**Chapter 16** Wasted Potential

The gym was a battlefield, the air thick with tension and the acrid smell of smoke. Dylan stood at the centre of it all, his hands glowing with an intense heat as he prepared his ultimate attack—Vitrification. The process, which involved turning sand into glass by superheating it, was already devastating. But Dylan amplified it further, drawing heat from the air and his own fire to create an attack that rivalled the heat of a low-yield nuclear warhead.

Sky screamed in agony as the heat overwhelmed his regeneration, melting his bones and charring his flesh. But even in the face of such overwhelming power, he refused to go down without a fight. Ripping off his charred hand, he hurled it at Dylan, forcing him to momentarily break his concentration. The distraction was enough for Sky to lessen the heat, allowing his regeneration to kick in.

In an instant, Sky was whole again, his red eyes blazing with fury. He leapt into the air, grabbing Dylan by the leg and dragging him face-first across the school grounds. The impact was brutal, leaving Dylan battered and bloodied. Sky dropped him, taking a moment to catch his breath. After all, even he needed to be in peak condition to maintain his dominance.

Sky stood over Dylan, his voice dripping with malice. "You'll need true power to overwhelm me, Dylan. All your attempts are meaningless."

Dylan coughed, blood staining his lips. "You're already down a life," he spat, his voice weak but defiant.

Sky smirked, his expression cold. "I could say the same about you. The wounds I gave you are fatal. In about two minutes, you'll be dead—no matter what you do."

Dylan's breathing grew laboured, but his resolve didn't waver. "Exa… libar… will stop… you…"

Sky laughed, a harsh, mocking sound. "Oh, please. My weak younger brother? Tell you what—before you die, I'm going to make you suffer to the point where you'll wish you'd died when that javelin hit you."

Dylan managed a weak smirk. "What are you, a 13-year-old edgelord?"

Sky's eyes narrowed, his voice low and dangerous. "You'll wish I was."

Before Dylan could respond, Sky vanished, reappearing moments later with Aisha in his grasp. She was unconscious, her head lolling to the side as he held her by the neck. Dylan's heart sank, his breath catching in his throat.

"Now," Sky said, his tone chillingly calm, "what did you say about me being an edgelord?"

Dylan's voice cracked, his desperation palpable. "Please… no. Not her. Hurt anyone but her. Take me instead. Kill me slowly for all I care. But please… not her."

Sky's smirk widened, his grip tightening on Aisha's neck. "See, the difference between me and my brother is… he would have listened." With a sickening crack, he broke Aisha's neck, her lifeless body crumpling to the ground.

Dylan's world shattered. He screamed, a raw, guttural sound of anguish as Sky dropped Aisha's body at his feet. "The bond between twins is one that's beyond comprehension," Sky said, his voice cold and merciless. "The love shared between those who cherish one another is beyond compare. Witnessing the only person who could truly understand you die… that's a fate worse than death. And in your last moments, you'll forever wonder if you could have saved her if you were stronger. I'll save you the trouble." He kicked Aisha's lifeless body toward Dylan. "You wouldn't."

In that moment, everything collapsed around Dylan. His sister—his twin, his other half—lay dead before him, her lifeless eyes staring into nothingness. The pain was unbearable, a searing agony that consumed him from the inside out. But amidst the despair, a fire ignited within him—a burning, unrelenting rage.

Sky had to die.

Dylan's hands glowed with an otherworldly light as he unleashed his ultimate attack: **Stage 2 Fat-Man**. Named after the nuclear weapon dropped on Nagasaki, this attack was the pinnacle of Dylan's power. It involved cooling the air via rapid absorption of all atmospheric heat, then rapidly heating it by forcing all the hydrogen and oxygen in the vicinity to ignite. The rapid expansion of air created shockwaves, each one followed by a heatwave. In essence, Dylan turned himself into multiple nuclear bombs, each exploding in the same area every ten seconds.

"I'LL KILL YOU!" Dylan roared, his voice echoing with a primal fury.

Sky smirked, his red eyes gleaming with malice. "You'll die trying."

Before Dylan could ignite the air, Sky moved with blinding speed, ripping out his heart. Dylan's eyes widened, his body collapsing to the ground as the light in his hands faded. No creature other than the two brothers could survive such an attack. Dylan was no exception. Sky stood over Dylan's lifeless body, his expression cold and unfeeling. "In one afternoon, the two with the greatest potential to stop me fell. Now, it's your turn, brother."

**To Be Continued…**