THE REVENGE OF REX PART 3.

The Runner's jaw hovered just inches above the archer's throat.

The man lay frozen, back pinned to the rubble, chest rising and falling in shallow gasps. His eyes stared straight into that gaping maw, teeth slick with saliva, each breath reeking of death. His lips barely moved.

"H…help…"

The Runner coiled tighter, muscles twitching, ready to finish it.

Then—

"RUNNER!"

A voice boomed from nearby.

The beast stopped.

It slowly turned its head.

Standing at the carousel, bathed in dying sunlight, was Rex.

His black cape fluttered behind him. His armor glowed faintly. But what truly froze the Runner in place… was who he held.

Johnquis.

Rex's blade pressed against his throat.

A long trickle of blood dripped from the corner of Johnquis's mouth. His arms dangled, too weak to resist.

The archer gasped.

"Captain…?"

The archer, crawling to his knees, looked up with confusion.

"Rex… th-thank God you're here. Please—save me!"

But Rex didn't even glance at him. His eyes stayed locked on the Runner.

"Turn around… slowly."

The Runner's eyes flicked between the man and Johnquis in Rex's grip.

The beast's breathing slowed. 

It stood. Tall. Slowly. And turned.

Rex met its gaze, blade unmoving.

His voice was ice.

"We've met at last, Nemesis."

His grip on Johnquis tightened.

"I still remember the wounds you left on my sister's body… that slim body she had… how easy it was for my arms to wrap around her. And you, you fucking tore her apart!"

The Runner growled low, its stance lowering again.

"Don't."

Rex's blade pressed slightly deeper into Johnquis's throat. A red line formed. Blood.

"One move, just one and I take his head."

The mall fell silent.

Even the wind seemed to hold its breath.

Rex's voice dropped,

"You took my sister. Now I'll take whatever matters to you."

Johnquis stirred weakly, eyes opening just a crack.

"…Rex… dont…"

Rex cut him off sharply, not taking his eyes off the Runner. 

"Shhh. Leash boy… I've seen how that monster acts around you. Care to explain why before I slit your throat?"

The Runner let out a low snarl, its eyes glowing violently, body tensed.

Johnquis gasped through the pain, barely able to lift his head.

"I-It's… my skill. I can enslave Eaters."

"Enslave?" 

Rex laughed dryly. 

"That's a broken skill, huh. So that's how you managed to tame this monster."

Johnquis swallowed hard. Blood trailed from his throat.

"Y-Yeah. I came here to tell you about this. It changed, Rex. It's not the same anymore."

"You're lying!"

He pointed to the archer still groaning against the rubble, his armor shredded. 

"You saw it yourself! Look what it did to them! That monster had its jaw wide open, ready to swallow one of my squad whole!"

"It was protecting me! They attacked me! If they hadn't raised their weapons, none of this would've happened!"

Rex chuckled coldly.

"Protecting you? Makes sense. The Runner is your slave. That makes you…"

He leaned in closer, teeth bared,

"…the master."

The blade bit deeper into Johnquis's neck. He winced, blood running freely now.

The Runner growled, its muscles twitching, eyes narrowing at Rex.

"RAHHHHHHHHH!"

The snarl echoed across the ruined floor, vibrating the cracked tiles.

Rex grinned.

"Oh? It's agitated." 

He looked the beast dead in the eyes.

"This is going to be fun."

Johnquis's breath was shaky.

"Please… it's changed. It's not the same monster that killed Lex…"

Everything stopped.

Rex's entire expression darkened.

His hand tightened on the hilt.

His voice dropped, cold and shaking.

"But it can't change the fact that it FUCKING SLAUGHTERED LEX!"

In a single motion—

Rex's blade slit Johnquis's throat.

SHLICK!

A clean slice.

Johnquis's eyes went wide.

He dropped to his knees, blood spraying from his neck.

He clutched at the wound with both hands.

"Uhh… uhhh…"

The Runner froze.

A second passed.

Two.

Then—

"GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!"

The scream tore through the mall like a quake. Tiles cracked. Glass shattered. The very air shook.

The Runner's muscles surged, veins glowing faintly violet beneath its skin. And then it lunged.

Straight at Rex.

With enough force to split the world.

Rex stepped forward, blade trembling in his grip.

"You'll pay for what you did to Lex. I'll cut you into pieces so small, they won't even know what to call you."

His voice broke into a roar.

"COME ON! YOU FUCKING MONSTER!"

He charged. Rage in his eyes.

BOOOOOM!!

They collided in mid-air.

A shockwave exploded outward—ripping dust from the rafters, cracking the stone tiles beneath their feet, and sending glass storefronts shattering into dust.

Rex was fury made flesh.

His long saw blade, jagged and blackened from years of use, screamed as it met the Runner's clawed foot in a brutal clash.

Sparks flew. Violet blood sprayed. But neither gave ground.

Rex shoved forward, teeth gritted.

"You fucking piece of shit!"

He roared and swung his blade again. An overhead arc that would have split a normal Eater in two.

The Runner twisted sideways mid-air, spinning, its foot smashing into the saw's flat side to redirect the strike. It landed light on a single foot like a dancer, then launched itself again, teeth bared and claws trailing behind.

CRACK—WHAM!

The fight blurred.

The Runner's kicks came like thunderclaps. Each one meant to shatter bone. Fluid, merciless, animalistic, its lean body pivoting mid-air, using walls, poles, broken railings as leverage.

But Rex held his ground.

"You think you can run from justice?! You killed her—MY SISTER!"

He parried a kick with the flat of his saw, then slashed low.

The blade bit into the Runner's thigh, tearing through muscle.

The Runner snarled, leapt up, and used the momentum to flip over Rex's head, landing behind him with a slide.

"RAAAAHHH!!"

The Runner lunged again, claws slashing.

Rex twisted and activated a skill.

[Skill: Iron Cyclone – Blood Cost: 10%]

"IRON CYCLONE!!"

The saw rotated at impossible speed, a blur of grinding steel. The Runner ducked, a hair too late. One claw was ripped clean off, skittering across the ground.

Blood sprayed.

But it didn't retreat. It twisted, planted both hands, and delivered a vicious double kick to Rex's chest.

BOOOOOM!!!

Rex went flying, smashing through a rusted souvenir kiosk, wood splintering, sparks flying from his armor.

He rolled, staggered to one knee, blood dripping from his mouth. His blade vibrated beside him, howling with rage, matching his own fury.

His voice was hoarse, teeth clenched.

"You tore her apart… Her body—ripped, hollow, unrecognizable…"

"She was all I had left. My only one."

His hands trembled.

"And you—YOU ATE HER!!"

He screamed and charged again.

[Skill: Breaker Fang – Blood Cost: 12%]

"BREAKER FANG!"

The blade gleamed crimson, a violent glow crawling along its serrated edge. It sang as he swung. 

The Runner met him halfway.

It dodged the main slash but took a shallow cut across its ribs. It slid under Rex's guard, claws raking his side, leaving three deep gashes.

Rex didn't flinch. He let it hit. Then he grabbed its arm and SLAMMED it against a broken carousel pole, pinning it down.

Face to face.

His voice shook with hate.

"Do you remember her scream?!"

"Was it fun for you!?"

"Was she crying when you bit her throat off, YOU MONSTER?!"

The Runner lashed upward. Its jaw snapping at Rex's throat.

Rex headbutted it. 

CRACK!

Then he lifted his saw.

"I'LL FUCKING END YOU—"

The Runner kicked upward with both legs, knocking Rex back. It flipped over and landed like a beast, shoulders heaving, eyes glowing violet-red, blood streaming down its chest.

The mall groaned. The second floor sagged.