Game in Marvel 143

"That… was harder than expected." Triss said. "No wonder Geralt always said never to fight a leshen in a forest."

"Yeah. But what the hell was a leshen doing out here anyway? I thought they only guarded sacred places."

"Exactly. Which ans we just trespassed sowhere very important." Triss said. As if in answer, a dozen hooded figures stepped from the trees, their eyes glowing faintly in the dim light. They bore staffs of ancient wood, their robes adorned with intricate symbols of nature.

The druids had found them.

And they did not look pleased.

The druids stood in absolute silence, and their robes, woven with the colors of the forest, barely moved in the wind. Liam barely had ti to straighten before one of them, a broad-shouldered man with a gnarled staff, stepped forward. His face was aged like old bark, with deep lines carved into his skin.

"You dare trespass upon sacred ground and slay our guardian?"

"Look, that thing attacked first. We didn't exactly have ti to ask for directions." Liam was still catching his breath as he checked his ribs. The interceptor had told him that his ribs were fine but Liam didn't feel fine at all.

"You wield fire and silver against the spirits of the land and expect us to believe your ignorance?" another druid snapped. "Your very presence is a violation."

"We just need to talk," Liam said carefully. "No more fighting."

"There will be no words for those who slaughter our guardians. Only judgnt!" The lead druid slamd his staff into the ground.

The first wave ca instantly—roots and vines bursting from the ground, lashing out toward Liam like whips. He tried to dodge, but the sheer number overwheld even his speed. Thick roots coiled around his limbs, yanking him off his feet.

"Liam!" Triss shouted, summoning a protective shield of flas to keep the roots at bay.

Liam gritted his teeth and activated his thrusters, blasting free of the entanglent, but before he could counter, a surge of raw force slamd into him like an invisible wall. He was sent flying back, crashing into a snow-covered tree. His HUD flickered from the impact.

"Why are they so violent? Aren't they supposed to be nature loving. Leshen itself is a very filthy monster."

The druids were already preparing their next attack. One of them raised his hands, and a howling gust of wind swept through the clearing, laced with shards of ice. Liam activated his shield just in ti to block the brunt of it, but the cold seeped through his armor, slowing him down.

Another druid slamd his staff into the ground, and suddenly, the entire terrain shifted. The snow, the dirt, the trees—everything warped. Liam found himself sinking, the ground pulling him in as though the earth had beco liquid.

"Enough!" Triss unleashed a wave of fire, forcing the druids back for a mont. But then one of the druids unleashed a spell that made a transparent spherical do around her and she felt like she lost connection to all the sources.

"You wield chaos in a place that denies it," he said. "Your fire ans nothing here."

Liam cursed under his breath. This wasn't a fight. This was an execution.

He tried activating his Predator Mode again, using his speed to maneuver, but another blast of magic struck him in the chest, sending him skidding across the frozen ground. His armor—normally his greatest advantage—felt useless against the sheer raw magic these druids controlled.

He lunged forward, swinging Dominion at the nearest druid, but the man rely raised a single hand. The blade stopped mid-air, frozen in place as if ti itself had halted around it.

"Pathetic," the druid muttered, before flicking his fingers. An invisible force struck Liam, sending him tumbling like a ragdoll.

As Liam struggled to rise, his body aching from the relentless barrage, one of the druids finally stepped forward, distinct from the rest. He was taller, his robes woven with patterns that seed to shift like living roots.

"You rely too much on your armor," the druid said. "It is not strength. It is a cage. Even if it's made of unknown magic."

With a simple gesture, he raised his staff, and Liam felt a sudden pressure around his entire body. The Interceptor's HUD flickered wildly, warning of multiple breaches and magical anomalies. Before he could react, his limbs seized up, locked in place by an unseen force.

Then ca the first strike.

A burst of green energy slamd into his chest, not rely sending him flying, but cutting through his armor like a blade through parchnt. Sparks and shattered tal scattered into the air as the Interceptor's outer plating split apart. Liam gasped as a searing pain lanced through his ribs.

The druid didn't stop.

A second strike followed, this ti directed at his right arm. The gauntlet exploded in a shower of fragnted steel, revealing his bare, trembling fingers beneath. The pain was imdiate, raw, and unforgiving. Liam gritted his teeth, but the onslaught continued.

Another wave of magic crashed into him like an avalanche, sending him sprawling to the ground. His HUD scread warnings—critical damage, integrity failure—but he barely had ti to register them before the druid advanced, his staff glowing brighter.

"And now, you will learn what it ans to stand powerless before true magic."

The final blow ca without warning. The druid clenched his fist, and Liam's entire body convulsed as an unseen force crushed his remaining armor inward. His left arm snapped under the pressure, bones shattering with a sickening crunch. Blood spewed from his mouth as he hit the frozen earth.

Triss's scream tore through the clearing. She pounded against the do, desperation written across her face as she watched Liam crumble.

"Stop!" she howled. "You're killing him!"

The druids did not waver. The lead druid, the one who had shattered Liam's defenses so effortlessly, raised his staff for the final strike.

Then, a voice echoed through the clearing.