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A Hero Tale {Complete}

Mikey started by countering Jenso's torrent of flames immediately, with a torrent of water that completely consumed and overwhelmed Jenso's attack. His arm was heavy, but the gravity didn't seem to affect his magic all that much. The water launched at Jenso continued forward, but was totally transparent, allowing Mikey to see Jeff's preparations though it easily. With his other hand, Mikey rose a wall of Water, which was just barely quick enough to intercept the two wind-sphere, despite splashing loudly as they both impacted it. Of course, since the torrent of flames didn't exist anymore, Jeff's follow-up scythes were still totally visible. Mikey took a hard step back and joined his arms together. With a slow heft, he pulled them back, and swung both arms at the wind scythes, smashing through their focal points from one side to the other, with a sudden extension of shining liquid. It's almost like Mikey had created a massive broadsword with his arms. But just as quickly as it appeared, his gauntlets shrank and he turned his attention towards Oz. "At this rate, I might have to.." Mikey cut himself off and launched a thin stream of super-focused water towards Oz.

A Hero Tale {Complete}

Mikey noted Jeff beyond the others, first. When his weakened bubble exploded, all three of the clones used a wind-like technique to prevent any water from reaching them. But instead of sending the remaining water back in a large cone, it was splashed away from the right-most Jeff. So they weren't real clones? Just illusions? Mikey registered the thought and smiled to himself. 'Good one, Jeff,' he thought, proud that the inventor was able to develop something so tricky with his Ki. If he could use more abilities like that, he would be almost impossible to hit in a one on one encounter.

The immediate threat was Jenso's flame saw. At first, Mikey wasn't worried. That technique again? Mikey had been over it many times with Jenso. The flame saw possessed devastating piercing potential, but the way it was formed allowed for easy dispersal by striking the center from either side. Mikey wound his left arm back, but before it came within range, Jeff's wind technique struck it, and made it move even faster. Mikey had no choice now. His battle bubble popped before the flame saw reached him, and unleashed a flurry of ice-spikes in every direction, at a surprising speed. Ice now? Mikey dropped out of the flame saw's path and re-equipped his bubble boot/Geyser Gauntlet combination as he fell, landing on his bouncy boots and hopping in place for a moment. He'd lost sight of Oz from his position in the air, but now he was below the steam Jenso created, and could see the man clearly at the other end of the arena.

A Hero Tale {Complete}

Mikey landed hard on his right foot and rose his left knee up high. Clones? Against him? Clone techniques usually weakened one's overall attack power significantly in exchange for agility and options. But Mikey's battle-bubble was built to counter abilities like that. Jeff had to know about it. Was he baiting it out? One of those had to be the real Jeff. If he was baiting out the battle bubble, then his other clones might have been weak enough to the point where his main body could still cut through his bubble with a piercing attack. Mikey didn't like the ruse affect his decision. Just before the Jeff clones approached him, he heard the distinct swooshing of Jenso's fireballs, and turned his head briefly. Two sides? Well, what was Oz doing? Mikey glanced at him long enough to notice him kneeling down. Something to do with the ground? There wasn't enough time to investigate it right away. Mikey knelt down on his right leg, and launched himself into the sky, leaving behind a small bubble of water where his right foot touched the ground. It was his bubble boot, detached. As the three Jeffs came towards him, he let it explode into a relatively harmless burst of water with only barely enough force to push the average person back. Jenso's fireballs passed under him, and Mikey was now high in the air. Jenso had seen this before, it usually prompted one of Mikey's signature techniques...

"Battle Bubble!" Mikey called out, spreading his legs and arms outwards for a moment, dispelling his gauntlets, and creating a bubble around himself that allowed him to float in the air, high above the battlefield, like a trailing balloon. Straight afterwards, he aimed towards Oz, who looked like he was preparing himself for something. Mikey had already made plans to investigate Jeff's new abilities, and knew nearly everything about Jenso. Oz was the only fighter he had never seen in action for more than a moment. With a clenched fist, Mikey unleashed a stream of pressurised water towards Oz from the surface of his bubble, nearly two feet in diameter.

While he was doing this, the surface of his bubble seemed to ripple. No, not ripple. The water.. Bounced? It bounced as if there were droplets hitting every single inch of it repeatedly. It looked more spiky then smooth. That was new. How far did Mikey's control go?

A Hero Tale {Complete}

Mikey's right hand didn't fire a water bullet as it extended, moments before Jenso reached him. Instead, he curved his punch downwards, towards Jenso's body, while taking a step backwards with his right foot, to better respond to whatever he might've done. Jenso dodged to the right, but Mikey's right hand was already in position to respond, and he was able to see the wind-burst coming from a great distance away, easily. He continued pulling his right foot around, pivoting on his left foot until his back was facing Jeff's attack. With his right forearm, he deflected Jenso's kick, throwing him off balance with the direction of his attack, and the momentum of his pivot. The defensive maneuver forced him to lean to his left, perfectly angling him to propel himself out of the way of Jeff's attack, and towards Oz, at the very last second. He felt Jeff's winds slice at his clothing, but no damage got through. As Mikey launched away from Jenso, he feet coated themselves in bubble-like boots, and allowed him to make short, fast hops. He bounced around the battlefield, circling around Oz, and making his way towards Jeff. Luke suddenly slammed the side of the force field repeatedly.

"Read his style! React accordingly! Remember what I taught you!" He shouted, "Reflex, Force, Withdrawl! Damage, attitude, knowledge!"

Mikey ignored Luke and changed the composition of his gauntlets once again, until they were rounded like blunt weapons, with slightly more bulbous fists, as he approached Jeff.

A Hero Tale {Complete}

"Think I'll dodge?" Mikey huffed, crashing his right arm into the ground on his right side to block Oz's leg. The reverberations from his gauntlet fought back against the strike, going as far as pushing back with an equal amount of force, despite not moving from where his arm landed. "You gotta think a little.." Mikey paused and looked up at Jenso, then to Jeff, and then to Jenso again, "A little more than that!" His eyes darted around the battlefield quickly, registering everything in just a few seconds and formulating a response with his sheer battle focus.

His second arm moved under Jenso's gracefully. The shockwaves from his Geyser gauntlet pushed Jenso's swing just above Mikey's right shoulder, leaving the hero's own chest open for a strike. But rather than use the split second opening to strike Jenso, Mikey's left hand opened and grappled Jenso's left elbow from below his arm. Using Jenso's momentum, as well as the force from Oz's initial kick, Mikey spun his body to the right, pulling Jenso into the path of Jeff's wind burst. Mikey's left foot quickly let off a burst of water afterwards, propelling him away from Oz and Jenso, and much farther away from Jeff, who was now at the opposite side of the arena. While midair, the water user's body spun around counter-clockwise, still abusing the momentum from the attacks that he'd redirected, until he landed on his right hand, and flipped his body upright. He stood steadfast and re-shaped his geyser-gauntlets into a sharper pair of weapons. "Did you learn anything about my style?" Mikey asked, reeling his right arm back, "I hope so!" Without further delay, he began launching a series of glowing water bullets towards Oz and Jenso from his gauntlets, with repeated punches.

A Hero Tale {Complete}

Mikey nodded to Jeff. "You can use magic, but keep it small-scale," Mikey explained briefly, "Oh, and we're starting- NOW!" On his last word, he dashed forwards, coating his arms in brightly lighted water and waiting to see how the three would react.

A Hero Tale {Complete}

Luke smiled at each and every individual who arrived, promptly. "Perfect, I'm glad you're all here. Especially happy to see you in high spirits, Jenso," Luke tacked on, walking to the opposite end of the floating platform. He looked up at the roof and nodded. "Today we're gonna work on teamwork, obviously. But, for this training, I've asked Mikey to sub in for a while." Suddenly, Mikey hopped up from below the panel. Was he hiding? How the hell was he hiding? "He'll explain the parameters. I'm only here to teach, once you've demonstrated your current finesse."

"That's right," Mikey started, "I'm gonna fight you guys, 3 on 1!" He seemed a little more energetic today, getting into a combat stance and smiling at the three trumps. "Of course, I don't stand a chance if the three of you work well together. Hell, I probably don't stand a chance in a 1v1 situation if we take power into account, so I've decided to limit you three significantly." Mikey rose his hand with 2 fingers extended. "I need you to fight at about a fifth of your power, two out of ten. No using anything above that, alright? No wide-scale attacks, no magic of high calibres, and no super forms. I on the other hand, will be using my full power." Suddenly the floating arena's edges began to glow, signalling that the four of them were sealed inside. "If any of you use anything too strong, I'll let you know. But, your goal as a team, is to land a single blow on me." Mikey shrugged his shoulder and lowered his stance, "Use the lessons Luke taught you, and try to work together. If you don't work together, well... You won't really stand a chance."

A Hero Tale {Complete}

~ Chapter 147 ~

_{The Fourth Day Dawns}

The morning meeting was filled with grief. Information regarding training and strategy was sparse, and Mikey seemed overwhelmed, despite how well certain lessons had been going. According to Luke, he'd been able to instil a better understanding on strategy in each trump, but they hadn't been able to work as a team yet. That was today's lesson, actually. Luke was looking forward to it.

As for energy control? There was no real time to gauge it properly. Mikey trusted that the mentors provided were doing a fine job. He'd met with each trump on several occasions for a few minutes, but wasn't able to get much more information than he'd initially explained across to them. Despite his intelligence, he wasn't a very good teacher. Ross and Luke had to substitute, there.

Now was not the time to worry about any of that, though. Luke waited in the training arena, atop the floating disk, for Jeff, Jenso and Oz, to arrived for their first session of team training. Bruce was busy elsewhere with Ross, and would have to rejoin them later in the day. It seemed the gaian giant was rather insistent on letting him have some more time out in the courtyard.

A Hero Tale {Complete}

"It is more likely than not that we will have very few chances to even fight in encounters that allows for multiple trumps Versus a single Order member if they feel threatened at all," Geode cut in, "Planning for a series of one on one encounters would be for the best. That being said, I will be leaving you here to continue this discussion. I must speak with Alvios, now." With that, Geode left the room, cutting the group discussion short. "You don't have to stay in here. In fact, I would prefer you didn't," He tacked on.

---

~ End Of Chapter 146 ~

A Hero Tale {Complete}

"Hm. I suppose I'll have to speak with him afterwards, and have Mikey bring up any sidling ideas at tomorrow meeting. It's fine," Geode said, turning back to look at everyone present. "Anyways, let us proceed. Shaidra..."

"In terms of similarity to my own use of the void, Shaidra fits the bill perfectly. That is to say, she may be capable of everything I am, and more. Based on what I've seen, she might even be a sheer creation of void energy, something which, despite my best efforts, I am not. As such, she has no Ki, or arcane energy. This is an oddity, to say the least. Void energy usually burns out in a universe if it is not hosted by Ki or arcane energy. It acts like a parasite in individuals like me, turning Ki and arcane energy into totally new forms of energy that do not adhere to the normal rules of how magic works. This is how all of the order members function, to my knowledge, assuming my hypothesis is correct. Knowing this, Shaidra's existence should be impossible. I've never met a creature of pure void energy existing within a universe, rather, that has only occurred in void pockets, much like what Jenso experienced when he died in Feralda, facing off against a strange creature, which was likely a creation of pure void as well. If this is true, then I may actually know a great deal of what she is capable of, already..." Geode paused and looked at his hand. "Hmm.."

"Void energy consumes all. Know this first and foremost. It will try to eat away at Ki and arcane energy until it burns itself out. Usually, large sources of energy can resist it for a long time, meaning that a strike from her will not result in the immediate death that the child from Alvios' home town was victim to. But, when infected, you will be completely incapable of manifesting Ki or Arcane abilities until it is purged from your body. Attempting to do so in great amount while infected, may purge the infection, but it will also damage your Arcane network and soul severely. This is to be acknowledged. If you ignore this, you will likely die. Following this, Void energy completely annihilates arcane energy at a 100 to 1 ratio. Arcane abilities will likely have no effect on Shaidra at all. Arki might, but Ki is your best option. Void and Ki trade evenly, and sometimes, Ki can have the advantage. The biggest advantage I've seen, is a 10 to 1 ration, with Ki coming out as the winner. This may be something that Alvios can take advantage of, and possible, Jenso as well. Jeff and Bruce will have the hardest time dealing with Shaidra. Jeff in particular, might not be able to hurt her at all with his weaker form of Ki. Despite her small size and animal like behaviour, she may be even more durable than even Rajaka." Geode paused on that statement. More durable than Rajaka? That little monster? "Of course, this strength also comes with a great weakness. From all reports I've received, she appears to be barely sentient, almost like a pet. That, as Yzeira has shown a great amount of value in her. They may be because she is the only Order member to have received nearly mortal damage, but we can't know for sure. Prisma's death did not warrant any reaction in him whatsoever. So... I'm at a loss, there."

"The abilities Shaidra has shown, are very few in number. She is fast, she is unpredictable, and she can teleport in and out of our reality in an instant. Combine that with her durability, and capability to eat through most ranged attacks and matter with ease, and she becomes a ridiculous target to actually harm. However, despite her astronomical defences, her actual stamina and durability behind these factors seems minimal. A single Sword attack from Alvios, albeit likely empowered by his Ki without his knowing, was enough to incapacitate her indefinitely. If a single strike lands, Shaidra may be finished. But, since she is an animal, as far as we know, she will likely not hesitate to run if put in danger. If she does this, we will not be able to chase her. Additionally, she can pull targets into her dimension if they are not on alert, making it crucial that we stay alert at all times. Even now." Geode pointed up, down, and all around. "She has the capability to teleport into this very room, and steal us away one by one. She likely hasn't done so, because she has not been ordered to do so. Something else about Shaidra, is that she appears to be relatively harmless if unprovoked. At least, she shows no intent to harm." Geode sighed. "Now, the other things she may be capable are as follows. Vacuum-like abilities, gravity manipulation, time control, and even immortality if her soul is not completely destroyed." Geode grunted. "Despite appearing as one of the weaker members, Shaidra might pose an even greater threat than even Yzeira if she is not taken care of quickly."

"I have not been able to concoct any strategies. Seeing how she is extremely mobile, a 1v1 situation might be our best option. But, seeing how Alvios would be the only candidate for such a task, I believe discussing it in detail would be pointless, right now. So, I turn to you. Has anyone a thought on this conundrum?"