Riley's body reacted before his mind could even understand what was happening.
The scream that tore out of him was the last response he made before everything became still.
Or maybe it was just still for him.
His body simply thumped, a violent internal jolt that felt as if his heart had been struck from the inside. The impact hit him so hard that the next sound clawing up his throat died instantly, strangled before it could escape.
His eyes dilated.
His back arched sharply.
Every muscle seized at once, locking him in place like a puppet caught mid-movement.
Then, in the next beat that never came, his heart stopped.
Silence.
Complete, horrifying silence.
The guardians rose in unison, the shock so intense that the air rippled with their mana. Of all the things that they could've foreseen happening, never did they think it would end up like this.
