The frozen arena shimmered with a cold, pale light. Khione stood at its center, her wand raised, her expression as still as the ice around her. Three demonized mages faced her, their forms twisted into monstrous shapes—a scarab with chitinous armor, a mantis with blades for arms, a lizard whose scales gleamed with heat. They were Adept-level, their power crude but potent. They had been sent to kill her. They would fail.
Khione did not wait for them to attack. She raised her wand, and ice erupted from the ground, a forest of jagged spears that shot toward the scarab. The creature raised its arms, chitinous plates forming a shield, but the spears pierced through, forcing it back. The mantis lunged, its scything blades aimed at her throat. She sidestepped, her movement fluid, unhurried, and a wall of ice rose between them. The blades struck the wall and skidded off, leaving deep gouges.
