"Ionia has always been a land of wild magic, its vibrant people and powerful spirits seeking to live in harmony…but sometimes this peaceful equilibrium does not come easily. Sometimes it needs to be kept in check.
The Kinkou are the self-appointed keepers of Ionia's sacred balance. The order's loyal acolytes walk the spirit and material realms, mediating conflicts between them and, when necessary, intervening by force... But what happens when force itself isn't useful? When the Kinkou themselves get overwhelmed by nature?"
Akali watched in horror as the young man fist barraged her former master. At first she was going to intervene, but stumbled back as Shen warned her against this, before getting slammed repeatedly by the Winter's ice gauntlets.
She knew that the boy would react, yet she didn't believe that it would be so violent. Akali trembled to the thought of someone else encountering the awakened Winter before them. Yet now, it wasn't the time for thinking.
"Akali! MOVE!" She thought, before grabbing a smoke pot from her belt and tossing it at the Winter. It crashed on him, disorientating him.
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"Ugh!" Lanius' vision became blurry from the smoke. He was about to attack the blue shadow, when something hit his shoulder...then it all darkened. Lanius smelled. Gunpowder? A smoke spell perhaps?
No, it hit him... It was some sort of object. Wait... Freida is silent...
What? Why? What did the blue shadow put on him?
Tsk... First the burning sensation, now this...
Lanius moved forward, away from the smoke that instantly cleared. The blue shadow had placed something in between him, a blue glowing line, the same as a few seconds ago. It held it with both hands now.
"~_---_____--!"
Somebody... A distant female voice yelled something. Lanius turned towards the source. It was the green shadow.
A female... And the other was a male? He yelled something to her before the second punch, the voice sounded male. Lanius now faced the female, who was now holding something with her left hand. It was glowing white...and was spinning at a high speed.
"=--___-~-! ____--=--~_---_____--!"
Lanius' eyes now darted towards the male. He was gone. He now instantly looked back at the female. There he was, a few meters to her right. The female flung the white thing towards him. Lanius understood.
"Playing dirty, huh?" He thought. "Very well... It's my dream, my rules!" he roared in his thoughts. Lanius stomped the ground with his right foot, as the white object approached him. A wide grin mentally formed in his mouth.
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"Shen! Move out of the way!"
Akali spun her kama, gaining momentum. She bought enough time for Shen to move out of the way so she can hit the winter. She wasn't going to kill him, just make him lose focus.
Akali noticed that her master had dashed next to her, as the winter got confused. She then flung her kama forward. The weapon spun mid air like a boomerang and flew towards the Winter.
The winter stomped his foot and an ice spike lunged itself from the ground, trapping the kama.
"My kama! " Akali yelled, gripping her knifes.
She rushed towards her weapon, trying to get to it before him, tho the Winter was closer to it than her.
The Winter gripped it by the hilt, snapping the ice that trapped it. Akali feared that he'd also break it, thus she stopped mid way when she saw him inspect it.
Her jaw also nearly dropped when he fused one of the long chains around his waist with the hilt by using some ice. The Winter then moved forward, spinning the improvised kusarigama around.
Not only did he outsmart her, but he also now had a weapon. The chain spun rapidly around, cutting the blowing wind with another whilst sound added to the background.
"Akali, we need to be fast and end this quickly, we're at a disadvantage!" said now said, gripping the paper slip that was left.
He handed her the slip and charged at the winter with the sword in hand. Akali watched as the two weapons clashed. The two men dashed, jumped and moved around, stepped back and charged forward again in the battle, as if it was a dance pattern. She hadn't seen something so unique, aside from the Vastayan tribes.
Something clicked inside her brain, urging her to observe the young man closely. The fox-like markings across his face, the set of sharp fangs in his semi open mouth...The blue feline eyes below the white membrane... The short growls that erupted from his throat every time he tried to intimidate Shen...
"Vastaya... The Winter is a half Vastaya." Akali thought to herself. She was then awakened from her observation slumber from Shens yell, as he stepped a few meters back.
"NOW! "
" On it! "
Akali flung three knifes at the Winter, who deflected them with the kusarigama.
She then also flung herself forward, intending to put the slip on his back. He noticed this and reeled back his kusarigama, ready to strike the Rogue Assassin.
Akali braced herself and once the sickle was flung forward, she also jumped, stepping on her kama as the tip dug the snow, allowing her to jump once more and do a full flip above the winter, landing behind him and slapping the seal on his back.
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"WRYAAAAAA!" That pain came again, along with Freida's blood curdling scream.
Lanius yelled, before he fell on his knees. The pain was too much to handle. How the hell did that woman do that? It felt as if his heart was burning.
He had to get out of there and fast. Lanius spun around, the woman was next to him and the man was approaching. He still had his weapon in hand, and so did she.
He couldn't die, not there, not HE, not in this nightmare. Lanius jumped up, unsure of how how to react.
He then slammed his foot down and a small hill of ice erupted from the ground, pushing him up and the other two away. He landed on his heels and began sprinting away to a random direction... with a faint though of his mind getting less foggy and his vision returning in the back of his mind.
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Shen's breath was cut in half the moment the ice slammed him in the chest. He along with Akali got flung to the side, landing on the snow.
The Rogue Assassin let out a scream as her bare shoulders and back sank on the snow and quickly jumped back up, rubbing them frantically.
Shen had forgotten that it was still snowing like mad, the wind had slowed down at least. He then looked around. Akali was ready to chase after the Winter, when her former master stretched his arm out, preventing her.
"What!? Why?!" she now demanded to know with a puzzled look on her face.
"Our job here is done. We awakened the Winter, we restored nature." he now said.
"He's still in that frantic state, I'm afraid that we haven't done anything..." Akali's stated.
"The seals dissolved, it will work in a few minutes. After all, what will we accomplish by going after him?"
"What will we gain by letting him go?"
"A demonstration of superior judgment, perhaps..." Shen sheathed his sword and began walking.
"Where are you going, what about my kama?" Akali rushed to his side.
"Oh well eventually get it back. For now, let's go somewhere warm, shall we?" He proposed, still walking.