Shards made of pure black circled a silver blade before they slowly stopped and lined the edge of the blade. The slender silver blade now extended both in length and in width, with pure black shards, all of which kept the darkness from swallowing the light of the arena, their own light.
Each one emanated a faint orange glow, like a star, cutting through an incalculable number of light-years to reach the sky above Earth.
Solaris took a shallow breath and pushed off his right foot, with the sword in his right hand.
With the shards lining the blade, it weighs practically nothing, so I'll use my right to attack and my left to defend.
Solaris raised his left arm in a defensive motion, and as he did, his fist turned pure black, then began to glow ever so slightly.
Watching the girl in front closely, He watched as she didn't move; then, as he blinked and opened his eyes, Solaris saw a perfect copy of his sword and arm placement.
All that was different was that the sword was glassy and slightly distorted.
The blade looked as though it was pulled from the sky itself and folded into a matching weapon.
Solaris gritted his teeth and swung the blade at an angle, attempting to cut the girl in half.
It wouldn't kill her, as the attack Selen had dealt Ezekiel didn't kill him.
Solaris had personally watched three healers move his body back together and then seal the wound, only leaving a faint scar.
So all Solaris had to do to win was to win; he wasn't going to be stopped by the beauty of the girl, and he wasn't going to be stopped by the conscience of murder, as she wasn't going to die.
The blade sliced through the air, yet before it connected with the side of the girl, her left arm shot up and blocked the attack with her own sword.
The clear glass blade rippled, then stabilized.
Solaris smiled slightly as his left fist shot forward, only to collide with her fist covered in a clear coating.
Shit...
Understanding the situation, Solaris pushed back, as he did she did as well.
The two launched back, landing a few feet apart.
Solaris was slightly hunched, and so was Arias.
Solaris squinted slightly as he looked at her eyes; in doing so, he watched them do the same thing.
After a moment, Solaris took a step to the right and began to walk; as he did, Arias followed, taking a step to the left, then walking.
The two began to circle each other.
After a few rotations, Solaris stopped and willed the shards to form a circle behind his back.
Arias did the same, yet the shards were clear.
However, the sword changed ever so slightly.
One of Arias's rings shivered, then turned into a metallic liquid and flowed along the edge of the blade.
Making a sliver edge, matching that of Solaris's pure silver sword.
After a moment, Solaris raised his left arm and pointed at Arias.
"You are a mirror!"
Arias didn't raise her arm.
She didn't speak.
She, however, did nod.
Then she rolled her eyes and dashed forward.
Caught off guard, Solaris was barely able to raise the silver blade in time to block her attack.
The hell? This is...
The sword that had once been in her hand was now gone, replaced by a claw.
Aria's right arm raised up and struck Solaris's face.
Or at least it tried to.
As Solaris watched her fist approaching, he willed his mantle to move some of the fabric tendrils and block the attack.
The mantle held the Arm in the air, wrapped around her wrist.
Solaris moved his fist and struck her in the stomach, launching her back.
Or perhaps she's not...
Solaris rolled his shoulder, while Arias made her way to her feet, then rubbed her stomach.
Straightening herself, Arias popped her neck.
Then she slammed her hand into the air and cracked it.
The air then shattered, and the shards flowed around before being reshaped into a large mace made of bone.
Solaris watched as she took a deep breath, then flexed her shoulders.
Two massive wings shattered the air and then reformed around her.
Looking up, she pretended to pull a cigarette from her mouth and then exhaled.
The wings flapped and sent a gust of wind around her, picking up dust and sand.
"Oh shit... that's bad."
Solaris took a step back, and then deep shadows rustled around his mantle.
I think I understand it: she can copy techniques and weapons, but not Extramicy, so I don't have to worry about facing any other Extramicy other than hers.
Solaris willed the shards to form a defensive array.
Shards made of shadow funneled around those not, and made his already powerful defence almost impassable.
A slight smile grew across his face, then he readied himself to fight.
Arias shot forward like a bat out of hell and swung the mace with a practiced precision, almost perfect, if not perfect.
However, she wasn't the one who practiced it; it was, of course, Ember's attack.
Solaris had seen it many times and understood the danger it presented.
Solaris willed the shards and shadow shards to get into position.
Then readied his blade and heated his soul.