The Defeat of Isaac

Without a backward glance, one of Isaac's tendrils extends, lunging at Ice King. Unfazed, Ice King channels his Uua into his blade, deftly slashing at the incoming tendril. The sword connects, freezing the tendril in place before it shatters into icy fragments. The gem on Ice King's forehead intensifies its glow.

After repelling the tendril, Ice King darts forward. Swiftly, Isaac whirls around, pointing a finger at Ice King and uttering an almost unintelligible incantation. This amplifies the gravitational field around Ice King, bringing him to an abrupt halt. The ground beneath him cracks, forcing him onto one knee. Isaac, not one to let such a chance go, seizes the opportunity, directing another tendril to strike while Ice King remains immobilized.

With no pause, Ice King summons an icy barrier around himself. It's a variation of Hilla's Barrier he had created by mixing it with his ice magic. The tendril wraps around the barrier, exerting pressure. A network of cracks fans out across the barrier as the tendril squeezes harder, but it doesn't go unchallenged. Ice begins to form across the tendril's surface.

Isaac grunts with effort, determined to breach the barrier. With a final burst of will, the barrier shatters along with a portion of the frozen tendril. He retracts the damaged tendril, preparing for another assault when Ice King releases a torrent of frigid energy from his sword. The frozen beam cuts through the air, homing in on Isaac, who attempts to shield himself with the already wounded tendril. The tendril becomes encased in ice before shattering entirely.

Retreating slightly, Isaac releases Ice King from the intensified gravity field, conserving his Uua. Liberated, Ice King turns the tables, hurtling forward with remarkable speed, sword poised. Isaac tries to intercept him with his tendrils, but now foreseeing that he has faced them before, he knows what to expect. Ice King threads through the attacks, drawing nearer with each step.

Then, unexpectedly, he falters as Isaac manipulates gravity around him midway through a step before causing a nearby tendril to strike Ice King with pinpoint accuracy. With a shout, Ice King raises his sword just enough to block the tendril and absorb the brunt of the impact. As the tendril makes contact, Isaac weakens the gravity around Ice King, causing him to be propelled backward like a rag doll.

Seizing the opportunity, the tendrils lash out at Ice King, seeking to incapacitate him before he regains his footing. In response, Ice King unleashes a frigid gale, billowing violently in all directions, momentarily halting the tendrils. That brief respite is all he needs to evade, just as the tendrils collide with the spot he previously occupied, pulverizing concrete into dust.

With robes billowing, Ice King charges at Isaac, the gem on his forehead now aglow with an even fiercer red, while the ambient temperature plummets. Alarmed by Ice King's closeness, Isaac weakens the gravity around himself before leaping backward, hoping to create some distance.

He retracts and then deploys his tendrils once more. Unfazed, Ice King twirls his sword, summoning ice constructs crafted from the same essence as his variant of Hilla's Barrier. The tendrils are deflected, and Ice King continues to close in on Isaac.

Then Isaac grins, flicking his wrist to amplify gravity around Ice King tenfold. Once more, Ice King comes to an abrupt halt, but this time, he's in greater danger. Even though he had earlier deflected the tendrils, they were still nearby. Had he been moving at his prior speed, it wouldn't have been a concern, but he isn't.

The tendrils swiftly encircle him, sealing off all avenues of escape before striking. Yet, Ice King has had enough. With a thunderous roar, he opens his third eye, his eyes glowing white.

I sense the Eani pause. In the next instant, all the Eani in his vicinity are transmuted into Uua, before being focused into a nearly solid construct around him. The sections of the tendrils within this area abruptly disintegrate into nothingness. It dawns on me—this is a Fiis technique, Flash Focus.

It's a straightforward yet potent technique, hinging on the simple principle that many magicks rely on the presence of Eani to persist. By instantaneously converting a specific area of Eani into Uua through the third eye and then concentrating the Uua around oneself, a sort of void is briefly generated where no Eani exists. Any relevant technique caught in this void dissipates—Isaac's tendrils, for instance. Moreover, the focused Uua offers a certain degree of protection.

With another resounding roar, Ice King charges forward, disregarding the increased gravity as if it were a mere inconvenience. The temperature plunges even further, just as he reaches Isaac and delivers a devastating punch. In a frantic attempt, Isaac attempts to focus Uua around himself, aiming to shield against the immense Uua that Ice King has focused on himself. Yet, it proves futile. Ice King effortlessly breaches his Uua, landing the punch. The collision of their Uuas results in an explosion that spares Ice King but propels Isaac backward.

Then, with purposeful poise, Ice King assumes a stance, and all falls eerily still. The gem on his forehead stops glowing, while his sword becomes red-hot, its heat distorting the air around him, scorching nearby walls and the ground. In one sweeping motion, he swings the sword, unleashing an arc of heat so intense it boils the very air.

Isaac tries to shield himself with what little remains of his tendrils, but they wither away as the arc cleaves through them. In a final bid to save himself, he erects a barrier, which the arc slices through like a searing knife through butter. At last, it reaches him, cleanly severing his arm. The wound instantly cauterizes, the limb vanishing into ashes.

Without a sound, Isaac crumples, lying inert on the ground. With the battle over, Ice King retrieves his phone, swiftly filing a report before rushing over to me. "Are you alright?" he inquires, inspecting my injured arm without making direct contact.

"I think I'll be fine," I stammered through chattering teeth. Ice King's unintentional manipulation of the surrounding temperature had taken a toll on me. Yet, with the reassurance that all was well, I began to relax, finally allowing my eyes to close. The pain gradually ebbed away.

At some point, a deep throbbing pain brought me back to my senses, but I kept my eyes closed. I heard multiple footsteps around me as someone asked Ice King some questions. I think I can also hear Hugo's voice.

One of the footsteps comes to a stop in front of me. I sense the presence crouch before it gently shifts the sleeve of my shirt to get a better view of my wound. The person tsks but spends a few more seconds studying my wound before leaving my sleeve alone.

"You must be in a lot of pain right now," a reassuring masculine voice says. "But don't worry, we'll take good care of you." He then places a hand on my forehead and I feel a refreshing energy fill me before I slip back into a painless sleep.

I wake up once more, this time in an unfamiliar room. Groggy I sit up as I try to make sense of my surroundings. A quick look around lends only one conclusion, I am in the hospital. An IV drip is attached to my injured arm which is more or less mostly healed. I spot my phone on a table near me and pick it up.

It is currently the evening of the same day. Smiling, I shake my head a bit. Laen doctors are truly amazing. To have healed such a bad wound in the space of a few hours is truly miraculous. Still, my battle today has stoked a fire within me and I now have two simple goals. Improve the purity of my core until it can finally utilize the third eye to the fullest, and master Redirection. The next time I fight, I intend to be a whole different person.