The Arks

"I will provide you with support Elemental Energy," ordered Mavislin, brimming with confidence.

Ashley closed his eyes, taking all the newfound power in. His eyes flew open, ready to strike back at the enemy. His heart started to beat faster and adrenaline pumped through his veins. He quickly loaded up some special bullets into his rifle.

"My eyes, I activate thee. Pierce all fragile hearts..." chanted Ashley as his eyes glowed in his Elemental Aura.

"Abyss Of The Horizon..." chanted the being.

"Lynx Eyes..." murmured Ashley as he prepared to fire.

"Phantom Orb!" shouted the being, sending the giant ball towards the stick man.

"Round One: Aqua's Pellet!"

The rifle he held glowed in a bright turquoise shade as more power flowed in. Streams of water were sucked into the barrel. His Elemental Aura loomed over the barrel of the gun. As Ashley fired the spell, a huge ball of water went straight towards the dark orb.

Normally, the dark attack would have won, but with the help of a certain Valkyrie, it powered through. This sliced the dark orb and managed to blast a hole in Benjamin's tattered cloak, despite being a ball of water.

"Impossible... How can mere mock Mage defeat my spells?!" roared Benjamin, summoning more orbs to kill Ashley.

As a bunch of them soared through the air, Ashley fired some more water shots at it. Each orb was destroyed instantly. This made the being livid. But Ashley was beginning to tucker out from all the running, while Benjamin merely stood there.

And to top it off, the water used was saltwater, making Benjamin's healing process slightly more antagonizing. Shot after shot, Ashley maintained his distance from the being, until Benjamin moved.

"Crap," murmured Ashley as he failed to see Benjamin's movements.

There was a reason why Valkyries are dubbed as 'Creatures of Light' since their movements are incomprehensible by other beings' eyes. But as the figure got close, Ashley gave a wide grin towards the Corrupted Man. Benjamin growled as he tried to punch Ashley from the back.

But the stickman dodged by launching himself into the air and delivering a tornado crescent kick right to Benjamin's face. This sent the ex-Valkyrie flying towards a tree stump. As he tried standing up, Ashley then launched himself to the Corrupted one once more.

He delivered a hook punch, which sent him flying off to his side. But Benjamin bounced back and propelled himself towards Ashley. But the stickman wasn't intimidated as he struck the neck of Benjamin using the tiger claw strike.

The impact was so hard that one strike managed to knock most of the wind out of the Corrupted One.

"Wait, since when he could do hand-hand?" asked Gillian.

"Since I was in the Mafia, the old one. To thrive in those streets, I can't always rely on my weapons, you know."

"You should've told me earlier, I would've concentrated my power on your limbs instead of your eyes," complained Mavislin.

"There are some things that you've got no clue about me... And I'll triumph over you for that," mocked Ashley, cracking his knuckles.

Benjamin knew he was in for a treat if he didn't resort to using the next spell. This time, hand-to-hand might not save him for something from another level.

"Abyss Of The Horizon..."

"Crap!" yelled Ashley as his body was beginning to falter.

"Vortex!" yelled Benjamin with a sinister smile.

A purple duststorm appeared behind Ashley, catching him off guard. It swirled into a tornado, trying to suck the stick man in. Mavislin's eyes flashed a shade of green as she shot both her arms out, towards the flying stickman.

"Zephyr Gait!" shouted Mavislin, sending the Wind Step Spell to Ashley.

He had barely managed to get out of that predicament. He then landed right beside Mavislin and lost his balance.

"I'm still not used to having extra boosts. Gotta give some time to adjust," reasoned Ashley, shaking his head.

Another blast from Benjamin made a beeline towards Ashley. But the new Marksman of the Barren PIllars had other plans. Ashley leaped off from his feet, skillfully dodging the Spells from the shadow. With his new boost, he zipped through the air without a care in the world.

"Hmm... It seems that he can adjust quicker than when he was a human..." murmured Gillian, keeping an eye on Ashley's movements.

"You damned fly!" yelled Benjamin as he missed another shot.

"Hm, this is starting to get stale..."

Ashley halted in his tracks while Mavislin retracted the spell. He then loaded another round into his rifle. Taking his aim onto the being, Benjamin decided to draw out more Elemental Energy from the area. The grass started to die and flowers began to wilt.

"Lynx Eyes..." chanted Ashley as he honed into Benjamin from afar.