Chapter Five Hundred And Sixty Six – 566
First Form! Darius commanded. Owl!
Felix rushed forward, hooked blade leading the way. The movements of First Form, also known as Owl Form, were inspired by the quiet and observant nature of that bird. They emphasized slow, deliberate strikes and precise footwork.
It was a sadistic choice for the obstacle course ahead.The initial posting of this chapter occurred via Ñøv€l-B!n.
Blades as long as spears swung for him, rotating on sigil-driven gears and pulleys that moved with the speed of an oncoming train. Felix stepped forward, lunging as a horizontal edge sliced just below his armpit. He twisted, pushing another foot carefully into place as more swung for his neck. The whisper of cold metal slid across his skin but left no mark. For a man with Felixs Agility, the course should be childs play; no matter how fast the gears spun, they would not have caught even his shadow. Yet had he moved at full speed, it would have defeated the purpose of attempting it at all.
To fight with a sword is to converse in the language of violence, Darius said. He was visible just outside the twisting maze. Each engagement is a dialogue. Your footwork and your sword are your words. You must choose them carefully.
He kept moving. Step after careful step, repeating the pattern hed hewn into his memory.
The footwork wasnt a problemhis Body responded to his thoughts almost before he had themso it was simply timing. Waiting for the right moment to strike.
With a final precise lunge, Felix cleared the whirling blades. He stepped onto a wide platform, a thin staging area right before the next section. He took a steadying breath and checked the stone disc at his waist. It pulsed in time with the suppression array he had laid below the course before starting, and a dull pain tore at his Mind, Body, and Spirit.
Darius scoffed. Hesitation, Felix? I thought you had mastered the course and your suppression array?
Never together, Felix told him. Im acclimating.
You know your enemies will not grant you such grace. Onward! Second Form! Falcon!
Felix stepped into the next section, which was a forest of thin metal wires that hung from above. The moment he entered, however, an array activated and drove Mana up and through the complicated machinery. Each wire, anchored upon a pivoting socket, began to oscillate at greater and greater speeds.
Razor sharp whips. Felix dodged the first few as they sped up. Always fun.
He dove into the fray, sword flashing out in rapid parries and pinpoint strikes as his feet blurred. A falcon was a fierce predator imbued with great speed and accuracy, and the Form emphasized rapid footwork and lightning-fast strikes. The razor whips flailed in almost random directions, devoid of any true pattern save chaos itself. Falcon was suited for its challenge, and Felix had to loosen his own restrictions on his Agility and Dexterity in order to match it. His crooked sword never stopped moving, deflecting every lash while slipping across the flexible wires to prevent getting entangled. Whips sliced and stung at him, cutting his Garment but never once touching his skin as he zipped through their wild embrace.
He was through it all in the span of fifteen seconds, exiting with a blast of trailing wind onto a fifty-foot diameter platform carved with relatively basic sigaldry. Felix knew it well: a warding circle, meant to keep Skills within the boundaries of the platform.
Some conversations are short and brutal, Darius said, and Felix heard him throw a lever somewhere just out of sight. Hatches opened all around the edges of the platform, and a ratcheting sound resolved itself into twenty different plinths that rose through the hatches. Upon them were Golems made of translucent glass and shimmering bands of red-gold orichalcum. Each bore a long spear of metal. Some are more drawn out. You must know which one you are engaging in, and choose the Form that suits it.
As one, the Superior Glass Golems activated. The sigaldry through their translucent bodies lit up with gold and silver, flooding their limbs with a simulacra of life, and propelling them toward him.
Now they were more prone to using the expansive sparring ring Felix had built. Hed modeled it after the one in a warehouse in Haarwatch, where hed first been trained, shaping its boundary walls out of rock and filling the interior with a thick coating of sand.
It was this that Darius angled his head toward, as the mages filed out of the room. Let us test your Sword Forms, Felix. I sense improvement in you, but I find a spar speaks volumes.
At his waist, Felixs sword buzzed. My Lord? The Nagafolk have assembled.
Oh good, Felix said. Tell them Ill be there in a minute.
Very good, my Lord. The sword dimmed.
Seeing them off first, followed by your own departure? Darius asked.
Yeah. You sure you dont want to lead them? Its an important task.
With you taking Commander Kastos with you, Ill be needed here. Your armies have grown substantially, and if we plan to be ready for the dangers the Hierocracy poses then we have a great deal to do.
Thats fair. Thank you, by the way, Felix said. For everything.
As Lady Dayne is committed to your cause, I could not in good conscience leave your people asragtag as they were. Discipling and technique is my bread and butter, and that is what I have imparted. It may hurt my pride a bit, but you are the reason they have progressed so much, Felix. Without your influence and example, your Legion would still remain bickering factionsor worse, farmers and laborers.
Not really sure thats worse, dude.
You know what I mean.
Felix grinned. I do. Youre saying Im the greatest boss youve ever had.
Darius snorted. You are certainly the strangest. I hope you intend to keep practicing during your journey.
I plan on it. Ill have Harn there, and hes promised to put me through my paces, Felix said. Vess and Evie too.
Commander Kastos is a remarkably adept man, though I do find his technique to bewild. More in line with your normal style, in fact. Be sure that he is pressing you on your fundamentals. They are important. He hesitated, touching the tip of his tongue to his teeth. I know that you will, but I would also ask that you take care of Vessilia, Felix. Do not let her come to harmand do not break her heart.
Felix blinked at the man. The words had all the pieces of a threat, but lacked any heat. Instead they were a cold promise. I dont intend to.
Darius only bowed, fully at the waist. That is all I can ask.
