The clearing heaved with smoke and gold. The Queen and her spawn writhed on the ground, wings bent, claws snapping, ichor pooling into rivers that hissed where it touched stone. Every creature watched, stunned, as if the sight of both titans brought low had stolen the breath from the forest.
Buzz leaned into Zza, his body trembling, his shell split wide in places that wouldn't hold much longer. Her silk wound tight around his waist, threads glowing faint in the firelight, her claws digging into him as if sheer will could keep him upright.
"This is it," he rasped, spitting blood into the dirt. "We don't get another chance."
Zza's face was pale, her mandibles clenched so hard she shook. "If we go first, we won't come back."
Buzz bared his broken grin, wild in his eyes. "Then we make it worth it."
He staggered forward, dragging her threads with him. Zza cursed, her claws pulling tighter, but she followed anyway. She always followed.
