Mouthfuls of blood poured nonstop from Graham's mouth, who was unable to process what had just happened. Since Graham had awakened his pyrokinesis, there was nothing he couldn't do; power, wealth, women, he had it all, and over time that created an arrogance that prevented him from processing the notion of defeat.
Wounded pride, that arrogance built on years of standing above thousands and only below one produced a wave of anger as intense as flames, and in a moment of opportunity few can find, Graham apparently advanced to the two-star class.
In an instant, blazing fire poured from Graham like water from a broken dam, forcing Desmond to back up quickly to avoid being engulfed in flames. To many, Graham's advance would have been a spectacular sight, full of terrifying power and fury, but to Desmond, who had seen Sasha's true form on more than one occasion, Graham was nothing surprising.
