Lorelai's spear crackled with crimson lightning as she met Daven’s charge, their weapons colliding in a flash of energy. Sparks erupted, casting flickering shadows across the battlefield. Daven's sword, wreathed in dark, swirling energy, parried her blows with precision, but Lorelai’s strikes grew faster and more deliberate. It seemed strange that the energy surrounding his sword was dark, when he had already shown wind-type magic abilities.

“You’re holding back, Lorelai,” Daven taunted, his voice dripping with smug amusement. “Afraid to hurt me? Or maybe you’re afraid of what I’ll do if I catch you?”

Lorelai’s jaw tightened. “Don't you dare try to toy with me,” she growled, pivoting sharply to deliver a sweeping strike aimed at his midsection. Her lightning-infused spear left trails of crackling energy in its wake. Daven dodged, the air warping slightly as he stepped just out of range.

He retaliated with a flurry of strikes, his blade slashing through the air with unnatural speed. Lorelai deflected each attack, but she noticed his movements were more than aggressive; they were invasive. A grazing strike aimed at her side tore through the fabric of her tunic, exposing her shoulder. Another swing cut dangerously close to her thigh.

Daven’s grin widened as he pressed the attack. “Oops. Looks like your outfit wasn’t built to last,” he sneered. “Don’t worry, I prefer this view.”

Lorelai’s eyes blazed with fury, and she unleashed a surge of lightning in response, forcing Daven to leap backward. “You disgust me,” she spat, the ground beneath her beginning to tremble.

The air grew heavier as Lorelai activated her gravity magic. Daven stumbled slightly, his smug confidence wavering as the invisible force pressed down on him. Lorelai didn’t give him a moment to recover; she lunged forward, her spear thrusting with blinding speed.

Daven barely managed to block the attack, but the force of the impact sent him skidding backward. “Impressive,” he admitted, his breath coming in shallow gasps. “I’m not the leader of the team for no reason.”

With a wave of his hand, the barrier around them seemed to twist, the winds intensifying. They howled like a living entity, whipping around Lorelai and obscuring her vision. She could barely see in front of her face. She stabbed her spear into the ground to steady herself, her lightning clad spear a beacon within the obscurity.

“You can’t hide behind your tricks forever!” Lorelai shouted, her voice carrying over the roar of the wind.

From Daven had wrapped his arms around her, groping her within the swirling chaos, his blade aimed at her neck while he copped a feel. Lorelai lightning exploded around her in resonance with her anger. Daven was forced to retreat but her spear arched upward in a wild slash. The tip grazed his arm, drawing a line of blood, his armed hung limpy at his side for a moment as the paralysis too effect.

“You’ll pay for that,” Daven snarled, his tone losing its playful edge. He lunged again, this time aiming low. Lorelai jumped, making herself lighter using gravity magic to enhance her leap, and retaliated with a downward strike. The spear’s lightning-coated tip struck his dark coated blade sending a shockwave that rippled outward.

Daven was knocked off his feet, but he recovered quickly, a sly grin spreading across his face. “You’re putting on quite the show, Lorelai,” he said, his eyes roving over her form. “I could watch you all day.”

Her grip tightened on the spear. “Enough,” she said coldly. Her mana surged as she prepared her most powerful spell. Crimson lightning coiled around her, forming crimson wings of energy that hovered above her like a living entity.

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“Lightning Animus,” she intoned, her voice resonating with power. The scarlet thunderbird screeched to life, diving toward Daven with blinding speed. He barely managed to throw up a barrier of wind, but the Animus crashed into it, shattering the shield and sending him sprawling.

Daven groaned as he hit the ground, his body skidding to a halt against the gnarled roots of a tree. Blood trickled from a cut on his cheek, but his grin remained. He pushed himself to his feet, swaying slightly as he glared at Lorelai. "So fiery, so untouchable," he rasped, wiping the blood away with the back of his hand. "It just makes me want you more."

Lorelai didn’t respond. She stood tall, her spear humming with electricity, and her crimson lightning animus coiled protectively around her. The thunderbird's glowing eyes locked onto Daven, its form pulsating with raw power.

"Still putting up a fight, I see," he continued, his tone regaining a shred of smugness. "I’ll admit, I underestimated you. Though you can’t keep this up forever, Lorelai. We both know you’re running out of stamina. And when you do..." He took a step forward, his tongue dragging along the length of his sword. "I’ll make you mine, piece by piece."

The scarlet thunderbird crackled in response to her fury. Lorelai lunged forward, her spear thrusting with deadly precision. Daven dodged to the side, but the animus followed, diving at him like a predator chasing prey. He spun away, summoning a vortex of wind to buffer the attack, but it wasn’t enough. The animus struck again, and again, each blow breaking through his defenses and leaving his movements more sluggish.

“Stop running!” Lorelai shouted, her voice echoing with power. “Face me!”

Daven chuckled breathlessly, staggering backward. "You think you’re so righteous, so pure," he sneered. "But I see through you, Lorelai. Beneath all that power, you’re just like everyone else—afraid, weak, needy. Why else would you flaunt yourself like that? You wanted my attention from the start."

She froze for a fraction of a second, his words dripping with venomous insinuation. Her expression hardened. "You’re projecting, Daven. Whatever twisted fantasy you’ve created, it’s all in your head."

"Oh, is it?" he said, darting forward. He aimed another strike at her midsection, but she deflected it, countering with a thrust of her spear. He twisted away, his hand brushing against her leg as he did so, deliberately lingering longer than necessary. "Your power excites me, Lorelai. It makes this little game even more... stimulating."

Lorelai’s face twisted with disgust. [Oppression] She unleashed a burst of gravity magic, slamming Daven to the ground with enough force to crack the earth beneath him. He gasped as the air was knocked from his lungs, but his grin never wavered.

“Still playing hard to get,” he rasped, trying to push himself up. “I love it.”

Lorelai raised her spear, its tip crackling with concentrated lightning. The animus flared behind her, its wings spreading wide as it let out a deafening screech. "You won’t love this," she said coldly, her voice devoid of emotion.

The crimson thunderbird shot forward, its body a streak of searing energy. Daven raised his hand, summoning a swirling barrier of wind, but it was too late. The animus collided with him, shattering the barrier and engulfing him in a torrent of electricity. He screamed as the lightning tore through his body, his twisted grin finally replaced by a look of sheer agony.

When the light faded, Daven lay sprawled on the ground, smoke rising from his battered form. His sword had been flung from his grasp, and his body twitched uncontrollably from the residual electricity coursing through him. He tried to speak, but no sound came out.

Lorelai approached slowly, her spear still imbued with power. She stood over him, her expression unyielding. "You’ll never touch me—or anyone else—again," she said, her voice like ice.

Daven’s eyes fluttered shut, his body finally succumbing to unconsciousness. The crimson animus dissipated into the air, leaving behind a faint crackle of static. Lorelai let out a slow breath, her spear striking true to the base of his neck, the battlefield fell into complete silence. She turned away, her gaze fixed on the edge of the barrier which had already started to dissipate upon Daven's demise. The distant sounds of battle flooded back in, grounding her in the reality of the fight she had escaped.

She tightened her grip on her spear and stepped forward. This wasn’t over yet, Daven was finished but the boss remained.