Clash Of Worlds (16 page)

The hooded figure had now walked to within around twenty feet of Auron and came to a halt. “I’ll say this again, leave here at once.”

Many men have died at my hand for less.
“I Apologise for my presence in your realm, I am here only for a short time,” said Auron, gritting his teeth as he tried to sound as sincere as possible.

The hooded man reached for the top of his robe and removed the hood to reveal his face.

Auron’s eyes narrowed as the man was revealed to be Lucius, the son of Kanto, king of the Underworld. Lucius was twenty years old, stood at around six feet two inches and had long white hair, which was rare for someone of Underworld blood. His white locks glowed in the darkness like stars in a clear black sky.

The legend of Lucius was infamous within the Underworld realm and it rivalled that of Auron’s in Alexandria. As the son of Kanto, Lucius had inherited many of his father’s skills in battle and was one of the fiercest warriors either world had ever known. He was the General of Kanto’s armies and was known to be as merciless in battle as his father had been in times gone by.

This was a dangerous time for Auron. He still hated the Underworld with every fibre in his being, but he knew that the realms were now at peace. If he was to seek out a fight with Lucius here and now, the peace treaty could be threatened and a repeat of the devastating Great War would be at hand.

“What business do you have in this realm Auron?” asked Lucius, who had now grown curious as to why the Alexandrian was present in a forest that had such a low survival rate. Lucius himself had no great desire to venture into the forest, but he had a mission of his own which required him to pass through it in order to get to his required destination.

Both stood firm on the pathway, blocking each other’s route. Auron became increasingly nervous about the situation, as he didn’t wish to engage Lucius in combat. He didn’t fear Lucius, Auron feared no man but the need for care and not reigniting a feud was greatly in his thoughts.

Lucius seemed less caring about the situation. He was much younger than Auron, and, therefore, had not seen the misery and death caused during the Great War. He had less of an understanding about what his actions could unleash. It was also true that Lucius cared less about keeping the peace than Auron. Lucius became increasingly arrogant as he and Auron continued to talk, which began to irritate the latter.

By now, Lucius had guessed the purpose of Auron’s visit to the realm. “So you seek the Dark Archer, the forsaken creature. Legend has it the demon lurks within these woods?”

“What business is that of yours?” Auron replied, clearly having tired of being civil.
You test my patience boy.

“What business is it of mine? You have no business being in this realm Alexandrian! Besides, all who have seen the creature have perished, you should be thankful he hasn’t come across you,” Lucius said rather smugly.

Auron did not wish to waste any more time bickering with the Underworld warrior and was eager to get back to the original task he set out to do. “I have a debt that needs to be settled with the creature Lucius, it is no concern of yours. Be on your way and let us bother each other no further.”

Lucius had no such desire to leave the Alexandrian deep within Underworld territory, albeit the cruised forest. “You have no domain here Auron. I tell you one last time, leave these lands at once before I draw my sword and end you.”

As many of his victims had discovered, once Lucius drew his sword there was no going back. Once he started something he never stopped, not until everything in his path was dead.

Auron showed no fear, though, there was no man in this world that could strike such a feeling into the legendary knight.
He is as arrogant as I was at that age.
“Just who do you think you’re speaking to boy?” said the Alexandrian, clearly angered by Lucius words. “You have no idea who you’re dealing with. Step aside boy before I do something I’ll regret.”

Lucius began to laugh at Auron’s taunt. “So easily rattled you are Alexandrian. You’re threatening me now? I’m sure you realise you have no chance of defeating me within this realm. Your powers are weakened here.” Lucius referred to the endless darkness that engulfed the Underworld realm.

Auron knew without the aid of sunlight he would be at a distinct disadvantage if they drew swords, however, the conversation seemed to be heading that way. Auron never backed down from a challenge though for he was not the typical Alexandrian knight. He was still more than capable of holding his own, even when fighting without the aid of sunlight. The one problem Auron faced however was that his foe was no regular man either; it was Lucius, the most infamous warrior around these parts. The two were evenly matched when fighting on a level playing field, but here, in Underworld, Lucius had a clear advantage. Still Auron’s pride stopped him from bowing to the young warrior’s wishes. “I have no desire for conflict with Underworld but I shall not be leaving until I’ve done what I’ve come here to do,” Auron said defiantly.

Lucius smiled. He had never met him in person before this encounter, but he had heard the stories of how wise Auron was. Still the young Lucius was arrogant and no one had ever dared challenge him before. He, like Auron, was undefeated in battle. Lucius now wished to do battle with the Alexandrian, to teach him a lesson for daring to speak out against him. Lucius drew his sword, much to Auron’s surprise. His weapon of choice was a double bladed sword, the same sword that his father had used during the Great War.

“You would draw your sword? Our realms are at peace!” Said Auron.
So he will not yield? So be it…

High above the squabbling pair, something moved amongst the trees. A shadow like figure moved from tree to tree. The shadow seemed that of a man, but no man could have possibly moved as this thing did. It jumped great distances, gliding as it landed on the branches without the need to balance itself as it touched down. It stayed near the upper regions of the trees; much like an eagle flying stalking its prey.

The figure was the creature that Auron had set out from Alexandrian to hunt. The demon, originally an Alexandrian in time gone by had developed extraordinary jumping abilities when he was cruised by the Creator, Trenkenth. You see, Trenkenth had deemed that it was the actions of this beast that had begun a chain of event’s that had started the Great War. He had betrayed the people of Alexandria and allied himself with the enemy, Underworld. After the bloodshed had ended, the Creator had cruised the man once known as Vincent Xavier, mutating his body into a half man, half demon form. Xavier was always at war with himself, suffering an inner turmoil with the demon inside him. He fought every second of every day to keep the demon from taking hold of him completely, fighting with all his might to keep it buried deep within his soul. The creature had been nicknamed the Dark Archer by the people of Underworld due to his wielding of a mystical bow. He had the ability to jump into the top of the highest trees in the forest from its lowest point. It is said that the Dark Archer was able to jump over fifty feet in the air if he so desired.

The Dark Archer also possessed great hearing due to the demon that resided within him. He had heard Auron and Lucius from over half a mile away and had been advancing silently through the trees to the pair’s location ever since they had started arguing on the forests pathway. The Archer’s dark cape flapped in the wind as he glanced from tree to tree. He landed on a branch high above them and drew his bow. He reached for an arrow from over his shoulder, where he had several stored. He didn’t place the arrow in the bow however when he noticed who it was that was below him. The Dark Archer had heard of Lucius of course as he was infamous within the realm, but Xavier was more interested with the presence of Auron within the forest. The creature knew Auron from a long time ago. The two of them were once allies. Indeed, there was a time he would have called him a friend. That time had long past and they were now the deadliest of enemies. The Dark Archer had long waited for the day he and his foe would cross paths once again.

The Archer also had no love for Lucius. Despite being banished to the realm of Underworld, he was originally of Alexandrian blood, therefore the Dark Archer had a natural hatred for the Underworld. In fact, Xavier had long dreamed of nothing more than returning to his beloved Alexandrian realm. Those dreams had long since died however as he knew this was impossible. Not only had Trenkenth forbidden his return, he was also an outcast in the eye’s of Zeris for his betrayal of the Alexandrian’s during the Great War. Little is know about why the Dark Archer betrayed his people, but their hatred of him had turned the creature bitter. He now only had pain and misery in his heart and seized anyone who dared to enter the forest, which he had chosen for his own prison. Very few had entered here since the Archer’s presence with the forests domain had become known.

The Dark Archer would have seized Lucius and especially Auron if they had been alone, however, he chose to watch silently as the pair prepared to fight each other.

Lucius, whose senses inside this realm were immaculate, became aware of the Dark Archer’s presence. “It seems we are no longer alone,” he said, taking a look up at the trees as he spoke.

Auron began looking frantically around the woods, searching for the enemy he had set out to kill. “Where is he? Where? Auron shouted.

“You’re not going to catch him by surprise shouting like that,” said Lucius very calmly.

The Alexandrian, who at this point had stopped listening to Lucius, sighted the Dark Archer in a tree high above over Lucius’ shoulder. “There you are traitor!” Auron snorted in an almost growl-like voice. He rushed quickly towards the tree, passing Lucius as he did so.

Lucius’ clenched his left fist together as Auron was about to pass him. Lucius unleashed a fierce punch towards the Alexandrian; who didn’t see it coming as he had his sights set on the Archer. Auron flew back several yards, landing flat on his back. Auron jumped up in a rage and aimed his sword at Lucius. It was an ancient blade, made of the strongest Alexandrian steel in the realm. He had won the sword in battle, gaining possession of it in a contest with his predecessor, the former champion warrior of the realm.

“I told you Alexandrian you are going no further,” snarled Lucius, who found great pleasure in bringing the legendary Auron down so easily to his knees.

“You’ll regret that Lucius!”

The time for talk now ended and the two proceeded to engage in battle.

The pair charged forward toward reach other. Auron threw several punches at Lucius, which found their mark. The blows struck the white haired-man on his stomach and face. They shook Lucius slightly, but only for a moment. Auron launched another assault, but Lucius countered the attack; picking Auron up and throwing him down the forest’s pathway. Auron, who was now angrier than ever, jumped straight back up.

Lucius began to laugh. He knew that due to the lack of sunlight, Auron’s powers were weakened and he began to mock his opponent. “Master Auron you disappoint me. I’ve heard the legends of how you’ve slain the Underworld armies of old single-handedly. However I feel the need to inform you that age is catching up with you old man.”

Auron pointed his sword straight out in front of him. The blade began to glow blow and a bolt of ice formed within it, firing from the blade in an instant. It crashed into his foe with great force, sending Lucius hurdling to the ground.

Lucius rose up on one knee. His arrogant demeanour had now all but vanished. He began to concentrate hard. The blade of his sword began to glow red. Heat began to omit from it and then suddenly, the steel caught fire. Lucius stood up and raised the sword quickly in the air. A ball of fire broke free from the steel of the blade and Lucius quickly struck the ball of fire with his sword like a baseball bat, sending it in the direction of Auron. The Alexandrian saw it coming, however, the speed and venom of the fireball took him by surprise and it crashed into the man’s chest. The Alexandrian was flung back into the truck of a tree with great force. The tree snapped apart as a result of the impact and fell to the ground.

Auron slowly rose to his feet. His face and hands were now stained with the red of blood and a great pain plagued his head. The draining effects of the Underworld on his powers had been greater than he had anticipated. If this was any other Alexandrian they would have been crushed by the blow, however, Auron was far above a regular Alexandrian and the knight rose to his feet once more. He raised his sword high towards the sky and summoned a healing spell from the heavens. Alexandrians possessed the wind elemental and Auron had mastered this ability to its highest potential. He combined this with a healing and empowering spell that the Warlock Rokk had once taught him.

A healing power soared from the heavens down onto the blade of his sword. The power flowed through the Alexandrian’s body, healing his wounds to a degree. The wind elements temporally boosted his strength and Auron knew he must act quickly if he was to take Lucius down. As the healing spell came to an end, Auron quickly fired a mini tornado from his blade towards Lucius. Whilst Auron was summoning his spell, Lucius had conjured up another fireball and both launched their spells simultaneously. Auron and Lucius crashed down onto the dirt hard, causing mini craters in the ground as they landed.

The Dark Archer, who had continued to watch the fighting below, crouched down on the branch on which he was stood. He put his bow down on the branch of the tree and took out his crossbow instead. Once again he didn’t reach for an arrow, of which there were several of on his back. Instead, he sat and watched the duel patiently, like a predator waiting for the right moment to strike.

Down below Auron and Lucius were trading sword blows back and forth. The sound of steel on steel echoed around the forest. At first Lucius was the aggressor. He was a master swordsman, having been taught by Kanto himself and he launched several ancient and skilful attacking combinations towards Auron with his blade.