Ichaival didn’t block in time as Lyra’s clone smacked the false archer’s leg multiple times with the Kali sticks. It dropped the hero to his knees and the clone aimed for his head. Ichaival teleported out of the way, but ran right into the opponent, who predicted his move. The false Ichaival tackled his other self down, bashing the hero’s face.
“Not looking good for Ichaival,” Jacque noted, sketching the fight.
“He just has to figure out a way to get those Kali sticks. And then beat down himself. Easy!” Shan shrugged his shoulder.
“You really think so?” I stared at Shan with skepticism.
“It’s a start. Darryl is overwhelmed by his own attacks. Get the Kali sticks out of the way since they’re doing so much damage and he’s got a chance,” Shan replied.
Ichaival teleported into the air and dive-bombed his opponent, knives spinning around him. I expected his clone to counter with a portal but he reacted with…. instant teleportation? There was a delay involved with portal teleportation, enough for someone to notice if they were skilled. But the clay Ichaival’s teleportation was instantaneous. I almost didn’t notice if not for the slight release of magic. I was proficient enough to actually recognize small details like that now.
The clay Ichaival crashed into the real one, mimicking the hero’s previous attack, knives rotating behind him in a circular motion. The blades stabbed Ichaival. In response, the hero opened up multiple portals to remove them from his body. The fake Ichaival raised his Kali sticks, ready to strike again. Ichaival dodged and created a portal near the weapons, ready to steal them. The portal closed immediately, canceled by his opponent.
“Getting tricked by himself, Darryl’s having a hard time. He’ll have to figure it out if he wants those Kali sticks,” Shan commented.
“That instant teleportation, it leaves behind a trail,” I remarked.
“Pretty good eye, Yuki,” Shan confirmed my observations.
Ichaival stared at his disappearing self. Did he finally catch on? He should have already realized since it was his powers. But it had been a long time since the hero even used anything close to this. He needed an adjustment period, just to acclimate himself again.
“The residue Ichaival’s enemy leaves behind contains information on where he’ll jump to. Is it possible for an opponent to read it?” Ksi looked over at Shan.
“Yep, he just has to calm down. It’s his own powers after all,” Shan answered.
Ichaival got thrown into a wall and coughed in pain. He recovered and stared at his opponent’s previous location. He muttered underneath his breath and ran to his left. Oh, a correct guess. He caught the clay Ichaival, prying away the Kali sticks, before whacking him in the head. The clay Ichaival retreated backwards but Ichaival didn’t purse him.
“He’s doing it. All he had to do was remember who he’s fighting, his fuckin’ self. He’s not overthinking things for once,” Shan observed before nodding in approval.
Ichaival created multiple portals and trapped the clay Ichaival in one of them. Knives flew into the clone’s back. Dropping him from the air, the hero tackled the enemy to the ground and delivered ferocious but familiar punches to the fake’s face.
“That’s new,” Shan remarked.
“The moves remind me of someone….ah, I’ve seen similar punches from Lionel,” Ksi confirmed my suspicions.
“Yeah, I was thinking that too. Shan, how does it look for Ichaival now?” I stretched my arm and legs.
“Still too early. Ichaival has to continue correctly predicting the fake’s movement. Let’s see if the fake takes advantage of his flaws,” Shan replied.
Ichaival set up a ring of portals around him and remained in place. The false Ichaival teleported straight to the false archer. That was suicide! All of the portals vanished and a look of confusion appeared on the clay Ichaival’s face. A huge portal appeared behind the enemy, sucking him in. He reappeared in the air before plummeting down into the ground with a sickening thud. Why didn’t the clone disable the portal?
“He actually did it!” Shan applauded his friend’s actions.
“Ichaival took advantage of the man’s aggressiveness to create an opening,” Ksi said.
“Ichaival can’t modify portals after an instant teleportation?” I questioned the gravity manipulator.
“Exactly. Darryl was easy to bait when we first started. Still kind of a problem now but he’s gotten better. There’s a cool down period after using instant teleportation. He can’t use portals or manipulate them,” Shan answered.
The clone capitalized on Ichaival’s blunder, an incorrect guess on the fake’s location, and turned things around. The clay Ichaival snatched the hero up into the air and slammed his injured shoulder into the ground. Ichaival winced in pain, not uttering anything, before rolling away.
“Is it finally going to activate?” Lyra jumped up and down in excitement.
“What did you do this time?” Shan questioned.
“Nothing. I just set the limiter to be removed after a certain amount of time,” Lyra replied, flashing an innocent smile.
“Oh f***,” Shan muttered.
With his increased speed, the clone caught the false archer off guard, targeting Ichaival’s injured shoulder each time. For now, it was just a one-sided beat down.
“What are you working on?” I checked in on Jacque.
“Uh, just sketching out cool moments happening during the fight. Don’t know exactly how it’ll help me but those were Tess’ orders,” Jacque answered.
Ichaival sprung up and clutched his injured shoulder. He persevered though, managing to get in a few hits, but dodged for the most part. Ichaival flew towards us after being knocked back. We moved away, not interfering with the fight. Shan glanced at his friend, muttering something which I couldn’t hear. Ichaival responded with a small smile. Not sure if Shan insulted him or gave useful advice. Either way, the false archer was fired up now, confidence filling his face.
He removed the Kali sticks from his belt. Would he use them even with his damaged shoulder? Shan chuckled as the man stepped toward the clone.
“Relax, he’s not going to use them, Yuki,” Shan said.
Portals opened up everywhere. What was he planning? At this rate, Ichaival should have hit his portal limit which left him vulnerable. Ichaival tossed his Kali sticks into a nearby portal and stepped back. Oh, I understood his plan. Ichaival’s Kali sticks were a double edged sword. Constant, consecutive strikes with the weapon meant a large boost in power. Raising it high enough would mean a win. But each miss meant a subsequent decrease, rendering the weapons useless. The Kali sticks boosted in power on contact so the user didn’t necessarily have to wield them.
“A very daring plan,” Ksi observed.
“Gotta trust Darryl to get it done,” Shan said, keeping a close eye on the movement of the clay Ichaival.
The Kali sticks struck the clay Ichaival’s back and then his leg. The fake tried escaping but he made contact with a one of Ichaival’s portal. He became stuck in place, caught in a loop as the portals around him always led to the same place. The Kali sticks continued striking him in different parts of the body. One portal remained as the clay Ichaival writhed around on the ground. Sweat poured down from Ichaival’s forehead as he approached the clone.
“Knockout time,” Shan declared.
Ichaival retrieved his charged Kali sticks from the last portal and pummeled the fake’s stomach. Blood spurted out from the false Ichaival’s mouth as a hole appeared in his stomach from the attack. Ichaival’s breath was ragged as he dropped his Kali sticks, blood running down from his hands and shoulders.
I assumed the fight was over but the clone suddenly sprung towards the hero. Ichaival traded blows with him and came out victorious. Ichaival couldn’t use any more portals so it was a brawl. Ichaival and his clay self tumbled to the ground. Ichaival pulled out a knife and jammed it into the enemy’s chest. The clone crumbled into broken clay pieces. Transparent golden chains, wrapped around the hero’s entire body, loosened and fell to the floor, vanishing five seconds later.
“You’ve earned them, Darryl!” Lyra placed the Kali sticks into his hands.
“Things are progressing at a rapid pace. A great success,” Tess declared, appearing out of nowhere, and helped the false archer up to his feet.
Ichaival thanked the Gatekeeper and allowed the Kali sticks to dissipate from his hand. Lyra, a proud look on her face, patted the man’s head.
“Do you know why I chose this challenge?” Lyra’s expression transitioned into a serious one.
“You wanted to get rid of my doubt. And remind me of my struggles,” Ichaival answered, clutching his shoulder.
“Bingo! You’re not the same person, Darryl, but at the same time you are. Just wanted to show you that!” Lyra patted his head again.
“Shigetzu, you are next once Lyra finds the pertinent information,” Tess instructed.
“I’m ready,” the man replied.
Four down now, leaving Shan as the only upper tier hero in our group who didn’t have his ultimate weapon. As for Lilith’s group, I didn’t know about their progress, but knowing the Gatekeeper and Lilith though, I didn’t have to worry. Next up was finals, the best part of a university student’s life.
