Day 2 - Second Session - Combat
Last night was one of those nights that Spheris could say that he had a great sleep. In fact, it was the best night he'd ever had! He had remembered to sleep on his bed rather than the floor and he had something to look forward to—the guidance of the High Magus and the return of his raven.
He'd never known what a sound sleep actually meant until he experienced it last night. The only thing that was out of place was the presence of Merisset, High Meister Gavryndor's daughter.
She had spent the night in the mansion, sleeping in the empty room in between Cerene's and Spheris's. And if Spheris thought Ardion the guard was a character, Merisset was completely something else.
She was much too explosive, raw and strict. No one dared mess with her throughout the night, especially during dinner when she would order everyone around. She was as direct as could be and even left Spheris thinking that Ardion was very lenient.
Now it was 7:23 bright and she had Spheris and the rest of the Avatars already in their gray uniforms, ready for a session.
"Combat!" her assertive feminine voice shouted. "In my opinion, it's the most important asset in survival. And my opinion is the decisive one, is it not?"
"Yes..." The Avatars said in confused murmurs.
"Yes what?" she demanded.
"Yes Miss!" they all said in unison, except Spheris. Merisset caught this, but decided not to say anything.
"In combat, we defend and we attack. Defend and attack! Those are the two basics of fighting." She then slowly walked to a punching bag. "Defend," she feigned a dodge. "and Attack!" She struck the punching bag with such a mighty blow, it kept bouncing for minutes.
"I need a volunteer to step forward to begin the training test," she turned to the group and said. As usual, Nero was the first to offer himself.
"Nero Karterug," Merisset stated. "Alright then, step forward."
Nero did as he was told, enthusiasm in his demeanor. He got a bit too close to Merisset as she took a stance. "You might want to give me a little space," she said.
Nero obeyed as well.
She then clasped her hands together, and a silvery mystical light emanated from her fists. "Yuddhāya sattvāni prakaṭayati!" she whispered. Suddenly, a silverish smoke surrounded her and slowly began to manifest into human-like beings.
Spheris gazed in amazement as he finally got the answer to his question. Merisset was a Mage! This surprised him because Mages were usually old and mostly men, she must be the most excellent exception ever.
"These holograms will be your enemies in training," Merisset said, returning to a normal posture. "They will attack you constantly and will not give you any room to rest until you take them out."
Nero stood confident as he simply gave an enthusiastic nod. The High Magus's daughter then lifted her hand to the air, and brought it down with a stroke of the silver magic. "Begin!"
The white-haired Avatar took his stance ready to fight, but the silver holograms were not waiting for anything. They immediately lunged at him, barely taking turns.
Nero dodged the first attack, striking the hologram with a powerful punch. Another lunged at him, but he caught it mid air and flung it away. Before another could attack, Nero kicked it square in the face and grabbed another, throwing it to the incoming one.
"Brute force! I like it!" Merisset cried. "But let's see how brute you can be when your opponents are stronger " She stretched her hands forward and the silver light appeared again. "Balavattaram bhava."
Right before Spheris's eyes, he saw the muscular features of the holograms intensify and they renewed their assault.
Undeterred, Nero flexed his muscles and faced them head-on. As they attacked with newfound strength, Nero countered with a combination of expert dodges and strategically placed strikes. He was a brilliant and strong fighter, and his punches were still way more powerful than the holograms.
In a dazzling display, he summoned his ice powers, encasing one hologram in a frosty shell before shattering it with a single, well-timed punch. Another hologram lunged, but Nero retaliated by sending sharp diamonds of ice stabbing through the hologram and ending his training in style.
'Wow,' Spheris thought. 'Where did he learn to fight like that?'
"Impressive fighting style," Merisset praised him. "You have already begun to master how to use your powers in battle. How is it you are not the most powerful Bearer here?"
"That's because Thorin's in the team!" Nero smiled, pointing at the Avatar. "You should try him next."
"Hmm," the female Mage glanced at the rest of the Avatars. "As intriguing as that sounds, I'm more interested to test out the Heathian."
Spheris froze. "Me?"
"Are there any other Heathians in this mansion?" she asked sassily. Spheris fell shut.
"Step forward." she demanded. He obliged and approached her, while Nero returned to the group.
"What is your name?"
"Spheris," he replied. "Spheris Arnadel."
"Hm, Spheris Arnadel," she cocked her head. "Fancy name for a Heathian. Alright, Spheris... let's see what moves you have, hmm?"
He gazed at her, trying his best not to turn the gaze into a glare. She took a few steps backwards and said her Spell once again. "Yuddhāya sattvāni prakaṭayati!"
And once again the silver smoke arose and slowly evolved into the holograms ready to attack the former thief.
Spheris stood still, watching as the holograms surrounded him, his eyes studying and observing their movements, waiting for a strike.
"Begin!" Merisset cried.
They all attacked immediately, launching strikes at Spheris. The first hologram launched a fierce jab towards his midsection, but Spheris dipped low, his body a blur as he slipped beneath the outstretched arm. With lightning speed, he pivoted on his heel, evading another strike aimed at his flank.
He started to get nervous, the attacks came faster. But to everyone's surprise, not a single one hit the target.
Spheris displayed his shadow walking skills in grace. Even though he was a bit overwhelmed by the never ending attacks, his movements were fluid and precise. As the holograms lunged forward, fists clenched in anticipation, Spheris shifted his weight effortlessly, sidestepping the attacks with reflexes only one who has been attacked so many times could have.
"What the—" Nero grunted. "Hit him already. He's right there!"
Thorin shook his head. "No, he's not. Looks like he's everywhere."
"Combat is about attack and defense, Spheris Arnadel!" Merisset yelled, also getting frustrated. "You're gonna need to hit them sooner or later!"
Spheris ignored her and intensified his focus as another hologram surged forward with thunderous speed. In a split-second decision, he shifted his weight to the side, the attack grazing his shoulder with a mere whisper of contact.
But the danger was far from over. Another hologram darted in from the side, fist clenched and directed to Spheris's midsection. His reflexes kicked in and he twisted his body mid-air, narrowly avoiding the oncoming strike and landing gracefully on the balls of his feet.
Finally, Spheris had the chance to catch his breath while the holograms all got back to their feet, getting ready for another attack.
"Alright then," Merisset smiled deviously. "Let's test those quick reflexes of yours."
Her outstretched arm produced the silver magic light once again, and she inchanted the Spell. "Tīvrataraṁ bhava."