Pieces of Sonder

Freya wiped away the sweat stinging her eyes. Her dropped sword at her feet reflected red flames. Kamdale paused in confusion after she voluntarily dropped her sword. Now he was staring at it, perhaps recognizing its origin. 

The sweltering heat from the fire urged her to flee, but she had to take advantage of this situation. Gathering her qi, she sent a Shockwave out towards Kamdale. 

Unprepared, the demoniclast stumbled. But he regained his footing in a flash.

Freya hardened the qi in her arms to block his sword. Still, a physical jolt hit her as his sword connected. Bracing her arms together, she held off Kamdale’s sword. The edge of his sword dug into her forearm.

Blood welled beneath the blade. Gritting her teeth, Freya willed her Qi Armor to hold. Besides the sharp edge cutting into her arm, a pricking sensation rattled against her qi. 

“Damn demons,” Kamdale cursed in her face.

Freya surged forward, making Kamdale disengage. She tried a quick jab but missed. The demoniclast also lashed out a quick slash. Freya easily dodged. They instinctively moved away from the spreading wildfire, all the while watching for the other to make an attack. As they separated further, Freya flexed her fingers. It didn’t seem like Kamdale’s sword cut into her nerves or muscles, but maybe that was just the adrenaline working. 

“What demoniclast apprentice did you kill to get that sword?” Kamdale asked, glancing back at the sword about to be swallowed up by flames.

“None. It’s my sword.”

“What nonsense are you-”

“Come on, my name’s not that different,” Freya said, pointing up at her name. 

[Freya Evenkey]

[Lvl 16 Martial Artist]

Concentrating for a moment, she briefly used her Misidentify.

[Frey Evenkey]

[Lvl 16 Demoniclast Apprentice]

Without wearing her special outfit, the Misidentify immediately broke. But she knew Kamdale saw it.

“How-?!”

“Freya, watch out!” Infamous Biscuit’s voice rang out.

She turned to find a demon bison charging her way. Cut vines trailed behind it. At the same time, she was distinctly aware of Kamdale at her back. Moving to avoid both of them, she jumped towards the fire.

Shielding her face from the flames, Freya ran parallel to the fire. The bison seemed afraid of the blaze, but Kamdale was not. Just like every time something went wrong, he was taking advantage of the situation. He caught up and cornered her into the fire.

Heat blazed at her back. She needed to get past Kamdale. 

She released another Shockwave. But Kamdale was ready this time. The qi energy did not affect him. He must have blocked it with his own qi. Not relenting, Freya tried a Sweeping Kick, but the demoniclast didn’t budge. He jabbed his sword down at her, making Freya back further up. However, his extended position gave her room to escape.

Freya darted past. But Kamdale swung at her back. 

She braced with her Qi Armor. Hunck!

All the air whooshed out of her lungs. She scrambled in vain to get off the ground. There was no stinging pain, but Kamdale had hit her was so much force she fell. 

Struggling to regain her breath, she rolled to the side. Kamdale’s sword narrowly missed.

She tried to harden her qi again. But she could feel it slipping away like loose sand. While her Qi Armor skill didn’t have a hard reset timer, it couldn’t be used indefinitely. That, combined with the hard hit she took, made her confidence in her qi waver.

Looking up from the ground, the edge of Kamdale’s sword suddenly seemed sharper. The fire also loomed closer. 

Kamdale slashed, aiming for her neck. Freya lunged back, but she was already on the ground.

Clang!

Another sword flashed in her vision, then fell to the ground. But it bought her enough time to scramble to her feet.

Botan stood, clutching his hand. 

“You too?” Kamdale said. He looked at Botan with murderous intent.

His demoniclast apprentice looked remorsefully at his sword on the ground. The boy shook slightly but steeled himself to glare at his mentor.

“Why would Frey be a demon? It doesn’t make any sense.”

He recognizes me? Freya blinked in surprise. I’m not in my Frey identity.

Botan continued, “I don’t know what’s going on, but why would a demon go through the demoniclast trials?”

Kamdale relaxed a bit. He seemed to realize Botan wasn’t a spy like Freya. “You just don’t see it yet. If you can kill her –him… the demon, you can grow to great heights!”

She prepared to spring away from both of them, but Botan looked unconvinced. He just stared at his sword on the ground. 

“I always wanted to grow strong and become a demoniclast,” Botan said. He shook his head, “But I don’t want to achieve it like that.”

“Well said.”

The two apprentices turned. Indrek walked towards them, his glowing sword in hand. He continued, “Trust your heart. The best things are achieved when your heart is in the right place.”

Indrek patted them on their shoulders. Behind him, Freya noticed Daveth and Meng tied on the ground. Some of the game players were guarding them while others were still dealing with the demon bison. Red Star Lightning appeared to be getting some healing from Infamous Biscuit. 

The chaos was dying down. The biggest remaining threats were Kamdale and the wildfire. Indrek looked towards Kamdale and said, “Let me handle this.”