The blue portal faded as Ruben found himself standing on the rooftop of a crumbling, half-abandoned building in the heart of the underground city. He blinked once, twice, adjusting to the dim light and the immediate sense of danger that clung to the air like a thick fog. Below him, the streets were a labyrinth of shadows and broken structures, the perfect setting for a battle that would leave no survivors.
A wicked grin spread across Ruben's face. He thrived in chaos. It was where he belonged, where he felt most alive.
"Finally," he muttered to himself, cracking his knuckles. "Let's see what Ronen's best lapdog can do."
As if on cue, a figure emerged from the shadows across the rooftop. Leo.
Dressed in his usual sleek black outfit, Leo's wild eyes gleamed with a manic intensity, his lips curled into a smile that was more predatory than friendly. His bloodshot gaze locked onto Ruben, sizing him up like a hungry wolf deciding how to tear apart its prey. His entire presence radiated madness, the kind that made normal people flinch, but to Ruben, it was a challenge.
"You must be Ruben," Leo said with a low chuckle, walking closer. "I've heard about you. Shiro's little pet killer, right?"
Ruben let out a deranged laugh of his own, raising his hands in mock surrender. "Guilty as charged. But what about you? Ronen's favorite little psychopath? I heard you enjoy tearing people apart for fun."
Leo's grin widened. "Oh, I do. Especially people like you."
The tension between them crackled in the air, thick with an anticipation that bordered on excitement. Neither of them was particularly interested in any noble cause or allegiance. For Ruben and Leo, this fight wasn't about sides. It was about violence, about satisfying the insatiable hunger for chaos that burned within both of them.
The First Blow
Without warning, Leo lunged forward, his body moving with unnatural speed. His fist came at Ruben like a bullet, aimed right at his head. But Ruben was no slouch. He sidestepped just in time, twisting his body and delivering a brutal punch to Leo's ribs. The force of the blow sent a shockwave through the rooftop, cracking the concrete beneath them.
Leo grunted but didn't back down. Instead, his eyes lit up with even more madness. He relished the pain.
"Not bad," Leo snarled, wiping a trickle of blood from his lip. "But let's turn it up a notch, shall we?"
In an instant, Leo's body shimmered with a dark, malevolent energy. His fingers twitched, and Ruben felt the air around them grow heavy, as if the very atmosphere was warping under Leo's control.
Then, with a flick of his wrist, Leo unleashed a barrage of psychic force, invisible waves of energy that slammed into Ruben like a freight train. The impact knocked him back several feet, sending him crashing into a nearby vent with enough force to dent the metal.
Ruben groaned but quickly regained his footing, a twisted grin still plastered on his face. "Oh, that's more like it!"
With a savage roar, Ruben charged at Leo, his fists glowing with a faint, red energy. He swung wildly, each punch cracking the air with raw force. Leo dodged most of the blows with ease, his movements fluid and unpredictable. But when Ruben landed a hit, it was devastating.
Leo felt his jaw crack under the force of Ruben's punch, his head snapping to the side. Blood sprayed from his mouth, but instead of retreating, he laughed—a deep, guttural sound that sent chills through the air.
"You're a fun one," Leo spat, his voice laced with both pain and exhilaration. "But I've only just begun."
A Fight of Pure Instinct
The battle devolved into a whirlwind of fists, kicks, and energy blasts, the rooftop around them crumbling under the sheer force of their clash. Neither man fought with strategy or finesse. This was pure, unfiltered brutality. They were animals, driven by instinct, by the thrill of the fight.
Leo's psychic blasts tore through the rooftop, sending chunks of concrete flying in every direction. Ruben, on the other hand, fought with raw, physical power, his fists colliding with the ground, with walls, with Leo's body like sledgehammers.
The two of them were so evenly matched that neither could gain a true upper hand. Each time one of them landed a brutal hit, the other would retaliate with equal force, their bodies bloodied and bruised but neither willing to back down.
"You're insane!" Leo shouted, wiping a stream of blood from his brow as he dodged another of Ruben's vicious punches.
Ruben let out a crazed laugh, swinging again. "Takes one to know one!"
Leo's mind raced, his psychic energy flaring up again as he focused his power on Ruben's body. With a sudden surge, he lifted Ruben off the ground, suspending him in mid-air with nothing but his mind. For a moment, Leo felt a rush of satisfaction as he watched Ruben struggle, helpless in the grip of his psychic power.
But Ruben wasn't one to give in easily.
With a savage snarl, Ruben forced his way through the invisible bonds, his raw physical strength overpowering Leo's hold. He dropped to the ground, landing with a thunderous crash, and before Leo could react, Ruben was on him, delivering a bone-crushing punch to Leo's gut that sent him sprawling across the rooftop.
Leo coughed, struggling to catch his breath as he staggered to his feet. "You…you're tougher than I thought."
Ruben wiped the blood from his mouth, his grin never faltering. "And you're just as weak as I thought."
The Turning Point
Leo's eyes darkened at that. The wild grin faded from his face, replaced by something darker, more dangerous.
"You think I'm weak?" Leo hissed, his voice low and menacing. "I'll show you what weak looks like."
With a flick of his wrist, Leo unleashed his full psychic power, the air around him distorting and warping as waves of energy exploded from his body. Ruben felt the ground shift beneath him, the very earth bending to Leo's will as the force of his power ripped through the rooftop, tearing it apart piece by piece.
Ruben tried to push forward, but the sheer force of Leo's psychic attack was overwhelming. He could feel his bones creaking under the pressure, his body screaming in protest as he fought to stay on his feet.
But Ruben wasn't one to give up easily.
With a guttural roar, he pushed through the pain, forcing his way closer to Leo despite the crushing weight of his psychic power. His muscles bulged with effort, every step forward a battle against the force pressing down on him.
Leo's eyes widened in disbelief as Ruben broke through the psychic barrier, his fist slamming into Leo's face with a sickening crunch. The impact sent Leo flying backward, his body crashing through a crumbling wall and into the darkened depths of the building below.
For a moment, the rooftop was silent.
Ruben stood there, breathing heavily, his body trembling with the aftermath of the battle. He wiped the blood from his mouth and grinned down at the hole where Leo had disappeared.
"Still think I'm weak?" he muttered.
But before he could celebrate his victory, a faint, unsettling laughter echoed up from the darkness.