Katerina stopped before Lucia.
Her breathing came out in irregular bursts, denser than before, as if each inhalation dragged something heavy from the bottom of her chest. Her shoulders rose and fell with visible tension, and the chains born from her arm vibrated with a faint metallic rattle, synchronized with her pulse.
Then her eyes changed.
The usual purple became darker, saturated by a shadow extending from the pupil. A thick thread descended down the corner of her left eye.
Blood.
She blinked, and the same trace appeared on the other side.
She didn't wipe it away.
"...no..." she murmured, with broken voice, bringing a hand to her face. "Stop..."
Her fingers trembled.
She tried to close her fist, contain the movement, recover control of her own body. The claws tensed with a dry screech, digging into the palm.
It didn't respond.
Djinn are beings without consciousness, agents of chaos who only live to destroy and cause suffering.
