With her remaining arm, Melanie touched her right shoulder with trembling fingers. Her knees quivered and she fell on the ground, her tears running like a waterfall. "No...this can't be happening."

"Hmm," mumbled the professor, looking down at Melanie's breakdown. "Seems like she's having a problem." She then faced the crowd and flashed her cheeky smile. "Do guys think the battle ends now? Or this newbie has something interesting to show us?"

"Boo! She's going down!"

"No fun, no fun!"

"End it! End it! End it! End it!

"End it! End it! End it! End it...."

Melanie was torn. She did not know if she should feel angry, sad, or disappointed at that point. In her seventeen years existence, her limbs helped her mobilize her daily routines and now that one of them was gone, she could not stop herself but grieve and wish to turn back time. Her brain could still feel her arm, her hand, and her fingers as if they were still part of her; even if they were not there anymore, and that mere idea brought more tears to her eyes.

She was in agony and the crowd—they didn't even care about her at all.

Melanie balled her fist and a crease formed on her forehead. She jerked her head to her opponent who was just sitting across her, legs crossed, casually eating the granola bar and staring at her nonchalantly. Melanie glared at her.

"W-why?!" exclaimed Melanie, gnashing her teeth.

Aze tilted her head and showed her smug face. "Why not?"

Melanie tried to muster all her hatred towards her opponent and visualized that into a ball of energy. She pointed her remaining hand to the Aze, recalling the spell Alice taught her earlier. She pursed her lips and focused on returning the favor; ripping Aze's arm out of her body and making her suffer too. She wanted Aze to feel the same pain, to make her taste her own medicine, to make her captive on a roller coaster ride of anguish and torment.

Melanie opened her mouth but the lump inside her thought prevented her from uttering a single word. The spell did not work. Her hand fell on her thigh, tears kept falling as her heart thumped faster inside her chest. She then looked down and thoughts came rushing inside her head. She wanted to destroy the person in front of her. That person inflicted her pain, that person sliced her whole arm like it was nothing, that person did not even say sorry—she deserves to die!

She deserves to die! She deserves to die! She deserves to die! She deserves to die!

"Is that what you really want?" an eerie voice echoed inside Melanie's head.

Melanie bit her lower lip and answered with a whisper, "Yes."

The professor walked closer to Melanie when she noticed the newbie seemed to be glued on the spot while looking down, her jet-black hair covering her entire face. She then placed her palm over her shoulder and asked, "You still going—"

The professor did not even finish her sentence when she noticed Melanie trembling from head to toe as dark shadows oozed out from the ground Melanie was kneeling on, making their way to her body. The ice covering her right shoulder, where her arm was amputated, gradually deteriorated into dust when the shadows settled over her skin, revealing the terrifying burn injury she received from her opponent's previous blow.

"What's happening?!"

"I-is that her true power?"

The shadows surrounded Melanie's damaged shoulder. They stretched and floated in the air, morphing into an arm. When the transformation was finally complete, the shadows disappeared and revealed a fresh regenerated limb which sprouted from dark magic.

Melanie started laughing like a maniac. She threw her head high and her purple eyes were now pools of bulging reds. Fangs started to grow out of her gums whilst dried tears marked her cheeks, making them shine as lights bounced from the surface. The cheers of the crowd slowly died down and they watched Melanie falling into the depths of madness.

"My personality is not really suitable with these energetic schemes. " She hissed and squeezed her professor's wrist until it made a cracking sound. "Sorry you need to see my horrible act."

The smile from the professor's lips faded away and was replaced with a thin wavering line. She freed herself from Melanie's clutches and stepped back, whimpering like a dog. She lost her grip at the microphone, and it landed on the floor, sending a high-frequency sound to the crowd that made their ears ring. Melanie's opponent also covered her ears and quickly kicked the microphone out of the platform. It made a thud and finally shut down.

Aze looked at Melanie with caution then she jumped meters away to create some distance. She then swiped her palm on the arena and made a barricade made out of ice that separated her from the lurking danger. She ignited orange flames in her hands and discharged them all at Melanie's direction.

"Did it work?" she winced, peeking through the field of smoke. Her eyes widened when she felt an intense aura just behind her. She lunged from her position and somersaulted in the air and landed on the other side of her ice barricade. She caught her breath and sharpened her senses. She momentarily jerked her head at the slightest of sounds.

Ice and fire levitated above her palms, "Where is she?"

"I don't like your eyes." Aze flinched when Melanie's strange voice sounded like a whisper to her ear. "Their dissimilarity bothers me...a lot."

"Why don't you show yourself?!" shouted Aze and then forced a smirk. "Coward!"

"Hmm," the voice spoke again, "your tongue also needs to be fixed."

Aze's eyebrows furrowed. She pressed her lips together then placed both of her hands on the floor. She then released her powers to the ground, impairing the material and destroying the smoke lingering in the air.

She almost lost her voice when she saw a pair of feet standing in front of her. Before she could even lift her gaze, a bullet of dark energy hollowed the edge of her shoes, penetrating the flesh of the middle finger of her foot. She gritted her teeth and blasted flames from her palm, throwing her own body away from Melanie.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

However, the moment she was in the air, Melanie jumped too and hovered above her with an evil grin. She grabbed both of Aze's arms and the jetpack flame instantly disintegrated within Aze's palms, losing her form. They both fell back on the stadium with Aze's body slamming on the hard concrete while Melanie sat on her stomach, still clutching both of her arms and pinning her to the ground.

"I caught you now." Melanie slowly opened her mouth and flaunted her fangs. "I wonder what your blood tastes like."

Aze's eyes widened in horror, completely immersed in those menacing pools of crimson. "M-monster..."

Melanie lowered her head and slowly inched towards Aze's neck, sending shivers down her victim as her laboured breath signified the pain she was about to suffer. For a moment, the crowd was glued to their seats as they waited for the conclusion of the two prime contenders.

Aze gasped when she felt Melanie's lips touching her skin. "S-stop..."

In a split second, Melanie's grip loosened on Aze's arms, and she suddenly collapsed above her. Aze was startled and heaved a sigh of relief. She then looked at Melanie who was pressing her body against her due to gravity. Her mismatched eyes quickly threw daggers at her, rose both of her hands in the air, and settled them to Melanie's waist. Aze gritted her teeth and forced her last blow with trembling hands.

Melanie propelled her head high as blood flowed out from her mouth. Her pupils went behind her eyes and her whole body shook intensely as spikes of ice pierced her organs one by one. Her back curved like an arch and her feet straightened and stiffened in the air, her purple eyes displaying the tiniest of nerves due to pressure.

Aze inhaled air in her lungs and pushed Melanie's body out of her. Using both of her arms, she pushed herself up and faced the crowd with an aching smile. The crowd, who was still mystified by their battle, steadily registered the end of the game and slowly clapped their hands together until they became a round of resounding applause. Shouts and whistles filled the arena, honoring the winner of the battle.

***

Melanie fluttered her eyes open, and her vision was still a blur. She swayed her head to the side and saw a rusty cart beside her with gauzes and blood. Startled, she turned her head to the side and her stomach sank. Corpses covered in white sheets with splashes of red lined up in columns beside her—their foul smell instantly filling her nostrils. She gagged. What was that place?

"Nasty, isn't it?"

She lifted her gaze and saw a woman in grey robes. Her hair was chestnut, and it cascaded to her hips. Her eyes were the shades of coffee and reflected sadness.

"W-who are you?" asked Melanie. The stranger half-smiled and sat beside her bed.

"I failed them."

Melanie frowned. "What do you mean?"

The girl smiled bitterly. "And I'm next."

Melanie tried to reach her, but she found out that both of her wrists were clamped down to the metal bed. She looked down and saw both of her feet were pinned down in the same way. She returned her gaze to the stranger, but the person was just staring at her with dull eyes. Melanie felt something was off.

"How did I get here?!" she blurted out and struggled from her captivity. "What are you going to do to me?!"

The stranger placed her finger on her lips and looked at the entrance of the morgue, "Shh," she shushed, "they might hear that you're still alive."

Melanie gasped. "W-what?"

The girl's lips slowly formed a wide smile and the corner of her eyes slanted like slits, "You need to die for me, Clementine."

Melanie opened her eyes to the white ceiling. A beeping sound resonated meters away from her ears and the smell of disinfectants came rushing into her nostrils. She moved her fingers and inhaled, feeling the tip of the tube shoved into her mouth to give her air. She bent over and tried to shift her body to a sitting position, but her insides were in pain. She peeked inside her hospital gown and saw gauzes surrounding her stomach. She hissed when she finally remembered what happened.

Melanie flinched when the curtains were pulled open. She lifted her gaze and saw a woman, standing wearing a crop top and skirt underneath her laboratory coat. Her hair was long and wavy and had the colors of the rainbow. Her eyes were clashing reds and purples, one in the left eye and one in the right eye, and were kind of hidden beneath her bangs.

"I see, you're awake now." Melanie stared at her, so she continued speaking. "I'm Doctor Mera Angelu Roman. I was the one who healed you."

"Healed?"

"Yes..." The doctor trailed off and flicked her fingers. "But I think the right term is I just brought back your body condition before you engaged in battle. I'm a time user."

"Oh," mumbled Melanie and gestured to herself. "But why am I still hurting?"

"I may have fixed all your injuries, but the trauma was still there. It's nothing serious though, and you're also free to go if you want to rest to your—"

"No," Melanie cut her off. "I'm fine here."

The doctor nodded. "Okay," she said and touched the curtains. "But before I leave, I just want to inform you that Ms. Marfori will be paying you a visit for counseling. She's just in session with Axel in the other cubicle."

"Wait!" blurted Melanie when the doctor was about to close the curtains. "Where exactly was that cubicle?"

"Um," the doctor mumbled and gestured to the space across Melanie's cubicle. "They're there."

"Do counseling really take place here in the..." Melanie looked around. "...infirmary?"

"Ah, no," the doctor replied. "Axel just won't leave your side when the medics brought you here, so Ms. Marfori came here after your class' sessions. I think you already know that taking this elective is necessary so, yeah."

"Oh, okay," Melanie elucidated. "Thank you for the information."

The doctor's heart-shaped lips curved up. "Take good care of yourself."

When the doctor left, Melanie was alone with her thoughts again. She instantly remembered her dream. It was unusual for her to have nightmares, but ever since the day before the Purifying Ceremony, she must have seduced the Boogieman for giving her full attention. She felt like she was being haunted by some apparition in her sleep.

"Clementine..." she mumbled. "That was the name the stranger called me in my dreams. I really wanted to believe that everything in that dream was only a figment of my imagination."

Last time she checked; her nightmares probably caused her to fail the Purifying Ceremony. It was one of the factors why she felt that different that day. She agreed to the question of that eerie voice who made her choose between superpowers over her sanity, and look at where it led her to. She was exiled from her home. However, being at the University of the Damned exposed her to the naked truth. She was not even sure anymore if fate brought her a disaster or did her a favor.

To stop her spiraling thoughts, Melanie stood up from her hospital bed and dragged the hanging fluids along with her. She moved the curtains and peeked through the gap. The doctor told her that Axel was only across her cubicle doing the counselling session. Melanie could not stop herself from being curious and stepped out of her area. She tiptoed and crossed the distance from one side to the other. She stopped for a minute and scouted the area—looking for other medical personnel that might see her attempts and saw no one nearby. She bit her lower lip and gently drew back the curtains of the cubicle.

"I understand that you feel bad about someone. I also understand that you are hurt, and everything is painful for you, but you do know how you channel your pain, right?"

Melanie leaned forward and peeped through the narrow opening. The muffled voices became clearer to her senses.

"You internalize the abuse, and you resort to punishing yourself in the process. I appreciate that you're doing better since our last meeting and you're being true to yourself right now, but I still want you to continue to be brave, okay? These burns and scars can be healed but the wounds inside your head? You need to help yourself too, Axel."

Melanie's jaw dropped when she heard the doctor's advice. She never knew Axel had been suffering all that time. She instantly recalled the diary from the history class and blamed herself for being self-centered and insensitive. She only thought of herself and her own problems and forgot to be thoughtful of others. How could she not notice the signs?

However, what surprised her the most was the voice she heard next.

"I can't guarantee but I will try, Ms. Marfori."

It was a soft and brittle voice of a man.

Melanie squinted her eyes and focused on the supposed figure of Alex. She gasped when she noticed the slight differences of her build and noticed the self-inflicted injuries on her body.

"Axel is...a guy?"