[Third Person's PoV]
Akane's eyes blazed pure white, the unnatural surge of mana radiating from her body like an uncontrollable storm. She stood motionless, unconscious of her actions, yet the power she unleashed warped the air around her. Her long, glowing blond hair whipped violently in every direction, as though caught in the fury of her own chaotic energy. The very earth beneath her began to tremble, cracks spider webbing outward from her feet, and the atmosphere shimmered under the immense pressure she exuded.
Suddenly, with a burst of speed, she vanished from sight and reappeared in front of Cid, her arm sweeping toward him in a massive arc. The sheer force of her movement caused the floor to quake, the air around them practically screaming from the strain.
Cid's reflexes were razor-sharp. He blocked her strike with his forearm, the impact so powerful it made the ground beneath them groan in protest. As the dust settled from the blow, Cid shot his palm forward, driving it into Akane's abdomen. The force sent her flying backward like a rag doll, her body crashing through the walls with such violence that they crumbled into debris around her.
As she soared through the air, her golden glow faded slightly, but from the shadows behind Cid, black tendrils of slime began to writhe. They slithered up his legs and over his body, enveloping him in his Shadow Outfit. With each pulse of energy, the transformation solidified, shadows weaving seamlessly into his form.
"You... you're him," a trembling voice rasped. Cid turned his head to see Yuuka, slumped on the ground with blood dripping from a gash on her forehead, her eyes wide with dawning realization. She stared at him in disbelief, the puzzle pieces of a hidden conspiracy finally falling into place.
Shadow's lips curled into a cold smirk. Without warning, he reached out, his hand closing around the air – and suddenly, Akane's wrist was caught in his grip as if she had been pulled from thin air. Before she could react, he hooked two fingers and drove them into her stomach with pinpoint precision. She gasped in pain, her body once again thrown across the room, but this time, Shadow disappeared in a blur of movement and reappeared in front of her before she could land.
Akane's body shimmered as she hurtled out of the crumbling building, her aura flaring even brighter. She managed to halt her flight, her feet digging into the earth, but the energy coursing through her refused to be contained. With a guttural scream, an explosion of mana erupted from her, obliterating everything in its path. The ground beneath her shattered, forming a massive crater, and arcs of lightning crackled from her body as the unstable energy lashed out wildly.
Shadow landed gracefully in front of her, a sword gleaming in his hand, his expression unreadable. Akane's mind was awash with grief, memories of every life she had taken, every ruin she had left in her wake crashing down upon her. Her body moved of its own accord, preparing to charge him once more, but tendrils of slime surged up from her shadow and ensnared her, wrapping tightly around her limbs and holding her in place.
she pleaded silently, the words trapped inside her. 'Please, kill me… I don't deserve to live' She could feel herself losing control again and didn't want to take another life.
Shadow strolled toward her with the calm detachment of a predator who had already won. Akane thrashed and roared, struggling against the chains that bound her, but they held firm. He raised his sword, his dark purple eyes fixed on her.
"Answer me honestly..." he began, his voice dripping with amusement. "Do you perhaps have a kidnapping fetish? I'm gone for a few hours and you're already captured… Again this is like what? The fourth? Five times now?"
Akane only screamed in response, her body unable to do anything else.
"Right, you can't answer right now," Shadow mused, raising an eyebrow. "Well, make sure to respond when you wake up." With a flick of his wrist, he bopped her on the head with the hilt of his sword.
Her glowing eyes rolled back, and her body fell limp, her golden hair returning to its natural black as her overwhelming energy finally faded. Shadow watched her for a moment, then sighed.
"Sweet dreams, Cha Hae-In."
---
Carrying Akane slung over his shoulder, Shadow stepped back into the ruined school. As he walked, the destruction behind him began to magically repair itself, the crumbled walls rising and the debris reforming into its original shape. His presence seemed to restore order where only chaos had reigned moments before.
His gaze fell upon Yuuka, still lying on the ground, her expression twisted in rage and disbelief.
"So, what now?" she spat, her voice thick with hatred. "Are you going to kill me too? Or is ruining my revenge enough for you?"
Shadow's lips twitched into a smirk. "Kill you? I honestly haven't decided yet. You did try to have me killed, but on the other hand…" He paused, as though considering. "I was never really in any danger. You can't kill me. I'm unkillable." He let out a small, frustrated groan. "Fatherhood Is making me soft. Normally, I wouldn't have hesitated to end this."
Yuuka scoffed bitterly. "Unkillable, huh? Do you think of yourself as some kind of god? Is that why you want this camp? So people can worship you, inflate your ego? Is that what this is about?"
Shadow chuckled softly, shaking his head. "A god? No, that's far too small a word for what I am." His response only deepened the disgust in Yuuka's eyes, her hatred burning even brighter.
Rolling his eyes, already bored with the conversation, Shadow waved a hand dismissively. "I could always just erase your memory. Make you forget all of this."
"No!" Yuuka cried, her voice breaking. "Don't you dare erase my memories! If you do, I'll forget him! I'll forget my husband! I'd rather die than lose that!" In a moment of desperate resolve, she pulled out a pistol from inside her coat and pressed it to her temple. Without a second thought, she pulled the trigger.
The gunshot echoed through the ruined hall, blood and brain matter splattering across the walls and floor.
Shadow sighed and snapped his fingers. In an instant, the blood disappeared, and Yuuka's body jolted upright, her eyes wide in confusion. "I... I'm alive?" She touched the side of her head where the bullet had gone through, finding nothing but dried blood. "How…?"
Shadow watched her with a small grin. "Welcome back to the land of the living."
Yuuka stared at him in awe, her voice trembling. "You… revived me. You really are a god…"
Shadow sighed. "Weren't you listening? I said I was more than that." He was about to continue when Yuuka prostrated herself before him, her forehead touching the floor as she sobbed.
"Please, God! Bring back my husband! I'll atone for everything! I'll do whatever it takes—just bring him back!"
Shadow gazed down at her, her figure shaking with grief. He let out a long breath, glancing skyward as if seeking answers himself. 'It seems it's not fatherhood that's made me soft,' he thought with a twinge of irony. 'It's being a husband. It's being a husband as well'
"Alright," he said finally, his voice resigned. "I'll bring him back. But you will be punished."
"Punish me however you want," Yuuka wept, "as long as I can be with him again."
Shadow stared at her for a moment longer, then nodded. "So be it."