Allen dragged the emergency lever down to its lowest stop while white inscriptions flashed along the dais.
The pressure around the trapped applicants dropped, yet their mana stayed caught inside the core's answering pulse instead of escaping. He traced that returning path through the array, hunting for a place where a slower drain could free them safely.
'It learned their shared current, and my damper slows what comes back, but it won't open their damn hands.'
"Back to the steps, all of you!" he barked, stabbing his free hand toward the entrance while the lever bucked beneath the other.
The other applicants scrambled back, several dragging their companions away from the cracked stone around the approach.
He shoved the lever harder against its stop, and a ward near Sable's sword flickered without releasing the blade.
'Their threads sit inside the response, so ripping the whole thing apart sends that leftover force straight through their bodies.'
