Chapter 14
"Do not attempt to escape my lightning prison," Lux said, warning his opponent. "I have never witnessed someone walk out of it and continue living."
The bald Imperial stood with his arms crossed. He stared intensely at Lux, until finally, he spoke up.
"You believe you have caught me." He shook his head. "I've heard stories about you, and this is just not what I expected. I didn't expect you to be a coward who is afraid of fighting. You need to wake up. I'm here to assassinate you and your friends. That's what I do. I'm not going to answer your childish questions."
"Very well," Lux said. "I respect your decision. However, I will not kill you." He turned to walk away from the Imperial.
***
Solis showed up on top of a hill where he found his opponent laying on his back. The man was wearing a large straw hat and had a piece of straw in his mouth. And, by his side lay a long scabbard holding a katana. Solis didn't say anything, he waited to see if the man noticed him. He waited in silence for what felt like an unreasonable amount of time.
Finally, Solis cleared his throat to get his attention. The man continued laying on his back, but eventually he tilted his head slightly to see his opponent. Then, he moved his head back and kept staring at the sky. Solis' jaw dropped at his behavior, he looked around to make sure no one could see him get ignored by his enemy. He wasn't sure what to make of the strange man. He had never encountered someone as an enemy who completely disregarded him. Yet, even with this odd behavior, there was something else of more interest to him.
"I have some questions I would like you to answer," Solis broke the silence. "First, where did you find that piece of straw? Secondly, are you a samurai?"
The man groaned and slowly climbed to his feet. He looked around as he brushed the snow from his clothes.
"I thought we were just gonna hang out and not talk or anything. But okay, yes to both questions. Now my question: how did you make your hair so white?"
Solis' eyes widened, but he tried to hide his excitement. He had always dreamed of meeting a true samurai. "I will admit that I am intrigued, but you did not answer my questions very well," he said. "I suppose I will answer yours anyway. My hair was not originally white, it has lost its color due to my loss of power. Now, my name is Solis, what is your name?"
"My name's Taida. So are you powerless then?"
"I am not powerless. However, I am far from as powerful as I should be."
"Well that's good news," the samurai responded. "Now, let's get this over with." Taida pulled his katana from its scabbard.
Solis removed his sword from his back in time to block a downward slash from his opponent. Taida jumped back and rushed in again. The two were crossing blades at high speeds. The samurai was very agile. He would flash past Solis in sharp movements. It had been quite some time since Solis had encountered such swordsmanship. Sparks flew. Swords clashed. Taida attacked. Solis counterattacked.
Solis knew he was losing the battle of speed. He had to adapt to his opponent's speed. The next time the samurai rushed in, he pushed back with his large blade. Taida slid backward for a brief moment. It was enough time for Solis to drop his two-handed weapon. He ran forward. Reaching behind him, he pulled two smaller blades from under his cloak. His speed doubled. Now, in a standing duel, their swords clashed more than ever.
Both warriors admired the other's swordplay. Taida realized that Solis' stance changed from that of a soldier. It resembled the style of an assassin now. He was too difficult to pin down. The samurai couldn't read his attacks anymore. He knew he had to turn to power attacks if he wanted to match Solis' new style.
The warriors locked blades. Taida's katana pushed briefly. He flashed away. Shooting back, he made a lateral slash. Solis flipped over the blade as he deflected it. The samurai came back. This time, he cut upward. He almost took off his opponent's head. Solis, once again resorted to agility. He flipped backward to avoid the blade altogether. Quickly, he rebounded. He shot forward, attempting a stabbing motion. But, in blinding speed, Taida spun past his lunging adversary, and thrust his blade behind him.
Several drops of blood colored the snow. "I am surprised that you managed to cut me," Solis said. "It is not easy to do so. My side is actually bleeding. It has been some time since I have experienced this." He moved his hand to cover the wound.
"You're surprised?" Taida asked, wrinkling his forehead. "I intended the blade to stab through you. I don't know what you're made of, but it's not normal. I just wanted the fight to stop before you kill me."
Solis furrowed his eyebrows, "You attacked me! You started this! I was perfectly content to just trade information. I have no intention of killing you. Although, I am wondering why you say that you wanted to just stop the fight when you are the one who started it."
"Well, I actually wasn't going to kill you either, even though, those are my orders. It all seemed like such a hassle. I just wanted to lay here." Then, Taida seemed to be in thought, "But, if what you say is true, then that would be why you haven't used the rest of your power, I guess?"
"I am impressed by your perception," Solis said. "You sense something more, but I am also aware that you have not used every ability you possess. Though, it is actually not quite as you say. I have used all of my physical power and speed during this fight. I have not used my other abilities because I felt no malice from your attacks. I see now that the nature energy does not affect you as it does with others. Why are you even here?"
"Well, unfortunately we don't really have a choice when we are given orders. Our orders were to kill you before you could try to kill the Alpha, but I didn't really feel like it. I prefer to relax."
Solis shook his head, "They clearly knew how many of us there are. They also seem to have some idea of our abilities and levels of strength. How much do they know about us?"
"We're just Gammas, we aren't given that kind of information. Only the Betas have actually met the Alpha in person, but it's said that he knows everything."
"I see, that certainly does explain how he knows that we are looking for him. Although, if he knows that much, then it should be obvious to him that we do not kill senselessly. Therefore, he lied to you to motivate your murderous mission," Solis reasoned.
"I'm not sure about any of this," Taida said. He reached to scratch his head, "I'm not sure who I can trust at this point. So I've decided, the one to win this battle will make the decision on what the loser will do. Do you agree with that deal?"
The white-haired warrior scratched his chin. "This is the first time I have ever heard a proposal such as this. I accept, I will honor the agreement."
"My ability boosts the power and speed of my physical attacks. I will now attack with everything I've got," Taida said.
Solis' dual swords began glowing a bright yellow color. Soon, his whole body followed suit. The entire battlefield became brighter as a light emanated from his position. Taida suddenly had difficulty locating his enemy. Knowing he was about to lose a handle on the situation, he raced toward the place he last saw his opponent. He attacked with all the power he could muster. Nothing happened. There was nothing but light.
"You are at a disadvantage," a disconnected voice rang out. "I am Solis, the name of the sun. I am the commander over the light of day."
Taida refused to give up. He shot back and forth. He attacked anything and everything he could see. Eventually, his blade struck another blade.
"Now, I know where you are," he laughed.
He issued attack after attack. He couldn't stop. He had to finish it quickly. Then he struck something that wasn't metal. Hearing Solis grunt, he pulled back to deliver the final blow. The next thing he felt was a blade touch his neck.
"I surrender," Taida said. He dropped his katana into the snow. Slowly, the light began to fade.
Solis' forearm was bleeding. "You almost got me," he said with a smile. "I realized that I needed to improvise." He looked down to see his wound, "I believe it will heal soon. As for you, you must obey my orders. First, I need you to destroy your crystal."
Taida looked down at his chest. He didn't want to destroy it, he honestly didn't know what would happen to him if he did. He always believed that deals should be upheld, though. He picked up his sword holding it by the blade. Quickly, he pulled it toward his chest to impale the crystal. The blade stopped. Solis had caught the sword by the handle.
"You really are different from others. I have never known an imperial to honor any sort of agreement. Therefore, my orders are for you to continue on as you are and live life however you see fit."
The samurai laughed, "I guess you're different too. My own people did lie about your group. I would like to make up for the trouble I've caused."
Solis nodded his head. "Very well, follow me."