Without wasting another second, he darted into a hidden room at the end of the hall. The wooden door creaked open, and he lunged toward a double-barreled shotgun mounted on the wall. His fingers moved quickly, loading shells with frantic precision.
Click. Clack. The metallic sound tore through the silence, tightening the air.
Kaivan appeared at the doorway, breath ragged, eyes locked sharply onto William.
"William!" he shouted, his voice rumbling like distant thunder.
William answered with a shot. The blast split the air. The bullet slammed into a metal chair, sending it skidding away. Kaivan rolled aside, hiding behind a row of seats.
"Shut your mouth!" William roared, eyes wide with manic fury. "I don't care if you live or die!"
Holding back the burn in his lungs, Kaivan shot back, "Wake Isabel and Thivi up, you coward!"
William kicked a chair aside, stomping the floor as rage surged through him. The words stabbed at his pride, boiling his ears. He aimed again, his hands trembling.
"Don't order me around!" he snarled, voice cracking with hysteria.
Kaivan lunged out from his cover. His body skimmed low across the floor, hand snapping up to redirect the shotgun's barrel.
Another explosion rocked the room.
BANG!
The bullet missed his heart, but hot fragments tore into his shoulder. Blood seeped down, yet Kaivan stayed on his feet. His breath was heavy, but the light in his eyes refused to dim.
And William, just for a heartbeat, stepped back. His eyes widened, realizing he was losing control.
There was no time to dwell on pain. Kaivan retreated quickly, slipping out of William's immediate range.
William smirked when he saw the blood pouring from Kaivan's shoulder. "You think you can win just because you know how to read a book, huh?!"
Kaivan grit his teeth, gaze unwavering. "Funny. Says the man running for his life."
With swift precision, Kaivan spun his karambit along his finger. One sweeping motion, and the blade slashed across William's leg.
William screamed, stumbling back. He jumped away immediately, desperate to put space between them.
"You stubborn brat! You have no idea who you're up against!" William growled, eyes glowing with fury.
Kaivan's cold smile cut deeper than any blade. "Oh, I know exactly who you are. A coward ruled by fear."
Under the flickering, dim lights, the tension thickened. William clicked his tongue and reached for the pistol at his waist. But Kaivan was faster. His karambit spun once more, then struck.
CLANG! The pistol flew from William's hand, crashing to the floor.
William gritted his teeth, grabbed the shotgun, and fired.
BOOM!
The shot roared, but Kaivan had already rolled forward. His body glided low again, karambit steady in hand. His eyes gleamed sharply as he closed in.
But William had begun to read his rhythm. As Kaivan drew near, William raised his knee,
WHAM!
Kaivan's breath vanished in an instant. His body slammed into the concrete wall, cracks spiderwebbing behind him. He dropped onto the floor, blood trailing from the corner of his mouth.
Yet behind William's blazing eyes, a tremor of fear emerged. He saw how the thin, battered boy, despite the blood, despite the damage, still rose.
And that, more than any weapon, terrified him.
Kaivan's breath hitched, chest rising and falling sharply, but the fire in his gaze did not die. His fighting spirit held firm.
William scoffed, lifting the shotgun to finish the job. But when he pulled the trigger,
Click.
No explosion. No recoil.
Only silence.
"Damn it!" William spat, throwing the weapon aside. His glare at Kaivan twisted with both rage and an unfamiliar fear.
"You're lucky... but you're no descendant of Omnivalor. Your body will never be as strong as mine."
Kaivan grit his teeth, swallowing the pain as blood slipped from the corner of his lips. Even so, he rose again. He knew this was the decisive moment. He flipped open the Omnicent,
But William moved first. His steps were heavy, burning with fury.
"I won't let you open that!"
His fist shot toward Kaivan's face, fast, brutal, powerful enough to crush a normal skull. Kaivan leaned back just in time, letting the punch miss by a breath. The wall behind him shattered.
CRACK!
Cracks spread across the concrete. Kaivan knew he couldn't dodge forever. He leapt aside, the karambit spinning around his finger. Its curved blade gleamed faintly in the dim light as he struck.