Episode One

Intercepting a Warlock, Will Tsarevich Find a Compatible Weapon?

A sound soul dwells within a sound mind and a sound body.

Soul perception: that's what he was good at. He needed to stick to what he was good at or he was going to lose. He couldn't afford to lose. Not again. And so he focused, closing his eyes so he could see—so he could see their souls. He saw them clearly: a Weapon soul and a Meister soul. Both were strong and confident—a little too confident. He started probing for a weakness when…

"What are you doing, Tsarevich? Are you just going to stand there? Come on! Attack already!"

The sound of Ayame's voice broke his concentration. He opened his eyes and he could no longer see the souls. Just his opponents: Sky and Rain. And they were advancing to attack.

He gripped the hilt of his Weapon, Ayame, the wakizashi and parried Rain's attack. Rain was wielding Sky, a halberd, and was one of the most proficient Meister students in the academy.

But she's not as good as me, he thought to himself. The fight became a flurry of twirling blades. The sound of metal clanging against metal, the breathing and grunts of the Meisters engaged in combat became the only reality that Tsarevich could perceive. He felt himself retreating into the recesses of his mind, letting his instincts and training take the front seat while he began to search for his opponents' souls again. Just when he was starting to get a glimpse of what frequency to adjust his wavelength output to…

"Stop using me as a shield and strike back! What the hell is the matter with you? What kind of Meister are you?"

The concentration break and the frustration at the insult caused him to hesitate for just a moment. Then the pain began. He felt the blunt end of Sky strike him again and again until he was on the floor with the blade of the halberd pressed against his throat. He was utterly defeated—and was about to be humiliated even more so.

He felt the sword in his hand surge and turn into Ayame. He looked up at her long legs, lovely figure, particularly her plump breasts and started to blush. She had her arms crossed in front of her and was glaring down at him, fuming with anger.

"That's just great, Tsarevich! If that had been a Kishin we both would have been dead by now!" she said accusingly.

"If you could have shut your mouth long enough to concentrate, I could have taken them both out with one blow," he countered. He was on his feet now and he no longer cared how hot Ayame was. Sure, it was hard not to notice her flawless skin and long, flowing hair, but he was pissed at her, so all of that faded away.

"Don't be mad because you lost again, Tsarevich," Rain said haughtily. As she did, her Weapon transformed into human form to add into the jeering.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but you haven't won a single sparring match, have you?" Sky asked with a coy sneer. Tsarevich could feel his blood boil as proverbial steam spouted out of his nose like a kettle.

"That's because I still haven't found a compatible Weapon partner yet!" he replied with a snarl.

"Oh, so this is all my fault, is it?" Ayame demanded. Before Tsarevich could say anything he felt the punch hit his face and he was on the ground again.

"Consider our partnership dissolved!" she screamed. In a fury, he changed the frequency of his wavelength and got ready to strike again but not before…

"That's enough! Everyone take their seats and start reading chapter seven. Tsarevich, come and see me out in the hall." The voice came from Professor Aurion. He had been supervising the sparring match and had remained uninvolved until now.

Great, Tsarevich thought, I'm in trouble again.

He followed his professor out in the hall. Merios Aurion towered over Tsarevich but he knew that he was only about four years older than him. His long, black hair hung loosely in front of his eyes. He wore stylish black clothes, far too trendy for a professor. It was only about two years earlier that he was a student too. Rumor was that he was the most gifted Meister to come through the Academy since Franken Stein. Tsarevich wasn't sure how much merit those rumors really had.

"Look, I'm sorry I lost my cool, Professor. Can I please just go back to my seat and do the reading?"

"I'm worried about you, Tsarevich. That's more than a dozen Weapon partners that you've paired with that have proven to be fruitless. What was wrong with Ayame? She's a powerful enough Sword, and really cute too…" the professor observed.

"She's a self-absorbed, pretentious little snot who couldn't keep her mouth shut long enough for me execute my attack," Tsarevich replied with a shout. The door to the classroom was ajar. He hoped that he had said it loud enough for Ayame to hear. He watched as his professor tactfully shut the door.

"You always say that there is something wrong with your Weapon partner. Koi was too quiet, Ayame was too loud, Takashi was too heavy, Kimiko was too light…seems like you've had quite the run of bad luck," he said sympathetically.

"Get real, Professor! We both know that there's nothing wrong with any of those weapons. It's me! I'm the problem. I'm just not compatible with anyone," Tsarevich felt the stinging warmth of embarrassment and anger flare up in his cheeks. He was not sure what he expected but he did not expect what happened next. He felt a comforting hand rest on his shoulder and he looked up to see genuine sympathy in his professor's eyes.

"Tsarevich, you are a gifted Meister. You have more potential than anyone in your class," he began.

"Only because of my wavelength," he muttered.

"It's more than that. Being able to bend your wavelength to adapt yourself to wield any weapon is impressive enough. Your soul perception is unmatched in your entire class. You will go far as a Meister. I'm sure of it," Aurion promised.

"Professor, why don't you have a Weapon partner?" Tsarevich asked, and then added, "If you don't mind me asking."

"Why do you want to know?" he asked. His head tilted ever-so-slightly to the side in genuine curiosity.

"To be honest, I just want to know why you are always harping on me to have a Weapon partner when you don't really have one either," Tsarevich admitted, and then added, "At least not one that we know about."

The professor let out a genuine chuckle and shook his head from side-to-side, clapping Tsarevich on the shoulder again. Tsarevich just stared him down, more curious than ever to know the answer. Just as the professor opened his mouth to reply, the PA chime sounded. After a second or two, the voice of Lord Death began to resonate through the halls.

"HALLO! HALLO! I trust that everyone is enjoying their day today. Remember, students that exams are just right around the corner! Make sure you're studying. Would Professor Aurion please meet me in the Death Room?"

"I guess you have to go and that means I'm off the hook this time," Tsarevich said, pulling away from the professor.

"Oh no, you don't! I'm not quite done with my lecture. You're coming with me," he replied, grabbing Tsarevich by the arm.

"With you? To the Death Room? With Lord Death?" Tsarevich asked. He waited to see if the professor was serious. The look on his face said one thing: he was. Tsarevich swallowed the lump forming in his throat and moped his way a few steps behind the professor.

Great…now I'm really in trouble. Lord Death! The Death Room! Ah!

"You're nervous about meeting Lord Death for the first time, aren't you?" Aurion asked.

"I've seen him before," Tsarevich replied, dodging the question.

"Sure you have. You've seen him give plenty of speeches to the Academy from afar, but I'm sure you're frantically wondering what he's like in person."

"Well, when you put in that way…" Tsarevich said, trailing off as his mind began to wander.

"Let me just say that this will be an experience that you'll never forget," Aurion said with a grin. Tsarevich could feel the dread start to loom over him like a shadow. Before long they were making their way down the guillotine hallway and Lord Death was in sight, in front of his mirror.

He turned to greet them as they began to ascend the stairs. Tsarevich started on his nervous twitch as he felt his pulse quicken. It started as a means to calm himself—that is, when he discovered that he could see souls. The first thing that he noticed was the enormous and powerful soul radiating from Professor Aurion. It was blue and round just like most human souls, and was larger than most Meisters. That was one indication that he was more powerful than the average person, but the thing that caught Tsarevich's attention was the frequency of the wavelength.

Every living soul on the planet has a certain frequency that their wavelength projects. A higher frequency was another indicator of strength. At first, when looking at his soul, Tsarevich though that it was not moving at all. To his knowledge, there was no such thing as a static soul. Everyone's soul is in motion; it's one of the laws of the universe. As he looked more closely he saw that the professor's soul resembled cascading water rapids. Rushing so swiftly and so fluidly, Tsarevich was starting to put merit to the rumors he had heard.

He was frustrated that he could not see Lord Death's soul. He concentrated harder, focused, looked closer, but to no avail. Maybe a reaper's soul was invisible.

"Oh! Hallo! Hallo! Merios, it's good to see you again," Lord Death said, his enormous white hand holding up two fingers. It was strange to hear someone call the Professor by his first name.

You're staring Death in the face and all you can think about is that?

"Good morning, Lord Death. To what do I owe the pleasure of this meeting?" the Professor asked.

"Straight to business as always, eh, Merios? I see you brought Meister Tsarevich with you today. To what do I owe the pleasure?" Lord Death asked. As he did, he turned the gaping black holes that eyes might once have been and stared, as far as could be told, right at Tsarevich—probably into his soul.

Nervously, he gave a bow and tried to think of how to reply. He started getting nervous again and turned his soul perception on. The distraction of the professor's soul in his peripheral would help him not be so nervous in front of Lord Death.

"Good morning, sir. Professor Aurion asked me to accompany him this morning," Tsarevich explained simply.

"Well, it's not very often that I get to have a face-to-face with one of my students! And one with as much potential as you! Welcome! Welcome!" Lord Death said cheerfully. His voice was not at all what you would expect from a Grim Reaper. Cheerful…with a tinge of…goofy?

Tsarevich flushed with embarrassment at the compliment. He did not like undeserved praise. He would let people tell him how great he was when he finally got around to making a Death Weapon. Still, for the sake of being polite…

"Thank you, sir."

"Lord Death, if I may ask again, why did you call me here?" Professor asked.

"You don't already know?" Lord Death countered.

"I assume it's because the Warlock Liir managed to get his hands on another tool," Professor Aurion replied.

"Assume! Ha! Merios you always manage to make me laugh. You are right though. I'm not sure what the West Coven wants with the tools, but whatever it is, it can't be good. He's currently en route from one of the mountain observatories. If you leave now, you might be able to intercept him," Lord Death said.

"I will leave immediately. We will intercept him and we will recover the tool," the Professor replied with a bow. Tsarevich noticed the change in the professor's tone of voice and demeanor. Normally he was so lax. Now he had the fire of determination in his eyes.

"So you're taking the boy with you after all," Lord Death said, head tilted to the side in musing.

"Yes. Tsarevich, you're coming with me," Aurion said.

"What? Me? No way! I'm not going with you to hunt down a Witch—!"

"—Warlock," Lord Death corrected.

"Witch-Warlock, Whatever! I can't even find a suitable Weapon partner, how am I supposed to help you intercept a Witch? No way! I'm not going," Tsarevich said, crossing his arms and sticking his nose in the air.

"You don't have a choice in the matter. You've failed your last four exercises. I don't think I need to tell you what kind of score you have in my class. If you don't go, I will expel you," the professor replied. Tsarevich's mouth fell open. He could not believe his ears. The professor said it so calmly and collectively, there was no doubt that he was being serious.

"That's not fair! Don't you think expulsion is kind of a harsh punishment?" he demanded. The professor did not reply.

"Lord Death, can he really expel me?"

"Hmm! I suppose he can. He is one of the executive faculty members on staff here at the DWMA. Yes. I guess he could expel you if he wanted to. I'd go if I were you. And I'd hurry! If you make him late and he's not able to catch the Warlock, I'd hate to see how he'd punish you then. There are worse things than expulsion after all," Lord Death said. Tsarevich turned and saw that Professor Aurion was already on his way.

"You'd better hurry, Tsarevich! He's right, you know! You don't want to make us late," he called. Tsarevich growled in frustration and chased after his professor. He found himself pouting as they made their way through the Academy's halls, all the way to the entrance and down the stairs into Death City. Eventually, he realized that pouting was not going to get him out of the situation and resolved to just walk and say nothing.

A Warlock? Why would the professor want me of all people to help him intercept a Warlock? I mean, those with Witch souls are usually quite powerful. And Meisters without Weapons seems to be a poor approach to fight one.

What about this thing that we're after? They called it a tool. I wonder what kind of tool it is. It must be pretty important if Lord Death called Professor Aurion out of class and told him to leave right now.

The only part that doesn't make sense about this situation…

"Professor, can I ask you a question," Tsarevich asked. The professor turned to him with a genuine smile.

"You know that I always encourage questions in my classes, Tsarevich. Go right ahead," he replied.

"We're not in class," Tsarevich replied bitterly. He never thought he'd live to see the day when he would prefer to be in a classroom reading boring textbooks than his current situation. He would even take another battle with Sky and Rain over what he was doing.

"But the important thing is: you're still learning. So by all means, ask away!" he replied a little too cheerfully.

"Why am I coming with you to intercept a Witch—?"

"—Warlock," Aurion corrected.

"Whatever," Tsarevich said with a huff impatient frustration.

"I already told you why: you have great potential. I think some time out the classroom and in the field will do you some good. I know that those exercises we do are not challenging for you. Maybe if were put in a situation that demanded more of you, you would do better," the professor explained.

"Professor, forgive me for questioning your judgment, but I wouldn't exactly consider myself a prime candidate for field work. You said it yourself: I have failed the last four exercises and my grade is abysmal," Tsarevich said. The professor started chuckling.

"What's so funny?"

"I like your use of the word, 'abysmal.' Very appropriate," he added. Tsarevich started fuming again. He was beginning to think that he wasn't cut out for the DWMA at all. Still, he was not satisfied with the professor's answer. He was almost certain that there was more to it than his so-called potential.

"You're sure this has nothing to do with my wavelength?" Tsarevich asked. The professor became instantly serious again. The sudden changes were starting to give him whiplash.

"You have a wavelength unlike anything the DWMA has ever encountered before. There are plenty of Meisters who can change their wavelength, but the last person who was as good at as you are was me, and before me…" the professor trailed off, words seemingly escaping him.

"Doctor Franken Stein," Tsarevich said. Everyone had heard of the Academy's greatest Meister and all had lived in his shadow since. He appreciated the compliment, but he didn't buy what the professor was changing. What good was being able to change one's wavelength at will if that Meister didn't know how to utilize it properly—or even pair with a proper Weapon?

"Exactly. To answer the question you asked me earlier today, as to why I do not use a Weapon partner: the answer is, without trying to sound haughty, that I don't require one. I am capable of fighting without the assistance of a Weapon partner," the professor explained.

"Because you can control your wavelength?" Tsarevich asked, though he knew he was sounding redundant with his questions.

"Precisely. There is a reason that I'm taking you on this mission and under my wing, Tsarevich. I can control my wavelength with great proficiency, but it took me years of hard work to master what you can do naturally," he explained.

"Really? Well, it's not come in handy for me yet," Tsarevich replied bitterly.

"It will; trust me," the professor said. Of all of the punishments that Tsarevich could think of, encouragement was the worst. Why couldn't people see the truth that he could: he was a failure as a Meister. Still, the professor seemed so utterly convinced that Tsarevich would make something of himself someday. How could he be so sure?

"I thought one of the first lessons that you taught us is that no Meister by himself, regardless of his power, is as great as he could be if he had a Weapon partner," Tsarevich pointed out, changing the subject.

"That's still true. Gifted as I am, I am still only living up to half of my true potential. As are you," the professor added, putting the focus of the conversation back onto Tsarevich.

"I've tried to find a suitable Weapon partner, I really have. I may be able to change my wavelength to be compatible with theirs, but that doesn't change my personality," Tsarevich admitted.

"An excellent observation and perhaps one that will help you when you do find the right match," the professor replied.

"If you say so," Tsarevich said, doubting every word.

"I know you will find a great Weapon partner. The two of you will do great things for the DWMA—for the world," the professor said. Now it was Tsarevich's turn to chuckle.

"That's a little farfetched! I guess I'll have to take your word for it now. I don't mean to change the subject—," Tsarevich said.

"Yes, you do," the professor interjected. Tsarevich rolled his eyes and continued.

"If I'm going to fight a Witch—," he started again.

"Warlock," the professor corrected.

"Whatever! If I'm going to help you fight a Warlock, I would at least like to be brought up to speed on who Liir is, what he can do, and what the plan of action is going to be," Tsarevich said, sighing heavily at the end, glad to have finally gotten his word out.

"You're awfully take-charge for a student, you know that? I suppose you're right though, we should discuss what we're getting ourselves into," the professor admitted. Tsarevich quickened his pace just long enough to catch up and walk alongside the professor. Now, he was all-ears.

"I am ashamed to say that our intel is somewhat limited. We know that Liir is a young Warlock that works as an agent for the Western Witch Coven. We know that his Witch soul is young, and his magical powers are probably not of the same caliber as a more-experienced Witch—or Warlock," the professor explained.

"Do we have any idea what kind of powers he does possess?"

"That's the tricky thing about Witches. You can never really know what to expect with them. Weapons and Meisters rely on their souls for power, and while ultimately Witches do the same; their souls are completely different than ours. The laws of Witch Magic are governed by a completely different system than Weapons and Meisters.

"I'm sure you've heard the stories about the Witch Medusa, waking up the Kishin Ashura, and of Lady Arachnae forming the organization Arachnophobia to oppose the DWMA."

"Of course I have," Tsarevich answered, "it's required reading."

"Witches are tricky creatures, full of lies, deceit, magic, and most of the time: evil. Even a young, inexperienced Witch can overtake a Weapon-Meister pair who isn't ready," the professor concluded.

"Well, if it's going to be so dangerous, why did you bring me along? Isn't it the job of the faculty to protect the students from danger?" Tsarevich asked. The professor put a hand on Tsarevich's shoulder and smiled.

"Don't worry, Tsarevich. You're going to be just fine," he said encouragingly. Tsarevich felt a little better, but not much. This entire idea was crazy and he had a feeling that it was going to go seriously awry.

An hour later…

"We're here," Merios. They were inside of the edge of the forest to the west of the DWMA. The trees were not very thick along the edge. They would be able to see Liir coming for quite a way. Merios reached into his pack and pulled out his sack lunch and plopped down on the ground to eat.

"You packed a sack lunch?" his student asked him.

"Of course! I always prefer to fight on a full stomach," Merios replied gingerly. His student rolled his eyes.

"I feel like you're not taking this seriously," Tsarevich complained. Merios donned his most charming smile.

"Well, he's not hear yet and won't be for a couple of minutes. You might as well make yourself comfortable. I packed extra if you're hungry," Merios offered. A deep grumbling sounded from Tsarevich's middle. The very mention of food caused his stomach to groan. Merios handed him a sandwich and patted the ground motioning for his student to sit beside him.

Tsarevich complied, sitting down, unwrapping the sandwich and devouring it in three bites. Merios looked at him with wide-eyed surprise.

"What?" Tsarevich managed to say through a mouthful of food.

"You really must have been hungry," Merios observed.

"No. I always eat like that. Can I have some of those chips?" he said, pointing in the pack at the potato chips Merios had packed.

"Sure," Merios said, handing the bag over. He watched as he opened the bag, opened his mouth and dumped the entirety into his mouth. In a few quick crunches the entire bag was consumed. Tsarevich let out a hearty belch and rested his hand on his stomach.

"Ah, that hit the spot," Tsarevich said, a smile finally creeping on his face. Merios forced a smile and started eating his lunch before Tsarevich asked for more.

"So when is this Warlock gonna be here? How long are we going to have to wait?" Tsarevich asked.

"Judging by the distance of his soul from where we are, and the rate that he is moving this way, I'd he'll be here right about…now," Merios said, tossing his food aside and standing up. Right on time Liir came bounding through the forest directly towards the two of them. He stopped on sight and stared them down. Merios noticed Tsarevich nervously making his way to his feet in his peripheral.

"Hello there," Merios greeted with a smile.

"Get out of my way," Liir replied. Merios sized the young Warlock up. He was young, still in his teens, but younger than Merios. He was tall, well-built, good-looking, with jet-black hair, and eyes to match. He donned a traditional black Witch's hooded cloak and carried with him an item of particular interest.

The tool…

"Give me that tool that you stole and we will be out of your way in no time," Merios replied. Liir's eyebrows raised for just a brief second and then his face returned to a glare. He was attempting to hide his surprise.

"So, you know what this is, do you? You must be Meisters from the DWMA," he observed.

"Yes, and we've come to retrieve that tool you've stolen," Merios repeated.

"I think 'stolen' is an awfully strong word, don't you? 'Found' would be much more accurate," Liir said.

"Look! We're not here to argue semantics with you! Hand over the tool or we're coming to get it!" Tsarevich said, his faced curled in a snarl and his fist clenched to fight. Merios could not help the smile on his face. He knew that his student still lacked confidence, but he also knew that he just might find it in the face of a life-or-death situation.

"You take one step towards me and I will kill you both. Now get out of way!" Liir shot back. Merios and Tsarevich held their ground. In a blur of shadow, he disappeared. Merios tracked his soul, moving at the speed of shadow and knew that Tsarevich was doing the same.

He reappeared between the two of them, hands outstretched and spell loaded to launch.

"Shadow bolt!"

Merios had just enough time to evade the attack and counter. Tsarevich was doing the same, keeping the Warlock pinned between the two of them. Every attack was blocked. Merios had hoped that Liir would not prove proficient at hand-to-hand combat as most Witches and Warlocks opted to make magic their specialty.

He proved to be faster and physically stronger than both of them. Merios didn't see the boot until it crashed into his face, sending him flying backwards. He flipped over backwards, making sure his feet would hit the ground squarely. He looked up just in time to see Liir send Tsarevich flying through the air, having suffered an uppercut of his own. The spry little Meister caught hold of the branch, and swung around to perch himself in the tree.

He dove towards Liir and prepared to strike. Soon, the two of them were locked in an impressive display of martial arts.

"So, you are not without skill," Liir said.

"I'm first in my class in advanced martial arts," Tsarevich said confidently. He must have caught Liir of guard because he dealt him a clout to the chest and followed up with a flip-kick that sent the Warlock flying. Doing a similar maneuver as Merios had just performed, Liir landed nimbly on his feet. A small trickle of blood came from his nose. He wiped it clean and spat to the left.

"I wonder if your martial arts training prepared you for fighting a Warlock," Liir challenged. Tsarevich charged, this time Merios was right behind him. He saw the attack coming but it was too late.

"Shadow flare!"

An eruption of Witch magic quite literally blew up in Tsarevich's face. He hit the ground and bounced a couple of time, stabilizing on one knee, clearly shaken, if not injured. Merios stuck with a deliberately wide punch with his right hand, preparing a wavelength attack in his left.

Just as he hoped, Liir fell for the trick, blocking the right punch and leaving himself open for the attack.

"Soul pulsar!"

Merios felt his wavelength collide with Liir's, and for the first time, he noticed that there was something very wrong—or different—about his soul. The attack doubled him over and left him open for more attacks. Merios kicked the tool into the air with his foot, spun kicked Liir in the gut, sending him smashing into a tree. He caught the tool in his hand and looked down to see their foe lying face-down, in the dirt.

"Tsarevich, are you okay?" he asked, looking over at his student who was just managing to get to his feet.

"A little worse for ware, but I'm okay. If I hadn't dodged to the left when I did he might have killed me with that attack," Tsarevich admitted. Merios hated to admit that he was right. He also hated to admit that he had underestimated the power the young Warlock possessed. He was starting to think it was a bad idea to have brought Tsarevich along at all. Luckily, nothing bad had happened.

"Well, all is well. We have what we came for," Merios said with a smile and a thumbs-up.

"What about him?" Tsarevich motioned to Liir.

"Our orders were to retrieve the tool. We have it so we're going home," Merios replied simply and started on his way. He heard Tsarevich's footsteps behind him when suddenly something grasped his feet and gripped hard.

"Where do you think you're going?" he heard Liir say.

Merios looked down and saw that shadowy hands had wrapped their way around his feet and was holding him in place. The source was a spell that Liir was using from afar, commanding his shadow to reach farther than could on his own. This was a trick that he had seen before.

Liir transformed into pure shadow and moved his body towards Merios at an alarming rate. Merios twisted so that he could avoid taking a hit from behind.

"Professor, look out!" Tsarevich jumped recklessly between the two of them and took a defensive position. As Merios had expected, Liir transformed and blasted Tsarevich to the side with magical energy, and continued his pursuit to Merios. The few seconds of delay gave him all the time he needed to prepare.

He twisted his limber body out of the way of Liir's lunges and struck back with attacks of his own. His feet were pinned and he was holding the tool in his hand so it limited him to right-handed punches which were not his forte. He tried to hit Liir with another Soul Pulsar but that proved to be fruitless. Liir dodged to the side and grabbed hold of Merios's wrist. The attack blasted harmlessly before him and dissipated. Slithering like a snake, Liir avoided the consecutive blasts when suddenly…

"Shadow stitch!"

Merios couldn't move anymore. He couldn't even blink. He just stood there, suspended in space.

"Do you like this technique? I'm sure you're wondering why you can't so much as speak. The spell is simple really. I've bound your body to your shadow and your soul to your body. You're not going anywhere," Liir boasted. He walked around Merios and snatched the square, metal cube from his hands. He was powerless to stop him.

What's going on! How could I have not seen this? This is wrong! It's all wrong!

Liir looked into his eyes and laughed. Merios stared back and realized that his eyes were the only thing that he could move.

"I could kill you right now, you know, but I'm feeling merciful today so I'm just going to leave you to stand there to teach you a lesson. That spell will wear off in about ten minutes or so, but I'll be long-gone by then. So long!" and with that, Liir was off again.

Merios had his worst fears realized when he saw Tsarevich chasing after him. He wanted so badly to scream and warn his student. He had been wrong! He had been so wrong! Liir was much more powerful than he had anticipated, and he was not able to foresee the attack. If Liir could do this to him, a two-star Meister, he would shred Tsarevich into pieces.


Tsarevich watched as Liir trapped his professor down with a spell, gloated, took the tool and escaped. He knew that what he was thinking was crazy. He knew that he should stay behind and help the professor get free from the spell. He also knew that if he did, that Liir would get away.

It was time for him to take a chance. The professor believed he had what it takes to be a great Meister; now was the time to prove that. Shaking, with fear, Tsarevich chased blindly after the Warlock, completely unsure of what he would do once he caught him.


Liir ran as swiftly as his feet would carry him. He scowled in frustration at the Meisters attempt to stop him. He had managed to escape by the skin of his teeth. One or two more hits from whatever it was that guy had done to him and he would have been a goner. He tried to think about what it felt like. It was as if the Meister had hit him directly with his soul wavelength. He had been under the impression that Meister's required a Weapon to do that. Obviously, he had been wrong. He would have to report this to Chandra when arrived at the coven.

Pain!

There was nothing so sobering as a swift kick to the base of the spine. He felt his body bow before he smashed into the ground so hard that he bounced in the air again. He felt another kick at the base of his ankle, causing his body to twirl temporarily like a windmill in the air. The punch to the chest was overwhelming, sending him flying through the air and into the tree again.

He had just enough composure to land on his feet and look ahead at his attacker. He was expecting that the clever Meister had found a way out of the spell and had come back for round two, but instead he saw the student standing before him, fists clench.

"You?" Liir said with a laugh. "You'd better stand down if you don't want to get yourself killed."

"Give me that thing that you have or I'm going to take it from you," the little Meister said. Liir frowned at his apparent newfound confidence.

"I would really love to see you try," Liir said with a sneer. The battle was on again. Liir was not holding back this time. Between kicks and punches he lost spells, sending shadows out to snare the Meister, Liir tried all that he could to land another devastating spell, but could not seem to get a grip.

"Your grasping at straws, little Meister," Liir taunted, "I can see the sweat collecting on your brow. You're growing weary. Eventually, you'll grow weary, slow down and I'll hit you with a spell. Rest assured you won't be walking away from this one."

"You're right, that's why I'm going to take you down right now!" he roared as he charged, fist swinging swiftly and powerfully. Liir blocked and parried the blows, throwing in a quick jab whenever he could manage. None of his counters were enough to keep the Meister from attacking. As much as he hated to admit it, Liir was the one growing weary. It would be an entirely different story if the other Meister had not hit him with his wavelength. Whatever he did to him made it harder to concentrate and cast spells. One fleeting distraction was all that it took.

"Gotcha," he heard the Meister say right before, "Soul Pulsar!"

Pain. Agony. Words failed to describe the feeling as he felt the Meister's wavelength hit him. It was not as powerful as the previous Meister's attack, and thankfully so. It might have unmade him if it had been. He felt the tool fall out of his hands as he bounced of the ground, struggling to regain his balance and equilibrium.

He stood to fight again but coughed and noticed a little blood mingled with the spittle. He wiped his mouth clean and spit in disgust. The Meister stood confident, holding tight to the tool, ready to launch another attack if Liir crossed him.

He wasn't even sure if the tool that he picked up was the right one. It was not worth losing his life over. Chandra would be upset, but she would get over it. He had underestimated the DWMA Meisters, but he would never make that mistake again.

"You win today, little Meister, but you had better hope that we don't cross paths again," Liir said. He transformed into his shadow form and fled as far as he could away from the Meister.


Merios felt the spell release after about ten minutes, just as Liir had promised. He was glad too, he really had to pee and was certain he was about to have an accident. He began to relieve himself just as Tsarevich approached with the tool.

"Hey professor I—whoa! Sorry," he said, turning away. Merios finished and turned around to face his student. He knew what was happening because he was able to sense their souls, but he decided that he would bemuse his student.

"How did you do that?" Merios asked.

"I caught him by surprise. If he had seen me coming, I doubt it would have went down in my favor," Tsarevich replied.

"Not that. I mean, how did project your soul wavelength like that?" he asked, genuinely curious.

"I saw you do it so I just mimicked it," Tsarevich said with a shrug. Merios was wide-eyed with wonder.

"You really are astounding. I told you that you would make a great Meister. You should be proud of yourself. You really saved the day. Let's go back and tell Lord Death all about it."

And so the two began their walk back to the DWMA. Tsarevich was elated in his new victory and insisted that Merios teach him how to do more with his wavelength. Merios readily agreed. An apt pupil proficient in the same kind of combat he was would prove an interesting challenge. Suddenly, Tsarevich furrowed his brow.

"Professor, there's something that's been bothering me," he said.

"What's on your mind?"

"It's been bothering me since Liir showed up and I looked at his soul," Tsarevich explained.

"Go on," Merios pressed.

"There's something very odd about Liir's soul. Something eerily familiar that I can't put my finger on. I know I've never seen a Witch soul before, but something tells me he is out of the ordinary," Tsarevich said.

"Something tells me that you're right. Something else tells me that we haven't seen the last of Liir, or the surprises he might have in store."