Everything exploded at once.
The moment my identity as a human was revealed, dozens of bear beastkin rushed forward from every direction.
Nyra reacted first.
"Stay behind Caelum!"
Then she vanished.
Not metaphorically.
One moment she was standing beside me.
The next, she was inside the enemy formation.
A silver arc flashed beneath the moonlight.
One bear soldier fell.
Then another.
Then a third.
Nyra moved like a shadow with claws.
Her twin daggers never stopped.
She ducked beneath a spear, slid across the ground, cut through the soldier's ankle, rose behind him, and drove the second blade between the gaps in his armor.
Before the body even hit the ground, she was already moving again.
Fast.
Precise.
Merciless.
On my other side, Vessa laughed.
Actually laughed.
"Finally."
She reached into two pouches at her waist.
Three small metal spheres appeared between her fingers.
She threw them.
"Down."
I didn't ask questions.
I dropped.
