Nightblade (Darkest night)

Gregory stared up at the carnage that was being unleashed in the sky.

" Monsters," he thought.

"They're monsters in human skin."

Waves of pure destructive force rippled through the air every time Marco and the masked figure collided.

They punched at each other at frenetic speeds, so fast that even the novices on the ground couldn't keep up.

Gregory activated his ability, shielding the aspirants and the talented kids just as a stray blast of umbralis surged towards them.

With the exception of the mysterious foe they were facing, the scene was vaguely reminiscent of the one at the orphanage.

Except this time, he was much stronger, and this time he had allies.

Powerful ones at that.

"This time. We'll definitely win," He thought, with a determined gleam in his eye.

"We must!"

Marco and the masked figure collided in the air.

Their fists hammered at each other time and again without either of them losing ground.

Their figures were blurred for everyone else who wasn't a maestro.

Cedric's face turned grim the more he observed the fight.

He stood with arms folded across his chest, tracking the battle with his eyes.

" This guy can keep up with Marco, even with him using the Dark family technique. If he's able to do that, I can't say I'd be able to do much more with my Ash technique unless I teamed up with Marco."

He frowned, glancing at the frozen aspirants and Talented.

" What kind of example would that be? Two family heads locked in a struggle against one rogue awakened assassin. Disgraceful!"

Cedric sighed, turning his attention to the fight.

" I can't believe I'm thinking this, but you better win, Marco."

Marco grinned, feeling the exhilaration of engaging in a high-stakes battle with an elusive, absurdly powerful opponent.

" This is just the best. Now to take it up a notch."

As the head of House Dark, he couldn't afford to lose to some unknown wannabe. He had a reputation to preserve and a generation of kids to inspire.

He absolutely couldn't lose, not when his sons and peers were watching.

Unfortunately for the mysterious man who had ignorantly challenged the Council's might, he'd have to deal with him with extreme prejudice.

" Too bad Draco and Axel can't keep up with the speed at which we're moving. They'd have learned a lesson or two."

Marco sped through the air, then feigned a simple straight that turned into a devastating hook at the last second.

His fist flashed forward, grazing the man's mask.

An explosion of sound and light ripped through the sky following the impact.

Marco Dark flew through the air, steadying himself after moving a considerable distance.

A long crack spread through the mask at the point of contact, but the mask held.

The masked man staggered back a few feet in the air, his golden eyes narrowing behind his mask.

" What kind of mask is that?" Marco asked, flexing his fingers. They throbbed slightly.

" A punch like that should have broken any mask."

Marco thought.

" But not only did the mask merely crack, I was shoved back."

" Enough games." The man snarled.

" What was it you said earlier? Oh, I remember,"

His voice took on a darker and colder edge.

"Let's end this farce."

The man's irises glowed brighter, emitting a brighter light.

In the next moment, he sped towards Marco, punching him. Their fists collided mid-air, then, impossibly, Marco's hand was thrown back.

Marco's black eyes widened in disbelief.

His arm trembled from the force of the blow. He winced, feeling the bones in his hand creak from the after shock of the punch.

" Was he holding back? Even after I used the Dark technique? Who the hell is this guy?"

The masked figure followed up with a thunderous punch to the face.

The impact produced a sound akin to a thunderclap.

Marco fell through the air, landing with an earth-shattering impact.

The ground cracked beneath his feet. He staggered blindly to his feet, then fell to his knees, the world spinning around him.

Marco wobbled a bit, then spat out blood and a tooth.

" Shit, what the hell?"

Cedric's eyes widened in disbelief.

It was extremely difficult to hurt a maestro. Maestros were walking calamities able to conquer entire nations by themselves if they so wished.

Which is why there was a need for the Council of Assassins. They alone stood at the hierarchy of power in this world of Shadows, with only a few individuals in the Praesagius capable of matching their monstrous strength.

And yet now, a maestro and a Council head no less, was bleeding and reeling from a fight.

Cedric grit his teeth and jumped into the air, barreling forcefully towards the man.

" Enough!" The man roared. He casually flicked his hand, holding it out with his palm facing the ground.

" All of you, kneel." He commanded.

Cedric hurtled towards the ground, ramming into it with devastating force. He broke through several trees before skidding to a stop.

Everyone knelt, a large pressure pressing them down into the ground; even the maestros found themselves unable to move an inch.

Cedric's eyes widened in disbelief.

" What the hell? How is he doing this?"

Gregory tried to move, but his body refused to obey him.

" No, not again," he inwardly screamed.

His grey eyes burned with light, then began turning dark, burning with black flame, but it still wasn't enough.

Not even the Videntis were spared.

Thrain's darkness writhed uselessly against the assault of the dense umbralis.

Even Victoria, with her strong psychic powers, was rendered helpless.

The masked figure descended to the ground and nonchalantly walked to the rift.

He thrust his hand into the rift, channeling his umbralis into it.

The scenery within changed, turning dark and sinister.

" Yes," he said in a voice devoid of any kind of emotion.

" This should make things much more interesting."

He turned his gaze to the aspirants, and they began to move, entering the rift.

Morgan found his body moving against his will.

" What the hell? What's going on?"

One by one, they entered and disappeared into the rift.

The maestros struggled powerlessly against the mental attack.

The man turned his gaze to the talented and then laughed.

" Oh, let's try that as well."

The talented began to move as well.

Cassius moved at the front in a trance, his eyes unfocused and hazy.

Amanda Gardner followed behind him, then Emily and Samantha.

Gregory screamed inwardly.

His entire body was wreathed in black flames.

The masked figure turned to him, a hint of amusement flickering through his glowing eyes.

" Interesting, he told me about you, but you're still too weak."

Some of the kids began to convulse uncontrollably, bleeding from their eyes and nostrils.

Their bodies rejected the flow of umbralis, rejecting the very concept of Tenebris.

"Ah, a pity," The man said.

" Sadly, there's no place in this world for those who are not willing to adapt."

They fell to the ground, bleeding and convulsing violently.

" Isn't it ironic, the most powerful assassins and Talented are gathered in one place, but you're all powerless to stop me?"

A dark rift opened, sundering the space.

A gray-haired man walked out, tapping a cane on the ground.

His eyes turned completely black.

" I'm afraid that's where you're wrong. Not everyone is here."

In the next moment, he materialized in front of the masked figure and then punched him.

A harrowing wave of force ripped through the surrounding trees, devastating the forest.

The masked figure flew through the trees, snapping a few pines in half before skidding to a stop.

" Bloody hell." The man snarled.

" That's quite the entrance."

Marcus smiled pleasantly, the darkness in his eyes swirling.

" I aim to please."

He nonchalantly turned to Damien.

" You seem to be in a bit of a fix."

Damien stared at him silently, unable to speak.

" What's wrong, cat got your tongue?"

The masked figure laughed, slowly rising into the air.

" I'm afraid they're all under the effect of my awakened ability. They're indisposed at the moment. But I must say you're quite strong; my ability hardly affects you."

Marcus smirked.

" Cheap parlor tricks won't work on me. And since they're all under the influence of your ability, if I beat the living lights out of you, they should all return to normal. Is that about right?"

The masked figure laughed once more.

" That's quite the sense of humour you've got, but unfortunately for you, fortunately for me, my objective here is finished. He got what he wanted."

" Who are you talking about?"

" Oh, you know who I'm talking about. And in fact, you'll be meeting him very soon. Sooner than you think. Until then, farewell."

The masked figure vanished, and everyone regained control of their bodies.

Luke rushed towards the dimensional rift, but it suddenly contracted in on itself and closed.

His attempts to reopen it were met with failure.

When it finally opened again, it was in a different location.

Marcus looked around.

" What the hell happened to you lot? Aren't you all supposed to be the strongest individuals in your families? What the hell?

The Black Forest looked like an earthquake had swept through it.

Just then, Lucas arrived.

His right arm was missing.

Cedric rushed to him.

" Dad,"

Lucas frowned, looking around.

" Where's Lucian?"

Cedric ground his teeth in frustration.

"He's gone. That bastard took my son away, and I was powerless to stop him."