Scene 5 - Vince vs. Rune

Vince and Rune stepped up to the platform.

Rune’s eyes were shining with fighting spirit, while Vince held a smile that was not a smile.

He didn’t want to fight Rune, but if he backed down without a fight he would be showing disrespect for her.

His eyes suddenly lit up as he readied an axe in each hand.

Rune smiled as she beat her gauntlets together.

Once the two were ready, Master Mo weaved his hand yet again, “Begin!”

Vince immediately threw his axes one after the other, launching all nine through the air to cut off all of Rune’s escape routes.

He had gone all out in the hopes of finishing this quickly, but to his shock, Rune hit his axes out of the air with a blinding speed

Rune instantly counter attacked by punching out and ball of fire shaped like a fist flew towards Vince, filled with explosive power.

Vince placed one of his hands on the ground and a small wall of earth rose up, blocking the fist. With his other hand, he used the power of gravity to control his axes, recalling four and attacking with five!

Rune punched the incoming axes out of the air but was forced to dodge out of the way of a few, but moved forward in an attempt to get closer to Vince the whole time.

Rune emitted a sudden burst of mana as she channeled a hollow spear of fire, filling the insides with a poison that solidified on the spear tip. The magic spear spun at a high speed and shot through Vince's earthen wall as if it was mere paper.

Rune pulled off the maneuver the best she could while dodging the storm of axes around her, and almost let out a cheer when she saw her flaming spear heading straight towards Vince. The fire swept through the hole like a line of fire and madly expanded moving straight towards Vince!

‘Great control Rune,’ Vince thought with a playful smile, ‘yet it’s not nearly enough.’

Behind the wall and hidden from Rune's sight, Vince had long been done with his preparations. Three axes spun in a strange pattern around him, manipulating gravity at high speeds to create a vortex.

In the middle of the vortex, feeding off of the force generated by the other three axes to increase its own speed to a frightening level, was a single axe aimed directly at Rune. At the moment Vince was holding it back with his gravity magic, but the moment his magic released the axe's built up pressure would burst in an instant, shooting it out at a blinding speed

Thus, since Vince was busy finishing up his own preparations, Rune had been able to create her flame spear so easily. The moment Rune's flame spear penetrated his earthen wall, Vince dispelled the magic holding his axe back. The weapon shot forth like a cannonball, slicing through Rune's attack like it was tofu and blasting fire and poison in all directions.

Though Vince was able to expel the flames with ease, the strange poison within flew straight at him! Using the last of his magic reserves he tried to block it with the remaining axes, alas too much of the poison got through and landed on his skin. The poison seeped into his pores and caused a numbing sensation to spread through his body, leaving him paralyzed. Unable to do anything, Vince fell to the floor.

However, Rune didn’t have time to dodge the rapidly approaching axe, as she had never expected Vince to explode with such power! Gritting her teeth, she gathered the overflowing flames and poison surrounding her body in both hands, spreading them out into six layered sheets and hardening them in an attempt to stop his attack!

Madness danced within her eyes and with pure luck, the axe smashed straight into her shields. Alas, Rune’s magical shields weren’t good enough.Even then, the shields managed to hold the axe back a bit before being shattered. By the time the ax had reached the last barrier, it had only lost five percent of its speed.

The axe mercilessly broke through the last of her shields, running straight through her chest and throwing her off her feet! If this had been a real axe, no doubt he chest would have exploded into a gory mess of flesh and bone.

As the dust settled, the spar's result became clear. Vince struggled to stand but was up nonetheless. Rune, however, was passed out on the floor.

Master Mo nodded in approval and opened his mouth to announce Vince's victory when he saw the boy topple over in a dead faint.

Master Mo shook his head with a small chuckle, "The victor is Vince," and moved to treat the boy's poison.

When he was done, the black robed maidens appeared once again and took the two siblings to the baths.

With eight of the nine siblings gone, Master Mo turned to Nena with a smile, "So," he began, "What have you learned from watching your older siblings?"