Chapter 9: Sorcery
No one spoke for fear of provoking another attack; the only sounds came from Texeirax's argument and the occasional pained groan coming from Nick or Golden Fox. By this point, everyone was anticipating the next attack, so when Mage let out a muffled shriek, everyone turned to attention.
"Mage?" Doctor Wolf tried to get close to examine her, but before her could, Mage let out a wave of magical energy, blasting him into a nearby wall. Everyone watched Mage, dumbfounded. She didn't have a violent look to her, just a look of pain, not that different form Mr. Enter. Even the non-magic users could feel the magic power resonating from Mage. The entirety of the Rift knew not to cross Mage. She wasn't particularly violent analysts, but the power she held was greater than most analysts had ever seen. She had no Rift magic, but her own power was strong enough to send dangerous ripples through multiple layers of the Rift. Ink Rose gasped as she saw that the walls of the corridor were beginning to, for lack of a better word, melt.
"Her magic has been overloaded, she can't think clearly," Doctor Wolf explained as Mage send out another wave of energy, "Her body can't hold it, so it's forcing the access energy out."
"If she keeps going like this, she'll obliterate the corridor and us with it!" Voice said. Voice wrapped a bind of Rift magic around the corridor. It would keep it stable, but only for so long. Mage wailed, the constant flow of energy taking its toll.
"Mage!" Fire Brand called. Mage looked up, but her eyes were blood shot and void of logic. She charged, seeing nothing but another target to get rid of the massive energy. "Mage, stand down!" Fire Brand ordered, locking horns with her. He knew he would have to work fast, his magic couldn't begin to compete with hers and in such close proximity, she could incinerate him without even knowing it. Mage let out another wail as she focused on a magical blast that would wide Fire Brand out of existence.
"I said, stand down!" Fire Brand put all the physical force his body could muster into knocking Mage back. She stumbled and fell backward. Fire Brand pinned her, determined to get through to her.
"Mage listen! You power is dangerous, you have to focus or we're all finished!" Mage heard him, but his voice was quiet in her mind, his words being shouted over the ungodly humming of too much energy.
"I-I can't!" Mage managed to shout. "I don't want to hear can't! If it's stronger than you thought, fight back that much harder! Dig in your heels, grit your teeth, and give it hell! Make it work for you!" Fire Brand knew what he'd have to do if she couldn't get it under control. He'd have to go boom. It would be the only thing strong enough to bring her down. To his incredible relief, Mage's breathing began to normalize. It took everything she had and a little bit she had to borrow from Fire Brand, but Mage managed to rebuild the dam that had been knocked down, with a few leaks here and there. The corridor reconstituted itself, looking as though nothing had happened. Mage stood up, buckled, fell, and then got up again with Fire Brand's help.
"Is everything… alright?" Voice asked, watching Mage. Mage nodded, "It's under control," She said, turning to the wall, "In fact, I think I might have an idea." Mage focused some of the leaked energy on the wall. The wall broke away, revealing another passage. It was pitch black inside. "Not bad soldier." Fire Brand said as her entered the new passage.
"Is control like that even possible?" "As of a few moments ago, yes. Or at least, for the most part." "How do you mean?" "It's sort of like a placebo. Her friend convinced her she could do it, so she did. If she ever realized that she's practically being held together by duct tape and hope, that dam would come crumbling down yet again."