The guardian met Helen above the broken street with crimson fire burning behind its carved eyes.
Her rapier struck the roof of its open mouth, stopping the stone jaws before they reached her face.
Five blue Shards continued their tight orbit around her wrist, unchanged from the power she had released before the first clash.
The impact drove both heels backward through cracked tiles while vibration climbed from the bent blade into her shoulders.
Helen pressed both heels deeper while the stone jaws forced her blade downward.
'That body carries far more weight than its size should hold.'
"I thought you planned to hold the creature," the Captain called as he ran toward the section Hajin had marked.
"I am holding it away from your neck, which deserves some gratitude," Helen replied through clenched teeth. "Search faster before that temporary achievement expires beneath the next charge."
