As if responding to the challenge, both bracelets pulsed with synchronised energy. I felt power flowing through me, heightening my awareness of everything—the twins' controlled breathing, the subtle shift of earth beneath Marcus's feet as he prepared to lunge, the energy signatures of Dean and Carter silently taking position at the garden's perimeter.
"You always did talk too much," I observed calmly.
Marcus's face contorted with fury as he launched himself forward, claws extended. I side-stepped with a grace that surprised even me, the bracelets guiding my movements with preternatural precision. His claws sliced through empty air as I pivoted, the shadow bracelet darkening as I called on its power.
Shadows seemed to thicken around my hands, solidifying into something tangible that I in
