
If it was, there would be a slight problem, but if not, then Regus would win eventually. After all, he was using less energy, and their power sources would cut out around the same time, assuming Regus didn't have a minimum transfer capacity.
He wasn't exactly sure if his ability theft consumed the target's energy. He assumed it didn't, because if it did, then he would've likely had some complaint from someone, or at least some sort of reaction. He hadn't noticed any, which made the possibility, while still very much present, unlikely.
It didn't really matter, anyway. After all, he was Regus. He would not lose.
And besides that, they were Hashim. Even if he tried to he would have a hard time.
Regus looked down at Rekhard. His own face was impassive, a mask of indifference. Not stony, not cold, just absent. As though he didn't care about what was happening. He had acted amused at first at the challenge. Not anymore. He would defeat General Rekhard without looking the least bit bothered. If this man was seen as a challenge for him, his life would only get more difficult.
Not that it mattered, really. After all, he was certainly powerful enough to defeat people much stronger than Rekhard. The only reason he tried to discourage people from challenging him was because he was paranoid. There were four people who could probably take him out. Maybe five or six, based on descriptions he had heard. But unlike most, Hashim didn't have to rely on better technique and more training and practice to get stronger. Their abilities could evolve and change through new personalities, though that was obviously best saved for extreme situations where they needed it.
Regus would not lose. And he would not win.
He would obliterate.
Not because he needed to. But for no reason other than that he wanted to.
And that was his philosophy.