PATIENT ZERO -The lone survivor
There was only profound, terrifying shock.
"You broke the shield," Malik whispered, his voice lacking the booming, atmospheric resonance it usually carried. He touched his bleeding face, staring at his crimson-stained fingertips in absolute disbelief.
"I broke your jaw," Baraka rasped, his voice barely a croak, maintaining his deep front stance despite the agonizing tremor in his thighs. "I told you, Malik. You have to go through me."
Malik looked at the teenager. He saw the shattered arm. He saw the cold sweat pouring down Baraka’s face, and he recognized the symptoms of extreme, terminal Caloric Debt. Baraka had burned decades of his own lifespan in a single, devastating punch.