Chapter 12: One More Step
Daniel clenched his fist as the announcer called for the start of the fight. Kaelin stepped forwards and started to move towards him. This was it. If he did well here, life was sorted. Doing well in the academy didn’t seem that hard. The biggest problem was getting in.
Looking around at the people watching, Daniel took a deep breath and focused. Plunging his fists into the ground, making sure not to cover the bracelet, he formed two gauntlets of stone. The fluid rock crept up his arm forming a set of full plate armour from head to toe. Some pieces had been omitted in order to increase his agility. Full plate was often too clunky to move in.
Kaelin started to circle the arena, and Daniel followed suit. They walked opposite each other, sizing up their opponent.
Daniel took a large step forward, stomping down on the ground causing a multitude of rock shards to burst forth from the ground and hover around Daniel, circling his head like a halo.
He rushed forwards, sending a barrage of shards at Kaelin’s face, re-loading each time he ran out. Kaelin put her arms up to block the incoming missiles, dodging the ones she could.
As Daniel got closer, he could see that she was littered with cuts all over from his attacks. Remembering the need for a weapon, Daniel dove to the ground and slid, Gathering the earth into a sword and shield as he did.
Popping up with style, he spread the brambles from the pouch on his left up his arm to coat the shield. With the earth giving it structure and the brambles acting as a deterrent from any retaliation, Daniel felt ready.
Kaelin stood, calm as ever, facing Daniel as he continued his onslaught with her hands raised.
Once Daniel was within range of Kaelin, he took the first swing. As his sword came down on Kaelin, she seemed to move faster, dodging out of the way. He tried again but he just kept missing.
No.
It was more than that.
Each time he swung, she seemed to get faster.
Faster and faster and faster.
Daniel couldn’t keep up. Kaelin was running circles around him as he kept trying to get a hit in. But it wasn’t just her. Everything… everyone was getting faster. No. That wasn’t it. He was getting slower.
How could she do this. Daniel thought time could only be used on oneself not others.
Despite her inherent lack of training with the threads, she was still beating him. It wasn’t even a fight at this point. Daniel had to lock in. Throwing acorns beneath his feet, just outside the slow zone, whilst Kaelin was still focused on punching him. As Kaelin’s fist hit his face, he activated them.
Using the mana in his bracelet for a boost in power, Daniel projected all of his mana into the seeds with one great push. The trees grew beneath him, quicker than Kaelin could react, even whilst in the slow zone.
The trees which he had forced to grow still contained some lingering mana. Daniel stood atop the tallest tree, looking down on Kaelin. She stood, mouth agape, right next to the trunk on one of the trees.
Daniel started funnelling all of his mana into the bracelet. He’d need the extra boost in case of an emergency like last time. And using the remainder of the mana left stored in the trees, he’d started to enact his plan.
Kaelin
This was a tough fight. Daniel had his affinities for 6 years now. Kaelin only had hers for a few days.
Kaelin studied Daniel’s movements up in the tree, wondering why he hadn’t come down to attack her again.
“AHHHH” Kana cried out as her leg was pulled out from under her. There was a root from one of the trees tied in a knot around her leg. Daniel must’ve been watching to make sure she didn’t move while he tied her up.
Jumping down from the branch he’d been standing on, Daniel laughed.
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“I can’t actually believe you got caught! In no world would I have thought it would be that easy, even if it is only you.”
“And to think I almost got worried back there! How stupid am I.” Daniel exclaimed, still laughing at his supposed stupidity.
“I guess I can stop charging this then.” Daniel mumbled, turning to the bracelet on his right hand.
Daniel kicks her in the side, causing a cry of pain to erupt from her mouth.
“You’d best not be about to give up already. I still have a whole lot more to show off.” Daniel whispered to her, his face close.
Daniel kept attacking her, despite she being defenceless. Each punch brought forth a new sound, along with a variety of soon-to-be bruises.
Suddenly, the pain got too much. Kaelin’s power surged forth throughout her body, giving her both a burst of speed, and turning the root around her leg into rotten goo.
Daniel
“What the hell? Why’d she struggle so much if it was that easy to escape? She’s probably just trying to put on a show thinking I’ll be easy once she starts trying. What an arse!
With her newfound power, Kaelin retreated to the other side of the arena to gather her thoughts while Daniel sneered at her inherent bitch-y-ness.
“Wait… MY BRACELET. She stole my mana from it. How th- Fuck that, she’s done”
Daniel watched Kaelin stand at the other end of the arena and waited until his bracelet was at the capacity he’d set, just barely vibrating, moving with the power it held.
Daniel continued filling his bracelet, the vibrations increasing steadily in power until it was burning straight through his wrist, a layer of charred skin and flesh building up around the thin chasm created.
“Arghhh Fuck. This’ll do, better stop before it breaks a bone.”
The pain was unbearable… for most. Daniel had built up his pain tolerance slowly in the fights he and kana had as kids. Not once did they hold back. A canyon in his wrist was certainly up there, but he’d seen worse. He got more scars a year than legs on a centipede.
A voice called out from his left. “Hurry up or I’ll have to go to the pub alone!” It was Kana with her usual encouragement. With that, Daniel decided to act.
Running straight at Kaelin, Daniel stomped forwards and sent a shockwave through the earth. Kaelin was thrown off balance. In her confusion, Daniel erected a wall of stone between them as to hide his actions. He dropped some vine seeds at his feet, using the earth as a platform to transport them.
Daniel sprinted directly at the wall looking like an idiot to the spectators. But at the last moment, he bent the wall on it’s side into a ramp. While he ran up, he sent the seeds around behind Kaelin, careful not to tip her off.
As he reached the top, his plan was in place. Jumping down at Kaelin, he triggered the vine cocoon to trap Kaelin.
Or it would have had she not dodged to the left at the last second. Apparently, the time magic worked on reaction time as that kind of speed was inhuman. Daniel fell towards her, no way of moving around as Kaelin reared up for a punch.
Daniel’s face flew directly at her fist. But he wasn’t done yet.
Daniel knocked her arm to the side and grabbed it, he pulled her to him, slamming his arm into her neck. Using her as a pivot to swing himself round. He locked up her neck into a chokehold, pulling tight as he did.
“You gonna surrender?” Daniel sneered, not giving her room to breathe, let alone answer. “Well, if not, I’d best keep going!”
Keeping her still, Daniel stabs and essence thread into her thigh, keeping the other end connected to himself. Daniel took in the energy from the bracelet, draining it until it was empty. He cried out in pain and quickly projected in all into Kaelin. Finally settling down, the bracelet fused with his melted flesh, surrounded by blackened skin, the scent of a freshly seared steak with a coppery tinge filled the air around them.
Kaelin cried out in pain, the audience winced, hearing what sounded much like torture. Suddenly Kaelin stopped.
“…”
Time had stopped. All around him, nothing moved. No. They were moving, just… very slowly. No one in the stands moved but Kaelin, her body was convulsing in slow motion. As if everything had slowed down. Daniel tried, but he couldn’t move.
His mind was locked in a state of thought, while his body was essentially paralysed. Daniel spent a lifetime there. The mental anguish of his situation, no contact with anyone, was too much. by his 22nd birthday, he was already crazy enough not to notice.
Kaelin
“You gonna surrender? Well if not, I’d best keep going!” Daniel said, disregarding her inability to speak.
Suddenly, a searing pain shot through her leg, she looked down to see a bulging essence thread pulsing mana into her leg. Daniel looked strained, clearly struggling after having contained all the mana in his body.
Kaelin fell unconscious.
***
She awoke to the sounds of shouts coming from all around her. She was sat on some strange goo. Quite similar to that of the aged toot she was caught in earlier. It had also left a trail on her neck. She got up, her hearing still fuzzy, and her vision even more so. Shaking the black stuff off her, she looked around.
Kana sat crouched over the substance crying, she picked up a silver bracelet and sneakily slipped it into a pocket.
Kaelin thought.
She stood, observing her surroundings, remembering what had occurred. Once her hearing had cleared up, she listened in on what Kana was saying.
Although she was blubbering, it wasn’t too hard to hear.
“Daniel. Why why why Daniel why.”
Then she realised. Her memory pieced together, the black goo, the bracelet.
Kana stood still, stunned at the scene unfolding before her.
Do the multiple POV's work?
