"Father! Father!"
The cries of Gabriel could be heard as he desperately looked for Father Laurence. The disappearance of the children, the chaos ensuing somewhere in the village, and the absence of Father Laurence has been overwhelming for the blonde-haired boy. He honestly had no clue where to go. He didn't know if he should keep fruitlessly searching for the kids, find Father Laurence, or what! In the end, he chose to find Father Laurence.
"Father! Where are you at!?" Typically, Father Laurence would travel through the village to get to an abandoned building. The building has been off-limits to villagers since Father Laurence was made a minister. Gabriel himself has never entered the strange building that Father Laurence spends so much time in. But now, he has no choice but to check there.
The abandoned building looked like a normal house, but the exterior was molded, falling apart, and boarded up. People passing by always chalk it up to either being under construction or just forgotten. Upon Gabriel's stepping foot onto the doorstep of the building, he grasped the doorknob, slowly twisting it and opening the door. As soon as Gabriel opened the door, Father Laurence was standing right in the doorway, shocking Gabriel. He did not expect to find him so fast. Breaking out of his shock, Gabriel breathed in to speak, "Father! I can't find the kids! And something has happened toward the other end of the village!"
Father Laurence's eyes widened upon hearing those words. "I thought I told you to take them somewhere safe!" Gabriel waved his hands frantically in an attempt to respond, "I did! But they snuck out somewhere! So now I can't find them!"
Father Laurence gritted his teeth in anger. As Father Laurence was seething, Gabriel gulped, raising one hand cautiously as he parted his lips to say, "Father, what really is happening? You said you'd explain it to me later. But, I don't know if we have that much time."
Father Laurence gazed at Gabriel silently, appearing to be contemplating something. The elderly man then sighed, rubbing his head frustratingly. "Alright. I'll tell you all you need to know. But first, come inside. I got something I need to give you."
Gabriel frantically nodded, following Father Laurence into the abandoned home, shutting the door behind them.
XXX
To Gabriel, the home didn't seem all that big. It just seemed like a regular home. But, finding out that the abandoned home has an underground section, exactly like the Montgomery Church was a bit surprising. Father Laurence must love basements or something.
At the flick of a switch, a long, narrow room was instantly lit up with flickering lights. Inside the room was various equipment. Gabriel had no idea that Father Laurence had equipment that he was unaware of. What stood out the most was the long sword at the back of the room. The hilt of the sword was colored black. The blade had a golden outline tracing the length of the blade. But, within the outline, the blade appeared to be made of silver-colored steel. The sword resided inside a clear container, keeping any outside substances out and away from the stainless blade.
"Father, what's that sword over there?" Gabriel questioned, jabbing a finger in the direction of the contained sword.
Father Laurence took a quick intake of breath, focusing his eyes on the sword. "That, my child, is the world's only real blessing left."
Gabriel's eyes widened in shock. What Father Laurence just said went against everything he had learned since being at the Montgomery Church. He was told that since the departure of the gods, all blessed items were quickly transformed into curses. Deep down, everyone at the church still believes that curses are still blessings, but to say that an actual blessing still remained was mind-boggling.
"H-how is that possible!? Without the aura of the gods, blessings can't truly exist!" Gabriel was hastily questioning the elderly man, turning his whole body to face Father Laurence. An expectant look was all over Gabriel's face.
Father Laurence glanced at Gabriel, sighing for the umpteenth time today. Everything was going at a pace that Father Laurence didn't condone. "To explain that, I have to explain my background."
Gabriel adopted a look of surprise. No one in the three holy nations ever knew the backstory of Father Laurence. This was information that Gabriel would certainly prefer to have. "Your background?" Gabriel asked, almost unable to believe what was going on.
Father Laurence nodded, parting his lips to say, "Yes. Because that sword right there, is a sword called Excalibur."
XXX
Resuming the encounter between Oshieru, Akushon, and Gimu, we can currently see the three standing in the same spot. The two instructors glared at Gimu. Gimu himself only stood there, bending his legs slightly, a smirk on his face.
"So, as I said, who's going first?" Gimu questioned the instructors for the second time, glancing from Oshiero to Akushon, expecting an answer.
Oshieru took a step toward Akushon and whispered, "How do you want to do this?"
Akushon kept his eyes glued to Gimu. "I'll go in for an attack. Observe how he moves as I go in. You'll have a better view from back here." Akushon rationalized.
With those words, Oshieru only nodded and took a few steps back. Gimu's smirk widened upon seeing which one of the two would be going first. Before anything could happen, Gimu spoke out to Akushon, "Y'know, I rarely fight people who use knives, especially against me. So don't disappoint me now!"
This man had a huge ego, and it was that clear to Akushon. The red aura sense instructor subtly stored some magic in his legs, slowly strengthening the two bottom limbs in preparation. "Don't worry," Akushon suddenly reassured Gimu of his words. "...I won't."
Without warning, Akushon dashed forward at breakneck speed. With his left hand, Akushon sliced at Gimu with his Bowie knife. Within that short amount of time, Gimu managed to dodge the sudden attack, reeling back his own blade. As Gimu swung his sword at Akushon, the red aura instructor used the Bowie knife in his right hand to deflect the swing.
Sparks went flying upon the impact of the two steel blades. The noise of their clash rang in their ears as they continued their fight. Akushon used Gimu's left leg to propel himself backward, performing a flip and landing safely on the ground.
Gimu retained a faint smirk. "That wasn't too bad. You're leaving a nice impression. Keep it up!"
Gimu twirled his Kanji-marked sword, speeding forward and slashing at Akushon. Akushon barely managed to dodge as Gimu's blade sped past his face. Gimu suddenly spun clockwise and slashed his sword from a different direction, prompting Akushon to deflect with his right Bowie knife.
Through a series of slashes and blocks, Akushon succeeded in locking Gimu's arm with his own right arm, notably the one wielding the sword, and Akushon used his left arm to jab his Bowie knife toward Gimu. In response to the jab from Akushon, Gimu bent back as far as he could to avoid the Bowie knife. Fortunately for Gimu, this gave him the opportunity to tangle his right leg with Akushon's, breaking the instructor's balance as well as setting himself free.
Gimu pulled his leg back, making Akushon fall backward. As Akushon was falling, Gimu kicked the instructor back even further with his left leg. With Akushon on the ground, attempting to stand back up, Gimu stood up straight. "That wasn't half bad," Gimu complimented. "...But it won't ever be enough to even scratch me."
With Akushon standing back up, he slowly walked back over to Oshieru. The blue-haired instructor put a firm hand on Akushon's right shoulder. "You okay, Akushon?"
Akushon nodded. "Yeah." He answered with a heavy breath. "This guy seems stronger than me." Akushon declared, keeping his eyes on Gimu.
"From what I saw, he is incredibly fast, faster than you. He always had his eyes on both of your hands, probably analyzing how you attacked. This guy was able to read every attack you threw at him." Oshieru informed his friend, keeping his voice at a mere whisper.
The black and blonde-haired instructor coughed. "We could both go at him at once. He might be able to keep up with my movements, but a second person could be a viable option for us to use against him."
Oshieru nodded in agreement. The blue-haired instructor backed away from Akushon, giving him room to balance himself. The two instructors then assumed their own stances, keeping their eyes on Gimu.
Gimu smiled wider at the sight of the instructors preparing to fight, "Round two, huh?" He questioned, raising his exposed eyebrow.
Oshieru flipped his tachi blade as Akushon flashed his Bowie knives. The two instructors then looked at each other. "Round two?" Oshieru asked his fellow instructor.
Akushon nodded, turning back to look at Gimu. "...Round two."
This time, it would be two against one.
XXX
Hey! Two chapters in one day! I usually don't do that so I can keep a steady pace, as well as have a clear mind for when I write, but I couldn't help myself! Stay tuned for more!
Have a Great Day!
Peace - Cr1ticalz_