(Sunday, 25th of Dancing Fool Moon, 2021)
Jack was in the head office of Sanctuary, giving a report to Headmaster Herakles. It was just Jack, Herakles, and Geppetto in the room. Jack was giving a detailed explanation as to what he saw in he visions. Herakles was listening intently, and Geppetto was twitching his fingers throughout the entire explanation. Herakles was listening intently, and Jack noticed his menacing aura was leaking out. After explaining the visions, Jack explained the lights entering your body. Throughout the explanation, Jack noticed that Herakles looked most interested in the part where he mentioned the little boy's name, Abraham.
"That is all, Herakles." Jack finished his report, and the headmaster was silent, trying to process all this information.
"Martha, Harry, and Charlotte...I remember the names of those three." Herakles let out a sigh. "Harry and Charlotte were in their senior year when they disappeared, and Martha went to a local police school instead of attending Sanctuary. However, while they didn't come here, they did send applications, so I know of their abilities."
"Damn, you have a pretty good memory." Jack commented, and Geppetto agreed with him.
"Harry's ability was simple, had an ability called 'Crash'. This Crash ability momentarily increased the user's strength to super human levels while also emitting a kind of destructive magic after every strike." Herakles remembered. "Charlotte on the other hand held similar weapons to Caroline's Whirlwind Rondo, specifically ones called Golden Feast and Silver Garden, which control fire and ice respectively. As for Martha, as a fae she had access to fae magic, but she also has a unique ability in her eyes."
"Her eyes?" Jack asked while pointing at his own eyes, and Herakles nodded. "Is it like an anime or something?"
"Well considering those eyes allow you to see anything physical, and paired up with fae magic, allow you to see anything, period." Herakles recalled, and Jack wondered how good his memory was. "So yes, anime levels of nonsense."
"How the hell did you remember that?" Jack asked Herakles, who let out a light laugh.
"I take time to remember not only every student at Sanctuary, but every person who applies as well." Herakles smiled.
"Are you even human?" Jack asked the Headmaster, who laughed in response to his question.
"Yes, I am, and also, I found another weapon for you." Herakles handed Jack a hand held bell with a black handle and a porcelain bell. "Angelus. Don't play it around your allies, since it would cause hearing damage."
"Got it." Jack got up from the chair and began walking to the exit. "Anything else today?"
"Mansa wants you to spar off against a final year student." Herakles informed Jack. "He wields three slayer weapons, Camelot, Micheal, and Bael. See if you can learn a thing or two from him."
"Alright, let's see how I do..."
(Later that day)
Jack was in the training area, holding Storyteller in one hand and Nursery Rhyme in the other. In the middle of the training area, Mansa held the Tempest. Meanwhile, the final year student stood on the opposite side of the training grounds. Behind him, a large, pale yellow shield with a 3 meter diameter was planted in the ground. On the surface of the shield, there was a blue spiral pattern on it like a top. Standing casually in front of the shield was the final year student, a man named Hokusai. He was about 4 years older than Jack was.
"Jack, Hokusai's class is a painter, so his talent is Painter." Mansa informed Jack before looking at Hokusai. "Hokusai, Jack's class is Archeologist, meaning he specializes in Temporal Necromancy, but he can't use some of his abilities due to amnesia."
"Should I go easy on him?" Hokusai asked while Jack spun the sword in his hand.
"Nah, according to Herakles, he makes up for it with crackhead courage." Mansa informed the painter before raising his hand into the air. "Ready...set...GO!"
Just as Mansa jumped into the air, Hokusai rushed at Jack holding a set of swords, the holy sword Micheal and the demonic sword Bael. Hokusai raised both the blade above Jack, and Jack used one of Nursery Rhyme's spells to freeze space around him only to reposition himself behind Hokusai. Jack let time flow again and swung his blade downwards, but a sudden force collided with his side, knocking him back. Jack looked at the source of the impact to see that the shield that was planted in the ground earlier was now moving on its own.
"Fairy Shield Camelot." Hokusai aimed Bael at Jack while the shield spun and hovered beside him. "I already know Storyteller and Nursery Rhyme's abilities, so for the sake of fairness, I'll tell you the abilities of my weapons."
"Let me guess, Camelot can spin and fly telekinetically." Jack guessed before summoning Captain Hook. Fish hooks shot out of the ground, connected to a thin wire, and began launching themselves towards Hokusai. "You aren't the only guy with telekinetic weapons."
"Uzamaki." Hokusai seemed to paint a black spiral in the air using Bael, and the spiral blocked the hooks, but Jack wasn't done.
"Rivermaker." Jack used Nursery Rhyme to shoot a powerful stream of water at Hokusai, who responded by slashing down using Micheal, leaving behind a black line. Almost like his sword was a paintbrush.
While Hokusai parted the rushing water, Jack used the Shadow to create two knights of darkness from Hokusai's shadow. Without even looking, Camelot came down atop the knights of shadow before they could even raise their swords. Jack used this temporary distraction to jump over the water and try stabbing Hokusai from above, but Hokusai formed his blades in an x-like formation. This cross guard perfectly blocked Jack's piercing and knocked him back just as the water died down. Jack's feet landed on the ground, and he made his artifacts disappear before replacing them with Remarkable Rocket and Coyote. Jack aimed both guns at Hokusai.
"How many weapons do you have now?" Hokusai asked while preparing both Michael and Bael. "As far as I know, you've been collecting quite a bit of them."
"Hell if I know, I don't count shit." Jack answered simply. "All I know is that the readers are feeling overwhelmed as hell."
Coyote's bullets looked like average rounds, while Remarkable Rocket fired red lasers from the sphere at the end. Unfortunately for Jack, Camelot hovered in front of Hokusai and blocked all the bullets from their mark, so Jack aimed Coyote away from the target and fired three bullets. The three bullets began to emit brown colored energy, and they took the forms of spectral coyotes that ran to the back of the shield in order to try and strike Hokusai from behind. The three coyotes were met with a swift cut by Michael. Hokusai removed the shield and prepared to lunge at Jack, only to see him without the two guns, and holding Giant's Path in the air.
"BOOYAG!" Jack slammed the axe down atop of Hokusai as he lunged at him, but before Jack's axe could connect with the painter, the shield blocked the swing. "FUCK."
Having no choice, Jack used Silver Garden to cover the ground in thin silver ice. When Hokusai tried lunging at Jack, he was caught off balance, and slid right past Jack, allowing him to use the prosthetic leg to put some distance between the two of then whilst also summoning Little Daylight. Jack aimed the gun at Hokusai, and fired both the beam and assault rifle at the man. The beams and bursts of lime light flew straight at Hokusai, who jumped onto Camelot like a hoverboard and moved out of the way of Little Daylight's attack. Jack stopped firing and switched Little Daylight out just as Hokusai got off Camelot and tried to slash down at Jack using Michael and Bael. In Little Daylight's place, Jack summoned the shield known as Beanstalk and used it to block the downward swing, then he conjured up 12 Months. Hokusai jumped back onto the ground away from Jack after his attempt failed.
"December!" Jack ordered, and 12 Months began to change. "You know, I think the 12 names of 12 Months are months, but of a system we don't use. From this system, I think December is the final month."
"Why is that?" Hosukai asked as 12 Months glowed before turning into what looked to be an assault rifle.
"Because December is the strongest form of this gun." Jack aimed 12 Months at Hokusai, and the gun's barrel split into multiple barrels, all of which are from different guns.
Every barrel began to release a barrage of bullets, shotgun shells, machine gun bullets, grenades, rockets, and every other manner of bullets shot out of 12 Month's numerous barrels. Hokusai was caught off guard, and was forced to have Camelot block all the rounds. Jack used the All-Seeing eyes he obtained from Martha to see past Camelot, allowing Jack to see that Hokusai was holding both his blades straight up. Jack watched as corrupted energy surrounded Bael, and holy energy surrounded Michael. He felt a shiver of fear run up his own spine, and Jack stopped firing before getting into a defensive position, facing his shield towards Hokusai.
"Bael, Michael, lend me your strength." Hokusai's voice rang in your ears, and Jack was in awe of what happened next. "Unison!"
Demonic wings made of light shot out from Hokusai's back, and Jack saw demonic horns protrude from his head. A golden halo formed just over his head, and in a flash of dark light, Hokusai vanished from behind Camelot. Jack was forced to use clairvoyance in your left eye, and he didn't see anything, instead, Jack was met with a swift kick from behind. Jack couldn't block it, so he was launched through the air, unsure of what was going on. Jack was kicked in the stomach, sending him into the ground. Jack's back collided with the ground, and he began to see stars. Jack tried sitting up, but his vision blurred, making it hard to see.
"Alright, Hokusai, that's enough." Mansa walked up to Jack and looked down at you from the ground. "As you saw, Jack, Hokusai is capable of using the Unison of Michael and Bael."
"I saw that." Jack rubbed the back of his head since it began to sting from the impact. "Nice job Hokusai."
"Thanks, but it's pretty basic stuff." Hokusai deactivated his Unison, returning back to normal. "If I were you, I'd focus on trying to achieve Unison of Storyteller."
"Why that one in particular?" Jack sent all his artifacts back to his room. "London Bridge seems way better, being able to turn anything it touches into a weapon."
"London Bridge is great for sneak attacks and traps, but in a 1 on 1 fight, the user is at a disadvantage, especially against an opponent who knows how it works." Mansa helped Jack back onto his feet, and he wobbled in place for a bit. "Storyteller possess abilities that make it close to impossible for people to know unless you tell them yourself. Plus, think of it as the ultimate unison."
"Alright, good idea." Jack regained his balance, and your his slowly returned back to normal. "How do I do that?"
"Simple, you just have to find a style that suits you." Hokusai answered, and that was the least helpful answer Jack had ever heard. "Think of accessing your artifacts' full power as a keyhole, and you possess a variety of keys. You just have to find which key works for each weapon."
"I think I get what you're saying." Jack began to walk out of the class. "Is it cool if I leave? I'd like to get some sleep before 10."
"Sure thing, you have classes tomorrow, so rest up while you can." Mansa then pointed at Hokusai. "Same goes for you, Hokusai. Slayer weapon training should not come before your class studies."
"Yes sir..."
(Later that Evening)
In the city of Oneiro, there were many buildings, and today the focus was inside of your run of the mill tavern. There were wooden tables lined with chairs full of people drinking from glass mugs. At the main bar of the tavern, a familiar man was sitting at one of the barstools. His shaggy hair was down and a mess. His white dress shirt was stained with alcohol, and his pants had similar stains. The tavern was filled with laughter, drunken rambling, and even some drunken arguments. The bell atop of the door rang, and someone walked in. The presence of the new person made the entire establishment go silent, and the waiter who was carrying food went still, almost going as far as to drop the tray of food he was carrying. The person who walked in helped the waiter keep his balance, and he kept walking towards the bar before sitting down next to the drunk who showed up at Sanctuary the day Jack arrived.
"Just some rum for me." Herakles ordered while he sat down next to the drunk, who felt a chill run down his spine. "Abraham Smiru, I noticed that you head to Moose Horn by train every Friday and come back on Monday, any reason as to why you don't use that money to buy a decent set of clothes?"
"Why do you care?" Abraham questioned whilst sipping tequila from a glass. "I'm just some homeless scum bag."
"And apparently the worshipper of the new Messiah Maria." Herakles spoke up, and instinctively, Abraham stood up so quickly his barstool fell and tried to deliver a haymaker to Herakles' face. The punch made contact, but it barely left a mark on Herakles' face. The man didn't even flinch or blink. "Given that reaction, I'm assuming I'm right on the mark."
"How do you know about that?" Abraham asked as Herakles got up from the chair, and his massive frame stood to its full height.
"Abraham Smiru, you're under arrest for the brainwashing of Harry Dracul and Charlotte Diego, their murder alongside Martha Cunningham's, and the brainwashing, kidnapping, and murder of countless other individuals." Herakles showed an expression he never wanted to show his students, unrelenting rage. "Do not resist."
"And what if I d-" Abraham asked, only to be met with a solid punch to his gut from Herakles' right hand. "ACK-!"
"I told you to not resist." Herakles growled as Abraham fell to the ground, clutching his stomach in pain. "Now, unless you want me to throw a serious punch and accidentally destroy this fine establishment and have you pay for the damages, you'd best come with me."
Without hearing any resistance, Herakles picked up Abraham and slung him over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. Herakles' boots stomped against the ground, leaving light indents in the wood of the tavern as he walked towards the exit. All eyes were on him, completely still, fearing that they would one day be the next target of his wrath. Herakles opened the door with his spare hand, and before he exited the building, Herakles turned his attention to everyone in the room.
"As you were, gentlemen." Herakles then exits the establishment, with the bell above the door letting out a ding.
Then everyone in the tavern breathed a huge sigh of relief.