The cathedral's training courtyard hummed with quiet tension. Polished stone tiles stretched in a ring, bordered by faintly glowing sigils meant to dampen stray spellwork. Silas stood with arms folded, his effigy beside him—a looming, quiet sentinel. Across the ring stood Cass, posture relaxed, his light-path effigy shimmering faintly behind him, as if carved from glass and sunbeams.
Velira lounged on a low step, arms crossed. "Try not to kill each other," she said, tone dry. "I don't feel like hauling two corpses."
Cass smiled. "Just a friendly spar."
Silas smirked. "Says the man with a radiant death machine."
They stepped into the ring. The wardline lit up as Velira raised her hand.
"Three. Two. One."
Begin.
Cass's effigy surged forward instantly, movement sharp and graceful. Silas held still, waiting. He didn't need to be faster—just smarter.
The moment Cass's spear arced down, Void Clot erupted beneath its feet—a smear of shadow that dulled its momentum and blurred its outline. Cass's strike missed by inches.
Silas's effigy snapped into motion, launching Ashpiercer Bolt with a pulse of dark and pale light. It screeched across the air.
Cass's effigy spun, raising a barrier. The bolt struck hard, skidding across the glowing shield. It didn't break through, but the shimmer of the barrier cracked. Cass frowned.
Silas moved again—low, circling. The mist around his effigy's feet shimmered.
Mistfang Latch activated. His effigy vanished into a curl of mist, reappearing behind Cass's, claw raised—
—but Cass was already there.
A burst of light flared, forcing Silas's effigy to recoil. The blast didn't land fully, but it singed its shoulder, staggering it.
Then, for a split second—
A silver thread.
Thin as breath, hanging in the air.
Silas's right eye twitched. Pain lanced through his temple. Blood welled under the lid. But he saw it—Cass's next movement. The shape of his defense.
Silas moved before Cass did.
His effigy flanked again, blade raised. Cass's effigy countered—too slow by half a heartbeat. Silas smiled—
—only for Cass's foot to slam into his chest.
Not the effigy. Cass himself.
The blow knocked Silas to the ground.
Silas laughed breathlessly, groaning. "Okay. That was cheap."
Cass offered a hand. "You'd have done the same."
Silas took it, dragging himself upright. "I was going to."
They both turned to their effigies. They were circling each other like predators now. No more flashy spells. Just careful motion. Matching pace.
Silas nodded once. Cass mirrored it.
Their effigies lunged at the same time. Blows collided. Sparks flew from a blocked claw, a redirected blade. Each strike nearly landed, each parried with precision. A minute passed. Two.
Then both effigies stepped back—equal distance, breathing heavy as if mirroring their casters.
Velira called out, "Should I declare a winner?"
Neither answered.
Cass wiped sweat from his brow. "Draw?"
Silas nodded. "Draw."
They both smiled.
Not a forced one. A real one.