Mr_DC
Been a while
I'm usually terrible at writing combat scenes which is why I tend to keep them vague. But that's no way to learn and get better so I decided to write a fight scene and focus heavily on the details. So, this is also a bit of a warning that it might be a bit gruesome.
I would appreciate any opinions and critique on this piece, it would mean so much to me to hear what you think. Thanks!
The top floor of Ecstasy Trust headquarters stood silent, a deceptive calm before the impending storm. Polished marble floors reflected the soft lighting, contrasting sharply with the trail of destruction leading up to this point. The air hung heavy with anticipation, broken only by the steady approach of heavy footfalls.
Lich emerged from the stairwell, her Outsider armor painted a menacing black with eerie green accents, now spattered with blood and viscera. She moved with predatory grace and in her hand, a blood-slicked dagger gleamed under the fluorescent lights.
As the Lich approached the conference room, the door suddenly swung open. Violet stepped out, her black vest and purple shirt pristine, black tie perfectly knotted. She looked more prepared for a board meeting than a fight to the death.
Lich paused, tilting her head slightly. "The queen of pleasure deigns to finally greet me."
Violet remained silent, her eyes narrowing as she assessed her opponent. She took a slow step forward, her movements fluid and controlled.
Behind Lich, the soft chime of the elevator broke the tension. The doors slid open, revealing Vaana in worn jeans and a battered leather jacket. Her golden eyes narrowed as she took in the situation.
Lich's helmet swiveled, taking in the new arrival. "Ah, reinforcements." She twirled the dagger in her hand. "It won't make a difference."
Violet and Vaana exchanged a brief glance, volumes spoken in that fleeting moment. They began to move in tandem, circling Lich from both sides.
Lich's posture shifted, her grip on the dagger tightening. "Shall we?"
The words had barely left her mouth when Violet and Vaana exploded into action. They moved with unmatched synchronicity. Violet darted in low, her hand snaking out to grasp Lich's wrist. At the same instant, Vaana lunged forward, her fist arcing towards Lich's helmet.
Lich reacted with inhuman speed, twisting away from Vaana's punch. But Violet's grip on her wrist was like iron. With a quick, brutal twist, Violet wrenched the dagger from Lich's grasp. The weapon clattered to the floor, skittering away down the hallway.
For a heartbeat, surprise radiated from Lich's posture. Then she laughed, the sound chilling in its genuine delight. "Not just a socialite, are you?"
The fight erupted in earnest. Lich's armored fist crashed into Violet's sternum with a sickening crunch. Violet's eyes bulged as the air exploded from her lungs, her diaphragm spasming. She staggered back, gasping, gripping her ribs. Vaana was there in an instant, her knee driving up into the midsection of the Lich's armor with bone-jarring force. The blow would have pulverized a normal person's organs. Lich merely grunted, retaliating with a vicious elbow to Vaana's temple.
The impact sent Vaana reeling, her vision exploding with stars. Blood trickled from her ear, a high-pitched ringing drowning out all other sounds. She shook her head, trying to clear the fog, only to catch another blow to the jaw that sent teeth and blood flying.
Violet recovered quickly and she darted in, her strikes a blur as she targeted the weak points in Lich's armor. Each blow was precise, calculated to maximize damage. The sound of her knuckles impacting the reinforced material echoed through the hallway, accompanied by the crunch of small bones breaking in her hand.
Vaana's style was a stark contrast – raw power tempered by experience. She weathered Lich's punishing blows, her face a mask of determination even as her left eye began to swell shut. She responded with devastating counters, each strike carrying the full weight of her body behind it.
Together, they pushed Lich back, their attacks perfectly coordinated. When Violet went high, Vaana went low. As one retreated, the other advanced. It was a deadly dance, beautiful in its violent efficiency.
But Lich was far from outmatched. She moved like smoke, slipping between their attacks with preternatural grace. Her counterstrikes were devastating, putting full force into each attack. A roundhouse kick caught Violet in the side, the crack of ribs audible even over the chaos of the fight. Violet stumbled, her breath coming in short, pained gasps as broken bone ground against itself with every movement.
The fight spilled into a nearby office, cubicle walls crumpling under the impact of thrown bodies. Violet snatched up a keyboard, swinging it in a wide arc. It shattered against Lich's helmet, keys flying in all directions, the plastic edge opening a gash on Violet's palm. Lich responded by ripping a monitor from a desk and hurling it at Vaana. Vaana ducked, the screen exploding against the wall behind her in a shower of sparks and glass.
Minutes stretched into an eternity of violence. The office became a war zone, furniture splintering under the onslaught. Blood spattered the walls, the floor becoming slippery with the mingled fluids of the combatants. The air grew thick with the metallic scent of blood and the acrid smell of fear and exertion.
Fatigue began to take its toll. Movements that had been crisp and precise grew sloppy. Defenses faltered, allowing punishing blows to land with increasing frequency. Bruises blossomed on exposed skin, deep purple and angry red marking the ferocity of the fight.
Violet caught a wild haymaker to the jaw, her head snapping back with a sickening crack. She stumbled, tasting blood, fragments of teeth mixing with the coppery fluid in her mouth. Stars danced in her vision, but she managed to drive her elbow into Lich's ribs with bone-crushing force. Lich's armor dented under the impact, but she barely seemed to notice. Her armored fist crashed into Violet's already damaged ribs, the snap of bones echoing in the room. Violet's scream of agony was cut short as the air left her lungs, her face paling as shock set in.
Vaana roared in fury, tackling Lich with reckless abandon. They crashed through a glass partition, shards slicing into exposed flesh as they tumbled to the ground. Vaana straddled Lich, raining down blows with fists already swollen and bleeding. Each impact sent shockwaves of pain up her arms, but she didn't stop. Couldn't stop. Blood and sweat stung her eyes, but she blinked it away, focused entirely on the armored figure beneath her.
Lich bucked, throwing Vaana off. In a flash, she was on her feet, hauling Vaana up by her jacket. With a feat of terrifying strength, Lich hurled Vaana across the room. Vaana slammed into a filing cabinet, the metal crumpling around her. The impact drove the air from her lungs and sent lances of pain through her back. She slumped to the floor, dazed, blood trickling from a gash on her forehead and pooling beneath her.
Violet re-entered the fray, her movements driven by an iron will. One arm hung limply at her side, broken ribs shifting with each labored breath. Blood bubbled at the corner of her mouth with each exhale. Yet she fought on, her good arm a blur as she targeted Lich's joints, seeking to disable rather than damage.
Lich caught Violet's wrist, twisting viciously. Tendons popped and tore, drawing a pained gasp from Violet. But even as her hand went numb, Violet drove her forehead into Lich's faceplate. The reinforced material cracked, spider-web fissures obscuring Lich's vision. The impact split the skin on Violet's forehead, blood streaming down her face and into her eyes.
As exhaustion set in, the fight devolved into a brutal slugfest. Technique gave way to raw determination as the three women battered each other with single-minded intensity. Their movements became sluggish, each strike telegraphed but still devastatingly powerful. Fists crashed into already bruised flesh, each impact driving grunts and gasps of pain from the combatants. Bones cracked under the relentless assault, the sickening sounds nearly drowned out by the thuds of flesh on flesh and armor.
Vaana, her left eye swollen completely shut and oozing blood, staggered towards a broken chair. She hefted it with trembling arms, swinging it wildly at Lich. The improvised weapon connected with a resounding clang, denting Lich's armor and sending her stumbling back. Something in Vaana's shoulder gave way with the impact, but she barely noticed, riding high on adrenaline and determination.
Violet, seeing an opening, grabbed a jagged piece of metal from a destroyed desk. She lunged forward, driving the makeshift weapon towards a gap in Lich's armor. But her movements were slow, hampered by injury and fatigue. Lich caught her arm, using Violet's momentum to slam her into a wall. Violet's head bounced off the hard surface with a sickening thud, leaving a smear of blood as she slid to the floor.
Seizing the moment, Lich turned her attention to Vaana. With frightening speed, she closed the distance between them. Vaana, still reeling from her previous exertion, couldn't react in time. Lich tackled her to the ground, the impact driving what little air remained from Vaana's lungs.
Straddling Vaana, Lich began a relentless assault. Her armored fists rose and fell like pistons, each blow landing with bone-crushing force. Vaana's arms came up instinctively, trying to shield her face, but Lich's punches were too powerful. The impacts reverberated through Vaana's entire body, her elbows and forearms taking damage that could pulverize bones.
Vaana's defense weakened with each punishing blow. Her arms, battered and likely fractured, began to lower. Lich, sensing victory, redoubled her efforts. Her fists found Vaana's exposed face, smashing into her jaw, her cheekbones, her nose. Blood sprayed with each impact, Vaana's features disappearing under a mask of crimson. Her head bounced off the hard floor with each punch, consciousness flickering like a candle in the wind.
Violet, barely clinging to awareness herself, saw Vaana's plight through blurry vision. With a herculean effort, she forced her battered body into motion. Ignoring the screaming agony of her broken ribs, the searing pain of torn muscles and ligaments, she launched herself at Lich.
It wasn't a graceful attack. Violet simply threw her entire weight at Lich, tackling her off Vaana. They rolled across the debris-strewn floor, a tangle of limbs and fury. Violet ended up on the bottom, and Lich wasted no time in turning her savage attention to this new target.
Now it was Violet's turn to endure Lich's onslaught. Blows rained down on her face and body, each one feeling like it might be the last her battered frame could take. Violet's vision swam, darkness encroaching at the edges. She tasted blood, felt the crunch of cartilage as her nose shattered under Lich's fist. But she couldn’t fight back, couldn’t try to defend herself.
Vaana, barely conscious, blinked blood from her one functioning eye. Through the haze of pain and fatigue, she saw Violet taking the beating meant for her. Something stirred within Vaana – a protective fury. With trembling limbs, she began to move.
Lich, so focused on Violet, didn't notice Vaana's approach until it was too late. Vaana wrapped her arms around Lich from behind, using the last reserves of her strength to haul the armored woman off Violet. They fell backward, Vaana cushioning Lich's fall and paying for it with a fresh explosion of pain through her already battered body.
But the move had its intended effect. Lich's assault on Violet was interrupted, giving her a moment to gulp in ragged breaths. Vaana, running on nothing but willpower now, locked her arms around Lich, pinning the killer's arms to her sides.
"Violet," Vaana gasped, her voice barely recognizable through swollen lips and broken teeth.
Violet, hearing Vaana's call, forced her eyes open. Everything hurt. Breathing was agony. Moving seemed impossible. But Vaana needed her. With a scream that was equal parts pain and determination, Violet rolled to her hands and knees. She crawled towards the struggling pair, each movement sending fresh waves of agony through her body.
Lich thrashed in Vaana's grip, her strength slowly breaking free. Vaana held on with grim determination, knowing that if Lich got loose, it was all over.
Violet reached them just as Lich was about to break free. Seeing the opportunity, Violet grabbed a nearby computer monitor. With a scream of pain and determination, she brought it crashing down on Lich's faceplate. The impact reverberated through the room, the monitor shattering into a thousand pieces.
For a heartbeat, all three women were still, their ragged breathing the only sound in the destroyed office. Then, slowly, painfully, Vaana began to disentangle herself from Lich. She didn't have the strength to restrain her further, to finish the fight. All they could do was put distance between themselves and the killer, hoping against hope that it would be enough.
Lich stirred, her movements sluggish but still dangerous. She rose to her knees, then to her feet, swaying unsteadily. Her armor was dented and cracked, sparks occasionally dancing across exposed circuitry. Through the shattered faceplate, one could glimpse an eye blazing with fury and begrudging respect.
Violet and Vaana leaned against each other, barely able to stand. Violet's face was a ruin of bruises and blood, one eye swollen shut, her broken nose sitting at an odd angle. Each breath was a battle against the grinding pain of her broken ribs, a wet rattle accompanying every exhale. Vaana wasn't in much better shape, her features almost unrecognizable under the swelling and blood. Her dislocated shoulder made her list to one side, and her breaths came in short, pained gasps.
For a long moment, they faced each other, the only sound was their labored breathing. The office lay in ruins around them, furniture reduced to splinters, walls pocked with impact craters. Despite their horrific injuries, despite the exhaustion that made their limbs feel like lead, each woman stood ready to continue if necessary.
Lich's voice, rough with pain and fatigue, broke the silence. "Not what I expected..."
Before anyone could move, the distant wail of sirens cut through the air. The whine of jet engines grew louder, signaling the approach of reinforcements.
Lich's head tilted, considering. Then, with a speed that belied her injuries, she turned and sprinted towards a large window. Without hesitation, she crashed through it, disappearing down into the night.
Violet and Vaana remained standing for a moment longer, as if unable to believe the fight was truly over. Then, as one, they collapsed to the floor. Their bodies trembled with exhaustion and residual adrenaline, injuries making themselves known with agonizing clarity now that the immediate danger had passed. As the sounds of approaching rescue grew louder, Violet and Vaana allowed themselves to succumb to their injuries. Consciousness faded, the world growing dim around them as their bodies finally gave in to the punishment they'd endured.
I would appreciate any opinions and critique on this piece, it would mean so much to me to hear what you think. Thanks!
The top floor of Ecstasy Trust headquarters stood silent, a deceptive calm before the impending storm. Polished marble floors reflected the soft lighting, contrasting sharply with the trail of destruction leading up to this point. The air hung heavy with anticipation, broken only by the steady approach of heavy footfalls.
Lich emerged from the stairwell, her Outsider armor painted a menacing black with eerie green accents, now spattered with blood and viscera. She moved with predatory grace and in her hand, a blood-slicked dagger gleamed under the fluorescent lights.
As the Lich approached the conference room, the door suddenly swung open. Violet stepped out, her black vest and purple shirt pristine, black tie perfectly knotted. She looked more prepared for a board meeting than a fight to the death.
Lich paused, tilting her head slightly. "The queen of pleasure deigns to finally greet me."
Violet remained silent, her eyes narrowing as she assessed her opponent. She took a slow step forward, her movements fluid and controlled.
Behind Lich, the soft chime of the elevator broke the tension. The doors slid open, revealing Vaana in worn jeans and a battered leather jacket. Her golden eyes narrowed as she took in the situation.
Lich's helmet swiveled, taking in the new arrival. "Ah, reinforcements." She twirled the dagger in her hand. "It won't make a difference."
Violet and Vaana exchanged a brief glance, volumes spoken in that fleeting moment. They began to move in tandem, circling Lich from both sides.
Lich's posture shifted, her grip on the dagger tightening. "Shall we?"
The words had barely left her mouth when Violet and Vaana exploded into action. They moved with unmatched synchronicity. Violet darted in low, her hand snaking out to grasp Lich's wrist. At the same instant, Vaana lunged forward, her fist arcing towards Lich's helmet.
Lich reacted with inhuman speed, twisting away from Vaana's punch. But Violet's grip on her wrist was like iron. With a quick, brutal twist, Violet wrenched the dagger from Lich's grasp. The weapon clattered to the floor, skittering away down the hallway.
For a heartbeat, surprise radiated from Lich's posture. Then she laughed, the sound chilling in its genuine delight. "Not just a socialite, are you?"
The fight erupted in earnest. Lich's armored fist crashed into Violet's sternum with a sickening crunch. Violet's eyes bulged as the air exploded from her lungs, her diaphragm spasming. She staggered back, gasping, gripping her ribs. Vaana was there in an instant, her knee driving up into the midsection of the Lich's armor with bone-jarring force. The blow would have pulverized a normal person's organs. Lich merely grunted, retaliating with a vicious elbow to Vaana's temple.
The impact sent Vaana reeling, her vision exploding with stars. Blood trickled from her ear, a high-pitched ringing drowning out all other sounds. She shook her head, trying to clear the fog, only to catch another blow to the jaw that sent teeth and blood flying.
Violet recovered quickly and she darted in, her strikes a blur as she targeted the weak points in Lich's armor. Each blow was precise, calculated to maximize damage. The sound of her knuckles impacting the reinforced material echoed through the hallway, accompanied by the crunch of small bones breaking in her hand.
Vaana's style was a stark contrast – raw power tempered by experience. She weathered Lich's punishing blows, her face a mask of determination even as her left eye began to swell shut. She responded with devastating counters, each strike carrying the full weight of her body behind it.
Together, they pushed Lich back, their attacks perfectly coordinated. When Violet went high, Vaana went low. As one retreated, the other advanced. It was a deadly dance, beautiful in its violent efficiency.
But Lich was far from outmatched. She moved like smoke, slipping between their attacks with preternatural grace. Her counterstrikes were devastating, putting full force into each attack. A roundhouse kick caught Violet in the side, the crack of ribs audible even over the chaos of the fight. Violet stumbled, her breath coming in short, pained gasps as broken bone ground against itself with every movement.
The fight spilled into a nearby office, cubicle walls crumpling under the impact of thrown bodies. Violet snatched up a keyboard, swinging it in a wide arc. It shattered against Lich's helmet, keys flying in all directions, the plastic edge opening a gash on Violet's palm. Lich responded by ripping a monitor from a desk and hurling it at Vaana. Vaana ducked, the screen exploding against the wall behind her in a shower of sparks and glass.
Minutes stretched into an eternity of violence. The office became a war zone, furniture splintering under the onslaught. Blood spattered the walls, the floor becoming slippery with the mingled fluids of the combatants. The air grew thick with the metallic scent of blood and the acrid smell of fear and exertion.
Fatigue began to take its toll. Movements that had been crisp and precise grew sloppy. Defenses faltered, allowing punishing blows to land with increasing frequency. Bruises blossomed on exposed skin, deep purple and angry red marking the ferocity of the fight.
Violet caught a wild haymaker to the jaw, her head snapping back with a sickening crack. She stumbled, tasting blood, fragments of teeth mixing with the coppery fluid in her mouth. Stars danced in her vision, but she managed to drive her elbow into Lich's ribs with bone-crushing force. Lich's armor dented under the impact, but she barely seemed to notice. Her armored fist crashed into Violet's already damaged ribs, the snap of bones echoing in the room. Violet's scream of agony was cut short as the air left her lungs, her face paling as shock set in.
Vaana roared in fury, tackling Lich with reckless abandon. They crashed through a glass partition, shards slicing into exposed flesh as they tumbled to the ground. Vaana straddled Lich, raining down blows with fists already swollen and bleeding. Each impact sent shockwaves of pain up her arms, but she didn't stop. Couldn't stop. Blood and sweat stung her eyes, but she blinked it away, focused entirely on the armored figure beneath her.
Lich bucked, throwing Vaana off. In a flash, she was on her feet, hauling Vaana up by her jacket. With a feat of terrifying strength, Lich hurled Vaana across the room. Vaana slammed into a filing cabinet, the metal crumpling around her. The impact drove the air from her lungs and sent lances of pain through her back. She slumped to the floor, dazed, blood trickling from a gash on her forehead and pooling beneath her.
Violet re-entered the fray, her movements driven by an iron will. One arm hung limply at her side, broken ribs shifting with each labored breath. Blood bubbled at the corner of her mouth with each exhale. Yet she fought on, her good arm a blur as she targeted Lich's joints, seeking to disable rather than damage.
Lich caught Violet's wrist, twisting viciously. Tendons popped and tore, drawing a pained gasp from Violet. But even as her hand went numb, Violet drove her forehead into Lich's faceplate. The reinforced material cracked, spider-web fissures obscuring Lich's vision. The impact split the skin on Violet's forehead, blood streaming down her face and into her eyes.
As exhaustion set in, the fight devolved into a brutal slugfest. Technique gave way to raw determination as the three women battered each other with single-minded intensity. Their movements became sluggish, each strike telegraphed but still devastatingly powerful. Fists crashed into already bruised flesh, each impact driving grunts and gasps of pain from the combatants. Bones cracked under the relentless assault, the sickening sounds nearly drowned out by the thuds of flesh on flesh and armor.
Vaana, her left eye swollen completely shut and oozing blood, staggered towards a broken chair. She hefted it with trembling arms, swinging it wildly at Lich. The improvised weapon connected with a resounding clang, denting Lich's armor and sending her stumbling back. Something in Vaana's shoulder gave way with the impact, but she barely noticed, riding high on adrenaline and determination.
Violet, seeing an opening, grabbed a jagged piece of metal from a destroyed desk. She lunged forward, driving the makeshift weapon towards a gap in Lich's armor. But her movements were slow, hampered by injury and fatigue. Lich caught her arm, using Violet's momentum to slam her into a wall. Violet's head bounced off the hard surface with a sickening thud, leaving a smear of blood as she slid to the floor.
Seizing the moment, Lich turned her attention to Vaana. With frightening speed, she closed the distance between them. Vaana, still reeling from her previous exertion, couldn't react in time. Lich tackled her to the ground, the impact driving what little air remained from Vaana's lungs.
Straddling Vaana, Lich began a relentless assault. Her armored fists rose and fell like pistons, each blow landing with bone-crushing force. Vaana's arms came up instinctively, trying to shield her face, but Lich's punches were too powerful. The impacts reverberated through Vaana's entire body, her elbows and forearms taking damage that could pulverize bones.
Vaana's defense weakened with each punishing blow. Her arms, battered and likely fractured, began to lower. Lich, sensing victory, redoubled her efforts. Her fists found Vaana's exposed face, smashing into her jaw, her cheekbones, her nose. Blood sprayed with each impact, Vaana's features disappearing under a mask of crimson. Her head bounced off the hard floor with each punch, consciousness flickering like a candle in the wind.
Violet, barely clinging to awareness herself, saw Vaana's plight through blurry vision. With a herculean effort, she forced her battered body into motion. Ignoring the screaming agony of her broken ribs, the searing pain of torn muscles and ligaments, she launched herself at Lich.
It wasn't a graceful attack. Violet simply threw her entire weight at Lich, tackling her off Vaana. They rolled across the debris-strewn floor, a tangle of limbs and fury. Violet ended up on the bottom, and Lich wasted no time in turning her savage attention to this new target.
Now it was Violet's turn to endure Lich's onslaught. Blows rained down on her face and body, each one feeling like it might be the last her battered frame could take. Violet's vision swam, darkness encroaching at the edges. She tasted blood, felt the crunch of cartilage as her nose shattered under Lich's fist. But she couldn’t fight back, couldn’t try to defend herself.
Vaana, barely conscious, blinked blood from her one functioning eye. Through the haze of pain and fatigue, she saw Violet taking the beating meant for her. Something stirred within Vaana – a protective fury. With trembling limbs, she began to move.
Lich, so focused on Violet, didn't notice Vaana's approach until it was too late. Vaana wrapped her arms around Lich from behind, using the last reserves of her strength to haul the armored woman off Violet. They fell backward, Vaana cushioning Lich's fall and paying for it with a fresh explosion of pain through her already battered body.
But the move had its intended effect. Lich's assault on Violet was interrupted, giving her a moment to gulp in ragged breaths. Vaana, running on nothing but willpower now, locked her arms around Lich, pinning the killer's arms to her sides.
"Violet," Vaana gasped, her voice barely recognizable through swollen lips and broken teeth.
Violet, hearing Vaana's call, forced her eyes open. Everything hurt. Breathing was agony. Moving seemed impossible. But Vaana needed her. With a scream that was equal parts pain and determination, Violet rolled to her hands and knees. She crawled towards the struggling pair, each movement sending fresh waves of agony through her body.
Lich thrashed in Vaana's grip, her strength slowly breaking free. Vaana held on with grim determination, knowing that if Lich got loose, it was all over.
Violet reached them just as Lich was about to break free. Seeing the opportunity, Violet grabbed a nearby computer monitor. With a scream of pain and determination, she brought it crashing down on Lich's faceplate. The impact reverberated through the room, the monitor shattering into a thousand pieces.
For a heartbeat, all three women were still, their ragged breathing the only sound in the destroyed office. Then, slowly, painfully, Vaana began to disentangle herself from Lich. She didn't have the strength to restrain her further, to finish the fight. All they could do was put distance between themselves and the killer, hoping against hope that it would be enough.
Lich stirred, her movements sluggish but still dangerous. She rose to her knees, then to her feet, swaying unsteadily. Her armor was dented and cracked, sparks occasionally dancing across exposed circuitry. Through the shattered faceplate, one could glimpse an eye blazing with fury and begrudging respect.
Violet and Vaana leaned against each other, barely able to stand. Violet's face was a ruin of bruises and blood, one eye swollen shut, her broken nose sitting at an odd angle. Each breath was a battle against the grinding pain of her broken ribs, a wet rattle accompanying every exhale. Vaana wasn't in much better shape, her features almost unrecognizable under the swelling and blood. Her dislocated shoulder made her list to one side, and her breaths came in short, pained gasps.
For a long moment, they faced each other, the only sound was their labored breathing. The office lay in ruins around them, furniture reduced to splinters, walls pocked with impact craters. Despite their horrific injuries, despite the exhaustion that made their limbs feel like lead, each woman stood ready to continue if necessary.
Lich's voice, rough with pain and fatigue, broke the silence. "Not what I expected..."
Before anyone could move, the distant wail of sirens cut through the air. The whine of jet engines grew louder, signaling the approach of reinforcements.
Lich's head tilted, considering. Then, with a speed that belied her injuries, she turned and sprinted towards a large window. Without hesitation, she crashed through it, disappearing down into the night.
Violet and Vaana remained standing for a moment longer, as if unable to believe the fight was truly over. Then, as one, they collapsed to the floor. Their bodies trembled with exhaustion and residual adrenaline, injuries making themselves known with agonizing clarity now that the immediate danger had passed. As the sounds of approaching rescue grew louder, Violet and Vaana allowed themselves to succumb to their injuries. Consciousness faded, the world growing dim around them as their bodies finally gave in to the punishment they'd endured.
