Twenty minutes ago, the worst-case scenario was failing to find Lusha before she could cast a ninth-circle spell. How hopelessly naive I was.
Every nerve in my body screamed at me to flee, to run, to escape. The fear and pressure of facing two ninth-level beings threatened to overwhelm my every thought. Memories of the arbiter and twin lava dragons flashed through my mind over and over, overlapping with Lusha and Zenith. My words had been brave, but at the end of the day, what was I but a simple eighth-level mage? I couldn't even use combat spells.
