Turmoil in the Underground

A scream!

Alfred's quick reaction turned him from a reclined posture to half-kneeling on the ground. 

He cast a sidelong glance at Sean, still deep in slumber, undisturbed by the piercing scream. 

Listening intently, the underground chamber seemed to have fallen under a silent spell, apart from their own breaths; no external sounds reached their ears.

Cecilia had risen to her feet, closing her hefty tome of magic. 

Her delicate face displayed a grave expression. 

In contrast to Alfred, who relied on sound for assessment, Cecilia had other methods. "I sense traces of magical fluctuations."

"From which direction?" Alfred stood upright, his demeanor shifting suddenly, like a sword drawn from its scabbard, sharp and menacing.

Cecilia pointed in the direction they had come from. "These magical fluctuations are very crude and primitive, unlike human magic."

"None of the tail-enders behind us are mages," Alfred noted.