Hughes made the two workers that came for them turn around and walk away confusedly.478Please respect copyright.PENANAlAhDXoWxeT
'You're sick.' Christine said. 'Don't you feel anything? All those people.'478Please respect copyright.PENANAJfeK8jOZhd
'It's just part of magic.' He replied. 'Magic was never meant to be a gift. Telekinesis, fire. All destructive.'478Please respect copyright.PENANAOPp6Oozrku
'I don't believe that.'478Please respect copyright.PENANA0NofcdiFxc
'It's true. You were given these powers for a purpose, Christine, and you need to realize this.'478Please respect copyright.PENANAfEaf1oJncb
Ashes were falling around them, a rain of black swans drifting down from the sky.478Please respect copyright.PENANAfljkQwgESs
'Christine. Listen to me. You're special. You're the most powerful of all of us. And you can still join us. You can be reborn as part of Floor Twelve Minus.'478Please respect copyright.PENANA7u1mrEYtWW
The woman cried. She had nothing left - her job was gone, she had no family, and the struggle had drained all the life out of her.478Please respect copyright.PENANAnqEiCH1nHc
With a shaking breath: 'No.'478Please respect copyright.PENANAS3eAPU0y26
'This is your purpose, goddamit! Magic isn't a fairytale, Christine, it's a weapon, and we're utilizing it the best we can.'478Please respect copyright.PENANApnU2P0qh5l
'No, I refuse to believe that.' She groaned as she rose to her feet.478Please respect copyright.PENANAuej3Wmdl0b
'You're weak.' Hughes spat. 'Weak like your brother.'478Please respect copyright.PENANAQSnXbxbwt5
Christine slapped him. 'I don't know who you're talking about. But he sounds like a man who does not deserve to be spoken about like that.'478Please respect copyright.PENANA4B7Go3VvyT
She turned to face the rubble.478Please respect copyright.PENANA2C1TuqWoBd
'Christine. What are you doing? There's nothing left.'478Please respect copyright.PENANAWKX5l1jeZI
'I am not going to let all those people die, Hughes.'478Please respect copyright.PENANAyWnFHKdjDH
'They're already dead!'478Please respect copyright.PENANAuAyFmYf3MQ
Christine stared on at the pile of concrete and glass, a face that aged within just a few days carved into a look of determination. 'That's not going to stop me.'478Please respect copyright.PENANAUCM9U4THUe
With a strenuous roar, she lifted her hands and the pieces of the WestGo building slowly began rolling to the center of the ruin, crashing against each other as the service workers ran around in alarm.478Please respect copyright.PENANAImtSPQCEtY
'Aaaaaaaaaargh!' The pieces were floating now, dripping dust and stones onto the bodies beneath, until they, too, rose into the sky, like puppets suspended by the strings of heaven.478Please respect copyright.PENANAlLSSA28qHH
But that's not possible, Hughes thought. It's not goddamn possible. She can't be doing this.478Please respect copyright.PENANACDW2ouxKqm
There were groans as pieces of steel bent, a flurry of activity as discarded bolts and supports on the ground spun into the air, shards of glass shooting up like a flock of shimmering doves, tinkling as they gathered into radially cracked panes.478Please respect copyright.PENANAlzCh2Ad5Lp
Christine's veins were pulsing, an overflow of energy pouring from the ground through her body, ripples of the Void sending undulations through the air.478Please respect copyright.PENANAjXwDgYbYDs
'YAAAAAAAAAAIEEEEEEEEEEEE - ' Christine could feel it draining her, sapping the very life out of her body, killing her -478Please respect copyright.PENANA4QIBN9Bw66
A deafening roar was ascending in volume as the bodies and pieces of WestGo clouded out the sun, sending the city into shadow.478Please respect copyright.PENANAxVvkMtblR6
Slowly, heavily, they began spinning in the air, some rising, some falling, all slowly being drawn into the center like a giant suspended centrifuge, crashes of smoke and dust, screams of exclamation from the people watching below as it began taking on a shape, a triangular prism reaching up into the sky -478Please respect copyright.PENANArvKzEUiKqw
And it all came cascading down, a shattering boom as the reformed skyscraper dropped to the ground.478Please respect copyright.PENANAdi7hrUeh3t
Cries of anguished relief as a flood of people came running out of the building - alive.478Please respect copyright.PENANA2yl7R0f3hd
Hughes looked on in amazement - Christine had revived them all. Not just one human, but thousands of actual people. Back on earth to feel the warmth of a loved one's embrace, back on earth to cry and smile -478Please respect copyright.PENANAnkCAX8UAzW
He didn't even try to fight it. He just turned back to the empty space in front of him, and in a daze, walked over to the object on the ground.478Please respect copyright.PENANAzSUkHmTOoy
It was her dress, limp, and lying empty on the ashen floor.478Please respect copyright.PENANA3o1VJaXyXE
With her final spell, the Void had taken Christine.478Please respect copyright.PENANAZRcNSZFf9H
Bound by the lives she saved.