by A F Kay
Through the clone, Ruwen watched Phoenix fly closer, and Ruwen wondered what to do. His location remained hidden at the moment, but once Phoenix ruled out invisibility, he would tear the ground apart. And with Ruwen’s opponent so close, he didn’t like being stuck in the ground. It felt too much like being in a room with one exit.
Ruwen let the clone dissolve and then used Stone essence to wipe away the dirt above him. He immediately used Air essence to throw himself out of the hole, which a moment later, filled with intense fire. He landed on his feet and looked up to see Phoenix, both arms forward, directing flames toward Ruwen.
Using his simple ice spell, Ruwen created a ten by ten block of ice directly in front of Phoenix. The savage heat vaporized the ice and, just as Ruwen had hoped, created an explosion of steam.
The flames stopped as Phoenix’s body, thrown by the blast, struck the top of the Spirit ward, and then fell toward the ground. Ten feet from impact, his body slowed, and instead of hitting the ground, it gently touched it. Phoenix stumbled to his feet and ran toward Ruwen.
Phoenix’s Aspect burned brightly, and the swords had reappeared. As he approached, he didn’t talk, and Ruwen knew the man finally respected him enough to focus completely.
Phoenix screeched to stun Ruwen, but Ruwen had expected it this time, and his mental barrier stopped it. Phoenix followed the stun by raising both swords, preparing to chop downward into Ruwen’s body.
Ruwen turned sideways as he stepped into the attack. Using a move from the merged form he’d named Planting Poppies, he grabbed Phoenix’s left bicep, and as the swords fell, Ruwen pulled downward while lowering his body, using Phoenix’s momentum to guide him forward and off-balance. Once Phoenix’s center of gravity had shifted, Ruwen stood and softly flipped Phoenix onto his back.
Ruwen kept a grip on Phoenix’s bicep and arm even though his hands blistered and smoked from the Aspect’s intense heat. He controlled the left arm and sword, but the right one remained a danger to Ruwen. As he stepped away from the other sword, moving toward safety, he began the final short twist of Phoenix’s arm that would end the Step and dislocate Phoenix’s arm.
Understanding exploded in Ruwen’s mind, causing his mental barrier to shake, and he immediately released his hold on Phoenix and stepped away.
Phoenix’s armor hadn’t triggered to protect his arm because the Bamboo elements of Ruwen’s mixed form had gently shifted the man around, not hurt him, as if Phoenix had tripped on his own and done a somersault.
Ruwen knew Aspects wouldn’t block helpful things like heals, so this behavior of ignoring things that felt natural didn’t surprise him. But when Ruwen had combined the Bamboo and Viper moves to create Planting Poppies, he hadn’t seen the immense danger hidden within it. Literally, like a viper hiding in bamboo.
Because the grip on the bicep covered the Air Meridian and the twist to dislocate the shoulder would also twist the Meridian’s paths, inhibiting the flow of essence. And with the final step, he would have twisted the arm off completely.
Ruwen had discovered a move designed to destroy a Harvester’s Air Meridian.
Phoenix staggered to his feet, shaking his left arm and rubbing his shoulder. The fire that had covered Phoenix’s Aspect had disappeared. Ruwen cast level ten Thriving Branch on himself, and then worried he’d caused damage to Phoenix’s Meridian paths, he cast level twenty Thriving Trunk on the man.
Phoenix gasped in shock and stopped rubbing his shoulder as the heal struck him. It was stupid to heal an opponent, but it had been a guilty reaction to almost crippling the man. Phoenix, without his Air Meridian, wouldn’t be able to create fire or fly. It would devastate him, and Ruwen had almost done it on accident.
Another realization struck Ruwen, and he blushed in embarrassment. Phoenix’s body, even though just Spirit, had advanced to a high gem level. Ruwen’s attack would have likely failed. The gem enhanced paths wouldn’t be vulnerable to his Silver strength. Even so, Phoenix’s Air Meridian was central to his identity, and even a chance of damaging it would be foolish. Ruwen didn’t have any ill will against him.
Flames engulfed Phoenix again, and Ruwen breathed a sigh of relief. He really was an idiot for being thankful his enemy could still fight, but he would never forgive himself if he’d crippled the man.
The Spirit ward pulsed red. Ruwen only needed to survive another minute.
“What did you do?” Phoenix asked.
“I healed you.”
“That’s not what I meant.”
Phoenix looked at his left arm again and then at Ruwen. “Who are you?”
Ruwen couldn’t answer that here. So he decided to stay in character. He stuck his arms out from his sides, like a scarecrow hanging in a field. To his surprise, a staff formed under his arms, making him look like the genuine thing. “I am nameless.”
The flaming swords reappeared in Phoenix’s hands. “Why did you come here?”
Ruwen couldn’t answer that either. Instead, he brought the staff forward, pleased to see it was a bo staff. “I come to protect the harvest.”
“I know you stopped yourself from damaging my Meridian. You’re an honorable man, and I don’t understand why you chose to fight. But I owe it to my Clan to finish this. I am out of time, and you’ve given me no option. I’m sorry.”
Ruwen understood. Phoenix planned to unleash his most powerful attack, likely killing Ruwen.
But nothing had changed for Ruwen. He couldn’t reveal himself as an Axiom, or use his Bamboo Viper Steps, and now he couldn’t use his merged Steps for fear of crippling people. He only had to survive another twenty seconds.
Ruwen knew he likely wouldn’t survive an ultimate attack from a gem-level Cultivator. His Scarecrow Aspect gave him a chance, but he needed to disrupt Phoenix as much as possible. Anything Ruwen could do to lessen the attack might make the difference.
Ruwen cast a level one hundred fear, and Phoenix stumbled. Ruwen thought about his healing experiments and his accidental discovery of Critical Evacuation. The spell gave you the urge to pee, something you couldn’t do here, and the level two spell had forced Ruwen into his mental shield. Feeling a little bad, Ruwen cast level one hundred Critical Evacuation on Phoenix.
Phoenix groaned, but after a moment, he stood up straight.
Willow’s voice echoed in the arena. “Ten seconds!”
“I’m sorry,” Phoenix said again.
Phoenix bowed his head.
Ruwen cast level one hundred Thriving Trunk on himself.
Phoenix ignited, and the air became an inferno. Ruwen fell to his knees, and only the bo staff kept him from being thrown backward. The ground around Ruwen turned to glass, and then melted as the area around Phoenix turned into magma.
Ruwen cast level one hundred Thriving Trunk over and over, as the mental barrier keeping the pain at bay slowly grew smaller. Spirit surged into his Aspect as it struggled to protect him from incineration.
Ruwen could feel his skin melting, as his heals failed to counteract all the damage. And Ruwen knew he only had one option left: Harvesting. But unlike the storm above Stone Harbor, there were people in front of him, and he needed to be careful. If he passed out, as he had at Stone Harbor, he would likely die. If he lost control, like he had with Fractal, he could kill everyone in front of him. And while, with help, he had survived the storm at Stone Harbor, that had been essence, not Spirit.
But if he did nothing, he’d turn into liquid.
Ruwen used the bo staff, which the heat hadn’t affected, to stand. He let go of the weapon, and it disappeared. Raising his arms into the Harvester pose, he made himself into an empty vessel.
Spirit flooded his center, and Ruwen funneled it to his Core. Unlike with Fractal, Ruwen kept control of the flow this time by altering the size of his mental vacuum. He concentrated on the space directly around him, and while the entire area inside the Spirit ward blazed, a bubble formed around Ruwen as he absorbed the Spirit nearest his body.
The amount of Spirit p
ouring out of Phoenix surprised Ruwen, and if he’d tried to absorb it all, he might have failed. But after a couple of seconds, he knew he could manage the area around him. With a little effort, he lowered his arms, stopping the Harvester pose, and only used his mental vacuum to control the flow.
Ruwen cast level one hundred Thriving Trunk on himself to heal the damage to his skin, then had to cast it again as half the heal disappeared to his Harvesting. He placed his arms in the scarecrow pose again, and the bo staff reappeared between them.
Far more than ten seconds passed, and Ruwen knew the duel had finished.
“Phoenix, it’s over,” Ruwen shouted.
Phoenix, deep in his ultimate spell, seemed oblivious to Ruwen. He spun his staff and lightly struck Phoenix on the shoulder. The flames pouring from Phoenix faltered and then stopped. Another ten seconds passed before the fire disappeared from the rest of the stadium.
It took Phoenix a few moments to focus, and when he saw Ruwen, his shoulders slumped. “I’ve failed.”
Ruwen shook his head. “No. You’ve only proved my innocence. Go to the mine and retrieve your friends.”
“How did you survive?”
Ruwen had used everything he’d learned to survive: heals, a fear, a poisoned heal, a Diamond level Aspect, a mental barrier built from embracing death, and his Axiom center that absorbed surges of Harvested Spirit.
Instead of giving all that information away, Ruwen summed up how he felt. “My fate is to suffer, not die.”
Chapter 33
Phoenix nodded. “Suffering is an honorable path.” He paused and then whispered, “Please remove this curse before my mental barriers fail.”
Ruwen winced and cast level one hundred Critical Blockage on Phoenix, removing the man’s terrible urge to pee.
“Sorry about that,” Ruwen said.
Willow appeared beside them, and Ruwen noticed the Spirit ward had disappeared.
“Phoenix, you failed to win,” Willow said.
Phoenix bowed to Ruwen. “The Sky Clan accepts the outcome.”
Ruwen returned the bow.
Willow bowed to both of them, and then slowly turned in a circle as he spoke, his voice booming across the field. “Reaper the Clanless has dueled to a draw Phoenix of the Sky Clan in a fight for the truth. The Sky Clan accepts the outcome, and the Scarecrow is free to travel unhindered among our Clans.”
Ruwen’s group was the only one that clapped. Most of the audience had already turned their attention to Blapy.
Blapy stood. “Sisters and brothers of the true path, it is gratifying to find so many of you risking this realm as you pursue perfection. In your right hand, you will find a coin. When you wish to speak with me, flip it into the air, and I will join you.”
Ruwen looked down at his right hand and found two coins there. Why did he have two?
One of those is probably mine, Rami said.
That makes sense.
Ruwen looked at the coins. One side had a centipede, shaped like an infinity ring and biting its tail. The other side had the symbol from the rule book Blapy had given him: a dragon coiled on itself with its wings forming the sides of the pyramid. At the pinnacle of the pyramid sat a Divine Circle, each Meridian portrayed with its own symbol.
Willow and Phoenix were still staring at their coins, and Ruwen cleared his throat. When neither man looked up, he just asked his question. “Can I leave?”
Willow tore his attention away from the coin and focused on Ruwen. “Yes, let me take you back to your tent for now. We can figure out the rest once,” Willow stared down at his coin again, “once we have attended to other matters.”
Ruwen nodded at Phoenix, but the man remained transfixed on the coin. Everyone here really took these coins seriously. Most of the audience were on their way out, and they seemed in a hurry to leave, probably wanting to get back to their tent and summon Blapy.
Willow and Ruwen walked back toward his group. “What happens during an audience with —,” Ruwen almost said Blapy but caught himself. “With The Companion?”
“Just speaking with her is a blessing few can claim. Her wisdom and insight are treasures.”
Ruwen’s experience with Blapy had skewed more toward pain, bloodshed, and twisted humor. But he couldn’t deny Blapy’s power, and he didn’t want to ruin Willow’s impression of Blapy with his own experience. The centipedes alone were enough to give normal people pause.
Blapy, Madda, and Padda had already left, and the rest of the Black Pyramid Harvesters were leaving as well. Ruwen felt a little disappointed that he hadn’t gotten a chance to talk to the Addas, and he wondered how Sift felt.
When he reached the group Hamma hugged him, everyone else offered congratulations, and Sift shook his head.
“What?” Ruwen asked as they followed Willow up the stairs.
Sift counted off on his fingers. “You buried yourself, ran around for ten minutes, and sucker-punched the fire guy.”
“I know,” Ruwen said. “I don’t feel good about it either.”
“But you survived,” Sift added. “Which I didn’t expect after that first inferno.”
Lylan spoke up. “Shade’s first rule: honor is a poison the weak can’t survive.”
Sift nodded. “That is true. Finding a balance is hard.”
Lylan continued. “There is nothing to find. The fire guy should have guarded his back, running out the clock was smart, and the burying was clever.” Lylan looked at Sift. “Speaking of honor in general, and especially in a fight so mismatched, is like the blind complaining it’s dark. It makes no sense.”
Sift remained quiet.
Lylan rarely spoke, and her comment to Sift had probably been the most she’d ever said in front of Ruwen. He still didn’t know her well, but her advice always centered on practical if maybe a little hard.
Lylan placed a hand on Sift’s shoulder. “Not everything can be dodged, and your Steps will not always be enough. Honor is not a shield that will save you, and I don’t want to lose you again.”
Sift put his arm around Lylan. “You’re right.” He looked at Ruwen. “I forgot how defenseless and weak our Reaper is.”
Ruwen frowned. “Well, defenseless might overstate it a–”
“He is like a tiny centipede,” Sift continued, “Crushed under the foot of a mighty gem warrior.”
Ruwen pointed at Sift. “Crushed isn’t exactly right, and why do I have to be a centipede?”
Lylan shrugged off Sift’s arm. “You two are impossible.”
“I agree,” Hamma said.
The two women sped up to walk behind Willow.
“She’s right, though,” Sift said. “It was a duel, and he far outmatched you. I fear life outside the pyramid isn’t as simple as I thought it would be.” They walked in silence for a few steps, and then Sift held out his hand. “Io and I want you to have these.”
Ruwen held out his hand, and Sift dropped two coins into Ruwen’s hand.
“We see Blapy all the time, and she’ll just scold us if given a chance. Better to let someone more deserving take that punishment.”
“What happened to honor?” Ruwen asked.
“I’m a quick learner.”
Ruwen shook his head. “Did you see your parents?”
“Yes. Blapy brought quite the group. I was hoping to talk to them before they left. To let them know I’m okay, but I had this stupid bird thing on.”
“Maybe you should keep a coin. Flip it, and when Blapy comes, maybe she’ll bring your parents. Or you could have her deliver a message.”
Sift waved his hands. “No way. All three of them at once? I do not want to take that chance. As much as Blapy tries to kill me, she’s as overprotective as my parents sometimes. How much advice can one man handle?”
They had reached the tent from earlier, and Willow turned to them. “You are welcome to stay as long as you wish. Use this tent as a meeting hall. Behind here, ten individual tents are available should you need them. I will return later to check on
you.”
Willow left, and the group entered the tent. Ruwen and Sift were last, and they found everyone bunched up at the entrance. A moment later, he heard a familiar voice.
“Hey, Sifty,” Blapy said. “Hi Lylan, did you like my ring?” Blapy stepped over to Hamma. “Hello Sister, I’m glad dumb and dumber have kept you alive. They’re still talking about your wedding.”
Standing in the center of the room, Padda and Madda stood silently in their Aspect armor. Ruwen’s heart beat faster, and he dropped into a level one meditation so he could feed his anxiety to his Core.
Sift took a step backward, as if he meant to run, and bumped into Ruwen.
Blapy smiled up at everyone, the effect ruined by her centipede helmet’s pincers. “I’m looking forward to speaking with each one of you. But I’d like to start with Sift and Ruwen. Would it be okay if we borrowed them for a bit?”
Juva and Slib immediately stepped out of the tent, followed closely by the four Champions. Blapy hugged Hamma and Lylan, and both women smiled as they left.
“I never get a hug,” Sift whispered.
Blapy waved her arm. “Come in. We don’t bite.”
Ruwen looked at the sharp pincers that closed over Blapy’s face and then at the hooded cobra of Madda, and the fangs covering her face.
Ruwen forced himself to take two steps forward.
A table and chairs materialized behind Padda and Madda, and they took off their helmets and placed them on the table. Their faces looked like dense smoke, but they were still recognizable. They strode over to Sift and hugged him. Then they hugged Ruwen.
Madda spoke first. “How did you get your physical bodies here?”
Sift took off his helmet and set it on the table. “The short answer is Naktos sent us here. The long answer is a rescue mission.”