Chapter 19: The Spear that Knits the Sky

Ulex was considering who to fight. He had more confidence fighting Gemsparkle. G Slayer was clearly more experienced, and was called G Slayer. He had a gargoyle head for a shield! Ulex winced as he made the mistake of looking at the horrific monstrosity. In comparison Gemsparkle was well… her name was Gemsparkle, what kind of name was that for a warrioress?

“Huh? Where Chacha?” Spongy asked, glancing around.

“Oh, it ran off, I’m not sure how you expected that it wouldn’t old boy” Waufronk explained.

This derailed Ulex’s already mostly useless train of thought. Right over a cliff. The creature that had caused it all wasn’t even around anymore. He wasn’t surprised that the chahat fled though. A being like that usually leaves after getting what it wants. In this case, it had quite successfully gotten the goadskulls to stop chasing it.

“Don’t worry Mr. Snaps , there’s plenty more vile natured furry beasts in the forest, actually… I could let you hold a chomper. I’ve a very fuzzy one I sometimes use as a pillow after subduing. It only sometimes bites”

As Waufronk tried to save Spongy from a fate of being chewed, Ulex attempted to collect his thoughts and come a decision. He could not however stop dwelling on how much of a waste of time the whole encounter was, or how Gemsparkle was called what she was called.

Lady Joykill was a much better name than Gemsparkle, if a trifle unfortunate. Ulex did not know, but Gemsparkle was quite aware of the difference, painfully so in fact. What made it worse for her was that while she seethed with envy and resentment towards Lady Joykill… the lady herself didn’t even think about her that much at all.

Gemsparkle would have challenged her to a duel before now, but she was afraid that if she fought Lady Joykill, she’d find out how she felt about her. While Gemsparkle was stewing in her old jealousy, G Slayer stepped forth. Gemsparkle almost missed that.

“Hey! Just what do you think you are doing!?” Gemsparkle accused.

G Slayer slanted his head and even shook it.

“Look at the size of that carrot, girl! You ever fought a carrot that big? There’s no way he’ll choose you, I’m clearly the better fighter and a man like that, he’d want to fight the best, to learn the best. It just wouldn’t be honourable of him to fight you. I mean, that’d be picking on the weak!”

“I’m not weak!” Gemsparkle objected.

“You are compared to me”

Gemsparkle could not refute this. She knew just how powerful G Slayer was and she wasn’t nearly steeped in enough envy and pride to pretend she was stronger. So, instead of saying anything else, she just harrumphed and pouted.

“Sorry about that lad. We can have a good proper fight right? Who knows, since this is a friendly match, it’ll be like a spar, you’ll learn a lot!” G Slayer said

There was no reply. Ulex was trying very hard to not show a pained expression on his face.

He had actually, before G Slayer stepped up, decided to fight Gemsparkle. After all, since the fight was pointless and the chahat had fled, he just wanted to get it over with. He wasn’t a battle-lover like Spongy after all. He had almost called out her name too. His carrot skin wasn’t nearly thick enough to call her out after what G Slayer said. That and the old warrior wasn’t completely wrong. It wasn’t a bad idea to learn a bit, and wouldn’t he learn more fighting a stronger opponent?

“Hahaha! Just right, the one I challenge is none other than you, G Slayer!” Ulex declared, wishing vaguely that he wasn’t.

Trying very hard not to snicker, G Slayer gave a bow and saluted Ulex with his needle-like spear.

“G Slayer accepts your challenge graciously!” he said.

-haha, yes, this old man has tricked another innocent fresh chicky, I got the feeling he was going to choose Gemsparkle, and now that look on his face! Hahaha! This fight is all mine!- he thought.

Had Ulex been able to hear the thoughts of G Slayer, he’d have been a bit bothered. As it was Lady Joykill began coughing and spluttering so hard that she needed a drink, except that all of their waterskins had mysteriously become empty. The goadskulls were quite spooked by this, and quite sad, as the skins had actually contained the wondrous sustaining honey drink, had a certain sweet-toothed thief struck again? Mad Cackle-Tackle performed a charitable act by tossing Joykill into a pond he had found earlier when everyone was playing the hunt simulation game. G Slayer and Ulex were decent enough not to start before Joykill returned.

As soon as she returned however… G Slayer struck without a word! A plain and pure thrust!

Ulex fell back, stumbling a rolling to avoid the strike, as it was, he lost some leaf from his carrot top.

“H-Hey what happened to a friendly spar!” Ulex objected.

G Slayer smiled. The smile of a goadskull is a particularly unpleasant thing, since normally their mouth cannot be seen, so when they open it… well it is as if a pit ringed with teeth appears.

“This is me being friendly! It is a spar, now, get up…”

One step counting for several, and G Slayer was before Ulex, spear descending.

“…and fight!”

Panicking a bit, Ulex flexed his muscles, and they shone, blinding G Slayer, and turning his spear aside.

“You want a fight! Well, I’ll give you a fight! I’m a buff mage, so I’ll buff! I’ll buff the ground into a golem!”

–Hahaha, this old man has once again tricked another innocent fresh chicky! His spirit wasn’t in this but now I’ve stirred him up, I’ll get a good fight!”

G Slayer slowly approached as Ulex posed with his arms clenched and curled at right angles. His muscles clenched and took on an earthy hue. One step counting for several, G Slayer appeared right before him, but as he did so, the soil rumbled and something arose and smacked right into his chin!

Rolling back to his feet and placing his shield before him, G Slayer got a good look at what had hit him.

It was a statue.

A statue of packed earth of Ulex’s packed form. An image of a carrot made of soil!

Ulex’s body was writhing at this stage, each and every muscle twitching and glowing with earthen light! He slowly closed his eyes and let loose a long breath, sending steam flowing out his mouth! As he closed his eyes, the eyes of the soil golem opened! Ulex brought his fists together and slammed them, knuckle against knuckle!

The golem did the same, then Ulex began to run in place, and the golem, well, it wasn’t quite the same. It did not run on the same spot, it ran after G Slayer! The old hunter’s eyes twinkled, and then, seeing through the golem Ulex knew that G Slayer loved to fight. The difference between G Slayer and Mad Cackle-tackle was just that one was insane!

“G-THREADING!”

G Slayer shouted out, and then a queer breath came out from the gargoyle head shield, a breath like a thread of wind, it went through the hole at the butt of G Slayer’s spear. The thread coiled, and the spear pushed forth with the strength of wind behind it!

The golem did not stop to dodge and as the spear tore into it, a fist pushed on to hit G Slayer… yet the old hunter had already shifted his shield to guard his body, and though he grunted under the force of the blow, he was not wounded or pushed back.

The earthen hue on Ulex’s muscles however, grew fainter.

The golem unleashed a storm of blows, Ulex not caring how many hits G Slayer scored on the golem. There was no real technique to it, while G Slayer’s needle spear twirled about in artful arcs, wind rushing behind it, for a few moments, Ulex almost thought he felt the wind against his actual face. Finally G Slayer let out a sigh.

“Only this much huh?” he muttered.

He twirled his spear, and turning his back to the golem, gave a tug.

The golem fell apart as it was sliced by the thread of wind that G Slayer had wrapped around it when striking with his spear. The earthen glow melted from Ulex and his muscles contorted painfully.

“I can still fight!” he cried.

G Slayer shook his head, not turning to look at Ulex.

“You can’t even see it, the thread I’ve connected to you and I? G-Face”

G Slayer levelled the gargoyle head behind him and with a gust of wind, an image of a massive head rushed at Ulex before he could do anything. It passed through him and robbed him of his fighting spirit. G Slayer took one step that counted several, and was right next to Ulex, pointing his spear at Ulex’s body.

“It is over. You lack focus. Conviction. Just what are you afraid of?” he whispered, so that only Ulex could hear.