Vuthe walked calmly towards Scythe, who was still picking herself up after being smashed through two walls and into a crater in the middle of the patio. As she exited through the hole in the wall that Scythe left behind, she found that Tizanta was already present. Giving her girlfriend a small nod she signalled her to put the protections into place.
Vuthe had always tried to be patient and rational, although it had gotten only harder with time. Despite her best efforts, however, she knew that she sometimes had problems looking at the world the way she wanted. And Scythe seemed to be much more like that.
She knew herself well enough to know what would have to happen to get both their temper cooled down. Since, as much as she hated to admit it, she too felt increasingly frustrated deep down about everything going on. No matter how much they planned ahead, no matter how many precautions they took, there was always something. To be fair, it had been a lot more relaxed ever since they returned, but nevertheless they still had to deal with more and more things that she really couldn’t be fucked to deal with, yet was forced to anyways.
And it grated. Especially since she was the one in charge, the one people looked up to. She didn’t dislike having the means and resources to solve issues, but she had been playing Queen for two millenia now, and she couldn’t recall more than two, three if she was generous, instances where she was adequately able to really rid herself of all her frustrations.
And of those instances, two were in situations she would never want to repeat.
Not to mention being tired of being a Queen in the first place. She couldn’t step back, just give up her crown, at least not until she found a replacement, yet she was also so sick of being a Queen. The entire worshipper and follower idea was a means to an end, the need to found a Queendom nothing more than a way to get the resources to remove the other nobles.
But now? There was no more reason for her to be the Queen, outside of her duty bond. She would never abandon her people, she would rather die to be honest, but on the other hand she was also tired of it. She just wanted to go back to the life she had before they arrived in Satien. Even if she knew that was impossible. It was a pipedream, but oh was it an enticing one.
So, despite her usual prim and proper appearance, right now, she let herself go with the flow. Clothing shifted around her into an outfit she would never wear publicly, her first assassin’s robe, although calling it that wasn’t really accurate. She just liked doing so, since she got it in the guild.
Her expression and body language shifted, less royal and more… free. In that moment, she might actually be closer to Rin Savart than to Vuthe de Thal, all things considered.
Stopping halfway between the wall and Scythe she smirked, feeling Tizanta’s megaconstruct of spellwork settling into place, sealing both of them in a pocket dimension where they didn’t have to fear collateral damage.
“Well. Here we are. Not gonna lie, I was hoping for things to be different, but it seems as if my fears were correct once more”, she sighed, more for the effect than anything else, before she continued, “I don’t think there is much left to be said. You, me, one on one, everything goes. You don’t trust me, I don’t trust you, you’re fed up, I’m fed up, we’re both dragons, so I think we both know how this goes. Anything you wanna say before we start?”
Scythe glared at her, taking in her surroundings with her other senses, “Where the fuck are we and what did you do with the others?” The question was accusatory, as Vuthe expected. Despite their differences and the fact that they had barely spent thirty minutes with each other it was increasingly easier to read Scythe like an open book, especially with this link between them.
“Safe and out of the way. This is just the both of us. Tizanta put us in a pocket dimension so we don’t need to worry about frail little humans running around and getting hurt from us looking at them funny”, she said with a small smile. She would never admit it to anyone but it felt good to just… be herself for once. No need for etiquette, no need for formalities, no need for the political mind games.
Despite her best efforts Scythe couldn’t suppress a grin herself, “Well. That means I finally have a chance to punch your fangs out and you have no ground for complaint. Don’t come crying to me if I kill you!”
And with that she lunged. Vuthe met her head on, or at least planned to, but Scythe had two guns in her hands by the time they met, shooting point blank. Vuthe gasped as they hit, surprising her greatly.
Before she had time to act Scythe slammed her elbow in Vuthe’s face, before pointing one gun at the other and firing into the magazine. A loud explosion rang out, catching Vuthe straight in the face, shrapnel burning its way into her skin, while Scythe jumped back with the explosion, getting out just in time.
It took Vuthe a moment to recover, a moment Scythe used to throw a grenade at her, which exploded just when Vuthe recovered, throwing her off again.
Rage began to build up, rage at the fact she was so easily outdone. Rage at her inability to read Scythe’s attacks! Rage at being played so badly.
With a thought she vanished, appearing next to Scythe, a weapon already in hands. It was the Twin Reaper, her favourite weapon, and the one she was most experienced with.
Scythe tried to jump, but a chain began to wrap around her arms, extended by Vuthe’s shadow magic which had been incorporated into the weapon during its creation.
She had spent a long time and a lot of resources to find the best crafters she could at the time to make this gem, and while not the most powerful magic weapon in her arsenal it was made with her in mind, affinity and enchantments included.
For a moment it seemed as if she finally had Scythe, but again she was surprised, utterly unable to read Scythe’ motives. She should be able to do so easily, Scythe had no training with auras after all, yet she couldn’t. Rather, Vuthe noticed after a moment, she could but Scythe simply didn’t think about her attacks beforehand.
Scythe used the chance of being pulled in by the chains to roll over Vuthe, grabbing the chain and trying to choke Vuthe with it. But the Twin Reaper were her weapon, they listened to her command, so Vuthe simply willed it not. The Kusarigama obeyed obediently, rendering Scythe’s attempt useless.
With an effort of will Vuthe calmed herself. This was much like her introduction to the guild, utterly surprised and taken off balance. She was utterly out of her element in dealing with such an erratic fighting style, but she had been taught to be better than that.
Closing her eyes and breathing out, just as Scythe punched her hard into the back of the head, sending her off her feet, she recentered herself. Landing perfectly on both feet and with a hand to support her she took a deep breath and focused on her training and on Scythe.
Keeping her eyes closed she focused entirely on the fight. She had been foolish in treating Scythe without respect. Honestly, it was kind of embarrassing how Vuthe had handled herself so far.
Scythe may not be trained in her own fighting style, but she had spent the last gods-know-how-long on Amnellium, a world that Vuthe knew was very militaristic. She should have known that Scythe was very capable of handling herself. Yet she had ignored it, thinking of her as… just a little girl.
She frowned while deflecting a bullet with the blade of her left hand weapon, trying to understand why she had thought of Scythe that way. She knew she was similar to herself, but yet she just… didn’t see her that way. Was it because she could feel Scythe underlying emotions both through her aura and the bond?
Submitting herself entirely to the flow of combat, the essence of her training, she danced through the bullets like an exotic dancer, never quite hit, but only ever dodging with the slightest of movements, barely evading at all. She let her instincts take over, confident that she would have the upper hand in the long run. She just needed to figure out how Scythe worked and then she could swoop in for the kill. Many might feel uncomfortable to let their opponent dictate the flow of battle, but Vuthe had been taught by the best.
As the fight continued, led by Scythe erratic style of fighting and sudden changes of tactics Vuthe went all the way back when she first entered the guild. Or rather when she had first met her combat instructor.
Vuthe followed the Kitsune through the halls, still sluggish from the hangover of the previous evening. The wound on her horn was throbbing like crazy, but she had endured far worse in the hands of the bandits and slavers.
The training hall was filled to the brim as they entered. Red led her to one of the adjacent smaller rooms, stopping in front of the back wall.
“Alright, Greenhorn. Behind this wall your new Teacher awaits'', she said with a mischievous smile.
The few trainees in this room began to murmur.
„She’s going to be taught by her?! Poor girl“
„I just hope she survives today“
„She looks really weak. Is that really a good idea?“
Vuthe had no idea who her teacher was, and these murmurs sounded… omnious to say the least.
Red pressed one hand to the wall, which promptly vanished. She motioned her through, and Vuthe obediently walked through the newly appeared doorway.
The room she ended up in was the same as the room she had just come from, but it had no lighting. Of course, her eyes could easily see in the dark, but the room appeared to be empty.
“Oh? A new recruit?“, a voice came from all around her. Before she noticed the door vanished, replaced by a wall once more.
Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
“I was told you would train me?“, Vuthe asked, trying to look for anything, but there wasn’t anything to be seen. The headache only worsened as she concentrated, her first ever hangover giving her the full experience.
“Were you now?“, the voice chuckled. It sounded female, eerily familiar. It took her a few moments to realise it sounded just like Red’s.
A sudden feeling of stickiness spiked on Vuthe’s right shoulder, then her knees, before she had time to do anything. The next moment she was floating midair, entangled by a web of thin wires. The wires held her in place, but they didn’t hurt.
„So you are this mystery dragon Master told me about… Curious…“
The wires moved her around, almost as if presenting her from different angles. She couldn’t move, even with all her strength she couldn’t get the wires to budge even a little.
“Pretty… Cute in a way… But also ferocious. Your essence is amazing. More refined than most others, like a cool pond. Master said you had no experience fighting or using your essence. Tell me, how is yours so refined?“, the voice asked. Vuthe had a better grasp on it now, it sounded like it was moving through the room.
“I don’t… know“, she responded, straining to break free.
Suddenly the wires withdrew, so quickly it almost looked like they simply vanished. Then there was light, a simple ball of light in the middle of the room, slightly higher than her head. She crashed onto the ground. It wasn’t a hard fall, she hadn’t been too high up, but it still was unpleasant, her head revolting the sudden force on her body. For a moment it felt like she would meet her breakfast much sooner than normal, but luckily she was able to keep it down.
“Ugh… That… hurt…“, Vuthe groaned, rubbing her head.
“It did, didn’t it“, the voice said, this time clearly in front of her.
Vuthe found a girl in front of her as she looked up, which she could have sworn was Red. The only difference was the missing scars on her face, and the weird looking glove with metallic insets on it on her right hand. The girl smiled at her, deviously.
“I am Amber. I believe my sister has helped you get settled, yes?“, the girl said, squatting down in front of Vuthe while she was trying to get up.
“Red? Yes“, Vuthe answered.
Amber nodded, getting up. A wire wrapped around Vuthe’s arms and pulled her to her feet.
“Good. Before I start training you I will need to know what you can do. Defend yourself“, Amber said, before vanishing. In her place appeared five humanoids made out of that wire, who started attacking her immediately, without even giving her a moment to prepare herself.
Before Vuthe could even think of conjuring her scales or black armour she felt a fist hitting her in her stomach, lifting her off the ground and smashing her into the wall behind her. She croaked from the pain, her apparent constant companion. Her head was ringing and it took her a long moment to get her bearings, a moment she didn’t have. Another fist hit her on the head, smashing her into the ground with a very unhealthy pulping noise.
Letting out a scream of pain, Vuthe cowered, pulling herself into a foetal position, arms wrapped around her head in a desperate attempt to shield it.
“Tsk… I thought more of you“, Amber’s voice came to her from somewhere else in the room, clearly disappointed, “Get up, try again.“
She didn’t even give Vuthe the time to argue, wires pulling her to her feet again. However, this time Vuthe didn’t wait for the wires to put her down, conjuring her black armour, black mist flooding off of her, mixing with the shadows all around the room. Mentally preparing herself to shift her scales as needed she looked at the creatures in front of her.
The armour skill Vuthe used at the time had been an enigma for her for quite a while, since it was so different to everything else she was able to do. And it wasn’t any kind of instinctive or inborn knowledge, it was something her subconsciousness had come up with when she first regained control of her racial magic. Yet, despite the crude form of the armour it had helped her greatly in the first few weeks of training.
The next time Amber had her creations attack, Vuthe was more prepared, as the first wire-creature dashed towards her she brought her arms in front of her face to block the fist flying her way. The armour absorbed some of it, her scales shifting to take the brunt of the blow, but nonetheless she was still pushed backwards, stumbling to keep her feet under her. She didn’t quite manage that, however, the headache pounding away at her skull, and she fell to the ground. Knowing what would come next, Vuthe immediately rolled to the side, the fist that was about to smash her skull in, smashed into the ground next to her, leaving a small crater.
Satisfied and overjoyed that she was able to escape that blow, Vuthe completely missed the creature coming up from her left, its foot hitting her hard in the side, lifting her off the ground and smashing her into another wall. While the armour took some of the blow, she hadn’t been able to refocus her scales, leaving her about as hurt as the first round.
“C’mon, you gotta do better. If we continue like this I will never know what you can do“, Amber said, the wires lifting her up once more, setting her back on her feet. Her legs gave out from under her for a moment, and she fell back, panting heavily.
“This… is… senseless…“, Vuthe mumbled, pain rocking her body. Her Master had told her that it would hurt in the beginning, but this was more than she had anticipated. It was a different pain than the one she had experienced in the cell, but it was pain nonetheless.
“Get up, or I’ll squash you“, Amber said, a threatening tone in her voice.
Vuthe obeyed, forcing herself to her feet and taking on a defensive position.
Her „training“ took the better part of 4 hours, and mostly consisted of Vuthe being pummled like a sandbag. The longer they trained, the better she got at evading or blocking the strikes, but she never even once got the opportunity to retaliate.
“This is enough for today“, Amber said, after Vuthe was again smashed into the ground. At this point she was panting heavily, her head feeling like it was about to explode, her entire body heavy and exhausted. Vuthe was pretty sure she had bruises all over her, to add to her collection of scars.
“Your adaptability is good. Your evasion decent enough. Your strength is admirable, but your fighting style is non-existent. You are like a kitten, desperately struggling, but you have no style, no method. It’s like a toddler flailing around. You never once used your strengths to your advantage, only ever trying to brute force your way through. It would be insufficient to say that you are garbage, the extent to which you suck at this is mind boggling“, Amber’s harsh voice was authoritative and cold.
“What do… you expect of… some-“, Vuthe began through deep breaths.
“However“, Amber interjected, cutting her off, “Your essence is incredible, your perception is better than most, if you would focus correctly. You are stubborn, but that can be a good thing. I suppose, once I’m done with you, you will be decent. You lack training and experience, if we supply you with those you will be a major force in any battle.“
Despite the situation Vuthe had smiled.
Still having the smile on her face when recounting those memories Vuthe finally found herself in the rhythm she wanted to be in. It felt good to be able to exercise like this again.
Her training in the guild had been a nightmare, but the effectiveness could not be questioned. And now, once more in the same zone she had been back then, she used it to make a mockery of Scythe’s quite frankly insanely good aim. All jokes aside, Vuthe would bet that even Archangel could learn from her, and she was able to snipe people from twenty miles over with a near perfect headshot. And near perfect meant a deviation of maybe an inch or two.
But aim only mattered if you could predict your opponent, and if the opponent wasn’t faster than the bullet you fired. It was time the tide turned, and Vuthe was thoroughly enjoying this, maybe much more than was reasonable, but Scythe was able to give her that which she had been aching for deep down for so long: An outlet.
Perspective: Tizanta isk Thesekar
Tizanta watched the two of them with the rest of Scythe friends in the bedroom they all had rested in. The fight was displayed on one wall with an illusion spell that made it look like a television show.
“Wow… They’re really going at it, aren’t they?”, Grunt asked.
Bullseye just nodded, carefully watching for every single detail. Tizanta could practically see his calculating mind racing to work through what was going on, just as Corellanium would.
“Honestly I’m surprised how even they are. After her display I thought Vuthe would wipe the floor with Scythe”, Silk said, earning herself a glare from Cluster. It was maybe a little worrying just how… fearful of Vuthe Silk had become. It seemed so unlike Calagrophy, although after a moment’s thought it did make sense. Calagrophy had deep down always been a cautious one. She was a battle junkie, yes, but she would never risk her people if there was even a somewhat reasonable doubt of success.
“Oh shut the fuck up. ‘Course Vuth or however she is called is strong, but Scythe ain’t a weakling either. You know that.”, Cluster snarled, still entirely too unhappy about it all. No, not unhappy, Tizanta corrected herself after a moment, confused. She doesn’t know how to feel about any of this, which makes sense all things considered.
“It should be no surprise that they’re so even. Despite the obvious differences in both appearance and training, they are, in the end, the same person who was trained meticulously, albeit under different circumstances”, Tizanta chimed in. Deep down she was a little worried about how well Scythe was dealing with Vuthe’s attacks, but she reminded herself that everyone in both groups were trained fighters. Just because the other group was from Amnellium didn’t mean they didn’t train. In fact, from what she had heard from Archangel it would have been more of a surprise if they weren’t up to standards, personal weaknesses aside.
And those weaknesses were obvious to Tizanta. If Scythe would have known about aura control in this fight she most likely would have been able to push Vuthe much harder, but her original estimation that the lack thereof was a severe detriment turned out to be false. What she didn’t know in aura control she made up for by unconventional combat tactics and a frankly insane skill with her guns and hand to hand combat. She was about as good with her guns as Vuthe was with Kusarigama, and that was saying a lot.
But it was also clear that Scythe had never been trained by professionals. She was good, undoubtedly, but she was self-taught. And that always left weaknesses. Especially with a hyper focused combat style like the one she showed.
And that wasn’t even taking into account that Vuthe had some tricks up her sleeve, as she was demonstrating now.
While midstrike with her Kusarigama she suddenly switched out her weapon for a greatsword, carrying a lot more weight with a lot more reach.
Scythe was able to avoid the worst of it, but she was still smashed into the row of houses surrounding them, ending up on the next street over. Vuthe didn’t give her any time to recover, dashing after her this time with a pair of lances.
For all her hatred for the title, Vuthe was still the Goddess of the Shadow Armory, and that extended to more than summoning weapons for an army. She was devastating in combat when she had access to her entire armoury.
And considering that by now her armoury was a part of her, that was pretty much always the case.
Tizanta couldn’t help but smile when she saw the greatsword that Vuthe had used for her surprise attack. It was actually Vuthe’s most valuable weapon, despite the fact that greatswords were one of the weapon types she was worst with, quite unusual for a strength based race like dragons.
The weapon in question was called Schattenstolz and was actually crafted by a disciple of the temple of DotExe, True God of Invention and Progress. While neither of them had actually met DotExe, his temples and his faith was spread widely, mostly because it favoured all forms of technological or artistic progress.
While Tizanta was lost in her musings, the four friends started to mumble between them, analysing the fight and Vuthe’s newly revealed trick, arguing about how Scythe could best deal with it. It brought a small smile to Tizanta’s lips. She had no idea why Vuthe wanted her to show them the fight, but right now she had the feeling it was to put them into a different headspace. Instead of worrying about the future they had something nearly every draconic being could get passionate about: A good, even fight.
And it only got better when Scythe pulled out one of her own aces. Tizanta had seen a lot of different weapons, but she had never seen someone fight with a rocket powered gun hammer. Yet that was exactly what Scythe summoned next, smashing it into Vuthe’s side, before pulling the trigger and sending Vuthe flying two blocks over with a massive explosion.
The four chuckled, and despite herself Tizanta joined in. She couldn’t wait to see how this fight ended. And she was pretty much certain that this fight wouldn’t end until both of them pulled out all stops and ruined her pocket dimension in their true forms. That thought made her contemplate recording it all. It would be one hell of a fight to see.