OLD-WORLD EXTRA

Their voices were calm, but inside, they were worried, two of them terrified even.

They needed to keep their distance, use their abilities strategically, and hope they could outlast him until a professor arrived.

It sounded impossible, as Album could reach any of them in one or two steps and end their lives.

But instead of thinking about that, they began to act.

Max stepped forward, clenching his fists through his two knuckledusters, as gold as his eyes.

His abilities were close-range, so he had no choice but to engage Album head-on.

"DRAGON'S ROAR!"

A shockwave of Aether spread through the area, targeting Album and injecting fear into him.

It wasn't close to being enough to freeze a Seraphim, but it might just slow him down slightly.

"Cover me!"

Max yelled as he charged forward.

His fists burned with fire, and his muscular body radiated raw power.

Ratatatatatatatatat!

Arthur, aiming his AR-HA2 assault rifle at Album, activated the engraved runes on the barrel, and dumped his entire mag, trying to pin him down.

His enhanced bullets tore through the air, humming with {00000000}, {000000}, and {000000}.

Album didn't even bother to dodge, dismissing Arthur's poor aim.

Yet, inexplicably, the bullets curved toward him, adorning Stellar Guidance.

His body caught a few, and they tore through his legs before he could react.

They must've hurt, though Album didn't show it, casually stepping towards Max while his wounds healed.

That single step forced Arthur to stop shooting, his line of fire interrupted by his classmate.

The gunfire didn't pause for long, though.

"Longshot."

Sofia replaced him, confident that she wouldn't hit Max despite how close they were.

Her Aether channeled into her pistol, forming one powerful bullet that turned the gun into a mini-sniper rifle.

She aimed it directly at Album's head and...

BANG!

Fired.

The bullet would've stuck his head directly, aimed perfectly, but Album saw it coming.

He twisted his body just enough that the bullet grazed his cheek.

The wound sealed almost immediately, leaving only a faint smear of blood behind.

Max had reached him then and punched him square in the chest.

"IRON FIST!"

Aether shot out, combined with his fire element, and formed a miniature Dragon's Breath.

Album didn't dodge and took the hit with a smirk.

The cloak covering him immediately burned away, and so did most of his chest.

Only difference was one instantly healed and the other didn't, leaving him half-naked.

Not caring for that, his left hand shot out, grabbing Max's throat before he could attack a second time.

"Urg-!"

Raising him up, he took out an energy stim pack from his pants' right pocket, stabbing it into the small hexagon in his chest.

His augmented suit was filled back up with energy and additional nanobots, regenerating until the cloak returned to its brand-new state.

Ratatatatatatat!

In the time that he attacked Max and wasted fixing his appearance, Arthur had gotten behind him and opened fire, his assault rifle spitting out a hail of bullets.

None of the bullets missed this time around, hitting Album square in the back, shredding his just-fixed augmented suit.

But again, his innate healing factor kicked in, and the damage was minimal, even as his blood splattered all around them.

The Zenith Warden barely flinched while turning around, his face showing slight annoyance.

He then swung his staff at Arthur's gun, bending the muzzle, and threw Max into him. Arthur tried to dodge, but wasn't fast enough.

"U-Useless bastard."

That was the last thing he heard before they smashed into each other and rolled across the floor.

BANG!

Another shot resounded behind Album, this time aimed at his heart.

The bullet hit its mark, piercing his chest and exploding out the other side.

But even as the blood sprayed from the wound, he remained standing, his expression

unchanged.

He looked down at the hole in his chest, then back at Sofia, his eyes narrowing.

"That was a good shot... But it won't save you."

With a surge of Aether, his body began to heal itself, the hole in his chest closing rapidly. Sofia watched in horror as the wound disappeared entirely, leaving no trace of the injury.

"How... how is that possible?"

Her whisper was unheard by him, by everyone; it was too quiet.

She simply couldn't believe someone could heal his entire heart, returning to its peak state

from almost nothing.

It went against everything she knew.

Album ignored her wonderment and continued moving forward towards the two, his eyes focused on Max, who was now within striking distance.

With blurred movement, he swung the blunt end of his staff toward Max's head.

Max raised his firey fists, silently activating Rapid Strikes, his newly acquired ability, in an

attempt to counter.

His arms moved in a blur, each punch aimed at Album's left hand.

The staff had its descent slowed down bit by bit until it began getting pushed back.

Max didn't stop there; he retaliated and attacked Album's weak points.

He punched his nose, eyes, temple, throat, jaw, solar plexus, liver, and even groin.

Each hit sent shockwaves through the air, but his regeneration kept him standing strong,

unfazed.

From not so far behind, Ava cast Aetheric Healing on Arthur, as well as Max.

In fact, she directed most of her Aether towards Max to keep his ability going.

"Don't let up, you monkey!"

Max certainly didn't need to be told.

Every ounce of Aether that he had received he used right after, most of it continuously looping the same Ability Path, allowing him to continue the attack almost indefinitely.

They had to stop him from moving for a few seconds longer.

But Album was fast-much faster than they realized.

He could have always dodged if he wanted to, but he was more interested in what Max had in

store.

Now, seeing that this was all Max had, he deemed it the time to end him.

Album stepped away from one of his punches and equipped his staff on his right hand,

swinging it at his head.

Max immediately stopped, protecting his head with his two hands in cross-motion. Expecting an impact, he stood like that for a moment, but the pain came from somewhere else.

His abdomen.

The first attack was a feint; Album had twisted his staff midway and slammed it into Max's

side with crushing force.

CRACK!

Max's ribs shattered under the impact, and he was sent flying into the nearby wall, gasping

for air.

"Max!"

Ava cried out and rushed to his side, immediately using Aetheric Heal to stabilize him.

But the damage was severe.

Even her ability couldn't fix every broken bone completely.

She still tried her best, however, realigning what remained with sickening crunches.

The longer she worked, the more the pain on Max's face faded.

Meanwhile, Album turned his attention to Arthur, who had continued to fire at him.

He was alone, with Sofia nowhere to be seen.

His enhanced bullets did little more than slow Album down, but he didn't stop.

Arthur knew that if he faltered, Album would target Ava next, and the currently Camoflaughed

Sofia straight after.

Without those two, they wouldn't stand a chance at survival...

Album lunged forward, and in one swift motion, he closed the gap between him and Arthur,

bringing his staff down.

Arthur tried to dodge, sidestepping the attack, but Album was too fast.

Or so it appeared at first, as Arthur's left foot had accidentally tripped on a tiny piece of

rubble, causing him to slightly slip backwards.

The staff broke his force shield yet only clipped his right shoulder, skidding down without

injuring him. Apparently, Arthur's Fortune Wheel was back on full blast.

Confused, Album pulled back in a second and attacked again in the next, aiming at the same

place.

Arthur didn't take that sitting down and continued to abuse his bent assault rifle.

He awkwardly aimed the barrel at Album and pulled the trigger, hoping that his luck would do

the rest.

The wheel spun, and it was a success.

A few bullets had gone straight towards Album.

But he...

"Weak."

Deflected them with a flick of his staff's nearly cracked blade, sending them ricocheting off

the walls of the tunnel.

Before rubble could fall, Album was already upon him, his staff swinging in a deadly arc.

Arthur tried to block with his rifle, but the force of the blow knocked the weapon out of his

hands.

He stumbled back, defenseless, as a man twice his size loomed over him.

"Luck is the only thing you have, boy."