Closing in on the Ignorant prey, steps heavy and sluggish, as if I was actually burdened by my heavy living armor, my targets attention already on me as I emerge. He gloats, thinking his meager “Skills” would be enough to best me, 3 of my arms hidden behind either my shield or in my fortified coat, the fourth one holding my ax, he doesn’t suspect a thing.
Closing in, the first strike comes from my bronze Great Ax, Bessie. A heavy step, rigid stance, heavy uncontrollable overhead strike, he dodges, a smile plastered on their face as if it’s some achievement to dodge a strike so predictable.
I move right after, way faster, Lighter, closing in on my prey, a heavy uncontrolled strike turned into one light and flowing, leaving no momentum wasted.
I see shock on the face of my prey, foolish that he is to walk around in almost no armor and no helmet, to not carry something as useful as a shield or a bow, to be as foolish to brandish a weapon as complex as a sword without even knowing the basics of footwork, yet thinking themself master of the Craft of Violence.
Their gaze fixed on my ax, stumbling backwards to once again avoid the oncoming strike, I move my shield to bat aside his pitiful, uncared for, sword from his hand.
Two unseen hands emerge. Two unseen weapons strike. Two more short spears are stabbed into Fatal areas of my prey. One stabbed through the armpit, ripping apart the Heart. Another stabbed through the neck, targeting the vital arterial blood vessels, throat, and finally the spine severing it.
My ax strikes soon after, severing the dying prey in two from hip to shoulder, in order to make sure that he won’t be capable of some last ditch Asspull.
He falls, rapidly dying, and I begin systematically ripping the body apart, burning the remains as I do so that he cannot be brought back, no matter what. Looting all that he had in life while at it, he will no longer need it.
Looking on at the burning pile of flesh and bone turning to ashes, I think back to how annoying this one was to hunt down. Constantly traveling, staying in settlements to drink, boast, and sleep around.
The annoying part was tracking down where he would have gone next.
While he didn’t know he was being tracked; the fool didn’t know how to read a map, going every which way, you couldn’t be sure if he would have popped up in the next settlement in a day, week, or even a month. His own foolishness was the only thing keeping him alive for so long.
The man had quite potent sensing abilities, which he didn’t even try to hone, so a surprise attack wouldn’t have worked, he would have just ran and hid, not that he would have gotten far, but he could have grown to overcome the ambush. He could’ve gained some-or-other bullshit ability in the heat of battle if I gave him the chance, so to blitz it was the only choice. To disassemble the body to pieces, and then to reduce even those pieces to nothing but ashes in the wing was to make sure he would Never come back. Not that it would’ve stopped any of the even more bs ones. The looting was just for the sweet, sweet, loot.
He had a good sword, he may have never done any maintenance on her, but she could be treated back to pristine condition.
A bronze curved dao with a bright blue tassel, a bit ahead on the design, either custom-made, system-purchased, or stolen. She’ll need a better guard if I am to use her in the future, replace the grip for a 2-hander too. She seems to like the tassel, so we’ll keep that as is. no? So you want a new tassel to signify a new owner. hmm… What color do you want it to be? Red and would suit you fine~
Making plans while discussing future modifications with the sword’s budding Spirit (Bessie and my armor also have their own), formerly unnamed and now named YanZai, making way to our next location.
[///-///-///-///-///-///]
This time facing an Opponent instead of Prey, in silence I return the one before me a respectful bow.
Roughly some 180cm tall (very tall to those of this Time and land), no weapons, musculature honed with martial mastery, hair reaching till shoulders, wearing little else than simple martial robes, an arguably handsome face showing little age, no scars.
The site of battle this time is a ring on an otherwise deserted, but well cared for, martial temple. The gate behind me and little else other than the main building on top of some stairs behind the ring.
I begin taking off my armor and weapons; First the heavy reinforced coat and the weapons underneath. Then all the different weapons and jars strapped to my armor on either bandoliers, straps and belts; javelin’s, knives, dagger’s, a shortsword or two, clay and glass vials of what is obviously poisons, venoms and all that nasty stuff, nasty hollow triangular obsidian daggers that are made to break inside of wounds (a nightmare to produce, barely possible with magic), crossbows both big and small with arrows to arm them with, and more. Then the different loose, thick, plates strapped to both vital and some less-than-vital areas, shoulder’s, hips, a few over my chest. A smug smile is brought to my lips as I see the shock on my to-be adversary by the sheer amount of “armaments” on me. The inner lamellar coats covering vitals, the reinforced segmented bronze breastplate with a big armor piece rising from the clavipectoral region and rising to cover till my chin, the helmet with an armored face mask with horns coming from my forehead and the forehead protector under that, the armored skirt, boots, and finally the under-armor underneath much of that.
To say my adversary-to-be was shocked would be an understatement; a hulking mass of heavy armor turning into the bigger half of an armory and a muscular, tattooed, four-prosthetic armed and (2)legged pale mature woman must have been a sight to see.
Probably wondering how I was not either crushed or cooked alive underneath all that, cute.
Stepping forwards, now in little less than chestwraps and a loincloth, I take my stance while my adversary does the same.
Speeding forwards with utilitarian moves without flourish, flowing like water, fierce as fire, cutting as metal,as he does the same, just without as much finesse, we close the gap, he is not shocked by my speed. Tracking my moves, he strikes first. A prodding strike without much behind it. I redirect it, not here to play that game, and strike back with impuny.
Seven limbs of metal and bone strike one after another without a single move wasted and the force of my body behind them each, seeking out vital areas; to systematically rip and tear the man alive. He, while less skilled, seeks to do the same to me. He redirects, dodges, sacrifices less important parts as we go. As do I. Neither of us retreat as we draw blood, be it deep or shallow; We keep on Brutally ripping into each other.
His wounds rapidly stitch themself shut and disappear with only a bloody trace left behind as they appear on his flesh. And while slower; so do the ones on mine, first bleeding, then bleeding flesh turning into wood, that wood then growing and sewing the wound shut, leaving behind fresh scars in minutes.
The brutality continued.
He over extended, I had blown open his kneecaps with my tail and destabilized him, with my hands busy I reach out to take a bite out of his jugular. He counters, a heavy fist strike straight to my jaw, aimed to take me out, not that would have worked with the amount of tweaking I had performed on my own body. Aim just a little off and with too much force the strike rips out my entire jaw. Bone, flesh, blood, wood and metal disconnected from where they should have sat. Feeling the familiar taste of pain, (the hot, the cold, the sharp, and the numb) and taking the opportunity in my Partners’ shock once more to strike, brutalizing the offending arm’s wrist. leaving it barely connected, yet visibly healing.
Seeing the pain’s effects and continuing our “spar”, I continue to wordlessly show and tell how to fight without fear of Death, how to harness all of your body, how to Reduce someone into nothing but a lifeless corpse with Unrivaled Grace, how to find the places that hurt the most, how to funnel your very Vitality to bring your body to extreme feats of strength, all that and more, all with our very own bodies as examples.
He started out skilled, yet only to an extent, a Prodigy, one both Gifted and Vigorous to improve, one that trains a single kick a thousand times, yet one with much to learn, a Total Monster.
Our battle is ever-accelerating, the next strike always being harder, better, faster, and stronger.
He has been learning since the first strike, even the slightest of shakes dying out, hesitation extinguished, moves becoming smooth and flowing as water. just like mine. Wounds barely exist for even shorter than before, body being tempered at an Excruciating rate, Vitality purifying and becoming ever-potent as we go at it.
I witness the moment that pain becomes but a mere suggestion to him as a Brutal kick aimed to disembowel is redirected to a thigh without flinching.
He witnesses the moment that his hands gain the strength to rip apart metal as a strike of his aimed at my heart claims one of my forearms instead.
Day and night has passed as we began ripping into eachother. Dripping with sweat and blood, my hand drawing blood at his jugular was the final move, we finally step back for the first time since we started. I, with one less hand, without my jaw, and my 3 meters of tail a meter’s worth of segments shorter than when we started, yet still brimming with Vitality (am tree). CuiFu, my partner in carnage till now, had most of his clothing shredded till they were nothing but rags yet was without wound, still covered in both our blood and sweat, yet still woundless, his Vitality almost bottoming out and eating into his lifespan was the end of our spar.
Picking up my severed jaw with my tail and putting it back where it should be, taking a few moments as the Esoteric, Biological, and Technological forces inside my body reassemble, replace and reconnect the jaw filled with teeth both sharp and dull.
I speak, I offer; “Work with me. Do so and I shall guarantee you both longevity and a piece of what you may have lost in your journey to this World. Work with me and make sure those like you do not ruin what should be.”
He took my offer.
