Glacial Burn

  As the shock mellowed down, his mind finally caught up. In the end, all Blade could do was shout as his body realized the predicament far too late.

  ?"Iris!"

  ?He wanted to go check up on her, but he could do nothing but worry about himself as the woman lunged at him.

  ?Block after block. That was all he could do against a barrage of attacks that carried the ferocity of lightning. The attacks were aimed to kill, and even being grazed filled his body with electricity, which was ruining his nerves. Even though his mind was catching up after having studied her so far, his body just could not keep up. He was lacking the physical capabilities to keep pace, or do anything substantial to her.

  ?He thought and thought, trying to figure out what to do. Block? Deflect? Attack? None of it brought him any closer to her. None of it gave him any meaningful edge. What could he do? What must he do to get over her? If he could not beat her, what chance would he have getting the answers he was looking for?

  ?He failed to block yet another attack, yet was left with only a cut as it grazed him, the lightning taking a toll, building up. He felt it and worried about what would happen if the woman were to unleash it all on him at once. Would all his nerves fry? Would he simply disintegrate? A million thoughts swirled in his mind, all leading to a singular conclusion. Was this the end?

  ?Cold. The thought flashed through Blade's mind as waves of icy cold winds spread out. Everything froze, from the ground to the air. Anything that found itself in the vicinity.

  He had to try his best not to be frozen, covering himself with mora, and yet he still barely managed to keep it tolerable.

  ?The woman had also stopped her assault, curious about the winds she proved more resilient against the cold.

  ?"Excuse me for the wait.”

  ?At the voice, Blade turned to see Iris standing up, but with markings across her body. Just like Indra's, though hers were an ethereal shade of light blue, and covered up to her left eye, instead of the right. Ice crystals formed where she walked, blooming into beautiful flowers of ice.

  ?"This is Deva Karma

  ?The words were said, and in a flash she was gone, appearing behind the electrical woman, as she cut her down. Freezing her body completely before making it shatter as it hit the ground.

  ?"How did you?”

  ?Blade asked, left speechless by the strength, speed, precision. Everything was as beautiful as the flower he found in front of him, sculptured to perfection.

  ?"It was a clone. So she would be weaker than the one I am guessing you and Indra fought.”

  ?A clone? The words lifted his daze as truth hit him. Was he seriously outclassed by a clone? He knew he was weak, that a being made from lightning would of course feel like it, yet was all he could do struggle?

  ?Iris, noticing his burden, offered him a hand, as she retracted the icy winds back to her body.

  ?"We do not have time to sit idly by. There is a good chance she is nearby since she sent a clone. If you truly hold anger over being weak, use it to train yourself, and better yourself for the next fight.”

  ?Blade nodded at her words. He was feeling a bit down as he took her hand, but chose to focus on the moment.

  ?"But I sensed nothing. Normally, it would be easier to sense a clone as they are a being made of mora. So I don't understand how she could have snuck up on us.”

  ?Iris said, wondering out loud, looking around before her eyes fell on his sword.

  ?"Lend me your weapon.”

  ?Blade looked confused, but determined it was better to do as she said, offering the sword for her to look at.

  ?Iris examined the sword before finding a magic circle on it.

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  ?"How amusing.”

  The words left her mouth as she tapped the circle once as it froze and shattered.

  Seeing her hand his sword back, Blade didn’t feel amusement at all. Then he remembered the woman's last act before she fled from him and Indra. She had kicked his sword to the ground to create the giant lightning explosion.

  That is when Blade noticed something in the corner of his eye. A faint crystalline shimmer where the ice shard lay.

  ?"Hey Iris, is that—"

  ?The sentence couldn't even be finished. A streak of lightning erupted from the remains, piercing Iris through the chest, catching them both by surprise. Yet it missed her vitals, as it got too close. Partially freezing even if it went through her, minimizing the damage. Still it served its purpose of weakening her.

  ?Blade could only ask why Why couldn't he have told her sooner? Why was his body so slow? Even if his mind had caught up, what help would it do if his body couldn't even respond to it?

  ?Yet as he turned, lightning shot down around them, obliterating everything. The statues, the ice, and the ground around them. It was as if heaven itself was punishing them for his failure, and the sky was furious as the hail of lightning only continued.

  ?Finally, Blade managed to reach Iris, slinging her arm over his shoulder and steadying her weight against his own as they fled.

  ?Still it became obvious how Iris was running out of strength. The lightning had been concentrated within the clone, to only go off after it was destroyed and its summoning circle broken, thus creating a hole in Iris’s chest.

  ?Meanwhile, Blade could only keep running, trying to find some cover to avoid the storming lightning hailing around them. The problem was finding intact cover.

  ?The first cave they came across was struck with dozens of lightning bolts. At first, Blade thought she had found them, but that was when he figured out she had no idea where they were. As he looked around, he saw how the lightning was striking down all caves and holes that could be used as cover or to hide.

  ?She didn't know where they were and therefore was trying to eliminate any variables at their location, by focusing on the most prominent hiding spots first. As long as she was striking blindly, they had a chance, but without a place for Iris to heal, it would only be a matter of time before they were found.

  ?From the fact the clone found them, yet the lightning now struck blindly, Blade deduced that the magic circle on his sword had been used as a summoner for the clone, and now that it was broken there was no way to locate them. At least one positive to be had. The question remained.

  How much longer could they last under this sky that rained lightning?

  ?"Iris, could you create some cover for us?"

  ?Blade asked desperately.

  ?Iris, who had been busy stopping her own bleeding and using her power to freeze her own cells to lessen the damage, looked at him. The lightning was still affecting her and considerably slowing down her healing process, while limiting the amount of power she could use.

  ?They both knew the risks of it. Creating cover now would be announcing their location and putting a target on them. Blade also knew that if Iris had to expend strength on both healing and covering them, it would drain her strength and potentially make her unable to fight against the electrical woman. Yet no other choice was present at the moment. If they stayed out in the open now, they would be working on limited time. So they went for it.

  ?Iris created pillars of ice around them, forming a sort of cocoon to protect them. Of course, the moment she did, all the lightning began firing only where they stood. Forcing Iris to continuously regenerate the ice, so as not to be obliterated by the ferocious strikes.

  ?Blade's mind raced through different ideas and thoughts. Anything to turn this situation around. If he kept relying on Iris, she would be left exhausted, and then they would be no match for the woman. Only then was when he heard it. A voice, coming neither from him nor Iris, but from above.

  ?"It's too late.”

  ?A voice that sent chills down his spine as he looked up, and that is when it happened. Lightning spread from the top and through the ice, reaching the ground and breaking it. As the ice shattered around them, the source of the voice came dropping down.

  ?Kicking Blade away and taking hold of Iris, the woman now presented herself.

  ?"So you finally spoke.”

  ?Blade said, though with little confidence. What should he do? What could he do? He unsheathed his sword, yet unsure how he should use it, or if he should use it at all. He could only stand there. Ready, but unsure as to what his next action should or could be.

  ?Meanwhile, Iris, who had recovered somewhat, decided to engage in small talk with the woman holding her by her arms.

  ?"Could I get your name, stranger?”

  ?"...Raiden.”

  ?"Raiden huh? How ironic.”

  ?Iris said as she kicked back suddenly, and the woman, now known as Raiden, jumped back. The moment she landed, giant ice spears erupted from the ground trying to pierce her. The action did little to surprise Raiden, though, as she responded with.

  ?"It's no use.”

  ?The words were followed by a discharge of lightning from Raiden’s body, as it shot out destroying the ice, and charged at them. To respond, Iris released the icy winds she had been suppressing, countering the charging lightning. The area around them turned into a delicate field of frozen earth, against a raging hail from the heavens.

  ?"Blade, do run away.”

  ?The words felt like a bucket of cold water was thrown on him.

  ?"Huh? Why? I can help.”

  ?"Can you though? From what I have figured out, you were a liability to Indra, as you're the reason she managed to escape in the first place. And you ruined our chances because you didn't notice the magic circle on your sword.”

  ?Blade could not refute her cold logic. Because of his weakness, Raiden had managed to escape, and because of his inability to notice the magic circle, Iris was now injured.

  ?Lamenting his own weakness, he could only turn and run away as instructed, using the cold as cover for his escape.

  ?"Making him flee? Why?"

  ?Raiden asked. She had let him run, yet questioned why Iris would want him to.

  ?“Your target is me, isn't it? I didn't lie. Having him here would be a nuisance, so let's get this over with, shall we?”