Boom.
A thunderous sound erupted from within, followed by a blinding surge of gold and azure light bursting out of the dark tunnel. The shockwave swept through the air, scattering dust and the remnants of black smoke that still lingered like ghosts refusing to fade.
"Is… is it over?" Jennifer's uncertain voice broke through the heavy silence left behind by the explosion.
Serein clenched her fist, drawing her own levo inward to check. A stream of icy light rushed back through her veins and wrapped around her body. Zane's levo answered her call, cold and steady, and in her ears, the faint vibration of Elias's sound waves whispered back to her.
They were still alive.
She released a slow breath of relief. The commander had been defeated.
But before her lungs could fill again, the stray black mist in the air coiled suddenly and lunged toward her. It wrapped around Serein's body like a living shadow. Her instincts flared—she tried to summon a barrier of levo—
Too late.
