Descendants of Time (Role-Play Act 5: Revolutionary Moment)

Cinia Pacifica · 2014-12-02T18:25:26-01:00

Update: As of Act 4, many updates to the system was done and it's revamped enough hopefully. You can check the mechanic changes in the List of Profiles doc. Some other docs have more specific information too. If you want to catch up to the story for more recent contents, we've written review posts that goes through the majority of the important story parts of the RP based on each Acts: - Act 1 Review - Act 2 Review - Act 3 Review - Act 4 Review Spoiler: A lost country. A new country. An old country. What is true? What is false? So much has happened. From the sands of time they had arose. When the four representatives of the stars gathered… The wind had brought forth with it steam. Steam that brought with it soot, as well as dirt hated by those wishing to keep up an illusion – their appearances. When the eight representatives of the stars pointed blades… The wind had brought forth with it change. Change that brought with it inventions; elaborate usage of electricity, and fuels – providing more to grasp – so that they may hold onto their delusions. When the twelve representatives of the stars clash… The wind would bring forth with it a miracle. Miracle that would bring with it a gate. Yes, the gate beyond which the infernals live. Or so the prophecy had stated. I wonder if that is worthy of the word †˜miracle.’ Four had already met. As so did the eight. The meeting of the twelve had yet to take place. People have taken this prophecy for granted. O magi – wielders of power beyond the comprehension of mundane – those who suck mana from the realms’ air – are you certain that all the horrors and tragedies are from these Descendants of Time? You people – the magicians sworn to keep the world’s balance in correct order – should you be taking up your armaments against the bearers of the Zodiac? Has conflict truly been the only possible answer? Surely, their meetings had brought forth winds that shook the status quo. Yet I am willing to believe – that all have their reasons. For good, I hope. Instead of taking up blades and staves, take a moment – at least – to put up your hands – for prayers for those who have long passed away, for the mundanes and comrades alike. Don’t they mean anything to you all? Or is the process of generations – and heirs taking up your place – simply a means to extend your ambitions and desires to continue on in the material world? My duty – was never to rally against those descendants, but to be the beacon of peace and stability. I truly wish someone qualified could take my position. However, I too, hold a selfish ambition. I wish to find the answer. The answer to what is true, and what is false. This is the best position to navigate from – for the answer. So what if the Old King had stolen countless hearts of women and left countless hearts of men to cry? So what if the Countess had terrorized masses of people? Or of the matter at which the King of Knights lost his people’s trust? Or of the incident when the voice of the Fortune Teller told of the future that none wanted to know? What of the Thunder Emperor who fought to fend off the colonists to protect his herd? What of the tale of the Heart-Breaker Queen? She now suffers the fate of being locked away in a far, far land. Haven’t we humans done wrong ourselves? Are we to cast a deaf ear to the roars of wars we ourselves fought among each other? Mage’s wars. Civil wars. World wars. I, for one, am rather tired of these. Are we magicians implying that we are allowed to shed blood – so long as we raise our blades against one another? Nay. One should simply look from various directions. Let us look for what lies beyond what was seemingly obvious. Had we all not had our own reasons? The time of steam. The timeless zone. The time of future. And the modern time… Again, what holds the truth? How do we distinguish it – from what is false? If we claim that those from the past eras are but illusions… what of the country – from the modern era that we once knew? Were they real? Had they not disappeared – sunk into the sands of time? Do they even exist anymore? It is truly a mystery – one which I wish to solve. The prophecy spoken by the father of magi claims of the coming calamities to be brought forth by the Descendants, as if paying no care to the many conflicts to come for humans. Would one not see it as mockery? Was it truly a message to the magi, or the Descendants themselves? He who held the power to peer into the future – spoke not a word for the future of man or magicians. The calamities he spoke of were to be brought forth by the warriors of time. Each meeting of a group of them – would bring about great changes. The first would take time away. The second would accelerate time. The third would reverse time. And the fourth would bring about the infernals. Through the gates of hell would darkness come forth. The differences in the described events are rather strange, and do not match up. Magicians may find it credible due to the matching occurrences. I am yet to believe it blindly, however. Far from it. The father of magi cares only for the descendants. He cared not for the mundane. He never did, yet it was addressed to us – as if to use us. It might’ve been a message for the Descendants all along. That is my conclusion on the subject. – Queen Victoria’s Memoire, 1st Entry, 1857, August. ↑Prologue↑ Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to my next Role-Play (RP), the Descendants of Time RP. It was originally inspired by my old Time Warrior RP. At first, I had planned for a simple †˜reboot’ RP, but soon I came up with new ideas based around the concept of †˜Time Warriors’ itself. After which, this RP came out as a result. As such, it is not a fanfiction RP, and anyone with little experience in RPing are welcome to join. This RP may start out a little… mysterious yet normal. However, don’t make a mistake – the story is undoubtedly of a dark fantasy genre. †˜Happy’ moments may seem more scarce than it may be. If you’re looking for some of those boring happy-go-lucky high school RP; kindly switch your computer off. I’ve spent quite a lot of time preparing this RP, for at least a month now. Not everything is done, but it’s good enough for this thread to be up, so that prospective players may submit their character profiles. It’d take at least about one or two weeks before this RP officially starts. Players will still be allowed to join after the RP starts. I’d recommend one to join before it starts, regardless. So this time, I’m incorporating Ars Magica 5th edition into the mechanism of my RP. It’s not fully Ars Magica the tabletop RP game, but it is for the most part – simply tweaked and changed to suit the online RPing style more. You do not have to read the book of Ars Magica, as most of the mechanic is explained in the guidelines below. If you’re a beginner, I don’t think you have to delve into the complications. Just knowing the basic will do. Now, a little about the kinds of character available for play: Time Warriors, this time, are based on the Zodiac Signs. There are twelve kinds of Time Warriors known throughout the world as is the number of Zodiac Signs. Each has features representing their Sign, and must work towards concealing their identity, for the mages are eager to find and kill them. Albeit, Time Warriors are immortal, so they are rather hard to kill, as they’re only killable when using their Time Freeze ability. Then we have the mages. Apparent guardians of the world’s balance. Spiritual balance, to be specific. They refer to the magical dealings and undertakings as part of the †˜Magic World’, which is just a way to separate the mundanes from their activities in context. Otherwise, the Magic World consists of Magic Organizations, and other Organizations that hires mages and participates in the activities of said †˜world’. Most mages have forgotten the main purpose for which they took up this responsibility, and simply practice magecraft for other purposes. However, they do wish to hunt down the Time Warriors. They follow the Father of Magi’s prophecy which implies that Time Warriors will bring ruin to the world. Lastly, we have the mundane members of the many societies throughout the world. The mundanes do not know of the Magic World, and it is only an urban legend or rumors to them. Few mundanes often come to learn of the Magic World and the many magicians who’re a part of it. Those planning to play a mundane character – in other words, an ordinary character – should be striving for such an archetype. Finally, you have the option to start from one of three countries – England, Japan, or Russia, and they have their own settings. England is in the 19th century timeline and has a steampunk setting. Japan is in the 23rd century, and is futuristic. Russia has no sense of time at all, but has a steampunk setting too. Other countries outside these three are still living in the 21st century in the modern era. Rules: To join this RP, you must submit your character profile to me through a Private Message (PM). If you're new to RPing, give the old RP Guide a read, if you feel inconvenienced with reading so much, at least check out the Munch section, please. No spamming. Please don’t post any comments, questions, or a profile in this thread. Use PMs instead, or some other place, as RP posts will be made in this thread, after the RP starts. Write in the Third Person Format, because no one likes to be confused. We’ll be writing in a Google Doc in real time, so First Person Format may confuse other participants and readers. Make sure you have some time throughout a day to be able to write. An hour is preferable, but other participants have to be around at least. You don’t necessarily have to be around every single day. Make sure you have Skype because it will be used for communication. Character Creation: Spoiler: Write up your character profile by filling out the necessary details in the character profile sheet and send it to me via PM. If you have questions, or want to submit a draft profile with a PM for my opinions, go right ahead. So, below is technically two profiles, but merged into one due to my laziness. Basically, you must decide what kind of a character you’re going to play. There’s Time Warrior, Mage, and the Mundane, in other words, the Ordinary. Time Warrior slots are limited. Some of them are NPCs, and the rest are †˜new’. Two of the †˜old’ Time Warrior slots are already taken. Not exactly taken, but my friends are gunning for them. Throughout the profile, you’ll notice something that only applies to either Time Warriors or mages. Exclude the parts meant for the type of character you’re not going for. The character profile sheet is as follows: Basic Information: Name: Your character’s name. It’s not limited to names of a country since your character’s nationality may be from anywhere. Alias: If your character has an epithet or a nickname he goes by; it goes here. Age: Your character’s age. Time Warriors may opt to have their original age hidden here. No characters may be younger than 16 years of age. Birthday: The month and day at which your character was born. Gender: State whether your character is male or female. Nationality: Which country your character originates from. Handedness: Is your character right-handed, left-handed, or ambidextrous? I personally feel that everyone should not go for ambidextrous. Appearance: How your character looks. Provide an image. It may not be a screenshot from an actual anime episode, however. A fan-image that is original is most preferred. You may add any descriptions via text to make distinctions from the image. Character Type: State whether your character is a Time Warrior, Mage, or a Mundane. New or Old: State whether your Time Warrior is one of the newer ones, or the older ones. This only applies to Time Warriors. New Time Warriors have a limit of 300 years while old Time Warriors have no limit, and they must be at least 700 years old. Legends: This applies only to Time Warriors; state your character’s names of legends, achievements, and events of fame (words that defines them). All of them. Remember that you will have to write about them in your character’s background. Affiliation: Which Organization, or Magic Organization your character is affiliated with. Regardless of whether his loyalty is sincere or not. To be a part of any organization, your character must have an appropriate Flaw or Virtue for it. Country: You may pick one of the following: England, Japan, or Russia. Your character will be starting in the country that you state here, when the RP actually starts, so the character may have differing nationality. Personality: How your character acts and whatnot; the quirks of his everyday behavior. You must explain how his mind works, which includes both his demeanor and his inner mind. You must also explain the Personality Flaws that you took for your character here. The actual cause of the chosen Personality Flaws are best described in the background. Background: Your character’s backstory. In other words, his past. Explain how he had lived up to the point where the RP starts. You must include a piece of information about his origin – home, family, bits of his childhood life. You must explain here – how your character got to either England, Japan or Russia (whatever you picked above in †˜Country’), since regardless of his nationality, he must somehow get to the chosen country before the story starts. This is where you may write out why your character has the Virtues, Flaws, and the Abilities (possibly spells, if they may apply) that you chose during this process of character creation. After all, these things shapes your character’s very life. Other than that, you should sum up what your character expects of his life, and what he wants out of it – if he has it all decided, anyway… it may help me to come up with some events later. For the Time Warriors, they’ll have to write about their character’s legends too, and how the actual events differed from the legends told by the textbooks and online webpages. You have most freedom in changing whatever legend you pick for your Time Warrior. Technical Information: Zodiac Sign: This only applies to Time Warriors. State your character’s chosen Zodiac Sign. Not the one from birth, but the one your character is a Time warrior under. Statistics: Your character’s statistics, it measures your character’s general capabilities. You have 35 base Statistical points to spend on the stats listed below: Strength: Your character’s physical prowess. Your character will mostly need this for raw physical damage, or pulling off feats requiring brute strength. Dexterity: How fast your character is physically. Generally, your character would be able to use it to run away from all kinds of dangers with this, as well as outrun others. Endurance: Grants your character 30 HP per point if he is a Time Warrior, otherwise your character gains 20 HP per point. This shows how much stamina and physical tolerance your character has. Mana: It grants 20 MP per level. This is only available to the Mage type characters. Ordinary characters may or may not have it. It measures how much mana your character is able to harness from the appropriate realm to cast magic. Spirit: It grants 20 SP per level. This is only available to Time Warriors, Spirits, and those with only Supernatural Abilities (sometimes Mundanes may have this stat too). It shows how much spiritual energy your character possesses. Intelligence: Your character’s mental capabilities. The five senses all pertain to this, because your character’s brain must process information fast enough for him to react. It also encompassess memory and knowledge. Wisdom: In other words, willpower. Your character’s ability to keep things together instead of going insane and not wetting his pants. This allows your character to resist lies and befuddlement, as well as casting spells. Getting tired lowers it; if this goes down to 0, your character will faint. Charisma: Ability to charm, socialize, approach to simply speak anyone, or catch the attention of the peers with venerating aura of reverence. If it is high, the right people may just come to your character on their own. This is sometimes necessary to talk with certain kinds of people, especially the nobles of England. Luck: Obviously, your character’s luck. When there is no better way to crawl out of a dire situation; luck may be your character’s greatest salvation. However, lady luck is a fickle mistress; it is very unpredictable. The base limit of this stat is 5. If your character is a Time Warrior – you may not use any of your Stat points to boost this stat up. Instead, your character is provided a default Luck stat point (completely free stat points), which you may check in the List of Zodiac Signs below. Flaw: Write up the names of your character’s Flaws that you picked. The points may amount to 10 at maximum. Whether it is free, minor, major, or special should be informed in parenthesis. Virtues: Write up the names of your character’s Virtues that you have purchased with the points you achieved from picking Flaws. Again: whether is it free, minor, major, or special should be informed in parenthesis. Abilities: Write up all the Abilities that you purchased, including their levels just beside the names. Abilities are bought with the base Ability points provided for every characters, which is 35. More may be gained via purchasing Virtues or Flaws, but they may be restricted to particular types of Abilities that you may spend them on – Heaven’s Commandment Virtue, for instance, provides 10 Ability points, 5 of which may only be spent on Time Warrior type Abilities, while the rest may be used freely. If your character specializes in a particular Ability, put “(+1)” beside the original number of level. Keep the Abilities in order. I.e.: General, Academic, Arcane, Martial, Supernatural, Time Warrior. Specializations: Your character may specialize in 3 Abilities. State the specialized Abilities here. Arts: Your character’s Arts – this includes the Techniques and Forms – must be listed here. This only applies to Mage type characters. Certain Techniques are gained from certain Academic Abilities, while certain Forms are learned from the Lore-based Arcane Abilities. Primary Technique: It is the first Technique your character started learning magic with. The first 5 spells that he learns must be under this particular Technique, combined with the primary Form. Primary Form: It is the first Form your character started learning magic with. The first 5 spells that he learns must be under this particular Form, combined with the primary Technique. Other Techniques: Through buying and leveling up certain Academic Abilities, your character may gain access to other Techniques. Other Forms: Through buying and leveling up certain Lore-based Arcane Abilities, your character may gain access to other Abilities. Mage’s Sigil: This only applies to mages. Every mage has their own unique qualities mixed into them. Even if they all use the same spell; there will be a small difference. Someone may cast Aurum spells that blows with wind but leaves a rose scent as an aftermath, another may cast a Terram spell and the earth would be controlled in a very orderly manner. Or a mage casting an Aquam spell could cause the water to glow and turn to ice at one point regardless of her wish. There are many kinds of sigils mages have, and they become more and more apparent as a character gains more Warp Points. Equipments: Information about your equipments must be provided here. Weapon: Depending on the type of weapon your character wields, a base damage is provided. Your character may use a weapon if he has the appropriate Martial Ability to use it. Each Martial Ability is bought for each type of weaponry. Minimum base damage of any weapon is 5. You may purchase the Relic Virtue to have a mythical weapon (usually owned by Time Warriors), but you’d have to talk to me about it before picking a weapon. Otherwise, you may pick the Magical Item Virtue. Attire: Most people don’t really wear armors anyway, they happen to wear enchanted clothing instead. No Ability, Virtue or Flaw in particular is required to have an armor, and the enchanted clothing provides a default 2 Defense value but may break easily from taking damages, while the invisible armors donned by Knights and Dark Knights usually provides 5 Defense value. If you want your character’s attire to be special, pick the Magical Item Virtue (it only lets you pick one item from the list). Treasure Item(s): Usually, crafters and alchemists happen to have these as they make them. Otherwise, you’d need a Virtue that makes your character wealthy to be eligible for having at least one of them. Each social status proving your character’s wealth and power allows 1 Treasure Item. Otherwise, Magical Item Virtue lets you pick one. Confidence Score: Every characters starts with 1 score, but a Virtue, or story events may raise it. Each score raises the point limitation by 3. The limitation may be surpassed temporarily by the effects of a Flaw or a Virtue. Confidence Points: Every character starts with 3 points, but a Virtue, Flaw, or story events may raise them. They may be used to make a dice roll check pass even when they fail. However, they’re lost forever once used, and must be gained anew. There are other ways to gain them, refer to the mechanism section below. Reputation Type: State the type of Reputation and its level your character has. This may only be gained through a Virtue, Flaw, or through story events after the RP starts. Spells: List all the spells your character had learned – this is only for Mage type characters. They must be listed chronologically, but the spells from your character’s primary Art comes first, before the rest. We don’t want things to be out-of-order, especially when we have to look up what spells your character has learned later on. Please put the Technique and Form name combination over the class of spells. I.e.: Write †˜Rego Corpus Spells’ then list off all the spells of Rego Corpus that your character learned. Mages have no real limit to learning spells, but characters are limited by Magical Education and Magic Theory Abilities. List of Zodiac Signs Available: (Update: No more Time Warrior slots available.) Spoiler: This contains all the Zodiac Signs your Time Warrior character may hail from, along with some basic or useful information about them. The full information about the powers will be sent via PM to the player by me. Zodiac Signs that are not taken before the RP starts will be used to make NPCs instead. To be honest, all these Zodiacs except for Aries and Libra are being targeted by my friends already… try taking your pick, anyway. Be careful, though. Once you get the actual full information about the chosen Zodiac Sign; you may not change to another Zodiac Sign. [size=15]Aquarius:[/h] Symbol: The Water Bearer. Color: Blue. Classification: Knight. Element: Water. Physical: Cool and Balanced. Realm Affiliation: Faerie Realm. Ruling Planet: Uranus. Lucky Stone: Amethyst, +2 Luck. Time Ability: Seeing a vision of the target’s past. He must sin after using this power. Vice: Your character’s sin is taking pride in his accomplishments. He is unable to boast, nor is he allowed to make statements that distinguish between †˜positions’ of himself and another. Time Span: January 20 - February 18. [size=15]Aries:[/h] Symbol: The Ram. Color: Red. Classification: Rogue. Element: Fire. Physical: Hot and Active. Realm: Infernal Realm. Ruling Planet: Mars. Lucky Stone: Diamond, +5 Luck. Time Ability: To go to the future. He must sin after using this ability. Vice: Your character’s sin is showing rage and anger through speech and words. He may not raise his voice beyond the ordinary level of speech. Time Span: March 21 - April 19. [size=15]Taurus:[/h] Symbol: The Bull. Color: Brown. Classification: Vanguard. Element: Earth. Physical: Active and Warm. Realm: Infernal Realm. Ruling Planet: Venus. Lucky Stone: Emerald, +4 Luck. Time Ability: Aging. Your character grows older by three years despite being immortal, in an instant. This ability only works if your character sins. Vice: Your character’s sin is hatred. He is disallowed from expressing any form of hate. He is disallowed from speaking words of hatred in any way. Time Span: April 20 - May 20. [size=15]Gemini[/h] Symbol: The Twins. Colors: Sky Blue and Emerald Green. Classification: Summoner. Element: Air. Physical: Cool and Move. Realm: Infernal Realm and Divine Realm. Ruling Planet: Mercury. Lucky Stone: Aquamarine, +3 Luck. Time Ability: Your character constantly see what would happen five seconds into the future. Vice: Your character’s sin is greed. Every time he finds himself fulfilled from self-satisfaction by completing an ambition – he has sinned. This only applies if your character had to step over some other person’s feelings of any kind to accomplish it. Time Span: May 21 - June 20. [size=15]Cancer:[/h] Symbol: The Crab. Color: Silver. Classification: Assassin. Element: Water. Physical: Cool and Passive. Realm: Magical Realm. Ruling Planet: Moon. Lucky Stone: Moonstone, +2. Time Ability: Acceleration of the process of something in an object, say, a cancer, for instance. Your character must sin after using this ability. Vice: Your character’s sin is rest. She must not rest or stop to relax in any case. Even when she has nothing to do, she must find something to occupy herself. Time Span: July 21 - August 22. [size=15]Sagittarius:[/h] Symbol: The Archer. Colors: Purple. Classification: Archer. Element: Earth. Physical: Cooling. Realm: Magical Realm. Ruling: Jupiter. Lucky Stone: Turquoise, +3. Time Ability: Unwind reality – your character is able reverse the time of something. Your character must sin after using this ability. Vice: Your character’s sin is lying. She is not allowed to lie in any way, even about something trivial. She must answer any and all questions truthfully and faithfully. Time Span: November 22 - December 21. [size=15]Capricorn:[/h] Symbol: The Goat. Colors: Black. Classification: Warrior. Element: Wind Physical: Cool and Strong. Realm: Magical Realm. Ruling Planet: Earth. Lucky Stone: Garnet, +2 Luck. Time Ability: Your character may completely stop the time of something. Forever. He must sin after using this ability. Vice: Your character’s sin is food. He must not express his hunger in any way, nor he show his desire to eat. Time Span: December 22 - January 19 Character Features: Spoiler: Flaws, Virtues, and Abilities: The system of Flaws and Virtues provides features to your character that makes him or her unique after you put them all together. When you’re making a character, you should pick Flaws and Virtues, first. A minor Flaw or Virtue is worth one (1) point, while a major Flaw or Virtue is worth three (3) points.. You are limited to 10 points when taking up Flaws. The accumulated points of the Flaws you took for your character grants you the same number of points required to buy Virtues. So if you buy Flaws equivalent to 10 points, you basically gain 10 points to buy Virtues. A Flaw is defined as a kind of issue in your character’s life that is sometimes considered not preferable. However, it is not always exactly †˜bad’. Selfishes is sometimes frowned upon, but it may be endearing for parents. Kindness is often seen as a good trait to have, yet it isn’t always necessarily good for a particular person to always show kindness. You must take the Vice Flaw to play a Time Warrior. Or the Blatant Gift to play a mage A Virtue is defined as something arguably helpful or nice to have, but it can make a person’s life harder. Work, responsibilities, power. They seem nice, but they add a weight to pressure to a person, most of the time. There are times when one may wish that they weren’t particularly skilled in something. You must take the Heaven’s Commandment, and the Mythic Blood to play a Time Warrior. Or take The Gift, or the Gentle Gift, to play a mage. If you wish for your character to be an ordinary, mundane character who is going to delve into the Magic World after the story starts; do not take the Heaven’s Commandment or The Gift (or any of its variations). Instead, take a Virtue or Flaw that justifies your character having supernatural connections. I.e.: Ghost Warder, Guardian Angel, Plagued by Supernatural Entity, etc. Please note that you must pick at least one personality Flaw, and one Social statue Virtue/Flaw during the character creation process for the profile to be legitimate. After you’re done picking Flaws and Virtues – it is time to look towards the Abilities. There are 35 base Ability points provided when creating a character, but several Flaws and Virtues gives extra points, albeit in some cases they may only be spent on particular types of Abilities. You must note that Academic, Arcane, Martial, and some Supernatural Abilities are locked. To unlock them, you must take a particular Flaw or VIrtue. You will come across various Flaws or Virtues allowing you to unlock them during the process of character creation. However, to unlock the few Supernatural Abilities – your character must be a Time Warrior. To buy Abilities, you must spend Ability Points; 1 Ability point per level, up to level 4. For levels 5 or above, you will have to spend 2 Ability points per level. For levels 8 and above, you must spend 3 Ability points per level. Do not forget that certain Flaw, Virtue, or Abilities may have you specify their type in the very names. Here is the list of the Virtues, Flaws, and the Abilities: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ZfRWOvsSi4dOYDP-NUt5FjfouSXXDsC9VY1UMtf0-tI/edit# Abilities your character has not learned may still be used unless it is marked with a * mark. The list may go through small changes as time passes. Arts and Spells: Mages practice the Arts to be able to cast spells. An Art consists of Techniques and Forms. Only by combining a Technique and Form, can a mage cast a spell. The first Technique and Form your character learns is his primary Technique and Form, as they are the first he had studied and understood. Hence, your character’s first 5 spells must be from that particular combination of Technique and Form. A Technique arises from studies of different fields. They’re not particularly related to magic, but they do grant one knowledge and wisdom. Techniques are a set of beliefs that tries to connect with a mystical Realm. Theology, for instance, teaches the Techniques of Creo and Rego. Techniques may be gained from certain Academic Abilities. There is no limit to learning Techniques for any characters. A Form is an element. Through the studies of a particular Realm may one delve into its properties to manipulate it. By mastering a Form, one may draw the mana of its affiliated Realm to fuel a spell. The Mana stat only determines how much Mana your character is able to harness before he drains himself out. A Form may be gained from the lore-based Arcane Abilities. Here is the list of Techniques, Forms, and Spells: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1rbbnHP_X3AI4dBK80Db-vFq2xMxiffEWw7bwbLtbNWs/edit# The list may go through some changes as time passes – I may add more spells… I may not, too. We’ll see. Equipments: Weapon, attire, and Treasure Items – the set of equipments possibly usable in game terms in this RP. Your character may start with any ordinary weapon and clothing, but they may be enchanted. It is possible to have a Treasure Item from the start – but your character has to be wealthy to be eligible. A weapon is obviously a tool meant to wound and kill a target. For it to contain magic, or be a mythical weapon with special properties – you must buy the Magical Item Virtue, or the Relic Virtue, respectively. Weapons usually provide a base damage, which adds a number of damage into every normal attacks your character makes with that weapon. Ordinary weapons comes with 5 base damage. A Strength roll adds more damage to it. To have an absolutely ordinary weapon, say, a sword – you simply need to have a Single/Great Weapon (Sword) Ability for it. An attire is what provides protection up to an extent to your character. Mostly from the prying eyes, however. Ordinary dresses or attire of any kind comes with 2 Defense value. These attires may break as soon as your character is hurt, however. You must pick the Magical Item Virtue or the Relic Virtue if you wish your attire to have enchantments or special protective properties. Defense rolls allows a character to gain lowered damages. A Treasure Item is an enchanted item that usually comes with various effects. They are crafted by Crafters or Alchemists, and usually has mysterious effects. You may pick one from the list if your character is wealthy in any way. The most dangerous yet commonly seen Treasure Items are ones that possesses vis, usually worn by powerful mages. Vis is raw magic that may power up spells, by the way. You may pick more with Magical Item Virtue. Those under Relic type may not be picked during character creation, unless you use the allowance from the Relic Virtue. Remember that the Relic or Magical Item Virtue may not be picked twice. To dual wield a weapon (I.e.: two identical guns on both hands), your character must have the Martial Ability Single Weapon or the Ranged Weapon Ability at the appropriate level (4 for Single Weapon or, 3 for Ranged Weapon) of that particular type of weapon (I.e.: gun.). To use two different kind of weapons at once (I.e.: sword and wand on both hands), you must pick the Multiple-Weapon Martial Ability. However, you will have to purchase Single Weapon Ability or Ranged Weapon Ability (or Great Weapon/Thrown Weapon Ability) appropriately. So if you wish to have your character fight with a sword and a wand at the same time – you’d need to buy Single Weapon (Sword) at level 1 at least, and Single Weapon (Wand) at level 1, at least. Note how this Ability had to be bought twice, but under different type of weapon. You may justify four weapons if your character is an android or a marionette (after buying appropriate Virtues) by claiming that two weapons are fitted into legs or other parts of the body, while the rest are in both arms. Of course, you’d need to invest quite the number of Ability points for them. Those who wants over four weapons should just shoot themselves. Here is the list of Weapons, Attires, and Treasure Items: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1MLNCLQ3geMOHgkFGrlff7E7wTugJNVw7jEJCHz9eSV0/edit If there’s any grammar issues or major game-related issues, don’t hesitate to tell or use the comment function. Protip: Use ctrl + f to find something specific. You may use the Table of Contents add-on to navigate easier, especially for the spell list. I have the Table of Contents set up on most docs.

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Cinia Pacifica Ojou-sama Writer

8 years ago

The Queen had fallen into her slumber and Aramus had been keeping a close watch on Her Majesty whenever he could, his mounting worry offset by busying himself with chores and meditation. Aramus had also ventured out of the house to scout the surrounding area, never having been to the Isle of Wight before. There was a town not too far out but otherwise it was relatively peaceful.

He had administered simple first aid to himself, bandaging his wounds and doing what he could but it wasn’t enough to prevent scarring in a few areas. Any strenuous physical activity was out of the question as it would reopen his wounds, but the chores he had been doing so far seemed alright.

The pantry had only contained dry goods and nothing fresh to eat, so Aramus had visited the town after changing his clothes from some spares in the servant's quarters. The suit was a little too conspicuous on such an isle. The card issued to him by the Space Police couldn’t be used either, not that he’d want to draw attention to himself. He would instead head to scrounge around in the manor for any pence or pound that might be found. That and whatever he had on him would have to be enough, sans a few bloodstained coins.

He had bought enough staples to last a few days with the money and hurried back, hoping that his appearance wouldn’t raise suspicion in such a town. Usually, most people in such an area knew each other and hence he had to make himself scarce. He had been enjoying a simple meal of cream soup and bread when Queen Victoria finally awoken.

“Good morning… Mister Linfield,” Victoria greeted, after getting into a sitting position on her bed, and turning to the window. “How long has it been?”

“A week, Your Majesty. Is Your Majesty feeling better?” Aramus asked, leaving his meal for later as he paced over to the bed.

The eyes of the Queen were listless, and they still appeared to be very tired; there was a forlorn look on her face.

“I do not know…”

Some of her mood spread over to Aramus and he felt distress at Victoria’s state.

“I will retrieve some hot soup and tea, something to warm Your Majesty up after that slumber.”

The Queen made a small smile, one that may have been forced. The looming gloom was yet very apparent even though it resembled the usual smile of his Queen that he was used to witnessing.

“No, I shall be well; hence the food shall be excused,” she said, before going into a state of silence. She looked down at her right palm—deep in pondering—before she looked back at the sky beyond the window. The cloudy skies obscured the view of the sun as ever. “I thought I would not wake up this time…”

“It would be a miserable day if Her Majesty didn’t wake…” Aramus said softly.

“Yet I would find continued peace in slumber.”

“Does Her Majesty wish to?” Aramus asked with trepidation. I could say the same of myself though...

“Of course, everyone likes to rest, but I still have much to accomplish.”

His fears allayed, Aramus cracked a smile. “Would my liege like to rest just that little bit longer in this abode?”

Then leave this relic of the past be in peace and go. There was no one to rely on for the moment, and Her Majesty knew the degree of loyalty her Magister had for her.

“Mn. I really… prefer this abode. Much more than the rest of the Royal residences.”

“Then rest we shall. I will strive to live up to Her Majesty’s expectations whilst we remain here,” Aramus said with a bow.

Despite the previous thought, Her Majesty couldn’t help but say thus: “Ah, but you do not necessarily need to serve me, Mister Linfield. I am no longer the Queen of Britan now.”

“That does not change the fact that my life still belongs to Her Majesty… but I believe saying the title in public would cause… problems,” Aramus said respectfully.

As one would believe…“Problems?”

“Like my liege has said, Your Majesty are no longer the Queen… referring to Your Majesty as such might draw unwanted attention. Would there be any other title that my liege finds suitable?”

“Only other title involved the Empress of India, Her Grace, Her Majesty, Protector of… well, as a lady, however, I would not mind some attention. Hoho.”

“Then shall I continue to address my liege as such?” Aramus offered with a tilt of his head.

“Silly, it means you are free to address me as you wish. I do not mind if you choose to call me by my given name.”

“Victoria…” Aramus said to himself, as if unsure he was about to call his liege by her first name. “Lady Victoria.”

“Oh dear, that was surprisingly easy.”

Aramus looked away from her as she said that, somewhat unsure himself. Calling her that would definitely take some getting used to.

“I’ve just been so used to addressing my Lady by her title that it feels strange, like I’m not the one saying the words… This is… new, but I could get used to it.”

“That is good to hear, albeit I did not expect you to readily accept my request.” The Queen looked back to the window again, the expression easing up once more from her smile. “What do you think, Mister Linfield? What do you think… will be the future of Britain?”

“Only time will tell, Lady Victoria. Whether Princess Louise and Beatrice really have the people in their hearts when they staged the rebellion will show its effects sooner or later. The common folk will be unaware of what truly transpired in Buckingham but as they say, ignorance is bliss. But even if they hold the country’s best interest at heart, I cannot accept such treatment towards Milady. Tis far too cruel...” Aramus wringed the corner of his servant shirt in frustration.

“I suppose it was only necessary in their part to usurp the throne for Albert, they needed to remove the person who would not give it up simply via persuasion. Regardless, I am unsure as to what I must do.”

“Perhaps take a step back for now? Let us see how they manage our Great Britain. I believe there is still much Milady can accomplish, things that might have been restricted by the throne now made possible.”

“That is true… now I have so much time; I am not sure how to spend it.”

“Perhaps we might try to get into contact with whoever remains that is loyal to Milady? That and finding a safer abode for Milady to reside in, somewhere a bit further than here.”

“I am not quite interested in finding an abode. I would like to find the Diogenes instead.”

“Diogenes… how many of them are there, milady?”

“Four.”

“Four that are loyal to milady… Was Duchess Cavendish Bentwick one of them…?”

“No. There was Duchess Frederica, Duke Honeysett, Earl of Aberdeen, and… I suppose we are not required to contact the final Diogene.”

“I do not believe my Master would let Duchess Frederica die so easily, but I will try contacting him. Earl Aberdeen was fending off a portion of the rebels by himself… and as for Duke Honeysett, I do not believe I’ve met him.”

“I suppose getting into contact with the Duchess may be good enough.”

“My apologies for not being of more use… Would Milady like to stay here for a week longer whilst I try to get in touch with my Master?”

“I shall remain here no longer than three days.”

“Understood, milady. I will visit the Space Police headquarters to see if there is any information I can find regarding my Master and Duchess Frederica’s whereabouts. Is there anywhere Milady intend to travel to after those three days?”

“That is something I must mull over for the time being, Mister Linfield. I wish you well on the travels.”

“I wish the same to Milady too. I will be returning shortly when I have information.” Bowing, Aramus gathered the unfinished meal and excused himself from the room, leaving Victoria to her thoughts.

Queen Victoria looked back down to her palm again.

Time… is it?

Cinia Pacifica Ojou-sama Writer

8 years ago

Aramus stepped foot into the bar, once again dressed in his suit. Underneath lay a series of bandages that covered his healing wounds and that somewhat restricted his range of movement. He gave a quick wave to the bartender before climbing the stairs to the Space Police headquarters, cracking the door open.

He loathed leaving Victoria unguarded even though she was a Descendent, wanting to get this small affair over and done with as quickly as possible. His head was filled with all kinds of thoughts as he entered the room, checking to see if DKD or any other Witnesses were around.

Aramus found the room to be relatively empty. When he peered at the desk, he found a lady who was comparatively a few years older than DKD, the noise of typing on a keyboard was what filled the office room.

“Hello,” Aramus began as he appraised the new face. He hadn’t seen her during the few meetings they had when so she had probably been on assignments. “Has DKD been here recently?”

There was no response. Aramus noted a buzzing noise from the headset that the Witness wore while looking intently at the laptop’s screen. There were holographic images popping up around her and a blue light surrounding her as a result, and she seemed busy going over the data all around her.

Stepping closer and into the corner of her field of vision, Aramus waved a bandaged hand at her.

“Hm? Is that you DKD? You know I don’t like to see—what?!” A horrific reaction was seen as the blue lights were turned down and the Witness saw the bandages before anything else.

Aramus tried to draw attention to himself, raising his voice slightly so that she’d take notice of him instead of the bandages. “Ah, I’m still actually a new Witness, DAD to be exact. I don’t believe we’ve met but it’s uh, nice to make your acquaintance.”

“Uh… I’m Witness DLT, usually the one managing data. Nice to meet you. What do you need? I don’t think I remember your name on the list of members.”

“I think I’m still a provisional Witness, that would explain why I’m not on the list of members yet. I am currently searching for DKD, there are a few things I’d like to ask her unless you’d be able to help me instead…?”

“Depends on your query, DAD. DKD is currently out for business in Egypt.”

“Oh, she’s still there? I’m currently looking for Archmage Christopher, would you happen to know of his whereabouts? I might have to drop by Egypt if nothing comes up here...”

“Archmage Christopher? Please wait a moment.”

The Witness started typing on the computer again. Several boxes floated up around the Witness as she searched for data. It took some minutes, but it didn’t take long before pictures of Christopher surrounded the manager.

Finally, another box of text popped and DLT pressed a finger against it, hovering it over to Aramus.

Aramus read the textbox.

Chilling in Thailand with one hell of a babe. Man, I can hardly crack this one. But that only means I gotta try harder, right?

DAD only now noticed that it was a Twitter blog post of all things. DLT pressed a button on it, and an image of Christopher popped up with Frederica beside him, one looked jolly while the other appeared worried. There were many replies to this post as Frederica’s attractiveness drew much attention, and fans of Christopher were many. There were millions of follower of his dandy master, and somehow it all came as unsurprising.

“It seems I have severely underestimated my Master. I suppose I will be heading to Thailand then, thank you very much for your assistance, DLT. I suppose this… Twitter thing is a way to keep in touch with him.”

“Good luck.”

“On that note, would you be able to find a certain Duke Honeysett or Earl Aberdeen as well?”

“We do not have information on the Diogenes. They are restricted due to the request of Queen Victoria.”

“Ah, I’m actually looking on Her Majesty’s behalf. Magic Magister Aramus Linfield acting on Her Majesty’s orders.”

“Not enough proof, sorry.”

“Not at all, I understand it’s highly suspicious of me asking about their whereabouts as it is. Anyways, thank you for the information you’ve provided to me, it’ll help when I go look for them.”

***

The portal closed shut as Aramus returned to Osborne House, having searched in Thailand to no avail for his Master and Duchess Frederica. As his Twitter only made a note regarding Thailand and not specifically where he was, it was indeed perplexing to even think of where to look for the pair of mages. Returning empty handed made him feel extremely cross with himself as he walked towards Victoria’s room, knocking lightly on the door.

Receiving no response, he raised his voice to announce his presence. He definitely didn’t want to cause any incidents. Peeking into the room, he found that it was empty and the Magister began his search in the manor.

It took him over ten minutes to go over the many rooms of the residence. They may have been smaller rooms compared to the other nobles’ mansions but it was still a large structure. Finally, the Magister came out to a balcony to find his Queen drinking tea.

“Milady,” Aramus said, noting that the Queen had made tea for herself. He idly wondered when was the last time she had a chance to do so.

“Welcome back, Mister Linfield.”

“I have found the whereabouts of Duchess Frederica, she is well and travelling with my Master in Thailand. Unfortunately, I could not find them when I went myself. Information on the other Diogenes could not be found. There was another Witness that helped me but she mentioned that without proper identification, I would not be able to rescind your previous directive regarding the Diogenes.”

“I see. It is true that I had asked for the restriction of information on the Diogenes to the Space Police. Very well, it matters not I suppose.”

The Queen took a sip of her tea and fell into deep contemplation. It may be better that we scattered for the time being. Time must be paid…

“Milady Victoria? Shall I make preparations for our departure?” Aramus asked, guessing that she had already decided upon something.

“I feel like a persistent mother, Mister Linfield.” The Queen turned to the Magister with a smile tinged with melancholy. “It is so hard—and such a waste—to let go of something I have nurtured for centuries.”

“Your heart will always be with the people, no matter where Milady may be. Perhaps in the future, fate may hand Milady the reins to lead the people once more. If Milady so wishes, I will aid in this endeavour to the very end,” Aramus said quietly as he had given up hope on returning to England whilst the rebels still searched for Victoria.

“Perhaps one day I shall be back to the throne. For now, my mind is set—Aramus Linfield, are you ready to journey with me to the end of the earth?”

“And beyond, Lady Victoria.” Aramus straightened himself as she addressed him.

“Very well. Our first objective will be to stop the war with the Japanese, or at least prolong it.”

“Understood, Milady. Will Milady require anything from Osborne house? I shall pack it for our journey.”

“Nothing in particular except perhaps some Earl Grey.”

“Aha, Milady appreciates the same tea blend that I do. I’ll make sure to pack that in.”

“Is that so? Would you care to try a cup or two? I had prepared some for myself earlier.”

“Milady’s handmade tea… I-If Milady wouldn’t mind, I will help myself to a cup,” Aramus chirped.

The Queen poured the tea in a cup for Aramus as he approached the table. Thoughtfully, Victoria had prepared an extra teacup, possibly hoping to have the Magister for a companion in her moment of leisure; the English teatime, even though it was the morning.

Taking a seat, Aramus thanked her and lifted the teacup to his lips. He inhaled deeply, savoring the distinctive aroma of the tea. It was clearer than how he usually brewed his own Earl Grey as he personally preferred a stronger flavor. He took a sip of the hot tea and had to close his eyes in extreme satisfaction. Neither light nor heavy and with a hint of citrus. He hummed and took another small sip of the tea before setting the teacup back on its saucer, somewhat unwillingly.

“Milady has singlehandedly spoiled every other blend of Earl Grey for me. I don’t think I could drink my own after this.”

The former Queen of Britain laughed.

“Why thank you. Perhaps I shall take charge of preparing tea from now on.”

“I would argue that is the duty of a servant but in this case… I feel nothing but overwhelming defeat. I have much to learn to prepare tea of this caliber.”

“That is fine, to feel defeat is but natural, for we Descendants who have unlocked a certain extent of our powers achieve perfection of a kind one would not expect.”

“Even so, I must strive to achieve a fraction of that perfection. This tea for example, it’s far too good! I need to be able to make something remotely similar otherwise I’d just stop drinking Earl Grey entirely.”

“How much time have you practiced before, Mister Linfield?”

“I’ve been brewing Earl Grey for myself since I first bought my own set but… it doesn’t hold a candle to Milady’s nor any of the more luxurious boutiques that do offer it… Tea was a luxury for me even then, it was expensive.”

“Ah, I see. Incidentally, this happens to be perhaps the third time I have prepared tea myself in a very long time.”

Aramus couldn’t believe his ears, mouth opening in a small †˜o’ shape in disbelief. “T-Third time?”

“Yes, had I not mentioned it before? We are able to achieve perfection regardless of practice and experience. It is simply the miracle of a Goddess.”

Victoria drank her tea after speaking as if it was a matter of fact; relishing its taste for herself.

“I thought you meant that by having experience with brewing tea, not… being able to do so flawlessly due to being a Descendent,” Aramus muttered as the feeling of crushing defeat hung on his head. “That’s so unfair.”

“Hoho, that is simply the rule of the world. There was never true fairness; it would defeat the purpose of pursuit. It is but the privilege of being such a perfected existence.”

“I suppose there must be some perks given to those chosen as Descendents. Still doesn’t help me at all,” Aramus said with a sigh. “I’ll just… keep trying now that I can get some decent tea leaves.”

“I must say, you are quite stubborn. I speak in jest, of course.” The Queen finished her tea. “There are inhuman and most unfair perks granted to us, and it is particularly done to make it unreasonable to the humans.”

“Experiencing it firsthand has shown me the gap between my own measly existence and those of Descendents. I do not think it possible to ever stall, let alone defeat one by myself. A fool's errand, really. Sometimes, it is best to let sleeping dogs lie.”

“Now, that is a crude analogy to use before your Queen, but that would indeed be the wiser decision for one to make.”

“My apologies, Milady.” Aramus took another sip of the divine tea before continuing, “I’ve also accepted that no matter how much I try and stay away from them, I always seem to run into Descendents. Being a member of the Space Police is far less hazardous.”

“Hm? Ah yes, that is because your threads of fate are connected to mine.”

Yet another bombshell dropped so candidly by Queen Victoria.

“The threads of fate, Milady?”

“Yes, all individuals in this world have something connecting them with the sands of time. I can only see them very sparsely, so I cannot tell where else your fate may take you. You must have heard at least one tragic myth that is driven by a prophecy, yes?”

“Yes, those are oft talked about during readings of heroes past. Curses and voyages aplenty, is that similar to my plight?”

“These tragedies were often lead by misunderstandings of young Descendants. Misunderstandings caused due to Divinations by Descendants who knew not the extent of the mysteries that the threads of fate held.”

“So each of these are deeply tied with a Descendent… Take myself for example, Milady said I was tied to her but that would mean it would be connected since… I was abandoned by my mother or even before that. Is all this foretold by Divination as Milady has put it?”

“Not quite. From my experience, certain actions allows us to weave history itself. Your death was quite certain unless I made the exception for your education, for example.”

Aramus palmed his mouth as he digested this tidbit. That meant to say that without her intervention, he would’ve ended up rotting in the slums of England, never to be found. It was quite a disturbing thought. “It seems as though Milady saving my life should now be taken in a literal sense instead of just my own belief…”

“It was simply me showing pity and looking down on a person who could not live by their own strength, do not make it seem so noble…” the Queen said, looking down. “Everyone is welcome to their pride, and so am I—yet I break it due to my love for humanity. That is simply an irony in my case.”

“If Milady says as such. I often found myself in such scenarios during my tenure as a teacher in the Academy. The younglings seek ways to prove themselves and tend to rush into danger but even when I as their teacher chide them for such actions, I find myself in life threatening situations more often than most others. Now I know the cause but that doesn’t really change much. I simply accept it, though it does get somewhat tiresome.”

“Fate has its own ways of making it all balanced for everyone. You never know, Mister Linfield… beyond the battlefields may lie a paradise that only you may well come to appreciate one day. That is why one must live on, regardless of misfortunes.”

“I can attest to that. It has been a blessing to be able to serve under Milady thus far. I sincerely hope that this may continue until I turn old and gray. Perhaps we’ll find someone to replace me at that time,” Aramus said with a chuckle.

The threads of fate around Aramus turned black as the Queen heard his words.

“I… do not believe one may last that long to grow so old.” Her smile was full of melancholy. “If it is the wandering Final Battle Maiden—I sincerely have my doubts.”

“Then until that comes to pass, I will be in Milady’s service. Even I cannot see myself turning old with all that is happening around us and though I do wish to one day look back on my life and be satisfied, it is a luxury. A man is defined by his actions throughout his lifetime, no matter how short it is.”

“That is a fine resolve. I shall watch over you, Aramus Linfield—perhaps there will come a day when I speak the tale of your heroic deeds… assuming you commit as such, of course.”

“I am merely adhering to what I believe in, which would be my faith in my Lady Victoria. Though being called a legend does have a nice ring to it.”

“I am sure it does, I have been in several myself. Hoho.”

“That must have been most interesting, to be able to hear tales of ages past still known throughout the world today.”

“Yes, it is also oddly pleasing when you are aware that they are speaking of you, but storytellers themselves do not realise that the heroics of the one who they speak of are their very listener.”

Aramus couldn’t resist a chuckle. “Your little secret.”

“Mhm. Your life is quite full of interests too, however. It may be worth a legend already. You have met a peculiar amount of Descendants, according to yourself.”

“I wouldn’t dare spin a tale of myself. If anything, I would be remembered as the one who removed New York and a portion of South America from the world map, but infamy is its own form of fame. There are not many who know of my involvement with the Descendants after all.”

“I would not hold you particularly responsible for these actions. Well, you were responsible—I recognise the failure to stop those tragedies—but at the same time… humanity simply got their just desserts. The lack of precautionary measures by the governments, harming nature mercilessly… I suppose it is karma, of sorts.”

“The response from the government against Virgo was… underwhelming to say the least. I do not think we could have stopped Virgo from activating her World Buster Commandment had she so wished. She willingly appeared in front of us and that gave us our chance.”

“Of course, that is Alexandrina’s style—she would not have it any other way. A fight fair and square is her ultimate goal.”

“Fair and square with humans against a Descendant.” Aramus shooked his head.

“We had the numbers on our hands, and two Descendants. We did had a fair chance, if I were to speak my opinion. However, as an experienced warrior and strategist, her tactics were cunning and it was probably too much for the ones I had sent to face her.”

“Ah yes, Natsu and Sir Kazimir. I must say, Sir Kazimir’s Commandments are most interesting. And when Sir Arthur arrived at the end. Without him, we wouldn’t have survived.”

“Of course not, I had to use various means to gather these warriors, and even then Alexandrina did not fall… that only shows how much of a worthy opponent she is.”

Victoria made a rare savage smile befitting of a warrior. It would be no surprise to believe that the Final Battle Maiden of the ancient days would be most pleased to face Virgo in the battlefield once more.

“Milady is eager to cross blades with Virgo once again, I see. Now that the throne is no longer a concern, perhaps Milady can choose to pursue this course of action. I too wish to see how my… brother is doing in her service.”

“Ah, yes. I have met your brother recently. I suppose this was the first task Alexandrina assigned him. I shall admit, though. I am indeed eager, it is quite stressful to hold back in a battle.”

“My brother has made his choice, I will respect his decision even though it pains me a little to fight him,” Aramus said with a dour look. “I think I will have to make myself scarce if milady and Virgo did clash. Who knows how far the fallout may carry.”

“I would not recommend taking part in such a battle, to be frank. A human would only be in our way.”

“Good advise, I would do well to listen to. Perhaps I shall busy myself with my brother during that time.”

“That would be most appreciated. Your brother possesses the… Oppressive Gaze Commandment, it seems.”

“Would milady happen to know what it does? I did not have much time to pay attention to him during the battle in the throne room.”

“Mn… it was a Commandment used to keep the masses in order, and detect Descendants, I believe.”

“Most interesting…. With a name like that though, would it still work if his eyes were removed…?” Aramus thought out loud.

“I do not think it would be easy to cut out an eye of that calibre.”

“The tissue around it may be softer in that case… perhaps…” Aramus paused when he realized he was going out on a tangent. “My apologies, Milady. I do get caught up in new information too easily.”

“That is fine. Regardless, he is no Descendant, who would have iron-solid bones and powerful protection. A Representative is still less than half of what we are.”

“Then that is still possible… like Claudia’s arms. Maybe pulverizing the eyes inward…” Aramus shook his head to clear all thoughts of crushing Michael’s eyeballs.

The Queen made a big smile. “You must really like hurting others.”

“Only for those that deserve it. If one picks up the sword to slash others then he must be prepared to be slashed in turn. There are… exceptions to this rule.”

“I would think that is true, those prepared to kill must be prepared to die. What do you think these exceptions are?”

“Those with no regard to life. These kinds of people have the potential to be more dangerous than others with a clear objective,” Aramus said as he thought back to the girl in Japan. “I met one such person not too long before returning to England. It was… unpleasant.”

“Hm… I cannot quite agree to it, but I suppose we are all welcome to your beliefs. What is this regarding a person you met before arriving in England, though?”

“Space Police case in Tokyo. I’m not exactly at liberty to discuss the full details but… innocents were being drawn into a distortion. The disappearances had apparently been going on for some time.”

“Ah… distortions. Speaking of which, I should be lending aid for a big distortion that I sense at the moment.”

“Will this be our first course of action, milady?”

“Distortions are the first priority for the Space Police, yes? We may as well prepare before your mission catches up to you, and put the work of prolonging the war after.”

”Milady, thank you for your aid in this. I shall begin preparations immediately,” Aramus said as he drained the last of his tea. It was a waste for he wanted to savor every drop but alas, there was no time to waste. Bowing to Victoria, he then excused himself.

“Ah, before you go, Mister Linfield—make sure the packages will not be ruined if they get wet.”

“Of course Milady Victoria. I’ll make the necessary preparations.”

Cinia Pacifica Ojou-sama Writer

8 years ago

The two were located in Hampshire. The Isle in reality had always been a part of this county and so was the Osborne House, the Royal residence that Queen Victoria was very fond of.

Currently, Alexandrina Victoria—and her only remaining subject, Aramus Linfield—had traversed through the town of the Isle of Wight, the East Cowes. It was a relatively peaceful town, and a small one at that. The time for sightseeing was short, and they passed by in ways most discrete. Portraits of the Queen was very commonly owned by many subjects across England and the Queen may very well be recognised very strangers easily if they come clean in the city squares.

The two made way for the docks, where Aramus got to behold the sea that was known to surround the country that is England.

“I wonder if we will be able to come back here… I really liked the quiet, away from the hustle and bustle of the city.” He watched the waves as they crashed against the shore, feeling a strange sense of calm.

“You should always assume that you will not see again what you have already seen, Mister Linfield.”

Aramus was pensive about what Queen Victoria said, perhaps she was speaking from experience. Even still, it had been hard for him to let go of a great many things thus far. If he continued to do so, what would remain of the man within?

“Such a shame though.”

“It does not mean that you will never see them, but I suppose being hopeful generates more misfortune sometimes.”

“I am extremely familiar with that feeling… It’s one of the reasons why I don’t exactly… hope for anything.”

“I am—in truth—only repeating the words of Lancelot.”

“Lancelot... What was he like, Milady?”

“He was… a very lonely man. Loyal, kind… but somewhere in him lay an inner beast.” The Queen smiled. “I suppose he was very human in that regard.”

“Was he always like that? In the tales regarding the Knights of the Round, at the end…”

“His betrayal, you mean?”

Aramus nodded.

For only a single moment the Queen showed an expression of despair.

“He was… till the very end. He yearned for love overmuch.”

“And that drove him to betray Arthur and the country they worked so hard for…”

“It is said that women can cause wars, after all. It was a great lesson for me, I suppose.”

“Were the Knights of the Round Representatives of Arthur…? I can’t deny the possibility now that I’ve met Arthur himself and Milady’s relation to him only cements it further that the members must have been extremely powerful.”

“That is correct, the Knights of the Round were Representatives of King Arthur, and the one who committed taboo, was Lancelot du Lac indeed. They were all great warriors… each of them… but Mordred was different.”

”Mordred, the son of King Arthur that he never knew about till the end?”

“Yes, he was the son of the mother of all vampires, the Blood Countess of Hungary.” The Queen looked down at the many boats, ships, and other vessels along the lines of the coast. “Shall we get ourselves a vessel?”

“Are there any of them that Milady fancies?” Aramus asked as he scanned alongside Queen Victoria. “Shouldn’t be too hard to procure for a ride to the mainland.”

“A ride to the mainland?” The Queen giggled. “Silly Magister. Come, let us look for one.”

The two walked along the line of ships, the Queen attentively checking the boats as they did so.

“I must profess I’m not good with watercraft. Never really been on one before…” Aramus said as he checked for anything that he felt might be good, but having no experience, he wasn’t sure what was and wasn’t.

In the end, the Queen spoke to an older man and she was offered a great ship, however, Aramus heard something unbelievable soon enough.

“No, we want that dinghy over there, Sir.” Victoria pointed to a wooden, old and battered dinghy on the very far corner of the row of boats.

“U...Um, my fair Lady, that is old and I would not recommend it—”

“That is fine, we shall be taking it.”

“It’s alright, Sir. The Lady will not change her mind once she is set,” Aramus whispered into the elder gentleman’s ear. Even though Aramus himself didn’t like the boat or rather, was unsure of how they’d even sail, his liege had decided upon it. “Please.”

“If you say so…”

“Thank you kind Sir.”

Dropping enough pounds into the man’s hands to pay for the dinghy, Aramus walked over to begin prep for cast off. He had to make sure it was seaworthy before Victoria stepped onboard.

Before he could begin, however, Queen simply got on the boat without any prior thought, and it wobbled underfoot. When the old man was about to give Aramus a pair of oars, the Queen waved her hand dismissively.

“We will not be needing them.”

Aramus shrugged at the old man before climbing aboard apprehensively, the boat rocking even more from side to side.

The least the old man could do was set the boat off into the water. He looked at them with dread, thinking they were a couple that was set on suicide.

Feeling the wind, he cursed the weather.

“Looks like a storm is coming…”

***

“Now that we have privacy in the water, shall we continue our conversation from that time earlier?”

“Of course, milady. Mordred, son of the Blood Countess but… with Milady and Arthur, how did he manage to get a seat in the Round Table?”

“I am not sure of it myself… but I am aware that Arthur himself allowed it, for he knew who his son was.”

“That is a most puzzling choice… Did Milady happen to have any… Representatives at the time alongside Arthur?” Aramus had to crouch a little as the boat rocked in the waves, his sea legs unsteady. “I would imagine both Milady and Arthur guided Britain together.”

The Queen looked down at the water beside her.

“That is correct… I had one Representative at that time.”

“Oh…” Aramus said, turning his head to look at his liege. “Is Milady… uncomfortable speaking about this subject? If so then I shall prod no further.”

“Well, you can imagine, Mister Linfield. I was Guinevere, and I… with Lancelot du Lac…”

Aramus sat down on the boat after he gave up trying to get used to the water.

“But, was Lancelot not the one that courted Milady first?”

“Yes, that is true… he is the only man I know who managed to be the Representative of two Descendants.”

“That’s possible…? Being able to wield Commandments of two Descendants… No wonder the legends spoke of him as the second after Arthur.”

“It is a sin—the taboo. I am guilty for it along with him. It was what finally ended his life, and I shall carry this sin until my very end.”

“Now I understand why Milady had not a protector when the revolutionaries invaded… It is a tragic story indeed, to be torn between Milady and Arthur. If I was in the same position, I can’t be sure of the outcome…”

“Even if I had a protector, I would not have such a person take part in the bloody battle of the revolution.”

“A Representative exists to accompany a Descendant till the end is what I had thought, but does Milady think otherwise?”

“The Representative of a Descendant? It is silly to generalise. Each of the Descendants have differing relationships with their Representatives.”

“Oh… Arthur and Virgo use the Representatives to enforce their decisions… I’m unsure of Claudia’s own relationship with the Countess. It seems I’m learning new things about the Descendants every day.”

“Arthur’s Representatives were his greatest knights, Alexandrina’s Representatives were also… her knights. Currently, they are the †˜Judgement’ members, I suppose they are her enforcers. A long time ago, however, her Representatives were Kings—how the times have changed.”

“Indeed they have. The advancement of technology has brought a great many things into our lives but yet robbed of us of other qualities. One only need to look at Japan to see the future after all. I am honestly surprised they could bring so many Descendants to heel.”

“That is fine. Humans must move on, after all… I do not approve of their use of technology for danger but they are also fighting for their own survival.”

“The kids in class though, they have these smartphones and they’re always staring and tapping at them. I fear for the future of our nation sometimes.”

The Queen chuckled. “That is purely a subjective concern. I had done so for some time myself, it is rather fun.”

Aramus grumbled something about not having money for a smartphone and the Galapagos. “The Headmistress… Well, she looked just like Virgo, she was also fond of the gadgets.”

“Ah, her clone, yes?”

“Yes. She picked up an orphan too, one that I was tasked with looking after but he… disappeared from the Academy during the time I was serving with Master Chris and the Space Police. I pray for the boy.”

“That one clone of Virgo possessed the kindness of her heart. That is why she was a person I could approve of. Unfortunately, she is now a part of a greater person.”

“Indeed, she took great care of me during my tenure. Does Virgo not have access to the memories of every clone she absorbs?”

“Of course she does.” The Queen’s mood changed, as she made a rare pout. “Her head is too convoluted for her own good. Such a showoff, even bringing down a part of the moon to show her powers… what a reckless action!”

“That would explain why she has each and every one of her Representatives named Judgement? Such a whimsical person indeed.”

“That one, I believe, is a thoughtful action. In the end, Alexandrina is still one of the older generation Descendants… and I believe if a time comes when she is truly about to do something she must not, her Representatives will steer her in a direction better. Unfortunately for the humans, Virgo’s ideology is unwell for them.”

“Indeed, tasting it firsthand was extremely frightening. There must have been an alternative instead of her resorting to such genocide… Does the culling even affect her anymore? Or… if it does, why does she still go through with it?”

“I believe you are under a misunderstanding regarding her notions. Albeit, it is true that she is a person who kills anyone that dares to stand in her way. Virgo comes from the past, Mister Linfield, a past where killing to survive was absolutely natural and acceptable even for the humans. As a leader, she was taught to conquer. She was a respectable ruler, yet it was her people that turned against her, and thus her view of the people changed—I believe we spoke of this before. Ishtar and Alexandrina have the opinion that it is the world that must be cared for instead of the people, the humans that are harming its nature.”

“Yes we have, Milady. My perceptions as a man of this age do blind me… If she hadn’t been betrayed, I believe Virgo would have been capable of doing mankind much good. The heart of man is capable of a great many things but at the same time, prone to weakness. I am guilty of that weakness as well.”

“Now, are you? Regardless, in the end, I understand Alexandrina’s issues to an extent, but I cannot say I sympathise. She is able to feel the pain of nature, and I can only imagine how she has been feeling for the past millennium.”

“There have been… occasions. I believe milady has already seen one such failing of mine. Those trials...” Aramus said with a huff before putting a finger to his chin in thought. “So every Descendant has a special trait that ties and sets them far apart from the others…?”

“A-Ah, the trials and your imaginat—ahem. The Descendants are indeed bound to their own traits that stem from their Celestial Spirits, yes. The longer they live, the greater the power they receive. However, responsibilities also rise in tandem. Alexandrina, for instance, was allowed to feel nature’s pleasure and suffering. There is also the fact that using her powers tires her out considerably. I can imagine but… I would say the past year she has only suffered, and most of it likely came from the works of mankind.”

“With the rate mankind is destroying nature… I can see why Virgo would seek to remove even a portion of us. Is Milady willing to share her own trait? Milady hails from a time of legends or even further with the likes of Arthur and the Blood Countess. The fledgeling Descendants, like Natsu, even Artemis said she needed to be watched over.”

“Mn… I believe Alexandrina has no intention of removing mankind. She simply wishes to conquer them, if anything. As for my trait… ahaha, well, perhaps one day you will know.”

“Haha, I hope I’m still around then. The life of a person is fleeting, insignificant in the greater scheme of things,” Aramus said with a melancholic smile.

“That is simply the way it is… it is also the reason why Virgo is wont for killing. Have you perchance heard of the Cycle of Rebirth?”

“I’m afraid not. I’m not much of a Magister, am I?” Aramus said sheepishly.

“It is not common knowledge in the Magic World.” The Queen smiled at Aramus. “The Cycle of Rebirth allows souls to go through a particular process that allows one to reincarnate.”

“So Virgo isn’t exactly… wait, wait, wait. Humans disappear, earth regrows, humans come back. Rinse and repeat?” Aramus said with a few crude gestures.

“Yes, that is how it should have been, but… due to the harm done to nature, I believe souls are starting to die.”

“Now that is…” Aramus held a hand to his forehead as he heaved a heavy sigh. “That is indeed quite the bad piece of news.”

“That is likely why Ishtar and Alexandrina want to stop humanity. This is simply my theory, however.”

“It is still a difficult pill for me to swallow… that our current generation must die out so that we ensure the safety of our race as a whole.”

“Who knows what time will tell soon? It may not have to be this generation. It is certainly a generation where something decisive will happen, however. The threads of fate are accumulate…” Victoria said, looking up to the sky. The clouds turning darker and darker by the moment.

“Oh, what now!” Aramus grumbled as he stood up on unsteady feet.

“No need to worry, you may sit down, Mister Linfield,” Victoria spoke after a moment. “Have you noticed that our generation at the moment… has all the Descendants in it?”

“I had always thought there were a complete set since the powers are always passed on but if that’s not the case and only now are they all gathered…” said Aramus as he took a seat.

“Oh no, there is always someone taking down some Descendants. The members of the Magic World who wish to keep the world from ending and… the Blood Countess also happens to share their goal.”

The boat started to shake harder with the raging waves and the strong gales of the seas. Victoria was apparently absolutely unperturbed.

Aramus had to clutch the sides of the boat as he was battered. “So, if we had succeeded in removing Natsu, this wouldn’t have happened? How long has the Prophecy been around anyway?”

“For at least two millenniums? I am not sure myself. There is no validity to the statement itself, but I have witnessed the effects of the Descendants meeting each other before.” The Queen faced the sky again. “Just like this.”

“It’s always such dour weather. I wish I could see the sun in England sometime instead of… from a country that isn’t my home. Or if there will be a home to return to after the clash of Descendants.”

“Oh dear, is me bringing out the sun by my glorious Commandments not enough for you? Such a greedy man.”

“A man tends to wish for what he can never have after all. The view was glorious, the Pegasus distracted me a little though. Fabulous creature indeed,” Aramus said with raised eyebrows as he looked up again at the cloudy sky.

“It was the Pegasus brought down from its constellation, after all. It is a marvelous creature.”

“Commandments never cease to amaze me.”

“They are the power of the Gods, after all. If it would not amaze you, I would think you are not human.”

“And they are granted unto ones such as ourselves. I’m not sure if I could cope with it properly if it was somehow passed on to me.”

“It is only the people who are capable of forgoing their mortal selves who receive these powers. So perhaps… that is slightly untrue.”

“Even young children like Natsu? Perhaps in time, I look forward to seeing where her powers will take her.”

“It is in their potential, to be specific. Some may cling to their humanity, and that would ultimately lead them to their doom.”

“Transcending humanity… I shouldn’t think too much of it. I do not think too many issues will arise so long as those around know to exercise a measure of control. I’d imagine it wasn’t as such back in the day?”

“Wars were much more common back in the old days, so I would not say so, no. There were times Kings and Queens would face each other in combat, and the thrones were exclusive to the Descendants.”

“Did Descendants get replaced much quicker back then? For example, a warmonger set upon by the others if he had invaded kingdoms across the land?”

“Hm… I suppose so. I do not remember everything, but if memory serves correct, after I introduced the Monarchy System, I did not see much of the monarchs that made the covenant with me ever again. One of the few who came back from the past would be Alexandrina.”

“Milady introduced the Monarchy into this world…” Aramus murmured as his eyes widened a little in surprise.

“Well, it was not my idea to begin with, I simply got it from someone else. It was not commonly in practice till we Descendants swore to lead the nations, however.”

“It still lasted for a lengthy period of time up until recently… I guess Descendants leading nations really mattered in the long run if such changes were to be considered, like our Great Britain for example.”

“Perhaps it did matter. However, it may not anymore. I feel that I should take back the throne, but that would simply be denying humans their opportunity to run the country… ah, I apologise.” The Queen made a wry smile. “We have dwelled on this subject once before, I believe.”

“Indeed, I still stand by whichever choice Milady makes though… Despite what she did, I believe Princess Louise to be extremely capable in her own right.”

“She has to be… otherwise, Albert would not choose her…”

“Prince Consort Albert… I do not know what to make of his actions, what persuaded him such that he would forgo milady in such a manner.”

As if the nature scorned the mention of Prince Albert, roars of thunders lit up the seas and now it started to rain, the droplets starting to fill the boat slowly.

In simple terms, it was a storm, and they were right under it.

“Well this isn’t good. Choppy weather up ahead,” Aramus said. A wall of wind overhead prevented any more rain from wetting their clothes, but Aramus was unable to clear all of the water filling the boat and it was slowly rising up to their ankles.

“Yes, I am able to see that,” the Queen said, smiling.

“Milady, your dress… I’m sorry.” Try as he might, Aramus couldn’t prevent the water from sullying her dress further. He seemed more bothered about it than the Queen herself.

“Ah. Yes, I suppose this was inevitable. This is a small sacrifice, however.”

The raging torrents were making the boat shake too much, and due to the rocking, Aramus almost fell over, his concentration falling and the shield of wind going down with it.

“Blast!” he cursed, reaching out to steady himself. He felt the rain on his scalp, matting the hair together and was extremely unsure of how they’d last the storm. Well, not Her Majesty but him, defeated by a storm after escaping from rebels. How dreadfully pitiful.

“Mister Linfield!” the Queen called out loud. Her voice could barely be heard in the deafening howls of the storm. “Hold onto something for now, never mind the spells!”

Aramus heeded her instructions, gripping onto a side of the boat so tightly his knuckles turned white. He looked up, and a large wall of water was pulled up. A tidal wave was coming up to them and he felt the terror grip his heart.

The boat struck it directly and both of them fell into the water as their vessel flipped and faced downwards.

Trying to keep his head above the water was futile with the strong current, and Aramus was submerged by the waves. His lackluster ability to swim made matters worse, almost bordering on useless but he struggled against the waves. Breaking the surface for a brief moment, he called out to Victoria before being forced under again, water flowing into his mouth and lungs as a wave crashed upon him.

Are you angry at me…?

It was impossible for one to stay up on the surface of the raging torrents, and the Queen was thus well below it, looking up to the skies beyond it. Its dark shade and thunder were seemingly the incarnation of fury itself.

The fury of the nature—for calling upon the sun, and the burden to the world it caused.

It would be peaceful to simply remain this way… but alas, I cannot be stopped now.

Cinia Pacifica Ojou-sama Writer

8 years ago

Aramus woke up on a sandy beach. He could hear the birds and the noise of the sea breeze. The sky was clear and azure, and he could not locate any of the clouds of the storm. More importantly, he was alive. However, he could not find his Queen anywhere in sight. Getting up, he looked around, and the first thing he spotted was their boat, which was still in one piece, stuck against the sands.

That thing made it through in one piece. What kind of… Aramus coughed up water as he pounded his chest, his unsteady legs making it difficult to get up. He would have to look for the Queen, no matter where she was. She might be here, she might not, but it would be on his head forever if he lost her now. With that in mind, he started plodding around.

The beach was seemingly empty and long, without any souls of man around other than himself. He found a mountain behind him and wondered if there were settlements beyond it. At such a moment of walking, he found someone standing very far on the edge of his vision. When he turned to identify the figure, however, it was gone.

Hobbling over to where he had seen the figure disappear, Aramus looked around. A slight drop of mana and Aural Vision flickered to life. If there were any people, he would be able to tell from their unique signature, but after looking around, nothing seemed to stand out at all. It was peculiar.
Whatever it was would have to wait till later. Finding Her Majesty was his priority and he set off again, using the mountain behind as a landmark to gauge where he was going. The slippery figure didn’t seem to want to leave him, and often he found it in his peripheral vision yet vanishing again as soon as he turned.

Travelling for a couple of hours yielded no results, and he felt as though the spectres were coming even closer. Aramus could’ve sworn that one was right in his face when he shut his eyes in exhaustion before finally throwing his hands up into the air in resignation.

“Fine! You have my attention!”

Aramus thus followed these spectres throughout the sandy beach, taking off from the mountain. His body was tired and he didn’t know how long ago it was that he had eaten a meal with Her Majesty. That was when he suddenly trudged upon something and fell. He got up and looked around again.

He found the boat that they were sailing with. Aramus realised that he had come back to where he started. He looked down and saw himself on the sandy surface. The eyes jolted open, almost as red as a crazed demon, leering at him.

“You… you did this.”

He turned and found the ephemeral figures all surrounding him. They were the transparent visages of the Queen.

“You did this.”

The voices echoed, giving him a headache as they repeated the phrase over and over again.

They approached him, floating, with eyes piercing and glistening like gems, as if all-seeing.

“What are you?” Aramus asked fearfully as he took a step back, unsure of what to do in this situation. Was someone playing on his fears, using Victoria’s image to try and get to him? He didn’t have time to find out as he turned, putting him face to face with one of them.

Aramus screamed.

Cinia Pacifica Ojou-sama Writer

8 years ago

The portal that was connected to the Void Realm opened, leading Michael and Charlotte to the small apartment where Dana lived. It was as small as Michael could remember. Unlike the last time he was here, however, there was one difference—he could not find the Saint anywhere. The apartment was so small that one could realize who was where from a simple glance across the place if all doors were open.

“Mistress, please excuse our entry,” Charlotte announced. In her arms was Michael, who had no legs to walk with. She had been joking about his lack of limbs for some time during their traveling in the Void Realm.

“Now that is quite the sight to see,” Dana said from her room.

Charlotte walked over after noting Virgo sitting around the small table in her room as usual.

“I’d tell another joke, but I’ve already ran out.” Michael shrugged, looking weary from their travel. “All I can come out with tends to be half-baked. I couldn’t even stomach them.”

“Sounds just like you,” Charlotte said casually with a “hoho” laugh, placing Michael on a chair, his head was below the table’s surface.

“It almost looks like you’re back to being a child,” Dana commented.

“Heh. Maybe dip me in soot and dust, to complete the illusion. So this condition of mine is fixable, yes?”

“Yes, I have something to cure the Holy Burns and accelerate the regeneration.”

“Please tell me you’re not going to disintegrate me again...” Michael’s face scrunched up as he imagined being sliced to pieces once more.

Dana smiled. “Would you like me to?”

“I knew a guy who would probably enjoy that,” he quipped while shaking his head in refusal of her offer.

There were two glasses set in front of Dana, and she simply took them up and placed one before Charlotte and one before Michael.

“Drink up. They’ll do you good.”

Michael reached out to the table top and felt around for the glass. His hands touched the one in front of him, pushing it a centimeter farther, but he managed to grab it in the end. Without saying or doing anything else, Michael straight up chugged the contents of the glass.

It was of a very short amount in the glass, surprisingly. It felt like he was drinking normal water, but he found himself tasting honey, or at least something similar. There was the hint of another taste, but he couldn’t exactly put a finger into it. Regardless, the effects were almost instantaneous as the soothing feeling washed over his mind, and the stinging feeling was gone.

“That’s definitely better. Now instead of a roast, I just feel like an uncooked ham,” Michael quipped. It seemed to him that losing his stomach made him spout out random nonsense on the double.

“I would prefer a nicely roasted meat about now,” Charlotte said.

“Well, you may let him rest here,” Dana stated after the two were done drinking.

“Very well, I suppose I shall return to my estate now?”

“Yes, you are free to go.”

“Take care, Miss Charlotte. Good luck to you and Missus Weiss.” At the last moment, he remembered about something, someone he planned to have accompany them back. “Oh, could you help me introduce our new companion to our Mistress? I don’t think I’d have another way of bringing her here.”

“Why would you wish to have her meet her our Mistress?”

“She’d have to anyway, sooner or later. Besides, I promised her an exotic souvenir.” He gave a glance to Dana.

“Hm?” Dana turned to Michael.

“Very well, I shall make sure to bring her along soon,” Charlotte answered.

“Hmmm?” Dana turned to Charlotte, who gave her a bow.

Dana simply tilted her head as Charlotte left through a portal.

“You could say it’s a surprise. Although, with what Saint said it could already be spoiled,” Michael looked around once more. “That being said, where is Miss Saint? Or anyone else for that matter?”

“She went on ahead. We should be leaving after you recover too.”

“A separate job, I assume.”

“Just making preparations.”

“Preparations? Where are we going?”

“We’ll be taking the Magic Train to make way for Russia.”

“Russia… I haven’t had the pleasure. What is that place like?”

“As you’d have heard by now, there is no time there and the weather is always cold.”

“Time doesn’t flow? How does that work?”

“It is simply a lifeless world. None of its mundane residents understands the concept of time whatsoever.”

“I see.” Dana could see him frown. “What needs to be done there?”

“The base of my Steel Union lies there, so we are simply going back home, I suppose.”

“Home, huh? When do we leave?”

“As I said, we’ll leave as soon as you recover.”

“Then it seems like we’ll be here for a while. Thank you for helping me in that fight.”

“I simply sensed that… you were in danger. Speaking of which, I believe you wish to speak about your battle?”

“Heh. There are quite a number of things that happened in that battle. Even crossed swords with an Archangel… But what puzzles me the most is if the Queen was that strong, if she were that God, why was she in London?”

“All the Descendants are Gods and Goddesses, I do not think the power and the meaning of her stay are related. Surely you’ve heard of the legend of King Arthur, yes?”

“Uh. Roughly? I get the general idea around it.” Michael scratched his cheek.

“The simplified truth is that King Arthur lost everything, and Guinevere reclaimed everything.”

“And these people… That guy who appeared at the end when we fought, was this King Arthur?”

“Yes. King Arthur left on a journey to the Faerie Realm—his final resting place was Avalon before he did so… while the Witch Guinevere continued with putting the Kingdom of Britain back together.”

“And now her daughter kicked her out of her position. I recall she did stand against you, should we chase her then?”

“No point chasing her—she will come to us in due time. Our motive is conquering this world, after all.”

“I see… What else is there? That wave of energy I managed, with your help, to use against Uriel. Is that a one time thing? What about Flora? She appeared to protect me against the Magister’s spell.”

“No, you needed the spiritual energy to stand up to the Archangel… I suppose it is your natural talent that allowed you to perform the feat. You have taken a step towards mastering the relic. Who is Flora?”

“She was that spirit that protected me when we arrived at the throne room. The Magister fired a particularly powerful spell, but with her help I managed to protect the important figures in the rebellion,” he summarized, not wanting to explain what happened in the past year as a whole. “Oh. You might know her by the alias White Lotus.”

“Can’t say I remember her. You do seem to have a peculiar situation in your soul. I shall take a guess that that’s Flora.”

“It seems like our souls fused. Saint was there when it happened, but I’m not exactly sure how. I did ask the Queen about my circumstance and she mentioned I had a soul of an angel. Not that it made anything clearer at all.”

“Sounds about right. The Saint of Summer has exceptional sense when it comes to anything holy—I would trust her appraisal of your situation.”

“Hopefully it will prove useful for us later. But for now I don’t have any particular feelings about it.” Michael was Jesus’ son after all. Couldn’t go any lower than that.

“I can tune your soul if you need, by the way.”

“Tune my soul? Like an instrument?”

“You know, tuning—I can make adjustments so that it is easier for you to work with your little Flora.”

“That’s possible? Color me surprised. What else can we do with souls?”

“Well, Descendants are able to make contracts with souls, and have them attached to their own—like in your case. It is very unusual for ordinary people.” Dana smiled at Michael. “But I suppose I cannot say that for you.”

“Thank you.” Michael scratched his cheek again. “But how will we do it? Is it like a ritual?”

“Kinda. It’d take like ten hours?”

“Well… I’m not going anywhere.” Michael grinned towards Dana.

“I suppose I will get around to drawing the circle for the ritual.” Dana lazily got up, yawning as she walked. “I guess that magic circle in the living room can be altered.”

“I would help if I could, thank you for your patience.”

“I would be a lousy Mistress if I didn’t do anything for you, so don’t worry about it.”

Cinia Pacifica Ojou-sama Writer

8 years ago

The magic circle was redrawn in the living room. Ancient runes were drawn by Virgo herself. Michael noted even a mini portrait of a priestess, a small disc containing the moon, and the curvy waves that represented the oceans. This beautifully drawn circle was testament to Dana’s extensive knowledge of mysticism.

Almost ten hours had passed, and Michael was laid on the very center of the magic circle. His clothes were taken off and a small circle was also drawn on his chest, where Dana placed a finger throughout the entire process.

It was a painful ritual. The sting should’ve been akin to a mosquito’s bite on the skin, but Michael felt a powerful shock every time Dana would touch him on the circle. She’d move the finger back and forth between the corners of the circle and its very center, manipulating perhaps his very soul, and that of Flora’s that was merged with his own.

With each stroke of the finger the ex-priest would see remnants of his memories—the few peaceful times he had with Flora, and he would wince from agony just as the visions came and went.

A portal opened outside the magic circle as Charlotte and Rose entered.

“Welcome back, Caster.”

Dana didn’t even need to bat an eye to know Charlotte came in as she worked with Michael’s soul.

“Brought a guest with you, I see,” the Descendant added.

“Yes, this is the person Mister Michael wanted you to meet… speaking of which, what is going on?”

“Just a little tuning ritual for his soul.”

“I… see.”

“A tuning ritual…?” Rose curiously asked, and Charlotte only shrugged at her. She avoided looking down at Michael, his bare skin making her gulp, and almost wanting his blood.

“Haa… Good… Afternoon? I think?” Michael’s voice was breathy, as he had been enduring the pain of the ritual for hours now. “Dana… meet Miss Rose, Rose this is… Virgo, would be the name you’d be familiar with. She’s a former member of the Countess’ retinue, but we have agreed to work together now.”

He faced Dana and grinned as sweat trickled down his forehead. “Exotic enough?”

Dana pressed the finger against his chest with a bit of force.

“I was hoping for a nice dress.”

Michael shivered as Dana pressed on him with her finger. “I’d be delighted to shop for your clothes with you.”

“That is fine, I do not really need presents,” Dana replied, pouting like a certain Weiss.

The magic circle stopped glowing, and Michael was finally freed from the painful sensation on his soul.

“Good day to you, I suppose?” Rose greeted. The timing for the introductions was odd to say the least. “I am not sure if I should be feeling fear or not, meeting the person who wanted to end the world.”

“Nice to meet you,” Dana casually said. “I’d be most delighted if you do feel fear.”

“That’s how it is. Don’t worry too much,” Michael said towards Rose. He made a note to ask Saint or Charlotte about Dana’s dress size later. And possibly also where he could get money to get the good dresses. He then turned to Dana and told her what the favor he wanted to ask was. “Might I ask if she could accompany us? I did make a promise with her.”

“What would I even do with you people?” Rose inquired.

“Three things, one and most importantly, the Countess would probably be looking for you now. I need to ensure your safety first of all. The second would be since Miss Charlotte will be doing matters of her personal business, we would be conducting this plan of ours without her temporarily, so we need to adjust our time frame for that.” Michael scratched his neck. “Finally, I need to be sure of your sustenance for the time being. I did tell you I’d rather you drink from me than some random passer-by. Is that agreeable?” He made sure to look at both Rose and Dana.

Dana got up from her crouching position. “Well, I cannot complain, seeing as my current forces are small in number, compared to the past.” The past when she reigned as Alexandrina the Great.

Rose shrugged. “Does that mean I am to join your retinue?”

“I hope. In the end the decision lies with you.”

“It’ll be great!” Michael just remained grinning.

“Well, I shall be going,” Charlotte said. “We will not meet each other for a while. I hope for everyone’s safety.”

“We meet in Russia, the base,” Dana informed.

“Oh, so we are going back. Very well.” Charlotte gave a graceful bow to Dana before she re-entered her portal, and it soon closed.

“Fare well, again.” Michael managed to at least wave her goodbye. “So, what do you think, Miss Rose?”

“Of what?”

“Coming with us?”

“It does not seem like I have any choice, now do I?”

“Well, yeah, but I’d rather you come willingly.”

“I do not really know what to think, to be honest. It has not really… sunk in, I suppose.”

“Well, according to Dana, we would be here until I recuperate, and it seems like it would take some time. If you want to talk about things, I’d be willing to lend an ear. I, myself, need to get some time to get my head wrapped around what happened.”

“I do not really know what happened myself. Miss BrontÃ« is yet to share the news of your mission’s outcome.”

“Last thing I remember is the Queen was forced to use what I assume is her Commandment and summoned a winged steed to trample Claudia and Miss Charlotte. I tried to save Miss Charlotte but even then we still took some damage. In the commotion I tried to attack the Magister, but the Queen protected him and sliced me into two. Next thing I remember is waking up in Miss Charlotte’s home.”

“A winged steed… for such a thing to exist…”

“Well, now that you are here—can you put this thing in a bed? I do not think it is a good place to converse, either,” Dana suggested, pointing at Michael.

Rose only gave a nod, picking up Michael from the center of the magic circle.

“His room is?”

“No idea. Take a pick?”

Rose only gave a curious glance at Michael, his body was naked and the temptations were only rising at the back of her mind.

“Take a pick, your owner says…”

“You know, I’d complain but I am plenty tired right now. I don’t mind whichever you choose, you’d need to feed soon, if your glances mean anything. We can do it there.”

“I am not going to feed on you till you recover. Maybe I should ask your owner, she seems very delectable,” Rose replied with a rare smirk.

Michael felt his eyelids become heavy from exhaustion, yet he grinned at Rose’s statement. “Well, that’s something I’d like to see.”

Rose chose a random bedroom and placed Michael on a bed, pulling a blanket up to cover what remained of his body.

“This apartment is so small…” she commented before leaving the room, but stopped at its exit. “For now, I will be with you—if that is the answer to the question you were seeking.”

“That’s good,” he replied with a yawn.

***

The Magic Train ran past the ocean now. The jerky feeling in the train was considerably lacking in a Magic Train in comparison to an ordinary one, so it was particularly more comfortable in the cabins of the locomotive. The view beside them was scenic and the seagulls added to the beauty of the ocean.

With only Rose and Michael accompanying Dana, they were on their way to Russia.

Michael’s body had fully recovered, and he felt better than ever, and was able to eat, drink and function normally again.

Rose was reading a novel throughout the trip, only taking a glance rarely at the passing scenery from time to time. Her attire, as always, made her look as though she was there for a party.

Dana—on the other hand—simply watched the ocean with a look so serene on her face, that one would never believe that she was a deadly Descendant who was determined to rule the world. That was how much the ancient dweller of earth appreciated its beauty.

“I worked near the docks once… well, not on ships. But I wished to ride a ship then,” Michael broke the silence when he looked at the ocean.

“Sailing on a vessel… is an experience worthy of the time spent,” Dana responded, speaking from experience. “The breeze of the ocean is a good thing to feel.”

“You think maybe later we can try riding one? That would be nice indeed. Trains are too… stuffy. Is there any news about Saint, or Miss Charlotte?”

“None from either of them. I assume they’re going on about their own business as usual. Summoner will be joining us on the train’s next stop.”

“Summoner? I haven’t had the pleasure of meeting her yet.” Michael recalled the battle at New York. “I mean, outside of trying to kill each other.”

“She was busy in Saudi Arabia. She should have some time now that she has wrapped up some personal affairs.”

“She uses a peculiar type of magic, is that one of those Lost Forms too?”

“That’s right, it is the Lost Form of my ancient priestesses, the Starlight Lost Form.”

“Ah. Hopefully I can ask her about it when we reach our destination. I’m going to get us some snacks, would you two want anything?” Michael stood up and fixed his clothes.

“I suppose it will be a good time for me to present your reward. Anyway, bring me some coffee.”

“Reward?” He just tilted his head. “Do you take it black? How about you, Miss Rose?”

“For the operation you went through… I have to reward my valiant warriors in some way, yes? As for the coffee, yes, black.”

Rose only shook her head at the question.

“Huh? Well, I’m not one to refuse a reward.” He then exited their stall and headed for the diner car to get their food.

“Still fighting your urges?”

Dana asked Rose, who hadn’t turned a page of her book for about ten minutes now, and Virgo noted it with much amusement. It was obvious how hard she was trying to hide it from Michael.

“I do not need it…”

“I find that giving in to one’s desire is a simple answer.”

“I said I do not—”

“Look, the precious skin is right here.”

“...”

***

“I’m back! Who knew there’s different types of coff—”

Michael balanced in his hand a tray filled with snacks and drinks as he opened the door. Just as he faced the two ladies he was with, he saw something that he only joked about a while back.

Rose was sucking on Dana’s neck, a bead of her crimson blood sensually rolled down her pearl-white skin until it got lost under her dress. The air in the room felt hot and humid as his ears got filled with the sound of Rose gulping and Dana’s breaths. Michael silently entered the room and closed the door, still balancing the tray on his hand, as he felt unsure of what to do. He hadn’t even considered stopping the two as he watched them.

“So… Is this my reward?”

“Surely you jest. Why not take your seat?”

Dana calmly replied, only smiling at Judgement Oppressor. It seemed like the sensation of pain of having her blood sucked was lost to the Descendant who had bore suffering far greater than this.

“Oh, I could’ve taken that,” he joked as he took a seat. “In any case, this coffee is called Americano, and these are some sweet biscuits, and I also brought a pot of Earl Grey.” Michael started putting down the beverages and snacks from the tray onto the small table without spilling even a drop, as if they weren’t moving a few hundred kilometers per hour.

“Thank you.”

Rose was like a mosquito, almost completely still as she was draining blood from Dana.

“Here is your reward.” Dana brought closer to Michael a glass. It looked like there was water in it, but he could vaguely tell that it was the same honey-flavored drink that he once had to ease the pain he felt due to Victoria’s Commandments.

“Does this come in different flavors?” he joked as he immediately gulped the sweet nectar he was offered. Like before, his mouth was filled with a sweet taste, but this was a bit closer to honey than the previous one. As his body absorbed the drink, his mind and body slowly relaxed until he reached a state of calmness that usually came to him only after long meditation. He felt completely relaxed and carefree. He almost forgot Rose was still sucking Dana’s blood beside him. “What kind of tea is this?”

“It isn’t tea, and nor does it come in different flavors.”

“Thank you. This was quite a refreshing reward.”

Michael smiled sincerely at Dana, feeling peaceful at the moment. For this moment, he wasn’t the person who killed Bram for his father, nor he was the killer of Flora. He was just him, and he could relax.

“How does it taste? Do you like it?”

Dana asked with her usual smirk, something that she had showed the time he become her Representative; thus he could tell—she was fully awake.

“Quite, I love sweet things,” he replied as he shook the glass in his hand. “What was that anyway? I feel like it’s something out of the ordinary, like iced tea. Did you know that exist?”

“Iced tea?”

“Yeah, a friend in Japan showed me the beverage. They are serving cold teas in a tin can, dispensed by a machine. Futuristic land indeed.”

“Ah… I used to have them all the time. Probably one of my clones did. Anyway, what you drank just now was… well, why not take a guess, actually?”

“Some sort of nectar, perhaps? It was sweet after all. There were also myths of it being the drink of the Gods, I believe.”

“Good, that is quite close. Where do you think the drink comes from?”

“Plants?” Michael tilted his head in confusion.

Dana playfully placed a finger on her lips. “The answer lies here.”

“What do you mean—oh.” Michael’s eyes widened at the realization. “Really?”

“Yes, the saliva produced behind these lips are a form of honey—or well, nectar, as you would put it. It is not so odd, though. The Countess carries with her powerful venom that may corrupt man with a single drop of her blood, there is also Queen Victoria who has in her what you’d call ale.”

“I’m not sure what to feel… I do want more, but... Wait, did you say that the Countess has venom for blood? And the Queen has ale for hers?”

“Yes, different Descendants have different properties as they are warped with time. I do not know what part of Victoria tastes like ale as it is a mystery. If you want more, though… you might have to come take it from me. Hohoh.”

“Was that a challenge?” He bore a playful smirk in his face.

“If you’d believe so, it could be.”

Michael placed the glass he was holding onto the table as he stood from his seat and walked to face Dana. Without further ado, he leaned towards her to take her lips, thirsting badly for her sweet ambrosia.

Virgo placed a finger on Michael’s lips, Rose retracting her fangs with a dazed look to see what was going on. Indeed, the vampire had hardly been listening to the conversation.

“I sense that you have strong feelings of love for someone else—are you sure you should be doing something like this with me?” Virgo questioned, still wearing her usual smirk.

“I am done restraining myself,” Michael said as he held Virgo’s finger with his hand, eventually interlocking fingers with her. With that obstacle out of the way, he continued his journey towards her luscious lips.

“Are you saying your previous lover—Laura—no longer attracts you?”

Michael stopped completely in his tracks, suddenly snapping out of his reverie.

“She does not need a monster like me.”

“Has she told that to you?”

“Heh, if only she could. What I wouldn’t give just to know she’s out of her coma...” He returned to his seat, a melancholic smile embedded on his face.

“So, if you are not serious, I wouldn’t recommend you to engage me that way. I can feel the depths of your emotions… and every one of my Representatives. I will feel guilty if you cannot devote to me wholeheartedly but indulge me regardless.”

“Can you really?” Michael asked Dana. If she knew a better way to cope with his emptiness, he’d want to know. Given a choice, he would not want a repeat of what happened with Flora. How long can he stop himself, considering even now he felt like he was teetering on the edge of a cliff with no bottom in sight? “Is love something that I deserve to feel, despite what I’ve done?”

“How would you answer if I asked the very same question to you? I had committed far worse than you, Oppressor. It is not a matter of deserving.”

“I suppose…” He returned to gazing at the outside of the carriage through the window. “I suppose time will tell.”

Rose went back to her seat beside Michael, dabbing her lips with a handkerchief.

“Your Mistress is… much more kinder than I thought.”

“I’ve the same thought, Miss Rose. Are you feeling better now?”

“Yes… I can think straight again, at least.”

“I cannot accept that opinion,” Dana stated. “There is no such thing as kindness in a person with bloodstained hands.”

Michael kept silent, his chin resting on his hand. He genuinely thought what Dana just did as kindness, but what she said also made sense to him. In this room, all three of them were killers. No amount of moping and asking for forgiveness could wash their hands of blood. But even then, he knew that Rose wanted to change, and Dana was striving for what she thought was right. He used to think of himself as one of the agents of good, but now he was just motivated by his desire for vengeance.

As if it were the first few buds after winter, he felt like there was something else now. Maybe after all this, there was something else he could strive for. Maybe.

“Well. I still think it was kind of you, what you did.”

“Just a matter of principle. I’ve had many lovers before, and it taught me that if such feelings are left unchecked for long… it may drive one to the brink of insanity.”

“I need to forget her… for the benefit of all of us. I wish it was easy, though. How did you cope with it?”

“Love is an unforgettable experience, but try and struggle—for that is the only way to learn the lesson in earnest.”

“No, but really, how did you cope with it?” Rose repeated Michael’s question out of curiosity.

“By killing them. There was a rebellion because of love, can you believe that?”

“A rebellion?” Michael asked.

“Jealousy was the cause. My Representatives turned against each other, and at some point each of them were thinking I was cheating on them… I was simply taking on the invitations of each of my underlings in stride. How naive I was… I was quite careless in my young days.”

“Huh. If you put it that way, it does seem like it was the most efficient way to deal with things. Love is such a dreadful thing to bear,” he commented as if it wasn’t a problem he was dealing with.

“I have felt it before, but I cannot quite understand the emotion myself.” Dana looked at the ocean once more. “Ever since then, I reduced the amount of males I took in… even then, love would blossom between women, how ironic.”

Michael just smiled as Dana complained. Seeing her like this made her look more human to him. “So, Miss Rose, how about you? Any problems with your beloved?”

“My beloved?” Rose asked back with a scoff. “I do not have the time for such a thing.”

“Why not? Is the Countess strict about that kind of thing?”

“Not really… the Countess actually encourages honesty and all those… things. It is not as though the Countess exactly has bad intentions, I simply do not prefer to be what I have become.” Rose looked down as she spoke. “I would regret loving a person. My life span is different as a vampire, and who knows when I could die?”

“Did you not get turned willingly?” he inquired.

“Of course not.” Rose clicked her tongue.

“So the Countess was your progenitor, and Mary believes she has a way to undo the curse? I recall one time before where Laura almost turned from Marco’s bite. However Flora drank from me a lot but I didn’t experience the same thing even once. Is there something that needs to be done for a bite to turn one person?” Michael got into his thinking mood as he rubbed his chin.

“The Countess could not have been her progenitor,” Dana stated. “She is not a Representative.”

“I cannot tell why you did not turn,” Rose said. “Normally, humans are most susceptible to the venoms of our fangs. That Laura is likely not entirely human.”

“She’s a Faerie. She was about to go back to their Realm when the attack on the Queen happened. If not the Countess, then who is it that turned you into a vampire?”

“Why do you care?” Rose fell silent for a moment. “…It was a rapist. Happy to know that?”

“I’m sorry. I just thought… if we find him then we can study him as a base for a cure.” Michael felt bad for the vampire, but he decided not to hold back on his thoughts anyway. “If we can harvest his parts… maybe finding a cure specifically for you could work?”

“It’s not that easy,” Dana responded. “I know what this Mary person may have been speaking of, though. Ah, apologies, she is supposed to be your mother—I forget.”

“What do you mean? You know how to possibly cure Miss Rose?” Michael asked Dana, paying no mind to her forgetting about Mary. It wasn’t a concern of hers from the start, in any case.

“Ever heard of the Elixir of Life?”

“Elixir of Life?” he repeated. “Is that some sort of concoction?”

“It is a legendary magical potion in the Magic World… even the mundanes have heard of it,” Rose supplemented. “But how do you know of it…? Mary never mentioned it before.”

Virgo drew her palm out and with a flash, a ripple like water could be seen atop her palm. A gold cup floated up—its top closed—it was reminiscent of a container and a drinking cup from the ancient eras at the same time.

“Because I was one of the few who got one from a vault.”

“So if I am reading this situation right… You have the exact substance that could possibly cure Miss Rose of her vampirism. I am going to assume that it isn’t free,” Michael crossed his arms as he glanced back towards Dana.

“Of course not.” Dana huffed. “This is a relic in itself. It is able to cure—or rather—take you back in time.”

“Back… in time?” Rose asked confusedly.

“That is correct.”

“So is there a way to make or find more of that?” Going back in time… I could prevent all this from happening. But… No. I shouldn’t.

“I do not know about making them, but… mn, I doubt you can find them. Regardless, this drink will refill with each solstice anyway.”

“What do we need to do to give Miss Rose a sip?”

The train was now in a city, and was soon to stop at a Magic Station.

“Oppressor. Step out of the room.”

“Hm? Okay?”

Michael stood up and closed the door, standing in front of it just like a guard. He crossed his arms and tapped the floor with his foot, passing time by watching the windows in front of him, admiring the busy city as he passed through its blocks.

The Magic Train soon stopped and people from other rooms started to exit. Minutes passed as many passengers passed by.

“I see you are on duty already. How admirable”

Michael turned, the white one-piece and the golden hair of Judgement Summoner made him feel as though he only met her yesterday.

She walked up to him, her luggage rolling behind her.

“I suppose the Mistress is wont for privacy at the moment?”

“Yes, she ordered me to stand here for the moment. So, I guess it’s nice to meet you. The name’s Michael, or Judgement Oppressor.” Michael then offered to take her luggage.

Accepting the offer, Michael was allowed to take her luggage while she spoke, “It is a pleasure to meet you, I am Judgement Summoner—but I suppose you knew that already—you may otherwise refer to me as Aisha.”

“Aisha it is, then. Saint, Miss Charlotte and her mother would not be accompanying us until later, if you didn’t already know. Would you like to have some snacks at the diner car while we wait for Dana and Miss Rose to finish?”

“I may join you if you wish, but I’ve already had lunch for the day,” Aisha answered. “As for the matters of the rest, I suppose I have heard the news a little. We’re all gathering at Russia, yes?”

“Ah, yes. Dana called it as going back home, but seeing it would be my first time going there…” He made an apologetic smile as he continued, “Would you prefer if I announce your arrival to them?”

“No, I do not prefer to disturb my Mistress unless she demands my presence. Shall we proceed to the diner car?”

“That would be much more preferable than standing here,” he responded as he gestured with his hand the way to the diner car. “After you.”

Cinia Pacifica Ojou-sama Writer

8 years ago

At the diner car, Michael sat in front of Aisha, in between them was a cup of tea, while Aisha chose one of those fizzy beverages, and finally a set of cakes to go along with it. Having already eaten his snacks with Dana and Rose, Michael settled for something light to snack on while waiting. Michael scrounged up in his head what topics he should discuss with the beautiful lady he was with to pass the time.

“Were you out on a job?” he asked.

“Some diplomatic affairs, yes. What about you?”

“Something similar, we were tasked to help the rebellion against the Queen Victoria. Well, former Queen it seems.”

“I’m surprised you’re still alive,” Aisha said, still smiling.

“You should’ve seen me directly after the battle, I was sliced in half.” He chuckled, unconsciously rubbing where he had been sliced in two by the Queen. “Miss Charlotte almost got roasted by the Queen’s Commandment too.”

“I had only heard rumors, but I suppose this rebellion was quite real. At least you’re still alive, that person’s strength is nothing to scoff at…”

“I got lucky, one of our allies lost two Relics and his life in the fray. The Countess’ Representative was trampled by the winged steed, and not to mention the amount of other rebels that died just after we arrived. It truly was unbelievable.” Michael took a nibble on a cake. “That said, the ones allied with the Queen took some heavy losses too.”

“I would think so, hearing that the Queen has fallen… which still surprises me. That said, winged steed? A new Commandment?”

“I just assumed so. The Queen summoned a winged steed that burned all that it touched. Not to mentioned it trampled everything it stepped on too. It required that her angels sing in a chorus to activate. It would have been majestic if it weren’t aimed at us, to be honest.”

“It would provide for a good show for sure.” Aisha drank from her bottle of coke. “I suppose I had a bit of trouble on my side, but nothing like yours.”

“Oh? Would you like to share?” Michael asked as he sipped from his cup. He liked the one Dana gave him much more than this, indeed.

“Fought a Descendant myself. Had assassins all around my father’s palace. Just another fun day at work.”

“A Descendant? Palace?” Michael’s eyes widened in surprise. “You are Royalty, Miss Aisha?”

“Hm? Well, yes. I am a Royal Princess of Saudi Arabia.”

“Pftk!” Michael choked on his hot tea, but at least managed to prevent himself from spitting it out. He thanked the cosmos that he could regenerate wounds. “I-I’m sorry. Should I refer to you as your Royal Highness?”

Aisha blinked and laughed, ignoring the few stares they received. It was no surprise that the Princess gained attention regardless of where she was.

“That is up to you. We’re comrades now, so I won’t mind if you prefer to remain casual.”

“Well, then. I believe I will stick with Miss Aisha. Formality is something I’d prefer to do at the bare minimum, if you’d notice,” Michael joked as he wiped the tears from his eye. “I must say, it is an experience to be surrounded by charming women such as yourself. Surely, it beats being sliced in two any day.”

“Well, thankfully you will have some male company in time. It must be hard to keep yourself proper before the ladies.”

“Another Representative, perhaps? Well, it sometimes is, admittedly,” he signalled for a refill for his cup. “So I would ask you beforehand to forgive if I do make a slight in manners of conduct. It’s fairly new to me, but I try.”

“Understood. I don’t meet many men who are good at mannerisms these days, anyway.”

“I apologize for my kind, then. Now if we would be back on our discussion, why were they trying to assassinate you?”

“You will know when I make my report to the Mistress.”

“Ah. Actually, I have a question or rather, a favor to ask.”

“And that is?”

“What do you think would be the kind of dresses Dana would like? And her size too, if you know. Now that she has mentioned it to me, I cannot get it out of my head. I know a simple dress cannot be enough to express my gratitude, I do wish to get her one at least.”

“Getting a dress to express your gratitude?”

“Sort of?” He laughed awkwardly.

“Hm… something that really accentuates her figure and heightens her elegance… I think? Something modern for sure, can’t go with the Victorian era dresses for this.”

“Ah. I can imagine that. Erm, I mean that is one wonderful suggestion. You think they have those kind of shops in Russia?”

“I can’t say I’m sure. Why not try exploring? I may accompany you if you wish.”

“That would be most appreciated. I haven’t had the pleasure of going to Russian, nor am I capable of speaking their mother tongue. How about you, Miss Aisha? Can you speak Russian?”

“Of course not. Why?” She tilted her head.

“Won’t that cause some misunderstanding at shops if we cannot talk to the proprietors?”

“Is that really a problem?”

“I would think so… but I guess we won’t find out till we see it now, don’t we?” Michael took a sip from his cup, his tea was a bit colder than he would like now. “What about you, Miss Aisha?”

“Well, all words sound the same to regardless of language… what about me?”

“Sound the same? I meant what type of dresses you prefer.”

“Who knows, if I like something… I like something. Something like what I’m wearing… it’s quite nice, don’t you think?”

“Well, it most certainly is a feast for the eyes. It suits you well, Miss Aisha.” Michael commented as he gave a glance at her one piece dress. She was the type of beauty that no ordinary man would dare approach casually. Once more, he thanked that he had encountered Dana before her, otherwise he would be a stuttering wreck, almost reminding himself of his first meeting with Mary.

“Why thank you. I see Mistress has also made you particularly handsome… even if she didn’t give you good clothes.”

“Oh. T-Thanks.” However, he wasn’t exactly used to compliments. Especially regarding his appearance. “Clothes? I actually feel I am wearing too much.”

Out of habit, he wore a white shirt and a grey vest, preferring to wear a charcoal black jacket instead of the enchanted coat he used for missions. He had on black pants and shoes that he had gotten at a lowered price in a shop he passed by in London, instead of having them tailored. If one were to look at it, his whole wardrobe tended to be monochromatic and looked pretty much the same.

“Probably the quality that’s bugging me, don’t pay much heed to it.”

“Figured, I opted for the cheaper ones rather than having suits tailored.” Michael pouted at the thought that he’d need to pay that much for his own suits. He didn’t mind spending for Dana, but to him buying expensive suits only to get them destroyed in missions didn’t sit well with him. “If only they were as durable as that coat...”

“Depends whether you can get them weaved with magic, or use the expensive ones like the ones from Japan.”

“Haaa… I don’t think I know someone who can weave magic into clothing, nor can I go to Japan anytime soon. Not that I can afford either, too.” Michael sighed as he played with the icing on the plate with his fork. “One of these days I may end up fighting naked.”

“Why not simply ask Caster?”

“Miss Charlotte can do that? I shall ask her about it when she returns then.” With that matter settled, Michael just rested his chin on his hand, a rude gesture, but it slipped his mind. “That said, I recall you use the Lost Form of Starlight?”

“Of course she can, she is the legendary student of the great alchemist Paracelsus. Weaving magic unto clothes in the simplest task to such… oh, my Lost Form of Starlight, what about it?”

“Alchemist… Anyway, I wish to inquire about that Lost Form. So far I have seen Void in action, and personally I use Heavenly Sacraments. What’s this Form about?” Michael recalled his alchemist friend Emilia, who had perished against the master whom he served now. He knew she would not be happy with what he had become, but he had a goal he needed to attain, no matter the consequences. He already saw his brother who seemed to be putting no effort in saving Mary, so he knew he had to do it all by himself, and perhaps with Miss Charlotte.

“You are curious about the Lost Forms?”

“Indeed I am. Knowledge is power, after all.” He made a toothy grin towards Aisha.

“The Lost Form of Starlight’s roots originate from ancient Babylon, where the Goddess Ishtar had once granted her priestesses the armaments of destruction—special spells, that is. It is told that the priestesses fought Gilgamesh with it.”

“Isn’t Ishtar the same Goddess of Virgo? Does that mean Dana can use this Form too?”

“I am not sure myself… but would such a great person require the usage of magic?”

“Hmmm… Why not? Magic or not, these are skills that may prove useful to her. She seems to me a person that wouldn’t immediately resort to her more powerful abilities. I feel like when she fought us she was intentionally holding back some of her powers.”

“Wasn’t that because she loves fighting too much? I haven’t heard of Descendants using magic before, to be honest. I can imagine the Mistress being so much more powerful with the Starlight, though. Since it gathers the light of the stars…”

Michael felt a shiver run through his spine. “I wouldn’t want to be on the receiving end of that. But gathering the light of the stars… That sounds like something I would want to see.”

“It is a very complicated—and dangerous—mechanic. They say that playing with fire is dangerous, and that notion is especially true in this case. If the wrong person tries to use this spell without the proper knowledge, they might blow themselves up with it. Boom!” she said enthusiastically, putting her arms up dramatically.

Instead of being afraid, Michael’s eyes twinkled as he imagined what Aisha described. “What a pretty sight that would be!” He clapped his hands enthusiastically.

“I know, right? Just imagine the sparkles!”

“I think it would be used at a moonless night. I can see it lighting up the place like it was day! I do hope to witness this in action, Miss Aisha.”

“Unfortunately, there are only two users of this Lost Form in the world, and the particulars of the spells are top secret of Saudi Arabia.”

“Two? Do you happen to know the other user?”

“Mhm. She is my student.”

“Oh? Is she with you or she will be following us to Russia?”

“No, my apprentice does not work for our Mistress. She is a bit of a special case.”

“A special case, huh? Then I suppose if I meet a user of the Starlight then I would know who taught her. They are taking quite a while, huh?”

“Shall we go check?”

“I suppose.” He stood up and stood behind Aisha, awaiting to assist her when she stood up.

“It’s just a train here, I can do that much myself.” Aisha got up on her own, declining the helping hand.

Cinia Pacifica Ojou-sama Writer

8 years ago

When Michael and Aisha came back to the door of the room, they could see through the small window panels of the door that Dana was back to staring at the window and that Rose was reading her novel again.

“Mistress, Miss Aisha has arrived,” he said, as he knocked on the door.

“Come in.”

Michael opened the door and they both proceeded inside. Aisha gave Dana a bow.

“I have returned, Mistress.”

Dana smiled at Aisha. “It is good to see you return. Come, join us, both of you.”

“So, did it work?” Michael asked as he took a seat.

“Rose will be the next to join the retinue.”

“Wait, what?” Michael quickly snapped his gaze towards Rose. I thought you disliked your extended life span? He left the question hanging in his head. Dana offered her something, and was being a Representative in exchange worth it?

“Well… I suppose I am fine with this,” Rose said almost nonchalantly, but he could see her smiling behind her novel book.

Michael just scratched the back of his head. It seemed that he was too young to understand women. “As long as you’re okay with it I suppose.”

“I would rather be an elf than a vampire. I simply do not like being an Infernal, is all… if I can live peacefully in the future, that will be fine for me.”

“That is assuming our objective is complete one day,” Dana said, but Rose remained adamant.

“We will succeed… I hope we will.”

“I will make sure we will.” For a second, as he filled up with determination, Michael looked reminiscent of his past self. “But an elf?”

Dana pulled up her long, fair blonde hair to show Michael her ear. There was a pointy end on it.

“I suppose you do not look at the mirror often, Oppressor,” Dana said with a smirk. “All of my Representatives inherit my blood.”

“That’s true...” Michael drooped down on his seat. How could he not notice such a thing? “To think I had pointy ears all this time and never noticed. It scares me what else could’ve changed without me noticing.”

“It is the same principle that bound the Representative of vampires to change the way she did, it seems,” Rose said. “In that case, it makes sense.”

“Congratulations on losing your vampirism, then.” Michael smiled wholeheartedly towards Rose. “And I suppose I look forward with working with you.”

“Well, we have not done the ritual just yet.”

Aisha only hummed. “Another Representative, mn?” That was surprisingly easy, is this Rose person really that loyal?

“I suppose that can’t be done in a train. That’s one thing to look forward to when we arrive, then.” Michael relaxed as he looked back outside the window. “Well, I do hope the ritual succeeds.”

“May I hear your report, Judgement Summoner?” Dana inquired.

“Yes, my Mistress.” Aisha’s expression turned cold in an instant; shifting gears. “I have successfully managed to uncover the routes that the vampires use for their illegal businesses. I have also identified the Churches that are used as experimental sites by the Roman Catholic Church.”

“Oh? As expected of one of my best retainers, you have flawlessly completed your mission… even the extra that I had sprung up on you.”

“You praise overmuch, Mistress. This is the least I may do.”

“Experiment… by the Church? What are they doing?” It might be Dana’s nectar, or the massive amount of tea in his system, but the mention of the church didn’t trigger Michael’s anger. However, it did arouse his interest.

“I had discovered signs of human experiments with children,” Aisha replied. “The research of the Lost Form of Undertaker has been resumed by the Pope’s orders.”

“Oh, so they are finally trying to finish that research. Using children is a rather barbaric method, though,” Dana said.

Aisha clenched her fist. “That is not how one should progress their research.”

Michael sat silently in his corner, struggling to contain his temper. He opted to keep silent before he started throwing out nonsense from his mouth. He aimed to end the Church, but he couldn’t do anything at the moment, and without Dana allowing him to. So for now he would endure. He just hoped that Laura was safe, and Robert too. If his companions were to observe him, they would notice his fist—his whole body was trembling.

“Well, go on,” Dana urged, and Aisha gave a nod.

“The vampires seem to have routes all over the Middle East at the moment, but I would think they have their own routes across Europe, and America—”

“And Asia and… well, almost everywhere,” Rose added. “If you want… Mistress, I may help with the investigation on the vampires, as I am indeed a former comrade of the vampires.”

“Very well,” Dana responded. “We will leave that to you.”

“At the end of a party I was in, Mistress,” Aisha began, “there were assassination attempts on the Royalty of my country.”

“I presume your father is safe?”

“Yes, yes he is.”

“That is good to hear. And?”

“Yes, Mistress?”

“I sense that you wish to speak of something else?”

“Ah, I… um…” Aisha took some moments to think. “I fought with Aries.”

“Aries?” Michael asked, thankful for the change in topic. He would’ve volunteered against the Church like Rose did for the Vampires, but he knew he wasn’t ready to take on his Father. Not yet. He would ride on their knowledge of his death in the meanwhile.

“Ah, the man who lives for victory and war…” Virgo muttered. “For him to challenge one of my retainers… now, that is rude.”

“Well, I am alive and hale, so it is fine.” Virgo still continued gazing at Aisha and she sighed. “And I took up an apprentice for the Lost Form of Starlight.”

“She’s the avenger… isn’t she?”

“…Yes.”

“Hahahaha!!” After the passing of a year, Virgo had finally had her laugh. “Good, good! I cannot wait to face her again in combat.”

“Face her again? Avenger?” Michael started thinking deeply. “That… sounds like someone I know.”

“Svetlana Astakhov Alicia, Duchess of Norfolk,” Aisha supplemented.

“Oh. Her.” Michael almost sounded disappointed. “This may be considered as a tangent, but may I assist Miss Rose with her mission? I have something I need to confirm for myself.”

“And that would be?” Rose asked.

“I had a friend... who was turned into a werewolf. I wish to know if the Church has any hand in that.”

“They do not. It was the Countess’ experiments that brought life to the lycanthropes.”

“Did she make more? And what is this the Church is trying to do with Undertaker… I wish to find that out too. I want to stop—” Michael cut himself off as he took a moment to breathe. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine,” Dana said with a dismissive wave of her hand. “We’ll get to them in due time, Oppressor. However, we cannot run when we must walk. We take one step at a time.”

“I just thank you for considering my request.” Michael bowed his head. “I believe that there are people who would share my disgust if they knew the truth about their Church.”

“You already know my answer, Oppressor—the Church has no place in the vision of the new world I plan to carve out in the future.”

“Then it will be done as you wish.”

“How are the others doing?” Aisha questioned.

“Caster and Sniper went on their personal quest to find their lost family member. The rest should be gathering at the home base,” Dana answered.

“I see… but is it safe to come out of America like this, Mistress? Your spiritual energy may have been picked up. America was flooded with energy from the piece of the moon for that reason, after all.”

“That is fine. I managed to take out most of the spiritual energy overloading me against King Solomon.”

“Ah… I see.”

“Speaking of, is the MVA also looking for you?” Michael suddenly asked Dana.

“You and me both,” Dana answered.

“Am I not considered dead?”

“Missing.”

“And I had my resurrection all planned out. Americans.” Michael shrugged.

Cinia Pacifica Ojou-sama Writer

8 years ago

Coupled with the overcast dusk sky, the chilling gale of the blizzard, and the layers of white that coated the city of Moscow—Russia had the very image of gloom painted on itself.

As expected of the city that knew no concept of time, the citizens were up and about. There were not many people around, but a fair amount. Each of the companions of Dana were ladies beautiful in their own regard. Rose was born to a family of British aristocrats, Aisha was from the Royal family of Saudi Arabia, while Charlotte—even if she was elsewhere at the moment—was also quite the elegant beauty and was an author, rather than a noble, but was fairly wealthy regardless. Lastly, Dana herself simply held the regal nature of a monarch in herself. Rather, it could be said that she was a passing Goddess across the snowy streets.

Michael assumed that they would be staying in a house, similarly like their previous case in an apartment in New York. This assumption was changed when they left the city.

Past the Khimki Forests—which was part of the Green Belt—was a hidden construct of steel. It was large and oppressive. Steam escaped from the chimneys and there was the faint noise of running engines.

Dana looked up to the structure with a hint of nostalgia.

“How many years has it been?” The question escaped Aisha’s lips before she even knew it.

“For you… that would be six?” Dana guessed.

“Are we really staying… here?” Rose spoke, not expecting an answer.

“And I thought, there would be no more steam.” Michael quipped, but was actually happy that the place might be warm. “This is just like home.”

“...You really would believe that, I suppose.”

“So, what is this place? House of Judgement?” He grinned as he rubbed his elbows. Russia was just too cold for him it seemed.

“I would rather claim the House of Steel,” Aisha said with a chuckle.

“House of Steel? I can see why. So this construct, I assume only us know about it?”

“Members of my Organization, yes. Thanks to the powerful barrier that I put up around the forest when it was being built.”

“Fancy. So shall we enter our new home? Well, for Miss Rose and I at least.”

There was a large field of snow across the tower of steel, and it took them several moments of walking to finally enter the so-called House of Steel. The noise from the machinery was heavier inside, the scent of steel strong, but it was warm.

“I welcome you all to the Factory of the Steel Union,” Dana finally spoke again.

“In truth,” Aisha began, “this is not only our home but also the home to the androids that you often hear of in the Magic World.”

“Androids? Are they the same as the marionettes of Japan?” Michael asked.

The group progressed further into the factory, where they came upon a lobby. Several robots could be seen cleaning the floors and the walls. There were mechanical words of welcome for Dana as well.

“Almost, but there are stark differences. To begin with, the human body is not changed up to seventy-percent—or was it eighty-percent?—like the marionettes.”

“I believe they are wiped of their personalities too, afterwards,” Michael said. “That’s what a friend told me at least.” He glanced at the robots, who looked sleek rather than what he expected. He was so used to clockwork and steam machinery he half expected to see them here, too. “They have a mind of their own, these robots?”

“Not quite, they have to be programmed.”

“They do not wipe personalities, modifying the brain simply has its side-effects,” Dana explained, raising an index finger. “The marionettes require their brain to be changed mostly for the networks that they are to be linked to. Such a system is not needed for androids as my aim is to only improve functionality. Even then, androids still lose some of their personality often.”

“I see. Then this network, is it just among marionettes, or is there a locus of information they all connect to? Aside from this, are they both equally as durable?”

“The network is a part of a larger web of information, apparently. That is where they receive information from other external devices—such as security cameras—about missions. As for durability, it is still unknown. Currently, it is quite clear that the marionettes employed by Japan are superior thanks to technological advancements. I have been learning from them myself, and hope to apply some of their techniques soon.”

“Soon, huh? Have you been going to Japan then? I mean, to learn about marionettes.”

“Hm? Had you not met me in Japan? You speak as if we were strangers.”

“Oh. I meant… other than that time.” Michael scratched the back of his head, embarrassed.

“How long do you think I’ve been there?”

“I just assumed you were there to take Miss Alicia and Miss Lumiere’s life, to be honest. Not to mention you travelled by portal, then.” If one were to look at him, when he spoke the names of the people who helped him in Japan, Michael had to control himself from flinching. He was completely aware he had joined the side of their murderers.

“Except… I had been the Headmistress there for years.”

“You’re Miss Lumiere?!” Well, they do look alike…

“Of course. She was one of my clones. The knowledge of all my clones comes to me when I consume their heart. That is why I know about Japan, for my clone had taken interest in it herself.”

“Clone? Eating her heart?” Michael shivered at the thought. “Do we have any particular agenda for now? I would like to rest after our trip. That said, if Miss Rose doesn’t mind, I wish to witness her become one of your Representatives, too.”

“For now, I am going to go over some data and reports.” Dana faced a staircase as she spoke. “So, I shall be on my way to my office. All of you are free to rest. Ask Aisha about your rooms. For Rose, we are going to summon all the available Judgement members when it takes place.”

“Thank you.” Michael then turned to his two other companions, Aisha in particular. “This looks more like a castle as we go deeper inside, huh?”

“Perfect for me, don’t you think?” the Princess of Saudi Arabia replied with a smile. “You’ll have to learn to mind the noises of the factory as you sleep, though.”

“That’s one thing to get used to, I guess. Admittedly, I’ve slept in worse places,” he then glanced at Rose, who he knew used to be a noble. “How about you, Miss Rose? Would you need some ear plugs, perhaps?”

“No… I will be fine,” Rose answered, her eyes colder than in the train. “I do not mind.”

“Hm? Is something the matter?” Michael asked. Was the lady having second thoughts? That would prove to be problematic for him. A few moments of awkward silence passed as Michael decided to keep an eye on Rose. “Well then, may I ask where our rooms might be, Miss Aisha?”

“Well, follow me—”

The noise of a yell was heard—echoing across the steel walls.

“That was… the Mistress!” Aisha climbed up the staircase in the right corner immediately, leaving the two behind.

“Please wait here Miss Rose.” Michael said rather calmly as he ran off to follow Aisha.

As Michael followed after Aisha, they traversed through a long corridor in the second floor after crossing the small staircase. There was a sector in the middle of the floor where Michael saw a large hollow space that seemed to go far down, and far up too, bound by railings in each floor. Amidst this intersection was Dana, holding the hair over her scalp as if in pain—crouching down.

“Dana?! What’s happening?” Michael quickly knelt to her side, unsure of what to do. He looked around the area to see if there was anyone else aside from him and Aisha, but saw no one. “What’s happening to her? Another of those distortions?”

Aisha knelt down beside Michael too, but she appeared to be just as confused as him. “It could be… but this is worse than usual.”

“Miss Lumiere…”

Michael and Aisha both turned to the darkness at the other side of the intersection. A young blonde child with a pair of clear blue eyes walked out. Someone who used to be with a certain Magister a year ago.

“I… did not notice him at all,” Aisha said. “Who is he…?”

“A...Almond,” Dana uttered amidst the pain she was experiencing. “Don’t… don’t come near me,” she said—not to Michael, not to Aisha, but to the child.

“Miss Aisha. Kindly take Dana somewhere safe… I do not know this area as much as you do,” Michael said as he stood up and summoned Caladbolg in his hand. When it came to Infernals and their like, age did not matter—and he knew that all too well. If a child could make a Descendant like Dana kneel, then all the more so. “Who are you, child?”

“Don’t you think it’s fine?” Aisha asked Michael.

“It’s fin—” Michael spared Aisha and Dana a glance. “She’s not fine.”

“I think our Mistress has—for once—misunderstood her pain.”

“What does that even mean?” Michael was so confused he desummoned his Relic. The child was not speaking, Miss Aisha wasn’t moving, and Dana was still crouched in pain. Did he turn insane somehow on the way to his room?

“Miss Lumiere!” Almond ran up to Dana and hugged her. Apparently, Michael’s words and presence was hardly noted by the young boy.

Dana looked down at Almond was a blank expression, tears forming at the corners of her pupils. She took up a finger and examined a drop of her tear in confusion.

“Almond… y-you have grown.”

As the boy wailed in her bosom due to the fateful reunion, Dana hesitantly held him, unsure of her own emotions. The heart of Lumiere she ate gave rise to emotions she hadn’t felt in a long time—feelings akin to that of a mother.

“See?” Aisha said, turning to Michael.

“Hm. To think I almost hurt a child. I might’ve lost my sanity after all,” he mumbled to himself as he averted his gaze from the other three.

“Descendants are hard to be prone to ordinary emotions, so I understand why you may have thought that,” Aisha said, walking up to him.

“This kid… is hers?”

“No… he was… a war orphan…” Dana uttered before Aisha could take a guess. “My clone… nnngh.” She held her head with a hand again, Almond raising a concerned face. “…Took him up.”

“A war orphan? But still, doesn’t that make him your child as well?” Michael asked.

“It… it does?”

“Of course. Besides, I don’t want to kick a child out back there. It’s freezing!” Michael smiled at Dana and the child he almost tried to kill. “I should go back, Miss Rose might be wondering where we are.”

“Yes, I am so very curious,” Rose said in an amused tone from behind Michael.

“Weren’t you left with… the Magister?” Dana questioned. Memories from the clone who was named Lumiere were only now coming to her properly, when she thought about Almond.

“I came to you… if what this person said it’s true—I guess you really are my mother, Miss Lumiere!” Almond made a big smile as he proclaimed.

Dana sighed. “What did my clone get me into?”

“So. A child managed to enter this barrier-protected fortress of ours.” Michael scratched his cheek, unsure what to feel. A child somehow managed to infiltrate and surprise Virgo and her Representatives, and that particular child was apparently entrusted to a certain Magister. “Did you come alone?” he asked the child.

“Yes!” Almond answered. “I carried the charm mother gave me some years ago. I think the luck I gained from it really helped,” he added innocently, showing a Japanese style charm that one would find from a shrine.

“I fear myself sometimes,” Dana commented.

Michael chuckled at the absurdity of the situation. “Well, your mother’s here now, so congratulations on your quest. You did give me quite the scare, though. I’m beyond poofed. Famished, even.”

“I suppose this Lumiere was the one who had the cunning nature of our Mistress too,” Aisha remarked.

“How does that get you hungry?” Rose asked. Michael just shrugged at her.

“For now… Summoner, take him away,” Dana commanded, and Aisha gave a nod. The Descendant finally got to her feet and felt rather embarrassed to have shown such a moment of vulnerability before her subordinates. She walked off hurriedly as if to hide her face.

“After I guide these two to their rooms.” Aisha gestured towards a pillar in the very middle that was in the center of the long round space of the intersection.

Michael just barely noted a bridge connecting to it in the dark. They followed Aisha to what appeared to be an elevator. It was quite old-fashioned compared to the ones Michael had the pleasure of using in America but was good enough for convenience in the premises.

Now on the fifth floor, there were several doors across a hallway. The noises of the machines were much lower up here. There were few lamps hanging down from the ceiling, just enough to illuminate the place.

“Take a pick,” Aisha said. “There are name tags on some doors—those are basically in use by others.”

Michael skimmed through the doors until he found one without a name tag. He opened the door to check if it really was unoccupied, and saw that it had indeed been undisturbed for quite a while. “This one.”

“There may be some furniture there… or may be none. Anyway, it’s your room now. You can do what you like with whatever you find in it—it’d probably be from the previous user of the room.”

“Well, there’s a bed. Oh! A free chair, too! This is good enough. I can buy the other things later,” he exclaimed, satisfied with his new room. He then looked back at his companions and then saw the child, remembering that he forgot what the child’s name was again.

“Before I forget, my name’s Michael, Michael Kallweit. What about you?” He extended a hand towards the child. “Forgive me for showing you my sword earlier.”

“My name is Almond, Mister Michael.”

By this time, Rose picked a room of her own and the door was shut. Surprisingly, she chose the room next to Michael’s.

“Almond. Okay. As a matter of my apology, would you want to learn how to use a sword?” Michael asked, giving a curious glance at Rose’s door.

“Wouldn’t it be better to ask Judgement Knight for that instead?” asked Aisha.

“Well, when she returns, I guess? I don’t particularly know how to interact with children,” he replied before looking back at Almond. “So, what do you say?”

“What is… a sword?” Almond asked.

“What is a sword, huh?” Michael scratched the back of his head. “Something used to protect someone… I guess?”

Almond only blinked at Michael’s words while Aisha laughed.

“I think that’s enough for the day, Oppressor,” she said. “Besides, how would you find the time to teach swordsmanship?”

“A man always finds time!” he replied, pumping his fist.

“She is here, you know? The Saint.”

“Really? Since when? Did you see her? I need to ask her something, actually. Is she here?”

“Should be here in this factory somewhere. I can feel her presence.”

Michael tried to sense for Saint, but only managed to create yet another awkward silence. It seemed like he had developed a talent for it now. “On second thought, we will see each other again on Miss Rose’s ceremony.”

“Mhm. We’ll all see each other in time.” Aisha pulled up her hand and took a peek at her wristwatch. “It’s already ten. You should rest now. I’ll show Almond to his room.”

“Thank you for your accompaniment. See you later Miss Aisha, and you too, Almond.” Michael waved them goodbye and then entered his room, closing the door shut. He placed his suitcase on the chair, and then dusted the bed with his hands. Satisfied with his work, he removed his vest and placed it on the chair’s back, along with his coat.

He then took a cleaner white shirt from the suitcase and changed clothes. Giving a glance towards the coat, he just opted to at least wear a vest before standing in the middle of his room. He recalled the words Saint taught him a year ago and sung the hymn, concentrating as he did before. The faint light started to form from him.

Cinia Pacifica Ojou-sama Writer

8 years ago

A sky painted in gold, an ancient pathway made of bricks. Monuments and pillars from millions of years past. Stars shone brilliantly beyond the twilight sky. This was a world the prospective Saint—Michael—had laid his eyes upon before. The place made him feel at ease.

That was how Heaven felt. A silent and peaceful world.

Upon an altar afar from his location sat an existence adorned with countless jewelry. An exotica in itself—the Archangel preferred beautiful, and artful objects. Her cyan eye looked down at him, but she spoke not.

“I have returned, Archangel Zophiel.” Michael knelt in front of the angel out of respect—something that was totally ignored when he fought against them just recently. “I understand we have had a conflict of interests recently, but even so I seek audience with you.”

“We were aware—conflict was only inevitable. I shall listen—what do you wish to speak of?”

“My path… will inevitably lead to me to face more of such battles, perhaps with the Queen once more, perhaps not. Archangel Uriel... who watched from the start has already expressed his opinion with the path I chose. I… believe that I still will be in dire need of your guidance.” Michael raised his head to face Zophiel, and still got mesmerised by her unnatural beauty. “That is, if you wish to extend it still.”

“Pray tell, how much would you trust your own ideas of justice? Do you have the conviction to press on with your path?”

“Stopping now would be an insult, and would take meaning to all those lives I’ve took—and will take,” he said, filled with determination. “My father must be stopped, no matter what. If he deems himself a God, then I shall become the Devil.”

“It is unfortunate, but I do not believe a Saint should be the Devil. You have taken a turn, and your words for good now feel as though they are… excuses for justifying mere vengeance.”

“Was I ever a tool for good? He had created me as a weapon, not to do justice, but to deliver execution… You are right—it is vengeance I seek.”

“A tool for vengeance is not what a Saint ought to be. He may have fashioned you a knife to slit the skin of the Infernals, but that does not mean that one may not change—despite being reborn; you cling to the spectres born of your past.”

“Then… if there is such a thing… would you guide this one?”

“Do you not have a magnificent guide, the Goddess who fights for nature?”

“Ah, of course.” He finally cracked a smile. “She who gave me a second life would also give me purpose other than vengeance? Then, I ask for your patience. Mayhaps I find that it is not vengeance that I must truly strive for.”

In the next moment that he blinked his eyes, he was back to his room.

“A Saint, huh?” he said to himself, losing the feelings of exhaustion after conversing with the Archangel.

While what he felt was true, it may not necessarily be right. While his hunger for vengeance was real, and his anger felt like it would eat him alive if he slipped, maybe there was still hope for someone such as himself.

He decided that he needed to think about things as he exited his room and was about to wander off, when he took a brief glance at the door of the room that Rose chose earlier. He hesitated for a bit before knocking softly at her door.

“Miss Rose?”

“…What?”

A low—muffled voice was heard from beyond the door of the room.

“Did I disturb your sleep? I was wondering if you would like to roam around with me.”

Rose opened the door, her body clad in a simple black chemise, due to its transparency he could see her fine skin behind the fabric due to the light of her room being on—which was brighter compared to the dim lamps of the steel-walled corridor.

“Roam? At this hour?”

“T-Th… c-can’t sleep.” He cleared his throat, caught completely off-guard by her comely appearance.

“Well, I am a denizen of the night, so it does not bother me to go out now.”

“Lovely. I-I mean… I would wait here till you a-are ready...” He averted his gaze, afraid that he was staring too much.

“Your face tells me that you would rather have me go out in this attire,” Rose said with a smirk he least expected.

“I’d rather be the only one to have the pleasure—” Michael immediately turned around. Sometimes he hated how quickly his mouth moved. “I’d rather… have an idea what I should say.”

The vampire raised her eyebrows at his words, but closed them momentarily.

“If you want to see me… you can do that however much you want. I will lose all of this soon, anyway.”

The words were spoken after some moments of silence. Rose narrowed her eyes, and averted her gaze, a bit of blood welled up in her cheeks.

“However much… I want...” He trailed off, completely forgetting his initial offer. “That is a very tempting… offer. Are you sure, Miss Rose? I mean… I am… me.”

“W…Well, you did save me. I am only in this world because of you. Until the time I am changed…”

Before her back were her fingers fiddling repeatedly, eyes still not meeting Michael’s.

“That is...” Michael felt a pang of guilt when he realized he did do so, but mostly for his own purposes. He felt a few more stabs of guilt when he realized how much he wanted her still. What is it with me and blondes?!

“You do understand… It was beneficial to me, too? I meant what I said to you, but I was motivated more by my revenge then.”

“We both agreed for selfish reasons that night. What about it?”

“It is because it keeps being harder and harder restraining myself.” He turned to face her once more, and even started walking closer to her. “And I am afraid of what happens if I don’t.”

Rose turned away to hide her tears.

“It is… fine. Please forget I said anything.” Her voice was low and it quivered. What is wrong with me…? What the hell am I even doing?!

If blondes were his weakness, a woman’s tears would be his death. Completely forgetting about her attire, he stepped closer and held her shoulders.

“I apologize if I have insulted you, Miss Rose. If anything, I was too afraid that I would hurt you. But now I see I have done so by dilly-dallying about.”

“No… I am the one who is at wrong—I am the one who should be apologizing. I knew you had feelings for someone, and yet… I…”

Michael hugged Rose, without saying a word. He rested his chin on her shoulder, either waiting for her to throw him off or something. Her scent filled his nostrils, and her breathing drowned out the noise of the machinery around them as he closed his eyes, unsure of what exactly he was doing.

“Are you sure about this… with a person like me?” the vampire asked meekly, her fingers still fiddling like a young girl in her teenage years.

“Because it is you.”

“What is that supposed to even mean?”

“Because you’re Rose, that’s why I am sure.”

Rose turned to Michael, her eyes still teary, and her expression stripped of all its coldness. There was only a girl who seemed as though she wanted to be spoiled, cared for—and loved.

Without any words, she stole his lips. For some moments they remained that way. Michael experienced her the sensation of her smooth, supple lips joining against his own, all words and feelings culminated into this interaction and all hesitation were thrown into the air. As soon as they parted, the temptress took him by surprise—thus their lips met again. This time, their kiss was much deeper, longer, and more passionate.

Without even separating, Michael held Rose and stepped forward into her room, slamming the door shut as he went past. They continued until they reached her bed, separating for what seemed to him as hours as he lay her on and unbuttoned his vest and shirt with a hand. Immediately as if a starving wolf stumbling upon its prey, he pounced onto her, seizing her lips once more as he ground his body against hers.

As soon as their lips parted, Rose gasped for air desperately. Her eyes shone crimson and her fangs were visible to Michael.

“I am… so sorry. I might not remain… as me anymore.”

“What… do you mean?” he asked, panting.

“Your scent… my instincts—I do not think I can stop this lust for blood.”

“It is your last night as one… after all.” He grinned towards her. “Just know it won’t be for free this time.”

Her hands wrapped under his neck, a sweet smile coming up to her face.

“Have it your way.”

“Exactly what I intend to do,” he replied as he traced a finger across her body, from her neck downwards, stopping to cup her bountiful bosom.

“I hope you do not regret it. I have a terrible habit in bed.”

“What do you mean?” he asked curiously, forgetting how they were on top of each other at the moment.

Her hand fell on his crotch, and her curled smile grew into a smirk.

“Something I picked up when I was… raped. I cannot help it nowadays.”

“Oh? Would you mind me asking?” He gave her a soft, teasing squeeze.

“Is it not more thrilling to simply find out?”

“My instincts tell me that I shouldn’t.” He gave Rose another look, then smiled. “Where were we?”

“Careful, they are sharp.” She embraced Michael tighter and pulled him into another kiss. It appeared that Rose was very self-conscious about her partner’s tongue clashing against her fangs.

MIchael responded in turn as he started to get a bit more aggressive, cupping her breasts as if wanting to tear off the piece of cloth that was separating his hands from her skin. He started kneading them rhythmically as he tried to take dominance from her. His instincts started to take over for him, without him knowing. He tugged roughly at her chemise as he pulled back for some air.

“Let’s get rid of this.”

“As you wish…”

Cinia Pacifica Ojou-sama Writer

8 years ago

“Are you truly certain of committing yourself—to me?”

“Yes.”

Snow was falling. It was nothing like the fierce blizzard from hours ago. The world appeared to be peaceful and quiet.

“Kneel.”

The vampire knelt down to her new Mistress-to-be. She only looked straight—at Virgo, at the Descendant who would rip her out of existence soon—with eyes fearless and expression completely blank; she was ready.

On the magic circle, the Goddess stood, looking down at the so-called present that her Representative had brought for her. The pair of relics from the Irish legends had materialized and she grasped them. She wore her usual confident smirk.

The sword to the right shone radiantly like the sun.

The sword to the left was shrouded with the wind.

Placing the right sword on her shoulder, Dana tested the vampire’s will and determination. The scorching heat was but an inch away from melting her shoulder.

“Oath.”

“With the honour of my ancestors of the House of Neville—I, Rose Nevill, shall make an oath to walk with you to the end of the earth, Descendant of Virgo. I shall accompany you even to the depths of hell if I must. I shall be the sword that would pave the way for you. I shall be a shield that you may sacrifice for your solace.”

Rose’s words carried her conviction, and it was witnessed by the five Representatives of Virgo, each of whom stood vigil at the ends of the magic circle—surrounding the two as the ritual progressed.

“Do you accept me as your Queen? Your superior? Your Mistress?”

“Yes, Mistress.”

“You would be willing to be rent to nothing in my name?”

The intensity of the blade’s shine rose and Rose’s sweat trickled down from her chin, despite the cold weather of Russia.

“If that is your will.”

“You would have your soul painted deep, navy-blue for my sake—for your sake?”

“If this soul—that was once forcefully sold to the Devil—is what you desire… please, paint it with your color. Please grant upon me change—Mistress.”

Rose spoke each of her words with much disdain.

Virgo lifted her blade from the shoulder of Rose. Her Commandment had raised the length of her blades exponentially, with a bright, burning extension on each sword.

“WIth my blades I hereby announce the rebirth of a woman. My priestess—to be born anew.”

Gracefully and swiftly, the twin relics of Dana sailed from many directions, displaying transcendent swordsmanship as she danced, burning away every bit that made up—the vampire, the aristocratic lady—Rose herself. Her bones, cut. Her blood, melted. Her skin, torn. She suffered a pain unlike any before, as her heart and brain were cast into nothingness, with only the heat of the burning blade in its place.

Even her blood didn’t coat the steel floor of the factory—the rooftop upon which the ritual was taking place. Burning sparkles were the only remnants of the woman who knelt before Dana moments ago.

The sparks floated upon the magic circles like red fireflies, dancing across the air. An abrupt gale took up from the magic circle and their dance was accelerated, heralding the birth of Dana’s new servant.

With a fiery flash, the particles converged. The light turned dark—navy-blue—the change had taken place.

It was irreversible.

The light soon shaped into that of a woman whose existence was completely rent but moments ago.

Rose was born anew.

She was breathing heavily—steam rising from her back—still kneeling before Dana. She was devoid of her black corset, the dress that would usually give the image of a lady ready to party.

Rose was unaware that her body was improved to be at the capability of a Representative. Her beauty was quite literally accentuated further with the aid of the ritual, and the power that shaped her new self. The pointy ears were apparent to the spectators. The few scars she was ashamed of showing to her bed mates had vanished and were replaced with her clear and bright skin.

Her face appeared even more attractive now, lavish with the beautiful look of an elf that made it seem as though she was extremely fragile, comparative to glass. Her blonde hair was slightly longer than before now, enough to be at shoulder length. Her eyes were comparable to a pair of amethysts. They held together a clear violet color.

“Tonight, I shall welcome you back into the material Realm. How do you feel?”

Rose closed her eyes, and a smile naturally crept to her facial features.

“Cold… but at peace.”

This change was something she had longed for, yet it was unbelievable to her that she had underwent such a ritual. It had barely sunk into her mind that she was reborn. The display of power was true and she was starting to understand why Michael was so attracted to the seemingly peerless figure who stood before her.

“I hereby appoint you, Rose—as Judgement Reaper.”

“I am honored, Mistress. I shall strive to serve to the best of my ability—as Judgement Reaper.”

“You are the judge of death. Judge the evil and the guilty—execute them—purge them, reap away those knaves who dare stand before me—and our ideals.” Dana leaned down to Rose, her piercing navy-blue eyes—burning with the mark of Virgo—looking deep into her newly-reformed eyes. “That is your purpose, understood?”

“In your name, I shall put your enemies to rest.”

The magic circle stopped glowing with spiritual energy, and Aisha was the first to walk up to Rose and put a white cloth to cover his body and protect it from the bone-chilling gales.

“Congratulations.” Michael smiled at Rose, keeping himself outside the circle. As much as they did last night, Rose still was a noble lady.

Rose only smiled at Michael, before Aisha helped her walk away to the staircase that would lead them down inside.

As the others started to take leave, Michael turned towards his mentor, and fellow Representative, Saint Teresa. He found out he was correct when he assumed he’d meet her at Rose’s ceremony. “So, how have you been?”

The Saint shrugged. “Same as ever.”

“What does that even mean?” he asked, tilting his head to the side. And he thought Russia was cold.

“I know you have something you want to ask. Out with it, would you?”

“I was about to ask about Heaven’s Sacraments actually… if it’s possible to continue to advance my training. Zophiel said that she will continue to grant me her boon, for the time being.”

“Did something happen? I thought you managed to get her approval almost a year ago.”

“Oh. Yeah, we fought against the Queen in London where I had to stand against her and Uriel. It is then that I also discovered from the Queen herself that I might’ve had a soul of an angel. Whatever that may imply.” He scratched the back of his head, not exactly sure he knew what he was talking about.

“I don’t think your soul is relevant to the matter with the Archangels, at least the Lost Form if you are trying to bring that up. Is Zophiel considering on calling off the contract? Since I realize she is only granting her powers †˜for the time being.’”

“Ah, I was just informing you what else I found out, especially about that mysterious power back in the United States. Zophiel gave me another chance to pursue the path of a Saint, not that I am entirely sure what that means. She told me Dana would guide me to the right path, though. That is why I wish to further my training in this Form, maybe I would gain a better perspective of things as we moved along.”

“Unfortunately, I cannot train you until you settle your matter of Saintdom with Zophiel.”

“What do you mean?”

“To unlock greater power of the Lost Form as a Saint, you must pass a trial of the Archangel. It was essential to meet the Archangel regardless. The fact that she didn’t offer a trial means you are currently stuck till you find your way out, kid.”

“Hm… what should I do? Where do you think I should start?” Michael held his head in contemplation.

“Didn’t the angel give a hint already?”

“So I should ask Dana after all,” he concluded. “Thank you for your advise, Saint! I need to find her as soon as I can.”

“Wasn’t she here just now…?” The Saint looked around. Only Michael and Teresa was here now. “I suppose no one likes the cold weather.”

“Just so.” He rubbed his elbows as he felt the bone piercing chill similar to when he arrived. “You think she is in her office? Or perhaps with her child?”

“Both? I saw her with her child in the office last I spoke to her.”

“Huh, she probably left him there for the ceremony. I’m going to consult her later, then. The child, I mean Almond went quite the distance to see her again.”

“I can’t tell if it was desperation or some crazy high-spiritedness. The kid’s got the guts, though. Even if it was the secretly-enchanted lucky charm helping him, I think that was commendable… maybe a bit too good to be true.”

“He also managed to get through the forest barrier, and catch Virgo off-guard.” Michael started rubbing his chin. “Not to mention he ignored me raising my sword towards him. Miss Aisha and Dana don’t see anything wrong with it, or at least they aren’t saying anything.”

“Well, it’s a child. I wouldn’t be surprised if someone raised in Japan’s Eastern Magic Academy doesn’t understand something as primitive as a sword.”

“I do not understand children at all.” Michael sighed as he headed towards the staircase. “Where would I find you later?”

Saint pointed downwards. “The training field just below this floor.”

“Alright. I’ll be back as quickly as I can.” He waved her goodbye as he went down the stairs in search for Dana’s office.

“Does he even know where it is?”

Cinia Pacifica Ojou-sama Writer

8 years ago

In the third floor was the office of Virgo. The noise of machinery was heavy again as Michael returned to the factory of the Steel Princess. There were bots seen, cleaning the walls and the floors as usual. Apparently, there was never enough cleaning done here.

It took some time to find the office, however, as the factory was large, and as he had only started to reside in it since a day ago, he didn’t know much about it.

Finally, there was the door labeled “Steel Princess.”

As he didn’t know this name, he simply opened it to check if Dana was inside.

There was only a desk in a small room, and Dana was indeed behind it. There were some shelves on both sides and a window behind the Descendant. She was going over various documents before her and Michael couldn’t see Almond in the room.

Looking at her, Michael recalled a time in the not-so-distant past where he would observe Laura do the same, scrutinizing papers while he messed around with her. He knocked twice softly at the door before speaking.

“Am I disturbing you?”

Dana did not look up in attention.

“Take a seat.” She motioned to one of the chairs before the desk.

“Steel Princess, huh?” he asked as he took a seat in front of Dana desk.

“My old handle for the android business.”

“Why not Steel Queen?” He paused for a bit, mumbling the name to himself. “Well, Steel Princess does sound better. In any case, that’s not the purpose of my visit.”

“I wonder why,” Steel Princess muttered to herself. “I had sensed it. You need me for a matter that is troubling you at the moment.”

“Exactly. It seems that I need your guidance, so that I may be deemed worthy of the path of the Saint. Basically, it appears that my own thirst for vengeance is holding me back to before you took me as one of your own.”

“It’s because you made killing the focal point of your goal. Saints aren’t about just killing people. That’s partially what made them nearly extinct.”

“I recall that story… but, I cannot help it. Try as I might, even when I already know that there’s no satisfaction after fulfilling my revenge…” Michael put his hand over his chest and gripped it, recalling the feeling of emptiness after killing Marco. “I cannot help but to seek it still.”

“It is not as though I cannot sympathize. I attacked humanity out of the same emotion. I relished the joy I felt from battling, but that was a separate matter. In the end, revenge for the sake of it will only bring about destruction. You argued that you wanted to help me create a new world. I felt your conviction then, but now it is lacking.”

“It is true, what I said. But it is as if I am torn between myself and my anger.”

Dana put away her documents and looked up.

“What is it that you truly want to do? You trust power more than anything… but is killing all you want to do with it?”

“Killing is who I was… it was always my answer. I wished to follow you, and use my talents for killing to a purpose that may truly do good.” He looked her in the eye. “But every time, in my head, I see her being subjected to his whims… and knowing that it was due to my own weakness that my own mother once again played to his tune, is it wrong that I feel angry about that?”

“I have become a villain to protect nature. If you are going to be a villain simply to sate your feelings of vengeance, then I care not—you are still living by your words. Even if you do not intend it, you would be fighting for my goal to some extent, assuming you follow my commands. However, if you do wish to change that… then feel free to follow my example. For that is the only way I see that you may truly find an answer. If it is anger you feel then feel free to use it to your advantage. Do not let it rule you—rule it for what you believe is truly good.”

“I am not sure I fully understand what you mean, but I got what you said about ruling my anger. Who knew it was exactly the same as power—how it would be meaningless to be ruled by it.” He then stood up with a smile in his face. He may not have gotten the answer to his dilemma, but he found the way to find it. Probably. “I thank you for your patience with me.”

“Good luck with the trial.”

“I will make you proud.”

***

When Michael left Dana, he felt like he had found the answer to his question, but as he went farther and farther away and headed towards the training hall to meet Saint, he realized that he had no idea on what he should do. Rule his hate, his anger? He knew what not being ruled by it implied, but ruling it himself? The rhythmic hum of the machines around him seemed to mock him as he searched himself for answers that may not yet exist.

Snapping out of his indecision, he decided to just head to the penultimate floor of their new abode. There was no sense in standing like an idiot, he had time; he could decide on what his plans were later. For now, he must ask Saint for something else entirely.

The floor held a grand training hall. Michael entered the floor just below it via the elevator and had to walk up past a staircase to reach it. The elevator could not directly take one to this floor as it had a completely different layout. Unlike the other floors, there was not the large shaft at the center of the factory that went past the rest of the floors below.

In the middle of the hall were three individuals. The first that came to his sight was Judgement Saint, someone he could easily recognize. Next came a man with jet black hair, wearing eastern armor, and a girl with silver hair—similar to his own—wearing silver armor. He had seen these two figures back in the ceremony where Rose had become Judgement Reaper. However, he was yet to be introduced to them.

Both were once mentioned as the vanguards of the group by Dana before, and that was all he had heard about them. Aside from the fact that Judgement Knight—one of the two—was apparently very good with the swords.

Michael kept a mental note to make introductions with his peers later, seeing that they were busy training at the moment. Besides, it was Saint the he needed to disturb at the moment. He approached his mentor, who thankfully was nearest to where he was at the moment.

“Saint, I have talked to Dana. It seems like it would take me a while to understand her advice.”

“Nothing like half a century I hope; it’s fine.” The Saint took up a golden sword and shield. The man in black faced her.

“Hopefully, not.” He took a few steps backwards, not wanting to get involved with their spar. “So I was thinking, in the meanwhile that I can work with a few spells I had in mind. Although, I believe I also haven’t made introductions with our allies, too.”

Songs of steel resounded across the hall as he spoke.

The Saint spoke as she exchanged blows with her opponent calmly. “And you want my help with them again, I presume?”

“Of course, I am but your humble student, after all.”

“Anyway—” The blades clanged. “This here is Judgement Samurai.”

He faced the warrior who wore eastern-looking armor, currently sparring with Saint. “Pleased to meet you.”

“Pleased to meet you.” His voice was much fainter in comparison to that of Michael’s.

“And I am Judgement Knight,” the shorter girl said from beside him. Before he knew it, she traveled up to him from being behind the swordsman.

“Oh, pleased to meet you too. I was named Judgement Oppressor, but Michael would be alright too, especially in between missions. I have heard much about your swordsmanship, Judgement Knight.”

“I will call you Oppressor,” she answered. “I have heard of your… situation with the angel soul.”

“It was something that I did not know existed until the Queen told me. That said, I am not sure what that implies in the bigger picture, for me,” he responded, recognizing that his senior was a professional no nonsense type of person.

“In the simplest sense, I think it implies that you will grow to be much stronger one day.”

“That… would be most assuring. If that is the case, I hope that I would be capable of using such potential.” Michael smiled at the smaller swordswoman before making a single clap with his hands. “That said, as a fellow swordsman, would you care for a spar?”

“I do not mind, but are you sure?”

“Shall we use… sparring weapons then?” He gulped.

“Our sparring weapons are as good as ordinary weapons.”

“At least, they’re not Relics.” Michael shuddered at the thought of possibly being incapacitated for a good while from a spar. If his soon-to-be sparring partner’s skills were true, then he needed to at least mitigate the damage he’d receive. Even then, he was excited to fight someone stronger than him.

“Feel free to take one from there.” The knight pointed at the very corner, where many steel swords were put against the wall. They looked similar to the wooden sparring weapons he once sparred Lily with.

Michael decided to wield a two-handed longsword, similar to Caladbolg. He went a considerable distance from where Saint was sparring, and where Knight was standing. He raised a half-guard as he waited for Knight to be ready.

Judgement Knight was already holding a sparring blade. Apparently, she picked one up from the other side. She made a similar guarding posture.

“Come.”

He shifted to a more dynamic stance, preparing to take off to Knight immediately. In a matter of seconds, he was in front of her, having traversed the distance between them with unreal speed. His weapon drew an arc in the air as he swung his blade from below, it gaining more momentum as it travelled. However, it was all a matter of spectacle when his sudden attack was parried by Judgement Knight.

She gave a single thrust in return. With a most notable clang their blades clashed. Despite the fact that Michael blocked her blow, he was pushed back by a few meters. Making a leap, Judgement Knight caught up to him, and launched a flurry of thrusts.

Michael managed to evade most of her attacks, taking a few shallow cuts here and there. Deciding that she wouldn’t lose from him dodging, he seized a momentary hole in her attacks, quickly thrusting his own sword in response. He managed to penetrate her defenses as he caught her off-guard, drawing bit of blood from where he stabbed her.

He didn’t expect how quick she could get herself together as she promptly kicked him in the face, sending him flying across to where he started. “Erm. Could I have my sword back?” he asked sheepishly as his weapon remain lodged into her.

“Of course.”

She took out the weapon and she carried it with her other hand. A dash was followed by her drawing an “x” with both the swords, and Michael just barely evaded it. Now it was a flurry of thrusts with both swords and he had nothing to defend himself with.

As he kept dodging the attacks from both swords, he activated Chrono Phantasma. As the spell improved his perception and response to her blades, he managed to weave through the wall of her attacks and quickly go around her, summoning the silver bow in his hand. He held the bow horizontally and then quickly drew and released an arrow point blank.

Knight twisted her arm and put the sparring sword that she gained from Michael, the arrow bursting it to bits in less than a moment. She thrust her other sword behind herself, and it was pointing right at Michael’s neck as his spell ended. He saw a glow similar to his own around her body, but for only a slight moment.

Michael raised his hands in defeat, surprised that she was more than he anticipated. Despite being the loser, he was glad; he’d probably ask to spar with her more often if she didn’t mind. It was an opportunity for him to grow stronger, he believed. “Your skills are as they have said. But that last ability… what do you call it?”

“Ah, that is the Burst Step Supreme Spell. The name is quite self-explanatory, as it maximizes your response time.”

“That’s a bit similar to my spell, although it accelerates one’s own body and mind to achieve the same effect. I call it, Chrono Phantasma.”

“My spell can go twice as fast, if you are interested in learning.”

“You would teach me? I would be delighted to learn from you! I was actually about to ask Saint earlier, but it seems like she’s a bit busy.”

“Anything related to sword and combat, and Supreme Spells that augment such factors—you can learn from me. Saint, is of course, a good teacher too.”

“Oh, in that case, I actually have another spell in mind. But I think improving Chrono Phantasma would be easier to start with.” Michael took a glance at Saint who was still fighting. “And Saint is indeed a good teacher, considering she taught me her Lost Form with me having only a glancing recollection of my memories then.”

“If it’s a spell you want to improve then perhaps I am not the best for aid. Ask Caster or your mentor, Saint, I suppose.”

“Oh the other thing then. Do you think it is possible create a sword, or swords, that would be capable to fight on their own?”

“Swords in physical form, or are we speaking of magically-formed blades?”

“Magically-formed, preferably.”

“You can easily manipulate them with Mentem. You may use Imaginem, I think, just to make a more distinguished sharper blade.”

“I see… then what if I want to use multiple blades, plus having the freedom to move still on my own? Can I somehow impart some of my experience onto the blades, like how one would right them in a book?”

“Multiple blades would be following the same application, simply burning more mana. It may take a toll on your mind to craft each weapon and manipulate them. I do not think imparting your experience is necessary if you are controlling them, though, is it?”

“For them to fight autonomously, I figured for a singular strike I can immediately break the blade down again, so it wouldn’t be taxing. But if I had to maintain multiple blades at once, I would rather a few of them not depend on me on every action. Perhaps if I make an imprint of them to act offensively, they would be attacking, and the same when I want them to on the defense.” He gestured to the side of the hall, so that they could talk better without being in the way.

“Well, you need to come up with an original formula that would contain more or less the type of actions you’d take in combat. There are ways to make a particular part of your mind to be copied with ancient magic. That would still combine Mentem and Imaginem. You can craft them and have them take out particular orders according to that formula. The problem is that it cannot be too complex, and your opponents may find the attacks predictable with time.”

“That is good enough, for the time being. I figured giving them instructions more complex than that would require me to be concentrating instead of battling. So I need to come up with a formula, aside from the one to summon the sword constructs in the first place. Do you have any advice on where I should start with regards to this matter?”

“Well, the first step would be realizing what deity should be called upon when you recite for the spell.”

“Hmmm, considering I want to create blades… perhaps a blacksmith deity?”

“Maybe. A War God may be more potent, though.”

“That may be true. Perhaps Ares, Mars, Nergal, or… Ishtar was also a war goddess wasn’t she?”

“Ishtar being a War Goddess is probably the reason why our Mistress loves war—ahem, yes, yes she is.”

“Having to face her when she’s excited was terrifying, to say the least. Then it might work, Ishtar I mean, considering I serve her Descendant in this realm.”

“I guess it would. Don’t be surprised if it doesn’t work the first few times, though. That deity is rather finicky about specifics of your formula and recital.”

“Somehow I felt that might be the case. Thank you for your advice, Knight. I will have to prepare for the spell. Would you like to see it if I manage to do it?”

“Feel free to consult me if you need to.”

“That, I will.” He looked back at the sparring area and saw Saint and Samurai were done with their bout. “Please excuse me, I have to go back to Saint.”

Michael then approached his mentor, who was taking a rest after fighting. “Did you win?”

“Duh.” The Saint made a smug face as usual. “He is still new like you… it’d take more than just talent to take me down.”

“As expected of my mentor!” Michael mirrored her smug smile. “Knight defeated me soundly, even when I used my own spell. She mentioned she used her Burst Step spell to counter mine, but I got a few pointers on how to improve.”

“Well, the Burst Step is the spell of the God of transitions and boundaries, Hermes. There is no spell currently that I know of that would be able to match its speed. The fact that you made Knight use it speaks in volumes of how fast you can be.”

“She offered to teach me that spell… I think I should take her up on that offer. But for now, I asked her advice on a new spell I was working on.” He then discussed what he and Knight talked about prior.

“So you want to improve that spell you once created? It shouldn’t be too hard with what Knight says. I personally don’t think you can handle the Burst Step, so this may be a better alternative.”

“Can’t handle? Then is it as taxing as I think it is?”

“Probably. Knight has another spell to counter the side effects so it hardly puts a strain on her.”

“Ah. Then I’d at least take pointers from that spell. What do you think about the new spell, however?”

“The thing with the sword? Well… it could be used for crowd control. Depends on how well you can get it working. If you’re using Ishtar and succeed, though, I think the results will be worth it.”

“Ah, so you do agree that Ishtar would be the best choice for it. If I can manage to do it properly then I could also overwhelm a single target.” Michael rubbed his chin. “Now I need to work on the formula and the specifics, huh?”

“Well, yeah. I guess I can help… assuming you need me to, that is.”

“Of course! If anything, I might need inspiration,” he grinned.

“Inspiration? Right, that’s a good point too, I guess.”

Cinia Pacifica Ojou-sama Writer

8 years ago

With a short yell, Aramus’ eyes jolted to life. Pounding on his chest and leaking water past his lips, he finally came to his senses.

The sky was azure and the cries of the birds in the air—aplenty. There was a strong sea breeze that was very refreshing. When he picked up his upper torso, he found the boat stuck against the sand, just as he saw moments ago in his dream.

“I see you are finally awake. Good morning, Mister Linfield.”

Aramus turned, this time, his monarch had kept him company.

The Queen strode up to him with a basket that seemingly contained some sandwiches. She also held a bottle of mineral water. Behind her, he could see not a mountain, but a city some distance away. There was a line of trees bordering it, and he could only imagine how far his Queen traveled to get these items.

Not to mention, Victoria wore a black maxi, which was embroidered with roses. These roses, of course, were of vibrant vermillion color. The black was still a refreshing contrast compared to the other dresses she had worn so far, as black were normally meant for mourning in the nineteenth century England. The pattern of embroidery gave a rather ethnic, bohemian, and even a slight mature look so far. To match, she wore bangles and a pair of sandals.

The diadem atop her head was of course removed ever since their journey had began. The Queen would probably not take it back out for a long time.

”Your Majesty! Oh thank goodness…”

He was still breathing harshly, courtesy of what he had seen just moments prior. That had been far too strange for him.

“Yes? Is something the matter, Mister Linfield? You look as though you met a wraith of the Magic World.”

“A wraith? Possibly… There were strange visions I saw when passed out, spectres that seemed to disappear when I turned to look. For reasons I know not, they took Milady’s visage when I was finally confronted by them.”

“Nightmares sure are fond of you, Mister Linfield. Now, I believe it would be proper to get up and brush away the sands. We shall not dally here for long. There is yet a long way to go.”

“My apologies, Milady.” Aramus picked himself up and cleared the sand away with deft usage of Aquam and Aurum, also to check if he was able to use magic before running over to Victoria’s side. “Perchance, does Milady know where we have washed ashore?” he asked, offering to carry her things.

“We are currently in the city of Rouen in France, according to some of the locals I spoke with earlier.”

“F-France? We somehow made it across the channel even with that storm. Though I do not think I will be of much use here with my inability to speak French…”

“Of course, with my Commandment active, the Divine Luck has brought us here. Perhaps there is a reason why we washed up on the shores of France… and I believe it would be fine as long as you are able to exercise magic, Mister Linfield.”

Aramus smiled in mirth. “I have never really been privy to good luck but perhaps that may change with Milady.”

“Well, despite my Commandment that brings forth luck, I do get into messy situations like that storm. There have been times when I would see a clear sky just above myself, and a storm on an unlucky individual just a mere few hundred paces away.”

The two started to walk towards the trees as they spoke. The gentle sea breeze swept up some of Her Majesty’s hair, and it turned out that she would pass some time like this with unkempt hair.

“That sounds about right in my case.” Aramus took the chance to note where else his liege needed attending to, making a mental note to get the necessary toiletries and accessories for her later.

“Perhaps this place would do…” The Queen looked down at the grass beside the trees as they approached it. “Unfortunately, there is no picnic mat with us for our little lunch.”

Aramus raised his free hand slowly and in turn, the topsoil shifted out of the way revealing a small slab of stone as it emerged. It would serve as a makeshift table, and he washed off any remnants of dirt on it before drying the surrounding area with Aurum.

“Will this suffice, Milady?”

“Absolutely.”

Aramus sat beside the slab of stone as the Queen placed the basket atop it and handed Aramus a sandwich from it, before taking one out for herself. She placed the bottle of water beside said basket, and she settled down beside him. The two ate in silence for some time, simply taking in more of the cold air as they finished the sandwiches.

“We should be able to head to Paris from here…” Victoria said absentmindedly as she eyed the sea.

“Paris…” Aramus repeated as he munched on a sandwich. “Is that our destination?”

“Not quite, but I do know a few there who may lend us aid.”

“Mmm… The start of another journey. I don’t dislike it despite the circumstances leading up to it. After all, travelling with Milady is not something that happens everyday. Perhaps we may get more comrades in our little quest there as well.”

“Ah… my senses informs me that we should not expect like-minded individuals soon. Be keen, Mister Linfield, we are wanted fugitives at the moment, likely.”

“It is vexing that we are considered as such and yet I can’t bring myself to hate it. Regardless, I will keep my eyes and ears open for anything that might come our way.”

“You are open to the idea of being a wanted figure?”

“If I am wanted as a criminal for protecting Milady, then so be it. It pains me that the world sees it as such but… Milady is more important than any of that. Besides, I was a fugitive from before. This just adds one more to my list of crimes.” Aramus pointed to the bridge of his nose, the criminal brand standing out.

The Queen flicked his forehead with a finger.

“Everyone has their bad days, and I am particularly aware of yours.”

Aramus rubbed the red spot with a sheepish smile. “I’m glad to know someone is looking out for me in this world.”

“You are doing the same for me, are you not? A sovereign must at least look after those who are in close vicinity to her.”

“It is a shame not all leaders share Milady’s view… but I digress, this is merely my duty to the Queen I have sworn to serve.”

“All leaders not need share my views, it would be boring otherwise. Everyone is entitled to their views.”

“Indeed. Some water, Milady?” Aramus asked, opening the bottle of mineral water for her.

“Not yet.” The Queen still seemed to have another sandwich to finish. “That said, have you managed to accomplish that order I had given you?”

“Most definitely!” Aramus said excitedly, fishing out the tea bags he had kept safe. They had weathered the storm better than he had, secured in a little airtight box.

“I meant… oh fine, let us have our time time, shall we?”

“If not this,” Aramus said as he raised the box of tea leaves, “then the one regarding myself?”

“I suppose you are still attempting?”

“Yes…” Aramus replied in a much more subdued tone. “The pain never really goes away.”

“It will… given time.”

“I suppose so. Until then, I shall have to live with it.”

Victoria drank some of the mineral water and got up, taking up the basket.

“Now, if you are done, let us be off.”

“Alright. Milady, allow me to carry the basket,” Aramus requested after sinking the stone slab back into the earth.

“Oh, I am no child. Surely I can do this much myself?”

Aramus raised both hands in surrender.

The Queen laughed. “I speak in jest.” She handed Aramus the basket which he happily received. The two then started walking towards the city. “Remember Mister Linfield, us old folks loves to revert to our childhood-self from time to time.”

“I will take note of that,” Aramus added with another smirk. “But surely you jest, Milady. You? Old?” He snorted.

“Now, now, I am not so short-sighted as to not see past my own looks. Well, aside from little fits of childishness, anyway.”

“All in the mindset, just like how I believe I can do the impossible sometimes but I must say, there must have been many chances in Buckingham to indulge yourself like this? Traveling and having a meal in quiet.”

“Meals were much more quiet. There were many opportunities to indulge myself, though. I am not one to let my position rule over me all the time.”

“But this is more †˜fun’ for Milady? My own meals in the Eastern Academy were usually by my lonesome. At the time, I found it fitting for someone like myself.”

“Most of supper times were spent in solitude too. Most would be dining elsewhere. There was hardly a time for the family to get together…” She reformed her smile again. “While I find this change of pace fun, I cannot quite tell the difference.”

“All it takes is one companion to make a difference. My own experience with Lady Cavendish Bentinck taught me as such. Hopefully, Milady will also enjoy herself from here on forth. Food also does better with good company…”

“Hm… I never quite thought of it. I understand that it is nice to dine with family but other than that, it is more or less the same to me. Lady Cavendish Bentinck, though…”

“Aye, I am still unsure of what has happened to her. The last I heard of her was from Earl of Aberdeen and Miss Kaitlyn Mercer having custody of her…”

“Yes, I had assigned Lord Haddo to rescue her. I assume Kaitlyn Mercer was… an Enforcer?”

“My senior, yes. She was together with us in the throne room as well.”

“Ah… the other person sent to the Void Realm with my son and Duchess Alicia…”

“Yes. I pray they are alright. Even as a member of the Space Police, that place still feels a little… off.”

“That is the home of Goddess Nyx and… well, I suppose it is no surprise that you feel that way.”

“Nyx? I had heard countless horrors stalk the Void. Does Nyx rule over them?”

“It is not exactly a bad thing, but the Realm is controlled by dark powers, and Nyx is responsible for its facilitation”

“I see… It is something I will probably be unfortunate to learn about in time. With my proximity to it, there is no way I wouldn’t. Still, if we are able to travel between the Void and back, there should be a chance the three of them are alive.”

“They should have died, as the Void Banishment spell destroys its targets… but someone may have interrupted it at the very last moment… yet that is too hopeful of me.”

“We will know about their fate eventually. With any luck, they will have all their limbs as well. Might we discuss Milady’s plans from here on out?”

Now on a road and into a neighborhood, the Queen spoke once more, “There is nothing for us to speak of regarding that matter.”

Aramus nodded, taking in the new area they were entering.

The Queen and her Magister walked for a long time. Victoria drew quite the attention to herself, her majestic aura full of elegance, and one couldn’t help but turn and smile at her. Some would even point at Her Majesty and speak among themselves. Aramus even had to stop bystanders from outright touching her.

Reaching a shopping center, they finally stopped at a taxicab stand.

“It was simply a long walk, but we already had quite the day, it seems.”

“Indeed. I’m not sure if we can… proceed stealthily with the way the locals are. Word will spread of Milady’s beauty.”

“That is fine.” The Queen made a triumphant smile. “Anyway, take out that card you gained from being a Space Police member.”

“Here comes the chance for me to play the part of a good butler, oh yes indeed,” Aramus said a little dryly before taking out the aforementioned credit card. It was obvious to all bystanders who saw that this was a couple that was very well off.

“There is a little trick to it. Hold it up before yourself, and apply a bit of mana to it.”

Aramus did as was told, making sure to provide just enough so that the mundanes wouldn’t see it. It didn’t take long after he did so that a taxi rode up to them. The door opened on its own, and the driver from inside the taxi waved at them.

Upon entering, the driver made a smile. Putting up his cap he spoke:

“Welcome to the Magic Taxi—a special service for the mages for the Magic World—may I know where we are going, madam?”

“Paris,” the Queen answered.

Aramus looked perturbed, glancing down at the card in his hands once more. “Well this would’ve saved me a lot of time if I had known about it earlier!”

Alas, it was too late for him. As the taxi started running, his back was forced against the seat. The speed of a Magic Taxi was capable of surpassing the fastest bullet train in the world, and of course that was faster than the camel ride he had a year ago with his senior from the Space Police Organization.

The Queen on the other hand seemed cheery, enjoying the ride as if the speed was just right. The driver was completely composed, even turning up the radio, and a news program started shortly.

“G-Goddamn it,” cursed Aramus as he struggled to reach for his seat belt. Sunk deeply into the seat as he was, the strap was a little out of reach over his shoulder and he fumbled with the strap.

“Mister Linfield.” Victoria pointed downwards with a smile. “You dropped the card in panic.”

“I’ll get to it in a bit. I believe… safety comes first,” Aramus answered with a pained smile. After a few more moments of struggling, he was belted in and he retrieved the card with a sigh.

He was pressed in against the seat once more as he got his card back, due to the taxi pulling its break at a most inopportune moment. Aramus looked ahead after his head was forced back into the cushion, finding an old lady pass by the road. It was a small moment for him to take solace in as they were in full stop, but it didn’t last long as soon as the lady was out of the way; the car went ahead at full speed once more.

“With Queen Victoria being dethroned and Prince Albert taking over, there has been quite the chaos across the Magic World now that its most reliable ruler is gone. Would Prince Albert be up to the task?”

These words came out from the radio and Victoria’s cheery face was gone.

“There was word of many prominent nobles going missing before this rebellion, and it is suspected that it was all the handiwork of said rebels. With the Traitor Descendant out of the way the Magic World would surely find a better stability, some believes.”

“What a time we live in, huh?” the driver commented nonchalantly.

“Yeah, what a time to be alive,” Aramus grunted from his position. “A lot of things happening lately.”

“There is word that England will thus prepare to strike at Japan soon.”

The Queen widened her eyes. “No… this is too soon!”

“We have Princess Louise here, who claimed as such.” There was a noise of shifting and moving and soon a familiar voice was heard.

“Yes, Britain shall strike soon. We are preparing our finest magis for the battle. There is no reason for us to simply sit back as Japan prepares its technology to counter us once more.”

The reporter then announced the break and a song was played. Songs of the Magic World were another thing altogether, but the Queen’s attention was far too absorbed into the words that she had just heard to listen to it in earnest.

“Milady…” Aramus said worriedly as he glanced across at Victoria.

England would not be prepared, not against what Japan had to bear. He thought they would seek to consolidate their forces, allow Great Britain to thrive as they had said. Instead Aramus was going to see everything go up in flames again.

Cinia Pacifica Ojou-sama Writer

8 years ago

There was a chandelier of steel, decorated with glass and lights—and with the lamps of the walls adorned the ornate designs—illuminating the room, which was full with grandeur, as one would realize from all the rich furniture. In this room lavish with such valuables, Aramus once more felt lost and misplaced while his Queen basked in it as though it was natural.

It was as though the elegance and the lavish atmosphere was the very sun to the flower that was Victoria; she was far more comfortable than ever. No doubt, the five star hotel Le Meurice would satisfy even a monarch to an extent.

After the Magic Taxi came to this hotel. Despite the fact Victoria was a runaway monarch in exile, her wealth was still quite considerable. It came as no surprise that this figure who was known as one of the ten Archmages in the world had a room from Le Meurice permanently, regardless of costs.

Much like the Ritz Hotel, there were several hotels affiliated with the Magic World that would give the unique, wealthy, and the powerful rooms free of cost and would hope for their indefinite presence in their halls. This was a way to garner popularity and fame and at the same time entertain interesting individuals.

Unfortunately, due to their situation, the Queen herself suggested that Aramus would stay with her in her room. There were brief moments where members of the management were throwing daggers in the form of stares at the Magister when the suggestion was made, but he had to endure them.

Aramus himself felt slight discomfort at her decision, not wanting to intrude on her own personal space nor imply anything else for that matter, but he did appreciate that she considered him familiar enough to share a room. Still, there was that one time, but Aramus repeatedly told himself it had been for protection.

Aramus sat down on the couch. It was lavish and served better as a bed than his own. If push came to shove, this would be where he’d probably choose to rest. He idly ran over what Victoria would have needed from their trip to freshen up, listing off items in his head.

He heard a noise of a dull clang and rose his head up from his thoughts, seeing a tea cup atop a saucer placed before him on the table. Victoria seemingly held her own as she sat on a sofa closeby.

“Mulling over already, Sir Magister?”

“There is still much to do and I cannot help but feel slightly restless with all this… waiting, not after the news we heard.”

“If one does not rest their mind, they will become dull and tired. It is too soon to be engrossed in thoughts that fuel tension, Mister Linfield.”

As one would think based on her words, Victoria held her head high with grace and elegance once more; cool and composed. This nonchalance was perhaps a result of the accumulation of experience as a sovereign figure. Her Majesty had already recovered from the grave news she had heard back in the Magic Taxi.

He gave up and took a sip from the tea cup offered to him, revelling in the flavor. Some of the tension left his shoulders and a contented sigh left his lips. “My bad tendency to overthink things.”

“For now… we should take solace in this relaxing music provided by the rain. I say this despite having hoped for the rise of the sun.”

“Yes. My body has been a little sore since the storm, knots and stiff bones. A relaxing nap would do them some good.”

“Is it truly so bad?”

“Quite. I could attribute some of it to the past year, but being blooded and then battered by a storm within the span of two weeks is not the way to treat one’s body.”

“So it is true, I only had suspicions of it until but moments ago. To be frank, I do not quite remember the workings of a mortal body nowadays.”

“Yes. These bones of mine can take a beating but with each passing day, they creak that little bit louder. Magic does wonders for the body but nothing beats a good old massage in my opinion. Perhaps I will find a masseuse if we have the time to spare for it. I would prefer to be limber in the days to come.”

“You are at liberty to take time and rest, Mister Linfield. I shall be taking a walk to admire the amenities of the establishment.”

“Would it be alright to accompany Milady on her tour of the hotel? I will have the massage before retiring at night. It allows me to sleep that much better.”

“Did you not wish to sleep?”

“I will sleep peacefully after the massage but till then, there is time.”

“I hope you realize it yourself, Mister Linfield, but you are quite the worrywart—just like your mother.”

“So I’ve been told. She was worried for us till the very end,” Aramus said with a smile.

“For all of you—despite losing her memories at some point—yes. Thankfully, it was I who managed to save your sister from the melting pot that was your half-father’s designs. I suppose that came to an end now as well.”

Leaning back into the couch and looking at the ceiling, Aramus remained silent for a moment before speaking.

“She is missing again, whisked away from under our noses whilst we were at Duchess Frederica’s abode. I-I had to abandon the search for her to aid milady…”

“I apologize for having ruined the affairs regarding your family, but the decision was yours to make, Mister Linfield.”

“Yes… My student, he is currently searching for her but I doubt whoever’s responsible will let him snoop around. They might have designs for Aozora, but him?” Aramus shook his head. “My ineptitude again.”

“Perhaps that is a test of fate for him. Sometimes it is better to leave a man to fend for himself. It is a valuable instrument for one to grow.” The Queen finished her cup of tea and got up from her sofa. “Let us depart. If you are unwilling to rest, there would be only one way out of here.”

Clearing the tea cups quickly before leaving with Victoria, Aramus took pause with what was said. He had been wholly unsure that Akihiko would be able to defend himself, but maybe she was right? Chances were he was dead, but if he still survived then he’d make a fine man yet.

***

The two toured across the dining halls and the lobbies after departing from the hallways. It came to the Magister as no surprise that the luxurious lavishment spread out to every corner of his visions regardless of where he went with the Queen. Once more, he felt out-of-place.

It took quite some time before Victoria would rest her feet to let her gaze rest upon something, and when it did, she stopped on a balcony with her only servant, looking up to the Eiffel Tower. There was only a drizzle taking place but the Queen minded not the wetness or the weather as she looked upon the beacons of light piercing through the vapory fog made by the light rain.

The steel tower impressed Aramus just as the Statue of Liberty had before it crumbled. Seemingly reaching for the sky, the architecture had a different appeal than that of Japan and England. It was always refreshing for him to see new countries, curious as he was to see how they had developed.

This view was not shared by his liege, however. When the Magister looked down, he found the monarch hugging a male who stood vigil before the railing. Unlike with him, Victoria gave the man a glimpse of her fears, and comfort.

“Arthur, I am so glad that you are safe.”

“Mother, what are you doing here?”

“I suppose you can say that I am in exile now.”

“I see… so it is true.”

The young man who appeared to be slightly older than Prince Leopold. He was the third Prince of Britain, Prince Arthur. His look was that of a moderner, and he was a man who apparently followed the principles of a mage; attempting to blend in with the masses. He only wore a white shirt and jeans for pants, something no noble would wear outdoors.

Some of their conversation was lost to the Magister who stood some distance from the pair of mother and son, deafened by the noise of the intensifying rain. He afforded the two some space as they caught up. It seemed as if they hadn’t met in a long time. Aramus did want to step out of the rain though, it was miserable.

Victoria soon separated from Arthur. Her tears were wiped by herself and she learned to restrain her feelings once more, apparently making assurances to her son. Words were exchanged and the two seemed to have caught up after some minutes.

Her Majesty came back to the Magister, the reunion’s effect on her facial expressions quite obvious due to her smile.

“It seems as though some things will at least get better this way,” the Queen finally stated as they walked out of the balcony, leaving Prince Arthur behind, who seemed to prefer his solitude in the rainy space.

“That is good to hear, Milady. Will the Prince be alright?” Aramus asked as he looked at Arthur. Dressed as he was, it wasn’t quite what you would call wet weather wear.

“I sense some ill emotions resulting from distress. It would not surprise anyone, though. All of my family is to be subject to some kind of torture due to this rebellion.”

Aramus watched the Prince for a few moments more before gesturing towards the interior of the hotel again. “Shall we be out of the rain?”

“I suppose. Albeit it was refreshing… which is strange.”

After the two left, Prince Arthur took out his cell phone and made a call to his peer.

“Inform Louise that I have found our mother… yes, with this—I shall get over this nonsense for good.”

Cinia Pacifica Ojou-sama Writer

8 years ago

Outside the windows, the Magister could see that the drizzle had become a full-out rain now, fiercely tip-tapping against the walls and the windows of the hotel. Thankfully, it didn’t feel cold here, as the establishment was well-prepared for these finicky reactions of nature.

Invited to the Magic Salon in a parlor was Alexandrina Victoria and Aramus Linfield; the Queen and her Magister, and around them were the many mages residing in the hotel. A Magic Band affiliated with the hotel was playing quaint music with their instruments. It was a soothing music infused with Mentem and Corpus magic that could make one feel relaxed, perhaps more than necessary, however.

The luxury and designs were particularly lavish here, and Aramus could survey many paintings and ornate interior designs aside from the fireplace. It was designed to mimic a quaint parlor one would find in the nineteenth century London for the mages, as one would expect of an old hotel that nowadays gave away rooms to notable magi.

Speaking of the magi, the Magister found himself surrounded by many faces he knew not. There were, however, people even he could recognize by names alone. Henry, for instance, was seen but moments ago. This reputed Magister, was, unfortunately too elusive, and vanished as soon as he was seen. There was also Duke Honeysett, one of his seniors from the Space Police, but in this crowded space he couldn’t spot the Witness ever since he landed the first glance.

The Queen was particularly surrounded by various individuals, and they were shrouded in a storm of gossip. No one dared to speak of the rebellion, as if it was taboo. At the same time, no one dared to refer to Victoria as the Queen. This was testament to how true it was that the sovereign’s face was indeed unknown to the modern world, for Victoria was simply seen to be a very social and charismatic—and of course, beautiful—figure.

Simply saying the name Victoria would produce many raised eyebrows, but it was not so uncommon a name that the person would be treated as the Queen right away. Aramus, on the other hand, had little company, and somehow it felt just about right for him.

He watched the Queen socialise as he nursed a drink in the corner of the salon, content to stay out of people’s notice in such a place. Anyone who had business with him would have to go out of their way to see him, giving him ample notice. In the meantime, he would enjoy the band.

“Should you not be accompanying your woman more?”

Aramus turned to a man who dressed like any other moderner of the country, but perhaps he was a little too detached from the atmosphere—much like him. The most eye-catching accessory he had was a headset wrapped about his neck. He seemed extremely bored.

Raising an eyebrow at the man who would regard Victoria as his woman, Aramus looked back at her amongst the throng of fans. “I’m afraid you are mistaken, dear Sir.”

“Probably,” the other man said nonchalantly. “But you have that look.”

“A man can dream,” Aramus said after a sip from his glass. “But there are some things we are never meant to have.”

“Do you truly believe that? Have you asked her that yourself?”

Aramus thought back to the one time he had let slip his feelings to his liege. “What I believe is irrelevant, she deserves better. Much better.”

“So you would bask in your own assumptions than confirm with her feelings? You should learn that women love confidence in a man.”

“There are other things that prevent me from doing so, least of all confidence.”

“She has the look of a person who’s lost everything, and you… well, let’s just say that you have the chance, but you won’t take it. I pity you.”

“It is… insightful of you to make that statement, there aren’t much better ways to sum it up,” Aramus said with a wistful sigh. “But I stand by my statement, I am unworthy.”

“Just don’t regret it when she is gone forever.”

Closing his eyes with an exhalation of breath, much as he wanted to, Aramus couldn’t bring himself to do as the man had said. He had made that blunder once before and that was enough. She would live far beyond his meager human lifespan, get back on her feet again whilst he moved on. That was the way of things. “Perhaps,” Aramus said as he turned to regard the man only to find him gone. Strange.

“You cannot do that, teacher… ehehehe. You have to only look at me.”

A very familiar voice—laced with menace—came from the other side.

There was no way Aramus could ever forget that voice and his eyes widened as his head turned slowly, stubbornly to look at the source. What was she doing here of all places? Again, nothing, and Aramus found himself staring off into empty space as the band continued playing in the background. Looking across the room with frantic eyes, he looked for either the strange man or—her.

An ear-piercing noise filled the room in less than a moment, bringing Aramus out of his frenzy. It was loud enough to drown away the myriad voices of the residents—the screams of the Magic World’s denizens. Everyone sunk down to the floor while the rest were shot alive as ammunition was fired, shattering the windows to sharp bits.

Figures black from head to toe climbed down from various places one could hardly imagine. Who knew that their assailants were on the ceiling with them all along? They slid down from above with wires, while some hopping in through the broken windows while the rest entered through the door.

The Prince of Britain sneered at the sight as he entered past the door and gave his mother an utmost look of disgust as his vision finally fell to the Queen in exile.

“Arthur… you cannot be.”

“You are to come with me, mother.”

A round of firearms was released once more, and more of the members of the Magic World were killed. It didn’t take long for the mages to start casting magic and thus the parlor entered a state of turmoil as it became a battlefield. The terrorists with their modern arms and the mages with their mystical abilities were pit against each other.

“Milady!” Aramus fried a terrorist in his way with a bolt of lightning, ducking past the smouldering corpse as bullets zipped overhead. He hadn’t expected the Prince to pull this stunt, not after earlier.

The end of a heel was promptly placed on his face and Aramus toppled backwards, almost falling with his buttock facing the floor. He looked up and upon the chandelier stood the one whose voice he had heard earlier.

“Your dance partner is here, teacher.”

“Why!?” Aramus flared up in anger and hurt. After a year, their reunion brought nothing but sorrow to him as he stared at Elizabeth, the lady who would prevent from him from his duty.

“Teacher,” Elizabeth said, licking her gloved finger. “I believe it is the task of a student to ask, not the other way around.”

“Move out of the way, Ellie. I will not say this again.” Aramus hated the words that flowed from his mouth, a sense of loss in his mind as he had to mark her as an enemy. She shouldn’t be treated this way, her of all people.

“Sure.”

And so Elizabeth vanished without a trace. This level of speed reminded Aramus of the time he witnessed Claudia and Mary fight within the shard of the moon. His former student struck at his cheek with a strong fist that no ordinary girl could possibly possess, and he was pressed hard against the wall. The concrete behind him lasted but one moment before it crumbled altogether, debris and the clattering of the stones forming a cloud of dust amidst himself.

Aramus thus fell off from the building as a result, and the student followed with glee.

Before he could make contact with the ground, she sent him flying across the neighborhood with another blow from below. The Magister barely managed to stand atop a building, the rain now tip-tapping against his suit, but he knew that this suit couldn’t possibly get wet with how it was made.

Elizabeth, in her dark attire, stood on the opposite end, her smirk classically evil and Infernal aura plainly visible.

As he observed, he noted the Queen and the Prince flying off the premises he had previously been in with a flight possibly of a supernatural feat, as they clashed openly in the dark rainy skies.

Aramus huffed as his body ached, wishing that he had gone for that massage earlier. He was sore from the beating but otherwise none too worse for wear, but with the way Elizabeth was treating this, they wouldn’t be proceeding until one of them went down. He looked at her with great sadness, that smile out of place on the girl he knew.

“This will be… our last lesson, Elizabeth Cavendish Bentwick. It seems like you have no desire to be a student of mine any longer.”

“Ehehehe… what is this supposed to be, a graduation ceremony?”

“If you wish to see it that way. We never had one after all…”

Elizabeth laughed out loud as thunder roared from a distance. Her jet black corset and the cape with its deep scarlet on its underside was a fashion he could only dub as strange and ominous.

“You say silly things, teacher. All you really needed to do was hold me.”

“You know things wouldn’t have gone smoothly,” Aramus replied, but the words sounded hollow. He remembered what she had said to him moments before facing Virgo and his subsequent disappearance from the world.

“You should have left with me… left this silly, and stupid world…” Elizabeth spoke, the pauses filled with ominous giggles. “But now look at me!” she cried out, smile all gone, her tears mixed with the droplets from the rain. “I… I am broken.”

“I… I do not think so. You have grown since I last saw you a year ago,” Aramus said, his features softening a tad. “What you wear, the exterior… You were the one who taught me to see past that. How you reached out to me when none did, I will never forget. Now it’s my turn... Come back, Ellie.” He extended a hand towards her, hoping she would take it.

She looked down at the hand with a gaze full of hate, but still—Elizabeth walked up to it—her hand was drawn forward to accept the hand of her beloved, but then she stopped.

“Come…? Where? Is there a place in this world at all?”

“Won’t you give it a chance?”

The Magister could see Elizabeth’s hand shaking, her emotions warring each other inside her mind. He could see the inches of distance close as she walked up to him.

“Teacher…”

The very same tone of voice full of warmth was what the Magister was reminded of. Droplets of blood tripped down and mixed with the rainwater below. Aramus found the thin blade of a rapier pierced through his hand instead of the warm grasp of Elizabeth’s palm.

Devilish laughter reigned anew and he realized—Elizabeth’s heart was filled to the brim with black filth he may never be able to trudge through in his entire life. Through those curved lips were her twin fangs, and from behind her golden bangs were a piercing pair of scarlet eyes, burning just like Claudia’s.

“It is too late for that. Much too late, Aramus. It is you who should come with me—and leave that wretched Queen behind—to the world of the damned that is hell!”

Aramus slid his hand off the rapier, clenching it into a fist. He shook his head slowly, sadly as he looked back upon Elizabeth with undisguised anguish.

“I cannot… I will not. That is not how I will repay my debt to her. So I will continue on in this hell of yours, this ugly yet beautiful world.”

“Debt? What debt? Had you not done enough? What has she done for you?! I loved you Aramus, I still do… and I dare say no one else does more than I do!” She panted—a clenched hand on her chest—as if it took an incredible amount of effort to get these words off her chest. “She does not even think of you like I do… what do I lack? Why would you choose her over me? Duty? That is so petty and pointless. Saving lives…? Did she save my parents? My father? My mother? All those people against Virgo…?”

There was no reason to refute what she had said, it was all true. Aramus lowered his head, letting the rain pour on him as if it would wash away the feelings he kept in his heart. “I will never forget you as long as I live, Ellie. You were the wind in my sails, the sun shining through on a cloudy day.” He showed her a melancholic smile even as tears filled his eyes. “But you now know why I choose to be alone? Because I can never make anyone happy. Not with the way I am.”

The rapier was replaced by a sword that blazed furiously. The sword’s shine intensified as her other arm gripped tightly its hilt, as if responding to her emotions.

“If you will not come with me—then you are my enemy.”

Aramus reluctantly raised his right arm as a sword materialized, thorns reaching out and latching onto his forearm.

“I will miss you, my dear student.”

An aura of violet Spiritual Energy shrouded Elizabeth and the power of the Representative of vampires was witnessed.

“I will take you with me, Aramus—with force.”

(BGM: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P3ile9QkG88

And so their blades met one another. The flames and the winds clashed, resulting in an ominous chorus that was mixed with the song produced by the sword of Alptraum that Aramus wielded.

The Magister could see the sparks flaring from the points where their weapons struck, and the droplets of rain vaporizing at the touch of the blazing sword of Elizabeth. The once excellent student laughed as she pressed against him, relishing the prospect of winning over her teacher with brute force and power.

As soon as the blades parted, they met again, over and over again. The echoes of steel didn’t carry far due to the thunder and lightning rumbling, deafening out the noises produced from the battle.

Wings of light sprouted to life on Aramus’ ankles as he leaped upward with the aid of Hermes’ Wings, dodging a slash from the Blade of Surtur by the skin of his teeth. The heat from the sword could be felt even through his suit as he twisted around the blade.

Elizabeth pursued, her body shrouded with a cloak of violet fire and Aramus could see her face just before himself, full of glee. She spun and her blade arced, coming up to his own as he deflected the blow. Sparks flew off his gauntlet as the sword ground against it before he shoved it away roughly, responding with a punch of his own. It rocketed toward her but she ducked away out of reach at the last second, forcing him to press forward with Alptraum in a series of slashes, of which she almost felt the perilous winds from the final slash, but moved her head back just in time before it cleaved her.

With a resounding counter, the flares erupted from the sword and Aramus was rapidly descending as Elizabeth pushed him all the way down to the streets populated with the mundanes. They crashed on a car, its roof bending audibly as various voices of mundanes were heard. There was a traffic jam, and amidst this mess came the two warriors of the Magic World.

They jumped from vehicle to vehicle, clashing repeatedly. The eyes of the civilians—and their phone’s cameras—could barely keep up with them. The wings of light sprouted from the ankles of Aramus once more as he decided to take off into the air, evading her final thrust.

Elizabeth simply leapt up without magic, displaying her speed as a Representative that far outclassed Aramus’ pace already, a sphere of flame striking him back into the road.

Rubble crumbled off him as Aramus pulled himself painfully out of the ground. Elizabeth dashed towards him with manic glee, but was swiftly halted by a blow to the sternum. Casting Vibrato in a heartbeat, Aramus followed up with an uppercut that sent her reeling from both the blow and the myriad effects of the spell.

Forcefully grabbing her leg, he dragged her roughly against the ground just as a tornado whipped up beneath his feet, propelling the pair away from the mundanes. When he looked down at Elizabeth, he found her arm outstretched towards the innocent civilians, an orb of flame forming. She grinned at him.

“Either me or them, Aramus. Ehehe.”

That same pained expression flickered onto his face for a moment before he released his hold on her. No more innocents should be caught up in their conflict. The flames intensified and it pushed her towards him instead. It thus propelled them both into the Eiffle Tower that was located some distance away from their previous spot in the traffic.

The two stood on opposing corners of the rods, the vampire noble lady now holding her temples for a moment due to the Vibrato spell that was cast on her. The air around them buzzed with static even amongst the rain pouring down as Aramus cast Lux Tempora. With a crackle of energy, he streaked forward with intent to run her through, Alptraum effortlessly piercing Elizabeth in her moment of weakness.

Aramus was positively stricken as blood ran freely down his blade and off into the downpour.

Elizabeth placed a hand on the sword that impaled her, its sharpness making a small cut. She coughed copious amount of blood and made a small smile at Aramus.

“It is not too late… Aramus. Come with me… to my Mistress. Salvation is yet not… lost.”

“No, Elizabeth… That salvation is yours alone.” With a heavy heart, Aramus returned her smile.

“There… there is only suffering… in this solitude.”

“It must remain that way. I do not wish to bring pain to others I love…”

A burning mantle of mana formed over her black cape, and Elizabeth’s eyes burned vermillion.

“I will burn every other person you love to ashes!”

A fire formed before Aramus, and it was shaped like the head of a demon that screeched at his face. The mantle coiled towards the Magister, and a blast of fire sent him crashing to one of the pillars of the tower. His blade was flung back to his gut, piercing past his skin and pinning him in place.

Despite her injury, Elizabeth hummed as she joyously walked up to Aramus, now stuck against the Eiffel Tower. She held his arms down with her own, and smiled yet again, her fangs in plain sight.

“I wonder how you taste…”

Sinking her fangs into the skin of her beloved, Elizabeth drank Aramus’ blood from his neck, relishing the taste. He gasped when they pierced his flesh, squirming weakly in her grip.

“Aramus, there is no escape. No one will save you. It will always be… just us.”

With those words whispered to his ear, his former student stole the lips of Aramus Linfield, showing her fervent passion. The noble lady only seldom released his lips to let him gasp for air, and would sadistically steal them again.

“Elizabeth…”

He had been conflicted throughout, struggling against her even as he felt the forbidden pleasure of the act. To finally be able to taste those lips after so long. It brought out an ache in him, one that would have been acted on if they weren’t in such a situation. As it were, he slipped in for another kiss with her. The last one.

Finally, Elizabeth’s and Aramus’ lips parted, and perhaps for good. She placed a hand on his crotch and massaged it. She licked the blood from where she bit him on his neck.

“Say, Aramus. How many children would you like? I will bear them all—all for you,” she inquired, pressing her bosom against his, her voice full of her passion, a venomous—seductive tone.

He hissed when she rubbed against the wound on his abdomen, but that only made her coo to him. “I’ve never really… p-put much thought but maybe, three.”

“I see. A family of five… does not sound so bad. It may not end… so fast.”

“I’m sorry...” Twin spheres of water swirled to life as Aramus drew upon the power of the storm raging around them. He turned the spell against the arms that constrained him, and ice began to creep up Elizabeth’s arms as they froze her and himself.

She pulled her mantle up, reluctantly distancing herself from the Magister after releasing his arms. The heat of her mantle warmed her fingers, and her mana spiked up.

Pulling himself up, Aramus braced himself for the spell she was sure to unleash. With the amount of power she was putting into it, he wasn’t confident he could take it in his injured state. He directed Galeforce towards her to put a halt on her spell, the spheres growing larger as they absorbed more of the rain.

The mantle of Elizabeth coiled and was directed towards Aramus once more as more flames converged together with her. Eventually, fire and water collided to create a cloud of steam as their spells clashed. Despite the mana that was exhausted, her palms formed more conflagration, the twin orbs of fire reigniting once more.

The steam parted in a discharge of lightning, bolts running around the steel structure as Aramus burst through the cloud with Alptraum. Barely a second passed and his blade was again stained red, drawn into an upswing to cut off her spell. The feathers resonated together in a small shockwave, threatening to push Elizabeth off the tower but she held her stance.

“It is… not over yet!”

On Elizabeth’s palm was once more held the burning Blade of Surtur. Her expression pained yet mixed with her manic glee, she approached Aramus with weak steps.

“Ellie… this can’t go on.” Dismissing Alptraum, he held his own wound to slow the bleeding.

“Do not… underestimate… my power!”

Despite these words, she coughed some more blood, forced to hold her wound just like her former teacher.

It broke Aramus’ heart to see her like this, forced to drag herself along. He could still see part of her underneath the twisted exterior and for all she inflicted upon him, he couldn’t bring himself to condemn her because he was partly to blame. If he had given her an answer earlier, been more forceful—what if they had never even crossed paths? Would she still have turned away from the world?

“I never did…”

Elizabeth thus raised her sword.

“Don’t do it, Ellie. Don’t—”

“Aramus—”

A golden light descended from the heavens, and Aramus witnessed the golden lance that was Gungnir pierce through the chest of Elizabeth. Her wails echoed for not even a moment before it drowned away in the noise of the heavy downpour. His former student was dragged down by the invincible force of the Queen—all the way down to the street that laid below the Eiffel Tower, making a large crater. All the while, her arm was outstretched towards her beloved, but against the might of the Descendant and her relic, even the proud Representative of vampires couldn’t do anything but loathe her existence.

Aramus had stepped forward despite himself when the golden light struck Elizabeth, and he threw himself against the steel girder when she fell, reaching over the edge and grasping at empty air as he watched her fall. Forcefully averting his gaze, he pulled his arm close to his chest and squeezed his eyes shut. Aramus screamed to the clouds above, thunder and lightning crashing in tune with his sorrow. His voice was lost in the rain as the downpour raged, his own emotions and magic fueling the ongoing storm.

Elizabeth looked up to the Queen with pure rage and hatred, so much that her burning crimson eyes made them apparent. She could see the person who “stole” Aramus from her come down from the black layers of clouds, surrounded by a holy light. She clenched her fist and screamed.

“I hate you…!!” she cursed to the heavens above—at the sight of the Queen—with a strained throat. “You… took everything… from me…!”

Shadows and darkness formed in the vicinity of the fallen noble lady, the Countess now stepping beside her before she placed a hand upon the forehead of Elizabeth.

Shockwaves and lightning smashed into the Countess as Aramus descended, bringing the storm with him. Black thunderclouds shrouded his person, rolling off him as he glared at the Descendant with undisguised rage. He would not forgive the one who had turned Ellie.

The sparkles of electricity faded into nothingness at the touch of the Countess’ finger. She did not even look at Aramus as she dealt with his magical assault. An oversized hand formed from her back, and it scooped up Elizabeth from the fractured road.

“Mother…”

“It will be alright.”

The Descendant only grinned at Victoria, but she made no effort to battle, instead disappearing—leaving black feathers in her wake.

The dark clouds dissipated from his being when the Countess had left with Elizabeth, leaving Aramus alone on the street as he stared blankly at where they had been. He ground his teeth and bit back a curse, letting the rain pour down onto him as if it would wash away the events of today.

The lance that was summoned back to Victoria from Elizabeth finally dematerialized.

“Mister Linfield… we must be away now.”

Turning away like his body felt like lead, Aramus wordlessly obeyed his Queen. Not once did the stricken expression leave his face.

Cinia Pacifica Ojou-sama Writer

8 years ago

The next day, Aramus woke up in the same hotel room once more. Upon first glance, he couldn’t find his Queen anywhere in close vicinity. His wounds were patched up with bandages and the pain made him wince, but it didn’t feel as strong as he thought it would.

Aramus eased back into the soft material, the events of yesterday plaguing his mind as he idly looked around the room. That was until he saw the sofa that he should have been sleeping on and then his eyes turned into the size of saucers when he realized where exactly he was lying down. He breathed a sigh of relief when it looked like he was the only one who had been sleeping in the bed, judging from the condition of the sheets.

It was still a little jarring for him, and he grudgingly slid out of the covers. Aramus couldn’t get what had happened to Elizabeth off his mind, that manic look on her face whenever she spoke to him. The Countess had changed her and for the Descendant to personally retrieve Ellie, she must be important. Especially how Ellie had called the Countess mother.

He felt worse the more he thought about it, up to the point he was staring at the ceiling in a daze. It was just so unexpected. One moment she had been safe and suddenly, a vampire under the Countess. Even her feelings for him had been stronger than he had anticipated. Elizabeth had always shown restraint whenever they were together.

It had been foolish of him to allow both of them to get close. He had become complacent as a Magister, and now he was suffering the consequences. Solitude should have been his course, it definitely would have saved many people a great deal of trouble.

Golden particles could be seen coming together at the corner of his eyes, and Aramus turned to the ray of sunlight where it landed from the window. He could see his Queen’s form materializing under the warmth of the morning. Unlike the times they had spent together, Victoria appeared to be more direct at using her supernatural powers. For either caution or perhaps something else was at work.

“How do you feel, Mister Linfield?”

”Better, Milady. The wounds have closed up though the aches and pains remain.”

“I am… sincerely sorry for what you had to experience.”

Aramus dropped his gaze to the ground, disheartened. “Milady is not to blame… The Countess, she is responsible.”

“Morgan may be adept at luring those with fractured hearts, but it is always the person who chooses their destiny when it involves becoming a Representative.”

“Elizabeth was burdened with a great many things for her age. The fault lies with me as well.”

“I am sure you were doing what you could as a teacher.”

He looked as if he had been struck, tightening his jaw. “Not entirely. Allowing myself to become attached to her was something I should have been more careful about.”

“There is nothing wrong with becoming attached to a person, Mister Linfield—regardless of age and positions. Those are purely shackles made by humans.”

The thought of one day having to kill Elizabeth made Aramus feel horrid and curse inwardly. “The heart and mind hold two different thoughts on this matter.”

Victoria sat down on the bed beside Aramus. “And they are?”

Aramus steepled his fingers, pondering the question. “I will only bring pain to those close to me. Can someone go through life with me knowing they might be discarded at a moment's notice? I will never forget the look on my student’s face when he heard of my decision regarding my sister. I will invariably hurt them with the way I am hence, it is best if I do not get attached and watch from afar instead.

“Yet I find that I am unable to fully suppress that emotion, to want a family or have loved ones. People around me would speak of that but… it is not something I could relate to until recently and even then, I am unsure what is the line between love and obligation, like I was merely acting out who I was. Son, teacher, friend to fully support everyone. I am distorted…” He ended with a heavy sigh, hoping that the Queen would have some words that might resolve the problem he was facing within himself.

Aramus could feel the seemingly feeble arms of Victoria wrapping around him; he was embraced.

“You think overmuch, silly man. Love is not to be thought of. No rationale should win over it should you experience it. Likewise, being unable to relate to the concept of family wholly is simply how things are. An ordinary person would have a relationship with his mother since his childhood—your fate was simply not the same. It is fine to be that way. It is fine to be who you are… the more you distance yourself from your peers the more distortion you will experience. If you had truly believed that those around you face misfortune, then you would never have chosen to accompany me.”

He inadvertently froze up when he felt her touch before relaxing into her embrace. Just for now, he told himself, feeling a sense of comfort within Victoria’s arms.

“I hope… I will remember what it is to love someone.”

“In time, I am sure that you will.” If I am able to save you from your fate… Even as the Queen looked, Aramus’ threads of destiny were black.

“Thank you, Milady. Recently, my emotional state has been… slightly unstable. The events of yesterday did not help in the slightest.”

“I was awar—” Victoria gasped.

There was a lack of sensation. Aramus could feel the body that embraced him vanish for a moment, his eyes didn’t betray him either. As if her form was reaching its end, this was the feeling the Magister felt from experiencing this slight disappearance.

“Milady!” Aramus said in alarm, his own problems forgotten. He thought back to the Hour Glass and feared the worst.

The Queen released Aramus and looked down to her palm, her expression appeared to hold the same surprise Aramus experienced, but not quite alarmed as he was. Victoria soon smiled in defeat, as if accepting her fate.

“I shall be fine. All shall be fine… do not worry.”

The worry Aramus felt could not so easily be abated, but he nodded at her words.

“I suppose it may be better for us to pursue the distortions soon, though…”

“Will our pursuers let us leave France so easily?”

“Likely not… Mister Linfield, I want you to listen carefully to what I have to say.” Seeing Aramus nod, she continued, “We are going to part ways here.”

“I-I understand, Milady.” His mouth responded without too much complaint but neither of them missed the furrowing of his brow. “Where am I headed?”

“You are to stay here. I shall be leaving today.”

“Does Milady intend to draw our pursuers away using herself as... bait?”

“I shall go into hiding… into the Void Realm. Mister Linfield, I have managed to contact Mister Bradley… he wishes to continue your training.”

“If Master is coming here, what of Duchess Frederica? I presume she is accompanying him?”

“The Duchess has a different matter to tend to.”

“Understood. Back to training on the Lost Form…”

Victoria stepped backwards, making a smile.

“Be well, Mister Linfield.” Her form started to break into many gold particles in the air. “It was quite the delight to have the conversations with you.”

“It has been my greatest pleasure, Milady. If fate is kind to us, perhaps we may have more in the future but till then, I shall pray for your safety.”

Aramus knelt before her till she vanished.

Cinia Pacifica Ojou-sama Writer

8 years ago

Silence descended on the room and Aramus was left to his own thoughts.

The warmth that he had felt from Victoria, the way her slender arms had held him. He questioned whether she would be alright but chided himself straight after. She was a Descendant and the former Queen of Britain, she could definitely handle herself. It wasn’t her that needed to get their act together. Leaving the bed, Aramus prepared to leave the room. He had to make a few arrangements for his training with Master Christopher.

First would be to procure a smartphone. He could keep track of others, and seeing all the locals with one reminded him that it was he that was out of place without one. Aramus hoped that being unable to speak a lick of French wouldn’t be too much of a barrier in his search for a good one. The concierge would be able to direct him as to where he could get one and after short conversation, hailed a cab to one of the stores in question.

It would’ve been too much of a hassle to go all the way down to the minute details of the smartphone so he went with one recommended by the store salesclerk. It couldn’t compare to those of Japan but would suit his purposes. A flash of his black card of the Space Police and Aramus was one smartphone richer.

As he was on the way out of the store, Aramus glimpsed a news report of the damage around the Eiffel tower. None of it was particularly clear about what had happened, but he caught very faint flashes of himself and Elizabeth. Most of it was a blur due to how fast they had been moving, but he found himself remarking at how far technology had come even outside of Japan.

Aramus found himself walking towards the Eiffel Tower. With no other destination in mind, he had absentmindedly walked along with the flow of people. The streets were lively as ever, as if yesterday’s incident hadn’t even happened. Sections of cordoned road indicated where he had fought with Ellie, traffic and people alike meandering around in their hustle.

Even the area up on the Eiffel Tower itself seemed to be under repair. Spots where Alptraum had scoured the steel looked newly touched up but not quite fully fixed. Conversation buzzed around him like background noise as Aramus replayed the scenes of yesterday, the feeling of pain and sorrow in his chest as he watched Ellie plummet to the ground.

A buzzing in his pocket brought Aramus out of his thoughts, the screen giving him random messages in French when he viewed it. Brushing it and the heavy emotions off, Aramus returned to the hotel for the day. The concierge provided him with adequate information when he had asked for any nearby Indian restaurants, marking a few on a map in the event he needed to bring Christopher for a quick fix and then was set for a private massage, again courtesy of the front desk.

The masseuse came in short order with a massage bed, a svelte young lady with blonde locks. The outfit she had on hugged her curves nicely and Aramus found himself looking at her more often than he should have. She spoke heavily accented English, making light conversation with him as both got ready. Aramus had requested for a Tui Na massage so that the kinks and knots in his body would be kneaded out. It was something of an experience each time he had one due to the way it was carried out.

He lay on his front as the masseuse began, light touches on his body indicating where she was searching for his sore spots. Her slender arms showed surprising strength when she finally pressed down on his muscles and he felt a burning sensation as a knot was worked on. A sigh left Aramus’ lips as his body was progressively prodded, kneaded and stroked. There were sharp pains in particularly tense areas, but they lasted only a moment before he felt the pressure fade away under her ministrations.

She worked on his front, flipping him over and Aramus lazily complied, his mind in somewhat of a daze. Aramus was putty by the time she was done with him, stuck in a state of bliss as his body was removed of most of its tension. He told himself that this was something he needed to do more often, thanking the lady and helping to wheel out the bed.

The massage had taken roughly an hour and a half but it was not yet dark so Aramus settled for some meditation, crossing his legs and taking a seat in the center of the room. He was brought out of it later by the sound of the buzzer, Aramus promptly opening the door for his Master.

“Yo, lad. Nice room you got here.”

Christopher wore a formal suit unlike his usual getup, and his student could tell he was not exactly comfortable in it.

“Her Majesty still here?”

“Milady departed earlier today. It is good to see you again, Master.”

“Nice to see †˜ya too. I suppose the Queen mentioned where she is going?” he asked, sitting down on a sofa.

“Milady is travelling to the Void but declined to mention where,” Aramus replied as he pulled out a chair of his own. “Tea, Master?”

“I see. I’d suspect that Her Majesty wishes to hide her presence there for the time being. Anyway, I’d rather have coffee for now… I imagine we’ll be staying up late tonight.”

“Alright. I’ll ask room service to bring up some coffee for us. What shall we be doing tonight?”

“Well, let’s talk a bit first. I wanna know what’s been happening while I was away. Heard the Queen was dethroned and has a bounty, but that’s all I know so far.”

“Yes, she has been overthrown by the Royal Princesses Louise and Beatrice but it appears that Prince Consort Albert was the one masterminding the whole event. Prince Leopold and Miss Mercer were sent into the Void alongside one Duchess Svetlana Astakhov, courtesy of Princess Louise. When we travelled here, Her Majesty met up with Prince Arthur but… he betrayed us. He used mundanes to attack and… Elizabeth Cavendish Bentwick was with him.”

“Elizabeth was… huh?” The Archmage blinked. “Why’d she assist Prince Arthur for such a deed?”

“The Countess got to her. Elizabeth is now a Representative,” Aramus said with stress evident in his voice. “She holds Her Majesty responsible for what has happened in her life thus far.”

Christopher clenched his fists and shook his head. “Her mother is gone, and now this… she’s gone completely astray.”

“She wields considerable power now. It was difficult to keep pace with her and… if I had slipped up, we probably wouldn’t be having this talk. It might have something to do with becoming a vampire or Representative, but she is more vocal about her opinions.”

“Representative, though… I wonder what she wants to achieve by joining a terrorist group. For her to be working with the Prince, that just doesn’t quite add up. That said, vampirism is said to change people to an extent.”

“She, ah… She kinda bit me on the neck,” Aramus said as he rubbed the spot where her fangs had pierced his skin. “Elizabeth was extremely clear that she wanted to bring me back with her, wherever they were going.”

“Hm? You? Why you of all people?”

Aramus swallowed uncomfortably as he looked at Christopher. “It seems that she was in love with me.”

“What?! W-Wait so… y-you didn’t lay a hand on her or… anything like that, right?”

“Of course I didn’t! Well, before she was turned, Duchess Caroline did issue a warning to me but now, it seems the roles have been reversed. The young lady was talking about… things.”

“T-Things? What kind of things?!”

“H-How many kids I wanted…” The words sounded so alien in Aramus’s ears. Kids. The very idea that he might have his own was baffling. “She held me down and well, drank from me.”

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!! THIS CANNOT BEEEEEEEE!!”

“YOU THINK I WANT TO BELIEVE THIS EITHER? SHE WAS RIGHT THERE AND I COULDN’T DO ANYTHING!”

“GOD DAMN IT KID, THE ONLY TIME YOU NET A WOMAN IS THE WRONGEST OF ALL OF THEM TO HAVE!”

“HOW COULD I EXPECT HER TO APPEAR THERE AND THEN? LAST I HEARD SHE WAS SAFE!”

“THAT’S WHAT I HEARD TOO! W-WHAT HAS SHE BEEN DOING BEHIND OUR BACKS…?!”

“I-I believe there might be someone else to blame. The other Representative of the Countess, she is uncouth in her ways. Perhaps she might be to blame for why Elizabeth became this way!”

“The person called Claudia? She’s been famous for a while now but I’m not sure it was intended. But I can imagine the Blood Countess ordering her Representative to find someone with potential… maybe. It’s a saving grace that she doesn’t have many Reps like Virgo, but maybe this expansion will change things… for the worse.”

“If you were there when the words rolled out of Claudia’s mouth… But never mind, Elizabeth always had great potential. I had hoped she wouldn’t forget who she was, always putting herself in a precarious position. The Society had their claws in her, pushing all the dirty work unto those shoulders.”

“That criminal Organization was connected to her?”

“Yes. They would occasionally send her on missions to eliminate targets.”

“And I assume you don’t know why she worked for such scum?”

“She did not tell me.”

“I guess I’ll have to ask her myself some day.”

“I would like to… bring her back, but I am not sure if that is possible with her as a Representative.”

“A Representative is a person who shares a bit of her power with her supposed master, right? I wouldn’t bet on it… but I’ll have to see this to its end as her uncle.”

“I hope it doesn’t come to that… Anyways Master, what have you been doing whilst I was occupied with Ellie? I trust you had fun in Thailand?”

“I tried to, but the Duchess isn’t one for fun.”

“I bet she was fretting over Her Majesty the entire time,” Aramus said with a chuckle.

“Yep. I couldn’t really get back because of the Space Police laws so we couldn’t rush back to help. The enemies were stronger than we thought.”

“How did you get away from them in the first place?”

“The Void Realm. My little cheat move.”

Aramus looked at his Master a little sullenly. “Cheat move he says.”

“Saved a life, at least.”

“Indeed. I would’ve resorted to the same if it came down to it.”

“Too bad I couldn’t come back to help. Had to take care of the lady and I couldn’t break the law again either.”

“It is understandable. They were prepared to handle all of us and I wouldn’t want you to risk more than you already have. The defeat is still… biting.”

“Princess Louise, Princess Beatrice, and the Prince Consort… it seems like things were more corrupt than they thought.”

“Not to mention Prince Arthur here as well,” Aramus added. “But midway through the fit in the throne room, I decided to use the Lost Form. It was interesting.”

“Interesting? You don’t mean explosive or something?”

“Exhilarating. The crunch of bone beneath my hands is something new to me, I thoroughly enjoyed it.” Aramus laughed a little, remembering how that traitor Fane broke at his hands.

“You must really like to make people hurt.” Chris now returned the sullen look.

“Only the traitor who killed Duchess Caroline and stole her Relic, though I daresay hitting traitors does make me feel slightly better about the violence.”

“Right?!” Jolly his Master’s expression had become, and thus he made a big smile again. “Beating the bad guys up just feels so great.”

“Yeah. Did you not see him on the way in, Master? The fellow was masked but he… made it abundantly clear who was the one responsible for Duchess Caroline’s demise. Out of all whom I faced that day, his face felt the best when I smashed into it.”

“Mask… mask… oh yeah, I did beat someone up with a mask, didn’t I? Wait, that bastard was responsible?!”

“He won’t be troubling us again.”

“Got him all smashed up, did you? Good job.”

“I don’t think a man can live after his head has been separated from his body. He had the gall to challenge me to a duel over the relic.”

“In a crazy situation he wanted a duel? What the hell?”

“The relic was retrieved in short order before we did battle. I don’t really know what he was expecting when he wanted a duel.”

“Well, he is gone now, so we don’t need to know. I guess we should be resuming with the work on the Lost Form. Seems like the training from the past year served well, but I doubt it was enough.”

“It was enough to give me a power boost. The dragon within gave me what I needed to save Her Majesty at the last moment. Without it, we’d have perished there.”

“If you were a master of the power, though, it could’ve made a bigger a difference.”

“Yeah… But that’s why I’m going to train up until I meet Milady again.”

“Well yeah, that’s what I’ve been saying.” Chris shrugged. “When did you get so familiar with Her Majesty to use that term, by the way?” he asked with a smirk.

“It would be troublesome to use her former title in public so… we settled for this instead. Milady said it was ok but there are times when I feel that I’m overstepping my bounds again.”

“You sure are, lad. I’m surprised you haven’t reverted already. Even I have to watch my tongue when Her Majesty isn’t even… there.”

Resisting the urge to crack a small smile, Aramus sufficed with a scoff. “I am trying but it’s been a week since the affair was over for me to… acclimatize. Just have to be a little more careful when others are around.”

“People might get the wrong idea, so yeah. Be careful… around whatever allies that may be left. Especially around the Duchess… oh man.”

Aramus cringed at the thought. “Duchess Frederica will not take too kindly to it, not at all.”

“If I cared as much I might not either, but well… to the Archmages, the Queen is more like an old colleague of sorts.”

“I would imagine. Her Majesty might have more allies and enemies lying in wait. I would gladly endure any punishment to lower the risk of outing ourselves, no matter how bad it’d make me look.”

“Make Her Majesty look, you mean. Imagine the story: being betrayed by her family, the Queen seeks comfort from a mere servant!” Christopher said with a sudden dramatic tone. “Perfect for the newspapers and the theatres!”

That was enough to destroy whatever Aramus had thought, looking at his Master with abject horror. “T-That’s… What have I done?” he said, cradling his head in his hands.

“That’s right. We could have a scandal on our hands! Imagine those articles rolling out all day!”

“No please, Master. Say no more. I cannot bear this… shame!”

“Anyway, how much of the story did I mention the last time? It’s been almost an year and all, sorta forgot.”

“Well... “ Aramus said, scratching his own head as he tried to remember. “She finished teaching him the Dragon’s Fist after he was done cleaning the temple whilst she watched. Something about wiping a legion out with it.”

“Ah… legion comes later, I think. That was me making a fuss about that legend, wasn’t it? Man, it still frustrates me, I can’t do anything like that… and I’m supposed to be an Archmage!”

“In time, Master. You’re almost there anyway.”

“Dragon’s Fist is the spell that does the weakest blow, though. It’s a different matter if we get to Dragon’s Form, though. It’s a bit of a pun now that I think about it… but it makes you well enough to fend off a real legion.” Christopher gave a toothy grin. “And enough to blow the hell out of that Claudia too.”

“I look forward to being able to do that,” replied Aramus with a grin just as large. “What comes next after the Fist?”

“The next big thing to look forward to would be the Nirvana—that which grants the Dragon’s Form. However, there are other spells you must learn first, to complete the combo.”

“That has something to do with my awakening? There were certain spells that raised or lowered it but I couldn’t seem to go beyond a certain threshold.”

“You can’t go beyond that threshold without the right spells. I have taught you spells that connect with the earth. We’ll be performing spells that will work with the fire this time to match up. In the end, the whole purpose of the combo is to alternate between fire and the earth, along with the wind. It’s a colossal dance I tell †˜ya.”

“To go faster, hit harder. Have you pushed the Lost Form to its limit yet? How fast does one get? Using this alone made me travel on par with my Aurum spells.”

“Goes thrice as fast at least, I can guarantee that, son. I have already mastered all there is to it.” Christopher paused for a moment and looked around. “That said, you never got my coffee, did you?”

Aramus promptly hopped to it, calling the room service for two orders of coffee. “Anything else you’d want to eat? Dinner?”

“Oh, I had dinner but—ah screw it! More Indian food!”

Relaying the order, Aramus added more of that for himself as well. “Three times as fast. Damn, how the hell do you even keep up at that speed. Do you become red or something?”

“As red as a burning comet, kid.”

Aramus laughed. “That must be quite the sight to see. Is this only attainable in Nirvana?”

“Well, aside from the jokes, Nirvana is the spell that allows you to reach a perfect balance with the dragon. Even if my Master called it †˜perfect,’ it’s still dangerous. You barely have a few minutes before you burn yourself out… in the form of a dragon.”

“You destroy yourself as a dragon?” Aramus asked with a puzzled look. “It’s not a partial transformation?”

“I’d rather call it half than partial. You still retain a human shape, but other than that… well, it gets grotesque. You can already tell from all that heat gathering in your body, can’t you? That’s not good—even for a mage. Having the dragon inside us keeps our body together. Even that has its limit, however. We’re not the Goddess, we’re simply the men who have embarked on a path to learn the Godly techniques.”

“This all culminates in a gigantic explosion of energy if we fail?”

“There won’t be any failures. Not from my apprentice!” Christopher cleared his throat. “If you do fail though, your dragon goes back to sleep.”

Aramus allowed himself a tiny grin. No doubt Nirvana would take many more years before he could even attempt it. “Considering that my dragon is still young, I think it would take a little bit of time before I can do that. It just woke up after all.”

“Yeah, mastering Nirvana is the last part. Before that, you must master the combo itself. We will have to bring you up to the next level before the Queen decides that it is time to take action… probably.”

“Will we be staying here in France for training or is there another location suitable for the next level?”

“Probably here. Unless Her Majesty suggested where she’ll descend from the Void?”

“Her Majesty did not mention where so here will have to do. I hope the hotel staff doesn’t mind us using the room for longer,” Aramus said, now more mindful of his liege’s title.

“They all know whose room it is, especially the owner,” Christopher said in a low tone. “He has been keeping Her Majesty safe. Not for long, though. Now that we know of the Prince’s attack… they will likely keep checking. Whenever they come to check this room you’ll need to hide.”

“Hiding reminds me of the days back in the slums… Would it be safer if we found another place to stay?”

“It’ll be worse outside. We should use this hotel as long as possible. Psst, you can hide in the Void Realm, just do that.”

“Words of the wise.” Aramus snickered. “I quite like the amenities this hotel provides as well, they have been extremely helpful thus far but I should try to avoid any further contact. I did manage to get a list of Indian restaurants ready for you, Master.”

“Oh, cool… ah, but that’s besides the point! We’ll use this place for now. You only have to hide for a short while each time anyway. Thankfully, the Astral Venture is hard to catch even with Intellego.”

“Alright then. Shall we begin tonight?”

“Yeah. What’s a good place to train though exactly? We can’t break this room apart either.”

“There aren’t many places in the area where we can train without being noticed…”

“Hm… well this is a bit of an issue.”

“Most places nearby are populated and things have been a little… tense ever since the incident near the Eiffel Tower.”

“Hm… how about we train above the clouds then? I’m not sure if they have many planes traveling there right now, though.”

“A-Above the clouds?”

“Yeah! It’s fun! Gotta be able to step on †˜em though.”

“I… I don’t know Master. I’ve never really done it before...” Probably because I’ll fall to my death with one mistake.

“Alright. How about the… the alleys? Maybe clean the bad guys out and make some space for ourselves?”

“I think it’s safer if we trained up in the air… If that doesn’t work out then we will find a place amongst the mundanes.”

“Well, can you step on the clouds?”

“You can teach me, Master!” Aramus said none too excitedly.

“Huh…?! And you call yourself a Magic Magister specializing in Aurum?”

“Well, I can fly but… I don’t know. Have you seen the skies of England? Or in Japan, you’d get turned into a red smear by one of their flying cars. Definitely no reason to be up there.”

“The ones in Japan? Those are easy. You just have to stay out of the transparent roads right? The problem in those countries is that you can’t really go to the clouds, though.”

“Get shot by lasers,” Aramus said with a few finger motions.

“You watch too much sci-fi, kid.”

“You should’ve seen the battleship when it visited Buckingham, Master. Lasers, lasers everywhere.”

“This is what happens when you mistake the Magic Cannons for lasers. Told †˜ya kid, you watch too much sci-fi!”

“Wait, that’s Magic!? Aww,” Aramus said as he visibly deflated. “I thought they’d advanced enough for lasers.”

“Maybe they have, but as far as I know they haven’t developed it. I was in the Mage’s War and we analyzed the supposed †˜lasers’ before.”

“Does that mean the rest of Japan uses Magic at that level as well?”

“At least in the war before. Their guns were next to none when it came to superiority as well.”

“And England is hoping to engage them soon. Anyways, we could try jumping on clouds. I could probably handle it… I think.”

“Oh, cool. If that’s the case we should just get on the balcony here and be on our way.”

“Uh… Alright then,” Aramus said as he opened the doors to the night sky. It was a glorious view, one that would be his last if there was a screw up.

Just before Christopher was about to jump off into the sky and reach the clouds, he stopped and turned to the Magister.

“Oh, that reminds me, we can’t use other spells while in the Lost Form… so we’re gonna fall off as soon as we start anyway.”

“The alleys it is?”

“Yeah, or what about the rooftop?”

“That is fine too. Definitely less prying eyes at this time of night but we just have to be cautious with our pursuers if they are still looking.”

“Hm… it could be a problem then. Magic leaves traces behind for the Intellego Investigators to follow.”

“My apologies, Master. Perhaps we might have to take our leave of this hotel after all?”

“What? Do you plan to cast in the Queen’s room?”

“I wouldn’t dare. From the rooftop would probably be no issue if we take precautions.”

“Exactly my point. No reason to leave this luxury just yet. We can get ambushed while we sleep in other hotels, unlike this one, unfortunately.”

“Then we are back to square one… Shall we travel around to look for a place first then?”

“Might as well, and there’s no better place than to start with an Indian restaurant.”

“If there’s that then I have a few places in mind. Think we’ll find one that makes curry just the way you like it?”

“Hopefully.”

“Alright, I’ll inform the room service to hold off on your beverages, and we can head out.”

“Gotcha.”

Cinia Pacifica Ojou-sama Writer

8 years ago

The smell of chilli and spices permeated the air of the restaurant. It was fairly normal to most as expected of an Indian restaurant but to those who had more experience, one could tell the faint differences between the spices. Cardamom, Saffron and Coriander to name a few but the list stretched far longer. The pair waited patiently for the food they had ordered, watching the chef make the naan in front of them, tossing the dough into a large earthenware pot.

Before long, there was a feast enough to fill the stomachs of three men but for Chris and Aramus, it would probably be just right. Without further waiting, the two of them dug into the hot, steaming meal of curry and naan.

“So, learn anything about your family, lad?”

Christopher was the first to break the silence aside from the myriad symphony formed from the cooking in the kitchen, other people’s buzzing conversations and the noises of the city.

“My half brother has turned traitor, he was one of the rebels at the palace and Mother is… in a Boundary in England. She was surrounded by great metal behemoths, I couldn’t do anything about them.”

“I see… I have heard some tidbits of the supposed Jesus. Nothing conclusive yet, but it seems like it’s been going on for a long time—all of this charade.”

“Considering he’s been at work since the founding of our calendar… and possibly even longer, it would take a monumental effort to change what he has set in stone.”

“It may as well never change. I’ve been thinking, though… there could be some truth to it all.”

“Truth to what?”

“The religion. The talk of a sole God… or rather, the trinity. There may be more than what meets the eye.”

Images flashed through Aramus’ mind of the time with the Hourglass, of the two other figures that were suspended within its sands. The angels of the Dominion Realm, or Heaven, probably meant that Her Majesty was God. Ok.

“This is all kinda hard to take in,” Aramus said. “So, God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit might all be… what, Descendants?”

“Possibly, or they could be something else… if you take Celestial Spirits into consideration.”

“Like the Holy Spirit?” Aramus asked. Assuming that Her Majesty was God and that his mother was the Virgin Mary, that would show that intercession on behalf would have some basis. Oh boy, oh boy. This is too much but I gotta know more!

“I was thinking… the Holy Spirit could be the Celestial Spirit. Jesus would be its Descendant. But then what becomes of God? One of them could be a Rep and in place of Jesus in reality, though—completing a trinity we all knew of, but never thought of.”

“I don’t think Jesus would just tell us if he had more Representatives but… with Mother as the Virgin Mary… Wait, wait. He did say something to my brother. That everything he had amounted to was all because of his plans,” Aramus said in alarm. Oh, he didn’t like where this was going one bit.

“That may mean he has plans to make your brother a Rep?”

“But my brother is already a Representative of Virgo, that bastard.”

“Oh… when the hell did that happen?!”

“I don’t know. We couldn’t find him at the last fight with Virgo, I believe the MVA still has his weapons and equipment. Next thing I know, he shows up and tries to gut me. Lovely, isn’t he? Not even a †˜How ya been brother?’ Just a sword to the back.”

“So Virgo just kidnaps him and turns him evil? Very lovely.”

“Apparently so. I don’t know what he was thinking… or if he was thinking at all, his temper is worse than mine.”

“Either way, it’d mean that Jesus’ plans may have been foiled.”

“So let’s say, gender doesn’t necessarily matter… that would be a good reason why our sister was stolen right under our noses to be Michael’s replacement. Oh, Aozora.”

“Well shit. She’s going to be in a world of trouble unless we intervene soon.”

“And so is Akihiko. I hope he’s still alive, I would feel absolutely dreadful if he were to pass away in his pursuit of her. So, what do you propose, my Master? Bust into the Vatican and knock a few heads together?”

“Not quite. You need your training, lad. Your Queen’s also your highest priority at the moment.”

“Aozora will have to wait again,” Aramus said sadly. “Life is painful.” He laughed, sounding extremely hollow.

Finishing their food, Christopher looked towards the window, the streets dazzling under the bright lights, and the people passing by.

“Seems like this whole city will be our training ground this time.”

Aramus looked at Christopher with a look that spoke volumes of how unsure he was of this course of action. “A-Are you absolutely sure?”

“Yeah, just use the roofs. What could go wrong?”

“Everything…” Aramus replied in soft voice as his shoulders drooped. “Well, if you say so Master.” It’s not like I’ll be given a chance if magic does leak out anyway, having already been trialed once. Oh well.

“So the continuation of the legend—you up for storytime lad?”

“Yup, let’s go but… we should wait awhile before sparring. It’s not good to fight on a full stomach.”

“Yeah, that’s why we talk about the story. It’s high time I continue where I left off a year ago. You remember the tale of the sailor man who was taken up by the Mother of the Dragon, right?”

“Yes, she trained and watched over him. What happened after?”

“To put it simply, he became drunk with power. The kind man who’d endure the sufferings of his days was long gone and replaced by a man who spent years honing his martial arts skills. However, there was still some sense of righteousness in him. He believed that anyone could do what he thought was right, but only with power. To rule the country, to make everything how he wanted, he was ready to do anything for the Goddess so that he may be taught greater techniques.”

Aramus shook his head in disapproval. “There are limits to what one can or should do in the pursuit of power.”

“The Goddess would embark for adventures, and often times she’d find interest in various aspects and thus they’d become extended travels. The young man followed suit every time, believing that there may be hints to greater growth. Yet, blinded by his lust for power, he found these times rather… lacking—boring. One day, however, she watched over an important diplomatic meeting on an island in China. I don’t know what era it was back then, but there was probably some feudalistic stuff going on, †˜ya know?”

“And he tried to solve everything with his power? Or maybe he met someone that was his match there?”

“He tried to do the former. Of course, the result wasn’t anything he had hoped for.”

“Did the Goddess rip his face off for trying?”

“No, she only watched him do whatever he wanted. When the man couldn’t solve the issue, there was of course a backlash, and the higher lords of the country were all accompanied by great warriors, each of whom lent aid in taking down the user of the Lost Form.”

“So he lost to them even when he was so confident of his power.”

“One must never grow as overconfident as him. When truly frustrated with his loss, he called up to the heavens for power. Hoping that his Goddess would hear his pleas and have his wish granted… it happened, he finally gained the ultimate strength.” Christopher sighed. “However, that was not the aid of the Goddess, but the herald of his inner Dragon going berserk… for good.”

“So did the Dragon take over his body? Considering the the Dragon grows from what it sees, that man’s warlike tendencies must have influenced it quite a bit.”

“Who knows, the legend does not specify in what form the Dragon went berserk. It simply stated that there was a calamity—the warrior himself becomes a personification of it—and that the talks of peace and unity were long gone. Instead, it was thanks to him that China was in turmoil for the years to come. The Pulse of the Dragon plunged deep into the volcano of the island and immediately after—settlements were made impossible for a long time to come, and many of the lords were outright murdered.”

“Ugh, that makes my own mistake seem like a drop in the ocean. Does the legend say where the Goddess went after?”

Christopher smiled. “That would be the next part of the legend where it continues off of the Goddess’ attempts to teach him what is truly right.” He got up from the chair. “Now, we should continue your training. It’s not the tragedy that’s the real point of the story, it’s what you learn from the mistakes of the ancients.”

“Basically, not to lose sight of oneself in the pursuit of power?”

“If that’s what you learned from it, then that could just be it.”

“I… It’s too early for me to say much about this Lost Form. I’ve barely scratched the surface of what it means to be an Ancient Dragon but… I do not wish to let this power control me. The Dragon within has already proven to be an immense help despite being not fully matured.”

“Sometimes they say that the mature ones are prone to being led astray, though. That may have been one factor.”

“Then I just need to raise it well. I’m surprised Master’s own doesn’t have a penchant for Indian curry.”

“I’d be delighted if Dragons developed taste for food the same way as we do. I’m surprised yours don’t have a penchant for cupcakes!”

“Well, it acquired the taste for something more troublesome than cupcakes. I can’t say I’m pleased about that.”

“And it did the same in my case. Greedy bunch, the Dragons are.”

“As they say about Dragons and their hoards. I just pray it doesn’t get hungry often, like when I need it most but knowing my luck, that is a distinct possibility.”

Cinia Pacifica Ojou-sama Writer

8 years ago

From the top of a towering structure, the Magister looked down at the grand city of Paris. Despite the dark hour of midnight, the roars of traffic and the buzzes of the people were aplenty, filling the air as high enough as to reach even him. On one side he could see a venue where a late night opera was being held, on the other side a shopping mall was witnessed, a sea of people seemingly as small as ants coming and going. He looked up, and found thunders sparsely dominating the black expanse of clouds, and straight ahead was his Master crossing the air with one long leap.

Aramus too, leapt. His fist mounted, the two clashed under the fury of the lightning, brightening up the horizon. From building to building they crossed, leaving nary a trace for a mundane observer to follow with eyes naked untrained. The blitz and barrage of battle continued, generating shockwaves in the air as both activated their Lost Forms of the Ancient Dragon. Admittedly, it didn’t take long for the Magister to take note that the Archmage was only adjusting to his own level for it to make an even fight.

The coldness of the breeze rubbed against him, shaving off the sweat produced. The pressure of the air was intense and keeping up with his Master was starting to become a most restrictive affair; he was slowly readjusting himself from the Magister now, raising the bar higher with each moment. The flurry of jabs and kicks rained down on him harder and with greater fluidity, admonishing him for growing complacent with the earlier state of things. Finally, Aramus’ Master experienced triumph as an uppercut tossed him up further into the clouds, and a knee bashed into his gut from the sky—plunging him deep into the asphalt grounds of an alley. Flames erupted as the mana sent down by the Archmage exploded.

It was bad enough that he reached the surface level, but it was worse when the concrete materials collapsed and he fell on the river that ran under the ground that was the sewer.

“Come on lad, that ain’t gonna be enough, ever!”

The voice of his Master echoed down to him, his suit now wet, and he reeked of the sewer water.

“Yes, Master!” Aramus replied before flicking his hands in distaste. “Oh sure, this suit is indestructible but the smell? The dry cleaners will have a field day with this.”

“Good! That may teach you to get comfy in this atmosphere!”

“Back to basics then…” Aramus muttered with a wrinkling of his nose as something floated by in the water. Leaping out of the hole, Aramus emptied his shoes of the fetid water trapped in them before continuing his spar. A burst of air indicated his departure off the ground as Aramus flew up to meet his Master, delivering a punch that only whiffed thin air. Chris backed away, making a face at how foul his student smelled.

“I expected better.”

The knuckles of his Master thus pummeled him far once more, sending him to a neighboring tall structure behind him. He somehow found his way onto the railing and straightened himself, but he had no time to think of another comeback as his Master was just before him.

Another round of fist and fury resumed as the master and student clashed. The Magister could see a palm thrust prepared and he immediately put up his silver gauntlets in preparation for blocking the inevitable strike, for it was too late to dodge. A great heat permeated his arms before the fist was launched, and his senses told him to leave the vicinity of his Master despite the lack of possibility. The Shattering Force of the Dragon thus tore through his guard, as both the fists of his Master pressed deep against his gut; one placing the disc of air and the other making it break and let loose a stronger force.

One could say that his Master forgot his manners when he accidentally broke the wall of a man’s room when the Magister crashed into the building that lay behind them. Atop him was a few pair of clothes and underwear, and the owner of the room looking at him with an expression so crazed as if he saw a ghost. On the other hand, Christopher had a goofy smile, scratching the back of his head, contemplating on whether he went too far.

Aramus flicked articles of underwear off his face, wiping the trickle of blood that was flowing down. “Sorry about this, chap. We’re in the middle of filming a movie, don’t worry about us.”

After the many screams of the apartment dweller, and Christopher’s many apologies, and the payments made for the damages, the two were back where they began, with a flurry of movements flying all over the place.

“Remember the techniques I put you down with!” Christopher said in-between the series of blocks and dodges. “Learn from my moves, lad! Observation is key.”

“Yes, Master!” It wasn’t just about observation that helped in his learning but the fact that Aramus did not want to get hit by such a move again, not to mention the copious amounts of money that would be used if they did repeat the scenario. He attempted the same move that Christopher did, mana in his fist before he plunged it forward.

The wall barely cracked, and Aramus grit his teeth, while his Master’s teeth sparkled in the sparse lights of the city. A surface of the earth elevated from the floor to stop his fist. Moreover, the spell was a failure for which the mana from his inner circulation didn’t carry out, instead making him sweat from the warmth.

Aramus panted before pushing forward, body checking Christopher away. “Harder than it… looks!”

“That’s the third spell you’re supposed to learn. Neat, right?”

“Once I get it to be on the same level as Master’s, yeah. Until then, lots of practice.”

Aramus launched a swift flurry of punches once he caught his breath, following up with a sharp kick. His Master caught most of the punches, but when the kick connected and he smirked, he looked back at Christopher’s face to find that his smile wavered not. The Magister’s kick was stopped by his muscles alone.

With a flick of a thumb on his forehead, Aramus fell flat on the floor.

“Just how weak are you without magic?”

“Extremely,” Aramus said with a certain distaste, pounding a fist against the floor. “Not much better with magic, I might add.”

Christopher rubbed the back of his head in contemplation. “Maybe hit the gym?”

“Hitting the gym wouldn’t really help against Descendants or Representatives but… there aren’t too many other solutions, huh?”

“It’d make for a good foundation. Besides, man comparing against Descendants is just foolish.”

“Yeah, I felt so bad when your niece overpowered me just with brute strength alone,” Aramus said with a nervous laugh.

“Alright, with that decided I guess we’ll take a little detour to your training.”

“Where will we be going?”

“To bed. We find a place to build your muscle first thing after breakfast tomorrow.”

Aramus let out a sigh of relief, body visibly relaxing as Chris called off the training. “Won’t a normal gym do? I think we can ask the concierge since they’re open twenty-four seven.

“I was hoping to keep our interaction with hotel staff minimum. I mean, what are the chances they won’t sell us out to investigators?”

“The internet then?” Aramus replied. “I also need to get this suit cleaned. It smells something fierce after the sewer and being knocked into that wall, I don’t even know how to describe it anymore.”

“I guess…? Anyway, the spells I showed you today—you’ll be learning them until further notice comes from Her Majesty. For that end, we’ll do both the gym and the hardcore spell practices. I hope you’re ready for some of those no-breather days from last year.”

Christopher only heard a soft groan in response.

Cinia Pacifica Ojou-sama Writer

8 years ago

It never ceased to amaze him; the running hot magma and the throne that sat atop it proudly with no fear of ever sinking down into the depths of hell where the King sat, awaiting the tales of many for who knew how many years. The walls were of a shade of deep brown, and there were carvings of skeletons of all kinds of creatures, including man. Two pillars stood vigil to the far east and west from his view.

The Magister floated in the air, a mysterious magic holding him up before the King. Like the last time, he could not move, but could only speak.

“Oh? The Magister has returned much sooner than I had expected.”

The King patted his pet, a three-headed demon known as Cerberus. His size was that of Solomon’s, and his mere voice made the place shake.

“King Hades, it is an honor to be here again. Much has happened since last I came and it might be brash of me but I thought I’d share it, considering I have this after all,” Aramus said with a tap of the earring.

“I have heard of you since our last meeting. Young Svetlana had much to complain, it seemed. Regardless, I welcome you back, and am eager to hear more of your tale.”

“Ah, Svetlana… That new body of hers was really surprising but anyway, the world will soon see another large change. Her Majesty, Queen Victoria of England has been removed from her throne. The ones responsible are of her blood and consort, Prince Consort Albert and Royal Princesses Louise and Beatrice. They were working hand in hand with Representatives of Virgo and the Countess.”

“Ah…” The demeanor of the King took only a slight change for a moment and Aramus could tell from the reaction. “The Queen of the Heavens was removed… this is rather unexpected.”

“Indeed, I had not thought what would happen but it seems fate had something different in store. These are trying times for those loyal to the Queen such as myself, there are not many of us that remain due to the purges. Had it not been for training I had received and the support from my comrades, I would have definitely met my end during the rebellion. Would King Hades like to hear of my story from whence we parted?”

“I shall leave that decision to you. Another perspective of a story is never a bad thing. Be mindful of how the time passes here in comparison to your home Realm.”

“Then this lowly Magister will tell his tale. Upon departing from this Realm, I raced back to our gathering forces to join the fight against Virgo. Svetlana might have mentioned it but during our battle, the two of us were responsible for devastating most of New York and its population. Our battle against Virgo did not go well either, ultimately failing to kill her even with the aid of several other Descendants. King Arthur lent us aid at the final hour but it was still for naught.

“King Hades, I had thought I was an orphan up till that point but it turns out that my mother was alive, though I can not be sure for how long. We were reunited, my mother, half-brother and I. Turns out I also have a half-sister as well. Alas, our reunion was not meant to be and I… lost my mother in the same moment I found her. She was the Representative of Jesus Christ and the current Pope of the Catholic Church, another Descendant. My half-siblings are of his blood but my own my father still remains at large.

“Turns out I had been teaching my sister all this time. She had been a student in my class under a different name and my brother and I resolved to find her but he too was separated from me, spirited away by Virgo at the end of our battle with her. I did not have the opportunity either as I was to be tried at the Crystal Summit for my crimes. Thankfully, the sentence I was dealt was not incredibly harsh, but I now serve another organization as my penance till the day I breathe my last.

“A year was spent in that organization and training under my Master, Christopher Bradley. One of the ten Archmages, his brother does travel to this Realm very often. My Master’s patience allowed me to break out of my slump and I am thankful that he placed his faith in me when few others did. He and one other person were my partners for the last year and upon one assignment, I chanced upon Svetlana in Saudi Arabia. With her change in form, I didn’t know it was her but… to my surprise she was also training under another of Virgo’s Representatives. She must have had her reasons for doing so, considering Virgo is a mortal enemy to her.

“The organization that I am now tied to keeps watch over the world and and the distortions that happen in it. An interesting occupation if any, and we detected a large disruption in the desert surrounding Saudi Arabia, hence our trip there. After that was, it was mostly spent improving myself and learning the Lost Form of the Ancient Dragon from my Master and the ropes of the organization from my partner.

“Thereupon we travelled to Japan, My Master, partner and I. Visiting the Academy that I taught at was… disheartening. It was a shadow of its former self after the events of before when the Countess attacked, the subsequent loss of Duchess Margaret Alicia. Not known to many but the Headmistress, Lumiere had been a clone of Virgo. Without them, the teaching staff and students eventually dispersed and it was nothing but empty halls. Even my own charge had taken leave, young as he was. I haven’t had any success finding him as of now…

“We were in Japan for two reasons, one was an assignment and another to locate my half-sister, Aozora. A search of the Academy turned up no results but another of my former students who joined us in our hunt for her. He seemed to be enamored with her and as her half-brother, well, I had to bring him along. We eventually found her in one of the distortions and I freed her but she remained comatose.

“At that time, we had heard of disturbing news of rebellion in England and I hurried back. My Master and student came along but my partner, she could not get involved as a neutral party though she did follow as there was also a job to be done in England. There we met up with the Duchess of Edinburgh and learned that she had been attacked by assailants, no doubt working for the rebels. At that time, we didn’t know that the Royal Princesses and Prince Consort were orchestrating it.

“Using the Duchess’s manor as an abode, we conducted our investigations and during one of those, I… found my mother again. She was whole even though she had disintegrated with my very arms a year earlier, not something a man will ever forget. She was kept restrained to a large clock tower and when I trained to free her, a large steel beast nearly took my life. Thankfully, it was not fast enough to pursue me but it was close.

“My partner decided that the pair of us were not sufficient to deal with this particular distortion and would relay it to the higher ups. By this point, the rebellion was picking up speed and when we returned to the mansion, my sister had been kidnapped by unknown assailants. It had happened so quickly even with my student in the same room as her and… I had to forgo saving her to protect my Queen. It was… not an easy decision and the look my student gave me still pains me to this very day when I told him of my choice.”

“I see… these are very interesting turns of events. I do not mean any offense despite the repeated tragedies. Even I had not expected the great Virgin Mary to have a son not of the pure blood of Jesus of Nazareth. And lest I forget, yes, I had known the Archmage who’d seldom travel into my domain—he was also given an earring like yours but his visits are very much all business. It was also the reason why young Svetlana could chance to meet me. That said, I have also met Princess Beatrice before.”

“I now carry my mother's name and sword proudly so that each time I wield that blade, I remind myself what it means to be of her blood. I did not face Princess Beatrice during the rebellion but she was pretty powerful in her own right, going toe-to-toe with Prince Leopold in their battle,” Aramus said as he summoned Alptraum. The thorns crawled up his arms, somewhat of a comforting presence now that he had used it for as long as he had. “My one and only inheritance from my mother,” he said in a voice both proud and tinged with sadness.

“That is a fine blade that I chanced upon once more, but it has… changed. You must have fused it with another relic?”

“Indeed. Another that I received from King Solomon, the Fan of Paimon. She has been a most wonderful partner ever since I could use her though it was during my younger years when I first came in possession of her. This brand is my punishment for doing so,” Aramus said, referring to the brand on his nose. “A theft whose punishment was ultimately repaid when I came upon Asteria and thanks to King Hades for healing me.”

“That I remember, too recent it was when you came in tatters after suffering the fist of Asteria.” The King laughed, making the Magister think again for a moment that the ceiling would collapse. “Might I ask how Princess Beatrice was?”

“Unfortunately, I cannot provide much information on that since I was occupied with two Representatives and a little more at the time but she was extremely skilled with a rapier. She faced Prince Leopold in combat but was unable to overcome him though with Princess Louise’s aid, they did.”

“Mn… to be held back by a Prince must mean he is of considerable skill. How unfortunate, I suppose my apprentice has a long way to go.”

“Princess Beatrice is your apprentice, King Hades?” Aramus asked.

“Indeed. I have trained her myself since her childhood. The child is far more dangerous than one would think, for she was possessed by a strong spirit from this Realm. It took many years to overcome the curse but the demonic mana runs strong through her veins still.”

“This is… most interesting. Prince Leopold held her off with some form of crystalline armor, it could repel even the strongest of blows. Is she similar to Svetlana in that regard now? Possessed?”

“Hm… similar perhaps, but much greater than my granddaughter. Currently, she should be able to control her powers but seeing as you made no mention of her releasing great power, I assume that she was not taking the entire ordeal seriously. It could also be a last resort of sorts… in which case the situation with the Queen was going rather well for them. Was the Queen truly so easy to fend away from the throne she cherishes so?”

“There were few that I could call allies by the time the fighting reached the throne room, my own brother joining in as Virgo’s Representative. I felt the fighting could have gone either way if Her Majesty had used more of her Commandments, such as the Pegasus which lit up England’s skies. That was the first time I had seen it without any clouds and it was beautiful…”

The King gulped at the mention of the pegasus. “The Queen summoned that?”

“Yes. By that time, I was pretty much dead on my feet and had to be pulled aside by Her Majesty, otherwise I’d have been melted. The Representative of the Countess, Claudia took the blow and was decimated but we could not capitalize on that, not when Prince Consort Albert came. His appearance shocked the Queen more than the battle had up till that point.”

“What happened then?! What did the Prince Consort do? Surely he did not reveal himself to be a Descendant too, did he? Your life is full of that obvious twist.”

“It seemed everything they had experienced together was a lie. All by some grand design of his and he… Unless my eyes were mistaken, the Royal Princesses were also involved with him in that manner as well. That revelation was probably the proverbial nail in the coffin for my Queen, she just… seemed so listless after that,” Aramus said sadly.

“So it was not exactly the type of twist I was expecting.” The King’s fist banged against his hand rest. “Too bad! But perhaps there will be one next time!”

“Perhaps there may be, King Hades. I shall be sure to come again if I survive the coming days and maybe then…”

“What has happened to the Queen after all this? I assume you have been accompanying Her Majesty?”

“I was the only one remaining and we barely escaped that mess in one piece, travelling to the Isle of Wight. A week was spent recuperating there but even then, Her Majesty was low on spirits. We had to leave though, they would be looking for us. I’m not sure why but we took a tiny rowboat and sailed off, getting caught in a storm and washing ashore in France. That was… extremely peculiar. I woke up seeing wraiths.”

“I assume Her Majesty activated the Commandment that grants her unimaginable luck, otherwise no woman would venture the seas with a rowboat to arrive at France at the end of the journey.”

“Her Majesty did mention something like that. There we checked into a hotel and made it our refuge, at least for the time being. Her Majesty met with Prince Arthur who had been living amongst the mundanes but unfortunately, betrayal followed us here. They attacked us in a Magic Salon and… another of Countess’s Representatives challenged us. One of, no, my favorite students from the Eastern Academy. Elizabeth Cavendish Bentwick, daughter of house Cavendish Bentwick and also niece to my Master and Nicholas. She has accompanied me on many occasions, even into battle. It was a great shock.”

“Oho, so the Countess is finally bold enough to prepare for Ragnarok once more. Ironic, but I had hoped for this to happen.”

“Ragnarok? Ending the world?”

“That is correct. With each day it comes ever closer.”

“Is it predetermined or are there triggers for it? If it were to happen soon then it’s best I’d be prepared for whatever comes at my Queen’s side.”

“There is not much to say as they are the mysteries of the universe, and I would love to be privy about them myself, if they did indeed exist. There is one, however… have you heard of the tale narrated by a man who claims to be a prophet since ancient times, claiming that the coming of the Descendants would herald the end the world?”

“Yes, we mages follow his words to ensure that they do not bring about that calamity, hence why I come into conflict with so many of them.”

“That appears to be one hint of the Ragnarok so far. This, coupled with the legend of Odin has sparked many debates over the centuries.”

“I see… Well, the only recourse for me is to try and prevent it from coming to pass. Probably impossible for one so insignificant as me but that won’t stop me from attempting it.”

“Haha! You are so full of eager to try the impossible, truly a son of man. Is that all you are willing to share for this visit of yours?”

“Would King Hades have heard of something pertaining to an hourglass from anyone else before?”

The King spoke with a tone very low and quiet. “The Hour Glass hidden in a particular Realm? Or just the usual item?”

Aramus remained silent, looking up at King Hades with a tilt of his head to specify the former. “I was hoping King Hades could shed some light on it since… clearly no one else wants to.”

“It is best to remain in the shadows… man must never know of its origin and function.”

Aramus looked downcast, he had been hoping to learn something that might help in his quest to save his Queen. If even Hades treated it that way then…

“What if I stopped being human? Would I learn of it then?”

“And how would you attain such a feat?”

“There must be ways. I must find out one way or another, my very raison d’etre depends on it. My apologies if I am too forward with my intentions, King Hades.”

“Why do you appear so desperate to know about this? Is your raison d’etre that revolves around the Queen… truly that important to you?”

“I will strive for her even if my body and mind break down. Never again do I wish to see her so… sad. If I can, I will bear all of the pain and suffering in my Queen’s place. That is… all I can do as Aramus Linfield.”

“Do you not think that is rather selfish? Do you think the Queen wishes for you to sacrifice yourself? Her Majesty is too kind to let you do such a thing.”

Aramus looked down at Alptraum, still attached to him. “I am a terrible subject of Her Majesty’s. I am a terrible son and brother. Forsaking family and many other things for what I believe in… If I gave up now then what would all those sacrifices be for? How can I look at myself in the mirror or the Aramus of yesterday and say all that you’ve done is for naught? So, I will walk down this path laced with thorns until I can walk no longer.”

“You do realize that no one ever stops being human other than the Descendants, yes?”

“If… I must go that far… No, I am willing to go that far if it is the only way.”

“However, that is impossible, for all the Zodiacs’ Descendants are in existence currently. That must be why this era is so full of chaos. Aramus Linfield, it is impossible to do this unless… you slay a Descendant. Even then, there is a crucial factor that would still deter your path and objective.”

“And what is that factor, King Hades?” Aramus asked with steel in his voice.

“A Descendant new to their power are absolutely powerless to affect the gears of fate that allows the Hourglass to function.”

“So, that Hourglass is fate itself? Can it be paused by slaying a Descendant? All I need… is more time.”

“These thoughts are precisely the reason why I did not wish to speak of it. One wrong step and the world would cease to function. You would become the greatest villain ever to live.”

Running his left hand through his hair, Aramus looked somewhat manic. “Then is there no way for me to save her!? I can’t—won’t let her die! Is this the hand fate has dealt us, that we have to work with?”

King Hades leaned forward towards Aramus, the red gleaming eyes burning brighter for a moment. “Do not let Her Majesty’s sacrifice be in vain. The Descendants are required to run the world, remember it well.”

“I will never forget it,” Aramus said through tears. “I will carve it into my very soul.”

“Do not be so saddened, for the possibilities are infinite, son of man. A day might come when a solution may present itself, until then your patience must last. With all twelve Descendants active, one never knows what could spark due to their existence.”

“Until that time… I shall temper myself to be ready. King Hades, I thank thee from the bottom of my heart for enlightening me when none would. Truthfully, the revelation has rattled me down to my very foundations but I only feel incensed to do more in the time I have left together with my Queen,” Aramus said with a bow.

“With that all done.” King Hades seemed to sigh in relaxation. “There is something I must let you know about your mother…”

“Anything, King Hades. Anything that might help me free her.”

“It is a bad news, unfortunately. No matter how hard one tries, the bond between a Representative and a Descendant is unbreakable. Even if you †˜save’ your mother, it quite be a bliss very short, like a passing breeze.”

“And killing Jesus of Nazareth is going to be a monumental task. At least my foolish half-brother is out of his clutches though he has thrown his lot with Virgo. Fool.”

“Contrary to your views, I believe seeking the aid of Virgo was not particularly foolish. Becoming a Representative is a bargain made for humans and considering his case—a staircase to elfhood. If Alexandrina of Macedonia is who she once was, she would likely treat your half-brother in ways fair… but it is indeed true that slaying Jesus is akin to facing Her Majesty in combat. No one knowledgeable would wish to do such a thing.”

“At least he’s safe though I’ll give him a good beating for trying to off me last time, nothing like a little brotherly love.” Aramus sighed deeply. He needed one of those Magic Cupcakes right now and even then, it might not be enough to help him deal with this problem. “I suppose all I can do is wait for them to try and kill each other, take advantage of the situation then. It would be impossible otherwise.”

“That has been a hope of the ancients and the moderns. Some things never changes.”

“Sons of man, one and all,” Aramus said hollowly. “Clamoring over each other till the bitter end. Thank you, King Hades for granting me an audience again. I must return to my training now, it is infuriating when everyone around oneself is stronger than the man in question. Perhaps this time, I can make a difference.”

“Perhaps you shall. I wish you luck in your endeavors.”

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