The last piece of dead

The chamber trembled under the weight of its own secrets. The broken tanks hissed as neon liquid pooled around Melly's boots, but she barely noticed. Her eyes locked onto the figure emerging from the shadows.

They were taller than anyone in the room, their presence suffocating. Their skin glowed faintly, etched with runes more intricate than Melly had ever seen. Power radiated from them, a force so raw it made the air crackle.

Arkins tensed beside her, his fangs bared. "What the hell is that?"

The masked man, still bound by Melly's golden chains, let out a ragged breath. "The final phase of Project Rebirth."

Melly's heart pounded. "Another experiment?"

The figure stepped forward, their glowing gaze fixed on her. Then, they spoke.

"You were supposed to be the last." Their voice was smooth but hollow, as if layered with something unnatural. "But they wanted more. They perfected me."

Melly's grip on her magic tightened. "Perfected?"

A slow, eerie smile spread across the figure's lips. "I have no limits. No weaknesses."

Their eyes flickered to the man in the mask. "Unlike you."

The masked man flinched.

Melly saw it—the crack in his confidence, the sudden stiffness in his shoulders. Whoever this person was, they weren't just another experiment. They were stronger.

And they weren't here to talk.

The figure lifted their hand, and the entire chamber shook.

The Unstoppable Force

A pulse of raw energy blasted outward. Melly barely had time to throw up a shield before the force slammed into her. She skidded back, boots scraping against the wet floor. Arkins growled, crouching low, ready to strike.

The masked man, still caught in Melly's magic chains, twisted in pain as the energy pulsed through him. "You don't understand!" he gasped. "They—"

The final experiment vanished.

A heartbeat later, they reappeared inches from him.

With a single strike, they shattered Melly's golden chains as if they were nothing but mist. The masked man choked as the figure grabbed him by the throat, lifting him off the ground effortlessly.

"You were obsolete the moment she was created," the figure said coldly. "But I… I am their masterpiece."

Then they clenched their fist—

And the masked man screamed.

His body convulsed, golden energy ripping from his skin as if being forcibly extracted. His runes flickered and dimmed, his power siphoned away in an instant.

Melly's stomach twisted. "Stop!"

The figure didn't even glance at her. "This is mercy."

With one final pulse of power, the masked man went limp.

Then, without hesitation, the figure dropped his lifeless body to the ground.

Silence.

Melly's breath came in short gasps. Arkins let out a low, dangerous growl.

The final experiment turned to face them.

"You're next."

The Last Stand

The moment they moved, Arkins attacked.

He was fast—faster than he'd ever been. His body blurred as he lunged, claws slashing. But the figure didn't even flinch. They caught his wrist mid-strike, twisting it effortlessly.

Arkins roared in pain.

Melly moved.

Golden fire ignited in her palms, her magic flaring like an explosion. She hurled a blast of energy, but the figure simply flicked a hand—

And her magic dissolved.

Her stomach dropped.

No…

The figure tilted their head. "I told you. No limits."

Then, in the blink of an eye, they grabbed her.

A hand wrapped around her throat, lifting her effortlessly. Magic surged through her veins, but the moment she tried to summon it—

It was gone.

She gasped, clawing at their grip. Her power—her essence—was being drained.

She could feel it.

Arkins struggled to his feet, eyes blazing with fury. "Let her go!"

The figure smiled. "She was never meant to win this fight."

Melly's vision blurred.

No.

No, she would not die here.

Her fingers trembled, searching, reaching—

Then she felt it.

Her grandmother's pendant.

The same pendant she'd worn all her life.

The same pendant she'd never questioned.

Her grandmother… the betrayer.

And yet…

The moment her fingers clenched around the pendant, something shifted.

A memory surfaced. A whisper from the past.

"You'll understand when the time comes."

A final gift.

Melly's eyes snapped open.

She understood now.

With the last ounce of her strength, she pressed her thumb against the rune carved into the pendant—

And the world exploded in golden light.

The True Power Awakens

A shockwave erupted from her body, blasting the figure backward. They crashed into a broken tank, liquid splattering in all directions.

Melly collapsed to the ground, gasping for air, but the moment her hands touched the floor—

She felt it.

Her power.

No.

Something greater than her power.

Something ancient.

The pendant burned in her palm, but it didn't hurt. It awakened something inside her, something that had been sealed for years.

Arkins staggered beside her. "Melly?"

She lifted her gaze.

Her eyes weren't just glowing anymore.

They were blazing.

The final experiment pulled themselves from the wreckage, eyes narrowing. "What did you do?"

Melly rose to her feet, the air around her humming with raw, uncontained magic. Energy crackled along her fingertips, brighter and wilder than ever before.

A slow, dangerous smile spread across her lips.

"You said you had no limits."

She stepped forward, magic pulsing like a second heartbeat.

"Let's test that theory."

Then, with a flick of her wrist—

She unleashed hell.

The room trembled as Melly extended her hand, summoning the last fragment of death itself. Shadows coiled around her fingers, twisting into a dark, otherworldly force. The air turned cold, thick with the scent of something ancient and forgotten.

The final experiment's glowing eyes narrowed. "What is that?"

Melly smirked. "Your reckoning."

With a flick of her wrist, the last piece of death surged forward.

It wasn't fire. It wasn't magic. It was something beyond—something that didn't belong in this world.

The figure barely had time to react before it struck them directly in the chest.

For the first time, their expression changed.

Shock.

Then—pain.

A strangled cry ripped from their throat as the black force burrowed into them, devouring their energy from the inside out. Their glowing runes flickered wildly, their body convulsing.

"No," they gasped, clutching their chest. "No!"

They staggered backward, their once invincible body failing. The power they had boasted—the power that made them perfect—was unraveling.

Melly clenched her fist. "You were made to be unstoppable. But everything has an end."

The figure let out a raw, guttural scream as their body cracked. Not just skin—reality itself seemed to splinter around them, as if the last piece of death was erasing them from existence.

Their eyes locked onto Melly's, desperation flickering beneath the agony. "You don't understand! You need me!"

Melly's gaze was cold. "I don't need anyone who was built to control me."

With one final push, she tightened her hold on the shadows—

And the figure shattered.

Their body collapsed inward, consumed by the force Melly had unleashed. Darkness swallowed them whole, leaving nothing behind.

No blood. No remains.

Just silence.

Aftermath

Melly exhaled, her hands trembling as the power faded from her fingertips. The last piece of death slithered back into the void, vanishing as if it had never existed.

Arkins stared at the empty space where the final experiment once stood. "Damn." He turned to Melly. "What the hell was that?"

Melly's lips parted, but she wasn't sure she had an answer. The pendant around her neck was warm against her skin, the runes faintly pulsing.

Something deep inside her whispered: This is only the beginning.

But for now…

"It's over," she said, voice steady.

Arkins exhaled, running a hand through his hair. "Good. Because I don't think I could've handled another surprise villain tonight."

Melly almost laughed—almost. But the weight of what had just happened pressed down on her.

She had won.

But victory came with a price.

She turned toward the fallen masked man—the one who had warned her, who had tried to resist his fate. He lay motionless on the floor, his power drained beyond repair.

Her chest tightened.

Not everyone had survived this night.

A New Purpose

Arkins placed a hand on her shoulder. "What now?"

Melly glanced at the ruined chamber, at the broken remnants of Project Rebirth. At the truth she had uncovered—the betrayal, the experiments, the lies that shaped her entire life.

She clenched her fists.

"We burn it all down."

Arkins smirked. "Now that is a plan I can get behind."

Melly stepped forward, magic flickering to life in her palm once more.

No more running. No more being controlled.

She was done playing their game.

Now?

She was rewriting the rules.

And this time, there would be no mercy.