Finn and Aqua stared in utter shock side by side at the scene in front them.
Across the large training room, Kaito and Kaeline clashed dozens of times in the blink of an eye.
Their bodies flashed from one side of the room to the other.
One second they were near the center of the room, the next they were near the wall.
Then the ceiling.
Then the floor.
Then gone again.
Finn's eyes widened as his CPI scanner struggled to keep up with them.
"I… I can't even see them."
Aqua's fins twitched violently beside him.
She focused essence into her eyes, trying to follow the movement, but all she saw were broken flashes of purple, white, and black.
"Neither can I…" She muttered.
Kaito suddenly shot across the room and threw a punch toward Kaeline's face.
Kaeline tilted her head to the side, dodging it by mere inches.
She countered with her kunai sliced upward.
Kaito leaned back, the tip of the blade grazing the front of his shirt and cutting a thin line through the fabric.
He spun away, planted one hand on the floor, and kicked toward her ribs.
She blocked with her forearm.
THUD!
The impact pushed her back several feet.
Kaito's eyes sharpened.
He bounced off the floor, white lightning crackling around his legs, then dashed around her.
His body turned into a blur as he ran in a wide circle around her. Purple and white essence trailed behind him, forming a ring of essence and lightning.
Finn's hair whipped back from the pressure while Aqua lifted one arm in front of her face.
Kaito kept running faster, faster, and faster
The ring of purple and white light grew brighter until it looked like dozens of Kaito's were circling Kaeline at once.
Finn's mouth dropped open.
"He's moving that fast?"
Kaeline stood in the center of the circle, her kunai held loosely in one hand. Her golden eyes scanned the ring around her.
Then he attacked.
He zipped toward her from the right with a punch so fast it looked like his body was still running in the circle while another version of him had broken away to strike.
Kaeline turned her shoulder and his fist cut past her chest.
He vanished back into the ring.
Then he attacked again, this time from the left.
Kaeline stepped back dodging it.
Then again from behind.
She leaned forward.
Then he came from above.
She raised her kunai and blocked his heel.
CLANG!
Kaito's eyes widened slightly before he vanished again.
His attacks came faster and faster with every attempt, but Kaeline dodged every single one.
Despite that, each strike came closer.
The first missed by inches.
Then one inch.
Then half an inch.
Then less.
Finn clenched his fists.
"He's getting closer."
Aqua swallowed hard, watching intensely.
The ring of essence screamed around Kaeline. Then her eyes slowly closed.
Finn's expression changed.
"What is sensei doing?"
Her shoulders relaxed and her breathing steadied.
For a moment, it looked as if she had completely dropped her guard.
Kaito didn't hesitate.
The moment her eyes closed, he vanished from the circle and appeared behind her.
His fist shot toward the back of her head.
Just before it connected, hers body moved.
Her foot shot straight up behind her in a standing split kick.
CRACK!
The bottom of her foot slammed into his chin.
His head snapped upward and his feet lifted off the ground.
For a split second, his entire body hung in the air.
Kaeline's eyes opened.
She pivoted on one foot, spun, and drove her heel into his stomach.
BOOM!
Kaito shot across the room like a cannonball.
He crashed into the wall a few meters beside Finn and Aqua.
The entire wall shook and a deep crack spread behind him. He coughed, eyes wide, body stuck halfway in the dented metal.
Before he could fall…
SHING! SHING! SHING! SHING!
Several kunai stabbed into the wall around him. Some pierced through the loose parts of his clothes, others stabbed directly into his shadow.
His eyes widened.
"What the—"
He tried to move but his body didn't listen.
From the shadows against the wall, numerous black arms reached out.
One grabbed his wrist. Another grabbed his shoulder. Another wrapped around his waist. Then more.
They pulled him back against the wall, pinning him there completely. Kaito gritted his teeth and flared his essence, purple and white energy erupting around him.
The arms trembled, but they didn't let him go.
Kaeline walked toward him calmly, her black essence flowing around her body.
Kaito struggled harder.
"Damn it…"
She stopped in front of him and lifted a kunai slowly, holding the edge against his neck.
Kaito went still feeling the sharp metal graze his throat.
Kaeline's golden eyes looked directly into his.
"The fight is over."
Kaito stared back at her, sweat dripped down the side of his face.
His chest rose and fell quickly.
For a long moment, neither of them spoke.
His fingers twitched, still trying to move, but the shadow arms tightened slightly.
His jaw clenched then his essence slowly faded as he looked away.
"…Yeah."
The black arms began to release him one by one.
They melted back into the shadows against the wall like they were never there.
The kunai pinning his clothes vanished into dark smoke.
Kaito dropped to the floor, landing on one knee.
He stayed there for a moment, head lowered.
Finn took a few steps over to him.
"Kaito…"
Kaito pushed himself up.
His face was hidden beneath the messy locs of hair stuck to his forehead.
Kaeline lowered her kunai, the excitement in her eyes fading slightly as she watched him.
"You fought well." She said.
Kaito didn't respond.
He turned and began walking toward the main door.
"Wait, Kaito!" Finn blurted out.
Kaito walked past him.
Finn quickly stepped to the side.
"That was insane! You actually pushed sensei enough for her to use her shadow abilities to stop you! That means—"
But Kaito didn't say anything. He kept walking.
Finn's words and excitement slowly died in his throat.
The door hissed open and he stepped through without looking back.
Then it closed behind him.
Finn stared at the door with a worried expression.
"Kaito…"
Kaeline remained in the center of the room, her kunai slowly dissolving into black essence between her fingers.
Her golden eyes stayed on the door.
Kaito walked through the halls of the starlight alone.
His footsteps echoed across the metal floor.
His jaw was clenched so hard it hurt.
His hands were balled into fists at his sides.
The pain in his ribs, stomach, chin, and arms didn't bother him.
Not as much as the thought repeating in his head.
Not enough.
Not enough.
Not enough.
He turned down another hallway, barely noticing Viro who walked past him trying to get his attention.
He didn't care. His mind was still in the training room.
Kaeline's foot under his chin. Her heel in his stomach. The kunai pinning him to the wall.
The shadow arms holding him down like he was some helpless kid getting beaten in the streets of Thalos again.
His teeth grinded together.
"I'm still weak…"
The words left his mouth before he realized it.
His footsteps slowed.
"I'm still so damn weak."
He stopped near a long window overlooking the stars outside.
The glass reflected his face back at him.
He stared at himself, eyes filled with frustration.
"If I can't even beat Kaeline sensei…"
His fists trembled.
"How in the stars am I supposed to beat the captain?"
His breathing grew heavier.
"At this rate, I'll never become a captain of my own."
His voice shook.
"I'll never be strong enough to save Aqua."
His forehead lowered toward the glass.
"I'll never be strong enough to save Astra. To save Luis and the other thalorians from the Accord. To keep my promise… to them."
THUD!
His forehead hit the window. A thin line of blood slid down from his hairline.
He didn't move.
His breathing grew uneven as blood trickled down the bridge of his nose and dripped onto the floor.
"Why…"
His teeth clenched.
"Why am I so fucking weak!?"
He pulled his head back again, ready to slam it into the window a second time.
"Kaito dear…"
He froze.
The voice was soft and quiet, but he knew it all too well.
He slowly turned his head.
A few meters down the hall, Elysia stood in front of him, her soft eyes looking at the blood running down his forehead.
"Elysia…"