Wrath's first instinct was to dig his fingers into the rope and relieve the tension around his neck but that proved futile as the noose was too tight around his neck since his weight was keeping it secured. As painful as it was to suffocate, he highly doubted Rahim was going to kill him this way. He just wanted to cause him pain and he was off to a great start. Black dots began to swim his vision as he decided to forgo attempting to pull the rope off and just cut the rope with one of the swords at his waist. When he reached down and felt the grip in his palm he flicked his wrist and felt himself fall into the courtyard.

He then reached behind him and pulled up on the base of the noose to release and allow sweet air to flow into his lungs. He would've taken some more time to catch his breath but he noticed a shadow in front of him become bigger and bigger quite quickly. Rolling out of the way, he narrowly dodged the blade that sunk into the ground where his head was. He scrambled into a fighting stance with his two swords drawn while Rahim stayed crouched where he landed.

The avenger turned his head to face his enemy in a slow predatory motion before rising to his height and tugging his weapon out of the ground. "You're a bit slower than I remember. If you don't pick it up, this won't be as much fun." He got into his two handed stance and gave his opponent a moment before he rushed at him with the intention to cut him into itty bitty pieces.

Wrath had to backstep to keep up with the barrage of attacks that came his way, all the while aware of the danger of his weapons breaking. He had to adjust his blocks so no one attack landed with the full weight of his attacker's swing. Each slash was met with a deflection that left a brief opening for the demon but he knew better. If he decided to take one of those openings, he was sure that the avenger would punish him for it, so he just continued to remain on the defensive.

"Come on, you can do better than that! You've been fighting and killing your entire life, don't tell me you've lost your nerve now!" Rahim sent a particularly hard swing that Wrath tensed in preparation for it but before their blades could touch, the katana receded and completely changed direction.

A feint!

Wrath tried to use his other sword to catch the attack in time but the katana cut clean through the upper portion of his blade while leaving a cut above his left eyebrow. Following through with the way his body turned with the swing, Rahim sent a particularly hard side kick that sent his opponent tumbling away. The Sin quickly rolled into a crouched stance and looked up in time to see a flying piece of metal a few feet from his face.

He pushed off the ground to dodge the incoming projectile but unfortunately it left him open to another strike from his opponent who was standing right next to him. He gasped when he saw the raised blade above him and tried to scramble out of the way before it hit him but failed as a thin slice caught him from the middle of his chest to under his left armpit.

Grinding his teeth to keep from screaming, he backpedaled away as fast he could while keeping an eye on Rahim who remained in his after strike position. Wrath got into his fighting stance and frowned when he saw the state of his left sword. The upper part of his blade had been completely cut off leaving about ¾ of the blade intact. When Rahim made that feint, he panicked and tried to stop his real attack and didn't take into account how much force would be behind it. Even so, he was lucky his blade managed to slow the attack long enough for him to move his head out of the way or he would've lost an eye.

The cut on his head began to bleed profusely and colored his vision red but he could still see so he put that as a small victory. The cut on his chest stung and made his coat sag a little but it could've been much worse. He needed to actually put up a fight instead of remaining on the defensive. His opponent didn't have a body so he couldn't get tired nor could he be wounded. That made fighting him a problem in itself, Wrath thought he could figure something out as they fought but in this brief exchange, he ruled out that going on the defensive was pointless.

That being said, he couldn't just hack and slash recklessly, despite the odd demeanor, this was Rahim. He had enough of the man's memories to remember that counter attacking from his sheathed stance was his bread and butter. If Wrath decided to over commit to one strike, he could expect a blade to get lodged in his throat. Which furtherered limited his options. There was only one thing that he could do that would make life a lot easier.

He had to take out that damn katana.

He was sure that he was stronger than Rahim was and in a fist fight, the odds would likely be in his favor. However to get to that point, he had to get rid of the avenger's most prized possession. Such a task would not be easy if not outright impossible but it was the only thing he could come up with.

"You can't run forever you know. With every wound I inflict on you, you'll get slower and slower until finally you won't be able to move. When that happens, you're going to be all mine and I will only allow you to die when you've suffered enough."

Rahim stood up and got into his stance again before rushing once again. Wrath tried to focus his defensives on protecting his head so it wouldn't be lobbed off but his opponent didn't care about it. In their previous exchange, it became clear that Rahim wanted to remove his head so he wouldn't be able to move but now, he was going for anything else. The slightest gap in his opponent's defense was a target to him.

As they continued to cross blades, more and more little wounds appeared on Wrath's body. They were small and inconsequential but they began to add up. Each movement he made would open up his wounds a little more until there were droplets of blood every time he jumped, dodged, or rolled. All the while, his swords began to get nicks all over them from clashing with his opponent's blade. It wouldn't be too much longer before they broke.

However, as they fought, Wrath got better at anticipating Rahim's movements. He could now deflect each hard swing as well as dodge any of them that had significant force behind them.

The avenger went for a hard thrust that his opponent was able to read and sidestep before planting his foot on the back side of the blade and sending it into the ground. It looked like a perfect opportunity to knock the weapon out of his hands but Wrath was forced to back off when Rahim harshly brought his hands up to free his weapon. Hoping to get a wound in, the avenger leapt forward at the unbalanced man in front of him and sent a slash at his chest.

The Sin leaned back and out of the way as the blade tore through his greatcoat but didn't leave a wound. Throughout the fight, his greatcoat continued to be cut over and over until it was tatters hanging on his body. He didn't try to take it off as it would require a moment to do so and he didn't want to give his enemy a free shot especially after he just got used to his attack patterns.

Rahim on the other hand, had actually stopped talking and laughing then proceeded to focus which made his attacks faster and more dangerous. When he could see that relentlessly slashing at his opponent was getting minimal results he decided to switch things up. He reached to his side and grabbed his sheathe then placed his blade inside then got into his iaido stance. His left hand was at the base of the sheathe with his right one ready to draw at a moment's notice. His legs were spread apart with him in a semi crouched stance.

It was during this stance that he would generally wait for an attack before deflecting and counter attacking. Yet he surely knew Wrath wasn't going to take the bait and attack without thought, so the reason for him taking that stance was a mystery to the Sin.

The avenger once again charged in that stance and tensed his right hand which meant an attack was coming. Wrath timed his dodge with the movement of Rahim's right arm which should put him on his opponent's right side and give him an opening. Only, he didn't realize that there was no ring of the katana being drawn and all Rahim did was slash his right hand forward as if he actually had a weapon in hand.

Which gave him the chance to swing his left arm with his sword and sheath in hand into Wrath's right shoulder. The loud pop that resounded was evidence that the avenger knocked his opponent's shoulder out of place but they both ignored that when he kept pressure on his weapon and pushed Wrath to the ground.

Now Rahim was above the Sin with his sheathe in his left hand pinning his opponent to the ground. His feet were on each of Wrath's wrists so the demon wouldn't have been able to use them to free himself. As the two of them stared at one another, the one on top reached down and pulled his blade free from his sheathe and had it poised to bring down on his opponent's head. A beat passed as if the avenger wanted to take in the moment before he brought his blade down with the intent to kill.

Wrath had little time and raised his leg up and aimed a knee in his opponent's back to hopefully knock him off balance. Unfortunately Rahim seemed to anticipate this and jumped above the attack and flicked his wrist creating a gash on the inside of his knee. The demon's eyes widened in pain as he tried to sit up but was pinned back down with a blade going through the right side of his chest and into the ground.

Rahim sat up slowly to take in the sight of his pinned prey before raising his foot and bringing it down on his opponent's right hand. The sounds of bones snapping filled the night air as the young man screamed in pain. He tried to take a swipe with his left arm that the avenger knew to be claws hidden underneath the coat and gloves, and missed when his opponent stepped out of the way.

A solid kick to his forearm had his left arm on the ground before another stomp on his elbow had him hissing in pain. His left arm was stronger and more durable than his right one so the bones held but his arm was still pinned. With his chest impaled into the ground, his right hand completely broken and his left knee having its muscles cut, only his right leg was free to do anything. With no other options he sent a kick at Rahim's head but it was easily caught by the ankle. Another moment later and another scream filled the air as his ankle as well as his knee was broken on that leg from his opponent snapping his ankle with his hand and his knee with his free leg.

Pinned and in incredible pain, Wrath could only focus on breathing as the avenger above him took in the sight of his broken body. One would think that Rahim would be laughing at the situation but for some reason, the inferno of rage only increased. Apparently seeing Wrath under his heel was more infuriating than he thought.

"This cannot be all the power you have. You've killed many competent warriors in your lifetime. Yet tonight your performance was pitiful. Don't tell me you actually feel guilt for what you've done to me. Remember what the old man said. If you fall here then there is nothing stopping from getting to Elsa, so if you really love her, then I suggest you stop playing possum and give me the fight that I've been training for my entire life."

Bending down, Rahim took hold of his katana and ripped it out sideways that cut through a few ribs that had Wrath screaming in pain. Blood began to pool around him as the avenger walked around him and away from him. As he headed toward the front gate of the castle he heard the heavy breaths of his opponent grow harsher and a few coughs escaped him.

"W-where...are you...g-going?"

Rahim didn't turn around, only continued to walk.

"To get you some motivation."

It didn't take much thought to know who he meant and Wrath grew desperate as he tried to force his body to get up. His wounds were profusely bleeding as he found it hard to get his limbs to move with his muscles severed. He rolled on his stomach to see Rahim taking his sweet time to walk into the castle.

No! Get back here damn it! I'm not done!

His whole body continued to burn in pain, his left arm was the only thing that worked properly. He was already low on energy and would die if he did not rest but none of those mattered to him. His worst nightmare was heading toward the people he cared for most. He said that he would take care of him but here he was dropping the ball. The training that he went through with Stonewell would've been for nothing if he failed now.

I've got to win!

Wrath dug deep into the very depths of his soul. What he was about to do was almost akin to suicide but he didn't care. He would be dead before Rahim took anything precious from him. The small reserve of black dust he had heeded his call, as well as the memories of those he killed that came along with it. Their bitterness and anger at being killed by him stung, but he ignored it.

He felt his wounds mend to the point where he could function but that was it. The rest of it he focused it into giving him the strength to get back on his feet. He took his first step forward and ignored the blinding pain that sent up his body. Then took another and another before he was sprinting toward his enemy. The image got blurry as he ran but his target was clear, his left arm tensed in anticipation as he cocked it back and sent it forward toward the back of Rahim's head.

Only to miss when the avenger cocked his head to the right.

"So predictable…"

Wrath had enough time to widen his eyes before he felt his lungs fail. He couldn't breathe as he looked down to see the blade that killed him once deep in his chest. His organs began to fail one at a time like before as Rahim held him up by his weapon.

It was ironic, they were in the same position but their roles reversed.

The avenger watched as the light dimmed in Wrath's eyes, impaled on the weapon he made for just that purpose. He leaned in so he could whisper in the demon's ear. "I didn't know how much black dust you had left, so I had to make you desperate enough to use the last of it. Acting like a bloodthirsty fool kept you from considering that I actually had an ulterior objective when I killed those men. They were sacrificial pawns to properly motivate you to come to the conclusion that I had to be stopped at all cost, even if that meant using the last of your reserves. Now that it's gone, you're just as mortal as a pathetic human. While I was trapped in that damn world of yours, I've waited for so long to have this moment. Seeing the light fade from your eyes as you realize that you are going to die. I truthfully couldn't have done this without Elsa's help, she made you so desperate and bent you to her pacifistic whims. Had you been killing like the old days, you would've had enough black dust to sustain you but you chose to stay peaceful here."

More blood began to erupt from Wrath's mouth as the world began to darken. He fought to keep his eyes open to continue to fight but with each passing moment, he started to drift. Rahim's musings were his only lifeline to stay awake but even they began to fade as time went on.

"If you took Alrick's offer and hunted down the remains of Rakat's army you would've been strong. Hell, even Stonewell said so, you were made to kill your enemy. You don't belong here, this weak little hamlet has corrupted you, turning you from such a furious monster to little more than a housepet. One so desperate to keep your mistress safe that you let your emotions get the best of you."

Rahim ripped his blade out of Wrath's chest and watched him fall to his knees with blood oozing from his wounds. His enemy was defeated and would die soon, but the avenger did want one more thing.

He raised his blade in his two handed grip.

Before his mother's killer would die, he'd remove the demon's head just as Wrath did his mother. He wanted the last image the demon saw was his own headless corpse before he passed on to the afterlife.

Such poetic justice that he was denied in his first life was something he would take in his next.

Kristoff and Hector had watched Wrath go through the broken window a while ago before seeing to the Prince. The mountain man had recoiled at the sight while the noble pressed his finger's to the large man's neck. When he felt a pulse, he motioned for the ice harvester to help him life the Prince. The two of them each took an arm before lifting him up and shuffling out the throne room.

They passed a few guards being taken care of by the staff who had been awakened due to the loud noises. Kai was seeing to one of the guards at the base of the staircase that was on the way to the infirmary when he noticed the three headed his way. "Your Highness! Sir Bowman! What has happened, why are there so many wounded?"

Kristoff was about to reflexively tell the plump man he didn't have to address him by that title when he was cut off by Hector. "The castle is under attack, an intruder broke in and attempted to assassinate Her Majesty. Fortunately he was repelled and Edward is in pursuit as we speak. We are relocating all the wounded to the infirmary where the Queen is since it currently is the most heavily defended point in the castle."

"Is the intruder in league with King Hans?"

"No, he's an entirely different enemy. According to one of our guards, Hans caught wind of the assassination plot and sent his personal guards to reinforce us but they have been killed."

Both Kristoff and Kai had dubious looks on their faces when they heard the Hans had 'caught wind' of an assassination attempt and had sent men to help them. They had the feeling that Hans had a hand in this and sent those two men to assist the intruder. While Kai didn't know any better, Kristoff believed that Rahim showing up the same time Hans did was no coincidence. Plus there was the fact that the avenger wanted to kill Elsa.

If Grad Pabbie was right in thinking Wrath and Edward were the same then Elsa's death would be the last thing that came from their minds. Kristoff may not have known Wrath yet he knew Edward and he knew that the young man loved the blonde deeply. If Rahim came from either of them then hurting Elsa wasn't a possibility.

Which made him think that somehow Hans was the cause of this since he already tried to kill Elsa before. The mountain man may have been jumping to conclusions but he was fine with that. It was nice to see that Kai thought the same as he joined the three of them to the infirmary and opened the door so they could shuffle through. When they walked in with Ahimoth in their arms, Elsa and Anna gasped in horror.

Doctor Steward turned at the commotion and dropped the tool he had in his hand as he took in the large man's condition. "Dear God! Put him over there right now and give me room!" The two men compiled with his orders and deposited the Prince into an empty bed before they moved away to let the Doctor work. As they watched him go about his business, Stonewell frowned on his bed. He had seen the state the large man came in and could easily tell that he'd been tortured. There wasn't anyone else but Rahim that could've done such a thing and it made him think of the runt he was fighting against.

If he was willing to do that to his best friend, imagine what he'll do to his mother's killer.

The Captain kept those thoughts to himself as he didn't want to worry anyone, yet he could tell that Elsa had the same thought he had. He watched her face become worried as she glanced at the door to the infirmary for a moment too long for his liking. "Don't even think about it."

The blonde turned his way and met his stern glare head on with a stubborn one of her own. Any other time he would've been proud but right now he was two seconds from limping over and putting her in a timeout.

"He will be fine, you'll only make things worse if you go."

Elsa bit her lip when she heard him say that and wished to argue but couldn't find the words. She had faith that he would be ok, she really did but with each passing moment something gnawed at her. She had some kind of sense that she needed to go to him right now or something terrible would happen. She reasoned that it could perhaps be her generic sense of foreboding and worrying that made her feel that way but she couldn't halt its growth in the pit of her stomach.

"I believe that, but it's just...what if he needs help and no one is there to give it to him?"

"And what if he has everything under control and you showing up gives the enemy the opening they need to turn the tables?"

The blonde flinched at the question and wished that very scenario didn't play out in her mind. She could see her arriving when Wrath had Rahim pinned and him looking up at her in surprise before a blade appeared in his chest. He looked down at the protrusion as blood erupted from his mouth before looking at her in shock then fell to the ground dead while Rahim stood up and thanked her for his victory.

She didn't want to imagine that, she wanted to have faith that he would be fine but the pit continued to grow. It demanded that she go right this instant to his side. Stonewell could see the war play out on her face and beckoned her to come closer. The blonde took a few steps and sat down next to him as he sat up and for once, he took on a gentle expression.

"I understand, with everything going on and you seeing all these people getting hurt, you don't want the person you care for to be one of them. It's the same reason why you sent Anna and Kristoff away when Hans arrived because you didn't want them hurt. You knew that he would use them against you and that you would fold to whatever he planned if he had them. Imagine how Edward feels, he's facing the past who wants to kill him using any means necessary. If you arrived to help him, he'd be so preoccupied watching out for you that he wouldn't be able to fight effectively. If you want to help him then you need to stay here and let him focus."

Elsa understood what he was saying. He was right, she was afraid Hans would use Anna against her and she knew that she would've gone along with anything he said if he did. She could see Edward bending to Rahim's whims if the same happened to him. She didn't want to hurt his chances of being alright just because she worried too much. While the pit in her stomach continued to grow and grow, she decided to ignore it as best she could and just keep telling herself that he would be fine.

"Ok…I see your point. You have faith he'll be fine so I should too."

The old man smiled before laying back against his bed with a grunt. Despite the brave face he had on, he was frowning on the inside as he thought about the young man. While they had been training on that mountain and Edward had passed his balance test, the old man had taught him to have a resistance against outside forces. Mainly threats that came from other people, not himself.

He knew that on some level, Edward thought of himself as Rahim who lived through life and died. He thought that this life was a second chance. Seeing the original Rahim full of bloodlust and hate for his being could be quite jarring and distracting. There was also the chance that Edward wouldn't want to destroy Rahim since they could be the same person.

There was a chance he could hesitate in the face of his former self and with his opponent in mind, the Captain knew that any sort of hesitation would lead to grave consequences. It was why he reminded him what would happen if he fell or hesitated before he left. The old man wanted to impress the fact that if Edward fell then Elsa would be vulnerable.

It was a low blow but Stonewell played on the young man's protective feelings. He hoped that they would outweigh any sense of guilt or apprehension he had at facing the avenger. Rahim had already demonstrated that he was willing to go through anyone that got in his way and unlike their first battle against each other. Wrath didn't have access to all of his abilities.

There was also the fact that Rahim's body was different, he wouldn't tire or sustain any wounds. He could continue to fight forever if he felt like it. In fact given what he knew about both their bodies, the avenger had the advantage when considering his body and weapon. If that katana was truly as dangerous as Edward believed then it could maybe sever his left arm and rob him of the advantage it gave him.

The old man may have sounded so sure that the young man would win but the one thing about battle that was constant, was the fact that anything could happen. Any small thing could turn the tide at a moment's notice and take a sure victory and turn it into defeat. He hoped that small thing would be in Edward's favor but the pit in his stomach told him otherwise.

He kept that to himself and watched Elsa walk to one of the windows that looked out to Arendelle. She was likely going to look over to the village as well as the ice roofs that decorated her castle. It used to be a pastime of hers and would help her think whenever something bothered her. He also knew that it was a habit of hers when she was a child to look out at the village to the outside world.

While he believed that she could be a threat to her kingdom, he thought that it was an exercise in futility to keep her locked up in her room. She could've easily busted out whenever she wished and all the time she was locked in her room would've been better spent letting her practice her abilities.

He knew that she was a peaceful person and would never use her abilities to hurt people but as a soldier, he could see all the wasted potential. If she had half the battle experience he did, he would've encouraged her to assist Edward as he knew that she wouldn't hesitate and be a real threat. Yet he knew that her kindness was both her strength and weakness, in the face of a bloodthirsty monster, it was better if she stayed away from that battle.

He watched her a little longer before her face became really panicked when she seemed to see something. Turning around to face the window, he made a quick scan of the courtyard where he could make out two figures. As his eyes focused on them, his heart leapt up into his throat when he could see that Wrath had been pinned by Rahim. Before he could say anything, the window was open and Elsa already had made an ice slide.

"No, don't!"

His cry alerted everyone in the room as they saw the blonde hop out the window and onto the slide which evaporated as she went down it. Anna's cry for her sister filled the room as Hector quickly sprinted out the room hoping to get down to the courtyard before it was too late. Stonewell tried to get out of his bed and run down to help but his legs gave out on him and he fell to the ground.

Cursing angrily, all he could do was shuffle to the window sill and pull himself up to watch his granddaughter head straight into the jaws of danger.

When Elsa saw the young man pinned to the ground, she didn't think, she just acted. She watched Rahim walk away from the downed young man and he struggled back to his feet to continue fighting and her scream was stuck in her throat when she saw him get stabbed.

The blonde hit the ground as soon as the young man hit his knees. Rahim gripped his weapon in a two handed style and had it poised for the final blow. Elsa cocked her hand back and sent it forward putting everything in the icicle and watched it fly through the air, hoping desperately that it would hit its target. As it got closer and closer, she was sure that her aim was true and it would connect with the avenger who was still focused on his downed opponent.

Unfortunately, Rahim's head snapped to her at the last moment and he twisted his body out the way of the incoming projectile. The two of them held each other in their gaze as Elsa continued to run as fast as her feet could take her, hoping desperately to get there in time to save the person she cared for.

"Well isn't that precious? Just in time for the end."

Elsa didn't know which one of the two of them that Rahim was speaking to but she was quickly closing the distance between them. She refrained from firing another blast of ice magic as she didn't want to hit the young man and focused all of her energy into running. She was just a few meters away from reaching him.

Just one more moment…

Unfortunately that was one moment too much as the distinct ring that haunted Wrath's past filled the air and his headless corpse collapsed in front of her. The blonde stopped in her tracks and her mouth was agape as Rahim held the young man's head in his free hand and turned it so that they could look each other in the eyes once more.

On the young man's face was an expression of pain and sadness but his eyes had one emotion that on any other occasion would've filled her with happiness. With the very last of his strength leaving him, the young man spoke the words that he had been dying to tell the platinum beauty for the longest time.

"I-i...love you…"

After those words left his mouth, Rahim crushed the head in his hands and watched it explode in a cloud of black dust. The body soon followed after and dispersed in a cloud of dust as well, leaving behind a dull red stone. Elsa stood still for a moment as she seemed to replay what just happened in front of her a few times as memories of the time the two spent together blurred in her mind. Those memories forced the scream that had been previously stuck in her throat.

"EDWARD!"

The avenger watched the blonde drop to her knees with tears streaming down her cheeks as she continued to look at the space where the young man had occupied a few seconds ago. The heart wrenching scream that filled the air didn't bother him in the slightest. All it did was slightly amuse him as he considered that he probably became Wrath in the woman's eyes. He wordlessly bent down to pick up the stone and held it in his hand while leaning in close to the woman's face.

"Couldn't have done it without you."

He didn't become Wrath, he was so much worse than Wrath.

I killed him! And right in front of Elsa too, I am so evil :D. Now that Rahim has finally completed his quest, wonder what he'll do now that Elsa is right in front of him. Hopefully I can knock out a new chapter in a few days. I still got a little less than a week in total quarantine so I should be able to if nothing happens. Please drop a review and tell me what you think, stay tuned!