The lagging of its pacing before an attack still threw me off guard each time he performed it, deviating further from our earlier pattern of battle.
The insane speed before it's attacks were something I had already adapted to the longer the fight proceeded, but it was only by a margin that I was able to respond.
It kept on giggling repeatedly like a child throughout it's barrage of relentless attacks. It was a beast when it came to hand to hand combat and the fear that it would pick up a weapon at any moment, kept on weighing on my mind.
'I'd be at a clear disadvantage if that happened' I thought feeling my flames flicker.
For just a moment that I had let my thoughts occupy my mind, he had already landed a decisive punch, reaching deep into my abdomen and almost turning my insides into mush.
'Shit!'
The longer the fight lasted, the more I felt like I was losing the upper hand but I still kept attacking without thought, hoping to devise a new strategy that would put me in the winning position.
"I must say, in all my battles I haven't met a person with a magnificent battle IQ as you. Unfortunately though, you lack experience" it commented, ending it in distaste.
Another punch that I couldn't anticipate landed in my guts, as I finally understood why he kept hitting that singular spot.
It was to wear me out entirely, till I couldn't move my lower body.
My legs had almost given up as they started to shake mildly in response to the overbearing weight of my collapsing upper body.
"Let's take it up a notch shall we" it suggested, as a change in its aura began to dampen our surroundings.
It began levitating, lifting itself entirely from the ground until it was suspended completely in space. The more it unveiled new techniques of it's powers the more my mind tried to explore the nigh limitless arsenal of spatial manipulation.
So far he had only demonstrated a few of it's truly formidable attacks but nothing of overwhelming significance had been put forth.
I shot concentrated flame like bullets at him at top speed but it evaded them all while showing off it's dominance in aerial combat
It had years of experience in combat when compared to me but lacked the conviction to end a fight immediately, enjoying every moment of it's opponents struggles.
That was it's mistake and I exploited that particular flaw without reservations. The electrifying feeling of a prolonged battle enveloped my entire body till I felt it quake from pleasure.
WHAM!!!
BAM!!!!
BOOM!!!
The extensive and spontaneous attacks that ensued, tracked an unusual amount of dirt as we both sprinted at top speed, counter attacking and blocking each other's techniques. In just the short amount of time that I had battled with this freakish monster, I had grown to a certain level that I hadn't anticipated before.
I molded the flames that formed around my fingertips until it solidified and became extremely hard, forging a blade brimming with pure hot energy of about a thousand degrees.
It took a lot of energy to just maintain it's form for seconds so I had to launch my next attack immediately in hopes that it would wrap up the fight
I could feel the heat spread around me, turning everything into molten magma and although i was completely immune to it, the rest of my team were not, so they moved back in caution.
"Now you're putting your all into it" it commented again, this time, in regard.
It the proceeded to pull a katana-like blade from out of nowhere and pointed it towards me. It was a metal like none that I had ever seen and I couldn't understand why It hadn't melted completely even though my own weapon emitted enough energy to melt it. It simply walked towards me as if the heat had no effects on it in any way.
"I'll tell you probably because your look shows how confused you already are. My kind possess bodies that are relatively durable as we can resist heats far intense that you experience back on your planet, but the real reason I haven't turned into ash is because I pulled out my versal blade in the nick of time.
The blade is made from an extremely hard and almost indestructible metal, discovered centuries ago by our ancestors. It also provides it's wielder with that immunity to intense heat."
'Bullshit!!' I screamed in my head.
It just had to have the exact countermeasure to my strongest attack and he just waved it at my face as if it was a kid's toy.
I had already reached the limit of my ability and I watched as the blade in my hands dispell until it faded completely. This was the worst case scenario that I hadn't accounted for and I was definitely out of all trump cards, while my opponent just pulled out his own trump card.
"You couldn't even hold out for another minute, what a shame" it lamented, shaking its head.
The drawbacks from extensive usage of our abilities were not something to joke with but at the moment, I had no other options as I needed a final and decisive attack to end the fight.
'Once more'
I molded the flames once more, more hotter than the last as I watched blood drip from my nose and dry up before it even reached the ground.
I was going to suffer the consequences of my actions later but for now, I got to be the savior of an entire squad. The titillating feeling I received from going past my limits was something I wouldn't exchange for anything else.
"HAHAHAHA... HAHA.... You really are feisty, human!!!"
"Get ready for the true battle!" I yelled, energy coursing through my entire body.
Hearing myself sound like the very person I fought to defeat was an awkward feeling, but my heart had been set ablaze by his undying thirst for battle; it was like meeting someone with a similar mindset as you.
The clashing of our blades sent out sparks that flied in all directions, as they collided even faster and with more vigor. I extended the heat from the blade towards my fist and punched it in it's blindspot before it could even react, sending it a few metres away from me.
It was as if my strength had grown exponentially in response to the increase in my ability output and I just concentrated on switching between punches and stroking with my blade.
His blocks were durable enough to withstand both the heat and force of my attacks but his reaction speed was slower each time he responded, leaving enough openings for me to fill with immediate forceful punches.
We continued in that manner until my drawback started kicking in and I felt the blade fluctuate. I had a minute tops, before it went out completely so I decided to pull off my deadliest attack.
I created some distance between us, then pressed the entire blade from both sides till it took the appearance of a spear, then with all the strength I had left, I threw it towards my opponent with the quickest speed I was capable of fathoming at that moment.
I already knew it could not use instant transportation like with the captains final attack, so it decided to use the same method in order to defend itself from the attack.
'How predictable' I thought, feeling accomplished.
Before coming into contact with his outstretched hands, the spear exploded, releasing tons of energy until it had burnt everything in it's path completely.
I had won.
I fell on my knees in joy, looking up to the sky as I felt the night breeze wrap around my body. My muscles in my arms began to tear as the pain resonated throughout my entire body.
I yelped in pain but it was completely worth it, I had overcome an adversary that I had thought would be impossible to beat at the beginning of our fight. A truly awe-inspiring feat.
"That last ditch effort was truly gratifying even for me who witnessed it. Thanks to my versal blade, I was able to withstand the potency of the attack just barely" A voice proceeded from the thick clouds of smoke.
I looked towards the direction of the sound of it's voice, completely void of a reaction. I was thoroughly tired, and didn't want to take my chances by speaking without reason. I knew I didn't exterminate it entirely, I had just rendered him unfit to battle any more by unveiling a very gratifying final trump card.
"I will retire for now. You've proven your willingness to survive and I will honor that and also it would be illogical for me to fight at a disadvantage against the rest of your kind. I hope we meet again human!"
'Well I sincerely hope we do not.....' I thought, trying to avoid a jinx.
"Before you leave, what is your name?" I inquired, hoping to favour our battle.
" Hahaha..... It's koldor do well to remember that name" it replied distastefully.
As he walked out through an invisible portal and I felt his presence disappear entirely, I knew I had truly won the fight. I collapsed to the ground, emaciated by the intense battle and even more intense drawback I felt.
'I guess in the end it all boils down to the how much one's mind can endure in a fight'.
Succumbing to the sleep that creeped on me without a fight, I felt the outrage in my head calm.