The air became heavier, with the pressure of an imminent storm. Lee stood solid, his breath steady, and closed his eyes to feel the Skull Mask's pulse of electricity. Darris' insults rang in his head, but he stopped them with one thought: "This is our fight."

  "Time to put forth more effort... Darris, I suppose you forgot one thing: I am the actual thing!"

  Lee concentrated while pressing both hands to the ground. His red energy flowed through the ground like veins of molten fire. The earth rattled, and fissures appeared beneath his fingertips. The fight halted around him, as even the Skull Soldiers were taken aback by his immense force.

  A thunderous rumbling erupted as the water ripped open. The fissures revealed phantom soldiers dressed in antique armour, their eyes shining with the same red energy as Lee's blade.

  "YOU HAVE YOUR SOILDERS I HAVE MY SKULL ARMY!"

  Maya, floating above the tumult, took in the breadth of Lee's newly formed army. In the dark light, her wings shone like molten gold, reflecting the fires of conflict underneath. "Looks like we've got our work cut out for us," she blurted out.

  The field of battle broke in unending mayhem as the two armies collided. Lee was in the foreground, his Skull Blade blazing with red fire. The ethereal soldiers he had called moved with the precision of a well-trained army, their antique armour flashing a crimson hue. He cut into the opposing ranks, each stroke of his blade unleashing rippling waves of energy that annihilated any Skull Soldiers in their path.

  "Keep pushing forward!" Lee yelled, his voice piercing over the roar of war.

  Above the commotion, Maya soared like a comet blazing across the sky. Her Light Speed Flight transformed her into a blur, moving smoothly amid volleys of hostile fire.

  "Time to turn up the heat!" Maya exclaimed, her wings shining even brighter. She dived quickly, her blazing aura leaving an incandescent path. She pulled up at the last second, unleashing a barrage of explosive energy that left a blazing crater in the opposing ranks.

  Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.

  "Burn them all!" Taz shouted, his voice rich with unearthly resonance. He flung his palms forward, igniting tremendous floods of flame that consumed everything in their path. The earth underneath him browned and cracked because of the extreme heat.

  On the edges of the fight, Luke hunkered on a high perch, his Skull Sniper ready. His keen eyes surveyed the commotion, identifying high-priority targets within the opposing ranks. Each pull of the trigger unleashed a bolt of blue energy, hitting foes with deadly accuracy and causing little explosions of shimmering light.

  "Clear on your left, Lee!" Luke yelled out, slaying an assortment of Skull Soldiers attempting to flank his companion.

  On a rock above the carnage, Amir watched the combat with dispassionate calculation. His palm hesitated over a hidden switch on his gauntlet, his face inscrutable.

  "It's not enough," he said to himself. His gaze shifted quickly to Darris, who stood alongside him with a twisted grin.

  Darris stood at the brink of the cliff, his dark aura wrapping about him like a serpent. He smirked as he looked around at the mayhem. "They're more persistent than I expected," he added, slightly amused.

  "Persistence is irrelevant," Amir said with frightening serenity. Without hesitation, he activated the secret switch on his gauntlet. "Show them what real power looks like."

  Darris's silver aura blazed furiously as he jumped down from the precipice. Enveloping him in a barrier of electricity.

  His eyes locked with Lee full of malice.

  "Beckton," Darris snarled, his voice like a razor slicing through the cacophony. "Enough with these diversions." Let's stop this now, you and I.

  Darris rushed forward, his skull fists leaving a fiery trail as they punched into the air.

  Lee confronted him directly, their weapons slamming into one other with a thunderous boom that turned into a crater. As their abilities collided, red and white energy burst forth like fireworks.

  Lee clenched his jaw, resisting the tremendous impact of Darris' blow. With his muscles strained, he acknowledged, "You're stronger than before." “But so am I!”

  Lee sprang forward, his sword tearing through the air in a barrage of strong, accurate blows. With easily, Darris dodged each strike, his silver energy encircling him like a living shield.

  Darris dodged a particularly strong strike and quipped mockingly, "You've improved." "But you won't be saved by skill alone."

  The rest of the crew had to contend with the never-ending swarm of Skull Soldiers as Lee and Darris engaged in combat.

  With unabated rage, Taz shouted, his flames swallowing whole waves of foes. His eyes glowed unearthly as he let forth streams of flames that destroyed everything in his path. "You freaks, hurry up! I have a lot more sources for it.