An echoing scream burst out from the stationary body of the Kraken as Wu, Lera, Kaire, and the remaining bounty hunters all looked towards it. Then, the tip of the Sky Splitting Sword pierced through the body and the shell's of the Kraken, expanding and growing ever further. "I...I am not done fighting yet!" Ver's voice came through the chaos as she emerged as a darkened figure being covered in the green blood, supported by the tendrils coming from the stomach of the Kraken and holding onto the gigantic handle of the legendary sword with its help too. "That's more like it!" Kaire laughed excitedly. She marched forward, sending a fist forward as Ver commanded the Sky Splitting Sword to grow bigger and bigger until it dwarfs even the body of the Kraken. Then, as she channelled every last ounce of power within herself and the Kraken, a flame rose from the base of the handle before the entire sword was ignited. "Whirlpool Black Special: SUNDER!" Ver shouted, resonating with the Kraken's power and fully unleashing it through her body and into the massive body of the sword. The legendary Sword served as a far superior vessel for the Kraken's power at this moment as it vibrated and hummed. The color of the sky above appeared to have reddened due to this very attack, and as Ver's about to unleash it, her entire body spasmed once. The immense pressure coming out of Kaire's Dominance of the Bear had already left its mark on her body, and yet she continued pushing herself forward, fighting back against the overwhelming force with a combination of the Kraken's and her own resolve. She will not back down. She will not fail here. She will accomplish her goals, and she will return to her family. "COME!" Kaire laughed excitedly, her eyes opened up wide as Ver screamed with all her heart, holding onto her focus and slammed the sword forward. A trail of fire and smoke was drawn into the air as the body of the blade slammed forward. Meanwhile, Kaire concentrated her Wave at the fist and planted her feet deep into the ground. Then, as the sword continued accelerating down, giving off loud crackling shockwaves as it flew, Kaire's back foot twisted in the ground, tearing the trees out from the ground and sending them flying outwards. Then, the torque transferred from her ankles up through her pelvis, stirring up the air and creating small tornadoes that picked up everything. "Bear Punch!" Kaire shouted, clashing her fists square into the body of the blade. She could have avoided this slow and heavy attack easily. But why would she? This is the first time in a long time that she has had the privilege of fighting someone of her own size, and the first time since being on the Eastern continent that an opponent didn't yield to her Dominance. The titanic clash rocked the entire forest as a white flash briefly turned dwarfed absolutely everything else. The shockwave from the impact peeled away the earth and sent out a tsunami of dirt and dust as Lera yanked herself back and away in the chariot while Wu hid behind the wave-powered machine gun and blasted a path through the wave of dirt. Kaire stumbled backward with her fist bleeding profusely. She rapidly shrunk her body down and looked down to see her right hand nearly being completely split apart, the tip of the blade ripped through her concentrated bubble of Wave right over her wrist, her reinforced skin, and her toughened bones and tendons. "Shit." Kaire cracked a slightly nervous smile as her heart pounded. She looked up at her opponent, and the body of the Kraken was nearly completely blown away and a streak of flattened Kraken flesh ended with Ver being thrown all the way back towards Wu on the ground, the tendrils of the Kraken still clinging around her waist, but the monster didn't appear to be moving at all. Ver lied motionless, though her hand was still holding onto the legendary weapon. Pinching the nearly severed parts of her hands together, Kaire then ripped off a loop of her uniform's fabric, wrapping the pieces of her hand together roughly. That was ridiculously reckless, yet what is this exhilaration within her? Kaire wondered, her mind travelling back to her younger days. As she walked through the flattened and coincidentally smoothened path of the forests towards Ver, the Manifester was helped up slowly by Wu. Lera landed her chariot not too far away from them, and she laid out her array of Casts right in front. "Stop right there!" Lera said, her voice loud and clear as Wu tended to Ver's wounds. "You alright?" Wu asked, squeezing Ver's arms and untangling the tendrils from around her waist as the Kraken slowly sunk back into a vanishing black whirlpool. The Mark of Manifestation around her right eye twitched, and he quickly took out the eyepatch from her chest pocket and wrapped it around her head. "Argh...ah...ouch..." Ver grunted, a few shallow breaths kicking her consciousness back to life before her expressions were dazed, "What...Kaire..." "She's...still..." Wu said, looking at Lera that now acted as the only line of defense in between Wu and Kaire. The group of surviving bounty hunters slowly got up, and they followed Kaire from a certain distance away, "Ver. It's not on you." "...I am not strong enough...even with all I had..." Ver cursed, pressing herself up as Lera launched her blasts towards Kaire, activating all of her Casts and trying to stop the unstoppable force from getting close to her target. Wu smiled at her and slowly helped her move aside. Then, he turned as Kaire moved to Lera and shoved her aside. The slightest push from the former Sky Guardian Corp member sending her body flying through the air and crashing into the side of a tree. With the wind knocked out of her, she coughed and gasped for air. "Lera!" Wu called out, and Kaire snapped her finger, drawing Wu's attention with a gust of wind.. "I do not care for her anymore. I never really did." Kaire said, pointing her uninjured left hand forward, "I am here for you, Wu. And I am here for the Fuel Rock Prime." "You want it?!" Wu asked, running back towards the wave-powered machine gun and sending it full blast towards Kaire. She was initially pushed back by the continuous blasts of the Wave, but she soon got used to the intensity of his attacks similar to before. "This is a pointless battle!" Kaire said, slapping aside the last of the blasts like a dodgeball as her body got used to defending itself against the blasts. She charged forward, but Ver stepped in front of her as Wu stopped the machine gun from firing. Seeing Ver moving again gave Kaire pause, and she stood up straight before crossing her arms in front. "Your name?" Kaire asked. "Ver Fulgen Vaughan." Ver replied. "Ah. The Vaughan family." Kaire's eyebrows raised, "That explains your strength. Move aside, and you won't have to get hurt anymore for this." "She was a bounty hunter too!" The other groups gasped, "Why are you suddenly helping your target?!" "That's...because..." Ver lowered her head slightly and gently touched her eyepatch, "We had a deal of our own." "I am not a bounty hunter, but even I can tell it's foolish." Kaire said, sighing and taking a small step forward, "You have a great future ahead, Ver. You may even be strong enough to enter into the Infinite Academy and become a Sky Guardian Corp member, just like the founder of the Vaughan family. I would hate for you to die here." "You know what you are wrong about?" Ver asked, taking a step horizontally and blocking Kaire's path further, "This strength is my very own, not the Vaughan family's." Kaire was slightly taken aback by the statement, and the girl with the blonde hair held her sword and pointed its tip towards her, "I am not the lost girl of the Vaughan family for no reason~" A smile of amusement floated up Kaire's face, and she dashed forward as Ver swung her sword down. In an instant and with only one arm, Kaire disarmed Ver immediately and kicked her all the way back towards Wu. Then, as she walked forward further, Lera screamed and channeled the remainder of her Wave, casting the Trapping Cast as vines grew out from the ground and held around Kaire's ankles. "I respect you, Ver Fulgen Vaughan." Kaire shouted, "Fighting until the end is the mark of a true warrior! However, that's why warriors always die!" "NO! YOU WON'T!" Wu shouted, blasting away at Kaire and then the rest of the bounty hunters as they all scattered and moved out of the line of fire. "This is the end. Hunters, you may kill them as you wish." Kaire said, ignoring Wu's final struggle and heading towards the Fuel Rock Prime as Ver slowly pressed herself up from behind Wu. "VER! TAKE HIM AWAY FROM HERE!" Lera screamed as Kaire picked up a piece of rock and launched it towards the wave-powered machine gun. Her arm powering up for an instant and sending the rock crashing through the wooden gun like a bullet. The wooden structure splattered in a brilliant explosion, the splinters of wood nearly flying into Wu's eyes as he fell back. Seeing the biggest threat taken out, the group of bounty hunters jumped into the air and aimed to be the first one to kill Wu as Kaire slowly marched towards the Fuel Rock Prime. That's right. Despair. Fight. Flight. My resolve shall not be rebelled against. Kaire smiled, her hands reaching towards the guaranteed future. No...I have to carry it through...my dreams...my goals...my future... Ver looked down at her hand and the Sky Splitting Sword, her fingers gripped around it tightly. Wu pulled out his One-Shotter Pistol and unleashed an array of shots when suddenly, a cold hard tip pierced through his scapula, slide right past his right lung, and penetrated through to the front of his chest. He looked down, and the darkened tip of the Sky Splitting Sword emerged from within him, tainted by his powerless human blood. Lera looked towards Wu, and the entire world begun to spin as blood streamed out from his chest and mouth. "...Wu...?" With her body trembling and voice shaking, Lera reached out towards him and tried to shield him with her Bubble Bubble before a group of bounty hunters surrounded her instead and started stomped onto her hand. Through the legs and boots of the hunters, she saw Ver slowly lift Wu up into the air by the blade, her face enveloped in darkness. "NOOOOOO!" "I, VER FULGEN VAUGHAN, HAVE KILLED THE SUMMONED ONE!"