Pounder looks like a piece of mountain, and it glares at William like a fool, who handled the fight against those 3 Jawjumpers as a mild distraction. Of course, it almost ended up hurting him in that process, but now, he is fine and ready to take care of the rest of his problems.
The problem is of questionable style, since he wants to fight, but doesn't like the context of how he even ended up here. And when he glances at Rozzante not so far away, he can see there are those who are not prone to any problems and are flexible enough to truly do what they should.
Walkers should be fighters, and William knows it but isn't ready to fully acknowledge it within himself. He needs to grow and stabilize. A sense of reason is somewhat growing in his head at this moment, contrary to before.
Rozzante stands his ground, glaring at Hellfire and the remaining Hellgars without a speck of fear. His Emblem shines in his mix of crystal and stone-like armor. In his hands, he wields power to shatter them, while the darkness isn't a problem to him. Enough light goes out of the Hellfire, allowing him to see just fine. And a distance away from William ensures he won't trouble him, even though his illuminating arm is far away.
As Rank 1 Walkers, their area of effect is kind of slim and even weak. Their Emblems don't have dozens of Skills to maintain, so it makes sense. Calling them even weak in perspective to the overreaching powers most middle to high Rank Walkers have, is almost laughable. But Rozzante knows better than that. His unconventional Mutant type is strong for his Rank, and it could be potentially harmful to anything near him.
A joke is what most Walkers would think without further context, considering he is still a Rank 1 Walker through and through, and they have limitations on what they can do, wield in their bodies, and what their Emblem endures. Especially those that aren't even a month old, are considered complete beginners.
Rozzante acknowledges that fear and harm correspond with opportunities and growth. He learned it the hard way, long before he was close to the Awakening. William is, in fact, much more harmful and dangerous than him, and not by a little bit. He is getting to know his little Annihilation bit by bit, and he is frankly as surprised as one would get—silently, and taken aback.
Annihilation is a nasty element capable of harming more than the surroundings, or the user. It is originating from the first recorded Annihilation element, named Devourer. Anything that it touched, it ate. That is the knowledge that went on for many decades and shrouds the current Annihilation element as something extremely dangerous on all fronts. That was what the first Annihilation went as, and its end was no different.
That is in the past, however. The current reality is prone to changes, similar to how the first decades of Walkers, reshaped resistance and the future.
Living beings are particularly prone to Annihilation since flesh and blood are a favorite and rather important part of all beings. Be it Walkers or Darks, they care about their bodies one way or another, albeit some to a lesser degree. Opportunities, efficiency, and progression move along with dangers, so growth and some problems are necessities to overcome certain limits. Power requires it, and Walkers have to steer through this idea ever since their status became an instrument to end many decades of suffering.
That is why keeping a distance is a good idea because safe Walker will always strike back again. It is important to live, unsurprisingly. Nobody wants to end up dead, or harm others. Well, apart from Darks.
As far as Rozzante understands, they can all starve and perish.
Unfortunately, he can't hold back what lays dormant in him, but it is important to at least stop his Emblem from fighting way over the line. It is a harsh reality that is inevitable with his kind of Emblem, and he hasn't gotten William's treatment.
Roman explained to him clear concepts over the Annihilation, which he would then learn and figure out on his own since his Emblem is not William's. That means various topics, and quotes or hints. One of them is clear in his head: Passable power to kill a foe is better than obliterating them alongside the surroundings. And harming allies or one's body isn't fine either.
He also added an interesting quote: Without one's body under control, Walker has nothing. That one is weird, considering Walkers aren't handling their bodies alone. They have Emblems! Those aren't considered as part of the body, but a tool or so William always thought. Maybe he is wrong, and he should rethink it, but since Roman couldn't care less about being exact, and clear in his brief topics, he has to take his guesses to someone else.
He doubts Roman is somewhere... He couldn't find him anywhere yesterday, which ended in disappointment. He wants to know what he thought of his first two trials. Has he done well, enough, or bad? Did he even watch him?
Well, he can't search for answers, and handling the control has been one of the lessons regarding all styles of Annihilation. That also explained missions that Walkers can endure, since hardly ever they are done by a single individual. There are teams, and where they are there, no one wants a Walker with instabilities. Roman talked about it briefly, however, mentioning what he considered enough, and leaving less than good context behind.
So William has only little out of it taken to his heart. He gets it more and more, now, as he endures his Walker's life, but most of it is about the System and Emblem that he lacks. He knows what Walkers are like by now, and he has seen a lot of the Outside. The reality of this world will never get worse for him, he feels. No... He hopes it won't get worse. That wouldn't be a pretty world otherwise.
He hasn't expected to get this sort of progress and feelings about his Walker status in this manner. In fact, he has no clue what he expected when he met Luke for the first time. Certainly not what he's gotten...
Roman countless times argued that he should take care of everything the same. Be it his body, Emblem, or the System, everything matters. He has no idea how much of a good advice that is since he also mentioned how many Walkers are unique and different from one another. So what to trust if there are contradictions? Roman for sure seemed to talk too much and cared more about Annihilation than anything else.
That, William appreciates, since his Emblem is getting more and more stable in his hand, but he lacks knowledge in many other departments.
Well, he can trust his fist to speak and future the rest. It won't disappoint him, so he points it at the Pounder. And the Pounder wants his head, walking ahead in steady steps like a hill on legs. Hellfire has no intentions to go at him, so that leaves this duel to be quite clear and nice.
These Trials have been going on for less than 30 hours, and he feels as if days passed. Not that it is that bad. He spent more time being clueless Outside— being watched by countless Darks and even hunted—then became worried over nothing.
This is nothing... Nothing compared to his hellish youth.
He can fight back. That is the major difference between the past and the reality. And his tight-fitted, and dense Annihilation Claw is what he holds as one of the keys to smack this Pounder. Inner Enchantment shines in pristine transparency, but he doesn't take it for something robust and intense. He has yet to test its Rank 1 to the limit, and it sure adds protection, more than the speed. He already tested it from those Jawjumpers, whose attacks went against it rather well.
Velvet Eyes helps more in this regard since it enchants his vision and reflexes. Why take the damage when he can dodge, right? That basically counters the most lacking part of the Rank 1 Inner Enchantment, and most of his major Skills are at Rank 1. Almost nothing is at 0, which is an excellent interpretation of his talent, or the growth of his Emblem. Well, to get to Rank 2, he has to get some of them to Rank 2. That is the start of the journey, and Rank 1 is that.
Considering his lack of bloodshed, he shouldn't complain about his defense since he hasn't gotten hurt all that much. The strain on Walker's psyche and body is considered normal, something that every one of them must consider. Where to stop, however, is a tough part. William doesn't know where to stop...
With Inner Enchantment ready, he can hardly stop himself from testing moves he feared before. It is no wonder... Inner Enchantment is a Skill that many Walkers beg for, but they won't get it just because they want it. They should have flexibility, and a body corresponding with the Emblem's possibilities.
The last and most crucial factor is the System itself, which grants those Skills under the pretext of the System, and Walker's qualifications. It is a rather self-contained, self-sufficient, and unique way to grant authority, and the System decides it all.
Growth corresponds to the most rudimentary form of what Walker can achieve, and that is basically time. Getting to the next Rank requires months of progression from Rank 1 and even more work. Bottlenecks vary, and generally, before Awekened Walker is 18 years old, having a Rank of 4 or 5 is considered significant to surprise even Emblem Academy. But too quick of a rise isn't known to be the most stable. Taking time isn't worse. It is all about proper growth. Not everyone and everything is equal.
Of course, what is great and not isn't all about numbers. Skills have to be great but to get from Rank 4 to 5, it doesn't mean something easy. There is no perfect path for quite a few Walkers, and more often than not, teachers and older—already-established Walkers—help more than anything else. The older generation is important, and each new generation of Walkers is even more.
William holds no qualms about his near future for the time being. He has no idea what the Academy is truly like below the surface of what he has seen. This amounts to almost nothing since the official Academy is nothing he can see from walking around these islands. Only Walkers of the Academy or those officially competent can get in.
For now, the only thing that is on his mind is that damned Pounder, which is a Dark he hasn't seen very often. He has about... few dozen recollections of seeing them Outside, and they are heavy brawlers with the ability to shatter homes as if they are from paper. It walks to him slowly, dragging its heavy arms on the floor, its eyes glowing in slight crimson, which is the reflection of his Annihilation. Its eyes are small dots of black. No glint or glow is in them in normal darkness.
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He sees its slow steps, and with further ado, glances at Rozzante who starts his fight, he goes all in.
Inner Enchantment supports his weight and redistributes all damage caused by external effects. Those could be environmental, or Dark's influences. The degree of how well he can take a hit is exponential to the Rank of the enemy, but some Darks hit harder, regardless of Rank. William at least shouldn't have a problem when attacked by a couple of Rank 1s, but a swarm of them would swallow him whole. In that case, he wouldn't last for long, unless he kills them all first.
And that is entirely possible because of his Annihilation, and Velvet Eyes, while Inner Enchantment is a means to swallow his mistakes. That is a combo of 3 powers of quite some style, which adds up to a significant power-up.
There is one piece of information that Roman hasn't mentioned, but not as if it is the only one. He talked less about the good and more about potential problems. That is how proper teachers do their job, or so he always thought. After all, what's the point in praising William's capabilities when he has a triple top-tier combo right from the Rank 1? Not like he can be jealous... Perhaps a little bit. A tiny little bit.
William slams his clutched Claw against the rough and large legs, hoping to see how much damage he could do against one of the most sturdy Rank 2 Darks. As he expects, not much. He feels reverberation among his Vectors and slight backlash after hitting way too tough substance.
A fist won't do. William deducts.
Considering the flatness it has, it is no surprise. Gear 1 has also much smaller spikes, and their density doesn't help it much against this sort of foe. Pounder's skin and mass are way too thick, and he couldn't crack it even a tiny bit.
This isn't a way to teach it a lesson.
It is a lesson for him, and where else he would find such a nice practice target than this pile of flesh? Well, he isn't the literal wall of flesh that Rozzante fought, but this will have to do. Pounder wouldn't disagree. It can fight in a steady and straightforward manner since that's what those dumb Darks always do. They act in instincts. Its back bends, and fog spreads from its shoulders. Tendrils swirl in a storm, digging deep into its flesh, swirling and empowering it from inside, rather than outside.
Its large hands shudder in shock, and under its skin, shaky tendrils are visibly clothing its bones and muscles, concentrating on the arms alone. With unlike speed and momentum, Pounder slaps at his side as if he is a mosquito. William ducks down, dodging the attack more than well, since it is sluggish under his Velvet Eyes. He sidesteps and kicks the side of the leg under its exposed arm. It connects well, but Pounder doesn't even shake.
A kick won't do well either. As expected. Only a Physical kind of Emblem would've done something... Well, my Emblem isn't that. Obviously. It has different kinds of uses.
William doesn't give up on a few failures, which aren't even failures. He is learning and doesn't lose anything if he learns from his mistakes. His Gear 1 hasn't got that many chances to shine, so he focuses on what he can do: pinching his clawed fingers to make a point, he attacks after ducking the other slap. This time, he hits the side of the hand, right at the edge of the wrist, penetrating a few inches into it, and cracking its hide-like scales. He misses the swirling tendrils, but not a drop of blood appears.
He smiles in satisfaction, but it ends up being way too brief, since unlike him, Pounder has two damned hands...
Metalic sounds echo, and William flies a dozen feet away. He endures a rather light slap to his chest, but thankfully, his Inner Enchantment takes it well. He doesn't even bleed, yet something deep bothers him... Another backlash, akin to pained clusters of Vectors that go around his body, and clutches together to form the Inner Enchantment.
Everything outside of his body is connected to his body, making one entity. That is a rule that Roman made him remember. Of course, the Vectors don't share senses like pain with the user. It wouldn't be nice or make sense. It is well outside of the body, but the forces that come at him, still travel through them, affecting the body that holds the cycling Vectors, and Arcanite in general. It is all revolving around the Emblem.
Not a cheap shot, but not all out attack either. William feels the damage and thinks he can take dozens of those strikes without significant damage. Of course, that doesn't take into account his cycles, and how long he can keep fighting. Those 3 Jawjumpers took some breath out of him for sure, but his mind is clear. He can think, work, and fight like before. At least for now.
Let's be clever about it. William takes a deep breath and watches the Pounder. His stance, fingers, head, movement of feet, and so on. It makes a good image in his head, and he looks for exploitable weaknesses. He does know a way to victory, which is as simple as it could get: shattering its less powerful legs.
Weaknesses of Darks are generally well obvious up to Rank 4 and Pounder has clear problems. Its size has both advantages and disadvantages. Its movements can be very clunky, but those tendril-empowered hands aren't. These are Pounders's main weapons, and those long fingers are like metallic bars, capable of shattering a lot of things—bodies included. William felt just a poke of them, and he should be glad he hadn't gotten hit with a full-blown hammer-like fist or one covered by the Alpha.
Wiliam will figure this clear weakness first, and regrets can get out of the picture. He runs forth, his head tucks behind the Claw, and Velvet Eyes watches. Pounder puts its arms ahead, and both of them have those swirling tendrils under their skin, making it look veiny and burly.
William decides to go straight in, and Pounder takes this bait. At the last second before a fist hits him, William changes the direction, and turns left, dodging a grab instead. That is a clear death, from what he fortunately doesn't know personally. Ponder's grip is another power of their massive hands.
He continues forward afterward, and in a flash, uses his Pincher to the back of its legs, causing Pounder to fall to one knee, but its arms have a long reach. And its hips are surprisingly flexible. It turns on the spot with its upper body, swiping its arm at William and against the floor. It's a whole arm, and William sees it as a literal wall coming to smack him whole.
So he jumps as he runs, leaping over it with surprising agility when he jumps more than 13 feet up. It isn't even what he wants, and as he expects, the second hands come at him afterward. It is better than being smacked senseless, or so he thinks in a brief second in his flight.
Why does everyone have the damned two workable hands!? He complains and puts his Claw forward. Frustration and anger run through his head, going to his arm as something strange happens and snaps. The flow of his Vectors loosens, and cycles explode from the Emblem. A powerful flow of Annihilation spreads from his palm, extending the fingers, and thickening them as well.
He yelps, and without his ability to do anything, his Gear 1 becomes a large Gear 3. It clutches the incoming swipe before it even hits him. Like glue, it sticks, and sizzles, cracking the hide-like scales and twisting some of those tendrils. William doesn't clutch his hands whatsoever. It happens on its own, behind his back.
Pounder shudders for the first time and growls like a wounded animal. Its mouth finally appears, and pain lingers in its humanoid, deep voice. It is a small mouth, and not for attacking. Just eating in small bites is enough for it, since its head isn't even that large. Considering its mass, its head isn't even as big as Hellgar's, and those are like enlarged wolves.
What is happening!? William thinks, stuck in the mid-air while his Gear 3 solves it all on its own. Somewhat...
But he also panics, since Roman warned him of instabilities. One of the clearest ones under his explanation is exactly this, but it isn't about words alone. He endured nightmares under Roman and lost his touch with his Emblem many times. Considering his experience with lack of control isn't farfetched. It is a first step to get those limitations away, after all. Annihilation Vectors that attack on their own are the first note for the start of true problems, yet those don't come at all next. No pain enters his arm as many times before, and no pain or storms goes into his head.
He is fine, albeit panicking midair, so he tries to hold his shit together and clutches his hand. It works again, albeit the previous explosion of this Annihilation Element isn't under Gear 3 at all. It came from the palm, and Gear 1 became Gear 3 in a blink, and without his touch or care.
When he changes the gears, the whole Claw explodes or condenses as a whole, but this went from the palm first and remained around it too. It doesn't enlarge his forearm all that much, making his palm way out of the line.
Oh well, no time to panic like a clueless kid. Well, I am still a kid, or am I not? William sights, and doesn't like the lack of ground under his feet. He smears his palm and bends it down, powering through the downward motion and going against Pounder's countering power. It is like pulling down a ship, and the anchor is deep.
He reaches the ground after some struggle, but it is more because of Vectors that stretch, allowing him to reach the ground first. He releases the claw. Then, Pounder howls as if enraged, and its arms swell, and its arms crack in a few parts. Its fist goes right at William and his weirder-looking Gear 3 than usual.
As William lands, and gets a proper look at him, the Gear 3 looks much sturdier at the palm.
Emotions run deep, or so Roman said once. He changed the topic immediately, so he must hide some secrets that he didn't want to tell me. Oh well, don't look... Don't look.
William doesn't regret anything, and whether it is a bad thing or a disaster, he has to take those hits and kill this Ponder. Afterward, he will gladly go over whatever problems his damned Emblem has.
The Pounder is like a savage beast and pounds his fist at William as if he is a predator instead. Many fists land, smacking at his enlarged palm, which shakes in Vectors but acts like a wall.
William watches it, hiding behind his wide palm, which protects his whole body more than enough. Perhaps even if there are 3 more people, they would fit. He feels no power rush over him, making each fist unable to reach him in any capacity. This is the power of his Annihilation element, and each swing of a fist lands into the Annihilation, damaging more scales, and causing some exposed tendrils to vaporize. Blood starts to pour from Pounder's arms, and William watches it in silence.
How long can I hold this? He wonders but has no idea how his cycles are doing at the moment. His mind has no clarity whatsoever after this sudden outburst, and his Gear 3's palm looks like a spider. Its fingers are wide and long, and the palm itself is a body. So he tries to hold one of the fists like a ball, and he succeeds. Pounder howls, and chops at his wrist to cease the Annihilation away. It works this time around, and William feels the backlash immediately. He grunts and feels as if his arms vanish from his sight.
Vectors swirl and release the much-damaged fist. Pounder continues fisting his way forward, uncaring about the consequences. It goes bestial, showing its fangs in its tiny mouth, and fisting to not end. Willaim backs away, jumping as far as he can while his Gear 3 follows. More chunks of it defend against those first, but William is too preoccupied with caring for his pain. It should vanish... And when it does...
Hell breaks loose.
William's fingers clutch the air itself, stopping him from fleeting, and causing him to take two fists to his torso. He cries in unwillingness and pain, cursing his damned Emblem. While exposed, the fingers form a long Pincher, and under no momentum whatsoever, the tip pierces forward, spearing its way into Pounder's exposed and free chest. It goes straight through like a screw through paper. Blood smears the ground, leaving a hole in the chest, and fingers dig deep and even swirl on their own, leaving more damage, and blood loss.
Well, the blood loss isn't as apparent. Some of it evaporates into mist, which then goes to the fingers. William feels the performance going through his Vectors, but he can't see it, since he has two fists on his body, pressing their weight onto him. He feels some tremors. And fear, but he isn't sure if it is his. He will lose his mind if this continues, so Inner Enchantment comes in clutch. He heaves a deep breath and smacks the fists aside with his left arm. It causes enough leverage for him to roll aside, and see what goes behind those fists.
There is nothing much behind them. They fall aside on their own, revealing the fact that Pounder's arms are completely detached from the body, and his fingers have a feast.
“Well, fuck me backward, and bleed me dry!” He cries out loud and slaps his forehead.