Apophis landed in front of Ben.
The ground under her feet broke apart into floating shards.
Her hair moved like black fire, her wings spread wide, and gold-veined darkness leaked from her hands like liquid.
"Still standing?" she asked coldly.
Ben exhaled.
The blood on his lips boiled away in the heat of his aura.
"I'll stand until one of us stops breathing."
He moved first.
The air split as Ben rushed forward.
Spinning rings of dark aether wrapped around his body.
His tendrils shot outward like a storm of blades, slashing at her from every angle.
Apophis stepped forward once and met the attack.
Her hand caught one of his appendages in mid-swing.
She squeezed, and it shattered.
Ben spun and drove a kick into her side, the blow packed with compressed gravity.
The impact sent her flying and smashed her into a fractured wall.
Ben did not stop.
He blinked above her as she tried to recover and drove both fists down.
