Choices

Gayron towered twenty feet tall, a monstrous demon of muscle, scale, and fire. His claws, large enough to engulf my torso, wrapped around me, pinning my arms. I screamed as their razor edges shattered my cloak's protection, slicing through my dress. Long, thin lines of blood welled across my arms, back, and beneath my breasts where his claws dug into my skin. When one claw caught the edge of the sunpurge on my side, the world turned black and white, a blinding agony consuming me.

"Xiviyah!" Korra's frantic voice tore through the air haze of pain, accompanied by a sharp bark from Fable. I could feel my wolf's strength flowing into me from the bond, probably the only thing keeping me conscious.

We crashed down away from my allies, between the two armies. Gayron's claws dug deeper as we hit the ground, a small crater forming in the tundra. Flames licked across my entire body, curling the edges of my shredded dress, but they had no power against my Adaptive Resistance.