Without giving June a heartbeat to react, Max lunged forward, moving with such explosive speed that the forest itself seemed to blur around him. His blue-lightning-infused fist smashed into her midsection like the wrath of a raging thunder god.
Bang!
The impact detonated with a sound like the heavens themselves splitting open. June's body folded around his fist, spit and blood spraying from her lips as the shockwave tore through the trees, uprooting them and sending splinters flying like lethal rain. Her form shot backward in a screaming blur, carving a deep trench through the ground as she went.
Yet before she could even tumble to a stop, Max's figure vanished in a flicker of shimmering distortion, only to reappear directly in the path of her hurtling body. His hand extended, fingers spreading apart as space itself seemed to ripple and freeze around him.
