The Keys to Ascension

by Dilland Doe

As Theto deflected the stronger attacks, their impact shocked through him. He looked for an opening, but just saw deadly metal striking toward him.

  Then, Perlio lifted his right sword too far above him. Theto knocked away the other blade which came at his side, then lunged toward the opening, seeing blood. Perlio sidestepped the stab and came down on Theto’s unprotected shoulder. Proteen’s power rushed through Theto as he instinctively threw up the shield. The sword barely dinked off it because Perlio saw the move and pulled his sword to begin a new flurry of strikes.

  Theto flashed around. He parried some, dodged a few, and threw up the shield a few more times as he backpedaled away from his friend’s furious assault.

  While the storm of Perlio’s swords raged toward Theto, Perlio opened his mouth. The massive blast of sound rocked Theto’s ears. It hurt like The Divinity’s wrath, but Theto expected the sound blast and maintained his focus, blocking and dodging incoming blades.

  The fight went on and on. Both boys slowed as sweat ran down their faces and drenched their shirts. Theto wondered if his ears would ever recover from the repeated sound blasts his opponent shot his way. He looked for openings to attack, but could never get off defense. His few attacks just left him vulnerable and only his magic shield saved him. He knew he had to use Yepiera. Illusions could change the battle, but he didn’t want to risk distracting himself. If he could just survive, keep avoiding the torrent of blades, then maybe his opponent would screw up; maybe there’d be a way to win. He saw the exhaustion in his friend’s face. But, Theto felt it in his aching muscles and burning lungs.

  The Master’s voice pierced his ears. “Enough. Lower your weapons.”

  Theto stood, bringing his swords to his waist as he turned his eyes toward The Master. Perlio lunged forward. Theto threw up the shield, but the sword already slammed into Theto. The Master’s barrier shattered.

  Anger exploded in Theto’s mind as he saw The Master staring at them and Perlio smiling in victory. “The Master said stop!”

  From the other side of the gym, Theto’s own voice said, “Oh, did he?”

  What!? Theto double-took the direction of his own voice. No one stood over there. “The Master?” He looked at their instructor, then back at Perlio.

  Realization came over Theto. Perlio’s sound tricks were more varied than Theto knew. “That’s cheating!”

  Perlio laughed, sending a surge of fury through Theto as he clenched his fists around the pommels of his swords.

  The Master smirked. “You must be ready for anything in battle. Now sit. Twenty-One and Twenty-Two, prepare to fight.”

  Theto refused to look at his friend, but the Master’s words made sense. In war, an opponent may try anything. Theto should not have dropped his guard so easily.

  #

  Theto let loose a long sigh of relief as he finally slowed to a walk. He wanted to collapse to the ground, but didn’t, knowing that noon grub was inside. He glanced behind him. A pack of larger guys still jogged. Most of the students dragged themselves into the temple ahead of him.

  His fanny pack vibrated. Theto unzipped it and a little gerbil head poked out. He pet it as he went inside.

  Proteen spoke, “Man…You know you can make them barriers not just right in front of you, right?”

  Theto jerked his head back. “Hey! You spoke to me! Your shields are a Divinity-send.”

  Staring down at the gerbil, Theto scratched his head. He stepped into a corner away from the other students. Proteen didn’t respond.

  “How do I project the barriers?” Theto asked, “That could be useful.”

  He stared at the gerbil as it turned its head and vibrated its nose in little sniffs. Theto scratched its furry scalp. I guess that’s all he had to say.

  #

  The next week, Theto and Perlio faced each other again. A few days earlier, Theto had defeated a twenty-nine again and Perlio failed against the same twenty-six.

  The master crossed his arms. “Go.”

  Theto charged. Perlio started moving his blades to hit his incoming target when Theto threw up Proteen’s shield right in front of Perlio’s weapons. The swords dinked off the shield as Perlio’s eyes opened wide. Theto dropped the shield and attacked. He tried to knock away his opponent’s sword on Theto’s right while simultaneously stabbing a killing blow with his left blade. Somehow, Perlio avoided the sword aimed at his blade, used that weapon to deflect Theto’s attack, then maneuvered his other sword to point toward Theto’s charging body. Theto jumped out of the way and spun to face his opponent.

  Perlio attacked, but Theto threw up another extended shield, stopping the assault before it began. Theto countered, but somehow Perlio’s swordsmanship got the best of Theto again.

  Theto tried this tactic several times. He failed to even come close to hitting Perlio. However, for the first time since Perlio recovered from injury, Theto was on the offensive.

  He forced Perlio to hit another shield before dropping it and striking, but at the same time, Theto threw in an extra surprise. He called on the power of Yepiera, creating an illusion making himself look like Perlio. Perlio’s mouth dropped as he saw an image of himself striking forward. He somehow still parried Theto’s strikes, but Theto kept coming.

  Theto had him on his heels and struggling to block as Perlio examined his own face; his own eyes that stared determined to defeat him. Theto knocked a sword to the side. Then threw up a shield when Perlio tried to bring it back to his defense. Theto sliced toward his friend’s gut. Again, Perlio found a way to deflect the attack.

  How is his sword always in the right place!?

  Theto kept his furry focused on a never-ending attack. He wouldn’t let his friend recover. Eventually, Perlio would make a mistake and Theto would have him.

  While blocking attack after attack, Perlio opened his mouth, releasing the massive high-pitched siren. It felt like someone stabbed Theto’s ears, but he was ready for it and gritted through the pain. As Perlio parried more strikes, the siren kept blasting.

  The transparent shields put on the students by the Master vibrated. They vibrated faster and faster. Theto ignored it and continued his flurry of stabs and slices, throwing in a few barriers to mess up his opponent’s movement. But then, both shields shattered. The barely visible shields scattered off both their bodies.

  “Halt.” The master said.

  Both boys did so, breathing heavily. Theto looked around. “What does this mean?”

  Perlio laughed. “Better luck next time.” He chuckled again, looking like a jerk.

  “What!?”

  The Master said, “Both shields broke at the same time, the fight is a tie.”

  Theto put both his hands in front of himself, shaking his swords. “But he didn’t make a killing blow. He just found a way to destroy the shields with sound. That’s cheating!”

  The Mastered looked at Theto with a straight face. “A great warrior monk remains calm before and after battle. It isn’t currently against the rules, so it’s allowed and the fight is a draw. Return to the lines.” He swiveled his head toward the other students. “Nineteen and eighteen. Prepare to fight.”

  Theto glared at his smiling friend, muttering curses under his breath. He needed to win. He finally had him and he cheated. That rat! He won’t even fight fairly.

  Perlio whispered, “Calm down. There’s no cheating in war.”

  Theto shook his head and growled.

  Ch. 46

  Theto sat, watching Perlio face Twenty-Six who had defeated him countless times before. Twenty-Six stood much taller and thicker than Perlio, with long brown hair and a thick beard. He held a diamond-shaped wooden shield and a large axe. As in previous fights, right at “Go”, Twenty-Six used his high being.

  Perlio moved slow, like he was just casually going through the motions; like he was practicing his form by himself. But, Twenty-Six’s high being had the power to sap one’s speed, and Perlio had no counter to this.

  Twenty-Six charged, bashing Perlio with hi
s shield. Perlio flew to the ground. Twenty-Six followed with a downswing of his axe. Perlio started to roll away, but too slowly. The axe shattered his shield.

  Theto laughed out loud. A sadistic pleasure burned in him as he saw his cheating friend lay defeated yet again, facing the same frustration he had experienced losing the same fight over and over.

  Perlio ignored him as he jogged back to the line.

  #

  Theto produced three illusions of warriors charging his opponents from the side. Squad matches didn’t carry rankings like the individual bouts, but no one ever wanted to lose. In five against five battles, each team had to develop tactics to overcome the others.

  No one had seen Theto create illusions independent of himself before. He had practiced with Hibb. Three of the opposing squad turned to fight the illusions, then Theto’s team attacked. Perlio fought on Theto’s right. Swords hung from the belts of two of the opponents while they wielded spears. They both jabbed at Perlio who easily deflected the first one. It was Theto’s job to block the other, so Perlio could go for the kill. Theto watched as the spear went unblocked into Perlio, shattering his magic shield and knocking him out of the fight.

  Theto charged forward and defeated both opponents before they could prepare for his onslaught. His other teammates defeated the adversaries distracted by the illusions. They won, but Perlio was “killed”. Theto eyed Perlio while smirking and blowing air out his mouth.

  #

  Running, Theto smiled. His body screamed at him to walk, yet, he had energy. Running got easier and easier. Through hard work and determination, he could keep up with the center of the pack.

  Perlio jogged up next to him. “Hey, man. You’re taking it too far. I forced a draw fair and square. You’re acting like a petulant child. Stop. We’re training to be freaking monks, man. We can’t act like this.”

  Theto stared straight ahead as he jogged.

  Perlio shook his head. “What? Were you a noble or something?”

  Theto didn’t respond.

  “Oh, The Divinity. You were. Well, you’re just another novice here. You don’t get everything you want you spoiled brat.”

  #

  Hibb approached the door of his house, pulling a key from a pocket. Man. Found my house again! No more getting lost at night for me! He was settling quite nicely into his new life in Blastonin. He’d never been able to study magic in the open before and to talk about it with so many colleagues. Work here is pretty amazing.

  Stepping inside, part of him expected to see his gorgeous secretary greeting him like she normally did, but he knew she had a friends-night. He set his backpack on the floor and sat in a comfy chair, relaxation soothing his mind. I’m so close to a breakthrough. He thought he’d get there today, but then things didn’t work as planned…

  Steps ran toward his front door. Hibb growled, casting invisibility. The door slammed open. Theto pounded in, clenching both his fists. He turned his red face left and right. “Uncle!”

  Hibb let go of the magic. “Nephew, what’s wrong?”

  “Perlio! That dung beetle is ruining everything! He cheats to win. I can’t advance with him in the way.”

  Hibb wanted his nephew to talk to him, but he didn’t want to give into his crabbiness either. It wasn’t like him to act like this. Frustration must have gotten to him.

  Before Hibb could think of a diplomatic thing to say, Theto continued as he paced back and forth. “It’s unfair! He can’t just destroy both our shields with sound to end the fight. How does The Master allow that? Are they in collusion?”

  Hibb chuckled. “C’mon Theto. Listen to yourself. Perlio…this is the boy teaching you swordsmanship, right?”

  “Maybe he’s jealous. I’ve almost caught up with him already. He liked being my superior and can’t handle my rise.”

  Hibb lifted a hand near his face. “Uuuuuh, nooo.”

  Theto stomped a foot, vibrating the house. “It’s true! Everyone’s always been after me. Perlio and The Master connive to keep me down. The inquisition wants me dead for magic I didn’t use. And someone betrayed our family. Who in The Divinity’s name betrayed us? Who turned in my dad? If I ever find out who ratted on my father, I’ll kill him in an instant!”

  Guilt fogged over Hibb as a frown forced itself onto his face. “I did it.”

  Theto froze, staring at his uncle; mouth and eyes gaping open.

  Why did I just say that? Probably bad timing. He’s unreasonably angry right now, but I can’t hold this in any longer!

  Throwing his hands to the side, Theto said, “What!?”

  Hibb fought back tears. “I was a fool. There’s no excuse for it. The count and some dark wizard friend bribed and convinced me. I was wrong.”

  A wet exhale came from Theto’s mouth. He breathed in as he looked to the side. “Uncle, I knew you were a fool, but this!?” He snapped his head back toward Hibb.

  Hibb opened his mouth to speak.

  “You ruined my life!” Theto yelled. “You’re the traitor to my brothers and my father. I want you dead, uncle!”

  Hibb stood. “Strike me if you must, boy.”

  Theto puffed himself up as his face contorted with rage.

  He still gets all red when he’s angry. Ha. This will be a good test of his control.

  Theto reached into his pocket and pulled out a long knife.

  I didn’t know he had that. “Does killing me serve the good of all?”

  Theto sneered. “Yes.” He rammed the knife into Hibb’s chest.

  Dingle berries.

  Theto’s face of rage left him as he stared at his hand entering and exiting the shimmering image of Hibb, who had snuck into the corner with invisibility while leaving an illusion in his stead. The boy really needs to pay more attention to his surroundings. Right under his nose… Heh heh. Hibb really wanted to tell Theto how he got away, but didn’t want him to know that Hibb still stood in the same room.

  “Uncle, where are you?”

  “Back at the monastery doing some late-night research.”

  “But I can hear you.”

  “It’s an illusion. You perceive sound, but there is none.”

  Theto’s face opened up like he had a grand realization. “Yes, sound illusion. That’s it.” He slowly turned his head while he appeared to think on his newfound insight. He faced the illusion of his uncle. “We’ll talk later…I’m sorry for striking you. I don’t forgive you, but I shouldn’t have tried to kill you.”

  “Heh, I forgive you for attempted murder.”

  Shaking his head, Theto jogged out of the room.

  #

  Almost a week after his light bulb, Theto stood in front of Perlio, confident in the coming victory. Theto had been nice to his friend over the week, knowing the source of their tension would soon be over. Plus, he needed Perlio to keep teaching him with swords.

  “Go.”

  They fought. As before, Theto made up for Perlio’s superior swordsmanship with his shield, which he not only used defensively, but extended out to interfere with Perlio’s movements. Theto went on the offensive, swinging blade after blade and randomly throwing in the shield so Perlio couldn’t get in rhythm.

  Perlio blasted him with sound, but Theto was ready. Right as his friend used the power, Theto made him perceive the sound being far far louder than it actually was. Perlio cut off the sound early as water welled in his eyes. Hoping the surprise would take him off his game, Theto went all out in a series of lunges and slashes, but Perlio somehow parried every strike.

  The clanging of swords and thudding of shoes on the gym floor went on as the fight raged. Perlio tried to use the sound again, and Theto again used his trick. He feared Perlio would realize the extreme loudness of the sound was simply an illusion, but he seemed to not catch on.

  Theto kept on the attack, flashing every sword trick he knew to try to penetrate his opponent’s defenses. His arms grew sore as his breathing deepened. Perlio still parried like the fight just began.

&nbs
p; My attacks use more energy than his blocks. I have to find a finishing blow!

  Theto gritted in frustration as his attacks, which seemed so perfect to him, were easily blocked. Theto side-stepped a counter jab whose wind blew against his side.

  Perlio tried his sound a third time. Again, it cut off early as Theto blasted his opponent with fake sound. Sweat ran down Theto’s face. He couldn’t keep this up. The illusions had prevented him from losing, but hadn’t given him victory. He used his shield multiple times in a row to frustrate his opponent’s attacks. Theto knew that technique irritated Perlio.

  Illusion can win…

  Theto charged forward, swinging a flurry of blades at his opponent, who parried them all. Then he threw a shield in front of Perlio’s blade, forcing him out of his tempo. Theto focused to create an illusion he never had before. From each of his elbows, he created three new arms, each holding a sword, making it look like his two arms split into eight.

  Perlio backpedaled as he tried to figure out what to do. He released his noise to shatter the shields, but Theto countered with the sound illusion. Theto put all his power into it this time. Perlio yelled in pain. Theto caught up to his opponent, coming down on him with a storm of swords. Perlio blocked three of the illusionary swords, but a real one broke through, slicing across his gut and shattering the shield.

  Finally…Theto had won. Making him Twenty-Seven. He stood with his arms hanging, breathing heavily while sweat trickled down his face. He smiled at his friend, but not with hate.

  Perlio smiled back. “Good job.”

  He’s a better man than me… Guilt dampened Theto’s victory. They shook hands. Perlio was hardly tired. Theto expended so much energy in his attacks; he badly needed to not move.

  “Good.” The Master said, “Twenty-Seven and Twenty-Six, prepare to fight.”