From her comfortable spot on a cozy sofa, the bird keeper raised a brow when she heard the rustling and banging of metal from one of the thousands of bird cages located above her.
"Fascinating." The bird keeper eyed the cage with intrigued, "A raven wishes to rendezvous with its new master."
She was the bird keeper, here at the Aviary of Darkness, a breeding ground and habitat of the ravens that hibernated until the time has come for them to break free to meet their destined master that will lead them to greatness.
The Aviary possessed at least thousands of cages above, each housing a single raven that was destined for a particular person. For centuries, this Aviary had stood at the testament of time, and many wondered why this cages would never run out, the end not even at sight.
And this was not just any ravens though. They were exceptional magical beasts cared solely by the St. Raven family, one of the esteemed 7 Saint families in the land of Grayhart
When a raven spread its wings, it has sensed and deemed worthy for a Master to serve until their last breath.
Such was the devotion of a raven, and the bird keeper understood this.
For she too is a St. Raven, and her own raven companion latched comfortably at her shoulders, wanting to witness which of the ravens were awakened to greet its new master.
"Ah, how exciting is it not, Thuri?" The lady spoke to her raven, "The birth of a new raven, and a worthy master that is fated for great things."
Not every St. Raven had the privilege to gain their own raven familiar. Only the ones who were chosen and bathed by divine darkness is said to be worthy of doing so. It is decreed in the Chronicles of Ravena, ordained by the first St. Raven who also was one of the wives of the Warlock King himself.
The matriarch of the St. Raven family, the prodigy heiress, and a very few others… those were the ones who were gifted by their raven companions at a very young age.
"I wonder who could it be?" The bird keeper could not contain her excitement, "Perhaps it's the second daughter? Or maybe one of the rising prodigies from the branch family? Fufufu, choices, choices…"
When the cage finally broke open, the bird keeper could no longer hold her breath and eyed the newly-born raven with sheer excitement.
"W-what is this?!"
Stunned, the bird keeper could not believe her eyes when the raven finally revealed itself.
A raven's design may vary from time to time. Some may have spiky hair, or perhaps a blunter beak or sharper claw than the others.
One constant factor that a raven would always possessed is its color, the color of darkness itself… Black.
But the majestic bird that proudly displayed itself was anything but black. It sported the color violet instead.
The violet raven eyed the lady and its own raven like it was beneath it. The beast possessed a regal aura unlike any other.
It was as if it was looking down on them, both literally and figuratively.
Even her own raven ruffled nervously from her shoulder, and if she was being honest, she too felt like an insignificant ant being judged from head to toe.
The bird keeper has not felt this from any other ravens. This one possessed an aura of incredible power unlike anything that she has witnessed so far.
When the violet raven finished gazing down on them, it finally made its move and flew off to leave the Aviary in search for its master.
And whoever its master was most likely was someone of a whole new level!!
"Well, this is new." The bird keeper managed to calm herself down when the violet raven left, "I should report this to the mistress. She may want to hear about this… new type of raven and its new enigma of a master."
***
An explosion of such immense caliber naturally was not gone unnoticed, even from a far distance. Its tremor was felt throughout the entire land and the power that was behold was nothing to be scoffed about.
In the capital city of Arkanus, it was what the hot topic among the populace. A powerful explosion that could be felt even from a thousand miles away was something that's both impressive and mind-boggling.
As a result, the capital decided to send an elite platoon to investigate the scenery.
It was a four days trip by horseback and four days had passed, they expected to arrive at the place anytime soon.
"By the Saint's tits, are we even there yet?" One platoon member complained and was frustrated since they should be here at this location.
"Easy there, lieutenant." The platoon leader chuckled at his subordinate's annoyance. "We should be here by now. The map mentioned that we are nearby."
"There should be a village around here, right, sir?" another member, a Witch, asked while looking around at their vicinity.
"Indeed." The leader nodded, "Sanders is one of the small rural villages that trades us with bountiful harvests and fresh fishes. Hmm, I wonder if the village was a casualty of the explosion?"
"It probably was." The lieutenant shrugged in response and took out his own map, "And it tells us that we are standing here at the village itself. But all I see is a barren wasteland with no signs of destroyed buildings or houses that suggested an explosion whatsoever. Damn it, is the map wrong or something?!"
"It shouldn't be." The leader frowned, "Our maps are also magical in nature. They were made to be 100% accurate as crafted by an esteemed Witch of the St. Flora family."
"Fufufu, this is the village, no mistake." A girl who was among them made her presence known, "Or at least, what once was."
The trio turned to look at the young girl who interrupted them and they acknowledged her in an instant.
She was a beautiful young girl at her early teens, with scarlet mesmerizing eyes and an petite figure. The girl was dressed in a black-red gothic style robes and a red butterfly ribbon attached on her princess-styled haircut.
And speaking of her hair, it was pure color black, a distinct trait that was all it took for them to recognize her.
"Ah, Ms. St. Raven, forgive us for not noticing you earlier." The leader bow his head apologetically.
"It's quite alright." The girl smiled in a friendly manner, "It's a nice change to be ignored every once in a while, fufufu."
"Hahaha, I suppose." The man went along with her banter, "You are the prodigy heiress of the St. Raven family after all, Ms. Erika St. Raven. We'll do our best to make you feel welcome here and not be isolated from the group."
"Fufu, that's all I ask." The girl now known as Erika chuckled approvingly. Her eyes then surveyed the area and told them at what she found out about it, "As I was saying, this land that we step foot right here was once the thriving village of Sanders."
"Truly, ma'am?" The Witch was surprised at this revelation, "Like the lieutenant over here mentioned, not even a sign of a destroyed house whatsoever is located within our vicinity. Even an explosion would leave some sort of evidence from its volatile destruction."
"Of course." Erika just smiled in response, "But this explosion here, it's nothing out of the ordinary. I sense traces of foul magic still lingering around."
"Traces of magic… now that you mentioned it, I do sense it as well, but it's pretty faint, like an aftermath of a spell or magic ritual." The Witch of the trio spoke with a frown, "Could it be? A magical explosion so potent that not even ashes or a speck of dust remain."
The rest of said trio could only be surprised at what their witch comrade just concluded. To think that such a powerful magic was even possible. After all, they were non-magical folk, men. The concept of magic was something that they still find a bit intimidating since they can't use and understand it like their female counterparts.
"Impressive." Erika grinned in approval, "A spell of immense power was caster right at the heart of the village itself. But the question is, what's their motive? Why cast it in a small, simple village in the first place? Did the Witch who casted it even survive? We may have answered one, but many are still left unsolved."
"Well, whatever this is, we need to get to the bottom of it." The lieutenant spoke in an condescending tone, "And if possible, catch the Witch responsible for this carnage. But I guess the bitch is probably dead since no one could have survived such a huge explosion, even the caster herself."
"Bitch, he says." The Witch shook her head in dismay, "Is he always like that, captain?'
"Haha, yes." The leader, their captain chuckled lightly, "The lieutenant may have a vulgar personality so to say, but he's a good person at heart. He means well."
As the three started their banter towards one another, Erika was left to her own devices as she scowled gravely while eyeing on top at her very own raven familiar flying and scouting the area from above.
"An explosion… Mother said that the mysterious violet raven also flew somewhere in this direction. A coincidence perhaps?" The girl rubbed her chin and instantly dismissed such a notion, "No, and whoever casted this explosion is still alive, no question. The Bird Keeper is capable of monitoring the life force of each raven as seen from the beating of their heart inside their departed cages. And if a raven is still alive, so to is their master. And whoever this master is…"
A sinister smile formed on her lips and Erika could not help but shudder excitedly,
"… needs to be return to us for questioning. She is our dearest family member, after all, fufufu."