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Previously . . .

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       Slowly, I pressed the knife's sharp blade against my skin, and-

       Slice.

       Slice.

       Slice.

       Slice.

       Slice.

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PoV: Lui Shirosagi

       After observing the previous match that featured Valt Aoi, I would never admit it, but I was looking forward to witnessing his next match. His aura was so... dark. Before, he radiated an aura of hope. Kindness. And most of all, friendship. Now, he looked completely different and was completely different. He changed. Changed in a bad way.

       To most people, Kurenai might have been similar to Aoi. But I knew better. Kurenai's aura seemed to have dulled too, but I knew his case was different. First, here's something that has to be said: even though the majority of people didn't know who Ashtem really was, I did, it was Theodore Glass. From what I thought, Valt must've thought he lost his best friend. He had lost hope. And Ashtem had taken advantage of that. He manipulated Valt. He made him think that no one cared about him. Valt had most probably come quite close to losing his sanity - dealing with so much. He couldn't think straight, then joined the Snake Pit.

       Kurenai, as I've said, is a different situation. He went to the Snake Pit for you could say... getting revenge.

       I may or may not have made a very, very, very tiny mistake.

       But it was partially Free's fault, too, so don't come at me, mortals. Or aliens. Or demigods. Or whatever you call yourself.

       Anyga- I mean anyways, Shu probably realized the old hag's intentions, and now, he's trying to break free from the darkness. Heck, maybe he already did, and was only playing the Bad Boy part just so Theodore wouldn't suspect him or something. But one thing I knew: he was going to save his best friend, and most probably try to humiliate me as well. We were still rivals, after all. So I, being a very logical person, did the logical thing - I didn't let my guard down.

       I was pulled out of my thoughts as the match between Valt and Cuza began.

       "3! 2! 1! Let it RIP!"

       Both the beys hit the stadium, and Volturnus doesn't waste time attacking Cognite. 

       "Spinning Moon Drive!" Cuza ejaculated.

       Cognite was sent flying into the air, then spun forward and built momentum as it fell, landing a deadly blow. Volturnus was sent flying into the air, and boom. Ring-out Finish.

       "Alter Cognite sends Volturnus flying!" Hanami exclaimed.

       Cue the cheers.

       No one seemed to notice Valt and Cuza's reactions though. Valt just picked up his bey and got into his launching stance like it was nothing. Cuza looked shocked, and it hit me like a sack of bricks: Spinning Moon Drive was Cognite's strongest move. If it couldn't burst Volturnus . . .

       Cuza bit his lip, before sighing and picking up his bey. He, too, got into his launching stance.

       He seemed to have said something to Valt, though I couldn't hear because of the loud cheers of the crowd. Albeit whatever he said, Valt didn't seem to care.

       "3! 2! 1! Let it RIP!"

       This time, Cognite was first to hit Volturnus, who just seemed to speed up. Volturnus sped along the rails of the stadium before hitting Cognite with such velocity that it hit the stadium and a sickening crack was heard. Everything got really bright, and when it could be seen clearly again... Cognite was broken.

       Everything got creepily quiet. So quiet, that Valt's words echoed across the whole place: "Pathetic."

       He turned his back on Cuza and left.

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so uhm- im sry for the late update- my xams are going on rn and stuff so yeah-
and wp isnt allowing me to change the book cover for some reason :')
plz tell me if u liked this chap! :D till next time!
~Ash

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Rounded off word count: 650