Beyond Chaos

"Is it true that you are Flame Brand's grandson?" Salim asked as the pair finally faced one another, each having drawn their blades, but moments away.

"The only reason why I'm so handsome is because she is my grandmother," the half elf joked, grinning so wide, even the First Blade could see it through their visors. "Is it true that you're the strongest within Black Mountain?"

"In this age, it is true."

"How do you know my grandmother anyway?"

"My elder brother speaks highly of her," Salim admitted.

"I pay a great respect to your elder brother, who knows how amazing my grandmother is, for she is as beautiful as she is wise, as wise as she is strong, as strong as she is kind, and as kind as she is beautiful," Adam replied, inhaling deeply, and letting out a sigh of relief. 'I guess I need to be nice to him.'

'I will need to finish this quickly,' Salim thought, clasping his blade with both hands tightly, focusing his energy.

"I have fought a great number of warriors, and in this year, I have dedicated most to my grandmother and the Gaks, but today, this fight, I dedicate to my darling son, who is already crawling, the cheeky little punk, and my darling daughter, who is also already crawling, that cheeky little punk," Adam said, unable to contain himself from being a fool in the moment, but once he was done, he let out another sigh, full of frustration.

'Should I kill him?' The intrusive thought slipped within Salim's mind for a moment, but disappeared into the void as he meditated, and completely concentrated on the half elf.

The pair fell silent, waiting, waiting, waiting.

"You may begin," the Malawi said.

'Should I have warned him that the blade is Legendary Enhanced,' Jurot thought as the tension in the air broke.

Battle Order
D20 + 1 = 15 (14)

Fighting Spirit: 3 -> 2

Seventh Sky: 1 -> 0

Attack: Seventh Sky (Advantage)
D20 + 10 = 20 (10)
D20 + 10 = 28 (18)
Hit!
Mana: 34 -> 33
Ability: Divine Smite
4D6 + 2D6 + 8 = 29 (13)(8)
29 damage!

Attack: Seventh Sky (Advantage)
D20 + 10 = 16 (6)
D20 + 10 = 19 (9)
Miss!

The half elf darted forward, inhaling sharply, his entire body relaxing as his body flowed into battle, his axe trailing through the air with a keen efficiency that betrayed his relaxed form. As he clashed with the First Blade, their blades meeting steel, flashing white hot with divine magic, Adam felt something.

It had been a long time since he had felt such a feeling.

How long had it been?

He wasn't sure.

Mana: 33 -> 32

Spell: Shield
Defence: 25 -> 30

Health: 126 -> 27

Even as he willed forth his magic to try and deflect the vicious blows of the First Blade, the one considered to be the strongest within all of Black Mountain, the half elf stumbled backward, Seventh Sky almost slipping out of his hand. His red shield dented under the heavy might of the First Blade's blows, the divine magic flashing through the half elf's body.

"I believe this is enough," Salim said, glaring at the half elf through his visor, for he had willed forth his Oath to guide his blade, striking as expertly as the half elf, save for the minor difference that the half elf could not strike as effectively as the First Blade, for the First Blade's blade was guided not just for short bursts, moments here and there, but it would last their entire bout.

This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

"Enough?" The half elf pushed up his visor, spitting out phlegm from the back of his throat, feeling the burn within his throat and chest. "Is that what I get for holding back?"

Salim narrowed his eyes down at the half elf, who grinned viciously back at the First Blade, slamming down his visor as he stood once more. "It is good to be so lively when you are young."

Adam could hear it, the audacity in the older man's voice. 'Yeah! This is more like it!'

The half elf refused to acknowledge where this excitement was coming from, glad it was drowning out his true emotions.

It seemed as though the half elf would have to give it his all to face the one known as the First Blade.

"I hope the First Blade shows the young man mercy," Fatima said.

"I hope the Executive doesn't kill the First Blade," Yasha replied.

"Excuse me?" the, self proclaimed, strongest Sheath asked.

Fighting Spirit: 2 -> 1
Health: 27 -> 32

Attack: Seventh Sky (Advantage)
D20 + 10 = 14 (4)
D20 + 10 = 16 (6)
Omen: 5, 10 -> 5
10 + 10 = 20
Hit!
Mana: 32 -> 27
Ability: Divine Smite
4D6 + 6D6 + 8 = 41 (8)(25)
41 damage!

'What is this?' Salim thought, as the axe known as Seventh Sky swallowed his vision. He was certain of it. His keen senses, honed from decades of fighting, told him he had no need to worry of the axe, and yet as it scraped across his armour, the magic exploding through his bones, he withdrew.

Adam plucked a Thread of Fate.

The pair trekked through the land, their swift feet allowing them to travel much quicker than the typical party, even those who may have travelled within their carriages. They made their way northward, the pair making their way to Northern Aswadasad, already having trekked beyond the Order of the Black Lions, and though they did not follow the road, they followed an old trail from village to village, the kind that was an unofficial path of Aswadasad, but fraught with danger.

That was, for others.

"Are you tired?" the old man asked, in his fifties or so, meaning he was certainly in his sixties, though he was actually in his seventies. He wore simple tan attire, with a white turban, a metal medal pinned to the centre. The hilts of his blades, crossed and looming over his shoulders, were free to hold, the rest of the blades wrapped in scarves.

His companion was a much younger woman, in similar attire, though she wore a bright yellow scarf with red bursting suns, which wrapped around her head and mouth, her breath tickling against the fabric. She, too, wore a pair of blades upon her back, wrapped in plain scarves.

"Are you tired?" the old man asked.

"Yes, Scholar."

"Let us take a rest," the old man said, coming to a halt, allowing the young woman to take a few minutes to catch her breath. He would have preferred to have continued, for resting often caused their legs and feet to ache harsher than pushing through the discomfort, but since she admitted she was tired, it must have been rather bad. They drank their water, ate their hard biscuits and cheese, taking a moment to gather themselves within nature.

Scholar Muh wondered what other wonders would appear to him that day, for it felt like that kind of day, where Fate would bring him to an interesting place.

His ears twitched, the old man smiling, his pair of blades upon his back growing heavier, making themselves more known to him.

"Yasmin, can you feel it?" Scholar Muh asked.

"No?" Yasmin replied, her eyes darting around, noting the small bugs darting from leaf to leaf, the cocoons of creatures which were ready for metamorphosis. She closed her eyes, in order to sense deeper through her ears, hearing the swaying of branches.

"Not just your sight, taste, hearing, but cast out your awareness, feel beyond through the typical senses," Scholar Muh advised, allowing the woman to fall deeper into her state. All fell silent within her mind, while Scholar Muh kept an eye upon her, making sure she was not caught within the blade of another. So much was her faith in the old man, that she completely fell into the void.

"I do not feel anything," she finally admitted, unsure of how much time had passed.

"To our right."

Once more the woman sent out her awareness, but she shook her head, drawing up her scarf slightly to cover her mouth, her fingers itching, understanding the old man was warning her.

"Two," Scholar Muh said, and after a few moments, it was impossible to ignore their presence.

Tall.

Red.

Dark.

The figures numbered two.

Thus Fate was forever changed.

Yet, a greater monster troubled the Order of Black Mountain.

Attack: Seventh Sky (Advantage)
D20 + 10 = 12 (2)
D20 + 10 = 26 (16)
Hit!
Mana: 27 -> 22
Ability: Divine Smite
4D6 + 6D6 + 8 = 48 (15)(20)
48 damage!

Onward Soar: 1 -> 0

Mana: 22 -> 17
Spell: Searing Smite

Attack: Seventh Sky (Advantage)
D20 + 10 = 20 (10)
D20 + 10 = 20 (10)
Hit!
Mana: 17 -> 12
Ability: Divine Smite
4D6 + 6D6 + 5D6 + 8 = 66 (14)(21)(18)
66 damage!

Tall. Purple. Dark.

The half elf stood over the form of the First Blade, who had dropped to a knee, doing his best to remain conscious, but the half elf had struck him so violently, so viciously, he could not remain conscious, even in front of all those who watched.

The Second Blade, the Fourth Blade, the Sheaths, from the likes of Fatima, to those who had yet to be named to the companions of the half elf, engraved within their hearts the sight of the fool of a father over their strongest warrior.

The Malawi blinked.

'At least he fought off the flames,' Adilnur thought, sipping his tea lightly.