Kip always chewed his claws when he was anxious. Never being needed in a combat scenario meant he didn't need his two quickest weapons. But on his newest level up, he realized what he'd have to improve. The choice was clear as day. He was not just the face of this kingdom, but the claws too. After the match with the Ducervi, he was once again faced with a choice

  [Dragoneye 1] (Required for Dragoneye 2)

  [Wings II] (Required for Wyvern Mode)

  [Sharp Claws] (Required for Daggerous Talons)

  Kip wrapped his little arms along Blademan’s metal chest and raked his claws across the tinman’s torso.

  Kip did not know if he could actually rip into Blademan’s metal, so he was pleasantly surprised when he saw dribbles of red.

  “Yyeeeaouch!” Blademan yelled as he looked at his chest, “You actually drew blood! Good on you, Kippo. But having a good weapon doesn’t make you the ultimate weapon.”

  Kip attempted to place his claws on Blademan’s head, but Blademan leapt up and kicked his feet out, dropping onto the ground on his back. Luckily for Blademan, he had Kip to cushion the fall.

  “Oof!” Kip yelled as Blademan pinned him. Blademan reached back and stabbed at Kip. The blade diced Kip along his shoulder. Kip had to get out of there quickly. He wriggled out and dug his way through the heavy mud. Blademan lashed out with some strikes but was slicing blind and never connected with Kip. Blademan stood up, completely covered in mud.

  “Oh come on!” Blademan yelled, “don’t tell me we’re doing this again!”

  He walked through the mud. The vibrations deafened but he could still feel the occasionally wet blip on his radar of Kip, somewhere under the rubble.

  “I can’t with this,” Blademan said, “Your whole strategy is to keep hiding. How are you going to do that when you’re in actual combat? Is this what you want your people to think of you?”

  Blademan stabbed at the ground, then held his hand there, leading him in the direction of the vibrations of Kip wriggling through the ground..

  Kip burrowed through the mud with his new claws. Blademan had a much better sense of his movements, and they were both moving quite slowly. Kip could not see anything that was happening under. Eventually his head collided with a big rock sticking out of the earth. He poked his head up for some fresh air.

  “There you are.” Blademan said, then leapt toward Kip. Kip dipped his head in and pushed himself away, the blade entering the mud and stabbing at a spot he was at one second ago.

  “I know your type, Kippo,” Blademan said, “You’re honorable. You let a scallywag like me come in and strong arm you into this fight… you could have said no. I can tell you want what’s best… but that’s not you. This place is a fortress. It needs a strong leader. Not someone who runs away from a fight. Can you even fight? Sure, your claws can work, if your small slow body gets close enough… but can you fly? Can you breathe fire?”

  He stuck his sword back into the mud. Something was moving fast. He could feel on the vibrations of the fluid that there was something coming. He looked over at the direction it was coming from. How did the little guy learn to move this fast?

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  “Okay, you’re getting a little more interesting.”

  And just like that, blademan lost him from the vibrations. He looked over. He stuck both hands in the mud to help pick up on it. Two vibrations. One from each side. One much bigger. Kip reappeared from the mud to take another breath. Blademan stepped closer to try to stab him but suddenly, Jasssper shot out at him from the mud, bearing his fangs.

  “Woah!” Blademan said as Jasssper wrapped around the sharp body, beared his fangs and sunk his teeth into Blademan. The blades bounced off harmlessly.

  Blademan chuckled, “Made of blades… remember?”

  Blademan flexed his shoulders, slicing Jasssper and causing him to fall down and slither away. As blademan went to look for him, he found Kip instead. Kip scratched Blademan’s swordhead, “Ouchie! Kippo! Watch out, if you learn how to use those things you might get dangerous.”

  Kip attempted to scratch him again but Blademan dipped and sliced Kip along his side. Kip dropped down into the muddy earth again.

  “Hold on!” Kip said, “Pause!”

  “Pause? Is that part of the rules?” Blademan asked.

  “Jasssper!” Kip yelled into the swamp, “Thank you for your help! But it’s like I said! I have to do this fairly. And that means a one-on-one.”

  “Awww, how sweet. You want to fight me one on one.” Blademan stuck both his hands out as he dove into Kip. Kip stepped out of the way but the blades still nicked him. Kip was badly wounded. He knew there was only one place to escape, the underbelly of the mud. Kip took a deep breath, but before he could sink his head in, Blademan interceded, “Oh no you don’t!” Blademan rushed over and slit into the very spot that Kip was attempting to hide. He swung his blade up at the kobold. The kobold had no time to sink down. Instead, he jumped up and summoned his wings. One big gust of wind and he was higher in the air, most of the mud coming off of him.

  Kip opened his wings and glided down to the nearest branch of a tree. The heaviness of the mud and the lack of a runway created impossible conditions for his bladewheel.

  “A little distance? No problem for a swordsman like me!” Blademan held his blades up in the air, concentrating. The blades grew red with energy. Blademan launched them and the red beam flew off the swords and sliced the tree limb, causing Kip to fall back down into the water.

  “Wha?!” Kip cried out as he pulled himself up. He looked at Blademan who was charging the energy in his shoulders, “How?!”

  “My boon! After killing two hundred birds with a sword, I was given the ability to turn swords into a ranged weapon. Why do you think I wished to make myself blades?”

  Kip pushed himself up out of the mud, “I thought you wished to be the ultimate weapon and the genie took advantage of you!”

  Blademan laughed, “No. I wished to be made entirely out of blades. Then the genie was like… ‘are you sure? That’s crazy!’ and I was like ‘Come on and make me blades before I put you back in that stupid bottle!’ Now that I’m made out of blades, I don’t have to come up with excuses for why I don't want to hug my kid. Everything’s coming up Blademan!”

  “That’s horrific!” Kip yelled.

  “Shoulder attack!” Blademan shot the energy in his shoulders at Kip. Kip jumped out of the way just in time for the blades to slice open the tree he was resting on.

  Kip could hear a loud crunch ring out from the tree. He could hear the strains of the tree’s natural fibers snapping as it began to timber. Kip rolled out of the tree’s trajectory but Blademan pumped his two shoulders and shot them right where Kip was going to be.

  Kip covered his eyes and stopped rolling, pinned between the two forces. Kip turned himself into a little ball, wondering if this was the end. The tree fell right on top of him. He opened his eyes, not dead. He had slipped right where the fork in the tree started. He was safe, but there was no time to wait. Blademan was up in the air, coming down on Kip, about to slice him in twain.

  Kip was still in ball form. Using his tail, he pushed himself and rolled over his head, evading the slice.

  Blademan then said, “Head cannon!” He whipped his head up and slashed Kip while rolling.

  “Ahhh!” Kip yelled in agony. He slowed his roll and unfurled. Blademan got up. Kip had been incapacitated.

  “See? This is why you’re not fit to lead, Kippo. You’re getting bested by me, and I’m some rando. Imagine when one of your own comes for you? Imagine when there are barbarians at the gates? They’ll need someone stronger. Someone who wasn’t afraid to turn himself into a weapon. A man made entirely out of blades. So long, friend!”

  And with that, Blademan stuck his blades up and drove them into soft scaly underbelly.

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