The sound of breaking glass resounded over and over across the arena as Solaris's fist rained down across Arias's body.
Rather, the reflected portions of her body.
Solaris continued to attack, darts of shadow shooting out as his fist rained across her body.
Yet Arias paid him no mind and simply continued to deflect and dodge the darts, using her Extramicy to act as an impenetrable defense.
Her body moved so fluidly and cleanly that Solaris wasn't sure if she was fighting or performing a dance. Every step, every block, every attempted counterattack was perfectly combined.
Every time Solaris attempted to catch her off guard, she was already moving to dodge it.
Every punch landed on a piece of her, only for it to just be a reflection of her.
Damn it, this is so confusing... How am I even supposed to beat this?
He gritted his teeth.
Solaris hardened his skin as she finally landed an attack on his sternum.
Her palm slammed into it, only to do nothing but bounce off and return to deflecting the darts Solaris was using in attempts to distract her.
Is this what it's like to fight someone like Ember? I mean, attacks just pass through him due to him being fire... the only time I've seen him be hit was...
Suddenly, a thought popped into Solaris's head.
His lips slightly curved up into a grin.
Solaris ever so slightly laid off his relentless onslaught.
And began to be peppered with hit after hit; the attacks were only nonfatal due to him coating his skin the moment before she hit him.
Slowly, the one-sided assault Solaris had been dishing out was now a trade.
Every three hits he threw, she threw ten more.
Solaris began to slowly begin to understand the style she was using more and more.
Damn it... I don't want to go back... I will beat her.
Solaris steeled his resolve.
If I act fast, I can regain it... so I can't drag this out...
Focusing, he continued his assault and defense, leaning slightly more into defence, using the shadows of his mantle and even the strands of fabric to block attacks.
He began to move himself into the center of the arena.
As he moved, Arias followed, continuing to pepper his body with different attacks, from palm strikes to punches, to even a few kicks.
After a relentless onslaught of attacks, Solaris was in position.
Solaris gritted his teeth, then he moved the shards.
Around the arena, from the walls to seemingly random spots, all of Solaris's shards shot forward, cutting through the air.
A few even shot down from the sky.
As Arias threw a punch, she finally understood what Solaris's plan was.
She contorted her body, folding her outstretched arm into her stomach.
Then she twisted and flipped upwards.
Towards Solaris.
She dodged a few of the shards, but not all of them.
Landing on the ground, she felt a myriad of cuts across her delicate figure. One was even slashed through her left eye, causing a rush of blood to pour out.
Some were still being made.
She gritted her teeth in pain.
Opening her mouth to scream.
Nothing, however, came out.
Or rather. It did.
But only for a mere moment, before everyone forgot that it happened at all.
Solaris stared at the girl who seemed to be screaming. His ears rang for a moment, then stopped as if nothing had happened.
The girl raised her right arm and, with incredible pain and force, slammed it into her chest.
Then the girl's face cracked and then shattered into a myriad of glass shards.
The black shards and the glass shards merged on the ground for a moment before the black shards rose and floated back to Solaris, forming a ring behind his back.
Solaris's eyes narrowed as a look of confusion overcame him.
He began to look around, yet he saw no Arias.
oh... Shit, did I kill her! DAMN IT, THEY SAID IT WASN'T....
"AHHHHHH!!!!"
A blade slashed across Solaris's right eye.
Solaris raised a trembling hand and placed it to his right eye.
Lowering it, he felt a large amount of blood, more still, coming out of his eye socket.
Slowly, he peeled his left eye open and looked around.
As he did, he saw a beautiful girl in a silver dress with a black jacket.
The girl turned her head, her black hair shimmering in the moonlight.
Looking at Solaris, she smiled and winked.
Then she turned fully around.
Her body had cuts littering it was not pristine and perfect.
The eye that had been cut was now perfectly fine.
It was as though she hadn't been hit at all.
Solaris's one eye widened as he looked down at his own body.
It was littered with cuts, all cuts he recognized.
Shit, that's bad.
Solaris was not afraid of losing blood, or even the cuts on his body; the black mantle on his body would seal up the wounds slowly.
What worried him was the missing eye and the fact that Arias had seemingly transferred the damage to him.
Solaris bit down on his teeth even more.
This was the true power of an Executioner.
I'm just a useless newbie, shes the real deal. Why am I facing her! DAMN IT ALL!
Solaris slowed his rapidly beating heart by simply reducing some of his heat, then he stood up and, with a heavy sigh, whispered.
"I will surpass her; I will surpass that ability."
Opening his left eye, he returned the heat to its former levels and outstretched his left arm, willing the shadows to create a weapon.
This was the first time he had attempted both of these things.
Desperate times call for desperate measures.
The shadows formed into a small axe, then a few shards coalesced into a head for the axe, melding with the shadows.
"You may not know this, but I once killed a few demons with only an axe. Sadly, that axe broke while I killed two devils, so this will have to do for now."
The girl's eyes slowly widened as Solaris charged at her, killing intent lacing his single eye.
A wide and terrifying smile crossed his lips.