Desperation

What stood before him wasn't Castor or at least the chest and arms weren't Castor. His legs still seemed somewhat human-like, but crimson armor covered his entire body. His arms had doubled in size and were encased in what looked like tubes of metal plating. Where his chest should've been was a convex piece of twisted metal with a bright red orb in the center. On top of his head rested a knight's helmet, complete with a crest of what looked like horsehair.

"THERE IT IS! CASTOR'S ENHANCED FORM: CASCARA DE DEUS!!" The announcer yelled as the crowd cheered in excitement. "That new blood must be something special if he's making him get this serious."

In response to the cheering, the metal of the helmet split apart to form a twisted grin, through which steam escaped with every breath Castor took.

"This is the ultimate power of a Legion!" Castor slowly walked closer, stretching his arms out to his sides. "We evolve past the limitations of our humanity, and truly become one with our Dyad. Our power lets us subjugate legions of Grimm like it's a walk in a park." As if to prove his point, he gripped his rapier with one hand and crushed it to dust with ease.

"Do me a favor, and take a nap now would you!" He yelled in a distorted voice as he closed the distance between them!

Raishun raised his sword to block the rapid series of punches coming towards him, but it did little to help. Every one of Castor's strikes carried the weight of a bullet, and even though he blocked, the attacks still sent shocks up his arms. Even with his semblance, he was gradually pushed into a corner. Desperately he landed a slash against one of his arms and instantly realized his mistake.

The red-haired Legion flashed a sickening grin. Red energy began to coalesce around his right arm, and he drew it back to strike. When he launched forward, steam shot out from the vents on his arm just as his fist connected with Raishun's stomach.

The blow turned the world upside down. He felt himself soar through the air before crashing to the floor. Thankfully his aura held, but it did little to stem the pain. His entire body felt like it was aflame, and after a few seconds, he was able to suck in a breath.

[I-... I can't win.] He thought to himself while clawing at the ground in vain. It took all his strength to push himself up on all fours, yet even doing that made the pain so intense he felt he would pass out.

[Don't give up!] A familiar feminine voice rang throughout his head. [We still have one chance, one way to turn this around!]

[Serah… How?]

[I'll explain later! Just listen to me!] She snapped aggressively, [You remember what Castor told us about? How borrowing my power requires a sacrifice? Pay the toll, and I can give you enough power to stand a chance!]

Raishun nodded to himself and slowly rose to his knees. He glared at his teacher, who was posing for the crowd.

[Yes! Focus on your frustration! Take everything, your excitement, fear, and anxiety! Give it to me!]

His senses started to go haywire; everything sounded ten times louder than it was before. He could hear Morgan yelling from the window, Castor's confident laughter. Then the headache started. It was just as potent as when he had first become a Legion. He dropped to his knees, clutching at his head as he screamed in pain. Slowly he felt something envelop his consciousness, and the pain started to slowly ebb away bit by bit.

"No way." Castor said with his twisted smile, "Come on Raishun! Show me a good time!"

The blue-haired boy stumbled to his feet, his body hunched over as he stared at his teacher with a mix of animosity and excitement.

[You… no, we are Legion.] Serah's voice echoed through his head, setting his skin alight with pinpricks of energy. [Show them the strength of our bond! Show them the power of a Tyrant!]

Energy suddenly coursed through his body like a roaring river. He arched his back and roared loudly as waves of yellow energy began to radiate from his body. He saw his aura shoot up from a sliver of red back to full green from the corner of his vision.

"YES!" Castor cheered, "NOW THIS IS A BATTLE!!"

Grasping the Caligula tightly, Raishun closed the distance between himself and Castor in less than a second. The armored Castor reacted with a flurry to strikes. Still, his movements suddenly seemed so much slower to Raishun, as if he were watching him moving underwater. He effortlessly danced around all the attacks and cut an x-shape into the helmet with his sword.

Castor hissed in pain and retaliated with a punch he'd charged with his semblance. Raishun slid under the punch, dragging his sword along the underside of his arm, eliciting a hiss of pain from the red-haired man.

"What a turn of events! This isn't a sparring match, it's a once in a lifetime battle between titans!"

[Aiming for the arms and head does nothing. Destroy his core, and we can knock him out of that empowered state of his]

Heeding the words of his Dyad, Raishun drove his sword towards his teacher's chest. But Castor saw the attack coming and managed to catch his arm just before the blade touched his chest. With minimal effort, he lifted the Legion and began slamming him over and over onto the ground.

"Night night!" Castor yelled as he jumped into the air, planning to slam his student headfirst into the ground.

[Use my power Raishun. The power of a witch!]

Raishun felt something awaken inside of him, a new power blooming throughout his entire being. He pressed his palm against Castor's chest and channeled aura into him. Suddenly blue energy shot out the other side of Castor's body, but it didn't seem to do any damage.

The two of them plummeted down towards the earth, Castor's hands still wrapped tightly around Raishun's body. Then at the last moment, they let go, allow Raishun to roll away to safety.

It took Castor a moment to realize what had happened; he looked up in shock, only to see that Raishun was already upon him.

"GRAAAAAHH!" He cried before stabbing the Caligula straight through the core of his chest. The armor surrounding his body started to crack and fall away in pieces before exploding off him in a flash of red light.

His breathing heavy, Raishun raised his sword in victory and let out a loud warcry. The cheering of the crowd filled his ears, making him feel more alive than he ever had in all his time in Remnant. However, the moment was short-lived, when he felt something sharp stab into his back.

A bright yellow flash filled his vision as time started to slow down. Behind him, Castor pulled the tip of his rapier out from Raishun's shoulder. His breathing came out in labored breaths, and it seemed like he would pass out at any moment.

"You didn't think I actually crushed my rapier." Castor said as Raishun fell to the cold arena floor. Reaching inside the cape that hung from his waist, he threw a bag of red stones to the floor. "Honorable fighting is for stuck up people. You'll need every advantage possible if you want to fight Grimm and live."

"Damn you." Raishun choked out, right before his vision faded to black