Clawed wheel met the soil and momentarily dig, causing a sand burst. Brass colored power armor blasting through the air at incredible pace considering it's bulk, and the fact that it's not even floating made it all the more impressive.
But more so than that, was its pilot.
The red haired boy, teeth clenched tight and eyes opened as wide as physically possible. Shortly after, he unleashed the kind of roar that most people will least expect from him.
"LAURAAAAA!!!!"
Multiple blades conjured from the gaps between armor plating, giving an impression of a shark. Slicing the air devastatingly, the positioning of the blade began to stabilize the constantly vibrating machine.
One more blade is unleashed from the smaller buckler on the right arm, this time, it wasn't merely a fancy substitute for control surfaces.
Beam wrist blade and aforementioned solid counterpart clashed, releasing a blinding spark and low pitched creaking sound. As the PIC of the two units harmonize with each other, Newton's law kicked in, allowing the one with greater mass and strength to prevail.
Schwarzer Regen has no chance, Laura knew. Even though it's considerably stronger than most I.S., this one is different: it's a monster. The silver haired girl hardly surprised, she already knew pros and cons of this machine.
She smirked, the kind of smirk that she gave anyone she deemed insufficient and inferior.
"What's wrong, Reed? What's wrong with putting them in their place? You know that might makes right"
They clashed several times, and even though S. Regen is weaker, it's also more nimble and had greater reach. Her blade is so much lighter than him, and technically, more destructive and durable.
It was no longer a sanctioned duel.
His armored fist made contact with her barrier, the strength of which enough to shatter it and briefly activated Absolute Defense. She flinched feeling the residual impact on her insides, and fiercely retaliate with a swift kick to his sides.
Unfortunately, he had what she lacked. All she had behind the barrier and absolute defense is smimsuit-like outfit with questionable protection value, meanwhile, he has layers upon layers of advanced composite and behind those, are artificial musculatory system. He simply shrugged it like no one's business.
"THINK TWICE!" he grabbed her face, which is covered with high-density protection field. Realizing that, she twisted herself in a way untrained human will have difficulty, slammed her armored heel to his neck instead. Physical protection around his head were minimum (and in case of his face, nonexistent), that's enough clue for her, and she delivers.
She laughed at his misery, she laughed, aloud.
"Look who is this" she grabbed him and once again, attacked him in the head. This time, her fist made contact with his right cheek, a punch so hard that without the existing Absolute Defense, his head will be nothing but slimy mess and calcite fragments. "You ran away with that woman, you leave me. This is the result! you become so weak, so pathetic, so miserable"
The stout machine fell aside as the pilot lose his integrity. However, it doesn't stop there for sure.
Strong force pulled her before she couldn't react, and his knee went into direction of her exposed hip. She screamed and tumbled around for a second, before regained her composure
"Says who? Laura? I'm still the same Reed you knew, YOU taught me back then in the Schwarzer hase"
"DON'T YOU DARE!" with a swipe of each wrist beam saber, she sliced through the armor near his knees. After swiped him off his feet, the berserking soldier stomp on the cracked side repeatedly until she can hear him cry "DON'T YOU DARE TO MENTION IT!"
He did, but at the same time, he returned the favor once again, he launched himself with full thrust on his booster, put her into submission midair in a way that even professional wrestler will gave him applause
"You call yourself a soldier, Bodewig? A Soldier never denied fact! It happened!"
and proceed to grapple her into the ground, resulting in a small unburnt crater as her backpack made contact with it.
"That comes from a traitor? Don't mock me, Reed Yuuki!"
Which ended with his face grinded into arena barrier as she drag him along the border as she dashed upward in retaliation, before splatting him to the arena's roof like a wet laundry.
Anyone with a basic understanding of High school grade I.S. combat will say the battle is far from graceful, it was brutal and very efficient, so long that it's within the scope of few rules exist.
But the aforementioned girl already break said rules, it hardly matter, the red haired boy is out for blood.
It's not out of revenge...
Bruised and weakened, both of them stand imperfectly, almost like having a hunchback, their eyes are dim at first.
"TRUTH! BUT NOTHING BETWEEN US IS A LIE!"
"You left me for that woman and you still say that?!"
She tore out her eyepatch, revealing her oddly colored eyes. Likewise, his eyes change their color. It was beautiful, yellowish gold, like the color of twilight sky. And yet, despite the elegance, those eyes screamed misery and loneliness. Those eyes that only seen a country torn by hatred and revenge, those sad eyes sought friendship and love.
[Warning, Valkyrie Trace System Activation in Fifty Seconds]
It was a desperate attempt for salvation, to reach her who built a sturdy fortress between them, to redeem himself who had committed sins of betrayal. If words can not reach her, maybe pain and sorrow will.