It was eleven at night when Massimo Zanini arrived. Before entering his house, he realized the lights were on, even though he had made sure to turn them off before leaving in the morning.
Carefully, he went to open the door just to realize it already was. Now convinced that there was someone in his house, he called the administration.
"Oh, I forgot to tell you, I assigned you a roommate; her name is Cosima Farfali. Don't be weird to her."
That was the response. Incredible. Massimo was sure she made that on purpose just to hear his reaction. The administrator, whose name was Adriana Pellegrini, has been messing with him since he was a child, and being neighbors back then gave her the opportunity to do so all the time.
But where could this Cosima have gone this late at night?
Massimo looked around the house and noticed the pizza in the fridge. Was it for her? Well, maybe it was, but Massimo knew that the moment he laid his eyes on the food, he had legally become its owner. Based on his own perspective, of course.
Either way, it would have been too much for him to eat a whole pizza without Cosima, so he just cut two slices and ate them like that, right out of the fridge. Apparently this roommate had been considerate enough to choose the room farthest from his and didn't mess around with his things, so he would repair her by doing the same.
"I'm so tired."
He said to himself, stifling a yawn.
"Maybe I should wait for her."
But would she come? Maybe this Cosima was one of those girls who spent the day sleeping and the night partying. So there wouldn't be any point in waiting.
The alternative is that she just went somewhere quickly and would return quickly.
Such a dilemma was in Massimo's hands. Going to sleep or not going to sleep. But Massimo despised two-choice dilemmas; obviously there was a third way; he created his third option and chose it.
He took a piece of paper and wrote in a pen, "Hello, Cosima Farfali, my name is Massimo Zanini, and I hope to get along with you. I ate two slices of pizza. I arrived, but you weren't here, so I went to sleep. Let's talk tomorrow. Also, don't forget to close the door when you go out." And I left it on the table under the pen so the air wouldn't fly away.
This was the first option, but with extra steps, but Massimo deluded himself into thinking that he was a genius making an outstanding move. And the truth was, who was there to say he wasn't one?
Cosima awoke completely immobilized in what appeared to be a dungeon underground. Her body was nude and in a position with all her members fully extended.
From where she was, at least twenty figures were visible, covered in dark robes and black masks. They were waiting for something.
"The anchor is awake!"
One of them announced. Cosima was scared; it's obvious they are referring to her, but what was going to happen? Was she going to die!?
One of the figures got near her, and from within his robes, he pulled out a dagger with ornaments and blood stains.
Tears formed in her eyes. She wanted to scream, but she couldn't, and that was even more terrifying. Not being able to control her own body was a fear worse than being burned alive.
Slowly, the dagger cut the skin in her stomach, and blood started to come out. A second figure took a sample and put it under some machines.
"She has the mana to whistand the process and enough compatibility to bring a sacrificial lamb. Begin the ritual."
"Con questa saga spezzo il corpo e la mente per raggiungere l'anima."
The person with the dagger stabbed Cosima straight in the belly button.
"Madre Natura e Padre Tempo creano leggi inviolabili."
The rest of them chanted before the dagger went through the torso until it reached the breastbone, making a vertical line.
"L'anima è selvaggia e incontrollabile."
Her insides felt like they were on fire. Cosima couldn't tell anymore what the person with the dagger was doing.
"Oh, anima di ieri, accetta l'anima di oggi e squarcia il velo dell'ignoto."
The dagger now made a horizontal cut through her torso.
"Anime simili cercano anime simili."
"Oh, tu che sei come il fuoco, accetta quest'ancora e salta le leggi del padre tempo!"
"Rituale di creazione della vita eterna, dodicesimo sacrificio del nuovo mago e del vecchio mago."
Flames scorched her body; the pain of the dagger was nothing compared to the fire. Suddenly, she felt hands moving inside of her. Try to break free. She was a chrysalid for someone, and she couldn't even scream.
She felt like a plastic bag carrying something so heavy that it was starting to rip. The moment the tension reached its maximum, she was about to pop like a balloon. But the breaking point never came; the flames coming out of her body suddenly took on a human shape, and Cosima felt herself being hugged from behind with kindness.
When Cosima realized she was in the arms of another woman.
"What is your name, manasi."
One of the figures said, an unknown voice between the rest.
"Tell me masked ones, are you trying to continue the ritual?"
"Your name woman."
The woman remained silent for a few seconds.
"Do you want me to save you?"
She said to Cosima, looking her in the eyes.
"Please."
Cosima answered weakly.
All figures quickly got on guard, prepared for an attack.
The woman hugged Cosima tightly and smiled.
"Not a single one of them seems stronger than me, but being cautious is always the better option."
Cosima was unconscious; the pain of the ritual had been too much for her.
"Mentre il sole copre il giorno, lascia che il fuoco sia la mia armatura."
The woman said these words fast, but without mumbling.
Flames surrounded both her body and Cosima, burning to 986 Celsius, enough to melt silver. Effectively, it was armor against almost every medium-level spell they could shoot.
"Noctem duodecim lunae!"
The man with the dagger suddenly went black as a shadow. His body had no outline, and his shape became scattered.
The confrontation was inevitable. A woman covered in fire against a man covered in darkness. Was the woman mistaken when she said that no one here seemed stronger than her?
A voice that appeared from nowhere began to shout.
"THERE'S NO POINT IN FIGHTING UNTIL ALL SACRIFICES ARE HERE! RETURN IMMEDIATELY!"
The man who was about to engage in combat with the woman reluctantly made some steps back. The woman did not move a muscle, expecting what would happen.
"Ut nox cum luna movet, non me solum, sed socios meos incolumem dabo."
All figures were covered by a black veil that manifested from thin air. The light of the fire couldn't even show what was behind it. Just six seconds later, the veil fell, and not a single mage remained except for Cosima and the fire woman.
Twenty seconds passed before the woman determined there was no danger and put out the flames in her body.
"Now, where in the world am I?"
The room where they were was as dark as the mouth of a wolf.
"La mia mano come una torcia."
The hand of the woman was lit in fire, but not like the one from the previous spell; this fire was just to illuminate the surroundings; in reality, it was as cold as the temperature of the room.
The first thing she noticed was a circle on the floor painted with something that was blood, but not from a human. It had a fourteen-pointed star drawn inside the circle, with emeralds put on each end in a clockwise direction, ending in twelve.
"So I am the number twelve."
There was fresher blood squirted over the draw; this was Cosima's blood.
Walking away from that, the woman saw lots of things she couldn't recognize; they were electronic things like computers and similar equipment.
What she could actually tell was that the room they were in was underground, and from the materials both on the floor and the ceiling, it was a catacomb.
Carrying Cosima on her shoulders, she tried to search for some clothes that the masked figures left behind, because both of them were nude.
Suddenly, the woman felt a sharp pain on her right heel. She looked down and saw a rat biting her.
"Brucia finché non diventa cenere!"
She pointed at the rat with her little finger, a minuscule flame arrow was shot. It hit his target and the rat combusted immediately. In a few seconds, only black bones remained.
"What a waste of mana."
After crossing a door, both women found themselves in a large aisle full of skeletons, confirming they were in a catacomb.
She kept walking with Cosima, still unconscious, until she found a vertical ladder that led to a hatch on the ceiling.
After opening it, they found themselves in the basement of an abandoned house.
The woman went around the house searching for clothes and found some in a closet. Then she dressed herself and Cosima.
The clothes she took were a little too big for Cosima and too small for her, so they both looked funny.
In one of the rooms of the house, there was a clock on the wall that, in case it was working perfectly, should be four in the morning.
"Wake up, girl."
Said the woman while giving light kicks to Cosima to annoy her into awaking.
"Nhh."
"Wake up."
Cosima opened her eyes and saw the women who saved her.
"Who... are you?"
"My name is Eloisa Cobossi, yours?"
"Cosima Farfali."
"Well, Cosima, it seems like you got yourself involved in some sort of ritual, like it happened to me some time ago. I don't know exactly what the ritual is except that it's for reaching eternal life."
"Some time ago? How much?"
"Which year is this?"
"2024."
"Damnit! Two hundred years!"
"What? Are you two centuries old!?"
"It seems like that; tell me, Cosima, which kingdom is this? The Papal States? Sardinia? Tuscany?"
"There are... no kingdoms in Italy anymore."
"WHAT! DON'T TELL ME ITALY WAS DIVIDED BY FRANCE AND AUSTRIA!"
"N-no I mean, there's one republic that unites all of Italy nowadays!"
"My Italy.... A re-re-re-republic?"
"Were you... a noble or something?"
"Why is my Italy a republic..."
Eloisa was devastated, Cosima thought she was going to cry right there.
"Eh hmm, ah yes! Tell me more about the ritual, Eloisa; how did you got involved, and those things!"
"Awww my Italy is a republic...."
"Technically, the Papal States still exist."
"Really!?"
"Yes, but now it is called the Statto della Città del Vaticano and is very tiny."
"Doesn't matter; if there is a pope, and there is no king, that only means I have to conquer Italy and make the pope crown me!"
"Eloisa, but tell me about the ritual."
"Cosima, educate me about the military affairs of Italy today."
"What? What do I know about that?"
"Maybe I can buy some ships from the Ottoman Empire and invade Sardinia; you know, Cosima, always start things with the easiest part... The Ottoman Empire still exists, right?"
"It's a republic now, and it's called Turkiye."
"A REPUBLIC TOO!!!! IS EVERY COUNTRY A REPUBLIC!!!???"
"Spain isn't."
"So there is still hope in the world. I can buy some ships from there."
"You can't! And how are you going to buy them!?"
"I'm rich; I have a castle; I buy whatever I want."
"More like you had a castle."
"What are they going to do, move my castle? The Cobossi family are descendants of roman nobles dating to the time of Marco Aurelio; the legacy of my family is indelible! Was your last name Farfali?"
"Yes, like the family of manasi."
"Then you understand what I'm talking about; we both come from such noble houses."
"I'm the last Farfali, and sorry, Eloisa, but this is the first time I heard about the Cobossi."
"Are you saying that my house fell?"
"O-Or or or maybe I'm just disconnected from the social world, you know!"
A single tear fell from Eloisa's face.
"Cosima."
"Y-Yeah?"
"You and I are a team now; together we shall save ourselves from this accursed ritual, and then after we are free, we are going to conquer Italy for the honor of our houses. Your magic is probably magnifique, and if I have it by my side, we will be unstoppable!"
"My magic, you said?"
"And your resources."
"About that..."
"What."
"I'm an amateur; I can only do the scintilla spell."
"WHAT!"
Massimo awoke at six. First, he was going to see if Cosima arrived, but she didn't. This was starting to worry Massimo. If she doesn't get home in an hour, he will call Adriana.
He took the rest of the pizza and sent a message to Adriana; right after that, there was a knock on the door.
"This girl had me worried over nothing; now Adriana is going to tease me for life!"
Even if he wouldn't admit it to himself or to anyone, he was relieved that nothing bad had happened to his roommate. He opened the door with a smile on his face, just to see a man in his fifties instead of a young woman. His smile disappeared.
"Hello Massimo, you don't know me, but you have to help me. It's a question of life or death!"
"Who are you? It's someone in trouble."
"My name is Domenico Abato; I'm a detective from the police."
"Is this about Cosima? Is she in problems?"
The police couldn't have come that fast; there was simply no way Adriana could have read the message, called them, and had them come here in less than a minute.
So, the obvious was that they were already on their way here by the time he sent the message, which means that there was a reason, probably a crime that made them go to the residence. A crime so serious that the police react so fast, combined with the fact that the door was open last night, means that Cosima was kidnapped or killed and the police were working on suspects.
"Yes, she is; nothing bad has happened, but it could happen. You understand, right?"
"Yes, but I haven't met Cosima yet; she just moved here yesterday, and we didn't encounter each other."
"But she was here, right? There has to be something you could have noticed; even a little clue can help us; she was kidnapped, you see."
"Yesterday, when I came home at night, the door was open. I think it was an hour before midnight."
"Come with me to the station; I have to take your declaration."
"Yeah, of course, anything I can do to help."
Massimo left the house following Domenico; this was Massimo's first encounter with the law, so he couldn't tell if anything was out of place.
He thought he was helping to solve a kidnapping, but he didn't realize that the one being kidnapped was him in broad daylight.