Barrier Fall

Let them go

Ren opened his eyes to a void of blinding white.

The empty space stretched endlessly in every direction. His hair was pure white, but behind him, he felt something dark and ominous. He turned.

A colossal glass barrier—as wide as the world he stood in—separated him from a dark, empty void. On the other side stood Ren, his hair was pure black, his expression as cold and hollow as the darkness itself.

Black Ren placed a hand on the glass barrier, and it began to c***k.

“Well, this is a problem,” White Ren sighed. “I didn't expect to see you so soon. And it seems you’re already breaking the barrier.”

“I’m not the one doing it,” Black Ren replied.

“Then it must be the demon who’s been lurking around us,” White Ren said. “If you don’t have control over our body, that means he’s the one pulling our strings.”

“Our body?” Black Ren raised a brow. “This body is mine. You’re nothing more than a pesky parasite. When I finally gain control, of my body, all your so-called friends will wish they never met you.”

***

BANG!

Kirian blocked Ren’s endless flurry of fists, unable to counter any of the attacks. He glanced past Ren and spotted the cause of all this—a demon with white hair, wearing a white gown, standing in front of Soren.

How the hell am I going to get there? Kirian thought. If I leave Ren unchecked, he might attack the kids. If that demon attacks Soren, he’s done for. I've got to do something. Quick.

Kirian stopped defending and began launching his own attacks, carefully timing them between Ren’s blows. Ren shot out his left hand, Kirian dodged sharply to his left and countered with his right.

BANG!

His punch slammed into Ren’s lung, and the possessed man crouched, gasping for air.

This should buy me a few seconds at least.

Kirian bolted straight for the demon in white.

Before he could reach him, Ren dove at him, tackling him mid-sprint. They flew deeper into the forest, exchanging brutal blows. Kirian, fueled by mounting anger, hit just as hard as Ren.

***

“Mare?” What the hell is going on, and what’s this guy’s deal? “L-let them go!” Soren stammered, his fear giving way to rage.

“They can do that themselves, if they wanted to be back in their hell,” Mare replied calmly. “Ever since you stepped into the forest, you’ve been in my reach. My powers creep inside you through the trees, through the insects, through the very air you've been breathing—and I can finally gain full control, when your mind is most vulnerable. When it's time to sleep.”

Huff. Huff.

Soren let out a deep breath, planting his feet firmly on the ground. “Let them go!” he demanded, gathering his courage. “This is the last time I'll be saying it in words. Let them go!”

Mare was about to speak when—

BOOM!

Soren’s gravitational punch slammed into Mare’s chest, sending the Demon flying backward and crashing against a thick tree.

“Ahahahahahaha!” Mare cackled like a madman as he peeled himself off the bark. “Finally, things are getting interesting. You think you can beat me? Let’s try it then—let’s see how long you last.”

Mare reached up, grabbed one of the glistening beads from his hair, and threw it at Soren. Soren deftly wove through the air to dodge the bead. He didn’t know what it was, but he didn’t want to risk touching it.

The bead flew past him and landed on the ground.

BOING!

A white, cloud-like substance instantly materialized and bounced Soren back toward Mare.

Mare readied a fist. Soren, flailing through the air, managed to steady himself and c**k his own fist back for a punch. Mare’s face lit up with excitement.

Soren punched, but Mare struck his wrist upward, deflecting the blow. Soren’s gravitational punch shot upward into the trees, devouring branches and tearing trunks whole.

“f**k!”

Mare’s other fist met Soren's face with devastating speed and force, sending him flying into the night. Mare launched himself after him, soared past him, and waited in the direction Soren was headed.

BANG!

He punched Soren’s head again, sending him crashing in another direction. Soren landed hard, spitting blood and out of breath, barely holding onto consciousness through sheer grit.

Mare adjusted his hair as he calmly walked toward the fallen World Weaver. “So, you’re really good with your fists, hahahaha! I’m more of a trickster myself, but after you punched me—wow—I wanted to tear you apart. So tell me, what are you?”

He stopped in front of Soren, who was still on the ground.

BOOM!

Soren in a desperate attempt punched upward at Mare’s face, but Mare, moving with grace, dodged it easily.

Mare stepped on Soren's fist. “Seeing a horde of people who could use Iora, I was overjoyed! It meant I could torment you and play with you for a very long time. Unlike humans, your minds don’t crumble easily. I could have as much fun as I liked.”

Soren struggled to get up. Mare dropped a knee on his chest.

What? I can’t move my body.

Soren’s limbs were paralyzed. He could feel the pain but could no longer move.

“Now that we’ve gotten to know each other, tell me. what are you?”

Soren didn’t answer.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

Mare unleashed a fury of punches on Soren’s face, each one heavier than the last. Soren was almost blacked out, but no matter his grit, he couldn’t move. It was like being awake in a nightmare.

***

On the other side of the clearing, Kirian and Ren were still locked in their brutal exchange. When Kirian saw Mare brutalizing Soren, he lost it.

Ren lunged forward and plastered Kirian's face with his fist, but Kirian didn’t budge. It was as if the blow hadn’t even landed.

He rolled up his sleeve, exposing the five black bracelets he wore. Pulling one out, he said, “Sorry, Ren, but I'm going to get a little rough with you—even if you are being controlled.”

Kirian turned his face violently, and Ren was flung away. Ren got up as fast as he touched the ground, launching himself back at Kirian.

It seems without trying to kill you, I can’t rid myself of you, you've gotten more pestier, Kirian thought.

He drew the blade crossed on his right shoulder. I haven’t seen any of the rings on his finger drawn out, which means that demon still doesn't have total control of Ren yet. If we can kill that demon, maybe we can get Ren back.

He hurled the sword straight at Mare.

Mare saw the blade coming, twisting through the air via Ren's eyes. He feinted right, and the blade passed. But what he didn’t expect was the blade to hang in mid-air.

A hand caught the sword it materialized from thin air, and a body followed. It was happening so fast Mare couldn’t react.

The figure materialized, a man with short golden hair, the same face and clothing as Kirian. His right hand was the last to form, and it was heading straight for Mare's face.

BOOM!

Mare’s face caught the blow. He was thrown like a rag doll through the air, crashing through trees and branches. He was about to fly past where Kirian and Ren stood when Ren leaped up and caught him, breaking his fall.

Mare’s face was a bleeding mess. He had never been punched so hard before, even after fighting and killing many Kurai warriors. None had ever landed such a clean, fast blow. Mare wanted revenge, paid tenfold.

The golden-haired Kirian, the clone, another version of Kirian different from Ann but with the same hair, had a smirk on his lips. He held up Soren.

“Can you stand?”

Soren felt helpless and weak, but his disgust at what had been done to him held him up. “Stand? I can still fight!” Soren stood, determined and ready to fight.

The real battle was about to start three against two, and Ren was not on their side.

Kirian clenched his fists, turning to Mare and Ren. “Well, what are we waiting for? I thought we were trying to kill each other.”

Mare grinned, baring his bloody teeth. “Well then, let’s dance!” He ripped several beads from the top of his hair.

All three, Kirian, Ki, and Soren, launched themselves at their targets at the same moment.