FIGHT!

Lu looked across the courtyard at me, as if asking if it was ok, or saying that she was sorry.

I nodded to her again and she pulled her sword from its sheath. I did the same and assumed the only stance I could, starting to harden my skin. 'Harder… Harder.' Everything I had learned stemmed from that one technique.

If I didn't strengthen my body enough, then when I enhanced my muscles they would tear, or even snap my bones… At least that's what I was told.

I could feel the manna surging through me, my skill seeming to improve every time I used it.

I felt full of power, only making it feel that much better when I started to strengthen my muscles as well.

Manna was practically oozing out of every poor of my body as I held my sword. "COME AT ME!" I yelled, laying my sword downward across my shoulder like a shield.

"YOU BETTER BLOCK THIS!" She yelled back, rushing towards me with a heavy downward strike. The moment her sword touched mine I started deflecting the blow to counterattack. I spun around swinging my sword with all my might, but as she came into my vision everything slowed down.

This isn't right she recovered already? No, It was faint! Her sword was still raised high into the air ready to cleave me in two.

She struck me in the face as hard as she could with the sword's pommel causing me to stagger back and start to bleed from the nose. It wasn't broken though, and I was still conscious.

"Siya!" She yelled, backing up. I could see the tension build up in her body as she nearly dropped her sword, reaching out to me with one of her hands.

"It's fine, it's not from you, it's from my magic…" Of course that was a lie… Looking at her face I figured she must have known, but it was too late to stop. 'I have to do something before she starts to worry and lose the will to fight.'

I charged at her, trying to take advantage of her hesitation, but she instantly countered. Her instinct kicked in and she quickly sidestepped my swing.

I changed the leverage to try and cut her but she blocked, kicking away my sword and bringing her own up and across my abdomen. It cut into me, but not deeply. 'These swords aren't dull!' I stepped back and lifted my shirt to look at the gash.

'Is that why she was so against this? Did she know?'

Lu whipped her blade to flick off the blood and backed away.

"It's not over. This match will be until one of you is incapacitated." Our father's voice bellowed out, making Lu flinch.

"She could die!"

He crossed his arms and remained silent.

'It's no use… His mind is made up. You're right, I could die. The only question now is… will you still fight me? I know we aren't that close but…' 

She readied her stance again and prepared to charge.

'I guess I can't blame you… He's a scary man…'

"I Promise… I won't die… I won't let you kill me..." 'For you're sake.'

She charged at me and released an overwhelming onslaught of attacks so fast and ferocious that I had no time to do anything but block. My arms took the full force of every blow sending shockwaves through my body, and just when they started to finally give out she kicked away my sword, following up with a second kick to my head that I managed to block, although it still sent me to the ground.

She leaned over me. "Stay down." She whispered. At that moment it clicked.

'She found a loophole?' I was proud in a strange way. It made me feel like we really were sisters. 

'Every swing she took with her blade, it was like she was aiming for my sword, and the only time she actually hit me was when she struck with her feet.' Whatever negative thoughts I had about her continuing to fight after saying she thought I might die vanished in an instant.

'Well, it's good to know you care but…' "If I lose here I'm as good as dead anyway…" I muttered back. I stood up, wiping the blood that was still trickling from my nose and spitting more of it out onto the ground. 

"No, NO! Why would you get up?" She asked, glancing back at our father, begging him to stop us with her eyes.

"FACE ME AGAIN!" Anger bubbled up inside of me. Every time we traded blows it only grew worse and worse until I felt like screaming with every breath I had, letting out a growl that made me ashamed because of how similar it was to my father's.

I was sick of all of it. The training and the rules, the weak body, the pain. I was mad at myself for not being better than her, and I was mad that I had to use magic, to "cheat", and even then, still I couldn't face her. I was mad that I had to fight her at all, angry we had to fight with real blades, and even more pissed off that the only way I could win was by hurting my little sister.

Every thought that crossed my mind only made me more furious. Until the only person I wasn't mad at was her…

I saw Lu's face. I could see the fear written on it. Whether she was afraid of me or afraid she would kill me I couldn't say. She charged again and again. Each time beating me to the ground, before long she began slicing into me with the blade, unable to keep her perfect control as she wore herself out trying to end it as quickly as she could.

'Harder. I can make my skin thicker. I have to.'

Finally, in my rage, I hardened my skin as much as I could right at the point where she was going to strike, focusing the entire spell right there, and her sword bounced off. She lost her grip for a second and I finally saw an opening in her guard, a place in space and time that her sword couldn't reach to block. The perfect strike was right there.

My vision zoomed in on the open air around her so perfectly that I lost sight of her entirely, only seeing the opening in her guard. I swung with all my might, twisting violently as I poured everything I had into it.

"That's enough!" our father shouted,

I tried to stop the sword as fast as I could, but I could hardly even slow it down. stepping in between us like a flash of light, he caught it with his bare hand 

His sudden appearance in front of me sent chills down my spine as his blood slowly trickled down my blade, his face as stern and unshakeable as ever. 

'Why would he–' I looked past him to see the tip of my blade next to Lu's neck, and her wide blank eyes just above it.

I instantly dropped the sword and staggered back, shaking. "I…" I muttered, unable to say anything else as tears started to nearly blind me after realizing what might have happened if he hadn't stepped in.

all the anger I felt was gone. I looked into her eyes as we both fell to our knees.

"A-are you ok?" She wasn't responding, or moving at all.

After a moment she slowly looked over to me. "I… should be asking you that…" Her voice was cold, but not like father's. All the blood had drained from her face and she suddenly became pale, I could see a tear start to form in her eye as she stood back up.

Her voice cracked as she tried to speak. "T-the match is over. So I'll be going now… If that's alright."

Our father nodded, allowing her to leave before he said anything else. "This was not a victory. You used magic, remember that. As far as you being ready for the next lesson though, this will do."

He flung my sword to the ground next to me, and the only thing I could hear was the same reverberating phrase… 'pick it up.' I could hear it so loudly and clearly, that I thought I might be going crazy.

It almost felt like a supernatural force somehow guided the blade back into my hands. I couldn't feel the tears form in my eyes, but I could see them wetting my clothes as they fell from my face.

'I picked it up… Now what?' 

I stood up again. My insides felt like they were on fire, but my skin was so cold my fingers had locked in place around the handle of the blade. 

"That last swing was pretty good." He said, looking down at his hand. "It finally had some real power behind it."

'The swing that almost killed my little sister… Was good? That's what you finally acknowledge me for?' Something in my head snapped. I could hear it. Like a woven string of twine that had been pulled far too tight.

I could feel the air rapidly rushing around me as ice and heat started to flow from my body, turning the metal of my blade red hot, and encasing the entire area in a snowy frost. Shards of glistening ice circled me like a sash and a heat so potent you could see it rising from my entire right arm.

I was like an active volcano causing an avalanche in the middle of the worst blizzard you've ever seen. Not even I knew what I was going to do next.