Kai said, “That’s what worries me. To use the split step, Sora gathers his ki in his legs and uses it to speed up. But it’s not perfected though and if Zack gets used to the speed; he’ll plan on finishing it.”
Zack was getting back to his feet. Many girls cheered, and some people groaned. But Sora suddenly jumped back. He took a defensive stance.
Sara said, “He noticed that something’s coming. It’s been a while since I’ve seen it. The last time he brought it out was when he faced you last year in a spar, right Kai.”
“I don’t know how strong it really is because I froze him instantly,” said Kai.”
“But you still didn’t want to face it. That’s why you did so,” scoffed Steve.
Kai retorted, “If I had faced it, I’d have taken it too seriously and might not have held back. I might’ve killed him.”
Zack was now pointing his sword at Sora. He took a deep breath and then held his sword with both hands. The sword started gleaming again. A burst of orange flames suddenly erupted around him. The flames suddenly started to change. It was now burning blue. With a bang, the blue flames were blown away. Zack now held a sword with a blue blade. The golden phoenix’s blue eyes had turned blood red
“He finally brought it out!” squealed Katie, “The Phoenix Fire sword, Final stage!”
Zack smirked at Sora’s confused look. Kai let out a sigh and said, “Sora did well. It’s too bad though. It doesn’t seem like he can win. Zack’s gotten stronger in the last year, more than what I anticipated.”
Sora started pacing around Zack slowly now trying to make his adversary lose track of him. Suddenly, Sora charged at Zack head on. But when he was a meter away from his target, he struck a barrier of blue flames. Sora was blown back and hit the floor hard. Dazed, he was about to get up when he felt a searing pain all over his body. He winced and looked at the burns given to him by the blue flames, which were revolving around Zack.
Zack smirked and said, “Everyone else who was struck from that attack either died or was knocked out. I’m glad you didn’t, though. Now I can test all the special techniques of the final stage.”
In the audience, Kai turned back and asked Katie, “What are the special abilities of the final stage? How is it different from before?”
Katie replied, “Whenever Zack used the blue flames, the fire seemed… stronger and faster. I also noticed something else.”
Sora had moved into the offensive again. This time, he moved all over the place and sent waves of compressed wind aimed at Zack. But the ring of blue flames around Zack blocked all his attacks. Zack suddenly slashed his sword. A high-speed blur of blue was sent at Sora, who dodged it by a whisker.
“It’s coming!” shouted Katie.
Sora sprawled onto the floor. There was a big burn on his back. Kai and Steve jumped to their feet. Sara’s jaw dropped. They had clearly seen Sora dodge that attack. All three of them turned slowly to face Katie and asked, “What the hell was that?”
Katie was taken aback by their reaction. She said uncertainly, “The blue flames… never miss. You can’t just dodge it because they’ll follow you. I guess the one Sora dodged struck him on the back. It was on his blind spot, so there will be nothing he can do to avoid it.”
“But that means the attacks can come from anywhere!” spluttered Steve, “He can aim at a completely different place and it’ll still hit.”
They suddenly heard gasps from all over the arena. They faced the fighting area to find Sora staggering back to his feet. He was panting heavily. He was losing blood. His burns seemed severe. But his eyes were still alive, burning with determination to keep fighting. He took a stance and said, “Come on. Don’t stop, if you’re not tired, that is.”
Zack stared and started laughing and then said, “Look at yourself. You’re in no condition to continue fighting. Those burns are more severe as the blue flames are no ordinary flames. They are the flames of the Phoenix. And you’re taunting me? Know your place.”
Sora smiled and murmured quietly, “Yeah these burns sting a bit, but I’ve had worse burns than these.”
Zack continued attacking and sent a downpour of blue flame slashes. He shouted, “You can’t survive this. The moment you were struck by my blue flame barrier, the flames recognized you and set you as their target. You’re finished!”
But when the smoke of the attack cleared, Sora was standing at the middle of a small crater and the floor just outside the crater was burnt. Sora’ was holding one sword at the front and the other behind, both facing the floor.
“That move is the typhoon shield,” said Kai. “He takes that stance and rotates while compressing the air around him into a wall. That torrent of air blocked the flames at its circumference.”
Sora glared at Zack and his panting was heavier than before. Zack gave a smug look and said, “It doesn’t look like you can use that technique again. I’ll make you burn in the sea of these flames and finish this off quickly.” He sent his flaming sword in a sweeping motion, which was followed by a wave of blue flames. But it was countered by Sora, who used another wind meteor. Another wave of attacks was sent at Sora, but each one was countered with a wind of equal power.
Katie asked, “Why doesn’t Sora use that typhoon shield again? He can use it to get closer to Zack, right?”
Kai said, “There’s a slim chance of him using it again. That technique needs high concentration and at his current level, he can’t use it while moving about. So he’s planning to wait for Zack to run out of ki, and it seems to be working,” he glanced at Zack, who was starting to pant very hard.
“Who do you reckon will win if it does become a battle of stamina?” asked Katie. Kai grinned as he said, “In that case, the winner will be, in the long run, Sora. That’s because–” he answered the questioning looks of those near him. He then jerked his head at the fighting area, where Sora had suddenly used his split step and sent a crushing blow at Zack “– that kid has the most ki I have ever seen in my life. He is only panting heavily due to his injuries. The heat from those burns makes it hard for him to breathe.”
But Zack didn’t seem to be ready to lose. He staggered back to his feet and said, “Guess I can’t wear you down. So I’ll just have to attack you using my flames at their max power. Hopefully, you won’t die now.”
Kai, who was grinning a moment ago, suddenly grimaced and said, “He wasn’t giving his all till now? What’s up with this generation? If I don’t start training seriously again, they’ll surpass me in a few years.”
Zack held his long sword with both hands and took a deep breath. He held the sword at his right side, with the top facing Sora. Then he started jabbing flaming arrows. Sora didn’t have time to counter this time. He was forced to dodge it. But he failed to dodge the homing attack completely. He was using the split step and managed to avoid the worst ones, but he was still badly injured.
“It’s over,” said Steve. Kai sighed and said, “Yeah. I’ve trained Sora for five years and taught him everything I could at his level. For the remaining two years, I let him train on his own to master everything I taught him till the day came. But seems like it wasn’t enough. It’s a shame.” But suddenly the rest of the audience started murmuring loudly again. Kai looked at the fight and said, “What in the world is he doing?”
Sora was closing his eyes. He had relaxed his grip on his swords and was breathing in deeply. Zack ignored this and sent another assault of flaming arrows. They were already closing in on him but Sora still had his eyes closed. They collided and smoke covered the scene. Everyone held their breath and waited to see the outcome. Slowly Sora walked out of the smoke. Clutching his contract, he took a stance ready to continue. The smoke had cleared to show no signs of flame or burns or any kind of damage at all. No one knew what had happened. But everyone noticed something different in Sora.
His eyes were now open. But it was the eyes of a beast. Zack, who was shaken by what he saw, sent another wave of attacks. But Sora, instead of bracing h
imself, charged straight at the incoming sea of flaming arrows. And he gracefully dodged through each and every one of the flames. He was about to attack but suddenly used his split step, which seemed to have gotten faster. He wasn’t even looking at the attacks tailing him. His eyes were set only on Zack, who was gritting his teeth and sending in more waves of attacks.
Sara turned to ask Kai, “When you left him two years ago, where did he go to train?” Kai muttered, “I have no idea. But he mentioned something about a forest. I don’t know which one though.”
Sara nodded and replied, “I think we might have found the kid who was reported to have been living in Blood Hill forest for the past two years.”
Kai slapped his forehead and exclaimed, “No way! That idiot!” Katie asked, “Isn’t Blood Hill forest the place where A-grade beast contracts reside? I’ve heard that no one other than B class level contractors can leave that place alive.”
“Exactly,” said Sara. “And to survive in there, your senses have to be alert always. You’d never know when a beast would attack you. And if he lived there for two years, his senses must’ve become extremely sharp. He must have… wild instincts.”
Kai said, “So if what you said is true, then his instincts tell him when and where the attacks are coming from. So he can concentrate completely on dodging without worrying about where the attack might come from. But by the looks of it…”
Sora was moving all over the place and none of Zack’s attacks seemed to connect. But Sora didn’t seem to get time to attack at all.
“He can’t find any opening at all,” said Steve. “He’s concentrating only on dodging fast. But because of that, he doesn’t have enough time to attack.”
Sora suddenly seemed to tighten his grip on his swords again. This time, he stormed at Zack, who realized what had happened only when Sora was just a few feet away. He set another flaming barrier just in time. But Sora spun his swords and released a crushing blow on the barrier. The scene resembled a tornado striking a flaming wall. The collision sent a massive wave all over the arena. Both the fighters were disarmed; their contracts had been sent flying at the impact. But Sora wasn’t finished. Kai noticed something black develop at his left fist and realized that this could result in the worst-case scenario. He was about to shout for Sora to stop. But as the punch closed in, both fighters suddenly fell to the floor, at the feet of Gary Lightshield, unconscious.
Gary then announced, “I conclude this match a draw.”
Kai was sitting in between Sora and Zack’s bed in the guild’s infirmary. The setting sunlight was streaming in through the window. The table next to Sora’s bed was covered with fruits and Zack’s was overflowing with get-well cards from girls. The room was silent except for the deep breathing of the injured. Then the door opened, revealing Steve and Sara, who walked in.
“How are they?” asked Steve.
“Their condition is stable now,” replied Kai. “They should be up by tomorrow. But thank god, the match was stopped just in time.”
“But why did grandpa step in?” enquired Sara. “He knocked both of them out just when the match was about to conclude.”
Steve said, “I noticed something was strange in Sora’s punch. His fist was covered in some kind of black aura. What was that?”
Kai was quiet for a moment but then let out a sigh and said, “Guess there’s no need to remain silent about it.” He cast a wary eye on Sora’s sleeping face and said, “Sora is a contractor… with two contracts.”
“What!” Steve and Sara shouted.
Kai beckoned them to keep quiet. He then continued, “You guys know that Sora is the sole survivor of the Vento massacre seven years ago, right?” He then went on to explain about the forced contract on Sora with the Wind Fangs and the accidental contract with the Black Flames. They listened to the story quietly. Then Sara said, “Then that black fist was… the black flames?”
“Yeah,” said Kai. “But that contract is unstable. Legend says that it’s cursed. It has unbelievable strength; it can burn anything to a crisp with just one strike. But it affects the user as well, as it causes heavy burns on his body rapidly. I’ve told him to avoid using it, but at that moment I don’t think he could hold himself back. It was a critical situation.”
Sara said, “But can a person with that much ki really exist? I mean… contracts with two Z-grades… He must be a monster.”
“That’s why the Dark Alliance wanted him so much,” said Kai. “They want to acquire the power stored by the holy seal. They need contractors with ki high enough to control Z-grade contracts. The seal can be opened only if all seven contracts used to make it are gathered, and they need to be contracted too.”
There was silence for a few minutes. Then Steve got to his feet and said, “I’ll be leaving now. Got some missions to take care of.”
“Me too,” said Kai as he stood up. “What about you Sara? Want to have dinner after I get back?”
Sara frowned and said, “My mission will take a few days to complete. And I wouldn’t go out with you anyway.”
Kai sighed and said, “Rejected yet again. Just what kind of guy is your type?”
Sara walked out of the room without answering. Kai, with a final glance at Sora, followed her out.
The next day, Kai entered the guild headquarters. He made his way to the third floor, where the infirmary was situated. On reaching the corridor, he saw a huge crowd of girls lined up. They were gossiping and giggling and were clutching on to some cards. He asked one of them, “Hey, are you girls waiting to see Zack?” The girls who heard him turned back and squealed on seeing the famous ice emperor. One of them stuttered, “Y…Yes.” Kai smiled and asked, “Could you let me through first?” His charm worked on them and they let him go in front immediately. He realized that the door for the ward was locked. He gave a slight push and the door’s lock broke. He quickly stepped in and replaced the door, summoned Glacio and sealed it with a wall of ice. He turned to face Zack, who was reading a magazine. The empty table next to his bed, which had held the get-well cards, had signs of burns on it. Zack turned and said, “Kai, What brings you here?”
Kai said, “Hey Zack, good to see you’re awake. But I don’t think burning your fan mail is a nice thing to do.”
“Like I care about such trivial matters,” said Zack.
Kai grinned. “That’s not very nice. They were very worried about you. Sora did quite a number on you.” Zack glared at Kai, who said, “Hey, I have every right to praise my student.”
“Your student?” Zack asked, taken aback. “You were the one who trained that kid?”
“You can’t call him a kid, you know. He’s your age,” said Kai as he strolled over to the other bed, which had its curtains drawn. It revealed an empty bed, littered with remains of the fruits given to its occupant. He turned to Zack and said, “By the way, where is he?” Zack shrugged his shoulders and suddenly asked, “Wait… he was here? Where the hell is he? I want to finish our fight.”
Kai started laughing and said, “You hate not having won against a total newbie, right? Don’t let it get to you. He’s pretty abnormal as it is. I can guess where he would be after a hard battle. It’s a pity you can’t come with me to find him.”
“Why not?” Zack asked offended. “I have the right to redeem myself after that embarrassment. Plus I’m almost fully healed.”
“It’s not a question of a rematch,” said Kai. “You’ll have plenty of chances to fight him later on, seeing as he’s now a member of the guild. But I don’t think you can get out of your room with all your fans blocking your path.” He laughed and left through the window as Zack scowled. He then heard a small creak and turned to realize that the frozen door was beginning to melt fast.
Kai made his way into the building through the main entrance again and took the elevator to the second floor, the guild’s dining hall. He entered through the doors into a huge hall filled with tables and chairs, and the aroma of mouth-watering spices, freshly baked bread, melting
cheese and desserts of every variety filled the air. Kai stood still and took a whiff of the delicious cuisines and delicacies before moving towards a small crowd near the kitchen. He peeked in to see a table filled with empty dishes. The crowd was staring at the occupant of the table, who was wolfing down a bowl of noodles. “A cheese sandwich,” shouted the boy covered with bandages from head to toe. The crowd was in awe, and so was Kai as he shook his head with a smile. He said, “You’ll never change, Sora.”
Sora, who had started on the cheese sandwich served to him, just then, spotted Kai. He swallowed hard and said, “Hey Kai, what’s up? Long time no see. Did you see me fight?” The others gasped at the sight of Kai, who said, “I should’ve known. Your appetite is bigger than ever, even more than what it was two years ago.” Sora finished what was left of his sandwich and then got up. They could hear sighs of relief and cheers from inside the kitchen. Then the guild’s chef came out. He was a young man with blond hair and clear blue eyes. He was surprisingly skinny with dark brown skin. He smiled at Kai and then grinned at Sora saying, “So you’re the one causing my kitchen all this trouble.”
Sora was startled by his unlikely appearance and said, “You’re the chef?” Kai said, “Yeah, that’s Mac, our chef. He’s the best one I’ve ever met.”
Mac grinned and said, “And you must be Sora, the newest contractor of our guild. It’s a pleasure to meet you. And by the way, do you have enough money to pay for what you’ve eaten?”
Sora stared. “I have to pay?”
Kai laughed and said, “Stop teasing the kid, Mac. Guild members don’t need to pay.” After exchanging pleasantries, Mac returned to the kitchen. Sora let out a sigh of relief and said, “That wasn’t funny, asking me to pay. I don’t have a single Zen with me.” Zen was the currency of Gara.
“Serves you right for escaping from the infirmary and helping yourself. Anyway, you better get back. You’re in no condition to move around. You should step out only if the doctor discharges you.”
Contractor: The Legendary Contract of Vento Page 5
