When I stood in the shadow of the limb embedded in the ground…
The other two limbs had no choice.
To reach me,
They had to force their way through,
To shatter everything that stood in their path,
To break the limb embedded in the ground…
That limb which had suddenly become an unintended shield.
The monster's body convulsed violently.
It wasn't just a shiver of rage,
But a shudder of genuine pain.
Then its scream rose, distorted, fractured,
As if the throat itself were tearing apart as it shrieked.
A massive sonic wave exploded from its body,
And swept across the arena,
It passed by me like an invisible wall,
Pushing the air so harshly that my chest felt compressed.
My feet wavered.
I felt the ground being pulled from beneath me for a moment,
And I felt weakness…
A void.
But I…
Did not fall.
I stood.
Not because my body was capable,
But because I refused to fall.
With all that remained of my eroding strength,
