Katie drew her sword along the ground, sprinting at speeds unprecedented—black strands hiding her white face. After closing enough distance, she attempted slashing upward at his skull. Icarus smirked, using his raised wrist to block the imminent stroke, just widening his eyes as he noticed that redness entered his peripheral vision. He slammed himself forward, throwing his leg ahead and watching her jump following the shockwave.
He struck the air with his fist, sending an invisible blade to spark against her sword. Tossed again following her deflection of such a powerful attack, the Source stumbled away, watching Icarus run toward her. She inexplicably vanished, instantly reappearing behind her foe and slicing his shoulder. Despite the wound he'd sustained from her Blade, more attacks came flying her way in the form of numerous fireballs.
Naturally, she retreated, quickly replaced by the Grim Reaper spirit manifesting behind her to block the incoming flames. Hiding behind it with her sword nearly sheathed, Katie witnessed Ace land before her.
"Did you manage to see anything?" she asked.
"I did. Right now, he has both Azazel and Rivers' Vita signatures swirling around within him. Theoretically, he should be able to use Requiem techniques," he relayed.
She glanced over Death's arm, witnessing the fire relentlessly crash onto the spirit's bulky front. Icarus remained idle, allowing the gateways colored light blue to spew endless amounts of flame onto the deathly familiar.
"He's just standing still," Katie said, turning back to her cousin and shrugging her shoulders.
Ace placed a finger on his chin. "That's odd..." Removing the appendage from his jaw, he looked down at her. "I still have some of the old man's techniques engraved into my body. If I channel some of that and use a pact to utilize both Eternal Sight and Divergence simultaneously, we could finally get the chance to beat him," he said.
Katie's eyes widened; furrowed brows displayed her irritation.
"Don't you remember what happened last time you did that? You almost lost your humanity!"
"I know. I don't want to do it either but—but this is the end," Ace uttered, averting his gaze from her.
"No, it's not! We can still win this, I know we can! You're the one who taught me that, remember?! You're the one who gave me hope… when I was drowning in despair. It can't… I CAN'T… I can't end like this!"
As Kate tearfully pleaded for their lives to persist into the future, Ace's gaze reflecting her saddened face softened. His hands slid over her shoulders, bringing her close and tightly embracing her. The wetness pouring from her eyes leaked onto his white hoodie as she held her cousin close.
"Is your pathetic little moment over now?!" Icarus yelled, dispelling the two from their embrace, causing the Deathly spirit to slowly fade.
Ace glared through his whitened highlights, spotting the anticipatory grin painted over Icarus's lips. "Why're you staying still? You planning somethin'?!" he cried back at him.
"Perhaps. But you know how it is, I'm sure. Ones of Inheritance like us… are nothing but con artists."
The moment he said that two doorways shattering the barrier of space appeared—hovering at his head's sides. On command, demons with exposed brains and red eyeballs along the wings spat from within those gateways. Ace and Katie reacted differently but moved instantaneously. The two demons unhinged their jaws, hurling out balls of hellfire toward the cousins.
Ace zipped away, shocking the air around him as red lightning enveloped the area; sliding around the platform while his eyes radiated a crimson shine. Watching the ground explode before him, the levitating monster extended its palm, erupting miniature beams of corrupted hellfire toward its scarlet opponent. Unfortunately for the beast, that task was easier said than done, for every attack it threw, Ace had been rapidly vanishing across the vast ground.
Leaping right into the air in front of it, extending all limbs, Ace watched its claws slash at his exposed face. Mere moments before the sharpness mutilating his features, the ginger moved swiftly. He threw his leg forward, easily beheading the multi-eyed demon in one fell swoop.
Katie didn't waver. Instead, she kept running in a straight line and just watched as the hellfire came flying toward her. Without breaking a sweat, she easily deflected the beams with her Blade—all that remained was to slaughter it.
Before she even could, though, the demon spontaneously detonated, scattering guts and innards every which way. Widening her eyes, she jumped back, watching the sight of the Jester dart forward and slam his fist into where she formerly stood. The more she swiftly retreated with fleeing hops, the more Icarus punched into the ground.
Eventually, she got tired of fleeing and flipped backward into the air, unleashing multiple projectiles from her misty Blackened Blade. Icarus easily swatted them away, widening his eyes just in time to duck—luckily dodging the lunging kick Ace threw his way from behind his swordswoman cousin. He instantly recovered, shooting upright just in time to spin around and feel Katie's foot slam against his right cheek.
Momentarily soaring upward, Icarus giggled, watching through hazy vision as she vanished from the ground only to reappear above him. Gripping her sword with both hands, she slammed it onto his skull and watched him crash right back against the roof's platform. Ace sped right past him, grabbing at his ankle before bypassing him completely and then hurling him into a nearby pillar.
Katie landed beside him. "Doin' good?" she asked.
"I think so. Just keep piling on attacks and something good's sure to come out of it," he assured.
"Gotcha!"
She ran ahead once more, watching Chrollo recover from his placement within the column. He glared ahead despite the blood leaking from his face; blackened strands rocking in front of his eyes. The second the tip of the Blade punctured the idle pillar, Icarus had vanished, now balanced atop the lengthened steel. Widely grinning at his black-haired foe, he sprinted along with the sword and jumped once she pulled her weapon back.
Icarus landed behind her, pulled her over his shoulder, and slammed her onto the concrete platform. She recovered onto her feet, lifting the Blade to block his kick; dismissing their blows' clash. The Jester stepped back, watching her advance and noticing the rapid slashes thrown his way. Despite his affinity for regenerating constantly, depending on it alone would undoubtedly waste the remnants of his Vita.
Summoning a recently-stolen technique, tomahawks appeared from his palms, fingers tightening over the handles. Throwing the axes whenever her sword sliced his way; the metal engraved into each of their weapons' edges occasionally met—releasing sparks. Her sword scraped his cheek, his axes cut her arms.
Spinning their artillery around at unfathomable speeds, the frequent collision their swords made sent vibrations through the entirety of the Tower. The very ground below them shook, even beginning to explode from the pressure as projectiles released from the sharpness. Venous bleeding coursing down her exposed limbs, Katie unclenched her jaw, rage blinding her eyes.
"RAGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!"
The two of them screamed in unison, cries echoing into space's endless depths while exchanging blows at mock-lightspeed. Excluded from this gory battle, Ace watched with Eternal Sight's markings engraved into his pupils.
"Looks like it's about my turn…"
He fell from the pillar, descending from the heavens to land against the rumbling roof, still watching the ongoing fight produce limitless detonations. In due time, the Source's movements slowed. The Jester noticed more openings and he didn't falter. Feeling the hatchets vanish from his grip, he struck at her with open palms, to which the Source spat out blood with widened eyes—feeling his hand slam into her bust.
His knuckles sunk into her cheek, nearly sending her off the Tower, watching as she rolled toward the edge.
Before losing consciousness completely, dangling near the roof's verge, Kate uttered one phrase with her last ounce of remaining strength.
"Beat him… Ace…"
Icarus felt his plentiful wounds heal instantaneously. After the scars spread over his arms vanished with time, his long-haired head turned toward the final foe, watching his red hair move with the wind. Throwing the jacket over his hoodie aside for it to fall into the atmosphere, the Scarlet King glared at the Jester; aura contorting erratically.
"Katie could've taken me all on her own, she's done it before. Yet, I beat her. Why is that?" Icarus questioned, grinning at him.
Ace stepped forward, allowing the snowiness of his hair to conceal his skin's complexion. Lifting his hand, he cracked his thumb with his pointer. "Shut up," he said.
Icarus smiled; trench coat moving with his black hair while gazing at his ginger foe. He shrugged his shoulders, aiming his finger ahead.
"Whatever you say, King~"
Summoning the extent of his father's remaining power carved left within him, Ace aimed the same finger ahead.
Seconds before the final fight between the Jester King of Relty and Riot's Scarlet King began, the ground behind the long-haired Chrollo had crumbled. Turning around completely, he witnessed the sight of Alex's body soar within the Tower and slam right back down into the platform's center.
In due time, Jason and Kima appeared, too. Though their lips moved, the sounds of their voices were too distant for them to hear anything, leaving Icarus with a curious expression. Emerging from the smoke cloud with interlocked hands, Alex invoked that legendary technique and yanked his attackers into his soul's domain.
"Territory Envelopment: Unlimited Judgment."
Next Chapter: Necessary evils collide in a final duel that will spell out the fate of not only the New World but all others beyond it.