The explosions inside the colosseum were visible for miles.
From the city's outer walls, the Blood Moon Arena glowed like a dying star—its crimson light bleeding through the smoke that curled into the night.
Sirens howled.
Enforcer transports thundered across the sky.
Dozens of Sentinels descended in formation, wings of energy slicing through the dust.
Searchlights swept the streets. Panic rippled through the crowd gathered outside the arena gates.
They were already there.
Hundreds of figures cloaked in serpent insignia stood in the smoke, surrounding the Blood Moon Arena like a noose.
B-Ranks by the dozens.
A few A-Ranks among them—each radiating killing intent so heavy it warped the air.
The Enforcers surged forward, their rifles firing bursts of sonic light.
The Sentinels followed, blades drawn, voices cutting through the storm.
But Arbokh's army struck back.
A barrier of violence sealed the gates.
No one went in.
No one came out.
Outside the arena, war had begun.
The roar of battle outside faded into a muffled echo behind the sealed gates.
Inside, the colosseum was a graveyard of smoke and flickering lights.
Arbokh stood at its center, motionless amid the chaos, his aura coiling like mist.
Three silhouettes stepped out from the haze behind him—each one distinct and deadly.
Liora — The Beautiful Butterfly.
She had been the most adored participant among the eliminated in the first stage—graceful, radiant, and one of the four Wild Cards who had captured the crowd's hearts.
But who would have thought that all along, she had been dancing to Arbokh's rhythm.
The crowd's beloved butterfly… now the serpent's own shadow.
Voltis — The Electric Current.
Sparks danced along his arms, humming through the air. Every step left a crackle on the ground, the scent of ozone trailing behind him. His grin was sharp, manic, alive with static.
Vorran — The Killer Whale.
Towering, broad-shouldered, skin black and white like storm-torn seas. His aura rippled with oceanic pressure. He was the wall, the tide, the unstoppable force—the same one who had stopped Varga's claws with his bare hand.
Varga's claws trembled. His voice cracked through the tension.
"Why? Why did you kill Vico?"
Arbokh tilted his head, calm as the eye of a storm.
"Does a predator need permission to hunt?"
The words cut deeper than any blade.
Then—a blur streaked through the sky.
A flash of wings.
A roar of wind.
The blur came straight for Arbokh—but was stopped mid-flight by a shimmer of light.
Liora's wings unfolded, radiating a soft blue luminescence as she slipped past the attack and struck back in the same breath.
The figure crashed to the ground in a spray of dust and feathers.
Falko.
Varga's eyes widened.
"Falko…"
Falko rose slowly, eyes sharp and locked on Arbokh. His tone was cold, bitter, but steady.
"Varga, I still hate you. I still want to kill you."
He turned his head slightly, glare burning through the smoke.
"But right now… I want to kill him more."
Liora's wings spread wide, shimmering with a soft, beautiful blue that pulsed like living light.Her voice was sweet, but her smile was sharp enough to cut.
"You'll have to go through me first… little bird."
Falko's feathers ruffled, eyes narrowing.
"You won't take long. You're just an extra."
The air between them crackled—
two predators of the sky ready to collide.
But before Falko could move, the ground trembled.
Vorran — The Killer Whale surged forward, each step shaking the arena floor as he charged toward Varga.
His roar echoed through the colosseum.
Gaja stepped in his path, transformed, dust swirling around his massive frame.
"Where do you think you're going?" he said, cracking his neck. "You look about my size. Let's see who's stronger."
Vorran's grin widened, teeth gleaming like blades.
"A simple elephant can't possibly compare to the strength of an orca."
Gaja's trunk flexed, aura flaring gold and white.
"Let's test it out, then."
The two titans lunged—colliding mid-charge with enough force to rattle the arena walls.
Dust burst outward, shockwaves rolling through the air—
and Duma grinned from the sidelines, lightning flickering around his body.
"I know my limits," he muttered. "You guys are stronger than me—"
he smirked, eyes flicking toward Voltis—
"not faster, but stronger."
He stretched his legs and crouched low, lightning crawling up his arms.
"So I'll take the skinny one."
Voltis' grin widened, sparks flashing along his shoulders.
"Skinny?" he said, voice buzzing like static.
"Let's see how long you last, golden boy."
Lightning cracked through the air,their clash painting the arena in blue and golden-black streaks of light.
Kongu's gaze shifted toward the serpent at the center of it all.
"Then it's decided," he said, voice low but firm. "Us three take care of Arbokh."
Varga nodded, fury burning behind his silver eyes.
But when they turned—
Waraabe was gone.
Kongu clicked his tongue.
"Tch. What a time to disappear."
Varga's claws flexed, aura flaring around him.
"Doesn't matter," he growled. "Us two will do it."
Kongu cracked his knuckles, eyes narrowing on the serpent.
"Fine by me."
They moved.
Two predators charging toward the Venom King.
Arbokh watched them with a faint, amused smile.
"Only you two?" he said, voice echoing beneath the Blood Moon.
"You're underestimating—"
His words cut off.
Two sharp sounds—wet, quick, final.
SHK. SHK.
Arbokh staggered forward, eyes widening.
Blood dripped down his back, two clean wounds glistening under the crimson light.
For a moment, no one could see who had done it.
Then the air shimmered—
and a figure appeared out of thin air behind him.
A hood.
Green skin flickering between visible and invisible.
Green eyes shot through with yellow streaks, half-lidded with boredom.
Vail.
He exhaled slowly, wiping the twin blades against the bandages wrapped across his chest.
"Don't know what we're fighting for," he muttered, voice low, dry, and calm.
"But you look like the bad guy."
© 2025 Moku. All rights reserved. INSTINCTBOUND is an original work by Moku. Unauthorized reproduction or distribution is prohibited.