The corridor on the first level of the dungeon was quiet.
Dust from the recent explosion still hung in the air. It drifted like a thin, grey mist.
Elowen walked through the haze. Her steps were uneven.
Click. Drag. Click. Drag.
She favored her left leg.
Her silk dress was shredded. Blood matted the left side of her hair and dripped onto her shoulder.
She looked like a broken doll. But she was smiling.
She stopped in front of the little girl bound in the red, glowing chains.
The girl was on her knees. The magical bindings pulsed with a dark, sickly light. They wrapped around her small chest and arms.
Elowen looked down at her captive. Her chest heaved with ragged breaths.
"It seems like it actually works," Elowen whispered. Her voice was wet with blood. "They were telling the truth about this artifact."
She stared at the chains. She had paid a fortune for the suppression trap.
It was designed to bind high-level mages. It fed on their mana to strengthen itself.
