The first strike came from the smaller creature.
It disappeared.
And by the time Kaelion realized—
it was already in front of him.
The attack broke through his defense before he could raise the sword.
Fast.
Too fast.
His essence vibrated violently.
He was hurled across the layer—
dragged against the dark surface as if the void wanted to pin him to the ground.
Before he could recover—
the shadow of the larger creature was already over him.
The blow came down.
Heavy.
Dense.
Without hesitation.
The layer cracked beneath the impact.
Kaelion tried to move.
Too late.
His essence trembled.
Unstable.
Like something on the verge of coming apart.
The smaller creature came from the side.
He tried to track it.
Failed.
The lateral strike caught him mid-movement.
His body spun.
Dragging across the layer.
Tearing the surface as he slid without control.
He tried to get up.
The larger creature was already in front of him.
The blow came straight.
Without warning.
Without room to defend.
The impact crushed him against the layer.
He fell.
The sword still in his hand.
Without knowing why… he had not let go.
The creatures did not advance immediately.
They walked.
Slowly.
Without haste.
Like predators that had already decided the end—
and simply waited for the prey to stop moving.
There was no urgency.
No need.
This was something that took time to break.
Kaelion raised his face.
The floor of the layer pulsed beneath his hands.
Slow.
Like a breath that was not his.
He looked at the two forms approaching.
And for the first time since he had arrived in that place—
he thought.
Not instinct.
Not fear.
He thought.
— One is very fast…
The voice came out low.
Weak.
But present.
— …the other is very strong…
Silence.
He tightened his grip on the sword.
— Like this…
A pause.
— …I won't be able to survive.
He stared at the creatures for a moment.
Not with despair.
With clarity.
Like someone who had identified a problem
and now needed a solution.
— I need to get stronger…
A pause.
— …and faster.
Silence.
But something inside him responded.
It did not come from outside.
Not from the void.
It came from within—
from a place that still existed,
that still functioned,
that still obeyed only him.
The order was given.
The smaller creature disappeared.
Kaelion raised the sword.
It was already in front of him.
The attack came.
This time—
he defended.
The impact still sent him flying.
Still heavy.
Still hurt.
But he did not fall.
He slid across the layer.
And stopped.
Standing.
The larger creature appeared behind him.
The blow came down.
Kaelion did not dodge completely.
But he rolled—
enough that the impact launched him instead of crushing him.
He spun through the air.
Hit the layer.
And got up.
For an instant—
the creatures stopped.
Watching.
Something had changed.
The larger creature…
seemed slower.
Not weaker.
Slower.
The smaller creature disappeared again.
Kaelion watched.
And then he understood.
It had not disappeared.
It had never disappeared.
It was simply moving too fast—
so fast his mind could not follow the movement,
and interpreted the empty space left behind as absence.
It was not teleportation.
Not magic.
It was speed.
Speed beyond what he had been able to process before.
Now…
he could see.
The displacement.
The trajectory.
The instant before the strike.
The smaller creature appeared in front of him.
He raised the sword.
Defended.
The impact was still heavy—
but he held.
Standing.
Firm.
Present.
Both creatures stopped.
Watching in silence.
Something had changed in him.
Not dramatically.
Not visibly.
But something had changed.
He could now track the smaller one's speed.
Withstand the larger one's strength.
The prey…
was no longer the same.