The Duel Begins
Leon activated Shell Reverb: Echo of Origin, then instantly layered Karmic Loop to counter the ambient disruptions from the Harmonia Crater's field.
Garridan struck first—not with a blade, but with a wave of controlled vibration, conducted through a downward slash of his baton.
The air crashed like a giant bell had been struck.
Leon barely deflected the sound using a redirected echo pulse, but the tremor knocked him back two steps. His body tingled. Tempo Lock was trying to destabilize him already.
"Keep your rhythm," Garridan warned. "The Tower doesn't forgive stuttered climbers."
Leon smiled through the pressure. "Good. Neither do I."
He charged forward, using Tripart Echo in a burst—three attacks, one real, two from stored rhythm.
But Garridan didn't block. He conducted.
