Liliana raised both hands, summoning a stream of water that coiled around its legs, slowing it. Ethan dashed forward, blade igniting in fire, cutting across its chest, the flames hissed against the wet bark, but the creature didn't flinch.
Elara struck next, a blur of motion, her spear spinning in a deadly arc that pierced through the construct's chest. For a moment, light erupted, and then it went still, collapsing into fragments that dissolved into the soil.
Silence returned. Only the hiss of disturbed water remained.
Merlin exhaled. "That thing was a defense mechanism. Means the relic's close."
Elara withdrew her spear, flicking droplets from the tip. "Then dig faster."
Half an hour later, after clearing the silt and debris, they found it, a crystalline core, small enough to fit in both hands, faintly pulsing with blue light.
Nathan crouched beside it, impressed. "Looks like the real deal."
Liliana smiled faintly. "So we win?"
