I summoned a clone as I ran. It ran beside me, and taking a step to the right, I sank into its shadow. The clone that had sported a dull, mechanical expression suddenly became vivid and lifelike. It was as though it was the original, not a mere copy.

It was a tactic Phobos had come up with when she had been mulling over the best way to use her clones. Due to their limited flexibility, against an experienced opponent they could only serve as distractions. Useful enough for long range fights, but for close combat, they were just a waste of mana.

But by sinking into the clone’s shadow and manipulating it directly, I could use all my techniques through it, making it possible to trick even the most veteran of foes. At least, until they managed to land a hit and found their attack passing through without any resistance. It was a safe way to initiate combat and tease out the secrets of an unknown opponent.

Which was just what I was up against now.

Whoever was attacking the train likely knew about our presence aboard it. And we were famous enough that most of our combat repertoire would be transparent to them. I had a rough idea of their strength – a Tier 4 or 5 was unlikely considering how few of them there were and how easy it would be to notice their absence and trace the attack back to them – and I was confident of taking them on, but it always paid to be cautious.

Placing all my hopes on Hei Yang to bail me out if things went south wasn’t something I was comfortable with. Her motives were suspect. I didn’t fully trust her yet.

As I ran, I cast around with my soul sense, trying to locate the enemy. Which was the only reason I managed to dive into a roll, avoiding losing my head to the pencil thin beam of condensed light that swept through the place where my neck had just been.

~ Tier 3 light magic: Beamforming ~

Beamforming was widely considered the strongest offensive magic among the basic elemental spells. Trained to the pinnacle, a mage could use it to melt a hole through metal within seconds. My opponent was at least a Tier 3 light mage.

Rising into a crouch facing the source of the beam, I took a deep breath, opened my mouth and spewed out a stream of roaring blue fire.

The flames washed over the top of the train, lighting up the defensive wards, only to split around an invisible obstacle. My soul senses told me that there were seven hexagonal shields of solid light arranged like a flower blocking my flames. The central barrier was reflecting part of the flames back to clash with mine, forming a region of super-heated air in between us, while the six others around it were refracting the fire as though it was light, bending it away from my opponent. As I watched, the ‘petals’ inclined towards me, bending the splintered streams of fire inwards until they all converged with the one reflected by the central shield.

The streams merged, forming a dense pillar of white-hot flame that seared through my blue fire and obliterated my clone. There, hiding within an unnaturally dark patch of shadow, I felt the searing heat of the fire passing overhead and rejoiced that I had decided to lead in with the decoy clone. It had just saved my life.

I was shocked. My opponent had grasped, not one, not two, but three entirely different methods of mastering the Aspect of Radiance: invisibility, reflection, refraction. A half-step Grandmaster.

Who was this guy? With talent like that, there was no way he was someone obscure.

As soon as the flames cleared, I leapt out of the shadow and sprinted towards my invisible opponent guided only by my soul. Channelling Vita’s divine power to my ankle I pushed off explosively, leaving an imprint upon the rune hardened steel beneath.

I drew upon the wind to hasten me further.

My form blurred. Disappearing, and reappearing almost instantly in front of the mage. My fist smashed into the same luminous barrier I had sensed before and I could feel the force of my punch getting redirected back to me.

And that was what I had been waiting for. My teeth bared in a feral grin, I spun, letting the force flow through me; through my arm, across my back and then back out of my other arm, along with a punch I had put my hip into. Just as I had trained to do in the hours spent submerged in the pool back home.

~ Seastone fist: Two-layer Wave ~

The shield shattered and I felt my fist sink into the Barrier of the suddenly visible black-robed mage behind. He shot away like a cannonball, bouncing once, twice, before overshooting the edge of the train.

Grasping the air in his direction, I pulled. Strong winds rose to fill the vacuum I’d created, twining around my opponent and pulling him towards me. In the depths of the cowl hiding his face, I saw two pinpricks of light of blazing into existence.

Alarm bells rang crazily in my mind as I felt his mana spike. Acting more on instinct than reason I shadow walked away from my spot, moments before twin beams of condensed light scoured glowing red lines on the rune reinforced metal of the train.

To be able to put forth the spell with such power, my opponent had to be at the peak of Tier 3, at least. Or be in possession of, and extremely practiced in using, a light elemental mind crystal.

Rising from his shadow, I tried to grab him from behind from where he couldn't cook me with his eyebeams. Blinding brilliance erupted from the seams of his cloak and washed out his surroundings in a flood of white.

~ Tier 1 light magic: Flash ~

As the light touched me, I disintegrated into flakes of shadow that too were washed away. It was just my clone.

After a few moments, the light dimmed, revealing the mage surrounded by a multi-layered cage of pencil thin rays of light. A quiet hum filled the region as the air around him buzzed from the energy contained within those beams.

He had activated his Domain.

My true body emerged from another shadow at a distance, cold sweat flowing like tiny glaciers down my back. I shivered. I had been this close to being diced.

He walked towards me; his steps, slow, deliberate, menacing. The cage of light advanced with him. Clenching my teeth, I took a step back. Then another, fear and unwillingness writ upon my face.

Suddenly, the mage faltered. His Domain dimming and guttering like a candle in a breeze. Then it winked out and he collapsed in a heap onto the ground.

The apprehension drained out of my face as though it had never been there. The acting lessons with Ceres were coming in handy.

Walking over to my fallen foe, I heard the sound of soft snores. Deimos’ idea of hiding some of Ceres’ soporific smoke in the shadow clones had been brilliant, as could be seen from the sleeping beauty at my feet. He had gotten a lungful of the colourless, odourless haze when he had destroyed my clone.

I never fought alone.

Squatting beside him, I rolled him over and pulled back his hood. Then stared at him in stunned silence – for facing back up at me was the leader of the Huaxian Contingent: Shang Qing.