I can't turn it off! I can'tWith the discipline of a battle-hardened Mage Questor, Grimm crushed his rising panic, trying to concentrate on the task at hand. He shut his eyes and tried to force himself to relax, a seeming impossibility for a Secular, perhaps, but not for a Guild Mage. Nonetheless, the power within him began to rise to incredible, uncontrollable levels.

It's a Resonance! I'm trapped inside it, and I can't stop it!

This time, the traitorous, terrified thought went unchallenged. Grimm now knew he was fighting for his life.

He felt as if his body and soul were trying to explode into a million pieces, and he shuddered with the effort to contain them. Sweat ran down Grimm's face as he struggled to contain the roiling forces within him.

"Help me!” The strangled, desperate cry seemed to come from far away, but the mage knew this hoarse, terrified voice was his.

"All right, Grimm; you can stop now."

In an instant, Grimm regained control of his magic, dispersing it into harmless motes within his mind. For several moments, he rolled in his chair, incapable of speech as he drew whooping gasps of air into his burning lungs.

Drex smiled. “Do you see, Grimm? I have total control over you and your emotions. Back in your camp, I found it so easy to manipulate your emotions. When I wanted you angry, you were angry. When I wanted you to crawl, you fawned like a naughty puppy seeking forgiveness. Your infatuation for me gives me all the control I need."

"I never knew you liked dogs so much, Drex,” Grimm croaked. “I'll buy you one when we're out of this."

Drexelica leapt to her feet and lunged towards the Questor, slapping him hard on the left cheek. Grimm ignored the brief burning; he had suffered far worse physical punishment in his time.