Without warning, he charged forward, bringing the sword down diagonally across her chest.
His plan was to cut through her left shoulder, bringing it through the right side of her hip.
Though he faltered, the blade bounced off her shoulder with a loud 'clang!' 'It felt like I just hit solid steel.'
The force of the hit still sent Zheanni back, landing her on her ass.
From a pouch on his waist, Vidi, removed two daggers, removing their sheaths, the blades dripped. Dimethylmercury is the fastest-known acting poison in the world. If .3 billionth of a gram is absorbed into one's skin, paralysis will set in, and within minutes, death. Vidi had covered the blades in the chemical.
His head almost hit the ceiling, but he plunged, his red energy whipping around him as he fell toward Zheanni, aiming the blades at the center of her chest.
The knives cut through her clothes, stopping with a thud. The dagger in his right hand shattered on impact, while in the left, the blade warped, forever ruining the weapon.
Zheanni, still on her back, grinned at the guy standing over her, holding up two broken weapons in bewilderment.
The unanimous thought shared between the two brothers, 'She must be wearing some sort of body armor under there.'
Zheanni brushed her clothes, examining the holes in her luxury attire.
Vici rushed forward again, swinging down on Zheanni with his sword.
Vidi flashed away, inches before his brother's sword connected with him.
The sword buried itself an inch into the floor several centimeters above Zheanni's head. She'd moved out of the way. Balling her left hand into a fist, the punch sending him recoiling.
Getting to her feet, she walked him down. She couldn't react, 'He's so fast, it's like he's teleporting.' Vidi had appeared behind her, holding one of the sharpest blades he had. It was three feet long and stained red. He swung, attempting to decapitate the girl. The blade effortlessly bounced off her neck with a clang. She spun, her foot hitting him in the chest, sliding him back several feet.
"Okay," Vidi said, locking eyes with his brother. An understanding passed between them. At the same time, they both manifested two weapons each. Vidi had an axe and steel claws. While Vici had a glaive and scythe. Each molten with energy. Weapons like these are specifically used for speed. Regularly, their movements are inconceivable to the normal human eye, but when working in harmony, the two brothers surpass that in orders of magnitude.
"She needs to hurry her ass up," Conor groaned, grabbing a nearby metal folding chair and plopping down on it. He took out his phone, then remembered that he wouldn't have any signal. Jamming it back into his pocket with a frown. "Kholwa, these dudes are so ass. I hate people like this, thinking they're good energy users just 'cause they can spawn in a bunch of random shit. Like, there's no technique or nothin', just spam. If the average male was like either of these two, inter-gender sports would be legal."
"Go Z!" Kholwa cheered.
The golden aura around Zheanni grew slightly; the intensity was as if you were to stand too close to a bonfire. She dug her feet into the ground, charging forward.
Vici barely dodged the flurry of punches, returning strikes with his weapons. The blades continued to bounce uselessly off her skin. 'What is this power?' Her clothes ripped the more he slashed at her.
Vidi moved in as well, easily dodging everything thrown at him, but couldn't manage to damage Zheanni. The longer they fought, the more they felt it. Even though they hadn't made any progress in damaging her, their movements were perfect. The humming of their energy reached a crescendo as the two vibrations synced. 'Damn, mate, it's been a while.' Vidi thought.
'Yeah.' Vici thought.
Every slice, every attack, each movement, it was perfection. Their blue and red energy intertwined, moving so quickly they left brief tracers of light across the art room.
"How are y'all doing this shit? I've barely hit y'all!" Zheanni said.
"Energy is like your soul," Vici said, aiming at her eyes with his metal claws.
"Several things are happening," Vidi stabbed downward.
"A flow state." he slashed at her stomach.
"You're also just not technical. A slag with no subtly." Using a shoe blade to cut at her Achilles tendon.
"It's like sensing energy. If you get proficient at it, you can read people." Vici slashed across her neck.
"Ya get real good, and you can sense what people are gonna do before they do it." Vidi slid under her punch.
"Especially a talentless murderer like you!"
Conor darted a look over, seeing the bright pink aura that now surrounded Kholwa. 'She's not gonna be a retard and jump in, is she?'
"Haemosu," from under Kholwa's hanbok, five dog heads poked out. Their necks were that of dragons, writhing and coiling as they stretched. "Come on Haemosu, watch them," she said. 'Even with energy, and my Haemosu, I can't even follow them. They're moving far too fast!' Kholwa pulled her eyes away from the fight, looking at Conor to see his reaction. He sat forward, taking the fight seriously now. She noticed his eyes. At first, she thought they had rolled back in his head, but she realized his pupils were moving too quickly, catching every movement, as the three danced several yards away.
"She's takin' the piss, and this's doing fuck all. Been too bloody long, but we're doing it." Vidi stopped, jumping back a few meters away from Zheanni. He concentrated, clasping his hands together, holding them low. "Vici, the seven-blade dance."
"Right," he nodded, backing up.
A shared skill between the two brothers, the Seven Blade Dance, follows these rules: 1.) Only one sword/blade can be wielded at a time. 2.) The blade must make contact with the opponent at least once before transitioning to another blade. 3.) To "spawn/transmit" each sword, an individual catalyst must be used for each one. Description: The brothers possess seven insignificant daggers, each serving as a catalyst for a distinct blade. Each of the seven blades harbors a unique ability.
The first blade appeared in their hands. To Kholwa, it looked as if the brothers switched places in the room, though Conor saw what had really happened. They had moved so fast, running across the room, simultaneously slashing at Zheanni, ending up where the other had stood. Blade One has no special traits other than its sharpness.
Switching to Blade Two, a machete, they steadied themselves, waiting for an opening.
Zheanni stood in the center of the room, her fists clenched. 'This's gettin' so friggin' old.' She closed her eyes, feeling the warmth of a familiar presence pass by her.
"Oi, what the…what am I looking at?" Vici wavered.
Looming behind Zheanni was a purple humanoid figure, its eyes two holes of fire, while its mouth hung agape, a maw like a black hole. A void. It had round padded shoulders and a screen device showing the number '33' on each. "My Dark Passenger," Zheanni tried to hold its eye contact but simpered, looking away.
"Okay," Conor nodded. "I take back what I said. If Z's gotta take out her Energy-Vamp, they real."
Kholwa looked panicked, "This is a mistake!"
"Eh, she'll be a'ight. Why you trippin' off a fight? Just watch, damn."
"Because she can be damaged now that Dark Passenger is out of her."
"Yeah, but, now she can actually fight back. It's not just a stalemate."
"Maybe…"
"You got no faith in your homegirl, huh? Shut the fuck up and watch!"
With every step the Dark Passenger took, it left a footprint of a tar-like substance. It reminded Conor of Ferrofluid, as it bubbled and spiked out of the ground, floating as if it weren't affected by gravity.
Attempting to catch her Energy-Vampire off-guard, Vidi flew forward, sliding and spinning. The sword connected with its stomach.
Zheanni shielded her eyes as a massive explosion engulfed the two.
Looking up in time, she saw Vici charging, ready to skewer her.
The brother's energy that covers Blade Two takes on properties of an explosive agent, and the blade will detonate on command or if it pierces an object.
'She's faster,' Vici thought. Seeing Zheanni now weave around his strikes. He coughed, feeling the wind get knocked out of him. Her knee planted in his stomach. His concentration broke, 'The hell just happened? What…Who is that? Now she's even faster and stronger! I never expected this slag to be the toughest person I've ever seen. Minus my dad, of course.'
Like Zheanni did prior, the Dark Passenger stood motionless, the blade having no effect.
Vidi turned to Blade Three, his energy arching up and down the katana as electricity.
Zheanni ducked under the wide swing of Vici, 'If this sword is the same as that other guy's, I don't wanna get hit by this. Every time their swords change, it's got like a new element or something?'
'Why is she dodging now of all times? Does she know our ability? Is she vulnerable?' Vici was blasted back as the Dark Passenger lunged over Zheanni, slamming its shoulder into him.
Focusing on the other brother, who was sprinting right at her, she attempted to dodge, but Vidi was faster, slicing across her stomach, sending an arch of blood across the room, splattering across a sculpture of an old pharaoh. Her blood seeping into its cracks.
Conor grinned, watching the electricity arch up her body as she shook uncontrollably.
Kholwa gasped, putting her hand to her mouth. Haemosu all yelped as several explosions in quick succession erupted on the other side of the room, shaking the building. One of the heads curled behind her, peaking out from behind her shoulder, whimpering slightly. "It's okay," she reached out, petting one of the heads, though she felt as if she were trying to convince herself.
Zheanni tentatively brushed the gaping wound in her torso. She winced as her fingertips made contact, swearing and gritting her teeth. 'I haven't been this hurt in a minute!'