Chapter 26
Jess screams his name in horror.
Bull lunges forward. "What the hell was that? It wasn’t magic."
Sonny rushes over to his body. He cradles Thomas’s head and presses his palm, glowing with ether, to the hole in his chest. He tries to seal the wound, but the damage is too large and was struck through his heart. Sonny’s breath catches. He tries again, forcing more ether into the wound, searching for anything to stitch back together. There is no edge to grab. The damage is clean and final. Thomas is gone.
Sonny cannot believe what just happened. His face no longer has that same sad, blank look. Shock has taken over.
Bull and Jess frantically come over next to Sonny and Thomas’s body. Jess’s voice breaks. "Sonny, please. Heal him.”
A monotone voice speaks from the shadows, slow and serious. "You look pathetic, Three."
Sonny knows the voice. He snaps back to reality and goes serious. He stands.
Bull turns toward Sonny. "Three?"
Sonny does not answer him. Someone steps out of the darkness. Two. He is calm, almost bored, like he walks into a kitchen instead of a crime scene. Ether rolls off him in a controlled pressure that makes the air feel thicker. He looks the same as Sonny remembers. Calm eyes. Controlled posture. A man who never wastes movement.
Sonny’s voice is low. "Two." Two looks upon the crypt diving group.
"You have friends. That’s new."
Bull stands, metal rising along his arms in a reflex. "Did you do this?"
Sonny raises one hand without looking back indicating he should stop. It is not a suggestion. "Don’t." It is not a request. It is a command. "Bull. Jess. Take Thomas and run. Now. You must escape this room."
Bull snaps back. "No way. We’re gonna kill this guy."
Sonny shoots a glance back at Bull. A glance that tells Bull his life is in danger.
Jess’s eyes are wet. She clutches Thomas’s shoulder like if she holds him hard enough he will come back.
Two comments. "No one leaves until we finish our business Three."
Bull grabs the door and yanks. It doesn’t move. Jess looks to the side wall where the portal for defeating the boss should be, but it seems to be sealed off.
Two lifts his hand slightly. "I sealed the exits. I blocked the portal. The only way out is through me."
The boss room suddenly feels smaller.
Sonny exhales once. "Stay back. Whatever happens next, do not interfere."
Bull’s voice breaks with anger. "Why are you being like this? We can help."
Sonny’s eyes do not leave Two. "You can’t. You are both far too weak. If you get involved, you will die. I cannot protect you."
Bull’s face reddens. "You think I’m weak?"
"Yes," Sonny says immediately. The word lands like a disrespectful slap.
Jess softly whispers with concern, "Sonny…"
Sonny does not soften. "Promise me something. Don’t tell anyone what you see here. If you survive, you keep it quiet."
Bull’s brows knit. "Why?"
"Because it could get you killed," Sonny says. "Promise."
Jess nods quickly. "I promise."
Bull hesitates, then nods once. "Fine. I promise."
Sonny exhales. "Thanks. Stay back." His bandages climb higher. Black cloth forms over them. Sonny is ready for the fight.
Two looks upon a battle-ready Sonny. "There you are."
Two cocks his head. "One is disappointed. He had hopes for you."
Sonny’s voice is low. "You and One are why I am like this. You should have never taken me."
Two’s mouth twitches. " You are supposed to be devoid of emotion from your training. These attachments make you weak."
Sonny’s gaze hardens. "I’m going to kill you."
Two nods, almost approving. "Try. If you fail, I kill them next." Nodding his head towards Bull and Jess.
Bull’s fists clench. Jess pulls him back, eyes terrified.
The fight begins. Two moves first. He does not rush. He simply disappears from where he stands and reappears in front of Sonny with a strike already mid-swing. Sonny barely raises his forearm in time. The impact booms through the boss room and cracks stone dust from the ceiling. Sonny slides back a step, feet carving lines into the floor. Two follows with a second hit, then a third, each one placed to break structure. Shoulder. Rib. Thigh. Sonny blocks the worst of it, but the force still rattles his bones. Sonny answers with Ether Force, a palm strike that hits like a hammer. The wave slams into Two’s chest. Two barely shifts. Two’s heel snaps up and catches Sonny in the ribs. Sonny’s breath bursts out. He stumbles and recovers before he falls. Sonny throws kunai. Two tilts his head and the blades miss by a hair. He catches one by the handle and flicks it back. Sonny twists away and the kunai bites into his bandage instead of his throat.
Jess gasps.
Sonny rips the blade free and keeps moving. Two raises his hand and his body changes. His forearm swells, muscle and bone thickening unnaturally, turning his limb into something like a club. He swings. Sonny ducks and the strike caves a chunk out of the wall behind him.
Bull’s awestruck by the fighting prowess he is witnessing. "What are they?"
Jess whispers, "Don’t talk."
Sonny steps in close, using the opening. He lands a three-hit sequence, quick and precise, targeting joints and pressure points. Two absorbs it, then counters with a headbutt. Sonny’s vision flashes white. He tastes blood. Two grabs Sonny by the shoulder and throws him across the room. Sonny hits the ground hard, rolls, and forces himself up. Two does not let him breathe. He fires a compressed ether beam from his fingertip. Sonny twists, but the beam still tears across his side. Bandages snap tight, compressing instantly.
Sonny’s eyes narrow. He enters Terra form. Markings flare across his bandages. His senses sharpen. The room’s ether becomes louder. Two laughs and activates Terra form matching him. His markings burn across his skin like hot ink.
For a moment, the fight becomes pure violence and speed. They trade blows so fast Jess can’t track hands, only sound. Impacts. Cracks. The floor shudders.
Sonny takes a hit to the jaw. His head snaps sideways. He answers with a knee to Two’s stomach. Two shrugs it off and drives an elbow into Sonny’s collarbone. Something pops. Sonny’s arm goes numb for a second. Two presses, relentless. He grows a leg longer mid-step and uses the extra reach to sweep Sonny’s base. Sonny falls. Two is on him instantly. He stomps down. Sonny rolls and the stomp crushes the stone where Sonny’s head is a heartbeat before.
Sonny springs up and uses Ether Strings. Thin, near invisible lines flick from his fingers to the kunai scattered on the floor. He yanks two blades into the air and whips them at his foe. Two raises a hand. His palm thickens and the blades stick in the enlarged flesh, stopping short.
Two rips them out like splinters. "Good trick."
Sonny’s breathing tightens. He is losing the exchange. Not because he lacks technique, but because Two is more experienced and built for this.
Minutes stretch into a half hour. Sonny’s bandages are shredded. Blood seeps through in dark patches. Two has cuts and injuries too, but he looks almost refreshed.
Sonny knows he cannot win alone. He needs an opening to use Draco Smash. He can only use it once.
Sonny backs away and throws both hands out. Ether splits. One Sonny becomes three. Three becomes ten. Ten becomes dozens. Ether clones fill the room, each moving with real weight, each capable of striking.
Bull’s mouth drops. "How are they still fighting like this?"
Jess grabs Bull’s sleeve. "Shhhhh."
Two’s eyes sharpen. "Running?"
Two begins destroying clones with brutal efficiency. One punch caves a clone’s chest. A kick takes another’s head. An Ether Shot erases multiple. But the clones keep coming.
Two’s irritation grows. "Fine," Two says.
His body expands. He grows taller, broader, until he nearly fills the chamber. Thirty feet of muscle and ether pressure. His speed drops, but his reach and power becomes terrifying.
He sweeps a massive arm across the room and wipes out a line of clones in one motion. The floor shakes. Dust rains from the ceiling.
Two crushes the last visible clone under a huge palm. It dissolves. Two pauses. He realizes he doesn’t know where the real Sonny is. He turns his head slowly, searching.
Above him, Sonny clings to the ceiling like an upside down shadow. His bandages have primarily been directed to his right arm, the rest hang loose around his body. His Ether Cast is down, resembling his disfigured appearance. His right arm is wrapped in dense, compressed ether that pulses with heat. Draco Smash. Sonny lets go from the ceiling and falls behind Two.
Two senses him at the last possible moment and swings. The giant hand hits Sonny midair. Sonny takes the blow. He does not block. At the same time, Sonny releases Draco Smash. The strike detonates. A blazing column of ether punches through Two’s chest where his heart is and continues through the wall behind him, carving a tunnel into the stone.
Two freezes, stunned. His expanded body collapses inward as the transformation fails. He falls to one knee. His eyes flick to Sonny, incredulous. "You gambled everything."
Sonny slams into the far wall hard. Bones crack. His breath vanishes. He slides down, leaving a smear of blood on stone.
Two tries to stand. His legs give out. He drops forward and goes still. The room is silent.
Bull and Jess stand frozen beside Thomas’s body, unable to process what they just witnessed. Sonny lies crumpled against the wall, not moving.
The fight is over.
