Then I'll Show You Mine
734 Words
For a moment—
They faltered.
Just enough for me to feel it.
The shift.
The break in their coordination.
The loss of perfect timing.
I held my ground, my breathing steady, the warmth inside me aligned with every movement I made.
Not wild.
Not unstable.
Controlled.
Mine.
“You’re adapting,” Kael said.
“I have to.”
Because if I didn’t—
They would.
And then—
We’d lose.
I stepped forward again, ready to push further—to keep control of the pace—
But something changed.
The air stilled.
Not naturally.
Not gradually.
Instantly.
Every figure froze.
Mid-movement.
Mid-attack.
Like something had pressed pause on them.
My chest tightened.
“That’s new.”
Kael’s voice dropped.
“…No.”
A pause.
Then—
“That’s it.”
Before I could ask—
The figures stepped back.
Not broken.
Not forced.
Ordered.
They moved in perfect unison, retreating just enough to clear the space between us.
My grip tightened.
“They’re making room.”
“For what?” I asked.
The answer came immediately.
The presence.
Stronger than before.
Sharper.
Focused.
My chest tightened as the air shifted again—heavier, more concentrated, like everything in the space had been pulled toward a single point.
Then—
It stepped forward.
Not through them.
Not from behind.
From within.
One of the bodies.
But different.
Completely.
Its movement was smoother.
Controlled.
Intentional in a way the others hadn’t been.
Its gaze lifted—
And locked onto mine.
The warmth inside me reacted instantly.
Not just alert.
Challenged.
“That’s the original,” Kael said quietly.
I didn’t take my eyes off it.
“I know.”
The figure tilted its head slightly, studying me—not rushed, not aggressive—
Interested.
“You changed,” it said.
Its voice wasn’t layered anymore.
Not distorted.
Clear.
Focused.
Real.
“So did you,” I replied.
A faint smile touched its lips.
“Of course.”
The word carried weight.
Confidence.
Certainty.
Because it knew something I didn’t.
My chest tightened.
“What do you want?” I asked.
The smile deepened slightly.
“To understand you.”
The answer came too easily.
Too honestly.
“And breaking me helps with that?” I shot back.
A pause.
Then—
“If necessary.”
The air shifted again.
Sharper this time.
Dangerous.
Because now—
It wasn’t observing anymore.
It was engaging.
Kael stepped slightly forward.
“Then try.”
The figure’s gaze flicked to him briefly—
Then returned to me.
“You’re still interfering.”
Kael didn’t respond.
Didn’t need to.
The warmth inside me pulsed again.
Ready.
The figure took a step forward—
And everything changed.
The energy around it didn’t surge outward.
It collapsed inward.
Compressed.
Condensed.
My eyes widened slightly.
“That’s not—”
Before I could finish—
It moved.
Fast.
But not like before.
Not a direct attack.
It shifted—
And suddenly—
The space around me warped.
My breath caught as the distance between us collapsed unnaturally, like it had folded in on itself.
“What—?!”
It was right in front of me.
No transition.
No movement I could track.
Just—
There.
My chest tightened as I reacted instantly, throwing up a barrier—but its strike hit immediately after, the impact sharper, denser, forcing me back a step.
“That’s not speed,” I said.
Kael’s voice came sharp.
“It’s space manipulation.”
The realization hit hard.
Because that meant—
Distance didn’t matter anymore.
There was no safe range.
No time to react.
The figure watched me carefully.
“You learn quickly,” it said.
I steadied myself, forcing the energy back into control.
“So do you.”
A pause.
Then—
“Good.”
The air tightened again.
Because now—
It wasn’t just adapting.
It was evolving.
And whatever it just did—
That wasn’t something we had seen before.
That was something new.
Something worse.
My chest rose slowly as I adjusted my stance, the warmth inside me sharpening in response.
Because now—
Keeping up wasn’t enough.
Understanding it wasn’t enough.
I needed to outthink something that could change the rules of the fight itself.
And if I didn’t figure it out fast—
This wouldn’t just be a fight we struggled in.
It would be one we couldn’t win. 😈🔥
- Writer
