Unwanted Reunion

Clyde looked at me as if he had seen a ghost. His attire wasn't the one I saw back in the village. Instead, it belonged to a hunter. It was loaded with straps and pockets to hold various tools and mimicked nature in its very design. So this is what Clyde actually did. He wasn't a blacksmith at all!

"Clyde!" Orlah yelped excitedly. "My hero!"

Clyde looked at me and Orlah, not saying a word as he took something out his pocket. I readied a sword of flames and a shield, preparing to defend myself. Clyde pelted something onto the ground in front of me, startling me. It wasn't a weapon… wait this was a…

POOF.

Dust enveloped me in a thick cloud. I began hacking as the fumes entered my lungs. Smoke grenade, one of fighting dirtiest tactics. In this world, people don't fight fair. They fight to win. I swung my fiery blade to clear the smoke before I heard a swoosh. An arrow hit my shoulder, one I couldn't see. I heard Clyde jump from the tree branch he was on but there was no thud. He must be a professional.

I could feel a presence as I turned around. An arrow flew out but my sword was able to disintegrate the thing. As the blade fit snugly in my hand, I noticed it began to flicker. Crap, I had almost used up all my mana. I shortened my blade's length and dispersed my shield. Conversation was key if I was going to win this battle.

The only indication I had of his presence was the disturbances in the air that he had made. The smoke began clearing when… he was gone. I could still feel his presence, but the confusion was still there.

"You were supposed to be dead by now."

His voice called out to me in a taunting manner.

"I never expected you to be able to learn magic, Arthur. Especially considering what kind of guy you were back in the village."

SWOOSH.

Another arrow grazed passed my head, near inches from my demise. I couldn't stand here any longer. I readied myself, and I ran. I ran as far as my feet allowed me to. An enemy I was completely unprepared to deal with crossed my path and I was in no position to fight him. My sword was diminished to a knife, just enough to quickly destroy any oncoming arrows Clyde plucked. I could feel Clyde follow me as Orlah cheered from the distance. Her gleeful voice distracted me and I could feel a smile grow on her face.

I turned a corner, stopped in my path to catch my breath and I leaned my body against a tree. I only had mere seconds to rest before an arrow flew past my nose. I thrusted my fiery blady up, but Clyde was able to quickly dodge it. This was his domain.

Before he jumped off the branch he was on, I changed my weapon into an ax and swung it into the wood. There was a snap and Clyde lost his balance. He fell before my eyes. I was about to take another swing when…

POOF.

Another smoke grenade?! This caught me off guard, but I was more prepared to deal with this sort of thing now. I could hear Clyde scurrying up a tree like a squirrel. His presence was more clear now. He was injured.

Another arrow rained down, but this time it went nowhere near me. I could hear Clyde curse under his breath. I cleared the smoke again, this time with more ease. Clyde was not in my sight, but I could feel him. I rescinded my fire ax's length again to conserve mana. Then, I felt something strong… a limping man jumping to the next tree. I changed my fire's form, this time into a sphere. This may be my last chance, my last shot at defeating Clyde. I ran with all my might as soon as I was mere inches away from him, swung it.

"HYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!"

I could Clyde scream as the fireball collided with him. What an ungraceful fall it was, yet satisfying nonetheless. And as he landed head first, I passed out again, but I knew I had won.