'!'
Nick stared at the incoming hound in horror.
His mind screamed at him to move, to raise his sword, to do something.
But his body wouldn't respond.
The hound's jaws gaped wide, the glowing red fissures along its body pulsing brighter as it closed the distance.
Two meters.
One.
'Move. Move. MOVE!'
But he couldn't. His legs felt rooted to the ground, his arms locked in place. Fear gripped him like iron chains.
"GRRR!"
The hound lunged.
"NICK!"
At that exact moment, Nami's voice cut through the paralysis like a knife.
Something inside him snapped.
A sudden surge of strength flooded his body, hot and electric. His hand moved before his mind caught up, gripping the hilt of his sword and yanking it free.
Flames erupted along the blade.
Nick swung.
A diagonal slash, downward and across.
Swoosh!
The blade cleaved through the hound cleanly, cutting it in two. The separated halves hit the ground on either side of him, twitching once before going still.
