Ban and Pandora rushed inside the lab as the door crashed against the wall, their eyes darting about as they took in the scene. They saw Ian trapped inside a mist-filled magic circle and Ivy, standing at his podium, finishing his spell. Pandora unleashed a salvo of Ice onto the bubble to little effect. Ban rounded on Ivy with Void held high.

“What have you done!?” Ban demanded.

Ivy ignored them, concentrating on his spell.

Inside the mist Ian felt his arms and legs seized. He struggled as the tendrils lifted him off the ground. The tendrils pulled hard, forcing Ian to gasp from the pain. He breathed in a minuscule amount of the cloying vapor but it was enough. The mist trickled down his throat and the rest swiftly followed. The bubble cleared allowing Ban and Pandora to watch as the mist filled Ian. When it was done Ian fell to the floor, coughing and beating on his chest as though it would expel whatever had taken root inside of him.

“No!” Ban roared, rushing forward. He struck the edge of the circle. The circle, along with the floor, cracked and magical energies flared wildly. The bolts of power shot out around the room, crushing a table, exploding bottles, and wreaking havoc.

Ivy rushed to finish. He hadn’t expected the accursed hammer and it would undo his work.

Ban brought Void down again and the circle broke. A rush of power was released and it struck Ivy, hard. He let out a cry of anguish as the powerful shock wave smashed into him and sent him flying into the far wall. The podium too was destroyed by the wave of force; hollow wails rose from the shattered skulls as they crumbled.

Ian climbed to his feet and stumbled over to where Ivy had landed in a heap. He reached his arm out to pull back the hood and finally see the face of the monster who caused all of this.

“Guhhh!” A loud groan from the other side of the room called him away. Anders!

The force of the spell breaking had expelled Ban and Pandora back out into the hall landing them in a tangle of limbs. The minotaur was the first to re-enter the room; his eyes widened when he saw Ian, “You’re glowing.”

Ian, rushing to Anders, stopped and glanced down at his arm and started in surprise. There was a faint purple light radiating from his skin. He would have to worry about that later.

“No time, my friend needs help. Ivy brought him here and… experimented on him so that he could perfect this damn spell. ” Ian spat out the words as fast as he could.

“Pandora, he needs help," Ian pleaded as they all congregated around Anders. He didn’t expect that even Pandora could heal him. Anders was in such bad shape. But there was still much that he didn’t understand about magic so just maybe he could be fixed. Ian tried to keep his hopes low as Pandora examined his broken partner.

Pandora let out a gasp when she saw Anders’ condition. Mal stood at her side with his ears and tail lowered trying to make sense of all the smells in the lab. After Pandora saw the cables coming from Anders’ back, she turned her shimmering eyes shook her head.

“Ian, I’m so sorry. I’m not skilled enough; he would need a true faith healer. Even then…”

Roland stumbled in from the hall and took a look at Anders shaking his head. There was nothing he could do here. “She’s right. Can you get it so we can move him?” While he spoke he rummaged around inside his robe, coming back with Ian’s gun and offered it to him.

“We need to get you out of here and we’re going to need your help to do that,” Roland said as Ian took his gun and checked it over.

“I’m not going anywhere without my partner, or him," Ian said, turning around. “Damnit,” Ian cursed. Ivy was gone.

“For you, Ian, I will try. It may be enough to buy him some time,” Pandora said. She couldn’t stand for her friend to be in such agony, and the healer in her didn’t want this poor soul to suffer such a tormented existence, but her healing magic wasn’t the same as the priests’ or clerics’. Instead of blessings from a deity, it cost something of the caster. Herbs and potions urged on by a spark of magic would do the trick in most cases, but for more grievous maladies, the cost was high. And worse yet, the healer must endure the same pains as their patient. Pandora knelt before Anders while Roland, Ban, and Ian devised an escape plan. A white glow came to either hand as she placed them against Anders’ temples.

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

“Poten. Altsana,” Pandora whispered the magical phrase.

“No, you can’t!” Roland cried out, he recognized the spell; it was a powerful, desperate spell only to be used in the direst of circumstances.

The magic, however, had already left her lips and he could do nothing but look on in horror as Pandora’s spell set to work. The white light extended from her fingers as tendrils. Each one seeped into Anders’ and set about expelling the toxins and chemicals that were keeping him alive and pushing his body to heal itself. His twisted leg snapped and contorted until it set properly. The shorter leg grew becoming a proper limb once more. With a popping hiss, the cables burst out of his back and the grimace etched on his face went slack. Pandora screamed in utter anguish as Anders healed. Her body jerked and shivered with each new malady her magic attacked. Then it was over.

Ban caught the slumping form of Anders as Roland caught Pandora. Her lips were tinged with blue and her entire face was pale and drawn. Roland swept her up brushing aside strands of red hair from her sweat-laced brow.

“That was very foolish. You could’ve died,” Roland whispered.

“Is he alive?” Pandora asked him with a weak smile.

“Yes,” Ban replied, hefting up the unconscious figure of Anders after placing an ear to his chest. “He is breathing on his own. Now can we please get the Abyss out of here?”

Ian had no idea of the true price that Pandora had paid but tears of gratitude brimmed in his eyes. He couldn’t find the words to thank her. He drew in a breath and steadied himself; he was going to get everyone out of here alive.

Roland and Pandora were leaning on each other for support with Mal acting as their crutch. Ban came last carrying Anders as gently as speed would allow.

“We need to get out of here before Dakon finds us,” Ian said as he went to the door, “I saw him earlier after I escaped from my room.”

“We don’t have to worry about Dakon anymore, Ian,” Ban said as a rare grin of pride spread over his face, “Survival now, details later.”

Ian led the way ducking around the door and out into the hall. They doubled back planning on picking up Reige only to find that he was no longer there. They didn’t have time to search for him. Their primary mission remained the same rescue Ian. The irony of Ian now leading them out of here and being the exhausted group’s protector was not lost on Ban.

When they made it to the Gallery of Opulence they found the fire from the library still raging. It was spreading out into the Gallery now licking at the edges of the rugs, chairs, and all the other finery that would burn. They moved swiftly around the edge of the blaze to the room of many doors.

“What the hell happened here?” Ian asked as they skirted around the blaze.

“Oh, nothing much. I only did what I had to do to get this back,” Roland pulled out the Star Chart from his robes and waggled it back and forth.

Ian yet again found himself unable to express his appreciation. Had they not been fleeing for their lives, he would have hugged the mage.

“You found it! Fantastic,” Ian exclaimed.

“Of course, who do you think I am?” Roland asked with a grin slipping the Star Chart back into his robe.

“One of these days you are going to have to explain how that works,” Ian said as he led them on.

“It’s bigger on the inside,” Roland supplied while drawing up next to Ian.

Ian shook his head and pushed open the door that led to the transportation network of doors and out of this nightmare. The room beyond was flooded with a sea of red robes. Beyond them lay the portal back into Landorei and salvation. They had overrun the forces left behind to guard the portal.

“I’m afraid this is where your heroic escapade comes to an end,” Kaelic said as he stepped out of the crowd.

“You should be crisper than a dwarven bogkin rib right now!” Roland said with an angry snarl.

“Kill them but leave the blonde human alive,” The unimpassioned chameleon said with a smirk.

The Red Robes turned on the trespassers; their weapons raised as they collectively took a step forward. Mal raised his hackles and let out a series of barks and snarls. Ban could not do much while he was carrying Anders; the mages could barely walk; and Ian didn’t have a machine gun.

“Back,” Ian said as he and Mal took up a defensive position. If they fell it would not be without a fight.

A piercing, angry roar burst through from the other side of the portal behind the mob.

“Today it ends!”