The silence of the plaza was shattered by the sharp, ringing sound of metal biting into the stone floor where Zeven had been kneeling only a heartbeat ago. The elder had swung with the intent to sever, but the sheer density of the seal had delayed his momentum by a fraction of a second, just enough for the edge of the blade to gouge the altar instead of Zeven’s neck. Sparks flew, jagged and bright, illuminating the faces of the elders who stood frozen in their configuration. Zeven remained motionless, his head bowed, his body pinned by the unrelenting pressure of the violet seals.
"He is resilient," the third elder muttered, his hands trembling slightly from the strain of maintaining the binding. "Even with his spirit anchored, he refuses to yield."
"Then we shall break him until there i
