Acronius

Chapter 2: Cedrik

"How is Eudon, Ryia?"

"He's alive, but he won't be moving much for quite some time."

"It's very heartbreaking that it has to be like this, but to keep the peace, we must do this."

"I-I'm sorry, but I have to go Cedrik."

I kills me to see such a strong girl break down like that. Ryia truly loves my brother, and she's taking this situation really hard. Thanks to Ryia, my brother has just enough energy to survive, but no more than that. His telekinesis powers makes him a cut above us all, and no one member of the Equos Undecim has beaten him by themself. I still remember the days when we'd train together, the eleven of us. We'd all win some, and lose some, but we became stronger and our moves became sharper. My brother, being the only one to never lose, helped our parents coach us up, to become the challenge he wanted so bad. We did three kinds of training per week, and we combined them on the seventh day. The first two days were hand to hand combat. The second two days were weapons, and the third two focused strictly on our powers. For our first two days we learned various martial arts and how to use our powers to compliment these martial arts. I, with my teleportation powers, was considered one of the most tactical, and I was the first of the Undecim to put my brother on his back. I remember the day like it was yesterday.

—

"Alright whoever wins this match goes on to face Eudon. Cedrik, Juliet, I want you two to impress me!"

Lord Arthur was Bryce and Alice's father. He is the current holder of the legendary Virubus, the treasure of the Fortis bloodline. It's said he's even stronger than father. Me and my older brother Eudon are the sons of Emperor Eli, who uses teleportation just like me. He is extremely intelligent, and because of his intelligence he is one of the most feared men in the world today. But Lord Arthur is the only man that dad fears. I barely beat his son Bryce in my last match, but I set him up with a punch he wasn't fast enough to dodge. He ran at me full speed, and so did I, but I teleported to him, punching him before he had time to guard himself. I knocked him out cold, beating him for the first time ever. My opponent, Juliet, beat his sister, Alice, who has super speed. Juliet used her smoke to confuse and frustrate Alice, and then took her out. Now I'm face to face with the most beautiful girl I've ever seen. She is from the Gratus bloodline, who are known for their beautiful and ability to trap their enemies. The color of caramel envelops her skin, and her eyes glow a soft lavender. While looking silly on some of us, our gray training tunic fits her perfectly. She's quite a bit shorter than I am, and she has a nice athletic form. I hope she doesn't notice me blushing. Lord Arthur is saying something, but I missed most of it.

"Pay attention Cedrik! And stop blushing at me, these muscles aren't for you son."

Everyone laughs at me, but better him falsely calling me out for staring at him than him exposing the truth.

"Now that I have your attention, you may begin!"

Just like that, she turns into a puff of smoke, and the room fills up with smoke too. I've watched Juliet for more than just her beauty but I've also memorized her attack patterns. She comes at me from the left and lands her first punch, which means next she'll try to get me from behind. This time I land a sweeping low kick just right, tripping her before she can land her next attack. She materializes and flies up above me, with a scary look in her eye.

"Aaahhhhh!!! I won't lose to you Cedrik! Take this!"

Even though she is normally calm and tactical, Juliet has a tendency to blow a fuse every now and then. She flies down at me at full speed and right into my very own trap! Along with my teleportation powers, I can also create after images, and I use that power now. I teleported behind her, leaving an after imagine where I'd been standing. As she lands, and my after image fades, she looks up just as I prepare to finish her off. Instead of kicking her like I'd been prepared to do, I teleport once more, getting behind her and hitting one of her pressure points. This disabled the use of her arms. She turns around to kick me, but I easily counter it, as I spin around and kicked her in the stomach. I use two after images to walk her into a corner and throw her off guard. Me and my after images charge at her.

"I-I surrender!"

My after images dissipate and I help her to her feet. We meet eyes for a second, and I get nervous and turn away.

"I'll beat you next time Cedrik, don't think your so special just yet!"

She gives me a playful punch and wishes me good luck against my brother, knowing I'd need it. My blush has to be obvious now. I turn to see me brother waiting for me.

"Cedrik, I'm impressed. But don't think that I didn't realize you help back with Juliet. I want you to give me all you've got!"

"You may be the big brother, but I'm gonna take you down this time!"

"That's the spirit! Make me fall Cedrik, if you can that is!"

"All right you two, this one's for all the bragging rights. Remember, you both do your best, no less. Now, ready? Begin!"

With that we both clash in the center of the room. We don't use any powers, traps, or tricks. It's just us throwing all we've got at each other. We have always started our fights like this, and we won't use our powers until someone goes down. That is until now. I let a punch land flush on my chest, and I fall back teleporting as I do so, and letting my after image hit the floor. I grab Eudon from behind, putting him a choke hold.

"Nice move Cedrik, but it's not good enough!"

He goes to throw me off, but I've already made a move. I teleport above him, kicking him in the same fashion that I almost kicked Juliet in. He falls, and rolls a few feet away from me. Everyone gasps, and even I was stunned by this. Normally my brother seems untouchable.

"Not bad brother, but now, I'll have to fight you a little more seriously!"

He rises off the ground and into the air, hovering majestically. His soft green aura looks amazing, and just as I ready myself, he's already attacking me. He knows I'll use my after images to evade his attacks, so he turns to find the real me, and throws a barrage of telekinetic punches. His telekinetic punches are much more powerful that his normal punches, rivaling even Bryce, whose only power is his crushing strength. I wake up to see my brothers hand reaching out to me. He's smiling, and the others and clapping.

"Cedrik, you did well. Your a lot stronger than the last time we fought. Good job brother, maybe one day, you'll surpass me."

Hearing that kind of praise from Eudon brings tears to my eyes. I might not have won, but I pushed him further than anyone our age has. He gives me a hug, and we retire for the day, waiting to train with each other tomorrow.

—

It feels funny sitting on this throne. I, of course, don't just sit here the entire day anyway but when I do I just remember my brother and late father. I sit here now because when I go to my personal home, I always feel like somebody's watching me, and especially in the shower. But all of that aside, the fact is I am sitting on the throne now, and that I am the new Emperor, for better or worst.