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I gather what remains of that shimmering force, pressing it into a single, desperate push. My arms tremble. The collar chain tightens, sizzling on my neck. Pain scorches me, but I channelthe spark anyway, forcing it outward in a wave of pale fire. The ring beneath my feet cracks. The air thrums. A half-dozen gargoyles close to me reel back, hissing in shock. The chain near the collar warps, metal turning red-hot.

The force abruptly sputters, leaving me dizzy, half-blind with pain. My magic flickers out, a candle snuffed by the tempest.I can’t maintain it.The collar remains, though partially melted, searing my skin. I collapse to my knees, panting, tears streaming from the exertion. My untested magic is not enough to free me from this entire clan.

As the haze clears, I find myself surrounded by more gargoyles. My brief wave of magic incited chaos, but the clan is too many. They regroup swiftly, wings spread, weapons drawn. The air is thick with fury. Varzak emerges from the scrum, face twisted in rage, blood dripping from a wound on his brow. He stands near Korrin’s battered form. My heart seizes.Korrin…

He’s pinned again, one gargoyle’s foot on his back, another wrenching his arms behind him. His breath comes in shallow gasps, blood matting his hair. He meets my gaze across the ring, sorrow on his face.I tried,I mouth silently, tears scalding my cheeks.

“Enough!” the Alpha’s voice booms, drowning out the crowd. He strides forward, staff crackling with arcane energy, eyes burning with wrath. “She dares use purna magic in our sacred arena? We end this now.”

Varzak spits on the floor, stepping back. The Alpha raises his staff, pointing it at me. I sense a build of oppressive magic. My weakened limbs quake.He’s going to strike me down.My attempt at power was fleeting, leaving me drained. I can’t muster that force again. Dread paralyzes me as the staff glows with crimson lightning.

Korrin lets out a guttural roar, struggling anew. “No—Alpha, spare her!” he shouts, voice cracking with raw anguish. My soullurches, but the Alpha ignores him, staff swirling with lethal brilliance.I’m going to die.My final thought is of Korrin, battered, unable to save me.

But at the last instant, the Alpha falters, glancing at the stunned gargoyles around me. Perhaps he wants this to remain Korrin’s responsibility, a twisted test of loyalty. He lowers the staff, features contorted in a sneer. “Bind her. She tried to awaken her magic. She’s dangerous. Secure her properly.”

A swarm of gargoyles lunges, wrestling me to the ground. My brief surge of magic is gone, leaving me dizzy and powerless. They clamp new metal shackles on my wrists, ignoring my whimper as the collar tears fresh burns into my neck. My face presses against cold stone, tears dripping.All is lost again.

Korrin is forced to watch, pinned, helpless. Our eyes meet. I see heartbreak there, and a flicker of hopeless rage. The Alpha addresses the clan. “We shall reconvene at day’s end. Korrin must carry out the execution or face a traitor’s demise. Let the purna reflect on her final hours.”

My breath shudders. The crowd roars in approval or condemnation—I can’t distinguish. My mind spins, everything a blur of fresh tears and throbbing pain. Gargoyles drag me toward a side exit, presumably another dungeon cell. I catch one last glimpse of Korrin, pinned on the dais, eyes raw with sorrow.I can’t do this again.

They lock me in a cramped alcove off the arena corridor, heavier bars forming a claustrophobic cage. My arms remain shackled, the collar chain threaded through an iron ring in the wall. I slump against the bars, body trembling. The faint heat of my attempted magic still hums in my veins, but it’s ephemeral, impossible to grasp again.I can’t replicate that wave, not without control or guidance.

Hours pass in a haze. Outside, I hear distant roars from the crowd, presumably other events or preparations. The pungentreek of gargoyle musk seeps in. My entire being aches with the knowledge that come nightfall, I face the final stage: a forced execution at Korrin’s hands. My chest quakes with a silent sob.He won’t kill me.But if he doesn’t, the clan rips us both apart.

I realize with a sick twist: the Alpha might want to torture me further, forcing Korrin to watch. Maybe they’ll chain us in the arena again. My breath hitches, nails biting my palms. The chain rattles whenever I shift.What can I do? Wait passively for death?

Despair weighs like lead. I recall Korrin’s vow, the nights we spent forging a bond deeper than fear.He’d never willingly slay me.But the clan’s brutality is unmatched. If he tries to defy them a second time, we both die.Is that the best outcome? Dying together?My throat burns at the thought.

I feel a gentle tug at the frayed edges of my mind. A swirl of memory: the half-buried monastery, the archive scroll describing High Purna lineage, the faint illusions of unstoppable power. If I truly am that scion, should I not be able to fight back? To break these chains?Yet the collar, these runes… they stifle me, or maybe my fear does.

I close my eyes, tears leaking down my cheeks. My lips shape a silent prayer to any spirit or star that might listen:Give me a miracle.But the cold, empty halls answer with nothing.

The fortress’s cyclical routine intensifies as dusk falls. I hear gargoyles gathering once more, stomping in unison. Firelight seeps through the barred window high on the corridor wall. My guard stands watch, occasionally muttering about the “grand finale.”They want a spectacle.My veins run cold. I cling to the bars, forcing my stiff body upright. The chain drags.

At last, a squad of gargoyles arrives, unlocking my cell. They yank me out, ignoring my pained whimper. My ankles drag on the stones, wrists shackled. The lead gargoyle sneers, taillashing. “Time to fulfill your role, purna. If the traitor fails, you both die. If he obeys, at least he is spared. You? Not so lucky.”

I can’t muster a reply, only trembling breath. My eyes burn. They drag me through a labyrinth of corridors, then down a narrow passage that leads to a side entrance of the arena—different from before. The roars of the assembled clan echo ominously, a savage chant. Adrenaline spikes, my heart in my throat.No escape, no second chances.

At the threshold, they pause. My hands shake uncontrollably. Another guard grips my chin, forcing me to meet his gaze. “You’ll kneel in the ring. Don’t try that magic trick again. We’ll see how far it gets you when the Alpha intervenes.”

I bare my teeth in a last flicker of defiance. “Let Korrin go,” I whisper, voice raw. He snorts, shoving me forward. The doors open, torchlit columns framing the ring. The crowd’s roar intensifies, hitting me like a physical wave.

I’m shoved into that same circular arena, the crowd overhead jeering and stomping. Torchlight illuminates every corner, gargoyles perched on the stone tiers, hungry for violence. My legs nearly give out, but the guards drag me to the center. My chain is fastened to a metal ring in the floor, ensuring I can’t run or hide. I see the dais again, the Alpha looming in regal menace, staff in hand. Varzak stands behind him, arms crossed, wearing a triumphant sneer.

And there… Korrin, flanked by two gargoyle enforcers, stands to the side of the dais, unshackled but battered. He clutches that same black-hilted blade, knuckles white. My eyes lock on his. His breath catches, heartbreak written on his face.He has to do it.My chest stabs with agony.He’s forced to kill me or watch them tear us both apart.My lips quiver with unspoken pleas.Don’t do it, but if you don’t…

The Alpha raises his staff, commanding silence. The crowd hushes, an expectant hush that makes my skin crawl. Hegestures to me, kneeling in chains. “Behold the purna, a threat to our clan’s survival. She dared awaken her magic in our midst. Now she faces final judgment.”

A cheer of bloodlust rises. My stomach lurches, tears welling. My gaze flicks to Korrin once more. He steps forward, sword trembling. The Alpha’s gaze pins him. “Korrin, we grant you this last chance to redeem your betrayal. Take her life, prove your loyalty.”

Thunderous silence. My heart hammers so violently it drowns my hearing.Korrin… please.

He exhales a shudder, stepping into the ring. The guards holding me release their grip, stepping back to watch. The chain still tethers me to the floor, enough slack to stand or kneel. I manage to push myself upright, though my wrists remain bound. I look into his eyes, searching for some sign, any sign. He lifts the blade, lips parted, tears glistening.He’s crying.

His voice emerges, shaking. “Alpha, I beg you?—”

“Silence,” the Alpha hisses. “Perform your duty.”