The Innkeeper

Lex wore a solemn expression as he looked at his foe. The suit of armor emanated an aura that felt quite dangerous to him, and his instincts were subtly warning him that his enemy was dangerous - something that had not happened even against the suits of armor that made him bleed when he was training.

The armor looked lean, and yet extremely powerful and durable. Its curves were satisfyingly smooth, and in certain places such as his shoulders, elbows and the top of the helmet, it grew out as if replicating flames. The armor was a soft shade or red, though on the flames the color was more intense.

Unlike the previous suits of armor, this one did not wield a massive, double handed sword, but instead carried a sword and shield combination.

Somehow, Lex doubted he could melt this one so easily.

A smile grew on his face. Fighting was only interesting when it was challenging. He had improved a lot in the recent past - he was eager to see how strong he had become.

Lex summoned his sword and got into position before beginning the test.

Lex actually struggled to see the armor move, but his training and instincts guided his movements. Their swords clashed, ushering forth a rain of sparks and the sounds of thunder.

Before Lex could do anything else, as he was already reeling from the absurd might packed into that sword attack, the shield bashed him in the face. But, unexpectedly, Lex was not sent flying back.

Lex hardened the space around his legs to hold him in place and bashed the shield back. Who said his face was weaker than equipment?

Lex's brain, which was working at full speed, made an observation that if he had blocked using Stalwart Guardian he would have gained the advantage in the previous exchange. It was a reminder to rely on his techniques.

But while he had a momentary lapse with his sword techniques, he did not fail with others.

He Blinked up into the air above the suit of armor. As if predicting where Lex would appear the suit of armor was already turning to attack. Red flames had appeared around it like tentacles and all swung towards Lex as if they were sentient. A trace of Dragons Might appeared and tried to hold Lex down.

But whether it was flames or Dragons Might, he already had an incredible resistance towards them!

Instead of a sword attack, Lex used one of the two space based techniques he had learned as he punched out!

Space Warp!

Right in front of his space, for a region of three feet (0.9 meters) space seemed to bend oddly. Someone observing would think it was just a lighting trick, or illusion, but that was not the case.

This incredibly lethal technique, which Lex could only employ in a very limited range for now, drastically warped space in a small region. While the warping itself was already incredibly deadly, that was only one of the traits of the attack. The second was a sudden, massive spike in gravity that lasted only a few moments.

Despite its short duration, the extent of the gravity increase was enough to shatter even the strongest of materials!

The suit of armor, which had been caught in his attack, was dealt a severe blow! Its shield broke, and its armor was covered in cracks before the effects of gravity even showed themselves.

Then the armor began to deform, as its chest and back caved in slightly. For a moment Lex thought the fight would be over, but then his instincts screamed a warning!

Instantly, Lex Blinked away only to see another suit of armor had appeared in the air, right behind where he had been, and had been moments away from decapitating him!

The broken and battered suit of armor disappeared, as if it were a mirage, leaving only the completely unharmed suit, falling from the sky.

For a moment Lex was confused. How had it dodged his attack? Lex hadn't sensed anything, or even detected its arrival behind him.

But he did not have long to think, for the moment the armor landed, the fight continued!

Sparks flew in the air as this time Lex did not forget to use his techniques, and craters formed in the ground - the stadium being the only thing seemingly suffering from their clashes.

The suit of armor brought out its techniques, which favored fire and Dragons Might, but Lex could basically ignore them. But oddly enough, the suit of armor could also ignore all his space based attacks, and was skilled enough to dodge or parry all his sword attacks.

They fought, and fought, and fought some more. Lex risked sustaining injuries to attack, but never actually suffered any damage, or managed to hurt the armor. They seemed to reach an impasse.

When the fight kept on continuing like this, and five minutes passed, Lex decided he could no longer afford to wait. Every moment he delayed Ra was getting stronger.

He had to use the second Space technique he mastered, which he was trying to avoid using. Not only did it exhaust him mentally and drain a truly massive portion of his energy reserves, but Lex himself also suffered when it was used.

He entered his Berserk state, and blared his Domination in full. His Berserk state increased his physical abilities tremendously, which is exactly what he needed.

Taking the armor by surprise with his increased speed, he body slammed it and immediately put it in a bear hug, ignoring the flames that covered its body.

Space Unraveling!

Although a moment ago the two had been hurtling across the stadium due to Lex's body slam, they suddenly froze in place. The space around them slowly began to break down, as if turning to ash. But as the ashes fell, they unraveled and turned into something else.

Whether it was Lex's clothes, Lex himself or the suit of armor, all were cut through as they were touched by the transforming ash.

It was not the Void behind space, which would eventually be revealed if this attack continued, that was dangerous. No, it was the extremely potent, powerful and dangerous energy that space was made out of, that it unraveled into, that was the danger. And if that energy touched Lex's Golden core, he would basically be crippled!

But Cassandra had already taught him how to avoid that, so all that remained was for him to mutually suffer some damage with this accursed suit of armor.