Toji was driven back, Grim on the defensive as the archfiend pressed his attacks. Not even the souls it contained were able to keep up with the beast's fury. Toji growled, roared, and spat vitriol as his temper rose to a fever pitch. Byxx ignored it all, focused only on defeating the Devil God and saving his dear friend.

He’d played his role in Khazmine’s scheme, loath as he was to have done so, and now he would focus entirely on making this demon, this monster, pay for insulting him and the rest of his friends.

Byxx let out a stream of fire, intending to wrap Toji within it. Toji extended one hand, a column of dark energy consuming it before creating dozens of orbs containing Byxx’s own energy that shot out, forming spikes that launched themselves directly at Byxx’s head and body. The archfiend shielded himself with his arms, gritting his teeth against the incredible pain a few of the spikes managed to inflict.

Gods, he hissed. He won’t give up, will he?

Toji swung Grim out, an arc of dark-violet energy shooting forth, knocking Byxx in the chest and flinging him back on the ground with a pained grunt. As he scrambled back to his feet, he heard what he swore was the snap of unfurling wings, and nearly collapsed again as he saw two large, magnificent, red and blue iridescent wings appear from Toji’s back just before he launched himself in the air.

Manifesting a purple blade in his left hand, he slammed it against Grim, a bolt of thick purple lightning shooting down toward Byxx who dove out of the way just before he got hit. Not one to back down from such a challenge, he powered up his sword and aimed high, energy blasting forth toward Toji. The Devil God juked out of the way, his black eyes glaring down at him, his brows pinched in a frown.

“Not holding back now, are you, old thing?” Byxx taunted.

“Bastard,” Toji hissed. He flattened his wings and dove toward his enemy, arms pressed to his sides before he flipped and landed hard on his feet, swinging with all his might. Byxx met him blow for blow, laughing with each strike. If he had known the boy had such a temper, he would have exploited it sooner; limits were a thing of the past when Devil God Toji Kanaki was pissed off.

And in the distance, surrounded by fire and smoke, another battle was coming to a close.

“Just say the word, little one,” Khazmine whispered, her voice tempered with a weary sadness that came from dredging up unpleasant memories. “Just one word, and it will all be over…”

Out of breath, charred, and about to pass out, Tristan winced before releasing his hold on his weapon, his hand to his chest. His brilliant red wings, iridescent in the glow of the flames, burst from his back out of instinct alone, twitching uselessly before falling limp against his body. The sword fell lifelessly to the ground and faded into a mist, a worthy sacrifice to the Gods of Raze and Ruin.

“Pleece,” he whimpered, a word so painfully sad that it pierced what passed for the Augment’s heart.

Far from the wounded boy, Toji resumed taunting the archfiend.

“Wanna know a fun fact about my awesome little toy?” Toji laughed darkly, the red and blue slits in the center of black eyes gleaming like menacing torch light. “All it takes is one tiny little nick, no deeper than a papercut, and your soul is mine.”

Byxx glanced at the behemoth in Toji’s hand. That’s why the blade feels so wrong…it’s a soul thief. With that in mind, he gave Toji a thumbs up. “I thank you for the good advice, friend. Now, come at me!”

They circled each other, their blows akin to volcanic eruptions, shaking the world around them, many of their swings going so low or wide they dug into the ground, flinging debris everywhere. In the back of his mind, Toji was grateful Natsu had thrown the barrier up to protect himself and the others. The only one he wanted to hurt was Byxx. Everyone else was innocent in this game. The only problem was the huge bastard wouldn’t stay the hell down!

He leapt high, coming down hard on Byxx again, energy erupting around them, slamming into the archfiend and driving him back until he fell to the ground.

“Fuck, Finally!” Toji yelled. “For the love of my own damn father, could you just hurry up and lose already?!”

Byxx wiped at the blood leaking from his mouth, breathless, his chest burning from a mix of the intense exertion and thick smoke. He was tired, he was sore, he had even more broken bones and bruises, but he wasn’t about to give in. He wasn’t about to yield. Toji Kanaki was an ass, but he was a worthy opponent. If he were to lose, it would be with honor, to his last breath. Nothing else mattered.

He gripped Damocleaver tightly, ready to spring up with another fierce attack, but before he could even draw another breath, Toji whipped Grim around, grabbed the hilt by both hands, and shoved the massive sword directly into Byxx’s face.

TOJI!

Toji froze, Natsu’s desperate cry resonating through his soul. On the ground, Byxx was breathing hard, his broken and bruised body shaking as he stared at the very tip of Grim, mere centimeters from his brow.

TOJI GET OUT HERE QUICK! IT’S TRISTAN!

A piercing, resonant sound battered Toji and Byxx’s ears, broadcasting on blast from the Augment’s harmonic assembly. With her shrill call came a series of messages, loud and booming enough for both combatants to wince at her volume.

“STAND DOWN!”

Khazmine’s cry broke through Byxx’s resolve, clearing away the fog of bloodlust.

“YIELD!” the Augment bellowed. “BOTH OF YOU, YOU MUST YIELD! THE FIGHT IS OVER! THE BOY IS—”

The pair stared at each other, Toji’s features slowly shifting back to normal, his wings tucking back into his body. “What’s more important?” Toji asked.

“Shall I ask you that?” Byxx countered. Neither of them had a hint of malice in their tones. Even in the heat of battle, both men knew there were greater things to aim for besides a glorious victory on the field. For all their differences, for all they could disagree about and dislike about one another, this was something they could share.

“Nope.” He reached down and offered the archfiend a hand up.

Byxx squinted suspiciously at the Devil God before consenting to accept Toji’s aid. Byxx rose to his feet and both of them sheathed their swords. Toji’s gaze danced furiously around at the fire, fueled by an energy that was foreign to him, and ran a hand through his hair. Normally he’d use his own dark energy to put it out, but he had a feeling whatever he tried, it wouldn’t work. However…

He turned to Byxx. “Um…you started this…how do you put it out?”

Byxx smirked. “A lesson for you, lad. Watch and learn.”

Extending his hand before him, he drew on his ether core, his eyes turning black as he focused on the flames surrounding them. Toji’s jaw dropped as he watched the blaze calm before turning in their direction. It drew in on itself, forming a swirling column of fire that spiraled down directly into Byxx’s palm. When every last ember had vanished into his hand, he folded his fingers in, his eyes returning to their normal warm amber glow. 

He turned to Toji, still awestruck. “And that is how it’s done.”

Toji nodded slowly. “Teach me, sensei.”

Byxx gave Toji a weak smirk and a chuckle. “Another time, old thing. We have more pressing matters to attend to.”

Toji sobered. “Tristan.”

Byxx nodded and the two ran from the field toward their friends and the injured young god.

***

The arena barrier dropped the second Khazmine began running. Natsu didn’t need to sense anyone’s energy to know something was terribly wrong. The Augment burst through the flames with Tristan in her arms, running at high speed, calling for Natsu with all her might. The others bolted forward, but Natsu yelled at them to stay back.

“What the hell happened?!” he demanded, taking his nephew from Khazmine’s arms and laying him on the ground. “What did you do, Khazmine?!”

“He is damaged,” Khazmine said, unwilling to clarify at present. “Beyond what we can heal…”

“You think I can’t see that?!” Natsu screamed at her. The Augment tilted her head at the look in his eye; a look of pain, of loss, of desperation. Tears welled in his eyes, the sight of his nephew in such a state clawing at his insides more painfully than the scars dug into his husband’s face. “If he dies,” he intoned thickly, “it won’t be Toji you have to worry about.”

Khazmine stared down at him dispassionately. “Noted.”

Uttering an insult he knew would likely make Iris pass out if she heard it, Natsu growled and turned back to Tristan. The boy was breathing, but barely, each breath raspy and difficult to acquire. Every movement brought tremendous pain to the young god, whose charred skin and innumerable wounds covered practically his entire body.

TOJI!

Natsu tried to calm his pounding heart as he examined each burn and bruise that marred the young god’s exposed flesh. He was incredibly glad he could heal from these wounds quickly, but the smoke damage…if Natsu didn’t do something, Tristan was going to suffocate and die, despite being out of the fire.

“He has smoke-of-the-lung,” Khazmine assessed. Plates in her neck retracted enough for a small, bronze cylinder to fall into the Augment’s waiting hand. Khazmine brought the device close to Tristan’s mouth and depressed a button, filling his lungs with a reservoir of air. It wasn’t much, but at least she could buy him a few precious seconds. “Ninety-three percent damage to alveoli. Blood pressure dropping rapidly.”

TOJI GET OUT HERE QUICK, IT’S TRISTAN!

Realizing Byxx and Toji were still in the midst of their fight, Khazmine turned and screamed for the pair to yield. If her desperate pleas through her highest-frequency channel weren’t enough to pierce such a barrier, Khazmine struggled to think of what possibly could.

Natsu’s hands roamed over the boy, panic muddling his mind. He knew what he had to do, he’d done this a few times for other victims of smoke inhalation, but this was Tristan! 

Relax, baby, you’ve got this, Toji soothed. We’re on our way.

Natsu nodded and took a deep breath, calming his core. “Right,” he whispered. He put his hand over Tristan’s core and winced. His energy was moving too slow, his core sluggish, unable to produce more healing energy to combat the external wounds, plus aid in destroying the ash particles that were poisoning his lungs. Natsu swallowed hard. Pulling the mess out was going to hurt, and Tristan wasn’t going to be talking normally for a few days at the very least.

It was a good thing his father didn’t give enough of a shit to go see his only remaining son graduate Guard training. Tristan was a good liar, but Natsu wasn’t about to put him in that position over something like this. Especially since he got hurt doing something he was strictly forbidden to do by his instructors, never mind the Helman Army itself.

Toji and Byxx burst through the ashy smoke, Toji’s face pale as he skidded to a halt on his knees, putting Tristan’s head on his lap, cradling it between his hands. To the astonishment of everyone around him, he was shaking.

“Dammit, kid, I told you to be careful,” he said through gritted teeth. He looked up at Natsu, his eyes wet with pleading. “Do it.”

Natsu nodded. “Hold him still.” Channeling his energy into his palm, he ripped Tristan’s shirt in half and recoiled, revealing even more flesh damage caused by his encounter with Khazmine, including a massive burn lancing across his chest. One that was still actively eating away at his skin. 

“Are you fucking kidding me?!” He exploded at the Augment. “What did you do to him?!”

Khazmine blinked, unfazed. “Severe damage to eighty-three percent of his body. Total system failure is imminent. He is running out of time.”

Toji refused to look up from Tristan, knowing that if he did, he would turn her into shrapnel with one blink. Tsu, do something before I lose my shit completely.

Natsu glared at Khazmine for a second longer, bared his fangs and hissed, before turning back to the dying god on the ground. As everyone looked on in tense amazement, a tendril of soft green energy curled out from Natsu’s palm and entered Tristan’s body.

He guided it through, stretching and expanding it to remove every bit of ash and dust he could find, healing his organs and internal tissues as he did so. Another wave washed through his blood stream, cleansing it of the infection that was beginning to grow. It was when he reached Tristan’s lungs that he felt the urge to scream.

Less than a minute, he growled. That’s all that was left on the clock. If she hadn’t brought him out when she did…

Toji’s waves washed through him like a calming river, dissipating his anxiety, soothing his fears. He’s going to be okay, love…he has to be… 

“Can we do anything about this burn?” Natsu asked, noting that it was the only one not healing. Everything else, every electrical burn, bruise, and whiplike mark was fading at a normal rate. But the burn on his chest, the one that seemed to be growing rather than healing, wasn’t reacting to anything either he or Toji were attempting through their energy manipulations. 

Toji choked back a cry, a tear falling from his left red eye. “Don’t die,” he pleaded under his breath. “Not over a stupid game I never should have dragged you into. Don’t die because of me!” His head snapped up, his eyes searching for the archfiend. Byxx flinched at the look of pure desperation on the Devil God’s face.

“Byxx…” Toji pleaded, his voice shaking. “Help me…pleece…” His chin quivered. “I’ll do anything…I swear on my core, I’ll return a massive favor, give you whatever you want, hell, I’ll even fight you on your own turf someday if that’s what you want. If you just save my nephew, PLEASE!”

Byxx glanced down at the boy, struggling to breathe, to hang on to life while Natsu continued to cleanse his body of the toxins that had invaded through the smoke inhalation. A sharp twitch made the archfiend wince, and he could only imagine that was Natsu attempting to jumpstart the young god’s energy core. 

He had the means to help, and perhaps if he were a lesser man the archfiend would decline simply based on Toji’s behavior. However, the boy had done nothing to deserve such treatment from Byxx, who was an honorable soldier and friend to the less fortunate, like he himself had once been.

“PLEASE, BYXX, I’M BEGGING YOU!” Tears rained down Toji’s face, the scars on his face no longer a mark of fear… but of a damaged young man with a broken heart and few friends in the world to call his own.