Silence
The entire hall was engulfed in silence as Sunny challenged Gunlaug. The golden tyrant, the man with a transcendent echo against a new sleeper with a true name, a man who slew a pathfinder.
Though it seemed clear who would win many were divided. Sunnys friends were naturally on his side and everyone else wasn't. But one side was wrong and it wasn't Sunny's
Gunlaug remained silent for a few seconds and then stood up - "I Accept your challenge"
Sunny smiled - "So I assume if I beat you the title of bright lord becomes mine?"
Gunlaug made his way to the ground of his throne and the stairs leading to it. Everyone leaving the area around to prepare for the battle - "Naturally"
He got into a fighting stance. The armor around his hand morphing forming a colossal axe. Sunny in turn summoned his own transensent blade and noticing the slightly stunned looked around including Gunlaug's or atleast that's what Sunny expected to see if the helmet was not in the way.
"Did you think you were the only one to kill a corrupted?"
Gunlaug realized it. That Sunny was not an opponent to take lightly after all, that transcendent blade could pierce his armor
Simultaneously they rushed at each other. Gunlaug's blade crashing down from above, Sunnys moving in a slashing arc towards his torso.
Forced to dodge, Sunny side stepped, the great axe crashing into the ground splinters of marble shooting out whilst Sunny's blade missed the torso and instead managed to nick his arm.
He watched as the odd molten gold echo shifted and repaired or replaced the cut with a new piece.
Gunlaug morphed his axe into a sword not bothering to pick it up from the ground rather he made it form anew as he slashed horizontally, Sunny falling to a squat dodging the great sword as he propelled himself towards the Castle Lord.
Their blades made contact multiple times - Sunny slowly learning the style of his opponent. After all it was a style far to crude for someone who grasped so many other's.
Steel against steel, clashes rang out for every minute that seemed like hours to the audience
Gunlaug made a charge towards a Sunny slashing down at an arc. Sunny used his momentum and momentary vulnerability against him and ran in rolling on the ground stopping behind the giant man as he turned at slashed the back of his knee
The cut was deep this time - not a simple knick rather it went half way through the giant man's back knee causing him to fall to one knee
Sunny had put a decent amount of force into that swing so his body continued in that slashing direction so as he turned he simultaneously raised his blade and brought it down crashing down into Gunlaug's shoulder leaving a wound as grievous as the one on his leg
That particular display having everyone hold their breaths whilst it took less than 20 seconds from the time Sunny rolled
A sudden spike formed from Gunlaug's armor from his back impaling Sunny on it by the shoulder as he avoided being pierced in the heart.
Gunlaug was tired and out of moves. While Sunny began to laugh. He dismissed his blade and resummoned it in the other hand currently raised above his head - in that 4 seconds before the blade could be resummoned Sunny felt it from the tip that had pierced his body - how the golden liquid like echo solidified forming spiked that tried to spread piercing his left shoulder through in multiple directions
Within that spit second that the blade reformed from its sparks of light Sunny brought it down with his right hand with such force that it pierced the main spike body clean through separating it from the main body and Gunlaug's control causing the part in him to evaporate into sparks.
Sunny moved and stood in the front of Gunlaug - his steps sounding like thunder in the silent hall.
"Are you a monster" - Gunlaug coughed a mouthful of blood leaving his mouth - "Your blade has poison"
"It does and no I am not some mere monster" - Sunny looked slightly somber.
"Yet you do not bleed and Im watching your wound heal right in front of my eyes and I assume that Harus power had no effect on you" - The bright lord said as he dismissed his echo seemingly resigned to his fate
The man looked up at Sunny - "I tried in the beginning... I really did"
Sunny looked down sadly at the man in front of him. Someone forced to be ruthless for survival and was now dying after all those years of suffering.
Yet why did he look so peaceful. Why did his eyes stop reflecting the burdens it had just a second ago
"Can you end it before the poison does..." - He spoke an odd tone that Sunny could bit make out in his voice. Was it pain?, hate?, relief?
"Of course..." - Sunny slashed the air whirring in the wake of his blade. A clean arc so much so that it seemed the corpse in front of him had yet to realize it had Ben decapitated - that was before gravity set in and the diagonal slash took its toll and the head of Gunlaug slid of his shoulders - "... your nightmare is over"
'Find peace within me..."
...
The hall remained silent before the death of its Lord and then it almost exploded into chaos
There were those who liked the Golden Tyrant amongst the inhabitants and it was not just the guardsman or pathfinders and they were all planning to rush the boy who just killed their lord.
But Sunny was not in the mood. He released his full hold on [Star of Divinty] and [Child of Dread] causing the weaker willed of the group to stop all together.
But as his gaze was holding those at a distance at bay. The ones closer to him fell out of that gaze - while that meant Nephis and his friends would not be affected by him it also meant that Gunlaug's men would also not be affected.
Naturally the first who charged into motion was Harus - but he was intercepted by someone Noone thought would.
Cassie had her rapier summoned as it cut of Harus causing him to step back.
"A blind fool dares!"
Cassie did not bother with speaking - she made the first move, moving as Harus began to throw his chains to which she dodged narrowly
She got close and slashed her blade missing but halted his movement
...
Aside from them others began fighting too
Kai turned his head dodging Gemma's arrow aimed at his skull. He was preparing to rake to the skies before he heard his fellow archer speak.
"Run into the skies again you weak bastard"
Kai paused all his movements the bone bow appearing him his grasp as the an arrow made its way into his other hand.
"I won't let you pass" - he notched the arrow and moved forward with incredible speed shooting it immediately. Gemma moving to dodge it
Arrows continued to fly and they continued to move eventually Kai found himself within close combat range with the large man
...
Tessai thew his hand axe at Effie who brought the end of her spear down pinning the weapon to the ground
She ran forward and so did he.
Effie noticed Tessai's skin grow that slight ice blue as he activated his aspect causing his skin to become as hard as stone as well as slow down her movements
But thankfully she was still fast enough to deal with him
They clashed together her now summoned shield - A gift from Sunny, clashing against Tessai, both of them moving back slightly their legs sliding back on the ground.
...
Cassie bent her torso back as if she was doing limbo dodging Harus's chain slashing through the air
"Could you not get a weapon memory so you had to use a tool?" - she provoked him
And it was evident
Rage clouding his mind he charged at Cassie without his chains. He was planing to use his hands, to crush her himself
And that was his mistake.
Cassie dodging all his strikes but eventually falling back. Or that's what she wanted Harus to think.
As she fell backwards and Harus uncut claws for nails swung downwards she tucked in her legs and held the ground with her hands in an almost handstand position before springing her legs out with great force striking Harus in the jaw sending him back - stunned.
She flipped and found her feet on the ground once more. But she did not stop
He blade was brought in position under her left arm being held by both her left and the right crossed over her chest - her legs moved forward with great speed and she thrust her winded up blade forward with all the strength her body could muster and watched
It pierced not just Harus's neck. But went through the wrist of the hand he was using to hold his jaw from the injury
The blood seeped out slowly as disbelief shown in his eyes - "How..."
"I trained" - she looked down at his fallen form as the blood flowed from his neck creating a pool beneath him.
Sunny had not seen such an expression on Cassie's face but it was not something he hated.
...
Kai swung his hand forward. The glove of his armor making contact with Gemma's nose with a sickening crunch causing the man to stumble back
But that attack was not without injury as a fist found it's way into his stomach causing a pained gasp followed by a fury of saliva as he stumbled back.
"We've been going at this for a while" - Gemma laughed.
"Yeah... I'm tired let's end his - Hunting dog" - Kai let out a smile that made Sunny proud. It was that shit eating grin that could provoke anyone.
Gemma summoned a blade - expecting Kai not to do well in close combat dealing with weapons
But he was wrong
As he swung the blade Kai used the top it the Bone Bow to hit the blade and push it of course whilst he spun around and allowed the bottom of the bow to attack Gemma's chin aiming to pierce through
But to the Hunters credit he did dodge that attack
But Kai was tiring
He leaped back 2 steps before taking to the air to dodge the blade aimed his way. Kai flipped himself with that jump into the air so while he was upside down he notched an arrow and let it loose.
The bone arrow whizzed through the air. With great force A perfect line from his bow to where it got stuck.
Gemma was dead - the arrow sticking out the back of his skull making sure of it.
...
Tessai slashed his axe aiming for Effies's guts and missing poorly as she stepped back.
But her counter attack left his last weapon destroyed
"No more memories?" - she teased
"do you think I need a weapon to deal with someone like you" - he put his fists up and smiled at her
Effie planted her shield on the grounds with a thud - it's size 3 quarters of her giant body so it made a less than kind impression on the ground before dismissing it completely
Her spear to had been dismissed along with her armor leaving her with nothing but the clothes Sunny made for her during their time together
She raised her hands above her head in a stretch. Her joints cracking from the strain of the current battle.
And then bringing them down she charged.
Her right fist swing towards Tessai who stepped aside sending up a fist towards her jaw that swung right past
They continued to collide over and over. Blow against blow, neither landing a finishing strike until Effie decided to take a necessary hit
His fist slammed into her gut, that aspect making his body as hard as stone - she held in a pained grunt as her eyes ignited with the opportunity.
Her fist clashed straight into Tessai's face as she brought it down. The giant fell down holding his nose but before he could get up Effie pinned him down sitting on him and raining punch after punch against him
Even his hands that he used to shield his face had cracks due to his ice aspect before they shattered and there was nothing between her fists and and his face
And soon enough he was dead - his face mangled in a way that if one didn't just see it was him, they would not be able to recognize him
...
One might ask what of Channing Star?
Who was she fighting against?
Thw answer - no one.
Nephis stood there as she watched the head of Gunlaug slide of. And as the person closest to both the pathfinders and the guards as a few attempted to attack her while others were smart enough
But it was clear she was not to be trifled with as the ones that attacked her...
That flaming blade of hers cut into the air severing heads with such heat that the wounds had already cauterized spilling no blood just a volley of headless corpses making their way to the ground.
After that no one attacked her - especially with the blood sisters besides her on alert now
...
Silence flooded the hall once more as no one moved.
Then Sunny did.
He summoned the gigantic tower shield in his hand and launched it - the over sized shield whirred in the air as it crashed into the stair case leading to the singular throne atop it.
The shield tore through half of the marble as it caused the rest to tip backwards everything landing down with a crash as the stairs and throne crashed onto the ground breaking into fragments.
From his feet a line of darkness flowed splitting into 5 lines as it reached in front of where the previous throne was.
From it everyone warched as 5 magnificent black thrones arose from the ground. One in the middle where the previous thine stood though it was on the ground and not atop a flight of stairs
The other 4 were distributed on bot sides - 2 on the left and 2 on the right.
All 4 of Sunnys companions remembered that strange message he said in the tent before Tessai's entered
'when all is over walk to your thrones'
And so they did
Sunny moved first sitting on the throne to the right of the middle one and Cassie did to though she sat on the one to the left.
Effie took the far right and Kai the fair left
They all sat down as everyone watched. No one moving, speaking or doing a thing.
"I guess you have new rulers now huh?" - Sunny said breaking the silence.