Strike At Midnight || Luka Couffaine

Chapter 24 ❧ Blind Spot

I instantly take a defensive stance.

Before I could think, Master Shou his staff over his head and strike my forearm. The impact flares a stinging pain. "Agh!"

His staff plummets down on me again without missing a beat. I lunge out of the mat entirely, narrowly dodging the staff slamming on to the ground with the force of a man in his prime. It's as if he could actually see me despite being completely blind.

"Halt!" Master Fu announces. "Do not leave the mat. I'll give you a warning." I nod feebly. In that moment, I meet Master Shou's eyes. It reveals nothing, but his form reacts with a killer instinct.

I roll away as his staff smacks same spot I was a moment before. He rears back to strike again as I struggle to regain my footing. My heart beats frantically.

"Selene," Master Fu calls in concern.

If rooted to the middle, Master Shou's staff could reach almost the full radius of the mat. I have to move him back.

"Oblivion!" I say, realising I've given away my exact location. I rear back as he moves forward. The staff swings to my neck, but my claws fasten on to it. My claws elicit a loud crack as we battle on sheer strength- the walls shudder.

His face remains blank and doesn't give anything away. He switches to strike at my knees while my hands still recover from the reverberation. I pivot up, twisting myself in midair. As he estimates my location, I find an opening.

His staff was dangling unsure in one moment but smacked my claws in the next. He halts my first ever attack before it could even begin.

Since he lacks sight, he only depends on his four other senses. In the past, after using Oblivion, I find myself heavily relying on my ears to detect noise. Hence, I must be as quiet as a mouse, to keep him guessing. Minimal movements- no sound.

He twirls his staff in a brilliant speed that makes me gasp.

"Ugh!" I jump to evade his strike but I suddenly hunch over, wheezing. Nausea rises up my lungs as I worry that he crushed my lungs.

His strikes down from above me, launching into another attack. Blistering pain blossoms in my one hand that stops it as my other hand claws onto his arm. To my surprise, my claw makes contact.

With no delay, he rams his staff onto my sternum again, sending me staggering out of the mat. I freeze in shock- like ice water was splashed over me. Are my powers failing me again? But I've made up with Grimm and even perfected my skills.

"I've considered the possibility if the blind could be unaffected by Oblivion," He begins. The back cloud wraps around him and explodes. A black emptiness fills his eyes and mouth but he stands unshaken. "Oblivion detaches the victim from his five senses, but what if a blind man has trained his remaining senses to detect the slightest of signals- to the point that even Oblivion won't deter his awareness."

"Selene, this is your last warning," Master Fu says gently. "If you leave the mat once more, your opponent will automatically win."

I force air into my lungs as I stand up shakily. Revising my options I cautiously step back into the mat, steeling myself for another beat down. I shake away the dread.

Pull yourself together, Selene. Grimm is depending on you- Luka is depending on you. I'm not losing this fight.

I have a full five minutes before I detransform.

He moves fluidly and with a speed of a cheetah as my eyes could barely follow him. But it's just enough to depend on reflexes and jump aside. We exchange blow for blow in search for a critical moment to strike.