Nightmare Challenge: Mystical Towers and that stuff

Job:

All right! So the plan is to return back to the tower where we met the sunny dumbasses. There is apparently some Lacrima in there that should not be there. Once we destroy them, we will be able to fight whoever caused it. Ignite would explain, her fist slamming down onto Elyx's office desk right in front of him, the paper around the fist gently gliding away as they tapped the ground. The ones under her fist, including the job paper itself, would be heavily wrinkled due to the amounts of force placed in her excited punch. The young mage in turn would tilt his head to the side. That is not a plan you idiot. You are simply restating the job. Now an actual plan would be to use attacks that attack multiple targets at once. Admittedly, it will be costly since it could damage the tower, but those Lacrimas will cause a lot more harm. It seems like the job demands sacrifice. Elyx would explain, placing his palm over Ignites fist before lifting it up and off of the job request presented to them. His light brown eyes would continue to scan the paper, blah blah blah large seal, blah blah blah harmless lacrima. What did interest him though was how the source of the Lacrima acted before the Lacrimas could be damaged, since there are 33 and still are at this moment. Whoever or whatever was behind this clearly did not welcome attackers. There were two possibilities for this. One could be the big sudden reveal of the source, as it pounced onto them and strike down the mages with one swoop. The second and more likely explanation would be traps, lurking everywhere, possibly in the Lacrimas themselves. The job claimed that there was no harm in the Lacrimas. And that claim was probably wrong.

All right, lets depart. We're off to the Mystic Tower. Elyx would explain before standing up, palms against his desk before he'd head towards the door of his office. Soon, he'd walk towards the end of the Guild Hall with a smile on his face, thinking of the possibilities that this job might provide. It sounded fun, dangerous surely, but compared to what at this point anymore? Ignite would follow up right behind him with her palms placed against the back of her head, her red hair acting as a barrier. For once, her nose was not stuffed into a book about rifles. Good, even someone like her deserved to have a rest every once in a while. Soon, they'd depart from the guild before making their way to the tower at a walking pace. No need to rush anything by using Yuni, it had been a while since they went out together for a job. It was just their busy lives, so much to do nowadays. And with the recent attack that he had to endure, jobs such as these teach him to endure and prosper even while the odds are against him. Little did he know that biting off more than you can chew was something quite different than challenging yourself.

1/80

The Mystic Tower was the location where they had beaten the Sun Mages. But this was a different job, and the sheet of paper clearly stated that the ones who dare take it be aware that this was a one-hundred year job. With that being stated, those who take it must prepare to take away their current comfy lives to live out in some unknown area for days, weeks, possibly even months, just for the ability to finish the job. Elyx had done it in a few days, whoops. But regardless, it was not such a good idea to get cocky, though he had Ignite by his side, it was always the prideful who fall the hardest. Plus, who would dare help him back onto his feet if he was known for arrogance? Avoiding such a nasty trait, he'd think of the possible dangers of the job. For example, Lacrima often can be formed by whatever the user desires. And in this case, the source of the Lacrima has some cruel intentions if recent mages who took the job were unable to live by the end of it.

His body would shiver at the thought of getting caught off guard, forcing him to cringe in both first and second hand embarrassment as well as much pain that he will probably feel even more than the humiliation. Ignite on the other hand did not seem so worried. With her right fist balled into her left palm, she'd give her hand a nice tight crunch to let out an echoing series of bones being cracked. Though they were currently walking through a forest that lead them to the tower, Elyx still cringed at the cracking. Mainly because of all of the attention that it might cause to those who might want to have them dead. He did not need their blood on his clothes right before a job would begin. And of course, the She Phoenix would amplify the risk by being herself. We are going to wreck some fools! I call the one who is the source of all of this! She would announce before placing her victorious - surprisingly not cracked in half - right fist into the air.

Such an act earned her a palm to the mouth by the Wind Slayer, sealing her voice as the echoes traveled far into the air. Hopefully no one would catch onto the sound and follow them. If they did, well, it was too late to change things now. On the plus side, they were nearing the Mystic tower not too far from where they currently were located. Though they could be a bit more subtle, their destination was almost reached regardless. Perhaps Nimpha was following them, because that was a rather lucky break. Their steps muffled by the soft grass as they stepped, at least the sound of their steps will not alert enemies that they have moved. Such a shame that they had to think of this, provided things stayed quiet, they might have had peace of mind.

3/80

And so the duo would arrive with a not so dynamic entrance, just merely a couple of stragglers who just ended up being lucky enough to face ambush, despite their volume. The tower scaled quite well... Much bigger than the Sunny Tower, though Elyx could have sworn this was the exact location where the Sun mages were located. Then again, due to the previous three job results involving them, they might have been held for questioning, and if that were the case... They would definitely be locked up. Or more likely, they evacuated and moved elsewhere. That however would not explain why the Tower maintained an upgrade. What would however was the new power that was creating chaos in the building. It was a small theory, but their only lead. And learning from the previous fight that we had to endure... There are guards that want to put an end to us... He thought to himself oh so brightly. With a smirk now placed onto his face, his magic power would begin to flow, the darkness amplifying his body and speeding up the beating of his heart to give him a rush of energy. And so the both of them would begin to approach the tower.

Naturally, nothing ever went according to plan. In this case, they would hear a voice at the entrance of the tower. The voice was clearly that of a male, demanding entrance. A few pounds would follow after that, but no reply. Looking to investigate the scene, they'd lightly step as much as they could. As they neared the doors, they'd realized that being subtle was a smart move, the mage sense of the being trying to enter was on another level compared to the both of them. The She-Phoenix tilted her head to the side, her facial expression curious for reasons Elyx dare not bother trying to guess, just as long as she did nothing stupid. But of course, she had some sort of comment to say. Turning her head to the Wind Slayer, she'd keep her voice down. I know this guy, read about him. Recent god of Ishval number one. He's known everywhere and the papers won't talk about him for the last few weeks. The She-Phoenix explained. However, Elyx was not so quick to believe since he did not update himself on this sort of thing. How would you know? This may just be some regular man.

Shaking her head to the side with disapproval, she'd place all of her weight in her steps again. Media does not lie about this sort of thing. There is no mistake that it is him, who else would have the strength to scale the tower and clear the threat? And just like that, the Wind Slayer took a little offense, since he thought that he himself could have done it. But regardless, he would trust Ignite on this one and follow right behind her. Hey there, trying to find a way in? Ignite would ask the man from behind him, if he did not notice their presence already that is.

5/80

Witnessing a few swift slices, since their awareness allowed them to see that quickly, it seemed like the attempts were futile due to the doors standing up without budging. But as seconds passed by, the latches could be heard disarming as the set of doors fell onto their sides, granting entrance to all those who find it. Whoever or whatever was behind the door and in the tower most likely was aware of their presence now, but to try attacking in broad daylight was just asking to make their job easier. Ignite's purple eyes locked onto the set of double doors that were onto the ground, her pupil's shrinking down heavily at the sight. The She-Phoenix was prepared to ball up a huge swarm of fire in her palms, but that never had such accuracy and would have made a mess of the doors. While the question that the man still lingered in the air, the young mage would take the question. His right hand slipped into his pocket before revealing a slightly less wrinkled version of the job folded twice, creating four rectangles once it was unfolded. This job is dangerous, and that is why we are here. To prevent the death of any more mages on this mission. Elyx would explain. His available left hand would scratch the back of his head. As for any reason why I think we would be successful when many mages of my level had failed... I'll be honest, I didn't think of one. I'm relying mainly on intellect on this... And a bit of luck.

And just like that, Ignite took the wheel, shifting her eyes back onto the Wizard Saint. As for you, who needs luck when you practically shove any being out of the way? I don't think I have met a mage of such power! Well, maybe Ignite had not, but there was one that the Wind Slayer could think of. The Celestial Spirit identified himself as Zack Rose, the one responsible for destroying his first house, paying the funds to rebuild a new one, and in the end befriended him. If these two stood side by side, he would wonder who would win in a one on one battle. But such a think might possibly only be a dream match. This was reality. And reality suggested that they analyzed the inside of the tower. Do you know anything outside of what this piece of paper offered? Elyx would ask, placing the slip of paper out towards the man, not knowing if he had his own copy or not. It would explain why he was here, but the Wizard Saint might have just heard about it without knowing that it was a job. Oh the possibilities.

Also, what else can you do? The She-Phoenix would ask, tilting her head to the side. It would make Elyx chuckle a bit, this was her first time meeting someone that was most likely a celebrity. It was like that other job that he had when they met Enola, who gave him the same amount of attention that Ignite gave this man.

7/80

Receiving the answer that he did, he'd return the sheet of paper back into his right pocket, his facial expression neutral. Whoever this guy was, he clearly did not play around. Good, because on One-Hundred Year jobs, that was the easiest way to have your blood painted on the walls, underestimating the power of the monsters and opponents you must face off against. If the Magic Council said it was that powerful, don't act all high and might above it. Client, hm? Elyx would question. The client who wrote the job application down went to a mage, according to Ignite, a very popular and strong one. It would make sense to call upon that mage this were an urgent job. Plus, considering whoever the client was probably heard of the wizards getting taken down by the source of all the chaos, it was likely that he or she became desperate and searched up the ladder. Still, there was nothing to be done with all of the fliers out, hence why Elyx and Ignite were here. As for any data, I have nothing confirmed. But using reasoning and previous experience, there are most likely traps in here... Sadly, I am unable to locate any of them with my current sensing. A bit of shame in his tone. To think that he had Bounty Hunting down pat, but even he still had a bit more to work on. For shame.

A sudden blade would be pointed towards them, not really targeting either of them. The words emitted from the mans lips were cold, but he was trying to be as honest as he can. Elyx would return a similar response, lifting his right palm as it faced the ceiling. A spinning sphere of wind would form above it, the air around it vibrating with much intensity to be felt. Concern yourself with your own health, we will concern ourselves with ours. You have a client to return to and we have a job to clear for that client. With three, we'll cover more ground since the Lacrima are scattered. He'd explain before letting the sphere die down within a second, then his palm would return back down to his side. Ignite closed her eyes and tilted her head to the side, her lips in a smile. Only the She-Phoenix would smile during a time like this. The first action was to do recon, preferably on a lacrima. If they familiarize themselves with one of them, maybe they would give clues as to their behaviors and maybe where even the rest of them would be located. It was an okay plan, though there were plenty of holes, and there was no clear end goal either. It seemed more like a shot in the dark. We'll have to locate one of the Lacrima first, care to lead the way? The Wind Slayer would ask, placing his hands in his pocket. Maybe this guy could sniff them out better than he can if Ignite gave him so much credit.

9/80

Once the group entered, the doors would repair themselves instantly as the third of the group, Ignite, took her last step off of the outside world and into the tower. Whatever was causing this knew of their presence, a preemptive strike was being declared by their opponent. The man would give his order to duck, a proper evasive action that both the Wind Slayer and the She Phoenix would gladly acknowledge. Bending their knees quickly, they would catch a bit of wind from one of the flying Lacrima. With a snarl on her face, Ignite would place both palms outwards, flames forming out in front of each of them. This brought light to the scene, so that the party could see a little bit better. The enemy already had their attention on them, though the light was very obvious to probably every being in the tower, those beings probably knew of their existence already, hence why the Lacrimas would attack them. Ready to take her anger out on the spheres, she'd snarl as her purple eyes glared at one of the targets. Placing both palms out towards it, and a beam of fire would fire at it. Though it did not move, upon impact, it did not seem to move either. Still, the fact that her fire had been taken without burning the target to ashes caused her to step back, very much unpleased with the result. Their magic resistance is high. It would fire towards her to return the favor, and at its speed, that was not going to have such a happy ending. Her purple eyes would raise, full well knowing that she was unable to even react, her awareness and speed were not too keen, she was more of a hard hitter. Towers and tanks don't focus on evasion much, thus, creating this unfortunate scenario.

Fortunately, Elyx had her covered as a sudden leap from him would cut in between the She Phoenix and the Lacrima. His palm with a spinning ball of wind, as he pressed that sphere against the lacrima to create severe amount of impact. However, with the strength of an Artifact against the strength of his signature spell, the Lacrima would be fired back in the opposite direction, crashing to the wall of the tower before shattering. It took a lot more magic than he thought was necessary, they they not even climb too high up the tower yet and already the Wind Slayer used his magic. It was a very good call to work alongside the man, who can cover them while they recover their energy. Though he probably would not do that on purpose, Elyx can find a way to make it happen. That was one Lacrima down... Who even knows how many more there are left? These Lacrima are a lot stronger than we think, they don't go down so quickly. Ignite normally can take things down on her own with one shot. Not only did she not do it, but the Lacrima was able to counter. He'd explain, not realizing the possible danger around him. There was more than just that one.

11/80

Is that pathetic power the most that you could display? Elyx's voice would ask towards the man. However, those words did not arrive from his lips at all. Ignite seemed to think otherwise, he head turning over towards the real version of him, and for good reason as well. She would hiss at him next next retort from her. Idiot, what the hell are you talking about? Do I have to strangle you? She would ask, however, after giving him a good look into his eyes, she would realize that he was not all there. The Wind Slayer instead was focusing on where that voice came from. His ears remained sharp, as the first time he heard a perfectly matching voice of his echoing throughout the tower. What's the matter Lerale Magician? Did your own music make you deaf? And that caused Ignite to turn her head around. That voice did not belong to her either. A snarl was placed onto her face as her purple eyes glowed. They both had a decent amount of information to work with. This was either some sort of illusion, or there was something that had the ability to clone their voices. Both were very impressive, but hopefully it was the latter. The real Elyx would let out his own reply towards whoever or whatever was causing this. Come out of the shadows then, if you believe the power of this man is not worthy of your attention! The Wind Slayer would announce, subtly acknowledging that the man that was working alongside them had impressive power. To eliminate so many lacrima all at once, that was beyond amazing.

Without warning, a slice from above from a similarly looking blade to Bound Iris would strike down, forcing the real Wind Slayer to jump backwards, flipping back one time before sliding as his feet hit the ground. Snarling, his light brown eyes would look back upwards towards the enemy who struck down onto him. However, those same eyes would be staring right back at him. The physical appearance of this person, same looks exactly. The jacket, the jeans, the handkerchief, even Bound Iris, they were all the same. The spiky hair that most people were able to identify him by, it matched his own exactly the same. The only real difference for one to identify them by was the colors, but in the shadows where only the flames of Ignite can shine, it would be hard to tell the difference between them. No way... Care to dance with me, Lerale Magician? The resembling Elyx would ask.

Ignite in the meantime stepped back in much surprise, how would she be able to tell the difference between the real and fake Elyx? Sure, she knew which one was which as of currently, but once they lock into battle, their bodies will look like blurs and eventually, she would get lost and confused. Yeah, I see your problem there. Such a shame, eh? A similar sounding Ignite voice would ask from behind, and a sudden palm would be placed onto her shoulder. Shuttering and reacting on instinct alone, the real She Phoenix would attempt to elbow the one who had her voice, but that Elbow ended up meeting the palm of a cloning version of her. The only real difference was that the fake was smiling, in that creepy doll sort of way. Were you not concerned a few seconds for the Lerale Magician? And now you can't even tell which one is which now, you turned around, you lost track. A taunt from the doppelganger as the both of them would jump back, facing each other now as they both began to mentally prepare themselves for battle. Ignite and Elyx would be standing right next to each other, the both of them with their own paired versions of each other. The real ones could not tell each other apart, not with this dim lighting, and their best hope would be that they just got lucky and their partner ending up being with the right version of them.

And now, the battle would begin. The doppelganger Elyx slashing Ignite, the pairing was incorrect after all. This caused the She Phoenix to clench her teeth as she jumped back, both of her palms filled with orange flames. Witnessing that moment, the real version of him would be given time to block an incoming disguised regular punch by grabbing the fake Ignite's fist. In return, he'd breathe in quickly to compress air into his body. Sky Deity... And thus the words announced allowed him to cast a spell. Attempting to free herself from his hold onto her hand, she would aim to jump and kick him. But before her foot could reach his cheek, his breath would release as his voice boomed all throughout the tower. BELLOWS! A giant spinning cyclone of wind would emit from his mouth, sending her flying away in the violently spinning winds. The severity of the winds cut into her deeply since this was one of his most powerful spells, and it was normally used to wipe out mass armies. For it to be used onto one being alone, it was rather reckless, but that was how the Sky Deity went to war, it did not care to play safe and by the rules. It played to win, which was perfect for the rules of a fight. The goal was not to play fair, it was to put your life onto the line and the winner takes all.

Ignite and the fake Elyx would stare at each other, one with a smile and one with a furious look, her clenched teeth almost at their breaking point. How she would love to rip her knuckles into his skin, and now here was her chance. Provided that the real version of him was able to distract her counterpart, she could exploit his every weakness. If this were truly a version of him, he'd fear things such as water. Being made of fire however, that was going to be hard to locate. Was there possibly a way to create her own water? If there was, she had not found it yet. But she will now, her life depended on it.

Dance with me Phoenix, match my movements, so we can dance until the end of time! The fake Elyx would exclaim, the winds around her intensifying for she then had an idea. There was a half chance that it might work, but to fuel off of his flames was her only hope. Since wind had oxygen, even magic wind, and fire was reliant on it, she could make his wind her flames. It was worth a shot, the real Ignite would jump back as the fake Wind Slayer breathed in to compress air into his lungs, and then he released a giant spiral of violently spinning winds at her. Now was her chance. Placing her palms up, she would try to convert the wind into a fire cyclone, attempting to redirect the attack towards him, depleting a bit of his own magic as well as inflicting some damage onto him. However, once she actually attempted it, the winds were still there, and cut through her with such intensity since she did not brace for the attack, and the knockback would slam her against the wall of the tower. The cloned version of the Wind Slayer would only smirk as this occurred, it was apparently funny for him. You dumb Phoenix, you do not know about a Sky Deity's Magic Resistance, your flames at your level could never consume my winds! He would announce so cockily, caused the She Phoenix to snarl as she shook back up onto her feet, that was a damning impact to take. Now she understood why the real version of Elyx thought that many underestimated him for his looks, his spells did pack one hell of a punch.

The real version of Elyx would look at the opposing Ignite, who seemed rather surprised to be on the losing end of things. The Wind Slayer was just too versatile for her, he was able to read her and counter her every move accordingly. Unless she thought of a way around that, there was no way that she could win against him. Still though, she shared the real She Phoenix's personality, thus causing her to charge at him with two palms of flames in her hands, the color purple instead of the regular orange or red that Ignite had. Maybe that was going to be the sign to tell the difference between what was real and what was fake. She aimed to strike at him with the right palm towards the head, in which he moved his body to the side, returning the attack by pressing his own palm against her stomach, pumping a sphere of wind from it into her stomach before blowing her away and slamming her against the wall with major knockback. However, unlike the previous Ignite, her feet hit against the wall before she fall back onto them, a bit more graceful than the real one. However, seeing as both were against the walls, and the original had already gotten up, the original She Phoenix would quickly strike at the cheek of the doppelganger and knocking her to the ground. The battle was a teeter-totter.

16/80

Elyx Health: 100%
Ignite Health: 215/450

Doppelganger Elyx: 100%
Doppelganger Ignite: 205/450

The cloned Wind Slayer would attempt to save the She Phoenix counterpart by emitting white colored winds towards the real Ignite, trying to press her against the wall again. The real version of him however would prevent this by activating another of his higher ranked spells, which admittedly was beginning to take a toll onto him since he was using a hefty amount of magic power. A Tornado of wind without a cone like shape, but a cylinder shape, would launch out towards the doppelganger with the black jacket. The fake Elyx however jumped away from the attack by doing some sort of cartwheel flip motion off towards the side. Now it was a mirror battle between the both of them, but already the real one had a plan. Not everything about him could be matched, there was one unique attribute that the clone could not have. With a smirk on his face, the real Wind Slayer would lock his eyes onto that of his opponents. Tell me something, do you think you are able to match everything I do? The original Elyx would ask, having a smirk returned to him from his opponent. It seems like his answer was found, and the both of them would quickly draw out a Celestial Spirit key from their pouches. If you really had my knowledge, you would know that something like that for you is futile. Celestial Spirits require contracts before they are summoned, and you were about about a few minutes ago. And... There is only one Celestial Spirit that can be summoned, there can't be two Virgos. Regardless... Due to your lack of contracts...

The doppelganger Ignite would try to smack the key from his grip so suddenly, only to have the real one grip the fake ones wrist. It's not very polite to interrupt them you know! The original She Phoenix would announce before filling the opponents wrist with her deadly orange flames, the burning sensation traveling up the cloned Ignite's veins, launching her back and away from the grip, severe damage had been inflicted, would the opponent stand back onto their feet? The advantage was finally growing for the ones who were original.

You are unable to summon any spirits! I open the gate of the Celestial Spirit Maiden, come forth, Virgo! A white light would emit from the tip of the key as he sliced down. The clone repeated the chant in an attempt to trigger his key, but no contract had been made between him and the maiden, and the real Elyx was the one to call her out first. The maiden would reveal herself with her right palm over the left, formal as usual, though the chains kind of ruined that formal attire. Due to the effect of Celestial Fire, the other Elyx and Ignite would both suffer even more damage, and that was without the maiden attacking yet. The cloned Wind Slayer would step back, snarling as his plan had failed him. Damn you... Playing the numbers game! He would exclaim, showing that their plan was working.

18/80

Elyx Health: 100%
Ignite Health: 215/450
Virgo: 100% 1/10

Doppelganger Elyx: 100%
Doppelganger Ignite: 125/450

With a smile on his face, he would look at the opposing clone that stood in front of him. They did not seem like the type to have such a tense moment while mirroring each other. Elyx thought that if he ever met a clone of himself, they would get along rather well together since they were able to understand each other. Well, they most certainly did, but looking at their current state, he could have not been any more incorrect. Virgo would bow her head formally before looking to the original Elyx, being able to differentiate them quickly using their colors. What would you like for me to do for you, master? The Celestial Maiden would ask with a neutral facial expression of her face. This time, he did not mind having her call him that, since she did not ask anything embarrassing, like when he was with Ven in the King of Fighters tournament and she asked him something along the lines of "Is it time for punishment, master?" That almost got him gripped by the throat by the Flame Slayer, and he could not blame her for it either. Elyx would smile before pointing towards the opposing version of the wind Slayer. We need to take care of this clown right here, you see. Think you could handle that? The Wind Slayer would ask, Virgo nodding her head before extending her chains all the way to their 30 meter distance, the wrist chains now being weapons. The fake Elyx would step back, snarling before unsheathing the fake Bound Iris that he had, preparing himself for the Celestial Maiden. That was a bad move, Virgo did not just have the chains up her sleeve. Due to the effect of Celestial Fire, the other Elyx as well as the fake Ignite would flinch as another burning sensation occurred and traveled through their body.

The cloned Ignite would fall onto her back, the energy being sucked out of her too much, and since she did not have too many damage resistance, it would be expected that she fell onto the ground. The differences in this battle was the Celestial Spirits, especially with the passive ability of Celestial Fire. The real one would look down at her from above, the domination She Phoenix in this battle. The one on the ground would snarl as she hissed a taunting comment at the real one. Relying on those damned spirits because you can't do anything on your own. Look at you so smug, acting like you are anything because you are standing there. This would be the other way around if yo- And so the real one would step onto the throat of the one that was one the ground, preventing any more words to emit from the fake ones lips. Looking down at her with her purple eyes, she would let out a smart remark before pressing down, ending the battle. You rely on my ability as a Phoenix bird to fight, your existence means nothing. You are the last one in existence to be giving me such an attitude. And with that, the pressure on her foot amplified, a crackle of the neck of the fake Ignite showing that one of the clones had been defeated.

20/80

Elyx Health: 100%
Ignite Health: 215/450
Virgo: 100% 2/10

Doppelganger Elyx: 400/500 (Celestial Fire)
Doppelganger Ignite: Defeated

That downed one of them, but there was another one that still needed to be handled. Virgo would begin the battle by drilling into the ground. Elyx in the meantime would charge towards the opponent, planning to distract him by using Bound Iris. The fake would block the first slash to the right before pushing forward his body, locking the right foot to the ground before shattering the ground all around them within 50 meters, knocking Virgo up into the air in return, knocking her before he body would flip, since she would not land on her back while she was this active, that was the first amount of damage that she had taken from this fight. Ignite would take advantage, already having a palm cut into the fake version of Ignite, the palm of fire burning in the enemy before launching him into the air. In return however, he would flip back to normal using Air Step, preventing him from flying away any further. Pulling out his own Bound Iris from his sheathe, the cloned Elyx would extend it forward before a huge wad of dark magic would extend the blades length, the distance created by the magic was so large. It was 150 meters of pure devastation, he was able to hit them all with it if he felt like. And knowing the enemy, he most probably did. Elyx could have done the same thing if he wanted to, but her feared that he would hit the allies with him as well as his enemy. And it was not worth it. Meanwhile, the cloned version of him had no nearby allies, meaning that no matter who he hit, it was an enemy. Getting close to him was going to be an adventure on its own, but it was not quite impossible either. The numbers game was still on their side, all they had to do was take advantage of the numbers and work together. A lot easier said than done, but still possible.

The She Phoenix would start by running, earning her a side slash with the newly made blade of dark magic. Elyx and Virgo would launch their bodies into the air to avoid the attack before the Celestial Sprit Maiden would slash her chains downwards onto the fake Elyx, who was able to block using the giant weapon. Once that occurred, the real Wind Slayer would fire a spear of wind magic from his palm, aiming to pierce the opponent. However, it was not that easy to hit an opponent who had their speed boosted using the effect of Air Step, thus resulting in a miss when attempting to hit the moving target, the spear did not change directions. Ignite was able to cover a bit more ground, firing a chain of flames towards the opponent. However, those flames meant nothing to the dark magic as once again they were blocked, resulting in nothing in the end. They were slowly by surely getting close, both were emphasized when being said.

22/80

Elyx Health: 100%
Ignite Health: 215/450
Virgo: 390/450 3/10

Doppelganger Elyx: 350/500 (Celestial Fire)

The battle of the extended Bound Iris clone against the three regular opponents, the Celestial Spirit Maiden, the She Phoenix, and the Sky Deity Slayer, as they continued to charge towards their opponent. The cloned version of Elyx would smirk as he would quickly emit the "Champion Flow" effect from his body, which caused a massive amount of wind to transfer from the clones body throughout the room. It was a violent wind for any average human, but to them it would feel like a light breeze. The real one could do the same thing, but he was not lacking the magic power to execute the ability yet, so he would not do such a thing. Ignite would be the first one to execute an attack trying to get the clone from the left side, only for her fistful of flames to be denied by the extended blade of the clone, launching her away from him, causing severe damage onto her once again. Her back was slammed against the wall, forcing her back to slide down the wall, it was unfortunate, but there was no time to focus on that right now. Virgo would dig in the ground once again, trying to sneak her way behind the clone. The spell that he had used before to break the ground was still in its cooldown, it would take a while before it was allowed to return, and knowing that alone give the Celestial Spirit Maiden a chance. Finally, she would appear from behind the clone, both of the chains up right behind her back, all she would have to do was slam them onto the enemy and cause critical amounts of damage onto him. A perfect opportunity, only... That was what it seemed like at least.

A sudden adrenaline rush would shoot through the bodies of both Elyx's, without any explanation of why, but he felt so much stronger than he previously was. The cloned version of him would suddenly block both of the chain whips as they struck, then pushed out to clear the Celestial Spirit from his sights. Meanwhile however, while he was distracted with Virgo, the real Elyx would strike his opponent with his own Bound Iris blade, sending him back against the walls, but not with as much impact as before. The defenses seemed to have improved, the both of them obtained the boost. But only the both of them... Meaning... Just the thought of it made him chuckle. Did he not tell the man to worry about his own health, while he was looking over his own? It did not matter though, this assist given to him was plenty of help, so just this once, he will let something so trivial go. Now it was time to test out his new strength. his opponent seemed to know what was going on, being the clone and all, it was likely that they were able to mirror their thoughts with each other and the originals. But regardless, that did not stop the clone from losing this battle, and the real Wind Slayer planned to keep it that way.

24/80

Lets keep dancing, now that you are focused on me and me only now! Elyx, the real one, would announce before the other one would snarl at him. The both of them locked eyes with each other before then leaping out towards each other. Naturally, the clone version of him would slice to the side since, well, he had a good 150 meter blade in his grip. This made Elyx jump into the air to avoid the attack, and in return, he would place both of his palms outwards towards his opponent, a smile on his face as a circle would open in front of him. Once it opened, a barrage of wind chains would launch out towards his opponent, who could only evade unless he dared try to block the attacks with that heavy weapon. So making the rational decision, the other Wind Slayer would roll out of the way from the first few chains. The next few were still chasing him, forcing him to run only before returning the chains with a sudden Sky Deity Bellows launched out towards the chains of dark wind. It sure did end them, but that was all that it did, it did not mean to aim for the real Elyx, who was still on the run around, slowly gaining some ground against his opponent. Now that he was not outnumbered anymore however, the clone was able to focus on the real Sky Slayer, being able to raise the Bound Iris blade up into the air before slicing it downwards onto his opponent. It was a nice move, being so aware that he could raise the blade quickly, aim it even quicker, and slice it down quickest. It would have been a nice tale to tell to say that the original Elyx did avoid the attack, but that was not reality, and all he could do was take the damage inflicted to him.

Being launched back from the attack, the real Sky Slayer would snarl from the damage inflicted onto him. He forgot that his own weapon was able too inflict severe damage. However, he was also able to inflict that much damage with his own, maybe he should try to do the same thing as his opponent... wait, that was the whole point. That was what the other version of Elyx wanted to do, match the both of them together. There had to be some sort of bonus to his abilities that make him stronger, and if there is nothing else different, then it seems like there is only one option... To keep fighting this way and be as different as he could from his opponent. From there, he would be a lot less predictable, seems like there were going to have to be a few tricks involved, it has been quite a while since Elyx had done this... But... He was going to have to plan his actual moves out to outsmart his opponent. Oh how he thought he would have to see such a day..

Elyx Health: 375/500
Ignite Health: 90/450
Virgo: 265/450 5/10

Doppelganger Elyx: 300/500 (Celestial Fire)

26/80