Rosa reacted to Jade's cue with impeccable timing, leaping into the air just as Jade called out. To her astonishment, the world around her transformed into a perilous forest of water spears, each freezing into solid ice the instant the frigid wind touched them. She wove through the deadly maze, each spear missing her by the slimmest margin, her movements as graceful as they were urgent.

With the agility of a seasoned fighter, she landed lightly upon an ice pillar, her footing sure despite the slick surface.

In that same breath, Rosa caught sight of Oscar's blade soaring through the air. Jade's voice pierced the tense air once more, "Grab it now and throw it over to Oscar!" The urgency was palpable, the command clear.

Startled by the trajectory of the weapon, Rosa sprang up again, her body coiled with the energy of necessity. She caught the sword mid-air, a feat that spoke of her reflexes and combat awareness. Without hesitation, she hurled the blade towards Oscar, her throw precise and powerful.

Meanwhile, Jade was battling her own limits, the energy drain taking a toll on her physical capabilities. She threw herself to the side, still unable to stand, as an ice pillar whizzed perilously close. It grazed her cheek, a shallow cut blossoming with blood, a stark red against her pale skin. Exclusive content from m,v lem|p,yr

With a sense of finality, Jade grasped the cross strapped to her back and hurled it towards Rosa. "Throw it directly at that ugly-ass creature with everything you have, and get ready to restrain him one more time," she instructed, her voice a mix of desperation and determination.

Rosa, despite the confusion and weariness etched into her features, caught Jade's cross. The weight of responsibility settled upon her as she nodded, understanding the gravity of Jade's request. With a heave that summoned the last of her strength, she launched the cross high over the ice pillars.

It soared, a small beacon of hope, over the head of the creature who was still surveying the aftermath of his assault, oblivious to the counterstrike being mounted against him.

The creature, momentarily preoccupied with its premature victory, was taken aback upon realizing the humans' resilience. A muttered curse escaped its lips as it clutched the gaping wound in its chest. "I will have to retreat?" The thought was a bitter pill, its pride wounded as much as its body.

However, before it could act on its retreat, Jade's rallying cry pierced the battlefield. "Let's end this, Oscar!" she shouted, her hands coming together in a final bid to pool her remaining energy. In a blink, she vanished, only to reappear in the trajectory of the thrown cross.

Clutching onto that memory, Jade found a semblance of resolve. "Ty could handle this!" she thought fiercely, the determination to withstand the pain echoing Ty's endurance. Despite her skin blistering from the burn, she steeled herself

As the creature lunged forward, aiming its ice spear at Jade, the battlefield was suddenly engulfed in an intense blue flame. Rosa's voice, powerful and commanding, filled the air with determination. "BINDING WEBS!! BLUE NOVA!!" she yelled, invoking her most potent spells.

In an instant, the blue flames, far hotter than any ordinary fire, engulfed everything in their vicinity, including the creature's ice spear. This unexpected turn of events caught the creature off guard, as the intense heat began to melt and weaken its weapon, rendering it increasingly fragile under the scorching embrace of the blue inferno.

Seizing this crucial moment, Jade, with all her might, thrust the sword into the weakening spear. The blade, empowered by Rosa's spell, sliced the ice spear in half with precision.

Using the momentum of her descent, Jade spun, aligning herself perfectly at chest level with the creature. Her continued momentum was key; it allowed her to swing the sword upwards, targeting the creature's neck in a fluid, lethal arc.

The creature's response was a desperate, anguished scream of "NOOO" as it tried to recoil.

However, Jade's attack, although it didn't completely sever the head, inflicted significant damage.

In the creature's moment of vulnerability, a strong gust of wind erupted, altering the course of events dramatically.

Jade felt the wind's force against her back, propelling her forward. The blade slipped from her grasp, and both she and the creature were caught in the tempest's pull. The wind, almost sentient in its timing, flung Jade into the very portal the creature had opened for its escape.

As both fell into the portal's opening, Jade realized the gravity of her action—the damage was indeed done, but the wind's intervention had thrown them both into an unknown fate beyond the creature's intended path of retreat.