Pain returned before sound.
It spread through Nev's body in slow waves, starting from his ribs and crawling outward until every breath felt heavy. The world came back in fragments. The smell of blood. The rough bark pressing against his back. The sound of something large moving through broken branches.
A faint warmth pressed against his chest.
"Stay with me," a voice said, strained but steady. "Don't lose focus."
Nev forced his eyes open.
Lyra knelt beside him, one knee in the dirt, both hands pressed against his side. A pale glow flickered weakly around her fingers as she poured healing energy into him. Sweat ran down her temple, mixing with dirt and blood. Her breathing was shallow, controlled with effort.
"You're alive," she said when she saw his eyes move. "Barely. Don't try to stand yet."
Nev swallowed, throat dry and burning. Each breath scraped like broken glass. He turned his head slowly.
The clearing looked wrong.
Bodies lay where people had stood moments ago. Broken weapons were scattered across torn earth. Blood soaked into grass and bark, staining the forest in dark, uneven patterns. The air felt thick, heavy with fear and the copper scent of death.
The Knocker stood at the center.
It had not rushed them after striking Nev. It had taken its time, as if nothing here could threaten it. Its broad chest rose and fell slowly. Thick arms hung loose at its sides, muscles knotted and relaxed at once. Dark fluid seeped from shallow cuts where Nev's blade and Kerr's arrows had struck, but the wounds were already closing.
It turned its head slightly.
It noticed movement.
Bran roared and charged.
He moved like a wall given legs, shield raised, mace clenched tight in his remaining hand. There was no strategy left in him now, only fury. He slammed into the Knocker's leg with everything he had, driving the shield forward.
The impact shook the clearing.
The Knocker staggered half a step.
Nev's eyes widened.
That was enough.
Kerr reacted instantly.
Arrows flew in quick succession, not aimed to kill but to control. One struck near the shoulder. Another hit the side of the neck. The Knocker snarled, a deep sound that vibrated through the ground itself.
"Now," Kerr shouted.
Nev pushed himself upright despite Lyra's protest. Pain exploded through his body, but instinct cut through it. He staggered forward, blade flashing as he struck where Bran forced openings. His sword bit into hardened flesh again and again, shallow cuts carving lines across the monster's side.
They were hurting it.
But the damage felt wrong.
Too little. Too slow.
The Knocker's attention shifted.
Its massive head snapped toward Kerr.
Nev saw the intent form.
"Kerr," he shouted.
Too late.
The monster crossed the distance in a single step. Its hand closed around Kerr's head as if gripping a fruit. Kerr did not even scream. There was a short, wet sound, and then the monster released him.
Kerr fell.
His body hit the ground without resistance. Blood poured from where his eyes had been. His bow lay broken beside him.
Bran screamed and charged again, grief and rage tearing through discipline.
The Knocker met him halfway.
A thick arm swept sideways with terrifying speed. There was a sound like cloth ripping, followed by a scream that cut through the forest. Bran's shield fell uselessly as his arm separated from his body, hitting the ground a moment later.
Bran collapsed, clutching the stump, blood spraying across dirt and leaves.
"Bran," Lyra cried.
She broke formation.
She ran.
Nev tried to grab her, but his hand missed by inches.
The Knocker turned, amused now.
It struck once.
A claw punched through Lyra's abdomen as if her armor did not exist. The force lifted her off her feet before dropping her hard against Nev's chest.
Her healing glow vanished instantly.
She gasped, blood spilling warm and fast across Nev's clothes. Her hands trembled as she tried to summon energy that no longer answered.
"I can't…" she whispered. "I can't heal anymore."
Nev caught her, arms shaking.
The world narrowed.
The monster loomed ahead of them, indifferent, bloodied but far from wounded. It looked at them the way one might look at broken tools.
Lyra leaned her forehead against Nev's shoulder. Her voice was weak, but clear.
"I'm sorry," she said. "We shouldn't have asked you to join us."
Nev stared past her.
At Kerr's still body.
At Bran screaming quietly in the dirt, shock replacing pain.
At the monster that made all of it meaningless.
His hands clenched.
Something inside him twisted, sharp and cold.
The forest was silent again.
Too silent.
And for the first time since arriving in this world, Nev understood what it meant to be truly powerless.