Chapter 74: Chapter 73: Proud to Play My Part

Deep within the Saber Province’s eastern most wooded forest, Nero and Xenia sat quietly. Both sat in the lotus position approximately 5 feet apart and facing one another. Xenia had since switched clothes to her all-black karate gi with her 10^th degree black belt wrapped around her waist. Nero too wore his karate gi with his 8^th degree black belt wrapped around his waist.

He spoke with his eyes closed, “As a grandmaster, you know all too well that peak combat skills are achieved through both mental and physical harmony, something you are quite capable of. I am only here to calm your spirit and remind you of that fact before the battle.”

Xenia took a deep breath, “The mind and the body are one at the grandmaster level, Nero. Reflexes, power, speed, and stamina are all increased. Even more, the synergistic effect of increased ki makes one even more powerful. But I do agree… as of late I have been lacking in self-control. Something unbecoming of someone of my martial arts level.”

The two meditated in the forest in silence for hours and hours until Nero once again spoke, “It is time. You are ready to ki meld with me if you still desire such an undertaking.”

Xenia took a deep breath with her eyes closed and responded, “Yes. Although I am capable of such determination and self-control, I need the edge of your warrior’s spirit. As you say, this battle will not be one to be taken lightly. Even though I am supremely confident in my ultimate victory, I would be a fool to not take every advantage possible.”

Nero and Xenia both powered up their ki auras to incredible levels. Nero’s ki a brilliant blue-white hue and Xenia’s a black-red hue. The two ki auras were then focused into one another and condensed around the two users.

A mixture of blue/white and red/black swirls of dense energy condensed into a sphere around both Xenia and Nero. The swirl of energy around the two was both peaceful and violent, loud and quiet, calm and angry.

The nearby trees cracked under the immense pressure and fell into the ground with those branches and trunks falling into contact with the energy sphere simply disintegrating upon contact.

Then, moments later, the energy sphere ceased to exist as the ambient ki was released into the dense forest.

Xenia and Nero both sat with a surface mixture of both ki energies in their aura. They stood and faced each other. Nero felt a layer of emotions consisting of an immense power and intense lust with a desire to kill and ravage his opponents, a feeling that shook his foundational battle spirit which fought the newfound emotions and stood firm.

Xenia took a moment to assess her new layer of ki lending her calmness and shrewdness allowing her to see past her lust for blood.

Nero called out, “This meld will last for only a few hours. It will not carry you into battle, and it most certainly will not carry you through battle. It is merely a tool to allow you to train and hone your battle spirit. An aid in molding it to how you see fit.”

Xenia outstretched her hand and calmly said, “Then let us train.” Her obsidian sword hilt then flew from its resting place on her back in a semi-circular path to her front and landed in her hand. She ignited the blade’s energy of contained and controlled blood and ki energy as she assumed a fighting stance.

Nero reached over his back and unsheathed his legendary sword glowing red with the aura of his empress.

Xenia gave a slight smirk, “BloodStar vs BloodStar. May the best sword win!”

She lunged at him readying her attack as their training session began.

Their blades met, one of steel imbued with ki and the other blood imbued with ki. The clash of blades sent a shockwave outwards leveling any trees that might still be standing.

Both Nero and Xenia were expert swordsman, and the two could both attack and defend with the best of them. Nero charged Xenia throwing strike after strike of the sword at her with his massive strength. Xenia maintained a stolid face as she twirled her blade and body deflecting his attacks with surprising ease.

Xenia’s style was flashy by her own design adopting a strategy that looked both beautiful yet served her well. She was not afraid to be spin her body and maneuver her sword to the front, back, and side to deflect incoming attacks often times not even maintaining visual contact with the opponent’s sword. Such a feat was indicative of her 10^th degree black belt level which allowed her to see blind spots and detect the motions of her opponents. Such a technique was not through ki; however, through breaking through plateaus of the human limits of the mind.

Xenia’s abilities to have full control of her movements, full knowledge of her environment, and full awareness of her opponent at all times whether she was visually or mentally assessing them gave her an unseemly advantage on the battlefield.

As a plateau that Nero had yet to breakthrough himself, Xenia’s edge in the training slowly started to show itself. She increased her speed with her attacks with Nero maintaining a parry each time until suddenly Xenia landed a ferocious upward swing of her blade.

Her blade swung up through Nero’s thigh severing his entire right leg. He fell to the ground in pain but instead of yelling and screaming, he merely looked at her and said, “Very good! Again!”

Xenia focused and healed his body with her own ki. Only moments later, Nero was standing at full health ready to spar once more.

Over the next several hours, the same process happened over and over and over again with Nero ultimately losing a limb, suffering a mortal wound, or otherwise finding himself near death as Xenia bested him time and time again.

Nero landed plenty of blows on Xenia as well; however, her healing powers left him unable to build on the damage he dealt.

As their ki meld wore off, and each warrior’s ki sprit became pure once more of their own ki, they found a stopping point.

Nero praised her, “I daresay your skills with the blade have exceeded even your own mother. A level of praise I never expected to give you in this life.”

Xenia laughed as she fixed her now disheveled ponytail, “I have always been a gifted sword user. But I have really embraced the practice since receiving BloodBane, a weapon as ferocious as me.” She stroked the hilt of the now inactivated sword and bloodbent it pinning it against her back once again.

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Nero looked to her once more, “When we return the Saber Fortress, it will be for you to meet with Empress Victoria and receive your armor from her. You will then take your leave alone and meditate in the warrior’s tents in the Saber Province grassy plains serving as the battlefield for you and Gregory.

She nodded silently, and Nero continued, “I suggest you meditate to hone the calm and focused warrior’s spirit we have trained with today. Pope Gregory is many things, and one of those things is a gifted warrior. If you do not hone your own warrior spirit, you will be at a disadvantage to him in that one regard.”

Xenia nodded once more and looked to Nero, “It is I who trains you most often. However, it is you who has imparted me with the most valuable lessons of the warrior. I have always had the skill and the talent, but I am learning to be a true warrior still. Thank you Nero.”

Nero said, “The warrior’s spirit is ultimately tempered on the battlefield through loss of comrades, through pain and defeat, and through mental suffering. Through experience in war. You are young. I am only imparting my own knowledge to you. The rest will come with your experience. And I believe you will one day become the ultimate warrior of our world. I am proud to play my part.”

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Within the Saber Fortress cathedral, Pope Gregory knelt at an altar of Christ the King. He had spent his entire life training, and instead of training for a few more hours or a few more days, he spent his time praying and mentally preparing.

He knelt with the God Sword in his hands as he blessed his blade and spoke to his God in an ancient tongue long since lost to time. Although gibberish to any observer or onlooker, his words rang out loudly within the cathedral, and they roughly translated to, “The hour of Christ approaches. A rare moment when I, the bridge between our worlds, will use my maximum power and call on all of your blessings. I request that you look over me as I face the demon walking amongst us. I pray for your assistance on the battlefield, and I pray that if my power on Earth is not enough that your power in heaven will aid me. Amen.”

As he finished his prayer, a blinding golden light appeared and shone down on him. The bright cylindrical formation of golden light appeared out of thin air as the cathedral roof overhead blocked the sky. The golden light of mysterious origin then vanished suddenly. Gregory was unsurprised by its appearance and seemed to welcome its power.

Gregory smiled, “Thank you my Lord. Thank you for being by my side as I battle the Earthly demons in your name.”

He then stood and grabbed the God Sword and retreated from the altar to sit at a pew within the empty church.

The door quietly opened behind him as he sat in silence and peace. A muscular man of similar age sat down next to him and said, “Not in the fields or forests training with me or Jacek, I see.”

Gregory smiled, “I have a lifetime of training under my belt including some of the biggest wars this world has ever seen. I have my God at my back. And I have a sacred sword in my hand. No, last minute training is for the unprepared and the unsure. That is not me.”

Jarek smiled back at him, “A very matter of fact approach my old friend.”

Gregory looked to him, “Come now, Jarek. My opponent is a young heir in her twenties. She is powerful, yes. But she lacks the experience and the wisdom of a true Master. You aren’t worried for the outcome of this battle are you?”

Jarek responded truthfully, “I am worried Gregory. I hate seeing my friends put their lives on the line. However, I know you do so to better the world and to save your son, Pope Peter. But I would also plead with you. Do not take her lightly. She is a BloodStar. Just like her mother. You remember facing off with her mother, Victoria, so many years ago don’t you? Well, Xenia is even more powerful than the young Victoria we faced.”

Gregory nodded, “As impressive a feat as that may be by the young BloodStar, the power needed to defeat someone of my stature is well beyond the youth of this world. Only time and hard work can allow someone to best me.”

Jarek sighed, “I hope you are right.” He then looked down and said, “All the same… if you lose… Pope Peter will remain within the BloodStar dungeons. I need to know who your next in line is. Is it Michael? Is there another?”

Gregory sternly said, “My next in line would be Pope Peter. Michael has been tasked with rescuing him should I fall. Do not worry, I have made my plans.”

Jarek sighed again, “You know as well as I do that Peter may take years or decades of both active military incursions and diplomatic meetings to be rescued from that dungeon. In the meantime, your loss would trigger the Fallen Contingency of the Great War Treaty. In that case, I need to know who in your family would have voting rights if we move forward in that direction after your death.”

Gregory maintained a stolid expression, “You think it could come to that? I hope to prove you wrong. Tomorrow I will show you why that question offends me.”

Jarek shook his head in agreement, “I do not intend to offend you Gregory, I only intend to cover all of our bases.”

Gregory looked to Jarek, “In that very dire and unlikely scenario you have laid out… St. Michael would be my voting heir. He isn’t much good at anything. He can’t lead a nation, and he can hardly lead an army. That is why it is imperative that I win tomorrow. My victory would mean my son back and the world safer.”

Jarek pat Gregory on the back, “I know you’ll win. As you say, you haven’t lived this long for no reason. You have the experience, the sword, the motivation, and you have your God at your back.”

Gregory nodded silently. Jarek then continued, “Just don’t underestimate Xenia is all I ask. Take it seriously from the very start. Finish it quickly. She is a BloodStar… a supremely talented one. That alone is enough to strike hard and strike fast. You don’t need my lecture obviously, so I will leave it at that.”

Gregory nodded, “I have it covered, Jarek. Lest you forget what happened in Houston.”

Jarek merely nodded although he knew much had changed since Houston. He then stood from the pew and left Gregory to his prayers and his thoughts alone in the church.

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