I looked down at the Reaper's writhing form. The dark shapes beneath its translucent skin were moving faster now, concentrating in its chest and head. Protecting vital areas.
Belle was right. Those weren't veins or arteries. They were parasites. Or maybe the real creature itself, using this humanoid form as a shell.
I changed tactics, pressed my palm flat over its chest where the movement concentrated most. The creatures inside roiled against my hand, writhing beneath that translucent skin as if they could sense what was building.
Wave Motion energy gathered there against the Reaper's breastbone, more concentrated than anything I'd attempted before. Not a projectile meant to escape. An internal detonation.
The Reaper's spine arched violently. It thrashed harder than before, nearly bucking me sideways off its torso. Its limbs twisted at angles that would snap human joints.
"Hold it!" I yelled.
