Twenty millimeter rounds screamed from the pod in rapid succession, tracer lines stitching through open air. Each impact sparked bright flashes against the golden barrier Wester conjured with a casual lift of the Staff of Brilliance. The rounds struck and ricocheted, metal fragments scattering harmlessly into empty sky.
The barrier did not even tremble.
Wester's lips curved faintly.
He did not counterattack. He did not move. He simply endured.
Kiara narrowed her eyes and maintained fire, the recoil vibrating through the helicopter's frame, the scent of heated metal creeping faintly into the cabin. Shell casings rattled against interior compartments. The helicopter circled, appearing erratic, yet Zion's flight path was deliberate, spiraling upward gradually.
Below, murmurs spread.
Was this the weapon that felled a Cerberus?
Wester raised his staff slightly. "Is this the mighty machine that wounded House Dawn's Grand Elder?"
Kiara ignored him.
Her finger shifted.
