Liora didn't strike the pale stone first.
She drove her blade against the lower brace holding its collar, at the damaged place she had reached earlier. The Warden's left arm came down toward her shoulder. Aiden met it from the opposite side, turning the joint far enough to keep it from closing over the opening.
The contact bent his blade. He held the angle for one more breath.
Behind the construct, the rear line tightened beneath its heel. Elara pulled the existing roots around the base of the nearest damaged post. The stone shifted into the Warden's backward step, taking away the small retreat that had protected its chest before.
Nyx's false movement flashed near the other post. It lasted barely long enough to turn the mouth. Valeria's brief flame appeared above it, where the head had already begun to look. Neither trick won the whole fight. Together, they took the head away from Liora while Aiden kept the arm from reaching her.
The lower brace snapped.
