NOVEL WEB 379. Enough of This Ranged Nonsense
Wind gusted all around Ike. It tore at him with sharp lances, bit past Storm Clad, and sought out every inch of him to cut into him and tear him apart. The wind lifted him off his feet and threw him back. He couldn't see anything through the raging tornado, but he felt it as he slammed through walls and into the earth, only for the wind to throw him up into the sky and bring him down again. The whole time, he was helpless, little more than a passenger on a ride, a leaf on the wind. He struggled, trying to break free, but his Tempest was swallowed up by the wind, and Storm Clad struggled to survive against the raging storm outside.
Silver flashed. As sure as fish through river rapids, silver arrows soared on the wind and rushed toward Ike, closing in on him from all sides. Ike whirled. He fended them off with sword strikes as best he could, but the wind kept him off his feet and off balance, so he couldn't outright counter the arrows. He hit one, and it shoved him left, into the next arrow, which pierced his chest and detonated, taking out a chunk of his ribs and lung. He wheezed, struggling to breathe as his regeneration worked on his chest. Another three arrows closed in, charging at him from all directions. He concentrated his aether into his arms and moved as fast as he could, battering them back. The first two he deflected, but the third burrowed into his upper arm. He threw his sword to his off-hand just before the arrow detonated, and his injured arm fell limp against his side, streaming blood down his arm and into the wind. The two he'd deflected glinted as they turned about in the whirlwind to come at him from opposite directions. Ike gritted his teeth. He lashed out at the one coming for his uninjured one, pushing mana into the Hungry Sword. At the same time, he activated the Steel Hands technique, turning his whole arm into steel as the wound closed. The arrows zipped toward him. The Hungry Sword opened its mouth and chomped down one, and Ike caught the other in his steel hand. Before it could detonate, he cracked it in half, releasing the compressed air harmlessly away from him.
The wind raged. The ground rushed up, and Ike grabbed the ground as he passed, linking himself to the earth. The wind blew past, swirling away without Ike in it. He came out the other side into a dusty wasteland, the earth itself blasted down to nothing, all the buildings ripped to shreds and torn everywhere. He stood, coughing up dust and shaking debris out of his hair.
Before he'd even fully recovered, a half-dozen arrows hurtled toward him. Ike growled in frustration and gripped the Hungry Sword tight. Left, right, left, bettering them away, only for them to curve about and swoop back toward him, even as Accais loosed more arrows at him. He couldn't keep up. It wasn't possible. The arrows found gaps in his defenses and burrowed into his body to detonate for maximum damage. Ike's blood splattered the floor, turning the dirt to mud. His regeneration struggled to keep up as the arrows kept carving holes in his body. He struck with all his might and managed to blast one open, only for two more to pierce into his opposite thigh and tear it to shreds. Without his thigh strength, Ike dropped to his knee, supporting himself on his sole good leg. Gritting his teeth, he struck another pair of arrows out of the air with two swift strikes, only for a third to strike his shoulder.
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"A fool who only specializes in one thing will find himself at the mercy of someone who studies the opposite," Accais stated calmly, as he drew his bow again. "Regret that you were foolish enough to challenge someone who could counter you."
"Piece of shit. Stop struggling and let me absorb you!" Ike snarled.
Accais snorted. "As if you could."
So he is a piece of the greater being! Ike smirked. His leg healed, and he stood again, subtly adjusting his stance. "What, are you scared? Come over here. I'll show you."
"If such a thing were possible, it would mean that one of us was close enough to the true self that we could become the true self. Brightbriar's dreams would be realized. It's impossible that some slumrat kid he abandoned after a one-night stand could possibly be the root of the true self, when I'm so clearly superior," Accais stated. He fired rapidly, sending three arrows Ike's way.
Ike swung his sword and swept all three out of the air. The Hungry Sword chomped down on them, eating them up. He was starting to get used to Accais's patterns, and without the tornado to keep him off his feet, he could mock Accais enough to keep him firing in simple, predictable directions.
"Yeah? Brightbriar thought the Prince was superior, too, but he was wrong. The Prince died, and now he's part of me. Just because Brightbriar thinks you're hot shit, doesn't mean dookie about your actual abilities," Ike replied. He struck down most of Accais's arrows, but one snuck through and cut a hole in his side. Wrinkling his nose in annoyance, he pushed forward anyways.
"The Prince?" Accais narrowed his eyes.
Ike laughed. "What, did he not tell you? He's made lots and lots of 'sons' throughout the centuries. There's not just you and me and Rosamund, there's lots of others, too. Some he killed as infants, some rebelled, some even followed his lead like you. They're all dead now, because they're failures. Failures like you."
Accais's eyes flashed. "You don't know what you're talking about."
"You're the one who has no clue. Now shut up, and let me absorb you!" Ike snapped. He slammed his foot down and pushed all his aether into his legs. Lightning jolted around him, vivid purple, bright as the sun. His body blurred as he closed the distance, closing in on Accais. He'd had enough of this ranged bullshit. It was time for a melee battle.