Edgar raised his hands to the sky, and called down a tempest. Swirling blades of wind formed into tornadoes of natural fury, all of which raced towards Theodore. The man laughed, and slashed his rapier through the air so quickly that it appeared like a blur even to Jonathan. Blades of force met the blades of wind, slicing through them with ease.

The tornados were ripped apart, and Theodore was revealed, smiling. Not a single scratch was on his body. Then a thirty foot long blade of dark rock fell from the sky above him, where Hushar had leaped, occluded by the tornados. Branth raced across the ground below, crackling energy coating his claws.

Jonathan raced forwards and seized Theodore in a moment of distraction, leveraging every last bit of his Divinity enhanced strength. Cuts began to form across his body as the swordsman unleashed his weapon domain once more, but Jonathan held firm. Then Hushar’s blade descended, and pummeled them both into the ground.

Jonathan relied on his armor to keep him safe, but the other man had no such protection, or so it seemed. Instead of bisecting him, the obsidian blade was itself bisected, cut into a series of ever smaller pieces by the weapon domain. However, the sudden lack of pressure on Jonathan allowed him to strike. A nova of colorless power erupted from every part of his body, slamming into Theodore. The untrammeled power of the Void ripped through his body, flaying skin from bone.

Then Jonathan was sent tumbling backwards, another blast of force impacting him in the sternum. Theodore was revealed a moment later, his flayed face twisted in rage. Where his bones showed, they were a silvery color, as if he had replaced his body with the metal that made up his weapon. His muscles gleamed with the same color, and they combined to create the image of a cold and uncaring automaton, straight from the movies of Jonathan’s homeworld.

Jonathan rolled to his feet, and gritted his teeth against the pain that ripped through his body. He felt like his ribs had all broken at once, as the power coursing through Theodore’s weapon rushed through him. It was a strange result from a rapier, but he knew that it was because his natural durability was high enough to offset the true effects of Theodore’s domain. Namely, that he would have been carved into little pieces.

Jonathan had a slight crisis of faith in his skills as he watched the man recover. He was used to seeing everyone destroyed utterly by Maw of the Void, but for once, he had found someone who could resist it.

“You are nothing before my body tempering,” Theodore hissed, his voice raspy. “I do not just wield the sword, I am part of it.”

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Yet another path to power was revealed to Jonathan. He was starting to wonder just how many there were in this world. Had he been missing out on something important all along?

However, as it stood, he was less injured than his opponent, showing just who had the more effective path to power. Although his bones were broken, that was of little consequence for someone of his level.

Edgar sent a spear of wind towards Theodore, but the man deflected it with his rapier, the comparatively tiny weapon somehow standing up to the thirty foot long aggregation of compressed air. Already his flesh was beginning to heal over. The fighter let out a roar of rage, fitting his far more bestial appearance now that his dapper outfit had gone. His body was now a mess of scar tissue and blood, with the lingering power of the Void preventing the wounds from healing properly.

Rather than speak, the man rushed forwards, his body shedding blood and flesh as it went. If nothing else, he was certainly determined. Now that Jonathan had exposed his most powerful skill, the rest of the battle would be harder, given that it had been found wanting.

The rapier came flashing in like a piece of light itself, and Jonathan found himself unable to dodge. Instead, he was forced to blast the attack to the side with the side of his fist, using his stamina to empower his speed. His hand was almost cut apart to the bone as it touched the rapier, his armor useless before it.

Regardless, there was now an opening, and Jonathan took full advantage of it. His left fist pistoned forwards, and into Theodore’s face. The swordsman folded around the fist and went flying backwards,but at the cost of his rapier slicing yet more wounds across Jonathan’s chest. His entire body was covered in blood now, despite his relatively quick healing rate. Just like the Void hindered regeneration, whatever elemental energy Theodore was using did the same thing.

As he flew backwards, Hushar stepped forwards and swung for the fences, his sword swelling to untold proportions as it went. The attack crushed through Theodore’s faltering guard, and into his flesh. There was a sonic boom as the man was propelled backwards, digging a furrow into the ground. He rose undaunted, and pointed his rapier at Jonathan.

“You keep interesting company. However, this battle is between you and me.” The sword flashed with light, and suddenly, Jonathan found himself standing on a massive plane of whiteness, facing off against Theodore. “This is my Plane of Challenge. It was the reward for reaching Expert Rank with my weapon. When it comes to cowards like you who rely on the help of their allies, this helps.”

“All this shows is that you yourself are a coward. If you were truly superior, then you should easily have been able to defeat me and my fellows, especially with your higher level.”

Jonathan sighed, and raised his fists, preparing himself for battle. This would undoubtedly be the hardest fight yet in Mire.