Spasming on the floor as death approached, Sadie, despite the atrocious situation, remained completely calm. It had become abundantly clear to her that, unless she surrendered, this fight was not going to end so easily. True to her assumptions, Ares wandered over with his hands behind his back, whistling the same non-descript tune he''d whistled once before during this fight, presumably ready to catch the arrow and ''save'' her. He glanced down at Sadie and winked to which she completely ignored him. She couldn''t look away because she was still being zapped, but she had achieved a clarity of mind that enabled her to put aside all of Ares'' annoying gestures and facial expressions. Sadie had discovered a sort of nirvana, one in which she could simply appreciate the fight and get the most out of it. Why be annoyed when this was a golden opportunity to learn? Why get upset over every loss when winning is impossible anyway? Why take a revenant seriously? Why try so hard when someone who isn''t even trying at all is showing vastly superior results? Although these were the thoughts racing through her head, Sadie hadn''t given up. Quite the opposite, actually. Her narrow mindedness and rigidity were being put to the test and she saw no reason to believe that either would be useful to her here.
Sure enough, as the arrow descended through the hole in the roof, Dominus reached out and caught the arrow between his index and middle finger. As Dominus turned around and walked away, he made sure to line up some of the scattered weaponry, repositioning them with clear intent. Or rather, he himself knew what he was aiming for even if Sadie couldn''t tell, but it was obvious that he was preparing something of note.
When the shocking stopped, Sadie stood up and went to pick a nearby weapon. As she neared an axe, she happened to glance over again at the line of weapons lying between her and Ares and something deep within her clicked. For the first time during this fight, she felt like she truly understood exactly what Ares was planning to do. "Hahahahaha." Sadie laughed uncontrollably in a self deprecating manner as the second she had given up on trying to analyse every little detail, she had gained access to every little detail. The less sense she tried to make of everything the more sense it made which, in hindsight, made a lot of sense as everything Ares did was nonsensical to begin with. As for Ares'' plan, simply put, there wasn''t one. None whatsoever. Which weapon would he pick up first? How would he find an opportunity to swap from one to another? How did he plan on killing Sadie? The answer to all of these questions, and any questions she could have asked herself throughout the entire duel, was that he had no fucking clue. Of course she couldn''t read his mind, there was nothing in there to begin with! This moron was just going to walk towards her and do whatever he felt like doing with whatever weapon was next to him at the time. ''Plan'' my ass. This stupid dog doesn''t even know what the word plan means. Sadie looked down at the axe at her feet, which now just looked pitiful sitting there by itself. There was no clearer indication of the difference between her and the current Ares than the difference in aesthetic between a weapon''s expert going out of their way to pick up and lock themself into a single weapon, and an expert who was bunching them all up because it didn''t matter to him in the slightest as he was confident enough to win regardless.
The moniker ''Thousand Weapon Exemplar'' wasn''t given to people who were only good with a single weapon, they each had their own titles anyway. A ''Thousand Weapon Exemplar'' was not the best at wielding any individual weapon, in fact nor were they even really capable of wielding a thousand of what any normal person would consider a weapon. Most Exemplars probably couldn''t even name a thousand weapons but that, in a round about way, was the catch; anything was a weapon when held by an Exemplar. There was an Exemplar who had invented his own unique style called ''drunken sharpshooting'', another who once beat a room full of cultivators with a bowling ball, one who was captured and managed to escape by knocking out his enemies with the chair he was tied to, and even Dominus himself had experimented with turning a slinky into a deadly weapon. Exemplars were typically deranged people with minds that were out of the ordinary in every way imaginable but that was also why they were unstoppable, because no one had any idea what it was they were supposed to be stopping in the first place! More often than not, ordinary weapons actually made Exemplars bored because it was all too easy for them, they spent their entire lives in pursuit of a challenge not in the form of a foe that could contend with them, no, but rather in search of a weapon that wouldn''t bend to their every whim.
Sadie picked up the axe and threw it amidst the mess of weapons to which Ares looked up at her and gave a thumbs up. For once, the smile on his face wasn''t condescending, but genuine. Sadie couldn''t tell if this was actually going to help her in any meaningful way or if she''d just been successfully goaded into doing something stupid, but she went along with it nonetheless. Maybe it was time to do something new? She''d reached a dead-end in her own training and had no idea where to go so she was at least partially aware that doing the same thing over and over again wasn''t going to get her anywhere. The major issue was that she was one of the strongest people in the Vraizon domain and the next domain up wasn''t accessible so, regrettably, there was never anyone to guide her forward out of the quagmire she''d found herself stuck in. Why Ares of all people might have the keys to the metaphorical kingdom was beyond Sadie but it had reached a point where she really didn''t care who it was. It''s not even that Sadie necessarily wanted to get stronger, although that was part of it, it was mainly because she wanted to kick Aym''s teeth in at least once as she had never beaten him before. Maybe this was the solution after all? Learn from a revenant to beat a revenant? If you can''t beat them, join them? Sadie didn''t know, but then again seemingly neither did Ares and yet he was just dandy. She was going to lose this fight regardless, that was something she had come to terms with and accepted, so why not at least go down experimenting?
Dominus took the initiative this time around and took off running towards Sadie, weaving around maces, swords, spears, and other miscellaneous tools of violence. As he neared Sadie he punted a dagger at her, sending it spinning in an arc with a velocity that was tricky to gauge, almost as if he''d put a sidespin on it.
Sadie''s gut reaction was to pick up a nearby shield and block it... But she left it there. Picking up the shield was objectively correct as any other weapon would require precision and/or effort to block the dagger, but then what? She''d be stuck with a defensive weapon in hand while Ares had free range to pick from tens of weapons and counter her in whatever manner took his fancy. Sure, looking around at her available options made her antsy because she''d never usually opt for any of them, but she was supposed to be stepping out of her comfort zone here otherwise her struggling up until now would have been pointless. After deliberating, Sadie realised she wasn''t supposed to be deliberating anything at all and just picked up the thing closest to her; a spear. A spear obviously wasn''t going to pay dividends here but she''d made her ''choice'' and stuck with it. Next up was deciding whether to thrust the spear at the incoming dagger or hold the spear vertically to block it. Normally, Sadie would block it as that was the safer route with no potential for human error so, naturally, she did the exact opposite and took the more aggressive approach, knocking the dagger aside by striking it with the tip of the spear. Sadie was surprised to realise post decision that what she was doing was actually correct, for once, and had put her in a good situation. Ares, who had run off to the side, just slightly out of Sadie''s vision, had just picked up a small war hammer. In the event that Sadie had gone for the block, she would have had to take a more passive approach, wait for the dagger to connect, and stabilise herself post impact, all of which would have taken time. Even if it only added up to an extra second or two, that made all the difference as Ares would have been a few steps closer. The difference between Ares being up close and personal while Sadie was holding a spear and Sadie being able to keep him further away was monumental. The time she shaved by attacking the dagger was enough to allow her to prevent an ugly outcome she wasn''t even aware of at the time. Not to mention the fact that the shield would have been an awful decision considering Ares'' choice of weapon. Yes, sure, Sadie had been incredibly lucky in that everything aligned perfectly to give her a good outcome, but was it really luck if she consciously chose not to make the obvious move? Sadie wasn''t quite sure. After all, now Ares was going to have show some ingenuity to escape his situation and reverse the tide too. Did this mean the fight would devolve into a creative tug of war? Sadie had never been in a fight quite like this before as everything was usually meticulously calculated and optimised. Like this, the ''appropriate'' response to each other''s moves was going to get more and more ridiculous... But maybe that wasn''t a bad thing? If she fought like this against a normal person, wouldn''t she just win immediately every time? Were the rules of combat she''d followed her entire life really the right way to do things just because they worked up until now?
Meanwhile, Dominus was incredibly pleased. Sadie was learning. Make no mistake, Dominus was not so kind-hearted as to teach everyone he came across, but there were a few reasons he went out of his way for Sadie. 1: He was beyond bored with being dead. This was his first time breathing air and stretching his muscles in however many thousands of years. By turning the duel into a lecture it would inevitably last longer. 2: Seeing the basics of his own teachings being misused in such an amateurish and egregiously bad way hurt his soul. Yes the basics were strict, but the evolution of them was not. The entire point was that the basics would allow you to have the bare minimum competency no matter what whacky bullshit you attempted to do. It wasn''t supposed to be the end goal, but rather the starting point from which everything else originated. Dominus was aware this domain was pitifully low in the ''ladder'' and that he shouldn''t expect better, but it was still annoying seeing someone misunderstand his guidance to such an extent that he felt the need to step in and correct a thing or two. 3: Sadie had potential. Dominus saw in Sadie the potential for a new Thousand Weapons Exemplar. They weren''t necessarily rare, but having more around was always fun for Dominus so he could experience new things rather than just living forever and fighting the same boring old sword grandmaster codgers day in, day out. It would also benefit Sadie who would live a pretty great life so it was a win-win overall. 4: Lastly, and this was pretty much the biggest reason, Sadie reminded Dominus of his first wife. Dominus had many wives, and he actually regretted it, but he never cared for anyone more than his first wife; that was always true. She was the daughter of the God of the weapons pillar and Dominus had fallen in love with her at first sight. She liked him too but her grumpy old man wouldn''t let some random, talentless Joe Shmoe date his daughter so he set an impossible challenge for Dominus; ''If you want my permission to be with my daughter, beat me in a fight''. The grumpy old man wasn''t just any weapons pillar God either, he was the only one. Throughout all of history he''d never been replaced because he''d never died nor was there anyone more fitting for the role. He was, and still is, one of the strongest Gods out there. Still though, Dominus was head over heels, not that he wore heels... Except that one time he was experimenting with a fighting style that involved kicking people a lot... Anyway, he spent the better part of his life training and never gave up. Countless failures and losses to the old man littered his path but still he persevered. It was during this journey Dominus realised rules and styles weren''t aiding him, but keeping him down. What would a set style do against someone who also knew it and could utilise it better than you anyway? How were you supposed to get better at the style if the other person spent just as much time practicing as you and was born earlier? Dominus was talented, but so was the old man. Dominus needed to do something else so he set off on a journey of sorts wherein he took in as much information about anything and everything he could find, relevant to fighting or otherwise. He learnt how to dance, how to play chess like an expert, and how to think outside the box like a philosopher. He eventually returned with a new goal in mind, to reinvent what it meant to ''fight'', and boy did he succeed. His wild, unfettered and, honestly, stupidly random approach worked wonders as all the experts were utterly confounded by tricks and ideas they''d never even imagined possible. Dominus racked up win after win and never lost again, not even to the old man who was baffled when he finally felt the bitter sting of defeat at the hands of a man wielding a boomerang, a shovel, and some pepper spray. Dominus'' trips to far away lands, work experience doing graveyards shifts, and conversations with wily women earned him both the ire and respect of the old man who had never seen anything like it. Dominus happily married the old man''s daughter and he even taught her how to fight like him instead of her ''stinky old codger of a father''. She, like Sadie, gloriously failed to grasp anything beyond the basics for a long time but, one day, when it all clicked for her, she became a powerhouse in her own right. Dominus smiled to himself as the memories came flooding back, even if he felt guilty for the way things went afterward as he had a lot of time to ruminate on his mistakes while he was dead. But, hey, he was alive again and he could apologise now! Or, well, he''d need Ares to drag his ass back to the upper domains first... As for Sadie, well, why not help her? He had more than enough reasons to justify it.
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
Sadie took the opportunity to be aggressive and launch an attack. It was a simple spear thrust, not unlike the one she''d just done to knock aside the dagger, but it was safe and effective as it would be able to keep Ares out of reach and at a disadvantage. Sadie was less interested in hitting him and more so in putting the onus on him to show her something interesting, something that she could learn from. Ares took a step back while raising his arm in preparation to to retreat from the spear and attack simultaneously by throwing the hammer... NOT. That was simply what it looked like he was doing and Sadie knew better than to expect something so simple, but she went along with it anyway out of sheer curiosity. Yes she could just play it safe and take a step back, but what would happen then? A boring fight in which she runs away all the time while Ares peppers her with ranged attacks? That approach was boring and ineffectual, she couldn''t be so fearful of her opponent otherwise she would never create any openings. If she took the bait, she felt like she could learn something interesting and put herself in a situation she otherwise never would. Sadie took a step forward to chase and extend her spear''s reach. If Ares committed to the throw, she would stab him. If Ares blocked, Sadie could push aggressively and keep up the pressure. Much to Sadie''s surprise, Ares took a step forward and swung the hammer but never let go. He wasn''t going to throw it or block, he was going to advance after feigning a retreat and attack the incoming danger just like Sadie had done with the dagger earlier. Just like that, Sadie was in a rough bind. If she allowed it to happen, her weapon would be crushed and Ares, thanks to his forward step, would be uncomfortably close, giving her no time to find a new one. If she abandoned the spear she would have to flee and dodge the hammer that Ares would inevitably throw at her... Were these the only two options available to her? Were they really?... No. I''ll just make a third option. Sadie''s heart started pounding as an idea struck her out of the blue. Was it risky? Yes Was it stupid? yes But the only question that needed answering was, ''would it be exciting?'', and Sadie already knew the answer to that. Maybe the revenants were right, maybe having fun was what mattered, or maybe that was just the optimal way to fight and it just happened to be fun. Who knows? Who cares? Sadie had never had a thrill like this before. She mimicked the smug smile that had tormented her throughout this fight and silently dared Ares to play this game with her.
Sadie stayed on course and committed to the thrust. Ares rose to the challenge and brought the hammer down with ferocity upon the feeble spear, but his eyebrow raised when the spear tip was buried into the ground instead of shattering on contact. The amount of power behind that swing was not to be messed with and the spear should have been obliterated, yet the only consequence for the spear after butting heads with the hammer was to be driven down to the floor and wedged into the ground. Ares realised Sadie used his own trick against him, imbuing the spear with mana to make it sturdier and withstand the blow. Ares smile widened as he was caught off-guard for the first time today and he was dying to see Sadie''s next move. Sadie didn''t disappoint as she used her palm to throw up the spear''s shaft. As the spear''s tip was still buried in the ground, the shaft travelled in a semi-circle arc, leaving Sadie''s grip and ultimately landing directly opposite her, squarely on Ares'' shoulder which was hunched from swinging the hammer. Sadie took off with a sprint and jumped, planting her left leg on the spear''s shaft causing Ares to be indirectly pushed closer to the ground as the weight came bearing down on his shoulder, locking his arm down and creating a massive opening. Sadie felt a rush of exhilaration as she raised her body by pushing down on the spear. Her heart was out of control as it beat rapidly. This fight was going to turn her into a battle maniac, but she was too busy madly laughing as she swung her head down onto Ares skull to care.
THUD
The feel of Ares'' blood trickling down her face and its metallic scent were the sweetest sensations Sadie had ever experienced. More MORE DAMNIT! DONT DIE YET! I''M NOT SATISFIED! As Ares fell backward, Sadie''s heart nearly exploded from the rush of adrenaline when she saw that trademark smirk creep onto Ares face. It wasn''t any ordinary smirk either, it was dangerous, She knew what it meant. He was going to hit her, and it was going to hurt. Who cared about that though?! She wanted to know how. How did his head not crack?! How was he going to save himself now?! How was he going to beat her now?! How was she going to have to respond?! How could she find a way to hurt him back?!
How?
How?
HOW ARES?
Ares continued falling but his body suddenly stopped as it neared the ground. Sadie felt Ares'' foot catch the back of her head which was still jutting forward after the headbutt. Ares pulled hard with his foot and brought his body back up while dragging Sadie''s head towards his own.
CRACK
Ahhh... Sadie could feel it. The Echo rattling around in her skull was the answer to all her questions. He used an Echo to mitigate the damage from the first headbutt as well as to retaliate. Her brain was pummelled, her throat was rattled, pain racked her organs and, BANG, one of her ribs exploded... THIS IS HEAVEN!
It was official, Dominus had turned Sadie into a maniac.
Poor Aym.
Poor poor Aym. How he was going to deal with a woman this aggressive was anyone''s guess. Who knows, though, maybe it was a good thing?
MOREEEEEEEEEEEEEE!
…
Okay, maybe not, but it wasn''t Ares'' problem so he quietly apologised in his mind and went back to watching the spectacle.
Sadie regained her bearing and looked back at Ares. What she saw calmed her raging heart and gave her pause. A deafening silence overwhelmed the building as Ares slowly walked towards Sadie with a grin on his face.
Gulp
Sadie couldn''t explain it, but it was as if all the weapons in the Field had awoken from a dormant slumber and were now staring at her. An overwhelming pressure descended and it felt like time had frozen. Amidst the sea of pressure, Ares took one final step which echoed throughout the sect and spread his arms in front of him with his palms facing the sky. Ares inhaled a deep breath before uttering the name of the unique art he created many moons ago; a unique art that struck fear into anyone who knew it''s name for it was the very same art that once slew a God.
"Asura Rondo!"