Kath valiantly shielded Alice with her body and pointing her wand at the front, she was standing firm against the encroaching threat. Joanne had caught up to them. Kath noticed Joanne holding DeVries' dueling cane. A magical artifact the now-deceased old lady was supposed to pass on to her apprentice, Maria Randell.
"Why did you do that?" Kath questioned, her breath desperate and labored.
"It was necessary," Joanne replied cryptically.
With a swift incantation, Kath unleashed the curse "Alea Iacta Est," a powerful and dangerous spell. However, Joanne effortlessly dodged the dark flashes of light.
“A very powerful and dangerous curse,” She snorted. “I could have died bursting from the inside out in seconds. Of course! If it had touched me.”
“Alea Iacta Est!” She cried three more times, but Joanne dodged the three flashes with ease.
"Where is Alice going?" Joanne asked, diverting Kath's attention. When she turned back, Alice had vanished, fleeing down the desolate street amidst the ruins.
In the chaos, Joanne cast spells— "Spanto! Somnus!"—petrifying and then lulling Kath into a deep slumber.
"Don’t get distracted in front of your enemy," Joanne admonished. A swift kick to Kath's face broke her nose. However, she fell as her consciousness faded. The redhead disappeared as Kath succumbed to unconsciousness.
She didn’t know how long she was out, but she felt how the spell broke and she started waking up. In the haze of her awakening, Kath felt Steve's presence. He shook her gently, concern etched on his face.
"Are you OK?" He asked though she could only manage a nod. Her vision remained blurred; her mind lightheaded.
Steve released the red shield he carried and it suspended itself next to the other shadows around him. Kath couldn’t distinguish what they were, but their glittering silver shadows danced around them
Hanging his hammer on his belt, Steve tenderly cleaned her bloody face with his coat. As he lifted her to carry her on his back, he stumbled upon her small wooden wand.
“Thanks,” she said, after getting her wand back.
Steve started running in the direction he had seen Joanne go.
"Look at that," Kath mumbled, pointing out something amiss even in her half-conscious state.
Steve rushed to the next intersection, discovering a coin-shaped pendant on the ground. "It’s Alice’s," Kath whispered.
Picking it up, Steve watched as the spinning triskelion transformed into an arrow, indicating a direction. An unspoken determination fueled his steps as he followed the arrow, venturing into the unknown to find Alice.
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