April's body felt weightless.
The colorless energy like mist flowing through her veins wasn't just power—it was a primordial instinct. A new force guiding her beyond thought, beyond strategy.
Her blonde and violet, vibrant hair—tied loosely into a thick braid—suddenly flared, growing at an impossible rate. The strands cascaded down, sweeping past her feet, and still they lengthened, alive with motion, as if the very air breathed through them.
It moved as though sentient, flickering with invisible orange currents—whispers of some unknown energy dancing within.
A thin thread of colorless, mist-like energy coiled around April's stitched eyelids, soft and deliberate, loosening each cross-sewn mark just enough for what was about to come.
Then, after an entire month sealed in darkness, April's eyelids parted.
Metallic silver eyes emerged—once dull, now gleaming with a glacial brilliance. Their light was not just bright, but piercing—cold, unyielding, and absolute.
The air itself trembled as an unshakable presence surged from her, flooding the entire room.
A shiver ran through the room.
Kai exhaled. "Oh… oh, that's new."
Saya's expression darkened. "She's in U.i Mode."
Dante grinned. "Ultima's Instincts, huh? Now this I wanna see."
Kai's brows furrowed. "Ultima's instincts?"
"Basically," Saya began, her gaze never leaving April, "it's a mode where the host's human instincts and the Ultima's instincts perfectly synchronize—creating a balance between man and beast. When that happens, the host gains otherworldly instincts."
Kai blinked. "Hmm, okay, I get what you're explaining… but you still haven't explained that." He jabbed a finger toward April.
Saya's expression didn't waver. "Simple. Ultima's instincts—that's the wolf Gear's Partial TakeOver Mode."
The room went still.
"What?!" Dante's voice broke the silence. "She's already unlocked her Partial TakeOver Mode?!" A wide grin spread across his face. "Hah! This girl really is a wolf in sheep's clothing!"
Jax rolled his shoulders. "Good. But if you're gonna wield that power, show me you deserve it."
April didn't answer.
She didn't need to.
Her body moved before she could even think.
One second she was standing still—
The next, she was already behind Jax.
BOOM!
Jax barely twisted in time, but April's fist still grazed his ribs, sending a shockwave through the air. The sheer force cracked the reinforced walls behind them.
She moved again—faster, sharper.
Jax blocked, countered, but April was already gone before his strikes could land.
She wasn't fighting like before.
There was no hesitation. No wasted movement.
She wasn't thinking—she was reacting.
Like an animal responding to danger, like a predator closing in on its prey.
Jax grinned, despite the sweat forming on his brow. "That's real combat instincts."
April struck again aiming for his abdomen. Jax blocked. But her foot was already coming up—
A high kick, straight to his jaw.
Jax barely dodged, flipping back.
But April followed instantly, her movements relentless.
April burst forward, appearing in front of Jax in an instant. She feinted a high kick toward the right side of his face—her right leg slicing through the air with precision.
Instinct took over. Jax raised his arm to block—exactly what April wanted.
Using the momentum, she brought her left leg up to follow the right, her body twisting midair in a movement that defied reason. She spun twice, sharp and fluid like a drill cutting through the air.
Then, in a single breath, she retracted her left leg and rocketed her foot forward.
The kick connected cleanly with Jax's jaw.
The impact cracked through the air—a sharp, echoing thud. Jax's head snapped back violently, his body lifting off the ground before being hurled backward.
Kai's jaw tightened. "She's not giving him time to breathe."
Saya's voice was quiet. "That's U.i Mode for you. The instinct to overpower your opponent and..."
Jax landed, skidding back, his arms crossed infront of him.
His grin widened.
"And?" Urgently required Kai.
"...after showing it's dominance it devours it's prey WHOLE!" Saya finished.
Jax then he cracked his neck.
"Alright, Ultima." His stance shifted—more aggressive, more serious.
"Let's see how long you can hold that Partial TakeOver Mode."
April's glowing metallic-silver eyes locked onto him, cold and unwavering. The loosened stitches along her eyelids still formed crisscross patterns—a haunting reminder of what bound her once.
Yet, the sheer intensity burning within those eyes made it easy to forget one undeniable truth: the girl standing before them was blind.
She exhaled. "Here i come then."
She spoke her tone sounding absolutely emotionless. No hint of warmth, nor arrogance. Just complete seriousness.
Then she disappeared again.
Jax barely caught sight of April before she vanished again.
His instincts flared.
Right—!
He twisted, but—
Too slow.
A knee slammed into his side.
The force sent him flying. He flipped his body mid-air then he landed on the ground skidding, boots carving trenches into the ground.
But before he could stabilize—
April was already above him.
Her heel descended.
Jax crossed his arms just in time—
BOOM!
The impact sent a shockwave through the room, shattering the floor beneath him. Jax grit his teeth, but April didn't stop.
She was relentless.
Her movements blurred, each attack flowing into the next. No wasted motion. No hesitation.
It was pure instinct.
Kai watched in awe. "She's fighting like she knows what he's going to do before he does it."
Kuro whistled entering the room. "That's U.i Mode. No thinking, no planning. Just raw, perfect reaction time to overwhelm one's opponent or prey."
Saya's arms were crossed. "Yeah but she won't last long, though."
Dante frowned. "What do you mean?"
Saya's gaze was sharp. "U.i Mode burns through stamina and…G-force fast. Her body can't keep up with the speed it's moving especially since it's her first time using it. The moment she loses momentum—"
In the fight, Jax's eyes narrowed.
Now.
He let one of April's punches land.
But the second she made contact—
His arms locked around her wrist.
April's instincts flared, but Jax had already twisted, using her own speed against her.
Her body whipped through the air.
Then—
CRASH!
She slammed into the ground, the impact forming a crater beneath her.
Dust and debris scattered.
For the first time—April wasn't moving.
Silence.
Kai tensed. "Is she—"
A shiver ran through everyone.
April's fingers twitched.
Then—
Her body flickered. And April wasn't anymore on the ground, she was somehow already up her head looking down onto the ground.
Jax's pupils shrank.
'Already—?!'
But before he could react—
She was behind him again.
This time, he had no time to block.
April's palm pressed against his back—
BOOM!
A direct hit.
Jax stumbled forward from the force.
His eyes were wide.
Nobody ever pushed him like this.
April stood behind him, orange hair glowing, her metallic silver eyes sharp as ice.
She exhaled.
"I'm not done."
Jax turned, grinning. "Good."
Then—
He charged again.