SQUAD SHOWDOWN

Alko pushed himself up from the ground. The taste of iron was fresh in his mouth, blood smearing his lips. A smirk crept up as he uttered in a half-mocking tone, "He's captain for a reason."

His sharp eyes darted toward the advancing figures of Stella and Calvin. They moved with an unsettling grace, the confidence of their stride evident. "Ugh, here come his lackeys," Alko mumbled, his tone dripping with sarcasm. "Hey, could you, like, go away? I wanna fight Captain Barclay."

Stella let out a cold, almost melodious cackle. "Captain Barclay?" she echoed, her tone dripping with condescension. "Do you really think you stand a chance against him? Matter of fact, do you even think you stand a chance against me?"

A defiant smile formed on Alko's face. "Challenge accepted."

Without another word, he lunged at them, muscles rippling. But before he could close the distance, Calvin, with an almost ceremonious gesture, announced, "Kalo: Mist of Glamour." The world around Alko dissolved into a haze of alluring scent, obscuring his vision and choking his senses.

"What the hell?" Alko choked out, coughing through the thick mist.

From the fog, sharp projectiles shot out with startling speed. "Shit!" Alko cursed, leaping back, barely evading the gleaming finger nails.

Emerging from the fog was Stella, her grace in combat almost ethereal. Every move she made was calculated, and precise. The dance of their fight was a sight to behold — a fluid motion of dodge, parry, and strike.

But as Alko twisted away from one of Stella's swipes, she revealed a trick up her sleeve. With a fierce thrust, she unleashed her nails from her fingers, embedding them deep into Alko's abdomen.

A choked cry escaped him as he recoiled from the unexpected blow, creating a distance from his agile opponent.

He immediately surveyed the damage to his body. His gaze fixated on his midsection, and a jolt of alarm passed through him. Long, decorated fingernails—three of them, cruelly sharp and gleaming wickedly in the dim light—were deeply embedded into his flesh.

"This chick…" he muttered under his breath, wincing slightly as he yanked the nails free.

Stella, her face a mask of impatience, shot a glare at her companion. "Your damned perfume was supposed to dull his senses, Calvin. Why's he still on his feet?"

Calvin scowled back, clearly taken aback. "You're pinning this on me?"

Alko, clutching his wounded stomach, let out a raspy chuckle. "Dull my senses? Lady, I've been drunk for more than half my life. Being a little off-kilter is practically my default mode."

Stella rolled her eyes, clearly exasperated. With a terse nod to Calvin, she simply said, "Calvin."

Calvin stepped forward, a determined look in his eyes. He clasped his hands, his voice a low chant. "Kalo: Ethereal Bliss."

The air thickened around them as a dense, swirling mist began to rise, shrouding everything in a heavy blanket of white. Alko coughed, trying to wave away the suffocating fog, but to no avail.

By the time the mist began to dissipate, Alko's voice cut through the air, dripping with derision. "Again with this?"

He darted forward, aiming to take Stella by surprise. But, a few strides in, he faltered, confusion evident on his face. "What...? Why am I...?" His voice trailed off as he realized that, despite his bravado, something was wrong. Each step was laborious as if he was moving through molasses. He felt... slower.

Alko summoned his strength, and with a deep inhale, he launched a fist straight at Stella. But it was unlike him – the punch, usually a deadly force to be reckoned with, now moved as if weighed down by invisible chains. Stella, almost leisurely, sidestepped his advance.

Taking advantage of the momentum, Alko tried to compensate with a rapid succession of punches and high kicks. But the scene played out in a surreal, drawn-out fashion, each move seeming to drag on for an eternity.

Stella smirked, her eyes locked onto her adversary. "Too slow," she taunted, her voice dripping with disdain.

Suddenly, the tables turned. Stella lunged forward, her gleaming claws flashing in a deadly dance. Alko did his best to evade the incoming barrage, but his movements felt mired, sluggish. Again and again, Stella's claws found their mark, slicing through his defences and etching lines of red across his skin.

"For fuck's sake," Alko gritted out, desperation evident in his voice. "It's like trying to fight underwater."

Seizing her chance, Stella readied herself for a decisive blow. With a powerful twist of her hips, she unleashed a fierce double swing of her claws, sending Alko spiralling through the air. He landed with a heavy thud, dust rising around him.

Stella turned her gaze to Calvin, a self-satisfied grin playing on her lips. "Not bad, Calvin," she complimented, her voice almost purring. "This is going to be a cakewalk."

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In the looming shadow of Dove Corporation Headquarters, the courtyard became a battleground for a dance of precision and power. Captain Barclay and Kimberley sized each other up, their intent gazes betraying neither fear nor doubt.

Without hesitation, Kimberley unleashed a rapid volley of BB bullets, each aimed directly at Captain Barclay. However, with finesse and agility, he deflected each one using his shimmering golden necklace chain. Not wasting a moment, he leapt toward Kimberley, chain arcing gracefully but menacingly in the air. But Kimberley's nimble footwork ensured the chain's lethal touch never met her skin.

With a sudden change in tactics, Captain Barclay whipped his chain around a large stone and launched it directly at Kimberley. She retaliated, blasting the projectile to smithereens. Yet, this was precisely the distraction Captain Barclay needed. Masked by the dust and debris, he surged forward, swinging his chain straight for Kimberley's midsection.

The world seemed to slow as Kimberley gracefully arched her back, evading the glinting chain by mere inches. Seizing her moment, she fired a series of BBs his way. Three missed, but one made its mark, nicking Captain Barclay's cheek and drawing a bead of blood.

He landed, face etched with a mix of pain and surprise, a stark contrast to Kimberley's cool composure. But then, with a sly grin, he murmured, "Kalo: Luna's Bracelets." Suddenly, both his arms shimmered with four gleaming bracelets each.

Kimberley's gaze sharpened, a hint of amusement in her voice, "Nice bracelets."

"My grandmother has exquisite taste," he retorted.

The ensuing exchange was a dazzling spectacle, as Kimberley unleashed a hailstorm of bullets while Captain Barclay, displaying uncanny reflexes, weaved and dodged with his bracelets absorbing or deflecting her assault. Then, with deadly intent, he projected four of his bracelets toward her. Kimberley's quick reflexes allowed her to dodge three, but the fourth left a vicious slash on her bicep.

As she grimaced in pain, Captain Barclay, sensing an opening, lunged forward. In the heart-stopping moments that followed, his golden chain once again came into play. Kimberley, while trying to fend him off, found her wrist ensnared by the chain.

A moment of realization dawned on her face. "Shit..." she whispered, the weight of her situation becoming clear.

Captain Barclay's grin spread wide, a dangerous gleam in his eyes, as he pulled Kimberley ruthlessly towards him. With merciless precision, he delivered a bone-crushing punch that rocked her. Without giving her a chance to recover, he began a relentless assault, yanking her back repeatedly with the chain just to send her sprawling again.

Suddenly, the golden chain wrapped around her tightly, and he hoisted her into the air before slamming her down with a ferocity that made the very earth quake. Without pausing, he began spinning her around in the air like a rag doll, each rotation more violent than the last.

Disoriented and desperate, Kimberley managed to summon her weapon, aiming directly at the chain binding her. With concentrated fire, she shattered the chain's grip and was hurled through the air, crashing to the ground in a tumble.

Gasping for breath and struggling to rise, Kimberley's eyes widened in terror as the shadow of Captain Barclay loomed above her, chain poised for another strike. As it came crashing down, she managed to roll out of its path, springing to her feet with a dancer's grace. She ducked, jumped, and swirled around his attacks until, with a burst of speed, she captured the wrist that controlled the deadly chain.

A swift, spinning elbow connected with Captain Barclay's nose, temporarily breaking his momentum. Sensing an opportunity, Kimberley raised her gun, pointing it directly at his chest. But in a split-second move, he deflected her aim, causing her to fire skywards. Undeterred, Captain Barclay sent a bracelet hurtling toward her, sending her sprawling once more.

From his position of seeming dominance, he smirked, "Easy work."

However, his satisfaction was short-lived. Gazing upwards, a rain of bullets plummeted toward him. His eyes widened in shock as he danced, ducked, and dodged the oncoming barrage.

With a mixture of astonishment and grudging respect, he turned to Kimberley, "When did she...?"

The memory flashed before his eyes: Kimberley's misdirected shot upwards, the bullets disappearing into the sky. He realised, "She used Vibration Multiplication in that split second?"

Staring at the fierce woman before him, Captain Barclay muttered, "This girl..."