With the power of Ether allowing people to heal from even normally lethal injuries, I’ve noted that Ethereans in particular have become desensitized to the level of violence they inflict on one another in their sparring matches. It’s rather disturbing when you stop to think about it…

  -Excerpt from Arvad Malachi’s musings

  Aria had been muttering an Invocation for an Art as Daxton took his sweet time getting ready to spar. She wasn’t going to mess around, and would use this chance to prove to Zareb that she didn’t need a human’s tutelage.

  “Winds. Gather together at my beck and call. Compress and explode to grant me speed…”

  Right as Zareb called the start to their bout, she finished her Invocation, “Wind Burst.”

  It was an Art that, among the elves, had many, many variations. The one she used now was a basic version of it. As the name implied, the Art channeled and focused winds to a point before releasing them in a burst.

  Aria had directed the winds to her feet, and had used their bursting release to shoot herself forward in a tremendous burst of speed.

  She’d brought her sword forward in a stab, the point of the blade focused towards Daxton’s chest. If Zareb were as capable as he implied, then surely such a wound would be within his ability to heal? If not, then he’d jump in and stop her attack, assuring her victory over both he and Daxton.

  However, as she got dangerously close to the young human, the general didn’t step in as she’d expected. Before she could form another thought, Daxton moved with speed she hadn’t expected him to be able to pull off, and sidestepped her stab, causing her to fly by him.

  His eyes were wide with shock and he reflexively jumped back to gain some more distance. Aria spun as she slid to a stop, and saw him with a hand over the center of his chest, looking at her incredulously.

  “Were you seriously about to run me through with your sword?” he asked her.

  “No, I was just planning on poking you really hard,” she responded sarcastically.

  “Oh… really?” he asked hopefully.

  She gave him a flat look, “No.”

  He suddenly looked offended of all things, as he turned to Zareb with an expression of disbelief that said, “What in the void?!”

  The general merely raised his brows and shrugged at him.

  Aria frowned, baffled by Daxton’s behavior.

  Finally, the young human turned back to her, looking genuinely angry, “Oh… it is on!”

  She sensed a build up of Ether from him, and readied herself. Out of reflex, she burned some Ether and enhanced her eyesight, allowing her to see the power and its flow.

  It was then she realized that the build up of power was stemming not from him, but from his sword!

  Flames began to emanate from the weapon as he raised it before throwing a slash her way. A wave of fire launched towards her quickly, giving her little time to respond.

  The flames exploded shortly after reaching their target.

  ***

  I can’t believe she nearly killed me! Just like that! Galen thought angrily.

  “In her defense, she probably figured Aleksi would be able to heal you or stop her attack at the last second,” Redian explained.

  Even if Aleksi can heal me after, that doesn’t justify A SWORD THROUGH THE CHEST!!! he yelled.

  “Good… good…” the sword cackled before saying, “let the hate flow through you! Oh and duck.”

  Galen followed the instincts that Redian granted him, ducking low as instructed as what looked like a blade of green tinged wind slashed overhead.

  That was the Art she used against the scorpion Ether Beast! he remembered, is she TRYING to kill me?!

  “Relax, boss!” Redian chimed, “judging from the output, that Art wouldn’t have been able to bisect you. It would have left a deep gash, though…”

  THAT HARDLY MAKES IT BETTER!!! he screamed back, admittedly freaked out by Tufani’s mercilessness.

  Instincts not his own flared within him, sensing incoming danger. He saw Tufani coming at him again in another burst of unnatural speed. He side stepped the attack again, before countering with his own slash.

  She blocked it, and the two locked blades for a brief moment, eyes locking.

  “Are you trying to kill me?!” he hissed at her.

  She frowned, “No.”

  “Could’ve fooled me!” he responded as he burned more Ether and further enhanced the muscles in his body.

  Tufani responded in kind, and the two entered a contest of strength.

  He’d expected to immediately fold, but was more than pleasantly surprised at how even they were thus far. In fact, as they both steadily burned more and more Ether to enhance themselves further, he found himself starting to gain in advantage, if only slightly.

  Realizing he was pulling ahead, Tufani suddenly slackened her arms, causing him to stumble forward. Instincts helped him to quickly regain his balance and block a slash from her that sent him sliding back a bit.

  He smiled, thinking to himself, So, when it comes to strength, I have the advantage.

  Perhaps that shouldn’t be so surprising? After all, Tufani was rather thin, and he himself was in good, athletic shape. So it logically followed that she would need to burn more Ether than he did to match him in raw strength.

  Let’s see how we compare in other areas… he thought as he and Tufani charged at one another and began to exchange attacks.

  Their swords sang as they sliced through the air and repeatedly collided in quick, but heavy strikes. During their exchanges, he noted that neither of them had a definitive advantage over the other.

  So… in terms of swordsmanship we’re about even… he noted, now… let’s see how we compare when I have Redian guide me.

  He slowly allowed himself to be immersed in the instincts the Sentient Weapon provided him. As he did, his attacks steadily became sharper and faster. Not because his physical speed had increased, but because he began to eliminate wasted movements in his strikes with Redian’s aid.

  He smiled as he began to press her, forcing her back as he took the advantage. Just as he thought he was about to land a strike, Redian shot him a warning as Tufani suddenly moved faster than she had before, and parried the blow.

  She got faster?! he thought with panic as he was left wide open, damn it, she was holding back!

  She slashed at him, and, instinct guiding him, he barely managed to jump back to avoid a deep cut. The front of his shirt was sliced, with the blade grazing his skin. He winced as he landed on his feet. He looked up to see Tufani giving him a cold look, her focus unwavering.

  “Seems like I drew first blood,” she noted before charging and closing the distance.

  It took everything Galen had to avoid getting struck again as he dodged, blocked, parried, and weaved in between her incredibly fast attacks.

  Okay! So she’s definitely got me beat in terms of speed! However, it seems with just a bit of Redian’s help, I have the better reaction time, instincts, and skills! he analyzed.

  It also helped that the Sentient Weapon’s previous Wielders had experience fighting against foes faster than themselves. He could’ve immersed himself more deeply into the instincts of his predecessors, but he hesitated to do so. This was just a sparring match, after all, and that seemed like overkill. So, satisfied with what he was tapping into from the sword, he wholeheartedly threw himself into the fight. He and Tufani exchanged several attacks, with each managing to nick the other here and there, though he noted he inflicted more cuts.

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  Though they continued with him steadily gaining an advantage, Aria began to try to tip the scales to her advantage, “Oh winds! Hear my plea and alter your natural flow…”

  Galen’s eyes widened, recognizing the Invocation.

  He tried to press Tufani in hopes of interrupting her Art, however, she was managing to continue her invocation while simultaneously defending herself. Something he’d learned was a rather advanced skill for an Etherean called Concurrent Casting.

  “Come together and form a blade to cut down my foes…” Tufani continued as she managed to deflect Galen’s flurry of attacks.

  Tch! She’s going to finish at this rate! he realized, Redian!

  “Already on it, boss!” the sword confirmed as Galen felt a portion of the Sentient Weapon’s reserves diminish.

  “…slice them apart and tear them asunder!” Tufani finished her Invocation.

  Redian, thankfully, managed to finish casting the Flame Slash Art at the same time.

  As green tinged winds began to coat Aria’s sword, simultaneously, flames erupted from Redian’s blade.

  “Wind Blade!”

  “Flame Slash!”

  Their Arts were cast at the same time as their swords collided. The fire fed on the swirling, sharp winds, resulting in them growing out of Galen’s control. An explosion of flame and heat sent them both flying back, their swords hurtling in the air away from them.

  They both hit the ground roughly, and after rolling a ways, sprang to their feet.

  They both were sweaty and breathing heavily, covered in minor cuts and burns. Galen wiped the sweat from his chin as he noted Tufani sizing him up with a new sense of caution.

  They both noted their newfound lack of a weapon. Tufani’s eyes briefly glanced in the direction her sword went, but Galen brought her attention back to him with a crack of his knuckles.

  He smiled at her as he cracked the other, showing that he felt confident in taking her on without Redian. At this, she narrowed her eyes and took the bait as she too cracked her knuckles.

  Alright… when it comes to Arts, she definitely has me beat, he admitted, without Redian, I’d have lost already. No surprise there… BUT, let’s see how you do against me in hand to hand, Tufani…

  Galen burned Ether, and charged towards Tufani, who met him halfway.

  She threw a punch his direction, which he dodged.

  He countered with an uppercut that struck underneath her chin, causing her head to snap back. He struck at her side with his other fist, landing a blow right on her ribs. She winced, but caught his arm before he could pull it back. She pulled him in as she landed a haymaker across his face.

  He briefly saw stars and tasted blood in his mouth, but managed to recover before she could land another hit. He blocked her next blow, and the two began to exchange attacks. They would attack each other with ferocity, sometimes managing to land a blow here and there, before they gained some distance and circled each other, looking for an opening. Then, they would begin another exchange.

  Galen had been confident when he’d provoked Tufani into fighting him hand to hand. He’d trained a ton under his grandfather back on Earth, and part of that training had included hand to hand combat. Boxing, wrestling, mixed martial arts, etc. He’d fought in many official tournaments and even won a few of them. He’d then sharpened what he’d learned on Earth in his training under Aleksi and later Arawn, refining what he knew to better suit a fight without rules and regulations.

  With all that, he’d been confident that he’d have the advantage in hand to hand against Tufani. And he did.

  But not as much as he’d been expecting.

  Clearly, her mother had been rather well versed in hand to hand, since Tufani was not only managing to hold her own against him… she was doing a damned good job at it. Her blows were fast, sharp, and calculated, and she benefited greatly from the speed advantage she had over him. He was having a hell of a time gaining an edge.

  But gain an edge he eventually did.

  Tufani swung a punch towards his face, which he managed to side step before grabbing her arm at the wrist with both hands and jumping to wrap his legs around her shoulder and neck.

  The sudden weight caused Tufani to fall to the ground with him as he performed an arm bar submission hold. He pulled on her arm, causing her to cry out in pain.

  “Yield,” Galen said to her.

  She resisted, fighting his hold and trying to escape.

  He increased the pressure, threatening to break her arm, “YIELD!”

  She grit her teeth in stubborn refusal.

  He glanced to Aleksi, who stood a fair distance away, watching.

  His mentor seemed to read the question in his eyes as he nodded. “It’ll be fine,” the look seemed to say.

  Just then, Tufani startled him as she began to lift him from the ground using the arm he was threatening to break.

  It was a burst of Ether enhancement that allowed her to pull off what was normally impossible to do back on Earth. Galen clenched his teeth, as he too burned more Ether to enhance his strength. However, that did not increase his weight.

  Before Tufani could slam him to the ground, he mentally apologized to her before using his burst of extra strength to cleanly snap her arm.

  She let out a scream as her arm fell limply, causing Galen to thud softly on the ground. He rolled back and sprang to his feet, looking at her as she jumped up, broken arm hanging loosely.

  He winced at that, wondering if he’d gone too far.

  Then again, he reminded himself, she did nearly stab a sword through my chest at the start.

  “I did tell you to yield,” he said to her.

  That only seemed to make her angrier, as her eyes flared.

  He frowned, noting for the first time how her eyes, normally a sapphire blue, were now glowing an emerald green.

  He tensed, sensing something was coming. A feeling that was proven true as she began another Invocation, “Stagnant winds, I command you. Heed my call and flow according to my will…”

  Galen gaped at her, “Seriously?! You want to keep going?!”

  “Swirl and take with you that which gives life…” Tufani continued, unbroken arm raising into the air.

  He cursed under his breath and tried to charge at her to stop her Invocation. However, she merely leapt back as she finished her Art, “Aerial Void!”

  Galen tensed, preparing himself for an attack. Winds swirled in a wide area around him, and he raised his arms in defense. However, nothing more happened. The winds didn’t close in on him like he’d expected them to.

  He took a deep breath to calm himself.

  Or rather, he tried to.

  He found he couldn’t inhale. He frowned and tried again, but was once more met with failure. His eyes widened as he found he couldn’t breathe anymore.

  He whirled to Tufani, whose arm was still up in the air, eyes glowing green, expression intense and shadows framing her face.

  Did she… did she just put me in a vacuum?! he began to panic.

  He felt Redian confirm this and urged him to hurry, knowing he’d pass out soon if he didn’t somehow put a stop to this Art.

  Using one of his own was out of the question. For one, he’d yet to learn how to pull an Art off on his own. And even if he could, fire wouldn’t ignite in a vacuum. He couldn’t close the distance between himself and Tufani, since her superior speed wouldn’t allow it.

  He fell to his knees, vision beginning to blur from the lack of oxygen. Anger unexpectedly swelled within him, as a competitive thought entered his mind, Damn it! I don’t want to lose!

  One hand was at his chest, but the other brushed against the ground. It ran across something solid and loose, and he grabbed it in reflex.

  His eyes widened in realization. Moving quickly and with a burst of Ether, he hurled the object he’d grabbed, a jagged rock, towards Tufani. She hadn’t expected him to make such a move, and as a result, the rock collided against her head, causing it to snap back.

  The air suddenly returned, and Galen gasped desperately for breath, finally able to fill his lungs again.

  He saw Tufani stumble as she brought her head back down, allowing Galen to see blood was running down her face from where the rock had struck her. She looked dazed as she fell down to one knee. She looked like she was mumbling something.

  Frowning, Galen burned Ether to enhance his hearing to listen to what she was saying. What he heard caused him to leap to his feet and rush after her.

  “Oh winds. Take the power within me and use it to restore that which was harmed. Healing Breeze,” Tufani cast her Healing Art.

  However, Galen had reached her before her Art could begin mending her damage. He threw an Ether enhanced punch straight to her face before stopping at the last second.

  He met Tufani’s eyes, which had refocused as her Art healed what had likely been a concussion.

  “I win,” he said to her.

  She narrowed her eyes, now blue again instead of green, “No, I do.”

  Galen felt something sharp poking at his stomach, and he looked down to see her holding a rock with a pointed edge, one different than the one he’d thrown, poised to stab him in the gut.

  “You’re both wrong,” Aleksi spoke, suddenly appearing right by them, “I’d call that a tie.”

  Tufani glared at him, “How?! I’d have cut open his gut with this!”

  “And he’d have likely broken your skull open if his blow connected. Your healing Art hadn’t fully mended it by the time his fist reached you,” Aleksi countered, “as such, I’d call it a tie.”

  Galen sighed, stepping back from Tufani while muttering, “Damn it, I was hoping to win there…”

  “Hold on! I don’t agree with these results!” she protested.

  Aleksi raised a brow at her, “Oh? Do you disagree with my assessment?”

  She fumed, but didn’t argue further. She did, however, angrily run her hands through her hair. She winced, however, as she no doubt brushed the spot where her Art was still healing.

  “Come now, both of you. I’ll let you know my thoughts on your bout after I heal you,” Aleksi paused and turned to Tufani, “is that fine with you, lass?”

  She was silent for a moment before responding, “…fine…”

  Aleksi smiled and nodded before leading them towards the closest wall to rest.

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