The blade tore through the armor on her back, rapping apart the metal. “I could so easily snuff your lights out.” Skyfrost pushed her heel into Ragna’s spine. “But that would be too nice. I gotta drill it into your brain so that you’ll realize in your last moment just how much you’ve clung to that false hope.” Skyfrost laughed. “You were always destined to crawl on the floor like the maggot you are. The weak will never defeat the strong. The world is ours. You received a bit of power and thought you could conquer the skies. Sorry, but that’s our domain. We look down on you from above. Sometimes, we subjugate you, and sometimes, we protect you. It all depends on our whims. But the only way a maggot will fly is in a bird’s beak.” They raised their scythe above Ragna’s second wing. “In the end, you were nothing but a girl trying to play with the big boys.”

Ragna chuckled, and Skyfrost raised their brow. “What’s so funny?”

“You’re talking a lot.” Ragna turned her leg around. The chain that connected Skyfrost to her ankle swept them from their feet, and Skyfrost hit the ground with their head. “It gave me plenty of time to get used to the pain.”

Ragna stood up. “Ah, that reminds me. Maggots can fly. If they live long enough, they’ll become insects and fly in the sky.”

She activated the gravity manipulator and swung her leg. The force slung Skyfrost from the ground, forcing them to transform their arm back to their original form.

Ragna tapped the floor with her boot. Ice extended from her, and Skyfrost transformed into a raven.

Ragna smirked. She got them.

Above the raven, stakes grew from the roof and impaled the bird through the chest. Skyfrost’s body reverted to its original form. The stake broke under the weight, Skyfrost fell and landed on their feet.

They pressed their palm against their rips and glared at her. The wound that would have been lethal to the crow had become minor.

Ragna clicked her tongue. “Guess I should’ve penetrated you with something bigger.” She groaned. “Twice. I sound just like that scorpion perv.”

“Don’t talk to me like we’re equals.” Skyfrost slammed their fist against the floor. They went on all four, and their body transmuted.

Fur covered their skin. Their hands and feet turned into hooves, their face elongated, and horns grew out of their head.

Skyfrost had turned into an ibex.

They ground their hoof against the floor and charged forward with their head full-front. Ragna readied her sword. She launched it at the goat, but Skyfrost transformed. A crow soared towards Ragna, evading the saber’s swing. The Vice-captain reformed into a human. They leaned back with the head and smashed their skull into Ragna’s.

A crunch reverberated in her ears, and the impact pushed her several steps back. For a second, Ragna’s field of vision blurred, and blood dripped along her nose’s rims.

Skyfrost landed on the floor. Their arms turned into scythes and attacked Ragna. With no opportunity to retaliate, Ragna had no choice but to focus on dodging the blades. Even that one second it would take her to activate the gravity manipulator could allow Skyfrost to kill her. With each attack, Skyfrost pushed her further back until her back touched the handrail.

Fuck. Ragna grimaced.

She couldn’t retreat further back.

Skyfrost smirked. “That’s the end of the line.”

Rory raised their blade, but Ragna activated the gravity manipulator as Skyfrost’s gloating gave her the necessary time. The blade slowed down. Ragna grabbed Skyrost’s elbow and threw them over her shoulder. Skyfrost managed to clutch her horn in midflight, and both slammed into the window.

A white light engulfed the dome and took their sight as the two slipped through the glass like through water.

When Ragna and Skyfrost could see again, a new stage awaited them. Black and white squares littered the plane. They spread out on the floor and on the walls that appeared in random intervals without connecting. Mirrors had risen from the ground like pillars.

Mana filled the atmosphere. A single breath sufficed to inhale it. Ragna’s Mana reserves recovered, and particles latched onto her stub, reforming her wing.

Ragna beat her wings.

Yes. She had them back again.

She gazed at Skyfrost and smirked. “I’m back at full power. All your efforts had gone to waste. If only you didn’t spend so much time being a dick, you might’ve won.”

“How dare you lecture me?” Skyfrost’s eyes had become bloodshot. They fletched their teeth at her like an animal. What had remained of their arrogance and mockery had turned into pure anger. “I’m a Vice-captain, and you’re a fucking brat from the academy. I’ll teach you your place even if it’s the last thing I’ll ever do.”

They widened their arms like wings, and in the air, ice daggers levitated. By the millisecond increased their numbers. The abundance of Mana within the mirror world and the lack of caution allowed them to reach new heights.

Skyfrost’s arms hit the air in front of them, and all daggers torpedoed at Ragna. And new projectiles appeared. Skyfrost shot them as well at her. Without waiting for them to hit her, they replaced them with new ones. Again and again, Skyfrost created weapons to kill Ragna with and threw them all at a single location. Ice dust spewed like mist and spread, but Skyfrost continued.

“Ah. Finally. Finally.” Skyfrost giggled and started to skip between two tiles. “I’ve killed you. I’ve killed you, Ragna Griffin. It took me so long, but finally, I finished you off. But don’t be mad. I’m simply better than you. No.” They shook their head. “Please, be mad. Become a Draugr, live for the sake of besting me, and suffer knowing that you’ll never succeed.”

A bullet made of water shot out of the mist and hit Skyfrost’s chest. Their eyes widened. Blood spewed out of their mouth, Skyfrost tumbled backward, and Ragna stepped out of the haze.

“Impossible.” Skyfrost regained their balance. “How did you survive?”

Ragna shrugged. “Does it matter? There are thousands of ways I could’ve protected myself. We’re in the Mana Realm here. My Mana’s endless, and the sky’s the limit for the stuff I can conjure up.” She looked at Skyfrost and displayed a fake smile. “You haven’t realized it yet, so I’ll spell it out. Cause honestly, I kinda pity you.”

“What?” Skyfrost grimaced.

Ragna waved with her hand. “Our Mana’s endless. That means we’ve got the same amount. When it comes to power, we’re both equal here. It’s our own qualities that’ll decide the battle. But since you can barely stand, It’s already over.” She raised her finger. “I’ll say this one more time. Give up. Spend your last moments in peace. There’s no point anymore.”

“You of all people are taking pity on me. This gotta be a bad joke.” Skyfrost started to laugh. “No point. No point. What do you know about this battle?” Their voice gained strength and deepened, turning into a roar. “I’ll never bow down. Not to you. Not to the world. I’ll rise and rise and rise until I stand at the apex of all society. And everyone who stands in my way will crumble. And I won’t let a military brat still green behind their ears bring my path to an end.” Skyfrost erupted in another fit of laughter, and then, their tone dropped. Between the two extremes did it swing as Skyfrost’s voice sped up. “You think you’re my equal? Don’t be so arrogant. I’m Vice-captain Rory Skyfrost. I’m the greatest Valkyrie in the world, and no one will ever best me.”

Mana gathered around Skyfrost. From all corners of the mirror realm, it conglomerated on their body. The wounds started to close, and Skyfrost began to transform.

“What’s going on?” Ragna gulped.

Feathery wings extended from their back, growing as large as their body, and a second set expanded from their head, merging with their hair. Their teeth transformed into shark fangs that could burst metal under their pressure. Skyfrost’s hands and feet sharpened to talons, and their clothes disappeared. Their naked body radiated pure hermaphrodite beauty before heavenly blue fur covered their outlines and intimate organs.

A bird’s tail in the same color as their fur extended from their hips, and a scythe blade grew from their elbow. Their face had changed into a fusion of Skyfrost’s visage and a shark’s. One moment a human starred at Ragna, the other an animal.