"Ah! I didn't mean too!!" Crusch panicked, staring at the white mist that permeated in front of her from the plumes of dispersed and melting snow, unable to properly see her parents. She turned to the man behind her whose expression seemed surprised but pleased which annoyed her since she could've severely hurt someone, yet as she was about to voice this thought did two voices catch her attention from ahead of her.
"Dark flames!! I couldn't have imagined, this is perfect!!" It was her mother, "Viktor, tell me it wasn't surprising!"
Yoraina glanced at her husband, an expression still slightly serious but that was quickly melted at the course of events only a few seconds prior, "It was impressive"
Crusch was dumbstruck, the level of energy placed into her attack coupled with which she could only assess to be the results of her newly fused affinity didn't feel all that week to her, the explosion was nearly deafening and the impact even harder than the first spell her father had shot at her yet neither Yoraina nor Viktor were harmed, hell, even their clothes only held small clumps and particles of snow as its only remnants of her attack. It was most definitely a surprise to her, but of course it was only expected, this was a magic family after all.
"I must say, this is something I've never seen before" Crusch glanced back at the man again as he spoke, "An affinity fusing with a basic self defense spell, quite something"
"I thought that's what was supposed to happen?" she commented, her parents still in joyful conversation.
"Ah? oh no, not even in anyone's wildest dreams" he looked over to her parents, "This was a spell of no needed affinity thus the use of Dragon Tongue over human language"
His brows furrowed as his gaze seemed to turn contemplative and serious, his mind perhaps not only focused on explaining the grandness of her feat but uncovering something else as aswell, "A great deal of effort is required not to mention the mana needed to perform it, most affinities don't have the power capable of infusing into a spell without much of a form"
"A form?" Spells had forms? Crusch thought.
"Whether a spell caters for elemental users of the flame pathway, ice and so on means that it has a form" Crusch nodded, "A spell without a form although essentially meaning that it can be infused with any affinity would require the affinity to mould the spell into what could more accommodate itself"
"Something that a lot of others can't?"
The man didn't answer immediately to Crusch's question but eventually chuckled as though a light bulb had flashed in his thoughts and a feeling of excitement overcame him.
"A singular affinity can't but it seems that two can" he slowly turned around and started walking.
"A–Are you leaving so soon?" Crusch stammered to stop the man, still desiring to ask a few questions.
"My purpose was to administer the fusion of your wands, it was already uncouth of me to have stayed for so long in such personal matters" he then suddenly stopped before turning around to give a slight bow, "I look forward to seeing your participation in this year's Preliminary Mage trials"
And with that the man left, retreating back towards the castle where he'd be escorted from the estate.
"Ludmilla!!!" Crusch was suddenly grasped in a tight embrace, lifted into the air and faced towards her smiling mother. Once again she felt a string of pain, a feeling of sorrow and bitterness. Familiar to this feeling, Crusch gazed at her mother intently as her image overlapped with another.
"Ludmilla? Is something wrong" Yoraina asked, staring at Crusch's who's eyes had gone wide and her body lightly trembling, "Ludy…?"
**
Beryl was seated with one of his legs crossed across the other, his gloved hands grasping a news paper while occasionally reaching over for a cup of coffee beside him. 'Ludmilla Von Ludunhime Exists!?' read the papers front page along with a lengthy row of text that seemed to take up nearly half the entire news paper, Beryl grimaced and groaned when he realized this, nearly having the desire to drop the paper and stare outside but there was very much a reason not to do so.
They were currently seated in a busy cafe, Higg's and Mugg's, in Luran's middle district of course. The place featured standard chairs and tables however there were sofa areas coupled for larger audiences, at the end of the cafe at a corner was a juke box, flowing with florescent colors and buzzing with soft music. He wasn't seated alone and he was nervous, across from him was the reason for his nerves to be on edge.
"What an interesting paper" said the woman, it was Veronica.
The recent investigations surrounding the murders of Beldrund, the lower district area most notably known as the slums had become widespread. Such a vast crime of slaughter was unprecedented and unheard of that there had been fear starting to permeate through the air, even more so when the murders had something to do with forbidden arts; necromancy.
"Indeed, your sister has grabbed quite the attention" he said, meaning to show neutrality than complimenting her own sibling since it wasn't clear where she stood in regards to her, noble's were so complicated in their own inner workings.
She smiled however and seemed to show fondness, Veronica had been assigned as the assistant detective in their ongoing investigation. She was a graduate from the Magical Academy of Erentale, specializing in the supportive use and civilized contribution of magic to the magical world of law. Her affinities seemingly lying within the Fate domain being a psychic and a Seer, she wore a deep black embellished day suit, pinned to the right of her chest was a medal of sorts which he could only assume to be the crest of the Academy she'd attended while a hat of similar colors sat on her head but this was soon taken off. She was of course in disguise, her raven black hair had dozens of strips and highlights of white and her eye color now a dazzling shade of ember along with her facial features had changed to fit the appearance of someone at least a few years older than her actual body.
Veronica took a glance outside and suddenly spoke, "The trials will be held a month from now huh?"
"As always" Berly answered, noting that her tone wasn't much pleased about that, "Something bothering?"
Veronica didn't answer immediately till a cafe lady strolled up to their table with a tray in hand, a cup of steaming coffee and a snack were given before she left, "Do you think the murders had anything to do with a growing level of tension in the lower district? Perhaps…"
"A movement?" Beryl deduced and from the silence that responded him after, he was correct but he shook his head, "They wouldn't kill their own, not if that was the case"
"It could be a warning…" She countered, "Aren't the lower district known for their radical personalities? The last time they decided to show their intentions for change and a man on a burning stake was placed in their central"
"That was…years ago…"
"So we can agree that they're not above killing their own for a cause?" Berly didn't answer and Veronica continued, "But I'm not saying that they have this time, evidence points elsewhere but I…I just don't know where…"
Beryl placed the News paper down, his gaze fixated on Veronica who's expression seemed complicated and slightly paled. She'd been called in for a multitude of reasons, a prodigy and a noble not to mention holding a rare affinity of fate that the department felt would aid them well on their search for the murderer and only a few days ago till now had she been tasked to divinate who or where the criminal might be, he was meeting her now for an answer after she'd come out of seclusion.
"What did you see?"
Veronica gazed into Beryl's eyes and looked away, to describe the scenes was to give form to something she couldn't make sense of. Veronica was no ordinary Seer, her divinations worked on the accounts of dreams and messages which, through either her own talent or skill could she communicate with the objects directed to the divination, learning more than what mere imagery could tell. Seeing imagery was well and truly far above what many had been able to accomplish however as since Veronica's birth, the affinity towards the domain of Fate had been a half and incomplete structure with those lucky enough to grasp at it only being able to use barely a tenth of the affinities true capabilities. Half Seer's didn't witness coherent imagery, instead getting warped and blurred images that sometimes became a mismatch of colours and changing scenes, their ability only worked in tandem to see short visions of the future; about a second to a minute ahead, it became used in battle but was tasking and sometimes hard to work with.
"I saw…" she trailed off, unconsciously did she clasp her hands around the steaming cup of coffee ahead of her, "there were flames…"
"Flames?"
She nodded slowly, "Lots, many, engulfing everything with the sound of screams"
"Where was this?" Beryl could deduce that this was a disaster, perhaps one into the future just waiting to happen but Veronica's brow's only furrowed.
"I couldn't tell, there was nothing left prominently standing enough for me to recognize" her eyes fluttered to the contents of her cup, "The people however, there I could recognize"
"Who were they?"
"...Not anyone I could give names, simply their features told me that they were Republican"
Beryl who heard this felt his face harden as Veronica continued, "They were saying something and shouting words I couldn't understand but knew what they related to"
"Words you knew?"
"It was magic"
Beryl's eyes widened in shock, "Magic?"
"Dragon tongue to be specific" she explained, wanting to pick up the glass and take a sip of her coffee but found the task difficult as she was unconsciously trembling, the cup rattling on the small saucer beneath it.
"Tsk, this is a normal reaction to using my affinity, pay it no mind" She spoke, Beryl's gaze had evidently began to fall on her hands and body that seemed shaken from the experience.
"I see…" he stared at her then glanced away, awaiting her to continue on her own.
"There wasn't panick however, for some reason they all felt…elated…"
She tracked back through her memories of the figures expressions and screams, there was pandemonium but there wasn't panick and fear.
"This all happened in rapid succession" she continued, "They were singing and dancing while screaming those words in Dragon Tongue"
"Can you recite them?"
Veronica looked at him in shock and then shook her head, "I wouldn't dare, the consequences…"
Beryl quickly understood and nodded, there were harrowing things that could be mentioned or perhaps even summoned with the use of words that one couldn't discern. There were words not meant to be uttered and knowledge not known, Veronica continued although this time Beryl noticed she held a great deal reluctance in sharing.
"There were corpses around me…similar to the sight at the crime scene..but it seemed to span on forever till a certain point where I…" Veronica grasped the cup tightly, ignoring the burning sensation in her hands, "There were wings at the end of that horror, large, towering wings that spread out like a dark blanket ready to shroud everything in darkness…I..I.."
Beryl grabbed Veronica's hand's and peeled them away from the cup, clasping them in a manner to calm her nerves.
"It's alright, now breathe, breathe" Veronica was at first reluctant, eyes slightly wide as though reliving those same images again but eventually she did as was told and calmed down. Soon, a silence came between them as Beryl let go of her hands and the two simply sat there.
"I…" Veronica later began but was interrupted.
"No need, I understand your job is dangerous" Beryl interjected, "There's no need to say anymore than this"
He was still brooding over her recollection, a burning city? Screams, corpses and a beast with wings large enough to blot out the sun? It felt familiar till it clicked.
"A heretic…" Veronica's gaze lifted.
"A…heretic?"
Beryl was too focused and enthralled by his deduction that he nearly didn't answer but quickly did so as Veronica asked again.
"A blasphemer perhaps, the person responsible for the murders has been speculated to be a half necromancer, a defect of his own affinity" Beryl explained, "The images you've described which I'm sure you already knew which is why not only because in any sense, its dangerous but refrained from speaking the words said in your divination is because it relates to the Dragon of Death"
Veronica frowned, "If the person is a believer then how does this correlate to blasphemy?"
Beryl hadn't pieced anything of coherent nature that made sense to even himself but the world of magic was vast, mysterious and dangerous. Defects or halflings of a certain affinity weren't rare and we're quite common, in fact a large majority of the population of the slums were those same defective, dozens of attempts had been made to find the root cause of this issue and perhaps even a cure but all attempts had failed…yet never vanished.
"You said it yourself, the lower district are a population of radical out goer's" he answered, "This is about a half necromancer, a defective who's lived his life with only a small fraction of a power he knows to be great"
Veronica quickly understood, the man was perhaps trying to find methods in curing his defect and perhaps those methods entailed acts of disrespect to their God but her face was still riddled in contemplation, "Even so…"
The scene felt far too horrific, something like that had been used to relay a message of execution for a heretic, a blasphemer? That was wrath, that was chaos and destruction of which she'd gazed upon so much so that Veronica had intentionally stopped the divination far earlier than she'd intended simply in best interest of her mind, lest she go mad.
'And for it to be a direct message as well..' Veronica thought.
She hadn't seen the body that held those incomprehensibly large wings, she hadn't seen the proprietar of all that chaos and death but even a glance, no, for a God then even a glance at the flames should've set her mad. Yet Veronica shook her head violently and dispelled such thoughts, it was skeptical but there was no proof that it couldn't be.
"Praise his Eminence of the worlds in between" she heard Beryl mutter under his breath and nodded, still unable to shake off her trembling however for although most of it was a reaction built through the repercussions of using her affinity…some of it, apart from the beast, apart from the corpses and the burning city was a fear for something even more terrifyingly harrowing.
For in that city of burning ember's, where she'd heard people laugh, dance and scream to the incomprehensible sentences in Dragon Tongue, across the nearly endless landscape of corpses where wings so large that they could blott out the sky did she see a girl. A girl of deep dark hair, flowing past her shoulders and disheveled, a girl whose body was riddled in scars both shallow and deep yet still stood strong with her back towards her and a wand of obsidian color in her grasp that glowed with an amethyst hue at its tip seemed to face that beast in fearlessness.
Veronica couldn't see the girl's face, Veronica couldn't discern why she was there apart that for some reason she was standing against that thing. Yet, something screamed at her from the deepest reseses of her mind, a voice that she wanted to deny was even speaking the truth but it kept pounding.
'Ludmilla..'