Inside the Arcane bunker, Rivna and Kenjiro square off in wide stances with their weapons drawn. Dark rainbow-colored mist pulsates from underneath Kenjiro’s eyepatch.

Kenjiro: (This is it. A taste of the true power of the queens.)

After a pregnant pause Gideon waves down his hand.

Gideon: Begin!

Kenjiro grips his katana and swings out a wave of purple mist within a blink of an eye. Rivna sidesteps, but a small strand of her hair is cut off from the attack. She remains in her position.

Kenjiro: (Damn. Even as a Kreygyk Warrior she’s quick. And there’s so much confidence in her posture. She’s certainly no stranger to battle.)

Loc and the others watch intently. Kenjiro dashes to Rivna and performs an overhead swing. Rivna catches his blade with one hand and bashes him in the stomach with the hilt of her Steam Sword, all with ease. Stunned, Kenjiro briefly keels over before performing a staggered swing with his blade. With inhuman speed and finesse Rivna cartwheels backwards to dodge and kicks Kenjiro, launching him across the room and into the wall. Everyone but Gideon appears to be impressed.

Gidget: Man, I knew this was gonna be a one sided fight but this is starting to look a little brutal.

Aldrog: That’s the Witch Tier’s might for ya.

Loc: This fight is far from over.

Aldrog: Are you sure?

Gideon: Loc is right. Things are just now heating up.

Kenjiro slowly rises.

Rivna: I thought you wanted to test your might against me. Don’t tell me this is truly the extent of your cursed power.

He chuckles.

Kenjiro: I should have known holding back would be futile against you.

Kenjiro clasps his hands together, performing a unique hand sign. Dark Rainbow colored mist swells around him. A demonic roar sounds from the mist. Everyone but Rivna and Gideon appear to be slightly taken aback.

A large blood red horn grows from the right side of Kenjiro’s head. His teeth on the right side of his mouth grow incredibly sharp and his right arm and leg appear to be more muscular. Blood red veins are visible all over the right side of his body. Kenjiro’s voice has a slight demonic echo to it.

Kenjiro: Let’s see how you fare against the Queen of Queens’ very own power, Witch Tier!

Gidget looks completely flabbergasted. He frantically taps several buttons on his goggles.

Gidget: Oh wow! Kenjiro’s Combat Rank just shot through the roof! It’s higher than Rivna’s now!

Kenjiro dashes to Rivna at blurring speeds and swings his katana. Rivna blocks the attack with ease, but the impact rattles the entire room. Kenjiro unleashes a flurry of sword swings. Rivna blocks them all with little effort.

Rivna: Better! But I’m afraid your efforts are still lulling me to sleep.

Kenjiro grunts in anger. Rivna kicks him in the stomach, launching him back to the wall again. Loc laughs.

Loc: So much for the Queen of Queens’ power eh, Kenjiro?

Kenjiro rises with a perturbed look.

Kenjiro: (I need to master this power if I’m going to stand a chance at destroying it. But, damn; I’ve spent all this time training and it’s like I haven’t made any progress at all with it.)

Rivna: Don’t tell me you’ve given up now.

Kenjiro holds up his sword in martial arts stance. Gideon looks intrigued.

Kenjiro: (At this point I might as well practice the Iyn Moon Technique while I have the chance to fight a worthy opponent.)

Kenjiro lets out a deep breath and reverts back to normal.

Aldrog: He changed back.

Gidget: And so did his power.

Aldrog: I don’t get it; he was stronger than Rivna before. Why’d he change?

Kenjiro dashes to Rivna. He swings. Rivna blocks and counter swings, however her slash goes right through him as his body turns into a purple silhouette before dispersing. Rivna appears to be slightly baffled. The dispersed mist forms back into Kenjiro and he kicks Rivna in the stomach, stunning her. She takes a few steps back with a smirk. Steam emits from Kenjiro’s katana as he sheathes it, resulting in purple mist surround him. Aldrog and Gidget cheer.

Rivna counters by lashing out with her Steam Sword. Kenjiro pushes his thumb against the hilt of the katana, causing it to unsheathe an inch. In a brief flash Kenjiro moves to Rivna’s rear, several yards away from her. Rivna pauses. She looks surprised. Gideon looks slightly relieved.

Gideon: The match is over; Kenjiro is the victor.

Everyone looks at Gideon in confusion.

Rivna: I lost? But how--

In a delayed reaction, Rivna’s sword is cut in half and a bloody gash appears across her chest. She kneels in shock and pain. The others look concerned and Loc runs to her.

Aldrog: What? But how did she get wounded?

Kenjiro: Sorry about that, Rivna. I still haven’t mastered my control over that technique yet.

Loc: Are you alright?!

Rivna: Thankfully it’s not as deep as it looks. I should be able to recover soon.

Gidget picks up a broken piece of the Steam Sword. He sheds a tear.

Gidget: I wish my latest invention was in better shape. I don’t know if I’m gonna be able to fix it in time for the raid on Queen Bethel’s palace.

Loc: Well find a way to get it done Gidget. We need her at her best. And are you sure you’re alright Rivna?

Rivna: I said I’m fine Loc. It’s hardly a scratch.

Gideon: Well let’s get you bandaged up then. No more training for you until after our mission.

Rivna nods. She stands and faces Kenjiro.

Rivna: That attack… For a moment I could not sense your vyrkra at all.

Kenjiro: It is a technique passed down by my family for generations. It’s called Zyn-Oizarga. We use our vyrkra to contort gravity, allowing us to briefly distort reality to move at unreactable speeds. It’s highly difficult to master and it requires an extreme amount of vyrkra to pull off.

Kenjiro unsheathes his sword. It’s dinged up and hardly in one piece.

Kenjiro: I typically refrain from using it because even if I somehow had enough steam to perform the technique more than once, the pressure it exerts on the weapon is just too great. And I really didn’t mean to cause you this much harm Rivna. I tried holding back as much power as I could, but the attack still cut right through your defenses.

Rivna: No. I am honored that you considered me worthy enough to use it against me. Thank you for this privilege.

Loc approaches Gideon and notices his hand has a fresh gash on it.

Loc: What happened to your hand, Uncle?

Gideon glances at it.

Gideon: Ah, it’s nothing. I think I might have accidentally cut myself when handling the artillery earlier.

Loc pauses.

Loc: Well, be careful Uncle. To me you’re the only real family I have left. I don’t want you overdoing things.

Gideon chuckles.

Gideon: Don’t worry kid, your Uncle Gideon is gonna be around for long time.

Loc walks to Kenjiro. Gideon studies his hand.

Gideon: (I had no idea the Zoh-Gyns of Dyrkcen were still capable of such devastating Vyrkra Arts. Had I not stepped in Rivna would be in two pieces right now.)

Loc: That was truly impressive Kenjiro. I’m glad you’ve decided to use that power of yours for our cause.

Kenjiro: Let’s get one thing straight Loc. I’m not interested in your cause. I only decided to join you because you’re my best bet at defeating the Queen of Queens. Once this is all over, we’ll go our separate ways.

Loc smiles.

Loc: I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Gideon: Alright everyone. We’ll call it a day for now. Get some rest and tomorrow we’ll review the mission briefing one more time before the big day.

Everyone but Gideon begins to leave.

Aldrog: That sounds great! I’ve been starving since this morning so I can’t wait to eat.

Kenjiro: You’re excited for Tamar’s cooking?

Aldrog slumps.

Aldrog: Oh yeah, she’s cooking tonight isn’t she? Suddenly I’m not that hungry anymore.

Kenjiro chuckles.

Loc: Hey be nice guys. At least it’s food.

Aldrog: True. It is technically edible.

Rivna: I’m famished, so nearly anything sounds pleasing to me right about now.

Gidget: Count me out guys. I got too much work to do.

Aldrog: Alright, Gidget. But don’t work yourself too hard now.

Gideon: Loc. Over here.

Loc pause and approaches Gideon.

Loc: What’s the matter Uncle?

Gideon: I have something for you. It’s time I impart to you what your grandfather imparted to your father and I just before his passing.

Loc looks eager.

Loc: What it is?

Gideon: It’s called the Yhol-Oiudyn technique.

Loc looks at Gideon quizzically.

Chapter End