Tbate-The Reincarnates

Gray and Nico: A hatred, a rivalry that transcended worlds

From the point of view of Arthur Leywin

"Hey... what's that?" Jasmine asked, pointing into the air. "Are you guys feeling it?"

Something was...wrong, I felt it, I looked at Helen, then at Durden. They looked as confused as I felt.

A black spot in the sky was rapidly growing in size. Other people were starting to notice it now. Some even cast shields, others screamed, channeling mana into their wands in preparation to face what they obviously thought was a threat.

My breath was crushed out of my chest by the sudden presence of a powerful aura.

The Twin Horns dispersed, activating their powers and preparing to defend themselves. A black comet landed on the ground an instant later with a blast of dark energy that sent everyone flying like insects. Tens of thousands of people screamed, but no one was running now. Everyone looked frozen, unable to do anything but watch.

A supernova of black flames swept away the dust, revealing Elijah's figure, his short black hair and sharp features, almost unassuming save for the indomitable, hate-filled rage in his eyes...

He stepped out of the crater he'd carved into the arena floor, his dark eyes sweeping everything around him. Black iron spikes protruded from the ground with each step, and dark flames enveloped his body. The sight of that black magic filled me with dread.

"Long time, huh, my dear old friend... Gray."

"Elijah? What's going on? How are you..." my voice trailed off as we both exchanged glances. The expression he wore was strained. He was definitely Elijah, but everything about him just felt a little off.

With a sneer, Elijah leapt back, his arms spinning with a black aura.

I responded in turn by activating the Realmheart to its full power. I needed. From what he showed me, his spell formations were almost instantaneous. If I was going to make it out of this alive, I needed to know where and how his spells were going to form beforehand.

I could see my bangs turn white as golden runes began to pulse across my skin. As the otherworldly power of an asura coursed through my veins, I began to calm down becoming more detached like a cool blanket wrapped around my mind.

With a thought, I removed Dawn's Ballad from my dimensional ring.

Tightening my hand around his handle, I faced Elijah, a mana that felt like a whirlwind of ash converging around his hands, ready to be released.

'I need to stop him. I'll get the answers out of him after this.'

I rushed forward, closing the gap between us in three strides. I aimed for the middle of his body, but a black spike erupted from the ground between us, stopping my attack.

"Why are you doing this, Elijah?" I spoke with uncontrollable anger, repositioning myself.

"After what you took from me, don't you feel bad asking me that, Grey?" Elijah replied, his voice filled with anger.

His eyes couldn't follow it, but the spikes that could be conjured from thin air and even faster from the ground seemed more like an automatic defense system than an intentional conjuration.

Meanwhile, Elijah continued to try to pull away, his face tight but controlled as he continued to prepare his spell.

I could see through Realmheart the form this massive spell would take, urging me to move faster and hit harder. My initial plan was to engage him in close combat in order to conserve my mana and exploit his weakness, but with our confrontation happening, I had a feeling it wasn't going to be as easy as it had been in my head.