151. [BOLERO] A Fair Fight (Part 1)

[Designation: SKJAL SORENSEN]

[Wayfarer Race: YAKSHA]

[Karmic Level: 58]

[Liminal Karma: 25,102 क]

[ZEALOUS Instrument: TYRFINGR]

[Auxiliary: ROUNDEL]

***

The first thing Zacarias had to do was get away.

From his scales-for-brains barracuda of a pursuer. From the black-green embers that lapped at his feet. But most of all from the godsdamned heat.

Oh madre mía did he have it up to here with the fucking heat! Even so, the NINEFOLD master leapt from branch to leaf to more burning platforms, deftly picking the spots that were least likely to roast his legs.

He'd done a lot more parkouring of late than he might've expected before coming to Pretjord, but this latest rendition had got to be his strangest and trickiest performance yet. For the combined magic of Tyr and Rathor had produced a surrealist painter's drug-fueled vision of hell, complete with screaming souls, raging fire, and floors and walls that threatened to turn runny at any moment.

Nowhere was safe, and as such, Zacarias had to keep running. The problem, of course, was that he couldn't keep running forever. At this rate, he'd soon succumb to Stamina depletion or a determined Kronvakt hunter—whichever got to him first.

Just a patch of solid ground is all I ask. Somewhere I can set my feet down for two seconds without being burned alive…

Clearly, such sanctuary was nowhere to be found inside a cage of fire and sand. The only solution, then, was to break out.

The Manusya finally did stop, having spotted a potential escape route. A section of the rotunda's wall had been hit especially hard by [Pacification], resulting in a strip of leaf-morphing-into-soil that rose halfway towards the ceiling. Zacarias knew not what fresh hell awaited on the other side, but he had to trust it'd be preferable to dooming himself on this side.

The briefest breather to allow his Stamina bar to recover. It was a calculated risk, knowing his pursuer wouldn't be so generous as to let slide a punish window. Sure enough, Skjal Sorensen bared his barracuda fangs and lowered ROUNDEL for one of his signature moves:

[Auxiliary Technique: BRYNHILDR]

After one short week of fraternizing with the enemy, Zacarias had already pegged Skjal as someone with an overromantic sense of self and purpose. Case in point: the barracuda man had graced each of his spells and techniques with the names of luminaries from Pretjordian lore. [Brynhildr] was one such example—a buckler-forward gap-closer named after a legendary shieldmaiden said to have defended the Realmtree Kalpas ago.

But a shoulder tackle by any fancy name was still a shoulder tackle. Skjal no doubt intended to pin his target against the wall and crush him like a bug. Too bad for the former, Zacarias had prepared a twofold response: first a [Pauldron] of his own to counterbalance and absorb [Brynhildr]'s impact, and second…

The week of fraternization had also revealed that Skjal wasn't exactly the sharpest knife in the kitchen. On this occasion, the eager hunter had failed to notice the deliberate manner in which his quarry had positioned himself. [Pauldron] had somewhat blunted [Brynhildr], but it'd also transferred much of its power onto the [Pacified] wall behind the Manusya… which now exploded into bits of dirt and crushed leaves.

And wouldn't Zacarias know it? The fresh hell that awaited on the other side was open air. It was just his luck to pick the section of the rotunda that connected directly to the outside of the Apical Bough!

He had to think fast and act faster. [Dreamer Aspect] on. [Palm of Empowerment] to grab the frayed edges of the wall and hold on tight.

At the same time, he watched as Skjal's burly figure defenestrated from the DIY window, thrust outward by the barracuda's own momentum. If the gods were good, that same momentum would propel Skjal all the way into the sky and onto a lethal fall.

Alas, Zacarias knew better than to count on a lucky smite—nor for the gods to be anything but indifferent. For the one week had also taught him that Skjal Sorensen was nothing if not persistent—perhaps not unlike a certain Rakshasa gunslinger. Sure enough, the Kronvakt team leader saved himself from certain death with a combination of lightning-quick reflexes and well-honed skill:

[Auxiliary Technique: GEIRSKOGUL]

Shiiing!

The sound of metal forcibly displacing air. Another ROUNDEL technique, [Geirskogul] was a run-of-the-mill buckler throw—if said throw had been imbued with a barracuda's mighty strength and predatory intent.

Indeed, the sheer torque of ROUNDEL leaving its wielder's hand was enough to halt and reverse Skjal's skyward momentum. He then twisted in mid-air, using the rebound to reach for solid wall.

Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

Of course, said piece of real estate happened to be already occupied. Zacarias acted without thinking, sensing a rare opportunity. Surely, a well-placed spearing kick with [Lance] here should set his rival back on the path of a lethal fall…

But then Zacarias realized his mistake, too little too late. For what he'd envisioned to be a smiting blow proved instead to be a helping hand.

A predator's inborn reflexes. And skill honed from countless sparring sessions with the Realm's best and finest. Skjal grabbed hold of Zacarias's leg, mid-[Lance], thereby negating its damage and giving himself a much-needed anchor. He then proceeded immediately to apply a downward pulling force.

Not good! Zacarias understood then that he and his opponent fought with very different objectives in mind. For while he was in a hurry to push on and rejoin his trio-mates, Skjal was under no such obligation. The loyal Kronvakt man would happily eat an untimely smite if he could drag the 'traitor' with him.

Zacarias had to pull out all the stops to, well, stop that from happening. Spend Karma first, ask questions later.

[Dreamer Aspect: THE FIFTH DAO—AXLE OF FULFILLMENT]

A NINEFOLD master's shoulder was normally reserved for some hard, no-nonsense tackling. When imbued with VISAGE's Erudite energy, however, the joint became a hinge point—a fulcrum upon which the very tides of battle could turn. In a typical use case where Zacarias were to grapple with his enemy, he might then use [Axle] to uncork the mother of all judo throws.

Or, in this rather unprecedented case, he could 'throw' both himself and a barracuda hanger-on onto the curved roof of the Apical Bough!

Manusya and Yaksha together became a purple blur as they swung through the air, rising in a violent arc. But Zacarias wasn't satisfied with merely 'shrugging off' his unwanted passenger; he aimed also to turn the move into a devastating finisher. To that end, he shifted his concentrated aura from his shoulder down to his lower leg, thereby activating [Spear of Commitment].

The plan was to drive Skjal onto the roof with the combined momentum of [Axle] into [Spear]. But alas, the barracuda man was nothing if not persistent. He let go of Zacarias's leg at the last possible Ksana, before dodge-rolling out of the point of impact.

Not to be outdone by a Manusya practitioner of the killing arts, Skjal transitioned smoothly into his own counter-finisher. In the time it'd taken for the two of them to flip onto the roof, ROUNDEL had completed its return trip. The metallic buckler now boomeranged back into Skjal's hand, which he turned to its sharpened edge and drove toward Zacarias's exposed side.

[Auxiliary Technique: REGINLEIF]

A shield in name could also be a deadly weapon in the right hands. If a week of sparring had taught Zacarias anything, it was that Skjal's hands certainly fit the bill.

Presently, the NINEFOLD master was still recovering from his whiffed finisher—posture too low to the 'ground' for his own [Shield] to be effective. As such, he was forced to [Lance]-jump out of harm's way and higher up the curvature of the roof. His trailing bare foot felt acutely the displacement of air as ROUNDEL whizzed past and slammed into solid leaf.

Finally, both combatants had a chance to 'rest' and take renewed stock of each other.

A furious exchange of acrobatic maneuvers and lethal finishers had resulted in a combined total of zero HP lost. A testament to two martialists' dedication to their craft, as well as the finely tuned parity between them.

As irritated as Zacarias was by Skjal and his dogged interference, his appreciation for the barracuda man had also grown in spades. He allowed himself a faint smile then, but took care to keep his eyebrows flat. Nothing but the utmost respect for a worthy opponent.

Zacarias appreciated also the shift to a new venue. The temperature hadn't cooled as much as he would've liked, and the roof's curvature took some getting used to, but at the very least, it was solid ground for his bare feet to latch onto. Good thing it was also relatively dry, allowing for a good bit of friction to—

Hang on. Zacarias suddenly cottoned onto an obvious discrepancy. Why is this roof dry? Shouldn't the Apical Bough's outer wall be flooded by the Sanzu's waterfall? Speaking of waterfall, why is it so quiet out here that I can even hear myself think?

Still wary of the barracuda threat, Zacarias stole the briefest of glances at the night sky overhead. What he saw there was so unbelievable that he almost couldn't tear his eyes away.

The Sanzu River that poured in from the heavens was in complete stasis. A solid sheet of verdigris, containing scattered elements of umber that had trickled in from the Realm above. Even an uncultured brute like Zacarias could see its surreal beauty, but of course, now wasn't the time to sit and admire a painting.

Zacarias did, however, consider the frozen waterfall's implications. It'd clearly been the work of Shark Bro and his [Pacification]—a Realm-wide spell that had started from the very top and worked its way down. Which meant its effects would be dispelled the moment someone—perhaps, say, a certain estranged daughter—were to smite the [Pacifier] himself.

Well, that was already the plan, wasn't it? And if Zacarias knew anything about Bubblegum, it was that she had a knack for upstaging her family members. All the more reason for him to hurry this along, lest he be still stuck fighting a barracuda when the water turned back on.

"Skjal, my man," Zacarias yelled across the roof, struck by sudden inspiration. "Good sesh, and I'd love to go for round two, but I'm already running late. What say we take it up again tomorrow, hey? In the meantime, I promise I won't tell the others how you lost."

Until that moment, Skjal had been lowering his shoulder, readying another [Brynhildr]. But at Zacko's words, he looked up and flashed his fangs, eyes wide with disbelief.

"Have you lost your mind, Manusya?" he snapped, striking the exact tone Zacarias had been 'fishing' for. "I had you dead to rights, until you decided to scurry away like a cornered guppy!"

"Oh, but that's only because I was taking it easy on you," Zacarias taunted, taking full advantage of the 'provocative' nature of his laughing Buddha mask. "Surely, you can see it wouldn't have been a fair fight otherwise?"

The effect was instant and dramatic. Skjal's silver scales darkened into a kind of glittery charcoal. He then slid his buckler hand to one side as he reached for a sword hilt with the other.

"Consider this a kindness far beyond what you deserve, traitor," he said, voice low and full of menace. "If it's a 'fair fight' you want, I'll gladly oblige. Pity that you shan't live to savor it for long."

Hook, line, and sinker. Thank the gods Skjal Sorensen was almost as dumb as he was strong. Goading the barracuda into drawing his weapon had been the surest way to lower his defense—and therefore speed up the fight.

But of course, it also made him that much more dangerous.

Zacarias flattened his eyebrows and lowered himself into a defensive stance. Nothing but the utmost respect for a worthy opponent. He also hid a wide, eager smile behind his VISAGE.

How could he not be excited? For even after a whole week of sparring, this was the first time Zacarias had gotten Skjal to unsheathe TYRFINGR.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.