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"Enough noise. Let him come!"
Zombie Corvus Glaive blurred forward again, a streak of darkness aimed at Wanda. She conjured a crimson portal in his path, chaos energy boiling in her veins but Glaive twisted unnaturally, defying inertia itself. He slipped past the rift and unleashed a storm of punches like a hurricane of piledrivers.
Wanda summoned shield after shield, layers of glowing crimson stacking a hundredfold before her.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Each impact thundered like collapsing skyscrapers. The barriers cracked, trembled, and shuddered as rubble lifted into the air under the force.
Wanda's tendrils of chaos lashed out like writhing serpents, whips cracking against Glaive's decaying frame.
But he only laughed. "These tricks? Against me? I am invincible!"
With each roar of confidence, his blows struck harder, faster. His strength was will-fed, confidence multiplying his power. His fists hammered through layer after layer until only one barrier remained.
"Shatter!" he bellowed, bringing his arm down like a mountain.
The final blow never landed.
A hand caught it.
The shockwave ripped outward, a gale so violent that towers kilometers away shook on their foundations. Dust clouds rose like tidal waves.
Wanda's eyes widened in relief. "Nolan… you're back!"
"Leave him to me," Nolan said calmly, his smile fading as his gaze locked on Glaive. "You turned my people into your thralls?"
Recognition flickered in the zombie's hollow eyes followed by ravenous hunger. "So you're the 'Supreme Sorcerer' they spoke of. You smell… divine." His jaw trembled as black ichor dripped from his lips. "If I devour you, I'll be complete. Stronger than ever. Perfect."
"Try me," Nolan replied.
Glaive lunged, fists blurring faster than sound. Each punch tore shockwaves into the air, detonating thunderclaps across the battlefield. To ordinary heroes, his speed was untouchable.
But Nolan wasn't ordinary.
Empowered by the lattice of two Power Stones woven into his flesh, his punches met Glaive's one-for-one. His blows carried the weight of collapsing stars, refined through dimensional siphons.
The collision of their fists birthed a storm. Shockwaves carved canyons through the streets. Winds heated by friction scoured stone into ash. The battlefield glowed red-hot under the sheer violence of their clash.
"I am invincible!" Glaive shrieked, his blows accelerating as his self-belief fueled him.
Nolan smirked. "And yet… your fists are slowing. You doubt yourself."
"I do not!" the zombie roared. Black frost erupted from his maw, a freezing gale tearing through the air.
Nolan inhaled deeply, then exhaled a storm of arctic breath infused with magic, overwhelming Glaive's blast. The undead warrior staggered, stunned.
"You… you use my powers?" he gasped.
"No," Nolan replied, eyes glowing. "You're mimicking me."
Twin lances of red energy burst from Glaive's eyes, searing through the ruins.
Nolan's own heat vision ignited in response, not beams but columns of light that burned like miniature suns. The clash detonated between them, sparks showering the ruins like fireworks.
Glaive howled as the superior beams blinded him.
Nolan's fists struck like artillery, driving him backward, smashing through collapsed skyscrapers.
Blow after blow landed, until Glaive crossed his arms desperately in defense, staggering under the relentless assault.
"This is all?" Nolan said flatly, disappointment in his tone.
He lunged, seizing the zombie's tattered cloak as Glaive barely dodged his grasp. Nolan's grip tore the fabric free, leaving the undead gladiator glaring in shock.
The fight was far from over but the balance had shifted.
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