V.I.R.A.L

There was nothing but darkness Jinx found herself in an endless abyss with no key sign of an escape. The third trial was underway with no apparent objective. Looking around meekly, she began roaming further into the deep. Each step she took a heavy burden was placed on her making it harder to breathe. Looking down at the ground, she noticed she was walking on what looked like grass, but it was too dark and dead looking to make out. Her thoughts were corrupted as she was unknowingly suffering each breath being stolen from her. Eventually, she found herself unable to continue as she collapsed curled up going pale gasping for air. No words could come out of her mouth as everything faded as Jinx took her failed final breath.

Awaking on a broken bench, Jinx found herself in an enclosed park of some kind. Trees were blocking the view of the beyond as well as a rusty fountain dried up of all water. Jinx held her head feeling entirely different all past memories gone. "How does it feel Holly? How does it feel to be reborn?"

Jinx sat up, staring at the woman with the golden armour. The same woman who had visited her so many years ago. "It's you… You're real?"

"Perhaps. I can still feel that burning rage deep within. Good, it's about time you show the world your pain."

Jinx stood up feeling different, she usually would turn down those sorts of remarks, but now she was the opposite. She had to hold back the uncontrolled laughter growing like a parasite. "Why can't I remember anything?"

"Why the hell would you want to remember those memories? They brought you nothing but pain and horror. I took them away, so you're welcome."

Jinx felt her hand shaking as she held her hand out a gun appearing. Slightly startled, she stepped back, still keeping it to the woman. "What have you done to me?"

"Nothing much. I just made sure there were no regrets. You'll be happy to know Holly Montague is dead. I killed her. In her place is Jinx Montague."

Jinx looked at her hand in horror, feeling everything twisting and turning as her sense of reality and sanity was slipping. "I died?"

"And you never will. I have granted you the ultimate power to seek your revenge. To harness your anger. You can die, but if your willpower remains, you will survive till the very end. A piece of me in you Jinx. Embrace it."

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Jinx felt sick to the stomach falling to her knees, throwing up gagging. "Wh- Who the hell are you?!"

The woman looked down at Jinx with a foul look one of disgust and spite as she folded her arms, letting her cape blowing in the wind. "You may see me as your fairy Godmother Montague. I have extended my hand to help you seek revenge, and you will choose wisely to act out said plan. Revenge is what makes the world go around from small, petty incident is doing better than your work colleague to revenge against your past self to do better. Humans are built on these prospects. Revenge and one other thing. Anger that is what you may see me as. For you are in the presence of the five stages of grief. My name is Anger you will do well to remember for I am both your salvation and your demise. Now Jinx are you ready?"

"Ready for what?"

"For the world to know your name."

****

A small number of bullets kept firing off as Alton kept back calculating his next attack. Readying it, he mocked Jinx yelling out. "You can't have much ammo left, right? What's wrong your powers aren't working?"

Jinx snapped clocking her gun towards Alton as he moved in rolling forward, shooting a small condensed blast of water which had the speed and power of a bullet. Rippling towards Jinx, it suddenly missed throwing Alton off entirely as he knew he calculated the attack correctly. With not much choice he was forced to push in with a follow-up attack now complete in the open. Jinx didn't get time to attack as Alton was already in her face. Still, to his unfortunate luck, each episode he tried landing would abruptly miss. Alton had no words for such feats as his final attempt ended up with him tripping up before even landing a hit falling to the ground. Tumbling forward Alton crashed into a tree in front of him. Jinx raised her machine gun at him only for it to start clocking up. Jinx began yelling in a frenzy trying to fire. This wouldn't work in her favour as the gun exploded in her hand, making her retract in pain. Because of this, Alton was able to start putting the pieces together. Jinx whipped out her final gun being a small pistol.

Further enough away, Alton leapt into the tree, putting together the pieces. "So, you weren't making that shit up. You really are a bad luck charm. Or at least that's what your powers are right? Conflicting bad luck onto your opponent so they miss their attacks or hurt themselves in the heat of the moment. Pretty devastating if used correctly. But it seems not even you can control its randomness given the gun exploding. So that's the power of Holly Montague."

"There's no Holly only Jinx! Holly is dead!" Jinx declared. Alton swiped his hand as a thin layer of water covered the floor. Jinx instantly slipped falling to the ground during which Alton leapt from the tree, moving his fist back to end the fight. That was until he was completely thrown off by an explosion so loud it shook the jungle. Caught off guard Alton missed falling to the ground. Both streamers looked up seeing the volcano in the middle of the arena erupting the explosion of molten lava heading towards them at high speed. Jinx stood up hissing. "Holly… I hate you so much."

Alton pulled himself up, turning and running away without much hesitation as the jungle was being ignited by each passing second. Traversing through the environment using branches, vines and the trees as platforms to pass through Alton was fleeing at high speed. Swinging onto another branch to mark his escape, his sights met with Jinx who was running alongside him. Both stared at each other as Jinx clocked her gun towards him, firing away. Alton jumped and weaved through the trees dodging each shot all while focusing on the doom behind him. Swinging high up Alton took a high leap in the air. The last of his water shot him up like a spring as he propelled high into the sky seeing the surroundings and the portal to the next region dead ahead. Flipping around, he began free-falling towards the edge of the forest marking his escape. That was until Jinx matched his height, launching herself high in the sky landing on Alton as the two were in a fistfight falling dozens of feet from the sky. Landing serval blows to Alton he managed to finally free himself of Jinx spinning himself around. Using her body as s spring as he jumped off her leaving Jinx to fall back into the jungle below. This didn't put into retrospect the last of the fall. Alton crashed through the trees and branches before tangling himself in a mixture of vines.

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Struggling to break free, he kept jerking his body around in hopes of snapping a vine. Jinx slammed her foot against the tree below, aiming at Alton. With no way to avoid the shot, Alton spun around at the last second taking the gunshot to the back, the force breaking him from the vines hitting the ground again. The lava gaining on the two Alton began crawling to his feet dazed from the fall and gunshot. Eventually, with a boost of adrenaline, Alton was back on his feet. Throwing back blows of his own with clots of blood hardening being tossed at Jinx as she was chasing him shooting ago. The portal was just in sight as Alton used the last of his energy to speed up. Leaping over a tree trunk the portal was in reaching distance that was until the ground began to crack open. With a split second of reaction, Alton rolled onto his front using the force of his arms to push him forward and over the newly formed ravine making it to the portal. Jinx wasn't so lucky jumping too late as she just missed the edge falling to her doom.

Her fall was suddenly halted as she looked up, seeing Alton catching her. He had jumped into the ravine using his water powers to hold him down. The two hit the cliffside as Alton had one hand out holding up Jinx. "It would be in everyone's interest if you didn't let go!" Jinx was dazed by the moment, unable to process appropriately as she stared down at the bottom as the lava began piling up. Jinx clocked her gun towards Alton as he rolled his eyes, yelling. "Come on! Seriously, what is your problem Jinx? I'm trying to save you, so the least you can do is stop trying to kill me."

"Let me go."

"What?" Alton whispered, feeling his body topple forward as the dried-up blood was cracking. "You've got to be shitting me."

"If we keep this up, both of us will die. Whether or not you care to doesn't bother me. This isn't to save you; I just want you to let me go. What's it going to be hero?"