(Opening Scene: Headmaster Theron's containment spell is gently suppressing the raw energy of Astrid's Storm's Fury, but a residual tension still crackles in the library. Doctor Finch remains huddled on the floor, trembling with fear and shame. Astrid's breathing is ragged, her gaze still fixed on Finch with lingering anger.)
Despite the headmaster's intervention, a spark of Astrid's fury remained, refusing to be fully extinguished. Her hands clenched again, and a sharp crackle of energy built in the air around her. Before Headmaster Theron could fully regain control of the situation, a bolt of pure lightning, smaller but still potent, erupted from her fingertips, aimed directly at the cowering Doctor Finch.
"Astrid!" Zane exclaimed, his voice filled with alarm. He understood her anger, her fierce protectiveness, but witnessing her lash out with such uncontrolled power was unsettling.
Just as the bolt of lightning hurtled towards Finch, an unexpected reaction occurred within Zane. His eyes, which had been wide with concern, began to glow with an intense, deep purple light, mirroring the shade they had taken during his fight in the simulated arena. A subtle wave of dark energy emanated from him, a silent command that seemed to ripple through the very fabric of the library's magic.
The bolt of lightning, mid-flight, flickered erratically. Its bright intensity wavered, and then, impossibly, it seemed to… dissipate. The raw energy simply vanished, absorbed into the ambient magical field of the library as if it had never existed. The only trace was a faint scent of ozone that quickly faded.
A collective gasp filled the library. Headmaster Theron stared at Zane, his calm demeanor momentarily broken by surprise. Astrid blinked, her remaining fury momentarily eclipsed by confusion as she felt her spell abruptly cease to exist. Doctor Finch, who had braced for the impact, remained unharmed, looking around in bewildered terror.
Zane himself was just as surprised. He hadn't consciously tried to stop Astrid's attack. It was an instinctive reaction, a surge of his void power responding to the uncontrolled magical energy in the room, particularly that directed at someone he now felt compelled to protect.
"Zane?" Astrid asked, her voice softer now, the anger in her tone replaced by a mixture of shock and curiosity. "What… what did you just do?"
Zane looked at his hands, a faint purple afterglow still lingering around them. He didn't have an answer. It was as if the void within him had a will of its own, reacting in ways he didn't yet understand.
Headmaster Theron lowered his containment spell on Astrid, his gaze now fixed intently on Zane. The events in the library had taken another unexpected turn, revealing a new and potentially even more significant aspect of Zane's burgeoning power – an instinctive ability to negate or absorb powerful magical attacks.