Marvel: Impregnation System

Chapter 165 - 159: Ebony Artifacts

"And he only sent this many people?"
"You're kidding?" Ricky asked, eyeing the Ordo Draconum, the dreaded faction that terrorized covens worldwide as his brows knitted in a slight frown.
"Seriously?" Ricky turned back to Agatha, who sighed and shook her head, already understanding his reaction.
"They possess items that neutralize the field of magic within the area," Agatha clarified, explaining why witches and warlocks fell to seemingly ordinary humans.
"I was about to say cause these guys don't look like sh*t-"
"YOU KNOW NOTHING!" Angela roared, her eyes wild as the energy around her, that pungent purple aura, swirled into a deeper, more intense blue.
It was then that the crown began to take shape, forming a half-headpiece that curved over Angela's head like a dark coronet of power. 
The once-unstable energy solidified into jagged, obsidian-like ridges, gleaming under the unnatural light that pulsed around her. 
At the same time, the arm clutching the shield underwent a transformation as black accents of armor slithered across her skin like living shadows, creeping up her forearm and solidifying into sharp, segmented plates.
"YOU HOLD THE POWER OF GOD, AND YOU ABUSE SUCH DOCTRINES FOR YOUR OWN GAIN!" Angela screeched, her voice raw with fury. 
Her mind buckled under the strain of the cursed ebony artifacts, the strain of their power digging into her very soul. 
A searing agony tore through her naive and untrained consciousness, a cruel punishment for daring to wield their might. 
The dark purple and blue energy crackled violently around her, pulsing with a life of its own, as if the artifacts resented her existence yet refused to release their grip.
"Oh geez, not one another quack-" Ricky sighed, almost slouching his shoulders at this fanatic before him.
"FOR YEARS, WITCHES AND WARLOCKS HAVE KILLED FOR THEIR ADVANCEMENTS, THEIR VILE ACTS STAINING THE WORLD THAT THE TRUE KING SEEKS TO RULE! BUT NO MORE, I SHALL NOT ALLOW IT!" Angela twisted mouth spout acts of hypocrisy that went completely unnoticed by herself and her comrades while Ricky raised an eyebrow.
"WITH THE EBONY SHIELD ON MY ARM AND THE EBONY CROWN ADORNING MY HEAD, I SHALL DO WHAT THE ORDO DRACONUM FAILED TO DO BEFORE ME!" Angela roared, her voice reverberating with unnatural power.
It was then that the truth struck as to why the Ebony Blade had remained silent and it felt an eerily familiar presence.
"Wait, did she say Ebony?" Ricky immediately realized, drawing the connection from the weird colors accenting the revealed ebony artifacts.
SIHG
'Yes, those are my siblings.' the Ebony Blade heaved out a tired sigh in Ricky's mind, its voice riddled with annoyance as it gazed onward at the artifacts
"Uh, are you talking to them right now?" Ricky asked, his gaze flicking between the shield and the crown, then back to the Ebony Blade as the Blade sighed again
"The only way for me and my siblings to speak is either if we are bound to one or through the traditional way weapons speak," the Ebony Blade clarified, its tone heavy with history that was filled with swords crossed.
"There's a traditional way?" Ricky asked, confusion creasing his brow.
"Through combat, weapons show their intentions and their words through every strike of their wielder. It is common knowledge." The Ebony Blade sort of scoffed, subtly looking down at Ricky who scrunched his eyebrows.
"How, the f*ck, is that common knowledge-" 
"HOW DARE YOU IGNORE ME!" Angela roared, her eyes blazing in a blackish purple light that was slowly corroding her sanity while she spread out her arms.
"HOW DARE YOU NOT COWER IN FEAR OF GOD'S ARMY, THE ORDO DRACONUM, WHO WILL PURIFY YOUR TAINTED SOUL!" Angela bellowed, her voice trembling with fervor as he went overboard, her words spilling out like a torrent. 
Even her comrades exchanged uneasy glances, their discomfort palpable as the intensity of her proclamation filled the air as even for her, it was a little too crazed.
Ricky wore a simple deadpan stare, his gaze locked on Angela as she boasted about her army as his hand slowly rose, and a green portal materialized in the air before him. 
But instead of stepping into it as he normally would, a series of figures began to emerge from the swirling green depths. 
The beings stepped forward one by one, their forms shifting and rippling with unfamiliar energy, casting long shadows as they gathered around Ricky.
"Is this what I think it is?" Boney's skull poked out, his hollow eyes scanning the scene before him as his gaze landed on the meaty humans, poised and trembling in front of his master, their souls ripe for the picking.
"Move over, you oaf!" Chuck snapped, irritation in his voice while seemingly behind him and the portal.
"Don't waste a second in our grand master plan!" Chuck pushed past Boney, eager to play his part in Ricky's plan, excited at finally being used like the pawn he was in his grand plan.
"Good, GOOD!" Angela's mind was completely shattered at this point, her voice trembling with an unhinged excitement, almost drooling at the prospect of battle.
"I am finally able to slay the unholy being who dares use the Great Wizard Merlin's creation!" Angela seethed, her grip tightening around her sword, knuckles white with intensity. 
Her eyes locked onto the Ebony Blade, burning with a rage that could cut through steel, as if she could already see her victory in the reflection of its dark surface.
"Unholy? I'm literally a honorary bishop-"
"NONSENSE! THAT IS NOT THE REAL CHURCH OF GOD, THE REAL HOLY LAND!" Angela screeched, her voice grating and sharp, causing Ricky to frown and absentmindedly rub his ear in discomfort.
"Wait, let me guess, you know where the real Holy Land is?" Ricky asked, his laugh blatant and mocking, but his eyes involuntarily tracing down her supple form. 
He quickly caught himself, his smirk faltering for just a moment before he masked it with an indifferent expression.
'Damn, she's actually kinda hot-'
"CAMELOT, THE PUREST CITY AMONGST ALL THIS FILTH!" Angela roared, her eyes strained as if the weight of the crown she wore was too much for her mind to bear.
"Didn't see that one coming," Ricky replied sarcastically, tapping the Ebony Blade on his shoulder with a flick of his wrist. 
His eyes then narrowed as he noticed the Ordo Draconum slowly unveiling strange, unfamiliar objects, each one more unsettling than the last.
"And we can relax with all the yelling, I'm literally right here-"
"YOU-"
"YEAH, ME! AND STOP INTERRUPTING ME!" Ricky suddenly snapped, his voice thunderous as his sovereign aura flared around him, crackling with raw power.
The armored men flinched, taken aback by the wave of energy that pulsed through the air. The very ground seemed to vibrate with his fury. A certain man's eye began to radiate a blinding light, as if reacting to the intensity of Ricky's presence, his gaze locking onto the source of the disturbance.
"Listen, if you guys came here to start some trouble, then f*cking bring it on." Ricky gestured to them, his eyes burning under the bags looming under his eyes.
"I'm having a real sht month, and you don't know how badly, HOW BADLY, I want to beat the sht out of someone," Ricky let out a maniacal laugh, almost begging, begging them to start something so he could just unleash his anger growing with each passing second. 
A few of the men flinched, unsure whether to respond or retreat as Ricky's energy simmered, ready to explode at the slightest provocation.
But before any response came, Angela laughed hysterically, her laugh echoing unnervingly through the tense air.
"I didn't come here to start trouble!" Angela declared, her back arching in a way that was far from graceful as she readied her stance.
"I'm here to finish what my predecessors started, by slaying the demonic beings known as witches and warlocks." Angela beckoned with a grim smile, reaching into her knightly attire and pulled out a scroll. 
Ricky frowned at the sight, thinking they were going to just fight already only to get an entire speech as he watched the parchment in her hand.
"But I was ordered by the great wizard Merlin to give you a chance and I shall show you some mercy," Angela declared, her eyes fixed on Ricky with an unwavering intensity.
"Oh wow, he shouldn't have~" Ricky sarcastically said, frowning while suddenly pulling up his system window.
AHEM
"Black Knight, you are in possession of a holy blade that does not fit your stature," Angela read aloud, her tone dripping with contempt, meant to infuriate Ricky, if only he was actually paying attention.
"Uh huh."
"When I created the Ebony Blade and its counterparts, it was never meant to be anything more than the shadow of Excalibur, and especially not used for the vile acts you wield it for now," Angela continued, her voice sharp as she glared at Ricky, as if each word was a strike meant to undermine him.
"Uh huh."
"It is why I, Merlin, creator of the blade and ruler in place of the true and only king humanity ever birthed, order you to surrender yourself and the blade to await a proper trial to determine if an execution, banishment, or imprisonment is to be carried out," Angela declared, her words cold and final, as if her decree was closed by not only the ending of her words but by closing the scroll.
"Uh huh." Ricky, completely uncaring and subtly tuning Angela out, was currently looking at the array of skills he was currently harboring.
One of Ricky's greatest gains had come in the form of weapons he never quite used, their functionality never quite matching the Ebony Blade or his current weapon of choice. 
He could only wield two at a time, limited by his own two hands, until now.
Suddenly, two spectral arms emerged from his back, their ghostly forms shifting as something pushed its way out from within his very flesh. 
The spectral hands reached out, gripping the hilts protruding from Ricky's body, and yanking out two weapons that have been lying dormant within him after being devoured.
Then, a pulse of energy surged through him, activating his newly honed skill as a power flooded the spectral limbs, their form solidifying as a third spectral arm materialized behind him. 
Unlike the others, it did not reach toward his body and instead, within its grasp, a weapon materialized out of thin air, summoned by Ricky's will.
Suddenly, Ricky who was only dawning the Ebony Blade and Chastiefol suddenly spurred out three more weapons as they hung above him.
The weapons mentioned:
Tungsten Blade of the Hollowed Forge; a seemingly ordinary machete that draws on the power of the void, eroding the physical composition of what it cuts as structures, shields, and barriers are not just damaged; they begin to unravel, their atomic integrity corrupted.
Venomous Fang of the Abyss: The blade is coated in a venom unlike anything seen on Earth. When the blade pierces the skin, it doesn't simply poison the blood; the venom feeds on the life force of the victim, draining not just their strength but their very essence.
Stormcaller's Glaive: This elegant glaive features a blade that crackles with stormy energy, and its haft is adorned with runes of thunder and lightning.
"You will surrender-"
"Oh will you shut the f*ck up, we both know I ain't doing that." Ricky scoffed, giving Angela a taste of her own medicine and interrupting her.
"Listen, I don't give a damn what some old pervert thinks, and I sure as hell ain't handing over what's mine just because he suddenly wants it back." Ricky chuckled, tapping Chastiefol against the grass while casually watching the armored men set up their strange rune-carved artifacts.
Honestly, Ricky didn't feel the slightest bit threatened as even without his magic, hell, even without his X-Gene, these guys didn't pose a real challenge. 
The only reason they were still breathing was because he needed test subjects and information but before all that, he figured he'd stretch his limbs a little.
Mastery: 1→6%
Ricky had technically been raising it, though not in the way one might expect. 
Lately, he'd been spending time with Lucky, helping him clear out tree stumps and set up his new backyard. It wasn't exactly gardening, but it was close enough.
'Whatever, at least I can finally use these other weapons.' Ricky thought, looking at the machete and corroded dagger before looking at Angela.
"Let's just get this over with because I still got sh*t to do-"
"Watch your tone foul creature when addressing The Great Witch Hunter Angela!" A man yelled from the side, drawing his bow and pulling it all the way back.
SPLAT
It happened so fast, so suddenly, that most of the ordinary humans barely had time to process it.
One moment, their comrade stood among them; the next, he was gone. 
Their eyes trailed further back, only to find him writhing, impaled against a tree by a spear that had torn through his flesh. 

Blood spilled from his mouth in ragged coughs, his body trembling as the reality of his fate set in.
COUGH
COUGH
Even Angela, clad in the Ebony Crown and Ebony Shield, barely registered how fast Ricky had hurled the spear at her comrade.
"Chuck, mortally wound the strong ones for questioning and go nuts with the cannon fodder," Ricky ordered.
Chuck instinctively bowed, his excitement palpable, while Boney stepped forward, cracking his knuckles with a sinister grin.
"Master, does that mean?" Boney asked, literally trembling with excitement, the skeletal warrior born for one purpose and one purpose only.
"Yes, Boney, that means you can devour their souls." Ricky waved his hand.
Boney practically jumped up and down, his hollow eyes flaring with anticipation before locking onto the unfortunate group of cannon fodder.
"DO IT NOW!" Angela roared, her aura flaring as her smile instinctively widened as her comrades activated the anti-magic artifacts, their runes glowing ominously.
Yet, as the battlefield shifted, Angela's gaze flickered to the side as the coven stood at a distance, watching, not with fear, but with quiet, measured intent.
Among them, Agatha remained still, her impassive stare concealing decades of simmering hatred but she could wait just a little longer.
'Something's wrong-' Angela thought only for her mind to squeeze under the oppressive might of the crown adorning it.
'Do not take your eyes away from that thing you fool!' The Ebony Crown yelled at this dimwit, forcing her to look back at Ricky who beckoned Chastiefol back to his grip.
"What?" Ricky suddenly asked, looking down at the Ebony Blade before his laughter trickled out of his mouth.
"You want to say hi to your siblings?" Ricky asked, his eyes slowly turning towards Angela who felt her entire nervous system shiver.
'PREPARE YOUR DEFENSIVE STANCE-' The Ebony Shield roared, trying to beckon her forward as Ricky suddenly disappeared in place before appearing before her sight.
"Then I guess I can only make it a touching reunion!" Ricky let out a mocking laugh, his body flickering into view right before her, wide open, yet utterly untouchable.
The Ebony Blade gleamed with its dark edge, humming with a violent hunger as he swung it across his body. 
Crimson electricity crackled along its surface, the air itself hissing under the sheer force of the strike.
In the next second, the destruction that the attack would've caused was abruptly halted as the Ebony Blade met the Ebony Shield with a resounding clash. 
The sharp edge of the blade scraped against the dark surface of the shield, sending a shockwave through the air, both weapons vibrating with an intense, almost tangible power as they locked in place.
The Ebony Crown unleashed a violent burst of purple electricity, crashing into Angela's nervous system with such force that her arm jerked toward it, as if controlled by an invisible hand.
In the next second, the destruction that the attack would've caused was abruptly halted as the Ebony Blade met the Ebony Shield with a resounding clash. 
The sharp edge of the blade scraped against the dark surface of the shield, sending a shockwave through the air, both weapons vibrating with an intense, almost tangible power as they locked in place.
"Ah, if it isn't our darling sibling," the Ebony Crown spoke, its voice smooth yet laced with a chilling edge. It began to shift, its form warping and reshaping, taking on the appearance of its wielder, though this time, it bore longer hair, a stark contrast to its counterpart's shorter strands
"I see the outside world has made you soft," the Ebony Shield scoffed, crossing its arms as it surveyed the Ebony Blade with disdain. 
Instead of the flowing locks its sibling wore, the Shield sported a crew cut, low and tight, a stark contrast to that of it's holder.
"The only thing that is soft is your wielder's will." the Ebony Blade raised its gaze, almost looking down at his younger siblings as it saw them both glare at him.
"And your wielder's will is any better?" the Ebony Crown scoffed, hatred flaring in its eyes while turning away only for the shield to take a step forward.
"Our creator has given us the purpose of taking you back to your rightful place." The Ebony Shields words made its sibling give it an ugly frown.
"Our purpose is to kill Knoll-"
"Your purpose will and will always be in Excalibur's mighty shadow," the Ebony Crown hissed, its words dripping with venom. 
It glared down at the Ebony Blade, mocking it with every syllable, as though trying to provoke a reaction. 
The Ebony Blade, however, remained eerily silent, ducking it's head slightly before slightly raising Ricky's image upwards as it's eyes, contrary to its murky black appearance, sparked with a red light filled with only hatred.
"Repeat those words, one more time." the Ebony Blade low voice rang out with a deadly edge that only mimicked its mighty form.
"Shadow."
The sheer force of the impact left a trail of destruction, trees and rocks splintering in the wake of the explosion.
Ricky stood frozen for a moment, his eyes wide as he stared at the Blade, which still thrummed with energy in his hand. 
Not just one, but both of his younger siblings repeated the words, their voices dripping with disdain and an unspoken understanding of the deep wound they were opening. 
They knew exactly what it meant to invoke Excalibur's name in front of their eldest sibling, and they reveled in the power of the moment. 
The Ebony Blade stood motionless, the weight of their words settling like a heavy burden in the silence.
BOOM
Immediately upon the two Ebony weapons colliding with one another, the Ebony blade exploded out in a mass torrent of red energy that he hadn't seen since Dracula.
Ricky was a little confused while Angela was sent tumbling backwards, her body tossed like a doll into the distance, skidding along the ground before slamming into a tree. 
The sheer force of the impact left a trail of destruction, trees and rocks splintering in the wake of the explosion.
Ricky stood frozen for a moment, his eyes wide as he stared at the Blade, which still thrummed with energy in his hand. 
The Ebony Blade itself seemed to crackle and pulse with an intense, volatile power, the cracks spreading like veins of molten lava coursing through it. 
Ricky raised an eyebrow, the situation quickly shifting from a mere exchange of blows to something that was only used in a life or death situation.
"Whoa, what was that?" Ricky asked, his voice almost too calm for the chaos unfolding around him as the energy from the Blade was still raging, and yet he had not called upon it.
The Ebony Blade's vibrations grew stronger as a crack in its surface deepened, and Ricky could feel its resonance, the weight of its power shifting in a way that was uncharacteristic. Something had changed.
'I do not ask for much, only to revel in my displays.' The Ebony Blade's voice, low yet filled with rage, reverberated in his mind as the words of its siblings clearly got to it. 
'But I implore you, humiliate the one wielding the power of my kin.'
The Ebony Blade, once content with asking for little more than freedom from the chains of Ricky's blood, was now actively requesting a favor, one that undoubtedly surprised Ricky.
"Don't tell me they made it personal?" Ricky chuckled, glancing up at Angela as she struggled to get to her feet, only to stumble back down as she would've died if it hadn't been for the protection of the crown and shield.
'To a degree that warrants my fury.' The Ebony Blade clarified, making Ricky all but laugh as some of her comrades rushed all around him, encircling him.
"Khathar un'koran, sahran dhar'uk, sorin val'shek thal'zu. Kothal ven'rak, relzoth til'vrah. Ur'daith kal'thor." Angela's comrades all chanted, the black artifacts lighting up with a red energy that suddenly surrounded Ricky in a dome.
"LADY ANGELA, THE ANTI MAGIC BARRIER IS SET, QUICKLY, REGAIN YOURSELF AND-"
SNORT
"Like I said earlier, really?" 
In the next instant, Ricky swung the Ebony Blade across the square barrier surrounding him, and with a single, effortless strike, its magic shattered as the blade, capable of cutting through anything, cleaved the barrier as if it were nothing more than paper.
"I've got a f*cking sword that can cut through anything, what are you guys even doing?" Ricky genuinely laughed, waving the Ebony Blade in front of them as they gnashed their teeth in frustration.
Turning around, his gaze swept over the situation, and their eyes widened in shock as Boney ripped through the higher-ranking members, his skeletal hands effortlessly slicing through arms and legs.
Then, as if sensing a weak link, Boney's bony hand shot forward, wrapping around the neck of the youngest member and with a vicious yank, he pulled the man closer.
Opening his mouth wide, Boney inhaled deeply, his hollow eyes glowing as the man's entire body convulsed, choking on the life being drained from him. 
Ethereal mist began to pour from the young man's form, flowing like smoke into Boney's mouth, as his soul was slowly devoured.
"THIS CAUSE IS LOST, WE MUST PROTECT LADY ANGELA!" The man quickly assessed the situation, positioning himself in front of Ricky's line of sight to Angela as the others followed. 
One of them, however, had a distinctly different iris from the rest, a curious detail that seemed to set him apart.
"BE STRONG, DO NOT COWER IN FRONT OF THIS BEAST-"
SPLAT
"AHHHHHHHHHHHH!" The man screeched, his arm limply falling to the ground, followed by his knees and without hesitation, Ricky cleaved the man's arm off with his machete.
"And now we wait," Ricky muttered, glancing down at the man with no hint of concern, his gaze almost casual as he observed the situation, as if anticipating something to unfold.
Another man tried to rush at Ricky only for the ethereal arm to swipe at him as the dagger in its grip slashed at his neck, his gaze still fixed on the man who had his arm cut off but the tungsten machete.
It was a particular effect but the cut off arm, once solid and whole, seems to deteriorate before his eyes, the skin and muscle disintegrating in a ripple-like effect, as though the very essence of his flesh is being pulled apart by an unseen force.
The area around the severed limb begins to warp as the severed edges of the arm wasn't left with a clean or smooth cut but instead, it started to melt, almost cave in on itself while forming this chaotic mass of decaying tissue.
Its dissolution ability was no laughing matter as the atoms themselves were unmade as his bone started to break down into a fine mist of dust, the marrow evaporating as if sucked into the void.
The man's remaining arm, still intact but in a state of shock, trembled violently as he instinctively tried to put his hand over the new wound as if it would stop his body from being broken down at the atomic level. 
His man's face twisted in a gruesome agony as the physical pain gave way to a growing, more profound sense of horror. 
It was then that the excruciating pain of his body unraveling surged through his nerves, as the void's force crept deeper into him, siphoning away his very life force.
"MAKE IT STOP, MAKE IT STOOOOOOOOOOOOP~" But even when the man screamed, begging to the lord above, his flesh continued to melt away. 
Leaving behind skeletal traces while his muscles snapped like fragile threads, all while his nerves, once connected to his brain, now fire erratically to a point that forced him to foam at the mouth, his eyes rolling back as he fell flat on his face. 
"Jesus-" Ricky thought out loud, only to be interrupted by the other infliction he caused by the man trying to sneak up on him by the small dagger dangling in his spectral hand.
"KUERK, KUERK!" The man gasped, his fingers desperately clawing at the deep gash in his throat as the venom seeped into him, poisoning not just his body but his very soul. 
The agony was unbearable, far worse than any physical wound he had endured. It corroded him, tearing apart his essence with an intensity that shattered his sanity. 
The pain was so brutal that he would have gladly succumbed to blood loss, his hands frantically tearing at his flesh, just to escape the torment of this relentless, soul-shredding torture.
"Wow." Ricky simply put it, looking at the corroded weapons, tainted by his eldritch ability then looking back at the men who instinctively took a step back.
"M-Monster!" one of the men yelled, scrambling to flee, but Ricky raised the Stormcaller's Glaive high.
BANG
A flash of electric blue erupted from the weapon, crackling through the air with a thunderous roar.
The bolt shot forward like a speeding bullet, its energy disintegrating the very air it passed through. 
It struck the man square in the back, burning a vivid, charred streak into his skin as his spine was obliterated in an instant, and his body crumpled to the ground, lifeless, as the force of the blast turned him into little more than a smoldering ruin.
"And you're-........dammit I had something for this." Ricky smiled only for his mind to blank, frowning before looking up at the sky as if the answer would be written in the clouds.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Angela suddenly roared out, watching Ricky utterly destroy her comrades without even flinching, showing no compassion or reverence when he took the life of another.
"Whatever, you guys started it-"
"THEN I SHALL FINISH IT BY BATHING IN YOUR BLOOD!" Angela roared, her voice filled with a fury that rattled the air. 
One of her eyes pulsed with a dark, almost sinister purple, while the other gleamed a deep, eerie blue, as if the very essence of her power was manifesting within her as her aura flared violently.
"Alright, putting aside the whole thing about me killing your friends here, that was pretty good." Ricky actually complimented her, kicking himself that he didn't have any sort of quips in this scenario and giving Angela her flowers.
"SHUT YOUR DIRTY MOUTH!" Angela roared, bursting forward while holding her sword high above her head as her comrades ducked away.
Ricky threw Chastiefol to the side as it shot away all while dashing forward to meet her charge head-on.
Brandishing her sword high, it gleamed with runes pulsing with anti-magic energy that could've obliterated any other warlock, except Ricky. 
They both wound up their strikes, each preparing to unleash everything they had but as Angela swung her sword down with all her might, a sudden flash of red energy streaked through her vision.
Before she could react, her blade was severed in an instant, faster than any strike she'd ever seen. 
The impact was so swift that she barely had time to register the loss, her sword splitting into two pieces. 
She stumbled back, unable to comprehend what had just happened, and then Ricky's voice rang out with a wild, manic laugh at a sudden realization.
"No. F*cking. Way." Ricky bellowed, his voice full of excitement and without hesitation, he kicked Angela square in the sternum, sending her tumbling backward once again.
"DID YOU JUST F*CKING SEE THAT, DID YOU?!" Ricky shouted, his eyes wide with disbelief and childlike glee as he completely disregarded the chaos of the battle around him, holding the Ebony Blade with a grin that spoke to his unrestrained thrill, as though he had just unlocked something new and unimaginable.
Sigh
'Yes, I saw you cut through the space between the sword,' the Ebony Blade remarked, its voice dripping with the usual snark. 
It had been present the entire time, witnessing everything unfold, but Ricky was too caught up in the exhilarating moment to pay it any mind.
Ricky stood there, practically vibrating with excitement, still not fully processing what had just happened. 
Ricky had always been out of arm's reach and severely lacking in terms of wielding the full potential of the Ebony Blade, especially when it came to dealing with powerful opponents, minus Angela. 
But as he swung to slice through her weapon, something clicked as that flash of red energy wasn't just a powerful strike, it was a revelation.
It was like a moment of clarity, a realization that his blade had unlocked something deeper, something beyond mere power. 
It wasn't just the weapon cutting through things anymore; it was cutting through the very fabric of space and energy. 
Ricky's grin widened, and a wild spark danced in his eyes while hoping up and down like some sort of child.
For the first time, he understood the true potential of the blade and just managed to glimpse beyond the curtain that had been veiled before him for so long.
"BABY, DID YOU JUST SEE THAT? DID YOU SEE ME JUST CUT THROUGH THE SPACE BETWEEN THE SWORD?!" Ricky's voice was practically bubbling with excitement, a mixture of relief and triumph that had been long overdue. 
Agatha, still unsure of what exactly had transpired, looked over at Ricky with a mix of confusion and pride. 
She clapped her hands, a warm, encouraging smile spreading across her face. 
"I'm so proud of you!" Agatha cheered, genuinely happy for him, even if she didn't fully understand what had just occurred.
The other members of their group leaned in, curious and bewildered by the exchange.
"Do you understand what's going on-" One of them began, only to be cut off by Agatha's quiet response.
"No idea," Agatha whispered back, her brow furrowed in mild confusion, but her tone still filled with support.
"Oh man, it feels like a weight has just been lifted off my chest, phew~" Ricky wiped his forehead, turning back to Angela who was frozen upon finally returning her gaze not to him, but the scenery around him.
When Ricky threw Chastiefol to the side, it wasn't to free up his hand but to send a message, one that left a bloody trail. 
The spear sliced through the air with a singular, deadly arc, severing the limbs of the men who had lingered on the outskirts of the battle, attempting to avoid the chaos. 
Each of them crumpled to the ground, their limbs scattered, their lives hanging by a thread as the air was thick with the metallic scent of blood as they writhed in agony, barely clinging to consciousness.
Ricky stood among them, a satisfied smile curling on his lips as he wiped a splatter of blood from his cheek. 
The men, now reduced to little more than broken husks, trembled in the cold embrace of death that loomed just beyond their reach.
"Now to make good on a favor from my sword." Ricky chuckled, his carefree tone almost chilling Angela to her very core before her entire being flared with a bubbling anger.
"I'LL KILL YOU-" Angela screeched, her voice seething with fury as she pointed her finger at Ricky, her eyes burning with vengeance.
But before she could complete her threat, that same streak of red energy pulsed in front of her vision.
WHOOSH
A gust of wind swept through the air, almost gentle in its passage, but it was the calm before the storm.
Before she could react, the havoc that had been unleashed behind her erupted in a blinding flash. 
A long, searing slash appeared in the air behind her, the sound of it slicing through the treeline behind her as if disrupting that hanging stillness in a flash.
It was only then did Angela feel a sudden tug at her side, as though something was pulling at her very essence.
Thump
Her arm, the same one that had been pointing at Ricky in her fury, fell to the ground with a sickening thud as the pain registered in her mind only after the shock of the strike.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Angela screamed, the searing pain from the loss of her arm eating away at what little resolve she had left. 
Her mind, already broken and reforged, completely crumbled under the weight of this agony.
The last fragments of her sanity flickered as the Ebony Crown, sensing her vulnerability, seized its opportunity.
The once ornate headpiece, an extension of her will, grew darker, more insidious as it didn't just sit upon her head anymore, it invaded her. 
That purple energy spiraled out from the crown, burrowing into her flesh with an unnatural, agonizing force. 
It tore into her very being, twisting and contorting as it sought to embed itself deeper.
With a sickening sense of finality, the Ebony Crown nestled into her skull, its influence expanding, its dark power fusing with her mind. 
'Let it take control." The Ebony Blade suddenly said right as Ricky was about to swing again, feeling like a kid in a candy store when cutting through the space between them.
'It's more fitting to let my sibling think it has a chance before crushing it.' The Ebony Blade hatefully uttered, receiving a chuckle from Ricky.
"And here I thought I was the only one with family issues," Ricky joked, allowing the Blade to take its moment as he watched Angela's body twist and contort, like a marionette with invisible strings controlled by the Crown adorning her head.
"Fall in line eldest, our maker commands it~" Angela said in a husky, low whisper while turning her hollow gaze at Ricky.
Instead of responding, Ricky lunged at the controlled Angela, winding up his sword in an exaggerated motion, as if savoring the dramatic moment. 
The Ebony Crown instinctively blocked his strike, its power surging to intercept the blade but Ricky's body only flared.
"The only ones who will fall in line will be you two, unfortunately." the Ebony Blade spoke coldly to its siblings, its murky black hand crackling with ominous red energy.
"SHIELD-" The Ebony Crown roared, its voice a thunderous command, swiping its hand as the Ebony Shield immediately sprang forward.
"I KNOW!" the Ebony Shield snapped, surging forward with a flash of blue electricity. It conjured a mighty, shimmering wall of energy that collided with the Ebony Blade's towering attack, the immense force of the blow crashing into the barrier as the sound of the impact reverberated through the air as the two distinct colors clashed.
One side was dominated by the towering red electricity of the Ebony Blade, a destructive force that threatened to tear through everything in its path. 
On the other side, the Ebony Shield stood resolute, its blue electricity a symbol of unyielding resistance. 
The two powers clashed with thunderous intensity, but the Blade merely raised its gaze, watching the struggle unfold before it as it's dark murky eyes gleamed, unbothered, as it observed the futile battle between its siblings.
"URGH!" The Ebony Shield gritted its teeth, lifting its murky black hands in a last-ditch effort to hold off the oncoming force, but its knees buckled under the overwhelming power. The Ebony Crown, seeing its sibling falter, surged forward in a burst of purple energy.
"CROWN-"
"I KNOW!" The Ebony Crown roared, placing its hand on the back of the Shield. 
Its purple energy channeled into the Shield, amplifying it, and a new surge of blue erupted from the Shield's form, pushing back against the onslaught.
Yet, even amidst the struggle and the combined resolve of its siblings, the Ebony Blade's gaze rose slightly higher. 
A deep, violent red pulsed through the air, as the Blade's power surged forth with an even greater intensity.
"If anyone is to be in the shadow of a sword, it is but you two in mine." The Ebony Blade's voice was low, guttural, as its oppressive nature pressed down upon its siblings. 
The weight of its words felt like a suffocating force, its presence overwhelming and without mercy as the Blade cared not for the struggle before it, nor for the unity of its kin.
The words they had spoken earlier, the ones that had reawakened something deep within it, sliced through the Blade like an old wound that had never truly healed. 
The sting was undeniable, raw, as the Blade surged with a rage born not just from its own power, but from a place of ancient, festering resentment. 
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" The two siblings howled in unison, their voices a mix of defiance and desperation, as they surged forward with everything they had left. 
Their combined power seemed like it could rival their eldest, the force of their charge almost enough to push the Ebony Blade back, to stand their ground. 
But just as the balance might've been leveled, if only barely, their murky black forms began to fracture, the cracks appearing like spiderwebs, spreading quickly across their bodies.
The energy pouring from them was immense, yet the deeper they pushed, the more evident it became since just because they could withstand the power coursing through them didn't mean their wielder could bear the weight of the Ebony Blade's fury. 
The Ebony Blade's rage was an unstoppable force, and though its siblings had power, they were still bound to their wielders. 
And a weapon, no matter how mighty, could only ever be as strong as the one who held it.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Angela's scream echoed through the battlefield, her marionette-like body being torn apart from within as Ricky relentlessly drove the Blade deeper into the shield. 
Electricity crackled, sparking a torrent of energy that swirled around them, twisting and churning in real time, feeding off the collision of their powers.
The intensity of the struggle was so overwhelming that even the undead beings, once impervious to such disturbances, were drawn to the swirling maelstrom of energy. 
The air seemed to hum with raw power, vibrating with the force of the ongoing clash.
Everyone, whether alive, dead, or something in between, was captivated by the spectacle of energy spiraling around the two combatants, its crackling presence impossible to ignore.
It was then that Angela's skin started to mimic that of the Ebony Blade's siblings as her skin started to fracture under the raw power that her body was not trained to handle.
"Alright, you've had your fun."
BAM
Then, as suddenly as it had appeared, the swirling energy evaporated into the air, dissipating like smoke as Ricky yanked the Blade from the shield. 
In one fluid motion, he swung it across Angela's face with a brutal strike, the force of the blow sending her head jerking back, her body still reeling from the overload of power that had coursed through her.
But Ricky wasn't finished and without hesitation, he released the Ebony Blade, letting it fall to the ground, and with both hands, he seized the shield and the crown. 
His grip tightened around them, feeling their power pulse beneath his fingers as the remnants of their control over Angela began to falter and unravel. 
But instead of the dramatic confrontation the crown and shield were expecting, Ricky focused inward, casting a mental dome around his mind to shield himself from their influence. 
With a single, forceful movement, he tore them away from Angela's being, severing their connection with her in an instant.
"Yeah-no, we aren't gonna do this right now." Ricky looked at the crown and shield in his hands, seeing them visibly pulse at his fingertips before throwing them off to the side.
"Anyways, Angela was it?" Ricky asked, looking down at the dying Angela while her body crumbling in on itself.
"Listen, I'm gonna do you a favor and take these off your hands but don't worry, you're welcome." Ricky smiled, looking at this almost hollow shell as Agatha from the side nodded to her coven who started to take action.
"O-Over my cold dead body." Angela actually managed to whisper, trying to reach out for Ricky's ankle's only to have it stepped on by Agatha.
"Don't worry Lady Angela, that can be arranged."@@novelbin@@