**********************************************
Nourtuck, The Crimson Arena, Time: 3:25 PM
**********************************************
Koras stood amidst the aftermath of the attack, and Ezra lay on the ground with a burned-shaped hole in his stomach.
"So, who's next?" Koras crossed his arms. "Because I might start swinging at ya if any of you don't step up." He looked at James and Mianne, who were still processing the shocking turn of events.
Fear filled Mianne's eyes, but when she turned to James, she saw he was visibly shaking. She thought he was trembling in fear, but it turned out to be something else.
"You damn shit stain of a scum..."
Mianne thought he was shaking in fear, but it was something else. "Uh oh..." Mianne back away for a bit.
"I WILL MAKE YOUR HEAD HANG BY YOUR DAMN ARMS." James threatened, surprising Koras.
"Woah... did your mother kiss you with that-"
"HAAAARRRRGH!"
Koras was cut off by James' rage as he almost couldn't defend himself from the assault. "Your rage is off the meter, kid, but it can't beat me!" Koras was about to hit him with a right hook, but his fist went through an afterimage.
"Afterimage?!" Koras couldn't believe it as James appeared behind him, hitting him with a powerful slash.
"Eye of the Sun!" James' halberd flared up more intensely than before. Koras couldn't block the attack and was slammed into the wall.
"Relentless Shine!!!" James rapidly stabbed Koras with his halberd, the tip burning with fire. Koras couldn't believe what was happening. First, he was winning, and now he was losing to a kid with a temper.
"Are ya done-" He was cut off again as James continued to ruthlessly beat down Koras. Mianne took this opportunity to take Ezra away so he wouldn't get caught in the crossfire.
"Guérison." Ezra was covered in a green aura as he slowly recovered.
"Alright, enough of this." Koras had had enough as he finally powered through the assault, tackling James to the ground.
"Turbulence Overdrive!" Koras punched James in the head. "Turbulence Overdrive!" He tried again, but James got the upper hand and caught the fist.
"FUCK YOU!" James twisted his fist, causing Koras to release his grip and allowing James to break free.
As the battle reached its zenith, both combatants took a momentary step back, assessing each other with a mixture of respect and determination. The room was charged with tension, and the fate of the confrontation hung in the balance.
Both of them assumed a stance, glaring at each other like hawks. "Kiddos, you know you have impressed me so far. It's a shame that we couldn't work out a deal with you," Koras smirked, while James clenched his fist.
"You can try to sway with me all you want because behind that skin is a dead man!" James stated, causing Koras to chuckle.
"Oh, please, you don't know the extent of how many dead men I have killed." Koras's body was surrounded by an orange aura.
Koras lunged at him, preparing to attack. "Time's up, kid!" James tried to swing his halberd at him, but Koras leaped up, readying his attack.
"Destructive Magma Storm!" He kicked James in the face before delivering more and more kicks, his feet starting to glow more orange.
"Your little boost can't save you now, Ahahaha!" Koras laughed as he continued his assault, but an ice arrow pierced his shoulder.
Ezra stood from the other side of the arena, panting with most of his injuries that weren't fully healing. "Leave that boy alone..."
Koras turned to him, his bloodshot eyes filled with absolute rage. "STOP IT!" James yelled as he ran at Koras as fast as he could to save Ezra. James grabbed Koras' foot, slamming him down to the arena floor.
"Damn, brats!" Koras spun himself to punch James right in the jaw, quickly getting up on his feet before being tackled by James.
"I won't let you hurt him!" James held him by his arm as Koras knelt on his stomach.
"Let. Me. Go. You. Brats!"
Meanwhile, James and Koras continued to clash with each other, trading blow after blow, and blood was spilling. From afar, Ace watched the intense battle and began questioning himself.
"Have I ever been useful at all?" he said to himself as he saw the two fighters locked in combat.
"What have I ever done that was useful to anyone?" Ace clenched his head in stress, tears streaming down his face as he looked at the ground.
"Maybe he's right. If I hadn't been so... weak," Ace fumbled his words as he punched the ground in frustration.
"If I hadn't been weak, I could've saved somebody!" He screamed at himself, feeling powerless to support them in their life-threatening struggle.
Blocking another attack to save them from an unavoidable death seemed impossible to him. He felt lost in his ability to contribute.
And then something reminded him of a situation long time ago...
**********************************************
Qumor, Oceanwell Town, 1 year and 6 months ago.
**********************************************
Exhausted, bleeding, and feeling like he had been dragged to hell multiple times, Ace couldn't stand up anymore. He was on his knees, his body on its very last leg, as he tried to catch his old enemies.
A sound of materialized can be heard as the man with his fancy footwear walked toward Ace, "Oh, what happened to your skill and critical thinking? You used to be way better than this,"
A male voice taunted as Ace looked up and saw his old enemies and the man he been looking for, Sugar.
"Don't you ever give me fucking advice, you damn murderer!" Ace retorted, trying to keep Sugar away from himself, Sugar could only frown at his attitude as the rain kept getting heavier.
"Jeez, I'm just worried and sad for you, man," Sugar replied with sympathy, clearly seeing Ace in a vulnerable state for the first time. He even offered a cig to smoke but Ace smacked it away.
"YOU?! WORRIED?! MY ASS! YOU KILLED EVERYONE OUT OF THE GODDAMN BLUE AND RAN AWAY! WHY SHOULD I BELIEVE SOMEONE WHO-"
"ENOUGH!" Ace was about to unleash his entire anger towards Sugar, but he was stopped by the latter, who looked at him with anger still in his eyes.
"I won't let you be like this, beating yourself up because he sacrificed himself for you and his friends," Sugar said, his face showing a frown as the rain began to get heavier.
"He did all this for you to live a normal life and protect the kingdom you loved so dear," Sugar stated, raising his voice more and more.
"I DON'T CARE ANYMORE! I'VE LOST EVERYTHING AND EVERYONE! EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. EVERYONE JUST LEAVES AND DISAPPEARS FROM MY LIFE FOREVER. I DON'T HAVE ANYTHING," Ace yelled, crying in the rain and banging his head on the stone path, Sugar's fist could curl up as his veins were showing.
"STOP IT!" Sugar yelled as he grabbed Ace's collar and lifted him to look him in the eye.
"WHO DO YOU THINK WILL BE SAD IF YOU WERE GONE? WOULD EZRA, JAMES, MIANNE, AND JULIA BE OKAY IF YOU WERE GONE ONE DAY?" Sugar yelled at the top of his lungs to make sure his words got through Ace's stubbornness.
"THEY WON'T! THEY WILL MISS YOU IF YOU ARE GONE! YOUR LIFE MEANS SO MUCH TO THEM!" Sugar continued, visibly shaking from yelling so much.
"I-I have them... My own family..." Ace started to understand. His family needed him, his friends needed him, he looked at his own hands, remembering the memory of them.
He helped James with his power, He helped Ezra socialize more with people, and he helped Mianne overcome her own fears.
"Please, don't let his sacrifice be in vain," Sugar said, taking a deep breath.
"Keep your chin up, Ace." Sugar said, starting to smile.
"Huh?" Ace was confused, wondering why Sugar was smiling.
"You need to be their guardian angel, a knight in radiant armor who shall never fall ever," Sugar said, putting his hand on Ace's shoulder.
"Be the Radiant Knight, who swore to protect everyone."
**********************************************