Author's Note: Chapter 20 at last. Man, lol, it's been a haul. I'm glad I've managed to make it this far, and with a fair amount of reviews to show for it. Thanks a lot you guys. I wouldn't be anywhere without any of you to leave a nice review. I'm actually also surprised I've yet to receive any flames for this fic. I've killed off several main characters and truly no one seems to be angered by it. Or maybe some are, and have just decided, 'TO FUCK WITH THIS FIC!' Either way, lol, still no FLAMES. On with the chapter, read, and of course, ENJOY!

The wind howled fiercely as in large, powerful gusts it washed across the icy terrain of the renowned Mt. Gagazet, sweeping countless flakes of white snow into a spiral towards the heavens before slamming them into another piece of the mountains treacherous surface. There was always a storm waging above, ever since the terrible day of Oblivion's resurrection a brief three months into the past. Never was there a tranquil moment, only endless, punishing winds blasting and threatening to tear the flesh off of ones bones. The snow never ceased falling. The ice never ceased forming. And the temperature remained as deathly low as it had always been. Mt. Gagazet had once been viewed as holy place, where Summoners traveled through on their pilgrimage to defeat Sin, to reach the once glorious Zanarkand now in ruins, and obtain the final Aeon. It was such no more. The mountain had, as all of Spira, been twisted by Oblivion's influence.

The ring of steel clashing steel was the only sound to rise above the roar of the wind, as two fated combatants waged their destined battle atop the frozen ground. On the slopes they dueled, meeting blow for blow with evened force, each attack successfully negating the other. One fought for the sake of those in which he held in his heart, while the other fought for the darkness in his own, to satisfy an insatiable lust for combat.

"C'mon," Kane teased as once again their Slayers locked, their faces drawing close as sparks danced between them in the gusts, "dis' ain't no fun at all. Were is da blood spillin'? Right now this is just swordplay."

Tidus grunted in response, shoving with all his might against his foe's assault, refusing to step down. "Isn't that what you wanted? A good opponent?"

Alexander grinned insanely. "I want a great one."

They pulled back, launching themselves to put distance for the next attack. The brute of a SHADOW Captain's aura flared as brightly as it had at the start, continuing it's seemingly endless destruction, while Tidus's had not diminished either, maintaining it's dark shine against Kane's own. They were evened. Both equal in strength and skill, at the time. Neither were letting down, both determined to win, but for different reasons.

"I've been wondering," Tidus began as his eyes narrowed seriously, "just how did you survive that blow to the heart? You said it's dead? If so, you shouldn't be alive."

A frown crossed Alexander's scarred features as he met his opponent's gaze, coal madness matching golden malice. He seemed unsettled by the question, disturbed by it. "I don't like sharin' my story with opponents. Foes aren't meant to be talked to! They exist only to cut down."

"Is that so?" Tidus chucked amusedly, raising his blade with a challenging smirk. "Can you cut this one down?"

Kane tilted his head back with brief laugh, baring yellow-stained choppers as his lips parted into another one of his grins. "The question is: can you cut me down?"

"Let's find out."

"Yeah, let's."

Tidus speed off. In a blur he dashed across the icy surface at remarkable speeds, covering the ground in moments before drawing close enough to strike his gargantuan adversary, Slayer raised high above his head. He wasted no time. Skidding to a halt, he slammed the steel down, putting forth his strength into the blow. The pestilent edge crepitating with wicked energies speedily neared the titan's lower abdomen, it's end closing in on his mid-section, threatening to severe him diagonally from anything below the rib-cage. Contact never came.

At the last moment, Kane leaped back, distancing himself from the attack to escape with only a minor cut on his already tattered hikama from where the Slayer's edge had connected. Tidus saw this as an opening. Channeling his thoughts to the Slayer in his possession, he willed the aura outwards, shaping it into an extension of his attack as it bolted for Kane's neck in the form of a velvet blade. Again, the brute managed a dodge closely, his massive form leaping off to the right.

"Not done yet," Tidus yelled as he swung his left arm in his opponent's direction, changing the course of the aura to pursue him.

It swung at Alexander from an angle, coming diagonally towards his large chest at speeds too extreme for the Captain to defend. He could do nothing but watch the blade of aura close in, and cut into his chest. Blood spewed from the wound, splattering onto the snow beneath him, as his massive form tilted forward. It seemed he had been defeated.

'Too slow,' Tidus bragged in his mind.

Your getting the hang of controlling your aura…..

'Thanks.'

But Kane's been controlling his for far longer….

A shocked expression formed on Tidus's face as he looked closely to the wound he had forged. Purple and red were intertwined, a result of Alexander pushing his own aura into the wound to forbid it from proceeding any further into him. The wound was shallow. Too shallow to be fatal, all because of a last second act.

"Damnit," he growled as he called the energy back, the aura losing it's shape to fade back into the flame around him, "he saved himself. I was hoping to end it."

Alexander gave a skeptical glance, straightening his back from it's hunched over position as he laid the weight of his blade across his shoulder, hoisting it there as his aura abruptly retreated into his body, seeping in through his pores. "No fight o'mine be endin' zat soon. Just stop underistimatin' me, eh? I don't have the patience for cocky bullshitters thinkin' they can end a match with me like zat."

Tidus frowned. "Then let's end this match some other way."

"Yeah."

'His aura isn't active,' Tidus thought, eyeing his foe with golden orbs excitedly as he positioned himself for battle, 'meaning there will be nothing to stop me next time. I'll cut his head off!"

Be careful, Bargaine warned, I sense something different about him. The fact that aura was coming from his body is unsettling enough. He may yet to have call upon his Slayer…..

The thought sent a wave of fear washing over him. Kane at his current level was challenging enough, and the idea of him still capable of rising in power wasn't a pleasant one. If such was true, could he prevail? Was he capable of besting him then, if he couldn't even best him now?

He shook away the negativity with a silent growl. 'Even if that is true, I'll still destroy him for what he has done.'

"I'm coming," Tidus roared, "and you'd best be prepared to die!"

Alexander gave him a disbelieving look. "Can ya back those words up?"

The titan's hand sprung forth, illuminating with myriad emerald energy particles circling his fingertips extended out in Tidus's direction. His eyes widened, coal hues dots in a white abyss, bony cheeks stretching out in an excited grin, while his massive body stood opposing the violent winds. "Heh, Thundaga."

Several bolts of green electricity exploded from his fingertips, flashing straight through the air at sound-like speeds to collide against Tidus's form, terribly burning skin and the flesh beneath. He yelled out, his balance shattered as the force drove him flying backwards, long streaks of burned to black flesh stretching up his abdomen. He hit the ground with the moan, steam sizzling up from his wounds.

"D-damn," Tidus coughed, rolling onto his side with eyes closed tight in pain, "I wasn't expecting that."

Keep your guard up. One more mistake may be your last.

Using his elbows, he struggled to sit up, pushing with all his might and attempting to resist the pain. He didn't make it. From ahead, a charging Kane swept his left leg up, the front of his wooden sandals pressing into his chin and lifting him off the ground. The impact sent him into an upward spiral, Tidus's body twisting uncontrollably from the collision. He struggled to keep himself, eyes opened even though they begged to close. He was getting hammered, and offering no resistance.

"Tch, not done wit' ya yet," Kane muttered, before launching himself upwards in pursuit, pulling back his long, battle-worn katana to strike, "I'm goin' to make ya eat your words!"

Tidus saw it coming. Gripping Bargaine firmly, he added the momentum gained from the twists into a blow, bringing the sword's edge down against Kane's throat just as he prepared to attack. The steel cut easily through the tissue, ripping into his esophagus to quickly remove itself, leaving a deep and long gash behind to gush with a fountain of blood.

"Game." Even though his head spun painfully, Tidus kept his eyes focused on Kane's wound, watching as the brute fell to the ground as gravity took it's toll, and he took advantage. As Tidus followed, he placed the tip of his sword down, lifting it with a grip of two hands, pausing to time perfectly, and thrust. The deadly end pierced Kane's giant chest with ease, sliding through skin and bone with little to no difficultly. Another heart shot. This time, he expected it to end.

Bargaine voiced it's uncertainty. No, I don't think you've won.

'Madness.' Tidus rejected the thought. 'He's dead. There's no way he could survive.'

The giant was unmoving. His throat bled in an endless flow, Bargaine deeply embedded into his chest and heart. No breaths came, no movements, no heartbeat. Seemingly, his life had ended.

Tidus breathed out one word, "Dead."

Alexander breathed out a response. "Yea'."

Suddenly, a massive hand shot up, gripping Tidus's slayer around the edge with tremendous strength, and despite Tidus's efforts to match that power, found it to only be slowly pushed out of his opponents body. He was being overpowered, easily, by a dead man.

"This," he gasped, the strain evident on his dark features, "isn't possibl-"

He was cut off. With a grunt, Kane threw all his might forth, forcing the blade from his chest with enough force to send Tidus stumbling backwards, nearly winding up on his ass again. The leviathan rose slowly, his eyes a terrifying shade of red, as the aura of bloodlust from the titans body slowly began to envelope his entirety.

"I told ya, there's no winnin' against me." Kane's face was devoid of that wild smirk which he always bore, his expression hard with seriousness. "There's only losin'. You're fated to die by dis' blade o'mine."

Tidus quickly attempted to recover himself, wiping clear any shock that may have made itself apparent on his face, while regaining his composure only to return to a battle stance. "What the hell are you?"

"No human."

"I gathered."

"Don' even live."

"Then how do you?"

"I don't."

He growled, annoyed. "These games are bothersome."

Kane shrugged. "Ain't they though?"

'This isn't good,' Tidus thought to Bargaine, 'He's playing with me. He's suffered wounds no one could survive! '

This giant, it responded, is truly a fascinating being.

'An annoying one. Any advice?'

He recovers from wounds unaffected. And if he, in fact, is no longer amongst the living, an unsent, perhaps, we're in for a run…

'And we have to think up a way to send him, if that's the case.'

We're not Summoners……

'What do you propose then?'

We keep attacking!

The idea seemed too simple. Against Oblivion's work, no predicament could be solved through such an easy method. Attacking a foe impervious to attacks was futile. No damage inflicted was capable of bringing the giant to his knees, despite the deepness of the wound. He could lose blood, yet still stand, nearly have his neck cleaved off, and still live. Immortal seemed to be a fitting label.

'He'll just attack back.'

Enough! Focus, and bring this brute down!

'Just give me the strength!'

Kane frowned disappointedly, fed up entirely with the pauses seeming to occur in the middle of their match. Whatever his fool of an opponent was doing, his concentration would more intelligently be directed towards their bout. He'd get that desired attention. Pushing out with his aura, the red energy pervaded the area set before him, tearing apart anything to be caught in the wrath of Kane's power. Rocks disintegrated, reducing to nothingness, the surface of the mountainside ravaged by the destructive aura.

Tidus acted just at the right moment. Resisting the attempt with his own aura, the two powers clashed, projecting powerful gales throughout the vicinity. The bystanders, Yuna and Iiden, huddled down, seeking safety from the violent winds washing over them, while the bodies of the unconscious Ronso's twisted, tumbling up and down the treacherous climb. Several of them smacked into frozen boulders layered with snow, while others were doomed to a fall, plunging from drop offs closer to the base.

"No!" Yuna let out a scream as she watched Kimarhi's body roll, nearing an edge not far to the side of where her and Iiden waited. His body stopped, stilling only a few feet away from a terrible fall that would possibly end with the Ronso's death. She quickly rose to her feet, back against the gales as she ran, sliding down to his level with a concerned expression, gripping his right arm with her hands firmly which failed to even go around his large bicep. "I'm not losing you."

"No." Suddenly, another hand reached forward, gripping under Kimarhi's arm and lifting him with little effort. Her head turned to find Iiden, laying the Ronso's large form over his shoulder. "You're not losing anyone else."

She smiled softly at him, eyes squinted from the fierce wind as snow flakes hammered her face. "Thank you."

"Let's find somewhere safe to lay him."

"Yes."

As she fell to silence, Yuna turned her attention back to the duel as the gales died away, however, the stormy winds remaining. She watched Tidus's altered body ease, aura calming as Kane's. She couldn't understand how he could change so much in appearance and personality in so little time. It was unreal as it was frightening. Yuna couldn't help but think again upon how far he was slipping from her, how soon in time there would be no turning back for him. He'd be too deep into the darkness. Forever meant to be a puppet in Oblivion's twisted game.

She refused to let that fate befall him…..

"I've played with you long enough," Tidus commented with a smirk as he locked blades with his titan of an adversary, gaining a hold on his ground, "and I'm growing bored. It's time to end this."

"Ha! Arrogant son'abitch, eh?" Kane grinned amusedly as he mentally visualized the thought, the Captain doubtful of his opponent's capabilities. From what had been demonstrated so far, he had reason to be, for Tidus's skill held no threat to him at the time. "You're the one goin' down."

"Do you truly believe that?"

There will be a price…..Tidus…..

Tidus's strong aura darkened, lavender changing to black as more power was channeled into his whole, muscles tightening to rocks as veins pressed themselves against the skin. His teeth tightened, complexion fading surprisingly to an even more ghostly white, while an empty coal shade spread through his eyes. Surge after surge of energy was pumped up into his arm and through his body from the source, Bargaine, in his grasp. He felt incredible, undefeatable, but the feelings soon diminished as an unknown sensation pervaded his mind.

"Gah!" Tidus released a distorted, startled scream as an indescribable amount of pressure suddenly pressed itself against his mind. Pain jolted through him, body convulsing madly as he crumbled to the ground. The hurt spread rapidly, starting from his head and slithering it's way like poison as far as his feet, where an ache began at his toes, fingertips, and teeth. He tossed and turned, mind going blank as his focus was directed entirely on agony. This pain, it was experiencing his first face-to-face encounter with Oblivion all over again, when the dark entity placed the weight of his power upon his shoulders. The results were similar, but the pain was different. It was stronger.

"Tidus!" Yuna gasped as she watched on, terrified at what was happening to him. Her heart pounded, mind screaming to run to him, to offer some kind of release from the hurt he was being caused. Another nightmarish event on a nightmarish day. And even still, with that thinking, it was wishful., that this would all be a dream, just a terrible one. It was real.

Her legs acted on their own. Before she had time to register what she was doing Yuna had bolted, carrying herself towards him unconsciously, her mind acting instinctively to protect the one she loved. She wanted to save him! Standing by idly while he suffered wasn't something she was willing to do. Even if nothing could have been done, at least she'd be there at his side, edging him through.

Sadly, she didn't make it too far…

A burst of strange wind opposed her, and even though Yuna resisted, she could do nothing to prevent from being blown back, knocked clean off her feet as if hit by an invisible force. She expected the painful jolt of her back and head smacking against the ground, but instead she was caught, rescued in the arm of Iiden, who too, looked on in concern with crimson eyes as to what was happening to Tidus.

"This isn't good," he whispered worriedly, "Tidus has tapped beyond what he's capable of controlling."

Yuna gave him a perplexed frown. "What?"

"The power his Slayer possesses Is terrifying," Iiden responded while looking deep into her eyes seriously, "and that power is free to be accessed by Tidus. But each wielder can only tap into so much, before they lose themselves to that power, and are consumed by it. They become fiendish, beast-like."

"What?" A look of horror shot across Yuna's expression, eyes widening in concern and shock. "Is it permanent?"

Iiden shook his head. "Only temporary. However, the downside, each time the wielder loses control, the Fiend in their Slayer gains little bit more influence on them. They manifest themselves a little bit more."

"And?"

"Eventually, if it continues frequently, that fiend can overwhelm a persons consciousness….and take over their body. " A pause. " That is what's permanent."

Hammerfall- Renegade

See the outlaw stands alone, beneath the burning sun

The raging badlands now is his home

There's no sign of victory, he lost his liberty

And the only woman that he loved

An outlaw chasing outlaws, a runner in the night

By the radiant moon he will strike

The seeker of all dangers has come to take his toll

From the dead of night he will arise

Renegade, Renegade

Committed the ultimate sin

Renegade, Renegade

This time the prowler will win

He stalks in shadow lands, soundless, with gun in hand

Striking like a reptile, so fierce

No chance to get away, no time for your last prayer

When the prowler sneaks up from behind

An outlaw chasing outlaws, the hunter takes his pray

The law of the jungle he obyes

Craving for the danger to even out the score

Face to face, once and for all

Renegade, Renegade

Committed the ultimate sin

Renegade, Renegade

This time the prowler will win

On through the night he rides, on his raging

Horse made of steel

Nothing can save you now

Before the Renegade you will kneel

Next time: (( Chapter 21 ))- The battle rages on. As Tidus is consumed by power, he undergoes a bestial change, and begins a relentless assault on not only Kane, but Yuna herself! As the High Summoner tries to reach him, Kane awakens the power he had concealed through their battle and unveils a startling truth! Is his words true? Does he really possess immortality? Find out next time on DRAGONBALL Z! -insert wacky, guitar playing- . ;; NOT!

Geh… ; Worst following episode summary one can provide. Dirty stuff. Terrible. Fanfiction should CENSOR THIS! Do your job damn moderators!