The ten remaining grunt-tier blood puppets didn't give Kyle or Elara a single microsecond to formulate a defensive strategy. Moving with their chilling, insectoid synchronized coordination, they lunged inward simultaneously from all angles, their iron-reinforced claws whistling through the heavy, dark grey smog.
"Get behind me!" Kyle bellowed, his 245 Will stat roaring into focus as he braced his frame.
He didn't have the luxury of dodging. If he moved out of the way, Elara's frail human body would be instantly torn into crimson ribbons by the overlapping 240 Strength attributes of the constructs. Instead, he planted his boots deep into the basalt stone, utilizing his remaining 450 Shadow Energy to deploy a desperate defensive gambit.
"Shadow Craft: Aegis!"
Expending 200 points of his shadow reserve, Kyle forcefully warped the dark outlines cast by the canyon walls, condensing the shadows into a thick, semi-solid dome of dark energy around himself and Elara.
