Mira's arrow crosses the first line of defense.
Oliver moves his left foot too late. Veric is still outside the right angle to cover. Rhayne is far, but the distance Mira chose also gives too much time to a weapon that owns area.
The Battle Ribbon leaves her arm in a descending cut.
The metallic silk hisses in front of Oliver and arrives long before the arrow. What looked like a mistake was Rhayne's plan, and she doesn't stop the motion. The coil cracks against the floor, gathering momentum, and rises in an arc, cutting the air from below on the second beat.
This time, it lands clean.
'Bullseye. Good girl.'
The arrow is thrown high, spinning until it strikes the arena barrier and falls without force near the edge.
Oliver turns his face to Rhayne for an instant, his ear still marked by the earlier scratch. "Thanks, sweetheart."
Rhayne doesn't answer. She's already pulling the ribbon back, eyes on Mira.
Freya is still looking at me.
