The Protection of Ren Crown by Anne Zoelle

be registered by the Department, which is exactly what would happen should said mage be caught on the grid,” she said.
    They would analyze my magic and my background. I'd be caged or exterminated. To be caught doing magic without the aid of a container in the First Layer would be devastating.
    I nodded to her, releasing all intention to channel magic.
    Thunder cracked and a green line zipped past my peripheral vision.
    The three of us whirled to see a thirty-foot chartreuse dome suddenly encase us. Five men, armed to the teeth, stood just inside the perimeter.
    “Hands where we can see them,” one ordered.
    Olivia's hand flew to her pocket, only to be ripped away and unnaturally extended a moment later. From the grimace on her face, she was fighting to lower her arm.
    “Hands where we can see them, or we start removing limbs. And if you try to escape, the Containment Magic will kill you instantly.” The man’s expression indicated that this would please him immensely.
    The Department had finally caught me.

Chapter Three: Danger Re-engaged
    The chartreuse containment field leeched swirls of lime into the concrete and back up into the dome above us. There was a poisonous feel to the curves, as if they were streaked with venom.
    And yet there was something—familiar, yet alien, comforting, yet enticing—about the magic. Like a beloved childhood stuffed animal that had resided in another person's house for a few years. The dome's magic looked familiar, but didn't smell right.
    I stepped in front of my friends, hands outstretched. This was my fault. And I would take the full blame.
    The man who had spoken moved forward as well. He was of average height, with short brown hair and deep-set brown eyes. His left ear was slightly larger than his right. In fact, all of the features on his left side were just slightly larger than the ones on the right, as if he had been created by an uneven hand.
    I had seen this man. Earlier today, I had seen him in the library amidst the group lugging the purple boxes. On my way back from grabbing my papers, I had passed them in the hall. Right before the attack.
    His unevenly set eyes flashed and focused on the top of my head. His expression faltered, and his gaze dropped to my face. His eyes narrowed as if he were memorizing my features like I had his.
    “And who might you be with such an interesting set of shields? Step back with the Leandred and Price spawns. I'll deal with you later.”
    His words registered slowly and strangely. They weren't here for me.
    Adrenaline surged and I positioned myself fully in front of Olivia and Constantine. Threat to friends was in an infinitely worse category than a threat to me. My brother had died the last time a strange magic user in the First Layer had asked me to step away.
    And if this man had been at the library before the attack, he was likely not from the Department at all.
    Magic leaped from my core and blasted upward. I had to get Olivia and Constantine out of the dome, or somehow call magical law enforcement to us. I'd be arrested for using magic, interrogated by the Department, and likely imprisoned in magical Siberia. I accepted those consequences.
    I thrust my hands toward the men. Expecting a successful outward blast despite the new cuff, I was unprepared for the violent ricochet of failure. Magic exploded inside of me. I stumbled, vision blurring, my organs battered, bruised, and on fire.
    In a blink of the eye, bolts of blue flew forward over my shoulder as Olivia attacked in the wake of my failure.
    The blasts hit two of the men, sending them sprawling across the lot, but as the leader dove to the side, he spiraled an arm toward his injured comrades. The downed men sprang back to their feet, revitalized and battling once more. The five men separated in a move that bespoke long hours of practice drills—like Christian's football plays of coordinated attack and defense—and bolts of magic flew everywhere.
    I pulled myself upright and