Dark Magic Once More

---Katherine---

As we arrived, we saw many villagers hoisting buckets of water and trying to control the fire while others were busy trying to move the rubble and save those who were trapped underneath. The watch tower used to be a tall structure made out of granite blocks. It stood for decades, if not for a century. How that managed to fall was beyond me, but I'm quite sure it was no accident.

Dismounting quickly, Indigo rushed to the nearest person, asking where Emily's house was. The villager pointed, and we all followed Indigo to a pile of rubble closest to the collapsed tower. A woman—presumably Emily's mom—was sobbing and begging people to try and save her child. Try as they might, the people couldn't move more than a few smaller pieces of rock. The wind blew, and the fire roared stronger. The flames licked at the ruins of Emily's house, threatening to devour it at any second. The villagers looked at each other in fear and distress, knowing that they couldn't do anything.

"Would everyone please step back!" Indigo shouted. "We can help!" Many of the villagers looked at us skeptically. How can seven teenagers move several tons of rock and put out an inferno? Ignoring the glances thrown our way, Lucian and Jason stepped up.

We watched as Lucian stuck out his right hand, palm up, and the fire bent to his will. He twisted his hand, made a fist in a quick motion, and most of the fire died out. Jason raised one hand into the air and summoned a great gush of water that doused the rest of the fire, leaving many people dripping wet. The villagers moved back quickly, murmuring among themselves. Amazed. Curious. Afraid.

"Which houses have people trapped underneath?" Indigo shouted. A few villagers ventured closer and pointed at the places with people trapped inside. House by house, Jason moved the granite chunks as other villagers and we rushed forward to help the wounded and the trapped. Ashley stood nearby, aiming spells to levitate other blocks of stone. Rachel moved among the wounded, healing those who needed it.

"Please, help my Emily! She's trapped in there with a friend—please, they're only children!" Emily's mom burst through the crowd and clutched at Jason's legs. He looked very uncomfortable, looking to Indigo for help.

"Is Linda trapped with Emily?" Indigo asked. Emily's mom nodded.

"They're over there," she pointed. Jason directed his powers there. Most of the larger chunks had fallen there, crushing the wooden structure instantly. At first glance, it seemed unlikely that anyone survived.

We cleared away half of the rubble. "Emily? Linda? Can you hear me?" Emily's mom shouted, desperation in her voice. By now, Ashley had cleared the other houses and joined Jason. Together, they moved more pieces of fallen rock.

"Mom? I'm here!" a faint voice cried. Emily's mom ran forward, ignoring Jason and Ashley's shouts of caution. They hurriedly cleared hazardous rubble pieces before anyone could get hurt.

"Mom? Mom!" A small head of golden curls popped out behind a pile of snapped wooden posts.

"Emily! Thank goodness you're safe!" Emily's mom wrapped her in a tight embrace, tears slipping down her face.

"Emily, where's Linda?" Indigo asked worriedly. The little girl, no older than five, pointed back at where she was.

"We were playing hide and seek. I think she hid in one of the cupboards," Emily said. Indigo turned back to the house.

"Linda? Linda!" she called. "Linda, can you hear me? It's me, Indigo!" There was no response. Indigo ventured inside, calling Linda's name and moving aside broken pieces of the house. Jason and Ashley stuck by her side, moving larger portions as the rest of us spread out and searched.

"Indigo! Did you find Linda?" Aunt Jenny appeared, with Uncle George and Alex by her side.

"No, not yet," Indigo called back. "But we're still looking. Don't worry, Aunt Jenny. We'll find her."

"I found her!" Lucian shouted from a far corner. He waved us over. "Under there!" The ground had cracked, and the house had smashed through the earth. Now there was a ledge about three feet down, blocked with various pieces of wreckage. Through the midst of cracked furniture and wooden pieces, I spotted a small body curled up underneath, wearing a bright pink dress.

"Linda!" Indigo lunged for the child, but Aaron held her back.

"It's not safe. The ground is still unsteady. Let Jason and Ashley move the rubble first, and then we'll get Linda."

We watched anxiously as Jason and Ashley cleared a path. Then Lucian jumped down and gently picked up Linda in his arms. He handed her up to Indigo's waiting arms, then hoisted himself back up the ledge.

"Linda!" Aunt Jenny rushed forward and took Linda in her arms. "Linda, it's Mum, wake up!" The child lay limp in her arms, barely breathing. Aunt Jenny sobbed, brokenhearted.

"Can one of you guys heal her? Please, help me," Aunt Jenny looked to us with her tear-streaked face. Rachel stepped forward and laid a hand on Linda's chest.

"She has a few broken ribs and a couple broken bones," Rachel said.

"Can you heal her?" Aunt Jenny asked.

Rachel nodded confidently. She traced a quick symbol on Linda's crumpled dress. "Melius ossa." Mend the bones.

I watched as small streaks of yellow magic spread from the center of Rachel's palm, not unlike my own. Except while mine was vibrant blue, Rachel's was small and pale yellow.

Rachel's brow furrowed. She whispered another spell, and the magic came faster, stronger. We stood in a protective circle around them, making sure no one could disturb Rachel and the healing process.

"Something's wrong," Rachel said. "It's not just broken bones. There's something deeper, maybe something wrong with her internal organs. It doesn't feel right."

"Can you heal it?" Indigo inquired. Rachel bit her lip.

"I'll try my best." We watched as the magic pulsed stronger. I could feel the villagers drawing closer, murmuring among themselves.

"Oh!" Rachel gasped. The magic went crazy, swirling around and around as it fought some unseen force. Rachel's hand began to tremble. Then the magic shuddered and exploded, blasting Rachel back. We all saw a thin wisp of black whirl around Linda's pale, broken form before dissipating.

Indigo suck in her breath sharply. "Dark magic," she said aloud. Rachel nodded.

The villagers gasped as one and moved back quickly. Aunt Jenny looked up at us in desperation. "So there's nothing you can do?" her voice cracked.

"I'm sorry—I tried, but it resisted my magic—" Rachel looked so sad. "I'm just not good enough."

"Let me try." I knelt down beside Aunt Jenny and placed my hand over Linda's heart. I felt a faint pulse, but that was it.

"Please. Do whatever you need to. Just save my Linda." Aunt Jenny's eyes welled up with tears. In that moment, I knew I had to save the little girl, no matter what it took.

"But Kath—!" Aaron started. I looked at him.

"She's just a child. I can't just leave her like this. If I can heal you, then maybe I can heal her too." I was firm on my decision. Finally, Aaron nodded, worry creasing his brows.

For the second time that day, I called upon the newly-discovered magic deep within me, hoping there were still some left. "Heal." Thankfully, blue magic immediately poured from my fingertips. I could feel it fighting something deep within Linda. I willed it to be stronger and overtake whatever evil that was dwelling inside the poor child. I felt the struggle between light and dark, good and evil. The magic swirled around us, forming a cocoon again. I heard gasps from the others but paid no attention; instead, I called upon all my residue magic to heal Linda.

I'm not sure how long it took, but there was a sudden rush of wind and all the magic was drawn inward like a vacuum. The blue light disappeared. Linda's eyelids fluttered open. "Mum?" she whispered. Aunt Jenny's face broke out into a tearful but relieved smile.

"Linda, my baby." Mother and daughter hugged as Uncle George and Alex joined the embrace. I stood up and staggered back, feeling lightheaded. Aaron steadied me.

"At least you didn't faint this time," he joked, but I could see the concern in his eyes. I managed a weak smile.

"Yeah. I didn't."

A yell sounded from the back of the surrounding villagers. "Enemy sighted! Horsemen headed our way! They're coming for the chosen seven!"