Lin stopped abruptly on a thick branch, switched to her crane, and launched not forward but backward, directly toward Kieran who was pursuing her at full speed.
The maneuver was so unexpected that Kieran had no time to change direction. His momentum carried him forward like a missile while Lin passed beneath him, using her reverse impulse to grab his transformed legs as she went by.
The additional weight and sudden trajectory change caused Kieran to lose control of his flight completely.
It was exactly what Lin had been waiting for.
She, now in her crane form, rose to kick Kieran in mid-air, and for the first time in the battle managed to connect a solid hit. Her foot, wrapped in bestial energy, impacted against the flyer's ribs with devastating force, sending him crashing toward the ground in an uncontrolled spiral.
