The guardian moved like a shadow given teeth.
Elias barely raised his axe before the creature was on him, tendrils slashing. He twisted, the blade biting into darkness but finding no flesh. The guardian laughed—a sound that was both woman and abyss—and a wave of force sent him crashing into the cavern wall. Pain exploded through his ribs, but he rolled to his feet, refusing to stay down.
"Jesus! Valdez!" he shouted. "Keep it busy!"
Jesus charged from the left, his axe cleaving through a coil of tendrils. They parted like smoke, then reformed, lashing back. Valdez opened fire with her sidearm, but the bullets passed through the guardian's body and ricocheted off the far wall. The creature didn't even flinch.
"Your weapons are meaningless," the guardian hissed. Its green eyes fixed on El
