The arena trembled under the weight of Gloxkir's roar. The monstrous creature advanced, jagged claws scraping the cracked stone floor, and Kairo felt a heat in his chest he hadn't allowed himself in years—anger, pure and unrestrained. His hands clenched around the cold steel of the chains he had brought.
"You…" Kairo spat the word, voice trembling with something between rage and grief. "You don't get to decide who lives!"
As the fight began, adrenaline surged through Kairo's veins. His heart pounded like a war drum, senses sharpened, every movement honed to deadly precision. For the first time in years, he felt alive in the chaos. His normally black hair seemed to shimmer at the edges, faint streaks of silver catching the light whenever he moved—a subtle warning of the transformation that would one day be completed under Beelvrix's torment.
Gloxkir lunged, claws slicing through the air like hammers, and Kairo ducked low, swinging the chains with a practiced arc that whipped through the air with metallic fury. The first strikes tore across Gloxkir's limbs, but the creature was relentless, pushing forward with a guttural scream.
Memories of the Remnant's torture flared behind Kairo's eyes: the screams, the cold, the unending pain. But now, those memories fueled him instead of breaking him. Every swing of the chain was a release, every lash a defiance of what had been done to him.
I won't… I can't let this happen again. Not to me. Not to anyone… The thought burned inside him, reckless, raw. Rage and grief collided, each swing of the chain a scream he couldn't voice, a wound he couldn't heal. I am more than what they made me. I am more than my pain…
He leapt back, chains coiling in his hands, and in a single motion, hurled them forward. The links wrapped around Gloxkir's massive torso, constricting, rattling, clanging. The creature thrashed, trying to break free, but Kairo's grip was iron. With a roar that shook the arena, he pulled, swinging the chains like a hammer, smashing Gloxkir into the ground again and again.
The adrenaline made his emotions flare—rage, grief, and a burning need for justice—but it also blurred his control, leaving him almost trembling with power. His hair caught the arena lights, silver strands glinting with every furious motion.
I am not weak. I will not be broken. Not today. The thought consumed him, and for a heartbeat, the world narrowed to nothing but the chains, the monster, and the surge of life coursing through his veins.
Finally, with a scream that mixed fury and sorrow, Kairo pulled the chains tight around Gloxkir's neck. The monster's struggles slowed, the life draining from its eyes, and Kairo felt something break inside himself along with the creature's final gasp. He sank to one knee, chains slackening, chest heaving, face wet with sweat and tears he hadn't realized he was shedding.
From the shadows, Igron's eyes tracked every movement, silent, calculating, as if weighing what this newly unleashed Kairo could become.
The arena fell silent except for the sound of Kairo's ragged breathing. He looked down at the fallen Gloxkir, the chains in his hands now more a symbol than a weapon. Emotions still burned within him—anger, sorrow, maybe even hope—but he knew, deep down, the storm inside him was only beginning.