The night trembled under the weight of violence.
Reo's breath came in ragged gasps as he barely deflected Kael's next strike. Each blow from his once-brother carried the force of a sledgehammer and the precision of a master assassin. The Hunter wasn't just fighting — he was hunting.
"You were always the weak one," Kael said, his voice cutting sharper than any blade. "Always needed protecting. Always dragging us down."
Reo grit his teeth, blocking a savage kick that sent him skidding across broken asphalt.
"I wasn't weak," he growled back. "You... you left me no choice."
Kael's smile twisted into something cruel.
"You made your choice when you abandoned me," he said, voice low and dangerous. "Now, I'm just returning the favor."
He dashed forward — faster than the eye could follow — and Reo barely had time to roll aside before a blade sang past his throat.
---
Survival Mode
Think, Reo. Think.
He couldn't beat Kael head-on.
Not now. Maybe not ever.
But he could outsmart him.
Reo ducked into the labyrinth of collapsed buildings, using the ruins for cover. Kael followed without hesitation — silent, relentless.
Doraemon's frantic voice buzzed in Reo's earpiece.
"Reo! His tech readings are off the charts! You're not fighting a normal human anymore — he's augmented with experimental nanomachines!"
"Yeah," Reo muttered, dodging another blow that shattered a concrete wall like paper. "I noticed."
"If you can lure him toward the generator site," Doraemon continued, "I can overload the magnetic coils. It'll create an EMP strong enough to fry his systems — at least temporarily."
Reo smirked grimly.
"Temporary's good enough."
---
The Lure
Reo broke into a sprint, zigzagging through the debris, shouting insults over his shoulder.
"Come on, Kael! You always loved showing off! Catch me if you can!"
Kael's eyes narrowed, and with a predatory growl, he gave chase.
Blades flashed.
Walls crumbled.
Everywhere Reo ran, death nipped at his heels.
But step by step, breath by breath, he guided Kael exactly where he wanted him.
Closer.
Closer...
---
The Trap
They burst into the skeletal remains of the generator site — a massive steel carcass littered with sparking wires and broken turbines.
Reo skidded to a halt, pivoted sharply, and faced Kael.
Kael slowed, sensing something... wrong.
"You think you can trick me?" he snarled.
"No trick," Reo said, smiling thinly. "Just evening the playing field."
At that moment, Doraemon triggered the override.
The old turbines roared to life.
Electricity crackled through the air like vengeful spirits.
And then — BOOM — a shockwave of electromagnetic force blasted outward.
Kael staggered as sparks erupted from his joints. His systems glitched, muscles spasming uncontrollably.
Reo didn't hesitate.
He charged, tackling Kael into a pile of rubble.
---
The Clash of Will
They fought savagely, brutally — no elegance, no mercy. Just fists, elbows, knees — two desperate souls trying to survive.
Reo landed a vicious punch that snapped Kael's head back — but Kael retaliated with a knee to the gut that drove the air from Reo's lungs.
"You were supposed to die," Kael gasped, struggling against his malfunctioning body.
"Guess I'm harder to kill than you thought," Reo grunted.
They rolled through the debris, grappling, bleeding, tearing at each other.
Years of brotherhood, betrayal, pain — all of it boiled into every blow.
It wasn't just a fight.
It was an exorcism.
---
The Breaking Point
Finally, Reo gained the upper hand.
He pinned Kael down, straddling his chest, one hand clenched around the jagged remnants of a metal rod.
Kael stared up at him, chest heaving, defiant even in defeat.
"Do it," Kael rasped. "Finish what you started."
Reo raised the rod — and for one terrible moment, he considered it.
Killing him.
Ending it.
Ending everything.
But then he saw it — just a flicker — the scared, broken boy Kael used to be. The brother who had once shielded him from bullies. The brother who had once dreamed of a better world.
Reo's hand trembled.
"No," he whispered, voice raw. "I'm not like you."
He threw the rod aside.
"I won't kill my brother."
---
Aftermath
The EMP faded.
Kael's systems slowly rebooted.
But Reo had already gone — limping into the night, bleeding but alive.
He had won.
Barely.
But he knew this was just the beginning.
Kael would return.
And next time, there might not be mercy.
---