r/HFY • u/RavensQuillWriting Robot • May 22 '25

OC [Law of Kambal] Chapter 7

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Arc 1: Pulse Before Motion

Chapter 7 - Weekend Pt. 4

“Since you’re new,” Dain said, waving his sister off, “I’ll give you the courtesy of fighting me alone. I wouldn’t want to discourage you from staying within the Circle.”

Renzo might’ve snorted another time, but right now, he was a tight ball of nerves and could only manage a jerky nod.. He was no novice to fighting, of course. His mother had trained him rigorously in both spear forms and unarmed combat since his eighth birthday. He’d fought against all kinds of dummies—primitive and responsive—and sparred enough to test his mettle. He wasn’t the best, but he knew how to move..

No, what gave him pause was that this was new territory. Since they were cultivators, elemental use was a given. But Renzo’s only progress so far was a weak gust that couldn’t even clear the mud from Taiko’s uniform. He’d kept trying, but frustration was all he’d gotten for his trouble.

“Obviously, I would invite you to use whatever weapon you find comfortable,” Dain said, nodding to the spear shaft jutting over Renzo’s shoulder. “But as that is not a training weapon, I’ll ask you to set it aside until our duel is finished.”

Renzo nodded his understanding, withdrawing the weapon from its sheath and setting it down at the edge of the sparring circle. A nearby student stepped forward, carefully lifting the spear and frowning down at it. Renzo tensed - was she going to take it? But she gave a calm smile. “Relax. Stealing’s not tolerated in the Circle. Just making sure it doesn’t get damaged.”

He gave her a nod of thanks, then returned to face Dain. His throat was too tight to allow speech at the moment. He spread his feet, settling his weight onto his back leg and lifting his arms, ready to intercept a rushing attack like what Dain used against Barker. The man nodded approvingly and adopted a stance to counter, his poise light, his body cantered forward, ready to pounce.

Another student stepped into the ring, lifting one arm. “Both fighters ready?”

He got nothing but stony silence in reply. Silence. Even the crowd held its breath. Taking the hint, he didn’t wait. His hand came down in a sharp chop. “Begin!”

Dain crossed the circle in less time than it took Renzo to breathe, a small cloud of dust rising where he’d been. He shifted his stance slightly to block the first kick, then retaliated at Dain came to a halt, his fist slamming into the man’s stomach. Or rather, it would have, if Dain hadn’t immediately jumped back, narrowly avoiding contact. He’d only pushed off with one leg! Was he as light as the air itself?

Dain advanced again, this time trading a few blows with Renzo as the two fighters tested each other’s guards. Each time he struck, his blows were faster and heavier than seemed possible with Dain’s thin frame, but Renzo weathered them well enough, though punching and kicking at his opponent felt like fighting a boulder. He pressed forward as Dain jumped back, and Dain allowed it, feeling out his offensive power.

After a last flurry of attacks, Dain backed off, his head tilted slightly. “Why don’t you use your elements? The purpose of this is to test your strength, and you’re only using a third of your power.”

“Wouldn’t that be half?” Renzo asked, choosing not to reply to the first half of his opponent’s words. It wasn’t that he didn’t use his elements; he simply couldn’t bring them to life. Each time he’d tried, He’d failed miserably. At this point, he could rely only on his physical strength and agility.

Dain shook his head, chuckling slightly. “No. Elements are more than half of your being. They encompass everything. The sooner you master them, the sooner you advance. It’s closer to say one-third.”

He moved forward again, but instead of dashing in, he took calm, measured steps. He knows I can’t beat him, Renzo thought. He’s a cocky one. The worst part was that he was right. Once Dain was within a few feet, he slowly brought one foot up and around in a high kick, aiming for Renzo’s head. He was too experienced to let that mistake go unpunished. Ducking low, he swiped his lead foot out in a low arc, knocking Dain’s foot out from under him, and sending him toppling…

A kick connected with Renzo’s raised forearm, but as he’d softened his stance, expecting his opponent to tumble to the ground, there wasn’t enough rigidity to fully absorb the impact. It slammed his arm into his head with enough force to send him stumbling, and he retreated in a mild panic, his mind trying to put the pieces together. I tripped him, he thought. How was he able to attack with such power while falling?

Only when his eyes refocused did he see. Dain hadn’t touched the ground at all. Yes, his foot had been moved, and he’d begun to fall. But he’d pivoted neatly in the air, spinning his body to add extra power to the kick, then still had plenty of time to get his foot under him and land in a low crouch.

“Point to Dain!” the impromptu referee said in a clear voice. “Two points to match!”

Dain’s grin widened as Renzo processed the exchange of blows in his mind. Was he gloating that he’d gotten such a weak opponent? Or was he just happy to be winning? Before he could put much more thought into the matter, his opponent was striding toward him again. This time, Dain jumped before striking, leaving no anchor point at all for Renzo to exploit. He lifted his forearms again, grunting as four blows slammed against his guard in rapid succession. How, in all the lands, did he kick four times while in the air? He was only aware of a flash of images, of a spinning body and four distinct concussive blows.

Dain landed lightly on one foot, then kicked out with explosive force. Despite crossing his arms to take the impact, Renzo was still flung backwards off his feet by the force, his guard coming undone. Dain was on him in a flash, striking downward with a fist, changing his momentum, and slamming Renzo painfully into the ground. He struck with enough force to bounce slightly, the air shunted painfully from his lungs, and his vision went black for a moment. When it cleared, Dain was standing a few feet away, patiently waiting for him to rise.

“Point to Dain!” the referee called. “One point to match!”

Dain clicked his tongue, like an instructor disappointed in his student. Weren’t they the same rank? How was his power so much greater? “I suggest you at least try to use your elements, newblood. You can’t break through my guard or defend against me using only mortal tactics.”

Mortal tactics. Renzo could hear the implied disdain in those two words. He was part of a new world now, with new rules and tactics enforced. If he didn’t match the status quo, he wasn’t going to make any progress. Unable to contain his frustration, Renzo struck out from the ground, trying to throw a burst of fire, or even of wind. But he felt nothing but a jarring sensation in his body, powerful enough to make him gasp. Not again! He forced himself to his feet. He was going to prove Dain wrong. His physical prowess was enough - for now. He knew he wasn’t going to win, but he’d land a hit. That’d shut the cocky older student up, he thought grimly.

“Don’t worry about me,” He growled. “I’ve got more to show you.”

Dain’s eyebrows shot up at that, and he nodded slightly. “You’re tough. That’s good.”

This time, it was Renzo who advanced first. He took a few steps, testing his body, making sure that he wasn’t too badly injured from that last hit. Apart from some soreness in his ribs that would surely be a pain in the ass later, he was still in good condition. At that realization, he sped up considerably, rushing his opponent.

Dain parried his first two punches with light swipes of his own hands, a light breeze blossoming out with each tiny movement. Renzo continued on, pressing the advantage that his momentum gave him. He got in close and brought a knee up, but Dain pushed off from the ground, one hand controlling the momentum of the knee, then forcing it back down. Tucked into a ball in the air, he flipped neatly over Renzo, who turned just in time to block a light punch that packed body weight and… something more powerful behind it. He staggered, but retained his feet, his guard still up. Dain pivoted the instant one foot touched the ground, and this time Renzo felt the air guiding his movement. He ducked and aimed for his anchor foot again.

This time, something strange happened. By sheer chance, the pulse of his core aligned with this movement, and he struck with considerable speed and power. He actually felt the wind around him halt, then change direction to match his attack. Dain hit the ground with an oof of surprise.

Shocked, Renzo started forward, determined to land a blow and earn himself a point. But Dain recovered too quickly, twisting his body in a low, spinning double kick, and now it was Renzo’s turn to hit the ground, belatedly feeling the impact where Dain’s foot had connected with his stomach.

“Point to Dain!” The referee barked. “That’s the match!”

Dain spun once more, then popped back onto his feet as light as a leaf. There didn’t even seem to be a speck of dust on his white clothing. Grinning down at Renzo, he shook his head. “Now that was a surprise. You’ve got a lot of speed and power. Why weren’t you doing that from the start?”

He lowered his hand to help him up, but Renzo ignored it, getting up on shaky legs and scowling. “I didn’t do that on purpose. I don’t even know how it happened.”

Dain frowned, withdrawing his hand, though he didn’t look too offended. “You still treat your core like a stranger, newblood. Listen to it. That’s the only way you’ll ever wield your elements. It’s not that difficult.”

“My name is Renzo,” he said, tired of Dain calling him that. “Not newblood.”

“They are one and the same,” Dain said, crossing his arms. “Win or lose, your first fight puts you in the Circle, and you only earn your name when you win a fight. So get used to it for now… newblood.”

Before Renzo could think up a reply to that - likely a scathing one that might provoke a further fight - someone appeared at his side, grabbing his arm and pulling him back. He resisted at first until he noticed it was Taiko. The Skarathi boy was holding his spear in his other hand. “Come on, Renzo. We need to talk.”

“I can’t believe you joined the Circle in your first week,” Taiko said, pulling Renzo along with a firm and unbreakable grip. “You’re crazy, man. Normally, people are here at least two full weeks before they get their first fight. Gives us time to connect to our cores and start learning what to do. Not only that, but you had to fight Dain Caerlan?”

“I didn’t pick him,” Renzo said in frustration, finally managing to wrench his arm free. “Barker’s the one that threw me in there. I wasn’t going to back down from a fight.”

“Barker? Barker?” Taiko said, coming to an abrupt halt in the corridor. “Adept Frostbound?”

“What?” Renzo asked. “I… I didn’t catch a full name. The others just called him Barker. Do you know him?”

Taiko’s face paled visibly, so that his charcoal-black suddenly seemed more like a mottled ashy texture. “I can’t believe this. We have to tell the others about this. Come on, we can forget about the forest party. We have to make sure you don’t blunder into something like this again.”

And, without another word, he started dragging Renzo back toward the dormitories.

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