Thi Lan took a heavy step backward, her body fading into three, then four afterimages. It wasn't clear which one of her was true and real, and yet five attacks took shape nonetheless, all of them aimed for Grey.
Grey didn't dodge to the left or right. Even in all the chaos, he took a straight line, closing in the distance on Thi Lan so fast her eyes could only widen.
She realized too late that he wouldn't make any attempt to maneuver around her attacks. Used to battle, she was aiming toward where he would be, not where he was, layering her attacks through shifts in time to confuse him further.
This wasn't literal, but instead a clever use of speed and timing changes. Such an attack would easily overwhelm the vast majority.
Grey saw through it in a glance.
He closed in the distance on Thi Lan, one of his blood blades vanishing as he drove a fist into her gut.
Thi Lan's eyes bulged from their sockets, a cough of blood coming from her lips.
