"Oh hell no, how are there three of you!" Kayda shouted, her tone sharp and carrying that edge of disbelief mixed with annoyance. Her eyes darted between us like she wasn't sure which one of me to attack first. Her brows knit together, wings twitching in irritation, and for once the magnificent red dragon didn't sound pleased.
I tilted my head slightly, more amused than concerned. "What's the problem?" I asked innocently, looking at all of us in turn, as if I too were trying to confirm what she was seeing. However, despite the presence of three bodies here, each of us had only one tail, including myself. Somehow that was reassuring. If all of us had sprouted extra tails, Kayda probably would have had a meltdown.
"Ah, we can actually be four," the clone to my left explained casually, almost smugly, shrugging like the loss wasn't anything worth making a fuss about. "But yeah, that one died right there in front of you, so you're only seeing three right now."
Kayda's eyes widened, her jaw tensing as she pointed a finger at me—or us. "F-four. You can make four of yourself?"
"Yeah, why?" I asked, blinking at her like she was the one being strange about this. "Is that a big deal or something?"
Her wings snapped tighter against her back, the leathery membrane rustling faintly. "Kitsuna, I will warn you right now…" She paused, narrowing her eyes dangerously. "If one of your clones does anything date-related—anything—I don't care what it is—you are dead. Do you hear me? Dead."
The weight of her words sent a shiver straight through me, my tail bristling without my permission. I wasn't sure if she was bluffing or not, but I wasn't about to test it. "Yes, yes, we understand," I said quickly. The other two of me chimed in at the exact same time, our voices overlapping in eerie harmony, making it sound like some weird choir.
Kayda squinted at us, but the way her cheeks flushed a faint pink gave her away. Still, she nodded firmly, satisfied with my obedience. "Good. Now we can continue."
"Ah, right," I muttered, trying not to sound too nervous. But at the same time, the itch to push her buttons was just too strong. With a sudden burst of energy, I lunged forward, my clones moving in step beside me.
"So what now?" One of the clones asked hesitantly, his tone lacking confidence.
"You guys can go," I said bluntly, swinging both my hands outward. Chains of glimmering frost and shadow coiled through the air, latching onto the clones.
"Ugh, fuck's sake, what a waste of mana," the first clone groaned, his body shifting before collapsing inward, reshaping into the jagged form of an ice axe.
"I must agree with that one," the second added dryly before changing as well, his figure warping into a heavy warhammer that clanged against the ground with a resounding weight.
"Shut it," I snapped at them both, tugging on the chained weapons as they rattled in my grip.
Kayda's sharp eyes followed every movement, her expression a mix of irritation and amusement. "I must agree with them, Kitsu. Making clones takes a lot of mana. That headache of yours isn't worth it."
"Yeah, yeah, I know that," I muttered, pulling the axe and warhammer closer to me with a sharp tug of the chains. My temples throbbed like someone was splitting my skull with a crowbar. "But I can't control them properly. This way's easier."
'It feels like my mind got split into four,' I thought grimly, wincing as the throbbing worsened. 'Scratch that—the mind does split into four.'
"Ah, I see," Kayda said coolly, her body suddenly moving in a blur. She jumped back effortlessly, dodging the whistling swing of the axe as it cut through the air, followed immediately by the hammer's brutal arc.
Bang!
The shockwave of her takeoff rattled the ground beneath me.
"I really hate it when you fight in the air," I grumbled, glaring upward as she flapped her wings and soared out of reach again.
"Haha, I won't be the last," she shot back, her voice carrying over the battlefield.
"No shit," I muttered. Crouching low, I launched myself after her with explosive force. Chains crackled, the axe spinning wildly toward her while I twirled the hammer above me, ready to strike.
"Oh damn," Kayda hissed, banking backward midair as the axe sliced past her.
"Hup!" I grunted, swinging the hammer. With perfect timing, I let it collide with the back of the axe's handle, sending it flying even faster toward her.
Her eyes widened as the axe's edge grazed her wing. "Damn, nice move," she admitted, but her smile faltered when she glanced at the weapon's blade and noticed that the tip was melting due to her heat.
"Tsk, you're using that now," I said through clenched teeth, annoyed as I yanked the weapons back to me and landed with a powerful thud on the ground.
"You didn't say I couldn't," Kayda replied with a maddening shrug.
"True. I did want you to use that," I admitted, letting the chains go slack. The weapons hit the ground with a dull clatter before dissolving back into mist. My hands shifted, energy coiling into a new shape.
Kayda noticed immediately, her smirk faltering. "Oh, really?"
Bang!
The shot rang out, the bullet grazing across her wing and leaving a scorch-marked line of blood.
"Ow, that hurts, Kitsu," she hissed, glaring down at me.
"Yeah? Then dodge it," I said flatly, holding the hand cannon steady, black lightning sparking across its surface.
"Tsk."
"Haha, now dance, you flying lizard!" I laughed, summoning a second hand cannon and opening fire. The air filled with thunderous cracks, sparks, and smoke as bullet after bullet screamed toward her.
"Shit, since when!?" Kayda yelped, rolling and swerving through the sky, her wings beating furiously as she tried to outmaneuver the onslaught.
"Class, baby! Rawr!" I shouted, leaping after her while still firing, cheeks heating in embarrassment at my slip-up.
"Haha, it came out again!" Katie's laughter rang from the sideline, her voice mocking.
Dong!
"Shut up, tomato girl!" I yelled, hurling a grenade against the barrier with enough force to make the ground quake.
Katie paled instantly, shrinking back. "Uh uh uh uh…" She shook her head, pale as paper, eyes wide like I'd just thrown it at her instead.
"Great—"
"Kitsu, hasn't your mother ever taught you not to take your eyes off your opponent?" Kayda's voice purred behind me.
A chill ran down my spine. Slowly, I looked over my shoulder, smirking. "Oh, Kayda, Kayda… You do know my mother, right?"
Her brow furrowed. "Huh? Yes?"
"Yeah, she would attack me in the middle of the night if she felt like it," I said, grin widening.
"She would!?" Kayda yelped, startled.
"Yeah~, and it seems you need that training as well," I said, my tail already tightening around her ankle.
Boom!
Her shriek of frustration echoed as she was slammed into the ground.
"Every time, Kayda," I taunted mockingly. "When will you—ugh—learn?"
Before I could finish, a blazing kick caught me across the chest, launching me back.
"Shut up already! Are you not already warmed up?" she snapped, shaking off the dust.
"Ugh, I guess I am." I winced, rubbing at my left breast where her strike had landed. "Man, you really chose the wrong spot to hit me."
Kayda's mouth twitched. "Oh, sorry, I didn't look where I hit you," she said, not sounding sorry at all.
"Right, you'd never hit your girlfriend's boob on purpose," I sighed, still massaging the sore spot.
"Yes, of course I won't," she said with thick sarcasm.
"Whatever." With another sigh, I flash-stepped forward at full speed, the scythe materializing in my grip and stopping mere centimeters from her abdomen.
Kayda didn't flinch. She brought her left hand down, mana coating her palm in a shimmering glow.
I ducked, rolling to the right, whipping the scythe back toward her head.
"Tsk." Clicking her tongue, she raised a scorch barrier, igniting a fiery explosion.
Boom!
The blast tore across the battlefield, and when the smoke cleared, I was standing meters away—my arms gone, half my right leg missing.
"Ah, fuck's sake, my pants!" I yelled.
Katie nearly fainted. "Wait, isn't that going too far!?"
But her voice cut off into a squeak as she saw my limbs regenerate in seconds.
"Pfft, don't pee yourself," I muttered, ignoring the way her face turned an even deeper shade of white.
The smoke shifted.
Bang!
Vrrrr!
Boom!
The sound of gunfire cracked through the haze, bullets tearing through Kayda's barrier. One slipped through, the explosion ripping the shield apart.
Her eyes widened. "Your clones!" she barked, whirling toward the left, where one of my copies stood, chains whirling axes and hammers at her.
"Too fast," I said, clicking my tongue as she evaded.
Three fingers raised.
Bang!
Her scream cut the air as the bullet clipped her leg.
"Now!" my clone roared, launching both chained weapons as I flash-stepped behind her, wielding a massive, bulky gun.
Bang!
The bullets hammered against her barrier, but she reinforced it instantly, patches of flame repairing the hole. The shots bounced off uselessly.
"Wait, it bounced!?" She shouted—only to see them detonate into a storm of explosions that sent her flying straight into the warhammer's waiting strike.
Boom!
And still, she didn't hit the ground.
"All that, and you still haven't fallen seriously," I muttered, disappointed.
Kayda huffed, sweat dripping from her brow as she held the warhammer mere centimeters away with one hand, the other gripping a spear she'd conjured from the earth.
"It really feels like you're trying to kill me, Kitsu," she said, breaking the spear and shoving the warhammer away, the force obliterating my clone.
Bang. Bang.
Two sniper shots cracked again, one obliterating her scorch ball, the other puncturing her barrier. But then—silence. The clone's mana signature winked out.
"Your clone only had four shots?" she asked.
"Yeah, but they're just clones," I answered from right beside her, scythe slicing toward her.
She flinched, blasting it apart with a scorch spell.
Bang! Bang!
I was already firing again, twin hand cannons blazing.
Boom!
Kayda cursed, dodging through the smoke, her wings flaring.
"Where are you going?" I called after her, tails whipping through the haze like vipers.
"Away from these raging tails of yours!"
"Nope, you aren't getting away," I said, flashing behind her with a smirk, katana thrust forward.
Drip.
The blade melted.
"Tsk, you raised the temperature," I muttered, tossing away the useless hilt.
"Of course I did," she shot back, steadying herself midair.
"No," I growled, forming an ice platform beneath my feet. Launching from it, I dove at her again, tails lashing out in a deadly arc.