‘No! You cannot hope to beat him like this,’ Tralagar urgently hissed in the back of Kre’s mind.
“Now you decide to talk?!” Kre snapped back. The fury of his retort caused Barry to pause in his advance and look at the boy quizzically, but the pause didn’t last long, and he took another step in Kre’s direction, great sword at the ready.
‘Cormordean thrives on pain and fear,’ Tralagar replied, ignoring Kre’s little tirade. ‘If I am able to sense your fear, then the spirit inside that blade will practically gorge on it.’
‘I hope you have a better idea than just not to be afraid,’ Kre whipped back, his eyes on the weaving of the sword glittering in the candlelight in front of him.
He had room to maneuver, which was good, but he didn’t want to simply start backing away now or Barry would eventually corner him. Kre figured his best bet was to get Barry over to his side of the room leaving the exit undefended. From there, he wasn’t sure. The hallways of this strange subterranean building were bound to be as dangerous as a maniac with a fear-eating sword, but at least he knew that Beleg was out there somewhere and that was a comforting thought.
“I am sorry it’s come to this,” Barry said slowly. “You’ve been a good lad otherwise. I’ll try to make it quick, but I can’t promise that Cormordean will do the same especially if you insist on making this more difficult.”
The sword flashed out as if in response to its wielder’s thoughts and darted for Kre’s heart. His own swords flickered with a snicker-snack and with a sidestep, he deflected the great sword before it even came close.
“Nicely done,” Barry muttered, returning to his ready stance. He rapidly cocked his neck from side to side, popping it. “Beleg has done well by you. Taught you a few things I see.”
Following a giant step, Barry’s massive blade lashed out in a sideways sweep that Kre hadn’t anticipated, but luckily his grip on his own swords was tight enough that as they seemed to propel themselves towards the floor, his body went with them.
It wasn’t the prettiest of combat rolls, but it would serve to save his life. Even as he clumsily climbed back to his feet, his blades shifted back to parry Barry’s backswing. He then took a few hurried steps away before turning to face his opponent, swords raised and his hands tingling. Whether that tingling was from excitement or from nerve damage after blocking one of the hits from the massive sword, he wasn’t sure.
“My fights earlier weren’t this exciting,” Barry murmured, seemingly intoxicated all over again. His eyes seemed glazed over and he was swaying slightly. He placed a hand on the wall and breathed in heavily. “This is such a great night,” he said with a wide grin.
‘Cormordean is feeding on your fear, and that man is reeling from the effects of it.’
Kre shook his head, ‘Well, how do I stop it?’
‘I have no idea,’ Tralagar replied simply. ‘I just know that if you do not stop the fear from flowing, he will gain more power from it and not even your twin blades will be able to save you.’