Duel in the Shadows

John’s eyes swept over the battlefield, mind racing as he tried to think of a plan.

‘Not a lot of room to move up here,’ he assessed. ‘But jumping onto the water might not be the smartest idea. I have no idea if Senka can make me fall through it. Then again, I don’t know if she can do anything with the tree. Really don’t like not knowing about the environment.’

“Don’t be too preoccupied with your thoughts,” Senka warned, taking a step towards John. “If you aren’t careful, you might miss something.”

‘Why do I feel like that’s a taunt?’ John thought, matching her pace as he retreated. ‘Wait a minute. She really didn’t want to fight me. Is she giving me a hint?’

Senka suddenly darted forward and swept her hand from left to right. John reflexively jumped back but still felt the burn of her attack.

-5HP

‘Okay,’ John thought, fighting down a wince. ‘Looks like I dodged some of it. And I seem to lose the same amount of mana as hit points. But that was just a lucky escape; I can’t see her attacks. But I don’t think I can keep Arcane Sense active while trying to fight.’

John backed up as far as he could, heel stopping right before the root dipped down towards the water. Then Senka took a step towards him.

‘She’s got a range limit,’ John realized. ‘I took a step back after the first attack and she had to close the distance to attack again. And since I pulled back before her second attack could connect, it looks like I was able to avoid taking a larger hit. I need to keep her from getting closer.’

He cast Fiery Pursuit and let the fireball fly into the space between him and Senka, stopping her advance, her smile growing slightly.

“I see you’re finally getting serious,” the spirit said, an amused lilt to her voice.

“If the last few days have taught me anything,” John said, his face hardening in resolve, “it’s that if I want something, I have to work for it. And I don’t want to just leave you here alone.”

“Bold words,” Senka replied to his declaration, taking one more step forward. “I hope you have the resolve to back them up.”

She thrust her hand forward in a stabbing motion, a spike of darkness launching from her fingertips towards the fireball. John willed his spell to avoid the attack, dipping low as the ball of flame darted to his right before launching towards Senka.

‘Sorry about this,’ John apologized as he let his spell detonate a foot away from Senka. The blast rang through the otherwise silent air, the tree illuminated by the flames. The brightness faded quickly as darkness consumed the fire, leaving a seemingly unharmed Senka, her left hand held in front of her, palm facing outward.

“That was not a bad plan,” she said, lowering her hand. “But it was obvious what your idea was. Though, I suppose I have a bit of an advantage. I’ve got a pretty good idea of what you can do. You’ll need to think of new ways to fight if you want to beat me.”

“Doesn’t giving me all these tips defeat the purpose of having to beat you?” John asked, hoping to keep the conversation going to give him more time to think and recover mana.

“I want to fight with you,” Senka reiterated, a hint of anger seeping into her voice. “But I have to be beaten. That is the way things are. Beyond everything else, I am a weapon. That colors all I am, the same way being human defines you."

"So got to surprise you to win, eh?" John asked her.

"If that's the way you think you have to win, yes," Senka answered, lifting her right hand, palm facing him. "Of course, I have my own tricks."

Dark vines shot out of her opened hand, quickly flying towards John. With no way to retreat or sidestep the attack, John jumped off the root. He hit the solid surface and twisted to keep Senka in view, his thoughts in a flurry as he reversed away from the tree.

‘Need to think of some move I haven’t done yet,’ he reasoned as Senka jumped down to his level, slowing her descent with more vines spawned from her right hand. ‘Wait a minute. She launched that spike with her right hand and did that slashing move with it too. And she used her left hand to block Pursuit! So right for offence, left for defense. Unless that’s a feint to make me oversimplify things.’

John stopped himself from overthinking the situation, knowing that if he got caught up in what ifs, he’d never be able to win. Instead he began to run through his available skills and Evocations.

‘I could rush in with Verdant Surge and Rushing Winds but she might know about that. She was sort of asleep after she sent me that mana and I discovered that combo not too long after that,’ John thought. ‘But its 25 mana just for Surge and then 2 per second for Winds and if I want to full boost, I’d need to manifest the spirit, draining me further. I don’t think that’s the best plan.’

“Thinking up some plan?” Senka asked, her voice amused. “If you don’t come up with something soon, I might just have to beat you and have you come back later.”

John felt a surge of indignation flare up and he cast another Pursuit, throwing the fireball at the taunting spirit. Senka stopped as it approached, both hands resting at her sides, tendrils of dark mana swirling around them. John kept his attack flying straight at her, eyes keen on which hand and technique Senka would use to counter his spell.

Senka smiled, her expression clearly telegraphing her insight into John’s mindset and swiped her left hand upward, generating a wide field of darkness in its wake. She took a step back as the fireball impacted on the shadowy blockade, exploding upon contact. A dark spike shot through the lingering flames and John dived to his right to evade the attack.

‘Okay. Long range spike, closer range instant slash thing, defensive ward, shadow vines,’ John rattled off Senka’s moves as he circled around to bring Senka back into view. ‘And there’s something else. She never seems to move when she uses her magic. Is that some requirement to her abilities?’

Deciding to test that theory, John willed his wind spirit into view, activating Rushing Winds. With his Agility nearly doubled, John bolted towards Senka at full sprint, his coat trailing behind him. Senka twisted to face him, her left hand raised. A stretched oval of darkness spread out from her opened palm.

John’s blade crashed into the shadowy blockade, the shield buckling under the **** of his attack.

“Going for the brute **** approach?” Senka asked from behind her defense. “Is that the best you could think of?”

“Just wanted to see something,” John responded, letting the wind spirit fade back into his aura, ending its boosting effect. Then he reached around Senka’s obstruction with his left hand, casting Fiery Pursuit.

Senka let out a surprised gasp, her barrier beginning to fade, letting John see her begin to retreat from his risky attack as it approached. He willed it to explode before she could put any real distance between her and the fireball, the flash of light and sound drowning his senses as he pulled back slightly.

‘I hope that’s enough to end this,’ he prayed. His hopes sank as no popup appeared to signal his victory and cratered when black vines shot from the water below him, quickly wrapping around his legs and arms and lifting him up around a foot off the surface.

-2HP

John grimaced as the thorny tendrils lightly bit into his legs. His arms, protected by his jacket, remained unscathed though now most of his weight pulled down on them as the vines **** him into a ‘T’ shape.

“That was an effective move,” Senka said, a note of approval in her voice. Her clothing was singed and in some places burned away, revealing patches of reddened skin. John felt a spike of guilt at the sight, and Senka smiled softly, her left hand tenderly touching her barely burned cleavage. “Don’t feel bad about this. I don’t have the same bodily limitations as someone of flesh and blood.”

John didn’t miss the slight twitch of pain as her thin fingers touched the tender flesh and his guilt increased.

“Doesn’t mean I have to like having to hurt you,” he retorted.

“You’re sweet,” Senka remarked back, a small smile on her lips. “But even I know reality isn’t kind. And you’re up against some of the worst sort of people. Killing is one thing, but essentially harvesting them is just…”

She shook her head. “Talking about things we both know gets us nowhere.”

“Don’t think I can go anywhere like this,” John joked.

Senka’s smile grew a touch more sinister and she moved her left hand from her breast to cup her chin. “I do wonder how you’re going to get out of it.”

“Yeah, figured you weren’t just going to let me down,” John sighed.

“Sometimes a bit of struggle makes the reward all the sweeter,” Senka cooed. “It’d go a long way to prove you’re capable of fighting even in adverse circumstances.”

“Right,” John said. ‘I don’t think I have anything that can cut these without an explosion.’

His eyes drifted to Senka, who was watching him with an intense gleam in her visible eye. His gaze focused on her right hand, flares of darkness dancing around her fingers.

‘If I’m right and she has to remain still to use her powers, then an attack that forces her to move or shift to defence will free me. Don’t have a lot of mana left and I can’t grab the Mana Battery from my Inventory with my hands tied up to recharge.

’Fiery Pursuit could be enough, but she’s seen me use that enough times to expect it. It might get her to move and break the binding, but then it’s a waste of mana if it doesn’t weaken her or make her use more mana.’

John’s gloved hand tightened into a fist as he tested the bonds once more, the thorny vine not weakened by his efforts.

‘Wait a minute,’ John thought. ‘I need something she hasn’t seen before. So I either need to combine some Evocations or start using some elemental mana to change things up. Both mean I won’t know exactly what they’ll do, but that means Senka won’t either.’

After a moment of debate, John elected to employ elemental enhancement over Evocation combinations. It was easier for him to predict the effect of what elemental mana would do to his attacks than guessing what two items would do when working in concert. The only question was what attack and which of the two types of elemental mana he had on hand would he use.

‘Fire would let me do damage, but I lose mana on the exchange,’ John thought. ‘And from what using dark mana for Pursuit showed me, and Senka’s own attack, there might be a mana drain effect I can use. I’ve got 18 I can use in the knife, and all I need to do is use that in the right amounts to get the effects. Dark will work, but that just leaves me with the knife and the glove for attack effects.’

John wasn’t sure if using Shadow Snare on Senka would even work, given it was her own power, but trying to use the dark mana fueled Pursuit was something that Senka would know, given she helped him cast it last time. Then, an idea came to him.

‘The wind spirit,’ he excitedly thought. ‘If my powers work consistently, I should be able to supplement its power with dark mana. Could that make something like a withering wind, eating away at her mana?’

Thinking on the what ifs of the situation wasn’t going to let him win or even escape Senka’s hold, so he pushed aside the spirit issue for the moment and instead decided to employ the seeming instant dark fueled fire. John willed his greatsword away and replaced it with the knife.

The weapon’s personification raised an eyebrow in amused satisfaction when she saw her origin in John’s hands. John ignored her and drew in ten dark mana from the blade, its cool sensation flowing across his body as he funneled the mana, along with nine of his own, into his glove, triggering its Evocation.

Dark fire blossomed under Senka’s feet, whipping up into a vortex of inwardly spiraling flames lapping at the spirit’s feet. Senka leapt away from the sudden fire, the hem of her kimono ablaze, and the vines holding John faded into nothingness. He fell back to the surface, and after a moment to collect himself, dashed towards Senka.

On a whim, John willed his wind spirit into view, sending it to fan the flames under its own power. The mild gusts stoked the black flames slightly, pushing them to grow. John ignored how odd the sight of the unusual fire spreading across the equally unusual water was and kept up his chase. Senka had managed to put out the flames, but continued to run away, looking back at John briefly, a satisfied smile on her lips.

Spurred on by her grin, John pushed himself to go faster. Then Senka suddenly stopped and spun on her heel, now facing John, her right hand cloaked in shadows. Before she could launch an attack, John drew in the remaining eight mana from his knife and used it to cast Shadow Snare, intending to use the vines to pin Senka’s arms to her sides.

Skill Level Up: Evocation Lv. 4.

The vines manifested around Senka’s midsection, a black mist rising from them as they pulled the spirit’s arms to her sides. She let out a gasp of pain as the thorns along the vines dug into her skin, the lingering shadows on her hand flickering out as she fell to her knees.

“So, this is what dark mana does to this power,” Senka said weakly. “I was curious, especially after the fire one burns away mana. Stealing away physical strength, like a parasite. How oddly fitting.”

“I wouldn’t say you’re a parasite,” John remarked as he drew closer to her. “Is this enough or do I have to actually do the whole ‘blade to your throat’ thing?”

Senka let out a tired chuckle. “I surrender. If we were in a real life or **** fight, you would have me at your mercy. That is enough to satisfy the conditions. I submit.”

Quest Complete: The Shadowed Maiden
Guess using her own power to bring her into checkmate was a good move.
Reward: 3 Skill Points, Senka integrated into Spirit Link

John felt Senka’s presence the moment she said the words and Shadow Snare burned out its mana at the same time. He quickly willed the blade away and offered his hand to the spirit.

Senka took his hand and John pulled her to her feet, though her upward momentum caused her to fall into John, her large breasts pressing into his face.

“Oh,” she exclaimed coyly. “How clumsy of me. Although, I suppose after that fight, you could use some rest. I’m sure my chest would make for a comfortable pillow. Or would you prefer my thighs?”

John’s face burned under her teasing and his gut twisted with guilt as he briefly imagined those scenarios. A prickling sensation scraped against his scalp and Senka took a step back.

“I suppose there will be time for that later,” she said slyly. “Once we get things all settled.”

Images of Aeolia, Vivian, Beth, Teri and his mother flashed briefly in John’s mind and Senka let out a small chuckle as he blinked owlishly.

“That will take some getting used to,” Senka remarked.

“Wait, are we?” John began to ask.

“Sharing thoughts? Yes,” Senka finished and answered. “We’re linked now. I think we can prevent our thoughts from mingling, if that's your wish.”

John didn’t need a mental hookup to know Senka’s opinion on the matter and he shot her a reassuring smile.

“I’ll keep you linked up, unless I want a private moment,” he assured her. A wave of happiness washed over him briefly before Senka calmed her emotions, a faint blush on her cheeks.

“And I’ll try to not let any errant thoughts distract you,” Senka promised. “Now, as much as I find my domain enchanting, I do want to experience the outside world for myself. Shall we depart?”

“Yeah,” John said, then asked, “Um, how exactly do we depart? You kind of just pulled me in here.”

Senka smiled, bent down and kissed John gently on his forehead. Before John could say anything, he felt a sudden weightlessness and the twilight domain faded into darkness.

---

The comparatively bright lights of Vivian’s kitchen burned John’s eyes and he flinched in his seat, his senses disoriented by the shift in perspective, his head light.

“John,” Vivian exclaimed. “Your mana! Are you alright?”

“‘M fine,” he managed to say.

“You don’t look it,” Aeolia retorted, flying over to assess him. “You just lost most of your mana in a second.”

John managed to focus his eyes on his mana bar, finding it drained to about fifteen percent.

“Guess it was all happening at super speed,” John said, closing his eyes for a moment before recounting his meeting with Senka.

“So, you’re telling us you got sucked into some sort of spirit world and fought your knife spirit for the right to summon it?” Beth asked, incredulity in her voice. “Thought you said you just had to be on the right wavelength to do all that voodoo.”

“Turns out for someone whose origin is a weapon, I need to prove I can fight,” John explained. “Some sort of worthiness thing. Senka can probably explain it better. Hang on a sec, I’ll see if I can summon her.”

‘I don’t think you need to use any more mana to summon me,’ Senka’s voice echoed in his mind. ‘It appears I can manifest using the mana you’ve already used.’

‘You can?’ John projected back to her.

“Indeed I can,” Senka replied, appearing behind John, her hands lovingly placed on his shoulders, her gaze sweeping over the group before settling on Aeolia and Vivian. “It’s good to finally meet you.”

Thanks again for reading this little story. If you liked the chapter, please hit that thumbs up, and if you want to support my writing, check out my Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/ScrapCrow. Get access to my chapters before they’re published here and join my private Discord.