Reflections on the Dįvonësë War: The Dįvįnë Will Bear Witness to Fate

Chapter 3 - The Sound of Death

42nd Day of Ope in the Third Month of Snow's Fall
4372 A.G.G. (261 Years Ago)

The Municipality of Bastion, The Deep Cities
The Continent of Hesijua

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Samahdemn

The old Knight's movements were so fast that I barely had time to register what he was doing. He deftly dropped the flower and reached for his holster with his gun arm. The revolver which was sheathed there was out in a flash and raised. There was a loud clap and a muzzle flash and had I been one of the untrained masses, that would have been the moment I'd died. That would have been the story of me....but I was far from untrained. We all were. And my Amalgamate had already worked out the probabilities; calculated the most likely trajectories and speed of the bullet, and had given me alternatives that would allow me confident movement despite my injured side.

The weapon was being aimed slightly off center and it would most likely have been a shoulder shot had I allowed it to be. Whether it was due to his glaucoma or his standing position was unclear, but he wasn't properly aiming center mass. Regardless, I'd already begun to shift my body to the side to maneuver around the projectile and I simultaneously attempted to lunge forward in an attempt to close distance by throwing myself into an airborne spin. Twisting my hips, it was my intention to bring my leg down on his head like a hammer. Instead, I felt my leg impact his blocking forearm. And as soon as my feet touched the earth, I spun low as I attempted a high roundhouse to his head followed by a butterfly kick-like somersault; both of which failed to make any meaningful contact as he dodged me effortlessly. Continuing to flow with the acrobatic twisting of this deadly dance, I swung my sword almost blindly and to my dismay, the old man avoided that as well. I, however, continued to allow my momentum to spin me around one final time. As I did, I triggered my glaive mid spin and the entire length of my blade exploded in smoky white light. The force of it propelled me through the technique with excessive speed and power and I came around to cleave the elderly fighter much more quickly, only to have my cross slice intercepted by the old man's armoured arm; only serving to disrupt his grounded stance ever so slightly despite the force of the impact.

A solid forward kick to my chest ended my bladed ballet and sent me reeling backwards. There was a strength in the old man that beguiled his apparent age.

I heard the explosive sound of several glaive triggers I quickly raised my blade in an almost wild defense. Luckily my blind block paid off and the tint of blue-ish coloured superheated plasma spewed forth by the old man's blade splashed off of my guard.

My first instinct was to pull my revolver and return fire, but I fought the urge. I knew that his training would've likewise already put him in a position to move aside. Besides, I didn't want to drop the weave of heka I was struggling to hold onto in favor of drawing down on him. So I stayed my hand, and prepped myself to counter the next incoming attack.

But it didn't come.

Sure enough, he was prepped for a dodge and another shot. If I'd followed my first mind and pulled my sidearm, it may have very well cost me my life. Looking beyond my blade, I spied the old man in a bladed stance with his glaive extended forward from his body along his sword arm pointing at me like a gun; smoke pouring lightly out of its heated barrel. His off-hand was crossed in front of his chest; his pistol held tightly and pointed in my direction.

The sound of charging energy cut through the sounds of silence around us. Within moments, plasma shot forth from the accelerators within his handguard and coated his blade like electric water. The blue energies dancing calmly across the metal without the lightning show mine produced were a mirror of the elderly Knight's calmness. This was in stark contradiction with his scowling face.