The air in the suburbs vibrated as Zs'Skayr's eyes flared with a sickening purple light. He didn't just release an illusion; he wove a psychic web that bypassed Tyler's own defenses. Simultaneously, Tyler's Carnitrix-driven mental pressure slammed into the ghost.
Both fell into each other's mental traps.
"Giving up defense to trade blows?" Tyler muttered, his voice echoing through the Slaughter Wraith form.
The world shifted. Tyler found himself standing in a hellish Deathmatch Arena. Dozens of Vilgax clones charged from the shadows, their eyes burning with vengeance. "Tyler, this is the end! Every one of us is real!"
"A pathetic parlor trick! Shatter!" Tyler roared. He extended his serrated obsidian claws, tearing through the fabric of the illusionary space like it was wet paper. He stepped through the rift—only to be met with a massive, pale fist.
BOOM!!
Tyler raised his arms just in time to absorb the impact. The force was enough to make his spectral frame shudder.
"Boy..." Zs'Skayr hissed, retracting his fist with a mocking grin. "I am the Slaughter King! You are nothing but a pale imitation, a puppet of a broken watch. Today, you die!"
"Shut your mouth!" Tyler's tentacles erupted, braiding themselves into a singular, massive obsidian hammer. He swung with the weight of a mountain, but Zs'Skayr moved with the fluidity of smoke, dodging the strike and counter-attacking with a burst of dark purple energy.
"I'm the master of the void, brat!" Tyler roared, exhaling his own beam of concentrated purple aura. The Carnitrix's power was absolute; it didn't just collide with Zs'Skayr's beam—it devoured it, blasting through the ghost's position.
But the beam passed through Zs'Skayr as if he weren't there.
"Another illusion? His skill-switching is insane!" Tyler realized he didn't even have time to tear the reality again before a massive force slammed into his chest, sent him reeling back.
Zs'Skayr was a veteran. In terms of raw power, he was outclassed by the Carnitrix, but in terms of combat experience, he was leagues ahead. He relied on centuries of malice to bridge the gap.
Tyler straightened his back, a cold, dismissive sneer crossing his fanged face. "Interesting tricks. But that's all they are—tricks."
Zs'Skayr soared forward, cycling through illusions and energy pulses in a dizzying display. Tyler took the hits, being knocked back again and again, but his expression remained bored. "Is that it? This level of power wouldn't even bruise a child."
"How is he this durable?!" Zs'Skayr's heart sank. "He's changed since our fight at the Forever Knight base. He's becoming a fortress!"
"Done tickling me?" Tyler twisted his neck, his eyes glowing with a murderous red light. "My turn!!"
Tyler threw a haymaker. Zs'Skayr moved to cast another hypnotic veil, but suddenly, a violent, overwhelming urge to find a bathroom swept over him. Ben's physical debuffs—the hunger, the thirst, and the full bladder—finally caught up to the ghost's concentration.
In that one second of hesitation, Tyler's fist connected with Zs'Skayr's jaw.
BOOM!
The ghost's head snapped back, his body sent sailing through the air in a graceful, pathetic arc. For the first time, Zs'Skayr felt something he hadn't felt in an eternity: pure, unadulterated physical pain.
Tyler lowered his fist, a jagged smile on his lips. "Technique is great, but your stats are garbage."
It was the ultimate irony. Tyler had fought Vilgax—a stat monster—using technique. Now he was fighting Zs'Skayr—a technician—using raw, overwhelming stats.
Zs'Skayr tried to regain his balance, his pride shattered. He looked for an opening to escape into the void, but Tyler didn't give him a breath. The Slaughter Wraith's tentacles spun like propellers, accelerating him to terminal velocity. He became a blur, ping-ponging the ghost back and forth with bone-shattering strikes.
"Is it... is it that great to have a strong body?!" Zs'Skayr wailed in despair.
Tyler slammed the ghost into the dirt, then unhinged his jaw to fire a long-range, ghostly-faced laser beam. The impact began to melt Zs'Skayr's very essence.
"As long as I break you until you can't stand, you'll never touch Ben again," Tyler growled.
Zs'Skayr lay smoking on the ground, half-dead. Tyler drifted over, his fist raised for the final execution.
"Wait! No! I surrender!" Zs'Skayr raised his pale hands, his voice trembling. "I'll yield!"
"Surrender doesn't work for traitors," Tyler retorted, his fist glowing with red energy. "You're a parasite. Better to just excise you."
"YOU FORCED MY HAND!" Zs'Skayr screamed.
Suddenly, a wisp of pure, concentrated purple shadow drilled out of the ghost's body—leaving the outer shell behind. The shadow lunged with impossible speed, diving straight into Tyler's chest!
WHOOSH!
A blinding purple light erupted. Back on the ground, Ben felt the weight lift from his soul. He floated up, touching his face and chest in disbelief. "The Void-Wraith... he's gone? I'm free!"
He looked up at Tyler, ready to celebrate. "That was incredible, Tyler! We finally—"
Ben froze. He stared at the Slaughter Wraith hovering in the air.
"Tyler? Your face... why did your face change?"
New Transformation Log
The Slaughter Wraith (Possessed State)
Traits: The Carnitrix Ghostfreak variant, now with an inverted skull and a singular, piercing purple eye located in the center of its chest.Condition: High-Level Possession. Zs'Skayr has abandoned his own body to attempt to hijack the Carnitrix's hardware from the inside.Danger Level: Maximum. The combination of Tyler's raw stats and Zs'Skayr's combat experience creates a "God-Tier" threat.
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