Mio
"Well?" Mori shook the boy like a stray. "Kill the core."
Mio stepped forward. The boy's eyes found hers—brown, wet, wide enough to see the whites all the way around.
She was reaching for him. Her left arm extended, fingers spread, the gauntlet leading.
When did I start doing that?
Her left hand was already around his throat. The white pearl surface caught the arena's dim light—marble finish, faint golden geometric lines running through material she'd never seen before today.
The boy clawed at the gauntlet. His nails scraped against the surface and found nothing to grip. Brown eyes shaking. Nana's age exactly.
She was squeezing. The fingers tightened on their own, the gauntlet's warmth spreading up her forearm, and the boy's kicks weakened by a fraction.
Stop.
The fingers pressed harder.
Why can't I stop?
[Trait: Lotus Heritage — Zero Hesitation]
The boy wheezed. The sound came from somewhere smaller than his chest.
