Crossing Blades

  “What do you mean, ‘which is stronger’?”

  ?Blade asked as he blocked and dodged the attack coming at him.

  ?“Well, you see, there's only one of me. Normally I would need to choose between being manifested like this and being in the form of a blade. So now I split my power to manifest like both.”

  ?“I see.”

  ?He said before creating a long blade and using it to send her back, and though she recovered quite easily, Blade was happy.

  ?He had managed to create the blade purely of mora, though the process was slower than he had liked, he still managed to create it purely from mora.

  ?“There is one thing you should know about Mora. The obvious thing about it is that anything you can do with mana or aura, you can do with mora. Yet there is one more thing you can do with mora.”

  ?Severance said before running up, placing a hand on the crafted blade as it suddenly breaks.

  ?“Mora overpowers all, and with enough of it, even Absolute Authorities can be negated.”

  ?She said before grabbing him and tossing him aside.

  ?“Nice to know.”

  ?Blade said, landing and sheathing Severance, and created two daggers to go on the offensive again.

  ?Multiple clashes with sparks and mora flying. Blade used the mobility his daggers gave to try and attack, yet he still couldn't land a hit.

  ?So he went for a different approach. Letting Severance catch his arm, he aimed for her back, only for Severance to kick his arm up, making him only graze her. She followed it up with a kick to send him away before chasing him.

  ?Blade avoided direct confrontation with her, instead trying to hold his distance, creating a bow and arrows and shooting at her to block her vision and try to get a proper hit, only to switch to a dagger when she got too close. He would repeat this again and again.

  ?"Don't you get tired of this boorish pattern?"

  ?Severance said, having figured out his strategy as she leapt over the shoots and went for him. It was then Blade took out his sword again, using it to parry her attack before trying to slice her neck. Noticing this, Severance went down in a split before going to a handstand position and trying to kick him. As she did, she made her foot into a blade, and Blade, who had been ready to block, barely reacted in time to jump back, as his left hand was pierced.

  ?“In a battle always go for the kill, whether it is friend or foe. If not, you might just lose your life in training such as this.”

  ?Severance said, standing up as her foot returned to normal.

  ?“I know.”

  ?Blade replied, catching his breath. Going for the kill had always been what a fight had been for him, yet how would that clash with his dream? Would he try to save his opponents too? He knew what he said hadn't been a lie, but how to see them through was unknown to him.

  ?“Since you need it, let’s take a break.”

  ?Severance said. Blade wanted to continue, but a singular stare from Severance made him shut up and comply.

  ?Letting out a sigh, Blade dusted himself off and checked his hand and saw the hole. He was bleeding, but it wasn't severe. Since it was only a minor inconvenience and he had to take a break, he simply bandaged it and took to walking.

  ?He walked with no point in mind. Before he knew it, he found himself back to where everything had begun to spiral. At the bottom of the mountain.

  ?The mountain was left as he had escaped it. Ruined, torn, and cracked. The sides had either caved in or cracked off, sliding down the mountain to become rubble. There was no longer a top, only a crater and what could maybe resemble its remains if you tilted your head.

  ?Even if it was ruins, it held meaning, which was what Blade thought as he decided to scale it. Climbing up the mountain, jumping when there was nothing to climb, and walking when a sort of road could be made out. Eventually, he reached the top, where he slid into the center.

  ?Expectantly, it was empty. The ground was both charred and frozen. Truly a sight. He could see the cracks from where the lightning had coursed through, and he found himself staring around more than intended.

  ?Yet standing here, all he could think about was Raiden. From the stories of the villagers, he believed she would try to protect the village more from the destruction, but at the same time, he couldn't really blame her. She was obviously struggling to keep control, and it seemed to take a toll on her.

  ?So the question remained. What did he feel towards her? Did he hate her for killing his friends, or did he wish to try and protect her? Blade needed to sort out his own feelings if he were ever to meet her again, let alone fight her. So what did he feel?

  ?As he looked up at the starry sky, noting the colors, he came to a conclusion. He would try to kill her, but if there was a chance to help her, he would take it.

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  ?For some reason, it was liberating. Now knowing how he would handle things, that went along with his ideals. Now it was just about getting the strength to be able to carry them out.

  ?“Dreams without strength are useless, and strength without dreams is meaningless.”

  ?Blade said to himself as he stood alone. Eventually, he left the mountain, but not before he left a mark there. A circle with four symbols and nothing more. A mark for the one who had fallen, and a reminder for the new him who would continue on. He would make sure to come back.

  ?Descending the mountain, he found himself going back to the village. It had grown on him more than he realized, as this was the third time he had returned in such a short timespan. It was weird spending so long in one location. Never had he experienced such a luxury before. Normally he would be lucky to spend even a day in one spot, as he needed to travel a lot, and when he was in a place for long, it was usually only a battlefield.

  ?Yet now, he didn't have any real urgency, and so he went back to the slums where he had met the girl.

  ?The place looked much better now. No longer looking as dreadful as it had. The people also looked better.

  ?Then he saw her. The same white-haired girl who had attacked him. She looked better now and was running around.

  ?Though he suddenly had to dodge as bird constructs flew above him. They carried different things, from healing supplies to food. The ones with healing supplies followed the girl, while the rest spread out distributing the food. Yet they all shared the trait that they were carrying more than any bird should be able to carry.

  ?Catching one of the birds, he saw they were made using mora, and though he wanted to inspect it more, he couldn't as the girl came up to him.

  ?“Could you… Could you let go of that… please?”

  ?It was the voice that came from that girl. It was weak and not one he expected from someone who had tried fighting him.

  ?He let go of the bird and watched it fly away, continuing its tasks like nothing.

  ?“They are familiars… I created them.”

  ?She said, sensing his curiosity, though unsure.

  ?“I’m… Aisha.”

  ?“Nice meeting you, Aisha. I’m Blade.”

  ?An awkward silence fell between them after their respective introductions. Blade, in the silence, ended up asking the first question.

  ?“Aisha, could I ask what's up with your voice?”

  ?“What… Do you mean?”

  ?“That's what I meant. You have these pauses like you’re unsure of your own voice.”

  ?“Oh…”

  ?Blade waited for her to continue, but to no avail, he tried again.

  ?“I didn't mean to make you feel bad, I was simply curious. And you attacked me at our first meeting, so I can at least get an explanation.”

  ?Aisha looked visibly uncomfortable at the memory, yet talked, also feeling guilty.

  ?“I’m… Sorry for attacking… you.”

  ?“You don't need to worry about it, it's okay.”

  ?Blade responded by patting her head. Aisha was visibly surprised by the sudden contact but slowly leaned into it.

  ?Though after a while she caught herself and flinched before slowly grabbing his hand yet not removing it.

  ?“Why… are you doing… that?”

  ?“Don’t know, I just felt like it. I can stop if you wish.”

  ?“No… it’s… quite nice.”

  ?The moment lasted a while longer before Aisha said.

  ?“You—you asked… about my voice.”

  ?“It is fine if you don't want to tell me.”

  ?“No… my voice… it was stolen…”

  ?“Huh!?”

  ?Blade had many questions, but the biggest one was.

  ?“What do you mean your voice was stolen?”

  ?“The… overseer.”

  ?“The overseer took your voice? When? Why?”

  ?He wanted to say more, but noticing how she flinched at his rising voice, he quickly calmed down and returned to patting her.

  ?“Please tell me what happened.”

  ?“The overseer… When she first came… she took Miss Raiden… Yet we needed a guardian… She saw I had authorities, so she picked me…”

  ?“So what about your voice?”

  ?“When I tried… to reject the role, she said… ‘What a pretty voice… too bad it’s wasted on such a useless creature.’”

  ?Aisha said, trembling as she continued.

  ?“So after that… she ordered Miss Raiden to… rip out my vocal cords…”

  ?Blade was shaking at the news. Had Raiden really ripped out her vocal cords?

  ?“Please… don't be mad.”

  ?At her words, Blade snapped out of his clouded mind.

  ?“Why do you say that?”

  ?“Raiden… isn't at fault… She didn't have a choice… She even made sure it was painless…”

  ?Blade's anger remained, but now it was towards the one who had given that order. The reason for his friends' deaths, the overseer.

  ?As he thought, he also saw something plaguing his mind.

  ?“How are you talking now, then?”

  ?“Well… you see… I’m using mora… to create vocal cords.”

  ?“What? You can do that?”

  ?“I have… a couple of… Absolute Authorities.”

  ?A couple? So far all the people Blade had met only had one, the only exception was Raiden, but she had killed Indra and Iris to gain more. Does that mean Aisha had killed others?

  ?“Did you… did you kill others, Aisha?”

  ?“No, no, no.”

  ?She said, shaking her head.

  ?"Then how do you have multiple?"

  ?“I… was born… with them.”

  ?“I see. Sorry for judging.”

  ?“No… it’s fine.”

  ?“So then, on another note. What authorities do you have?”

  ?Aisha paused for a moment, seeming a bit uncomfortable, before saying.

  ?“I have… the authorities of alchemy… and familiars… I'm using alchemy… and mora… to create artificial voice cords.”

  ?“Wait, so you can use mora within yourself?”

  ?She nods before continuing.

  ?“Yes… you can use mora inside… your body… It doesn't have to be… outside.”

  ?That's when it clicked. instead of using his mora outside himself, why not use it within himself to strengthen him?

  ?“Thank you, Aisha.”

  ?Blade said, hugging her.

  ?Aisha was visibly stunned before leaning into the embrace, hugging him back.

  ?“It’s no… problem.”

  ?They stayed like that for a moment before Aisha voiced a question.

  ?“... Can I… Can I call you… brother?”

  ?“Huh?”

  ?“... sorry.”

  ?“No, I was just surprised.”

  ?Blade said, stepping back and kneeling down to better look at her as he patted her head. It was only then he properly saw her eyes, red eyes with crimson linings swirling into an orb in the center.

  ?“I'll be your brother, and I'll make sure you're safe.”

  ?“I… trust you then.”

  ?She said as she hugged him again.

  ?Blade let the embrace prolong before it ended as he stepped back, readying to leave.

  ?“I will get your voice back, Aisha, that’s a promise.”

  ?“I’ll wait for you then.”

  ?Blade turned and ran back. It was nearly sunrise, yet he didn't mind. Now he had another one to protect, and he was going to make sure he could keep his promise with Aisha.

  ?“Severance!”

  ?She sat waiting for him and looked up when her name was shouted.

  ?“I think I have found how to apply my mora.”

  ?“You have? I'm interested.”

  ?“Don’t have time, do we?”

  ?“Fine then.”

  ?Severance accepted, jumping down as her arm transformed. “Let's do it then. One month. Let's see this.”

  ?And so as Blade unsheathed his sword, they clashed.

  Character Card:

  The source of all familiars and alchemy. A girl continuously used by others, now putting her last bit of trust in the man she can call family.

  Name: Aisha

  Age: Unknown

  Race: Origin

  Mora: Glowing white

  Absolute Authorties: Alchemy, familiars, souls

  Title: None

  Appearance: Aisha has pale skin, red eyes with crimson linings swirling into an orb in the center, and long white hair. She has a body that looks like a child, no older than nine.

  She wears a collared, red long-sleeved shirt, a long white skirt and white boots.