Nocte Yin

Chapter Fourteen

“Yin!” Aadi barked, her breath clouding in the cold air.

Nocte straightened and knew something was going to go wrong. She felt the same dread that had filled her on that fateful day in Black Spells — the full moon and Paine’s withering eyes. But she did not contradict Aadi, knowing that it would cause more problems than help, and obediently broke from the line and prepared herself for whatever was to come. Aadi was happy — very happy — and that never boded well for Nocte.

“Paine!” the professor called.

He stepped out from the line.

Nocte held back the urge to throw up.

“Today I will judge your skills two at a time,” Aadi explained, eyes lit up in anticipation. “Select a weapon from the rack and enter the circle.”

Murmuring erupted among her peers and Nocte could only blink owlishly.

“What?” she asked in disbelief.

“Get a weapon, Yin!” Aadi screamed. “You’re fighting Paine! NOW!”

Nocte felt her stomach hit the ground. Fight? Paine? NOW?

Aadi gave her a piercing look and she quickly approached the weapons rack. She spotted Paine selecting a thin, double-edged sword. A jiàn, a Xonese sword.

He turned and caught her eyes.

She shivered.

He wasn’t serious, was he?

He smirked and Nocte knew, just knew, he was.

Swallowing, she went back to the rack and thought it through. He had a short-range weapon; therefore she needed a long-range weapon. Her weapon also needed to be equipped for short-range combat, in case Paine broke through her circle. She grabbed hold of a staff-like weapon with an axe and a pike at the end. A halberd, a Zyrish weapon.

She lifted the halberd and (holy moly!) almost stumbled from the sheer weight and size of the weapon. So it was heavier than she had thought… no biggie. Readjusting her feet, she stepped into the circle with Paine following.

 “You know the rules,” Aadi said, hardly able to keep herself from rubbing her hands together like the stereotypical mad genius. “Go!”

The class was silent, spreading themselves evenly along the circle to get a better look. Could this be as good as the Yin-Noir fight? Many were hoping for more.

Seeing how confident Paine was carrying himself, Nocte was suddenly hit with a flashback of the time in Black Spells when Paine Fireball-ed her ass right to Chalchiuhtotolin.

He was going to murder her.

“You’re dead,” he said, and smirked.

She gathered that.

He struck first, as was expected, lunging forward with the tip of the jiàn coming towards her. His eyes unwavering, his aim true, and all she could do was squeak and close her eyes pitifully. The blade scratched her cheek, and her eyes opened to meet his. Her face stung and then she felt something wet slide down her chin.

He withdrew his weapon and stood up straight. “If you are not vigilant, I will kill you.”

A drop of her blood hit the ground.

“Crap,” she thought, eyes wide.

Without warning, the blade sliced the air. Momentarily perplexed, Paine adjusted his eyes and saw that she had somehow managed to take a step back before the jiàn could scar her for life. A few hairs on the ground were the only evidence that he had struck. His hands were faster than the naked eye.