The next scream wasn't far. Female. Too close to mistake for background.
Lucen glanced left.
Half the block was chaos now. A sedan flipped over the divider. Steam hissed from a cracked spellcore under its hood.
Civilians ran uneven lines, some bolting through open shop doors, others just crouching behind parked bikes like that would stop anything with claws.
A teenage girl tripped by the hydrant.
Her friend, a stocky kid in a school uniform, hauled her up with both hands, but his stance was shaky. She was crying. Loud. Messy. The kind of crying that didn't sound like words anymore.
Lucen didn't run to them.
Just shifted his angle. Casual.
'Two of them flanking. That one by the alley wants an easy cut.'
A blur to the right. Another creature was skittering low along the pavement wall. Four limbs. Jaws twitching.
Lucen lifted a finger mid-stride. Quick line. No theatrics.
[Shockweave Bolt]
