Energy durability

The instant he turned back around and began walking deeper into the
ruins, the ceiling and the wall around the door cracked. A red flash of light
and savage gaseous energy came from the crack, headed for D. The time it
took D to see this and make a conscious choice of how to avoid it would be
the difference between life and death.

The impact swept D’s feet out from under him and slammed him into
the wall to his rear. Thick chunks of stone went flying, and the roar echoed
through the hall.

Now a mountain of rubble lay in front of the entrance. It would be
impossible to get into the rooms beyond without bringing in motorized
equipment.

D was on the floor, his upper body resting against the base of the wall.
The flap of his longcoat was caked white from the dust that rose from the
impact. There was no way he could move. He had taken a blast of energy
that destroyed hundreds of tons of rock in the walls and ceiling, and he had
been smashed headfirst into a stone wall. Of course, an ordinary person
would’ve been killed instantly by internal injuries alone.

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