Serena and Zolvorn disappeared from Victor’s view in a flash. A massive crash broke a colossal tree shocking Victor as a blast of air knocked him down. The towering tree began creaking as another shockwave deafened Victor for a moment. “CAWTHORN FLY!” Victor turned as branches blasted past his head. “BARRIER SHIELD!” the barrier blocked the torrent debris long enough for Victor to see Serena landing on the ground in front of him.
Serena panted her shoulders swaying up and down intensely focused on the black and red menace ahead of her. “1.” Zolvorn counted with a bright smile on his bloody face. Heading straight for her Zolvorn took off like a falcon leaping from a cliff. His massive greatsword burned through the air igniting the blade crackling with red lightning. Serena’s tiny form blocked the blade larger than her only to be sent predictably flying. “Bravo. One to one.”
Serena landed atop one of the trees not responding in any way her eyes focused in almost as though she was searching for a weakness. Cawthorn took off above the trees just in time to avoid the next shockwave as Serena slid her blade along the greatsword striking at her and slicing open his arm mid air. The two broke the ground they landed on cratering it as they turned “Supreme Ricochet.” Victor looked to Swordie and without a word brought it up.
Supreme Ricochet Rank 10
Rarity: Divine
Active Skill
Stamina Cost: 128 stamina per item
Duration: 100 seconds
While active thrown objects continue to ricochet for the entire duration, no limitations on surfaces or objects.
“1 to 2.” Zolvorn smiled sadistically. Serena briefly crouched her legs before tossing all of her remaining six throwing daggers toward the trees. They connected with a ding as though hitting metal. The daggers seemed to bounce around Serena almost perfectly echoing the sound of coins clattering on a metal. She seemed to instinctively know exactly where they would land. The two eyed each other him with a beaming devious smile and her with a stoic blank face dripping with sweat. “Who taught you to fight?”
“My father taught me the basics, but I learned much more the hard way.” She braced her legs against the ground ready to dodge the next strike.
The tree uprooted and went flying. Zolvorn leapt downward off the tree rocketing toward her. “Quake.” Zolvorn caught one of the daggers flying toward his head as his blade to the ground sending Victor flying into the air along with a huge amount of debris. Serena appeared collecting him knocking the wind out of him as she arrived gripping his chest. Zolvorn sighed “I authorize my opponent to take the bystander to a sufficient distance. If she does not return it will be considered running away.”
She turned to Zolvorn taking a deep breath as she landed with Victor. “Thank you.”
“It will just spoil the mood. You have 60 seconds.” Zolvorn put his greatsword up over his shoulder with yet another insidious smile. “After only a few exchanges we are already 1 to 3. You don’t think I’d let you walk away up on me do you? Go.”
Serena took off and Victor could only imagine that the pressure he felt was what it felt like to take off in a plane. In a few seconds flashing through the forest they arrived at the wounded Forala. “Take care of him.”
“Do whatever it takes but please live.” Victor fell to one knee.
Serena smiled warmly and patted his cheek with affection. “I’m more skilled than him. If this is a fair fight, he will lose, besides I’ll need practice for his boss.” She disappeared into the distance kicking up dirt and roots with each step.
“How is she so strong?” Emilie asked.
“It’s his skill. He matches his opponents’ strength with his in exchange for benefits from his Void Lord Gizixil.” Victor explained.
“We should run.” Jenora urged.
Forala laughed coughing up blood as Emilie continued healing her. “No. We could run for hours and we’d still only be a few moments from him. Either she wins or he kills us.”
Serena returned looking up the road at him. “You said a fight is like a conversation. I have one question before we resume.”
Zolvorn lifted one eyebrow and tilted his head. He returned all ten of her throwing daggers throwing them at her head. She caught them between her fingers with a smile on her face. “Ask away.”
“How do you feel about Luzuzal?” A sly smirk crept across her face.
“That delusional fool? He’s only escaped Gizixil and hides. He stands no chance against the other Void Lords much less the greatest of the Void Lord.” Zolvorn answered and once again darted toward her with his massive greatsword as the lightning crackled across it highlighting the lines on the blade more prominently. This time there was no dodging it. Serena blocked a segment of the blade, but only a segment. The blade broke into four shards with three flying past slashing her back and chest. Her extreme rigor sealed the wounds instantly. She wasted no time leaving one dagger to block and went for his neck. Serena launched toward him as he tried to dodge backward. He succeeded but by the slimmest margin.
She slashed his throat but the strike was far too shallow. A splash of blood quickly sealed by his incredible healing was her only reward. The blades retracted flying back to his greatsword and crackling with energy as he gained distance. She smiled touching her wounds. “So 2 to 4? or 1 to 3?”
He touched his neck with a bright smile. “Always 2 to 4. Never discount your opponents successful exchanges even when your blow also connected. Gizixil cares largely about violence but honorable opponents, and fair duels he holds those in high regard, or at least that is what he’s told me when he beat me. He told me to get more experience and come back when I had reached level 100 and challenge him. He even offered me this skill.”
“Touching.” Her dry sarcasm as she launched her throwing daggers. “ Supreme Ricochet .” She pulled out her bow aiming it down at him.
“I LOVE THIS!” Zolvorn launched himself at her this time breaking apart his blade with a swing far before reaching her. He deflected five of the throwing daggers and yet five more pierced his skin, three thudding in his chest slowing him down one on his leg and one to his arm. She loosed her arrow only for it to be blocked by one of the pieces of his sword. The fourth of his sword flipped into a distance behind him embedding itself in a fallen tree. Zolvorn shattered her bow and nearly took off her hands with the short blade still attached to the hilt with the other two crossing her chest shredding her shirt.
She jumped straight up getting enough distance as she cleared the trees in a single bound. As her jump reached its zenith she wiped out her remaining two daggers. She flipped them so the blades traced her arm. As she began to fall she took a breath and focused on the two floating shards of his sword and the short blade attached to the hilt. They crackled with energy as he wound up a swing. ‘It has to be his neck. Anything else won’t be enough.’ She took the risk throwing one blade while her skill was still active. It raced her down hitting a floating shard bouncing from blade to blade striking Zolvorn in the neck as she landed a piece of the black blade nearly cut her in half despite using her other dagger to block it from going through her.
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Serena was sent soaring into a tree where she landed and despite the immense damage she had just taken she stopped bleeding almost instantly. Zolvorn slowly pulled the dagger from his neck. “YOU ARE THE BEST COMBATENT I’VE HAD THE PLEASURE OF ENJOYING FOR YEARS! HERE!” He flung her dagger back with implausible force into the tree she stood on causing it to waver. It landed hilt first in the tree with the blade sticking out. She drew it back. “Your instincts are so good. You fight like you’ve been told to die and just decided you don’t want to. 4 to 6.” The wounds on his neck had practically sealed and scarred over.
Serena on the other hand may have stopped bleeding but she was not healing anywhere close to the same rate. “I think I understand how you’ve been able to do this so many times.”
Zolvorn smiled slyly. “Go ahead.”
“At your level rigor is so high you recover a lot of health per second. People who you challenge aren’t used to their new skills, speed, and defenses. That’s not what is really insidious, your entire skill set is based on trading blows.” Her eyes narrowed.
Zolvorn’s grin extended edging toward his ears. “Well it seems I’ve been found out. Did you go for my throat instinctively or because you figured that out?” He picked out the throwing daggers and tossed them back toward her. “Feel free to have your daggers back.”
“It’s always a vulnerable spot, especially for someone with a weapon as big as yours.” She readied herself for the next exchange. “Counting is pointless. It is nothing but misdirection.”
At that Zolvorn reformed his blade holding his massive blade in one hand. “Well done! It is pointless but I like keeping score. Most competent opponents end up ahead of me on that count and yet just like you I see them lose.”
Serena gritted her teeth and growled at him. “That remains to be seen. May as well tell you to use your skills, I’m going to take off your head in the next twelve seconds. The rank only increases the number of seconds the skill is active but I’m going to kill you in that window.”
“Why would you tell me that?” Zolvorn tilted his head. “You know I’m going to kill you.”
“I’ve spent my entire life wanting to wipe the smile off of a smug asshole bullying and beating me. It will be so much more satisfying to tell you before I do.” Serena smiled confidently.
Zolvorn grinned madly. “THEN COME SATISFY MY BLOODLUST!” He gripped his blade with both hands for the first time in their fight. The blade crackled with red lightning up his arm electrifying the air around him.
“Double dash.” Serena disappeared from Zolvorn’s view appearing less than a foot away from his face. Zolvorn quickly head butted her away and instinctively ducked. Her blade pierced his mouth shattering teeth, slicing his tongue, and ripping his flesh away from his face. He bit down with all his might shattering it in his mouth. If he had not ducked at the last second she would have killed him. His swing didn’t even make it halfway before she appeared behind him. His blade broke into four pieces hovering near his neck and head. Despite this she found a hole stabbing him in the neck with overwhelming glee. ‘I’ve got him!’ She practically danced around him slicing off his right hand leading him to drop his sword. The three segments began to rapidly rotate whirring around his neck. Serena jumped attempting to stab him on top of his head only for her plunge into the rotating black plates charged with lightning. She was running out of time only 3 seconds remained. She dismembered him viciously slicing his feet and other hand off knocking him to the ground. She plunged the dagger toward his skull screaming furiously. ‘I’ve won!’ The last second ticked by as the dagger scrapped off the edge of his skull all momentum gone. Her heart sank. She couldn’t move for a brief instant before falling backward facing the sky. ”No…” Her eyes began to water. “I’d won…”
Zolvorn coughed up blood having grown his feet back already. His split tongue reformed. His mouth resealed. He traced the scars as his hands reformed. “Many fighters say that, however you were a lot closer than them.” He extended his reformed hand drawing the sword back to it and reuniting continuing to crackle with lightning. “That was an impressive and wise gamble.”
Serena couldn’t move a muscle as a tear ran down her cheek. “I lost because my equipment was worse than yours. Mine didn’t break immediately but the magical sword protected you even when you couldn’t move yourself. You really call that a Fair Fight ?”
“Unfortunately preparation is a critical part of any fight. Most fights are decided long before they begin. Without gear to match your level will not save you. It is a tragedy we could dance but once.” His sword rose high in the air. “I thank you for this unforgettable experience.”
“JOLT!” Victor had finally returned and shot his hands completely ineffective against him. Something did happen however, Serena instantly vomited passing out. “DON’T YOU DARE!”
“No… Gizixil you can’t possibly be so cruel.” Zolvorn turned to Victor as Fair Fight clearly ended. “You just desecrated the sacred duel I was having with this woman. I am going to slowly, painfully, and hatefully kill every single one of you save her.”
“She was already beaten. It wasn’t even a duel at that point. It was just an execution.” Victor disagreed with him.
Zolvorn closed the distance in an instant gripping his throat against a tree. “Duels have an ending. You RUINED IT! THE BEST DUEL I’VE HAD IN A LONG TIME AND YOU RUINED IT!” As he encroached Victor could finally see his slightly pointed ears.
“Then fight me.” Victor proposed breathing hard desperately trying to convince him. “I see you like fighting and I heard what you said. You’re right and if you fight me you’ll find I am better prepared than her for someone like you.”
“Prepared perhaps, but your skill is pathetic compared to her.” Zolvorn scoffed looking down at him.
Swordie spoke up. “I can assure the vile cultist that in a Fair Fight Victor Vogal over gears him despite his level. He cannot take this duel because of cowardice.”
“Did the book just call me a coward?” Zolvorn’s eyes nearly popped out of his head.
“He tends to be truthful. If you want to prove him wrong all you have to do is activate your skill and fight me after I move her away from the battlefield.” Victor insisted.
“Victor Vocal, I challenge you to a Fair Fight .” Zolvorn backed away enraged gripping his greatsword. “The duel will begin once she is a safe distance away.”
Victor carried her away at what seemed to be a snails pace compared to how fast she had just moved. Forala, Emilie, and Jenora took her. Forala pulled Serena under her wing as Emilie begin repeatedly casting regeneration.
Urgent Quest
Quest Giver: Luzuzal
No time limit: Honestly Victor you’ll die on this one, no pressure.
Defeat an Avatar: Defeat Gizixil’s follower.
Reward: You won’t succeed. If you win we can discuss it.
Accept[Not optional]
Victor returned to the battlefield littered in bandit bodies without his sword. ‘Accept.’ He smiled at the opportunity to actually do something heroic for once. “Let us begin. I accept your Fair Fight .”