Lynn staggered, blood tracing an arc through the air.
Her composure shattered and her sword vanished into dancing embers, the blazing wall of Flame dissipating into a hazy mirage of latent heat.
She collapsed to one knee, gasping for breath, one hand on her chest. Crimson bloomed across her white shirt, and Damian saw her hand come away from her breast, sticky and red.
"You son of a bitch," Damian snarled, rounding on Cardinal. He found his feet in an instant, and marched forward to confront his other self. "She has nothing to do with this fight—leave her out of this!"
"That's rich, coming from you," Cardinal sneered. His upper lip curled in disgust. "You can stand there and spout all the pretty words you want, but you're such a damned fool, you know that?"
"You think I need you to tell me that?!"
