The declaration from Eusebios fueled the anger in Yuki. While the emotions from his battle with Demosthenes subsided with time they remained just below the surface for him. He could never allow himself to forget, at least until he repaid the debt. “I’ll be the judge of what is noble!” Yuki charged forward at Eusebios not planning on giving him any chance to drag out the fight with words.

His spear lowered to receive Yuki waiting for him at a thrusting distance. The venomous eyes painted deep voids of hue within Yuki’s face made Eusebios a little uneasy in confusion. He saw how deeply Yuki felt about his strike. Hesitation and fear lacked any presence. All he saw within his fist was self-assured in bold lines of confidence and righteousness. He wondered if he could match such passion.

The fighters closed distance with the spear thrusting out for Yuki’s shoulder. A small blast from Yuki’s foot pounded into the ground as he raised his open right hand against the spear. His palm slammed into the spear tip warping from his hand forcing it back into the wood of the spear’s shaft. Half of the shaft splintered and exploded as Yuki rammed his hand through before finally gripping the spear’s head. As a last accented moment of strength, he effortlessly crushed the metal head with his bare hand. A percussive blast from his hand knocked Eusebios back sending him to the ground.

Chapter 107 – Righteous Flames

“The weakness of people like you is that without your powers you’re just a normal human,” commented Kalliope from the doorway. Her figure took on a more sinister appearance with the glow of the awakened village behind her. She had Fumiko trapped.

Fumiko gritted her teeth, cornered so quickly. She had hoped that her magic gave her an advantage against a normal human, even a soldier. Staring down the point of a sword made her understand how much of a difference her lack of fighting experience meant. ‘I can’t let it end here…if only my magic worked…’

“I don’t know what your reasons are for helping outsiders into the homeland, but you know you only have two choices. You face your crimes before the Ministry of Military Crimes or I kill you right here as a traitor to Atlantis.” The villainous Kalliope moved a step closer to put her sword blade only a hair’s width away from Fumiko’s neck. Her words rang deadly serious. “As an Atlantean I know you understand me. Disguises won’t get you out of this.”

The threat of death hanging before her like a sword wreathed in black barbs and veils. She started to sweat profusely. She saw no doubt or hesitation in the woman’s eyes. Fumiko wished that she had more than just a translator to explain how wrong the woman was about her. However, explaining how she had magic seemed equally difficult considering the possibility normally was impossible. ‘If only I had a staff or something to defend myself.’ Her eyes darted around the small room wanting anything that she could defend herself.

Kalliope gave Fumiko the time to decide, but didn’t keep her eyes off of her for any moment. She almost seemed to taunt Fumiko’s heroics with the stained blade threatening life. ‘Let’s see how much resolve you have for your cause…’ Delaying her further brought Kalliope’s sword closer, poking Fumiko’s skin on her neck. She demanded a response.

Her options ran out. Yet Fumiko bravely held on to not giving up. She had to fight. The people might have been afraid of her, but they needed help. Fumiko gave her answer to the woman with a resolute stare of determination.

“I see. Then you shall die here!” The obsidian tainted blade pulled away from Fumiko’s neck. No relief came from its retraction. Raised above Kalliope’s head the sword clicked in her hand with the metal singing an ominous requiem.

Fumiko narrowed her brow in defiance against the unjust evil. ‘I need something…anything! With my magic…’ Her right hand knocked against a wooden pole. A broom cast aside during the search laid out of place on the floor. ‘Wooden…I need something more, but if I can survive the first swing…’ Fumiko left questions behind in her doubt, taking up desperation with the broom quickly trying to get in the way of the sword slashing down at her. Fear for what happened next made her eyes close.

A loud clash vibrated through Fumiko’s arm accompanied by a familiar divine warmth in her arm. Even through her closed eyes the bright light from in front of her shone through. Curiosity and her still beating heart made her peel back her eyelids to know the outcome. She missed the start, but at the end threads of her magic trailed from her hand penetrating the broom she held.

Calling it a broom anymore failed to describe it properly. Silver cast around sections of the wooden pole providing elegance and holy grace that it lacked. The bottom wrapped completely in silver balling up before finishing off in a sharp pyramid shape added at the end with the point out to contact the ground when vertical. At the opposite end of the broom the head no longer existed. In place of the broom head, a silver circular headpiece formed. Ornate leafing and stems twisted out from the bottom of the circle building into a complex woven sphere hollowed inside.

Even while admiring the craftsmanship of the ex-broom, the threat of the dark sword rattled against the wood. The common household item stubbornly refused to give ground to the sharp blade, not so much as chipping. Struggling, the tools came down to strength, something that Fumiko lacked both in position and natural physical attributes. She saw only one option tilting her hold to angle the sword down to the head of the pole. Kalliope staggered forward, losing balance breaking the clash.

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Fumiko threw herself back to get some distance between them. The corner of an end table stabbed her back. It jerked her over to the entrance of the door she fell through minutes before. Slammed against the wall Fumiko coughed to herself groaning at the stress. She caught a quick glance of Kalliope recovering and then the street outside. Her hands tightened up against the pole and rolled around the doorframe escaping into the street.

The night air gave her a welcomed cool breeze bleeding off some of the tension in her body. Narrowly escaping death left sweat covering her body sticking to her clothes. Discomfort from it pushed aside hearing the woman from the house knocking things out of her way to get out of the hovel. Fumiko tightened her grip on the pole that she held. A few seconds passed before she took in what she held. ‘A staff…did I make this? Is that even possible?’ Much of her powers remained unknown and unexplored to her as she realized more of what seemed possible with the magic she possessed. The possibilities had her pondering, but shook it off remembering her dilemma.

A flash of moonlight from the sword crept through the open doorway of the home announcing itself. Kalliope strode down ignoring the screaming and panicked villagers behind her. Her face wore a stern look almost as though disappointed in her failure. “You didn’t run. So you still plan to fight me.” She raised her sword hand up, hefting the Xiphos horizontally at Fumiko, the blade flat. “Let’s learn which will is stronger!”

Fumiko clinched her staff between both of her hands, finding her quest. ‘I can defend myself at least…’ Once an attempt for a defensive position by Fumiko began the demon charged forward as though signaled. The wait seemed difficult to read into if it was because of some warrior’s honor or hesitation in fear of the unknown. The destined heroine didn’t have the time to consider either option with Kalliope closing on her. The woman’s speed felt inhuman compared to Fumiko’s sluggish actions.

All Fumiko managed before their weapons clashed was to raise the staff away from her. The sword felt heavy from the weight of the dark lord’s foot soldier rammed through it into her staff’s pole. Sparks chipped away where metal scrapped and collided. The blade dug in against the metal grip of the staff trying to bite through it.

Hero Fumiko bravely held her arms against the overwhelming pressure. Dark miasma soaked through the skin of her foe. Each vibration built into a larger wave of pressure slamming into her hands. Her body began to feel unbalanced making her remember to slide a foot back for bracing restoring her balance. The exchange that went through Fumiko broke a tiny window of opportunity for Kalliope to finish the arc of her weapon.

Enough of the ending force jerked back Fumiko crumbling her blessed defenses. The sword swung in again quickly. Sparks flew up barely blocked. A weak parry from Fumiko stopped the third. She stepped back from the flurry of attacks coming at her. Her eyes darted down at her feet trying to watch what she did distracting her.

The evil foot soldier capitalized on the heroine's mistake and spun around with her feet planting it deep inside her stomach. Fumiko slid back coughing using the pointed edge of her staff’s bottom to dig into the ground for support. ‘All I can do is block…’ She stared up panting from the exertions. Her body felt weak and shaken from just only a few moments of the fight. ‘Can I really do this? I’m not built for this… If only my magic worked…’

Her reprieve lasted barely longer than the attack before the demon’s assault resumed in fierce strikes. Fumiko didn’t even make it to her feet. Each dark aspected strike sent her recoiling backwards struggling to keep any ground she might have had left. While the attacks came her mind fell blank with no thoughts. She forgot everything from the moment before. Single-mindedness claimed her. An offensive strategy or even a defensive one failed to develop even a thought.

The next break for Fumiko left her body racked with aches in her muscles. She never felt such pain even from her PE class. ‘I can’t…’ Fumiko panted heavily, gasping for a breath. Her mind’s focus crumbled away. ‘…magic…’ Pieces of words or thoughts ran through her. Fragments failed to piece together. ‘…Kimiko…’ Her sister flashed suddenly in her eyes. A thread of light appeared in her mind taking over her actions.

Kalliope saw her last charge bring the fight to a close. She had only needed to finish the traitor off with a final blow. ‘I would have thought she’d put up more of a fight for being an MP user. How did someone as weak as her survive?’ Questions had to end. Only one course remained. Kalliope closed, bringing her sword back to thrust.

Brilliant light suddenly broke from Fumiko’s arm as violent threads and ribbons of energy. Kalliope had only seen the girl’s powers briefly, but she saw it was nothing like the power she displayed before. Any control seemed to have been forfeit. The light appeared to be ripping at her own skin as it jumped along funneling into the staff still held in her hands. When the energy touched the wood it exploded in flames racing up the staff into the globe at the head. Kalliope stood meters away from the scene, but the heat that burned off of the display made her skin sweat and blister. She pulled away a little, no longer certain what to do. ‘I can’t get close! Is this a defensive act?’

Seconds passed quickly as the flame grew inside the sphere until consuming the entire form. The metal work seemed unable to restrain the power that expanded out. Breaking free from the cage, tendrils of flame whipped out from the gaps of the bars. Despite the fire appearing to be completed, energy continued to drag out of Fumiko’s shoulder tearing at her clothes and skin. If she felt any pain from the torture she caused none of it reflected in her soulless eyes.

Watching longer, Kalliope began to develop a sick feeling in her stomach. The sight gave her an empty desperation. “She’s building up power to kill us both! Is she mad?!” Kalliope felt her determination crack. ‘I should run…’ Her head turned back down at the village seeing everyone around. ‘How many would die? She could wipe out the entire village!’ Kalliope looked over at the inferno blazing out of control.

Where the flame whips lashed out at the street char marks remained scorched by the intense heat. Nearby straw looked ready to ignite from the sheer heat. The thatched roofs smoked closer to the flames. Anyone witnessing the ball of fury renewed their screams fleeing in opposite directions knocking over anyone in their way to escape. Mass panic spread quickly as the light from the flames lit up half of the village.

Kalliope gripped her sword tightly and charged forward into the field of heat that surrounded the spell. She thought she ran to the surface of the sun, the burning heat sucked out every last drop of water from her body. Blisters and burns appeared on her hands from her sword heating up and exposed arms. Each step felt like misery dragged out over a year slowly penetrating so as to ensure every moment of every second felt equal and building in suffering. ‘How can she have such power and be so weak?! It doesn’t make sense!’ She staggered in her charge feeling her muscles crying out through her aching skin.

Her next step caught a flame tendril whipping at her wildly. The flame gave her no time to dodge, especially as she struggled forward. It ripped up through her uniform burning skin deeply. Even fighting the pain, a stifled scream broke into gasping yelp. As the tendril retracted back Kalliope broke her fall with her failing leg. ‘I can’t stop!’ Her pain from her injury drew all of what she felt over her body in making it feel almost like she had escaped the heat. Yet on cue to dash her hopes, a new wave of heat blasted through her with increased vigor. ‘It’s getting worse! I can’t get closer!’

She stared at her sword burning into her palm and melting flesh. Desperation remained her only weapon. Kalliope raised the sword up and flung it from her hand at Fumiko tearing burnt skin with it. In spite of her hand bleeding out none of it seemed to hurt. Hope kept her legs from collapsing in the heat, having to know if she reached her target. The sword sped closer drawing in a straight line for Fumiko’s chest. It looked as though it would reach. She knew it would. An errant whip blew out in front of Fumiko knocking the sword away. Cast aside, the sword spun rapidly through the air far beyond Kalliope reach. ‘I failed…’ Her leg gave up dropping her to the ground. ‘She’ll kill everyone…nothing can stop her…’ Kalliope passed out.