The final clash never came as a clean collision. It came as overwhelming certainty.
Emma lunged first, faster than before, stronger than before, her claws wrapped in lunar frost that bent the air itself. The second moon above flared to its brightest, pouring power into her body as Fenrir's authority howled through her veins.
This was her peak, her absolute, her claim.
Ethan didn't dodge. He stepped into it.
Their movements overlapped, hers a killing strike, and his a decisive end. His hand slipped past her claws, his body twisting just enough.
And then his palm pressed against her chest with something far heavier than force.
Authority.
The world stopped for a single, absolute moment. Emma felt it. It wasn't strength, nor speed, nor power, but something deeper. She was being overruled.
Her body froze mid-motion, her power faltered, and the moonlight flickered.
And then...
BOOM.
The impact came after.
