Kayon adjusted his stance, weight shifting, eyes tracking both of them. They split without a word. Evans moved first and Kayon's focus shifted with him.
That's when it came.
A kick slammed into Kayon's back. He staggered forward. Ice climbed over his legs, locking him in place Eva shattered it with a sharp strike, the impact driving into his chest and sending him skidding back.
Kayon rolled, forcing himself up.
Ice spears dropped from above.
He twisted, barely slipping past them, but the dodge carried him straight into Eva's flames.
Fire swallowed his vision, he exhaled hard, blasting it apart. Evans landed a clean strike to the ribs. Kayon grunted and jumped back, his breathing steadying.
"These guys…" he muttered, eyes narrowing, "…they're hitting from my blind spots."
Kayon exhaled once. "Then let's switch it up."
He moved cutting straight for Eva. They reacted instantly, their attacks colliding. Steam exploded outward.swallowing the space between them. Kayon pushed through it,
A strike snapped his head to the side.
The world tilted, he fell back, blood spilling from his mouth and nose as he hit the ground.
Kayon held his nose looking at them.
Carai stepped forward. "We can help you."
Kayon raised a hand his eyes focused on The battle infront. "Stay back." He pushed himself up slowly, wiping the blood from his chin.
'Mian'
'Yes, Master.'
"I want to try something. Can you analyze their fighting pattern."
A brief pause.
'It can be done.'
'Do it.'
'Estimated completion time, three minutes, forty-three seconds.'
Kayon wiped the blood from his nose, eyes never leaving them.
'I don't have that long. Cut it down.'
A beat.
'I can accelerate the process by drawing directly from your energy.'
'How much faster?'
'One minute, twenty-seven seconds.'
Kayon's eyes narrowed slightly.
'The cost?'
'You will lose access to all magic during that time.'
Kayon hesitated, glanced at Carai looking at him. his gaze sharpened.
"...Fine. Do it."
The flow of magic inside him vanished.
A faint pulse echoed in his mind.
223… 222… 221…
Eva tilted her head, watching him, she smirked.
"So that's your move?" She cracked her knuckles, stepping forward. "You really think you can take us like that?"
Kayon lowered his stance, breath steady.
"I don't need magic to break you."
Evans didn't respond, he just shifted slightly to the side.
Kayon smiled,
'They're tightening the net,' he scanned the area. 'I should focus on defence for now.'
Eva sprinted. Evans followed a step behind.
They clashed again.
This time, Kayon didn't try to meet them head-on. He weaved through most of their strikes, slipping past fists and blasts, but not all of them. A few hits landed.
His footing slipped.
Eva closed the gap instantly. Her kick slammed into him, and before he could recover, she drove both feet into his chest, stomping him back.
Kayon crashed into the ground, he tried to rise.
A wave of ice surged toward him.
He leapt, but the blast caught his right leg. He hit the ground on one knee, a sharp breath tearing from his chest. His foot fractured on impact, cracks splintering through it like glass.
Then.
A ball of fire struck him head-on.
Silence followed.
Smoke rolled across the battlefield.
As it cleared, Kayon lay there, barely moving, dragging in uneven breaths.
They're strong… I can't beat them like this.
He stayed down.
Just for a moment.
Then it echoed.
'7 seconds remaining.'
5… 4…
A faint smile touched his lips as he pushed himself up.
3… 2…
He lifted his head, eyes steady now, and drew in a slow breath.
1.
'Analysis complete.'
Kayon's magic returned in a crushing torrent, wind erupted from him, blasting outward in all directions. The ground trembled, cracking and sinking beneath his feet.
Silence as the dust settled, Kayon stood at the center of the crater his right foot was gone.
He stepped forward as his leg moved, flesh and bone rebuilt themselves mid-motion. By the time his foot touched the ground, it was whole again.
He walked out of the crater, every wound gone.
Eva and Evans froze.
Kayon lifted his gaze to them.
"How are you still alive…?" Eva's flames flickered, then began to fade.
Kayon didn't answer, he just looked at them.
"Now," he said calmly, "I'll be serious."
He vanished.
Then.
Kayon kicked Evans crashing into him and launching him across the field.
Eva attacked instantly.
Kayon met her strikes with terrifying precision, deflecting each one with minimal movement, a single punch drove into her stomach.
Her body folded, breath gone.
Evans dashed back in, forming an ice blade in his hand.
Kayon didn't even look at him.
He flipped forward.
His heel smashed into Evans,
His foot drove down, slamming Eva into the ground.
His fist followed through, crashing into Evans' chest and forcing him back again.
Eva lay pinned beneath Kayon's foot.
"Get your foot off me," she pushed Kayon's foot away, flames igniting in her palm as she thrust her hand upward.
Kayon stepped into the fire, the flames swallowed him, he walked through them and caught her wrist stopping the attack.
He looked down at her.
"That's not fire."
He opened his mouth flames poured out.
It crashed over Eva's face and chest.
She screamed, throwing up her left arm to block, the fire consumed it. her arm burned away.
Then,
The flames stopped. Kayon closed his mouth and let her drop.
"Now," he said quietly, "That is true fire."
Eva writhed, clutching the charred remains of her shoulder, her scream breaking into ragged breaths.
Evans rushed in.
"Get away from her!"
Kayon stepped back.
Evans dropped beside her, hands shaking as he pressed ice over the burned area, frost forming rapidly over ruined flesh.
"What happened to him?" he said, voice tight.
Eva grimaced as she forced herself up.
"Something's wrong… it's like" she winced, "like he knows what I'm going to do before I do it."
Evans' ice began to quickly melt.
"We need a plan," he said.
Eva's breathing steadied, she smiled.
"I'll keep him busy," her eyes locking onto Kayon. "You go for the girls behind him."
Evans hesitated. "You think that'll work?"
Eva's smile sharpened.
"It will. Haven't you noticed?" she pointed at Carai "Every time he attacks, he pushes us away from them."
Evans glanced across the battlefield, thinking.
"…Now that you mention it."
He stood, "Let's do it."
Eva stepped in front of Kayon, forcing a grin.
"You know what?" she said, "When we're done with you, I'll enjoy cutting those bitches down myself."
Her smile widened.
"But first… I'll have my men enjoy them first."
Kayon didn't move.
His expression darkened slowly, the way light dies before a storm and the air changed with it. Heavy. Cold. Like the world itself had drawn a breath and forgotten to release it.
"A pity," he said quietly. "I thought you wanted to live a little longer."
His voice didn't rise. It didn't need to.
The air trembled anyway.
Then he was gone.
The impact behind her was deafening felt before heard, a concussive wrongness that rattled her teeth. Eva turned.
Evans was gone.
Kayon stood where he had been.
He looked at her.
"I'll make it slow," he said. "And painful."
Eva lunged.
He caught her arm and tore it off.
She hit the ground and the scream that left her didn't sound human. Her body convulsed against the earth,
Kayon stepped onto her right foot.
It collapsed.
The sound she made then was worse than the first.
He crouched. Picked her up by the jaw one hand, and pulled her close until she could see herself reflected in his eyes.
"Shh."
A single finger pressed lightly to his own lips. "Don't make me enjoy this."
Eva's body shook so hard she couldn't control it. Her thoughts came apart in pieces.
'What is this'
'What have we done'
Urine spread down her legs. She didn't register it. She was looking at him and something in her understood, with terrible clarity, that there was nothing behind his expression. No anger. No pleasure. Just patience.
'I don't want to die.'
"Please," she whispered.
The word barely made it out.
Kayon moved.
He took her jaw and removed it.
The scream never formed. What came out instead was wet and broken air escaping, a sound that had no name. She hung suspended in air, and the world reduced itself to that single point of ruin.
He leaned in.
"Say that again."
Only the soft wheeze of her breathing answered him. air bubbling inside her lungs came out.
Kayon watched her for a moment.
"I suppose you can't."
He raised his hand.
Something sharp rose beneath her, slow and deliberate. He positioned her above it and let gravity do the rest. The noise she made wasn't a scream. It was smaller than that. More honest.
His grip found her throat.
Tightened.
Then crushed.
She went quiet but her body didn't know it yet. It struggled a while longer, Then it stopped.
Kayon released her.
In the distance, Dravena shifted, pressing closer behind Saeriel and Carai, her voice low and tight.
"…and you said he's not scary?"
Carai didn't answer immediately. Her eyes stayed locked on Kayon.
Then, quietly.
"You might be right."
A pause.
"He is scary when you provoke him...."
"Eva!"
A scream tore through the battlefield.
Evans lunged for her body.
Kayon's hand shot out fast, unyielding. His fingers wrapped around Evans's throat, lifting him effortlessly.
"I… I will kill you!" Evans grunted, straining.
"I have grown tired," Kayon said, his voice flat.
"Just… you wait. Once she's here… you're dead!" Evans rasped, choking.
Kayon's gaze fixed on him. He lifted a hand.
In a flash, Carai's blade flew across the air, landing perfectly in Kayon's grasp. Without hesitation, he dropped Evans to his knees, pressing the blade against his lips. It glowed red.
He forced the blade down his throat.
A moment passed.
Evans struggled, gagging, trying to pull free.
Kayon didn't move.
Then he pulled.
The blade opened him from mouth to stomach in a single, unbroken motion the sound of it quieter than it should have been. Evans' hands came up instinctively, reaching for something that was no longer there. Then they dropped.
He crumpled. Unmoving.
Kayon turned.
And moved toward the girls.
Saeriel and Dravena recoiled, pressed against each other.
He leaned closer to them and whispered.
"Do you… fear me?"