Chapter 188 - Vampire vs the Divine-blade (1/2)
A kingdom defining moment, the long quest of starting a guild was a few steps away. Staxius and Raulf faced one another, the ground dry and dusty. A few spells were required to clear out plants and trees. The battleground now stood visible to all who may have wanted to watch from inside the castle.
Rather than staying indoors, as opposed to the visiting nobles who rushed over, Gallienne stood outside. She was to act as the witness of said battle. The aura tense, the clouds covering the sun – Protectors for each kingdom were about to lay everything on the line.
”Before we proceed,” the queen spoke, ”-I wish to have a fair and honorable duel – one that would make each side proud. If there are any questions, do ask the opponent and come to an agreement. The rules are to be decided by the fighters per the tradition.” She sat, the Queen Mother remained in the castle, the boy she had seen so many years ago was back.
”Master Raulf,” Staxius spoke, the voice monotonous, ”-are there any restrictions or rules?”
”No, this duel is free – the only requirement is defeating the opponent by any means necessary,” he replied sharply – the divine-blade was a monster of a warrior. An all-out battle without restraint to weapons.
”Since the conditions have been made, both fighters get ready,” a guard acting as another witness spoke. Raulf took a peculiar stance, the sword overhead and body close to the ground, he was ready. Staxius, on the other hand, did nothing peculiar, the hand rested on the handle – a fair stance.
”There's no holding back,” the crimson eyes lit, the face changed to neutral, concentration heightened.
”BEGIN,” two loud explosions, each opponent rushed one another. Raulf took the initiative and used magic, the ground froze immediately. It had only been a blink, both men were out of sight – flashes of blue and red were seen. Strike after strike, no one knew what was going on.
A battle beyond human capabilities, the fight started. The usual dodging and holding back style would not have done any good. Staxius needed to fight all out, Raulf wasn't someone who could be underestimated. Even at his speed, the divine-blade kept up, every blink felt like a death sentence. The master-swordsman was specialized in stealthy and deadly style. He could vanish without much thought – invisible to anyone, even ones blessed with spirit-sense. Laps after laps, the two never stood still, they ran around waiting for opening then charged. Nothing extraordinary had happened yet, cards were being played smartly. With god knows how many years of experience below the master's belt, Staxius could not but feel the pressure of that man's aura.
With the cursed-blade unsheathed, the spirits that tried to latch onto his opponent were rendered useless. The immense aura that could deter an entire platoon for the attack was nullified and overpowered by the aura of a true warrior. Getting a stable footing was hard, not only was the speed reduced but it worked in Raulf's favor.
The situation grew disadvantageous by the second, he was where the man wanted him to be. 'Enough,' without thinking, the Death-element activated. Void-flames emanated from his feet; it melted the icy ground thus increasing the footing again.
'Smart,' Raulf thought but didn't seem bothered. Each strike he gave was precise and targeted, each contact they made had a purpose. Staxius parried and counterattacked, it even injured the man on a few occasions, mild cuts to the cheek. Nonetheless, after each engagement – Staxius felt it, '-the steel-sword is about to break,' despite being cursed, the weapon wasn't ready to take on the best swordsman in the continent.
'Shit,' the rhythm changed, from running around to a full-frontal assault, Raulf took him by surprise. *Crack,* the sword broke to which an explosion of dark energy shot out. It had the face of a screaming lady begging to be freed.
”What the hell is that?” taken by surprise, Raulf jumped back trying to reassess the situation.
”My apologies,” the face dripped with small cuts, the eyes burnt vividly. The hand held out, it seemed as if the soul were absorbed. To which after the mist vanished, he pounced, it almost took Raulf out. Staxius changed to a closer range fighting style, with no weapons, he had to endure and continue fighting.
There was no time for thinking, with the sword gone, the mobility increased, the fighting stance more flexible, he could easily evade the divine-blade and try to get close. A few punches landed, the element of surprise helped, the armor took all the force. ”Damn,” forced to reassess and being in reach of the blade, Staxius jumped back.
”You were careless,” Raulf didn't allow it, he leaped with a downward strike. Both in mid-air, evading was out of the question. The battle was won, in normal situations.
”Blood-Arts: Crimson Threads,” the blood which dripped from the face all shot out with a flick of the wrist. Staxius could control the liquid at will, as the name described, it made threads that had different densities. Instead of blocking, it shot out to one of the trees, thus giving him a chance to move. It all happened so fast none realized what happened. Shards of ice raised; many thought the battle was over.
”That was a close one,” he spoke, the crimson threads hovered above his head as if a halo.
”Impossible,” the battle stopped momentarily. Raulf took a few deep breaths, ”-I would not have expected this,” he spoke, ”-a nightwalker. Didn't your kind die out… and that blood-control, you're not some low-level fledgling, are you?” the face lit with rage.
”You're right,” the hair hovered subtly, the all-seeing eye came to life. Just like the Death element controlled his mana and magic, those eyes controlled another power. One given to a pure-blooded Vampiric-lord. Blood-Arts, the ability to manipulate one's blood at will. ”I've gone past the human limitation, I'm no longer one of the living – I apologize for keeping this a secret, Divine-blade; but you must understand.” The halo made of blood separated and formed tiny-sharp projectiles, ”-I'm the Protector of Arda, a province filled with races that are unknown to the human race. A place alienated and shunned for being different, ever since the independence – the oppression onto demi-humans has subsided. So, it's not too weird to assume that the protector of said place isn't a mere human.”
”I must apologize for the sudden outburst,” the battle resumed, ”-in the days of old, vampires have killed and eaten our kind for generations. Having fought against them time and time again has made my blood boil,” he smirked.
”Well,” Staxius vanished, ”-I guess you know what to expect,” it came from behind, the projectile launched. *Ice-element: Ice Barrier,* deflected, the high-speed fight was but an evaluation.