<< FON CARLSON >>

And with that, Fon watches Myrielle as she places her hands against the ground, and a shimmering wall of magick sprouts from the ground and envelops the anthurium.

"W-what?!" she exclaims, but she isn't able to do anything else.

The entire barrier from Myrielle already overwhelms the beast. The anthurium didn't even sense Myrielle. Is that the power of the powerless?

Fon is about to smirk at her thoughts when the by-product of the sealing circle hits them. Ayin claps his palms behind her and a cylindrical object that looks like a can of aberrant drinks appears.

However, unable to efficiently use one magick type over another at one time, the sealing can hover for a while and then fall on the ground.

"Stupid wizard!" she snaps at him.

She tightens her hands against the handle of her broom and swoops into the sealing can. Ayin tightly holds on to her. If not, he would be thrown off her broom.

"Take the freaking can!" she orders him.

Ayin extends his hands towards the falling sealing object. After he grabs it, they both shift their attention to Myrielle who is obviously straining at the weight of her magick usage.

Ayin whispers something to the can, bites his thumb, and presses it against the top of the can. Going to the top middle of the anthurium, Ayin drops it at the same time that Myrielle's negligible magick gets exhausted.

The anthurium that is imprisoned within Myrielle's barrier implodes. And when it finishes its due, its remnants go into the sealing can. The instant it did, it explodes, hurtling her and Ayin from the air and into the school grounds.

The instant they hit the ground, she feels Ayin's arms envelop her and protect her from the fall. Annoyed that she was being protected, she materializes water to cushion their impact against the wall of earth she created earlier.

Softening their landing, her eyes go to where the anthurium was. At the same time that the wall of earth she created crumbles, she sees the unconscious Myrielle beside her sealing circle that's slowly disappearing. Instead of the sealing can, there is only a gem on the ground.

Fon tries to get up, but it is painful. So, still lying on the ground, she calls up her wind and calls for the gem to come to her.

Holding the gem, she studies it. It is a red-yellow gem. It is sharing the same color as the anthurium flower.

"Myr!" comes both Sven's and Finn's voices.

Then, one of the active portals opens up and Cesky comes out with her third item. Confusion instantly replaced her smile when she scours the area.

"What happened?" she asks, but no one answered her question.

Instead, Jayden announces the end of the competition and the judges climb down their stage to close off the remaining portals. They might be worried that they inadvertently opened up a portal to the island of anthuriums.

"Are you alright?" Ayin asks, interrupting her musings.

He tries to help her, but when she notices his arms are bleeding, she slaps his hands away. With a grunt, she sits up. But Ayin is sitting too close to her for comfort. His hand is even touching her shoulders, and his eyes are scouring her body to check for injuries.

"I will be okay if you don't crowd me," she snaps at him. Ayin reddens again, but he obeys and lets her go.

Then shadow looms over her. She raises her head to see Philomena's scowling face.

"That's not my fault," Fon automatically defends. "I just helped."

Philomena sighs and kneels before her. Unlike the other judges who are still disconcerted by the effects of hallucination, Philomena is already staring at her with scrutiny.

"My hands are really off of it," she repeats.

"Did you hear the anthurium's song?" Philomena asks and Fon feels a bit relieved.

"Never been able to. We swoop away from its range. I am about to encase the sounds around it when Myrielle activated her sealing circle. And this wizard created an object to seal it."

Philomena glances at the gem clutched in her hand. "So, that gem is the sealed anthurium?"

She nods. "Probably."

Philomena shifts her attention from her to Ayin. "We need the medics to look at your arm."

Ayin nods but didn't make any action to move away from us.

"Have you lost your feet, boy?" Philomena asks again. "Or should I carry you to the medics?"

With that tone of voice, Ayin stands up and leaves. Philomena's gaze returns to her. Then she massages her temple before asking, "Let me guess. They said they want your magick again?"

She nods.

And Philomena heavily sighs. "You should be very careful once you leave my protection." She sighs again. She's been doing nothing but sigh when talking to her. "Especially when you are enduring these things, even when you are still within my protection."

She glances at her lower arm, where Utente's insignia is. "Fon, take care of yourself. Next time, you won't be fortunate. Remember what happened with Utente and Rosa."

Fon freezes. Her eyes meet hers. A moment of understanding passes between them. She knows, Fon thinks. Philomena understands what she's going through right now. And she wonders, who else knows about it?

"I'm here to take a look at any injury," one of the medics interrupts.

"Let me handle this," Myrielle interjects. She looks pale. It is obvious that she needs help more than she is. "You must come with me, Fon. We need to ensure that the Anthurium's song does not affect you when it started."

She nods this time. There are already too many pairs of eyes on her. A time away from all the attention would be great. And so, her eyes move to Rissa. She is waving at her, unperturbed by the current event. As she instructed, she never left her seat.

"Rissa needs to come with me," she says.

Myrielle nods. Behind her, Finn is rubbing and rattling his head. He seems to have the wrong notion that a few shakes would do something to the confusion he suffered from the anthurium.

***********************

Meanwhile, on the island of Anthuriums,

"I heard you sing earlier. Now, where is the prey?" a little girl asks.

"She didn't come inside," the questioned beast responds. It is another anthurium. It's supposed to charm the human girl into the island, but even with its loud song, it only affected the witches and wizards outside the portal. "My song didn't affect her," it adds.

"Stupid Anthurium," the little girl says in a calm voice. It is a slight little girl with curly black hair that flows up to her waist. The beast was supposed to enchant the little witch. The one with Utente's mark. "Kaine, you know what to do."

The man named Kaine steps forward. His hair is straight and tied on the back of his head. He is holding a broadsword that is even bigger than the little girl. "Yes, princess," he answers.

"Wait! I promise I will get her next time!"

"There is no next time. The Search is done," the little girl says. There is a freezing quality in her words that scares even the anthurium. "Letting go of a witch like that... that is a capital sin."

"I promise I–"

"Destroy it," the little girl commands, cutting the anthurium off.

Kaine steps forward. He raises his broadsword, ready to strike, and the anthurium has no choice but to slither away from the two. "You cannot do this! I am an anthurium!"

The little girl snickers. "Then fight for your life."

Kaine makes the first slash, and the anthurium's veins break off. As the beast prepares to fight, its trebles shake the entire island.

"That is... If you can even do something against my personal guard."

At that instant, Kaine is able to climb to the top of its head. And then, he brings down his broadsword and massive magick spews out from him. It is too much that the anthurium turned into nothing but dust.

After the short ordeal, Kaine walks toward the little girl and kneels before her. The little girl approaches him and rubs his hair.

"Good boy," she praises. "Once we return, you will have your reward."