Tracy was surprised when Kyle caught her staff, but the reason for that surprise was different than what one might expect.
She was not surprised that Kyle managed to grab it.
She was surprised that Kyle did it in the first place.
He had done that before in the past, and every single time, it ended badly for him.
An experienced Fighter like Tracy naturally knew that her weapon was prone to being grabbed by an enemy, and she had ways to deal with it.
Water Ether gathered around her staff, and she pushed forward.
This technique made her staff incredibly slippery.
In the past, Kyle had caught the staff with confidence, but moments later, it just slipped through his fingers, and Tracy had poked one of his eyes.
If she had been intent on killing him, she would have succeeded.
Tracy pushed her staff forward.
At that moment, a bit of Metal Ether appeared around Kyle's hand.
Tracy pushed.
But her staff didn't move.