Dread Mage

They fell, but Sonder remained steadfast.

"Sorry," she said and reached out a hand.

Though the person now revealed to be a girl Sonder's age seemed very fearful of her.

She then realized that in a situation like this, her appearance could be frightful.

The girl stood up fast and waved her hands around in symbols.

Sonder saw that mana flowed from her heart through her shoulders and arms into her hands.

She was ready to attack Sonder but the undead girl took a step back.

Out of the girl's hand shot light and she yelled in addition, "Lux Sancta!"

It burned Sonder and she yelped in pain.

At the yelp, the girl stopped and seemed confused.

"I'm not here to hurt you. I seem to be lost, do you know the way out?"

At her soft voice, the girl seemed to be less afraid of Sonder.

"You aren't a demon?" She asked.

"No- or at least I don't think so," Sonder said and corrected herself after she thought about it.

The girl was wearing a thick coat, winter gloves, and ear-warmers, and thought that Sonder's own attire was strange in a situation like this.

"Sorry," the girl said, "I'm the Master Mage's apprentice."

"And what does an apprentice know of demons?" Vell said as he suddenly entered from the darkness.

The Apprentice was also scared by his appearance but Vell quickly spoke up.

"Speak, for we are here to help." He was serious and the Apprentice knew it.

"Deep in the heart of the college, there are demons. I don't exactly know what happened. A summoning must have gone wrong or one of the other mages must have gotten possessed. Someone must have realized that quickly and sealed off the college from the inside so that nothing could get out. I was meditating and traveling through distant places at that time, that's why none of them came for me, as they are attracted to great inner presence. But now that I am here, I am as vulnerable as everyone else who had fallen against them. I don't know how you got in but we must get out as quickly as we can. We must call on the other colleges and guilds."

"There is no need," Vell said calmly. "I dealt with demons and hellspawn before. Sonder and I should be enough to deal with them."

"I don't know who you are but that attitude is going to get you killed," the Apprentice said.

"You don't know? I am Dread Mage Vellichor and no being in this world or the next can stand in my way.