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“I know,” Alsia said. “But dropping them back into that hell is not acceptable.”

“I understand,” Tilaran’s mother said. “We’re working on some sort of alternative warded confinement but so far it wouldn’t hold.”

“Well that’s something I can help you with but even in the interim we can’t put them back in the prison. It’s not just about being humane. Xantaria designed it that way for a reason and I’ve been trying to figure out why for a long time. And well, look…” She held out her hand to reveal a bubble. Inside it was an image… well more a diagram showing a strange spherical spaces wrapped in threads which were pulling energy from the sphere and shunting it somewhere. Tilaran gasped in horror and his mother paled.

“This is monstrous!” she said. “She’s using them as a massive psychic battery. No wonder it hurts them so much!”

“She is,” Alsia agreed. “She’s a monster. We knew that. What I don’t know is what she’s using the energy for and that worries me. Even she wouldn’t do this for no reason.”

Tilaran’s mother nodded seriously. “No she wouldn’t. We need to track where the energy is going.”

“So you’ll ally with me?” Alsia asked.

Tilaran’s mother tilted her head. “Alaryia trusts you which speaks to your favour so provisionally, yes.”

“Thank you,” she said. “I swear you won’t regret it. Now let us turn to the next thing – protecting Ophelia. Xantaria will want her dead now she knows she exists.”

“And she’ll send that child to do it,” Tilaran said. “We’ll need to organise a guard until Ophelia is ready to fight again.”

“I feel well,” Ophelia said. “I think I’m okay.”

“You are better,” Alsia agreed. “But if you try fighting right now you’ll soon find out you aren’t ready for that yet. You’ll fatigue too quickly. It won’t last long..,. a couple of days maybe. But in that time you’re vulnerable.” She turned back to Tilaran’s mother. “I’ll help guard her. I can assign a couple of my alrari to watch over her if you assign a couple of yours.”

“Of course,” Halia said. “I was already planning to do that.” She smiled at Ophelia. “We’ll also need to work on getting your stamina back up.”

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