'There is no obvious way out of this,' Hajin thought, counting the four Shards that turned above the horns.
The rock wall sat against their backs while the monster filled the only gap out of the creek bed.
His best strike would not open a scratch in a hide carrying four Shards, though he kept the sword up anyway.
"Juna," he said, holding his voice level with some effort, "I am going to unsummon you."
The monster came before she could answer, a claw sweeping across at chest height with a heavy whistle behind it, so the conversation ended there for both of them.
He threw himself left, took the ground on his shoulder, then came up on his feet while she dove under the arm on the other side, her bandaged hand tucked in against her chest.
The claws went into the wall where they had been standing and blew it apart into shrapnel.
"What are you talking about?" she asked, coming out of her roll to glare at him across the gap.
