"Phase two? What do you mean?" Thomas's voice came strained through the haze of clashing spells and howling roots.
"You'll see," Ludwig answered. He didn't look back. His eyes were locked on the grotesque shape writhing before him. Slowly, step by step, he began to back away from the Queen, boots crunching over splintered bark and debris scattered across the blood-slick ground. Each step felt as if it dragged a phantom weight behind it.