Kazuki staggered back, his breathing ragged as he steadied himself, Wraithblade glinting in his grip. The air between him and Daelan was heavy, charged with an intensity that felt like it could tear the world apart. They'd clashed again and again, each blow, each ability pushing them both closer to their limits, but neither was willing to back down.
Daelan, his expression dark and triumphant, took a slow, deliberate step forward, his aura pulsing with an unnatural power. "Kazuki," he sneered, his voice laced with grim satisfaction, "it's time for you to see just how insignificant you are."
Kazuki tightened his grip on his blade, eyes narrowed. "You're out of tricks, Daelan. You're barely holding on," he said, even though he could feel his own strength waning. Every strike, every spectral ability he'd summoned had drained him, but he wouldn't let Daelan see it. Not now.
Daelan's smirk deepened, his dark energy spiraling around him. "You think I've been holding back? No, Kazuki, I've only just begun." He raised his hands, and the ground trembled beneath them. Shadows coalesced around him, dense and solid, forming an arcane circle of swirling, inky blackness that extended beneath Kazuki's feet.
Kazuki felt an intense pull from below, like gravity itself had shifted, tugging him toward the center of Daelan's dark magic. He struggled to keep his footing, his muscles straining against the force. "What... what is this?"
Daelan's eyes gleamed with a ruthless determination. "A small demonstration of what the Void can do. You think fighting me on this realm has shown you my power? Then let's see how you fare somewhere else entirely." His voice grew louder, a dark resonance echoing through the air as he shouted, "VOID ASCENSION!"
In an instant, the shadows surged up around Kazuki, consuming him in a vortex of darkness. The ground, the sky, everything disappeared into a whirl of black as he felt himself lifted off the earth, weightless and helpless against the overwhelming force that held him. He struggled, reaching out with the Wraithblade, but it was like swinging in an empty void.
And then, just as suddenly, it all vanished.
Kazuki's body was yanked upward at an impossible speed, the air rushing past him, colder and thinner with each passing second. Stars began to appear around him, distant and shimmering as the familiar blue of the sky faded into the infinite blackness of space. His breath caught in his throat as he looked around, his heart pounding in his chest. He was... above the world, far beyond anything he'd ever known.
He gasped, the cold biting at his skin, the weightlessness disorienting him. But he couldn't dwell on it. He had to focus, had to find a way to keep himself from being lost to this endless void.
Daelan's voice echoed through the vast silence, carried to him as if it were a mere whisper in his mind. "Do you feel it, Kazuki? The insignificance, the emptiness? You're nothing here. Just another speck of dust in the vastness of space."
Kazuki's fingers tightened around the Wraithblade, his knuckles turning white. "Is this really all you've got, Daelan? Tossing me out here and hoping I'll just fade away?" He gritted his teeth, determination hardening his gaze. "You should know by now—I'm not that easy to get rid of."
He took a deep breath, the cold of the void biting into his lungs as he steadied his mind. Concentrating, he called upon the spectral energy within him, letting it surround him in a faint, ethereal glow that pushed back against the darkness. He could feel his body warming as the energy stabilized, a shield against the void that threatened to consume him.
Daelan's voice sneered in his mind again, taunting him. "Do you really think you can resist the emptiness of space? Even your abilities can't save you out here."
Kazuki clenched his jaw, focusing his energy as he willed himself to stay composed. "Maybe you should be more worried about what I can do with this 'emptiness,' Daelan," he muttered. Closing his eyes, he visualized himself anchoring to the spectral energy, letting it pulse with a steady rhythm that resonated with the heartbeat of his very soul.
Suddenly, his eyes flew open, a fierce light burning within them. "PHANTOM STRIDE!" he shouted, the words reverberating through the void as his body shifted, ghostlike, allowing him to propel himself forward through the emptiness of space. The spectral energy enveloped him, forming a thin barrier against the vacuum as he shot forward, toward the faint trace of energy he knew was Daelan's presence.
As he hurtled through space, he felt Daelan's presence growing stronger, a dark blot against the endless stars, pulsing with a hateful intensity. His mind sharpened with a singular purpose—to reach Daelan, to confront him, no matter the cost.
And then he saw him.
Daelan was suspended in the void, a vortex of shadows surrounding him, his form dark and monstrous against the backdrop of stars. He looked up as Kazuki approached, his expression twisting into a sneer.
"You managed to survive the void?" he mocked. "Impressive, Kazuki. But all the energy in the world can't protect you out here."
Kazuki stopped a few meters away, his own aura blazing bright against the dark as he steadied himself. "I'm not here to be protected, Daelan. I'm here to end this." He raised the Wraithblade, the weapon gleaming with an unearthly light that pulsed with each beat of his heart.
Daelan chuckled, his voice cold and mocking. "Bold words. But let's see if you can back them up." He raised his hands, shadows curling around him as he called upon the power of the Void once more. "VOID CORRUPTION!"
A surge of dark energy rushed toward Kazuki, a relentless wave of shadows that threatened to consume him. Kazuki's eyes blazed with resolve as he swung his blade, slicing through the darkness with a fierce slash. "SPECTRAL JUDGMENT!"
The Wraithblade cleaved through the shadows, the spectral energy colliding with Daelan's attack in a clash of light and darkness. Sparks flew, energy crackling around them as the two forces met, neither one yielding.
Daelan's eyes narrowed, his expression growing more intense. "Still standing, I see. But for how long?"
Kazuki's breathing was ragged, but he held his ground. "Long enough to see you fall, Daelan." He gathered his remaining strength, focusing it into his blade as he prepared for one final attack. The Wraithblade shimmered, its light growing brighter as he summoned every ounce of power he had left.
But before he could strike, Daelan's form twisted, his dark energy morphing around him in a chaotic swirl. "You want to fight to the end?" he snarled, his voice filled with a deadly resolve. "Then let's end it here!"
Kazuki braced himself, watching as Daelan's form surged forward, a force of darkness that felt as vast as the universe itself. He met the attack head-on, his own energy blazing in defiance as he swung the Wraithblade with all his might.
Their clash echoed through the void, a final burst of light and darkness that filled the endless space around them.
And then, in the silence that followed, Kazuki felt his strength wane, his body growing heavy as the last remnants of his energy faded. But he held his ground, refusing to fall, his gaze fixed on Daelan, who was likewise weakened, his dark aura flickering like a dying flame.
In that moment, they were equals, two forces balanced on the edge of existence, each one refusing to yield.
Daelan's breathing was shallow, his voice barely a whisper. "It seems... we're evenly matched, Kazuki."
Kazuki managed a faint smile, his own voice strained but steady. "Maybe... but I'm not giving up. Not now. Not ever."
They stood there, locked in a silent standoff, their fates intertwined in the vast emptiness of space, neither one willing to take a single step back. The stars bore witness to their struggle, silent and eternal, as they fought on, refusing to surrender to the void.