"Where are you?" Kadmiel screamed throwing a pillar like it was weightless.
"Eve, stay hid?" Sai replied.
I shook my head her power was unreal. The ground cracked under her feet with every step that she took. Her hair had grown substantially since her power spike. It was too soon to say if Eve was outmatched or not but judging by Kadmiel's faith energy and her experience it was apparent that Eve had an uphill battle at the least.
"Thanks for the genius idea," Eve replied peaking around one of the pillars. "What's your next string of advice block the next time she throws a punch?"
"Don't tell me you're hiding after all your big talk and boasting?" Kadmiel replied stomping and surveying the layout.
Oddly there wasn't a spike in Eve's biorhythm. She was suspiciously calm although she played a dishelmed demeanor to Sai. I knew better because of the extra touch sensory trait I had developed after copying it from Eve. She was like a rock in the midst of all the chaos around her.
"Please tell me you have a plan?" Sai shot.
"Yeah," Eve sighed pulling her pistols from their holsters.
BANG! BANG! PING! PING! Eve fired shots as Kadmiel swatted the deadly bullets like flies.
"Hopefully that wasn't it," Sai added placing her hand on her forehead in a worried manner.
UGH! Eve let out. Before she could Kadmiel appeared blocking her way with a devious smirk.
"Hi, sweetheart, I told you I'd catch you," she replied
"Yeah, well, seeing is believing?" Eve shot back with a regret-filled playful smile.
WHAM!
"Eve!" Sai let out.
KABOOM! SMASH! BOOM! Kadmiel swatted her with a blow that sent her flying like a bullet through about three or four pillars. She flipped wildly before slamming against the stadium wall and collapsing in a heap on the ground.
"Eve, Are you okay?" I added.
"What?!" Eve let out exhaling in a pain-filled groan. "I just got smacked through about four walls before hitting a stone barrier. Other than that I'm just peachy, how do you think I'm doing, Tim?"
UGH! Eve spit blood and wipe the remaining blood from her mouth.
"Well, I never thought this would be easy," Eve replied struggling to her feet.
WHAM! EXPLODE! Eve narrowly dodged as Kadmiel went for a knockout blow obliterating the wall directly behind her.
POW! POW! BANG! BANG! Eve let out shots that ricocheted off Kadmiel's armor.
"GRRR!" Kadmiel let out shooting towards Eve.
"Eve, watch out!" Sai exclaimed.
It was too late before she could move Kadmiel was restricting her passage. She grabbed Eve at the wrist holding her up by her arms like she was a baby.
UGH! SWIFT! Eve sent a knee into her throat causing her to let go before light stepping to the other side of the arena.
"Eve!" I exclaimed seeing Kadmiel's path immediately.
SWIFT! BAM! BOOM! Before Eve could prepare for the blow Kadmiel had struck with a shoulder block that sent her skipping like a stone in a pond. She pinged off the ground then hard into a nearby wall.
OUCH! Eve let out writhing in pain as she rolled over to a crawl.
"Eve, move hurry," Sai replied.
Kadmiel stalked her in a mocking tone as she crawled trying to regain her bearings.
"Is it too late to admit I was wrong?" Eve continued coughing up blood once again.
Kadmiel grabbed her and slammed her into a nearby wall.
BANG! BANG! PING! PING! Eve fired at point blank range as Kadmiel moved her head from side to side dodging each shot.
"Give me this?" Kadmiel replied snatching her pistols and tossing them to the side.
"Element Alpha, Light Command, Solar Dance," Eve light out.
POP! POP! POP! Eve let out a firecracker like light display in point blank range of Kadmiel's face in a last ditch effort to get away. Kadmiel recoiled from the explosion dropping Eve in the process.
"Great Job, Eve, now get some distance," Sai urged her.
But Eve was stunted she landed on her knees but that was all she could managed as Kadmiel more angry than ever grunted as her hair grew longer and her power exploded to even higher level.
"Still got some fight in you, huh," she replied walking over to Eve.
HEAVE! BLAP! BOOM! She grabbed Eve by her armored shirt and tossed her. She crashed into a nearby pillar then flopped awkwardly into the other side of the arena wall.
"Eve," Sai replied visibly angry.
AWWW! Eve grunted rubbing her back before flipping over and resting helplessly.
"Eve, you have got to get up and get some distance," I ordered panicking as she lay writhing in pain.
SWIFT! BOOM! Kadmiel leaped into the air landing hard on the ground inches away from her.
"This all could have been easy," she mocked cracking her knuckles. "I didn't want to put someone else in the hospital but you guys just had to push me."
WHAM! AWWW! She punted Eve like a rag doll as Eve let out a blood curdling grunt. She bounced across the sand before rolling into a heap about a hundred yards away.
Eve lay exhaling holding her arm before fighting to her feet.
"Awe, did I hurt your wittle arm?" Kadmiel replied chuckling to herself.
"I'm going to hurt you for that?" Eve replied cradling her visibly broken arm.
"You're still talking?" Kadmiel replied exasperated. "I've beaten the tar out of you and you're still talking."
"Why..."
BOOM! She leveled Eve with a punch that nearly took her head off.
"Don't..."
WHAM! She hit her with another.
"You..."
BOOM! She continued with another.
"Just..."
WHAM! She fired again as Eve's head flew from right to left with every blow.
"Shut your mouth," She finally finished as Eve collapsed face first.
She grinned as she stood over Eve confidently.
"I told you I was going to put you in a matching hospital bed with you sister, didn't I," Kadmiel continued picking her up by her hair as Eve writhed in pain.
SWIFT! AWWWW! We watched in disbelief as Eve snatched a handful of hair in a blaze of speed that was beyond even Kadmiel's. Kadmiel dropped to one knee in pain grabbing at Eve feebly as she shot past her.
"Oh, yeah, I forgot about you saying that," Eve replied tossing the hair in the air like confetti.
"Eve," Sai replied in awe. "How did you do that?"
Kadmiel stared at Eve with a demeanor that seemed to beg the same question. Eve tossed her hair back exposing her face. It was spotless, not a mark on it. After the beating she had just taken it was an amazing sight that sparked cheers from the crowd that was deafening.
"Let's just say I wasn't Mrs. Goodwin's favorite for nothing," Eve replied standing in a rejuvenated stance. "I played Dorothy two years in a row. You don't do that without learning a few tricks about acting."
Sai shook her head with a chuckle. I had spent most of our drama days sleep in the crowd but I would awake occasionally to take a rare chance to stare at Eve without suspicion. I soaked it up, maybe to the extent that I missed the point of the play to begin with so it wasn't surprising that I didn't get Eve's reference right away.
"Bull," Kadmiel fired infuriated. "There no way you could have taken my blows at tier 3. There is no way. I've decapitated A-Class rogues with those blows."
Eve chuckled.
"See, there is something about us twins that you may or may not know," Eve continued catching our attention. "We're alike in more ways than you know."
Kadmiel's fist clinched as she stared at Eve like she wanted to tear her apart.
"Yeah, right, you and that flake are nothing alike," Kadmiel continued.
"That's my sister!" Eve replied showing an anger that exploded for the first time.
Kadmiel cut her eyes realizing she had finally cut into the sarcastic demeanor Eve had been showcasing from the beginning of the fight. Eve calmed herself showcasing a fake smile.
"And we are alike. I may not be into books and computers...or maybe I am...or I used to be...regardless, we share the same traits. The only difference is my sister while smart is nowhere near as cunning or shrewd as I am. In retrospect I am as smart as my sister but nowhere near as nice."
"Yeah, right," Kadmiel replied showing a slight bit of concern in her voice. "You're bluffing."
Eve smiled in a mocking manner.
"Am I?" Eve replied running her hands over her face showcasing its flawless condition. "Every step you've taken, every move you've made, I have been one step ahead of. Every advantage you thought you were gaining was putting you exactly where I needed you to be. You idiot."
Kadmiel had a response to Eve's words that sparked a physical reaction that put me on edge.
"What did you say to me?" Kadmiel replied snarling.
Eve clinched her fist staring at Kadmiel with a flinching glare.
"Don't worry about what I said, that doesn't matter," Eve replied angrily. "Hear what I'm saying. I'm going to beat the crap out of you for what you did to my sister."
"Eve stop it!" Sai replied. "You said this wasn't about that."
"No, I said I challenged her because I thought I could beat her," Eve replied.
"No, you said this wasn't about your sister," I fired. "Eve, you lied to us and you lied to the council. You're going to forfeit the match."
Eve exploded with power until it looked like her body was covered in an inferno like fire. I said earlier that I had no idea how powerful she was, but this, this was on a whole new level. I thought back to our training and Jade's words after Eve revealed that she was able to tap into her abilities in the physical world. He wasn't kidding when he said that she had to be exceptionally powerful but I never expected this. I could actually feel her power and it was extraordinary.
"I didn't lie, this isn't about my sister," she replied as the flames began to change exploding into a blue-ish orange blend. "It's about me!"
"How is she doing that?" I asked staring in awe.
"It's her sound elements. It amplifies her other abilities," Sai replied.
Kadmiel laughed at the sight.
"Do you really think this is what Beth would have wanted?" Sai continued trying to talk sense into her.
"Right now, I really don't care," she replied emotionless. "It was my job to protect her. I should have done something but I didn't. I let her get beat half to death."
"Yep, and the same is about to happen to you," Kadmiel replied pulling out her sword.
I rolled my eyes in frustration as the situation erupted.
"Is it," Eve replied.
Before we blinked she had regained her pistols. Kadmiel stared at her and chuckled arrogantly.
"You are fast," She mocked with a laugh. "But that won't be a problem once I go to tier 4."
Eve powered up even higher.
"What makes you think I'll give you the chance to," Eve shot.
SWIFT! SLICE! AWWW! Eve shot slicing another piece of Kadmiel's hair dropping her to her knees.
"You little pest," Kadmiel replied grabbing her hair.
"What's going on?" I asked oblivious to what was happening. "Why is Eve targeting her hair?"
"It's her Achilles heel," Sai replied.
"Her what?" I replied.
"Have you ever heard the story of Achilles, the demi-god," Sai replied before answering her own question by staring at the dense look on my face. "Don't answer that...He was a demi-god who had a weak spot on his heel. It's where we get the term Achilles heel or the member the Achilles tendon. Like Achilles us Doms have a weak spot that is vulnerable to attack. It's a fail-safe in case we ever rebel or turn."
"So you're saying Kadmiel's hair is her weak spot," I deducted. "But I thought you guys guarded that secret. How did Eve find it?"
Sai shrugged apologetically.
"I don't know I wasn't here," Sai replied. "I didn't see the last fight."
"It was big mouth over here," Eve broke in. "Her big fat mouth. She let it leak that she was Nazarene or Nazirite. You know like Samson."
Kadmiel's jaw clinched at the sound of Eve's words.
"I saw an interview you did a couple of days ago in which you took pride in your Nazirite heritage. It sounded familiar to me so I went and looked it up and the story of Samson stuck out to me. You know the hot head whose power was linked to his hair. Sound like somone you know. Judges 13:7 'You will become pregnant and give birth to a son. You must not drink wine or any other alcoholic drink nor eat any forbidden food. For your son will be dedicated to God as a Nazirite from the moment of his birth until the day of his death.' From that point on I knew it was linked. I went back and looked at your battle with my sister and I noticed that every time you went to another level the length of your hair grew. You were pegged from that moment on. The beginning of the match was a ploy. I took a snippet of your hair to see if it actually weakened you and my assumptions were confirmed. From that point on I pushed you so that you could keep feeding yourself power thus making your hair longer and an easier target. Like I said before, every step you took, and every move you made put you precisely where I wanted you to be."
"That's impossible, my hair is fortified solid gold light energy the only thing that could pierce it was condensed light energy or a lightning bolt," She said fuming.
Eve smiled deviously.
"Oh, that," she replied mockingly surveying her pistols. "You remember that whole wine thing from the passage, well, these pistols happened to be dipped then crystallized in the Heaven Realms most expensive brand. Not that the price matters or anything but I'm a girl who tends to look for the best."
Kadmiel fumed as she stared her down.
"You little Earthborn scum," she replied dashing at her.
DODGE! SLICE! WHAM! Eve sidestepped her like it was child's play ducking under her outstretched blow and slicing her hair as she countered with a shoulder blow sending her into a nearby pillar.
"Like I said, every time you think you're getting closer, you're right we're I need you to be...and that's three steps behind me," she replied walking over to her with hair blowing in the wind.
The crowd was no longer cheering. There was a deaf silence as Eve ignored the scene and continued toward Samson.
"I am Kadmiel Bahir, a true Nazarite," she replied. "I will not embarrassed my family by losing to an Earthborn unknown with no extraordinary heritage."
BOOM! SLICE! KABOOM! Kadmiel exploded in power but before anyone could blink Eve was clipping yet another strand of her hair. As Kadmiel dropped to her knees once again Eve finished her off with a roundhouse that almost snapped her in half.
"I don't care," Eve replied.
She crumbled falling to her hands and knees as Eve stood over her with a cold-blooded look in her eyes.
"No one can withstand my blows. How could you do it?" Kadmiel replied fighting to her feet. "There's no way."
"Genius, I'm a sound user," Eve replied glaring at her with an emotionless demeanor that gave me that creeps. "After a couple of lesson with Uriah I learned to control external sounds. Everything in existence has a sound wave. Uriah taught me to control the sounds around me but even he had no idea how well I learned what he taught me. Even the most experienced sound users don't know how to control sound in real time. Most are time or precept virts. They don't have the traits to pull it off. At least not at my level. But even with my heightened touch and reflexes it was a struggle, after a couple days of hard work I could stop a butterflies wings from flapping without disturbing its flight. So controlling an unsuspecting hot head like you was elementary. Your punch gives off a slight sound vibration that I simply used as a buffer, add in some opportune dramatic and physical acting on my part, a little bit of fake blood and it wasn't hard to conceal the fact that none of your blows ever touched me. I just needed you to believe they did. The more powerful you became the denser the sound wave became. You get it, just like you told my sister, you never had a chance."
"Yeah, and I'm going to crush you like I did your sister," Kadmiel replied shooting toward Eve yet again.
WHAM! Eve caught her in mid-flight with a leaping front kick. Kadmiel exploded off of her boot like a soccer ball of a strikers toe.
HORRRRN! A Siren exploded causing everyone in the stadium to groan.
"Man," Sai replied flopping in her seat annoyed.
"What? What's going on?" I replied obilivious.
Sai shook her head.
"The Validity of the Duel has been challenged," she replied.
"What do you mean? Is Eve being kicked out?" I replied.
"No, it's about whether or not the trial will be forfeited," she replied.
"So, is the trial over," I replied.
Judging by Eve's demeanor it wasn't. She exploded in power. A blue orb appeared in front of her as she stood unflinched by the sound of the horn.
"This is for electrocuting my sister to force her to give in," she replied sending an orb toward her.
ZOOM! WHAM! BOOM! The orb hit Kadmiel's lifeless body with shattering impact that sent her flying into a nearby wall.
"Eve stop it's over," Sai replied standing up.
"She wishes," Eve replied powering up for another attack.
SWIFT! ZOOM! BOOM! Eve shot into the air like a missle then plummeted toward Kadmiel landing with pulverizing force. Kadmiel coughed up blood as Eve turned her heel and flicked Kadmiel's lifeless body to the side like gum off the bottom of her shoes.
"Eve, I said stop!" Sai warned as Eve geared up for another attack.
Tears streamed down Eve's eyes as power seemed to surge all around her.
SWIFT! SWIFT! BOOM! As Eve shot in for her next attack Sai exploded through the nearby wall. Before she could strike Sai shot in her path shielding Kadmiel.
"Stop!" Sai replied.
Sai wasn't moving and Eve wasn't stopping. This wasn't good. I stood not knowing what to do.
SWIFT! WHIF! I stood an awe as Sai suddenly shot toward Eve.
BOOM! The paths collided. I had no other choice. I had to react. I didn't have time to think. I shot toward the exploded dust cloud. I paused in my tracks at the scene. When the dust settled Sai stood cradling an emotionally distraught Eve kneeling with her head on her shoulder sobbing.