The chamber became a storm of violet and gold. Zirith moved with liquid grace, her destruction energy swirling like cosmic ink as she deflected Kyoto's opening barrage of ki blasts with lazy flicks of her wrist. Each impact sent tremors through the reinforced walls, shaking dust from the ceiling onto Marron and Launch, who struggled against Zirith's crushing gravity field.
Kyoto blurred forward, fist encased in searing golden light. Zirith caught it effortlessly, her palm absorbing the shockwave with a sound like shattering glass. "Predictable!" she taunted, twisting his arm with godlike strength. Kyoto spun with the motion, using the momentum to drive his knee toward her ribs. Zirith vanished, reappearing behind him with a chuckle. "Faster!"
Below, Launch gritted her teeth, sweat stinging her eyes as she forced herself upright. "Watch her footwork," she hissed to Marron. "She telegraphs her teleports with that hip tilt!" Marron nodded, her own ki flaring weakly as she mimicked Zirith's stance, trembling under the weight.
Kyoto unleashed a volley of rapid-fire energy spheres—a distraction. As Zirith vaporized them with a wave of her hand, he dove low, his hand slamming the floor. A shockwave of pure gravity erupted, buckling the metal beneath Zirith's feet. She stumbled, genuinely surprised. "Clever monkey!"
He didn't hesitate. Golden aura blazing, Kyoto shot upward like a comet, aiming a devastating uppercut. Zirith blocked, but the force lifted her off her feet. For a heartbeat, she floated, exposed. Kyoto's eyes narrowed. *Now.* He drew back his fist, cosmic energy screaming around it—
Zirith smiled. Her Time Ring glowed.
Suddenly, Kyoto was punching empty air. Zirith stood three meters away, examining her nails. "Time's up, darling," she purred. With a snap of her fingers, spacetime itself warped. Kyoto's own gravity attack reversed, slamming him into the ceiling with bone-jarring force before pinning him there.
Marron gasped. Launch snarled, gathering a flicker of green ki despite the pressure. "Cheat!"
Zirith floated toward the trapped Kyoto, tracing a finger down his chest. "Time Rings make everything fair, pet. Especially when I'm bored." She leaned close, her breath hot against his ear. "Ready to worship?"
Kyoto met her gaze, blood trickling from his lip. His voice was a low growl. "Lesson's not over." His eyes flashed crimson. Raw, ancient Saiyan power erupted—not gold, but deep, primal scarlet. The gravity field shattered like glass.
Zirith's eyes widened. "Oh?"
He dropped, landing in a crouch. The air crackled. "Your turn."
Before Zirith could react, Kyoto surged forward—not with divine speed, but pure Saiyan savagery. Crimson lightning danced along his fists as he unleashed a flurry of blows, each strike carrying the weight of collapsing stars. Zirith blocked the first three, her violet aura flaring under the assault, but the fourth hammered her ribs with a sickening crack. She gasped, stumbling back, genuine shock flashing across her face for the first time. "You—!"
Kyoto didn't let her finish. He seized her wrist, spun, and hurled her across the chamber. Zirith slammed into the far wall hard enough to crater the reinforced metal, dust and sparks raining down. Below, Marron clutched Launch's arm, eyes wide. "He's... hurting her?" Launch's grin was fierce. "About damn time."
Zirith peeled herself from the dent, wiping blood from her lip. Her playful smirk vanished, replaced by icy fury. "Alright, monkey. Playtime's over." She raised her hand, and reality itself warped—a sphere of crushing violet entropy forming above her palm. The gravity chamber groaned, metal buckling inward as light bent toward the destructive orb. Launch and Marron cried out, pinned to the floor by the sheer pressure.
Kyoto roared, crimson aura flaring brighter against the vacuum-like pull. He planted his feet, muscles straining, and thrust both hands forward. Twin beams of scarlet ki lanced out—not to counter Zirith's attack, but to engulf it.* The energies collided in a silent, blinding flash that vaporized the chamber's ceiling, exposing the swirling alien sky above. Zirith stared, stunned, as her own destructive power dissolved into Kyoto's primal rage. "Impossible..."
Kyoto shot through the dissipating energy, grabbing Zirith by the throat. He drove her down, slamming her back-first into the floor with earth-shattering force. Cracks spiderwebbed outward as he leaned close, his eyes burning like dying suns. "Lesson one," he growled, his voice raw. "Never underestimate a Saiyan." His free hand glowed crimson—poised to strike.
Zirith's shock melted into something darker, hungrier. She laughed, blood staining her teeth. "Oh, Kyoto... you really do know how to flirt." Her Time Ring pulsed.
Suddenly, Kyoto wasn't pinning her. He was suspended mid-air, inches from the cratered floor, frozen in time. Zirith floated upright, smoothing her scant outfit. "Lesson two," she whispered, her voice echoing unnaturally in the frozen chamber. "Time bends for gods, not monkeys." She traced a finger along his jawline. "That primal rage? Delicious. But crude."
With a snap, time resumed. Kyoto slammed into the floor, the impact rattling Launch and Marron's bones. Before he could rise, Zirith flicked her wrist. Violet chains of pure destruction energy materialized, wrapping around his limbs and torso, searing his skin. He roared, crimson aura flaring against the bonds.
"Watch closely, girls!" Zirith called out, her tone suddenly instructional. She gestured, and a miniature replica of Kyoto's primal scarlet ki orb formed above her palm—but refined, compressed, humming with lethal precision. "This is *control*. Not brute force." She hurled it past Kyoto's head. It punched a silent, perfectly spherical hole through the reinforced wall, revealing the swirling nebula outside.
Kyoto strained against the chains, his eyes locked on Zirith. "You... taught me nothing!"
Zirith floated closer, her smile predatory. "I showed you your limits. That's the first step." She leaned down, her lips brushing his ear. "The Saiyan in you is magnificent, Kyoto. But the god? He's still learning. Unleash him *properly*, and maybe..." Her chains tightened, cutting off his snarl. "...maybe I'll let you worship me standing up."