Quake's stone serpent coiled easily around Kai, tightening like an executioner's rope. The man's laughter echoed harshly through the arena, triumphant now that the tide had turned.
"You think a runt like you can touch me?"
Kai writhed, forcing his lungs to drag in shallow breaths while he strained to reel Serein's levo back into his grasp.
But the harder he pulled, the faster it slipped away, along with the air inside his chest.
Across the arena, Serein gasped for air. She clenched her fists, forcing herself to steady her mind and pull her levo back into him.
Her chest squeezed tight, as though she herself were being crushed inside that monstrous coil of stone. But again the levo shuddered free of her control, retreating in panic.
Kai's eyes locked on hers. His face, bloodless and desperate, pleaded in silence even as she fought to keep her own agony at bay.
No. He couldn't lose like this.
