A/N: I'm back! This one took a little longer to write (a lot longer), but I think the chapter is good.
P.S. In case it wasn't obvious, Darkness, Light is going to have significant plot changes compared to Tainted Black.
"They send forth mere children to challenge me? They're gods, what more can they ask for? Power? They possess unlimited power within their domain. An army? They can call upon the heroes of legends your kind spoke so highly of. No, they send children to their deaths, as if they were sheep. But my children, beings I've brought into this world, this world, swollen with the unnecessary, my children will slaughter them all. Nothing will remain unless I command it to. So they can try their best, those gods, they can prepare their armies, their weapons, build their monuments to the so-called freedom they so wrongly believe they hold, hold fast to their familias. For when the time comes, the war between all of you, and me, this world shall be torn asunder, and I will create a new one from its remnants. I am stronger than any god, and I am stronger than even you."
~Unknown
Present Day
Quiet talk filled the pub as Blaec walked in. He tried to ignore them, but a few comments still got through.
"Is that him? The demon elf?"
"I heard he uses necromancy. You think he can raise an army?"
"Did you know he can control monsters? Maybe he'll turn them against us."
"The thing about necromancers, is that they can kill your allies, then turn them against you."
Blaec disregarded their rumors as casually as he could, taking a seat as the green-haired elf walked over. Over the years, she had become the only one to serve him in the Hostess of Fertility, despite his reputation. He was a selfish man, but if the others liked to see him as the evil dark elf, then he'd fill that role for them. He smiled at Ryuu. "Just the usual, please."
She nodded, her sky blue eyes watching, waiting for any sudden movement. Blaec gave her none, but here she was after ten years, still ready for retaliation.
The doors opened, and the pub went dead silent.
A moment passed as the newcomer took a seat across from Blaec, his face covered by a hood. Ryuu stared at him, but Blaec shook his head. The elf left.
Blaec waited in silence, as did rest of the oh so wonderful gossipers around him slowly went back to their meals. He barely let out a whisper. "You called me out here. What do you have to offer?"
The hooded man slid a knife across the table, then pointed to the pommel. Blaec nodded. Dead drop delivery from the masked man. "Got it. What do you need me to do?"
The hooded man shook his head, then stood.
The pub hushed once more as the man left.
Blaec shook his head, then accepted his meal. "Thanks, Ryuu."
A few of the other adventurers looked at him, but he ignored their stares for now.
He reached the shop soon enough. Twisting the pommel of the knife, he slid out a small letter.
"The time has come."
It was short, just four words long, but Blaec knew the deeper meaning of the message. He was going to return, and while Blaec was a powerful adventurer, he couldn't defeat him by himself. What he needed was an army, one to counter the strongest of monsters. He had his own, a small one, but it wouldn't be enough. He needed something stronger. He was a selfish man, and while he had left Hephaestus ten years ago on her sacred island, he had yet to hear back. The masked man was his best supplier for anything, really. Black market trades were the better of the options he had. Of course, the masked man had always been his best supplier.
He held his hand out, pushing through the barrier he had set up. It was simple, really, just an Illusion spell that he had cast early on. All he had to do was cast it again when he left.
He stepped through, seeing the vast array of armors, weapons, and other various crafts that the masked man had made so long ago. He sighed, then picked up a small orb, then pocketed it. Whatever it was the masked man was doing now, Blaec was sure he could still make the strongest of weapons.
Blaec pocketed the orb, then turned, facing the three thieves, er, adventurers. He was having difficulty distinguishing them after all this time. "Yes?"
The adventurer on the right, a Boaz with shaggy black hair, spoke first, in a deep voice. "So, this is where you've run off to. I was hoping you wouldn't come here, but perhaps it's for the best."
Blaec raised an eyebrow, his hand twitching. "What business do you have with me?"
The adventurer on the left, an elf, answered. "We are here because you have committed grave crimes, and as such must be punished as such."
Blaec rolled his eyes, his hand slowly drifting towards his black sword. "Name your charges against me."
The one in the middle, what looked to be a human, pulled out a scroll. Ah, the god reveals himself. Because he already didn't deal with enough of them already. "The charges are: Theft -"
"They were given to me."
The god looked up at him. "Oh? Even the orb in your pocket, or the black sword at your side? Those belong to the masked man, not you."
Blaec scowled. "This house belongs to me. Thus, everything that came with it is also mine."
The god glared at him, and the Boaz reached for the axe at his waist. Blaec didn't really care. "Next charge."
The god looked down at the scroll once more. "Murder."
"No. Anyone that has died by my hand suffered when I tried to resurrect them with my magic. It works under the correct conditions, but, well, most people don't really follow my directions anyway. On the bright side, the ones who do make it go on their merry way, happy as can be. Next charge."
The god smiled sadistically. "Necromancy. Explain your way out of that."
Blaec grinned back. "Define necromancy."
The god glowered at Blaec, then glanced down at his scroll once more. "Necromancy: The reanimating of any corpse with ill intent."
Blaec chuckled. "Who is the one with the ill intent? Me, or the corpse?"
"Either or."
Blaec stared at the god evenly. "Then you have no grounds to arrest me on. No one I resurrect has 'ill intent', because there is no ill intent between the two of us. Their soul is restored to their body, and if they have a strong wish, they embody that wish. They hurt, suffer when their wish is there, burning at their minds, and the lash out to ease the pain. It's the consequence of their motives. Nothing more, nothing less."
The elf glanced to the Boaz. "He's lying."
In an instant, the larger man was striking down upon Blaec, who merely blocked with his gloved hand. "Me, a liar? Surely, you jest. I may be a selfish man,"
His back burned as he readied his spell.
"I may want the many things this world has to offer,"
The pain spiked as the spell readied itself, pulsing in eagerness.
"But I do not lie. It's the only thing I can give, but not take."
He placed his free hand on the Boaz's chest.
"Fire."
The Boaz burst into flames as he fell to the floor, writhing and screaming. Blaec just stepped over him, the next two spells already preparing themselves. "Now, you have ten seconds before my next spell, god. I'd rather not let you die, but if you continue your transgressions against me, I will let it happen. And you know I don't lie. Ten."
He stood unfazed as the elf panicked. "Nine."
The god looked panickedly at Boaz, then at the elf, who had a wooden stave out. She glanced at it, then at the burning Boaz. "Eight."
"Alright! We'll leave just, don't kill him."
With a snap of his fingers, Blaec dismissed the Burn Alive spell. "Very well. It's best you don't return here."
He kicked the Boaz at the god, even though the elf caught him. As the three left, the god glared at Blaec. "Take note, you will pay for what you've done."
Baec simply nodded as the trio left the shop, watching the night sky.
A moment passed, and soon his assailants were out of earshot. "Erebus."
The shadows coalesced into a man in a black suit. "You rang?"
Blaec scowled. "Where is he?"
Erebus bowed. "Soon, Carver. Soon."
He paused a moment, then smiled. "Ah, it seems dear Hephaestus has left the wonderful city. That wasn't due to you, was it?"
The tone wasn't accusatory, but Blaec grasped the underlying meaning. "Yes, that was me. He is readying his troops. Darkness, no pun intended, will fall upon this city, even the world, if we are not ready in turn. I sent her to make more weapons in her sacred island. He can't reach her there. I can. So, where is the masked man these days? Ten years, and all I've done is keep his forge hot. Anyone can do that."
Erebus grinned, the shadows shifting around him. "Ah, you mortals are so intriguing~! As gods, we do not change, even with time; we exist as we always were. But you mortals, you change in the blink of an eye, growing stronger, more adept in each passing second. Yes, the masked man is returning, but now, he brings a being of light. Ready your guardian, Blaec Carver, for not even you can gather in the darkness of the mind."
With that, he was gone, and the shadows flickered as they did before. Blaec frowned.
...
That one would do nicely.
Now all he had to do was ask nicely.
"No."
Well, that went so well. Loki somehow glared at him, despite her eyes being closed. He looked down at her evenly. "This is important."
Loki didn't give in. "No."
He glanced at the blonde girl, then back at the goddess. "Why not? She was the last one known to have contact, and she has a sword made by him."
Loki frowned at his point, looked over at the girl, then back at him. "You're not wrong, but no."
Blaec crossed his arms. "What do you want for her?"
Loki actually growled at him. "She's not some thing I can simply trade away! No!"
The other members of her familia shifted about awkwardly, trying to avoid the heated argument. Goddess versus adventurer, would certainly bring about a war game, but when it came to Blaec Carver, he was essentially the god of the familia, and challenging him in almost anything was near-suicidal. "Then I challenge you for her."
It was something Blaec was all too familiar with. He'd made challenges like this often enough, and various gods had arrogantly agreed, setting rules that would put them at a ridiculous advantage.
He'd won every single one of them.
Loki's 'glare' intensified. "... Maybe. What can you offer?"
Blaec knelt down, now eye to eye with her. "You know what I can do, what I have, what I can get. Whatever it is you want, I most likely can get it."
Loki thought for a moment.
Then, she grinned.
Oh, boy.
"Well, since you've asked so nicely, you can offer servitude under me."
Blaec scowled. "Fine. The conditions?"
It should have been impossible, but her grin widened.
Such was the life of Blaec Carver.
"Well..."
The two stood at the opposite end of the arena, away from him. Blaec hadn't been in double combat in a while, but his opponents were stronger than most of the others he had fought before: The only level 7 in Ontario, Ottar. The Boaz was known for his physical strength, reflexes, and powerful fighting style. The other was Aiz Wallenstein, the Sword Princess. If Freja was allowing Loki to use her familia as a champion, alongside Loki's own, who knew what would happen?
Blaec twirled his swords, the blades flashing in the light. He would have to take this very seriously. "Fire."
His hands burst into flames, which quickly wreathed themselves around the swords. Nightfall's flames blackened, while his own white one retained its normal violet color.
Ottar drew his sword, a large, single edged cleaver of sorts.
Aiz drew her own sword. Blaec knew that sword well. Desperate. It was one of the masked man's most prized works, second only to something even Blaec didn't know. The masked man just didn't tell him. That was alright, though.
Off to the side, Freja watched over with an... amused expression? "This man has no partner, Loki. Will he be alright against two adventurers of their caliber?"
Loki frowned. "I'm just annoyed it wasn't at least ten on one."
Freja raised an eyebrow, but was cut off as the heavy bell rung, signaling the beginning of the duel.
Aiz was the first to attack, her sword arcing as she lunged at him. "Awaken, Airiel."
Winds gusted around her, as if trying to protect their user. Blaec frowned, then parried. His white blade bit through the air, and even as Aiz rolled to the side, he still managed to draw first blood with the flaming sword. He grinned, then frowned as he glanced at Ottar, who was slowly approaching, sword in hand. What was the Boaz planning?
Blaec hurled the black sword at the boar-like man, then parried once more when Aiz tried to attack again.
Ottar moved to the side, gaining speed as his pace changed from a walk to a jog, then to a full on charge when Blaec kicked Aiz in the abdomen, or at least tried. The wind armor made it difficult.
So, that was it, huh.
"Bolt."
Ottar flew forward as Nightfall's flames slammed into his back, just as the flames on the white one burst towards Aiz. The wind armor shattered, and the swordsman was forced to retreat, or risk heavy burning.
Blaec just held his hand out as the black sword flew back into his hand. "Fire."
The flames burned once more, and the two adventurers backed up, visibly worried. Fire Bolt was the only spell he was allowed to use under the conditions of the match, and while it wasn't Blaec's strongest spell, it was the fastest to charge up, and his abilities helped speed along the chanting process, in exchange for pain. But pain was tolerable. Losing was not.
He pointed the white blade at the two, making his point very clear: Surrender or die.
The two looked at each other, then at Blaec.
Die it was.
Aiz was the first to respond, charging once more, Desperate in hand. "Awaken,"
Blaec crouched, ready to counter. Pain arced across his back as he readied a new spell, but he still sidestepped in time.
"Airiel."
This time, the simple wind turned into a tempest, and Blaec could swear he saw a small spark of lightning. That wasn't Desperate's power, the sword didn't make lightning, and it wasn't the magic, either. What was it, then?
As he dodged that, he barely deflected Ottar's heavy downward strike. He couldn't block an attack like that head on, he wasn't that strong. Instead, he stabbed quickly, forcing the Boaz back. He couldn't go on forever like this, though. They probably had more stamina than him.
He stabbed the black blade into the ground, then swung around it, kicking Desperate away. Blaec cringed as he felt the defensive enchantments in his boots wear down considerably, but still, it was better than nothing.
He landed, then, drawing Nightfall from the earth, swung it once more at the two. "Bolt!"
The black blade loosed its flames in a wave of darkness, and Blaec grinned when the white sword's flames joined in.
The resulting explosion knocked all three off of their feet, though Ottar merely slid back, while Aiz and Blaec almost flew into the arena's walls. Blaec bent his knees, feeling the boot's enchantments go to work, then sprung off, slashing with his blades.
An instant later, the winds roared to life once more, and Blaec's back burned as he prepared yet another spell. If he had to use more than these three spells, then he'd consider forfeiting. He wasn't suited to extended close range combat. Sure, he had the stamina for it, but it wasn't his prefered style.
And besides, the more spells he used, the higher the risk.
...
Was it worth it?
Aiz attacked once more, lightning sparking at an alarming rate. Blaec grit his teeth, his grip on his swords tightening. "Fire."
Of course it was.
He hurled Nightfall at Ottar, while blocking Desperate with the white one.
Naturally, Ottar tried to dodge, but Blaec waited until the black sword was close. "Bolt!"
The combination of the black flames' explosive power and its closeness to him caused the Boaz to be blasted into the wall.
No, wait. That wasn't right.
Ottar had gone through the wall.
Blaec grinned as Nightfall returned to his hand. With the stronger of the two enemies out of the way, he was free to focus on the faster, weaker one.
Aiz, on the other hand, had lightning arcing around her as she readied her blade. Blaec was confident, though, in his abilities. "Fire."
Once more, the flames engulfed the swords, and Blaec adjusted his stance. Aiz just stared him down. "Awaken,"
She lunged, almost invisible at the speed she was going, and Blaec barely managed to deflect the Sword. "Fire!"
The flames roared as they lashed out, and Blaec was briefly reminded of a certain white-hilted sword he had been told about when he was a child; one that would blaze with fire when drawn by a worthy man. He stood his ground, the flames licking the ground near the tips.
The lightning raced down the blade of Desperate. "Airiel."
By now Blaec had a very bad feeling about what was about to happen.
As such, a bad thing happened.
A very bad thing.
The lightning hit his swords, and then him.
Normally, that wouldn't be an issue, after all, he had enchantments that would nullify offensive magic on most of his clothes. The issue was, this wasn't exactly offensive magic.
He figured that out when the lightning coursed through his system, and his body locked up.
Aiz went in for the final blow.
No.
He had to prepare her for his arrival, to counter his army.
He couldn't lose like this.
He wasn't some trivial pawn in this war. He was stronger than her.
He wouldn't lose.
With every ounce of power he had, Blaec let go of Nightfall, the Sword falling from his grasp.
It met with Aiz's Desperate, Blaec pushed himself even further. "Bolt."
He blacked out.
A/N: Blaec, meet physics. Airiel is a wind barrier, and when it moves fast enough, it can cause particles of dust (Like what the floor of the arena is made of) to hit each other, and with enough hits, it can cause lightning. And of course, hot air conducts electricity better than cold air. Blaec's swords are on fire, and the material they're made of (for Nightfall at least) conducts electricity very well. Yeah, making scientific reasons for people doing cool stuff is difficult, but it's better than Deus Ex Machina. Also, because it's not magic, Blaec's enchantments are rendered kinda useless. Take that, magic!
Also, that "white-hilted sword" Blaec was reminded of? It's Dyrnwyn, one of the Thirteen Treasures of the Island of Britain. All myths (read: gods and various artifacts of legends) are true in Danmachi. Granted, he was told about it as a child: Legendary weapons are not common among the general public.
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