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Rex was paralyzed, his mind refusing to process what had just happened. He was drenched in blood—Daisy’s blood. He looked down at her lifeless body, the gruesome scene searing itself into his memory. Her once bright eyes were now dull and empty, her body lying motionless in a pool of blood. Everything had happened so fast, too fast for Rex to fully comprehend. One moment she was alive, and now, she was gone.

“She’s gone,” Rex thought, but it still didn’t feel real to him.

Ace charged at him, and Rex instinctively deflected the attack, but his movements were sluggish, burdened by the overwhelming grief that threatened to consume him. Suddenly, snakes emerged from the walls, their fangs piercing his back, injecting venom into his system. The pain was unbearable, like his insides were on fire, but he barely noticed. All he could think about was Daisy’s lifeless body.

Rex was on the verge of collapsing when Adam delivered a powerful punch that sent him flying. Rex crashed into the ground, his body refusing to move. The venom was paralyzing him, draining his strength with each passing second.

Ace loomed over him, a sneer on his face. “Such a weakling,” he spat.

Rex’s vision began to darken. “I have to get up. Please, get up, body,” he pleaded, his mind racing. But his body wasn’t responding, and he could feel consciousness slipping away.

In his mind, Rex was suddenly transported to a different time, a different place. He remembered his battle with Hades, the god of the underworld. It was one of the most intense battles he had ever fought. He recalled how he had faced Hades, his sword blazing with the power of the Flame Style. He had attacked Hades with everything he had, slashing through the god’s defenses with relentless fury.

Hades had retaliated with a beam of light so powerful it could obliterate anything in its path. But Rex had dodged it with lightning speed, narrowly avoiding certain death. The battle had raged on, with Hades transforming into a monstrous form with eight arms, each wielding a different weapon. Rex had fought with all his might, blocking and countering every attack. But then, Hades had grabbed him by the neck, lifting him off the ground.

“You’re dead,” Hades had hissed, his grip tightening around Rex’s throat.

But Rex had fought back, his eyes glowing with a fierce yellow light. He had grabbed Hades’ head, draining the god’s flux energy in a desperate attempt to survive. Hades had screamed in agony before leaping into the air, the battle spilling onto the surface.

Rex’s body had transformed, becoming darker, more menacing. They had landed back on solid ground, and Hades had undergone another transformation, becoming even more grotesque and gigantic. In a final, desperate move, Rex had charged up a massive attack, disintegrating Hades’ body completely.

The memory fueled Rex’s resolve. His eyes snapped open, and with a burst of speed, he grabbed Ace’s leg and hurled him down through multiple floors of the building. Rex jumped down after him, relentless in his pursuit. Ace’s body began to regenerate, his wounds closing as his flesh reknit itself.

“How the hell is he still alive!?” Ace thought, panic creeping into his voice. He saw Rex, his eyes glowing yellow, advancing with murderous intent.

“What drove you this far, to become a Yeager? Was it because you were about to die, or were you forced to?” Rex asked, his voice cold and devoid of emotion.

Ace’s mind flashed back to a similar question posed by another dark flame user long ago. The memory only fueled his rage. “Shut up! Us Yeagers are the strongest beings to live. Humans are weaklings who rely on others, but we Yeagers don’t!” Ace shouted defiantly.

“That’s your answer then,” Rex said, his movements blindingly fast as he appeared in front of Ace. Ace tried to strike, drawing a blade through his own skin, but Rex dodged at the last second, severing Ace’s waist and nearly taking off his head. Snakes erupted from Ace’s back, venom dripping from their fangs as they lunged at Rex, but Rex was already gone, appearing in front of Ace’s falling body, ready to finish the job.

Snakes’ faces appeared all over Ace’s body, spewing venom in a desperate attempt to defend himself. But Rex danced through the attacks, his every move calculated and precise. Ace’s body regenerated once again, his waist reattaching as he backed away from Rex.

“Where is this extra strength coming from, and what’s up with those eyes of his? It’s like he has Yeager eyes,” Ace thought, fear gnawing at him.

Rex then kicked Ace out of the building with a force that shook the walls. Ace tumbled through the air, but managed to cling to the side of the building using his flux energy. Rex followed, walking down the side of the wall with eerie calm.

Ace tried to keep up, but Rex’s speed was overwhelming. “New Scaled Palace,” Ace thought, summoning his palace. As Rex struck Ace at the neck, Ace’s body disappeared, leaving only a shed skin behind like a snake.

“You’re the fourth person to ever see my palace,” Ace said, his voice dripping with venom.

“That’s a lot of people,” Rex replied, unimpressed.

“Shut up! Now I have to kill you,” Ace snarled.

“Try, fuck face,” Rex shot back, a wicked smile on his face.

Ace attacked with renewed ferocity, but Rex dodged effortlessly. “Yeager Ability, Snake Tornado,” Ace thought, summoning a vortex of writhing snakes that enveloped Rex. But Rex danced through the tornado, his sword cutting through the chaos with lethal precision. He leaped out of the tornado and slashed Ace’s chest, drawing blood.

“That’s it, I’m fucking done with you!” Ace thought, his anger boiling over.

Rex just smiled, taunting him. “What’s wrong, scared?” he asked, his tone mocking.

Ace’s fury reached its peak. “Yeager Ability, Snake Armageddon,” he roared, summoning a massive orb filled with countless snakes.

“Every human is going to die!” Ace yelled, his voice echoing through the ruins.

Rex, unfazed, used his cybernetics to contact his allies, urging them to evacuate LA. Ace was about to unleash his devastating attack when Rex acted.

“Dark Flame Style, Dark Death,” Rex thought. With a single swing of his sword, the palace, the Wilshire Grand Center, and a quarter of LA were obliterated. The destructive power left Ace burned, missing a leg, and unable to regenerate.

“My body won’t regenerate… Why is that?” Ace thought, terror creeping in as he saw Rex standing over him, bloodied but victorious.

“I’ve hated you all my life. I’m going to send you to hell now,” Rex said, his yellow eyes glowing with deadly intent.

Ace, panicked, began to crawl away as fast as he could. “Luna, help me!” he cried out in desperation.

“Luna is not going to help you,” Rex said coldly.

Before Ace could utter another word, Rex’s sword flashed, and his head was severed cleanly from his body. Rex stood there, staring up at the sky, as the weight of everything that had happened settled over him like a shroud.