The Last Guardian || KTH

21

Zeila woke up earlier to practice her techniques and strengthen her control over magic. Being inside she exercised her bond with magic by lifting glasses and vases, throwing them and catching them just before they would shatter.

Gratefully, she had also learned how to open portals, about time as Taehyung told her. While she couldn't open one big enough for a person to pass through, she did manage to create a fissure that would let the vases run through it.

So she threw the vase, opened a portal before it would collide and opened her arm, ready to catch it when the portal opened above her.

It was three hours of vigorous practice after which she sat down.

Unconsciously, her hand rubbed the back of her neck, pressing against it like an itch that wouldn't rub off.

Taehyung saw Ji-wook warn her time was running out, but nothing more or so he showed. Either he hadn't seen Ji-wook clutching neck and breaking him like a twig or he mastered the art of never flinching.

She had seen the symbol engraved into her skin when Taehyung told her Ji-wook began the connection. The flower being wrapped around with thorns was a symbol to show Ji-wook initiated the zeritus, a spell wherein the magic between them can shift until one person completely drains it off the other, inevitably leading to death so the other could live.

Taehyung told her how all the guardians would undergo a transition period where their magic would shift from the predecessor to successor. But Ji-wook used the Clink between them to show only one of them would stand in the end.

Her fingers trembled outlining the symbol, dropping to her knees when she couldn't bear that thought any longer.

Not only was Ji-wook connected to her through her magic, but now he used that very connection to put a spell that bent the will of the guardians. They both were at the end of a thread, their lifes dangling on the line for the guardians power.

One snap was all it took.

Zeila shuddered, nearly dropping the vase had Taehyung not been there to catch it. "Someone wants another vase."

Zeila pursed her lips, blinking into the silence.

"Today," Zeila said, starting off with a long pause. "Do we trust Hyejin?"

Her hand snaked up to her neck, Taehyung understanding the reason for her question. "If you're thinking about the Zeritus, know that it's never giving him complete control over you. The connection is a two way track."

"Trusting Hyejin." Taehyung rubbed his chin, sighing when his thoughts narrowed down. "Zeila, we can't trust anyone."

"Then why not just ask her? I don't know maybe point a sword and threaten her? See if Hyejin is really Hyejin? There must be something we can do, something to build our trust on," Zeila rambled, frustration edging her mind. She felt at unease knowing every minute she was being watched, every second someone around her could potentially not be the person she thought they were.

She was exasperated. How longer would they wade through the illusion Ji-wook hazed upon them? How long would they fight blindly?

"There is no way for us to know. We've given Hyejin the bracelet, any spells that would control her would break in an instant. Jungkook is your guardian, he's sworn his life to protect you. And your brother-"