POV: Bash
Location: Southern Empire
Even in my heart, I felt a sense of shallowness I did not understand, Delta was fighting to protect her friends, I am just fighting because she paid me fifteen gold coins. I am fighting not for Delta but for my desire to meet Ash, my salvation.
"Hmm," Kowoske moved his legs apart from each other, he extended one leg forward and then inhaled a lot of air through his mouth.
"Your fate has been sealed," he said, "Die here right now!"
"SWORD ART TECHNIQUE, BLIZZARD" he yelled, moving his sword in repeated arcs upwards, towards me and Delta.
All the white cloud below his feet began to shoot towards us, every time Kowoske swung his sword, arcs of solid mist would come flying towards us.
They rained upwards like a heavy snow storm, each arc heavy like an actual sword colliding with our blades.
I deflected and deflected but they kept raining upwards toward us. Delta was sharp as ever, her electrifying speed marching the speed of the blows.
Looking downwards, Kowoske was in a complete frenzy, his killing instinct radiating throughout his body.
Several moments into the frenzy, my stamina was reduced to only twenty percent of the original.
I can't hold up much longer.
To my left, Delta's movement has slowed down, standing 500 meters above ground level and upside down created a huge disadvantage to her. Unlike me, she is not used to breathing in areas with low air pressure.
The ringing sound of our swords repeatedly countering Kowoske's attacks wafted throughout the night sky, and the air surrounding us sparked with orange lights as if fireworks were exploding.
"Bash, I don't think I can keep up with this any longer," Delta said, standing five meters mid-air from me.
"Hold on a while longer, I would figure out something," I said. my eyes drifting from the sight of the incoming slashes to Delta beside me.
"Tell Kanade & Hanabi, I am sorry," she said, a tear drop leaving her right eye.
The next thing my eyes saw was Delta's sword leaving her hand, she suddenly passed out with her eyes shutting down.
Waves of translucent strikes were traveling at insane speed, heading towards her location.
"She is going to die," a voice said from inside my head.
"You promised her you would protect her," the voice continued.
"What are you going to do Bashh, she is over five meters away from you, you would die if you attempt to protect her, the strikes are not only in her direction, they are in your direction too." the whispering voice then disappeared. Leaving me confused and indecisive.
"What would Ash do in this situation, what would Ash do." the words kept repeating themselves in my head.
Me and Ash promised to meet at the memory barrier, I can't afford to risk dying.
Breaking the promise I made to Ash to uphold the Promise I made to Delta is out of the question. If I die saving her, Kowoske would murder her after my death.
After all, both Kanade and Hanabi are two ranks below me and Delta, four ranks below Kowoske, their death is guaranteed in his hands.
My mouth opened and a violent scream came out of it, then a whisper.
"I will defy fate, I refuse to die or let Delta die."
I returned my sword to the scabbard at high speed, Squeezing both of my palms together, I moved then in an arc to the back of my neck.
"GRAVITY WAVE, NEGATIVE ZERO,"
My arms swung in an arc from the back of my neck, I slammed my squeezed fist against the air, my hands colliding with it as if it was a solid drum.
A circular wave of dark gravity formed and descended downwards, crushing all the mist arcs Kowoske directed at us.
In a split second, I ran along the condensed air membrane, grabbing delta I jumped downwards, falling at a distance from the tower.
Our bodies slammed on a courtyard west of the tower, with my back colliding with the stone floor, It left a huge impact wave about twenty feet wide.
less than a minute later, I heard footsteps approaching our location, struggling I got up from the ground and immediately removed my sword from the scabbard.
To my surprise, it was Kanade and Hanabi rushing towards us, they came to my sight with Delta still lying on the ground having passed out.
"What is going on," Kanade said, her heart beating so loud that I could hear it.
"There is no time to answer your question," I responded, "Take Delta and get away from here, go as far as you can."
"Bash, what happened to Delta?" Hanabi asked, pulling her sword from the scabbard as Kanade knelt at Delta's side.
"Pick Delta and get out of here," I scowled, my chest beating intensely.
"Tell me what happened or I would not step one foot away from here," Hanabi hissed, her stubbornness not helping.
The sound of an object descending from the sky caught my attention, raising my chin upwards, Kowoske was riding a cloud as it slowly descended to our location, his white sword placed behind the back of his neck.
"Dammit," I whispered to myself, "bad timing."
My feet rushed to Hanabi and I grabbed her waist with my right hand, I then ran to Kanade with Delta's arms around her shoulder.
My hand moved in an arc slamming Hanabi against kanade's body, I made their bodies as light as small rock then flung them into the sky, to a nearby forest.
My movements were instant, getting the three of them out of the sight of Kowoske as fast as I could.
"Hmm, getting the weak ones out of the battlefield," Kowoske said, finally setting his feet to the ground surface.