Chapter 50: The End is Just the Beginning

((You'll notice this chapter is short: Read the opening of A/N to know why.))

//Powder's PoV//

A brilliant white flash of light erupted as Powder watched Orion raise his hand. Her hope shattered instantly, both she and Ekko covering their eyes while screaming in fear, curling into balls.

The light was so intense that illuminated everything- the river, the buildings on both sides, and even the entire bridge.

Explosions followed, shaking the ground as the smell of toxic fumes filled Powder's nose. She couldn't move, frozen in fear and overwhelmed.

Breathing heavily, Ekko clung to Powder from behind, burying his face into her clothes. Both shook uncontrollably, waiting for the blinding light and violent tremors to pass.

When it finally dimmed, Powder looked up, her breath catching. Flickers of flames danced across the chemical factory, the smoke and the smell of burning chemicals filling the air. Mini explosions continued to ripple through the building leaving the walls charred and cracking.

Her gaze drifted through the blown out window. Shards of glass littered around them, but thankfully none pierced them. What caught her attention the most was a perfect, circular gap- two meters in circumference- where Orion once was. 

She couldn't see the crimson-eyed man either and some of the other thugs either. The flooring where he stood above Orion was still there, only vacant of bodies. They most likely escaped.

Her heart continued to sink however, shock flooding her, unable to process what she had done.

"I killed him..." she whispered, voice trembling and traumatized.

Ekko grabbed her shoulders and shook her violently. "Powder, we gotta go!"

"Powder! Ekko!" Claggor's voice echoed from below. Mylo stood beside him, their expressions tight with concern.

Powder's gaze drifted toward them, unfocused. She barely registered Vander and Vi in the distance, supporting each other, bloodied but alive with pained expressions. They casted worried glances toward them as they waited.

Still shaking, Powder finally climbed down slowly with Ekko guiding her until it was safe enough to drop. Claggor caught her as she staggered, lifting her into his arms, cradling her protectively as he turned to run.

She didn't resist, she barely reacted.

Ekko's gaze lingered on her sympathetically. He was also unable to find words to express what had happened. What could be said?

Everyone would know soon enough.

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//Orion's PoV//

The brilliant flash of light blinded Orion upon contact with the unstable crystal. He was immediately engulfed in a wide sphere of twisting, curling light that seemed to fold in upon itself.

Some called it wild magic- an imprint left behind that embodied the true essence of magic: unpredictable, untamed, chaotic.

Others called it corrupted magic, understandable given that while its core radiated a pure, blinding white, its edges swirled with a vile mixture of purple, red, and black.

Orion shouted in pain. Despite the mesmerizing beauty surrounding him, it felt as though his skin was being stripped away, flayed by the sheer energy of the arcane.

His body stretched razor thin, drawn out like liquid through a straw- yet the return to his original form was an equally disturbing, violent sensation.

He channeled magic for as long as possible, even if it was just a drizzle, as he hoped to outlast this phenomenon. But it wasn't enough, and his body gave out.

The colors twisted tighter, the brightness overwhelming. Then, with a deafening thunderclap, the bubble around him seemed to burst, leaving only blinding white in his vision.

Gasping for air, Orion's fingers clawed the ground beneath him.

Unable to understand the texture, nor able to think. Everything was on fire, yet he shivered uncontrollably. His senses failed him. No sight, no smell. He only felt sick- overwhelming nausea to the point of violent vomiting into the ground below him.

Was he cold? Warm? The distinctions blurred as his consciousness briefly slipped away.