The journey south proved more treacherous than anticipated. The once-bustling streets were now a maze of abandoned vehicles and debris, with thick snow concealing hazards beneath. Undead emerged sporadically from derelict buildings and snowdrifts, drawn to the presence of the living.
Zephyr maintained his characteristic silence in the passenger seat, yet his mere presence carried more weight than words. Like the eye of a storm, he projected an aura of contained devastation. Any undead approaching within ten meters of the vehicle were instantly shredded by an invisible, razor-sharp force that compressed and sliced through both air and space. They disintegrated before managing even a single growl - a display of efficiency that was both impressive and chilling.
From the backseat, Elara observed Zephyr's "performance" with quiet calculation. His effortless crowd control surpassed any similar ability she'd encountered in her previous life. Rising to the challenge, she extended her space-time abilities to their limit.
Under intense mental focus, her perception expanded beyond physical boundaries. Time seemed to stretch and fragment, revealing the undead's movements in slow motion, their vulnerabilities - typically heads or spinal columns - glowing like beacons to her enhanced senses. Her modified Glock 19 spoke with precision, each bullet finding its mark through impossible trajectories, eliminating threats that tried to slip past Zephyr's perimeter. One shot, one kill - her silent demonstration of value to both Zephyr and Cassian.
Seraphina proved equally formidable, having evolved far beyond the schoolmate who once needed Elara's guidance. Standing through the sunroof, her red hair blazing against the winter wind, she wielded fire with masterful control. Crimson flames condensed between her palms before launching as precise fireballs that erupted into infernos, enhanced by her special accelerant. The crackling explosions cleared entire streets, showcasing her growing power.
Through a space-time beacon Elara had placed earlier, Vespera's influence reached them from the villa. After Seraphina's flames swept through, surviving undead would suddenly turn sluggish or attack each other - evidence of the young girl's remote control abilities providing crucial support.
Throughout this efficient display, Cassian stood quietly in a corner of the vehicle, hands casual in his pockets, wearing his characteristic subtle smile. He neither attacked nor directed, simply observing with apparent detachment.
After Elara precisely eliminated another agile undead attempting a flanking attack, she caught Cassian's eye. His gaze held approval and intrigue, and his smile carried an inexplicable sense of reassurance that momentarily loosened the tension in her battle-ready stance.
The sudden feeling of security caught Elara off-guard. Her heart skipped a beat as she quickly looked away, fingers absently tracing her weapon's cold surface. Her instincts, usually reliable, suggested this unexpected comfort was no coincidence. What lay beneath Cassian's composed exterior? Was his current passivity born of confidence or concealed purpose?
Her intuition screamed that this man held crucial secrets - potentially great opportunity or dangerous depths. And she found herself being drawn inexorably toward that unknown future, pulled by an invisible force she couldn't yet understand.
The Jeep stopped outside an abandoned industrial park at the city's edge. What was once likely a factory's loading area now stood desolate, with only a few skeletal buildings rising against the snowy backdrop. The ground here was covered with a thin layer of snow, in stark contrast to the thick accumulation elsewhere.
"Something's wrong with the snow," Zephyr broke the prolonged silence, his pale blue eyes keenly scanning the ground, his deep voice carrying absolute certainty.
Cassian's brows furrowed slightly as he focused on their surroundings. "The ground temperature here seems higher than elsewhere. The snow's melting faster."
Alarm bells rang in Elara's mind. Such environmental anomalies often signaled hidden dangers. She immediately extended her space-time sensing abilities to their limits, her mental energy spreading out like invisible tendrils.
Almost the instant she became alert, chaos erupted!
From beneath the seemingly peaceful snow, dozens of dark green vines burst forth like coiled vipers! These powerful tendrils, tipped with metallic-gleaming barbs, launched simultaneous attacks at Elara, Seraphina, Cassian, and Zephyr, who stood at the perimeter.
"Watch out!" Seraphina cried, swiftly conjuring a barrier of flames before her.
Cassian and Zephyr moved in perfect synchronization with the vines' appearance!
Zephyr maintained his characteristic stoic expression, but the air around him turned violent. Countless wind blades materialized, forming a high-speed rotating wheel that shredded several vines to pieces, sending green fluid and vine fragments flying. His movements were simple but devastatingly efficient.
Cassian's style was entirely different. Though not as physically imposing as Zephyr, his movements were incredibly agile and graceful. Rather than meeting the vines head-on, he leaped backward with feather-like lightness, simultaneously conjuring a concentrated water blade that struck precisely at the vines' weakest joints. Every motion displayed raw power and rhythm, his lean yet muscular frame demonstrating remarkable coordination and explosive force in both evasion and counterattack, creating a visually stunning display of brutal elegance.
Watching Cassian's movements, Elara's heart skipped a beat as an overwhelming sense of familiarity washed over her. That fighting style, those fluid attacking patterns... she had seen them before, in a deeply memorable scenario! But there was no time to dwell on this as the thickest vine whipped toward her face with a whistling sound!
"Elara!" Seraphina's alarmed voice rang out.
In the critical moment, Elara had no time to draw her weapon. Focusing entirely on the rapidly approaching vine, her space-time abilities erupted with unprecedented intensity! Acting purely on instinct with a single thought—cut it!
A barely perceptible spatial resonance sounded—"hum—"
The space before Elara seemed to twist momentarily, as if distorted by an invisible hand. The aggressive vine abruptly and silently split in two less than half a meter from her face! The cut surface was mirror-smooth, as if sliced by the sharpest laser.
Elara herself was stunned. While she knew her spatial abilities included cutting power, she had never executed such an effortless, precise, and powerful spatial slash before! She could feel her power breaking through some invisible barrier, becoming more concentrated and powerful. Was this... a sign of advancement? Or was it triggered by the life-threatening situation?
Despite her excitement, she quickly realized this wasn't the time to analyze her changes. She needed to conceal this sudden power surge from Cassian and Zephyr. She immediately composed herself and refocused on the battle.
The fight rapidly intensified. These mutant vines clearly possessed some intelligence—after their initial ambush failed, they quickly changed tactics, using their numerical advantage to encircle the group. More vines erupted from the ground, weaving a green net in an attempt to trap them.
However, Elara's group's coordination improved continuously. Zephyr handled large-scale elimination, his wind blades acting like a relentless meat grinder. Seraphina's flames created chaos and burned the thicker vines that resisted the wind blades. Elara, with her keen space-time perception and increasingly sharp spatial cutting ability, precisely eliminated the most threatening targets and attacks from unexpected angles. Cassian moved along the battle's edges, his water blades alternating between fierce and gentle, always neutralizing crises at crucial moments or creating attacking opportunities for others.
Though intense, they maintained control of the battle. Soon, the aggressive vines were reduced to scattered pieces, with green fluid and severed segments littering the ground. Seemingly realizing their disadvantage, the few remaining main vines began violently shaking before suddenly retracting underground, attempting to escape using their previous burrowing strategy.
"Trying to escape?" Elara scoffed, highly concentrating her mental energy.
She pushed forward with one hand, sending out invisible waves. When the retreating vines hit Elara's spatial barrier, they bounced back as if striking an invisible wall, producing dull impact sounds.
The thickest vine, clearly the central one, appeared to lose all energy after several futile attempts to break through. It lay limply on the ground, its once-fierce barbs drooping pathetically, emanating an air of defeated sullenness.
Elara approached and grabbed the main vine, lifting it from the snow like an oversized disobedient earthworm. These mutant vines, it seemed, were nothing but bullies who crumbled when faced with real resistance.