A voice echoed from below as Veynar emerged from the shadows like a figure rising from water. His form was thin and sharp, his clothes tight to his skin. His eyes—pure white. His hands clasped behind his back.
Asim stepped in front of Hina,
But when he tried to summon his power, his weapon melted into the void below.
"Your powers won't work here, Asim," Veynar sneered. "Didn't think the Shadow Corp would send their best pet… and a fearful child."
Dark tendrils of void matter burst from the floor.
"GET UP, HINA!!" Asim shouted, shoving her out of the way as one lashed toward her.
Veynar's laughter echoed through the room as he attacked again and again, never hitting fully—watching them. Studying them.
Asim stepped closer to Hina, eyes sharp. "Stay back, don't step in."
Hina's grip on her katana tightened. "I… I can help—"
"Don't be stupid!!" he snapped.
Hina froze, anxiety tangling her thoughts.
The ground trembled as the void around them rippled—the air thick enough to choke.
Veynar's form stood still, arms at his sides, his eyes glimmering like cracks in the dark.
Asim exhaled, steady. "You've got that smug look, huh…" He tightened his fist. "Let's see if that arrogance survives a few hits."
Veynar tilted his head, voice calm. "Arrogance? No… certainty."
Asim dashed forward, the ground fracturing beneath his step, fist whistling as it tore through the air—but Veynar didn't move. The strike met empty space.
A pulse of black energy burst outward, slamming Asim back several meters.
He slid to a stop, boots grinding against the floor. No delay… he reacts the instant I move. Predictive? Or—
Then he smirked. Sound.
He tossed a shard of metal from his belt to his left; it clattered loudly against the floor.
Veynar instantly turned, a tentacle bursting toward the noise.
"As I thought," Asim muttered, reappearing on his right flank. "You track motion through sound."
His fist grazed upward—grazing Veynar's shoulder before being parried.
Veynar's tone sharpened. "Impressive… most die before they realize that much."
"And you talk too much." Asim twisted his body, kicking off the ground to create distance—a clean maneuver, fluid and fast.
Asim's strikes made Veynar sink into the floor, only for him to reappear elsewhere.
The tide turned, the scale shifting in Asim's favor, as if he was about to win—until Hina moved, stepping forward to fight back.
"I TOLD YOU TO STAY BA—" Asim yelled, but it was too late.
A tentacle slammed into him, throwing him into the wall with a sickening crack. His eyes rolled back, falling unconscious.
Hina screamed and charged at Veynar. He laughed, toying with her.
"You're full of fear… what a disappointment."
Anger burned in her chest. Her movements sharpened.
"Oh, look at that," Veynar said mockingly. "Your friend's lifeless body. I wonder if he's dead."
Hina's head snapped toward Asim's body.
Asim slowly lifted his head before his eyes widened.
"HINA! LOOK OUT!"
Before she could react—
A tentacle pierced straight through her head.
"HINAAAAAA!!" Asim's scream echoed through the void.
Veynar smirked. "Hina, huh? What a beautiful name."
Before the tentacle retracts back
Hina is dead. Her body should've fallen.
But it didn't.
Her skull mended instantly. Her eyes opened, glowing faintly. She stood tall, staring at Veynar.
In Hina's eyes, reality fractured. She saw herself—hundreds of her. No, thousands. Each moving along a path. A path of victory.
"I can see it…" she whispered. "Every single outcome where you don't live to see victory."
Veynar's tendrils lashed forward—but she moved like water, dodging every strike effortlessly. Each step was precise, rehearsed—as if she had lived this moment a thousand times.
Then—slash.
Veynar's head fell from his body.
The void faded away. The cave returned to silence.
Hina slumped to her knees, trembling.
Asim weakly staggered toward her.
"I died," she whispered. Tears welled in her eyes. "I died!"
She broke down, sobbing uncontrollably.
Asim sighed, kneeling beside her. "Hina. You defea—"
Before he could finish, she collapsed, unconscious. He caught her before she hit the ground, exhaling deeply.
"Hina, your powers are more than you can comprehend," he muttered, carrying her out of the cave.
He summoned a circle of void, reaching into it and pulling out a communicator.
Cut to Mera's group.
They trudged through the snow when a faint voice crackled through their comms:
"Asim reporting. Code green. Veynar found. Status: dead."
Mera's eyes widened. "Asim found Veynar!" she shouted.
Laith turned sharply. "Asim? Isn't he on the other side? What's the status?"
"dead…" Mera murmured, worry flashing in her eyes for Hina and Asim.
Laith nodded, clapping his hands. "Everyone, back to the meeting point. Mission's done."
Meanwhile—
Aiko and Ivan heard the same transmission. Ivan's jaw dropped. "In the cave?!"
Aiko's expression darkened. She summoned a door and stepped through instantly.
"Wait up!" Ivan yelled, diving in after her.