Balance. Not too much, not too little.
It was something Hitryel was getting unfamiliar with as the number of days he killed increased. But the last thing he'd want in the middle of a fight was to get reminded of those grueling lessons hammered into him—or least attempted to—by the Purewater Dojo Master Emerton.
His fight against Davith would've ended, only if Hitryel did not let his focus on his opponent cross over the thin line of balance.
Hitryel could not turn the lethal blow against the two meddling men who appeared out of nowhere. He could only let his Flow calm and expand their distance. All this because he'd focused TOO much on his opponent.
Davith grinned from behind the backs of the two individuals that just rescued him from going down. Judging by his smoking smile, it was easy to link the three men standing in front of Hitryel.
'Now this is something I haven't done in a while.' He was pumped to fight multiple opponents at once. The ABC just did not allow it and he never understood why. If entertainment was its sole purpose, then it was kinda obliged to give its audience more than just simple one-versus-one matchups.
Regardless, Hitryel did not let his focus dip too far, instead bringing it back to the three men ahead: the blond one, the one with a knife, and Davith.
"I can't believe he's giving you such a hard time," the blond one said to Davith. "He's just a professional brawler, how strong could he be?"
The one holding a knife to the front licked his bottom lip. "I guess we're about to find out."
"I'll be the one taking him down," Davith claimed boldly, then began filling up his cheeks—in preparation for another of those purple fireballs he could spit.
Hitryel smiled demonically. "You can only try."
###
To Ryuzio's surprise, Baru had forced their fight into close combat. He was much proactive now, starting exchanges without using his balloon punch.
Ryuzio would've been okay with it, if it wasn't for the fact that now he was getting impatient to hit the opposing Volant with his new—non-mastered but awesome—punch.
Baru kicked Ryuzio in his stomach. "You think this is enough to get away from me?"
Ryuzio shielded his stomach with his forearms but got pushed back in doing so. "I'm not trying to get away from you!"
Baru rushed, pulling back an inflated fist, finally using his balloon powers. "So what is it that you're trying to do here? You're just wasting both our time!"
Ryuzio enforced his arms with his blazing Ether, only using enough to still keep plenty for the punch he was so excited to throw. "I'm trying to beat you! And just watch me, I'm gonna do it!" He pushed his forearms against the inflated fist, colorful spheres of light flying out—
The lack of Ether going down to his legs forced him back, throwing him against a dumpster.
"Now stay there," Baru said, hand deflating. "That's where you belong."
Ryuzio gritted his teeth as he jumped back onto his feet. "You're wrong!"
The pink-haired girl watched from behind Baru, her expressions hidden beneath her face mask, making it hard to tell why she was overlooking this fight so carefully.
"So where do you think you belong, you brat?" Baru asked with an annoyed frown.
Ryuzio simply pointed toward the stars, walking closer to Baru. "The Skies."
Baru chuckled, bending a bit backward. "Ha! That got me."
Ryuzio's lips were in a line.
"You serious?" Baru said, genuinely baffled. "Do you even know what's up there? Do you know anything about Etherbeasts, Shrines, the Ultima Labyrinth, or even just Ether and Psio?"
"No," Ryuzio said simply. "But I do know that I'm tough as a dragon. And that's why I belong to the Skies."
"What the fluck are you even talking about now?" Baru growled with a dark grimace. "Let me tell you that the Skies ain't no children's playground where things like that are enough to impress the ones around. It's a place where only the strongest survive. And the ones who fail to keep up…get their wings cut forever."
"That won't happen to me," Ryuzio said, fixing his headband, "because I have no wings to begin with."
Baru's eyes widened, sweat on his forehead. "Those are…" Was the Volant remembering something?
"But no matter what," Ryuzio said, taking his Bullet stance, now that the distance was perfect, "with or without wings, I'm still gonna be the Sky King!"
Baru did not laugh. He continued to give that discolored expression, blinking at abnormal intervals. But then he snapped. "Take back those words! You're nothing but a brat!"
Ryuzio flared his Ether, eyebrows coming together. "And you're nothing but a punching bag that hits back."
Baru's jaw loosened. "E-Eh…?"
"Honestly that does it," the pink-haired girl said, looking at Ryuzio from over Baru's shoulder. "Let's team up."
"Heh?" Ryuzio said, confused. "But you're Balloonru's squadmate—"
"What the fluck did you just say, girl?" Baru said, turning away to face the masked girl. "You do know what'll happen to you if you do that, eh?"
She shrugged with closed eyes. "Maybe."
"You flucking witch!" Baru clenched a fist, walking toward her. "You think I'll let any of my subordinates get away so easily?"
She stayed relaxed. "Subordinate?" she asked with a light snort. "We were just in a little alliance. Not to mention that in these two weeks after we made our deal, I've helped you and your little goon-squad more than your ability to…'pay back.' This is the end of our deal, Baru. Accept it and move on."
Baru started to pace toward her faster. "You can't decide that all on your own—!" He stopped, though Ryuzio was unsure why.
The pink-haired girl's cheeks lifted, probably because there was a smile underneath her mask, as she pointed behind Baru. "Look out."
Baru turned sharply, only to be faced by Ryuzio, who focused all of his remaining Ether into his right hand. "This time it's easy to see that you're going to throw that punch and not attempt some other weird move."
"Of course I'm going to punch you!" Ryuzio said loudly. "That's how I'll beat you!"
Baru put both his palms to the front, the Ether going to them strong. "That won't happen, kid. After I counter this punch, you'll run out of Ether. My right-hand man is probably toying with whoever was in front of you in that bike you were on. That means this is the end for you. I'll finally get that headband!"
"You can't decide that all on your own," Ryuzio said with a smile. "Besides, Hit is probably waiting for me to finish this up. As his captain, I can't let him down. So…"
###
The two meddling men lay on the ground, arms wrapped around their guts. They weren't strong in the slightest. Just a waste of effort.
Davith stood in front, panicking, not being able to use any of his purple flames. "How the fluck are you this strong?"
"That's how it's meant to be."
Davith threw a right hook—
Hitryel ducked, clenching his fists. His right fist was pulled to the side, while his left forearm was to his front, the knuckles pointing skyward.
He exhaled, pouring all of his Flow into his right fist.
Davith flinched under the pressure of the focused Flow, exposing his entire body. His eyes widened as they failed to follow the punch jetting straight to his chest.
He was finished.
'The fist pierces the range. Then it stops before contact.'
Hitryel held back his thrown fist from making contact with Davith's chest.
'Then it touches the target gently, as gently as a drop of water falling into a calm lake.'
Hitryel pushed the fist into Davith's chest just a fraction of a moment after stopping it.
'But just like it takes only a drop of water to disturb a calm lake…'
Hitryel's fist returned to his side, but the force it delivered spread outward, as if rippling throughout his opponent's body.
'But the drop will bounce back…creating…'
An explosive sound burst out from Davith's chest—and a massive explosion of the bubbles of light accompanied it—as if the punch has pierced through his body. The shock waves penetrated his defense, his eyes rolling back into his skull, his mouth loosening open. The force of the punch was so strong it created gusts that blew outward from Davith. Not having tried it in so long, even Hitryel was a little surprised by the impact of this blow. But any less would've been a shame. After all, it was…
"Ripple Bang!"
Davith flew back, crashing into the building on the other side of the road, his body digging deep inside the wall.
"Under these Skies," Hitryel said, relaxing his body, "losing is not a possibility. But I don't belong here." He looked at Davith's unconscious body falling off the imprint on the wall, flattening on the pavement. "If this is the level here, I think I'll become Unrivaled in no time."
Hitryel reflexively lowered himself as all the bubbles of light shot toward him at blinding speeds. "Huh?"
###
"Dragon Cloak!" The Scales erupting from Ryuzio's right shoulder—as if from the starmark underneath his jacket—spiraled down to his right fist, enforcing it with a spiky glove of Ether…
But this time, they united into three larger ones, stacking on top of each in front of his knuckles.
Baru had his palms stretched in front of him, waiting for a Dragon Bullet…
But he wouldn't be getting one.
Ryuzio threw his right fist, not aiming straight at Baru. It was finally time for a…
"Dragon Chase!"
Baru's eyes widened as Ryuzio's right Gauntlet extended out…not toward him, but to his left. Not only that…it was going downward. To the ground. "Was that too much Ether to handle, kid? Forgot to aim?"
Ryuzio smiled.
The pink-haired girl standing behind Baru reached for her head, her eyes widening. "No way…!"
Baru glanced over his shoulder. "Eh—?"
It was too late. The Dragon had already Chased him!
Dragon Chase was a Dragon Bullet where Ryuzio stacked three big Scales in front of his Gauntlet, so that when he shot the Bullet…it bounced off the surface it hit, burning a scar in the shape of a Scale as it did so. But with each surface it hit, his Bullet lost one Scale. That's why he came to this alley, and that's why he threw his Bullet to the ground beside Baru.
Baru had be hit where he wouldn't expect it.
The Bullet hit the ground, the Scale staying there to burn a scar. Then it bounced to the wall on Ryuzio's right, burning another scar, losing another Scale. Finally, it bounced all the way to the left wall, burning the final scar…
Before going straight for Baru's face—
Baru brought his forearm in the path of the Bullet…
But as it was…the Dragon had ALREADY Chased!
The fist-shaped extended Ether—Dragon Bullet—punched into Baru's face, flattening his nose, a great amount of multicolored light spheres bursting out from the impact.
The extended Ether faded into the air as hundreds of red wisps as each of Ryuzio's breaths started becoming deeper. He was all out of Ether. But he had done it.
He had beaten a tough Volant!