Ashborn Primordial

Chapter 41: Beware of Gods Bearing Gifts

Vir was not happy.

Maiya was off training with Tanya, no doubt learning more secrets of the mejai.

He couldve been spying on them right now, absorbing the mejais teachingsknowledge that might help him unlock the secrets of his own prana. Instead, he was stuck here, forced to duel Riyan against his will.

Of all the times he couldve picked, why now!?

Balancing on one leg atop one of the dozens of vertical posts Riyan had installed in the training dome, he glared at his instructor, eyes full of loathing. If he had to fight, he at least wanted to wipe that smirk off of the smug mans face.

The obstacle course had dominated the dome before, but it was downright bursting now with the addition of the posts, which ringed the base of the course. Each post was positioned a few paces apartnot quite close enough to step onto, but close enough to reach with a small jump.

The man stared back at Vir, smirking as he balanced on his own post with ease, thirty paces away.

You fall, you lose. Begin.

Vir sprang into motion, leaping aside. As always, this duel would have to be swift if he wanted any chance at victory, or his stamina would rear its ugly head.

The dozens of wooden posts were about five paces high, so a fall from this height wouldnt kill him, but it wouldnt be fun.

Months ago, Riyan had wiped the sand with him. But he wasnt the same as back then. Hed grown. This time, he didnt intend to lose.

Vir fired off a chakri that sailed past Riyan, landing harmlessly in the sand below.

Were you aiming at me? Or over there? The man said, pointing to the sand as he leisurely hopped from one post to another.

Vir didnt take the bait. He hurled another chakri, which went wide as well.

Apparently, Riyan had seen enough. Realizing that Vir was no threat from afar, the man jumped his way to Vir, often skipping posts with his leaping strides.

And he isnt even using Talents, Vir thought. The man had so many advantages; it wasnt even close to fair. But despite all that, Riyan had walked right into his trap.

Vir jumped, meeting Riyan head on. When the man was just ten paces away, he threw a chakram. This one sailed through the air, directly on an intercept course with his head.

Riyans speed worked against him, reducing the time he had to dodge the incoming strike. Yet somehow, using reflexes that shouldnt be possible, the man brought his katar to bear and deflected the steel blade with a clang.

What he didnt deflect was the chakri that followed immediately behind. The smaller blade sliced a deep gouge into his cheek, leaving a trail of blood.

Vir hadnt idled. Immediately after throwing the disks, he charged, slicing down with his katar, but Riyan was there to meet him with his own.

Their blades locked, and for a brief moment, their eyes met. Riyans bristled with confidence. Virs glowered with determination.

Riyan moved first.

Balancing on one leg made any kicking incredibly difficult, but the rules didnt seem to apply to the man, who swept his dangling leg at Vir, threatening to knock his support out from under him.

Vir didnt allow it. Seeing the attack, he jumped back, landing gracefully on the post behind him. Prana Vision gave him something akin to eyes in the back of his head when it was active. And right now, it was roaring at full steam.

He attacked once again, a flurry of motion and steel. What he lacked in strength, he made up with speed, launching attack after attack at Riyan, forcing the man onto the defensive.

Except, Riyans defense was more than his match. Even after a dozen strikes, Vir hadnt landed a single hit. Rather, it felt like Riyan was deflecting each of his attacks in a way that destabilized him.

The message was obvious. The man was saying he could knock Vir off his post without even having to attack.

Vir was never one to blindly bash his head against something. The moment he realized he had no chance of winning a frontal engagement, he backed off, attempting to put several posts in between him and Riyan.

He was too late. Riyans blade came like a wraith, silent and deadly. Vir twisted, avoiding the savage strike, taking a gash to his forearm instead. Painful, but it didn't hamper his ability to fight.

Unfortunately, Riyans attack had robbed Vir of his balance, and he slipped off of his post.

At this rate, hed fall, and it would be his loss.

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No badrakking way!

Wrenching his core muscles with everything he had, he twisted and reach out a hand to stabilize himself. His left arm gripped a post while his right leg straddled another.

It worked, but it left his back exposed.

Riyan didnt hesitate to take advantage of this opening. He jumped, clearly intending to smash Virs back into the sand below.

But Vir wasnt without ideas. Hed spent months running scenarios in his head against Riyan. And hed come up with several potential solutions. Untested, of course, but what better time to prove his tactics?

Vir threw a chakri, not bothering to check whether itd hit his opponent, then sheathed his katar and grasped the log post with both hands, allowing his legs to fall. Now, he was hugging the side of a single post with all four limbs.

Instinctively, he leaped out of the way onto another post before climbing back up, regaining his position. Riyans diving attack hit nothing but air.

Variation C, he thought, shifting his stance. If a storm of swords wouldnt work, hed have to rely on movement.

Vir bounded from post to post, circling Riyan like a vulture. The man merely observed, amused. But when he dove in, Riyans smirk shrank just a hair.

Another chakri flew at Riyan, and Vir was right behind it. If Riyan blocked the disk, hed be wide open for Virs incoming attack. The proper move was to fall back to another post, but Vir knew the man had too much honor to do that.

Riyan moved slightly, allowing the chakri to graze his other cheek while bringing his katar up to deflect Virs thrust.

How can he even do that?

The man hadnt even blinked at the deadly chakri. Most people would flinch out of instinct, but if Riyan felt fear, he certainly never showed it.

With Riyan about to block his strike, Vir ducked low, attempting to swipe the man, but his opponent jumped up at the last moment, allowing the katar to pass harmlessly under.

Vir didnt even wait to see what his instructor retaliated with. The moment his strike missed, he was already jumping away to another postand not a moment too soon. Riyans blade swiped at where his ankle had been just a split second ago.

The pattern repeated for several more exchanges. Vir would jump in, attempt an attack, only for Riyan to block or dodge, forcing Vir to escape within a hairs breadth.

The tides turned the instant he ran out of chakris.

Without his ranged weapons to distract the warrior, Vir lost his only chance, and his body was tiring out.

The battle paused for a moment as the two fighters locked eyes.

This next encounter would be the last; Vir had to end the fight now, or hed be forced to surrender. Prana Vision flared as bright as ever, but his body could take no more. His heart threatened to burst and took everything he had not to retch.

Riyan made the first move. He sailed through the air, katar strike telegraphed from a mile away.

A feint? Vir thought. It had to be. There was no way a seasoned warrior like Riyan would attack with such an amateurish move.

Unless unless thats exactly what he wants me to think.

The prudent move would be to back away, but Vir was on a timer, and Riyan knew it.

Disobeying every instinct he had, Vir lunged with a thrust of his own.

Didnt see this coming, did you?

The look of surprise on Riyans face filled Virs veins with catharsis.

Riyan aborted his attack, killing his momentum as he passed over a post. But Vir had already committed. He dove through the air, straight for Riyan.

Realizing Vir was on a collision course with him, the man did the only thing he could. He cheated.

Riyan Leaped away, leaving Vir sailing straight at an empty post.

He couldve recovered. He might have thrown his katar away and grabbed the post. He might have twisted his body and somehow stepped onto it.

He did neither. He crashed spectacularly into the post, his arms doing little to protect him. Then he tumbled onto the sand.

Riyan loomed over him. What happened?

Vir looked up at him, cradling his wounded forearm. Do that again, he said. The Talent you just used. Do it again.

Riyan cocked a brow, clearly expecting a different reply. Leap? You have seen it before.

Humor me, Vir replied. Please?

The Ghost of Godshollow shrugged, then activated his Talent. To Virs eyes, it looked like hed simply disappeared and reappeared a short distance away, but the grains of sand that had Riyan kicked up told a different story. Hed moved really, really fast. Inhumanly fast.

But that wasnt what made Virs eyes pop.

Are we done here? he asked his mentor.

Riyan nodded, setting a Heal Skin orb against his forearm, repairing most of the damage from his earlier injury. You have come far, boy. But youre still green. We will duel twice a week from now on, and I expect you to grow and perform at a higher level with each consecutive fight. Do not disappoint me.

With those words, he left the training dome, leaving Vir alone to reflect on their duel. He wasnt angry or frustrated at his loss. Far from it.

Because hed just seen something. Something that couldnt possibly be, and yet clearly was. Something Riyan had outright denied, yet was true.

The man had said Talents didnt use magichad said it so confidently that Vir never even thought to question it. And yet, Prana Vision showed a steady stream of Earth Affinity prana leave the ground and enter his body through the soles of his sandals, flaring brightly the moment Riyan Leaped.

The realization crashed upon him with the weight of a Godhollow.

Talents arent gifts from the gods! Vir whispered. Theyre magic. Earth affinity magic!

He looked down, deep into the earth which overflowed with prana. His blood circulation wasnt quite enough to show him the black prana that lurked down there. But he knew it existed. Perhaps only in tiny quantities, but it was there.

And so it stood to reason he could tap into it, just the same as Riyan had.

Vir plopped down onto the sand, crossed his legs, and began to meditate.

Next time: 42 - Equilibrium