Chapter 31: Chapter 30: Bloodlust

Xenia stood before her mother dressed in a tight-fitting all-black athleisure outfit consisting of black leggings and a black sports bra with her toned midriff exposed. Her 10^th degree black belt was loosely tied around her waist. She stood with her arms crossed at the base of Khan Valley and called to Victoria, “This isn’t going to take long, is it? I would very much like to make it back to see Nero in his finals this evening at the Colosseum.”

Victoria stood 30 yards from Xenia wearing a crimson traditional gi with a tightly tied 10^th degree black belt adorning her waist. She gave a half smile and replied, “This won’t be like prior training sessions, Xenia. The time has come for real training.”

Xenia scoffed, “Real training?” She then put her arms up in the air, “I am a 10^th degree black belt, and I already have firm control of the BloodStar technique. I have been training for real my entire life.”

Victoria sat atop a boulder and assumed the lotus position before saying, “Fair points. You have been training your entire life. However, you are a prodigy. You have excelled at every step of your training including the BloodStar technique. You have outpaced my talents at your respective age, and you are even far stronger than I was at your age. However, you have never been truly challenged. This is not a fault of your own. It is a consequence of your great power and talent. So as the sabers of the world begin to rattle, it is my duty to challenge you. It is time I ready you for battle against other Masters of the Master Families.”

Xenia nodded her head, “War is upon us, yes. Or it soon will be, I am sure.” She too assumed the lotus position on the ground, “However, I think you will find that I am quite capable in competing at the level of the Masters around the world.” Xenia smirked and looked to her mother.

Victoria smirked back, “Is that so?” She built up her aura around her as she began to glow, “Then you will have no problem defending against my clones, yes?”

Xenia stood from her seated position and assumed a fighting stance. She then waved for her mother to attack, “Allow me to show you.”

Victoria remained seated atop the boulder and closed her eyes. Suddenly three shadow clones of herself appeared in front of her created from her aura. These clones had a shadowy silhouette of their creator and began to encircle Xenia.

Xenia laughed and said, “You take me too lightly mother!” She then created a round ball of intense energy within her palm and fired it straight at the clone right in front of her.

The ball of terrifying energy whizzed through the air at the shadow clone; however, just before making impact, a black circular portal appeared. The ki blast traveled into the portal leaving the clone completely untouched.

In the distance, Xenia could see the other end of the portal hovering over the ocean as her ki blast shot forth straight into the ocean below. A huge explosion took place sending large waves abound.

Xenia knew the technique well. It was one of the powers her mother had accumulated from her Bloodline Power inherited from her own mother upon her death. This technique was named Void Portal, and it was one Xenia looked forward to inheriting herself after her mother passed.

Xenia turned to her mother, “So you really don’t plan to hold back, do you? Fine!” Xenia was furious as she knew this battle would be one sided. Her mother was a mirror image of herself except stronger in every way. She even had more abilities to draw on given her Bloodline Powers.

Xenia grit her teeth as she thought to herself, “I can’t even bloodbend these damn shadows. She’s already taken away my most powerful battle tactic.”

Although she acknowledged her massive disadvantage in the battle before her, there was nothing Xenia liked more than a scenario to prove her worth and show her talent. She lunged at the shadow in front of her and began to engage in hand-to-hand combat.

Victoria continued to sit atop the boulder with her eyes closed controlling her shadow clones through her aura. Although the clones could not quite emulate her hand-to-hand combat skills, they could equal Xenia.

Xenia threw kicks and punches assuming an aggressive offense as the shadow dodged and ducked her attacks. The two other shadow clones closed in on Xenia from her flanks and began to throw kicks and punches at her. Xenia’s training had given her a near perfect awareness of her surroundings. To Victoria’s surprise, it was as if Xenia could predict the movements of her assailants before they were ever made.

Xenia ducked and dodged attacks from three different attackers until she finally let loose a powerful 360-degree windmill kick knocking all of her opponents back. Xenia hopped in place as she yelled, “You will need more than that if you wish to teach me a lesson mother!”

Victoria was unphased as she controlled the three assailants, picking them up for another assault. She whispered to herself, “Very well, Xenia. Here comes your lesson.”

The three clones attacked once more. Xenia’s confidence continued to rise as the same scene played out before with her easily avoiding all attacks from every angle while also waiting for her opponent’s blind spots to show themselves. Each strike she intended to make required expert timing and precision if she were to land a blow and escape unscathed from the attacks of the other two opponents.

The very window she had been waiting for presented itself, and she threw a forceful side kick at one of her opponents. However, mid-kick, Xenia noticed a slight delay in her movements. This delay threw her off ever so slightly but also just enough for her attack to be dodged. This also left her wide open to incoming attacks.

She found herself wide open, and Victoria didn’t waste the opportunity. The other two clones at Xenia’s flanks drilled her with perfect form kicks to her shoulder and ribs sending her flying backwards to the ground.

She immediately rose to her feet after falling to the ground, and yelled, “Shadow clones, portals, and now bloodbending!” She yelled with rage as she formed a huge energy blast overhead. She held one arm overhead with a finger pointing upwards controlling the large energy ball.

She then sent hundreds of smaller ki energy blasts from the large sphere overhead. The energy blasts weren’t terribly accurate, but they made it impossible to predict and hide from the incoming attacks. The shadow clones were quickly shrouded in large dust clouds as the smaller energy blasts exploded on impact in the vicinity of their targets.

However, as the dust settled, Xenia became even more enraged. Standing before her were three shadow clones enveloped in her mother’s Void Shield, a technique notoriously difficult to penetrate. Xenia herself had never seen an attack penetrate her mother’s Void Shield, certainly none of her own.

After the Void Shield dissipated, the three shadow clones forged ahead as they began to attack Xenia in earnest. They encircled her, and where normally Xenia would dodge with her superior combat skills, subtle bloodbending from Victoria resulted in her receiving a full pummeling. However, this time, the shadow clones did not allow her to escape their encirclement. They threw punches and kicks until Xenia was bruised and bloody; however, she was still standing, nonetheless.

Xenia powered up gathering a massive amount of aura around her body and then suddenly shot both arms outwards sending a shockwave of ki that blew back all three shadow clones. The force was so powerful the clones went flying over 100 feet, and the immense scale of power even made Victoria open her eyes for the first time during the battle.

Xenia’s bruises and cuts were already healing owing to her natural healing abilities that were always active especially during battle. However, before her last cut could heal, she bloodbent her own blood out of her body forming a 5-foot-long blood spear with a tip sharp as a razor.

This all took place before the shadow clones could even hit the ground. She grabbed the blood spear and threw it with all of her might at her mother. Victoria was genuinely shocked at the speed at which the attack took place, and she didn’t have time to activate any creative defensive abilities. Instead, she resorted to her own bloodbending abilities and stopped the blood spear an inch from her chest.

She then bloodbent the spear itself, turning it around to face Xenia as she hurled it back at her daughter. Xenia stood welcoming the spear as she seemingly took the attack head on. However, right as the spear made contact, Xenia bloodbent the spear into a shapeless pool of blood as she redirected the blood back into her body.

By now, the three shadow clones had recovered and were attacking Xenia. However, this time, Xenia found her body stiffen up completely. Victoria was now standing with an outstretched hand glowing red with a powerful aura as she bloodbent Xenia’s body to a standstill. The three shadow clones took the opportunity to attack as they began to beat her to a pulp. She was completely defenseless as the three shadow clones pummeled her with punches, kicks, and body slams.

After several minutes, Victoria called off the shadow clones. Xenia lay on the ground with several broken ribs, a broken jaw, dislocated knee, and multiple cuts and bruises all over. However, within less than a minute, her body had begun to recover at an astounding pace. She stood up from her injuries as if they had never happened in a mere thirty seconds.

She assumed a fighting stance and faced her mother. Victoria had a solemn look on her face as she said, “This simply won’t do.”

Xenia yelled, “You can attack all day. But I have an endless well of ki to heal me. You will never force me to give up, and you will never defeat me.”

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Victoria dissipated her ki and began to walk towards Xenia, “This simply won’t do. It’s time we had an earnest talk, Xenia.”

Xenia frowned as she let her guard down ever so slightly. She thought to herself, “Just what is going on?”

____________________________________________________

Night had fallen on Khan Valley, and yet Victoria and Xenia both remained. An open fire crackled as Xenia threw another log atop the flames to kindle it further. She turned to her mother, “Constance messaged me informing me of Nero’s triumph this evening.”

Victoria softly laughed, “I hear he ripped another fighter’s head clean off. That is becoming somewhat of a trademark finishing move for him.”

Xenia said, “I may yet be single for a very long time. I daresay no one will defeat Nero while he remains in his prime for many decades to come. At least no one my age.”

Victoria turned to Xenia, “Your age? But you will be your age for a very long time. That bottomless well of ki that keeps you flawless in battle also keeps you flawless in life. It is a veritable fountain of youth.”

Xenia decided to cut the small talk, “You have brought me out here to train, but you haven’t taught me anything new. You have only beaten me down with your superior skill set and experience. Did you need someone to take out a recent frustration on?”

Victoria laughed, “Goodness, no. Anyone who frustrates me so, I would simply kill and be done with it.” She turned to Xenia as they both sat by the fireside with their faces illuminated by the flickering flames. “Do you recall my story when I used the BloodStar technique in battle all those years ago?”

Xenia excitedly nodded, “Yes! You said the last time you created a true BloodStar, you killed tens of thousands of soldiers while standing against the United Master Family armies. You made the sky turn red forming one of the largest BloodStar’s in history. However, you failed to elaborate on what happened next.”

Victoria looked at Xenia in silence before speaking, “Yes well, I will get to what happened next. But first let’s start with that BloodStar. How many soldiers do you think you could kill with a BloodStar at this very moment? Using all of your power.”

Xenia paused for a moment. She hadn’t previously thought about it, but she knew she had no problem killing 100 soldiers. After thinking she said, “I believe I could manage at least one thousand, possibly two thousand soldiers.”

Victoria said, “Phew, you are much stronger than me at your age. In my youthful prime, I could only manage two thousand soldiers with a BloodStar, and yet here you are in your mid-twenties matching me as if it were easy.”

Xenia looked confused, “But you just said you killed tens of thousands of soldiers? Was that not your prime?”

Victoria looked into the flames, “Oh, it was. But I had the help of another technique. A technique that is as helpful as it can be hurtful to the user if not mastered before use.”

Xenia leaned forward with a hint of excitement, “Mother! You have never told me of such a technique. Why would you keep this a secret from your heir? Is it not my duty to carry on our family’s legacy?”

Victoria quickly responded, “This technique is created for destruction. This technique is needless in a peaceful world. I am banned from using this technique by the treaty I signed. If I perform this technique, the Master Families are granted permission to wipe our Empire from the face of the Earth. While not forbidden, the teaching of this technique would be frowned upon greatly.”

Xenia nodded realizing the fragile nature of these teachings on the political stage. Victoria continued, “The technique is called Bloodlust. As it was taught to me, it magnifies your current ki tenfold or more. However, in my own use, I have come to find that it does not alter our ki in any matter or form. Instead, it awakens an ancient power. It releases an ancient form of ki long since banished from this world.”

Xenia began to speak, but Victoria cut her off, “Make no mistake, this technique will increase your power at least tenfold. However, if not mastered, it will consume you with the rage of battle. You will destroy everything and anything in your path including yourself. Our ancestors worked very hard to suppress the teaching of this very technique after humanity as we know it was nearly wiped out by our uncontrolled rage in battle.”

Xenia sternly said, “You must teach me.”

Victoria said, “I’m not finished Xenia. After I killed those hordes of men, tens of thousands, the greatest curse master of all time from the Sage Family inflicted a nasty curse on me. They were prepared to go to any length to stop me that day, and they succeeded. The curse was so powerful that the counter curse killed the great Sage Master.”

Xenia looked on intently, “What curse is so powerful that it could stop you? I find that hard to believe especially if you had this Bloodlust technique activated.”

Victoria continued, “Oh they couldn’t stop me dear daughter. They gave me a choice. I could continue to wage war and leave the battlefield victorious after killing each and every Master of the Master Families. However, if I did, I would be cursed to never have an heir. Our own Master Family would die in the process as a result. Instead, I chose to cede the battle and return our Empire biding my time. I am still afflicted with the curse to this day. Outside of our borders, my powers are cut in half and my bloodline powers are rendered inactive. Although I would bet that with my handicapped half strength, I am still the strongest warrior in the world. At half power, I am easily stronger than I was during the Great War so long ago.”

Xenia had a solemn look on her face, “Thank you mother. Thank you for saving our family. I will not fail you in vengeance. I will make them all pay.”

Victoria couldn’t help but smile as she said, “You are truly my heir, Xenia. But that story has another important point. Had I not mastered the Bloodlust technique, I would’ve been blinded to the decision at hand. I would’ve destroyed the world and with it our family. It is imperative that you never use this technique without mastery or without a clear mind.”

Xenia nodded, “I promise. When does my training start?”

Victoria stood up and paced the perimeter of the fire, “It already has. The Bloodlust technique is hidden within you. It isn’t something that can be taught. It is raw, it is primal, it is the monster inside of you.”

Xenia stared in silence before asking, “Okay, so… how do I awaken it?”

Victoria threw her hands up, “That’s just it. Throughout history, masters of the technique including myself describe their awakening during near death events. However, you are stronger than every opponent you have ever battled. Even against me, you may be losing a battle, but you simply heal your wounds. Now make no mistake, I could kill you with relative ease foregoing any opportunity for you to heal, but… to bring you to the brink of death and keep you there might be something worse than death.” Victoria laughed, “Your talent and your strength betray you. They have paved over your need for this technique. But trust me, you do need it. Just as I can kill you with relative ease, so too can roughly half of the Masters of the world.”

Xenia grimaced, “Is this true? I’ve always assumed the old Masters to be on par with my strength. I think I could hold my own, even defeat any of them.”

Victoria laughed, “Don’t be headstrong dear. Jarek is the strongest by far. Not too far behind him is Pope Gregory. Master Karasu commands a great deal of my respect as well although not technically a Master of a Master Family. After those few, yes you could hold your own. However, seeing as you are butting heads with the Holy Light Empire, you can see my want to awaken your Bloodlust.”

Xenia held a serious face, “Mother! I am more than just your daughter, I am our family’s heir. Furthermore, I am a prodigy fated to take vengeance for you. I revel in pain, torture, and strength. Whatever you need to do to awaken my Bloodlust… do it.”

Victoria stood silently as she gazed through the flames and into Xenia’s eyes. She gave a subtle nod and turned away, “Then we will start again in earnest tomorrow.”

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