.
---
The rain didn't slow down.
It came down harder now—cold, heavy, relentless.
Parashu stood still, water dripping from his hair, his axe resting loosely in one hand.
Kamravinash didn't move either. His long coat was soaked, but he didn't seem to care. His eyes weren't angry. They were tired… broken.
"Move aside," Parashu said softly. "I don't want to fight you."
Kamravinash gave a bitter smile.
"You think I want to fight? I wanted peace. I wanted her."
His voice cracked. "But wanting doesn't bring back the dead."
A gust of wind swept between them, and in that moment—Parashu saw it.
Kamravinash's fingers twitched, energy circling them like black smoke.
Parashu's grip tightened around his axe. "If you raise your hand, I won't hold back."
"I'm counting on it," Kamravinash whispered.
And then he struck.
Dark tendrils shot from his palms like shadowy vines, slicing through the air toward Parashu. Parashu jumped back, landing on wet mud, and swung his axe upward. A flash of blue light cut through the darkness, breaking the first wave of attack.
But more came.
Kamravinash's power wasn't strength. It was emotion—regret, grief, heartbreak—all shaped into weapons. Each strike was a memory turned into pain. And Parashu could feel it.
As they fought, visions flashed in Parashu's mind.
A girl crying under a tree.
A friend walking away without a word.
A hand reaching out… and never being held again.
Kamravinash's power was not just about hurting the body—it touched the heart.
Parashu screamed and slammed his axe into the ground.
The earth shook. Water rose. Lightning cracked the sky.
He rushed forward, fast and furious, his axe glowing with raw energy. Kamravinash blocked the first swing with a wall of dark force, but the second strike broke through—sending him flying into a tree.
Blood mixed with rain on his lips.
Still, Kamravinash stood up.
"You don't understand," he said.
"I'm not trying to win. I'm trying to end this world where people like her die while people like me survive."
Parashu didn't answer. He charged again.
Their clash lit up the stormy night—light and shadow colliding, hearts full of pain exploding into every blow.
But even as they fought, one thing became clear to Parashu:
Kamravinash wasn't evil.
He was broken.
And sometimes, broken men are the most dangerous of all.
---