Daemon stood facing Barristan after ushering Howland away, in his hand was his Valyrian steel sword Blackfyre, which was known only to him as the pommel had been hidden a long time ago. Barristan smiled as his eyes gleamed with a look of excitement "Will you finally stop holding back lad? I won't be satisfied if I do not beat you at your best" Barristan said as he flourished his sword with his aura bright and pulsating. 

Daemon returned his smile as he stood lazily with his sword pressed into the ground being used like a leaning post "And what if I say that you experience my best every time we spar" Daemon replied. Barristan shook his head in amusement "Mayhaps it is wise of you to hide your strength or it could be simple paranoia, nevertheless I wish to see how strong you truly are" Barristan said as he held his sword up with both hands before flaring his aura. 

Daemon sighed he could tell Barristan's words truly came from the heart, they were from a man who had dedicated his life to fighting and had reached the peak of what he was capable of "And what if you aren't able to draw out my true strength Ser Barristan..." Daemon stated the smile having vanished from his face. 

Barristan kept smiling "I guess we shall see won't we" he simply replied, he then charged towards Daemon pushing off his back foot which was enhanced with aura, those who were watching simply saw Barristan disappear and reappear in front of Daemon who brought his sword up which was infused with aura and blocked the downward strike from Barristan. The ground quaked as the two swords collided, had Barristan not infused his sword with more aura than usual he was sure the sword would've snapped against Daemon's superior Valyrian sword. 

Barristan smiled as he tried to overpower Daemon in their clash of swords but he didn't budge 'That cheeky brat was holding back more than I thought' He thought to himself as he released more of his aura. The ground cracked under the pressure that was exuded from the two as both their auras flared, the crowd was roaring in excitement seeing the two warriors of legendary renown fight. While Ser Barristan was the more famous warrior his legend starting from when he was merely 10 name days, Daemon was a more enigmatic character having been known to be apprenticed to Ser Barristan and then the King himself. 

Even the other participants turned to see the clash between them, while normal people couldn't see the aura they could see the effect it had on the environment. To them Knights and Lords were superhuman beings capable of great feats of strength, some even believe they've been blessed by the gods which isn't difficult to see why. Lyanna, Lysa, Elia and Ashara all watched from the stand with bated breath, while the former two knew how powerful Daemon was they didn't know how strong he was compared to Ser Barristan who was one of the strongest men in Westeros. 

Others who were also interested in the fight were the Starks and Baratheon, mostly due to how Brandon spoke of him. Brandon himself wanted to see how far Daemon had advanced, as when he met the boy he had monstrous talent, it had not only been cultivated by one of the strongest people in Westeros but also THE strongest person. 

Daemon grinned as he felt Barristan release more aura from his body making himself stronger, causing him to slowly overpower Daemon as he did not release more aura to match Barristan. Daemon pivots to the left and lets Barristan's sword slide to the left-hand side, as it makes contact with the ground it causes a large boom and a crater forms, the force of the strike managed to lift Daemon off the ground but he quickly grounded himself and brought his sword up to cleave at Barristan diagonally. 

Barristan ducks underneath the strike and spins unleashing a side swipe aiming for Daemon's arm, Daemon not having enough time to block transfers a majority of his aura into his hand and slaps the blade away though he managed to get a large gash on the back of his hand because of it "You're not playing around are you Barristan" Daemon said with a smile as he looked at the gash on his hand. 

Barristan nodded as he gave him a look full of determination "I've trained my entire life to become as strong as I have, you barely a man have managed to in only a few years reach my level" he stated

He then stood straight and held his sword in front of him "As a knight and a warrior I have to know if I can beat you or if you are simply on a different level... Please Daemon fight me" he said with slight desperation in his voice. 

Daemon felt his heart clench 'Shit' he thought to himself as he thought over Barristans words the man had done too much to him to simply ignore his request, and while he wanted to hide his true strength until the time came he didn't need to show all of it now "Very well Barristan" Daemon said as he held up his hand showing the gash, his aura then exploded out of his body taking on a golden colour and the cut on his hand sealed up "I hope you're ready" Daemon said as he once again gripped his sword. 

Barristan smiled and nodded, Daemon then charged towards Barristan and sliced through the air with his sword which Barristan blocked though he struggled to do so, however, Daemon didn't stay in the clash for long as he lifted his blade which dragged Barristans up with it due to the guard. Daemon then launched a powerful kick catching Barristan in the chest and sending him flying back a dozen feet, though the older knight managed to land on his feet and skid on the ground. But Daemon wouldn't give him a moment to rest, they clashed swords once more and exchanged a fast flurry of strikes between them before it ended with Daemon jumping over a swipe aimed to cut him at the wait and kick Barristan in the face which dazed him. 

Barristan had a manic grin on his face as it had been a long time since he had felt like this, he gripped his sword again and channelled a large amount of aura into it before slicing down where Daemon was emitting a large slash of pure aura which created a gash in the ground as it approached Daemon. 

Daemon rolled out of the way before realising another one had been sent towards him, he pooled his aura into his sword and released the same technique cancelling Barristan's one. Daemon then rushed back towards Barristan before slamming his sword into his own, he had not refined the aura that he transferred to his sword so it turned his sword into more of a blunt object than something that could cut very well. However, this gave Daemon the advantage as with every swing Barristan was sent back a few feet it was as if he was being hit by a Warhammer. 

Has Daemon swung his sword at Barristan's ribs, the old man turned and intercepted it with the flat end of his sword bracing it with both hands, he then lifted it up and over his head before moving with the spin and counterattacking. Daemon cursed as Barristan had managed to get passed his guard again, he quickly raised his hand and sent a burst of raw aura at Barristan that was strong enough to push them both away.

Barristan twirls his sword as he looks at Daemon with a frown "I thought we agreed to fight seriously Daemon, will you not use your ability?" Barristan asked as he had a burning curiosity as to what it was, long ago back in Riverrun he had an idea of what his ability might be but over the years Daemon has kept it quite close to his chest. Barristan was sure that if Daemon was using his ability his aura would be attached to his own, he quickly channeled aura into his eyes and laughed, there was a line of aura connecting them 'He must've hidden it from me with 'Hide'' Barristan thought to himself. 

Daemon smirked "You finally noticed?" He said with amusement in his voice. Daemon had attached his aura at be beginning of the fight, though he hadn't made much use of it as it gave him an overwhelming advantage in a straight sword fight "I will take things up a level, get ready" Daemon said before flaring his aura and charging at Barristan.

Barristan stood ready and drew his sword back to hit Daemon but the moment he did Daemon pushed off his right foot and slipped to the side where Barristan's sword was making any hit he could get off ineffective as there wouldn't be any force behind the swing. Daemon however didn't attack Barristan with his sword, he drew his fist back and smashed it against the Knights chest denting his armour and sending him flying back. Barristan was knocked off his feet and rolled back across the field, as he got to his feet he was suddenly attacked by other participants who thought they could take advantage of the situation. 

Barristan blocked an overhead swing from an axe while on his knees before pushing back and getting to his feet, he smashed the pommel of his sword into the man's head knocking him out, he then backhanded another participant who did not have the benefit of aura to protect him, blood and teeth were spat from the man's mouth as he hit the floor. Barristan then quickly made work of the others who had attacked him incapacitating them all as Daemon watched. 

Once he knocked out the final participant he turned back to Daemon "Now where were we" he said before charging back at Daemon, however, every swing he took against Daemon was avoided no matter how he feinted or how fast he swung 'It was like he knows my move before I've even-' 

"Done it" Daemon stated making Barristan's eyes widen, Daemon then ducked under his swing before swinging his blade around and smashing it into Barristan's ribs, a hit that would've cut the man in half had Daemon not blunted his blade with his aura. Barristan felt all the air knocked out of him as he could feel several ribs break, he felt disoriented as he flew through the air finally hitting the ground. Barristan struggled to his feet as he held his side 'He is so much stronger than I would've imagined' Barristan thought before grabbing his chest plate and ripping it off his body letting it fall to the floor, it wouldn't help now anyway. The worst part was that Barristan believed that Daemon still wasn't giving it his all 'Well I suppose I'll have to change that' Barristan thought to himself. 

'The Bold'

Barristan's aura exploded out of him more than it had before dwarfing his earlier output. The aura users in the crowd looked at him in awe most having never even seen such a large amount of aura, even the ladies couldn't help but worry for Daemon as  Barristan looked incredibly powerful at the moment. Barristan condensed his aura into his body creating a thick layer of 'Fortify' around him, he sped towards Daemon even faster than before and swung his sword sideways, Daemon was barely able to bring his sword up to block the strike but it didn't matter anyway as Barristans strike slapped the sword out of his hands making it clatter to the ground. 

Daemon then felt the air knock out of him as a blow connected with his stomach and he slid back over the ground on his feet, he wasn't given any moment of reprieve as Barristan was in front of him again swinging his sword, Daemon barely avoided the swing and threw a punch of his own which connected with Barristans face, however, the man barely budged instead grabbing Daemons arms and swinging him over his shoulder slamming him to the floor. 

Daemon pushed himself away from the ground before Barristan could stomp on him. As he stood before him he couldn't help but smile as this was Barristan giving his all "It's unfair you know..." Daemon suddenly said in a quiet tone as he didn't want others to hear him. Barristan looked at him with confusion on his face as he'd never thought Daemon would be the one to complain about a fight "I don't mean this" he said as he read Barristan's expression. 

Daemon looked at his hand "You have trained your entire life to obtain the power you have, the achievement and pride you must feel... I don't think I'll ever experience that" he said in a sombre tone as he looked up at Barristan with his that were now crimson "I have only been an aura user for a bit under 5 years and yet I am already this strong... I feel no pride in myself no matter how hard I train" Daemon confided. Using his eyes Daemon's abilities were many times more powerful, but after constant training, they had evolved, something that had never been documented before while it still allowed him to exorcise aura, it was also linked a lot more closely to his aura abilities. More specifically his aura mimicry, his eyes allowed him to bypass the process of studying their aura and allowed him to directly copy their ability. A very powerful technique, however, it's also dangerous as it will always be a direct copy instead of a mimic, the difference between the two comes in the form of vows and restrictions. 

When Daemon mimics a technique he is simply using his genius to understand it while he places his own vows and restrictions, when his eyes copy a technique he copies everything including the vows and restrictions, and Daemon will not know what they are unless he's been told which could lead to an early death if the abilities restrictions are severe enough. However, Daemon had studied Barristan enough to recognise the simplicity of his ability and how unlikely it would be to have a dangerous restriction. 

'Aura Mimicry: Barristan Selmy'

His aura exploded out of him the same way Barristan did, however, Daemon's base aura levels were a lot higher than Barristan's, even when he tried to keep it hidden, when it came to the amount of aura Daemon had he was most likely equal to the King. What this meant is that Barristan's ability worked a lot better for him. Barristans eyes widened as Daemon rushed in delivering a powerful kick to his chest sending him sliding across the field. 

Daemon walked towards Barristan picking up his sword along the way "I'm sorry Barristan but I can't let any more of my strength become known" he said quietly to himself as he watched Barristan stand up and rushed towards him, Daemon sidestepped the swing of Barristans sword. 

'Last chance'

The aura around Barristan's head disappeared and Daemon promptly smashed the pommel of his sword against it, something Daemon wouldn't have been able to do if he hadn't had more aura than he did. Barristan fell to the ground like a stringless puppet and he was out of the match. 

Daemon sighed, he didn't want to end things this way but he had someone more important he needed to fight, he looked across the field to Arthur who had yet to move from his position he stood completely still only moving when someone got too close, whether it was a knight or a mercenary or a peasant he took them all out with a single blow not even bothering to draw his sword 'What a show off' Daemon thought to himself as he approached him. 

But before he did he looked towards Howard who was still standing at the edge watching the fight "What's your name" he asked and the boy slightly jumped after being addressed "Howland Reed my Lord" he stated with a shaky voice. 

Daemon nodded "Find me after the melee Howland Reed, I wish to speak to you" he stated and the boy nodded. Daemon then turned and continued to approach Arthur, as he did he backhanded and swiped at those who approached him leaving a trail of unconscious bodies behind him until he finally approached Arthur "Are you ready to fight?" He asked with a smirk on his face. 

Arthur looked at him with a blank expression "Will you ignore Rhaegar's orders?" He simply replied. 

Daemon raised an eyebrow "This is a melee, Rhaegar has no right to be involved, now come and let us see who is stronger" he stated 

Arthur continued to look at him glassy-eyed "You'll lose..." he simply stated before flaring his aura. At this point a large number of people decided to drop out of the fight just as they did when they saw Barristan and Daemon fight, they did not want to get caught in the fight between the two titans. 

Daemon looked at Arthur curiously "Will you not use your full power?" He asked and Arthur shook his head "Too dangerous to the crowd" he simply said. 

Daemon nodded "Very well" he stated, he liked to be fair and considering Arthur had not drawn his sword he sheathed his own. He then rushed at Arthur and slammed his fist at the man which he promptly blocked however he was sent skidding back, Arthur quickly realised that Daemon was fighting seriously and got into a proper stance. Daemon sent a flurry of strikes at Arthur who blocked and dodged however he seemed to be at a disadvantage when it came to unarmed combat, he couldn't dodge a kick that was sent to his knee which unbalanced him, Daemon then slammed his fist into Arthur's face forcing him to the ground. 

The lords and ladies looked on in disbelief as Daemon knocked the Sword of the Morning to the ground, Prince Rhaegar looked at the scene with an expressionless face but even he couldn't help his eyebrows from twitching in annoyance as this was to be a show of power. 

Daemon stepped back from Arthur who lay on the floor with an unreadable expression on his face, eventually, he stood up from the ground and reached behind him drawing Dawn from his sheath.

'Sunshine'

One moment Daemon was on his feet and the next he was skidding across the field before slamming roughly into the ground. Daemon quickly got to his feet, he looked at his arms and saw they were slightly singed and he raised his eyebrows 'Seems like I might've annoyed him' he thought to himself with slight amusement, he then concentrated his aura into his arms and quickly healed them. Daemon could feel the heat coming off of Arthur even from halfway across the field, and he wasn't the only one in the crowd and even the other participants were starting to feel it. Arthur's aura started to take on a brighter colour akin to sunlight as he approached Daemon. 

Daemon couldn't help but chuckle when he looked around and saw that the field was now empty, though he wouldn't call them cowards as only people afflicted with madness would see Arthur using his ability and still decide to fight him. Daemon's eyes flashed crimson once again as he held his sword in front of him and flared his aura releasing much more than he had before. 

'Aura Mimicry: Lyanna Stark'

The ground around him started to freeze over and his breath started to get foggy, though the ice didn't last long as Arthur got closer as the heat that emanated from him quickly evaporated it as fast as it could form. They were both soon stood in front of each other both of their auras flaring, steam being emitted from them both, the tension finally broke as they slammed their blades together, Daemon was forced back after being quickly overpowered and he had to duck underneath the follow up strike, he slashed upwards his sword in-line with Arthur's chin. 

Arthur leaned back and kicked the crouched Daemon sending him rolling backwards he then intensified the aura around Dawn and pointed it towards Daemon focusing his aura at the tip. 

'Sunshine: Shooting Star'

For a moment Daemon didn't know what happened until he looked to his shoulder and saw the gaping hole, he hadn't even seen the attack coming. He groaned in pain as he stood up and looked at Arthur in disbelief and excitement "Do you yield" Arthur simply asked as he still held Dawn pointed at him.

Daemon was conflicted 'I can't use that ability yet... that one is specifically for the King' he thought to himself. His reservations about not revealing his strength were quickly thrown out the window, he found that he couldn't help himself anymore and he unleashed the entirety of his aura 'I won't be able to get close to Arthur for long without Lyanna's ability active... but I've never tried using two at once' he thought to himself before laughing "Thank you Arthur, I haven't felt like this in such a long time" he stated. 

'Aura Mimicry: Barristan Selmy'

'Aura Mimicry: Lyanna Stark'

Daemon's aura exploded out of him even more reaching levels that even to him were uncontrollable, even simply using 'Shroud' had given him the same amount of aura that he'd normally use with 'Enhance’. Everything around him began to freeze once more doing so even faster than Arthur could melt it, and quickly the Kingsguard began to realise the trouble he might be in. 

Daemon shot forward faster than before and slammed his sword into Arthur who blocked it with Dawn, ice exploded behind Arthur and he was quickly moved backwards as Daemon drove into him. Arthur grits his teeth and brings out even more of his aura before bringing it in close to his body, it starts to become hotter and his muscles start to bulge until he finally stops Daemon. 

Arthur recognised that Daemon's ability was protecting the crowd from his own so he didn’t need to hold back as much anymore. His body now looked to be taller and much stronger and it was surrounded by pure sunlight.

‘Sunshine: Divine Sword’

Dawn starts to glow and heat up, Arthur quickly jumps back and slashes down realising a wave of heat that is sent directly at Daemon. Daemon stabbed his sword into the ground and quickly used a makeshift ability to create a frozen shell around himself. Another steam explosion occurs from the clash between the ice and immense heat, as it clears the crowd can see Daemon standing there with a large gash across his chest that looks to have immediately cauterised itself. 

Daemon then quickly fell to the ground having passed out from exhaustion, the power needed to keep that attack from cutting him in half was immense leaving him completely exhausted. 

———————————————————

Daemon woke up and noticed it was night outside, he felt the pain in his chest almost immediately and gave up trying to get up. He thought back to the last thing he could remember and couldn’t help but laugh, it had been so long since he’d been humbled and even longer since he’d had so much fun. 

‘I do wish I could’ve given it my all though’ he thought to himself, while he had used all the power he had, he had one ability that he did not use, one that he had created himself and specifically designed to defeat the King. 

‘Mother Rhoyne’

Daemon then frowned ‘With how things are going I wouldn’t be surprised if I use it soon’ he thought to himself as he lay there thinking about the future. But he couldn’t help but be concerned whether his most powerful ability would even work on Arthur. 

‘I might need to make something else’

(AN: Alright, so the melee is over Arthur won, tbf Arthur is insanely powerful and even then he didn’t use his more powerful abilities out of concern for the crowd. But neither did Daemon, their death match will have to wait until the Tower of Joy I'm afraid. Btw I’m sure some of you will notice how Daemon healed himself with his own aura and then notice the inconsistency as he nearly died when he helped Elia. His healing ability isn’t an ability it’s just his aura which has been refined to a high level, however ‘Poppy’s Embrace’ is an ability and the restriction and vow is that he shall take on the damage from the other person meaning his aura will not heal him in that situation, just thought I’d say that before I get someone say it in the comments. I think two more chapters until the rebellion begins)