Witches in Training (#2 in the Witches Trilogy) [rewrites ongoing]

Chapter Thirty-Four: Stone Circle

VERA

"Vera! Kieran!" Shaun yells, barrelling into the building. "You have to see this. Now."

Vinni looks startled; Kieran doesn't. Kieran was probably prepared for this. He was probably prepared for everything. He stands up. "Ver, wait here." Then, looking at the screen, says, "don't go." Then he runs off with Shaun.

There's a few moments of awkward silence, in which Kami starts to stir. Then Kieran and Shaun burst in, flustered. "Vera, go with Shaun. You need to see this." He sits cross-legged in front of the scrying image and even as I get up to go, he starts talking rapidly. 

Shaun brings me outside and says, "get on my back."

I'm nonplussed before I remember that he's a pegasus. Before my eyes, he transforms into a dark brown stallion with black, white-tipped wings. I've ridden horses before, and getting on isn't a problem. The only problem is that this particular horse is a friend of mine. The experience is a bit weird, you know?

When I've been seated, Shaun immediately takes off. He soars high above the buildings, and the wind whipping in my face is fantastic. This is what it's like to fly. But my adrenaline-fuelled thrill quickly fades when I see what Shaun had seen. A circle has enclosed the entire community-a circle made up of hundreds, maybe even thousands, of people linked by magical threads. "What is that?" I whisper.

"The gorgons." Shaun replies grimly. "Kieran can tell you more than I can, but this is what's known a as a Stone Circle. I don't know the specifics, but basically anything that's enclosed in that circle turns to stone. Forever."

*

"Gorgons are the most vain, self-centred creatures there are." Kieran says, still in his rapid-fire voice. "They fight like crazy and their government is crazy corrupted. So when they come together in unity, and with the same will, the sheer power of that harmony creates enough magic to amplify their powers and turn whatever is within that unbroken circle to stone."

"Can't we just break the circle?"

"It's not as easy as that. If the gorgons are this united for the first time in over a century, then their powers are heightened. You won't be able to attack enough of them to break the circle. But that's not the issue. The issue is evacuation. 'Everything within the circle' includes people, Vera. Every single person in this Community will be turned to stone in a few hours, and most of them don't know anything about it. The Stone Circle is a very old and ancient magic. The good thing is that a spell of that power can't happen immediately, so we have some time to get everyone out."

"How?"

Kieran points at the scrying screen. "The Fairy Kingdom. I've been talking to them. Queen Kyren says they should be able to shelter the people here."

"How are they going to get there? They can't all teleport."

"A portal." Kieran says. "Yes, Ver... they do exist. They're just incredibly difficult to make, because there has to be people on both sides with enough magic to open and maintain the portal. Queen Kyren can take that side. I can take this one."

"You can open a portal?"

Kieran's face darkens. "Not alone."

I'm horrified by this implication. "No. No. Kieran. You cannot use the bond again. Not after last time." 

"She's already awoken. This time, it won't make a difference." Kieran says. "Go with Shaun and evacuate the dormitory blocks first. See if Kami is okay enough to go with you. At this rate, I'd say you have an hour and a half at best."