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257. Sword Talking
257. Sword Talking
Ike leaped forward, and this time, the sword didn't fight him or struggle toward the axes. It obeyed his command, moving almost as neatly as his old sword had. Unlike his old sword, he felt a sense of togetherness with this sword, a real feeling of cooperation. This sword was a partner, not just a weapon.
Strangely, there was a sense of darkness to the sword. Something cold and unpleasant, that he wasn't fond of. But then, it had been held by a rude old man until recently. Maybe it'd picked it up from him. As long as I overwrite that darkness with cooperation, we should be fine. It's just an undercurrent, so it probably isn't anything to worry too much about.
Besides, it was just a sword. If it became too troublesome, he'd just throw it aside. He put his thoughts to the back of his mind and kept fighting. Weakened by the flames, the monsters were relatively easy to cut down. It kept them from fighting harder than the previous round of monsters. Without the flames Wisp was coaxing out and teasing around them, they'd be nightmarishly difficult to destroy or control. Instead, they were only difficult to handle.
Ike twisted his lips. I'm not sure I can entrust them to Rufus' team. We might have to keep fighting when Rufus' men take the field, but just fight less hard. It's not the difference between running and resting, but it's at least the difference between sprinting and jogging. It wasn't the best situation, but it was better than nothing. Then again, maybe the next castle would fall before that happened, and they'd be able to put both B Teams on one big B Team.
Not that I'm hoping for another castle to fall… but I kind of am. After all, Rufus' team had failed the previous round, fighting on their own. They'd had the old guy with them, but for all that he was an asshole who couldn't find his rear with both hands, given that he'd decided it was on his head to begin with, he'd probably fought as part of Rufus' fighting forces. Killing the old man had kept him from continuing to whisper stupid plans in Rufus' ear, but Rufus and his men were also just weak. Not only that, but one of Rufus' remaining men was injured. It left Rufus with four men total, and three of them in fighting fit, better than Ike's fighting force of two-and-a-half, but Ike wasn't at all convinced that Rufus' three could hold up to his two.
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An axe hurtled down at him, startling him out of his thoughts. Ike threw his sword up over him, bracing the blade with his other hand. The axe smashed into the Hungry Sword, and came away with a deep nick in it. At the same time, the force pushed the Hungry Sword's infinitely bladed surface into Ike's palm. Blood ran freely, all the way down to his elbow. Ike grimaced against the pain and instantly pushed aether into his Body Reforging Art to compensate for the injury.
The wound healed, but the Body Reforging Art kept going. The axe lifted away, freeing Ike to look at his palm. The skin of his palm had grown back, but there was a faint metallic sheen to it. He touched it, and felt cold metal, but when he moved his palm, the metal moved with him. What the…
The metal sheen faded away. His hand went back to being normal. Ike frowned. Forcibly, he pushed aether into his palm, trying to activate the metal sheen again. It took him a moment to remember how the aether had flowed, but then it clicked, and a metal sheen appeared on his palm again. Carefully, he pressed the metallic part of his hand against the Hungry Sword.
The blades clattered, as if on metal. They still cut his hand, but less deeply than before.
"It seems I've been neglecting something important," Ike muttered. The Body Reforging Art wasn't just a healing technique, nor a technique limited to full-body reforges. He could reforge parts of his body, too. His hands, his feet, any part of him.
The monster raised its axe again, determined to slam Ike into the ground. Ike went to run, then stopped. He lifted his sword again, bracing it with his hand once more. The Body Reforging Art had activated under these exact circumstances. If he stood here and let the monster keep beating on him, would it keep activating?
Whoosh! The axe swung. Metal clattered on metal. The Hungry Sword purred, all its blades trembling. It cut into his metal palm again, and he activated the Body Reforging Art again.
Once more, that secondary effect kicked off. Like tempering steel, his hand grew stronger with every blow. Ike braced himself and stood there, sword raised, waiting for the monster to strike again.
"You okay, Ike?" Wisp shouted.
"Never been better!" Ike shouted back.
She pursed her lips and threw her hands up. "If you say so! I guess I'll shout if I need help, huh?"
"You do that!"
Ktang! Axe met sword. Over and over. Ike's hand grew stronger, and the Hungry Sword took bites out of the axe. At last, frustrated with the first monster's incompetence, a second monster pushed it aside. It raised its axe, and so did the first.
I wonder… Ike released the hilt of his sword and clung to the blade with both hands. The monsters hammered down on him, and the Body Reforging Art activated—this time on both hands.
Over and over. Three monsters, then four, then five, until Ike was completely surrounded and the axe blows resounded unendingly. His arms trembled. His core ached. His legs bent slightly. The ground beneath him gave way, sinking into the surrounding earth. Two deep footprints stood out in the dirt where his feet were slowly pummeled deeper. The Hungry Sword rumbled in happiness, biting deep into the axes. Ike clenched his teeth and braced himself, letting the blows forge his metal hands. From a metal sheen, to a metal coating, until his palms seemed to be entirely made of metal.
Ike held out, hoping for more, but it seemed like that was as far as this level of force could take him. A vague sense of disappointment flowed over him, but then, he knew he couldn't handle much more than this right now. Not if he wanted to continue fighting afterward.
He waited, counting the blows. Five, six, seven—here it is! The break! Kicking out of the holes his feet had dug in the earth, Ike dashed to the side. The next axe struck earth instead of him. The monster tilted its head, then looked up. Their eyes met.
Ike tossed the Hungry Sword to his main hand and charged in. He smiled. "Thanks for your help! Now die."