Arthur's Point of View

Capital of Vithari - Dwardew

“Get up.” I told Elincia as I removed Typhon from the wall.

As soon as I got him down, a teleportation went off behind me. Immediately, I opened a portal in front of my back as I heard a spell shoot through it. Jumping back into the portal, I heard the explosion ring out in the air as I had readjusted it to appear just overhead. It wasn’t the High Elf like I expected. Instead, the Wraith was floating there with a barrier protecting him from his own spell that he had launched.

The fight began anew as the Wraith started firing a barrage of magic at me. They didn’t seem to be spell based, where they would change into fire or something along those lines. Instead, they appeared to be pure magic, which was dangerous. Summoning dozens of Gravity Pillars to surround and rotate around me, the attacks would shoot up into the sky before disappearing.

I would create a portal that would send them spiraling back to the Wraith every so often. A few good hits got in on itself as it screeched in pain, which halted its attack. That was until it started teleporting in and out while shooting more precise bursts at me. My Gravity Pillars couldn’t intercept them all, and a few got through. Gritting my teeth, I increased the amount, made them spin fast around my body, and added another layer rotating in the opposite direction.

My armor was still recovering from the High Elf’s sneak attack, and now more bits of it were destroyed by the Wraith. The Wraith teleported closer and was somehow able to weave in and out between my Gravity Pillars. As it closed in, it launched close range attacks while swiping at me. We came to blows as I tried to focus on my sword to return to me. I knew where it was and needed it. Magic stung like a bitch.

Grabbing one of the Wraith’s arms, I gathered a massive amount of energy in my free hand. Pushing it forward, it erupted from my palm as the Wraith put up a small shield with his free hand to block it. The energy was redirected upwards, slamming into the cavern’s ceiling, which already looked to be on the verge of collapse. When I stopped, the Wraith moved to the offensive but was halted when a teleportation went off right in between the two of us.

“Now, isn’t this exciting!” He declared as his hand slammed into the Wraith’s face, and I managed to avoid him grabbing mine. “Oh!” The High Elf said as I brought my leg down on him, but he blocked it with his wings. “Careful now!”

I kicked away from him into a portal and behind the Wraith before I punched the back of his head while the front of it was still in the High Elf’s grasp. It went limp for a second as the cloaked figure held it up with a small chuckle. He quickly tossed it at me, which I avoided. A portal then opened above me, where Defiance quickly fell through.

With it now in my hands, the High Elf seemed more on alert, but his grin disappeared when he found himself unable to move. His confusion could be felt as I held him in place with my Gravity Pillars as he looked around, trying to see if it was perhaps the discarded Wraith. Charging Defiance with my energy, I hefted it back and held it like I was preparing to throw a javelin.

“Wait-“ Was all he could say before Defiance shot forward almost point blank.

A grand line formed through the edge of the Dwarven palace and into the back of the cavern. I watched as the dust cleared, and I opened a portal to have Defiance return to me once more. The chasm that formed from the attack cut through the earth in every direction. Anything that was in my attack’s way was destroyed. Parts of the palace, the flooring, and even the ceiling were all eviscerated.

It wasn’t long before a teleportation went off in the distance to my right. The cloaked figure was alive. Not surprising, really. He floated there for a moment, and I noticed he was bleeding rather heavily before his wounds quickly healed. Naturally, the blood remained on him. Unlike me, it didn’t just evaporate into the air in red particles.

A large chunk of his cloak had been destroyed. Blood dripped down his fingers and wings as his pants looked a little torn. I could feel his gaze find my own as we stared each other down. His eyes left mine for a moment as he studied the new fissure that I had cut out through the backend of Dwardew.

“Dang!” He let out an impressed whistle. “I’m not going to lie, that did hurt a little bit. Didn’t think you’d have it in you to launch such an attack with your precious mortals so close by.” Chuckling, he held up one of his arms which was covered in blood. “Guess you proved me wrong there.”

“I tend to rise to the occasion when needed. Besides, don’t pretend that all that blood is yours. That’s the same arm you gutted me with.” I pointed out, and he merely chuckled and nodded.

“You’re not wrong!”