Alistair struck swiftly, slicing Valthos's duplicate in half, its form shattering as the magic dispersed. At the same time, the original Valthos was caught by their Minotaur teammate—though, with the added force and mass Alistair had applied to his body, the impact sent both of them skidding across the stone-tiled ground. The rest of the team had to halt their charge as Zavari, the demoness who had set up the anti-flying and teleportation array, rushed over to heal them.
Alistair casually approached, satisfied to see that the team members who had previously tried to encircle him were now repositioning to protect their teammates.
"We got this! We can beat him!" Valthos shouted as he stood up, brushing himself off.
"Keep pressure on him! We can overwhelm him!" he commanded, his voice full of renewed determination.
Alistair shook his head in dissapointment, stopping a fair distance from the team. "I was hoping you'd have realized by now that I’m holding back—for your benefit," he said, his tone calm but firm. "Being determined and driven are great traits, but you need to properly analyze your opponents and recognize when you're outmatched. Out in the field, it won’t be an illusion."
"He’s bluffing! Stick to the plan," Valthos insisted, his voice laced with stubborn confidence.
Alistair frowned. He had hoped to teach them through a gradual process, offering glimpses of insight as they fought. But it seemed he would need to crush them utterly to drive the lesson home. Solivorus demons were known for their unshakable belief that they were the center of all reality, so perhaps giving Valthos a harsh wake-up call would be more beneficial in the long run. At least one of his teammates seemed to realize Alistair wasn’t bluffing. Zavari looked uneasy, glancing between him and Valthos with growing doubt.
Valthos dashed forward, a duplicate appearing at his side as the rest of the team charged close behind. Alistair activated his Bloodcurdling Presence, and those with lingering doubts hesitated, their mental defenses buckling under the pressure. He boosted himself, rapidly converting his Qi into kinetic energy and empowering his telekinesis, halting the entire team in their tracks. The strain of holding so many opponents—each technically in the same grade as him—was beginning to show. He’d need to act quickly. With a swift squeeze, he shattered the duplicate; instantly, shifting his focus, he quickly followed this by crushing the original, sending Valthos out of the arena.
With his focus and magic stretched thin, the Minotaur Oklios tore himself free through sheer force magic freeing himself. Oklios's effort gave Zavari enough time to free herself, and much to Alistair’s surprise, he felt some of his power fight him. That wasn’t an easy feat, and he briefly wondered what her core concept was. His focus had been too divided to analyze her actions.
Deciding to end his boosting skills, Alistair took a step back and inspected the pair before him: Zavari, a Bellavex sovereign—known for their fierce, warlike nature—and the resilient minotaur.
"That was impressive," Alistair said with a genuine smile, dropping his Bloodcurdling Presence skill while letting the music fade as he acknowledged their efforts.
"Now, with just the three of us, how about we use this as a learning experience? Come at me with everything you’ve got," he added, his tone both challenging and encouraging.
"Thank you for your guidance, Clan Patriarch," Zavari said, a grim but determined expression on her face as she executed a curious bow.
The minotaur punched his fists together in a display of recognition, his chain axes clinking against each other, letting out a grunt as many of the recently enlightened minotaurs struggled with speech, not having gained the Myriad Language Comprehension skill like those that had participated in the trials.
He wore one of the heavy power armor suits, while Zavari wore one of the lighter ones—the exact same one his brother was currently intent on replacing with a better version. She used a spear, though he had noted that she had often used it like a scepter to perform magic. Alistair suspected her affinity for magic and enchantments was quite high based on the lockdown on magic and teleportation she had placed down.
Alistair's musings were abruptly cut short as Oklios charged at him, swinging his chain axes wildly, their roar filling the air. Alistair could have easily dodged with a slight tilt of his body, but the Aegis Stride wasn’t about evasion. Instead, with a swift flick of his poleaxe, he batted the axe blades aside, stealing half their momentum and increasing their weight to pull the Minotaur off balance. Oklios’s muscles bulged as he strained to regain control.
Before the Minotaur could recover, Alistair struck with the hammer side of his weapon, infused with kinetic energy and enhanced with force and mass at the moment of impact. The blow landed hard against Oklios's chest, nearly breaking his ribs and sending him reeling backward.
Zavari wasted no time, slipping around the staggering Minotaur. Her spear thrust toward Alistair’s neck, vibrating at extreme speeds as it sliced through the air with deadly precision. Notably, she hadn’t made a sound during her approach. Suddenly, Alistair found himself surrounded by Arcane Missiles, and he quickly recognized the use of the concept of delay as his True Force Barriers effortlessly blocked the attacks.
In response, Alistair dashed forward, hooking her spear with his poleaxe. The vibrations coursing through her weapon became useless as he effortlessly stole its momentum, his Kinetic Storage steadily filling with the energy flowing from Zavari's enhancement. When she finally ceased the technique, Alistair stepped in close, his palm extended just inches from her face. Rather than blasting her head off, he lowered his hand slightly, then unleashed a wave of kinetic force, sending her flying, her neck snapping back painfully from the impact.
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Some of the force reflected back toward him, and Alistair clearly recognized the concept of reflection. However, it made little difference—he absorbed the reflected energy back into his body with ease.
Alistair watched as Zavari executed a graceful backflip, landing on her feet and sliding a few meters. His interest in the minotaur waned—while Oklios used magic to empower himself and some force magic, it wasn't enough to keep Alistair intrigued. Zavari, however, was different. Based on the concepts she had shown, Alistair could make an educated guess about her core concept.
Reaching out through the Akashic Link, he asked, "Could your core concept perhaps be 'Echo'?" Alistair's tone was filled with curiosity.
Zavari looked at him in surprise, chewing her lip as she weighed whether or not to answer. Meanwhile, the minotaur, using a rage skill, charged at Alistair again. With a quick burst of Telekinesis, Alistair effortlessly moved to the side, hooking Oklios's thick leg with his poleaxe. The leg was too wide for the gap in the weapon, but Alistair shifted the minotaur's mass again, sending him tumbling to the ground and leaving a deep gash in both the power armor and Oklios's leg.
"Yes, Echo is my core concept," came Zavari's reply through the Akashic Link.
Alistair scratched his chin, intrigued. Her talent and concept were well aligned. He had occasionally taken time to teach his former students alongside Riseth when their schedules permitted, and adding Zavari to those sessions could potentially cultivate another true elite within the clan, given enough time.
The minotaur, consumed by his rage skill, charged again, his mind lost to fury. Alistair swiftly turned, lashing out with his poleaxe. The strike cut through Oklios, and as the illusionary form of the minotaur shattered, he was teleported out of the arena.
Without missing a beat, Alistair pointed his poleaxe at Zavari.
"You’ve got potential," he told her through the Akashic Link. "I'll be in touch."
Before she could reply, a Kinetic Strike shot out from the point of his poleaxe, piercing her chest in an instant and shattering her illusionary body. Moments later, Alistair was dragged back into his booth beside Riseth, greeted by the thundering cheers and applause of a much larger audience than he had anticipated. Alistair waved, schooling his expression. Though the crowd was excited, he hadn’t truly enjoyed how the fight had played out. He would have preferred facing a stronger opponent or, better yet, taking the time to train them properly. But this battle had been about displaying power, and revealing too much—especially in public, even among his own clan wasn't a good idea.
They ended up staying longer than they’d planned, watching several matches and even participating in a few. It turned out to be more enjoyable than expected, as Alistair and Riseth took the opportunity to teach some of the fighters. They pointed out flaws, directed their growth, and, in some cases, offered advice on how to potentially advance their concepts. Along the way, they identified a few promising candidates for elite training, if they proved to have both the talent and mindset needed. Their original intent of meeting with Simon fell to the wayside, especially since he was nowhere to be found, and they didn’t feel like calling him if he was truly busy on Nautilus.
Sitting in one of the private booths encircling the Arena, Alistair watched the ongoing fights of the impromptu tournament, but his mind was elsewhere. It had been a little over a year since they colonized Lacustrine, and the bridges were set to open soon. A celebration was already in the works, largely due to Nessyra’s insistence and the Neshan population's refusal to let the occasion pass with a somber mood.
What troubled Alistair most was how much their speed of progression had slowed since leaving the trial, and it wasn’t just them—everyone’s growth had ground to a near halt. On top of that, both he and Riseth had hit the skill ceiling for many of their key abilities, their current grade holding them back. The limited access to quality hunting grounds and dungeons only made things worse. While they could grind out a few more levels in the Everbright Dungeon or on Lacustrine and the surrounding planets, the pace was far too slow for Alistair’s liking.
The best solution to their problem wasn’t simply to seek better hunting grounds—it was to hunt people. Fortunately, Alistair had few qualms about targeting members of the Blackmarket Syndicates and their allies. However, the associated risks were no small matter, and they would need to form strong alliances to shield themselves from inevitable retaliation.
What made this all the more troubling was the knowledge that the Bridges connecting to the older universes could open any day now, bringing with them the first waves of invaders. While Alistair knew the Aegis Coalition had placed strong defenses and fleets in position, guarding the Bridges vigilantly for any sign of change, he worried that the sheer number of invaders could overwhelm them. Some might break through the blockade, slipping into the wider universe to hide and grow just like they were doing right now.
Nessyra had informed them that she had already called a few of the potential allies, and Alistair knew he and Riseth would inevitably be dragged into the discussions soon enough. Their fight and triumph over Eberus was spreading fast, strengthening their reputation and proving their viability as allies. This helped offset some of the prejudice many of the factions and races had against demons and humans in particular. Humans were generally known to be untrustworthy allies, prone to backstabbing even their own kin, and frequently responsible for great acts of cruelty. Alistair was relieved they had Nessyra managing the negotiations. Having a demon who specialized in contracts as the face of the discussions helped immensely in countering that reputation.
Though Alistair knew that wasn’t the only thing humans and demons were known for, he already dreaded the inevitable questions some of their potential allies might ask. He was reminded of a time during the trial when Simon had managed to pull him and the half-troll Zathron away for a short drinking binge. Once they’d had a few too many, they started asking about Zathron’s parentage, which unleashed a tirade about humans and demons. Zathron’s planet had countless different races, and he lambasted them with stories about how notoriously horny humans were. It was hard to argue, especially since Zathron claimed his own father was human.
According to Zathron, humans and demons had earned a reputation for crossbreeding with just about any species. He even told them about a conjurer named Frank he’d met during the trial, who had summoned a fire elemental and became so captivated by her curves that he was currently going to great lengths to obtain a potion for temporary fire immunity. Zathron added, with a snicker, that elementals typically didn’t even have genders, yet with the introduction of magic, he had no doubt that humans with elemental bloodlines would soon emerge. He insisted that humans and demons didn’t care about the size or shape of genitals—or how many teeth an orifice had—they’d still, for some reason, try to mount it.
Alistair chuckled at the memory, he wondered how Zathron was doing; they technically had given him a beacon, but he had yet to activate it, and he knew at the very least Desily would be happy to see him again.