Marden was in a dire situation. Two spikes had pinned his legs, two had torn through his gut, one had punctured his lung, and the last one had driven clean through his neck.
If it wasn't for him shifting his body at the last possible second, that final spike would have impaled his head instead. Blood flowed from his wound endlessly, as he struggled to breathe. By now, a large pool of blood had formed underneath his feet.
Despite that, he still managed to prevent Blackwood's sword from severing his neck and killing him. Coughing out a mouthful of blood, he looked the Headmaster in the eyes and grinned.
He was unable to speak because the spikes had pierced his neck, so he mouthed the following words instead:
'Not bad… Headmaster…'
