The dust finally thinned, curling in the air like smoke from a dying fire. The crowd leaned forward as the haze broke apart, revealing the two figures still standing at the center of the ruined arena floor.
Helios had shifted his keyblade into its light form. The Bríon na Lú gleamed, a spear of radiant silver that caught the torchlight and burned with an inner brilliance. Each breath seemed to make the weapon pulse brighter, as though the moonlight itself had condensed into a spear's edge.
Across from him, Kurai raised her weapon. The Abyssal Veil was no longer a simple keyblade but her black and purple war fan, its serrated edges catching flickers of purple shadow. She spun it once, the motion scattering thin ribbons of darkness that twisted in the air like smoke. Then with a sharp flick, the fan folded halfway, the jagged edge protruding like a dagger.
The Colosseum erupted.
"Helios! Helios!" one side of the stands screamed, stomping their feet in unison.
"Kurai! Kurai!" the other half bellowed back, their chant shaking the air.
Gamblers were already shouting odds, purses flashing gold as they argued. "Two-to-one on the girl!" "No, look at that spear—put me down for Helios!"
Phil buried his face in his stubby hands. "The floor just got fixed and now it's gonna be in pieces again…"
Helios' smirk curled as he lowered into stance. "Seems we've excited the crowd quite a bit."
Kurai's eyes gleamed, cold but sharp. "They'll remember this fight long after the dust clears if they live through it."
They moved.
Bríon na Lú shot forward in a blur, its silver tip streaking for Kurai's chest. She swept the Abyssal Veil wide, the fan catching the thrust on its serrated edge. Sparks burst as the spear slid across metal. She twisted, collapsing the fan to dagger form, and lunged for his ribs.
Helios sidestepped, twisting his torso—his wound flared. Blood wet his jacket, but he masked the wince with a chuckle. His spear spun, catching her dagger-strike mid-arc, then swept low for her legs.
Kurai vaulted back, her cloak brushing sparks as the spear kissed the stone. She flung the fan wide again, dark petals scattering outward in a storm of razored shards. Helios swept his spear in a broad arc, radiant afterimages splitting into three illusions that cut through the swarm. Light clashed with shadow, the air filled with the hiss of burning shards.
The crowd roared at the spectacle.
Zack grinned, leaning over the rail. "They're both insanely powerful!"
Skuld shouted herself hoarse. "Keep pushing, Helios!"
Helga muttered darkly. "You don't think they'll keep pushing each other into the dirt…"
Tempest smiled faintly, eyes sharp. "Neither's breaking yet. Good."
Helios pressed forward. Bríon na Lú blurred in a flurry of thrusts, silver lines carving across the air. Kurai spun the Abyssal Veil in fan form, her body pivoting with each sweep, the edges scattering more shards of darkness. One thrust grazed her shoulder, cutting cloth and drawing a shallow line of blood. She didn't flinch—she snapped the fan shut, dagger lashing upward.
The strike kissed his cheek. Red streaked across his pale skin.
The crowd howled.
Helios chuckled, spinning back, spear twirling. "A matching scar. How thoughtful. I'm touched."
"Not deep enough," Kurai said flatly, shifting her fan back open.
She surged in again, alternating forms—fan wide to scatter shards in a sweeping storm, then collapsing into dagger mode for lightning stabs between the chaos. Helios was forced to adapt, spear twirling, each thrust precise, each parry redirecting her strikes by the slimmest of margins. His side burned with every twist, but he never let it show beyond the thin line of blood darkening his coat.
Their weapons rang together in a rapid rhythm: clash, spark, hiss of magic, clash again. The air between them was alive with silver light and purple shadow, each motion a dance between destruction and precision.
Helios broke the rhythm first. He spun Bríon na Lú overhead, the spear leaving a glowing arc. "Shining Echo."
The arc multiplied into radiant illusions, three spear-thrusts striking from different angles at once.
Kurai snarled. Her fan folded into dagger form. She cut twice, her blade dispersing two of the illusions, then spun, the final thrust grazing her side before she kicked off his shaft, vaulting back into the air.
Her fan snapped open mid-leap. "Petals of Dusk."
The fan whirled, scattering a cloud of razored shards that twisted like a storm around her. The shards rained down, black and violet, forcing Helios to sweep his spear in wide circles, deflecting in radiant bursts. Shards sliced his sleeve, one biting into his shoulder. Blood welled, but he only grinned sharper.
"Good," he murmured. "Now you're not holding back."
She landed, her breathing sharp, sweat gleaming across her skin, her eyes glowing white. The shadows crawling up her arms pulsed faintly, veins blackening under the strain. Her body trembled—not from exhaustion, but from the darkness flooding her frame faster than flesh could safely endure.
Helios noticed. His smirk curved. "You're releasing your power too fast, and the body can't cope. I guess that goes to show you how much trouble I'm causing you."
Kurai's eyes narrowed, her fan spinning in her grip. "Then I'll drag you down quickly."
She lunged again, the Abyssal Veil snapping between dagger and fan, its transitions seamless, unpredictable. Helios countered with spear feints, illusions from Luminous Mirage flickering at her flanks. The two whirled across the arena floor, every strike inventive, every counter pressed to its limits.
The arena floor cracked, dust spraying with each impact. The crowd was deafening now, half crying Helios' name, half shouting Kurai's, gamblers bellowing as their fortunes shifted with every exchange.
Phil clutched his head. "The columns are gonna go next—look at those cracks!"
Neither fighter heard him. Their weapons locked once more, the fan catching the spear, the spear grinding sparks against the jagged edge.
Helios' calm voice cut the chaos. "Still even."
Kurai's lips pressed thin, her veins pulsing blacker by the second. "Then the next strike decides it."
Their blades pushed apart. Light flared at Helios' spear tip. Shadows writhed across Kurai's fan.
The crowd rose to its feet, knowing something devastating was coming.