TRAILING SHADOWS

"Are you really that eager to lose me, dimwit?" Bane bared his fangs.

"If so, I refuse, Dimwit."

"Gnnnrrrgh!" Sunday bared his teeth as well, facing the Rare Type Beast squarely with balls up fists. "Why You..."

"It's all a trick. Open your damned head up and see the truth. How do you even want to ever go Half Sage Mode with me if you can't even trust me?" Bane w.h.i.n.ed, raising his head from his paws.

"Nnnrgh..." Sunday's body trembled in wrath. He raised his balled fists to his c.h.e.s.t level, his eyes flaring out unrivalled anger at the soulbond.

"What?" Bane teased with a smirk. "Want to teach me some obedience? Go on, try it! And watch as I break out of here. Like I said, dimwit, any attack on me from you with just a mere Elite class while I am still restrained will result in you shattering your restraints on me. So, I dare you, go on. Hit me and set me free!" Bane huffed, rising to half height as he rested his weight on his two stretched out frontal paws.

"You." Sunday slumped against the bars, holding it with both hands. "Always. Looking down on mee...." He yelled out his frustration.

THWACK!

"Ouch!" A younger and smaller looking Sunday g.r.o.a.n.e.d, holding his forehead with both hands. "Why'd you do that for?" 

Niniola, a younger version too, rested her hands on her knees as she smiled to me with closed eyes. She seemed to be somewhat bigger and taller than Sunday, wearing a plain white knee-length gown with a yellow girdle.

"I never look down on you, Sunday. No matter what anyone says. To me, you're my champion." She said, reaching to hug his head in her sprouting bosom while dreamy white clouds floated about before covering them entirely.

"Hm!" Sunday sighed as the memory floated off and then, he smirked. "Right!"

His hands tightened on the bars, gripping them till they bleached white.

"This soul belongs to me. And all that is in it." Sunday yelled out as he shook the bars vigorously to the extent the reality around him began shaking.

Meanwhile, on the outside, Agbawo and Obedi stood in front of Sunday who still knelt on the ground, their faces puzzled.

"It's not working. You think the wolf..." Obedi asked as he flicked his finger, making the overhead lance vanish.

"Apparently. Seems Sage Mode is not going to work for him. We should teach him method two. That is summoning his wolf to fight in his stead." Agbawo leaned forward, his eyes carefully observing each grimace on Sunday's face.

"Right! And that bastard kept me holding my lance still. Does he know how much Agbara I need to keep it extended for this long?" Obedi grumbled. "I should have just rammed it in since and ended this thing." 

"Patience, you!" Agbawo cautioned, looking up at the crystal above that was dissolving, already submerged into the miasma more than before. "We can't let you do that. Any attack to him at this stage would..."

"What are you saying?" Obedi questioned. "Attacking him when he is less conscious now is the best time. That's how Eyes are stolen and the same way is the way we extract beasts. When the host is unaware of his surroundings." Obedi turned, slapping Agbawo by the shoulder, the latter wincing.

Oh, oh. Don't tell me you have a soft spot for the bastard already?"

"Whoa!" Agbawo exhaled, jumping back by a step as energy, yellow hot energy flared out of the kneeling body.

"Tsk!" Obedi looked disdainfully at Sunday. "He only achieved Partial Sage. Just as I thought, the wolf is not fully bonded to him. Makes it easier. Now, I just have to go Full Sage to crush him entirely." Obedi smirked, walking away from the center of the Arena to the edge, directly opposite him.

"I'll make this quick. The Arena is about to close." 

Sunday's eyes flashed open as he gasped, his body trembling visibly, all the whole, covered in a sheath of white flaming energy that stuck closely to his skin.

"About time, you came back!" Obedi yelled out in his Full Sage Mode, as an astral limb, a visibly sharp feather reached out and scythed where Sunday knelt.

However, the scythe hit nothing as Sunday was already high up in the air.

"Hmm." Obedi smirked from the center of the Eagle Astral body.

"Hiyaaaaa..." He yelled out, throwing his left hand to cross over his c.h.e.s.t. As he did, the astral eagle copied the same motion, throwing it's left wing over, shooting out two astral feathers, one scything up for Sunday and the other scything down.

Cornered and in mid air, Sunday grunted, putting his hands in an X as he braced for impact.

GBAM!

He tumbled over and over until he hung down with just a hand by the edge of the arena. 

'Dont die on me, fool. At least, let me get out before you die.' That singular attack that you blocked cost you several thousands of energy already.' The wolf bared it's fangs in Sunday's soul scape.

'Well, help me out then.' Sunday strained, trying to raise himself up.

He hurled his body up after straining for long. Just as he landed on the Arena ground on his legs, Obedi dove in for an attack, this time, the beak of the astral eagle coming first.

'Duck, dimwit!' Bane yelled out.

Sunday immediately did that, throwing himself on the ground just as the beak of the astral eagle clamped shut, it's empty catch unbalancing the momentum and sending out of the Arena only to bash into a cl.u.s.ter of the crystal shaped rocks.

However, even at that, Sunday's body is bruised, despite the cloak of Agbara surrounding him.

Irritated, he lashed out. 'I thought you said I should duck. I still got hit'

'Fool! That was the best course of action. Any other one would have completely broken you to pieces.' 

'He's fast!" Obedi noted, turning around with widespread wings.

'That might be a trouble for me.' Obedi's soulbond spoke into his mind. 'I can't exactly move as fast as I want to because the strain would rip you apart, being that you already have my full power to bear. If you were a little higher than Lord, meeting his narrow escapist's speed should be nothing. But still, here we go...' His soulbond added, flapping away from the rocks.

Obedi soared over head as Sunday dashed left to right, trying to confuse him.

'Insignificant worm. Trying to mess with me?' The soulbond muttered again as it dived headfirst again, pulling its wings for the center of the Arena.

As it neared, Sunday forcefully halted at one end, pausing to look at what was going to happen when Bane spoke to him.

'Dont get this wrong. I have no intentions of helping you.' The Astral Eagle's wing flapped out as fours limbs stretched out, forming a sort of nest that blocked out half of the Arena, from Sunday while a fifth sn.a.k.e.d out towards Sunday from the crest.

'I just don't want to be trapped in a dead body because that move is going to end you. So, have my powerrrrrrrrrrrrrrr....' Bane yelled out, transferring his energy into Sunday.

In an instant, Sunday's form wavered, the bird zoomed in, its fifth limb reaching to grab Sunday.

And then, the air became chaotic, rampant energy swirling about as the Arena started closing, squeezing upon itself.

Except that there was a loud noise, screeches of an astral eagle that was being panel-beaten ,paw by paw, by an angrier massive Prickled Bane Winged Wolf astral form that kept telling out.

"Who were you calling insignificant?" As it battered it all about.