It was chaos.
Rather than the relatively calm atmosphere he'd left behind, the entire courtyard was now in an uproar.
The second-ranked guards, faces twisted in fury, had once again conjured their magic circles while they barked out warnings: "Let her go, right now!" "We won't ask again, bitch!" "Don't you dare hurt her!"
Across from them stood Astrid and Seraphina, weapons drawn, and equally prepared to attack. Or at least, Astrid was, as Seraphina was only barely paying attention. Instead, her head was turned to look at what was behind her. "Dammit, Emily!" she exclaimed helplessly. "Don't harm him!"
Astrid, on the other hand, remained focused on the danger in front of her, but also yelled over her shoulder, "I understand your anger, Emily, but let's just wait for Erik to get back!"
Meanwhile, in the back, first-ranked survivors appeared to be gathering silently, as if trying to use the chaos for a comeback.
