Chapter 327: Golden mes


    It didnt make sense. None of it made sense


    Calex Thorn stared at the impossible unfolding in front of his very eyes. The dire girl had been cut by Nightshade. The swords exceedingly potent poison had filled her veins. He had seen her copse and sumb to the poison. And yet there she stood, cloaked in golden mes that burned bright. The air itself warped around her from the sheer searing heat, yet her skin was unburnt. Even from twenty paces away, Calex could feel the heat of the mes, it was as if he was in an oven.


    He didnt understand.


    He had never seen mes of gold before. And the poison Was the poison insufficient? Did her dire constitution weaken the poisons effects? Or was it perhaps a hybrid mutation?


    Calex shook his head and called out to his opponent, Are you Are you an elemental mage? Is this some kind of elemental fire magic? Or is this even elemental magic?


    Belle red at him and growled, a deep guttural sound.


    <em> Right Shes quite angry with me understandable </em>Calex swallowed, his throat felt dry in the back of his mouth.


    Calex shrugged and threw his arms up into the air, I must admit, I have spent most of my days studying the art of magic, though I cannot recall learning anything regarding this strange magic of yours. Quite fascinating really


    As he spoke his mind raced through possible ways to deal with the dire vampiress. Perhaps several more cuts, deeper cuts, with Nightshade would put an end to her. But the golden fire was a severe problem. It was impossible to get close.


    cks shadow tendrils, Greens vine entanglement, Purples mind chains most of his advanced spells would simply burn before they reached the vampiress.


    me and bright spells also seemed futile on a being who did not burn. Which left him with only a few options. Besides Nightshade, storm magic was his greatest weapon. But it would take time to create a lightning bolt powerful enough to pierce her aegis. He needed to make some distance, he needed a distraction


    Are those golden mes some sort of archaic orange spell? Calex asked as he slowly channeled green mana in the sands around him. Chromatic mes are usually orange, but House Noir has proven that they can be blue as well. Is that what this is? A secret spell?


    <em>Stop</em> talking, Belle said through clenched teeth.


    Calex sighed, As you wish! He abruptly mmed his foot on the ground.


    A 2-meter tall jagged rock exploded from the sand and hurled straight at Belle. She did not yell in surprise, nor try to evade. Her hands shot out and gripped the rock with newly-formed ws, stopping the gigantic boulder in its tracks.


    Calex stared in disbelief, H-how did y?


    I said stop <em>TALKING</em>! Belle screamed and flung the boulder at him.


    Shit! Calex channeled orange mana into his muscles and jumped to the side.


    The boulder flew past him and mmed into the arenas wall, cracking the reinforced wall and shaking the seats in the stands directly above. The crowd yelled, some in anger, most in fear.


    Calex stared in numb shock at the giant crater left in the wall, then slowly turned towards the one who had so easily tossed the boulder.


    Belle growled and bared her teeth. Her lower canines had grown as sharp andrge as her fangs.


    Calexughed shakily and smiled wryly, And here I thought I could take it easy.


    Belle looked down on him with disgust, Have you been going easy on me, little drow? Good. I was beginning to think this fight would be as disappointing as your pathetic excuse for teammates.


    Calex narrowed his eyes, Dont speak about them like that.


    Or what?


    Belle stretched out her arm and pointed her fingers towards what little remained of her hammer. The wooden shaft wrapped around a steel rod had burned to ash from the heat of her mes. Suddenly, the bare metal hammer began to tremble and glow with scorching heat as it warped into a metal ball before it elongated into the shape of a longsword.


    The des steel glowed red hot and burned with ck smoke. Belle wrapped her hand around the burning hilt and swung the sword around in a rhythmic pattern, testing its weight.


    This will do, she muttered.


    What are you? he whispered in rm.


    My mothers daughter, she snarled.


    Belle dashed towards him in the blink of an eye. Calex gasped in surprise and leaped back, his agility magic surging into his muscles at full might. With blurred steps, he darted behind her unguarded back and thrust Nightshade right between her shoulders. As the purple de neared her skin, Belles molten sword spun around and shed with Nightshade in an explosion of sparks.


    Belle turned her neck and looked back at him, Is that the best you can do?


    Calex frowned, How did y?


    The world spun, the sky was upside down, and the ground flew past him. His body crashed into the ground and skipped across the sand half a dozen times before slowing to a painful halt.


    Calex wheezed heavily. It felt as if a hammer had struck his ribs. He held his broken ribs gingerly and tried to stand. A sharp pain shot up his foot. He cried softly and fell to one knee. He had twisted the ankle during the fall.


    He panted in quick painful breaths and tried to assess the full extent of the injury. If he cast a White healing spell perhaps it might be enough to help him stand.


    You cant even stand, can you? Belle shook her head in disappointment.


    Calex stared at her warily. She was over twenty paces away, but he knew she could close that gap in an instant. She had sent him flying with a kick and he hadnt even been able to react.


    <em>Shes faster than me Even with my agility spells, shes actually faster than me</em>


    A cold sickly feeling crept over his back. Calex nced around for Nightshade anxiously. The purple de hadnded somewhere in the sand, but he could not see where.


    Belle walked towards him, one slow step at a time, I was told  everyone was told that you were the strongest mage of our generation. Perhaps in terms of raw magical skill. I admit, there is no one in this tourney with your technical skill. Belle gripped her molten sword tightly, But you are <em>not</em> the strongest, Thorn.


    I have to admit, no ones told me that before, Calex grinned painfully. Lets put that theory to the test.


    Blue mana poured into his veins. The twin pools at the edges of the arena shook violently. The two bodies of water flowed out in enormous waves and crashed against one another at the center of the arena, burying Belle under a hill of water.


    The water boiled instantly and erupted outwards in an explosion of steam, covering the whole arena.


    <em> That wont hold her for long, its now or never!</em>


    Calex summoned forth everyst drop of blue mana left in his heart and channeled it through his body. His instructors had warned him countless times about casting high-master spells and they were right


    He had never been able to manage a stable Javelin Bolt spell, but the time for holding back was long gone.


    Electricity crackled over Calexs hands and grew until it formed a small javelin. His arms burned from the exertion of mana. He could hear his own heartbeat thrumming in his ears, threatening to give out over the excessive magic. The spell wasnt stable, but it just had tost long enough to find his target.


    Calex ignored the pain creeping up his arm and stared intently at the steam cloud, a mad glint in his eyes. A faint golden silhouette slowly formed in the cloud. It grewrger and brighter as it neared. The steam dissipated around Belle as she stepped out, forming a strange halo around her golden mes.


    Calex chuckled in disappointment. Some small part of him had hoped the water would have been enough to put out her fire, but if anything it seemed as if her mes had grownrger, angrier.


    Belle red at him, Is this how you die? On your knees?


    Golden mes condensed over her sword until they formed a faint outline of a wolfs head.


    Calex could feel the sweat evaporating off his skin and the air drying around him. He could hardly breathe from the sheer heat. He leaned on his knees to steady himself and looked straight into Belles eyes, I cant aim on one foot.


    He pulled his arm back and hurled the Javelin Bolt. The blue pir of energy screeched through the steam in a whirlwind of electricity. Belles wrist snapped up, her molten sword rose in a sh and met the azure bolt in an explosion of mana. The crowds gasped with shock as the cloud of steam blew back from the blue and gold shockwave.


    As the steam and smoke settled, the crowds spotted Belle standing amidst the wreckage, unharmed, golden mes burning bright.


    A stone wall, four meters high and almost twice as thick stood between Belle and Calex. Belles mes had burned a molten hole so deep into the stone wall it had almost perforated the other end. Calexy on the ground, unconscious and covered in soot, but he was otherwise unharmed.


    Ophelia stood over him, a mixture of worry and anger washing over her face. She crouched down and gently picked up her son in her arms.


    You intervened! Belle called out angrily. The match isnt over yet!


    This match is <em>over</em>, Ophelia spoke in a cold,manding tone.


    You hypocrite! Belle screamed. You tried to have Freya killed even after she had surrendered, but now you step in to save your son when neither side has surrendered!


    If you dont like it, you can try and stop me, Ophelia narrowed her blue eyes, But I will not hold back.


    You think Im scared of you? Belle growled as her mes grewrger.


    No, I think youre just a battle-crazed imbecile, she said evenly.


    Belle snarled, Well see.


    Stop already, Sylvie! Youve won, let it end! Ismene shouted and stepped out from the arenas western gate.


    I win when that little Thorn bastard is dead! Belle roared.


    If you kill him war will break out between our cities! Ismene shouted.


    I dont care!


    Ismene stared at Belle and sighed dispassionately, ...So be it. She raised her hands high and summoned forth a tornado of water over the arena.


    Before Belle had a chance to evade, the tornado mmed down on her. Yet the golden mes burned bright through the water. Steam erupted all around, but the tornado simply grew and its gyration quickened as Ismene poured more blue mana into her spell. The golden mes burned brighter for a few seconds more, then slowly they started to grow dimmer and dimmer until the golden light disappeared altogether.


    Ismene lowered her arms and released the torrent spell. The tornado copsed and the water flowed out over the sand. Belle stood amidst a small crater of water, hands on her knees. Her clothes were soaked and her breathing was hard. The molten sword had turned a cool mottled grey. Steam evaporated off her body, but there were no mes. The ws on her fingers were gone and her fangs had returned to normal.


    Its done, Sylvie, let it go, Ismene said calmly.


    Belle red at the arch mage. She slowly exhaled through her nose and tossed her sword aside.


    Ismene smiled, relieved, Well done, Sylv


    Belle turned her back to the old woman and walked away with an angry gait.


    Ismene sighed under her breath, Im too old for this.