They stepped through the door. One last chance. One last battle. Anticipation building with every step.137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrmVvvsrQOL
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She was so happy—on this adventure with friends. There’s nothing they can’t do. If learning to talk better proved anything... it’s that everything just needs time.
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Yet, despite her mood bursting with joy—the open plains, the final chance at battle... all that greeted her was... grass? Just grass.
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Uh. This was lame….
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"That's it? We're done?" Arlin muttered. "I followed you into this... and there's nothing?"
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She looked over at the team—Coby, Nina, Len—and then back to Arlin.
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She wanted to comfort him—the brave man who'd come this far. She shared his disappointment. After everything he'd done to prove himself... this was his reward?
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She'd tried more than once to catch him... but it seemed he liked playing hard to get.
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Not that she minded. She knew what he'd been through with his mother. She remembered that pain—the pain of loss. At least... his mom lived.
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She was going to tell him everything was okay and he could brood on her shoulder when something caught the corner of her eye.
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...Wait. Is that... a monster over there?
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She tried to get a better look, sure she saw something, and it was indeed a beast.
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It was moving. What was it doing? Waving its hand like it could do something?
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CRACK BOOM
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Everyone flinched at the noise. But not her. She'd seen it, the beast, even earlier. An odd shape in the distance. Now, after the failed spell, it was clearer. What it really was.
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It was big. Even from this far, she could tell. Towering. Hunched. Was it... hurt? Not that she cared whether they came to hunt wounded beasts or not.
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She pulled Flame into herself gently. Just enough to help sharpen her eyes. She'd heard others do it before. Knew how. But she never really bothered with it.
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She preferred keeping it in her body, feeding speed, strength, and power. Not wasting it just... to look a little further.
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But now? She used it. Just to see better.
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And... what a disappointment.
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A broken ogre…
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"Dun luuk like much," she muttered. Her words were still slurred. Gods, she hated that. But honestly... the only one she really cared to impress was Arlin. And beating something big and strong? That would catch her man a lot better than pretty words ever could.
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The ogre stepped forward. Eyes cold. Dead.
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Even broken... it craved battle.
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And her pride burned hotter than ever.
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Because of this? This was beautiful.
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It chose death—but death as a warrior. Not as some broken beast crawling to the end.
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And she? She'd gladly return the honor.
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"LUT GO!" she roared.
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She flared the flames deep inside her body. Power flooded every muscle—every fiber.
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Her body trembled. Twitching. Desperate to explode forward from the sheer rush of fire mana.
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And she soared forward—answering the call to battle.
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Battle lust. Almost-blind rage. Joy.
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All of it tangled together as she flew toward a real fight. A real adventure.
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After so much waiting... sulking...
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Finally.
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At last she can be free.
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The ogre blinked—surprised. Confused.
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Didn't know how to handle her.
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So she grinned. Drew flame into her hammers.
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And graced him with her answer.
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Tactics? Fancy tricks? Nah.
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We fight. We smash. We win.
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Simple. Like flame.
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It burns. It takes. It doesn't give.
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It wins.
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WHOOSH.
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The hammers skimmed the edge of the ogre's flesh. It dodged—barely. She was mildly amused and thought to try and match her speed.
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But her rage wasn't that simple, and her strikes? Weren't that light.
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A flurry of swings—fast, relentless—slammed forward.
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The ogre couldn't dodge them all. Flames smashed into its flesh.
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She wanted to end it. Feed flame straight into the beast—finish it in one decisive blow.
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But its flesh resisted.
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Despite the hammering, despite the fire, it wasn't breaking. Worse...
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It started shifting. Changing how it moved. Countering her. Blow for blow.
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It was adapting. Matching her speed. This broken beast; this was…
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Madness.
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She flared the flame deeper—forcing more mana through her body. If it wanted speed? Fine.
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She'd go faster.
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The battle shifted—slowly, inch by inch—back toward her favor.
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But the ogre wasn't just standing there letting her win. No.
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It adapted. Again. Even through pain, even stumbling—it shifted, deflected, and dodged. More and more.
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This wasn't right. Broken beasts didn't fight like this.
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They thrashed. They raged. They died. But this one? It moved like it had fought a thousand battles.
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Like it had seen every swing she threw before. Like her flames—her pride—were just another day. What kind of monster learns while bleeding?
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She was burning too hot—too fast.
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she wasn't made for long fights. She was made for bursts. Hit hard, hit fast, and end it quick.
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And this ogre? Even wounded... it endured.
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This... was turning into a losing fight.
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She wasn't sure how to feel as the dance went on; she just needed one clean strike, even as she saw a calmness watching back at her that was starting to lead to dread.
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Then the team arrived—and joy surged through her once more.
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She wasn't alone. Not yet.
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They were a team and would win as such. She loved the idea of claiming all the glory but now knew that was foolish pride.
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This beast was not a toy to claim as a prize but a beast to defeat, and defeat it they would.
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Arrows hissed past her head. Close. Deliberate.
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Not meant to hit—meant to box the ogre in. Limit its movement.
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But... something was wrong.
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The wind pulled at the shots—twisting them off course.
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Even while focused on her... the ogre was still using wind magic.
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How was it doing this? Fighting her and twisting the wind to defend itself?
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She stumbled, struggling to find her rhythm between dodging its strikes and staying aggressive.
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It wasn't from lack of focus she'd trained with her berserker dad; she was used to things like this.
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She was rusty. More than she wanted to admit.
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Too much time watching Len train. Watching... not doing.
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She thought she was good enough, and the flame within would balance anything she lacked. Really, battle was not the thought that she always wanted.
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Maybe... maybe she always really just wanted boys more than battle.
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Well—Arlin, specifically. And a good fight.
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So far? She got one of those.
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Could be worse.
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And she was working on winning both this day, so she was doing alright even.
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A fist smashed into her face.
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Didn't even register the first hit before three more followed.
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She threw her arms up—pulled earth into her armor, trying to dull the impact.
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It helped. A little.
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But the damage was done. Her vision spun. Her head rang.
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She staggered, trying to refocus.
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Thoughts spun. Maybe thinking of Arlin between swings was not that smart…
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The team finally closed in.
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Now the real fight began.
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Leena's light surged over her—healing. Bones snapped back, flesh sealed.
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Terra grabbed a mana potion, chugging it fast.
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Len tried to say something—but no time.
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The battle was chaos. Terra shoved past her, hunting for her next chance to strike.
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We didn't come this far just to talk. We're fighting, and I can still fight thanks to the mana potion!
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Arlin kept his distance.
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Shadow spikes—missed.
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Shadow bindings—slipped off.
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Even limping, the ogre moved. Smart. Fluid. Staying just far enough to focus on... something.
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It was a slippery bastard; even with all of them now fighting it, it still could avoid strikes, and it was still holding its own…
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Nina hurled rocks—big, heavy, and fast. To try to break its focus.
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At least at first.
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But then—it flipped it on them.137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡERHqYVOJ3O
The ogre caught one mid-throw, twisted it with wind, and launched it straight at Arlin and Coby.
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Nina yelped—her focus shattered, scrambling to pull the rocks off course before they killed someone.
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So even our heavy-hitting rock girl needs a hand and can't handle this one.
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She realized it then.
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She was the linchpin.
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The one who had to keep its focus—force it to fight her—so the others could line up the kill.
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Fire mana flared inside her. Muscles burned.
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One more time.
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She rushed.
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She hadn't lost before; she just lost focus. She just needed to pin it down, and it would be over—a win, and they go home heroes.
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She charged—again.
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Hammer swings, flame strikes, her full fury—slamming into the ogre.
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The others volleyed in.
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This had to break it.
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It adapted.
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Again.
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Like it always did.
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She saw it.
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The eyes. Cold. Calculating.
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The way arrows flicked by—her eyes only catching them after they'd passed.
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It wasn't luck.
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It was reading them. All of them.
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Dodging was effortless. Like breathing.
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Shadow vines?
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It didn't even look. Shifted—stepped past—like Arlin's magic wasn't even there.
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Only when all of them pressed—Len closing in, Nina flanking, and Arlin trying to trap it with barriers—did it finally show a hint of surprise.
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Even then... just a flicker.
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Yet that moment was enough, and she would show it how much that could change things in a moment.
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Her hammers crashed into its smug face…finally.
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And its answer?
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It grabbed her mid-swing—and flung her like trash.
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The fall hurt—but the shame hurt worse.
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It had looked at her... not as a threat. Not even as prey.
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Just a pest.
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Even broken, it thought her beneath it.
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Her pride snarled.
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No. Not like this.
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Never.
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She didn't train and endure pain with her father just to fall like that, cast aside as if she were an afterthought, not to some mindless beast.
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"IS THUT ALL U GUT?!" She roared.
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Flames flared—surging through her veins.
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She charged again. Harder. Hotter. Slammed both hammers into the massive frame of its back with everything she had left.
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She wasn't playing now; it was a fight it wanted, and she would give it one. Her pride wounded from that fall and was burning hotter than the mana in her veins.
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It hadn't expected her back so fast.
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There it was—anger in its eyes when it faced her.
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And in hers?
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Glee. Pure glee.
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The others froze.
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They didn't know who was winning.
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This wasn't like before—no clean team tactics, no easy rhythm.
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This was chaos.
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But for Terra?
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This was perfect.
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Even as the ogre's swings tightened—precise, sharp—clipping closer with each dodge... she grinned.
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A fist—fast, brutal—came straight for her face.
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Too fast to dodge.
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She braced—but the hit veered.
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A whisper of shadow curled around its wrist—Arlin's vine.
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Saved her. Barely.
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She wanted to kiss Arlin for saving her, which would have hurt, but she was ready for the strike even if she was glad to avoid it.
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She staggered back, catching her breath. Trying to see the battle more clearly as things spun as fast as the mana burn in her veins.
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Nina's earth magic surged—stone wrapped around its feet, locking it down.
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For a moment—just a moment—the ogre was a sandbag.
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Wide open.
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Laughter burst out of her.
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"We've gut it. We've GUT IT!"
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She surged forward once more. Hammers smashing into its massive frame, driving it back.
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But then—
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It broke free.
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Nina's bindings cracked. Arlin's shadows snapped away.
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And its cold, ruthless gaze locked—right back on her.
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Despite the blows and all the things they did, it still stood undefeated.
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She could see even now, despite being broken, bleeding, and getting beat down, it was still thinking and planning, but what it was doing made no sense.
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Was it just too dumb to know it was going to die?
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Was this really the great beast from the past they feared?
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Maybe legends just make great monsters, and the greatest fools were them all for letting this ogre beast think it could be a king among peasants, never knowing it was beneath them all.
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ROOOOAR.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2F9yyS9sQz
The roar meant nothing.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiNuFNqZxTf
She was grinning, poor beast; it was breaking.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaGr3atoIS1
Then, without warning, it moved.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeD0bUgjDVX
A sudden burst of speed, its limp forgotten, wounds ignored.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8T10TSLMEG
Before anyone could react, it was there. It was on her.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBp52FJNvZv
She didn't feel the first hit.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnWXqSvSAQc
The armor took it. Blunted it.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0C7dgpycqk
But the force?
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEProlz9wP2
It sent her flying, airborne.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbh4wkvLdXl
Midair, it caught her again.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSu6RwJyy06
Both fists slammed her down.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYprVAzgVQf
The ground cracked beneath her.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡikM8Ha4UB2
She barely had time to bounce before—
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrasN6Kefid
CRACK!
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAgqOxr83EQ
Its foot came down hard, straight into her head.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoMoDXn9tCW
Only her mana-fortified armor stopped it from shattering her skull like glass.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuYNRjbWv59
Somewhere in that blur, her instincts saved her.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9W73XPbqT6
Mana surged.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv4Q0XJxdJM
The armor stiffened—skin hardened—just enough.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ94RRetNKeG
Enough to stop the kick from ripping her head clean off her body into the ground.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCjoS5SXdra
But not enough to stop the world from breaking.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiNMpnUHGP6
Broken.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYZzXaXPpm7
Body twisted. Vision spinning.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf3QovK2F3u
She tumbled, spiraling away into the dirt.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN1n8DfxKGy
Nothing left.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSwaJZd7Rtm
The world spun—colors bleeding together. Pain sharp, then distant, then sharp again.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLTUX0aYEYl
How? How did something that looked half-dead hit like a landslide?
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFlXUuKlqqo
Her body screamed truths her pride had ignored. This wasn't some wounded beast limping to its grave. This was something else. Something that had been playing with them.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe8My5T3eVF
Playing with her.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8OsHpycZI1
The thought made her stomach twist worse than the pain.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt0gwnHbr82
She had Nothing left.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ6alg6sLCA
Everyone—frozen.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUaEGS0ZLOq
One second it was victory.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJZC7kz6S6W
The next was the sound of breaking bone, crushed armor, blood hitting dirt.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnZFLTdte4x
Nobody moved...
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5Yybv4ZSiI
Len dashed—trying to reach Terra.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3hAOh9g4ZM
Too late.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpQJlnAxLZt
The ogre swung—forcing her back—cutting her off.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIpcZCk4htr
Terra's mind became a sea of fog.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4hEbiI5oDR
Nothing made sense.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd5cAezb7zt
How?
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr71fZurRO6
She was a fighter. A warrior.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOlIofhCnk3
She could take hits.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNPxwWKpG5i
But this…?
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoSKtymQQIy
This wasn't right.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaXYjk5MO5Y
The pain clouded everything.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡieFOzJLLma
Where did this power come from?
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNx6Kc3iZR2
Was it always this strong?
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCu4G6VzRdk
Is this... what they feared?
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj3Yoa9Au0L
The thing that haunted them?
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbodyFLSTQ9
And...
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDGwwSHwNqv
She rushed right into it.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ0RudsgXVt
Smiling. Laughing.
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Like a proud, blind fool.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOeBsKLK5ye
For the first time in her life, she learned something real.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6yWZOh4W2d
Fear.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNRztGhj59n
Real fear.
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Not the nightmare you could wake from, the one you were forced to live when the monster was real and did not fade with a dream.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbgz5c2JZbP
Broken.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV0Nuvp4EVn
Dying.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfxTgnfDSMz
Nobody close enough. Nobody's coming.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBPChaIK3px
She used to dream of being loved. Of being wanted.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJjDkCjAw3v
But now?
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx8bFvbI5z2
She just wanted to be saved.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBsmDNHyWIj
To be anywhere but here.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCTAC6A2q8v
Even those desperate thoughts... slipped away.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIqQJctBmj4
Pain—numbness—blurring together.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoCf9zdLFzS
The flame that always burned inside her, the one that made her strong, clear, alive—
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDvD45HnIRe
Flickered. Dimmed.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvK8pp9jdSl
Almost gone.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAPRDrUDXF6
Voices?
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWmPPn64rmW
Shouts? Screams?
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuZDv6XAk8I
Somewhere nearby—or miles away.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡStzb9uev4Q
...Hope?
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMRKP4N59wA
CRACK
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIfBONjrE8K
A scream.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsjUmJjmS2j
Movement…blurs.
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A dream. A nightmare.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJYPulyIClK
Am I even here?
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6LPX9ftx6u
Please... let me wake up.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtLDbp42iQY
A light.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWV0ELVa0Ss
Warm.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYS2NKlmXm7
Healing, it was pure life.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZwCGmJEGv5
A hand. A voice.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcaeHzKZ5jH
Clarity... breaking through.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHH4BZa06bd
How long had she been out?
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB1rJ2J1JQ3
Her eyes—finally focused.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7sKza54eCG
Arlin was on the ground? Trying to move?
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU43ZtH4Hrh
Why was he…why was he down?
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD71uIOTfPU
Smashing…somewhere nearby.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ8bpE7ZEhO
Nina was fighting? Alone?
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDzIepYhIE3
Where... where's Len?
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡca8RYXsA8j
Len was rushing toward Coby.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXoa5qOB7Gn
Wait was Coby's down?!
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH66s6nEdNP
When—how—
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoflwMJhLFy
Laughter.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9I2Yk0sszS
The ogre—just laughing.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcUNoWBMdje
Shrugging off everything Nina threw, Like this was entertainment. Like Nina was a child throwing pebbles.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgoJlRP2HBa
No... move. Move. I have to help.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTrOmtfzzXv
She's like my sister...
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5IBiOJJeFz
Her body didn't listen.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEsG2lutK3O
A weak roll—barely a twitch.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYXWktbZgip
She saw Nina—a fortress of earth.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAmgypM7o6r
Stone armor wrapped her form—a beast of a tank.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLhW2Ibr8HD
The ground shifted—jaws of rock, spikes, fists—slamming into the ogre.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ97QCzwTcc
But the ogre tore through it all.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo95ju7Mh0M
One step. Another. Slow. Unstoppable.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO8kixtomaM
Every hit Nina landed—the ogre shrugged off.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAOPDoQlOz3
Nothing. No fear. No pain.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9on72uSLaC
It shattered her stone with lazy indifference.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlJBjebNGqi
But Nina wouldn't break.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXVN0bJQ517
Every piece shattered—she reformed it.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyC2OXUdw63
A brutal, grinding war of attrition. Stone and fist. Smash. Reform. Smash again.
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Neither yielding.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡECBfT6ohSa
She was so tired, and it was hard to focus at times.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡubMBPLllnW
A thud.
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Distant—heavy—wrong.
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Nina—down.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYiiec9PpIp
Even the earth couldn't hold.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYXHqOdEGFd
Arlin—on his feet.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKwvcxjEYMn
Stumbling. Gritting his teeth. Focused.
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Determined.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHLpUUeui4U
Come on... you can do it.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡixRr10rCZX
She believed. She always had.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRQeAOJwkUH
If anyone could, it was him.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnHy6HjsI9R
He rushed—shadows lashing, spikes driving into the beast's side.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEyvGfdoCHK
The ogre... barely flinched.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFTvLCxVHbT
Stood there. Proud. Unbothered.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwBE4V6ri4s
...How?
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMqqnteAIpm
How did it heal?
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZzAYzUpxmP
Broken before.
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Now—untouchable.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrB3siRkYFE
Was it always like this?
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7izQbrp8VA
A trick. A trap.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8znYExVa9w
They never stood a chance.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZpwlAuLj40
The ogre swung—a killing blow.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTtS3FgEKLg
Arlin—vanished into mist.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLui4UqTSFC
The strike tore empty air—but not him.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtoNthd9a1e
Pride swelled.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7TBllzqMTO
Arlin—facing it head-on.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt9SSgDe1zj
No fear. No hesitation.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4ddyMk8qyM
She should've tried harder.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSbJ9ZYieEr
Should've fought smarter.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtylGr9phl6
Maybe then... they wouldn't be here.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwnbsZJaN21
This was her fault. Her stupid, blind pride.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ88I8XI2oFL
She'd seen grass and disappointment and threw herself at the first real fight like a starving dog at meat. Never asked why it was alone. Never wondered why legends feared it. Never thought past her own need to prove herself.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpdfnt5HmWT
And now?
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwJIqcWrXMB
Now Arlin was bleeding because of her.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL4TwRVDB0J
Nina was fighting alone because of her.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEs3VAxhNYn
They'd followed her charge. Trusted her instincts. Her worthless, arrogant instincts.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkfEcphOesx
Maybe... they wouldn't be here, if not for her.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0Nt7KXTvYK
She tried. Tried to crawl. To move.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdRs0kYZpF2
Nothing.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHpWXLXP35H
Mana drained. Body broken.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv6eyWqopqQ
All she could do was watch.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4adAS5rVqg
They brought so few potions.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJhbM2XssTh
So naive.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjfYg0T8CEt
They thought this would be easy—just another dungeon run.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYLfy5RKD0n
They were wrong.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5ZGt2hnDND
And the worst truth? She was still afraid.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡucRrSM5JNw
Even now. Especially now.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL1AgLIpkn9
This was not the adventure with new friends and finding a lover she dreamed about; this was an end with no winners, and she led them with pride in that charge.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKFta0vN6nF
Tears—slipping free.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBLuFTbXshq
No voice left.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKyRAeSlbm8
No begging. No cheering.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5ZoOAIPcTj
Just... watching.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiDfqGUy9hY
Praying.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7wWEARjdaA
The fight dragged on—a brutal dance.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdpb8rY7NUr
Arlin's strikes—sharp, precise, deadly.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNj6ca7uufl
A killer's craft.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡye9lhL5xaq
She was proud. So proud.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN3SQQ57iV6
But... why wasn't the beast dying?
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrauqm0000E
Len—kneeling over Nina.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH1sFNU9JTM
She'll help Arlin next.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbhjmZ1z84Z
It's not too late... right?
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkyeXad7s83
She could see it. The slowing. The sweat.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo8CAZ6Oneo
His shadow-steps—lagging. Delayed.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHc3669ksyg
Until finally—he couldn't shift at all.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUNJYk9mnMo
Standing there. Panting. Out of mana.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzADOMVDls9
Determined... but empty.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkg77g4Z6Zz
Nothing left.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqeJ0AvPrQI
And the ogre—knew.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡytZNK4fsPn
It charged—fists slamming into him.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡToPE6MDMSo
One—two—three.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBpJCTXkfG7
Too fast to follow—only the thuds in the air told her how many.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMtwVFxW5wA
Arlin spun and fell.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUmN1tik2Wt
Didn't get up.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE9ERVGDQnV
Len.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdKBEo2XdDu
Only Len now.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ42OXb46ax9
So... that's it.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbE6d8ILDss
They lost.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl4ZWVtnEGy
What can Len do alone?
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡva5HgGyD4u
Terra tried—tried to whisper, to plead, to beg.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3VhoSgNlEG
Her voice—broken.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLEJIkCgf66
A cracked bird. Not a song of hope.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpZUWrnYN5W
Just a screech of despair.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuOYflwkRjG
There's no mercy here.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlMK2VBjMfJ
One last, desperate thought…
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkEKVYiLqbl
Run, Len... please... just run.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCYJtumamEu
We're already dead. Let the light live. Let... something... survive.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb66EIatCwQ
For this is their darkest day, The world tilted. Colors drained away. Her head—where it had stomped her—throbbed with each heartbeat. Len's healing only did so much when they all needed her. Each pulse dimming the world a little more.137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGpgCnCbfJf
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8O6Y8gfYRa
Consciousness slipped like water through her fingers. In the growing darkness, only one truth remained clear: They were all going to die because she'd been too proud to see the trap.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBeKF2SJTy4
As all faded to black for Terra, she never saw what happened next...and she could not handle knowing her last thought is nobody would live to see a new day.
137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbSFxmmV8s2
It was not to win the day but the final proof that even light loses at the end of the day to the darkness of night.137Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhryOq2GY2d
and then Add to home screen.