Echoes of flames and shadows
As Rex and Emi raced toward the school, Rex shouted, “Are we almost there?”
“Yeah, we're almost there,” Emi replied, both of them skidding to a halt at the gates of the school. They looked up to see Kioko standing on the rooftop, her bruised face barely able to mask her exhaustion.
"Mom, we’re here to save you!” Emi yelled.
“Get out of here!” Kioko shouted back, her voice strained.
Just then, Beelzebub emerged from the entrance of the school doors, a twisted smile on her face. Emi immediately pulled out her tonfas, her eyes narrowing.
“Rex, save my mom, please. I’ll deal with this bitch myself,” Emi declared.
“No way, you’re just a civilian. I have to handle her,” Rex argued.
“Rex, listen. If anyone touches my momma, they’re getting their ass kicked!” Emi fired back, her determination unshakable.
Rex sighed, realizing Emi wasn’t going to back down. “Fine, but call this number if you need help,” Rex said, handing her a card before sprinting toward the building to rescue Kioko.
Rex leapt onto the building, his eyes focused on Kioko. "Where do you think you're going!" Beelzebub shouted, lunging toward Rex.
But Emi intercepted, grabbing Beelzebub by the leg and slamming her into the ground. “She's quick!” Beelzebub thought as she scrambled to recover.
“You’re not touching my hubby,” Emi said, her eyes flashing with defiance.
“Yeager ability, Fly Touch,” Beelzebub thought, her arm turning black and infected. She lashed out, trying to grab Emi’s neck.
But Emi dodged effortlessly. “What’s wrong? Afraid of a little touch?” Beelzebub taunted.
“Ever heard of personal space?” Emi snapped, ducking away again before delivering a powerful kick to Beelzebub's side. “Gotcha, bitch!”
Beelzebub staggered but quickly recovered, her eyes glowing with malice. “Water Style, Fluid Friction,” Emi thought, her body moving fluidly. She slashed through Beelzebub, seemingly missing—but the real attack came from the water she had infused into Beelzebub’s body. Seconds later, Beelzebub's insides exploded, water bursting from within.
Beelzebub coughed out blood, a twisted grin spreading across her face. “Got ya,” she rasped, her body trembling slightly from the damage.
Emi glanced at her tonfa, only to see that one had morphed into a grotesque, misshapen figure. With a look of horror, she immediately dropped it. “Ew, ew, ew!” she cried, shaking her hand in disgust.
Beelzebub’s smile only widened as her wounds began to heal themselves. “How dare you mess with my tonfa,” Emi growled, her expression hardening. “But now, you’re going to deal with my strongest power-up!”
Without hesitation, Emi bit into her own wrist, blood dripping as she activated her ability. “Water Style: Water Pressure,” she thought, the energy surging through her. Her body began to swell, muscles becoming more defined and powerful. She could feel her strength intensifying with each second.
“I feel so much like a pirate king right now,” Emi said with a grin, flexing her now enhanced muscles.
Beelzebub’s eyes narrowed as she analyzed the transformation. “She’s increased the water pressure in her body, making herself bigger and more refined,” Beelzebub muttered, recognizing the danger.
Before Beelzebub could react, Emi disappeared in the blink of an eye. In an instant, she reappeared right in front of Beelzebub, her grin now larger than ever. “Surprise!” Emi shouted, throwing a massive punch straight into Beelzebub’s face.
The impact was earth-shattering. Beelzebub was sent flying back, crashing into the school walls as the ground beneath them trembled from the force. Beelzebub’s body convulsed as she tried to absorb the blow, but Emi’s newfound strength was overwhelming.
“I told you not to mess with my mom or my man,” Emi said, standing over her, ready for the next move.
“Yeager Ability: Absorption,” Beelzebub thought, her arm stretching out like a grotesque appendage, latching onto Emi and pinning her against the school wall. Emi struggled, gritting her teeth as she tried to break free, but the grip tightened, pulling her closer.
It was then she realized what was happening—Beelzebub was trying to devour her.
“Aahhh!” Emi screamed in terror, her heart racing.
Beelzebub chuckled darkly. “Screaming to your death—seems appropriate,” she sneered, her eyes glowing with malicious delight.
“Nah,” Emi said, her tone suddenly shifting to one of confidence. “I was screaming for you because you’re about to get punched in the face.”
Before Beelzebub could react, a fist slammed into the side of her head, sending her flying through the air and crashing into the side of the school building. Dazed, she looked up, groaning as she saw a figure standing before her—Nur, his expression calm and focused.
“Thanks for saving me! I knew calling that number in my head would work!” Emi said, catching her breath.
Nur blinked in confusion. “Who are you?”
“I’m Emi Saito, Rex’s future wife,” she said proudly, despite the chaos around them.
Nur looked at her, bewildered. “I’m sorry, what?”
“Never mind that!” Emi said, waving it off quickly to avoid further explanation.
Both of them turned their attention back to Beelzebub, who was starting to recover from the hit.
“Let’s tag-team this bitch,” Emi said, cracking her knuckles.
Nur nodded, activating his ability. “Light Style: Light Time Difference,” he thought.
In a split second, Nur dashed toward Beelzebub, who raised her fist to strike him. But before her punch could land, something slammed into her stomach—twice. She gasped, disoriented, as Nur’s punch followed immediately after, striking her with the same impact as if two blows had hit her at once.
Beelzebub staggered back, her eyes wide with confusion as Emi delivered a kick to her side, only for Nur to mimic the move right after.
“How am I getting hit twice? Is it invisible?” Beelzebub thought, gritting her teeth as the relentless attacks continued.
She was partially right. Nur’s ability was based on the concept of light’s time delay. Just as we see the moon where it was a second ago, Nur manipulated his flux energy to create an echo of his attacks. His movements, timed perfectly with the light difference, allowed him to strike twice, disorienting Beelzebub with each blow.
“Stay focused, she’s tough,” Nur said, his voice steady as he prepared for the next move.
“Let’s finish her!” Emi shouted, charging forward again.
Together, they moved in perfect sync, their combined abilities pushing Beelzebub to her limits.
Beelzebub felt an overwhelming sensation surge through her body. “What am I feeling right now? Is this… death?” she thought, as Emi and Nur’s relentless punches rained down on her. Her body trembled under the force of their combined attacks.
Desperate, Beelzebub made a choice. “Then I have to use this,” she thought. “Flies Feeding Palace!”
A dome of darkness formed around them, and in an instant, they were transported to a twisted canyon, where tornadoes of flies swirled ominously. Beelzebub stood at the center of the chaos, a wicked smile spread across her face.
“Fuck!” Nur yelled, immediately understanding the gravity of the situation.
“Where are we?” Emi gasped, taking in the surreal, terrifying sight.
“We’re dead,” Nur muttered grimly, eyes darting around the eerie space.
Emi, ever the optimist, shrugged. “Welp, okay.” Her body returned to its normal size, the adrenaline subsiding for just a moment.
“You never told me your name,” she said, almost casually, as if death wasn’t imminent.
“Nur,” he replied, glancing at her.
“Cool name,” she said with a grin.
Beelzebub was ready to deliver the killing blow, her eyes gleaming with malicious glee. Just as she raised her arm to strike, a sudden, piercing sound broke through the dome. A sword sliced through the darkness, and all three of them froze in surprise.
Rex came crashing through, breaking the dome apart with sheer force. “I believed in him,” Emi thought, relief flooding through her as she saw Rex.
But before anyone could react further, the scene shifted once more. The world around them dissolved, and they found themselves in a dark room filled with flickering black flames. They all stood motionless, staring ahead at a throne where Amelia Locke sat, towering above them, her cold, merciless eyes watching them.
“I don’t give second chances. Now die,” she said with a chilling smile.
With a snap of her fingers, Beelzebub’s body erupted into flames, her screams of agony filling the room. The others watched in stunned silence as Beelzebub was consumed by the dark fire, her body turning to ash.
“I don’t care if this Yeager dies,” Amelia said, her voice indifferent. She glanced at Emi and Nur, her gaze cold and dismissive. “Or if you two die.” Her eyes then settled on Rex, her expression softening slightly.
“I only care for him,” she said, her tone possessive. Then, just as suddenly as she had appeared, Amelia vanished into the shadows, leaving them all standing in the eerie, flame-lit room, shaken and unsure of what had just transpired.
All of them were suddenly pulled back into the real world. Rex, Emi, and Nur stood amidst the remnants of the battle, staring at the ash that had once been Beelzebub’s body. As they watched in disbelief, the ash twisted and transformed into a single fly, which buzzed away into the sewers.
Beelzebub, now hidden underground, reformed her body. “What a terrifying aura,” she muttered, shivering at the memory of Amelia. “I don’t know how we can kill Rex if she is part of his soul. And not just her… the other dark flame users may also be tied to him.”
Back with the group, Rex was still processing what had just happened. “Where are the others?” he asked, his tone tense.
“Amber and Baluka got away. They’re heading to safety,” Nur replied. “But Leon… he’s in trouble.”
Rex clenched his fists. “We need to get to him.”
Emi’s eyes darted around. “Where’s my mom?”
“Right here, you idiot,” came a familiar voice.
Emi’s heart leaped as she saw her mother, Kioko, standing a short distance away. Without hesitation, she ran toward her, wrapping her arms around her tightly.
“Mom!”
Kioko smiled, though she winced from her injuries. “You did good, Emi.”
But their brief reunion was interrupted by a deafening explosion in the distance, shaking the ground beneath their feet.
Far away in Hakodate, chaos reigned.
“Keep fighting! Omniadapter!” Luna yelled, her voice brimming with excitement as she directed the battle.
Before her, a monstrous creature with a flaming white head clashed against her, their battle tearing the landscape apart. Flames roared around them as Luna’s energy surged, and the Omniadapter—an ever-shifting creature with a constantly morphing form—struggled to keep up with her relentless attacks. Luna’s eyes gleamed with an almost maniacal excitement as she fought.
With each strike, the battlefield echoed with destruction, the clash of titans signaling a new stage in the war that was unfolding.