CHAPTER 60: GRAVITY VS METAL

"I, Shin Amano, we’ll be the one doing the crushing. Core Release: Graviton Nexus."

Shin’s voice was calm, almost casual, as violet energy rippled outward.

Instantly, the world around him warped. A massive field, spanning thirty to forty meters, shimmered into existence. Gravity twisted unnaturally, slowing everything, as dozens of gravity rods sparked into existence. Shin’s body lifted from the ground, suspended as if the laws of nature had simply given up obeying him.

Across from him, Finian’s confident grin faltered for the briefest instant. Fear flickered in his eyes before pride forced it down. The weight of Shin’s Core Release pressed against him, crushing, suffocating, but Finian growled and forced his stance firm.

"I’ll meet you head on!" he yelled, thrusting out his arms. "Core Release: Metal Field!"

The battlefield answered his call. Every scrap of steel, iron, and rusted weapon in the ruined ward shuddered violently, then rose into the air. Chunks of metal folded into floating blocks the size of boulders, while jagged shards whirled like a storm of blades. Streams of it raced toward Finian, layering over his body until his frame looked like a walking fortress of living steel.

Gravity and metal clashed in the air, fields colliding, Shin’s oppressive violet pressure grinding against Finian’s expanding tide of sharpened iron. The ground beneath them cracked, buckled, and screamed as their domains fought for dominance.

But power against power, Finian knew the truth. Shin’s Core Release was the worst possible matchup for him. Gravity crushed everything. Against object based abilities like his metal manipulation, it was a natural predator.

If he let the battle remain a contest of domains, he’d be ground down until nothing was left.

So he moved.

With a sudden burst of speed, Finian charged, his massive frame blurring across the warped battlefield. Shin’s eyes widened slightly, he hadn’t expected that much speed from someone clad in heavy steel. The man was enormous, yes, but he moved with the precision and flexibility of a trained predator.

Gravity rods speared down from every angle, violet constructs that bent the air itself as they fell. Each one carried enough weight to pulverize stone into dust and twist even metal.

Tch! Finian gritted his teeth as he weaved between them. These rods, if one lands clean, I’m done for.

He twisted his body, agile despite his size, his limbs braced in steel. Whenever dodging wasn’t enough, he ripped chunks of metal into shields, throwing them between himself and the rods. The rods smashed through, crushing the blocks flat against the ground, but each sacrifice bought him the fraction of a second he needed to keep advancing.

Every step closer was a defiance of Shin’s overwhelming pressure.

"Oh, so you do have something in you. I gotta be honest, you’re quite the persistent one." Shin muttered, watching as Finian pushed forward through the storm of gravity rods.

The barrage only intensified, more rods, heavier, faster, their crushing weight enough to crater the ground wherever they landed. Yet Finian didn’t falter. Step by step, he forced his way closer until at last, he was in striking distance.

He lunged low, his massive frame whipping upward with a vicious right uppercut. Shin leaned back, certain his timing was flawless, but a sting brushed across his chin. His eyes narrowed.

The reach was wrong. He shouldn’t have been touched.

Finian didn’t let up. A left hook came sweeping in, and Shin ducked under it, but even before he could counter, a knee drove up toward his ribs. He twisted aside, evading the blow, yet again a graze scraped his cheek.

Shin slid backward, violet aura flaring around him, eyes sharp and unblinking.

What’s this? I calculated the angles perfectly. His reach, it’s longer than it should be. Is this his ability?

Across from him, Finian grinned, his steel covered fists glinting.

"Did I finally get your attention?" he smirked. "Good luck figuring it out."

Then, with a heavy step that cracked the earth, Finian surged forward once more, closing the gap with terrifying speed.

The barrage didn’t stop. Every swing, every kick, every strike, no matter how well Shin thought he evaded, Finian left a mark. His cheek split, his bicep cut, his ribs bruised, shallow wounds piling up across his body.

Shin clicked his tongue, irritation flickering across his usually calm face.

Tch! Every calculation’s off. He’s not just hiding an ability, he’s fighting like a man who’s lived inside battle his whole life.

Finian pressed forward with ruthless precision, his movements a perfect blend of brute force and practiced discipline. His fists thundered with the rhythm of a seasoned kickboxer, each strike chaining into the next with terrifying efficiency.

Shin retaliated with gravity rods, spearing them down in crushing arcs. But Finian’s Core Release flared to life as metal scraps twisted and hardened into barriers that shattered under the rods’ pressure, buying him just enough time to keep closing in. He discarded steel after steel, sacrificing everything he could forge just to survive the crushing force and stay within striking distance.

Every clash pushed Shin further back, step by step, cornering him against the debris filled ruins of Ward 6.

For the first time, Shin felt the pressure of being the hunted rather than the hunter.

I need to figure this out soon, just why can’t I dodge it? Shin’s mind raced, eyes narrowing.

Finian lunged with a gazelle punch aimed at Shin’s liver. But in that instant, Shin caught it, the trick. His opponent’s shoulders popped unnaturally, extending far beyond what the human body should allow.

Shin’s realization came too late. The punch slammed into his gut with brutal force, hurling him over a heap of twisted metal scraps.

"Ugh!" Blood sprayed from Shin’s mouth as he crashed down, clutching his stomach.

Finian exhaled, a fleeting wave of relief washing over him. Despite dominating the exchange, a chill lingered in the back of his mind.

This guy’s insane. Even while cornered, his instincts are razor sharp. He read my attacks, forcing me to barely graze him when I should’ve crushed him outright. And those gravity rods, he keeps launching them even under pressure. His jaw tightened. No, I need to end this before he turns it around.

He readied to charge again.

But before Finian could take a step, gravity rods pierced down from above, twisting space around them. Finian danced between them, his metal shielding him, only to see it bent and warped seconds later.

"That was a direct hit... How can you.....?" Finian muttered, eyes wide. But, why are his rods getting heavier?

From atop the junk heap, Shin pushed himself up, blood trailing from his lips, yet a grin spread across his face. He let out a short laugh.

"I finally figured it out." he said, brushing dust from his shoulders. His eyes glinted with sharp clarity. "Your reach extends about five inches further, thanks to those unnatural shoulders of yours."

"I see, sharp indeed," Finian muttered, lips curling into a faint grin. "But knowing won’t save you. Let me make it clear, I’m built differently. My shoulders, my connectors are metal, artificial bones if you will. They extend in a flash, giving me five inches of reach no human should have."

Shin raised an eyebrow. "What are you then, a cyborg?"

"Tch. Getting cocky again, huh? Call it that if you want. After being crippled, my body was pieced back together like a puzzle. Most of my limb joints? Replaced with metal. Every connector is artificial."

Shin chuckled lowly. "So that explains your speed earlier. I thought it was unnatural, looks like I was right."

Finian’s smirk hardened. "Insight won’t help you. From here, I’ll only go faster. Try your hardest to fail."

Despite his bravado, Finian knew the truth the moment Shin exposed his secret. The battle was already slipping away. His artificial reach had been his trump card. Without it, he had no edge. Against Shin’s overwhelming gravity, there was no path to victory.

The only way I could’ve won was by catching him off guard, but now that he’s figured it out, he’ll be ready. He’ll counter every strike.

His fists tightened, his breathing ragged. For the first time in the fight, doubt crept into his eyes.

Shin’s gaze sharpened. "Then I guess it’s my turn. You’ve had your fun. Now let me enjoy mine." He lowered his stance, voice dropping into a whisper.

"Core Release: Phase Two: Blackbound."

The air shifted.

Finian’s eyes widened as his body suddenly dragged, as though invisible chains bound his limbs. Gravity itself pressed against him, not crushing, but smothering, slowing every twitch of muscle, every step, every strike.

"What?!" His breath hitched. "This weight!"

As if to drive the nail deeper, small black spheres, each the size of a volleyball, manifested within Shin’s thirty meter domain. Their presence distorted the air, bending light as gravity itself warped around them.

"I have to commend you," Shin muttered coldly, his body levitating effortlessly in his own field. "You forced me to reach this point, to unleash a phase beyond my expectations. Consider it an honor, you’re the one who pushed me here."

Finian roared and dashed forward, but his speed was nothing before Shin’s gravity. A single straight punch, his fist cloaked in a dense aura of crushing force, smashed into Finian’s face. Bone shattered. Flesh tore. The ground cracked beneath the impact.

The brutal, one sided combat dragged on. Each time Finian collapsed, he rose again, bloodied, staggering, yet refusing to yield. His movements even grew sharper, faster, as if desperation sharpened his instincts. But Shin’s eyes followed everything. Nothing escaped him now.

"I admire your perseverance," Shin said, his smile gone. "But this has to end."

With a single command of his will, the black holes drifted toward Finian. He raised walls of metal scraps in a frantic defense, but the voids crushed them instantly, folding, warping, then ripping the metal apart like paper. The same fate befell Finian. His body crushed under the heavy pressure of the gravity as he fell lifeless to the ground.

Shin exhaled, lowering himself as his Core Release faded away. "If we hadn’t been enemies," he murmured, almost to himself, "we might’ve had more battles worth remembering."

—-------------------

From the crater, dust and rubble swirling around, the Messenger with the whip stood tall, her presence radiating malice as the psionic weapon coiled and cracked with a hiss. Across from her, Seth and Sora braced themselves, their stances firm despite the suffocating pressure.

"You cheeky brats." she yelled, her eyes narrowing with killing intent. The whip writhed in her hand like a living serpent, glowing faintly with psionic energy. "You’ll regret trying to isolate me!"