Solomon floated above the younger elf, staring down at him, disgusted at the sight before him
" you look so weak, Alvis. It sickens me; here you are, using a firearm and an inferior magic arm. You may beg the new gods, but have some respect and use something that can handle their power," Solomon lectured, floating around Alvis, testing his aim, watching the barrel of the pistol follow him
" what did i just say? Stop belly-aching about crap. I use the tools of the land! i am not a soldier; i don't need to keep a Pantheon tier weapon with me at all times!"
" from gold dust being tossed at your feet to kissing feet." Solomon gave a soft chuckle before continuing
" Tools of the land? Not a soldier yet in uniform? Am I ashamed of my power? All i hear is a dog obeying commands not to bear his teeth. also, you runt Cimmerians are second-class citizens here. You can't use your homeland's magic! i bet you would get exiled if they knew your race or if you used blood swordsmanship…" his words trailed off in a whispered
With a quick flick of his right finger, red lighting shot up from the ground underneath Alvis; zapping his gun out of his hand into the crater, the younger elf let out a Cruse of pain
" damn it, Solomon always lecturing me on tricks, yet you pull this crap ?" the frustrated elf grumbled while flicking his wrist, shaking off the after-effect of a shock
" Hush, I saw the flicker in your eyes. You were going to start shooting till i was nothing but a stain on the ground. I issue a challenge, a simple yet FATEFUL one."
" uh huh, no mystical ancient wizard rant! Turn yourself in. Gods know what damage your sentries have done," Alvis commanded, taking a stereotypical cop stance
" They haven't taken too many lives for now; hear me out. I will summon a sentry, and if you can defeat with blood swordsman, I'll retreat since my job here is done," Solomon spoke with a wicked grin
" What was your job?"
" take the challenge, and I'll tell you."
" summon three if i cut them down. You tell me who hired you to hijack a dungeon and invade the city," the young elf's tone mimicking an overconfident child
" deal," the word spoken covered in poison with a hint of glee, pointing his right ring finger out, giving the finger a flinch. A rusted, short sword rose from the ground. Alvis took it out with caution but wielded it with confidence.
Then, with a flinch from his left ring finger, three sentry rose from the ground. Alvis knew he did not have time to spare. He reached out to cut his hand on the sword but hesitated
Fearing any infection or poison on the blade, he took a fierce bite into his right hand while wielding the sword in his left. Blood started to spill from his hand. With a sense of nostalgia, he wiped the hand across his face, smearing his eyes with blood
As if commanded, the blood poured like a rushing river into his iris, turning it blood red. The sentries' eyes flickered awake, reacting to the immediate magic. They did not have time to wield their weapons before the strike
Suddenly, he was at the edge of the crater behind them. All the sentries and Soloman did not have time to react to the elf's movements. It was clear Alvis did not rust with this skill. He was underestimated. It wasn't till the damage settled in that the old wizard understood what had happened, seeing his protection bubble entirely shattered
From the first sentry to Solomon's bubble, each was cut with one slice in a rotating combo of vertical and horizontal attacks.
One by one, each collapsed to the ground, with a corresponding attack mark on their body. Solomon fell from the sky, crashing into the ground with a satisfying thump
Twirling the blade like an umbrella, Alvis nearly skipped to Soloman with a shit-eating grin. He started lecturing
" Solomon Solomon Solomon, what in all hells was going on in your mind? You issued a challenge to invade a city without care! On some secret orders? Money? Why? "
" c-chaos on the outside, symphony on the inside, AND NOTHING IN YOUR HEAD," Solomon roared, rising to his feet mechanically; shock slapped the elf's face that his attack did not kill the old wizard for a moment; Alvis did wonder if he was getting rusty while retreat skipping back.
No matter, though, these skills are for a bygone time, and they fit slaying a foe from their homeland. Gripping the blade with two hands, he pointed the tip at the center of Solomon's chest, then thrusted forward, gliding across the earth like a ship at sea.
When the blade tip rammed into Solomon, a sickening clang of metal rang out like a brutal car crash; half the blade shattered over the ground, yet Alvis was intertwined in a deadly embrace with his victim as he felt two hands clasp around his own
His hand of flesh could register that Soloman's hands were metallic with a layer of skin over them, concealing the machine within. With all of his strength, he attempted to yank his hands to no avail, merely thrashing around like a trapped animal
His pointless struggle aggravated Solomon, whose hands clamped down and started to squeeze audibly, breaking both of his attacker's hands. The sounds of cracking bone and twisting metal competing against each other
Alvis dropped to his knees, refusing to let out even a squeak of pain, resistant to any form of mental relief. Even as his face reddened and drenched with sweat, he did not whimper
Instead, he looked under Soloman's cloak. He was nothing but a dark brass machine, a walking robot with a fleshed head, letting out a loud and pained raspberry chuckle in a desperate tried to mock the wizard
" Alvis, shhh, you probably haven't known pain like this in decades. Your strength if you want to hear me keep up my end of the deal." Solomon spoke with such comfort that it was almost hard to miss the mocking in his tone
" Tr-rustken work i-i-im S-Shocked you would trust them," Alvis's voice cracked on his last words
" Those dwarfs are a tricky bunch, but fate forced my hand as it will force yours."
"W-hat wiz-zard bullsh-" Alvis words were cut short by Solomon snaking his hands to his back and pulling the hurt elf into a tight bear hug
" accept the words of Solomon heed this strings of fate he Alvis Winterson is ready for the journey of a hero, " he whispered his words, violating Alvis ear literally as seemly gold dusted breath danced from the old elf's mouth into his ear
A great pain overcame the young elf, collapsing him to his knees and spilling the loaded slabs and scrap from his arm to the ground
Alvis felt the power of blood evaporate from his body, replaced by a fleeting anxiety of needing to complete an unknown task; the paranoid brought in from his nerves drowned out the pain of his hand's awkward healing
Feeling his skin stitch itself back up from the bite, each finger resetting itself, every small bone repairing back into the complex web of bone in his hand
" my prince, i know you are experiencing a complex range of emotions right now, but i am not sure about your fate. What i am sure of is if you don't start meaning business, you will die. " the dark wizard's words fell on deaf ears as the elf was clearly in a trance
Solomon watched the gold mana flood alvis's eyes, seeing flickers of memories dance in his eyes like watching a video on your phone
Solomon was familiar with the sick child abandoned to fend for himself, the angsty teen learning skills in secret, and the young adult adventuring in the desert
The adult returning for his chance at the throne and a duel that cost him his arms, but what he was not familiar with was the new rapid memories that moved through his eyes faster than escaped film
Solomon, a warrior in Redemption, is the little babysitter disposing of monsters of the old gods trying to kill a small child on an island, and Solomon could feel it was Crete.
Another scene of carnage of Alvis sitting on a mountain of frost trolls on the rainbow bridge, then a peaceful memory of him swimming in the Nile with hapi
A terrible feeling came over Solomon, a toxic whisper in his ear. Was he lucky that he took the younger elf by surprise? IMPOSSIBLE THAT THIS..boy, was that powerful? Solomon took a better look at his chest with a significant blade mark in the middle
Shaking his head off the dangerous thoughts, he left the elf in his state to summon a portal, not noticing the elf's memories reversed; rewinding to the boy on Crete, the elf, a little awake, snatched a slab from the ground
Alvis closed his eyes, listening to something in his head. He spoke out softly and slowly, "I'm ok. I'm ok, but i need something right now."
"Zeus, i need your bolt. Don't worry, i can handle all of your power." the slab resting tightly in his grip started to power hot. Alvis could feel the slab symbol Start to burn into his palm. His eyes darted to the side towards his target
The wizard was busy plucking and pulling a physical piece of the world before him, opening a hole in reality's fabric like a chip bag. A small hole appeared slowly, frowning to a healthy portal size
Maybe from the memories, Solomon turned to face Alvis one last time only to lock eyes with the supposed entranced elf; the stare lasted what seemed like an eternity before the pair exchanged a cast of lighting at each other
Solomon's red lighting shot out from each of his fingertips, each blot the width of its respected finger combined like different streams into a mighty river of lighting rushing at Alvis
Alvis's lighting boomed from his fist, an accurate blue blot of godly lighting cracking like a whip through the air, splitting Solomon's attack on impact, gliding through it like a hot knife through butter punching into old elves mechanically chest blasting him through the portal
The sphere of darkness collapsed, following its master into the portal like dirt into a vacuum. Once the last bit of darkness entered into the unknown, the portal closed in on itself. With a heavy sigh, Alvis collapsed forward
Only to be caught by the shotgun knight who rushed to the elf from the crater out of sight, only appearing almost by FATE
" By the Pump who defeated the wizard! Wait, hey, sir, hang in there," the knight's voice turned to panic. He watched the hero pass out by forces unknown, rocking him forcefully to sleep.