The beast materialized beside the tank, its twenty-foot body coiling low to the ground, breath misting faintly. Without waiting, Kiara retreated back into the tank and drove left, widening the distance.
The Ice Leopard roared.
It sounded hoarse, more a rasp than a thunderous cry, yet it carried intent.
The scorpion's attention shifted.
The human presence vanished from its senses. Now it focused solely on the incoming threat.
The Ice Leopard charged forward.
Kiara's mind worked faster than the unfolding movement.
"Do not engage head-on," she transmitted through telepathy. "Circle around. Create afterimages. Confuse it. Then Rush."
The leopard obeyed instantly.
It began circling the scorpion at blistering speed, paws barely touching the ground. Its agility stat of 6.8 rendered its body into streaks of pale motion, ghostlike images multiplying in the scorpion's compound vision.
Ten seconds passed.
