Then Ornée raised her hand. Once again. High, firm, implacable. Her voice cut through the air like a well-honed blade, without emphasis, but with that sharpness that leaves no room for doubt:
— Let the battle begin.
Immediately, the gems embedded in Nortris' flesh blazed with a brutal flash, pulsing with a dark and threatening light, as if his very heart had awakened in his chest to beat to the rhythm of an ancient hatred. His body tensed in a shiver of raw energy, then he charged. In a single movement. Direct. Blinding. He held nothing back. His speed nearly shattered the scenery, a silent scream trailing behind his first strike — a terrible arc, a foretold impact, a shockwave ready to tear the air apart and sweep away all opposing pretension.
But the blow struck nothing.
It hit empty space.
Because I was no longer there.
I hadn't countered. Hadn't stepped back. I had vanished. Purely. Simply.
