The world around them trembled. Lacolone's aura turned black, silver flames licking through the air, cracking reality itself. Valgor smirked, blood dripping from his cheek.
Jessica's eyes widened in horror.
"That power… it's tearing the air apart."
Valgor spread his golden claws.
"Finally. Show me something worth killing."
Lacolone, bleeding but smiling through the pain, answered:
"Gladly."
They vanished at once—two blurs colliding mid-air. Sword met claw, sparks and blood bursting with every strike. Valgor's claw tore through Lacolone's ribs; Lacolone drove his sword deep into Valgor's thigh. Both men grinned, faces twisted with pain and exhilaration.
Valgor grabbed Lacolone's face and slammed him into the sand. The ground exploded, sending up a crater.
Lacolone coughed blood, raised his gun, and fired point-blank into Valgor's chest.
The bullet detonated, cracking the golden armor.
Valgor threw his head back, laughing, coughing blood.
"YES! HURT ME MORE!!"
Lacolone rose, half his face masked in blood.
If I stop moving… I'm dead.
Valgor licked the blood from his lips, eyes glinting with madness.
Above them, thunder split the sky.
Jessica whispered, trembling:
"They're not fighting to win… they're fighting to destroy."
Valgor attacked again, a blur of violence—claws, knees, elbows, kicks. Each hit drew more blood, each strike sounded like breaking bones.
Lacolone blocked desperately, spitting blood into Valgor's face, then smashed his forehead into Valgor's nose with a sickening crack.
Valgor laughed through the pain.
"MORE!"
Lacolone's swords shattered in his hands. He let them drop, fists igniting in black-silver flame.
"Then I'll use my hands."
Valgor grinned, spreading his claws.
"Perfect."
They rushed each other—barehanded, wild. Fists collided, ribs cracked, and blood soaked the sand. Valgor's claws carved into Lacolone's arm; Lacolone countered with a brutal uppercut, sending Valgor's teeth flying.
Valgor spat them out, laughing.
"You fight like a demon."
Lacolone wiped his mouth.
"Takes one to know one."
Far away, the crowd chanted in terrified awe.
"MONSTERS!! MONSTERS!!"
Jessica clutched Maya close.
"At this rate… they'll both die."
Waves crashed harder, lightning swallowing the horizon.
Valgor's claws pierced Lacolone's stomach. Blood poured freely.
"Got you."
Lacolone grabbed Valgor's wrist and headbutted him again and again until his forehead split open.
Valgor stumbled back, laughing through the crimson mess.
Lacolone yanked the claw out of his body, trembling but upright.
Stay standing… stay alive.
His aura burned hotter.
Valgor cracked his neck.
"Don't collapse yet. We're just warming up."
Lacolone charged. Their fists collided with bone-breaking force, shockwaves flattening what was left of the beach.
Jessica screamed:
"They're going to destroy EVERYTHING!!"
Valgor seized Lacolone's leg, slamming him into the ground again and again. Each impact shook the world. Lacolone twisted mid-slam, kicking Valgor under the chin and sending him stumbling back.
"Still standing?" Lacolone growled. "Then I'll knock you down again."
Both men panted, faces drenched in blood and rain. Their auras flared to blinding brightness—black flame against golden thunder.
"I'll tear your soul apart," Valgor snarled.
"Then I'll drag you down with me," Lacolone answered.
They charged, fists glowing—one wrapped in black flame, the other in golden lightning. When they collided, the sky itself split open, thunder raging in every direction.
Miles away, people shielded their eyes from the explosion's light.
Then silence.
Smoke swallowed the battlefield. Jessica shielded Maya as the sea flooded the beach. Cameramen lay unconscious, equipment fried and melted.
Through the haze, a silhouette moved.
Valgor emerged first, soaked in blood, one arm twitching. His golden claws were cracked.
Lacolone followed, dragging himself up, black-silver aura flickering violently around him.
Valgor smirked weakly.
"You're still alive… good."
Lacolone's cracked smile answered him.
"Alive enough to kill you."
Jessica's voice trembled.
"They're beyond human now… just monsters fighting to exist."
The distant crowd murmured.
"They're not fighting for victory… they're fighting for annihilation."
Both raised their fists again.
The storm froze in anticipation.
Then, in the final moment, the world erupted—Lacolone and Valgor charging, fists glowing like twin suns, ocean waves parting as they collided once more.
The sky shattered into red-black and golden thunder.
Jessica screamed through the roar—
"STOP—!!"
TO BE CONTINUED – One Must Fall!