Divine Essence

The mist swirled. "I'm not sure what happened with her mental state. It kinda reminds me of Tim when he lost control over his body when someone else took over. It doesn't have the same feeling as when it happened to him, but it definitely has its similarities. Won't lie, it kinda freaks me out." Thought Ayuka, glancing at Kira.

Kira was grinning. Her missing pupils gave Ayuka uncomfortable feelings, and as she tried to sense her energy, she felt it becoming more frightening and extraordinary. "She's like a puppet." Stated Ayuka.

The mist continued covering the whole area and made it chilly to stand in, but it didn't affect Kira. "What the hell is your problem? You're blocking me from hunting down that boy! I don't like it, it infuriates me, and you don't want me to become angrier." Claimed Kira. She grinned creepily.

Ayuka lowered her stance, moved her arm in front, and opened her palm. White mist circled her fingertips. It didn't stop. "Hold on a second. Weren't you the girl who Tim used to destroy that mansion?" She asked.

Kira's smile vanished. Her mouth shivered, revealing her natural rage. "Oh, you know about that? I still need to beat him up for what he did to me. Not only did he nearly break my skull, but he also destroyed lord Niklas' mansion. If he thinks he can just set foot onto this island and cause wreckage across the whole island, then he deserves pain." Complained Kira.

"Speaking about pain. I hope that sexy body of yours suffers brutal injuries, some of which should be fatal."

Ayuka's eyes tensed. They locked onto Kira, spotting an unusual reaction. Kira stepped forward and dashed forward. She hopped and tried to deliver a heavy attack on Ayuka.

Ayuka reminded herself of Kira's previous attack and was enough to teach her not to get hit by her. Kira dove and punched down. Her fist was enveloped with shadow energy.

Kira spotted that Ayuka's body faded away into the mist. It made her miss, rendering her attack pointless. She struck the empty floor, and its impact unleashed a flaring shadow, with her attack's weight causing enough damage for the ground to rumble.

Ayuka revealed herself from the mist, teleporting behind Kira and punching toward her. Kira looked over her shoulder behind and exposed a ghoulish smile. She dodged Ayuka's assault by moving around her attack and crouched amid. She shaped a fist and dragged her arm forward.

"She predicted that?!" thought Ayuka. "I hope you'll learn how it feels to be punched exactly like your friend did to me!" Kira's smile widened. Ayuka sweated. Without restraining herself much, Kira hammered her knuckles into Ayuka's abdomen. Its weight released a relentless shock that burst forth. It spread through Ayuka's inner body, making her feel like she was getting hit by a sledgehammer.

The force was brutal, enough to make her cough out blood. It squeezed her insides and stunned her in place. That assault allowed Kira to stand up and grab the back of Ayuka's skull. She pulled Ayuka's head close and aggressively smashed the point of her knee into the middle of her face.

Ayuka recovered from the attack and raised her to look at Kira, who prepared to strike Ayuka in the face with her freed arm. Ayuka dove beneath the punch by a hair and needed to act. She twisted the top of her fist to face the floor and then aimed. She punched her knuckles into the bottom of Kira's jaw, but when it came in contact, Kira didn't act.

She took the hit without difficulty, lowered her eyes to Ayuka, and chuckled. "Is that all?" she asked. Ayuka stepped back, distancing herself from Kira, and expressed true shock. "Tell me something, frosty. I heard your captain talk about you, that you were one of the strongest on the crew. So then, why did that punch feel like I was getting tickled by a feather?" She asked. "If that's the best you can do, then I don't see a reason to worry about your friend causing trouble. You both punch like kittens!"

Kira dropped both her arms, spread her fingers, and revealed sharp nails. "I'm going to enjoy cutting you wide open!" she laughed maniacally.

Her next step was a heavy stomp that caused the floor to crack. She dashed into a head-on sprint and aimed to clutch Ayuka's face. "Her body's as sturdy as a stone. What am I supposed to do about it?" Ayuka thought.

Kira pushed her hand forward, ready to grasp Ayuka's face. She chuckled. Ayuka backed away further and utilized the mist to fade away from Kira's nails.

Kira touched nothing but air. She instantly stopped in place and began tossing looks around the field of mist. "Seriously?! Stop being such a coward and face me head-on!" she shouted.

Ayuka crouched in the mist, gripping her chest, and needed to breathe to relax her pain. "Damn. If I get hit by another heavy attack like that, then... then I'm definitely going to break." She puffed and panted.

She observed Kira search for her from the mist. "What's worse is that I don't have any clothes on me to dress up. Man, it's so embarrassing to fight half-naked. Luckily the mist covers the view of others, so she's the only person I need to deal with."

"Come out already! No need to be embarrassed! We're both girls here, so what's the trouble?" questioned Kira, growing irritated. "I need to come up with something that'll work. My clothes did cushion the blows better, but getting struck directly into the skin makes it worse. Maybe there's something I can use to divert her attention to."

Ayuka squatted, and touched the cold floor with her right palm. "I need to figure out a way to be more efficient. But..." She flinched, which made her left eye close. She touched her stomach with the other hand and breathed out warmth. "She broke one of my ribs. I can't move the way I can naturally." She suffered severe pain in her ribs and stomach. The pain made her sweat.

"I might need to use it." She looked at her own chest. "But if I use it, then the heat will most likely evaporate into droplets of water, but it should be enough to equal her power at the very least." Ayuka continued observing Kira, who didn't stop complaining. "No, screw that. I *need* to use it. My skin is not what's important right now."

Ayuka breathed in and out. She relaxed her entire body and made it become soft. She closed her eyes, and her skin started becoming smoother. Her body became skinnier, and the hairpin that kept her ponytail's high end started to unwrap itself. It fell on the ground. Her hair spread opened and dropped down for their tips to extend to the bottom of her back. Her body seemed younger than usual.

Her body became surrounded with white energy. It looped from the bottom of her feet to the top of her head. "I haven't done this for a while, but I need something to match her strength." She claimed.

She slowly stood up, relaxed her muscles, and froze for a moment. She opened her eyes and a white spark popped in front of her face, bursting into tiny particles that floated around her like snow. It revealed her silver eyes. "It feels kinda refreshing, even if I've made a deal with myself not to use it unless it would be absolutely necessary." Once she spoke, her voice became gentler, softer, and younger.

Her divine blood started to boil, and the hidden essence of her mother's divinity unfolded itself open.

To be continued...