18. Entrails

Kaly focused on Scathach, her feet planted in the sand, not having moved since the fight started. Even as Kaly circled her, she didn't move. 

Holding the heavy curved dagger in her right hand, Kaly stabbed forward, aiming for the center of Scathach's back. 

Scathach twisted her torso out of the way, clapping her hands together on the blade, holding it in place. 

Kaly tried to yank the sword back, but it didn't budge, still held between Scathach's palms. 

"You want to phone a friend?" Scathach nodded in the direction of Ivy. 

Ivy perked up, nodding eagerly. 

"Fine." 

"Yes!" Ivy sprung high into the air from her seated position, then charged at Scathach. 

Kaly ducked out of the way of a stray elbow as Ivy swung wildly, her brass knuckle on her left hand. 

Kaly ripped the dagger from Scathach, and stabbed at her. 

"Phew," Scathach huffed as she blocked a ferocious swing from Kaly that would've accidentally decapitated Ivy by grabbing her arm and flipping her over on her back. Then she ducked under a flying kick as Ivy whizzed over her head. 

Kaly rolled to her feet, standing near Ivy, and scowled at Scathach. "Ivy," Kaly growled. 

"Hm?" Ivy groaned, getting to her feet. 

"She hasn't moved this whole time."

"Yeah, she has. What are you talking-"

"Her feet, I mean. She hasn't moved an inch!" Kaly cried. 

"Oh wow," looking at the sand around her feet, Ivy nodded, impressed. 

Mockingly, with an almost unnoticeable smirk, Scathach held her hands behind her back, waiting for them to attack once more. 

"That's it!" Kaly snarled, her voice low and dripping with venom. Stepping in front of her, she started swinging her dagger as fast and as hard as she could. "I'm gonna take your head off!" she hissed through gritted teeth, her voice cracking with barely controlled rage. Each swing of the dagger was more forceful than the last, the blade whistling through the air. 

As Ivy was about to attack, Kaly took a step back and her energy began to curl around her, twisting and expanding tightly. 

Ivy watched Kaly with wide eyes, seeing the deep, murderous dull in them, Ivy could feel the hair on the back of her neck stand on end. 

'I'm so sick of this! Her telling me what to do. Now she's trying to embarrass me with some trick! First, I'm gonna kill her, then everyone else on this trash island!' Her energy pulsed violently, sending ripples through the ground beneath her feet. Kaly's expression—her features twisted into a mask of pure frustration. 

Kaly's shoulders shifted and began to shudder as an unsettling crackling sound filled the air. Muscles rippled under her skin, and before anyone could react, something dark and sinewy began to stretch and twist beside her existing arms. In the span of a heartbeat, what was once flesh became a writhing mass, extending and growing. Within seconds, Kaly's form had mutated from two arms to four, each new limb unfurling with an eerie grace, her fingers curling as if testing their newfound strength. The atmosphere grew tense as the sheer power of her transformation became apparent. 

Ivy's jaw hung open, and her eyes twinkled with amazement, "Wait, Kaly, is that your energy ability?" 

"No, it's just part of my anatomy—focus, Ivy!" Kaly snapped, launching herself at Scathach with renewed intensity.

"Okay, okay," Ivy muttered, her energy flaring up as she darted forward, throwing a powerful punch at Scathach, who still had her hands behind her back. 

As Kaly closed in, her blade slicing through the air toward Scathach, the seasoned warrior finally moved. In one fluid motion, she unclasped her hands, disarming Kaly with a sharp kick that sent the knife spinning through the air. Simultaneously, she delivered a forceful shove to Ivy's chest, sending her stumbling backward.

Kaly, undeterred, lunged from behind, her fists now glowing with energy. Ivy, recovering quickly, charged from the front, the two of them closing in like a deadly pincer.

But at the last possible moment, Scathach ducked, her movements almost a blur. Ivy and Kaly, unable to stop their momentum, crashed into each other with bone-jarring force, collapsing to the ground in a tangle of limbs. 

"Ivy!" Kaly yelled, rubbing the side of her face where Ivy collided with her. 

"You hit me too, y'know," Ivy grumbled, tentatively touching her bruised cheek. 

Kaly got to her feet, looking from Ivy to Scathach. "Whatever. I don't need this bullshit." She said, deactivating her energy. All four of her arms were crossed as she stormed off. 

Ivy and Scathach exchanged looks. Ivy wasn't sure whether to follow her or not. 

Many hours later, and the trainees were off roaming the island, attempting to find food. 

Ivy wandered along the beach, looking for something she make a fishing rod from. She had some small chunks of meat from an animal, both her and Kaly killed. Planning on using them as bait, she picked up a hefty stick, swinging it back and forth in the air, then putting it on her knee, testing its strength. "Perfect!" 

Deep in the forests of the island, three trainees had grouped up, collecting any food they could, whether that be a rodent or berries. 

Hearing a rustling behind them, they turned, one of them squinting through the trees. 

Kaly turned, seeing the three trainees jump out brush, weapons drawn. 

"Oh!" One started to say, "W-we thought you were an animal. Our bad." He was about to put away his weapon, but seeing Kaly, back to only two arms now, her hands in her pockets and a dark, and a pissed off expression, he still held the blade firmly in his hand, though he did lower it, slightly. 

Kaly removed her hands from her pocket, and before any of them could react, she decapitated two, and bisected the third with one swift movement. The third's torso gurgling as it fell away from his legs, spilling his entrails onto the ground.