Before Bandy could completely lose himself to the tremble building inside his body, Drayke moved.
Not fast.
Instant.
A blur crossed the low-gravity air, and the next second Bandy's body folded inward as Drayke's fist buried itself into his stomach.
The impact didn't explode—it compressed, like the air itself had been punched out of existence.
Bandy's eyes went wide.
Before he could even gasp, another fist landed. Then another. And another.
A storm of blows.
No wasted movement. No overextension. Each strike perfectly placed—ribs, jaw, diaphragm, spine—Drayke's fists moved like they already knew where Bandy would be before he moved there.
Bandy was airborne.
Then slammed downward.
The ground of Marsh cracked inward as his body hit, dust and debris floating slowly upward in the planet's weak gravity.
"BANDY!" Bandri shouted.
Water Beauty reacted first. She thrust her hands forward, liquid spiraling out of the air itself, forming a rushing barrier between Drayke and Bandy.
The water twisted, sharpened, condensed—aimed to bind.
Drayke didn't even look impressed.
The water warped mid-air.
Drayke immediately broke the barrier.
The flow twisted sideways as if gravity itself had shifted, slamming Water Beauty off her feet as the redirected force sent her skidding across the surface.
Clementess raised both arms, light flaring around her like a halo, her ability stabilizing the environment around the team—anchors of force pushing against the planet's low gravity to help everyone stay grounded.
"Villain!" she shouted. "Hope you get destr—"
Drayke appeared beside her.
Her sentence never finished.
Bear was already moving.
The sound came before the hit.
A deep, sharp crack echoed as Bear's kick connected squarely with Drayke's side.
The impact sent shockwaves rippling through the air, and Drayke was launched backward, skidding across the surface for dozens of meters.
Bear landed, feet digging into the ground, shoulders relaxed.
"…Finally," Bear muttered, sipping his apple juice through the helmet's internal straw.
"Someone solid."
Drayke stood up slowly.
"You have been getting thrown here and there by the way,"
No visible damage.
Just a faint roll of his shoulder.
Tuka was already charging.
No powers.
No tricks.
Just raw strength and will.
He leapt, muscles screaming against the planet's resistance, fist pulled back with everything he had.
Drayke turned.
Caught Tuka's punch.
Bare-handed.
The shockwave still exploded outward, knocking Peppy and Clementess back several steps, but Drayke didn't budge.
Tuka's arm trembled.
Drayke leaned closer. "Determination," he said calmly. "How Pathetic."
Then he headbutted Tuka.
Tuka crashed into the ground, sliding across dust and broken stone.
"ENOUGH!"
Peppy rushed forward, body expanding slightly as her strength surged, her expression a mix of fear and rage.
She swung with everything she had.
Drayke ducked.
Chitki's voice cut through all of it.
"STOP MOVING RANDOMLY."
The helmets crackled.
"Listen. All of you. NOW."
Everyone froze—some mid-breath, some mid-pain.
Chitki stood back, suit cracked, visor fractured, but her eyes were sharp.
"He's not faster than us."
"He's earlier than us."
Bear tilted his head. "...I think you lost your mind."
"He's warping air pressure and directional flow," Chitki continued ignoring Bear.
"He's deciding where force exists before we apply it."
Water Beauty pushed herself up. "So… every attack gets redirected?"
"Unless it overlaps."
Bandy understood instantly. "Multiple vectors."
"Exactly," Chitki said.
"He can't bend everything at once if the forces conflict."
Drayke watched them.
Hands in his pockets.
Bored.
"Peppy, Water Beauty—flood the area. Wide spread."
"Clementess, recover your voice till you can use again."
"Bear—don't hit him."
Bear paused. "…What?"
"Threaten space. Not him."
Bear grinned. "Now I seriously think there is something wrong with you."
Tuka pushed himself up, blood floating from his lip. "And me?"
"You're the anchor," Chitki said.
"You don't stop moving."
Bandy groaned, forcing himself to stand.
"Bandy… don't release everything," Chitki added softly.
"Just shake him."
The water surged.
The ground stabilized.
The air pressure twisted in conflicting directions.
Drayke took a fighting stance.
"…Interesting," he said.
Then he stepped forward anyway.
And the real fight began.