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Black Mentis and Megalodon drifted in a dead universe. There were no stars. Not even light around them. Their bodies hung in an endless black void. Their movements pushed faint ripples through nothingness. Blood floated in slow red spheres between them.
Megalodon wiped his nose with the back of his hand. Thick blood smeared across his fingers and drifted away in droplets. His lips pulled back, teeth red.
"Not bad, human. You have enough power to entertain me."
He spat. The blood left his mouth in slow droplets and hovered between them. He watched it float, then swept his arm outward at the empty darkness around them.
"Look around. We knocked ourselves into a dead universe. The Null Void."
He rolled his shoulders. Bones shifted under his skin. He cracked his neck once. The sound echoed through the emptiness like a dry snap.
Black Mentis floated opposite him. His aura burned around his body. Blue energy twisted tight against his armor. Purple lightning crawled over his shoulders and down his arms. His fists tightened. Small arcs jumped between his fingers.
"Good. Then I will go all out here. Even if this place collapses it will not take my universe with it. I will take you down, demon."
His aura surged. Energy slammed outward in waves. The void around him warped and buckled. Rings of distortion spread from his body. Purple lightning struck the empty space and rebounded across his back. His legs shifted into a fighting stance. His shoulders leaned forward. His eyes stayed locked on Megalodon.
Megalodon raised both fists. His knuckles flexed. Muscles tightened along his arms and back.
"Bring it."
He pulled his arm back. His body trembled from the force building inside him. Veins swelled across his forearm. Energy leaked through his skin in violent pulses. The darkness around him warped. A black hole opened behind his shoulder. Its pull dragged loose blood droplets and debris toward its center.
Space twisted. The pressure pushed both fighters apart for a second before snapping back.
Mentis rushed forward. His body burst with speed. The void cracked around him. Thin lines split the darkness as he closed the distance.
Megalodon swung his fist hard. His arm cut through the empty space. The motion pulled nearby blood droplets into a streak behind it.
Mentis ducked low. His shoulder dropped. The punch passed over his head. Air displaced from the swing hit his back and pushed him forward harder.
He drove his fist upward into Megalodon's chest. The impact exploded outward. Force equal to a big bang ripped through Megalodon's body. His ribs buckled inward. Black blood burst from his mouth in a heavy spray. His form glitched for a second. Pixels of his skin flickered and reformed.
The empty void shifted. Darkness deepened from gray to full black. Stars and light started to appear in scattered bursts. Points of white glowed briefly before fading.
The void shattered around them. Fragments of nothing tore apart. A violent pull dragged both bodies through a collapsing tunnel of sparks and torn energy.
They slammed into another dimension.
Energy storms ripped across the sky. Floating fragments of rock and broken planets drifted in every direction. Lightning crawled across shattered surfaces.
Megalodon hit first. His back scraped across a burning plane of solid energy. Sparks tore into his skin. His body spun and skidded for miles before stopping. He coughed hard. Thick black blood burst from his mouth and scattered into floating droplets.
Megalodon pushed himself up on one hand. His arm shook. Blood dripped from his chin. He held his stomach with his other arms.
"Impossible. I am immune to physical attacks. And yet this mortal..."
He wiped his mouth and stared at Mentis.
"His strength is comparable to some lower gods. His fists are birthing universes?"
His eyes stayed fixed on Mentis. His breathing slowed. His head tilted slightly as he studied him.
"Unless he is…"
His voice dropped. His jaw tightened.
"Oh. So that is how it is. The string connecting you. I understand why I was assigned this task."
Black Mentis frowned. His shoulders lowered slightly. His fingers flexed once.
"Why are you talking out of your ass. Speak louder."
Megalodon vanished.
The space where he stood folded inward. A burst of displaced energy struck Mentis' chest before the attack even landed.
Megalodon reappeared inches away.
His knee drove forward.
CRACK.
The strike slammed into Mentis' ribs. Armor buckled inward. A shockwave exploded outward and tore open the surrounding dimension. Energy fragments shattered around them. Blood forced from Mentis' mouth and sprayed across Megalodon's forearm.
Mentis' body folded around the impact. His arms dropped for a fraction of a second.
Megalodon's hand shot forward.
His fingers clamped over Mentis' face. His grip crushed against the helmet. Metal screamed under pressure.
He twisted his hips and spun.
Once.
Twice.
Dozens of rotations built speed. Mentis' body whipped around in widening circles. His legs trailed behind him. Blood flung outward in long arcs. The surrounding energy storms bent around the spinning motion.
Mentis' hands grabbed Megalodon's wrist. His fingers dug into flesh. Purple lightning burst from his palms and burned into Megalodon's arm. Skin split. Black blood streamed down their arms.
Megalodon roared. His grip tightened harder.
He planted one foot against a floating slab of a broken planet. The surface shattered under the force.
He hurled Mentis forward.
Mentis' body launched across the dimension. The air ignited around him. His back hit fragments of rock. Each collision snapped pieces apart.
BOOM.
CRACK.
SHHHH.
He tore through floating debris. Blood trailed behind him in a long ribbon. His armor scraped across a field of sharp crystalline structures. Pieces snapped and stabbed into his side before breaking loose.
Ahead of him loomed a massive planet. Its surface churned with storms. The gravity dragged him faster.
His body rotated uncontrollably. His arms spread wide as he tried to stabilize. Purple lightning burst from his shoulders in short violent flashes.
The planet filled his vision as he hurtled toward it.
Mentis fell like a comet—his body igniting into a burning spear.
The atmosphere screamed. Clouds split apart. Shockwaves raced ahead of him, detonating mountain ranges before he even reached the surface.
Then.
BOOOOOOOOOOM!
The impact erased an entire continent on contact.
The ground collapsed inward, terrain carved out like soft clay. A crater thousands of miles wide formed in an instant. Cities warped before they were destroyed, buildings bending toward the center, then dissolving under the heat and pressure.
The planet convulsed.
Tornadoes of molten lava erupted from the crust, ripping upward into the sky. The force rivaled thousands of nuclear detonations going off at once. Plates cracked. Oceans recoiled. The sky drowned in smoke, ash, and burning earth.
Megalodon descended through the chaos.
He landed with a thunderous crash, the ruined ground fracturing outward from his feet. Cracks raced across the surface for miles. His massive silhouette stood unmoved at the center of the devastation.
Black Mentis lay tangled in broken metal and pulverized concrete.
His breathing came out uneven. Blood streamed from his jaw, dripping onto the cracked ground below. His suit was torn open, armor plates shattered or missing. He coughed once, thick blood splattering against the stone.
Still, his eyes burned.
Megalodon stepped closer, boots crushing debris beneath each step. His grin widened.
"Hmm, Persistent, aren't you?" he said. "I'll give you that."
He tilted his head, studying him.
"But… look… at… you."
He gestured casually. "You're bleeding. Your body's giving out. And even with all that willpower…"
His eyes narrowed.
"Your power's slipping. You feel it, don't you?"
Mentis clenched his fists. His muscles twitched, struggling to respond.
Damn it…
His thoughts cut sharp despite the pain.
He's right. Why am I this weak? I should be stronger than this. What's wrong with my body?
Megalodon raised one hand.
Dark energy crawled across his arm like living shadows, coiling around his fingers, sinking into his skin.
"Rest now, puppet," he said calmly. "I'll deal with your master."
Mentis' vision blurred. The world doubled. His limbs shook, refusing full control.
But his mind stayed razor-sharp.
He spat blood onto the ground, wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, and grunted in annoyance.
"Will you…"
He exhaled through bloodstained teeth.
"…shuuuut the fuck up for a second?"
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