I don't know exactly how far we had gone when I was too tired to teleport any further, but I was sure we'd have a moment or two to catch my breath. Sorla retched next to me, rolling onto her side.
"Don't do that unless you warn me next time," she gasped, spitting to clear her mouth of the taste.
"Didn't have time, exactly," I said, feeling my own stomach roil a little. "Now, is there any way we can sever her link to your magic?"
The blind Unicorn struggled to her hooves and turned to face in my general directions. "I'm not sure, since I can't rightly see the runes of the spell or the thaumaturgic circles branded onto me," she said, gesturing at her sightless eyes. "I had a spell working in Equestria that let me see the flow of mana in everything and I used that to navigate, but here, that vortex is absorbing and distorting all ambient mana, so it's not working."
I took a moment to brush some dirt from the brands on her side. "If I describe the spells, would that help?"
"Maybe," she said. "My knowledge of magic is about a thousand years off from yours. Side effect of being part of a kingdom that was sealed off a millennia ago." She hesitated. "Where's Azure and Gleam, or the Princess?"
"Chrysalis captured the Princess and her friends," I said, grief choking my voice for a moment. "After killing Gleam and Azure."
Sorla's jaw fell. "She killed..." Slamming a hoof into the ground, she growled, her horn blazing with dark black haze. "I won't do this again."
She turned her head to the east. "I can still feel the vortex pulling on me," she said. "Maybe if I just let it have me it will end all this."
I shook my head before realizing she couldn't see it. "I don't think so," I said, eyes roving over the shape of one of the circles. "One of these brands is a domination enchantment to keep you from doing anything that might harm you. She evidently didn't want you to kill yourself in mid-spell."
"Which means I can't take off my horn and cause mantic buildup, either," she growled. "What's the other brand?"
"I haven't seen anything like it before," I said. "It has parts of several different spells in it, most of which are channeling and binding subschools. Every last inch of this circle is in breach of several Equestrian laws."
"It was made by a Changeling that invaded another hive," Sorla said. "Look for a central rune, it should denote who the recipient of my mana is."
I found a rune in the rough center of the circle, a harsh circular line with a strange rune under it. "I think I found it," I said.
"Burn it off," she said.
"What?"
"Burn it off," she repeated. "Without a designated recipient, my mana should start a feedback effect. The spell won't have a source for mana and should cease if not reverse."
"That's going to hurt," I said, charging my horn.
She raised a partially regrown brow at me. "I've survived pain before," she deadpanned, then howled as I slammed her with as much heat as I could generate.
After a few moments, she rasped. "Is it gone?"
I looked at her barrel and sighed. The rune was still there, and her flesh seemed as though nothing had affected it. "Still there," I said. "And it looks like you didn't even get singed by my magic."
"Must be a protection charm or something woven into the circle," she gasped as she stood. "Meaning Chrysalis is the only one able to alter it."
A Thestral suddenly slammed into the ground between us, wings spread angrily. A blue unicorn raced up, huffing and puffing for breath.
"Java," she panted, adjusting the scarf around her neck. "You can't just charge after ponies like that."
"You might have missed it, Indigo," Java hissed, tufted ears tilted forward in aggression. "But this pony just assaulted another one."
Indigo rolled her eyes. "You're a baker, Java," she said. "What are you going to do, take away their sweet roll?"
Java rolled his eyes. "I can still report them to the authorities," he growled. "If you can keep them from escaping."
"If you two would shut up for a moment," Sorla said. "We could tell you that I asked her to do it."
The two looked at Sorla.
"That does change things a bit, I suppose," Java said. "To a crazy pony."
I sighed. "Let me explain,"
Sorla cut her hoof across the air. "No time," she said. "Too much. Let me sum up."