Mage War

Chapter Thirty-Six: High Mage Eldor

Th’ul runs with me as the High Mage chases us. My breath heaves as I leave the stadium and run down the plain, Fireballs landing next to me. I should never have picked a fight with Eldor. The High Mage is just too strong with magic and I tested him. I’ll be lucky if I survive.

Th’ul whispers something under his breath, and suddenly, I can run faster, lighter on my feet. Looking at him, I mouth the words thank you and keep sprinting.

A Fireball lands on the ground a few feet in front of me and I’m flung back, groaning.

“Come on!” Th’ul helps me up. “We need to leave!”

As I get up, Th’ul sends a couple of blue Fireballs at the High Mage. When they reach him, they disperse, turning into bolts of lightning. None of them touch Eldor, his shield being too strong. Instead, they just evaporate.

“He’s too strong,” I tell Th’ul. “How are we supposed to defeat him?”

“We’re not,” Th’ul responds. “We just have to survive until we get help.”

The ground lurches and heaves up. I scream in fear as I’m thrown into the air by the dirt, Th’ul coming with me. We fly for almost ten seconds, and for a while, it feels exhilarating. Then gravity takes care of us. We fall down, crashing into the ground far enough from the High Mage to rest for a few seconds.

Everything hurts. Somehow, I didn’t break anything, but my back feels like a horse ran over it, and I think I’m bleeding from my mouth a little. Th’ul looks okay. Knowing him, he probably was able to arrest his fall a little.

High Mage Eldor is coming after us, and I need to move. Standing up feels impossible, though, not unless I have some sort of help.

Th’ul picks me up and slings me over his back.

“I can’t do this for long,” He says, gritting his teeth. “So when you’re ready to run, just tell me.”

I feel his shield was over me too, and I lay my head on his chest. High Mage Eldor could probably destroy the shield, but for now, Th’ul is protecting me. I am heavy, though, so High Mage Eldor is still catching up to us.

In the distance, I spy the forest. If we can reach it, we might be able to escape the High Mage, at least for a while.

“Put me down,” I tell Th’ul. “I can go the rest of the way.”

As soon as I’m on my feet, I take off. Every step is painful, but I need to do this, or else I’ll die. Small shards of ice erupt from the ground, some of them piercing me, but I grit my teeth and walk on.

We’re still almost a hundred feet from the forest, but at this rate, we might reach it before he catches up.

That is, until I hit the boundary. Something invisible pushes me back and I land on my ass.

“Damn it,” Th’ul curses. “He’s put up a boundary. We need to find a way around it.”

He begins to run to the side, and while he does so, he turns to me.

“Run the other way. He’s going to be expanding the boundary my way and won’t expect you. Go. I’ll meet you in the forest!”

I smile at him softly.

Thank you.

I take off, sprinting to the side, touching the invisible boundary as I do so. Eventually, it tapers off and I run for the forest. From the corner of my eye, I see High Mage Eldor catch up to Th’ul. I want to help, but I don’t think I’d be able to do anything.

Th’ul will have to take care of himself.

Closing my eyes, I take a step into the forest. I’m much safer now, but I still need to find somewhere to hide.

I take a path to the left, not a man-made one, or else that would be too obvious. Leaves crunch as I walk slowly, trying to minimize the noise I make. Sounds of magic and fire erupt from beyond the forest, but I ignore it. The crowd in the arena cheers for something, and, for once, I wish they would just shut up. I need to be able to hear if anyone is coming.

The sounds of magic cease.

I hold my breath. Whatever happened, they are done fighting. EIther Th’ul will come to find me, or the High Mage will come to kill me.

Or both.

I hide behind a tree, searching the area for anyone, hoping, praying that Th’ul made it out alive.

Snap.

My eyes widen. There’s somebody here. Already? Did I not go in far enough to escape the Cultist? Slowly, carefully, silently, I unsheathe my sword. I need to prepare for the worst.

A silhouette comes into view about fifteen feet away. I still can’t tell who it is.

The form gets closer. I swing with my sword…

And stop it an inch away from Th’ul’s head.

“Why are you trying to kill me?” He whispers.

“Sorry,” I chuckle. “Just making sure.” Sheathing my sword, I look at him. “So, should we go deeper?”

“Yes,” Th’ul nods. “But not too deep. If anyone comes to help us, we need to be able to be found.”

“Doesn’t that mean it’ll be easier for Eldor to find us?”

“Oh, for sure,” He replies. “But we’re not taking him down on our own. This is a risk we must take.”

I think for a minute, then two, then three. I nod.

“Let’s go.”

“This way,” Th’ul tells me, forking right.

“Have you been here before?” I ask.

“Several times,” He replies. “I’ve been everywhere.”

“I was starting to think the same thing myself,” I tell him.

We fall silent as we continue to walk the forest, listening for any suspicious noises. All I can hear right now are the birds and the deer somewhere in the forest, and the crunch of my feet on the floor. I’ve never been a very stealthy person, so I expected that, but every crunch still makes me wince. Th’ul, obviously, doesn’t make a sound.

A Fireball lights up the air fifty feet away. I gasp, looking at Th’ul, who nods.

“We need to move faster,” He says.

“I KNOW YOU’RE THERE,” A voice screams from the distance. “YOU CAN HIDE BUT YOU WON’T LAST FOREVER.”

“We just have to wait until Yue notices we’re gone,” I mumble. “Just a few more minutes.”

Another fireball whizzes nearby.

I scan the area for any cores. Because of my inexperience, I can only see for about thirty or forty feet. If High Mage Eldor tries this, then…

I duck as a Fireball whizzes where my head had just been.

“He’s found us,” Th’ul says. “Run!”

We take off together, which I’m not sure is the smartest idea, but right now, I need to be by Th’ul’s side. He knows the forest better than I do.

I hear crashing sounds around the forest, and turning back, I gape. HIgh Mage Eldor is ten feet tall now, and his mouth breathes fire. I feel a well of despair in my soul.

How are we supposed to survive that?

Th’ul pulls me to go faster as High Mage Eldor throws a tree, landing a good way away, but the more he throws, the more danger we’re in.

“Come on, Yue,” I whisper. “We need you now.”

Another tree is thrown, landing just shy of where Th’ul had just been. He grits his teeth and keeps running, enforcing himself with his magic.

Third time’s the charm. The third tree lands on Th’ul’s legs, and he yells, falling to the ground, pinned by the tree.

I can’t help him; I’m not strong enough to lift the tree. But I’m not leaving him either.

Eldor roars at us, sending a pillar of fire towards me, and I’m too late to stop it. Reaching his hand, Th’ul redirects the fire, engulfing a tree nearby in flames.

“I’m spent,” Th’ul tells me. “I don’t think I can do any more.”

This is it, then. My final stand. I unsheathe my sword. Eldor laughs, and digs another tree out from its roots.

“YOU THINK YOU CAN STOP ME?” He roars, flinging the tree. I suck underneath it, sliding closer to him. I feel a wave of unfamiliar magic over me, Eldor trying to kill me, but my shield blocks it, although it’s growing weak.

I charge at the High Mage, murder in my eyes. I’m about to reach him when a gust of wind blows me back, sending me against a tree, and I fall backwards, vision blurry. Eldor advances on me, smiling; he knows he’s won.

As soon as he reaches me, I attempt to hit him, filing my arms and legs around. But I’m too weak now. Eldor prepares to punch me with what I’m sure is a killing blow. His fist descends…

“High Mage Eldor!” A voice calls from behind us. Weakly, I grin at High Mage Aegon.

“Aegon!” Eldro snarls. “What are you doing here?”

“Stopping you!” The other Mage responds. “What you are doing is illegal and irresponsible.”

“The boy deserves to be punished!”

“We all decided he would not be. You cannot take matters into your own hands. Yours is not the arm of justice, Eldor. If you do this, you will be stripped and forcefully Burned.”

Eldor turns his back to High Mage Aegon. “Watch me,” He growls.

A Fireball forms in his fist and it descends towards me. I close my eyes, but nothing happens. Opening them, I find my High Mage friend standing over me.

“Eldor!”He booms. “You will stop right now.”

Eldor finally seems to realize that this is worthless, that he cannot win the battle. He spins around and begins to walk away.

“This isn’t over, Zade,” He tells me. “You will be punished.”

As soon as he’s gone, High Mage Aegon turns to me, concern in his eyes.

“Are you okay?” He asks.

“Th’ul,” I point. Turning, the High Mage sees the trunk of the tree sitting atop my friend. Th’ul is unconscious now. The High Mage flicks a wrist and the tree rolls off Th’ul.

“He’ll be okay,” Aegon tells me. “What happened?”

“We were together like you said,” I tell him. “But he still attacked us. We were too weak. How did you find me?”

“Well, Yue found me,” Aegon responds. “She told me you were missing for too long, and that I should look for you. Seems like I arrived just in time.” I nod, grateful.

“Emm,” Th’ul groans, coming awake. “We’re alive? High Mage Aegon? Thank you, sir.”

“No problem,” The mage responds. “We should go back to the Arena now.”

Standing up, he leads us out of the forest. Th’ul and I are limping, but Th’ul has it worse off, his torso covered in blood.

As we leave the forest, a whizzing noise comes from behind me. I’m too late, and I watch as the dagger speed towards my back.

Aegon catches it with ease and throws it away.

“Coward,” he spits. “I don’t think he’ll try that again. We need to return now.”

— — —

As soon as Aster sees us, her face pales.

“Oh my Gods!” She shrieks. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean…”

“It’s okay,” I reassure her, “it wasn’t your fault. And we’re okay. Just need to take a little break.”

“Are you sure?” Yue asks. I nod. “Good. My second fight of the day is coming up. I wouldn’t want you to miss it.”

“Where’s Xavier?” I wonder. “With Skai.”

“Yes,” Alyx responds, and I roll my eyes. “But they are looking for you. He’ll be glad you’re back.”

“What happened?” Sia asks.

I give Yue a pointed look, asking if I can tell her. Yue bites her lip. In the end, she takes initiative.

“Sia, we’re talking about things that are very dangerous. We don’t know if we should involve you. Also, we don’t really know you for that long. I’m sorry.”

“That’s okay,” Sia tells her. “I’ll earn your trust.”

“Exactly,” Yue responded.

“Zade, you missed the greatest match of the day,” Neena exclaimed. “You should’ve seen it. I had never seen the man before, but he’s from Mremba and he took down this woman. It was insane. From what I heard, yesterday, the man stayed in the shadows. He’s had two games today, and both times, he demolished his opponents. He might just be the best one here.”

“Oh, come on,” Alyx interjected. “Better than me? But you are right. I am worried about him. And I know he’ll still have a match today. I’m hoping it’s not me.”

“I CALL TO THE RING YUE ZHANG AND GEORGI HERLOW!” The Wolf booms.

“Oh, that’s the one I fought,” Aster said. “Shouldn’t be too hard for you.”

“I’ll be back soon,” Yue winks.

Xavier finally comes back from looking for me. He’s dejected, but as soon as he sees me, his face lights up and he rushes towards me.

“You’re okay!” He exclaims. “What happened?”

I fill him in and he scowls.

“I can’t believe they would do that,” He growls. “They’ve gone too far. We had buried the hatchet with Raakhshas. High Mage Aegon said it himself: they can’t attack us. Will he face any repercussions?”

I shrug, “I doubt it. He’s a High Mage, first of all. Plus, the Cult doesn’t think he did anything wrong. And technically, he didn’t hurt me.”

“You’re limping.”

“But I’m not hurt, just a little bruised,” I reply. “I’m not defending him, but there’s nothing we can do.”

“Until tomorrow,” Xavier tells me.

“What are you talking about?” Skai says. We ignore her.

“What do you think will happen tomorrow?” Alyx asks.

“Honestly, I think they’ll be trying to bring Judgment day,” Neena tells us. “It seems like what they most want.”

“I don’t think so,” Alyx retorts. “They’d be preparing more for it. I just think they want to cause chaos.”

“Yes, but the royals are here,” Xavier says. “It’s the best time to bring Judgment Day.”

“I agree with Alyx,” I say. “They would’ve done a lot more to bring about Judgment Day. In fact, they would’ve done much more to stop us.”

“Exactly!” Alyx says. “Clearly, they are preparing something on a much smaller scale, although I doubt we’ll think it small-scaled.”

“To me,” Xander says. “I think they’ll try to prepare the world for Judgment Day.”

“Maybe,” Neena tells us skeptically. “It’s possible, and I hope you’re right, but I still doubt it.”

“I hope we’re right too,” I say. “All we can do now is hope. Tomorrow, we can act.”

“Tomorrow we act,” Xavier echoes.

Yue’s match seems to be ending, Yue with the upper hand. Georgi was desperate, knowing he would be eliminated, but Yue was still better. She attacked him ferociously, and somehow he stayed upright, his sword moving left and right to block Yue’s. He was cracking, though, and it was only a matter of time before she won.

And Georgi knew it. His eyes shifted up and down rapidly as he searched for any mistake Yue was making. Yue, mindful of this, kept herself light, making sure every step she took and breath she drew was controlled.

It was a fight that had been decided before it even started. By the time Yue connected her sword with his leg, Georgi already had a surrendering face.

Obviously, the crowd loved another show from the Sterkona. The cheering was deafening.

“What’s it like, being over there?” I ask. “With the crowd and everything.”

“It’s pretty normal,” Neena responds. “In general, you drown out the outside noise and just focus on your opponent.”

“Must be stressful, though.”

“Of course,” Neena told him. “We are fighting the greatest swordsmen and women in the world. Just having the chance is great, though.”

“I’m glad,” I tell her. “I’m proud of all of you, even if you’d joined the tournament before I met you.”

“Not all of us made it,” Neena said. “Both Poli and Artemis failed, as did Xander, although he probably did it on purpose.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, he joined the Cult at the same time. For him, it would just be added stress.”

“Has he heard anything from the Cult yet?” I wonder.

“I’m right here,” He chuckles. “And no, I have not. But I can feel something on its way. Whatever the Cult is planning, I think it involves me killing you. I always thought it was two separate things, but now…”

“You’re supposed to kill me too?” I ask. “I thought it was just your Vanguard friends.”

“No, you’re involved too,” He responds. His legs shakes as he thinks about it. “I’m scared, honestly, Zade.” His voice turns to a whisper so Neena doesn’t hear. “I know Yue told me not to leave, but I think I need to. Can we talk in the foyer?”

I nod, and we head there. After we get a little privacy, Xander spills his soul to me.

“I know I don’t know you very well,” He says. “But you’re the only one I can talk to. I really don’t want to hurt Yue. I’m afraid that if I stay, I won’t be able to leave. I have to keep my oath to them, dammit! I think I need to run now, or else I’m putting all of you in terrible danger.”

“I understand,” I respond. “I don’t know what I’d do if I were in your position. Honestly, I would do anything to see Xavier and Th’ul safe. To see yue and you safe. But I’m not dating any of my friends. That puts an extra layer on everything. I…I’m sorry, Xander. But I don’t know what to say.”

“It’s okay,” He tells me. “I didn’t expect you to decide for me. But if I leave, the Cult may kill me. I don’t want to put that on Yue either, you know? I…” He sighs. “I’m scared, Zade, that either I die or yue dies, and if yue dies, I’m going with her.”

“Xander, yue loves you,” I say. “I think she’ll understand if you leave, even if she’ll hate you for it at first. She knows you’re protecting her.But still, it might be a breach of trust if you leave.”

“I know, I know, I made a promise to them too. It’s too much, Zade. I can't deal with all this. There’s just so much I have to do, and it’s muddling my mind. Plus, I can feel the oath in my mind, forcing me to remember the Cult with every word I say and every thought I have.”

“Is there any way to sever your oath and control with the Cult?” I ask.

“I think so,” He responds. “It’s a very simple solution, and I’m sure you’d be able to figure it out.”

“You won’t tell me?”

“Can’t,” He responds. “I can’t tell you anything that will hurt the Cult. I can give you information, but I can't give you anything explicitly hurtful to the Cult. It’s part of the oath.”

I hang my head. “That’s horrible. I can’t imagine what that’s like.”

For a few minutes, silence reigns.

“Xander, whatever you decide, it’s the right decision. If you stay, I’ll support you. If you leave, I’ll be on your side. Don’t worry.”

Xander smiles. “Thank you. I hope Yue feels the same.”

“I’m sure she does.”

— — —

It’s time for Neena’s fight. While on the outside she looks confident, I can tell that she’s really nervous. She’s fighting an undefeated Arcadian, the only undefeated Arcadian now, and most spectator’s seem to think Neena will lose it.

Secretly, we all do. Of course, none of us voice it. We all show our support for our friend.

“THE MATCH COMMENCES IN THREE…TWO…ONE…BEGIN!”

Everything seems to stop. Both Neena and the Arcadian look at each other, assessing the other’s strengths. The Arcadian is not going to underestimate her, sadly. He knows what would happen if he did.

The crowd was just as unmoving as the fighters, and I look around as all my friends watch the match unblinkingly.

Then everything explodes. The Arcadian and Neena rush at each other simultaneously and their swords clash in mid-run, steel clanging loudly. The crowd cheers at this first attack, and Neena smiles at the Arcadian. The Arcadian returns the smile, pushing on her sword.

Neena smoothly steps back.

This rush wasn’t meant to finish the match, It was meant to gauge each other’s weaknesses. Seems like not many were found, as both Neena and the Arcadian frown slightly.

“Slow game,” Xander points out. “You’d think the Arcadian would go faster, seeing he doesn’t have much to lose.”

Apparently, the fighter gets the same idea as he charges Neena, who curses and blocks rapidly, her stance sloppy.

“Come on, Neena,” Yue whispers. “You’ve got this.”

The Arcadian swings again, this time aiming for Neena’s head, and as she defends, he steps left, sending her spinning towards the ground. Neena tumbles hard, her sword flying from her grip.

The Arcadian waits patiently, seeing if she was okay. At a nod from her, he advances. Yue groans.

“You can still do this, Neena,” I pray. “Just grab your sword.”

Neena crawls back as the man swings at her foot, attempting to slice some blood from her. The match was over, anyone could see that. As Neena reached her sword, the Arcadian kicked it away. He whispered something to Neena who smiled sadly. The Arcadian helped her up.

“What’s going on?” I ask.

“Oh no,” Yue pales.

Neena raises her voice to the crowd. “I surrender. Zak winds the match.” The crowd cheers, and Zak gives Neena a quick hug.

“I guess I DECLARE THE WINNER TO BE ZAK,” The Wolf says confounded.

Zak tells Neena something else as she leaves the ring and she hugs him again. He smiles and pats her back as she leaves.

“What happened?” Yue asks her.

“I lost,” She responds. “Zak gave me the chance to surrender; he didn’t want to hurt me. I took the chance, and he congratulated me on how far I got: Told me I was the hardest match he’d had. I know it wasn’t true, but he was really nice. That helps a little knowing I lost.”

“You did something braver than most people could,” Yue says. “I’m just sorry you lost.”

“I knew I would eventually,” Neena shrugs. “But I’m glad I got this far.”

I agree with Neena, but I still can’t help but feel a little sad.

One of us has been eliminated. There are just three left, and one has already lost a game.

— — —

The more I stay here at the Arena, the more discomfort I feel. Sometimes, I can see High Mage Eldor watching me and my friends. Other times, I’m sure that some of the spectators are watching me.

And there’s the added bonus that another Vanguard Warrior cheated.

“I was in the foyer,” I tell my friends. “And I saw the Warrior, what’s his name…”

“Juli,” Yue offers.

“Exactly, I saw Juli with a knife hidden under his sleeve. He stabbed it in the other person when the angle was just right. Then he stabbed his sword in the same place!”

“And the other person can’t complain!” Neena exclaimed.

“Right! Because he’s unconscious,” I say. “The moment has passed. You cannot prove Juli cheated, so by all accounts, he won legitimately.”

“This is horrible,” Alyx says. “I always wanted the Vanguard to win, but with this, I’m not so sure anymore. I feel ashamed about this. Where is the honor in the Vanguard?”

“Don’t forget,” Yue jumps in. “The murderers are in the Vanguard too. The Vanguard was losing their honor long before this. The only way to solve it is to win fairly and arrest the murderers.”

“We aren’t close to finding who they are, though,” Aster complains. “They remain illusive. How do you expect to catch them?”

“I don’t know anymore!” Yue shouted. “They’re not going to show themselves, and I’m not risking any of you!”

“We’re not asking you too,” Alyx told her gently. “We’re just as lost as you are.”

“But you elected me leader,” Yue said. “You made me the one in charge! Me being lost is worse than you being lost.”

“Yue, no one blames you,” I say. “You’ve done well as their leader. You’re doing all you can and that’s all we ask of you.”

“But it’s not enough!” Yue exploded. “I’m sorry, guys, but I just can’t do it.”

“You’re tight,” Aster stood up. Neena and Alyx gaped at her. “You can’t, okay? But neither can we! That’s why we stick together. We did less before we elected you leader. I know you’re stressed about what’s coming, Yue, but we’ll be fine. You’re a good leader. Why do you think we trust you?”

Yue nodded. “I just need some time alone. Is that okay?” We nod and she takes off.

“Shouldn’t one of us be following here because of the Cult?” Xavier asked.

“You’re right,” I volunteer. “I’ll go.” Yue’s friends give me skeptical looks, but don’t stop me.

I run down to the foyer, where I find Yue sitting on the ground. There are many spectators around her, but none approach her, except for one.

Sia.

I approach them.

“I got this, Sia. Yue’ll catch up.” Sia turns and walks away, confused. I pull Yue up and hug her.

“Are you alright?” I ask.

“I’m fine,” Yue sniffles. “Just stressed with everything. Sorry for shouting at you?”

“We understand,” I say. “You’ve got a lot on your shoulders. If I was in your place, I would be feeling worse than you.”

“I don’t know. I just need rest, but there isn’t any time!”

“Let’s take a walk,” I offer. “Around the inside of the Arena.”

“Haven’t we seen everything?” Yue asks.

“Nope,” I smile. “There’s a door behind the bar. I wanted in and they wouldn’t let me, because I wasn’t part of the participants.”

“What’s inside?”

“I’m not sure. Can’t hurt to look.”

Yue walks up to the bar.

“Ah, a member of the Vanguard,” The barmaid says. “Anything for you is on the house.”

“No, I just want to get in there.” Yue points and the barmaid smiles.

“Right this way, ma’am.”

She leads us in the door.

Once inside, I gape. We’re in a massive hallway, at least a hundred yards across. It's dark, but this seems to be a warehouse of some sort.

“Wanna explore?”

“Sure,” Yue responds. “I do need to go back soon, though.”

We open the first door. It’s full of swords and shields, of medium quality but still usable.

“Must be for the soldiers who broke or lost theirs,” Yue ventures. “This room is boring. Let’s go to the next one.”

I smile and let her lead me away. Yue skips some of the doors, instead turning down a corner into another hallway. Once there, she opens the door. This room is mostly empty, except for the paintings on the wall.

“What’s this for?” I wonder.

“I don’t know,” She responds. “I’m guessing these rooms are storages for participants. Some may even sleep here.”

“Wow,” I breathe.

We keep exploring the rooms, finding several different types of objects. Eventually, it starts to feel like intruding. These are other people’s private rooms. We shouldn’t be here.

“We should probably leave,” I say.

That’s when we hear the voices. There are at least two of them, and Yue turns to me.

“Most of the participants should be in the stands.”

“Suspicious,” I tell her.

We walk slowly closer to the noise down the hallway. They are hushed, almost angry even. Whoever it is, they don’t want anyone to know they’re listening, and that only widens my curiosity.

The voices slowly get louder when we turn a corner and keep walking. I hear a couple of words. One of them tingles my spine.

Dautha.

Yue looks at me sharply and my eyes widen. We might’ve just stumbled on something really important. Suddenly, this becomes much more dangerous and urgent.

“Hurry up!” One of the voices, male, says. “We don’t want them to know we’re here.”

“I’m going as quickly as I can,” Another voice, this time a woman, responds. “Why don’t you help me here?”

“I need to keep watch. If someone’s coming…”

“Just get your ass here and help me!” The woman groans. The man mumbles then grows silent.

“This is our chance,” I whisper. “We need to find out what they’re doing.”

Yue goes in front of me. I can hear the Cultists grunt as whatever they’re doing weighs on them.

We reach the final corner. Yue stops me, hand on my shoulder.

“I’ll look first,” She says. I nod, and her face pokes around the corner. The silence is not broken, so I guess the Cultists did not see her. She watches whatever the Cultists did for almost a minute when she turns back.

“Oh my god,” She breathes. “We’re in massive trouble. Thank Gods we got here when we did. We can stop them.”

“Let me see,” I hiss. I gently push her out of the way, then look around the corner.

For a second, I’m not sure what I see. It just looks like two people bent over something. The more I look, though, the more I realize what it is.

I gasp.

They’re arming explosives. Magic-powered explosives. They’re triggered when a mage aims any sort of fire at them. I’ve heard of them but I’ve never seen them.

My breath hitches in my throat when I realize the consequences of this. Whatever the Cult is trying, it involves blowing up the Arena, or at least a part of them.

We need to stop them.

But we might be too late.