One end of Galena's thread circled each of Ciprian's wrists as he raised his hands to thwart her attack, effectively cutting off the flow of his magic. It should have been nothing for him to rebuff her without much more than a fleeting thought, but after his fight with Wren and the difficulty of the woods, his energy was too sluggish.
"How dare you? Where is your loyalty? Release me. Now." His outrage roared in his ears as he forced his voice to remain even and his expression to remain unperturbed. He refused to give her the satisfaction of seeing him fall apart.
If the enemy could set him on fire and rip out his tongue without making him crumble, this traitor would never succeed in breaking him.
*Do something. Are you truly this useless? How pathetic.* The Creature pushed against the inside of his skull, mocking him.
Ciprian clenched his fists, and the string wrapped tighter. Galena's magic flowed into him, rooting him to the spot.
