Chapter 147.10: Fortnight 9: Little Giant

Arson continued to dangle from the flying stage above, not giving Stream much of a chance to avoid being targeted. The deluge of arrows frustrated Stream obviously, Arson unable to keep down the laughter that built in his chest at Stream’s predicament.

Arson pulled another variant of his arrows from his quiver. This projectile also hollowed out like his Cage Arrow, but without the honeycomb design. This arrow was barely distinguishable between Arson’s regular bone arrow, and was filled with bone dust from top to bottom. Arson smiled at the glowing tip of the arrow as he lined up his next shot.

“I got to give it to you, Little Giant, you're doing great. Don’t know how long you can keep this up but I don’t think the Maiden could have given me a better target dummy!”

Arson fired his arrow, hearing many around the stage begin to comment. His arrow flew over Stream’s shoulder and landed in the stage behind the young man, and Stream stopped to look at the projectile that hadn’t even come close to striking him, before he turned back to yell up at Arson.

“What, are you getting lazy, rich boy, or are those soft hands of yours too delicate to fire that bow of yours. It's obviously too fine a weapon for you anyway!”

Arson lifted his free hand with a rude gesture, just as his arrow exploded in a cloud of bone dust that submerged a large area of the stage. The bone dust was so fine that the cloud created was like that of chalk, both choking Stream as he tried to breathe, in addition to blinding him.

“You know, little giant, I think I’m done holding back. It's time for me to let loose a little bit. What do you all think?” roared Arson looking toward the others gathered.

The crowd yelled back in approval, a round of cheers suddenly booming in their direction from the edge of the stage. While Arson drew another one of his Cage Arrows.

“I guess I have my answer.”

…

Stream couldn’t breathe. Nor did he know what way to run to escape the cloud of dust. The young man completely unable to think long enough to plan out a counterstrike, or even attempt to defend himself.

He ended up sprinting in a random direction until he burst free of the cloud of dust, only to be encaged by another of the odd arrows Arson was firing. He spun in an attempt to find Arson, but before he could he was attracted by the sound of an odd whistling noise.

His eyes caught sight of the arrow just as the square tipped projectile expanded forming a wall that plummeted toward him. He cursed mentally, and even before he could think to break free of the cage that had just been placed around him, another cloud of dust burst into existence.

“By the depths, Arson, I hope you drown,” yelled Stream choking.

…

The heavy bone wall slammed into the cage crushing it completely. Stream couldn’t be seen through the explosion of dust and bone debris, and the crowd went crazy.

What Arson didn’t know was that Stream was undefeated in the dueling arenas for multiple reasons, and that his seeming victory was seen as an absolute anomaly.

The first reason Stream hadn’t lost, was that his father had trained him far more than any of the other young members of the races. While the second was his mixed blood. What Arson was about to experience, none of Stream’s other opponents had, but was truly the underlying reason why they’d all lost.

The area went silent for a moment, and Arson even detached from the chain that linked him to the flying stage that still circled above where he battled against Stream, dropping down toward the still dispersing cloud with a chuckle as he walked toward the small newly formed crater.

“Sparks little gi—“

Arson dove. The wall of bones blown apart in an instant as an arrow broke the sound barrier, soaring by Arson so powerfully that it popped, breaking apart under the duress of the force used to fire it.

Arson rolled, coming to his feet, all while drawing another arrow. He watched as Stream stood up slowly, the once small framed young half giant’s entire body now rippling with dense muscle.

Arson had thought the young man wore loose and baggy clothing to remain untethered and unrestricted. Stream’s clothing seemingly made to protect from any environment, but now as he saw the young man stand at his new height of nearly ten feet, Arson understood the truth when Stream turned to him and spoke in an incredibly deep voice.

“Call me little giant, one more time!”

Arson looked toward the crowd of amazed onlookers, and then back toward Stream. None there had ever seen Stream’s bloodline fully awaken, though some had come close, he’d only ever grown in such a fractional degree that it seemed the act of battling had made his musculature more pronounced. Now however, while battling Arson his rage had reached a new height, a level that Arson had no problem with taking even higher.

Arson shrugged and aimed the same arrow that he used to create clouds of dust, only this time however, he filled not just the tip with mana, but the whole arrow.

“Eat this… little giant…”

Arson fired and Stream moved. To Arson’s shock, the young man moved so quickly that his arrow seemed to be moving slowly compared to Stream.

The half giant jumped over Arson’s arrow, pulling back on his own bowstring. Arson’s eyes widened, and a deep instinctual sense told him that he was in danger unlike anything he’d experienced recently.

“Die, rich boy!”

A familiar sound like that of a volcano erupting touched Arson’s ears and a flicker of memory brushed against his mind.

Oh bloody embers…!

An explosion of power pulsed out as Stream fired an arrow. The bone arrow given to Stream by Arson not only duplicated itself numerous times during its flight, but each and every copy grew by titanic degrees as well.

A quarter of the stage was destroyed by the pillar sized bones. Each shot blasted apart the material the stage was made of. Chunks erupted into the air and nothing could be seen of Arson momentarily.

Stream missed an arrow that exploded with an incredible amount of power. The arrow that had been fired with the same functionality of a smoke bomb, not only discharged its normal contents, but had also been completely ignited by the additional mana Arson had infused into the body of the arrow.

While Stream smiled at his assumed victory. The crowd around the stage looked between the bomb that had been set off by Arson’s arrow, and the arrow skill Stream himself had used. Many murmurs about the oddity that was two archers displaying as much or more destructive capabilities as mages, or even some elemental masters.

Serves him right, thought Stream. Until a cheer and a familiar voice pulled his attention from his thoughts entirely.

“Now we are talking, little giant, I was beginning to think that I was already closing in on you and headed toward your dad’s skill level, but it seems that I have much to learn from you still. What else you got?”

Stream turned his head to see Arson once more dangling from the stage above. The series of arrows also soaring toward him made Stream groan in annoyance, but so did the fact that Arson looked completely unaffected by the powerful skill his father taught him.

Four of the arrow tips transformed into walls of bone, while two more glimmered from top to bottom with mana. As Arson had been circling while firing the arrows, all of the shots came at Stream from various angles and before Stream knew what was happening, four walls dropped into place around him.

Not having had seen the explosive arrow Arson had fired, in addition to observing the final two arrows that were sent toward him being on paths that would come nowhere close to him, Stream focused on returning shots of his own. Under the assumption that the arrows were filled with the same dust that had been used to distract him, he felt unbothered, knowing that in his current form he could merely jump above the clouds of dust and keep firing.

Stream’s powerful shots rang out with booms; the young man shooting both at Arson himself and the chain that held him aloft. The first ignored explosive arrow went off directly next to Stream, and rammed into the young man with the force of a twenty foot wave during high tide. While the second explosion detonated even more closely, thrusting into him amidst his flight, Stream knocked into the wall of bone nearest to him with enough power to smash him completely through the obstruction turned trap.

Stream managed to stay upright, his feet sliding across the ground as he struggled to keep his balance.

His rage grew, and fire began to leak from Stream’s pores, more of the crowd within the dueling grounds surrounding the fight by the blink.

“That all you got, little giant? Bring it on, or maybe you want your dad to take me on as your replacement!”

…

“They related?” asked one of Light’s followers. The young elf shook his head at the man, fluffing his wings in annoyance. He knew nothing of the new combatant fighting Stream, nor this new form Stream had been push to show.

“You think we could beat these two in a team brawl? I’ve never seen anyone break one of the stages beside us,” asked another of Light’s followers; the question causing the elven noble to scoff.

“You two scared by a few arrows and think you will be picked to support me in the battle against the Primes?”

Light looked over each shoulder at both followers, and sneered in their direction.

“My brothers and sisters would be ashamed of me if they heard I was hanging around you two. Where is your Elven might, boys…”

Light watched as the new combatant continued to use various combinations with his bow and arrows. Which made the young man he wanted to fight most in this life grow stronger and stronger before his very eyes.

Light’s parents had forbidden him from fighting the son of Acu, and though he didn’t understand previously, he became more and more aware of why they’d chosen to stop Light from doing so.

Stream was becoming more and more powerful with each breath Light took; a gasp going through the crowd as Stream literally breathed fire at a few incoming arrows, turning them to ash before he was struck.

“He’s really showing his mixed blood now, never thought I’d see the day…” Light mumbled to himself in disgust. Light’s family had often ridiculed Stream’s parentage, belittling Acu’s ancestry being mixed with both the blood of Giants and DragonKin, as well as his mother being an Elven Orc. His own family's pure blood line found any mix blood between the races to be revolting, and though Light was more accepting, Stream’s newest display of power made his blood boil, feeling as if his parents somehow knew just how prominent Acu’s son’s power truly was.

“What do you say, Light, why don’t we challenge them both? We might as well put them both in their places,” said the elf to the right of him. Light glanced back with a gleam in his eyes at the idea, his parents demands of him leaving his mind in an instant.

Spark this, I’ll show everyone here who is truly deserving of the councils attention…

“Sounds like you all may actually be elves.”

…

Arson cursed. Stream fired what Arson thought to be a normal arrow, but the moment the arrow left the bow, the projectile grew wings of flame.

Stream’s arrow didn’t even have to directly hit the chain that held Arson off the ground, as the flames sliced through the chain above Arson, dropping him from the above immediately.

“Gotcha, rich boy. Don’t get comfortable, this is my home turf!”

Arson rolled once he hit the ground, drawing another arrow from his borrowed quiver, then paused. Stream also paused as a kind looking older Orc woman slowly walked in between both the young men, clearing her throat before speaking up. Arson realizing she was their stage's designated referee by the all black garbs she wore.

“Excuse me younglings, but it seems the pair of you have a set of challengers,” the referee said, waving a hand behind herself in the direction of a handful of elves.

Arson glanced, his brow furrowing at the sight of five winged elves standing just inside the limits of the stage. While Stream didn’t dare look away from Arson for a moment.

“What’s going on here? Are they just allowed to interrupt our spar like this? Who are these scumbags?”

“They're nobles, and yes they can, they outrank us both, we’re pretty much obligated to accept their challenge.”

“Sounds fun, you down?”

“Sure…,” Stream said after a moment, sighing heavily before releasing the tension on his bowstring. Arson watched as the young man began to shrink slightly, watching him momentarily as Stream took deep breaths to calm down.

“Well if it isn’t Stream, or should I call you Little Giant,” said the young elf at the head of the pack. Arson walked to Stream’s side, noticing his grip tighten on his bow at the use of the name he’d just been using to antagonize him.

He really doesn’t like to be called that huh… Guess I’ll stop doing that.

Arson was agitated with Stream and his Father, but his agitation wasn’t a matter that he felt should allow for the complete destruction of the friendship they’d been building.

“Want me to kill him,” Arson said before Stream could speak up. Stream glanced over at Arson in surprise, but quickly shifted his facial features, smiling at Arson before he shook his head.

“No, just leave it be, he and his people are probably here to train for the fight against the Primes that is coming, it would be a waste of good talent, however small a dose these lot have running through their veins.”

“You sure, this Prime fight seems serious. Wouldn’t want to let anyone partake if they're going to drag us down?”

“I’m sure.”

Arson nodded, smiling as he looked off, allowing Stream to speak to the new party, ignoring the glare of their obvious leader at his words.

“Hello, Light, how may we be of service?”

“Hmm, that’s more like it, almost thought you’d forgotten your place, but my expectations are simple enough for a bottom feeder like you to understand…” Light said looking between Arson and Stream, gesturing between them, and then toward the elf beside him and then finally himself.

“You two against us two.”

Arson scoffed and chuckled heartily, looking back toward light.

“I don’t partake in unfair fights…”

“I see, it seems that this one knows just how outclassed he is, but I’m not dumb enough to go up against two skilled archers without at least one ally,” Light said laughing.

“Didn’t he say we were outclassed not even a moment ago,” Stream asked with an accompanied glance toward Arson.

“Yeah, but now we are skilled all of a sudden, and for an idiot who thought I wanted to fight just him rather than all five of them, he seems pretty cocky, does he know what he’s getting into?”

Stream burst into laugher, and finally looked at Arson, placing a hand on his shoulder, looking back at Light with a suddenly serious glare as he spoke.

“No, rich boy, I don’t think he does.”