He wore a black silk tunic that went up to his mid-neck, creating a V shape sitting comfortably just underneath his adam's apple. The top of said V was embroidered with gold silk and lines outlining his pecs and abdomen. There was also a small gold insignia just over the middle of his chest in the same gold. Over his right shoulder was a white shroud, a diamond made of gold silk just over the side of his shoulder. Inside of it housed a cross made of the same silk, signalling his faith, but not the organisation he was with. It reached over to his collar bone and shoulder blade, where its clips resided and went to a little before his elbow. It went in a V shape down his arm sticking to the sharp look he had. On his hands were gloves that housed the same materials as his tunic, even the gold trimmings. His right glove went to his wrist while the other went upward on his forearm, stopping just before his elbow.
His bottom half was dressed in a tight yet comfortable black silk, the same as his tunic and gloves, though they had no gold patterns on them like the others. Around his hip was a white sash. It was something he was given in the orphanage he lived in before they were all disposed of by some sick freaks who were with the church. He knew the man had gone against the church, so he didn't hate those of the church per se, but if he ever saw the man who did it again, he would quite simply gut him.
The sash he was given matched the shroud with the gold patterns, rather the shroud matched it. The uniform he was wearing he had designed to match the sash around his waist. He had modified it slightly to fit him. It had clips and a garter belt going around it to hold both his sword sheathes and said sash up. On his feet were a pair of plain black combat dress shoes. Stylish, but extremely comfortable when doing physically demanding tasks.
In all honesty, he looked like some form of high ranking Exorcist, but he much prefered the term mobile knight, who just happened to look like an Exorcist. He still had an unwavering devotion to God, even after learning of his death from the Grigori.
In his hand was his blade. It was a majestic sword, one filled with power; one that screamed authority. Its pommel was a metal bulb that extended a few centimetres from the grip of the hilt. It extended all the way through up to make the handguard, a crossguard which was angled a little bit backward. On the end of each side of the handguard was a spike ok metal which shot forward a few centimetres; it also went back a small amount, but only half of the length. The metal that made this hilt was the metal that had the reforged steel of the tip of Longinus, a holy metal that spilt the blood of Jesus Christ on it. It was wrapped in a black grip which exuded holy runes and divine seals.
The blade itself was simple but also forged from the same steel of Durandal. While not as sharp as Durandal, it could still cut almost anything without any of the swords abilities in play. It was just a two-sided long sword. It had 3 small shivs on each side and around two-thirds of the way down a protrusion which soon became the tip. Right down the middle, a rivet for structural integrity and flexibility.
While the blade was in no way coloured, it gave the appearance of a gold sword, purely because of the hue of its holiness around it. The swords name was simply Joyeuse, the blade of Charlemagne, and the royal French sword of coronation. More importantly however, it was the second most powerful holy sword ever forged, falling just behind number one in the sword department and around third overall in holy weapons. It was strong, incredibly so, but it wasn't quite on the level of both True Longinus, nor Excalibur, they were truly terrific weapons.
The sword he held was supposedly kept in the Louvre in Paris, or so it was told. The blade kept there was nothing but a fake, not that the church knew anything about that. They kept rather large security over the sword; there was never a time it wasn't being watched.
Daniel was the wielder of the true sword, and there wasn't much of a story behind it either. One day it appeared sitting in his room, that was it. No one but him was even able to lift it, so how it arrived, he had no clue, but as soon as he touched it, it told him everything he needed to know.
It sat in two sheaths, one being a protective metal casing that doubled as a blade as to not draw attention to the real sword that laid beneath. It was enchanted so no holy presence could escape. On top of that was a leather scabbard with a metal entrance and bottom. It looked simple, like it was just a normal sword, save for the handguard.
With the help of magic, he clipped the blade in its sheath to his back with a sigh. Daniel was a man; nee a boy, who was found by Azazel on deaths' door. He was technically the first of the Azazels' sons in the Grigori. He was there before Vali or any of the others that would come in the future.
While he loved Azazel like his father, it wouldn't be enough to stop him from what he was to do. While Azazel was supportive of everything Daniel did, he needed to go it alone. It was his desire to make something of himself with no help from anyone. He wanted to prove himself; not for anyone but himself.
He looked at his room. It was incredibly large, as in it was basically a luxury penthouse large. His bed was that like something royalty slept in, and not to mention the amenities. There was literally a fireplace below an 80-inch 4k television. Just from his room alone, it was obvious the love Daniel had for the Grigori was returned. Azazel loved his sons.
He got up from his bed, clicking his fingers and making the creases he had made smoothen out.
Taking a look around his room, everything was tidy. He had already stored everything he needed in a pocket dimension. Just the thought of walking to the door out of the room was a nightmare. He didn't want to, but he had to.
The slow, tentative, reluctant footsteps as they started out, slowly became faster as he walked to the door. The 16-year old grabbed the handle and walked out of the room he had slept in every night for the past 12 years. He didn't even look back at it as he shut the door, he couldn't. He was sure he would just walk back inside if he did, he loved the Grigori that much. He felt like he was about to betray them. His whole being was screaming at him to turn back already.
He walked through the dark halls which held the rooms of the Cadres - his family if he were to put it as such - with a shadowed look on his face. It was dark out, around 3 am to be specific, the beginning of the witching hour. He found it a fitting time as he essentially hailed from the place that held the beings humans confused with demons.
While he was in the underworld, his goal was the human world. When he got there he'd first establish himself then get on with his goals. He in all honestly didn't know where to start after he established himself. He would build his legacy on the way.
As he walked through the empty halls, he remembered all of the events he had gone through. Both the good and the bad, such as the time Baraqiel had blown up his own room in a fit of rage. He wasn't sure the exact reason back then, but it had something to do with his daughter. It was a touchy subject to which he had only heard about in recent years. He thought of that specific memory thanks to passing the door to his room.
There was a door every 30 metres or so and a name popped into his head every time he passed one.
'Kokabiel.'
He walked further.
'Penemue.'
A little more.
'Azrael.'
'Gadreel.'
Even more.
'Sariel.'
'Armaros.'
'Shemhazai.'
And then he was there, right in front of the place his subconscious was leading him. He stopped in front of his fathers' room. Looking to the door over his right shoulder. He wondered if he should at least give him some sort of sign he was leaving, but putting the thoughts into the intended actions evaded him as his thoughts skewed after seeing the handle of his blade in peripheral vision. That blade was the main reason he wanted to make something of himself, and he had to. He didn't want to be seen as someone special; a prodigy for holy swords. He wanted to be known for pure skill beyond a humanly possible level.
He reluctantly moved his gaze forward into the hallway. It looked never-ending, looming with darkness. He stood there waiting as if expecting something that was never coming. That was until a figure came from the ever-looming cloak of darkness.
In front of him was Vali, the silver-haired brother of his - adopted mind you - just like he was. His blood was that of a direct descendant of Lucifer himself, not to mention he also held Divine Dividing, a miracle in almost everyone's eyes. He was the one who was actually related to Azazel in some manner. He was related to all the Cadres in a sense, but Daniel was just no one, some kid who somehow achieved the right to wield Joyeuse.
"And where are you heading, brother?" Vali asked, tilting his head questioningly. They were the same age, and as such, the two bonded, becoming brothers as their adopted title put it.
While initially, he was a little resentful for Vali being related in some fashion to the Cadre, he noticed it didn't really change much. In fact, he was pretty sure they treated him better than Vali sometimes, no matter how much they said they were unbiased. Who knows, maybe they spotted his hint of resentment.
"Away," Daniel simply replied, "very far away."
He tilted his head further, not being able to understand the pure disagreement his body language put to Daniels' tone of voice. It simply didn't make sense, it was a known fact Daniel loved the Grigori.
"You don't want to though?" Vali inquired, taking a small step forward, a concerned look plastered on his face. It was one of doting, he needed to know; something wasn't right. "I can see it in the way your acting."
Daniel was silent for a small moment. His face showed a monotonous look to anyone not properly attuned with the expression, something his brother was attuned to, hence his concern. It was an expression he rarely used unless in distress.
"I don't know if you'd understand, Vali." He admitted, stepping to the side of Vali. It was a passive way of showing that he was near to ending the conversation, however short it was.
"At least try to explain it," Vali asked of him, not allowing the conversation to end so quickly. It wasn't that he was sad per se, but he was interested in his brothers choice to leave. "at least give me that before you leave."
He thought of the simplest way of putting it, just a few words were enough. "I want to be someone."
Short but powerful. He was always someone who had a way with words; as Daniel - the angel with whom he shared a name - liked to joke. He really was the complete opposite of someone who used meaningful vocabulary, but for Vali, he understood it well. This was his brothers' way of being meaningful when he was in such a state of mind and being.
He merely nodded. He had heard it from his brother before, after one of their spars. It was something he could relate to, he could be labelled as many things. From a descendant of Lucifer to the white Dragon Emperor. His brother was the same, simply because of that sword he wielded. He didn't really endorse his way of solving his problem, but who was he to stop him? Joyeuse had made him into someone with an extremely long life span, he could pretty much do as he saw fit. It wasn't like he was going off to his own death.
Daniel was moving his leg, ready to keep walking at the current point. Just like his room, his body was beginning to ache with the will to stop what he was doing, but he forced himself through it.
"I need to do this now, or I won't be able to." His foot fell on the hallway floor. "This place is too special to me. I might never leave if I don't leave now."
"Then why not stay?" Vali asked. It was obviously a joke, one that Daniel seemed to receive well judging by the small grin that had momentarily graced his lips.
He appreciated that his brother tried to lighten his mood when he was in such a strange state.
"But seriously, why didn't you bother using magic?" Vali asked, now back to back with his parting brother. "You obviously don't want to leave. Seeing all of this might have made you stay, or perhaps you wanted to see everything one last time to try and make yourself stay?"
"Maybe..." He replied. Daniel wasn't quite sure himself. But there was also the fact that maybe he just didn't think of using magic.
Vali took his fist and lightly bumped the back of it on his brothers left shoulder blade, prompting Daniel to do the same shortly after he had felt the gesture from his brother. A very sentimental one.
"Goodbye, Vali; no, brother." He bid, correcting the way he addressed his brother. He wouldn't do that to him.
"Goodbye, brother." Vali replied in kind, a small smile on his face. He found these moments rather nice, even if it was supposed to be sad.
He felt the heat and sensation of touch leave the back of his fist. Looking behind him, he watched the sway of his brothers sash, the only remains of him, the same which momentarily turned into gold particles.
The conversation; was short but sweet, at least in the brothers own fundamentally skewed way of meaning. Besides, the two of them were never really ones for words, they were all about action. But then again, who could blame them, Azazel had made them love fighting. Something which was an interesting debate in almost everyone's eyes. It went as far as Vali just fighting random people he had found for no reason.
It was barely even morning, but the blinding light barrelled over the horizon. It shone on the cliffside he stood on top of, accompanied by a large updraft of breeze. He was a few metres back from the edge so the draft felt like more of a strong breeze, but it was welcomed, it felt like his past was being blown away. He was being turned into a blank slate if one were to look at it that way. A blank slate ready for some engraving; that which detailed the future. This was it. He had now begun his own journey.
It had barely sunk in yet when he realised it acted like had just escaped some prison or something of the like. In reality, he could have left at any point in time. Maybe it was because he wasn't sure he had the willpower until now.
He turned away from the overlooking drop of nearly 100 metres. While the view of the ocean waves crashing held such a beauty he couldn't explain, he also craved to start his adventure. Hopefully, Azazel wouldn't take it too badly.
Along with the view being nice, there was another reason he had gone to the cliffs specifically. He had felt something, something strong. It had a very cursed feel to it, rather evil and riddled with dread and death. It was rather easy to understand why he was drawn to the spot, his sword was Holy, so naturally, it did not like the occurrence of such a grim aura.
The ensuing distance was almost nothing but plains of never-ending grass. Lush, green and soft looking grass. It didn't really make sense to him that such a lively area could have such a deathly presence, but oddly, it somewhat did actually make sense. He wasn't sure of his exact location, but he knew it was somewhere in Ireland, the fabled home of one of the cursed spears made by the immortal witch Scathach. It was fairly well known what the spears were and their curses. To put it lightly, very lightly, they just were not good.
The that was so famous in Ireland was the spear she had given to her apprentice, the child of light, Cu Chulainn. It was named Gae Bolg, its literal translation meaning Spear of Mortal Death. Its curse was pretty self-explanatory and not one you wanted to be on the receiving end of. It was a dangerous spear that had slain many. Legends had told that it was impossible for the spear to miss its mark; its opponent's heart.
It was strange though, Scathach had seized the spear when Cu was killed in battle, so it was a mystery that she was not in Dun Scaith in Scotland, her known place of residence. He knew of her legend from the Ulster Cycle, how she promised Cu a daughter. Was that the reason? She fell in love with him so much she couldn't return to Scotland? In reality, he didn't really care about that part. After his initial realisation that she was even there, he wanted one thing. A fight. Just like his brother he loved to fight strong warriors. And while he would most likely end up dead from fighting the immortal witch, he also could not think of a better way to start off his new life.
"The only problem is actually pinning her location to one place." He muttered to himself, slowly rubbing the back of his neck. Establishing himself for the future had been thrown out of the window, he wanted his fight more than anything right now. Maybe she would prove to be someone who he could draw Joyeuse against. "Hmm..."
He focused, almost like he was in some form of a trance, trying to hone in on her location. It was widespread, which could suggest she liked to move around, yet similarly, it was almost nowhere at the same time. It was an interesting energy he was receiving. It was something akin to a smokescreen. He could see, but it wasn't easy and very muffled.
Then something interesting happened. It cleared. It cleared almost instantly, leaving a singular point in the distance. It was very specific and fine-tuned. It was not an accident that he could have just done that, which he was sure he didn't even have anything to do with in the first place.
"Could she perhaps have noticed what I was doing?" A small grin made its way onto his flat lips as he spoke to himself. "I suppose I shouldn't leave her waiting then, should I?"
Taking a step forward, he dashed. To a person with normal sight, it would seem as if he had just vanished, a phenomenal speed, something he was regularly praised for, for being a human. To any supernatural being, it was considerable, but still not really impressive. Yes, he could probably match the speed of a low-class knight if he were to be compared to a Devil peerage, but that was it.
The distance he was travelling was a few hundred metres second, around half the speed of an air to air missile, something akin to around 100m per second. While it seemed that could take him to just about anywhere he needed to go with relative ease, it really wasn't. He was in Ireland, a place with a total area of 84000 square kilometres. If he were to run that whole distance it would have taken him around 14 hours of straight running. That was something he could neither tolerate, nor physically do. Half of that though? Easily. It just so happened to be far below the amount he needed to run as well. The pinpoint location he received was exactly 2000km away, something akin to a 20-minute run.
While he could have used magic, there was the issue that it would have alerted her right away if he had done so. He would prefer he had the chance to actually fight her instead of just being mercilessly killed right as his figure appeared.
He ran through plains of grass, forests of lush trees and past lakes of crystal clear water. The countryside of Ireland was something to behold in all honesty, a sight which he wished had seen earlier. He could tell the country was rich with culture and even more unprecedented beauty just by the countryside. He couldn't wait to see the mountain ranges.
After coming to a stop, he was greeted with a town. It was bustling, full of activity and life. Killarney was its name, a population of 15000 housed within its streets. Right in front of the large lake in the area was a cathedral and further beyond right on the edge of the lake was an old castle. Aside from that, there were not too many roads or houses. It seemed like a community where everyone knew everyone. It was a town after all.
The thing that grabbed his attention the most though was the castle. He was certain it had something to do with why Scathach was there.
He walked through the main street, spotting many small businesses and shops. It was cozy. He relished the feeling until time seemed to slow. Right before his eyes was one of the most dazzling women he had ever seen. Long red-purple hair going to her mid-back with eyes to match. Soft looking skin white as snow, and long black eye-lashes. She wore a white sweater which doubled as a dress, with black stockings that were covered by shin-high boots that had a small heel. What she was wearing in no way prevented her figure from being shown, he dared say it accentuated it further. He could only imagine what was underneath.
It was a good thing he had replaced his clothes with some more traditional ones, or he would have stuck out even more than he already did with his silver hair. Not that it mattered of course, without him even realising they had locked eyes.
Hers held mischievous, it was accompanied by an almost minuscule smirk on her face. He would have called it cute, had he not suddenly felt the pinpoint he was searching for flair suddenly, right in front of his eyes. There it was, that fiery red aura of death, encircling the gorgeous woman in front of him.
He didn't know, but his mouth was slightly agape. She had spotted him right away. Well, after he had wasted so much time staring at her.
Time seemed to move normally once more, but his still figure suddenly had an index finger on the centre of his chest, and a small mouth at his ear. "Follow me."
"Now why would I do that?" He asked in response, trying to keep his gaze off of her, not because he was trying to act tough, no he was already tough, right in the wrong area. Something he aimed to correct immediately.
"Didn't you come all this way to find me?" She mused, her smirk becoming slightly larger, not that Daniel could see. "You must have wanted something from me if you came all this way."
"Your right but uhh... just give me a few minutes." He replied stoically.
"Why would that be-?" She looked down and saw it. There was a tent right in his pants."Oh." Her face flushed slightly.
She adjusted her gaze on the side of his face. He was making sure he could not see her at all. It almost looked like he was trying to be innocent. Her stern gaze disproved that though. He was the son of Azazel, of course, he was going to pick up some of his honest pervertedness, adopted or not, even Vali had, as much as he refused to admit it.
"Seriously?" She asked in a whisper, not wanting to draw any more attention to them. She was simply supposed to just lead him out of the town. What a bother.
"Look I'm 16 okay? What do you want me to do?" He whispered back.
In response to what he said, she merely looked down, then straight back up. She looked away and bit her lip. It was certainly large for a 16-year-old, more so than Cu as she recalled. The ethically wrong side then hit her. He was 16!? How could she even have thought about a 16-year old like that?
"Here, I have a solution." She abruptly spoke, plunging her knee right into his gut.
He reeled forward instantly, feeling the unnatural way all of the air had escaped him along with the pain his digestive organs were now in. He couldn't even tense in time, but that was probably the point.
"Guh." He groaned. "That fucking hurt."
He stood in his hunched position for nearly a minute, just being watched by an amused Scathach. He could already tell she was quite the sadist, especially if he went off what some of the texts said.
As he stood up he felt like yelling at her, but decided against it, "What the hell was that supposed to do!?" He whispered aggressively.
"What do you think? Are you still hard jackass?" She asked in response, maybe a little too loudly, garnering some looks from passerby's.
He realised rather quickly he wasn't any more, but still glared at her nonetheless.
"Now, follow me." She ordered returning to a composed state of grace.
He stood still for a moment.
"Now!" She yelled.
"O-Okay." He stuttered.
Daniel wasn't exactly sure what was going on, but he was rolling with it. She originally came off as provocative, then turned into some sort of boss of his, he wasn't even sure what to think.
She led him to an empty alleyway between two store buildings around the corner from the main road which they had met on. She didn't waste any time and immediately transported them with magic to the fields of grass in front of the castle in the area. He was now convinced it was no coincidence she was in the same place as a castle. It was also pretty obvious she had already put a barrier, there was also a spear in her hand, but that was aside the point.
"So, why are you here?" She asked.
She was currently a few metres in front of him, the spear in her hand was twirling like clockwork, something that seemed to sate her need for amusement.
"I mean, my original intention was to ask to fight you, but now I'm not so sure." He chuckled nervously.
Her head tilted to the left slightly in inquisition. She hadn't heard something so straight to the point in a while, not that she didn't appreciate it, it was just a little bit stupid.
"What do you mean?" She asked.
"Well, you sort of just ordered me around like I was some dog. I'm assuming that means you think too little of me to battle me." He shrugged in response to the simple question.
"Well, I wouldn't say that," Scathach pondered on her words, "since you were so open about wanting to fight me, something I haven't seen in a while. Who knows, you might be more than you seem."
Daniel rolled his eyes, brushing off the insult he felt. "Yeah, whatever." He grumbled. "So, your some form of a knight, so I'm just gonna do the whole introduction thing since we still haven't even exchanged names."
She too rolled her eyes at his words. What a riveting conversation they were having.
"My name's Daniel, no last name. I was raised in the Grigori." He greeted as his battle attire donned his body.
That certainly piqued her interest. She was a lot more open to fighting him now, she wanted to see how they raised children into fighting.
"Scathach, the immortal witch." She mused. "I'm sure you've heard of me."
He groaned at her sense of humour. It was rather dry for someone so old.
Just like he did she donned herself in her combat clothes. A skin-tight one piece which was essentially lingerie. He rubbed his eyes. He could feel himself getting hard again.
"Oh for fu-"
'Boom!' Her spear collided with the ground in front of him creating a spray of grass and soil.
"Now let's battle!" She enthusiastically cried.
Yes. This was certainly the start of a new chapter in his life. A very interesting chapter.
This was it. This was exactly what he had wanted! It was a fierce battle, sword vs lance, devastating strikes littering the area as they move at speeds unfathomable for normal humans. Every time their weapons collided the ground would suffer the consequences; small craters had already formed in the hundreds around the previously green plain of grass.
"Haah!" Scathach cried moving closer going for a downward strike.
Daniel responded in turn to the aggressive move, taking it head-on. If he dodged, she could have continued her attacks and possibly created a worse situation.
The collision ruffled his clothes just like every other blow. The rattling and whipping of shroud and sash were music to his ears. His thorough grin of enjoyment was plastered on his face, an expression he only adopted when he was fighting a strong opponent.
Scathach wasn't too far off having the same expression. Her expression was one of entertainment, it had been a while since she had been in a proper duel or even a fight for that matter. It had been around a hundred years if she recalled correctly.
Pushing her off of him, he used his own agility to go for a swing at her abdomen. It was fast and strong, blowing a gale of wind past her as he took his stroke.
She repositioned the lance she was holding to the side of her body, stopping the blade from getting anywhere near her abdomen, however, she was forcefully pushed to her left from the impact. She recovered easily, sliding backward on her feet.
"I haven't seen you use any magical abilities or what-not, Scathach." Daniel inquired as their fight came to a momentary standstill. "I'm sure you could end this right now if you did."
He knew very well she was holding out on him; they were using pure physical strength only. He couldn't even feel any deathly aura coming from her anymore as she had just cut off her magic power.
She took a lunging stance. "Why would I want this to end though? I haven't fought someone in a good deal of time."
He shrugged, not sure what he should reply with. He wanted to see the power of the spear she was holding, but he also didn't want to die. He knew she was holding back, but he also knew if she did start using her power to the fullest, he was going to die, even if he managed to unsheathe Joyeuse properly.
He didn't get the chance to say anything as he braced for another large blow from their weapons. She brought the tip of her spear which doubled as a blade toward his hips. He jumped back, knocking the head of the spear away.
She repeated her attack but this time higher, to which he did the same thing. Jumped back and knocked the spear away. Scathach remained with that small smile on her face, seeing an opponent that wasn't so easy to beat, not to mention the fact he could rival her at such a young age, even if it wasn't her full power.
She went for a jab, which Daniel managed to redirect last second. When he did, Scathach took advantage of an opening he had shown and punched him in the chest. He was able to tense last second, helping him retain his balance and only slide back. She was a supernatural demi-god so her strength was rather impressive, he ended up sliding around 10 metres, but that didn't stop his counterattack.
As he slid, the grip on his hilt tightened followed by 3 swords of light appearing above him symmetrically. One over each shoulder and another over his head. They blasted forward quickly, threatening to skewer Scathach thrice, had they hit their mark. She had knocked each out of the air with her spear, making them explode as they hit the grass.
In what seemed to be a show of her speed, she lunged forward, going for a stab into his chest right as he recovered.
He shifted his balance to move to the left, dodging the stab and moving down the length of the spear so he was no longer in an area of gravely harm.
He brought his sword down over her shoulder, but she moved out of the way like he had done himself, nearly grazing the sharp edge of the blade. In response, she brought back the spear and used it like a bat, but by holding the flat edge near the tip along with the hilt, Daniel made a last-second block with the opposite flat edge of the blade.
It created an updraft of wind into his hair, pushing it up like earlier in the day. Oh, how he loved fighting.
Once again taking a step back he appraised the situation. He had no real way of beating her, her agility was far too high unlike some of the other people he fought. She was one of the people who were actually quick enough to dodge some of his faster blows.
"You know, I originally thought you had come here to ask for training." Scathach monologued in front of him. "I thought it was laughable since it should be a known fact, I don't take apprentices anymore. I was ready to kill you as soon as I saw you."
"Thanks?" Daniel eyed the woman in front of him curiously.
"No problem." She replied arrogantly. "I know I also said that I wasn't going to end this so quickly, but I'm actually really interested now, thanks to that little stunt before. You nearly took off my arm."
He just brushed that part off; he was more concerned about what she had said before. "So, you're not going to kill me?"
"Ha! Of course I won't. If you can survive this next blow that is." She mused, rather evilly. "If you can, I'll even take you as an apprentice if you'd like, that's how sure I am you won't survive."
An explosion of pure destructive and fiery red power rose from behind her. Unlike the craters from their trading of blows earlier, there was a crater at least three times as large as herself.
"This spear has never missed its mark, after all."
It was at that very moment he realised the spear that was in her hand. While all of her spears could have killed him with one of their curses, he just happened to be on the receiving end of a rather famous one, one he had pondered on earlier. Gae Bolg.
Daniel wasn't nervous per se, he was just completely convinced he was going to die.
Taking a more technical lunging position than before, the spear in her hand began to leak out energy as if it were some sort of generator or tiny waterfall. It rose behind her like some sort of wall, giving her the look of a hell-bent demon ready to murder something. That description wasn't exactly wrong if Daniel was being honest.
"Yes, your heart shall suffice." Scathach sung as if she was happy with herself. "I think I'll take it."
'This seems like some really shitty chant.' Daniel's immature mind thought, a small smirk on his face. Yeah, he wasn't scared of death at all. He had long gotten over that little thing.
He didn't get to think much more as the words riled up the energy from the spear some more. The wall was now more of just a gigantic gale storm of demonic power flaunting around, ready to obliterate him.
While he wasn't scared, he was a little sorry that he didn't say goodbye to the Cadres, but what could he do about that now?
"Gae Bolg!" She called just like all the other times she had made a battle cry, only this time, different. It was a lot more powerful. She sounded sure that it was the end of their battle.
It came at him at speeds he couldn't even believe were possible. He gripped the hilt of his blade and the second sheath of metal fell off. That's when shit went wild.
The hurricane of demonic energy mixed with the sudden beam of holy energy that Joyeuse had released from being drawn properly. It skewed in a way that looked unbelievable and eventually exploded, making the spear fall from to the side in all the chaos.
When it all settled, Scathach looked a little surprised but still unnaturally confident. He had stopped the unstoppable spear, no?
He was proven wrong when he saw it suddenly start flying toward his heart again. That chant Scathach had said before probably set a mark on his heart, or something of the like.
"Oh. So, that's what it means." He blinked rapidly at it before realising he probably should do something about it.
Thanks to drawing his blade he was able to see things much slower, in other words, the spear had seemingly slowed down. He was able to now intercept it with his own blade now, the one made from the same steel as Durandal. If he could block the spear, it would never be able to get through to his heart. And block it he did.
The flat side of his blade held the tip of the spear in an instant, stopping it right before it could pierce his chest.
He breathed a sigh of relief. While he wasn't scared of dying, it didn't mean he wanted to.
"How's this?" He asked mockingly toward Scathach whose eyes had widened only a little. It was less of a reaction than he wanted, but he got one, nonetheless.
He was expecting her to chirp something back at him, but she remained quiet and watched how he handled the spear.
He wasn't sure what to do from then on. While the sword could hold the spear, he still needed a way to stop it. So, he tried the most obvious thing possible. He grabbed it. With his bare hand.
The spear reacted instantly, increasing in power and pressure, but not making any ground at all.
He tried to pull it off the sword with his strength, but the spear only got stronger. It was like some sort of tug-of-war, and it was not an enjoyable one either.
The process kept repeating as he tried to pull it off again and again. It was his only option after all.
Scathach was watching now with amusement. Originally, she had hope for him pulling the spear away, but now it was just a waiting game of when he did manage to move it off the sword since it would just stab him if he did.
He pulled at it again as he had been doing so for the past 10 minutes. The force had even pushed the sword against his chest so hard he didn't even need to hold it in place anymore, it just sat there by itself.
He took both hands and tried one more time with all the strength he could muster. He felt his muscles burning, his teeth gritting, his veins bursting. He kept on pulling and pulling in hopes of getting it away from him, but just like before, it kept getting stronger. Then all of a sudden, the spear began glowing in white light.
At first, Daniel wasn't sure if it was a threatening event, or if was thanks to Joyeuse. It proved to be the second when the spear lost all force in its strike and all its demonic and deathly energy was replaced by its holy counterparts.
Taking the spear that now rested in his left hand, he grabbed his blade that had wedged itself in the grass between his feet. When he held it up, the metal casing covered it once more, restricting its presence again, returning to what seemed to be a normal sword. He sheathed it momentarily and spun the legendary spear in his hands. The holy energy in it had since dissipated and returned to its normal state, though he was still able to wield it strangely since just like holy weapons, certain parameters needed to be met to wield cursed and demonic weapons.
"You… you lived," Scathach murmured as she approached from the front. "You didn't even take any damage."
"Yeah, not even a scratch." He said in agreement. "Surprisingly."
"Can I ask what that sword really is? And don't pretend it's normal, that metal sheath which doubles as a second blade, it's smart, but even now I can feel small traces of holy power." Scathach interrogated him as she got even closer.
"Its name is Joyeuse." Daniel gave her the name of the sword.
She recalled a little when hearing the name of the sword. It had been a while since the wielder of the true sword had been seen.
"Incredible," Scathach muttered.
She turned around and began walking away. All of the impurities that had been made in the ground vanished when she clicked her fingers. The barrier had been dispelled, and judging by how everything had just restored, they had actually been in a form of pocket dimension. That wasn't so difficult to believe, what was, was the fact she continued walking away, almost forgetting that he still had her spear.
"Scathach?" He garnered her attention once more.
"Hmm~?" She hummed in acknowledgement.
"Don't you want your spear back?" He asked, a little bit confused.
"No, it's yours now, I told you if you survived you were going to become my apprentice." She tilted her head. Had she not said that?
"You said if I wanted to."
"Nonsense. I remember that you wanted to, so I granted your request."
He gave up, there was no point in arguing. He could see the smirk on her face, it was obvious she knew what she was doing. Besides, it would be a good way to learn how to use a spear.
"Now, come on, we don't have all day." Scathach spoke authoritatively.
He sighed inwardly. He knew the time he was going to spend with her was going to be something else, something very enjoyable.