Disclaimer (Continuity): This chapter heavily references event(s)/character(s) in the collaborative work, All in or Die (AIOD) by u/kraha37. Though both our works can be read independently from each other, the continuity still stands and will be utilized. This disclaimer's purpose is to warn and to clear any confusion of readers that may arise from the referenced event(s)/character(s).
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“Hey, how’s the trip going? You do anything crazy yet?”
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Rose jolts awake.
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Oh, I guess it's morning already. I'm doing fine so far. I'm about to head to the capital of Raske to talk to Lord Therius.
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"Really?! So what exactly are you doing? Did Hiro's notes say something about this, or was it Lord Tyrol's plan?"
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It was more so Mr. Hiro's plan. This is basically what happened…
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Rose fills Vuella in on Hiro's plan and what all happened in Kennis as she packs up a few of her things and gets ready to leave.
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"So how're you getting there? A horse and a cart like last time, or does Lord Tyrol have some kind of magic item or spell to get you to Raske?"
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Funnily enough, neither. This time, I'm walking.
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"WALKING?!"
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Yes, walking, and will you stop thinking at me so loud?!
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"My bad, I didn't think I was shouting."
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Well, you were, and now I have a headache.
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"You're welcome! But seriously, why walk? Wouldn't it be quicker to ride something?"
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Lord Tyrol says it'll help with training. Using ether is the quickest way to get stronger, so repeatedly draining myself should help. He also said that with Hyperspeed, I move faster than a horse drawn cart, so it should also be faster this way as long as I don't take too many breaks.
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"That makes sense. Sort of… Seems like a bit much, but if you’re fine with it, go ahead.”
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“Rose? Have you finished packing yet?" Faust calls out to her.
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"Almost! I'll be out in a minute!" She calls back to him through a crack in her door.
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Gotta go! I’ll speak with you again when I make it to Raske.
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She carries a small suitcase and a satchel packed with a few changes of clothes and survival and navigation items.
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After speaking with Faust briefly, she leaves the palace. On her way out, she admired the palace's technological advancements that Kennis. Automatic doors, 'digital' clocks, horseless carriages, and more, all powered by magic. Magic circles of varying sizes were required to put a magic system into place and have it become automated. This was most prominent in the capital, but even in smaller towns and settlements, magic was still a prevalent energy source.
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.
.
.
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Okay. Lord Tyrol said it should only take me three days to get there. Time to take off.
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On her first day of travel, she sprinted for six hours straight before stopping to rest. Of the few things to take note of, she realized that during hyperspeed, her need for food and sleep is reduced. She had never noticed because she normally used it in short bursts rather than an extended period of time. She was physically fine, but ether reserves had gotten to 20% or so and she wanted to save it for a potential emergency.
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After resting and regaining most of her ether back, she continues her journey. While significantly ahead of schedule, she encounters the massive mountain range on the easternmost border of Raske dubbed the Heights. There were only two passageways through it and climbing them was out of the question.
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On to the mountain pathway I go.
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She walks through the pathway, surprised to see it completely vacant. No evidence of any kind of settlement. Patches of grass dot the otherwise bare passage. She keeps pushing towards Raske’s Capital.
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After another hour of Hyperspeed travel, Rose approaches her destination. Raske’s Capital. Massive stone walls surround the city, with only one opening, with several guards armed with swords and spears. They wore similar armor to Therius, but their's shone silver rather than Therius’s gold. Once she gets within eyesight of them, they turn and look at her.
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“State your name and business here!” One man shouts.
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“My name is Rose Azor, a member of the Royal Family in Rahu. I’ve come to have an audience with his Majesty Lord Alexander Therius.” She says while holding out a letter written by Hiro that was signed, dated, and stamped with the seal of Rahu.
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“I humbly apologize for the rudeness, Madam. We will alert Lord Therius at once. Men, One of you escort Lady Azor to the palace in the meantime.” The man teleports away.
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Score! No um’s, uh’s, or stuttering! I did great!
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Two of the guards escort her to the Royal Palace. As they walk through the city, Rose notices that the citizens were a lot less lively than Rahuans. They seemed less expressive. Despite the Even the storefronts were plain looking and lacked vibrance. No one was sad per se, but they could have been happier.
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"We meet again. Lord Therius has agreed to meet with you. He awaits you in the throne room ahead."
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"Thank you."
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She walks through the Throne Room doors to see Therius, sitting on his throne. The seat itself was significantly larger than Rahu's throne, presumably custom made to fit a man of his size. The rest of the room was painted in a dull gray with red and gold accents. Those accents were few and far between, as the room still felt dry and dreary.
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As much as I dislike him, I really need his help.
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"Good evening Lord Therius." Rose says while giving a slight bow.
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"Another runt needs my assistance. What exactly do you want?"
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"I humbly ask that you help the nation of Rahu fight against Madu's impending attack"
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"What would my kingdom or myself gain from this?"
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"We would be eternally grateful to you for coming to our aid in a time of need, and we would not hesitate to fight for you in the future."
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"What good would it do to have aid from a country as weak as Rahu?"
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"We could help by… I beg your pardon?"
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"You heard me. Raske is the world's leader in military might, with no shortage in any resource. What could you possibly offer that could be of any benefit?"
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"W-well um… That's a question more suited to Lord Azor himself."
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"You, just like your king, are incompetent."
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"Lord Therius, with all due respect, please do not insult Lord Azor. He is-"
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"What he is, is some runt who thought he could walk in Vanessa’s shoes. He couldn't even protect himself, let alone his kingdom! He's a mockery of his title and his name."
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"Don't you dare say that about him! He's been through so much since ascending the throne, and through all of it, he stayed strong."
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"And that was his downfall. He tried in vain to perform his duties as Vanessa once did, but forgot to account for his own shortcomings. He is not her, and never will be."
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"But he is strong! Just give him the chance! If you help us, we can restore him and you'll see how strong he really is."
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"How about this instead? Since you're Rahu's representative, you can fight me in his stead. If you do well enough, I'll consider your plight."
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"I'd be glad to take you up on the offer." The idea of knocking some sense into Therius was quickly followed by her memory reminding her that he was said to be the strongest of the kings. Self proclaimed strongest, sure, but seeing as no other king denied it, there had to be some truth to the statement.
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"Kevv!" Therius shouts.
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The same guard from earlier teleports into the room in front of Therius, kneeling.
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"You called, my Lord?"
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"Yes. Take us to the training grounds."
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"Yes, My Lord." Kevv gestures for Rose to walk over to them. He grabs both of their hands and teleports them to an empty grassfield.
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"Is there anything else I can do for you, my Lord?"
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"No, this will be all. You are dismissed."
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"I wish you the best of luck, Lady Azor. I bid you both farewell." Kevv bows to both combatants before teleporting away.
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"We can start when you're ready."
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Rose enters hyperspeed at its maximum and dashes forward. She throws a few punches, to which Therius responds by blocking with his shield. With every hit, Therius’s shield bellowed, but stood firm. She even tried mixing up her approaches by teleporting above, behind, and any other angle she could think of. After a few more attempts, he charges forward pushing her backwards with his shield.
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"This is why you runts pale in comparison to your predecessors. You're too predictable!" He says to her in response to her several failed attempts.
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Hmm… Physical attacks aren't working. I'm pretty sure I'm faster than him, but he is consistently able to block all of my attacks. This might be harder than I thought. Let me think… If this beast of a man had an opening, where would it be? Logically, a place that his shield can't guard… Maybe this could work…
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She dashes at him feigning a punch, allowing her to grab a hold of the shield. He tries to shake her off, but once he moves his arm, she flips to the inside of his shield and delivers a hard right hand to Therius’s liver. He reaches for his sword, unfazed from Rose's attack, and she instinctively teleports away.
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Therius takes a slightly altered stance, hunching down behind his shield, poking his sword out over the top of it.
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What is he planning… Something about that sword feels weird. It's blatantly too small for a man of his size, and more importantly, it's mounted on top of his shield.
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A wince of pain. A cut appears on her arm. And another cut. Yet another cut appears on her body. Something was happening, but her eyes couldn't quite keep up with it.
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She focuses her attention on the sword and sees a faint blue light extending from it.
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It's definitely ether. I hope I'm wrong, but it looks like he's using light to attack me. I don't know how fast light is, but I'm pretty sure it's faster than me.
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She preemptively steps away, but still gets nicked by it. After the first few, a flurry of them come her way, none of them being lethal, but all of them drawing blood. A brief pause in the assault is followed by Therius’s shield ramming her entire body.
.
.
.
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Damn… must've lost.
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Rose awakes, face up on the floor, staring at the throne room ceiling.
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"I see you're awake. In case your memory's hazy, you lost."
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"I was just thinking the same thing. So? What now?"
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"Now, you leave. Do what you want, but don't expect any assistance from me or my kingdom."
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"I see you didn't patch me up. Can I at least have a room for the night?
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"You're lucky I even let you live after you decided to mouth off to me earlier. Don't push your luck. Leave."
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.
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I didn't have enough ether to teleport back to Kennis, so this is as good as I'm going to get. At least it's warm here.
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She thinks to herself as she lays in a small cave entrance in the mountain passage in the Heights.
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I don't really know what I expected, but I didn't think I was going to fight him. He did say that he was the strongest of the kings during the meeting. After today, I can see why he would say that.
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Hey Vuella? You there?
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"Hmm… Oh. Yeah I'm here. What's up?"
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I feel really good right now and I don't know why
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"Good? Did you fall in love or something?"
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Of course not!
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"Then what happened?"
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I failed to get Lord Therius’s approval. We fought a bit b-
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“YOU FOUGHT HIM!”
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“Yes, but can you think quieter please! We fought and I lost, so he declined our request.
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"Oh. Isn't that bad? Why aren't you more… you know, upset?"
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That's what I'm trying to figure out. I'll sleep on it and think more in the morning. Good night.
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"'Kay, night."
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She lays down on a bed of patchy grass, still covered in cuts. Therius hadn't even bothered to cover her wounds. They were mostly closed, but they still made it hard for her to get any kind of rest. The cold ground didn't make it any better, but after a few hours she had managed to fall asleep.
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Her slumber was shallow. Sounds of the night crept into her mind as her thoughts faded aw-
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What's that feeling? It feels like… me.
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Through her closed eyes she could feel bits and pieces of herself scattered around her.
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Wake up, wake up, wake up! Something's wrong here!
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She breaks out of her sleep, frantically swinging in front of her, hitting nothing, but feeling something.
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There was a faint green light in front of her, about the size of a coin. She could reach out and feel its softness, warmth, and familiarity. This was ether, but it was her ether.
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Where did it come from? I've replenished some of my ether from resting, but I don't feel like I've lost any. So… how is this here?
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She steps out of the cave to a magnificent sight. Countless lights dot the mountain passage. Some glow faintly, others brighter, some rising, some falling. As breathtaking as it might’ve been, she couldn't help being put off by the sensation of feeling of herself floating around her.
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Looking around more, she notices that there's more foliage around than the last time she was here. The patchy grass had been replaced with vibrant green grass and large flowers of varying colors.
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"Child."
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"Who's there?" She whips around and enters hyperspeed.
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"Where, or rather when am I?" Says as a deer stares her down.
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A deer? And it's talking? What did he mean by when? This whole situation is weird…
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"An answer would be appreciated."
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"Oh, um… we're on the outskirts of Raske at the moment. It's November 16th."
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Rose feels something rough wrap around her right leg. It yanks her up into the air.
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"You are awfully on guard for someone who was just supposed to answer a few questions. Is it because you know who I am?"
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"I'm on guard?! I just want to know why I'm being attacked by a talking deer with nature powers!" She says while trying to break away from the tree roots that sprouted around her ankle.
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"No matter. I'll subdue you first and then we'll talk."
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I don't know what I did to set him off but I guess we're fighting now. The first thing that I need to do is deal with these plants.
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She starts by using a flash of light magic to blind the deer and teleport behind him in the same moment to mount him.
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"Predictable."
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The deer leans forward on his front legs and kicks her with his hind legs.
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That hurt! Let's see if I can end this soon. I'm still not at 100% yet from fighting Lord Therius. More importantly, how did he know I moved? Can he feel me through the plants? If so, I might have an idea.
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She tucks and rolls, swiftly recovering from his kick, but is just as swiftly entangled in tree roots. This time, they wrapped around her arms and legs, jutting out of the mountain sides.
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"I suggest you surrender and tell me what I need to know before you get hurt any further." The deer says while walking towards her.
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As he approaches, the roots continue to grow and constrict themselves around her limbs. It was time.
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She gathers light mana in her right hand. The deer closes his eyes instinctively.
"A one trick pony I see. Too bad it won't get you anywhere."
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That's step one.
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In her other hand, she manipulates dark mana, cloaking the area in a thick, opaque darkness.
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Step two, done.
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Now, she teleports out of her bonds, as she did before. The deer responds with the same kick previously.
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"As I said, the same trick won't get-"
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He says before kicking the air. She didn't teleport behind him this time. If not behind him, then where?
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And this is step three, also known as checkmate!
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She casts the Weapon of Darkness spell, feeding it an excessive amount of mana. The spell creates a dull, pitch black ax, with an elongated handle, reaching towards her opponent. She swings, hitting the deer in his head and sending him flying into the cliff side.
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She teleports on top of him and puts a knife to his throat, dispelling the darkness in the process.
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"Can we call it here? I think I got this one."
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"I admit defeat. Tell me child, just what did you do?"
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She removes the knife from his neck.
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"I teleported a few inches in front of the roots that were holding me. I just needed you to think I wasn't there. I knew you would close your eyes when you saw the light, so from there I used dark magic to hide myself and my attack."
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"Creative tactics, created in the heat of battle. What is your name child? I will remember it well."
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"I'm Rose, good to officially meet you."
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"Rose? Hmmm… What year is it, Rose?"
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"Oh it's 1222."
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"Are you Rose, as in Rose Azor? The same one who created the Blade of Azor?"
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"Yeah, I'm Rose Azor, but I don't know anything about creating a blade."
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The deer bows his head to her.
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"I, Oliver, the Divine Moose and King of Deers, thank you on behalf of my late comrade and friend, In Ritsu. You created a weapon powerful enough to aid in permanently ending the ploy of Tonen, or as you might know him, Ellul."
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"You know Ellul? Who's In Ritsu? Divine Moose? Aren't you a deer? Does that make you some kind of god? What abo-"
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"One question at a time. Starting with myself, yes I am deity. I have multiple forms that I can assume that align with my title."
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Oliver's antlers begin to elongate and flatten out as he grows taller and a bit wider, before becoming a moose entirely. Then, he stands on his hind legs and starts to grow smaller and his fur retracts itself into his skin transforming him into a human man. He waves at her before changing back into his deer form.
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"Interesting. I didn't know there were gods in our world. So what about this Ritsu guy? And Ellul?"
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"There are a few, but there will be more later. As for those two, they were powerful ether users, who fought over how ether should be used. Ether in the modern Era is scarce to say the least. The vast majority of people don't know that it even exists, let alone what it can do. Ellul wanted to put us ether users at the forefront of society, while Ritsu wanted things to stay the way they were. At the very least, he didn't want Ellul to be the one to show the masses. They fought many times, but in this most recent one, Ritsu used the Time Sword to end it once, and for all."
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"This is… something. I don't know what I expected to hear, but it was not this." Rose says while scratching her head.
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"I'm following for the most part. So if this is who Ellul really was, why did he come after me?"
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"He wasn't after you specifically. He was after anything with time ether that he could use to fight against Ritsu and the Time Sword and you just so happened to be there."
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"OK. Gotcha. Sooooo… should this be important to me right now?"
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"These events, not so much. The important part of this, and my reason for coming, are to tell you about the time sword. According to the modern Era's history, the blade was not called the Time Sword until you were in possession of it. I also have no record of where it was prior to it's creation. For all we know, it might not even be a sword right now."
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"So I just have to keep an eye out for it. Makes… sense…" She says through a yawn. With the adrenaline starting to wear off, it was only a matter of time before her tired body started to give in.
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"It is fine. You will be safe in my care until you wake."
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"Sorry… about this… Mr. Oliver." She mumbles while descending in her slumber. She falls over, but Oliver changes into his human form and reaches for her, catching her in his lap.
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"She is quite the child. A skilled fighter who's crafty and adaptable in battle, yet still has a heart for her enemies. Even against me, who attacked her first, she didn't hesitate to spare my life. And now look at her. She's sleeping in the lap of her aggressor. As far as I can see, she lives up to every tale I've heard of her. Despite neither of us being at our full powers, it was a pleasure to battle against a legend in the flesh."
ns 15.158.61.6da2
