Ren Walker
It's just as I said: one minute I'm falling, then the rush becomes too much for my heart, which stopped beating. The next thing I know, my marking is gone and I'm smooth sailing on an actual dragon. Don't ask me how it works. I barely even know, myself. But all that really matters is that life gave me a second chance to be the person I always wanted to be, and it was as if my death symbolized an end to my destructive behaviors, and my coming back to life signaled a rebirth in a better nature. For some reason, I feel stronger than I did before, and since landing in the middle of a crucial battle, my power has been kicking in my veins more fiercely than it ever has.
While Elwood comes to the conclusion that Cerberus's weakness has corrupted the Reaper into also becoming weak, he turns his attentions to him, where the battle becomes Reaper and Cerberus VS. Elwood. Meanwhile, Kya rushes to Elektra, certain that she can help whatever happened to her. Leo and Sarah stand to the side, understanding that some fights just aren't their own, but they do help. Sarah throws Elwood and Xavier off their games, and though Leo levels his gun every now and then, but he knows the shot is too messy to make.
"I fall down and discover I'm a monster because of my power," Xavier notes, finding humor in my near demise. "You fall down and turn into an actual beast."
"Actually," I correct, sizing him up for possible wound. Unfortunately, there seems to be none. "My marking came to life while I was dead. So, I didn't actually turn into the dragon." Speaking of my marking, it still glows on my arm, as if it's trying to tell me something. While I don't know its actual message, it probably explains the euphoric surge of energy I feel.
"It's fine," Xavier shrugs off, looking almost happy. And this is why: "I just get to kill you all over again. And I've got to say, when Kya cries, that's when she's prettiest. Tell me, when you die for good, do you mind passing her along?"
This time, I'm the one who swings first, furious at everything he just said. Pass Kya down? As if I'd ever let her go. He saw her cry? What the hell did he do when she was breaking down? How dare this sadistic bastard say she's most beautiful when she's in pain. She's perfect all the time.
Our katanas clash, both empowered swords faring well against each other. This go around, Xavier uses his powers to a higher extent; teleporting far away, waiting for lightning to pass, and come up right behind me in the dark. It's only because of my glowing weapon and mark that I can barely make him out in the night. He appears at my side, now, sword already lunging into my side before I deflect it. Crazily, he laughs. "Oh, did I strike a nerve, brother? Did I push the right button?"
"I only have one button," I growl, pushing him away from me and kicking a burst of fire this way, reminding him that he's not the only one with an ability. "And you're it." Xavier sidesteps my flames, disappears, and pops up at my back. Reflexively, I swing my blade behind me, the two metals clanging together as I whirl around.
"Your reaction tells me otherwise," he coos, rearing his katana back and sweeping at my feet. Slightly, I jump, then stomp on his sword, slashing at his chest. It grazes his skin, but before any real damage can be inflicted, he teleports. Convenient, I mentally grouch. When his face shows itself, I find myself instantly parrying an attack. "Tell me, why assign the dojo to Kya? We both know what I'll do to have it back in the rightful Walker name. You're only putting her at greater risk."
Shoving him back, I swing my katana, unleashing a wave of fire. But it's not what either off us were expecting. Instead of raging reds and ominous oranges, it comes out in blazing blues, the temperature hotter than hell itself, the light brighter than the sun.
Simultaneously, both of us gasp, "...the hell?"
"No matter," Xavier assures himself. "It doesn't make a difference. I'll crush you, anyways."
Giving it all he has, Xavier swings his katana more like a baseball bat than a weapon. Before the edge of his blade even nears my skin, I blast it with my newfound tainted power. Though, rather than be tainted with darkness, it's almost like my flitting death sparked some sort of energy reawakening. My fire is so intense that it completely melts Xavier's blade, which seemed infallible all the way up until now.
With Xavier's metal disfigured and useless, Xavier himself is just about defenseless. Taking advantage of this moment, I deliver a high kick, my foot crashing across his face and bringing him down to the ground. He topples on his knees, defiant mismatched eyes staring up at me in infuriation. I position my own bright blade over his head, ready to swing it like an axe and finally end all this nonsense. "Go ahead," Xavier eggs on. "Kill me like you killed Father. Like you tried to kill me two years ago."
"If I were to kill you like before, or like your father, then this would all be an accident," I correct him, hands nearly shaking with pent up rage for all the terrorization Xavier's caused me, for the things he's said, for what he'll do if I let him get away. But I can do a lot of things, too. "Right now, if I were to end you at last, this would be my first intentional murder."
"Well, baby brother..." Xavier sighs, looking up at me with something hidden behind his eyes. It's a sort of confidence and arrogance that tells me he has a good idea about how this is going to end for him. "What are you going to do?"
I've spent all these years yearning for the life of my elder brother back, and here he is, kneeling in front of me, waiting for his fatal attack. If I kill him now, then I'll really be dwelling on a real corpse. But more importantly, I'll be doing nothing but repeating the past. If I really want to be someone altruistic and improved – if my coming back to life was truly representative of an inner rebirth – then it can't start out this way. A life full of more compassion and mercy cannot begin with death, let alone hands bloodied by family.
Adjusting my grip on the katana, tightening my clasp, the golden light muddles with the bright blue fire that curls along the blade, igniting with my final decision. Raising it high over Xavier's head, I slice through the air, aiming for the soft spot between his neck and shoulder. He's shocked that this is what I'm doing – gasping and widening his eyes.
I stop short, letting the flames dance right by Xavier's skin. Though they don't touch him, the heat is enough to burn him, considering it's so concentrated in power. He grits his teeth in pain, sweat instantly beading on his skin and pouring down his body. Even in the rain, the water does nothing to cool him off. There's even the sizzling of drops evaporating only when the liquid gets close to the fire.
"Finish it, Ren," Xavier provokes. "Or are you still too weak?"
"Leave us alone," I demand, tone grave and absent of emotion. "Stop causing us trouble, or the next time I see you, it won't be a battle just between you and I; it will be all of us against you. Our warring ends here, Xavier. I'm not going to hold a grudge against you for something that happened two years ago, even if that thing was trying to murder me. But if you don't leave this place immediately, then that is something I will remember."
Tentatively, I withdraw my katana, sheathing the katana and stepping back. Xavier's eyes scan my body up and down, as if wondering if I've gone mad. Slowly, he stands, balance spot-on. "You realize that letting me go now is a mistake, right? I'll be back eventually."
Scowling at him, I repress the urge to punch this guy in the face. Call it my "turning over a new leaf" project. But if Xavier doesn't get out of my sight soon, I might just burn that leaf to nothing but ashes. "Do you want to die? Are you telling me this because you want me to end you before something else begins? Has the weight of carrying two powers finally brought you down?"
"Don't get cocky with me," Xavier warns. Says him. "The more you anger me now the harder I'll come for you later."
"Then come for me later with all you've got," I dismiss. "I'm never going to kill you, but I'm also never going to die by your hand again."
"What will it take? What will finally make you finish the job?"
There's a certain image that comes to mind, but I don't dare indulge in it. Instead, I try to conceal my thoughts from Xavier. But because he's been stalking me for two years, and to him I'm utterly predictable, Xavier smirks, practically inside my head. "You ceased to amaze me long ago."
"I'm glad to be a disappointment to you. Now go. And for your own good, don't come back."
Because Xavier knows he's weaponless and my power is becoming something to reckon with, he backs away. I almost immediately lose sight of him, his dark hair and clothes nearly making him invisible in the nighttime. I watch the last spot I saw him until I feel his presence disappear. Wherever he's teleported, it's far away from here.
I know he'll be back. But not for a while. That much I can be sure of. For now, my fight is over.
Kya Carter
I was right about Elektra. Elwood had literally sucked the life out of her. Her sun-kissed skin was now a pale gray. Her skin clung to her in a conjuring of epic wrinkling and massive amounts of sagging. Her hair had become a wiry, thin gray, and when I flip her on her back, her bones feel like brittle toothpicks in my hands.
I check her pulse, making sure I'm not trying to heal something that can't be fixed. Elektra has a heartbeat, but just barely. I need to make quick work of her.
I hold my hands over her chest, where most of Elwood's damage occurred. In similar motions I used in the Swap, I reignite her energy, or what little she has left of it. My blue aura outlines my hands and coaxed Elektra's bright seafoam aura to show itself. Precarious at first, the tendrils of color twitch around each other, unfamiliar with associating together. But eventually, they mesh together and I give her half of my energy, watching as the blush returns to her skin, which rehydrates and smooths over. Her hair reverts to its moisturized, colored state, though there are a few remaining gray streaks.
Then, her eyelids blast open, panic and fury riddling her gaze. "Where the hell is that asshole? I'm going to kill him. I swear to God I'm going to kill him. I've never felt so helpless in my life," she growls, not bothering with a "thank you" or "what happened?" But that's the only way I'd expect Elektra to wake up. I'm just thankful that two people who I hold very dear to me have come back from near death – or plain death – experiences.
Elektra rockets up, not wasting a moment of her time. But when she does so, she stutter-steps, holding her head and clamming her eyes shut. "Take it easy," I urge. "You're only at fifty percent right now. I gave you part of my energy. Elwood drained your power and your life."
"I need to be at a hundred," Elektra huffs, eyes narrowing as she watches the final battle before us. Elwood and Cerberus play cat and mouse, Cerberus mimicking Elwood's power, trying to corner him and drain his own power. However, the catch is that whenever Elwood gets weak, there becomes a lack of power to steal on Cerberus's end, and he also suffers. The cycle will continue until Reaper finds a way to interject and end Elwood's life.
"You're right," I acknowledge. My fighting is done for today. Looking in the distance, I see Ren watching the fight as well, his katana sheathed and Xavier nowhere in sight. Ren is done fighting, too. Now, it's just these four, whose history was long intertwined with each other since before they met any of us. "Lay down," I instruct Elektra. "I'm going to give you all I can."
Though Elektra isn't one to accept handouts, she's determined to settle the score once and for all. Grimly, she nods and reclines on the ground, indifferent to the wet grass and soil. I suck in a deep breath and meet eyes for Ren. I jerk my head, gesturing for him to come near. Without hesitation, he trots over, staying far away from the vicinity of the vicious battling. Even though it's two against one, Elwood is like a pendulum – he always comes back swinging.
"Kya, what's going on?" Ren inquires, bending down next to me, elbows resting on his knees. His hands are without gloves, and without them, his entire being seems gentler.
"I'm going to need you to watch over me for a bit," I request. "Or have Leo or Sarah do it. I'm going to give Elektra all of my energy, since Elwood drained it all with her life."
"Are you sure?" Ren precariously cautions. "Last time, we did a fifty-fifty swap and we both felt like crap."
"We weren't as strong then as we are now," I point out. "I'm going to do this, no matter what. Elektra needs to end this. I just need to make sure I have someone to fall back on, and I mean it quite literally."
"Of course," he agrees. "I'll be here. Just be careful."
Elektra furrows her brows and mutters, "Says the guy who fell off a cliff, died, came back to life, rode a giant dragon, and roasted Xavier's sword with blue fire. Yeah, you're not a hypocrite."
Ren laughs, seemingly able to do so more freely. It makes my heart flutter, even in the situation we're in. "I thought you were supposed to be super weak," he utters.
"Me? Weak? Never," Elektra scoffs.
Ren mocks her, saying, "Says the girl whose life got drained from her and played Grandma Walker."
"Okay," I huff, getting my hands in the correct position. "Ready?"
Elektra smirks, always undaunted, no matter what. "Hit me with your best shot."
"Of all the times to say that..." I grumble under my breath.
Again, I flex my fingers, gracefully moving them along her vein patterns, where her power courses. Her thin strokes of chi open up, now that they aren't so stingy with where their energy is distributed, since there's more of it now. My dark blue collides with her light seafoam, meshing and creating various shades of blue. Soon, I grow dizzy, leaning my body weight forwards, my muddy knees propping me upright. My own ocean blue aura makes itself scarce, but I force it to continue to flow from my body.
The attachment I feel to my strings grows weaker and weaker, until my eyelids grow heavy in extreme exhaustion. This swap has the opposite effect on Elektra, who livens up and regains the extra spunk that Elwood tried to eliminate. "Thank you," she gratifies. "It's time to end this. But first, I'm going after that little traitor."
Going against the wishes of my body, I remain awake long enough to follow Elektra's line of sight. Her eyes set on Cerberus, who I went out of my way to warn for apparently no reason. Snarling like one of Asylum's starving dogs, Elektra rumbles, "He goes down first."
Elektra
Elwood is a pain in my ass, but Elwood also never betrayed us – he was just always the bad guy. But Cerberus is the one who switched to help the Reaper, then switched to help us, then switched right back again. Sure, I thought about switching, myself, but I never actually did it. I'm sure if Reaper and Cerberus didn't switch back over to Elwood's side, then this fight would've been over by now.
So it's time to take care of the loose end before I unravel the knot. While Reaper and her father engage in close-range attacks, using daggers against fists. Behind them, Cerberus stretches his hands out, trying to use Elwood's power against himself. While he's distracted, I point my fingers to the sky, calling upon the strongest lightning bolt I've ever made, tightening my core to prepare to absorb its extremity.
Like quicksilver, a bolt dashes from the sky, entering through my hand and charging up my body. Markings glowing, I point my other fingers at Cerberus and let it rip, a murderous roar of thunder pursuing behind my strike.
The lethal, blue-tinted bolt streaks over the plain of grass, giving light to the disastrous events that tonight has to offer. There's no way Cerberus can dodge this. Even if he saw me launch the heaven's weapon at him, he'd be too slow to move out of the way. By far, this is the fastest and most detrimental card I've dealt.
But while Cerberus isn't fast enough to evade my outbreak, someone else is.
How she saw it, I don't know. But Reaper abandons her current engagement, leaping to the side. Her decision is so hasty that she doesn't even have time to enact her own power of temporary immortality. Shockingly, Reaper absorbs the entirety of my lightning bolt, body ceasing midair as the electricity fries her from the inside. Like a dead fly, she drops to the ground. She doesn't move after that.
"Lana!" Cerberus cries, dropping his hands to pump them at his sides as he runs to her. Sliding on the ground next to her, she cradles her head in his lap. I don't know if it's tears or rain that falls down his cheeks. Lana, I hum to in my head. So, the Reaper has a name, after all.
Bitterly, the part of me who has no clue where I came from bites, Must be nice.
I look over to Elwood to gauge his reaction. He hates his daughter to the extent that he was trying to kill her two minutes ago. So, when he does nothing but stare at the body with an emotionless, blank gaze, I'm not surprised. I wonder, if I died and my parents found out, would they look like this? Or, would they be crushed, like normal parents? I imagine it would be the first option, considering my own reaction is not much different from Elwood's. I must have inherited my apathy from somewhere, right?
I continue to watch Elwood, curious as to how any woman would have even considered having a child with him. Was he once a great guy? Did something happen to change him? Is there a certain event that triggers the lack of emotion in people like us?
Then, Elwood looks to me, and he's smiling. "Well, Flash of Death, looks like you've finally defeated the Reaper. Excellent move, to go for her kryptonite." He turns back to Cerberus, who whispers something to Reaper, who is either dead or just about. Disturbingly, Elwood adds, "Just like I would have done." And something rots inside of me as I realize we're more alike than I had previously predicted.