Alyssa hopped out of the carriage and slammed the door behind her before he could respond, her gait quick and filled with purpose as she marched toward the Casting Hall. The acolytes that recognized her called out as she walked past, but she could only spare them brief waves of her hands as she headed toward the stairs, taking them three at a time until she reached the highest floor.
At the top, an enchanted door blocked access to Dunwayne’s private floor. Alyssa channeled her magic into it and it opened to her. How it worked was a mystery. She didn’t know much about enchanting, but she knew something complicated enough to record and recognize individual mana signatures was the work of a master. Perhaps beyond the fledgling masters of Harvest. She’d asked Dunwayne who crafted it once and he only replied that it was a gift.
The door leading to his office was open and Alyssa stepped inside without ceremony. She recognized all the faces as important members representing the main disciplines of the Hall, including her friends Brutus for foundation and Cynthia for alchemy. Dunwayne sat behind his desk, his tired expression showing every year of his long life. There was only one unexpected presence in the room.
Kierra stood in the center of the room, arms crossed and back straight. Alyssa hadn’t known the elf for long but if someone asked her to describe the foreigner, she’d feel confident describing her as a charming and playful woman. She was the epitome of the term “genius”, someone too talented to be burdened by life. She had a worrying comfortability with violence but had more than enough self-control to keep that one troubling aspect of her personality in check. Beyond that, she was kind, good-natured, and generous.
There was no trace of those qualities as she stood in the center of the Hall’s administrators. Her posture was tense and from the worried looks of those facing her, Alyssa could only imagine what kind of terrible expression she was making. She didn’t even turn around when the redhead entered and Alyssa knew Kierra was not only aware of her presence but who she was. It didn’t bode well for them if the elf was no longer being friendly.
“Thank you all for coming,” Dunwayne said in his usual jovial tone. That had been a shock to her. For a living legend, the Harvest Hero lacked the gravitas Alyssa would expect for a man with his reputation. As well as the ego. To anyone that had the pleasure of knowing him, he was just a kindly old man, doing his best to help the people of the kingdom. In some ways, that was more impressive than his accomplishments.
“I’ve gathered everyone here on behalf of Ms. D’Atainna.” He inclined his head toward Kierra. “It seems she has a matter to discuss with us that concerns the city. I have already heard the basics, but I ask that you repeat everything.”
“I do not mind, as today is the last day of talking.” Kierra’s voice was as hard and sharp as steel. “You are aware that Alana has come on behalf of her father to collect what is owed to the north.” Alyssa winced at the mention of the March. It was still hard to believe that such an insane tradition had escaped Victory’s walls. “The guilds refuse to pay the debts the north says are owed to them. They are confident fending off the north’s knights, but they are scared of my Lou. As they should be.” The elf’s shoulders became impossibly tenser. “First, they threatened us. Then they tried to kill us. When they realized their weakness, they instead attacked our hearts by kidnapping my flower and Yulia James.”
“Your flower?” one of the instructors asked.
“Umphrieltalia.”
Alyssa sucked in a sharp breath and many others in the room had similar reactions. The guilds had to be crazy laying their hands on the mental caster. Not because of her connections to the interrogators, those that was reason enough to be wary, but because of her relation to the elf. It was no wonder Kierra gave off the impression of a caged animal ready to lash out. The woman doted on her lovers something fierce. Having Talia taken and used against her must be driving the woman mad with rage.
“They’ve demanded that Lou and our clan leave the city or they will kill their hostages.”
“Cowards,” a male instructor muttered, the sentiment echoed by many others. Alyssa’s dread intensified.
“If you are here, then I suspect you don’t intend to comply with their demands,” Dunwayne said, his words soft, one step short of severe.
“No. The Tome clan has declared war against Quest.”
“Hey, now.” Alyssa couldn’t stop herself from interjecting. The room turned to her, including Kierra. The redhead had to suppress a shiver at what she saw in the elf’s eyes. Rage barely scratched the surface of the emotion she read in that gaze. “When you say war—"
“I mean exactly that. War. We’re going to reduce the city to rubble. In three days, the guilds will cease to exist.”
“You can’t! I mean, fucking ancestors. I understand that you’re upset. You’ve got every right to be, but the whole city? There are innocents that have nothing to do with this. Are you going to kill them too?”
“Innocents?” Kierra turned all the way around, her features twisting into a sneer. “There are no innocents. Why are the guilds so brazen? It is because all of you, those so-called innocents, have let them do as they please for too long. Those who keep quiet. Those who assist them. Those who do nothing. They are all guilty. None would be spared…if it were up to me.”
Alyssa swallowed as Kierra turned around, releasing her from the elf’s glare. “Once again, my Lou proves that she is better than all of you. She wants to protect the ‘innocents’ as you call them. That is why I am here. To give you the opportunity to evacuate the city.”
The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.
“You want us to help you?” Cynthia asked.
“The Hall is neutral party,” another woman barked before Kierra could respond. “Has been since its inception. That neutrality allows us to work with every faction, our acolytes setting aside personal grudges and traditions in the singular pursuit of excellence. You may be valuable as a pure affinity wielder, but we compromise everything this school stands for because you bit off more than you can chew.”
“…while the guilds actions are detestable, I agree.” Brutus looked at Kierra with reluctance. “Since Umphrieltalia terminated her employment with the Hall, we have no grounds to intervene. We’re sorry for your—"
“You are misunderstanding,” Kierra growled, cutting him off with a steadily rising voice. “We do not need your help. I do not want your help. In three days, there will be war. Do what you want but any who remain within Quest’s walls will die!”
Alyssa hurriedly moved out of the way as the elf stomped out of the room, throwing open the door and slamming it behind herself. There was silence until her footsteps disappeared. Then Dunwayne sighed heavily. “This isn’t good.”
“What are we going to do?” Cynthia asked. “Surely we aren’t going to stand aside while Kierra rampages through Quest?”
“Neutral means neutral,” the belligerent woman from before reiterated. “I don’t see what any of this has to do with the Hall.”
The alchemist scowled. “Neutral doesn’t mean independent. If Quest is embroiled in a serious conflict, how are we going to get supplies? Acolytes and instructors have family in the city. We need the city.”
“Forget supplies or whatever,” Brutus said. “I have an idea of Kierra’s strength. If she goes all out, the casualties won’t be small. There will be hundreds of deaths, maybe thousands.”
“Then what are you suggesting? Going after the hunters? Going after the elf? Either one of those could lead to the end of the Hall.”
“So we let them die?”
“Enough.” Dunwayne’s quiet command silenced the room. His gaze moved to Alyssa, who stiffened under the attention. “The reason I asked you here Allie is because you are the closest with the Tome family. What do you think of them declaring war on Quest?”
That explained it. Alyssa was skilled but she was nothing special amongst the instructors and had middling influence in the Hall. But, of the people gathered in the room, she had seen the most of Lou and her lovers. Enough to hopefully steer them to the right path.
“For those who don’t know me well,” she started carefully, “I’m a knight of the north. I say that so you know that I’ve fought titans and I don’t play political games. Knowing this, it’s my belief that the city is fucked and the threat isn’t Kierra. It’s Lou.”
A male instructor scoffed. “An initiate that hasn’t even completed a single year as an acolyte is more dangerous than a master caster with a pure affinity? You expect us to believe that?”
“You better,” the redhead snapped. The last thing they needed right now was undue condescension. “Kierra is dangerous. Incredibly dangerous even, but she still makes sense. I understand her and what she can do, to some extent. Lou? That girl makes no sense at all. I don’t know how to stop her. I don’t know if she can be stopped.”
The same man was going to interrupt but Dunwayne’s raised hand stopped him. “What does that mean?”
“I don’t know if you’ve heard the rumors that hunters cut Lou’s head off and she survived. I personally think it’s true. The girl threw a party where she demonstrated how durable she is. The people there threw their best at her and she took it like it was nothing. No magic. No healing. The girl’s regeneration is absolutely ridiculous. I think that’s what drove the hunters to such extreme action. A hostile army is one thing. An unkillable enemy is another.”
“Unkillable.” Dunwayne hummed to himself. “Do you agree with Brutus about the loss of life?”
“Oh, I more than agree. It’ll be worse than any of us can imagine.”
“…then we have no choice.” The old hero rose from his chair and swept his gaze across the room. “I have always stressed the Hall’s neutrality as pointless political games only get in the way of educating the casters of this kingdom. But I ask all of you to remember why we teach in the first place. Is it for us to sit on our accomplishments? No! This school was built to train the next generation so they would have the skills to face the next crisis that threatened humanity. We exist to save lives, foremost.”
“Then…we fight?” Cynthia asked, the tremble in her voice reflecting the room’s anxiety.
“…no. The guilds have chosen this fight. But we will accept Lady Tome’s mercy and evacuate the city. Organize the acolytes, call it a special assignment. Brutus, the foundation acolytes will go into the city, door to door, and tell the civilians to evacuate. They are not to force anyone, but they are to stress the seriousness of the situation. It may be arrogant of me to say so, but use my name liberally. I would hope the word of the Harvest Hero still means something.”
“It’ll be done,” the large man answered.
“Cynthia, gather who you need and organize supplies. Food and basic necessities for…a week should do.”
The alchemist balked. “Supplies to last thousands of people for a week in three days? That’s im—er, going to be very difficult. And expensive.”
“It doesn’t have to be anything too fine. Once the violence starts, the people will be happy to have anything.”
“Alright. I’ll do my best.”
“Benny, we need as many earth casters as you can find creating temporary shelters outside the city. Cooperate with Brutus. We need enough walls and tents to give people somewhere to sleep.”
The male instructor that had expressed his disbelief nodded.
“Wait a minute!” the belligerent woman interjected. “I didn’t join the Hall to wipe the collective ass of the city.” She scowled at the judgmental looks of the other instructors. “Maybe all of you are eager to throw away your time and money, but I don’t want any part of this. There was nothing in my contract that says I have to play hero.”
“Holly is right,” Dunwayne said before any could speak against her. “None of you are obligated to lend your aid. However.” The woman flinched as the old man fixed her with a glare. “Only walk away if you can stomach the guilt when people you could have saved die. It’ll be too late for regret then.”
“I…” Her words petered out and she bowed her head.
Dunwayne turned away from her. “Allie.”
“Yes sir!” The redhead responded, fighting a wave of embarrassment a moment later when she realized what she’d said. With the mood being what it was, she’d unconsciously reverted back to old mannerisms.
“You will take command of the Grand Watch and act as security for the temporary shelter. The biggest threat in a crisis is not the crisis itself but the panic it causes. I hope I can rely on you to impose order.”
Alyssa felt a headache coming on when she imagined spending days keeping a large group of scared people from doing something stupid. But it was what needed to be done. As Dunwayne said, it would be too late when bodies started dropping. She came south to avoid senseless deaths. “Alright.”
“There’s no time to waste. Remember that you are working to save lives and act with all due haste.”