Up close, the wide azure eye keeps open, the starry iris shining as the man’s heavy breaths have no end, echoing in the isolation that encloses the face immediately forward. That starry eye cannot be seen from the outside, for it’s concealed behind the parallelogram lens that blazes blue on the white mask beneath the black hood and above the golden shoulders. Those golden shoulders shimmer softly above the blue fabric suit tight enough that the man’s muscles can be distinguished underneath the thin gleaming streaks that branch around the body, all extruding from the central pencil emblem on the chest. His arms by his side, the man just stares forward, his black cape still, the glow of the frosty crystals tame whether it be the ones on the shoulders, knuckles, or black boots.

Behind him stands the other man though this one isn’t concealed from the outside, as his wrinkly bald head is exposed the same as his expanded yellow eyes and dropped jaw, facing in the same direction forward, his arms too by his side with his right one gripping his bulky handgun. His brown overcoat remains parted down the middle, allowing sight of the purple-stained black jumpsuit underneath, his casual, even messy clothing a stark contrast to the other man’s highly advanced suit.

At this moment though the two have the same expression and gaze forth, past the yellow gus hat resting on the floor, some of the small fibers shedding their dye thus exposing the natural kale green color along the rim and top, though some is hidden under the red band wrapped around. Next to that hat sits another lid, though this one’s fibers are natural that being long strands of black hair that mostly conceal the skin, however many of those hairs are soaked in the red puddle with small chunks of brain scattered on the patches of hair and puddle. Bits of the brain shine the same as the crimson blood. Though closer to the hat than that patch of hair is the remainder of the head that rests on the floor, the face planted flat on the floor thus only the back of the head is exposed, the open slice pointing straight at the two men which gray matter slowly slips out of, being pushed along the stream of juice. Below the neck though the body is mostly covered in the black coat used as a cape, only letting glimpses of the exposed arms be seen and the knees above the feet wearing those red sandals. The coat almost functions as a blanket to rest the man, or a tarp to cover the corpse.

Standing on the opposite end of the body is the one in the white jagged boots, the metal ring of the kunai pouched on the knee shimmering the same as the black fingers of the samely white gauntlet. The dark ninja robes similarly to the man in blue completely conceal the man’s body, any of the skin or hair, though different from the man in blue is his ominously dark figure, like a standing shadow.

That figure stares back at the two men in front of the corpse, all four of them standing in the frontmost room of the train, all standing on the metallic wooden floor with the golden finish, the same floor harboring the round tables further back, curved holographic screens projected from their surface. Whereas the floor has an opaque surface, the walls have window screens displaying the black void outside, dead space the train continues hurtling through, carrying everyone inside with it whether they were part of the crew or invaders, these four all stationary.

That is until one of the four moves, that being Ekitai who stumbles forward with his jaw still hanging, stepping around Meditat as he disorientedly ambles a few more steps before then collapsing on his knees, calling for Meditat to slightly lower his head, his movements not as lucid but opposedly rigid, abrupt.

He watches Ekitai kneel in front of the king’s corpse, panting under his breath as he drops his weapon by his side, blankly staring straight at the gaping hole through the cranium of his old friend whom he was just starting to make amends with.

Meditat then abruptly raises his head up, his own expression hidden but his posture and movements telling of the shock coursing through his body.

Focus returns to the shadowy man on the other side, simply staring back through those cold yellow eyes on the white mask. The plates composing the gauntlets from a distance oddly resemble wrappings, his entire suit having a traditional appearance that would be dated by millenia and yet here he is, standing though his breaths aren’t audible as though he were a ghost.

Blankly staring at the assassin, Meditat is first to speak but in jittering mutters, “How did…How did I…,” before lowering his gaze back to the corpse, “-What did I do…?”

His gaze finally shifts to Ekitai mourning on his knees, and after silently staring for a few moments, watching the old man just gaze with miserable eyes, unable to sob or weep but his agony was nonetheless expressed enough. He watches Ekitai slowly extend his bony, frail hands forward to pick the yellow hat off the floor, now the rim reddened, and raising it to his eyes he remains silent, the shock still potent within him.

That longing stare, despite visible facial expressions due to the mask, is enough to exhibit Meditat’s guilt in the actions he allowed to occur, in that he left the man defenseless and alone even after his ally seemed concerned for him. He was so confident in his resolve to find an objective for himself to try making a difference once again, to push himself back in the road of a hero and save people once more, yet his actions simply resulted in death. He had truly made a grave mistake, and the consequences of his heated actions were now on display before him.

Just a brief examination of the cut made it clear that recovery was impossible, he could not save this life, it was too late. Knowing this, Meditat raises his head back to the man on the other side, and he releases a heavy sigh, determining the best alternative action though it still wouldn’t suffice in absolving him.

Nonetheless, Meditat begins marching forth, stepping around Ekitai and the corpse as he gently declares, “I’ll neutralize him…you should return to the deck for now. I’ll make this quick.”

Noticing the advance, the shadowy figure takes a step back as he moves his right hand closer to the katana hilt on his sheath, making cautious moves not to make hasty acts though his reactions are swift.

Just a few steps into the march, Ekitai raises his head at first in befuddlement which then transforms into apprehension upon facing Meditat to which he queries, “Do you…even know who he is?”

Promptly Meditat stops, for that was a valid question. He lowers his head and ponders for a few seconds before then raising it again and admitting bluntly, “No…but I’ll take him down.”

Upon that shaky answer, Ekitai shakes his head before more sternly explaining, “No listen, actually listen,” to which Meditat does sincerely turn his gaze to him.

In a near line are the three, Ekitai kneeling on the floor with the hat in hand owned by the body of the captain laying on the floor who Meditat stands beside, the two facing each other as standing before all of them is the man who Ekitai identifies as: “That’s the leader of the Ookami pirate clan, they were a group on Earth 97 a while ago. They didn’t have the largest crew but they made up for numbers in individual strength, each of them was capable of hunting multiple Exhumans at once, and the leader had to best all of them. But they’re a defensive group, if they ever initiate an assault themselves that means they’re certain of its success, and they don’t fight traditionally either, you’ll be thrown off and the moment you are it’ll be too late to recover if you go in alone.”

Returning his gaze back to his severed former ally, Ekitai sighs gently before then softly placing the yellow hat back on the man’s head, able to cover the gaping wound but furthermore with a slight tilt down the rim it gently covers the eyes. He leans forward and slides his arms under the body’s armpits as he warns, “You’re going to need my help, I mean I don’t want to fight him to be frank but you…you won’t last.”

After gently pushing the corpse’s jaw up thus shutting the mouth, he then begins dragging the body backwards in the direction of the door as Meditat glances forward again just to focus on the clearly dangerous being, though given that being’s strange passivity, he decides to first continue the questionnaire before blindly charging in, next mentioning: “The Ookami clan…I’m vaguely familiar with them…they were one of the few to headline even to the Core. Though in my research I found that they collapsed in the last decade, so if that’s the case why would he be here? I…assume you know him from your own past as a pirate…I won’t prod there right now.”

Nodding his head as he drags the corpse right by the door where he then gently places him down, Ekitai stands upright as he sighs and admits softly, “I can’t know for sure…but…I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s for vengeance. You’re right, their clan did collapse in the last ten years, and that was from a raid we did, the Sea Hats. As I said they were defensive so…we went to them…and we burned them to the ground. Nowadays I…am not sure how I felt about my insensitivity when I did it.”

Quickly glancing back in astoundment, Meditat double takes between Ekitai and the figure now identified as Ookami before focusing back on the dangerous one, but he takes an additional moment to decide on his response, pushing back against his immediate reaction. Focusing on pure tactical comprehension, Meditat’s head tilts slightly down upon beginning to reevaluate the circumstances behind this entire long day, and slowly as he comes to piece the events together he realizes gently, “I…I see…. This assault happening when you’re here can’t be a coincidence…this was all orchestrated…the capture to draw me here…so I’d drag you here…I stayed with the ambitious intent to clear the Rim of raiders but I just worked in his favor…. All that confidence…was just weaponized…I was nothing but a pawn to carry out this assassination. I don’t know how to judge my initial mission if it was guided externally but…what I know now is neutralization is primary.” As Ekitai bends down by his handgun, Meditat extends his right hand forward as his white palm burns up blue before bursting out a fire that rolls itself into a cylindrical hilt while determining, “Ready,” to which his hilt ignites the long blue energy blade triggering Ekitai to raise his head in terror before exclaiming, “WAIT MEDIT-.”

In an action so swift it couldn’t be observed cleanly in real time, Ookami clenches onto the hilt of his katana as he lunges in a forward launch using a single stride as he pulls the hilt out, removing it from the stubby sheath yet miraculously the inside of the sheath itself produces a silver grainy mist that hardens in the continual formation of a blade which grows upon being pulled at such speed that in the time of the swift unsheathing, the mist builds a full length katana blade with a finalized sharp tip timed just that it can be swung forward when it’s not even a full foot from Meditat’s throat.

In fact, there isn’t time for Meditat to move his body or even produce a construct, rendering him frozen in fear, the battle decided or that is until a flare from the floor projects a green radiating bolt fired straight for Ookami’s head, forcing him to leap backwards, capable of moving at that impossible speed with ease.

Albeit startled by the staggering speeds of the nearly fatal strike, Meditat focuses to aim his free hand forward which fires a flame from each finger out which expel like dots of a circle that reach a diameter about that of a man’s height before connecting together into a large silver ring which autonomously levitates forth towards the Hunter as each of those original five points flare blue once again but this time to project cables targeted for the man who swiftly leaps backwards, dodging the first one before rolling to evade the second, retreating back and backflipping over the third while the ring trap pursues, all as two more flames emerge from Meditat’s hands which equip him with firearms resembling Uzis which immediately begin firing rapid barrages of black energy bolts which the Hunter also begins evading along with the ring which fires the fourth cable only for it to be weaved beneath it to which it then engages all five at once given that it has now reached closer to its target, though that proximity serves fatal as the shadowy man flips forward over all the cables coupled with a single keen slash that cuts the entire ring down the center, dropping it to the ground before it then combusts in blue flames, though from behind those flames fly two speedily projectiles which slip through both of the Anti-Exmatter guns so quickly that Meditat only perceives them in time to throw both forward instinctively before the barrels overheat themselves from the infinitely rebounding energy, resulting in combustion that could’ve consumed him had he reacted a fraction of a second too late.

Acknowledging the great speed of his opponent appearing superhuman who could render most projectiles pointless, Meditat brings his hands together and coils his fingers in preparation to carry a hilt as his palms begin to flame up, though just before he does he’s interrupted by the abrupt curiously toned question from behind him: “Wait, why are you using Anti-Exmatter?”

That question halts Meditat’s chain of actions, instead prompting him to turn back to face Ekitai whose handgun is raised though he’s yet to act, instead seemingly perplexed by the instinctual determinations made in the heat of battle. As Meditat’s white palms cool, he innocently explains: “To neutralize his Exhuman abilities, he must have accelerated movement in some manner.”

Oddly enough though Ekitai shakes his head and corrects, “He’s not an Exhuman.”

Bewildered by the bizarre statement, Meditat glances forward back at the opponent whose speeds were at a caliber above man, who now simply stands in place, not choosing to immediately strike but instead pause as an odd choice.

Keeping his focus on said man in the realization that having his sights off him for even a glimpse could result in a counterattack despite the separation of about twenty feet now, Meditat tilts his head before asking, “He isn’t? Strange…does his body house cybernetic enhancements?” Flames again begin to secrete from his hand as he begins to formulate: “You shouldn’t be affected as severely by an electromagnetic blast,” though the flames dispel as soon as Ekitai again corrects with a wavering tone, “He’s not a cyborg, at least he wasn’t in the last encounter, and he was moving just as fast if not faster back then….”

That very answer finally had Meditat lower his hands in the sudden revelation that he speaks in a chilled voice: “He’s…just a man-?” just as that very man’s swinging blade nearly reaches Meditat after an instant dash, the silver blade just inches from his waist for a clean horizontal slash on the once again defenseless superhuman, a strike guaranteed if not for a radiating orange bolt that passes between that superhuman’s legs, striking the floor between those white boots. Upon impact with the floor, a small circular chunk of the metallic wood surface around the assailant oddly warps, as if melting before many points of the floor abruptly extrude up into long tendrils that slither and coil around each other, again forcing the Hunter to leap backwards in evasion as the tendrils reach about ten feet high in a circle of about two feet in diameter, keen enough to only target one person despite the two being close to each other.

That quickly timed assistance is short lived though as just after jumping back, the Hunter dashes forward and rapidly slashes through the metal extrusions, reaching the two just before Meditat grabs Ekitai and dashes up in the air to evade another slash for the waist.

Only perceiving the sequence after its occurrence, Ekitai blinks twice with expanded eyes, facing down at the Hunter while Meditat keeps forward, flying deeper into the front room as his legs expel a flame down to the floor that spreads into a circle which rises up into a solid cylindrical tower about a story tall which materializes to have a silver body composed of individual bricks, resembling a medieval castle tower which Meditat drops Ekitai at the top of, and just after he does a blue energy dome activates over the top to add omnidirectional protection. Ekitai stumbles to his feet, initially perplexed by the sudden creation, though he’s quick to take action by aiming down at the Hunter before firing a barrage of dark green bolts which pass through the shield, though they’re dodged by the Hunter. Despite missing, upon striking the floor those bolts sprout what appear like small plants with spiky leaves poking out in all directions, each one about a foot or so in radius, yet even those are evaded even at the cost of longer strides and flips.

At the same time as the barrage being fired, Meditat projects a cable onto the side of the tower which lets him orbit, the energy cable wrapping around the construct, providing him speed which is used to fling himself straight for the Hunter, carrying that momentum to pass it off to a flame that he fires straight for the opponent. That long flame thins though the head abruptly widens into a semicircular shape before the entire flame manifests into a long pole with a disk attached to one end which has two prongs around the rim, resembling a man catcher though instead of there being metal spikes along the inner lining of the ring there are instead small forks that spark in preparation for an electric binding. The mancatcher is flung for the Hunter just after a flip, meaning to catch him off guard when evasion wouldn’t be possible, though midway through the flip as the Hunter perceives the weapon he simply twists his body and raises his katana to then make a horizontal slash that cuts through the ring perfectly in half, also slicing every fork which short circuits them all. That short circuit does result in a discharge that emits a small explosive smoking burst just as Meditat plants one foot on the pole of his own weapon to then lunge forward as his right hand conjures a metal hilt which emits a long blue energy blade. He swings his blade the same as the Hunter, and the two clash which expels the smoke away.

At the top of the tower, Ekitai watches the two fighters exchange swings with their blades, the Hunter able to use the sturdiness of his opponent’s stance to repel himself backwards to the floor for better footing to which the opponent boosts to the ground with two cables from the hips to pull him back into the fight in hopes of applying pressure. All while this, Ekitai constantly microshifts his aim, though he clearly struggles to find an opening for a shot he can take. Behind him is the black void through the huge window screen, from which that aforementioned green orb has become slightly larger as a sign of it being approached.

Gritting his teeth in visible stress, Ekitai mutters under his breath frantically, “Is he trying to sword fight him-...shit he has no idea.”

He gulps with a subtle step forward before exclaiming desperately, “KEEP A DISTANCE, YOU CAN’T WIN FROM THAT-.”

Despite not being that far as the battlefield is a single room, the intensity of the exchanged clashes drowns that vaguely audible senile cry, as all of Meditat’s focus is on advancing on the Hunter, using quick strikes with his blue blade held in his right hand as his left secretes another flame forming a second hilt that emits yet another blue blade to allow for sequential rapid strikes on an opponent who staggers back, seeming to be getting overwhelmed as all that’s done is blocks with the physical blade.

Noticing the apparent effectiveness of the attacks, Meditat speeds his strikes to grow his oppression, his cape waving violently with his movements as he gradually drives the Hunter towards the exit of the room. Every step back the Hunter takes, Meditat takes one forward, all of the exchanged strikes being one sided as all that the Hunter has done is block each attack but without any counters of his own.

In fact he staggers back near the exit door of the front room, seemingly having lost all his ground, and to that Meditat presses even more in the assumption that this battle was one he could manage swiftly.

Yet oddly Ekitai reacts with eyes expanded in horror, stumbling back upon the realization.

One blade after the other in a sequence to minimize time between strikes with attacks so quick that the light trails left by the plasmic blades form wheels, Meditat maintains his flurry with stable ease, recognizing that one more stumble is all that’d be needed to push his opponent out of the room. And so in that one last push right after his right blade struck, he pulls his left arm back, rolls it, and swings his energy sword once more on the enemy whose eyes flare before strafing to the side simultaneously with two swift swings so quick only blurs are registered.

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That registration only occurs in the aftermath of that left handed swing which strikes the floor, though just as it does the bottom half of the hilt just beneath the wrists slides off and falls, along with the exposed inner metal scraps including a battery that sparks just like the right handed hilt which separates just the same, causing both energy blades to flicker and cease concurrent with the falling of the scrap on the ground.

In absolute shock, Meditat instinctively turns to his side where the Hunter had strafed, only to find him break into a sprint in the opposite direction, making a B-line directly for the tower housing Ekitai who instinctively begins sporadically firing blue bolts which emit their own constant sparks of electricity while firing for a greater range, yet they’re all swiftly dodged. In the lagged realization that he had actually been manipulated into distancing himself further from his own ally, Meditat turns around completely and makes chase desperately, projecting cables off his hips forward as he erases both hilts and replaces them with new flames for the next creation just as the Hunter lunges and spins with three left fingers slipped into the small kunai rings on the thigh to pull and throw three kunai each with blades that have solidifications delayed slightly given their formations from the hardening silver mist. They finalize early enough though to be complete well before nearly reaching Meditat who boosts to the side as he releases his blue flame to instead form a circular shield he grips made of silver with an additional layer of glowing blue energy, though both that and the silver is penetrated straight through by the two kunai which hit, miraculously striking by the edges such that they don’t fly straight into the body.

While Meditat does remain unharmed at the very least, that close call staggers him for just a moment, a moment he recognizes is used by the Hunter to further close the distance to the tower, moving at constant speeds despite the shots Ekitai fires. Hastily, Meditat projects cables from his hips, though angled upwards towards the top of the tower which he reels towards combined with the acceleration of additional thrusts all while erasing his shield. He flips and spins in the air in reorientation which results in his feet landing on the side of the tower by the top timed perfectly as the Hunter reaches the bottom and dashes upwards, able to sprint along the vertical surface as his white jagged boots stick to the metal bricks.Those bricks though begin to act autonomously as several beside Meditat dematerialize and allow small turrets to pop out which swivel on an arm to aim and fire rapid blue bolts which the Hunter blocks with his katana. At the same time, the bricks beneath his feet begin to pulsate blue before then blasting highly concentrated energy rays out as traps, though even those are narrowly evaded. The tower’s hidden defenses do notably slow the Hunter down though, and coupled with the two Uzi-like firearms with ballpoint tips that fire rapid bolts which automatically adjust aim on a quick target, all summoned in Meditat’s hands along with an influx of additional turrets popping from the bricks, the Hunter’s intended dash to the top becomes less reasonable. He begins circling around the tower to try getting around the defenses, though more grow on the other side, turrets and floor beams all firing at full intensity until alas he is forced to leap off the tower at an upwards angle in apparent retreat, though in the air he grabs one of the small spikes tucked in his robe, pulling it out to reveal a shuriken which he throws towards Ekitai who drops himself just before the shuriken seamlessly penetrates through the shield. While the throw was a fail, it does succeed in making clear that the shielding was obsolete, no protection was truly sufficient.

The leap lands the Hunter on the rim bridge composing the top floor which he begins running along, dodging all of the acidic green bolts which instead strike the various consoles and tables, burning holes that then consume the devices as the holographic monitors sustained on them flicker away. In retaliation, the Hunter swiftly throws kunai towards the tower’s peak, forcing Ekitai to need to duck every time given that they all simply pass through the shield. However this means that whereas the Hunter can counterattack instantly given that he simply needs to dodge the bolts during the run, Ekitai is forced to pause after every dodge given that there’s little room for him to maneuver. Noticing this gap in resistance, Meditat leaps off the side of the tower, fires another two cables towards the top, and flings himself over to fly towards the bridge as he fires a blaze up his arm to equip himself with a rod that holds a black umbrella at the top, one which seems to allow him to glide more smoothly in the air but more importantly it begins rapidly firing bolts out of the rim in all directions, angled perfectly to aim for the bridge where the Hunter runs, forcing him to make swifter dodges given the hailstorm. This suspends his immediate counters against Ekitai, who is now free to stand back up and fire more confidently, shooting two-shot bursts of green and purple shots such that even when the green shot misses, the purple shot will land in the console before then rupturing a field of spikes orthogonal to the impact point such that it covers the bridge’s surface, further cutting off the Hunter’s movement. However the Hunter then uses those spikes by jumping onto one and changing directions, racing now straight for the tower with one last lunge for the top, blade in hand ready for a single decisive swing.

In terror, Ekitai jumps backwards to throw himself off the tower knowing that he couldn’t block against the attack any other way, instead relinquishing the high ground. He fires a pink bolt on the ground which puffs out the large veiny bean bag that he lands on, padding any injuries from the drop and allowing him to spring off it just in time as the Hunter leaps off the tower too in hot pursuit, though he’s intercepted by Meditat who collides straight into him, making perhaps the first actual hit. In recognition that a katana, while technically a short-ranged weapon, has a certain distance that’s necessitated for effectiveness, Meditat grapples with the Hunter with just his fists alone though ones that he enforces his fingers with using small energy-based claws that glow bright blue. Just as planned, the Hunter is incapable of striking Meditat with the katana given he’s simply too close, letting Meditat focus on trying to penetrate the suit with his claws, though he’s given little time as the Hunter instead then pulls the handle attached to his boot which reveals a small dagger that he can then use to swing at Meditat, this one’s blade far shorter thus able to land at this intimate range. Instinctively Meditat springs off the Hunter, bouncing back to Ekitai’s side on the ground as the Hunter lands not too far ahead, all three once again grounded. Though the Hunter immediately charges forward again, to which Ekitai swiftly fires two blue bolts, the first one forming a wall though during its development it’s mixed with the second bolt that strangely alters the structure, retaining the wall shape though with the slime material such that right as the Hunter makes his swing, that blue wall builds itself in front of the two intended targets, instead causing the blade to stick into the slime. Instinctively the Hunter tries to pull the katana out of the wall, though he actually struggles to do so, as the slime’s resilience seems to match even him. Not wasting that window, Meditat dashes around the wall simultaneously with the creation of another energy sword that he seeks to plunge into the opponent who simply lets go of his weapon to bound backwards, dodging the strike though relinquishing his own weapon.

That’s only one of them though, as before Meditat completes the followthrough of his attack, the Hunter grabs the second hilt on his hip and pulls it out to unsheathe a second katana which he swings in a rebounding dash for Meditat who hastily dashes to throw himself off to the side. That swing instead is then targeted oddly enough at his own weapon, the base of the first katana’s blade which breaks it off the slime wall, allowing the hilt to be recovered. He swiftly stows it back inside its original sheathe only to then pull it out again, letting the silver mist rebuild the blade to ditch the original one now trapped in the slime. Now holding two katanas, a sudden uptick in intensity transpires as the Hunter dashes for Meditat who raises his own energy blade to block it, succeeding though the Hunter begins a flurry of consecutive slashes similar to Meditat’s before though vastly faster, causing Meditat to stumble backwards at a greater rate now that he’s been put to the defensive, unable to even focus adequately to conjure a counter. He’s hardly able to move his arm enough to block each attack as the Hunter’s strikes don’t land predictably but instead seek for any openings, a tactic not unheard of as Meditat has employed it before, but never at this rate.

Luckily Meditat doesn’t have to face the flurry alone as Ekitai reaches around the slime wall and begins rapidly firing green bolts at the Hunter’s back, forcing him to use his right katana to block the bolts, somehow able to repel them and instead cause the bolts to ricochet wildly while he’s still able to sustain rapid strikes at Meditat albeit not as quickly. The depression of speed does allow Meditat to focus enough, projecting a cable from his back to then pull him away from the katana’s range, landing on a curved tabletop maintaining several holograms which now partially cover him.

Now the Hunter was again separated from the two, standing with his back to the distant window screen where the globe ahead is closer now, at least enough to distinguish the blues and greens given that its light side is facing the train. Though in this very floor, Ekitai chooses to deploy a new tactic as he aims down at the Hunter’s feet and fires a faint yellow bolt at the floor, one the Hunter dashes away from though on impact the bolt expands a material similar to wet sand which spreads out into a large circle about five feet in radius which Ekitai narrowly evades with a backwards roll, leaving only the Hunter standing directly on it. Not even a full second after the spread, the circle covered in the sand suddenly collapses as the sand seems to melt through the wooden floor, but furthermore it leaks down to form a huge cylinder that the Hunter begins sinking into. First his feet and then slowly his knees, the quicksand takes effect at a decent pace, opening an opportunity for both Ekitai and Meditat, the former of whom begins firing acidic bolts as the latter manifests four ballpoint turrets by his side which all initiate their own barrages, coming from multiple angles down on the Hunter who starts rapidly swinging both katanas while swiveling his upper body, parrying not only the acidic shots but all the barrages too. Technically these barrages aren’t entirely necessary as the quicksand is still pulling down on the enemy, however the rapid swings don’t only block those shots but they begin picking the sand off the surface, tossing them in all directions and slowly digging a hole of its own. The sand now on the Hunter’s kneecaps starts to depress as it’s flicked away at rapid speeds, slowly uncovering himself not by raising himself but instead digging himself out faster than the quicksand can draw him in.

Determining that the quicksand’s effectiveness wouldn’t be enough, Ekitai swipes on his handgun’s interface before then firing a second shot into the sand, this one a ruby hue which similarly covers the floor with a substance though this one being a strange similarly colored liquid that expands over the entire sand circle, though due to it not being shot perfectly in the middle it reaches past and even to Ekitai’s feet. Just as the Hunter uncovers the sand at his feet and leaps up away from the trap, the entire floor in the ruby circle including the metallic wood and the sand abruptly combust into an array of small cubes which all collapse the floor, dropping the Hunter down though same as Ekitai who flails his arms as the two fall into the lowest floor; this bottom story does include consoles and tables like the upper layers but furthermore in the center of the room is a strange huge contraption with a long metal device composed of tubes feeding into boxes and spinning disks, tubes connecting parts of the larger metal device but also extending to other devices like tall metal boxes similar to generators each of them occupied with a console machine. The main device is about ten feet long and six feet tall, but the inclusion of all the surrounding generators results in the whole floor seeming dedicated to the machine as it takes more than half the space, the main device partially resembling a locomotive engine.

Immediately upon discernment of the machine, Meditat leaps off the table and projects a flame with his right hand as his left projects a cable that grabs onto Ekitai, but that first flame passes him and expands to form a large rodless umbrella canopy about ten feet in radius, covering most of the contraption and shielding it from the cubic debris. The debris slides along the canopy and falls to the ground beside the contraption, though it does provide the Hunter a safer surface to land on, able to return his focus on his two opponents as he suddenly lets go of his katanas, throws two shurikens, and recollects his katanas before they can even begin to fall.

Those two shurikens perfectly aim for the two targets, forcing Meditat to need to yank Ekitai in one direction as he himself dashes in another, protecting both of them as Ekitai counterattacks with his own acidic shot which the Hunter evades with a bound off the umbrella just before it is devoured.

The arena shifting down, Ekitai fires a pink shot down at the floor which produces a veiny beanbag, signifying Meditat to relinquish the cable and let him drop down quicker before then summoning in his hand a wand made of a copper-like material which then fires long purplish arcs of what resembles electricity though with keener targeting directed for the Hunter who strafes backwards and backflips onto one of the console computers before then tossing a kunai with a hand he frees faster than what can be registered with anything more than a blur, though that kunai is perfectly aimed into the wand’s tip which causes it to erupt in Meditat’s face, disbalancing him in a fall for the ground. The Hunter capitalizes on this stun with an interceptive dash, both blades ready for a clean slash although one blocked as Meditat swiftly deploys a large wall to block it, this one created from his pure frosty crystal, which finally succeeds in resisting the blades. Without a proper comprehension of the katana’s true properties, it seemed the only truly reliable defense was the most extreme one, but at the very least its properties of being indestructible to any other than his brother remains true. He projects cables from both hands onto his own wall, reorienting himself to then press his soles into it and kick off in the opposite direction before surrounding himself with a legion of ballpoint drones that all open volleys just as he erases the wall, pushing the Hunter back into a defensive retreat as he blocks them until he can ground himself and begin evading on foot.

Landing back on the floor beside one of the generators, Meditat glances back to find Ekitai on the other side of the main machine, and now with a clean shot he fires several green bolts again. Those bolts are deflected in swift swings made by the Hunter, resulting in them being redirected randomly, one of them specifically being sent towards the main machine to which Meditat hastily releases a flame that manifests a metal wall floating right in front to block the shot, causing that wall to be devoured but at least not the machine.

That moment of diversion though lets the Hunter charge at Meditat who is forced to jump backwards past the cables of the generator to dodge a swing that nearly grazes the metal box. The fight moves between the contraptions, pursuing past consoles and tubes, Meditat cautiously navigating as to not trip on anything as the Hunter seeks for an opening. However oddly enough Meditat doesn’t form his own weapons to fight back, but instead seems to focus purely on retreat, his focus less on his own safety as he constantly glances hectically at the machine. With less room now when navigating around the wires, the Hunter opts to sheathe both of his katanas which both slip straight into the short sheathes, the only logical explanation being the subtle silver mist that signifies the dematerialization of the blades. He then slips both hands by his boots to grab two daggers, both blades materializing out of the sheathe so he can start swinging them instead, now able to make tighter strikes which allows for more attacks given the widening of opportunities.

The intensity again building, Meditat weaves and strafes from swings while stepping or dodging tubes until he can then move himself out of the tangelement, bringing his fists up and using his knuckles to block any swings he can’t duck from given that the crystals on his gloves are capable of surviving the blades. It isn’t the most conventional shield, as Meditat constantly has to move his arms given the little surface area the knuckles can cover, but he manages to slip away from the contraption and stumble back into an open area where Ekitai stands, also showing more caution after that close call with his ricocheted acidic bolt.

Back in the open, the Hunter glares at the two opponents before Ekitai takes his chance to shoot a yellow bolt at the Hunter’s feet, forcing him to jump in the air though oddly enough this bolt has little environmental effect, more like a tracer shot which minimizes any damage. However Meditat takes this opportunity and releases flames from his hands towards the floor ahead of him which expands out into a large disk that cements into an elevation pad that bolts straight up, crashing into the Hunter but more importantly raising him up to the second floor.

Not wasting time, Meditat launches off the ground and projects a cable onto Ekitai’s free hand, hoisting him up on course out of the level too, leaving behind the contraption which does feel rather vulnerable especially in such a heated battle. The two pass through the hole left behind, the edges of which almost appear pixelated as the floor along the rim has been slightly altered into a cube. Nonetheless both Meditat and Ekitai return to the original floor where the tower still remains, standing surrounded by the bridge of the top level. Partially wrapping around them are the white glitters of stars amongst the approaching Earth, far larger now, with more distinguished swirls of clouds keenly noticeable over the green lands and blue seas. The Earth is now noticeably uncentered from the window though, instead being further below as the train is instead headed over it.

After the sudden hit, the Hunter is quick to sheathe both daggers in his boots, flip back to his feet, and throw two kunai at his opponents, throwing Meditat off guard as he dashes to the top level where he places Ekitai, as the bridge has far more room for him to move rather than being stuck in a tight spot like the tower. Free of carrying again, Meditat spins to focus back on the enemy as he extends his right arm out before producing a flame that then forms a long black hilt more to the length of a pole which at the end ignites a long blue blade, more akin to a glaive than a sword, providing greater distance now that close proximities doesn’t seem the apparent best fit for this fight. Spinning the glaive in the air, only using one given its size, Meditat then boosts back towards the Hunter who unsheathes his two katanas again, their blades materializing in the silver mist just as sharp as when they were first made, as the process of rebuilding the blades does have the additional inherent functionality as a sharpener.

He brings both katanas up to parry the first swing of the glaive, using both to counter the weight of the heavier weapon as the two trade swings, each trying to find a worthy opening in the other, though the Hunter makes one bold move to swing both blades together into the glaive’s side to push it, creating an opening that is then used to jump onto the pole and bound off of it with a quick cut through the material, again destroying the weapon’s hilt thereby frying the blade.

During this exchange of blows, the abyss behind the combatants loses its former vibrant colors as only the rim of the approaching Earth can be viewed by the bottom, for the train had to maintain a certain distance to sustain its own strength against the planet’s gravitational pull. Even if the train hadn’t yet passed the planet, it had reached the point in which it had fallen into its blindspot.

Meditat spins around to find the Hunter running up the tower again before then leaping off to reach the bridge, focusing now on Ekitai who starts firing at him, melting consoles with acid, growing bursts of purple spikes or green vines, anything except actually bring down the enemy who just charges through it all.

Watching the frantic efforts of his teammate, Meditat raises a hand to fire a flame at the edge of the bridge a bit behind Ekitai, a flame that then extends away from the bridge in the shape of a slide which reaches all the way down past the tower and closer to the exit. The slide materializes with a silver body and a long blue strip of light along the center with light rings separated a few feet along the path, and as soon as it does Ekitai concludes his retreat by turning and slipping onto it, letting himself slide down the escape which accelerates his body as passing each ring causes it to pulsate to imbue him with more momentum in hidden bursts. The Hunter is quick to turn and make chase, jumping on the slide but rather than having his back against the surface properly, he instead keeps himself standing as he rather surfs the slide, letting it accelerate him but upright as to rapidly throw shurikens at Meditat, forcing him to dash and strafe, distracting him and letting the Hunter get ever closer to the end.

The portion of the slide being traveled still in the air, Meditat devises a plan and allows the slide to be erased in a burst of flames right as beneath it he forms a huge platform that materializes into a large net, resembling a safety net below a bridge though this time with the intent to capture as the metal netting sparks with electricity intent to render one unconscious. As hoped, the Hunter falls off the destroyed slide and plummets for the net, though before even hitting the trap he slices through the netting, cutting open a hole that he slips through, landing back on the ground in a roll that he launches off of towards Ekitai who fires multiple shots at the Hunter including a white one which does manage to affect the sword used to block it, as the entire blade becomes covered in a sticky web-like substance that connects to the floor, though the Hunter just lets go as one blade would still be sufficient for this opponent, leaving the blade standing on the web. He nonetheless charges and swings his katana though his entire body suddenly begins to fly backwards, being pulled by an abrupt air current being emitted next to Meditat from a huge vacuum device that being a large black tube that bends like a tentacle, stemming from the ceiling with a diameter enough to fit its whole target. The Hunter is swift though to use his free hand and throw three kunai up at the tube hanging higher from the opening, cutting a few holes through both ends which suddenly redistributes the vacuum’s forces as the leak weakens its pulling strength.

Able to ground himself again, the Hunter regains stability and raises his katana for a swing at Meditat who in his hands manifests a weapon, a long pole similar to the glaive but rather than relying on plasmic blades for neutralization he instead uses physical tips in the form of what resembles a bo staff. The center of the staff does have a distinct rubber grip, but the majority of the staff is enforced in a tube of frosty crystals, which upon collision with the blade does succeed in warding it off. While this tool can’t be used with the same speed, its length provides that needed distance, letting Meditat clash from further away where he can take the advantage. He’s surprisingly aggressive with a defensive weapon, using both ends to make rapid swings, somewhat borrowing the advantage of two weapons in that both ends target different areas that the Hunter has to protect from, and with only one katana he doesn’t have the same counterweight.

The Hunter makes a swift glance back to his other katana to find it still caught in the web, but furthermore Ekitai walks past it and raises his handgun, ready to fire on an opponent who is now lacking one of his main tools. Returning focus forward, the Hunter strafes backwards and picks up one of his daggers, arming himself with a second weapon despite its size being only a fraction of the original. This shorter blade is used to fend off against the starting barrage of green bolts, as while more travel distance is required with the arm to cover the body, he still manages to deflect all of the shots. At the same time though Meditat charges forward and begins an assault using his staff, forcing the enemy to start blocking it with his katana. Slowly Ekitai inches forward, limited to attacks with precise effects given that his ally is now close to the target, though with the pressure being put on by said ally, those drawbacks are absolved. Meditat continues to push forward which pressures the Hunter to backtrack only towards the source of the gunfire, the two allies finally having found their rhythm as they strike from both sides, neither of their moves disadvantaging the other, but instead cooperating such that their actions combine into one that seems to overwhelm their opponent.

This all at least appears to hold true until the Hunter makes the quick motion to dash to the side, resulting in one of the green acidic bolts to instead fly towards Meditat who does at least manage to deflect it with his staff, though that followthrough is exploited as the Hunter makes one swing for the neck which Meditat barely avoids with a backwards dash in an act to reduce one half of the pressure simultaneously as he lets go of his dagger to swiftly throw a kunai straight into Ekitai’s handgun’s barrel, jamming it to neutralize the other side. He picks his dagger back up before it can fall to then charge at Meditat with a low swing which is successfully blocked with the staff from a downward strike, though this results in an opening which the Hunter again tries exploiting by driving the dagger again for the throat, those sharp flaring yellow eyes underneath the mask, the scarf waving in the air same with the ruffles of the robe, as it seems any chance of actually beating this enemy results in the realization that they’re simply being played with. Unable to move his arm in time, all Meditat could do was watch and release an azure flame from his neck which wraps around and materializes into a large neck guard made of frosty crystals which somewhat resembles an oversized collar, functioning as a shield which blocks the dagger’s sharp edge, though focusing on that strike distracts him from the kick to the stomach that follows next, one that recoils Meditat’s entire body before it is blown backwards.

Having one opponent on the ground and another’s prime weapon disabled, the Hunter turns around, facing back towards the exit where he then begins to dash. That dash is aimed past Ekitai who tugs against the handle of the kunai lodged inside his barrel, who raises his head and rolls off to the side in fear of being the target. The true target though is what’s past him, that being the katana still stuck to the white web, only the hilt free as the katana is covered with whites more than it is with its natural silver. However, past that katana beside the corpse of the man in the black coat, the gap blown through the door becomes covered by the tall figure of the golden cyborg whose golden claws grip the edge of the hole to enter through, followed directly behind by the electric superhuman whose long pink hair shuffle behind her head, both of them facing forward.