A collective, stunned silence gripped the chamber. . The expected script had been simple: the Hunters under Sebastian's command would bear the remains away, a grim trophy to be presented to the Guild. The drama was over. Or so they had thought.
Reality tore itself in two.
One moment, Sebastian was standing over his prize, his voice a low, victorious growl. The next, there was a soundless detonation of force. Sebastian was simply elsewhere, hurled backward through the air as if by the hand of a god. A strangled cry was ripped from his throat, quickly drowned by a violent, convulsive spray of blood that misted the air. His teeth, a shower of white chips, clattered against the stone floor.
He seethed, a tempest of pure, undiluted rage, but even through the blinding fury, a sliver of his mind flailed in confusion.
'One minute I was talking… the next I opened my eyes to the sky.'
