The battlefield settled into a strange stillness.
Not empty—never that—but stripped of noise. The chained legion remained in the distance, scattered across broken ice and stone, their forms slumped and inert where control had abandoned them. They no longer pulled at the air. No longer pressed against the ground. Whatever rhythm had driven the island before had been cut cleanly, leaving only the immediate space between two figures facing one another.
The Second Pillar moved first.
Not to attack.
Her chains withdrew.
The wide-reaching lengths that had once claimed the battlefield slid back toward her body, link after link drawing inward with measured precision. They layered close to her frame, winding along arms and shoulders, bracing her spine, tightening around her like a second skeleton forged from iron. Nothing lashed. Nothing rattled. The motion was controlled, efficient—built for proximity rather than reach.
Defensive.
Compact.
Made for killing up close.
