Rosa reacted to Jade’s cue with impeccable timing, leaping into the air just as Jade called out.
To her astonishment, the world around her transformed into a perilous forest of water spears, each freezing into solid ice the instant the frigid wind touched them.
She wove through the deadly maze, each spear missing her by the slimmest margin, her movements as graceful as they were urgent. With the agility of a seasoned fighter, she landed lightly upon an ice pillar, her footing sure despite the slick surface.
In that same breath, Rosa caught sight of Oscar’s blade soaring through the air. Jade’s voice pierced the tense air once more, "Grab it now and throw it over to Oscar!" The command landed clear.
Startled by the trajectory of the weapon, Rosa sprang up again, her body coiled with the energy of necessity. She caught the sword mid-air, a feat that spoke of her reflexes and combat awareness.
Without hesitation, she hurled the blade towards Oscar, her throw precise and powerful.
Meanwhile, Jade was battling her own limits, the energy drain taking a toll on her physical capabilities. She threw herself to the side, still unable to stand, as an ice pillar whizzed perilously close.
It grazed her cheek, a shallow cut blossoming with blood, a stark red against her pale skin.
With a sense of finality, Jade grasped the cross strapped to her back and hurled it towards Rosa.
"Throw it directly at that ugly-ass creature with everything you have, and get ready to restrain him one more time," she instructed, desperation and determination driving her voice.
Rosa, despite the confusion and weariness etched into her features, caught Jade’s cross. The weight of responsibility settled upon her as she nodded, understanding the gravity of Jade’s request.
With a heave that summoned the last of her strength, she launched the cross high over the ice pillars.
It soared, a small beacon of hope, over the head of the creature who was still surveying the aftermath of his assault, oblivious to the counterstrike being mounted against him.
The creature, momentarily preoccupied with its premature victory, was taken aback upon realizing the humans’ resilience. A muttered curse escaped its lips as it clutched the gaping wound in its chest.
"I will have to retreat?" The thought was a bitter pill, its pride wounded as much as its body.
However, before it could act on its retreat, Jade’s rallying cry pierced the battlefield. "Let’s end this, Oscar!" she shouted, her hands coming together in a final bid to pool her remaining energy.
She vanished and reappeared in the trajectory of the thrown cross.
Catching it with faltering hands, Jade’s vision began to blur, her body pushed to the brink as she fought to maintain consciousness.
The creature’s composure shattered into disbelief as it watched Jade’s rapid approach. "How the hell did you close that distance so quick?!" it demanded, its voice laced with the unfamiliar sting of panic.
Jade offered no reply; her eyes said it all. They blazed with an intense white fire that seemed almost sentient, consuming her gaze with a life of its own.
For the first time, the creature experienced the cold grip of fear, an emotion it had not expected to face against what it considered mere humans.
Baring its monstrous teeth in a defiant snarl, it snapped its fingers, conjuring a portal at its back--a desperate escape route. "I don’t know what you’re planning, but I will return for my revenge!" it declared, the promise of retribution its only solace.
But Jade was resolute, her voice cutting through the creature’s retreat. "I don’t think so," she cried out, propelling herself forward. A wave of warmth spread through the frigid air, countering the chill of the creature’s last attack.
In one fluid motion, Jade let go of the cross and reached for the small blade in her left hand, her grip as sure as her intent.
The sword spun through the sky end over end. Oscar planted his hands into the ground and anchored himself as best he could, even from that distance. His strength was fading.
"Finish it!" he urged, his voice a rallying cry as his consciousness began to ebb.
The creature watched with confidence and anticipation in its gaze as Jade descended towards it. Her arm extended, catching the spinning, flame-engulfed blade, while her other hand remained ready to reveal the concealed weapon at the decisive moment.
But the contact with the fiery sword came at a price. Flames leapt from the blade to her hand, the searing pain eliciting a scream from Jade. The intense burn threatened to make her release her only weapon.
The creature sensed an opportunity and halted its escape. "Sure, come! Let me welcome you to your death, you snack!" it taunted, malice filling its voice.
It reassured itself of its impending victory, "I can still kill this girl before leaving and destroy all their hard work!" With this thought, it manifested an ice blade in its remaining hand, preparing to strike Jade down mid-fall.
Jade, now agonizingly close to the creature, cried out, the pain from the flames overwhelming. It was then that a memory flashed through her mind--a conversation with Ty, who had once been shrouded in a black flame, unyielding to the pain.
Clutching onto that memory, Jade found a semblance of resolve. "Ty could handle this!" she thought fiercely, the determination to withstand the pain echoing Ty’s endurance. Despite her skin blistering from the burn, she steeled herself
As the creature lunged forward, aiming its ice spear at Jade, the battlefield was engulfed in an intense blue flame. Rosa’s voice, powerful and commanding, filled the air with determination. "BINDING WEBS!!
BLUE NOVA!!" she yelled, invoking her most potent spells.
Blue flames, far hotter than ordinary fire, engulfed everything nearby, including the creature’s ice spear.
This unexpected turn of events caught the creature off guard, as the intense heat began to melt and weaken its weapon, rendering it increasingly fragile under the scorching embrace of the blue inferno.
Jade seized the moment and thrust the sword into the weakening spear with all her might. The blade, empowered by Rosa’s spell, sliced the ice spear in half with precision.
Using the momentum of her descent, Jade spun until she reached chest level with the creature. That falling force let her swing the sword upwards, targeting the creature’s neck in one clean arc.
The creature screamed "NOOO" and tried to recoil.
Jade’s attack failed to sever the head completely, but it inflicted significant damage.
In the creature’s moment of vulnerability, a strong gust of wind erupted, altering the course of events dramatically.
Jade felt the wind’s force against her back, propelling her forward. The blade slipped from her grasp, and both she and the creature were caught in the tempest’s pull.
The wind, almost sentient in its timing, flung Jade into the very portal the creature had opened for its escape.
As both fell into the portal’s opening, Jade realized the gravity of her action--the damage was indeed done, but the wind’s intervention had thrown them both into an unknown fate beyond the creature’s intended path of retreat.