Erend could feel it now without a doubt that this enemy was powerful. Not the usual kind of strong. Not the kind he could overwhelm with brute force or raw flame like always. This was different.
Usually, even when facing something new, some monstrous creature or unknown sorcerer, he remained calm and confident. Because deep down, he always knew that his Dragonborn power would carry him through.
He had faced horrors and walked through them still breathing.
But this vine-clad woman wrapped in fire? She was something else. She knew about Dragonborns. Her words had weight and history about his kind that even he himself didn't have. She had fought his kind and defeated them.
This wasn't a fight he could coast through. Not this time. He couldn't afford arrogance or carelessness.
"This one's strong, Eccar. Be serious," Erend sent a quick telepathic message to Eccar, his tone sharper than usual.
Then he charged.
---
