Report of the 19th of September, 1874, LfV agency, Hanover, Germany.
* The terrorist Li has not been seen in the last 2 days, making it evident that he has gone into hiding. With a medium stature, a mask engraved with various shapes of hexagonal symmetry, some black robe without any notable distinction and what appears to be, from an alleyway camera, charcoal black hair, the dubbed Li the Pyromancer is still a mystery to all.
* A gunshot has been heard from the Baker’s Street, the only suspect of such act was a Königsberger who has not been seen since he had gone into the bakery of Johann Alstrom, a migrant who came from Sweden.
* Overseeing her paperwork and passport, a woman by the name of Anastasia Elizabeta Carnation, affiliated with the notorious Carnation Family of Russia, was also seen near the vicinity wearing a large sunhat and some casual dress topped with a light blouse, hiding almost all of her visible skin.
* Accompanying the Carnation, a geologist of unknown origin was seen. Apart from his 4 years of experience in the mines, not a lot could be traced back from his life.
* Near the Hanover train station, a group of unidentified culprits have placed and detonated some amount of explosive, shaking the buildings near the station. While it could be considered as an act of terrorism, the amount used was greatly insignificant compared to what Li achieved as an individual and blew up the consulate building.
Note: As the fall rush should be starting in a few days, the train stations as well as the gates into the city is progressively getting crowded. It is almost predictable that the terrorist Li and other fugitives would use this opportunity to flee out of Hanover. However, our utmost priority is to protect the populus rather than catching culprits; it is the responsibility of the state to address such case. We cannot and will not interfere with the black-hats in any situation and or any report.
While the atrocities committed by those of high status could be forgiven quite lightly, those who have no such power to defy the authority which is meant to level the commoners from rising, cannot be forgiven so easily. And the reason of this whole fiasco to jab away the strive that is to reach the higher echelon: just a simple struggle for measly power that holds the current society together. Quite simple, really; people like power and they do not want to give it away, which leads to them developing and abusing the authority to prolong the duration and age which they could be in control.
In the day and age of magic and manipulation, the only signifiers of power are potential and control – control of oneself and potential to soar. Yet, the echoes of old still ring alongside the roar of Nova – holding an awkward middle ground to respect the tradition as well as flourishing the new direction. It is the age of struggle, mishmash of everything and anything, fighting for a smaller but significant portion of the diverse world we live on. As so, they try to extinguish the diversity among their share, hold to the idea of one pure entity, committing war crimes behind the general populus, propagating the lie that the world is only known as it was since the beginning. All a lie to keep the people from reaching the height which is believed to be the sky – a sky under the heaven.
*Female voice on stereo* “The train to Württemberg leaves at 11. Please board the train and enter the corresponding cabin on your tickets”, sounds an announcement across the Hanover train station, one of the oldest surviving stations on continental Eurasia. Having left the bakery half an hour ago, the group of 4 book their tickets to Berlin, getting an extra for Johann who stayed to teach Felix the ropes of baking and register. With the station being quite small and Hanover being one of the sovereign regions inside the Second Reich, the movement inward is quite lacking, to say the least. Yet, as it is in between the resource rich Rhineland and the industrial heart of the country, the connection trains run constantly and so do the people who need to travel between the two regions.
Sitting on a bench about one of the gates, “Geez, I did not think this much people would be here. Oh well, we just need to sit tight and wait, yes?”, says Li, hugging the suitcase to his chest. “I do not see anything different from my imagination… it could just be me, though, knowing that the stations that I am familiar with are usually much busier than here”, says San, onlooking the tickets she had bought. “Ah~ I hope my ID does not get bricked again. That one black soot on my records kneecaps my traveling potential… This feels more like a family vacation than anything else; why is that. Say, Li, can you make me something to drink, please?”, says Will. Choking on a spit, “Wait… Will, your last name is Mandalmerge?! Where the hell do you come from, man? That is not like any surname that I know of”, exclaims San. Handing a cup over, “Sounds familiar. Asian, maybe? Anyhow, drink some tea, Mr. and Mrs. Mandalmerge”, says Li.
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Over at the bakery, Johann is teaching Felix the essential breads and pastry. Opening various cupboards, “Here is flour enough for the next few days and there is the sugar and butter. While these are a lot, it runs out quite often so you need to make some weekly. If you cannot refresh the pantry yourself, you can buy some from the essentials shop, near the church next door”, says Johann. Pointing upward, “The upstairs do not have any use?”, asks Felix. Picking the things he had packed, “Yeah, no, it is just spare rooms. You can do whatever you want with it… Unless it ruins either my family’s reputation or the individual pride I bear for this building, you can do anything you want to this place. Well then, I think you would know any other gimmick of how this shop works so… good luck, mate”, says Johann as he leaves the shop. Going back in, again, “Do not forget to turn on and off the launcher before and after using the stoves and oven or you will get fried by the wrath of Tesla”, he adds before leaving to the train station.
“William Wilson Epsilon Mandalmerge… you have a long, long name, man. Anyways, where is Yuki? I have not seen her since we got here”, says San, organizing the paperwork she had taken from Li and Will. Staring into the distance, “Well… she might be inside the office booths, pulling some strings to ensure our travels to Berlin. After all, she is not called Lithe for nothing. I hope she would not spill ink on my paperwork again. That happened when I first came to Hanover from Berlin… It will be alright, I think. She is here to oversee my travels so it should be alright”, spots something, “Oh, here come Johann”, says Will.
*Female voice on stereo* “The train to Berlin leaves at 11.40. Please board the train and enter the corresponding cabin on your tickets”, sounds a speaker. Standing up from the bench they sat at, “Here is your ticket and you will be going in first”, says San as she hands the ticket to Johann. As Yuki appears besides him, “Yuki! Pocket!”, whispers Will as she jumps up to his pocket and shrinks her body to fit inside.
Walking up front, Johann enters the train without any hiccup. Following him, Will walks in, unquestioned by the conductor. Li goes in afterwards, clenching his suitcase… *one LARGE explosion* “An explosion has occurred in the western wing. Trains leaving to the Rhine and Lower-Saxony have been canceled. Please remain calm and wait until further notice”, sounds a speaker. Either startled by the explosion or just oversaw the name coincidence, Li clears the check. San enters afterwards as the last person to enter the Hanover-Berlin train and the locomotive steams into life.
Seated inside their cabin, “Well, that was unexpected. Was it you, Yuki?”, asks Will. Jumping out of the pocket, “No. If it was me, I would not have caused such a fuss”, says Yuki, in her human form. *sigh* “Well, it is a 3-hour ride until Berlin. What should we do until then?”, asks San as Li pulls out a deck of cards from his suitcase. Gazing a little closer, the mask and the two schematics can be seen, along with the utensils and uniform of a bartender, inside the case.
As the train to the capital of Germany travel across the countryside, the passengers on board relax and enjoy the ride. Even though the journey has begun, the pacing would not be much different for another couple of days but, it would be much better to do things one at a time, step-by-step, rather than rush everything all at once, resulting in an incomprehensible mess. With the departure from the city of Hanover, at 11.45am, on the 20th of September, 1874, the journey that would discover something that could revolutionize the means of modern science begins as the ones who would unveil such development play Muushig.