29 "I Think She's Ready"

"No, no, no. Sera, pay attention. You do it like this.", Aurice was already on the verge of bursting out. But she kept her anger in check. Nothing will ever come of it anyway.

"I'm trying, I'm trying." Sera cried. After several attempts, she exclaimed, "Wait, I think I've got it!"

Aurice breathed out. "Finally, it's about time. Now, I want you to go near the door and trying casting the spell."

Still nervous, Sera just did as she was told. Murmuring the spell, she felt as if an invisible cloak suddenly draped her from head to toe.

'Okay. That means I'm doing it right.', Sera felt kind of excited casting her first spell.

'Now, to try it out.' She slowly approached the door and held her hand out. Moving forward, she closed her eyes and pushed toward the door. She was supposed to go through it, but instead, her hand only felt the cold surface.

"Uhm, miss Aurice?", Sera began, choosing her words carefully as she looked back at her reflection. "I think your spell is not working."

"What?", Aurice countered. "Try harder, you just have to push through the door. It really isn't that hard."

Sera tried once again and put her weight to the door, but she just wouldn't pass through like Aurice said she would.

"Something is wrong."

"Wait a second. Sera! Step away from that door right now!", Aurice suddenly burst out. She would have pulled Sera back herself had she not been a reflection on a mirror.

"What? What? I've done something wrong, haven't I?"

Sera stammered as she began to panic. Pulling away her hand at the last second, electric currents suddenly engulfed the whole door making a crackling sound.

"Damn. I should have known.", Aurice said, thinking out loud. Sera was already running back to the mirror, trembling and tears welling up in her eyes.

"These Stedores are really serious in keeping us here. The protective wards they placed earlier are stronger now. That's why the spell didn't work. Maybe if I go back to the library, I can learn about a countering spell."

"Protective wards? Library? I don't understand all of this, miss Aurice, but please, I'm tired.", Sera was already frantic.

"I don't want to suffer anymore. I think we just made matter's worse. If the Stedores find out, they'll...they'll--"

"Pull yourself together, Sera!", Aurice exclaimed cutting the words off. She doesn't want to hear any more of these whining.

"I'll make this right, okay? I promise. I'm going to the Sanctuary to look for anything that can help so we just need to endure a little more of the pain, okay?"

Sera was still crying but as she considered the Aurice's words, she knew she had no choice. She only nodded in agreement.

"Oh, before I forget. There's this spell I learned in the Sanctuary that might lessen your suffering. It's the only thing I can do for you at the moment. I'm sorry."

Sera's face brightened up a little and she tried to smile to encourage Aurice.

"I'll do my best, miss Aurice. Please, come back for me."

Aurice only smiled, thinking,

"As if I even have a choice." and her image shifted back to the scared reflection of teary-eyed girl.

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The Stedores, once again, strapped Sera into the chair. The cold metal clamps wrap around her limbs and the needles bury into her skin. She tried her best to muffle a scream that was about to escape her lips. As the Stedores were busy making the preparations for the experiment, Sera took the time to murmur the spell Aurice taught her.

'This spell increases your resistance to magic and will allow you to endure the pain. However, this type of magic is a channeling one. You need to be awake and your focus should be in keeping your magic resistance up. If you waver, even for a bit, then the spell is done. ' Sera recalled the words of Aurice.

'I hope this works', she prayed, bracing herself as the Stedores commence their experiment.

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"Rhael, are you seeing this?" Agaven alerted his wife. He had been the one monitoring Sera's condition during the experiment and had observed some notable changes within their subject. Sera was supposed to be screaming right now. But it seemed like the girl was tolerating even the harshest of their spells.

Rhael was busy with her own work and was a little bit annoyed Agaven kept on disturbing her. She was looking for a way to extract Sera's life-force without killing her first. In the past experiments, everytime they tried to extract the life-force, Sera would suddenly convulse and a lot of blood would come spurting out of her eyes, nose, ears, and mouth, and her struggling would cause some of her bones to break. If only she was stronger.

"What is it now?"

"Come, look." Agaven was staring at the screen from which he was monitoring Sera's vitals. Rhael sighed and went up to where Agaven was standing, and her eyes fixed at the screen.

"Rhael, I think she's ready."

The light from the screen glinted against the Stedores eyes. "Yes, I think she is."