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By the time Parson was back on his feet, Damian was caught in Morgunov's shadowy grip as well. Most of Damian's body was glass, and Morgunov was holding his face with one hand and Germal's face with the other.

"Become as you were meant to be! See truth unlike you have ever known!"

Both of his old friends were screaming in agony, and so were their reapers.

Parson's most reliably powerful attack would require sacrificing most of his body, but the collateral damage might very well destroy the very people he was trying to save in the process. He had to do something else--and what came to mind in that moment was far riskier.

'Rozum,' he told Overra.

She melted out of his body for the briefest moment to deactivate pan-forma before returning to it and reactivating pan-rozum.

He wasted no time. His body divided in two, creating a second Parson.

But he doubted that would be enough. This was the Mad Demon they were dealing with. And they weren't likely to get another chance.

Parson demanded more. Difficulty be damned.

A third Parson. A fourth. A fifth. And finally, a sixth.

Six of himself. Six warriors of oxygen, manifested with pan-rozum.

It was so much information at once, overwhelming his mind even with Overra's help. But that hardly mattered now. He didn't need to know it all. He only needed to know his goal.

All six moved together. Three attacked the Mad Demon in unison directly. One grabbed Germal. One grabbed Damian. And the last stayed back, readying his most powerful attack--the same attack that he'd elected not to use with pan-forma a moment ago.

The Instant Air Burst.

As soon as the others were clear, the sixth clone would sacrifice its entire body to use it.

But Morgunov did not make it that simple, of course.