Chapter 43: Trouble in Lethal (2)

In the year 800, 199 years from the present time there was a man named Harduz. He grew up in a coastal town, with his parents being fishermen. It was an interim period for the world. Due to the progression of inventions as well as the overflow of wealth due to the uncovering of several gold mines across the northern and western continents, everyone vied for power.

One of the most prominent groups was called Lament. Lament was made up of thieves, some being on land while others sailed the seas; as pirates. Unfortunately for Harduz, as his town was close to the ocean, it was raided. Members of Lament pillaged and desecrated the place, killing and taking from anyone they saw. It was burned to the ground, with ashes being the only thing left.

Harduz' parents helped to stow the young boy away, however it cost them their lives. He sailed alone for a week, eventually reaching land. At that point, even though he was barely a teenager, he vowed to get revenge. From that day forward, he trained.

He soon found he was a blessing user. His rage manifested, in the form of horns that sprouted from his head. His skin turned pitch black and in his state, he found that the heat burning in his chest could materialize. It represented his rage and anger which surfaced while watching his home burn to the ground.

After 10 years of isolation, surviving off the land on his own as well as training constantly, he was ready. He made his way back to his coastal town, or at least the remnants of it. It looked like while he was away Lament decided to make it their base.

The event that would proceed there became known as the hellish slaughter. He gave no mercy to them, eliminating the members to their last man. In the wake of his fury, the town was burned down once again. However, this time, he decided to stay.

It was stated he spent the rest of his days just staring at the sea. Many passersby would see him, sitting at his same spot; the local hill. Eventually, the town was rebuilt, one last time. The name given to it was Maribella, based on the name of the local sea.

If it was random, or purposeful, in present time, Ultri had inherited the man's blessing. Harduz wasn't a sun clan member, nor was he a predecessor. It appeared Ultri's affinity for rage and violence ushered the power into existence once more.

Ultri didn't know the blessing had once existed, or that he wasn't the first holder of it. He called it 'vengeance.' A fitting name, both in his case as well as the first holder; Harduz.

Ultri's heartbeat was rapid, reminiscent of a drum as it went and went. He was practically seeing red. Ultri didn't notice he was crying blood; he was too focused on his enemy; Boreas. The man was staring him down, matching his malicious glare. However, he had a smirk on his face.

Boreas was thinking to himself, "I can tell… He's a monster. I don't think I can beat him, especially in my current state. Because of my blessing my fighting style revolves around a slow burn, but based on this situation I doubt he'd let me get my bearings… I'll have to stall!"

With a heavy stomp of his foot, ice spread from under Boreas' foot. It was like a tidal wave of ice, its single purpose to keep Ultri at bay. The man simply hopped over it, not wanting to play his game of matching power for power.

It wasn't like Ultri had to dodge, he simply wanted to take him down as quickly as possible; and he felt that blocking the attack wouldn't have provided that result. The ice which was now under Ultri shifted direction, going upward to catch his foot. Now with his opponent stuck mid-air, Boreas chucked his ice spear at him.

Wide-eyed at the maneuver; Ultri could only raise his arms to block. After the impact, a slight mist emerged; from the collision of ice and heat from the man's arms. Boreas took that moment to set-up the defense. To his front, back, and sides, walls of ice sprouted from the ground. They were a couple feet away.

He closed his eyes, breathing deeply. Boreas' blessing, while powerful due to it being an elemental kind, was draining. His ice could reach temperatures below freezing; being its deadliest form. Because of that fact it meant he had to allow his body to accumulate enough heat to balance the chilly temperature.

"Is this all?"

Boreas felt a chill run down his spine; not from his ice but following the voice coming from behind him. He opened his eyes, turning around quickly to see Ultri, standing there. There wasn't even a moment for him to react as he was punched deep in the gut, the pain was immense. Boreas went flying, breaking past one of his ice walls and crashing into a nearby tree.

As he strained in pain, opening his eyes he smelled smoke. The place he'd been striked was on fire. In a hurry he pulled off the shirt, tossing it away from him.

Ultri was running at him full force and he was too close to go for his ice wave attack. Boreas had no choice but to try his best to dodge the punches getting sent his way.

If it was his adrenaline giving him higher focus; he was able to avoid the attacks. Seeing his tactic of throwing with reckless abandon wasn't working, Ultri went for a feint before delivering a front kick to Boreas' chest.

The kick knocked the air out of Boreas along with sending him stumbling back several feet. Once again, Ultri charged at him. He was completely relentless. Flame ignited from Boreas' chest, where he'd taken the kick. In panic, he activated ice which snuffed the heat.

It was hard for Boreas to explain what happened next, everything happened so quickly after all. He was completely assaulted. From punches to kicks, elbows and even chops, he was pummeled with every attack imaginable. The entire time the weight of the blows as well as the heat overwhelmed the young warrior.

His mind was blank with pain. In the face of the vengeful warrior he made a decision. To run away. It was pure instinct. He didn't even recognize he was doing it until his feet lifted off the ground, propelling him in the opposite direction Ultri was in.

Ultri tracked the man's movement, his gaze somewhat absent. Then, his lips curled into a maniacal grin. "You're running? That's not allowed." Then, from his hands a long rope of flame appeared. He swung it with deadly efficiency.

Boreas, with his senses on a hundred, was able to narrowly avoid the attack. His skin was lightly coated in ice, as an attempt to staunch the flame which had dressed his body. If it weren't for his ability, he knew he would have died long ago. After all, an ability that lights whatever is touched on fire is extremely difficult to combat.

It's nature was an all-consuming force after all. If given free reign it will continue to envelope its target until nothing remains. Ultri was swinging the rope somewhat recklessly, so several trees had been set on fire at this point. The area was truly starting to look like a hellscape.

Boreas was panting heavily. He could tell, even if the flame had been doused somewhat, he would be heavily bruised. It wasn't just the heat, every blow he'd been hit with held immense power behind it.

He watched, as Ultri was taking step after step; following him. All the while he continued swinging his flame-rope at him. At this distance, Boreas could take a moment. He quickly slid behind a tree, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a small spherical pill.

The item was something he'd gotten from someone who worked for the criminal organization Black Jack. He was told upon consumption his stamina and power would be heightened. It was what he needed at this point.

He swallowed it without hesitation. As it went down his throat, a surge of energy came over him. He clenched his fist, looking down at it wide-eyed. It was hard to explain but even though he was heavily wounded, seemingly outclassed in every metric, he wasn't afraid. He didn't believe the pill had a calming effect as well but he may have been wrong. That, or he simply could tell, he was far stronger now.

Boreas moved from behind the tree, standing in plain sight now. Ultri was still stalking forward; flames dousing his entire body now. The only thing visible was a twisted smile on his face.

"Are you done?" he questioned, his voice deep and almost inhuman sounding. It was as if he was no longer human; he had become a vengeful demon.

"Yeah." Boreas replied. He raised his arms and in a smooth movement; his fingers danced through the air. Icicles materialized; being sharp and deadly. With a flick of his wrist, he sent them hurtling toward Ultri. But Ultri's grin only widened as he tapped his flaming fingers against the ground. The ground ignited, and the flames surged upward, consuming the incoming icicles, melting them into steam.

Maniacal laughter spilled from Ultri's lips; mingling with the roar of the flames that surrounded him. He charged forward, and fire spread from his fingertips, forming blazing tendrils that reached toward Boreas. But Boreas' eyes narrowed as he stomped his foot on the ground.

Instantly, the earth beneath Ultri's feet turned to ice, causing him to slip and stumble. The flame tendrils which flew toward Boreas with deadly efficiency slipped past the man just barely. As Ultri struggled to regain his balance, Boreas seized the opportunity.

He thrust his hand forward, and a surge of icy shards erupted from the ground, spiraling toward Ultri like a deadly storm. Ultri thrust his hands forward, attempting to incinerate the shards with his flames, but the ice persisted, extinguishing the fire with its biting cold.

The shards struck Ultri's arms and legs, and his roars of pain mixed with the sizzling of melting ice. His horns glowed with intense heat as he fought against the freezing onslaught. But Boreas wasn't finished.

He thrust his palms downward, and a wave of frost surged across the ground, encasing Ultri's feet in solid ice once more. It was shocking, before Boreas' ice would have instantly melted from Ultri's heat but it was far too cold. It was below freezing temperatures.

With a final, furious effort, Ultri unleashed a torrent of flames, melting the ice around his feet and sending steam billowing into the air. But the flames had taken a toll, leaving him weakened and vulnerable. While Ultri was able to manipulate fire due to his ability, without coming into contact with anything; creating it out of thin air was extremely draining.

Boreas advanced, his eyes fierce, his breath a frosty mist.

His fingers curled, and a spiraling blizzard materialized around Ultri. The freezing winds howled, obscuring him from view. Moments later, as the blizzard subsided, Ultri was revealed, his body encased in a thick layer of ice, his flames extinguished.

Boreas then snapped his fingers, an action which broke the ice. Ultri, fell to the ground, panting heavily. The horns slowly protruded back into his skull, along with his skin returning to its natural brown state.

He tried to push himself up, releasing a grunt of effort but he simply slipped back to the ground.

Boreas' chest heaved as he stood victorious, his icy blue eyes reflecting the moonlight. The battlefield was quiet, save for the crackling of the ice slowly dissolving.

"Looks like I won." Boreas said with an air of arrogance in his voice.

"You… bastard." In spite of Ultri's anger which was still as present as it was during the beginning of their fight; his flame was no more. The ice was too chilling to allow him to produce any more heat. Now, all he could do was glare upward at Boreas who stood over him.

Boreas returned his gaze; however he was thinking of something else. It was a memory, to be more specific.

He remembered being a young child, walking back to his village. It was after a long day of training at the peak. The peak was an area meant for isolation near the local mountain. There, the second born child would train. It was brutal. There were countless days his instructor would beat him senseless, and leave him returning back to the village with numerous bruises.

On one such day, after returning to the village he saw Ashur. He started to speak to him, but soon noticed there was another beside him. Ultri. They were laughing, talking about something that wasn't clear to Boreas who was still further away.

He couldn't help but be drawn to Ultri's eyes. It was strange, they had such vibrance in them, unlike his own. His blue eyes were hollow; weary from constant physical strain. From running for hours to holding heavy boulders as he squatted; even combat training. He was tired. Yet, Ultri as another young villager was carefree.

Boreas couldn't help but feel bitter. That feeling was only amplified by the fact that he was by his brother. He felt that no matter when he'd seek him out, he was surrounded by people. He could hardly get one on one time with Ashur. Resentment quickly rooted its way into his gut as he watched on longer.

He hated those yellow eyes… That knew little to no strife and even more so didn't care. He had no concern except for the present moment.

His recollection of the past faded along with the sun which was slowly falling out of view. He gazed at Ultri, having a distant look on his face. Ultri was still struggling to get back to his feet and failing at that. He was shooting a glare of defiance.

Boreas smirked and without warning reached down toward Ultri. The man tried to swat the hand away but was too weak to do so successfully. Boreas; with both hands grabbed the man's eyes; yanking them out.

A hoarse scream rang through the deep orange sky. Ultri was sitting in a fetal position, cradling his face as he groaned in pain. "There. Now you can never look at me again with such eyes," Boreas hissed.

"Boreas!"

Hearing his name called he turned around; seeing Bonne and Clyne heading into the clearing. Bonne had a look of panic on her face, rushing over to him. She started inspecting his state, checking for severe injuries. Clyne was hanging back a bit, scanning the remnants of the area.

The forest was no more; with only embers and ashes left. It wasn't the largest forest but it was big enough for its lack of presence to be distinct.

"I'm all right." Boreas said, lightly swatting Bonne's hands away. Clyne had finally reached the two, speaking next, "Seems he didn't go down easy."

The three turned their attention to the defeated warrior. He was still laying on the ground, but he no longer covered his face with his hands. His ragged state was clear because of this; with his eyelids shut tight as blood was coming from them.

"Wow, you took his eyes? That's pretty hardcore man." Clyne said, a slight grimace in his voice.

"It's only natural that I take them. He can't complain about the prize I take after beating him."

"Fair enough." Clyne retorted, giving a nonchalant shrug.

Ultri, though he was blind now, and heavily worn from the bombardment of ice earlier, was rising to his feet.

Bonne reached for the sword on her hip but Boreas' hand raise stopped her. A spear, clear and almost ethereal looking materialized.

"Any last words?" He asked, raising the tip to Ultri's neck.

Silence filled the desolate field. A second passed, and then another, before Ultri responded, "You'll pay."

Boreas snorted in contempt. Even to the end; Ultri was still him. In all honesty, he had hoped the man would have been broken, or cower for his life. Instead, Ultri dealt him the same spite from the beginning of their meeting. It seemed, even though Boreas had won; in the sense of spirit, he had lost.

He had to resort to an enhancement after all. If it wasn't for that, he would have surely lost. Regardless, pride had no value here. The only thing that mattered was he would live, and Ultri would die.

With a thrust of his spear, the blade pierced Ultri's neck. The man, with one last cough of blood, fell backward. As he lay on the ground, his last thought was regret. Not that Severost had died, or that he had lost to Boreas; but that he would never get to make good on his promise to Ashur.