I stood over the corpse, chest heaving, the femur slick and cracked in my grip. The creature twitched once, then stilled. I didn't waste another glance. There wasn't time.
The last hobgoblin towered over Nicole and Viktor, its armor a patchwork of scavenged metal and bone shards that clattered with every movement. It circled them, each step calculated as the Shaman's chanting grew louder behind it.
Nicole darted in first, slashing at its leg. It parried with its weapon, a twisted blade welded from scrap, and kicked her back. Viktor caught her before she hit the ground, his sword flashing upward in a wide arc that cleaved into the creature's shoulder. The cut was deep, but not enough to stop it. The hobgoblin retaliated with a backhand that sent Viktor sprawling across the blood-soaked floor.
Behind them, the Shaman's voice rose higher, words slithering through the air like smoke. The altar blazed, veins of green light snaking outward. The goblins around us shrieked as the light hit them, wounds sealing, limbs mending, their bodies bulging with new strength.
"He's summoning more of them!" Sloan shouted from the flank.
Nicole didn't look back. "Then kill him before he makes more!"
The Shaman slammed his staff against the ground, and a shockwave rippled out from the altar. A portal of green light flickered open behind him, and fresh goblins began clawing their way out, their eyes burning with the same glow. Mana crackled at the tip of his staff before a volley of mana bolts screamed toward us. The first struck a column beside me, exploding in a spray of shrapnel.
I dove behind a corpse for cover. "He's summoning and shooting at the same damn time!"
The next volley came faster. Nicole ducked as one bolt grazed her shoulder, searing the skin beneath her armor. Viktor gritted his teeth and lunged again, forcing the hobgoblin back just enough for Nicole to breathe.
I rose to my feet, letting my mana surge to the surface. It tingled, sharp and cold under my skin, but I didn't fight it. I'd been holding back since this fight started, too focused on survival to remember what the system had given me. My pulse synced with the rhythm of the Shaman's staff.
I raised my hand, mimicking his motion. "Let's see who's faster."
A bolt of blue-white mana formed at my fingertips, humming like electricity. I released it, and the air cracked as it shot forward. It slammed into the Shaman's chest mid-chant, staggering him. He snarled and fired back, green colliding with blue, the blasts exploding midair in bursts of color and sound that lit up the entire food court.
I stepped forward, forcing another shot, then another. Each one tore through the haze, closer than the last, until my vision blurred from the strain. My mana burned low, my body screaming for me to stop. Every pulse left a hollow ache behind my ribs. I could feel it, my reserves thinning to nothing.
The Shaman sensed my weakness, his grin broadening. He unleashed another volley; I barely dodged. One bolt skimmed my shoulder, searing my skin. The smell of charred leather filled the air.
I hit the floor hard, rolling behind a shattered pillar, lungs heaving. My mana flickered in my hands, too weak to form another proper bolt. "Come on," I whispered to myself. "Not yet."
Across the room, the Shaman lifted his staff, the runes along its length flaring with unstable energy. The altar's glow intensified, veins of green light crawling up his arm as he drew more power than his body could handle. The air rippled, heavy with pressure.
Marcus shouted, "He's overcharging!"
Before he could release it...
A new voice cut through the chaos like a blade through glass.
"Kneel, peasants!"
The words struck the battlefield like thunder.
Every goblin froze mid-attack. Then, as if yanked by invisible chains, they dropped to their knees. The Shaman faltered, his staff slipping from his grasp as his own spell shattered in his hands. The green light guttered out, fading into drifting embers.
The backlash hit instantly.
A shock of raw mana erupted from the staff, slamming into the Shaman's chest. His body arched backward, veins glowing bright green beneath his skin as the energy turned inward. His shriek tore through the hall, high and warped, echoing off every wall. The air rippled with heat, the smell of burning flesh cutting through the blood and smoke. He clawed at his chest as light poured from his eyes and mouth, his power devouring him from the inside out.
The goblins around him convulsed and fell limp, their borrowed strength stripped away as their connection to his magic snapped. The altar pulsed one last time, then cracked straight down the middle, spilling sparks of dying mana across the floor.
From the far side of the room, violet smoke curled through the shattered balcony.
Nadia stepped out of it, coat whipping in the rising heat, her staff still glowing with faint arcs of lightning. Her smirk was equal parts exhaustion and arrogance.
"You idiots look like hell," she said, voice dripping with casual mockery. "Good thing I like dramatic timing."
Nicole, still kneeling where she'd fought, glared up at her. Blood streaked her face; her voice was low, tight.
"You left us."
Nadia's smile faltered, just barely. "Temporarily," she said, flicking her wrist, and the last of the violet haze dissipated around her. "You were holding your own."
"Barely," I muttered, stepping forward, the spent ache of mana still buzzing in my arms.
Nadia's eyes met mine. "You look like you're about to drop."
"Probably," I said.
The Shaman was still alive barely, a broken outline slumped against the altar, his skin cracked and glowing from the inside like glass about to shatter. He wheezed, trying to crawl toward his staff.
Nadia tilted her head. "Persistent little parasite, isn't he?"
She glanced at me, eyes narrowing. "Jasmine."
I didn't need her to finish.
I crossed the floor, each step heavy. The Shaman tried to lift his head, green light leaking from the fissures in his flesh. He hissed something broken, reaching for me. I pressed my hand to his chest. What was left of my mana flickered weakly, barely a spark, but it was enough.
The energy met his unstable core, and for a heartbeat, we both froze in the blinding flash that followed. Then the light burst outward, and the Shaman finally stopped moving.
When the glow faded, all that remained was ash.
Silence fell again.
Nadia lowered her staff, exhaling. "Well," she said, looking around at the wreckage, "that was disgusting."
Nicole wiped her knife clean, eyes still locked on her. "You think?"
Nadia smirked faintly. "I know."
I stood there, swaying slightly, the edges of my vision darkening. My hands trembled, mana spent, body screaming for rest. But I didn't fall. Not yet.
It was over.
For now.