{Rukius's POV}
{45 minutes earlier}
The chuckling of Ken and Martha sounded more annoying the more I heard it, almost as if it were a broken record on replay. I had grown more distant ever since I enlisted in the task force as I felt a sudden weight of responsibility that rested on my shoulders. I had never been the type to feel responsible or serious about anything in my entire life due to the fact that I always believed that nothing was worth my time.
But here I was, in a humvee full of people I didn't even know up until last month, about to risk my life fighting against monsters without reason.
It all felt strange and new to me even as I pondered deeply on the facts. Maybe the Z fluid had some adverse effects on my mental state, maybe I just finally accepted reality, maybe I lost a part of myself that I would regret letting go of.
I stared out the window, towards the dry bare soil that spanned for hectares upon hectares, absent of plants or any life forms. We had been traveling for days and the only thing that we had made contact with were negrons and I was starting to believe that those were the only life forms that existed in this desolate planet.
'There has to be some advanced race coordinating the attacks of those negrons' I thought, glazing over the probability in my mind.
Martha was muttering about something happily and although I paid very little attention to it, I could make out a little of what she was saying. It was something about the space-time continuum that Nezro had talked about once back in college when I asked him about an assignment. I later researched the theory and became invested after a while.
I immediately felt that sharing insight on it might help elevate my mood but tried repressing the thought, until Joan started paying attention to what Martha was saying.
'This is my chance to impress her!'
"That's also why time flows different across separate places on earth. Slightly faster at the equator because of weak gravitational force and a tiny bit slower at the poles because of the decrease in the Earth's gravitational speed, right?" I concluded, staring at my open palms, then at Martha.
I watched as everyone's eyes darted towards me in amazement, I too was surprised by myself. I had kept the knowledge of that singular theory even after college.
"Wow rukius, I never took you for a nerd" Ken snickered, holding back a laugh.
"Shut up ken, I just heard my roommate talk about it a number of times when he did an essay on it back in college" I tried defending my pride, shifting my attention back to rocky terrain.
"So you aren't a nerd then, my bad"
Ken always found a way to get a joke out of every statement he made and I wasn't annoyed by it, however, the fact that Joan had laughed to almost every of his jokes made me infuriated and slightly jealous. This was a side of me I detested and didn't want Joan to know about, so I just averted my gaze from her look.
The nauseating feeling I got when something similar to the negrons was approaching began to appear. I looked out of the vehicle as it jerked repeatedly but couldn't find anything that matched the feeling I got, at least not until it approached us from the woods.
There was this dark hazy feeling I got, each time it took a step, it's fully clad body armor shimmering in the sunset. He was in every way a nemesis to humanity -the persona of evil itself.
He spoke a few words before going into battle with the commander and for the next fifteen minutes as they battled, I could already tell of the commander's defeat like the weather on a sunny day. As the commander laid on the wreckage of our vehicle incapacitated from launching his best attack, I could guess that it was going to attack us in hopes of finishing us off easily and completing it's task.
'Why do I get this feeling that I should step in even though I know I wouldn't last a minute again this entity?' was the thought that crossed my mind when it dashed forward towards Ken.
I responded almost immediately without a second thought, catching it's kick with relative ease.
My overwhelming urge to protect and participate in eradicating this otherworldly force, trying to threaten our survival got a better of me, as I put my own safety on the line for the benefit of someone I despised.
'Well, if I'm gonna do this, I might as well flex the moment as usual!'
*****
{Presently}
"Not so fast, it's my turn to tap in" I offered, shivering slightly from the impact of its kick.
"Another fry makes it's appearance" The entity sneered, rescinding in disappointment.
I could hear the thumping of my heart reach my ears, but I remained composed so as to not show weakness in front of the mysterious being that stood in front of me.
"Well don't just stand there, come at me." it beckoned to me impatiently.
'Luring me into making the first attack isn't going to work on me'
"Why, you're scared?" I asked, trying to pry on its mind, in hopes of a reaction.
"Huh?"
"That's right, are you scared that if I don't attack you first you might lose?" I pried deeper.
"Hahaha.... You think that awful ploy would get me agitated??. Whether I attack or you do, it's all going to end with your loss, human!" It barked, laughing instead of blowing up in anger.
BAM!!
The look of shock when I blocked it's attack was proof enough that it hadn't expected me to be aware of it's presence.
I had been watching it's fight for a while and I could already see a pattern in his instant transportation technique. I pulled it's hand toward myself and returned the attack with a heavy strike using my elbow.
It moved back instantly in a frantic manner, shock written all over it's face. I felt like I was a step ahead of it and was feeling my edge coming back.
"Well that was unexpected" it murmured, twisting it's fingers for a stretch.
'Of course it was, I just reciprocated your best attack with my own counterattack that you couldn't predict'
I leaped forward towards it, eyes blazing and confidence overflowing, I wasn't going to give it a chance to find it's repose. Every kick and strike it tried to land, I anticipated and responded with an unpredictable counter attack that always landed.
Carefully examining various factors in battle was my forte as I had invested most of my adolescence and teenage age playing games and battle Royales. I had a top notch mind for combat and didn't even need to use my ability for the first five minutes, it was fascinating.
"What happened to all that confidence, can't even land a single hit now. How laughable!" I spat, feeling a surge of dopamine cloud my mind and body.
I was going to taunt it, till it lost all its composure and attacked me in mindless rage, but unsurprisingly it wasn't working.
He was simply analyzing all its failed attempts in silence, as if trying to figure out a way to better his attack. It was a very deadly approach any formidable opponent could take and I wasn't going to buy him enough time to do that.
'I guess I'll be using my ability then' The suggestion eluded my mind.
I pictured the flames ignite in my mind and watched as it grew rapidly in my palms, energy flowing throughout my body as I felt it burn harshly. The feeling I got whenever I used my ability was always refreshing and it made me feel superior to everyone around me.
The burning bright red flames, emanating from my entire palm illuminated the growing darkness of the night until all that could be seen within ten feet was it's brightness.
I clapped both palms together, sending a burst of radiant energy towards my opponent at top speed which he dodged instantly with his teleportation technique. His moves were not only predictable but dull, as he did everything in his power to evade my attacks. I repeated the attacks hoping to corner him but he resisted, dashing backwards in caution.
"What a wonderful ability, I must say you are a feisty challenger. So I'll do you a favor and fight for real." It spoke, sounding like it had the upper hand all along.
He dragged the space in front of us as I watched it disappear like it had never existed there, pulling me closer towards him in an instant. He had completely erased space and although it appeared unbelievable, the fact that I was right in front of him was proof enough.
WHAMM!!
The momentum of his resulting strike doubled as it hit me in my chest, pushing me to the ground a few metres away from him. I finally understood why he remained persistent in his attacks even though they proved to be futile. It was so he could come up with a sequence of attacks that I was new to.
'Sly bastard!'
Although what it had done was similar with his instant teleportation, they were not the same concepts.
It's teleportation allowed it control only it's movements and not that of its opponent, appearing advantageous for both attack and defense.
But what it pulled off just now, gave him total control over the battlefield as he could now control both his movements and my positioning; a nigh-godly attacking strategy that I couldn't evade.
"You could react to the attacks you had seen over and over again but what happens when you can't predict your own positioning?"
It was right, it wasn't the fact that he used a new technique that disoriented me but rather, the pacing he used in landing the attack. This was beginning to turn into a battle of brains and I couldn't hold back my excitement.
"Let's go all out till one of us drops, human!!!".It screamed in excitement, stealing the words from my mouth.