Tave scanned the sky in every direction. Up, down, around.
Demons.
They were everywhere.
His eyes swept fast, calculating. At least ten. Then sixteen. Seventeen. Twenty... twenty-five. And that was just what he could see. Each of them radiated power. Not just random scouts, these were Gaia Masters, most of them Gaia Grand Masters.
This wasn't a chase anymore.
It was a closing net.
Tave's mind ran wild, a hundred escape routes playing out in fragments. Every move, every angle, every possible opening. But each path ended the same.
Any direction he flew. They'd catch him.
Unless... they didn't want to kill them. Not yet.
Tave hovered in the open sky, wings stretched but trembling. He held Panpan close against his chest, her grip weak but steady. One arm clung around his shoulders, the other pressed to his back, her face tense as she met his gaze, silent at first.
Then slowly, she shook her head.
"Tave…" Her voice cracked as she tried to speak. "Can you…?"
