Kraith stopped.
Water still clung to the metal floor in thin layers, reflecting faint light across the arena. But something was wrong.
The current had weakened.
Not naturally.
Velkar narrowed her eyes.
"With a flow like that… how could it just—"
She cut herself off.
The water was receding.
Not draining.
Being pulled back.
Controlled.
Kraith's gaze shifted forward.
Two Axians stood at the far end of the arena.
Waiting.
One of them stepped slightly ahead, voice calm.
"…Looks like it worked."
So they were the ones.
The ones who created the flood.
Kraith didn't reply.
Nyxara was gone.
No movement. No presence.
He moved first.
No warning.
No hesitation.
The distance between them vanished in a single step.
His strike landed cleanly.
Too clean.
Kraith pulled back immediately.
Something was off.
Then—
cold.
He looked down.
A thin layer of ice had already formed around his foot.
Spreading.
Fast.
He dropped his hand to the ground.
Solid.
Frozen completely.
Behind the ice user, the other Axian spoke.
"With this surface… how do we even move?"
The ice user didn't turn.
"Figure it out."
The ice beneath his teammate's feet melted instantly.
Steam rose.
Kraith's eyes sharpened.
"…Fire."
Then—
BOOM.
Something cut through the air behind him.
A delayed explosion erupted.
Kraith twisted his body just enough to avoid a direct hit.
He turned.
The second Axian stood with one hand raised, fingers shaped like a gun.
Light traveled from his shoulder, down his arm—
and then—
detonation.
Nyxara appeared from above.
She dropped straight onto him.
Wrapped both arms around his.
Locked his upper body completely.
No room to aim.
No room to adjust.
The next explosion went wide.
But—
he smiled.
"You think using my own power against me… will work?"
BOOM.
He vanished.
Reappeared beside the ice user.
Kraith shifted his stance.
Too late.
The surface was too slick.
His footing failed.
The ice had taken away his speed.
The ice user raised his arm.
Water condensed instantly—
froze—
formed a blade.
A sword of ice.
He swung.
Kraith dodged.
Barely.
The next strike came immediately.
Then another.
And another.
No pause.
No rhythm.
Relentless.
Each step Kraith took slid slightly out of place.
He couldn't anchor himself.
Couldn't counter.
On the other side—
Nyxara moved.
But the environment was against her.
Cold air pressed in.
Her distortions flickered.
Weaker.
Unstable.
Explosions forced her back again and again.
Fire surged across the frozen surface.
Then—
she saw it.
A detail.
Small.
But decisive.
The explosions weren't instant.
Each time—
the energy traveled from his shoulder—
down his arm—
before detonating.
A delay.
A pattern.
Nyxara stilled for half a second.
Enough to decide.
She shifted direction.
Not toward the explosive user—
but toward the ice user.
At that exact moment—
she saw Kraith.
He was crouched slightly.
Removing his shoes.
"…Is he trying to die?"
Then she saw it.
His feet.
Covered in small spikes.
Piercing outward.
Blood ran down around them.
But they weren't random.
They anchored.
Kraith pressed his foot down.
The spikes dug into the ice.
No slipping.
No sliding.
A trade.
Pain for control.
Then—
he disappeared.
No sound.
No warning.
The ice user reacted too late.
A kick slammed into his side.
Then another.
And another.
Fast.
Precise.
Relentless.
Each strike forced him off balance.
Each movement disrupted his control over the ice.
He couldn't stabilize the ground.
Couldn't rebuild the terrain.
Nyxara tightened her timing.
Closed in.
Forced the explosive user to adjust again and again.
They didn't overwhelm them.
Not yet.
But the flow of the fight—
had shifted.
—
Elsewhere.
Darkness.
Metal walls.
Levi opened his eyes.
His breathing was uneven.
Heavy.
Blood still lingered at the edge of his mouth.
Fragments.
Sharp.
Unfamiliar.
Velkar lay nearby.
Unconscious.
Levi pushed himself up slowly.
His body trembled.
But not from weakness.
Something inside him was moving.
Stronger than before.
Clearer.
He clenched his hand.
Didn't try to force anything.
Didn't imagine the structure.
Didn't recreate the sphere.
He just—
waited.
Listened.
The space around him was filled with metal.
Walls.
Floor.
Ceiling.
For a moment—
nothing happened.
Then—
a faint vibration.
So slight it could have been ignored.
But Levi felt it.
The metal responded.
Not fully.
Not clearly.
But enough.
He looked forward.
In the distance—
four figures stood in the shadows.
Still.
Watching.
Not approaching.
Not attacking.
Waiting.
Levi exhaled slowly.
This wasn't over.
Not even close.
And this time—
he wasn't trying to create power.
He was waiting—
for it to answer.