April leapt high into the air, twisting mid-spin—then snapped her thighs around Jax's neck like a steel trap.
Jax grunted, his balance faltering as he clawed at her legs, trying to pry them apart. But no matter how much strength he poured into it, April didn't budge an inch.
The more he struggled, the tighter she squeezed—each second drawing the air from his lungs.
"Urrrgh! D-dang it!" Jax growled through clenched teeth. His canines lengthened into something almost inhuman, his eyes flickering with feral light. Veins bulged across his temple and neck, his face flushing crimson under the immense pressure.
April's own expression was no better. Every muscle in her body screamed in rebellion, her jaw locked tight from strain. Her teeth ground together until blood welled between them, running down the corners of her lips in thick crimson trails.
Her body trembled violently, but her grip didn't waver. Not even for a second.
Her breath came ragged, raw, yet she refused to let go. The pain didn't matter. The fire in her veins didn't matter. Only her instincts did—screaming that if she let up now, she'd lose.
Then, out of the silence, a calm voice spoke:
"She instinctively felt Jax's mood shift," the Leader murmured from the shadows, his tone unreadable. "So she chose to cut off his air flow—to knock him out before he could escalate further."
"Ahhh—Leader!" Kai practically jumped out of his skin, whirling toward the voice. "Can you stop doing that?! Even after all these years, I still can't get used to you just—appearing like that!"
His face had gone pale, eyes wide, while the rest of the team tried to pretend they hadn't nearly had a heart attack.
Jax struggled violently, his muscles trembling as he tried to clasp his right hand to his left.
But April made sure there was always space between them—her grip shifting, adjusting, keeping him off balance.
Frustration flashed through his eyes. He growled, veins pulsing across his arms, and then—
he forced all of his G-Force into his right hand.
The air cracked around him.
His arm moved, inch by inch, trembling violently from the strain—until finally his hands met.
With that leverage, Jax heaved April off the ground with a roar.
He stumbled toward the nearest wall—then slammed her into it.
The impact echoed like thunder.
Then again.
And again.
And again—five brutal collisions, the entire room shaking with each one.
But April's legs didn't loosen.
Not once.
Her jaw locked tighter, blood leaking from between her clenched teeth.
"Let... go...!" Jax roared, desperation flaring in his voice.
He shifted his stance, moving backward, faster and faster—until suddenly, he flipped her into a piledriver position.
Everyone's eyes widened.
"Wait—he's not—!" Kai started, but before he could finish—
Jax let go of her legs, slipped his arms free, grabbed her by the waist—and then drove her down with his full power.
BOOOOOOOM!
The floor shattered.
A crater bloomed beneath them, dust and debris exploding outward, swallowing everything in a choking fog.
Silence.
Then, slowly, the dust cleared.
Jax stood at the center of the destruction, his chest heaving, sweat dripping off his chin and pattering against the cracked floor. His tonfa dangled loosely in his right hand, still faintly humming with dark energy.
April lay motionless beneath him.
For a moment, no one moved.
Then—she did.
Her fingers twitched.
She pushed herself up through the rubble, dust cascading from her shoulders like ash.
Her head hung low, blonde & violet hair spilling forward, her stitched eyelids hidden behind the strands.
She said nothing.
Did nothing.
Just stood there, swaying slightly, like a puppet barely holding its strings.
The room was deathly still.
Everyone thought she was about to snap into Ultima's Instinct, but she didn't.
Instead, she took one slow, wavering step forward.
Then another.
Jax exhaled, his breath heavy, but his eyes sharpened. "Time to end this," he muttered.
He raised his tonfa, letting his G-Force surge through it.
The weapon shimmered—then turned pitch-black, the air around it distorting from raw pressure.
He vanished in a blur, a streak of shadow rushing straight for her—
April lifted her head, eyes flashing open beneath the loosened stitches.
Her metallic silver pupils glowed like twin blades in the dark.
And then—she saw an opening
Jax sprinted forward in a direct line—fast, but predictable. His sides were completely exposed.
An orange aura began to simmer from April's body—faint at first, flickering like dying fireflies. It was the same ethereal glow that always surrounded Ultima whenever April met it in her mind.
Then—April moved.
She lunged, Drill Claws igniting. But before the attack connected, something within her clicked. Her body, weapon, and G-Force all synchronized in a single, explosive heartbeat.
The orange mist around her suddenly erupted.
It engulfed her entirely, surging upward in a violent pillar of molten light. The eruption shattered the air itself—breaking the wind barrier, shaking the hall, splintering ceiling panels as molten-orange light blazed across the walls.
The blast struck Jax mid-air, hurling him backward like a ragdoll.
He twisted, flipping mid-air, and landed in a fierce slide across the ruined floor, skidding to a stop with his tonfa drawn.
The explosion spiraled outward, swirling around April in radiant waves.
The fiery aura condensed into a shimmering coat of firefly-orange G-Force, wrapping her like living armor. Her fists glowed faintly, wolfish outlines flickering around them—an instinctive echo of Ultima's form.
The energy shook the entire hall.
Dante's Infernal Bane pulsed in resonance.
Kai's chakrams began to spin uncontrollably.
Saya's Phantom Requiem whispered faintly in the aftermath, its ghostly voice almost mournful.
And through it all, Jax stood firm.
Calm. Hungry. Respectful.
Then, he laughed—A deep, satisfied laugh that echoed across the trembling hall.
Slowly, the eruption began to fade. The wild energy condensed, folding back into April's body. After about forty seconds, the inferno dimmed, leaving only faint motes of orange light dancing in the air.
April stared at her hands, chest rising and falling in disbelief. She waved her left hand slowly—watching the faint trails of energy follow her motion.
"I... I managed to break through..." she murmured, voice trembling with exhausted pride.
The last of the orange aura seeped into her skin. Her shoulders slumped.
The adrenaline drained out of her all at once.
April swayed—forward, then to the left, then the right—her balance fading as darkness crept in at the edges of her echo-location.
She collapsed to the floor, every muscle quivered. Her breathing was shallow, sweat slicked across her body, exhaustion and exertion from breaking the Threat Barrier consuming her entirely.
The Leader rushed forward, catching her gently. "You did it," he murmured. "You've broken the Threat Barrier."
April didn't respond. Her body had been pushed beyond its limits. Her mind was still alive, registering the moment, the synchronization, the power—but the G-force energy that had flowed through her left her unconscious.
Jax stepped back, nodding slightly. "Not defeated. She's still far yet," he said. His calm voice carried weight, acknowledging her breakthrough but also reminding everyone that she had yet to surpass him fully.
The rest of the pack watched silently, awed. They had just witnessed April cross into a threshold few mortals—or even Pillar-ranked warriors—ever reached.
The hall was quiet, filled only with the faint hum of residual G-Force and the soft breathing of an unconscious April. The Third Barrier was broken.