Reaper

The tension was suffocating. They stood silent, staring intensely at each other, waiting for the first move.

No more of this. Ashira thought, his rage overflowing.

FWOOSH!!

Ashira launched the blood droplets at Ralak, cutting through the tension with a calculated strike. They streaked toward Ralak at blinding speed, aiming to tear him apart.

"Waste," Ralak remarked coldly, his gaze unwavering. He swiftly raised his arm.

Flame Manipulation: Burn!!㊋

WOO-PSSHHH!! A surge of flames erupted from Ralak's hand, scattering and engulfing Ashira's blood droplets. The fire hovered in place, still burning even after Ralak dropped his hand.

"If you want to damage me, you'll have to do a lot better than—"

FWOOSH!!

The blood droplets emerged from the flames, slicing through them as if unscathed. They pierced Ralak, riddling his body with hundreds of small, gaping holes.

"What were you saying about me needing to do better?" Ashira said sinisterly, emerging through Ralak's dissipating flames.

Ralak stood stunned as Ashira gripped his face viciously with one hand. "I'd say my performance just now was 'a lot better,' wouldn't you agree? My cosmic ability, Conquer of Red, allows me to control red blood cells, giving me dominion over blood itself. Couple that with my Aether ability: Full Defense, which makes my attacks impossible to block, and I'm practically invincible!"

"Eh, I'd give it a D-minus. Not a bad effort, though. Almost had me there."

Ashira's grin faded as Ralak's voice came from behind him. The body he held began to crumble into ashes.

Ashira spun around, his eyes wide with shock. Ralak was already standing behind him, gripping Ashira's face the same way Ashira had held his clone. Ashira glared at Ralak with pure rage, but Ralak only gazed back calmly.

Ashira grabbed Ralak's wrist with his right hand, pressing down hard, locking him from getting away and stretched out his left hand, Blood drops started to rise from under his skin surrounding Ralak.

 "Is this your plan?" Ralak asked tilting his head.

 Ashira smiled, his pupils bouncing around in his eyes. "DAMN RIGHT IT IS YOU PRETENTIOUS FU*K, AND ITS MORE THAN ENOUGH TO TAKE OUT THE LIKES OF YOU!"

"Sigh, Even i didn't have anyway to get out of this which by the way i do this still wouldn't be enough to kill me and besides… You shouldn't be telling someone that wants to kill you as much as you do them how your ability works.

" "HAHAHA, OH YEA WHY?" Ralak's eyes glowed a bright purple. Because… THEY MIGHT JUST STEAL IT. 

"LET'S SEE YOU TRY." Ashira shouted. 

FWOOSH!!

 The blood drops surrounding them started to come in quickly aimed at Ralak. Ralak sighed, his gaze becoming dark.

 STOP.

Ralak's voice echoed through the void, cold and absolute.

Ashira froze, his grin twisting into horror. His blood droplets stopped midair, no longer under his control.

"Ho… How… HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE?!" Ashira stammered, his confidence unraveling.

"You want to know?" Ralak said, his tone detached. "I see no harm in explaining—after all, it'll be the last thing you hear."

Ashira's breathing quickened, his anger boiling beneath his fear.

"I don't have a cosmic ability," Ralak began. "But I do possess celestial abilities, none of which are truly my own. For reasons even I don't fully understand, when I grasp the mechanics of someone's celestial ability, I can take it for myself. There's only one limitation—my comprehension."

"So you're saying," Ashira growled, his face contorted, "as long as you understand an ability, you can steal it and use it however you want?"

"Exactly."

Ashira clenched his teeth, his grip tightening. "What utter bullshit. Even so, I'll never lose to some backwater cultist bastard!"

Ashira's body liquefied into a torrent of blood, slipping through Ralak's grip. He reformed several paces away, blood pouring from his skin like a torrential flood. The crimson liquid solidified into twin swords, one in each hand.

"No matter what, I'll make sure you die today," Ashira growled, his voice trembling with fury.

Meanwhile, the blood droplets Ralak had seized earlier began to swirl and merge together. They stretched and expanded, forming a massive, ominous scythe. Ralak gripped it tightly, pointing it at Ashira with an almost casual demeanor.

"Good luck with that," Ralak said, his voice low and menacing. "But just know this—I'll be killing you with your own blood."

The scythe gleamed with a sinister aura as Ralak readied himself.

"Today," Ralak intoned, his eyes glowing with dark amusement, "IM GONNA BE YOUR GRIM REAPER."