As Aurora's beams of crimson energy streaked towards Chronos, a smirk of confidence adorned her face.
It seemed as though she had successfully caught her opponent off guard.
However, in that critical moment, something extraordinary occurred.
The pauldron on Chronos's shoulder shattered into countless intricate pieces, each one pulsating with a faint blue glow.
Vroooosh… Vrooshhh… Vrooosshhh…
These pieces swiftly zipped through the air, moving with the precision and fluidity of a flock of birds.
They twisted and turned, interconnecting with one another in a mesmerizing display of futuristic mechanics.
The interconnecting pieces formed a complex pattern, resembling a stream of armored scales in mid-air.
As the final piece locked into place, the stream solidified, transforming into a new, reinforced pauldron, gleaming with an ethereal luminescence.
