{Month: Sunflare}
{Date: 1/6}
{Time: Day}
Kanon readied her sword, a youthful excitement bubbling up to the surface. She didn't wait for Leo to get a reading on her, rushing forward and slashing down at him immediately. Leo braced himself for Kanon, blocking her attack and pushing her away. Kanon slid backwards then ran forward once again.
The two clashed multiple times, dancing aroune the battlefield as each clash of their blades rang out into the air. Leo parried her next slash, knocking her off balance then kicked her back. Kanon grunted as she slid backwards, finding her footing once again and looking up, her eyes slightly widening.
"Darkness Cutter!" Leo bellowed, slashing down at Kanon, launching a dark cutting wave toward her.
Kanon blocked the attack, grunting softly and sliding backwards, trying her hardest to resist the attack. Soon, she managed to slash through it, breaking through the attack. She smirked at Leo, a bead of sweat rolling down her cheek.
Izumi watched the battle in awe, holding her hand to her chest as she stood on the side. 'These two are so amazing...I almost can't keep up with their movements and strength...'
Kanon stood up straight, holding her sword in front of her and closed her eyes. She took a deep breath then exhaled, opening her eyes to look at Leo. "You are quite formidable. It's been a while since I was last challenged by an enemy. The Seventh Regiment is usually unchallenged, unmatched even, but for you to match us...it's almost like you are perfect counters. Tell me your name, I would like to know you better."
Leo lowered his guard for just a moment, standing up straight, his gaze locking onto Kanon's. "My name is Prince Leo, Leo Bushido, High Prince of Lunia! I am the younger brother of the current Queen of Lunia, Stella Bushido. I take great pride in my bloodline and will follow my sister step by step! No one will stop us from our goal!"
Kanon stared at Leo as he spoke, turning her sword to where the edge of the blade is facing Leo. She gave him a battle ready expression, impressed by Leo's resolve and ambition. "I like your resolve and conviction, but...By King Zephyr's Orders, we must seize Lunia and nothing will stop us from completing our goal!"
Leo rose his sword, pointing it at Kanon. "Then come. Try to take Lunia from us if you dare. We will stop you no matter what it takes!"
Kanon got into her stance, her eyes shining brightly with determination. She stood ready for battle, her light aura pulsating around her body. "We dare and will win! For Uphelia!"
Leo watched as Kanon dashed toward him and let out his battle cry, the dark aura around his body flowing powerfully. "For Lunia!"
The two bellowed, swinging their swords and clashed, the sound of their blades hitting against each other reverberating around the entire stronghold. Immediately, they entered a blade lock, the look of fierce determination etched onto their faces.
Leo pushed Kanon back again, launching heavy swings at Kanon, forcing Kanon to block the attacks but the force behind Leo's slashes broke her guard every time. She decided to stop guarding against his blows, opting to dodge and evade each slash Leo launched at her. She swiftly parried his next attack, knocking him off balance and creating an opening.
"You're mine!" Kanon bellowed, slashing at Leo's midsection quickly.
Leo caught himself, getting into his defensive stance on time and perfectly guarding against Kanon's attack. Kanon grunted as she was repelled, stumbling backwards then smirked at Leo, surprised by his reaction time.
"There's no way you're catching me off guard that easily. I've trained with my aunt, my sister, and my father, learning their techniques and teachings. A simple parry is not enough to knock me off guard!" Leo exclaimed, sheathing his odachi then summoned his katana, Celestial Edge.
Kanon stared at his weapon, noticing the blade of his weapon gleaming with a silvery sheen, sensing a bit of ice energy within the blade. "Oh? Lowering your attack in exchange for more speed and precision huh? It's gonna take more than that to defeat me!"
Leo got into his signature stance, his blade sheathed and his hand on the handle of his katana. "It's more than just lesser attack and more speed. I will show you my signature style! My Eternal Rain Style, passed down for generations within the Bushido Clan! Izumi, stand further back. Provide me with healing and buffs when needed."
Izumi watched Leo more closely, nodding her head and obediently stood further back and readied her Talismans when Leo needed her assistance the most. 'Eternal Rain Style...Isn't that the style King Alden used? I wonder if Leo had been refining the style to fit him.'
Leo lowered his stance then dashed toward Kanon, slashing swiftly at her, but she managed to block his initial slash, caught off guard by his boost of speed due to wielding a lighter weapon. She grunted as she continued to block and parry each of his attacks, unable to find an opening for a counter strike.
Kanon evaded his next slash, slicing down at Leo, but he used his aura to block the attack, rushing forward with a shoulder tackle to stagger her then slash forward, knocking her back. He followed with an upward slash to knock her in the air, somersaulting in the air and slashed down, knocking her to the ground.
Kanon grunted as she hit the ground, opening her eyes and immediately rolled away to evade his stab attack. She stood up quickly, hopping backwards to create distance between the two. 'He is much faster now...I could barely react to his strikes and I can move at nearly light speeds...! Prince Leo...you are something amazing...but I am not close to being out of this duel yet!"
Leo took his sword out of the ground, sheathing it again and turned around to face Kanon. "Hmph...That was only a taste of my speed. You have yet to see my full potential..."
Kanon stared at Leo and smirked slightly at him, getting back into her stance and bracing herself for the next stages of the battle. "Just a taste huh? Well I've yet to show you what I can truly do as well!"
"Then show me. Show me what you can really do!" Leo challenged, getting into his stance as well.
Kanon dashed toward Leo, swinging her sword swiftly at him, but he evade her attack quickly then launched a counter slash aimed at her midsection. Kanon blocked the attack and pushed him back, the two rushing forward and clashed quickly, their steps and attacks relentless and fluid.
Kanon parried Leo's next attack then slashed in a circle, landing her attack and knocked him away then appeared in front of him at near invisible speeds. "Holy Arts: Reverent Impact!"
Kanon slashed at Leo, landing a powerful slash to his body and knocked him away. Leo grunted as he did his best to withstand the damage he took from Kanon's Reverent Impact, stumbling a bit and grunted softly as her light energy began to slightly burn him.
Without missing a beat, Kanon rushed forward and prepared another attack, not allowing Leo the chance to regather himself. She went for a quick slash, but he blocked it, pushing her back then dodged her next slash by rolling to the side. Izumi tossed a healing Talisman toward Leo, but Kanon jumped in the way, the Talisman sticking to her back and healing her instead.
Izumi gasped, covering her mouth from the realization of what happened. "No..!"
Kanon, feeling rejuvenated and recovered, turned her attention to Izumi, pointed her sword at her. "Holy Arts: Sanctum Burst!"
Kanon released a burst of light energy toward Izumi, aiming to rid her from the battle to eliminate the possibility of Leo being healed or buffed. Izumi gasped, the light flashing in her eyes as she was frozen with a bit of fear.
Leo grunted and quickly got up, leaping in front of Izumi and taking the hit for her, the blast of light energy sending him crashing into a wall of the stronghold. Izumi's eyes widened as she watched Leo's body fly past her, quickly looking back and hurrying toward his aid.
"Leo!" Izumi yelled out, falling to her knees next to Leo and looking down at her worriedly.
Leo grunted softly as he was in too much pain to properly speak, the effects of the light energy causing him a bit of excruciating pain. She acted quickly and placed a healing Talisman upon his body, the talisman immediately taking affect and allowing Leo to rest easily.
"Leo...I'm sorry, I should've waited for your command, but..." Izumi began then lowered her head, closing her eyes and gripped the dirt beneath her. She let out a soft, frustrated sound. "How am I supposed to help you all if I'm so useless...?"
"There's no time for hesitation. I will still be here to save you if needed, but before you can believe in me, you need to believe in yourself..."
My words rang in Izumi's mind, speaking to her just when she was losing hope in herself. She wiped her eyes and stared at Leo, noticing him looking at her with a reassuring smile. He placed his hand on her, gently holding her hand in a comforting and assuring manner.
"Izumi...it's okay. It's not your fault, you only did what I asked of you and I wasn't paying attention...I don't blame you for anything that transpired," Leo spoke, trying to sit up but grunted as his body was still in slight pain.
Izumi stopped Leo from trying to get up, allowing him to rest and stared into his eyes. "Rest, Prince Leo...you've done enough. I will take it from here. Even if I know I can't win...I want to believe in myself. I don't want to be scared in battle. I want to believe in Lunia fully and I can't do that if I don't believe in myself..."
Leo stared at her for a moment then closed his eyes and smiled. "Alright...but just remember...if you need help, our allies are just a call and signal away."
Izumi nodded then stood up, turning around to face Kanon. She locked eyes with Kanon, balling her hands into fists. "Since you took out my Prince...I will take you on now. For Lunia, during even the Darkest Nights, even if I have to shroud my heart with the cold embrace of our Lunar Ancestors...I will fight for my kingdom. My home! Come to me, Selenia!"
Dark energy formed in her hand, shaping into a graceful bow crafted from moonwood, a rare material found only in Lunia's enchanted forests. Its limbs were subtly curved like crescent moons, and the grip was wrapped in silver-threaded silk, enhancing its grip and magical affinity. A bird began to materialize from her dark energy, taking shape into a darkwing eagle.
Kanon noticed Izumi's demeanor change as she was now equipped for battle. She studied her, and for a moment, she was once again caught off guard, only this time by Izumi.
Izumi got into her stance, a quiver full of dark energy arrows appearing at her side. Her eagle sat on her shoulder, his intense gaze meeting Kanon's. "Prepare yourself, Kanon... You're now facing off against me, Izumi Yoruno and my Eagle, Darkwing..."
Kanon was about to respond, but a volley of lightning arrows began to fly toward her at high speeds, causing her to immediately go on the defensive. She grunted as she deflected each arrow then dashed toward Izumi quickly.
Izumi drew one of her arrows from her quiver, shooting it at the sky then began evading each of Kanon's slashes. Evading her final slash, she swept Kanon's feet from under with a kick then kicked her away into range of her attack.
"Black Rain," Izumi said, snapping her fingers.
Kanon looked up, noticing multiple waves of dark purple arrows raining down upon her. She grit her teeth, rapidly slashing above her to deflect the arrows once again, sustaining a few scratches on her arms in the process.
After deflecting the next few arrows, she knocked the final arrow toward Izumi at high speeds. Izumi dodged the arrow then pointed at Kanon, Darkwing letting out a shrill and launching toward her at lightning speeds.
"Do not let up, Darkwing! Keep her on the defensive!" Izumi commanded, drawing her bowstring then a large purple lightning arrow formed between her fingers. "Hit her with a Rising Wing!"
Kanon grunted as she continued to block and dodge Darkwing's attacks, but Darkwing feinted his next strike, finding an opening to twirl upwards in the air and using his dark energy to knock Kanon in the air. Izumi fired the arrow at Kanon, the arrow striking her directly at her core then exploded.
Leo, who had been watching the battle closely, looked surprised at Izumi's skill with a bow, seeing for the first time the hidden potential Izumi truly had. The potential I was talking about. 'Stella was right...Izumi has so much hidden potential... especially with her natural Dark and Lightning Affinities.."
Kanon landed on the ground, upon one knee and grunted softly. She tried to get up, but purple lightning crackled around her body, jolting her and causing her to stay down. 'Geez...this girl's actually really strong when she's serious. With this static ailment on me, my speed has been reduced greatly. I can't risk dying here. I have to retreat.'
Kanon stood up and sheathed her sword, taking a deep breath and looked at Izumi with begrudging respect. "You're pretty good...but I must call this battle short. I can not risk dying this early in battle. You win for now.."
Izumi watched as Kanon retreated from the stronghold then heard our soldiers rallying due to Kanon's retreat.
"The Vice-Commander is retreating! Prince Leo and his retainer drove her off!" A soldier yelled.
The captain rose his sword in the air, letting out a triumphant cry. "Alert the Queen immediately!"
Izumi blushed slightly, her shy and reserved demeanor kicking back in full force as she received praise from the soldiers. She stepped backwards and hurried back to Leo's side and sat down beside him on her knees to take care of him.
Leo smiled up at Izumi, taking her hand into his. "You did amazing, Izumi... Remember that feeling. The feeling of self-belief and self-esteem...take pride in yourself..."
Izumi gently squeezed his hand in response, nodding at him with a soft gaze. "I will, my Prince..."
---------------
Zain evaded my next slash, parrying my next strike then launched a counter attack of his own. I dodged his slash, thrusting my sword directly at his chest to go for the killing blow. Zain parried my attack then leaped backwards, creating space between us.
Bash sliced quickly at Victoria, but she clashed with Bash at equal speeds, the two going clash for clash. Victoria let out a bellow, her demonic aura pushing Bash away then she rushed forward, leaping forward and slashed down with one of her swords. Bash blocked the attack and pushed her back.
Victoria landed on her feet then leaped backwards, returning to my side. "They've gotten stronger, Your Highness. More reactive...more...tedious."
I nodded, my gaze remaining on Zain's, never breaking away from his. "They have, but that means nothing to us. We will destroy them either way, no matter how long it may take!"
Zain locked eyes with me, a smirk playing on his face. "You've improved as well, Lady Stella. Three years ago, you were barely able to even keep up with me...now you're on basically matching me with each step."
I scoffed at Zain, rolling my eyes at his praise. "I don't need your praise to know that I am strong! The difference between you and I is that I have Ambition! A clear Drive and Goal! Something you puppets lack because all you do is follow that pathetic King's orders!"
Bash grit his teeth due to me disrespecting King Zephyr. "King Zephyr is a better ruler than you will ever imagine becoming! How can you call yourself a Queen but not have a Kingdom to rule?! If you hadn't stopped us, Lunia would've been free to take..."
Victoria's left eye twitched at Bash's words, her demonic energy flaring up. She pointed one of her katanas at Bash, glaring at him. "Don't you dare disrespect Lunia with your filthy mouth, Solarian! You have no right to speak down upon Lunia!"
"And I wouldn't dare to listen to a traitor like you! Shangri-La would be disappointed of your betrayal. His only daughter abandoning him for some witch with no people left to rule!" Bash spat, his voice dripping with disdain and judgement of Victoria.
Victoria growled lowly, demonic symbols slowly forming on her body. "Don't you dare bring my father into this!"
Before either of us could act, one of my Captains hurried toward me with news. "Queen Stella!"
I looked at the captain with a glare, my eyes faintly glowing. "What is it? Can't you see that I'm busy? Go back to your post and handle those filthy Holy Order soldiers!"
"But I come with good news! Lord Leo and Lady Izumi have driven Kanon away! She's retreating as we speak!" The captain said, his tone filled with urgency.
Zain looked surprised, letting out a soft grunt of shock. "What? Kanon's retreating?"
"I hate to say it, Lord Zain, but if Kanon is retreating, we must as well to make sure she takes no further damage while leaving the battlefield," Bash said, sheathing his weapons.
Zain looked at Bash then turned his gaze back toward me. "We shall meet again in the near future, Queen Stella. This victory is yours for now."
I watched as Zain and Bash retreated, his entire Regiment following behind and retreating as well. My eye twitched from annoyance that I couldn't finish my battle against Zain, but I knew we would cross paths again in the future.
With the victory being ours, my soldiers rallied and let out triumphant roars from a victorious battle. I didn't rally, walking off back to the base with disappointment that I wasn't able to strike down my target. Victoria followed behind, still bristling from Bash's comment, silently vowing to eliminate him once the moment rose again.