An invisible force gripped us, tossing our bodies skyward with incredible speed. I soared upward, the wind whipping through my hair as the forest shrank beneath us.
Freya cried out beside , flailing her arms helplessly. But it was useless against the relentless pull.
Monts later, the pull stopped.
We were suspended in mid-air, high above the treetops, the cold night air biting into our skin. Beneath us, the dark forest stretched endlessly like a black mass.
"Rin!" Freya scread, her voice barely audible in the wind.
She stretched out her arms, trying to summon vines, but there was no ground to draw from. Just empty air.
I struggled, trying to gather mana as I attempted to push myself down with a wind spell, but Kyro's hold was strong, pinning us in the air like insects caught in a spider web. He was far below us, but his power enveloped us completely.
I wondered if he intended to keep us here till we froze. Then, with a casual flick of his wrist, he whispered another spell.
"Space Affinity: Down."
We dropped from the sky, like stones dropped down from a cliff. The ground rushed up to et us, and I closed my eyes to brace for the impact
I slamd into the earth, pain exploding through my ribs and limbs. Every bit of air was forced out of my lungs, and I coughed helplessly to regain it.
Freya hit the ground nearby, letting out a painful groan.
I imdiately tried to rise to my feet, but the pressure intensified, pressing us into the ground like a giant hand. My chest compressed, and breathing beca ten tis harder. I tried to force air into my lungs, but each attempt made wince in pain.
With great difficulty, I turned to Freya. She struggled beside , her face pressed against the soil.
Kyro approached us with slow deliberate steps. He lood over us, his eyes devoid of pity.
"Don't worry. I'll make this quick," he said, his tone devoid of any emotion. "I have a demon to destroy."
The word "demon" echoed in my mind again, a chilling reminder of his painful taunts from earlier..
Lucy lay just ahead of us, pale and still, the orange pendant on her chest blinking faintly like a dying ember. I couldn't let him reach her. Not today.
Freya's voice cut through my mind
"Rin... do sothing, please," she whispered.
My vision blurred at the edges, the weight above threatening to crush entirely, but her voice reverberated in my mind, filling with a new resolve.
I had to save her. I had to save them both.
I closed my eyes, gathering my mana as best as I could. In response, dark clouds converged in the sky above.
When I had gathered enough, I forced a breath out through my lips
"Weather Affinity: Lightning Fury."
A loud rumble rippled through the air.
Suddenly, bolts of lightning rained down from the sky, one after another, illuminating the forest in white flashes. The ground shook with each strike, and the sll of charred wood filled the air around us.
Kyro narrowed his eyes. He imdiately vanished, as a bolt struck the earth where he'd stood. He reappeared a few ters away, then vanished again, dodging another bolt with ease.
"Remarkable spell," he called out, raising his voice against the roaring sound of thunder. "But you can't hit what you can't see."
He blinked in and out, evading every strike with ease.
Despite the crushing pressure I felt on my back, I poured more energy into the spell, sweat beading on my forehead.
The storm clouds intensified, the number of bolts increasing tenfold. Kyro kept up his dance, blinking in and out through each strike. I imagined he'd run out of mana at so point, but his teleportation seed to grow even faster.
Finally, the spell faded. The lightning bolts ceased, and the clouds above gradually vanished.
Kyro reappeared in front of us, his hands raised for what I thought was the final blow.
To my surprise, he began to clap.
"You've outdone yourself, Grand Mage," he said, his mana pressure increasing with each second. "I was afraid that one of your bolts would end . But it seems you've run out of mana."
He walked over to us, until his face was over mine.
"You fought well. But this is the ti you die."
The pressure above us magnified, forcing us down until the ground beneath us cracked. Freya turned to weakly, her eyes gleaming with a mix of dread and fear.
"Rin..." she whispered, her voice cracking with pain.
Summoning all the strength to my hand, I snapped my finger.
One final bolt of lightning streaked down, heading toward Kyro. Without hesitation, he vanished, but this ti, the lightning veered unpredictably, seemingly drawn to another object on the ground.
It coursed toward Lucy, striking the orange pendant on her chest with pinpoint precision. The pendant shattered imdiately, filling the entire forest with a bright burst of orange light.
The intense pressure above us imdiately faded. I pushed myself up, coughing like a dog as the fresh air rushed into my lungs. Freya let out a long gasp beside , curling on the ground.
Kyro soon reappeared in a burst of blue light.
"No," he whispered, his lips quivering. For the first ti, I saw a flicker of fear in his eyes.
Lucy's body arched, a short gasp escaping from her lips. Her eyes snapped open, beaming with a dark red light that pierced through the intense darkness.
She rose to her feet, her motion firm and rigid, like she was possessed. The air around her shimred, dark shadows slipping out from her hands m like living things and encasing her feet like mist.
I stared at her, my heart pounding. Her mana was completely different, and I could sense it.
"Lucy?" I called out.
She tilted her head, turning to look at . But when her eyes t mine, a cold shiver went down my spine.
This wasn't Lucy. Not anymore.
This was the Shadow Queen.
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