"You thought I was alone?" I try. If this goes my way, I'll only be triggering stasis. These three will live to tell what they saw. But I can use my unbound powers to make them think they’re surrounded by more students.

The earth takes a step back, head swiveling. "Come out. Cowards. Come out and fucking face us."

"Cowards?" I ask. "You're the ones who started a fight three against one. Or so you thought"

The earth forms a spike of rock in his hand and then throws it at me. Once it's in the air, it fragments into a swarm of small, piercing shards all screaming toward me.

I try to raise a shield of solid water, but I don’t have enough essence left to make it solid. It only slows the projectiles. They punch through, one cutting across my arm like a hot blade as others bite into me, drawing blood.

I hiss in pain, falling to one knee as I clutch the worst wound on my arm. Blood squeezes free, dripping to disappear into the mist.

"Enough," Typhon growls in my mind.

"Not yet," I warn. "Just keep the elementals from surprising me."

Reluctantly, Typhon continues to dart in and out of his fight with the elementals.

I feel myself automatically beginning to heal. But the power doesn't come for free. I'm already low on water, air, and fire essence. Already almost unable to perform more magic after just a few displays of power.

Unless...

"Try me one on one and I'll tell my friends to stay out of it," I shout to the earth. "You and me. Unless you think you can't take me?"

He hesitates. "Fine." With a gesture, he signals for his two friends to back off.

I pretend to motion to hidden allies in the trees.

"Clever," Typhon notes. "He is a fool for believing you, but it's clever nonetheless."

"Shocker. Malakai's people aren't exactly known for their intelligence."

And then I rush him. He fires more shards of rock my way, but I dive to the side and roll. It hurts like hell landing on tangled roots I can't see through the mist, but it's better than the alternative.

I sense Typhon battling the boar elemental through the tether, but can feel that he's toying with it and in no danger, so I put it from my mind.

I use the mist for cover, crawling on my belly toward the earth who shouts in annoyance, firing more magic blindly all around me. Dirt sprays and rock punches into the soil, but none of it finds me as I get closer.

Finally, I jump up from the mist, rapier blurring as I slip inside his guard. I could've put him in stasis, but that wasn't my goal. I just wanted to get closer. To...