The Eclipse took a sharp breath, the air around him distorting with heat. His robe fluttered in the scorched wind, and his lips twisted into a sneer.
"She's more trouble than you," he muttered, eyes narrowing toward Hanari. "You might be her steel shield, Lunara… but she's the roots crawling up my legs."
His hand rose, palm facing the cracked sky. From the swirling black and gold energy at his fingertips, a spiral began to churn—slow at first, then fast, violent, chaotic. A glowing orb of Eclipse energy, the size of a boulder, formed above his head.
Hanari's head jerked toward him, eyes wide.
"Oh no—" she whispered, already pulling her arms back to summon trees, but she wasn't fast enough.
With a grunt of effort, the Eclipse hurled the massive blast at her like a comet. It screamed through the air, trailing streaks of black fire behind it.
"DIE, ROOT-WITCH!" he roared.
Hanari dove backward, slamming her palms into the dirt.
