The sound of the wind howling complemented the tension of the situation. Nathan readied his battle stance with both hands tightly gripping the hilt of his sword. His heart rapidly beat in anticipation of who would strike first, how fast, and how strong. But Xavier still stood as he was after putting out the fire. With confidence, he raised his hand and pointed at Nathan's head. In a flash, he propelled a shot of water from his finger, causing Nathan to act quickly and block it.
[That was way too close! Wait, where is he?]
After Nathan's block, a soft mist surrounded him, losing sight of Xavier.
Nathan called out to him,
"Is this your plan, huh!? To hide like a coward!"
Afterwards, another sharp blast of water came hurdling towards him. It stroked past his shoulder.
"Who the hell gave you the idea that hiding? A hunter doesn't need its prey to see him. But have it your way," said Xavier, hidden among the trees.
He appeared behind Nathan and struck him from behind with his fist.
"Thought I'd be merciful, give you another chance to run away with your tail tucked between your legs. But playtimes are over."
A suffocating amount of bloodlust circled Nathan, and his senses spiked uncontrollably, and as he was about to back away, Xavier charged at him with water covering his hands. Nathan's attempts to block became futile as each blow weakened his grip and splashes of water felt like cold spikes brushing against his face. He gritted his teeth and fought back. Surprised by his outburst of strength, Xavier fell into the defense for a few of Nathan's attacks.
Before another strike landed, he saw an opening in Nathan's legs and tripped him over. As Nathan was falling over, he saw an opportunity to inflict damage before Xavier could land a hit. He slashed Xavier's leg, creating a massive cut in his hamstring. This made Xavier groan in agony. Just as Nathan stood up, he trapped him still with a shadow spell and swung his sword and directed it behind Xavier's neck.
[This is my chance!]
But just as he was about to reach the nape, Xavier's hand caught the edge of his sword and snapped it in two. Nathan stood there in a hopeless daze. He grabbed Nathan by the neck and tightly wrapped his hand around it in anger. He stared deep into Nathan's eyes and said,
"Screw with just killing you."
He threw a ferocious punch to Nathan's gut and slammed him to the ground. He looked at him with malice and punched his face with more power and speed than the last.
[Where the hell did this guy get this much power?]
He remembered a conversation he had with Seraphina after begging her to tell him where he'd find them.
["He's going to kill you…" I should have listened to her instead of just acting out rashly like an idiot.]
After numerous punches, Nathan's face began to look battered and bruised, with blood coming out of his nose and mouth. Xavier got and healed his leg by manipulating his blood with water magic. Afterwards, he grabbed Nathan's collar and forcefully dragged him towards the riverbed. Once they arrived, he held Nathan's head and planted it into the water, trying to suffocate him. He led him to struggle and tried wriggling away with what little strength he had left, splashing water everywhere and temporarily blinding him. But Xavier used his magic and made the water force itself into Nathan's nose, mouth, and ears. He began losing strength and willpower by the second.
"I'm not just going to kill you, but every single loved one you know. Friends? Family? Don't care. Anyone with whom you had a connection will die an agonizing and long death by my hands. Maybe I am a good guy. For not letting you get lonely in the afterlife. (mockingly) Haha. You came here hoping to get revenge for your dead friend, only to join him days later. Hilarious."
Nathan began losing consciousness due to the lack of oxygen he had left.
[I'm sorry mom. Guess I couldn't keep that promise after all.]
Just as he was about to give up, flashes of a woman appeared in his mind. She stood still with a dark, captivating demeanor. Her surroundings were filled with a peaceful, purple aura and tranquility without seeing her appearance. This soothing feeling took over Nathan's body, and his arms started to float freely in the water.
"Damn, that fast, huh. Tsk."
Xavier shoved his body away and stood up with his face wet. He went back to where they were first fighting and picked up Nathan's sword with the other half of it still intact, and came back.
"I'm not leaving here without having a piece of you as a trophy. What should I take out of you? Your heart, since you wanted to check mine? Yeah, let's go with that."
While stuck in that realm, Nathan couldn't speak or move, same as the woman. They just looked at each other, motionless. Time in that place had no real meaning, which felt like a long time, until she held her hand out and grasped Nathan's forehead.
[Who are you?] He asked her.
"I am-."
Just as she was about to finish, he heard what Xavier said in the outside world.
"I hope that your friends, along with that silver-haired girl, put up a better fight than you."
Nathan snapped back into consciousness and threw his hand towards Xavier's face, and lightning came out in a flash. He screamed in excruciating pain and tried dragging himself away. His eyes started bleeding uncontrollably.
"What the hell is going on here, ugh! I can't see, I can't fucking see! I swear, when I catch you, I'll rip you to shreds, you piece of shit!"
Nathan's hand calmed down, and he started coughing up water. Once he regained himself, he looked over to his Xavier, crawling away, and his sword right beside him. He took it and walked over to him in a struggle. As soon as he caught up, he fell on Xavier's back and stabbed him from behind. With each repeated stab, all he could think of was the first moment they met, the school attack, Harry's death, and how he mocked him in killing the others. After landing the final blow, Xavier let out his final words.
"He'll come for you, one day. And once he does, everything you know and love will be conquered before your very eyes, and you will be helpless to do anything to help."
He quietly laughed hysterically and let out his last breath.