Shad
Midnight
Joined: 25 Aug 2006
Post Count: 2684
Location: Lion's Maw
4252503 Potch
200 Soldiers
38 Nation Points
|
 Posted: Fri May 01, 2009 1:30 pm Post subject: 009 - A Little Practice Never Hurt |
  |
|
[size=150:e71i7dmy]A Little Practice Never Hurt
[p:e71i7dmy]"Gades! It's so good to see you!" Ibuki opened the door to greet yet another old family friend. Alex was jumping up and down behind her. He'd whizzed down the stairs again the moment the doorbell rang. Accustomed to businessmen in suit and tie coming to visit his father, it wasn't every day the Lizar family had such friendly informal guests.[/p:e71i7dmy]
[p:e71i7dmy]"Ibuki, always a pleasure," the middle-aged man said with a smile. "How's it going Alex?"[/p:e71i7dmy]
[p:e71i7dmy]"Great Mr. Short! Did Robo come to see me? Can I ride on the airship again?" he asked, peering inquisitively out the door behind Gades. Robo was an android repair-bot clocking in at a couple thousand pounds, and about the only entity Alex could ask "Why?" to a thousand times without irritating.[/p:e71i7dmy]
[p:e71i7dmy]"Haha, sorry kid. No way I could afford the shipping costs," he said, turning to Ibuki with a grin. "Cid's got the airship all tore apart again. This is all that's left of it." He handed Alex a wrapped box. "Can't let your little brother have all the fun today now, can I?" He ripped the box open immediately to reveal a remote controlled airplane with "ENTERPRISE" engraved on the side.[/p:e71i7dmy]
[p:e71i7dmy]"He's going to grow up thinking he has two birthdays," Ibuki joked as Alex sprinted back into the house to show his dad. "So how was the civilian flight?"[/p:e71i7dmy]
[p:e71i7dmy]"Nice, a lot more comfortable than what I'm used to."[/p:e71i7dmy]
[p:e71i7dmy]"Andrew, Marcus, and Eddy are in the other room. Please, make yourself at home." Ibuki motioned towards the living room.[/p:e71i7dmy]
[p:e71i7dmy]"It's about time I congratulate the new President of the UN!"[/p:e71i7dmy]
**************************************************
[p:e71i7dmy]No matter how many times Glenn removed the sword from under his bed he never failed to admire its splendor. The blade, while perfectly formed and balanced, bore no mark or distinction. Its glamor lay solely in the hilt, metallic-black and intricately carved in some mesmerizing pattern uncommon the any known culture or civilization of old. Its deepest allure rested at the very bottom, attached firmly by no visible device. This, a milky-white gemstone of unparalleled beauty, seemed to shimmer in anticipation as Glenn removed the brown felt concealing it. He found himself for a moment lost in the stone's depth. When gazed upon for any length of time the white gave way to a blackness so empty it seemed completely void of space and time. This pinhole in the center would slowly expand until it encompassed the bulk of its holding, and this hollowness seemed to unleash an overwhelming flow of emotions. Some days it would pulsate the deepest of sorrows, others a joy unrivaled. What vast secrets this stone held Glenn could only begin to imagine.[/p:e71i7dmy]
[p:e71i7dmy]Today the sword was anxious. This seemed to be the trend of late. A year and half had passed since the Zicron Blade last tasted flesh, and Glenn's occasional training satisfied it less and less. It longed for battle as much as he did, if not more so. Today it would have to once again suffice for training dummies. Glenn slid it into the sheath already across his back with the utmost care, as though it were some fragile relic. An antique it may be, but events had proved it indestructible. Nevertheless, something so beautiful deserved respect, and the personality it seemed to possess encouraged Glenn to honor it. When his friend Shadow wielded it Glenn saw it only as a sword, but now that it was his own it became a part of him. If anything the sword's own ideals were taking the place of his own.[/p:e71i7dmy]
[p:e71i7dmy]Every so often, were a cold autumn chill or a light summer rain to trigger his emotions, Glenn would lie awake at night and experience that same flood of feelings induced by its gemstone while it was still tucked away safely under his bed. He was of course to some conscious degree aware of the desire. Once or twice he'd even jokingly referred to it as his "precious", and while the simple fact that he could jest about it suggested that the sword's draw was not quite so overbearing as the fanciful ring with which he compared it, it nevertheless had a strong hold on him.[/p:e71i7dmy]
**************************************************
[p:e71i7dmy]Glenn lived on a little known country road in Pennsylvania, snuggled away peacefully at the foothills of the Appalachians. It was a fine place to reside, at the very crossroads of suburbia and seclusion. He was able to call a dozen acres of forest and hill his own and still enjoy the convenience of shopping malls and fast food havens only a few miles away. There in his own yard, with no neighbors to alarm, he carried out the bulk of his training. He began as always with a few warmup exercises, stretching first and then sparring with an invisible foe. Shadow had from time to time utilized a shield in his combatives, but Glenn long ago concluded that that was not his style. Instead he mixed both one and two-handed moves into his technique, using such a variety of attacks that he never failed to catch his imaginary target off guard. The bulk of his independent assaults were carried out in this manner, as the straw dummy targets, while inexpensive, depleted quickly. These he reserved for only his most powerful attacks, in which he drew on the sword's own internal power to deliver a devastating blow.[/p:e71i7dmy]
[p:e71i7dmy]How he caused the weapon to spring to life he could not define. At first it happened by accident. He'd inherited the blade just short of a year prior to his second attempt at the God of Fight tournament in Johannesburg. Against his first opponent, Serj Malkane, he proved no match. Skilled beyond measure in both fight and magic, the man pummeled Glenn without the slightest bit of effort. It was in Glenn's final desperate fury that the sword took matters into its own hands, the blade suddenly glowing green and shooting out a shockwave that tore apart the earth beneath it. The attack threw Serj off of his feet, an accomplishment to brag about given the course of the battle thus far, and though Glenn found a blade in his chest by the end of the match he'd unleashed something that made the failure worthwhile.[/p:e71i7dmy]
[p:e71i7dmy]After the fight he'd met with Serj. The mysterious fellow and he had a common bond, for Serj earlier that year lent aid to the Freedom Fighters. He too had fought alongside Andrew and Akira. He expressed deep interest in the Zicron Blade, to such an extent that Glenn was quite convinced he'd paid off Akigiyama to face him in the first match and had only entered the tournament to test him. Serj's submitance without putting up a real fight in the second round only confirmed it. Whatever he knew, Glenn was not privy to it, but he openly welcomed the man's offer to train him free of charge. Further conflicts after the tournament found the two of them fighting side by side along with the rest of the Freedom Fighters, pivoted against Dr. Righteous and Norimano in the taxing times that followed.[/p:e71i7dmy]
[p:e71i7dmy]When the dust settled however Serj announced that he had more pressing business elsewhere and took off without a trace. Whether or not he would return to make good on his promise, Glenn could only wonder. Serj had appeared out of nowhere, proved himself both skilled and knowledgeable beyond compare, and then vanished just as quickly. He remained a mystery to all who'd known him. It was he however who'd triggered Glenn's desperation and the subsequent activation of the Zicron Blade.[/p:e71i7dmy]
[p:e71i7dmy]As time went by Glenn continued to focus on this new-found power. It took quite a while before he saw any success at all. Eventually he found that if he envisioned himself in the direst of situations he could relinquish his mind to the sword at least enough to trigger some reaction. It would glow the faintest blue and under ideal conditions would even send out some short beam of energy, pulverizing the target in front of him. This he'd eventually mastered, and after turning a good many hay bales to dust he finally triggered for a second time the attack displayed in that fateful match at the God of Fight tournament. Now, in his present state, he was able to utilize that attack with a decent margin of success. It took time and a great deal of concentration, but he consistently pulled it off.[/p:e71i7dmy]
[p:e71i7dmy]Relatively exhausted from traditional moves, he prepared himself to carry out exactly this. It involved a giving way of conscious thought to pure emotion. By placing himself under stress and simultaneously clearing his mind, the sword took charge. It began to shine a vibrant green, its aura expanding to surround him, and as he struck the blade into the ground is thrust forth a shockwave tearing the earth in front of it to pieces. The dummy was completely enveloped as the earth split below it, and when the force subsided the earth collapsed back into its proper place as if not the slightest trauma had set upon it, each blade of grass settling into its prior location. The dummy was nowhere to be found, buried and broken a few feet below.[/p:e71i7dmy]
[p:e71i7dmy]This was the Zicron Blade's power. Glenn wiped the sweat from his forehead with one arm while returning the weapon to its sheath with the other. Such a release paid its toll on him. He felt immediately drained and exhausted, unable to practice further. It always ended like this. Perhaps if he continued to fight afterwards he could unleash even greater techniques, but as always when the glow diminished and the sword returned to its regular form his will was gone. He began to walk back towards the house in a relaxed state. To train further wasn't even an option. He'd told himself he would keep going today, but who was he kidding? He'd made such claims a dozen times before to no avail. Until he had an actual use for the power his will to go beyond this point was null. Perhaps that was why he and the sword both longed for a new conflict. Such a thing would be necessary for either to improve. With Andrew's call for alertness, maybe he'd get just that opportunity.[/p:e71i7dmy] |
|
