While the clash between Reito and Franklin tore through the academy’s core, another confrontation reached its breaking point in the west sector.
Skadi stood frozen mid-step, muscles locked, veins burning as if filled with molten iron. Her teeth clenched as she glared at the girl across from her.
Skadi: Damn bitch—what the hell are you doing to me?!
Caitlyn stood several meters away, breathing hard, one hand clenched tightly as thin crimson threads pulsed through the air between them.
Caitlyn: Simple. With enough of someone’s blood, I don’t just influence them—I own the rhythm they move to.
You left plenty behind after your little dance with Hiruzen.
Skadi laughed through gritted teeth.
Skadi: So that’s it? You think this little trick’s enough to hold me?
She exhaled sharply.
Skadi: Then you really don’t understand what I am.
A low hum filled the air.
Purple light bled through Skadi’s skin as steam hissed from her pores. The smell hit Caitlyn a second later—rotting iron, decay accelerated to the brink of nothingness.
The blood threads snapped.
Caitlyn: …As expected.
She wiped blood from the corner of her mouth, grimacing.
Caitlyn: You used entropy to purge the contaminated blood. You didn’t break my control—you burned yourself clean.
Skadi rolled her neck, joints cracking as if resetting.
Skadi: Damn right.
And I’m guessing you’re not letting me walk away.
Caitlyn: Not happening.
Skadi grinned, knuckles whitening.
Skadi: Then let’s stop wasting time.
She vanished.
Caitlyn barely reacted in time, blood surging around her fist in a spiraling coil as Skadi’s punch collided with it. The impact detonated outward, Caitlyn skidding back as the blood cushioning unraveled.
She leapt away, snapping her fingers.
A dense sphere of blood formed above them—then burst.
Needles rained down like crimson hail.
Skadi twisted through them, entropy rippling along her skin, needles disintegrating inches from impact as she surged forward.
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Skadi: Ruin Fists!
Decay wrapped her arms as she unleashed a brutal barrage.
Caitlyn tried to block.
Each impact felt solid—until it wasn’t.
A half-second after contact, Caitlyn’s bones screamed. Density vanished. Structure failed. Her forearms cracked as if hollowed from the inside.
She staggered, coughing blood.
Skadi: Heh.
So this is the crown jewel of the Sanguis family?
She pulled her fist back.
Skadi: Looks like you’re all hype.
Caitlyn hit the ground hard, blood pooling beneath her. Her fingers trembled—not from fear, but from loss. Every breath felt thinner. Slower.
Skadi stepped forward, fist raised.
Caitlyn’s eyes flicked to the blood beneath her.
Then—
It detonated.
The explosion hurled Skadi backward as Caitlyn forced herself upright, blood coiling around her like a living spine. Her arm shook violently as she reached into her coat and pulled out a small blue vial.
Her grip tightened.
She hesitated—just for a fraction of a second.
Then pressed it to her neck.
Caitlyn: Aaron I’m…Sorry.
She injected it.
Pain erupted.
Her scream tore through the sector as blue veins ignited beneath her skin, racing outward like lightning. She collapsed, convulsing violently as her heart hammered far beyond safe limits.
Skadi stared in disbelief.
Skadi: What the hell did you just do?!
The screaming stopped.
Silence fell.
Caitlyn stood.
Her eyes were no longer human—pitch black, irises warped and cracked like shattered glass. The air around her pulsed with pressure.
She vanished.
Skadi barely registered the impact before she was sent flying.
Caitlyn: Red Sun Cataclysm!
Blood compressed into a spinning singular mass and collapsed inward with crushing force. Skadi’s body buckled, bones fracturing as she was dragged into the vortex.
She laughed.
Skadi: Heat Death Pulse!
Purple light detonated outward, draining heat, motion, and spirit alike. The world went cold—dead-star silent.
Both crashed to the ground.
They rose again.
And collided.
Every strike split the earth. Thunder followed every blow. They punched each other back simultaneously, skidding across shattered terrain.
Caitlyn’s thoughts raced.
This power… it’s overwhelming. Too much.
But if I can push it—just a little more—
Her veins flared crimson.
Caitlyn: Scarlet Overlock!
Her heart screamed as time slowed. She blurred forward, striking Skadi dozens of times in seconds, finishing with a vicious uppercut that sent her airborne.
Caitlyn: Red Rain Liturgy!
Mist filled the air—seeping into Skadi’s wounds.
Caitlyn: Sanguine Marionette.
Skadi’s body jerked violently. Caitlyn slammed her into walls, ground, pillars—again and again.
Caitlyn: Stay. Down.
Skadi coughed blood, grinning.
Skadi: …Yeah. You earned that.
Entropy surged.
The control snapped.
Skadi: Guess I’ll stop holding back.
Entropy Rush: Terminal Charge!
She became collapse itself—terrain liquefying underfoot as she smashed Caitlyn into a wall, following with a sweeping kick that erased structural integrity.
The shockwave rattled the entire academy.
Back in the stadium, seats trembled. Lights flickered.
Students panicked.
Dean Frederick: Calm down! There’s an incident in the west sector—staff is responding!
Hiruzen clenched his fists.
Hiruzen: What the hell is going on out there
Emma: No clue but we should definitely check it out
Jonathan: Your damn right i’m tired of just sitting here
The trio get out of their seats and sneak past the staff and make their way towards the west sector.
Back at the West Sector
Both fighters stood barely upright.
Skadi: You don’t quit… do you?
Caitlyn: Like I said I’m not letting you leave.
Skadi exhaled slowly.
Skadi: Then I’m out of options.
Her voice dropped.
Skadi: Nulthria… lend me your strength.
Darkness poured from her veins.
Her skin darkened. Hair rose, glowing violet. Her eyes turned into empty white voids.
The air refused to move.
Caitlyn felt it—blood trembling, reacting on its own.
Skadi (voice echoing): How pathetic… calling on me for someone so weak.
Caitlyn: …What are you?
Nulthria: Your end.
End Chapter
