Vincent restarted the spar by swinging his staff at Talia's torso. Talia tried to block it but was lifted off her feet. Vincent didn't plan on letting the opening get away from him. He jumped in the air and stabbed downwards. Talia rolled to the side and kicked at Vincent.
Vincent used the staff as a pole and spun around. He kicked at her face while turning. Talia had to put her arm up to block the kick. She rolled across the floor before stabbing her sword into it. Her hair was undone, and she looked disheveled.
She narrowed her eyes and stood up. A dark aura started coming off her as she returned to her stance. "Someone's angry." Vincent chuckled as he got back into his stance. Talia took three steps before disappearing. Vincent made flames appear around him.
"Ahh!" Talia screamed when she came from behind Vincent. She moved back away from the flames. Her clothes were singed in different places. "Don't be so predictable," Vincent said as he spun and twirled his staff around himself.
'Predictable!? Doesn't he know traveling through shadows is hard to do? Some people have been training with the element of darkness their entire lives and haven't achieved shadow traveling.' Vincent couldn't read her thoughts; even if he could, it wouldn't phase him.
Back on Earth, kids would pretend to have superpowers and fight against each other. They would spend hours debating and arguing about what a superpower could and couldn't do. This gave Vincent an advantage other people didn't have. His imagination allowed him to adapt and figure out countermaneuvers against someone's powers.
Talia grunted as she stood up. "Predictable, you say? How about this?" She dashed toward Vincent and slashed at him from the top of his head. Vincent made flames appear behind his elbows and met her swing. Talia's sword glowed purple right before their weapons connected.
*Boom!*
A wave of dust was pushed out. Taila was in the air, still slashing downwards, and Vincent was trying to push her away with flames growing bigger behind him. The others heard the boom and deactivated the dividers to check on them.
"Damn! Kick his ass, Talia!" Bruno cheered. Trent and Isabell were stunned at the damage on the floor. Takashi frowned, and so did Meredith. They felt the sword and staff intent practically rolling off them. Garfield was wearing gloves that were putting out soft, warm light. His face was riddled with worry.
Talia was increasing the amount of gravity on Vincent and her sword. "Fall, damnit!" Vincent grunted as her sword got closer to his face. "Not a chance in hell." The flames started to shrink and change from red to orange. The temperature instantly rose almost a hundred degrees.
Vincent pushed, and Talia was sent flying into the wall.
*CRASH!*
Talia fell to the floor. Isabell, Meredith, and Garfield ran to check on her. They stopped when they saw her stand up, her eyes pitch black. They moved to the side as Talia waved her sword. Vincent hurriedly put flames on his side to push himself out of the way.
An extended black cut was made on the floor. The air itself seemed like it was cut. Vincent was pissed. "Is that what we are doing now?" He equipped his poleaxe, poured his flames and anger onto the blade, and swung. "First Chop!" A red line was released so fast that if Vincent had been aiming to kill Talia, then her head would be on the floor.
Talia returned to her senses as she turned her head shakily to her left. The floor, wall, and the air were on fire. She stepped away and fell on the floor. Garfield immediately ran to her side and started using healing magic on her.
Vincent took a look around and saw how much damage he caused. 'All this damage because I let loose and didn't want to lose. What if I had lost control and tried to kill her? We would both be dead.' He took a deep breath and dismissed his flames. He put away his weapons and sat on the floor.
He wanted to go over to Talia and speak to her but didn't think it would be a good idea. Takashi walked over to him and sat next to him. Vincent gave him a look. "What? Am I supposed to be scared of you or something? She pulled out a killing blow first. You responded the same. To me, she deserved it."
Vincent sighed. Takashi patted him on his back. "Hey man, you must make tough decisions as a group leader. You have to be the rock that never crumbles. You have to be friendly and firm all at the same time. It's better this happened now rather than later. This way, no one will try to argue with your choices."
Takashi left him to his thoughts and went to sit with the others. Vincent slapped his face and focused on the task at hand. 'He is right. I will be with these people for the next six months. There must be a hierarchy. Even more, I can't avoid or hide from problems if I am part of the problem.' He stood up and walked over to talk to Talia.
Planet Strara.
Lyla's eyes were glued to the screen when she saw Talia's shadow travel. "When did her kind move in?" She didn't ask this question of anyone specifically, but Jekel answered her. "They moved to the Regorian Empire 50 years ago. Their villages were destroyed, and they were hunted for their body parts. A Void Walker rarely allows their young out of their sights."
Caden stroked his beard as he watched Vincent's spar. He was thinking about who Talia's parents were. He was one of the few outsiders who had gained the acknowledgment of the Void Walkers. He didn't have to wait long before a man and woman walked out of a portal next to him.
The man stood 6'5 in height and had the darkest eyes a person could have. A woman who bore a striking resemblance to Talia stood next to the man. She had flowing dark hair that framed her face. Unlike the man, her eyes were a glorious purple. She quickly walked closer to Caden, speaking in a distorted language that no one besides him could understand.
Caden placed his hands on top of hers and spoke in the same distorted language. His words seemed to have worked since the man's face eased, and the woman smiled. The man nodded his head at Caden as a sign of respect. He took his wife in his arms and stepped backward. They disappeared the next second.
The air rippled for a second and then stopped. Caden turned to Jekel and beckoned him to come over. Jekel was immediately by his side. "What can I do for you, Master?"
"Send a message to Vincent, tell him it is from me. The message should say to protect the girl named Talia with his life and warn him that a Glutton is out looking for the girl. Fire and lightning are the only things that can hurt it." Jekel felt fear from hearing the name Glutton.
Gluttons were entities that feasted on the universe's energies and anything that used the universe's energy. Each one was different from the last. He typed the message and hit send. Caden smiled and told Jekel to send one more message to Vincent for him. "Tell him if he can sever one body part. I will give him a halberd technique. That should light a fire in him."
Jekel slapped his forehead on the inside. 'Vincent, if you know what is good for you, you won't risk it.' He pushed the send button and could only lament Vincent's position.