MINOR WOUND

Your health has been decreased by 15%

A third dagger appeared in Dallion’s back, sending a wave of pain throughout his body. The pain was momentary, but it was without question that each time Dallion experienced “betrayal” it was getting stronger, radiating not only from the new dagger but all the previous ones as well.

Pull it out, the armadil shield said. All of us have experienced betrayal. We won’t hold it against you.

There was a certain degree of truth in the guardian’s words. All the guardians had been banished as a result of the Star’s betrayal; however, if Dallion was to rely on that, it made him no better.

I can handle it, Dallion replied. I just need to be fast about it.

SUN GOLD ATTACK GAUNTLET BLUEPRINT

Made exclusively for combat, this single gauntlet has three layers of spikes that emerge when the fist is fully clenched. With the appropriate strength, the gauntlet could easily punch through armor or shatter massive objects. It also allows its wearer to perform line attacks.

A blue rectangle appeared, but was quickly shattered by one of Dallion’s instances. Benefits were all find and good, but winning the fight was the main focus.

Nox, leave the treasure hunting and join the fight, Dallion ordered sternly.

This was the second time he had to remind the crackling that the priorities were shifted. While it was true that a sudden stat increase would give him an advantage, especially if his reactions got boosted, having even one of the cubling’s copies do a solo was ill advised.

“Having problems controlling your familiars?” Vend asked as waves of instances attacked Dallion from all sides, overwhelming him. “That sounds like a betrayal to me.”

Fortunately for Dallion, no new daggers appeared in his back. Unfortunately, that didn’t prevent Vend from using an instance to throw two daggers in his leg. Two red rectangles stacked up, each a minor wound, dropping Dallion’s life to a quarter.

Taking the opportunity, the tip of the whip blade darted forward, right at the elite. The moment it struck him, though, the man had already burst into instances again. No wonder he had been made a lieutenant. If anything, the guild had waited too long to do so.

“Combat splitting is always faster than any action,” Vend said. “I thought I had taught you that.”

“The splitting is,” Dallion replied, using his music skill to add slowness in his voice. “The speed of the instance is your own speed.”

“You actually listened?” Vend smiled. “Nice touch with the music, there. It won’t work. In case you have any doubt, I’m wearing a blocker ring. And no, it isn’t metal, so you won’t be able to find it either.”

Dallion gritted his teeth and swung the harpsisword around him. For a moment, all strength left him, as he performed a line-attack. The action was exhausting, though not to the extent of having him lose consciousness. Relaxing in the air, Dallion watched the thread of destruction move forward, slicing through instances of Vend, and structures alike. A whole segment of the paradox cube burst into bits. The initial inertia forced it to continue in the direction it had been going before, while the lack of firm attachment made it impossible for them to take the turns required.

For several seconds Dallion looked in hope at the floating debris as they slowly made their way to the outer walls of the cube. Alas, no red rectangles appeared.

“Nice execution,” Vend said. “That’s at least one area in which you’ve reached me. Maybe you even surpassed me. Attacks are more March’s style. I focus on my own thing.”

A dozen more instances emerged on larger chunks among the debris, leaping from fragment to fragment.

“There’s one thing I didn’t tell you about split negation,” the elite continued. “It’s extremely effective against a person like me, without a doubt. However, it still requires you to get close enough to use it. That’s what I kept pushing you to increase your splitting length. Having a hundred of instances is nice, having ten that can last five seconds is better.”

“Thanks, lieutenant obvious,” Dallion grumbled, waiting for Lux’s healing effect to restore his health back to eighty-five percent.

That guy’s wicked cool! Onda said. He’s your girlfriend’s ex?

He was my mentor, Dallion corrected. He was barely in his twenties, and already he found obnoxious teenagers annoying, or at least Onda. Gleam, can you do something to pin him down?

How do I do that? The shardfly asked, annoyed. Attack the one in the middle?

Slice the instances that are heading towards me! Your goal is to control his movement, not deal damage.

The familiar didn’t reply. She was both annoyed that he was right, and also impressed at his strategic thinking. In the coming months, Dallion was going to have to spend a while teaching her to be more of a party hunter. Strategy was the only way to defeat enemies like Vend. He couldn’t hope to out-split them, he didn’t have the stamina to use destructive strength like March did, and his empath abilities were seriously hindered because of the blocker item his opponent was wearing.

Taking a deep breath, Dallion switched hands, moving the harpsisword to his left.

It’s too soon, Harp said in her combination of sounds.

I’ll be fine. I’m used to it now.

No, you’re not.

Both of them knew that he was lying, just as they knew that Dallion didn’t have much choice in the matter. In order to win, he had to use anything and everything to gain an advantage. Well, almost everything.

MINOR WOUND

Your health has been decreased by 15%

“Stings, doesn’t it?” Vend asked. “Some say that betrayal is a dagger with a second blade in the place of a hilt. Maybe that’s true in the long run. I’ve found that isn’t the case in the immediate future. The hand that holds the blade might tremble the first few times, but the back that receives the strike will bleed much longer.”

Focusing all his strength, Dallion did another line attack. This one was aimed more at Vend’s surroundings, slicing off another vast chunk of buildings as they were splitting apart. As in the previous time, several dozens of Vend’s instances disappeared. Quite a few more were slashed out of existence by the whip blade, however, the elite himself remained unharmed.

Dallion’s vision blurred.

Must stay awake, he told himself, struggling to remain conscious. If there was a stat such as will, he’d gladly have transferred all his points there. Sadly, will only relied on his character, and even in a realm built on mental images and metaphors, the will depended on his physical state as well.

The flames holding Dallion became brighter. Sensing the state of his owner, Lux focused on his efforts on performing a healing flash. This wasn’t something the firebird had done before; it wasn’t something the creature even conceived until now. However, spending so much time with Dallion had left its mark. Slowly, even it too was learning how to think outside of the accepted box. The attempt paid off. Within moments, Dallion’s vision returned to normal. He was still exhausted, but at least he was conscious.

Get me out of here, he told Lux. Gleam, continue to interfere.

Already ahead of you. The whip blade swished through the air. Due to Dallion’s current state, she could no longer see Vend’s instances, so was attacking under the assumption that they were everywhere. Apparently, her attacks were efficient, for without warning, a dagger flew through, hitting the weapon straight in the hilt. It was a one to a hundred hit—in nearly all other circumstances the familiar would have deflected the weapon, or at the very least evaded the attack. In this particular case, she wasn’t able to.

MINOR FAMILIAR WOUND

GLEAM’s health was reduced by 20%

Without hesitation, Dallion unsummoned the whip blade. If things got more difficult for him, he could summon her back, but for the moment, she had done her job.

What the heck?! The shardfly shouted, not appreciating the action. It was just one hit!

I need you fresh, Gleam, Dallion replied, himself still drained of energy. Even after Lux’s help, both his arms felt numb and his heart was beating like a drum. According to Harp, it would be still a while before he could get back to normal. The logical choice was for him to have the firebird fly him around, changing location frequently so that Vend couldn’t take advantage of the situation. Unfortunately, that wasn’t an option. Dallion already had four daggers in his back. Another six and his health would be at fifty percent, which meant that Vend could take him out with a frontal attack.

Lux, take me to the start, Dallion ordered.

The acceleration felt like a kick in the lungs, but within a few moments Dallion was where he wanted.

Now let me down, then go and thrust all the debris in the area where he’s at. Don’t target Vend even if you see him, just clear the space.

The firebird let out a reluctant chirp, but did as it was told, vanishing from sight. Moments later, Dallion could see the effect in the distance, as chunks of stone flew like hair smashing into the walls and in other buildings. The space of emptiness that had already formed within the everchanging paradox cube after Dallion’s line strikes now grew, removing more and more. This was definitely a step in the right direction, but Dallion continued to worry about the trial puzzle. Sometimes things were straightforward, but this time he was reluctant to assume so. Vend had said that by defeating him, Dallion would get rid of the doubts that kept him back. However, there was no way that would deal with the betrayal.

You cannot be betrayed by an enemy, Dallion said, forcing himself up on his feet. That means the enemy isn’t the opponent. It’s the result of the betrayal…

There were different ways to pass the trial. Defeating Vend was the simplest, relatively speaking. Stopping the betrayals was potentially a second option, although that was yet to be determined.

There’s something more. Dallion closed his eyes. The level of his mind allowed him exceptional recollection, as well as the ability to imagine scenes vividly in his head. Going back, he went through every word Vend had uttered, the daggers that had appeared in his back, the fashion in which Vend fought. There was no denying that the newly promoted elite relied heavily on combat splitting. Yet, even he hadn’t used this many. Potentially, he was capable of achieving the feat. If he had a gift that tripled the standard amount for someone with his mind value could achieve, it would be quite easy. However, there was too much smoke and mirrors, even for him.

A dagger has two blades and no hilt, Dallion said to himself. If that were the case… did it mean that the dagger also had two hilts?

Dallion opened his eyes. Time had slowed down to a crawl. He was able to see Lux jump from chunk to chunk, propelling the debris through the air in slow motion. A moment later, things had returned to normal. The firebird was moving too fast to be seen, even with Dallion’s perception focus.

Harp, take your nymph form, he ordered.

Whoa! Isn’t that a bit extreme? Onda asked. You just have to defeat him, not destroy the entire—

Please, Harp, Dallion insisted.

The harpsisword disappeared. Soon after, its guardian emerged, a step away from Dallion. There was a hint of fear moving throughout her, like a firefly in the night.

Pull one out. Dallion semi-turned his back to her.

You can’t be sure what will happen, Dallion heard the vibrations composing her voice in his mind. I might end up hurting someone else.

“I doubt it.” Dallion smiled. “The only way to stop betrayal is to prevent it from happening. I trust you, but this goes beyond my trust. I want you to trust me. As the saying goes, better clear enemies than false friends.”

There was a moment of seriousness, after which the nymph shook her head. Clearly, the speech wasn’t considered to be Dallion’s strongest points, but his determination was. With one swift action, she removed a dagger from his back. Instantly, his health rose by five percent.