The Promise to Fulfill (Insaney)

Zachary stared at the sword. That was the old blade that the man used. The midday sun sat high now. They had been sparring for the last few hours, but it didn't seem that either had really noticed. This whole concept of defending and counterattacking clicked something rather interestingly, since the best offense is, sometimes, a good defense.

Still, there were all kinds of good offensives and good defensives. It all came down to how you handled yourself in battle. Zachary, unlike the man training him, was only starting to grasp the concept of a fluid combo without halting to think. Still, it was working better than he thought it'd work. After all, he was getting closer.

The Replicator rushed forwards quickly, slashing his sword fiercely at the enemy that stood near him. Rosso struck quickly and met with the golden blade of the vampire's sword. Still, that attack had been a knowing diversion. Azul's horizontal slash followed almost identically with the end of the ice mage's first attack.

The Grim Angel smiled, apparently amused, and ducked under the second slash. Still, no attack ended if you missed. This was the first time that the Replicator actually grasped this concept. The amateur sorcerer pushed his blade against that of Night and quickly spun around and moved to drive the handle of Azul into Rain's back. The angel, ever quicker, simply vanished from where he had been standing.

The Replicator crossed Azul over his chest as he looked to the side to see Rain standing there. The Master quickly waved his pupil on. Without any second though, the ice mage charged forwards and slashed both swords at once. Again, the clash of Azul and Rosso against Night caused both men to recoil slightly. With all the force the Replicator could muster, he pushed Azul to the side and slid Rosso up, quickly making a horizontal slash. Very few people would expect a similar tactic twice in a row.

The same tactic again?

Rain easily dodged it as he did the first time around, recoiling with an uppercut that was dodged by the youth, who leaned back to avoid it. But as soon as his upper body returned to position, Zach's chin was met with a rising kick that followed the uppercut in a fluid motion, leading to the Grim Angel doing a backflip on the spot.

The kick lifted Zachary off his feet and made both go up into the air as his back slammed into the sand.

He lifted a hand to rub his chin as Rain stood over him, disappointed.

"Why'd you use the same attack twice? Once you use one once, it almost becomes obsolete if the enemy dodges the first time--and a disadvantage to you any time after. If you thought that I'd never expect it twice in a row, you thought wrong."

Rain walked away without even helping the boy up.

"But your mind may be on the right track--trick or deceive your opponents to the best of your abilities. All is fair in war, expect everything. Don't be surprised; that'll just give your enemy a moment to strike."

Well, logically, he's correct. I shouldn't have rushed in so recklessly the second time. Still... I've got an idea that just came to me, the ice mage said as he quickly gripped his swords tightly and closed his eyes. He needed to start combining ideas to bring down this foe. If he could defeat the vampire, or even just nearly land a blow, he was sure that he could salvage what seemed to be a wasted day of training.

"I have created hundreds of blades. Now these blades which are so plentiful shall bring about your demise. Arctic Blade Dance!" the Replicator stated as he tossed his first pair of Azul and Rosso and quickly created the second pair. All four swords moved quickly and struck at Grim Angel from four sides, still, there was one last place that the angel could go.

Rain leapt high into the air, watching as where he stood became engulfed in orange and blue ice crystals that simply sat there. Still, something was missing. Zachary wasn't where he had been standing when he had launched the attack. So, where had he gotten to?

"Ice is my body and frost is my blood!" the amateur sorcerer's voice echoed as the man reappeared above the vampire. Quickly slashing the elongated Rosso, the blade struck Night and forced the Grim Angel towards the ground.

Sand spewed from where the man had struck the ground, but still, Zachary wasn't quite done. When the ice mage landed, he rushed towards where the vampire had landed and pointed his Empowered version of Azul at Rain. "I finally got ya," he muttered, looking into the indent where the man had landed.

That was good.

Rain watched as the blade shone in the sun, the sharp tip pointed straight at Rain's chest. "I finally got ya," the youth said to him. This was entirely unexpected, and Rain was glad that Zach was able to gain the upper hand, but at the same time, he was a little disappointed.

But it's not time to tell him that... still a lot to learn.

Swiftly, Rain kicked his leg upward, slamming his shin onto the boy's crotch. Zachary gasped for air, his fingers weakening the grip on his sword, making it fall to the ground. His knees followed soon after, and he keeled over, both hands over his crotch, holding it and groaning loudly in pain.

"... You... You let your guard down."

"Training's over for today... I bet you'd need to rest after that."

Zachary grumbled a little bit as he remained hunched over for a few minutes. Rain had made a valid point... and one that he wouldn't soon forget... otherwise this same pain would return. It was almost like sleeping on a bed of nails, being pressed against a wall right next to it. Still, like all good pain, it came and went. The ice mage simply flopped himself onto the and and stared up at the slowly setting sun and thought for a few moments.

I came here to train... and I'm getting better... its just... I can't figure it out... I don't feel like I'm growing as fast as I should be. Monroe trains constantly, like Zorlo did, and when he isn't training he's fulfilling the needs that his family has. What do other people need me to do, though? After all, Rain is here despite Cadenza, so clearly she doesn't need him all the time... but...

The Replicator thought for a few quiet moments as he darkness slowly enveloped the sky and changed day to night. Night in the desert was very different from daytime in the desert. The sands grew cold and the landscape grew even more dangerous. Especially in Rubato.

Still, the sorcerer continued to wonder what his purpose was to others? He worked with Omar so that the man had an apprentice and someone who could be around to help him. That was obvious enough. Still, there was one person of importance that he had never questioned his importance to until just then.

Zachary sat up and picked up some sand and watched it flow through his fingers and sighed. What do I truly mean to her? What does she truly mean to me? Why am I asking myself this now? Is it... is it because of what happened? Maybe I'm questioning my own resolve this way... or maybe I'm just like he was... maybe I'm just as neglectful and awful a person? I hope not... I'll deal with that problem when this training ends though.

The Replicator stood up and walked off towards the hut the two men were staying in. For now, he'd get some sleep. No sense in wondering about things that couldn't be answered then.

Rain was far off; his silhouette barely visible among the dunes and clouds of sand, especially right now--the sun had set, and the night had taken the day's place. Rain looked up at the velvet sky that was dotted all over with bright white lights. It was different in the city--the artificial lights of the city would overpower the stars, and those who would live all their lives in cities would never witness such a thing.

But he's seen it...time and time again--before most of the major cities were built, somehow or the other, he stood there, and saw the stars.

And he remembered what a certain gypsy said to him once... and smiled.

"I wonder if Zach's okay," he muttered to the stars suddenly, before turning away and heading back to the hut. He entered, and saw Zach lying there, looking like if he was sleeping soundly. He was progressing fast... and if he kept up the current rate, this might be finished in only a week.

But the night was still there--so training would have to wait until the sun comes up.

The sun rose on the third day as the ice mage sat up. The sun had barely passed through the window before he moved himself outside to get back to his training. Today he would train harder than he had the day before. He didn't know completely why, but he felt that he had done little more than dick around for the past two days. The ice mage stood outside as the sands of the desert began to warm up and took a deep breath.

I told myself one week. One week and I'd be truly stronger. Still... I'm no where close yet. I have to work much harder. I'll never help anyone if I'm weak like I am right now. I can't let that happen! The Replicator extended his hands to the sides and Azul and Rosso formed formed from the palms of his hands. The amateur sorcerer grasped the handles of his weapons and quickly spun around and tossed both.

"I have to get stronger!" the red haired warrior stated as he created another copy of Azul and Rosso and tossed them into the air and causing them to dance with the other copies he had already thrown into the air. The four swords spun around in the air on their own, almost no control from Zachary required to maintain the aerial movements of these weapons.

"Faster!" the ice mage commented as he created a third set of the short swords and tossed them into the air to mingle amongst the others. It was astonishing at first at how easily the weapons danced around without accidentally hitting each other, but the way the weapons were designed was to create that kind of balance: to use one to call back the other if necessary.

"And all around better!" the Replicator said as he created and tossed the forth pair of Azul and Rosso into the air. The amateur sorcerer smiled as he held his hands out and closed his eyes. Semisolid Metalloid Ice formed in Zachary's hands and suddenly took the form of the throwing swords the man had been working on.

"I'll prove myself!" he said, opening the throwing swords and revealing that there were really form in each hand. Gripping the blades between his fingers, the ice mage extended his arms as far behind him as possible and smiled. "Now!" the Replicator called out as he tossed the eight throwing swords with great fury towards the dancing short swords in the sky.

Controlling all the swords as best he could, the ice mage forced them to hunt down and strike at the dancing short swords. Of the eight throwing swords, five of them actually struck the short swords and caused the blades to fall. The other six swords, the three throwing swords that missed and the other three remaining short swords, all slowly floated towards the ground.

"I can't control all eight perfectly yet... but I'll keep working at it. By the end of this week... I swear I'll be able to do it!" Zachary commented as he nodded and crossed his arms. Now he'd get some practice on his own before Rain showed up. He had to keep training constantly. That was the only way.

Rain was watching him from the distance as he continued to toss his blades into the air. He watched intensely as he tried to control them. The Grim Angel didn't want to disturb him now, he seemed to be doing okay. He was going to leave the youth alone for the next few days anyway--the man needed to be alone--train the body and the mind will follow, and then... train the mind for the body to follow.

It does go hand in hand, he realized.

But now, the only decision facing him was whether he should tell his student or not. Rain would be leaving to go back to Cadenza for a few days. One; because he missed her, and two; because the youth needed to practice on his own some more.

Without anyone around, he'd be able really push his limits as best as he could by himself.

The Grim Angel began to walk away, leaving the boy alone.

And when he pushed that limit, Rain would return to help him push further.


OoC: You can do the three day transition x3

Hours upon hours past as Zachary continued to practice. Each time, he would get closer and closer. The rising sun had soon set, and the dark night left him still trying to shoot down the swords he created. The Replicator closes his eyes as he opened the eight short swords and focused everything he had into this. His body was weakened, and he couldn't help but feel that if he didn't do it this time, and possibly even if he did, his body simply couldn't move anymore.

Quickly, the ice mage opened his eyes and threw the throwing swords with everything he had. The red haired mage quickly watched as two swords connected with almost no difficulty. His eyes shifted to another two, and the throwing swords quickly struck them and brought down the spinning short swords. The amateur sorcerer's eyes quickly moved over towards another set of the swords and watched as his blades knocked down two more of the eight short swords. Finally, the Replicator looked at the last two blades, watching just as his last two throwing swords struck the short swords, even if just barely.

Zachary felt his legs buckle under him and he fell to his knees. The Replicator placed his hands on the ground and noticed that his vision was starting to blur. "Okay... definitely a good idea to focus on only throwing one or two, and not eight... it takes a lot of focus, and also, my Mana is very low. Not dangerously so... but I've strained it as far as I can go..." the red haired warrior stated as his hands and arms gave out on him and he feel forwards.

Within minutes, the ice mage found himself unconscious.

o=)----------- Deeper in Zach's Subconscious -----------(=o

Zachary's eyes opened and he glanced around. His head was still spinning and he was rather exhausted still, but he took a few steps. Finally, it settled in where in the world the ice mage was. He was within the cavern where he had fought with Ice. "But... if I'm here... then..." the amateur sorcerer said as he stepped to the side as the tip of a lance sliced through the side of the Replicator's armor with ease and caused him to stumble backwards. "You've gotta be kidding me!"

The woman, in her fully armored glory, stood before him again and clenched her lance tightly. "You were a fool then, and still are. You hold back everything until you can't stand without what you've been keeping. If you always fight like that, you're bound to die young. After all, with people like me in the world, you can't escape the fact that you're bound to die," the Spirit of Ice stated as she thrust her lance with extremely high speed.

The Replicator evaded with everything he could, but still, the lance's tip quickly slashed at his legs, cheek, chest and arms. Zachary sighed as he grabbed the tip of the spear, breathing hard, and staring the woman down. "I don't know why you're here... but I'm not gonna lose."

"How can you defeat me when you regret the fact that you're still here. You're afraid of when I come back. That you won't be strong enough. That you'll die next time," the woman said as she turned and swung her spear quickly. Zachary's grip was broken from the weapon and his body was tossed into a wall. He slowly slid down after hitting the wall, but forced himself to stand.

"You're right. I've been telling myself that I should stay in Rubato and that I don't know when you'll come back to kill me... but if I live my life like that, with the fear that you'll kill me, then when you do come back, nothing will have changed." The Replicator held his hands close together and an orb of glowing blue magic gathered between them. A flash erupted as the orb took the form of Exarctica.

Ice's spear moved quickly and connected with the blade. With as much push as he could muster, the ice mage pushed the lance away and slashed at Ice. However, his blade struck her armor and simply bounced back. "But... this sword should more than-" he had half said as she punched him in the face.

"You're burdened by your fight with me, and with everyone else you've ever fought that's stronger than you. You keep looking back and telling yourself that somehow you've committed great wrongs. You need to forget the past. Forget who you were. You must look towards the future and what you must do for yourself. Until you can do that, you'll never be as strong as you should be!" her the voice of the Spirit of Ice said as everything became very blurry and everything vanished.

o=)---------- Back at the Hut ------------(=o

Zachary's eyes opened as he slowly stood up. "Let go of the past... and look into the future," the Replicator stated as he slowly stood up and smiled. "I can't fight myself and fight my enemy. I've let many people down, and I've let myself down, many times. Still, I've got keep working hard so that I'll never let that happen again!" the ice mage said as he walked off and returned to training. For the next two days, aside from sleeping, eating and bodily function, the amateur sorcerer trained. And trained. And continued to train and hone his skill. He would never again let someone down that was counting on him to live or save them.

The vacuum tore through the sand, creating a massive wall of it as it crossed the desert. It ripped the sand from the dunes and tossed the grains high into the air. The force flew past the youth, almost tearing away his clothes if it didn't lift him off his feet and sent him flying into a dune. Another one flew past, slicing through that dune and barely nipping at his hair--it would've taken his head off if he didn't try to get up and swiftly crawl to avoid it. A final, massive one came down, tossing up torrents of sand as it moved on, smashing into the little hut and uprooting the thing, pulling it into the air and ripping it apart.

"We won't be needing that again." Rain walked through the falling sand toward the youth, lifting his arm up and moving it as if he were parting a silk curtain. "When we're done with this last lesson, you're either going to hell or home--which one depends on you."

"Stand up." That was in the most demanding, but calm tone he was able to muster as he set himself. He seemingly pulled a dark staff, Nightingale, out of nowhere and twirled it in his hand. Rain knew that Zorlo had probably informed the boy in some way about this, but Rain wasn't going to attack him with all his strength--using his most powerful strategies was not something to be trained with.

"How many hours can you fight? Let's test what you've mustered along with your endurance."

Zachary smiled as he looked at Rain. "That staff... the one that his golden sword came from." The ice mage had seen that staff once before, he thought, but couldn't completely remember when or why. Even so, he could tell where the sword was thanks entirely to the handle he had seen of Rain's sword. "Well, endurance training time, huh? I'm no match for you in a real fight, but at least I'll give you everything I've got!"

The Replicator ducked backwards and quickly created a pair of throwing swords, tossing them with his newly gained accuracy towards the vampire. Still, the blades didn't get to Rain as he spun his staff and knocked the weapons away. The Grim Angel smiled as he started moving towards the amateur sorcerer. Time to get things started.

He can only create vacuums when he can swing his sword, so I need to prevent that. Also, there's no time to fight him holding back. This is a life or death battle. The ice mage held his hands close together and began to channel his Mana between his palms. In a flash, Exarctica formed and he grasped the handle of sword firmly between his hands before slashing at the vampire.

The angel vanished as he sword moved towards him and reappeared behind the Replicator, striking his staff at his leg. Still, the ice mage quickly kicked away the staff and spun around, swinging down his sword and locking blades with the vampire's staff. The Grim Angel was forced to step back an inch before he rolled around the attack and smacked the red haired warrior in the back of the head.

Zachary smiled as he spun around and slashed his sword horizontally at the Grim Angel, who quickly just stepped back, avoiding the attack again. The Replicator held his sword firmly between his hands and lowered it to his side before slashing it the first time. The first slash was faster than the last few, a bit of an idea that Zachary had decided to use for a few moments, but still struck the staff.

A series of slashes, all in rapid, undeterred succession, moved fluidly with each movement the sword mage made. Finally, the staff and the sword connected as the sands around them were pushed out. "Not done yet..." the Replicator stated as he pushed his blade forward and tossed Rain back a little bit and caused him to slide back slowly. Without any time to consider, the ice mage started his attack. Still... he didn't know how, but Zachary knew this wasn't his best, nor was it Rain's best fighting against his full strength.

Rain hadn't drawn his swords yet, and Zach was already using Exarctica on him--but still, he seemed to be holding back... Rain would just have to break that resolve. The youth came at him with a flurry of attacks now, but still, he was holding back. Rain had specifically told him not to hold back when it comes to a strong enemy, but he didn't seem to heed that advice.

The Grim Angel deflected and dodged each of his attacks, barely moving in any direction but backwards. It seemed that this would never end until Rain deflected Exarctica in such a way that the youth spread his arms and was about to bring the sword down vertically from over his head. But he wouldn't get that chance.

Rain grasped the boy's collar and tossed him roughly into the ruins of the hut. He didn't even wince when he heard the cracking of boards and breaking of the mud walls... He knew Zach could take a beating. The Grim Angel used this opportunity to draw his both swords and toss aside the sheath, which seemed to dissolve in mid-air.

He waved his sword, the tip almost touching the ground as if he were underhandedly throwing a ball, but faster. The result was a slicing vacuum that cut through the sand towards the ruins. A high, thin wall of sand shot up into the air just before the vacuum hit the ruins, causing it to explode outwards, sending the youth barreling into a dune.

Zachary rolled to the side as the vacuum narrowly missed ripping him apart. His body burst forwards and he moved like a monster towards the man. He was moving faster than before, and could feel his muscles working at their maximum capacity. Still, it didn't feel like everything was in place. He felt strong, but not as strong as his body should have been capable of being.

The ice mage leapt into the air and brought down his sword, watching it strike the shorter blade and narrowly dodging the golden blade of Night, which left a small cut on the side of his cheek. The Replicator landed and shuffled back a step before lunging his sword. The amateur sorcerer's blade was effortlessly pushed to the side by the vampire's short sword. Quickly ducking, the ice mage evaded, nimbly at that, being decapitated.

Dragging the blade of the knight sword along the ground, the Replicator slashed horizontally upwards, forcing the Grim Angel, for the first time, to lean back to evade the attack. Still, it had missed. This movement and forms of attack felt amazing. Zachary could feel his body tapping into its full potential. Quickly stepping back, he evaded another slash from the katana and pulled his sword across the ground and held it in front of him.

Zachary took a deep breath and released, feeling his muscles tense again as he stepped forward and slashed his blade downwards. The blades of the angel's sword quickly crossed and blocked the attack. With a small push, the vampire pushed the blade back and moved forward, slashing his short sword first, forcing the ice mage to step back again, and then a downward slash from the Grim Angel's full length sword caused the Replicator to roll to the side.

Still, it left the perfect chance to counterattack. Quickly recovering his focus, the Replicator thrust his sword at the vampire, aiming for an opening. Finally, at least, one had revealed itself.

The Grim Angel spun around with a swift kick; perhaps he had forgot to mention--or it had simply slipped his mind that he did, that "Timing is everything." Zach's attacks, movements and counters were filled with a little more grace than when they had first started this. His combos were flowing like water; still choppy at some times, and as smooth as crystal at others. But as improved as Zach was, Rain wasn't about to let himself get stabbed in the back or the side just like that. And so the kick that was powered with the momentum of the spin stomped the broad side of the youth's blade, making his counter falter as the tip of the sword veered off-course.

Rain spun again, this time, working with his other leg and slamming it into the boy's side. A loud grunt followed before a massive splash in the sand. He had picked Zach up with his leg and slammed him into a dune. Rain, for a fact, knew this: Zach wasn't fighting at his full potential. And maybe, just maybe, the Ice Sorcerer would need the heat turned up a bit. Not the temperature, of course, that was already sweltering.

"Is that all?" Rain grinned, heaving his longsword and resting it on his shoulder as if it were a massive zweihander, "I don't think you're serious."

Timing is everything. Timing is everything, he thought to himself over and over again. Against someone as fast and as strong as Rain, the ice mage had to think about what he was doing before he did it. Unlike Monroe, he didn't have a bag of neat tricks to trip up his foes. Unlike Zorlo, he didn't have an array of powers that could stop, distract, or delay an enemy. All Zachary had were weapons. Lots and lots of weapons.

Actually, that was a good idea. The blade of Exarctica sliced the sands its blade struck as the warrior stood up and dusted himself off with his empty left hand. Empty simply because he didn't hold his blade with two hands was the more exact thought. Zachary held his left hand in front of his face and smiled.

Suddenly, what appeared to be a single, think blade appeared in his hand. No doubt Rain had probably seen his throwing swords before, so this wouldn't come as much of a surprise. Nor was it meant to, actually. The Replicator moved his arm back behind him and quickly swung it forwards, throwing four blades at the vampire.

The Grim Angel simply spun his sword around and knocked the blades away, but also created a mild smokescreen of sand. Yes, he could use this. The amateur sorcerer moved under the cloud, keeping his body low to avoid detection. Quickly standing up behind the golden eyed man, the Replicator tossed Rosso at the man.

The vampire smiled as he ducked under the spinning blade and slashed the ground, throwing a weak vacuum towards where the sorcerer had been. It was close, but not quite there as the ice mage ducked back into the sandstorm and began to move about nearly quietly. The sandstorm Rain had accidently created was nearing its end, but Zachary's strategy had one last part.

Quickly creating Azul in his hand, the Replicator tossed the blade and ducked back down. Now, all he needed was an opening, and one he would soon, hopefully have. It wasn't much longer. Quickly, Azul curved around and Rain's sword moved swiftly, swatting the sword away. The Grim Angel seemed to be about to say something as he saw the second spinning blade moving at him.

Even for the angel, the blade was too close to completely evade it. He managed to avoid just enough of it that only a small cut appeared on his cheek. Using the distraction he had hoped had formed, the Replicator leapt into action, swinging his blade down towards Rain. Even if this didn't work, this kind of strategy seemed to be working fine.

"Your strategy is flawed."

The small cut on Rain's cheek healed in the blink of an eye. A massive blast of sand rose up from in front of him at the wave of his hand and slammed into the youth just before he brought the sword down. Zachary landed hard in the sand. For a brief moment, he had to spit some out of his mouth as he looked up at the Grim Angel approaching him.

Rain lifted up his golden blade and pointed the tip at the boy's nose. His tone filled with as much menace as he could muster.

"You'll never be able to beat me... and that's why, you won't see Arietta again."

"Are you just going to lie there?" The tip of the sword pricked his nose, letting a drop of blood run off, down to his top lip.

He thought he saw the youth wince at that statement.

"Get up, or you won't be going home."

Laughing. At that moment, after the threat that the ice mage had just heard, he couldn't help but laugh. The head of the Replicator moved back as he continued to laugh hysterically. At that moment, he might have, for even just a second, appeared to be completely crazy. Honestly, Zachary knew what he was doing. Or, at least hoped he did.

Rain raised his sword and brought it down just as fast as he had done before. The ice mage knocked the sword away with his left hand and moved to strike. Pushing his body up quickly, Zachary struck Rain's chin with a mighty headbutt and caused the man to stumble back. Who knew at that moment if the vampire was surprised by that attack, but the Replicator knew it was his best move.

The amateur sorcerer spun around quickly and drove his boot into the man's chest. The Grim Angel was pushed a few feet back and struck the sand hard for the first time that day. "True, my strategy may not have been foolproof, but still, at least I'm not about to give up," the Replicator stated as he grasped his sword between his hands and moved quickly, slashing his sword down to where Rain had been sitting.

"I may have promised Cadenza that I wouldn't kill you, but if you're going to try to kill me, I'll do the same!"

"Tch." Rain swiftly rolled away from the attack. And by the time he got to his feet, Zach had rushed him again, thrusting the sword forward, aiming for his heart. The youth was now more determined than before, seemingly fighting with all his passion and fire. But it won't be enough... and Rain wondered whether he should turn up the heat in the desert a little more.

When the sorcerer rushed in, Rain just tapped the boy on his head, making him bow enough for the Grim Angel to leap over him, tapping him on the back of the head with his foot, also. The youth stumbled forward for a moment before spinning around to face the trainer.

Rain adjusted his jaw, his eyes wandering as his mind leapt to thoughts about Zach's headbutt. It was good--he actually managed to surprise Rain and knock him off his feet. That was good, it meant he was progressing... and fast.

The youth came at him again, baring the sword down. He moved his hand to strike as Rain rose his own sword and took a step forward at the same time, stretching the blade out in front of him. The tip of it pointed at the edge of Zach's descending sword for a brief moment before a shivering metal clang came from both of them. The tip of Rain's Night had stopped Zach's attack in its tracks, and the boy was stunned for a brief moment as the vibration of the metal run through his body.

"That sword..." Rain's voice seemed to dance on the wind as his arm moved swiftly outward--too swift to be seen with normal eyes, "...is not capable of defeating me." It was a swift strike that followed: so hard and fast that no normal person could see it coming. The attack cleanly slapped away Zach's sword and sent it careening into the horizon.

That was followed by a powerful kick to the chest, making him fly through the air and land hard on his back.

But... to turn up the heat a little more...

"Well now, is that all?" he said calmly, an insulting smirk on his face, "I suppose after I'm done with you here, I'll have to recommend a new boyfriend for Arietta... I'm sure she'll forget about you easily enough."

OoC: @_@ Being distracted by the hot dancing girls in your sig makes posting hard.

BiC: Face down in the sand. Again. This was like the third or forth time this week. And it had only been six days! Although, at this moment in time, that didn't matter. All that mattered was that this man was going way too far. To see it... to see the life leave his eyes... even if just for a second, it would be almost rewarding. Almost. After all, the Replicator knew that he wouldn't live long if he actually managed to kill Rain.

Zachary's hands clenched tightly, grasping sand between his fingers. The ice mage slammed his fist against the ground and slowly pushed himself up to his knees. He was wroth. Fury seemed to erupt from deep within him as he stood up. Clenching his teeth, the amateur sorcerer looked furiously at Rain.

"I don't know if someone can forget about someone still alive. Still, I won't be around long after I get done with you. Cadenza will rip me to pieces, but hey, at least you'll stop talking!" the Replicator called out with an almost roar as he rushed forwards.

Fire and ice danced around his left and right hands before forming Rosso and Azul as the sorcerer leapt upwards before landing and thrusting his first blade at the vampire. The Grim Angel danced around each quickly thrown slash and thrust that the red haired man made. The savage, fast and fierce attacks that the Replicator made were full of fury.

An almost animalistic instinct had taken over, and the attempt of the amateur sorcerer to read his foes attacks seemed to be proving useless. "Take this!" the ice mage stated as he leapt up and swung his blades down towards Rain's shoulders. If nothing else, this would disarm him.

Swiftly, Rain turned sideways at the last moment, allowing both blades to pass right by him without touching him. Zach wasn't stunned at this, however, his time to react and change his attack was zero. Rain was already on the offensive, using even his inverted Gale to attack. But he did it in such a way that Zach always had time to block--if he didn't block...well...

Gale kept swiping away the blocking sword for Night to attack, but Rain would slow his movements or put in an extra step just to give Zach the split second he needed to block. Rain struck faster and faster, making the blades spark when they met. Each of his movements were swift and graceful--a step or breath never taken out of place. His breathing was even, as opposed to Zach's, who was panting from the heat of the sparking battle as well as the heat of the desert.

The youth's hands seem to falter each time he blocked and stepped back. A vibration he had probably never felt before was ringing through his swords each time they were struck with attacks that were rising in power. Another swift strike with Gale slapped Azul from the youth's hand and Night suddenly made a thrust inward, aiming for Zach's neck. The youth made one last attempt at blocking with broad side of Rosso, but when the tip of Rain's sword met it, a crack expanded all around it and it turned into dust before their eyes.

The sword kept going, veering off to the side a little, nipping Zach on the side of his neck. At that moment, the swords faded into nothingness and a powerful roundhouse kick sent the youth flying.

"What was that about making me stop talking?" Rain smirked a little, but the corner of his lips tugged down to a frown, "You're not ready. And... I don't think there's any more I can do for you."