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Robloxia, a place of true imagination. At least, that’s what it was advertised. Many lands spread across the region, up, down, and sideways. A place where many were friend and foe, a place of relaxation, freedom, a place of wonder and horror alike. Where dreams could truly run free.
Our sights are brought on a land high in the sky, forever shined upon by the sun and blessed with a summer that has lasted only forever. The sound of metal clanging against metal and shouting voices being its only melody, quick scrapes and slashes left with pools of blood that would dry quickly on ground that have only been soaked in that substance. Allyship and betrayal was common, and it was all for the love of the game.
Sometimes, if you were lucky and had the time to stay in the lands long enough, you were sure to meet a sight like no other across the lands. A warrior, an angel, a deity like no other. The creator of the lands itself, made only for the entertainment of all who had even the most basic knowledge of sword handling. A figure who was rumored to be the sun itself, for if he ever truly disappeared, the harsh sun of the blood-stained land would follow.
Of course, that was way too much of a stretch. Even he knew that he was just a regular admin, though he never planned to silence the rumors otherwise, it wouldn’t rest his ego well.
For Him, it was a day like any other. A fun sparring session within The Heights after a long day being cooped up in a bland office building. No longer having to bother with any meetings, co-workers, or any of the like. Just the sun on His wings and the smell of iron in the air. The atmosphere was as perfect as always.
Now, he just needed to grab a chosen favorite.
Any swordsman that was planning a sneak attack was foiled the moment he launched himself into the air, the power behind his wings blasting wind into their faces and leaving them in a state mixed with awe and disappointment. The admin stayed in the air for a moment, just out of reach, watching the arena. The ones who tried to sneak up on him were now roaming and looking for him, pointing at where his location was. A few others were freaking out that he was even there, as if he wasn’t always visiting in his free time.
Then, it caught his eye, he couldn’t help but grin seeing it. He finally landed, dropping in front of an area with white pillars stretched into the sky, a sword gleaming with sparkles sheathed into a sort of podium that was bathed in the same white. He pulled the sparkling sword from the podium with ease, smiling to himself. From how it looked, he’s the first to use it in a good while.
Just in time, too.
As swiftly as he turned, someone had made their way up to his location, whether for him or for the sword was unknown. They readied their sword, charging for a strike on him. The admin was luckily quick to counter. With the sword's might, he launched over the poor attempt of a sneak attack, launching again before the swordsman could find where the admin had landed, hit with a killing blow all at once. Their respawn was followed by temporary despair. The admin only chuckled as he traveled back to the middle of the arena to truly start his afternoon.
On the other side of the map, things were being… Ominous.
Many were wondering why someone was wearing a full on cloak in such intense conditions. Many thought the black cloak would bring heat stroke, better yet, an easier target. Anyone who got close enough witnessed the figure disappear before they even engaged in battle with them, almost as if they vanished in their own shadow, a cold wind being the only thing left. Despite this, many did find out there was some trail being left behind with the appearances (or disappearances, more or less). The only time they did seem to fight was when they emerged from the Darkheart's holding place, the said sword in their grasp. Anyone who tried to challenge them was dealt with rather quickly. Warnings that had spread to those smart enough never engaged and let the stranger through, the same chill following behind them, despite the heat.
The path went in circles before the main arena was finally cleared of all but one.
The admin finally made it to the ring of fire, slaughtering anyone who even dared to stay still or approach, a sharp grin on his face. With time, the grin did slowly grow away. Everyone had gotten too predictable again, or too scared to even try him in another battle. He was left in the middle of the ring alone with the Illumina, left to jab the air around him in boredom until someone new approached.
Shadows looked to intensify as the figure stood across from the admin, the hood hiding away any sign of identification.. They spoke no words, only raising the Darkheart’s point in Telamon’s direction.
Interesting…
He responded with the same action, expecting some sort of speech from the figure, maybe a few words of the usual over-confident nature that’d come from a challenge against him. Instead, they started a path to the side, the Darkheart’s point lowering. They let the point of the sword drag on the flamed decal below the two as they started to follow it. He recognized the custom, he’d seen other robloxians do this before, circling each other until one finally ran to strike. It was usually something among friends, yet he knew nothing of this stranger…
… Just this once.
Telamon followed the pace, speeding up a tad to even out the space between the two. The stranger had slowed down a little in turn for the same result, the two now circling each other. He would think the stranger was waiting for him to strike, but their nature seemed unbothered, relaxed… No, not relaxed. They were alert under that shadowed hood. Their posture was straight, their hold on the sword told him they were ready to flick it back up at any moment. It was a risky setup, but it was hard for him to guess if they were going for an offensive or defensive strategy, even harder with the shadows in the way.
He fixed his hood as he walked, if they weren’t going to give any signs, neither would he. He tugged at the rim of the hood a good few times before looking back up, a smudge of black suddenly rushing at him -
CLANG!
He rounded the Darkheart caught on his Illumina away from his form, pushing the cloaked stranger away for only a second before they lunged for another strike. Telamon had blocked the attempt and swiped at the stranger, only for them to jump away.
They were quicker than he anticipated, even if they had the Darkheart. The Illumina was usually quicker, but they were almost matching his speed. The stranger lunged again, trying to strike overhead. Telamon sidestepped, ready to jab them in the side, only for the stranger to suddenly do the same, dropping the sword and catching it in front of Telamon's attempt just in the knick of time for a block.
A grin started forming on his face again. There were people chanting around the arena, for the hooded figure and Telamon himself. This had potential to be something fun, even if an urge told him to end this one quickly. This was new, different -
He felt a sudden force on his chest, the stranger had kicked the admin away and slashed at him before he could regain himself. A second slash was caught with him slashing back, almost making the figure lose their grip on their sword and stepping back. It gave him a quick chance to check a stinging in his arm.
They got a hit in.
A wild expression grew on his face. He watched for that moment, as the scar quickly grew to a black color, his health draining away. Usual Darkheart cause, but it felt different from the usual effect. A sound led his attention back to the stranger's position.
The hood had fallen away. What was originally shadows now had a white comedy mask covering their face. He tried to focus to see into the eyeholes of the mask, but there was nothing but more shadows hiding their identity. Black and gray locs fell to the sides of their head. The style was dotted with charms in the shape of purple stars, as well as beads being locked into the ends of the hairstyle. Even stranger, a Voidstar sat still and stagnant atop their head.
The weird, spikey look from the hood made more sense now, at least.
They lunged at the avian once more, breaking Telamon out of his thoughts and making him sidestep out of the way, slashing at the stranger while doing so.
They staggered back, he stopped to watch. This time it was a hit, the damage causing blood to darken the cloak further. He watched them reach for the stain and press for a moment. He wondered if he should attack while they were looking, but was cut short of the thought., They launched to strike again despite the damage and went for a jab. He had no problem countering, but Telamon started to notice a change in atmosphere. The summer was still going strong as it usually would, sure. But the people watching the fight looked worried now. A new name was mixing into the chants that he couldn’t quite catch due to the ones still chanting his name. In another block, he twisted his Illumina to throw the Darkheart out of their grasp. It didn’t work, but they backed off into a defense because of the maneuver. The mask's grin looked to almost widen, a trick of the shadows, possibly.
Telamon readied his blade, thinking over his opponent. Their movements seemed almost dramatic and emphasized, almost as if they were acting in a movie. Even then with the dramatics, they were quick and almost chaotic on their feet, aiming to strike where it’d usually end the battle quickly. He was too quick to allow that, though. In turn, they were too quick to allow him any chance for the same blow.
Everyone recognized who this was, everyone but him.
He lunged to strike, stepping to their side for a slash in the same area as before. The stranger blocked the attack, this time holding their ground and keeping them both in a standstill. Both were trying to force the sword away from the other. Or, at least one of them was until something sharp went through their abdomen.
Telamon had pulled out another sword. Nothing fancy of note, just the regular sword anyone would have on them upon spawning in. The stranger stared at it for a while, or as long as they could until the admin finally pulled it back out. Cheers filled the realm as he flicked the sword outwards, blood staining the arena once again.
Though, he realized, blood didn’t usually look this dark.
He looked back up, seeing the stranger kneeling and holding the wound, one hand against the ground. He noticed the mask wasn’t falling off their face despite there being no proof of something holding it. In fact, it hadn’t moved at all during the fight. Originally, he guessed they were new to the realm, but they had enough experience to stand against him and others to say otherwise. Enough experience to worry surrounding witnesses.
He heard sound from the being again, clearer this time. A laugh. The person was still in front of him, still bleeding from the wound he inflicted. He felt his wings fluff up as a chill went down his spine.
They should have respawned by now.
They suddenly reared their head back, letting out a cackle that somehow silenced the cheering. Telamon couldn’t help but step back, readying the Illumina in a defense. Eventually, the laughter died down into giggling and the stranger lowered their head to look straight at Telamon. The eyes of the mask looked to almost squint at him. He knew better than to believe that it wasn’t the shadows.
Through the giggling, the masked stranger finally spoke. Slowly lifting themselves back up with the Darkheart, “you really are as experienced as they say!”
Telamon blinked. They sounded as if the mask weren’t there at all to muffle their voice. Worse, they sounded as if they were in perfect health, as if they weren’t actively bleeding out in front of him. Was this an exploiter? If they were, they weren’t subtle. They weren’t even restoring their own health. In fact, their health was stuck right at zero. They still bled right in front of him, the dark substance that looked to be their blood was staining the ground they stood on. Despite all of that, they still giggled.
He wouldn’t have this nonsense. He changed to an offensive and lunged to strike the masked intruder. This time, they didn’t move to dodge or block, not with the sword. They caught the Illumina in their hand and kept their grip on it. He could see it was taking their health, hell it was going into the negatives by now. Yet they still stood, still giggling. Their blood staining the glittering blade and their sleeve. Telamon gritted his teeth as he tried to apply more force into the sword. Shouts and chants filled the realm again. He could sense the fear building up, he could only guess they could too.
He almost growled through his words, “who do you think you are?”
“Oh, you’re not aware?”
The giggling was still lacing their voice and it was starting to annoy him immensely. He didn’t hide it from his voice, “you act as if He is supposed to.”
“Well, with how most of your regulars are acting, one can only assume,” they spoke casually, acting as if their life wasn’t on the line. “Though, I’d guess that’s my own undoing, isn’t it?”
The admin pulled out the linked sword again to jab them once more. In a blink, they had suddenly vanished away, causing him to stumble. His wings spread out from beneath the robes and gave him enough balance to keep himself from falling and turned on his heel.
… They were gone. The Darkheart was stabbed into the middle of the arena. Their blood trailed towards it, but somehow the trail only stopped at the sword. Looking around, he saw nothing else. The crowd around the area didn’t see where he went, either. There wasn’t even the sound of a touchstone being activated, they just vanished.
He searched the realm for a while for any other traces, along with a few other swordsmen who wished to help, but there was nothing left. It eventually led to him and the group staring at the Darkheart left in the middle of the arena, though no one was brave enough to pick it up. People were able to point out abnormalities in the sword's form compared to a usual Darkheart, however.
Somehow, it was slightly modified in appearance. Telamon hadn’t noticed it before due to the chaos in the fight, but the sword was somehow emitting stars from its form, similar to the Illumina. There were even specks of white in the sword, though it was hard to notice in the sun's light. Someone within the group had to grab a Darkheart to do actual comparisons. It was slightly longer, too. Slimmer compared to the Darkhearts usual form. The heart at the Swords hilt was chipped into a star form, and the tip of the handle had spikes formed around its edge.
Someone chirped that it looked similar to the Voidstar crown’s design. The admin thought it was a strange comparison, but everyone else within the surrounding group agreed immediately to the thought. Eventually, Telamon pulled the sword from the ground since no one else would. The sheer cold caused him to almost drop it in surprise.
Sure, the sword was usually cold whenever it was first pulled from its holding place, but time out in the sun usually warmed it. This version felt as if it hadn’t touched the sun in years, but Telamon kept his grip on it nonetheless.
The remaining people circling the arena started asking him too many questions for him to track. Eventually (after shouting over them to shut up), the group had calmed down and waited for him to speak.
“Telamon will be taking this to Headquarters to be analyzed. He suggests for you all to try and not make a big deal about this. Whoever you all may think it is, He is sure it’s just a hoax.”
Someone in the group raised their hand, he pointed at them for them to speak.
“How come they didn’t respawn?”
“He’s sure it's just another exploiter needing justice.”
Another hand raised, he pointed.
“Why is the sword different?”
He gave them a long, hard stare. Sadly, they didn’t pick up the memo.
“Exploit.”
“Oh.”
He sighed, reasonably annoyed. “No more questions, He has to report this while He can.”
Before anyone else could say anything stupid, the admin flew off. Up into the sky and towards more (hopefully) competent people.
Gauze was ripped as wounds were finally sealed up. Though they could heal quickly, they were sent to be bandaged up just in case. “Could never be too careful,” they told them.
“That should hold up well.”
The figure nodded, lifting their cloak back over them, “thank you, Holly.”
“Glad to be of assistance.”
The masked figure waved goodbye as they left the room and started down a giant hall, almost skipping their way down like a gleeful child. Passing many doorways, night-filled windows, and going up a staircase before finally stopping at a specific pair of doors. They knocked before entering into a room that was designed to look like a throne room, but no one sat at the throne. Whoever it was for wasn’t there yet, and had certainly not claimed the green crown and sword sitting upon it.
The cheerful skipping dropped into a formal walk, their arms folded behind their back until they finally dropped in front of the throne. They pulled their hood back and clasped their hands together, sitting them in their lap.
They closed their eyes, “I bring you good news, Adversary.”