The scent of metal. Blood. Emma had sent her subordinates to stop Andreas, but I don't think she expected me to be here to take care of them. Something was off, though. I would've thought she'd handle this herself. Andreas knew too much… but how much exactly? That question gnawed at me.
I heard footsteps. A strong metallic tang filled the air. From the shadows, a figure emerged. Emma.
"I didn't expect you to show up yourself. Last time I saw you, you said you were done with the Horsemen. Changed your mind?"
"I couldn't let you do whatever you pleased, not after you involved my brother."
"So you do care about him."
"I chose a different path than yours."
"Oh really? And what does that mean?"
"Why are you doing this, Emma? Is it really that important to become The Man of High Society? Important enough to poison your own brother?"
"I did what had to be done…"
"I thought you fought for humanity, not against it."
"Ordinary mortals don't deserve to stand on our level, Centuria. Why can't you see that?"
"Because I'm not blind to what we are. I'm no longer a Horseman of the Apocalypse."
"And yet you still carry the gift of immortality. We are the same, Centuria."
"I told you — I'm not Centuria anymore. I'm Coloepy Hamura, daughter of Hamura Kharatsumi. The man you killed. Your father. Our father.
"That man was never my father! I never had one!"
"Who's denying reality now, Cristha?"
"Don't you see, sister? We're the same — immortal, untouchable. Why waste eternity pretending to be human?"
"You're wrong. You're not immortal. You can be killed. Your brother's blood — that's your weakness. Only he can end you. I have no such flaw. You and he are twins — Cristha, the Horseman of War, and Chaleon, the Horseman of Death. Your ability binds you to every version of yourself across realities. Unless they're all struck at once, you can't be harmed. But Davis can pierce that link. That's his true power."
"Too bad his days are numbered. But you missed something… being a Horseman isn't my only advantage."
She unsheathed her sword and pressed it to her throat.
"The Blood Parasite."
She slit her neck. Blood gushed like a fountain, then twisted around her, forming a crimson robe that clung to her body. Her eyes turned red — bleeding from within — as massive blades of congealed blood formed behind her.
"Step aside from that door!"
"Over my dead body, Emma."
One of the blades shot toward me.
"You think you're the only one who can wield more than one power?" I said, freezing the blood mid-air.
Each step I took left ice beneath my feet.
"Everything has a freezing point. Blood is no exception."
She attacked again — waves of blood, all crystallizing before they reached me.
"You underestimate parasites, sister!" she roared, shattering the frozen shards and unleashing a flood that engulfed me from every side.
I could use it — that one ability I'd never unleashed fully. Dangerous, unstable. But I had no choice.
I froze everything. Then the ice shattered — the room filled with a cutting chill. My hair stiffened with frost; my lashes froze. The coat on my back grew heavy with icicles. I had become ice itself.
Anything that came near me froze solid. My temperature dropped below –30°C.
But I was brittle — one strike could shatter me. Not fatal, but long enough for Emma to reach the sanctuary. I needed to adapt.
Three larger waves surged toward me. She wanted to trap me inside my own frost. Fine.
The temperature began to rise. The frozen blood melted. Time for the opposite extreme.
Flames ignited through my hair, burning away the white until it turned black as coal. I stepped out of the steam — I was fire incarnate.
My blade blazed red-hot. I swung it, again and again, forcing her back. Still not enough. I needed balance — the equilibrium between flame and frost.
Half my hair turned white again; a single lash froze over. In one hand, a sword of fire; in the other, one of ice. I leapt at Emma, spinning midair. Blood rained from every direction. I dodged — she struck — her hand pierced my frozen side.
She smiled. Her mistake. I crossed both blades and drove them through her chest.
We broke apart — and clashed again.
The room was chaos — screams, shards of frozen blood, clouds of steam. I couldn't tell if minutes or hours had passed. It felt eternal.
We were both exhausted. The blood no longer moved; the fire dimmed; the ice refused to form. My hand had been severed — it regrew.
"I haven't had a fight like this in centuries, Centuria. Don't you miss the old days?"
"I do. When all four of us dreamed of a world where humans and Horsemen lived in peace. When our battles meant nothing. But those days are gone. And as long as you live, they'll never return."
Silence.
"Coloepy… humans will never chan—"
Emma froze. Blood spilled from her lips. A blade tip pierced through her chest. For the first time in her existence… she was wounded.
Behind her stood a young man — white shirt, dark tailored pants, brown hair, glasses. He held a longsword, driven straight through her back.
"You," she hissed, turning weakly. "I see now… you damned Caretaker… Victor Mancer… how did you—"
He placed his palm on her back and pushed. Emma slid off the sword, collapsing. He lowered the weapon, his voice calm.
"I forged this blade from Hamura's remains. The steel is carved from his very bone. I figured — if Hamura gave you life, he can take it away. Your brother's blood carries his genes, and so does this sword. Unfortunately, it can only be used once. But once is enough to end you."
"…Well played," Emma whispered, as the man touched his temple — his face shimmered, changing shape. "Y.K."
The chamber began to crumble. A massive piece of the ceiling broke loose above me — I froze, but he dashed forward, pulling me out just in time. He wrapped his arms around me as debris crashed down.
When I came to, he was beside me, clearing the rubble.
"Can you stand?" he asked.
"Yes… so you're Y.K.?"
"I am. And you're Coloepy Hamura — Andreas's sister."
"Where's Emma?" I asked quickly.
"She won't die. Instinct won't let her. But she won't get far either."
We heard shouting. We followed the sound — down the ruined corridor, into the fading light.
Two figures stood facing each other, weapons drawn.
Andreas and Purpleguy.
-Hamura Coloepy