Xerollion considered her defiance for a long moment. The silence that followed was more oppressive than the sounds of battle, a heavy, ringing void that seemed to suck the oxygen from the corridor.
His head tilted with the mechanical curiosity of an apex predator examining a specimen that had proven more durable than expected.
Then, with a slow, deliberate motion, he rose to his feet.
WHOOSH.
The telekinetic pressure vanished instantly. Without the invisible force holding her up, Evelyn collapsed completely.
Her body hit the stone with a wet THUD, her lungs seizing as she gasped for air that felt like poison. Her ribs screamed in protest, each breath sending sharp, stabbing pain through her chest where the pressure had nearly crushed them.
Blood pooled beneath her cheek, mixing with the dust and debris to form a dark, viscous paste.
