Thomas wasn't human anymore.
He stood at the center of the crater, his mutated form twitching with raw, unchecked magic. His body had twisted into something ugly—shoulders broad and hunched, one arm now twice the size of the other and ending in a clawed appendage that shimmered with black magic. A leathery wing jutted from his back, twitching erratically like it was trying to take off without him.
His eyes were voids—milky, endless. A low, growling breath slipped from his lips like smoke from a smoldering pit. The ground hissed beneath his feet, cracking in thin, spiderweb patterns from the weight of his presence.
Quinn felt it instantly.
The weight of Thomas's magic slammed into him like a boulder to the chest. It wasn't just heavy—it was suffocating. The air turned syrupy in his lungs, slow and thick, and each breath felt like it was dragging shards of glass down his throat. His bones ached under the pressure, his stomach twisted like something inside was trying to get out.
But then… a grin curled onto his face.
His muscles trembled from the impact, his skin prickled from the dark heat swirling around Thomas—but he liked it. He liked it. "This is insane," he muttered under his breath, half-laughing. "This is what I'm talking about…"
"Don't drop your guard."
The voice cut through the haze like lightning.
He turned—and there she was.
Asami, silver hair wild in the wind, stood with her blade leveled at Thomas. Her eyes were steady, unblinking. Sparks of lightning raced up her arms, crackling across her armor in thin pulses of light. Even her stance was perfect—low, deadly, coiled like a spring waiting to strike.
Quinn blinked, his grin slipping into something more focused. He nodded. But in the next heartbeat, Thomas vanished.
Gone.
"Where—" Quinn started, but never finished.
A sudden BOOM exploded above him.
He looked up just in time to see Thomas plummeting from the sky like a meteor, one claw aimed straight for them.
"MOVE!" Asami yelled.
Quinn jumped, rolling sideways just as Thomas slammed into the ground with a bone-shattering crash. The impact split the ground, sending chunks of rock and dirt flying like shrapnel. A wave of black magic rippled out, knocking Quinn back a few steps.
Thomas moved like a beast unchained.
No technique. Just power.
He swung his massive claw toward Quinn, who threw up a flame-covered hand. "Foxfire!"
The spell burst from the ground—three flaming foxes spiraling up and launching themselves toward Thomas. They collided with him mid-stride, exploding on impact. Fire licked across his skin, but he barely flinched, snarling through the smoke.
Quinn stood his ground, heart pounding.
Thomas was coming again, faster now.
And yet—Asami was already there.
She moved like lightning incarnate, blade flashing as she intercepted Thomas mid-charge. Her body blurred in and out of focus, too fast for Quinn's eyes to track. Sparks danced behind her like falling stars, her sword clashing against Thomas's claws with a ringing shriek.
He watched, breathless, as she ducked a blow and spun low, lightning surging through her legs to boost her speed. She was dancing between death like it was prohrammed—every move beautiful and brutal.
Quinn tried to keep up—launching more Foxfire in bursts, adding pressure, but it was clear he was playing catch-up in her shadow.
Then—it happened.
Thomas raised both claws for a downward slam, trying to crush her in one devastating blow. Asami blurred forward, stepping directly into his reach.
Her blade flashed once—just once.
A single arc of silver-lightning tore through the air.
Time paused.
Thomas's body froze, mid-motion. Blood sprayed into the air in a wide arc, splattering across Asami's face like crimson paint. Her eyes didn't blink. Her grip on the sword didn't change.
Thomas staggered back—chest split clean down the middle. Quinn couldn't move. Couldn't breathe. His mouth hung slightly open, jaw slack, eyes locked on the girl who had just carved through a monster like it was paper.
"Asami..." he breathed.
She turned slightly, wiping the blood off her cheek with the back of her glove, her voice low. "I told you. Don't drop your guard."
Quinn blinked, still staring, his voice caught somewhere between awe and admiration. "That was... insane," he finally said. "Like—gods, remind me never to piss you off. You're ridiculously badass."
Asami turned to him, brow raising. "Focus, Quinn."
He gave a lopsided grin, eyes scanning her face. "Can't help it. You've got blood on your face and you still look like a goddess forged by lightning."
Asami stiffened. A faint pink tinted her cheeks, betrayed only by the slight twitch of her lip before she spun away from him.
"Idiot," she muttered. "Pervert."
Quinn laughed under his breath, but then—something changed. The air around them thickened again. No wind, no sound. Just pressure.
His eyes snapped to the crater where Thomas's body twitched. Quinn's smile died and he took a step forward. "Wait…"
A low, guttural sound crawled from Thomas's throat—more like a gurgle than a growl. "If I'm dying…" he muttered, voice bubbling like tar. "...then I'm taking you with me."
Quinn's eyes widened. "Asami—!"
Thomas's body began to bloat, veins swelling like cables beneath his skin. His chest inflated, arms stretching, torso expanding with unstable magic. The ground beneath him pulsed with that same dark aura, and the air sparked with crackling instability.
"He's gonna—!" Quinn didn't finish. He grabbed Asami's arm instinctively, but it was already too late to run.
The explosion had begun.
Thomas's body erupted into a surge of boiling magical energy, his form warping and stretching as if his skin couldn't hold it. The blast radius spread in slow, blinding waves.
But then—a flash.
A figure flew in from the edge of Quinn's vision.
Lilith.
She landed hard between them and the blast, one hand slamming against the ground as the other stretched forward, fingers outstretched. Her eyes were with sharp.
"Glassguard!" she roared.
With a growl, her magic flowed out, layers upon layers of glass erupting from the ground and midair—shards melting together into a massive, translucent shield that curved over them like a protective dome. The shockwave slammed into it a moment later, the glass screaming in protest but holding.
Light flared. Energy rippled. The sound was deafening.
Quinn threw his arms over his face, bracing as the shield took the brunt of the explosion.
And still—Lilith didn't change..
She stood firm, boots dug into the ground, her magic singing through the air, shaping, weaving, reinforcing the barrier like an artist possessed. Sweat rolled down her temples, her teeth clenched.
"Don't you dare break…" she hissed.
But the barrier cracked.