The tournament’s arena glittered like a celestial wonderland, adorned with sprawling islands suspended in a void of shimmering stars and cosmic dust. Each island was a battleground—varying in topology, from jagged rock formations to lush green terrain—strategically designed to test the skills of combatants. Atop one of these islands, under the harsh glow of a distant sun, Cole and Talha stood face to face, their expressions reflecting a mix of excitement and tension. “Ready to lose, old friend?” Cole smirked, spinning his butterfly knife with a flicker of blue afterimages ghosting behind him, left in the wake of his Timewarp ability. “Please, you still owe me for that last spar we had,” Talha retorted, a competitive gleam illuminating his eyes. As an ex-member of the Harvest group, he felt the weight of his recent freedom—no longer bound by the chains of his past—but today, he found himself grappling with the familiar tension of a rivalry. He summoned his energy, a soft glow emanating from his palm, building towards a potent strike. “And this time, I’m not holding back.” “Wouldn’t dream of it!” Cole gravelly replied, his confidence peaking as he launched himself forward, activating Timewarp. In a blink, he zipped across the distance, leaving multiple blue afterimages in his wake, each one darting toward Talha. The disks of reality around them seemed to ripple, ensuring the audience witnessed the dizzying speed of his form. Talha, however, was ready. With a sudden twist, he created two clones of himself, who mirrored his movements, each positioned to intercept the oncoming Cole. “Surprise!” Talha shouted, the clones springing into action, their fists raised. They initiated a series of punches, aiming to push Cole back, while Talha, still in his original form, began gathering more energy into his palm. “Nice try!” Cole taunted, his eyes gleaming with mischief as he swiftly shifted his direction, dodging the clones and using their force against one another, culminating in a flurry of strikes that sent them tumbling sideways. “But I’m not that easy to hit!” With a swift backflip, Cole gained distance from the clones. He felt the thrill of battle coursing through him as the Semen Demon's presence began to hum in the back of his mind, tempting him with whispers of reckless abandon. He grinned, shaking off the sensation. “Now, let’s turn up the heat!” “You’re still cocky,” Talha replied, a hint of laughter in his voice amidst the chaos. Channeling his energy, he conjured two more clones, bringing their total to five. “But let’s see how you handle all of us!” With a nod, the clones launched a synchronized front assault. Talha followed behind, utilizing Clone Hopping, and in a blink, he exchanged his consciousness with one of his clones, positioning himself just behind Cole, ready for an energy-infused palm strike. “Catch this!” Talha exclaimed, his palm glowing a fierce, fiery cerulean. Cole barely had time to register Talha’s repositioning before he heard the footfalls of two clones heavy in the air; he pivoted just in time to meet Talha’s forward attack. Ignoring the strikes from the clones, Cole ducked under Talha's palm but countered with a quick slice of his butterfly knife aimed at Talha’s side. “Nice try, but you’ll need more than that!” Talha grinned, his clone interceptors taking the brunt of Cole’s fleeting assault, dispersing into wisps of energy under the sharp edge and phasing back into pieces of glowing light, while the original Talha moved agilely away, preparing for his next attack. “Let’s see how many clones you have left!” Cole shouted, reveling in their fierce duel. He then activated a surge of Timewarp, dashing forward again, only to leap upwards into the air, performing an acrobatic flourish as he rained down a barrage of swift knife strikes aimed toward scattered clones. With remarkable agility, Talha sprang back, generating a defensive line of clones as they reflected Cole's knife attacks. “Not bad! But your knife can’t cut through strategy!” “Strategy, huh?” Cole smirked, a coherent rhythm bursting forth as he switched tactics. “How about I change the game, then?” His voice, now edged with the anticipation of the rising power within him. The Semen Demon stirred, tendrils beginning to manifest at his command, weaving through the air with sinister grace. “Oh no!” Talha exclaimed, realizing the potency of Cole's duel with the demon. “You know what that means!” “Let’s dance!” Cole yelled, tendrils whipping forward, aiming to bind Talha in a powerful grip. Yet, just as the tendrils breached Talha’sperimeter, he executed another series of movements, propelled by the powers of his clones, negotiating his escape in an impossible scenario. “Time to kick it up a notch!” Talha shouted, summoning all five clones at once. They circled around Cole in a flurry of lifelike motion, creating an illusion of overwhelming numbers. Each clone readied their palms for an energy strike, their visual aura intermingling for maximum impact. “Surrounding me won’t work forever!” Cole retorted, calling upon his Meta-human ability to warp time around him. With a splintered ripple, he sped through the clones, delivering critical strikes that sent them flickering into oblivion. Yet with every defeated image, Talha remained—steady and focused, calculating the perfect moment. With sheer determination, Talha sprinted past his clones’ fading frames and landed squarely in the spot where Cole emerged from his effort, going for one decisive blow. “I’m not done yet!” Cole maneuvered away at the last second, but Talha was quick. A cunning flash danced across his eyes as he combined the power of his remaining clones with the energy he harnessed. In one gravely powerful movement, he lodged his palm into the ground before Cole could make a clean escape. “Now!” he exclaimed, projecting a wave of energy that surged upward, sending an eruption of force erupting from the ground. The shockwave sent Cole staggering backward, losing his balance for a split-second. In that critical moment, the crown of energy burst forth in a breathtaking explosion, forcing Cole to the very edge of the island. Sprinting against the shockwave, he managed to gather his focus and, with a defiant grin, shot back with one final Timewarp maneuver, creating a blue afterimage that lingered just long enough to evade the attack. However, he was perilously close to the island’s boundary. With a swift flick of his butterfly knife, Cole cut through any hesitation with feline precision, yet Talha, seized with the clarity of purpose, engaged the last remnants of his clones for a simultaneous front thrust. “Cole! Yield now before you regret it!” “Not a chance!” Cole shouted, adrenaline coursing through him. He leaned into the grasp of the Semen Demon, allowing its power to amplify his movements. Tendrils flared behind him, lashing out at Talha. “Then let’s finish this!” Talha declared, churning through what remained of his energy with one final strike—his palm aglow and his clones disappearing as momentum shifted toward their last exchanges. In a devastating clash of power, Cole and Talha collided—energy and speed meeting strategy and precision. Both combatants reeled at the impact, dancing around their finish line, their hearts entwined in a tempest of friendship and rivalry—each vying to outdo the other. Yet, as the clash reverberated through the island, neither of them wanting any bloodshed—a silent acknowledgment intertwined their spirits; regardless of the outcome today, they remained the best of friends. “Just don’t say I didn’t warn you!” Talha quipped, as Cole, breathing heavily, smiled wide and knew it was far from over. Their laughter echoed like constellations scattered across the vastness of the arena, notes of friendship woven into the fabric of rivalry beneath the watchful glimmer of the stars above.