"... 7am? Who in their right mind wants to attend a lesson at 7am?"
Standing in the fangled corridor was a single teacher, wearing a crisp brown jacket with a white undershirt and a green bowtie, staring at his new schedule. A name carved onto a wooden charm hung out from his chest pocket, with the name "Rekter" on it.
The schedules for students were carved in Dousala wooden screens for easy reference, and the schedules for teachers were placed onto a mist screen. Both of these common objects, however plain they appear, were magically enchanted to update itself regularly. Students would do their homework on the table, which meant they could refer to the screen easily. Teachers could see the mist screen whenever they walked in and out of the 45 degree angled corridors to their rooms. Essentially, it was easy for information to be transmitted since the times for lessons were placed in objects people would usually use or interact with in their daily lives.
But, most lessons did not start as early as 7am. 6am was a time for breakfast, and 6.30am was a time for prayers and piety. Depending on the student and the type of magic they used, as well as the class of belief their magicks were based in, their prayers could vary drastically from a 5 minute silent prayer to a large-scale ritual that would eat up hours. Therefore, lessons usually started at 9am o cater to the students in the normal stream curriculum.
Yet he had lessons with a single student at 7am on both Wednesdays and Thursdays, which clearly broke that tradition.
(You can't be serious... I'll have to consult Bertund about this tomorrow.)
This lesson must be something important enough, or unique enough to be placed away from the sights and ears of others, while the mess halls were filled with students still enjoying their breakfast and devout followers praying to their respective deities.
Rekter pondered over his newly-updated schedule.
(I really don't want to have to wake up this early in the morning just to entertain this. It's for a single student, too... I'm used to not eating breakfast, but with a schedule like that, it's as if they're forcing me to wake up early on these two days.)
Rekter scratched his head rhythmically, formulating a plan of action he's going to take.
(... Or it could be that this particular student has something that others should never learn of. SO it's my turn to take these, huh?... I guess the best idea I can come up with now is to rush this kid's class. If I can make this kid study at the rate of a few lessons at a time, whatever the class is, I'd have more time to myself.)
Rekter's eyelids sunk and his brows furrowed.
(I just hope they don't catch me using 解.)
With a plan in mind, Rekter headed towards his room and took off his clothes.
Surprisingly, the teachers' rooms appear almost identical to the students', except for the fact that every teacher has their own bathroom. Unlike the students, whom had to share a singular tank of water to bathe with, teachers have access to personal bathrooms with water that can be scented to the teacher's preference. For the most part, hygiene was a main factor, but there were also teachers whose magicks required the usage of medicinal baths to cleanse their bodies properly. Rekter wasn't one of those teachers, but the Selkpine-scented water was a luxury he enjoyed thoroughly.
He grabbed a towel hanging from a rack on the wardrobe, and headed to his bathroom, feeling the bliss of being a teacher in this facility.
*** ***
The clacking of hard leather soles on the floor could be heard from a man wearing a brown jacket and a green bowtie with a white undershirt and a small cup of mead in his hand.
Rekter had wanted to set up the room before the lesson had started, but when he opened the door, he was taken aback.
There was already a boy inside the room.
The boy had brilliant black hair, covering his head thickly. He was wearing the school uniform, and he looked like he was about 11 or 12 years old. Clutching a cloth- Or rather, a makeshift bag in his hands tightly, he looked a little nervous.
Prompting the boy, Rekter spoke.
Re : "Who are you? What are you doing here?"
The boy turned his head over to look at Rekter slowly, in a very stiff manner.
K : "I... I'm Ka-... Ka-Katachi. Kotsuba Katachi."
Re : "And what are you doing here?"
The boy quivered a bit, and then replied slowly.
K : "I'm... I'm here for a lesson at 7am, but it's... It's kind of dark in here..."
The boy seemed to be a new student to be unaware that a magic seal had to be drawn on the panel on the wall to activate Soltak's magic. That can mean one thing - He's the student Rekter was assigned to teach, and a new student at that.
Re : "Look over here. You can draw this symbol on this panel to switch the light on, and this one to switch it off."
Rekter switched the mead to his left hand, and demonstrated the actions to the boy. Strangely enough, that boy named Katachi seemed to appear rather stupid, being fascinated by the panel on the wall.
Re : "... Okay. Let me introduce myself. I am Rekter. Rekter Bluo. My specialty is in the Sha'koth legend and magic related to the trickster legend. As you can see, I'm dressed as Yurvik, one of Sha'koth's disguises. I will be your teacher for this class. So, since my schedule doesn't say anything about what I'm supposed to teach you, why don't you introduce yourself as well?"
Teacher schedules did not show the lessons to be held that day with good reason. Knowing nothing about the subject they are to teach, teachers are expected to be prepared for any situation. Even in times of peace, the teachers must always be prepared for the worst situations - That was the basis for the teachers in the Sage Raufid Magus Academy.
The boy seemed to look away for a little bit, and then spoke unconfidently.
K : "I... I am Kotsuba Katachi, and I'm 10 this... This... This year. I, I came to Sage Raufid's to... To... Learn more about the... The 'Curse Words'..."
Rekter's face paled.
Re : "... Did you just say 'Curse Words'?"
The boy nodded very slightly in agreement.
Re : (... Unbelievable. A boy his age actually knows the true name of the Words of Power... )
Rekter gulped his mead down and put the cup aside.
Re : (Damn it... Teaching a Word of Power is as good as suicide. Don't they know that?) "... Okay. But, before we begin our lessons, I would like to scope out how much you already know, then we can work from there. Is that alright?"
K : "O... Okay..."
Re : (At least he seems to lack confidence. I should be careful, though. If he truly knows the Words of Power and he's just feigning his stupidity, then this will turn out really unpleasant.)
K : "Uhm... To- To start with, the Words of Power are originally called 'Curse Words'. But... But during the hunt, the name sounded too... too- too ominous, so they changed the name to one more suitable. But its true name is a Curse Word, but, but-but-but knowing it in... In the mind is enough. Knowing it is called the Curse Words is enough for it to activate its true potential and heighten its precedence levels. And... And also, the name was ominous on purpose so the people would... Would change its name deliberately, weakening it on purpose..."
The boy trailed off, looking down so much his head was literally danging by his neck.
Rekter stared at the boy, in astonishment.
Re : (To even know the term 'precedence levels'... This is no simple kid 'just learning' about the Words of Power. He could potentially be as powerful, if not more powerful than I am.)
Re : "Where did you learn of this, boy?"
K : "There... There is a library at the church near... near my house, I often hid there and took it as a secret spot. I stumbled upon the bamboo book by pure accident, honest! But then... But then, there was this yellow glow inside the book, and the next thing I knew, this... This thing, was inside me..."
Re : (... Seriously?...)
Rekter began thinking hard. Very hard.
K : "Uhm... Mister Rekter?"
Re : (This boy found a Word of Power inside a bamboo book...? Then, whoever was reading the book probably had that Word of Power on him before he was killed, and the Word of Power must have slipped into the book. Then... The problem is, where and when was this person killed? Why had nobody taken the Word of Power inside the book? Was he killed with the intent to take his word, or by other means? How did this boy stumble upon the book?)
Rekter thought hard and hard on the subject, furrowing his brows.
Re : (Had the bamboo book always laid there on some crate or the floor, just waiting for someone to pick it up? Was that library never used again because a person actually died in a church's library?... But, what if he's lying? What if this kid knows exactly what he's doing, and he's trying to eke out my sympathy?... No, no. That can't be. His actions are quite shy and his hands are unstable, which means he's passive by nature. There's no way he's actually that evil to have murdered the actual owner of the Word of Power, and claimed it for his own.)
K : "... Mister Rekter...?"
Re : "... Ahh, I'm fine, I'm fine. So, you learnt quite a lot about the Words of Power already, huh."
The boy sheepishly nodded.
Re : "Well then, let's try something more practical. I want you to use that Word of Power on my cup over there. I'm going to try and understand how much you know about this magic in a practical."
The boy silently nodded, and looked over at the cup.
The words 固定 formed on the cup, and the 固 slowly faded away.
Re : (定?... So that's his character. Good. This is a good chance for me to scope out his abilities! 溶解! Dissolve object - Cup!)
A faint whisper echoed in the back of Rekter's head, and the words 溶解 formed on top of the cup as well.
Both words faded off at the same time, in less than a second.
Re : (What!?!... His precedence level... Is equal to my own!?)
Rekter stared at the boy, with a dumbfounded look printed upon his face.
*** ***
K : (He didn't seem to notice it. That's good.)
Katachi waved the teacher goodbye.
The teacher had apparently been shocked at a student he had met for the first day actually parring with him on the subject he was taking. With a few breathless gasps, he dismissed the one-student class, and said, "You already know more than enough... You don't need to attend any of these lessons anymore... You pass with flying colors. Easy as that." With a determined frown on his face, he left the classroom.
That teacher didn't seem to notice the little trick Katachi pulled.
And yet, with the only subject of the day, the week, and the rest of the semester aborted, he had free time to spare. It was only 7.14am.
There's plenty of time to spend.
K : "Now then... I guess I should start by tidying the place a little bit."
Katachi grabbed a tiny little duster, and found a stepladder in a nearby closet. With only one thought in mind, he walked onward in the magically enchanted halls.
K : (I want to wipe the dust off and clean those chandeliers in the atrium.)
Friday, 30 November 2012
Friday, 23 November 2012
Hello! Cozy here! :D
To the people who have read thus far - Hello! I'm Cozy T. W. but you can (CALLMECOZY) :D 神風 :D
I like this part of the WoP Quest universe. I can say I find it most unique, compared to when I've read those light novels which are like, all the rage in my life right now :D
In a recent light novel I've read, Seirei Tsukai no Blade Dance, there's only a girls' dormitory, and the poor protagonist has to *bleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep* and so, I feel sad for the poor protagonist. That's because only *bleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep* and so the protagonist naturally did not have *bleeeeeeeep* to go to.
In many series I've read, the boys and girls have to live seperately. "So long as they're not given the chance to commit the crime, they'd be safe." That's the basis those authors worked under, so logic and sense had to be incorporated into their stories, where the hormones of those teenagers rage around in a swirling storm. To be honest, I never liked that. It's like nobody ever thought of solving the problem any other way.
In WoP Quest, though, inside the Sage Raufid Magus Academy, there is a special directional magic in the hallways. That means you don't need to remember where the locations are - So long as you think about that location, the magic will guide your body there naturally.
Guys and girls don't need to sleep in different dormitories. Normal movement is impossible in the first place. Wanting to go to the "area behind you" sets your body to spin in a really funny way. Guys can't just "stand right here and peek through the window", because guys will naturally be guided off those kinds of areas.
It's like, a rubber ball bouncing on the floor, never actually entering the floor. Go there, forced to come back. Go there, forced to come back again. There's no way for them to peep. Therefore, it can defy the natural need for guys and girls to live in seperate dorms. :D
Of course, the Sage Raufid Magus Academy is only one small part of the story. It's where the journey begins, so... Yeah. :D
Look forward to the next instalment. :D It would be the start of the opening arc, where he actually starts school. Well, not like he's *bleeeeeeeep*. :3
Cozy T.W. Signing off.
Chapter 4 : A_Most_Strange_Stranger
K : "... Is that... A house for the gardener?"
*** ***
(This boy barged into my house, and now he wants to fight me... ? He doesn't seem to know who I am, though. I guess I can try to calm him down for now, until I figure out who exactly he is.)
Katachi had stumbled upon a small house made from stone. It had been a mere 3-minute walk from where that trap was set up, but before him was a rather exquisitely-built house. Plain and simple - Those words defined the hut perfectly. With a window at the front and the side, and a small, wooden door affixed into the granite walls, it was so basic it would have been regarded as "common", and "stereotypical".
That was not enough to deter Katachi's sense of adventure.
Pushing the door open gently, he peeked into the tiny hut.
The whole room could be described in one word - Messy. The cream ceiling and orange wall, the milk carpet and pumpkin furniture would have given off a homely feeling, had the entire place not been littered with occult objects, test tubes and vials, magic circles, a fridge with too many wooden tablets hung onto it, and to his left, a study desk with a board made to allow nails to be driven into it, to secure papers onto it.
K : (Wow! This... This is a gardener's house?)
He took a few more steps into the bizarre house, admiring its unusual interior, and had almost forgotten that he was trespassing.
K : (There's so many things...! A magic circuit used for coherence, a weird circle with webbings at the center, a sword hung on the wall, a portrait of a certain Sir Phlegmius with a huge knight's sword engraved with a serpent eating a fish on the blade, a weird 3-orb gadget with a handle, a model of Pierre's Dice, there's so many things to look at, I don't even know where to begin!)
Katachi was so absorbed that he failed to notice the groceries dropping onto the floor at the doorway.
"H-HAAAAAAAAAAH!!!"
(!) Katachi turned around, to meet a girl slightly taller than him, with blonde hair tied into four braids, and a bust size of Mount. Gigraceldi, donning the school's uniform.
"Who- Who are you!?"
It appears that this lady was the owner, if not a mere resident of the hut.
K : (She's the gardener!? But... That can't be right, she's wearing the same uniform as those girls inside that classroom. Maybe she's a caretaker or student of some sort? Had she been punished to stay in this place, away from everyone else? Or had she willingly chosen to stay here?)
K : (She's the gardener!? But... That can't be right, she's wearing the same uniform as those girls inside that classroom. Maybe she's a caretaker or student of some sort? Had she been punished to stay in this place, away from everyone else? Or had she willingly chosen to stay here?)
K : "I'm... I'm Katachi, I'm a new student of Sage Raufid's. My- My lesson was supposed to start tomorrow or the day after, so I just- I just... I..."
Katachi was shocked.
All his life, he had thought that Mother Rin's chest size had been the biggest he had ever seen. Mother Rin had said that a girl's chest is sensitive, and so only people they trust and permit the perusal are entitled to touching them, and that one should not indulge in the sin of lust. Having gone through such a limited education, he had come to believe that Mother Rin's chests were the biggest in existence.
K : (What in the- Those are HUGE! They don't fit her body size at all! Not even Mother Rin's were this big!... If they could come in THIS size, I wonder how big they can actually become...)
"You what?"
Katachi snapped back to consciousness. The girl before him was staring at him, seething with rage that he was staring at her chest.
K : "I... I. I just. Wandered around. T- Trap sprung. Al- Almost got killed... Found the hut, en- en- en- entered here. W- w- wasn't thinking. Cool- Cool stuff. You there. Exit... blocked..."
Since young, Katachi had lacked social interactions with the children of Mielfeud, being the ostracized bastard child and all. To be able to talk to a girl face-to-face gave rise to an uncomfortable feeling within him, even when they were 4 meters away from each other.
The fact that he was still stammering, and not frozen on the spot completely like a block of ice, was already pretty remarkable.
The fact that he was still stammering, and not frozen on the spot completely like a block of ice, was already pretty remarkable.
"Pfft! What's with you? There's no need to be this tense, it's not like I'm going- ... !"
The girl was scornfully mocking his erratic speech just a second before, but her face changed into a serious frown as she replayed his words in her head.
"... You sprang the trap?"
K : "Y-yes, I uh... I did. I touched that uh, wire thing, and these shards flew towards me."
The girl's eyes widened, and her jaw drooped in disbelief.
"... Impossible...! Those shards were infused with Vithrolu's decay magic! Your body was supposed to rot at the parts struck, and you should have no control over your rotting body!"
K : (Wha-...!!! I knew the trap wasn't that simple! It WAS a right choice protecting myself after all!) "That's really disturbing! A trap that rots bodies and kills people?! Who are you anyway!?"
The shock incited his natural instincts to defend himself.
K : (If I'm really going to die here, I'm not going down without a fight!)
Katachi bent his legs a little and bent his back, lowering his center of gravity. Should there be a surprise attack just like before, he would have to be ready to intercept every one of them.
The shock incited his natural instincts to defend himself.
K : (If I'm really going to die here, I'm not going down without a fight!)
Katachi bent his legs a little and bent his back, lowering his center of gravity. Should there be a surprise attack just like before, he would have to be ready to intercept every one of them.
*** ***
(This boy barged into my house, and now he wants to fight me... ? He doesn't seem to know who I am, though. I guess I can try to calm him down for now, until I figure out who exactly he is.)
B : "Me? I'm Bael. I'm an animationist, or, well, a reanimator if you rather that. I live here because my room mates often complain about a rotting smell coming from me, but I can't help it if I want to be proficient in my magic."
The boy wore a dumb look on his face.
K : "... You're not going to fight me?"
B : "You're in my house. If anything, I should be the one initiating the fight against a stranger like you, not the other way round."
The boy lowered his arms, and blushed at the apparent situation. He seems to have noticed that he was the one intruding, and should therefore expect to be attacked. To have let his guard down for even a slight second showed how his long his road to maturity and battle awareness was.
B : (C... Cute!..)
Bael started constructing very, very twisted thoughts in her brain.
B : (He's so... So stupid, so pure! He's like a clay doll that is still moist! Mmhmm, I want to mold him into a shape that suits me!)
Her face started to twist into a very wide, sinister smile. The boy must have noticed that because he took a few steps back in horror, when he had noticed the shifting eyebrows and lips on Bael's face.
B : "Hey, boy. What's your name?"
The boy retracted his neck further and further.
K : "... You're... not going to use my name for some voodoo spell, or anything weird, are you?"
B : "Fufufuu. I'm an animationist, not a hexer. I can't curse you even if I had your name."
The boy had finally let his guard down. Reaching out his hand slowly for a handshake, he muttered softly.
K : "... Then... Katachi. Kotsuba Katachi."
B : (... Kotsuba? That's... familiar. The structure suggests that he might have come from the far East, or maybe his parents did. Ohde, maybe?) "... Nice to meet you, Kotsuba-Katachi."
She had uttered his name in an unusually-afst fashion. Katachi's face had curled into an irritated frown upon hearing that.
K : "... You know what, just call me Katachi. I would rather you just call my name if you're not going to pause between my name and surname."
B : (His name... ! Wait, his name! I know it means something funny in Ohdean! I don't know what, but I've heard of it before!)
Bael's head brewed with a nasty idea.
B : "I have a better idea. I'll just call you 'Baka'."
K : "... Please don't call me by this name when others are around."
Bael is going to love teasing the daylights out of him.
*** ***
Katachi walked out of Cosmatral Neud and rested onto a bench right outside an archway that led to the halls. His cloth was well patched up, with a small hankerchief dyed the same color as the cloth, and some very fine stitching.
K : (What a difficult woman.)
After mocking his name for a good 10 minutes, the huge-breasted female named Bael proceeded to pour some tea for him, and they chatted for around 5 hours, with her talking excitedly about the school's history and facilities. The only thing he could have done was to tolerate and wait until her mouth ran dry, which was a bad idea in any case.
She had animated her teapots to refill her cup on an automatic basis, so even before a quarter of the way through Katachi had dozed off. The cloth on him being repaired was probably the only thing Katachi was thankful for after visiting the house, apart from the view of the interior.
Having entered the garden at around noon, he was quite shocked to realize that the sun was almost halfway down.
K : (Haa... I'll have to head back to my room. Where is it...? Oh, wait. The halls are filled with that funny magic that takes you where you want to go.)
Stepping through the archway into the inside of the school, he felt the directional magic controlling his limbs oppressively. Katachi had headed left, but the magic forced his body to turn around, and walk to his right. That would have been an uncomfortable feeling, but thankfully it was short-lived. Had one suffered that effect for long periods, one would most likely puke from dizziness.
K : (So, from the garden to my room, I would have to take a right, then a left, up the stairs, walk along the handles of the stairs, and loop over it, walk down the corridor, take a sharp right, the third room to the right. Huh. I'm not that far from my room. That might be good news.)
Entering his room, he saw a plain, classic room, with a bed and a rack with some clean uniforms already prepared, and a small, plain desk. The only odd thing about the room was that the rack had been deliberately placed above the bed, so if he had got up while in bed Katachi's head will definitely collide with the rack painfully.
On the table was a wooden tablet with his study schedule on it.
K : (... I only have classes on Wednesdays and Thursdays, so I guess the lesson plan is rather relaxed. I wonder if the students around have a schedule like this as well.)
Placing his sling cloth onto the table gently, Katachi walked out of his room, and only had one thought in mind.
K : (I want to bathe.)
The magic made his body turn to the left, and he started marching towards the boys' bathroom.
K : "... You're not going to fight me?"
B : "You're in my house. If anything, I should be the one initiating the fight against a stranger like you, not the other way round."
The boy lowered his arms, and blushed at the apparent situation. He seems to have noticed that he was the one intruding, and should therefore expect to be attacked. To have let his guard down for even a slight second showed how his long his road to maturity and battle awareness was.
B : (C... Cute!..)
Bael started constructing very, very twisted thoughts in her brain.
B : (He's so... So stupid, so pure! He's like a clay doll that is still moist! Mmhmm, I want to mold him into a shape that suits me!)
Her face started to twist into a very wide, sinister smile. The boy must have noticed that because he took a few steps back in horror, when he had noticed the shifting eyebrows and lips on Bael's face.
B : "Hey, boy. What's your name?"
The boy retracted his neck further and further.
K : "... You're... not going to use my name for some voodoo spell, or anything weird, are you?"
B : "Fufufuu. I'm an animationist, not a hexer. I can't curse you even if I had your name."
The boy had finally let his guard down. Reaching out his hand slowly for a handshake, he muttered softly.
K : "... Then... Katachi. Kotsuba Katachi."
B : (... Kotsuba? That's... familiar. The structure suggests that he might have come from the far East, or maybe his parents did. Ohde, maybe?) "... Nice to meet you, Kotsuba-Katachi."
She had uttered his name in an unusually-afst fashion. Katachi's face had curled into an irritated frown upon hearing that.
K : "... You know what, just call me Katachi. I would rather you just call my name if you're not going to pause between my name and surname."
B : (His name... ! Wait, his name! I know it means something funny in Ohdean! I don't know what, but I've heard of it before!)
Bael's head brewed with a nasty idea.
B : "I have a better idea. I'll just call you 'Baka'."
K : "... Please don't call me by this name when others are around."
Bael is going to love teasing the daylights out of him.
*** ***
Katachi walked out of Cosmatral Neud and rested onto a bench right outside an archway that led to the halls. His cloth was well patched up, with a small hankerchief dyed the same color as the cloth, and some very fine stitching.
K : (What a difficult woman.)
After mocking his name for a good 10 minutes, the huge-breasted female named Bael proceeded to pour some tea for him, and they chatted for around 5 hours, with her talking excitedly about the school's history and facilities. The only thing he could have done was to tolerate and wait until her mouth ran dry, which was a bad idea in any case.
She had animated her teapots to refill her cup on an automatic basis, so even before a quarter of the way through Katachi had dozed off. The cloth on him being repaired was probably the only thing Katachi was thankful for after visiting the house, apart from the view of the interior.
Having entered the garden at around noon, he was quite shocked to realize that the sun was almost halfway down.
K : (Haa... I'll have to head back to my room. Where is it...? Oh, wait. The halls are filled with that funny magic that takes you where you want to go.)
Stepping through the archway into the inside of the school, he felt the directional magic controlling his limbs oppressively. Katachi had headed left, but the magic forced his body to turn around, and walk to his right. That would have been an uncomfortable feeling, but thankfully it was short-lived. Had one suffered that effect for long periods, one would most likely puke from dizziness.
K : (So, from the garden to my room, I would have to take a right, then a left, up the stairs, walk along the handles of the stairs, and loop over it, walk down the corridor, take a sharp right, the third room to the right. Huh. I'm not that far from my room. That might be good news.)
Entering his room, he saw a plain, classic room, with a bed and a rack with some clean uniforms already prepared, and a small, plain desk. The only odd thing about the room was that the rack had been deliberately placed above the bed, so if he had got up while in bed Katachi's head will definitely collide with the rack painfully.
On the table was a wooden tablet with his study schedule on it.
K : (... I only have classes on Wednesdays and Thursdays, so I guess the lesson plan is rather relaxed. I wonder if the students around have a schedule like this as well.)
Placing his sling cloth onto the table gently, Katachi walked out of his room, and only had one thought in mind.
K : (I want to bathe.)
The magic made his body turn to the left, and he started marching towards the boys' bathroom.
Friday, 16 November 2012
Chapter 3 : Hated_Fated_Encounter
The wooden-soled shoes clacked noisily on the hallway.
In normal cases, where most students would have come from Bellpot or other large cities, their shoes would have been fresh-smelling, nicely polished, comfortable leather shoes, a gift from their parents.
Katachi had no such luxury to get such expensive shoes, having grown up with Mother Rinnesfeld whom believed that Nature has much to offer those who worked hard. It was quite unthinkable from a child's perspective to get such shoddy soles to wear to a prestigious, sacred land such as the Sage Raufid Magus Academy.
Of course, physical vanity and the like weren't problems for neither Mother Rinnesfeld nor Katachi; They had used Mother Nature sparingly and expressed their gratitude whenever they did. It had become a commodity to silently thank Segus and Mother Nature for anything and everything. It appeared too good to be true in the eyes of others, but non-believers can only doubt their faith for as long as they have not experienced it themselves.
Regardless to say, everyone in the vicinity 20 meters away from where Katachi was heard the noisy wooden soles plopping and clacking, disturbing the lessons that were going on and the peace of the general area.
K : (That green man they call 'Principal' seems to be right... The people who are walking here all have their heads fixed to their front as they walk. Wandering around without the slightest clue to this place, without a destination is the solution to overriding this magic in the day... It doesn't stay the same at night, does it? Did they put some sort of rune to determine when the magic needs to switch in phase? If so, how do they set that? The bamboo books never mentioned how to set them up...)
Three girls excitedly chatting to each other noticed the wooden plopping getting louder and clearer, and stopped to stare outside their class, at a completely clueless Katachi.
"Who is he?"
"Ugh, he looks so filthy!"
"Is he a new student?"
"Ugh, he looks so filthy!"
"Is he a new student?"
"Why is he wearing those shoes?"
"Look at how worn-out his clothes are!"
Instantly, his distinctive differences were picked on.
Students who went to the Sage Raufid Magus Academy often came from rich and poor families alike, but with a single glance into the classroom, Katachi roughly understood the situation.
There was a rather large group of those rich children who were talking to each other in a prideful manner, flaunting their riches and such before the others. It was obvious because their uniforms were hemmed with gold and silver, their bags were of a high-quality shiny leather that reflected the sun's rays, similar to their shoes, and they stood with their chests puffed out and arms crossed, trying their best to impress the others in the group with their parents' wealth and influence. Among the 5 who stood, one was a female who even boasted about her chest.
There was another group who had normal uniforms, classic cloth knapsacks and were generally doing their own things - Reading the books they had, twiddling their thumbs, or discussing something about Fey lines which Katachi presumed was a subject or chapter they had to study on. These people who were grouped like so were obviously those of a lower status, or class, whom have probably ended up in that class by scoring roughly the same as those rich people. With that single image, one conclusion had been derived.
K : (It appears that the classes in this place are formed and based on magic compatibility instead of status, hierarchy and ranking, centralising the good and improving the quality of the magically adept by giving them reliable, relevant competitiveness amongst their classmates. It's still too soon to judge, though, so I'll just keep that as a possibility.)
Not minding the onlookers who were now focused on the clear, resonant noise outside the door, Katachi continued walking.
*** ***
Katachi walked into a huge, wonderful-looking garden without noticing.
The entire school and its structure was just absolutely bewitching, to the point where remembering every detail would need one to use those very halls repeatedly. Since turning around to look behind would set the 'destination' behind him, it would just continuously force his body to twist to his left repeatedly and pace back and forth a 2-tile wide area, forcibly making Katachi look like he's dancing to an awkward tune unheard by the other students.
It wasn't a good thing either since he was making even more noise with his already-distracting wooden shoes. Having experienced that once, it was safe to say that turning to look backwards was by no means a good idea under the influence of that magic.
It wasn't a good thing either since he was making even more noise with his already-distracting wooden shoes. Having experienced that once, it was safe to say that turning to look backwards was by no means a good idea under the influence of that magic.
K : (It seems as though that magic itself is flawed in its own way as well... Ugh. I feel like throwing up...)
Leaning against a tree to catch his breath, Katachi soon found himself in a garden, without any clue on how he got here.
It was a beautiful sight.
The pavilion to his left was covered in a lot of vines, showing the neglect it had suffered. Though it had creeper plants all over the pillars and roof, it was perfectly clean in the center, if someone would put effort into dusting. Perhaps the seat area had been enchanted or made with a certain life-rejecting material, the pavilion was full of nature and yet the center was devoid of life. To his right-
K : (... ? What is that?)
-was a strange wire, attached to a very small, well-camouflaged magic circle on one end and one of the pavilion's pillar on the other.
K : (Why is there a line here? I have never seen spiders form their webs like that. No, the line is too thick, that's most likely not from a spider. What is this doing here?)
Out of curiosity, he tapped on the wire, expecting the line to be stuck on his finger.
The instant he had touched the wire, however-
K : "Wha!?"
-it burned out into an ethereal realm with a purple tracer, leaving nothing behind. The magic circle connected to one end of it glowed a sinister red, and a few pieces of tiny bits of what seemed to be fingernails, dead bugs, a beak of a crow snapped off and the like, floated in mid-air.
All of the tiny pieces were rather pointed, and were all primed towards Katachi.
K : (Is this... a trap?!)
Within a second of them floating and stabilizing in midair, they all flew towards Katachi in a menacing, merciless omni-directional pincer attack.
In that swift instant, the only thing one could do was think. It was a trap made deliberately to assault an opponent without giving them the chance to react. One could not dodge, or cast a spell to surround themselves with Earth to shield themselves, or anything else for that matter.
But for the black-haired boy, thinking was more than enough.
But for the black-haired boy, thinking was more than enough.
K : (恒定! Constant status - Self!)
A coarse, dry whisper exhaled out the words out in the back of his head. Two words formed on Katachi's body faster than an instant.
One of the words, 定, was radiating with a golden glow. It was placed directly on his stomach region above the shirt, which would have made the cast word seem obvious. The other word, 恒, had a very faint, smoky, grey outline, resembling a word made from a cloud. It was formed the same time as the character 定 but it soon proved to be completely unstable, as it had already started dissipating the very moment it was formed.
The tiny shards flew towards his body, landing onto his skin.
The small dart objects had cleanly landed onto him, and roughly 19 clicks could be heard within that moment. However, "landing" on him seemed to be the only thing it did. The objects were fairly small, and did not seem to carry any power in itself. Even if Katachi had not used the Word of Power as a shield, he would have probably lived through the trap.
That was only true if these tiny shards did not possess any secrets; For example, had they been coated with poison, or some sort of burning magic, then using the Word of Power to protect himself was truly a right choice. It could have been worth gambling the fact that it did not have secrets, and he could have taken the attack head-on, but Katachi chose not to take the risk since there was no benefit to that at all.
That was only true if these tiny shards did not possess any secrets; For example, had they been coated with poison, or some sort of burning magic, then using the Word of Power to protect himself was truly a right choice. It could have been worth gambling the fact that it did not have secrets, and he could have taken the attack head-on, but Katachi chose not to take the risk since there was no benefit to that at all.
K : (... Had I been late, I might have died. They may be small, but the speed they were flying at was not to be laughed at. That was a speed meant to maim, not as a harmless prank like those boys who used to dump buckets on me.)
Katachi brushed the small objects off of his body, but he's not out of danger yet.
K : (...! Oh no! Fade off, fade off, quickly!!)
The word faded off his torso in slightly more than half a second. Glancing around, Katachi tried his best to locate anyone who could have seen him. With only the cries of crickets and cicadas filling the area, Katachi heaved a sigh of relief.
The word faded off pretty quickly, but that was still dangerous - Had anybody seen that obvious, distinct Word of Power, he would have been busted on the very day he enrolled. That was something he would, with all of his power, avoid at any cost.
Katachi brushed the small objects off of his body, but he's not out of danger yet.
K : (...! Oh no! Fade off, fade off, quickly!!)
The word faded off his torso in slightly more than half a second. Glancing around, Katachi tried his best to locate anyone who could have seen him. With only the cries of crickets and cicadas filling the area, Katachi heaved a sigh of relief.
The word faded off pretty quickly, but that was still dangerous - Had anybody seen that obvious, distinct Word of Power, he would have been busted on the very day he enrolled. That was something he would, with all of his power, avoid at any cost.
Thanking the Gods for his safety and luck, he continued walking through the garden.
*** ***
The "garden" was considered an important piece of history within the Sage Raufid Magus Academy.
It was a special place of many flora and fauna, isolated into a plane known as Cosmatral Neud. Its only active entrance and exit was the center of the academy itself. Sage Raufid wanted to preserve as much life as possible during the warring days, so he had invested a large amount of gold and magic to make Cosmatral Neud possible. Unfortunately, since it acted only on a natural plane, the Path-finding magic did not work in Cosmatral Neud. Therefore, the automatic lead-you-to-your-destination magic was absent in the garden. This also meant that the place was a frequent hiding spot for students.
Katachi's presence there could have a drastic effect on the living things there.
Of course, so long as he did not enter the place with the intent to destroy everything, he was always welcome into Cosmatral Neud. His Word of Power was not something any force of nature could handle, for it did not originate from nature, beliefs nor legends, unlike most forms of magic.
The green-suited man reached his left hand into his slimy hat, and scratched the center of his head. The slime wriggled excitedly as a familiar foreign object entered it and tickled it up from the inside.
Y : "Do you really think it's safe for him to be there, Bertund?"
Yorn spoke with a low baritone and an irritated face.
The principal took his hand out from his slime hat, and interlocked his fingers together.
B : "Oh, it's perfectly safe for him to be there, Yorn. He can storm through the entire garden and Bael's traps like a walk in the park. I'm actually more concerned about the animals there reacting unfavorably."
Bertund did not seem concerned in the least.
Y : "He had just enrolled today! Surely your expectations in this child are too high?!"
Hearing that, Bertund gave a low, sinister chuckle.
B : "You worry too much, Yorn. Are you really that foolish to think that all the magic in the world work on the same dimensions? Or have you forgotten how powerful the Words of Power really are, even individually?"
Yorn's face twisted into a deep frown, unhappy at the fact that he was called foolish. But, as a subordinate, he could only suck it up and tolerate the tactlessness the principal exuded.
B : "Well, you'll see in due time, Yorn. I'm excited to see how things will turn out."
Y : "What do you-..."
Yorn stopped, noticing what he meant.
B : "... Indeed. He is dangerously close to Bael's house. Let's see what will become of this, shall we?"
Sunday, 11 November 2012
Chapter 2 : Peculiar_Principal_Greenlover.
Before the young 10 year old was a huge facility that gave off a castle-like feel.
It was a plot of land given to an aristocrat and a great sorcerer, by the name of Sage Raufid. According to the bamboo books inside the library, Sage Raufid wept at the potential magi dying because of the tides of war. To have built an entire academy to service the public and fish out the potential magi of the world, this place had been worshiped as a sacred ground to the figures of the world.
He wasn't used to such a classy sight. With hesitation, Katachi entered the building.
Setting foot into the grandeur hall, his eyes locked onto the first thing he saw - The great interior of the academy.
The elegant, strange design of the place appalled him. The chandeliers were shaped irregularly, and some even had magic seals on them. The pillars were not straight ones that normal people used to support buildings, and they swirled and spun in such weird fashions it seemed as if the building was the one supporting them. An orange rug was laid out in the center, almost as if saying "Right this way, guest of honor."
At a small corner of the eloquent view, was a familiar existence that ruined the entire flavor of that wonder.
"Hah. I didn't think the orphan would be allowed to attend this school."
... He remembered that voice.
There were three people in Mielfeud that constantly picked on him.
The first was Juval, a big brute who was the raw strength of the three. He would grab Katachi by his ragged cloth shirt and drag him to a dark alley. He had been here at this academy once, only to be sent back to Mielfeud as a laborman because he wasn't adept at magic.
The next was Zirco, the scheming brains of the group. He wasn't necessarily bad, but his mouth spewed forth the lies and slander that garnered the spite of others. He had probably been here at the Sage Raufid Magus Academy for about a year now, since he was two years younger than Juval.
And the one before him was the savage one in the group who would hurt him physically and mentally.
K : "Hello again, Dante."
D : "You scum! Don't talk to me in such a friend-like manner! You're just a bastard child unwanted by your parents!"
Clenching his fist hard, Katachi took a few short breaths to calm down, before relaxing his grip.
K : "I have no reason to take your humiliation here. I'll be off."
D : "Hah! Are you a coward?"
Katachi remembered Mother Rin's words in his heart - They were still immature, so their acts differ little from those of a fool's. He saw no reason to be dragged into his pace. With that preceding his baseless insults, Katachi walked up the steps, towards the second level.
D : "You'll never be able to use magic. You'll be sent back to Mielfeud and live the rest of your days as a lame, dirt poor priest! You'll always be a coward who's all talk and no action! GET BACK HERE WHEN I'M TALKING TO YOU, DAMN IT!!"
"SHUT UP!!!"
It seemed as though an adult, most probably a teacher in the academy felt disturbed by Dante's actions, and was now scolding him. The teacher placed some sort of seal on the magic circle at the top of his arm, most likely for misconduct.
K : (... This is new... The adults actually stood up for me.)
He had never received such treatment from another, not even once. To the child, it was a shock that he was protected by someone else, and even cared for.
Silently thanking the timely intervention, Katachi continued on his way along the orange rug.
*** ***
"... Welcome, new student. You are?"
Before him was a strange man indeed.
He wore a crisp green fancy uniform, with a white undershirt and a red colored tie. He had a really peculiar sun hat that seemed to be made out of a strange green jelly-like material shaped into a top hat.
From what he could remember, beings like that were called Slimes. Soft, brainless and resilient towards physical trauma, it was often a suitable enemy to train against. Why the man before him was wearing one as a hat, though, baffled Katachi.
But it fascinated him. Such a strange creature, told of only in the books of old in a time where monsters existed, sitting there quietly before him in its own little world...
And yet, the terrors it could induce. It was best to leave it be.
K : "I'm Katachi. Kotsuba Katachi. I... turned 10 just a week ago."
*Cozy's Notes : Discrepancy alert - He believes that he's 10, but he's not.*
B : "Ahh, a new student, aren't you?"
In his hand was a strangely-shaped snack that resembled a lizard that had been roasted over a flame of sorts, eaten out from its belly.
K : "... Is that... A newt on a stick?"
B : "My, how observant. Most students here don't even know what a newt is."
Licking his lips, he took another bite off the area at the abdomen, and the entire right leg of the newt snapped off easily. It made a squishy, chewy sound within his mouth, which gave Katachi a good number of goosebumps.
B : "Your astuteness will definitely help you in becoming someone great one day. Right then, your perceptual ability aside, let's see some magic, young boy. Do you have anything to show me?"
K : "I... I do."
Hearing Katachi stammer was not something people heard often. On the other hand, as he was constantly oppressed since he was young, Katachi probably didn't have much social interaction with people except Mother Rin. It was understandable how he was nervous speaking to others.
K : "But... Could you get the teacher standing there to go outside first, please?"
Katachi was indeed nervous.
Most students, upon meeting a stranger, would be nervous if they performed poorly on a first impression.
However, Katachi was nervous for a completely different reason.
B : "Feeling pressured from eyes watching you? Very well then. Take your leave, Yorn. Let me handle this first."
He had hoped the principal before him would keep the secret.
With a grunt, the huge teacher with a really large upper torso left the room through the wooden doors.
B : "Right then, let's see what you can do, boy."
Katachi's hands felt cold.
He extended a finger, and approached the desk with it.
(Should I do it...? Should I not do it... ? He's suspicious, but he seems pretty broad-minded seeing how he just readily accepts me being observant. It's... It's a gamble. Okay. Here goes...)
Pointing at the desk, a glowing, golden character was formed on it. A small amount of smoke appeared from the book right next to the character.
It was a most peculiar symbol - 定.
*** ***
B : "I have to say, that was a marvelous display, Mister Kotsuba.Usinge it at the age of ten is wondrous indeed. That kind of power can get you into the best class easily; In fact, you might not even stay in this school for long if you keep growing at this rate."
Katachi was kind of happy at being called a "mister", but it was no time to be elated.
K : "I don't want a best class, actually. I want a curriculum that can maximize my own potentials my way."
He had uttered it with flawless replication of Mother Rin's words - "The best is a standard set by the one who has achieved it. I would want something to be set for me, not by some person who didn't even know me."
Nodding in agreement, the principal's eyes squinted a little bit.
B : "Interesting. You truly are interesting, Mister Kotsuba. Most children would blindly go for the 'best class' because it offers the greatest diversity in finding their own affinities in magic, but it seems you have your heart set on what you already have, no?"
K : "Never doubt it."
Katachi felt kind of glad to be around the principal - He was surprisingly comfortable to talk to, despite dressing in such an awkward manner.
B : "I like that positive response. Very well. Here is a magic circle indicating your official registration into our school."
Snapping a glove snugly over his left hand, he placed his palm on the top of Katachi's arm. A slight, burning sensation was felt, and a circle was tattooed onto his skin.
B : "I have to say, I really love students that wear clothes as ragged as these. It may be a bit chilly in the long run, but that beats having to roll up your sleeves to place these magic circles."
Staring at the magic circle closely, Katachi raised his left arm a little bit to get a better look at the newly-added seal.
B : "Don't worry. That seal identifies you as an Academy student. It wears off when you leave this area, and vice versa."
Hearing that, he relaxed his left arm.
B : "In any case, welcome, to the Sage Raufid Magus Academy! I'm your principal and the descendant of Raufid, Bertund. There is path finding magic all over the corridors and walls, so you just need to close your eyes, think of your destination and walk forward naturally. The magic will guide you directly, so there's no need to be afraid of getting lost."
Bertund wagged his fingers around, as a gesture to represent the magic's assumed omnipresence.
B : "The path determination magic is unlocked only during breaks and is fixed at night, which means even if you try to sneak out during curfew, you'd be naturally redirected back to your room. Enjoy your stay here, Mister Kotsuba. I'll be heading back to work now. If you need anything, just form my image in your head and you will know how to get to me."
K : "Okay."
B : "One last thing - Take it easy just for today, and wander about the school, enjoy the scenery, remember the places if you have to. Walking and admiring without thinking of where you want to go is the secret to countering this magic. Your first lesson is scheduled to start in two days. Enjoy yourself until then."
With a wave, he invited Yorn back into the room, and closed the wooden door with a gentle click.
It was a plot of land given to an aristocrat and a great sorcerer, by the name of Sage Raufid. According to the bamboo books inside the library, Sage Raufid wept at the potential magi dying because of the tides of war. To have built an entire academy to service the public and fish out the potential magi of the world, this place had been worshiped as a sacred ground to the figures of the world.
He wasn't used to such a classy sight. With hesitation, Katachi entered the building.
Setting foot into the grandeur hall, his eyes locked onto the first thing he saw - The great interior of the academy.
The elegant, strange design of the place appalled him. The chandeliers were shaped irregularly, and some even had magic seals on them. The pillars were not straight ones that normal people used to support buildings, and they swirled and spun in such weird fashions it seemed as if the building was the one supporting them. An orange rug was laid out in the center, almost as if saying "Right this way, guest of honor."
At a small corner of the eloquent view, was a familiar existence that ruined the entire flavor of that wonder.
"Hah. I didn't think the orphan would be allowed to attend this school."
... He remembered that voice.
There were three people in Mielfeud that constantly picked on him.
The first was Juval, a big brute who was the raw strength of the three. He would grab Katachi by his ragged cloth shirt and drag him to a dark alley. He had been here at this academy once, only to be sent back to Mielfeud as a laborman because he wasn't adept at magic.
The next was Zirco, the scheming brains of the group. He wasn't necessarily bad, but his mouth spewed forth the lies and slander that garnered the spite of others. He had probably been here at the Sage Raufid Magus Academy for about a year now, since he was two years younger than Juval.
And the one before him was the savage one in the group who would hurt him physically and mentally.
K : "Hello again, Dante."
D : "You scum! Don't talk to me in such a friend-like manner! You're just a bastard child unwanted by your parents!"
Clenching his fist hard, Katachi took a few short breaths to calm down, before relaxing his grip.
K : "I have no reason to take your humiliation here. I'll be off."
D : "Hah! Are you a coward?"
Katachi remembered Mother Rin's words in his heart - They were still immature, so their acts differ little from those of a fool's. He saw no reason to be dragged into his pace. With that preceding his baseless insults, Katachi walked up the steps, towards the second level.
D : "You'll never be able to use magic. You'll be sent back to Mielfeud and live the rest of your days as a lame, dirt poor priest! You'll always be a coward who's all talk and no action! GET BACK HERE WHEN I'M TALKING TO YOU, DAMN IT!!"
"SHUT UP!!!"
It seemed as though an adult, most probably a teacher in the academy felt disturbed by Dante's actions, and was now scolding him. The teacher placed some sort of seal on the magic circle at the top of his arm, most likely for misconduct.
K : (... This is new... The adults actually stood up for me.)
He had never received such treatment from another, not even once. To the child, it was a shock that he was protected by someone else, and even cared for.
Silently thanking the timely intervention, Katachi continued on his way along the orange rug.
*** ***
"... Welcome, new student. You are?"
Before him was a strange man indeed.
He wore a crisp green fancy uniform, with a white undershirt and a red colored tie. He had a really peculiar sun hat that seemed to be made out of a strange green jelly-like material shaped into a top hat.
From what he could remember, beings like that were called Slimes. Soft, brainless and resilient towards physical trauma, it was often a suitable enemy to train against. Why the man before him was wearing one as a hat, though, baffled Katachi.
But it fascinated him. Such a strange creature, told of only in the books of old in a time where monsters existed, sitting there quietly before him in its own little world...
And yet, the terrors it could induce. It was best to leave it be.
K : "I'm Katachi. Kotsuba Katachi. I... turned 10 just a week ago."
*Cozy's Notes : Discrepancy alert - He believes that he's 10, but he's not.*
B : "Ahh, a new student, aren't you?"
In his hand was a strangely-shaped snack that resembled a lizard that had been roasted over a flame of sorts, eaten out from its belly.
K : "... Is that... A newt on a stick?"
B : "My, how observant. Most students here don't even know what a newt is."
Licking his lips, he took another bite off the area at the abdomen, and the entire right leg of the newt snapped off easily. It made a squishy, chewy sound within his mouth, which gave Katachi a good number of goosebumps.
B : "Your astuteness will definitely help you in becoming someone great one day. Right then, your perceptual ability aside, let's see some magic, young boy. Do you have anything to show me?"
K : "I... I do."
Hearing Katachi stammer was not something people heard often. On the other hand, as he was constantly oppressed since he was young, Katachi probably didn't have much social interaction with people except Mother Rin. It was understandable how he was nervous speaking to others.
K : "But... Could you get the teacher standing there to go outside first, please?"
Katachi was indeed nervous.
Most students, upon meeting a stranger, would be nervous if they performed poorly on a first impression.
However, Katachi was nervous for a completely different reason.
B : "Feeling pressured from eyes watching you? Very well then. Take your leave, Yorn. Let me handle this first."
He had hoped the principal before him would keep the secret.
With a grunt, the huge teacher with a really large upper torso left the room through the wooden doors.
B : "Right then, let's see what you can do, boy."
Katachi's hands felt cold.
He extended a finger, and approached the desk with it.
(Should I do it...? Should I not do it... ? He's suspicious, but he seems pretty broad-minded seeing how he just readily accepts me being observant. It's... It's a gamble. Okay. Here goes...)
Pointing at the desk, a glowing, golden character was formed on it. A small amount of smoke appeared from the book right next to the character.
It was a most peculiar symbol - 定.
*** ***
B : "I have to say, that was a marvelous display, Mister Kotsuba.Usinge it at the age of ten is wondrous indeed. That kind of power can get you into the best class easily; In fact, you might not even stay in this school for long if you keep growing at this rate."
Katachi was kind of happy at being called a "mister", but it was no time to be elated.
K : "I don't want a best class, actually. I want a curriculum that can maximize my own potentials my way."
He had uttered it with flawless replication of Mother Rin's words - "The best is a standard set by the one who has achieved it. I would want something to be set for me, not by some person who didn't even know me."
Nodding in agreement, the principal's eyes squinted a little bit.
B : "Interesting. You truly are interesting, Mister Kotsuba. Most children would blindly go for the 'best class' because it offers the greatest diversity in finding their own affinities in magic, but it seems you have your heart set on what you already have, no?"
K : "Never doubt it."
Katachi felt kind of glad to be around the principal - He was surprisingly comfortable to talk to, despite dressing in such an awkward manner.
B : "I like that positive response. Very well. Here is a magic circle indicating your official registration into our school."
Snapping a glove snugly over his left hand, he placed his palm on the top of Katachi's arm. A slight, burning sensation was felt, and a circle was tattooed onto his skin.
B : "I have to say, I really love students that wear clothes as ragged as these. It may be a bit chilly in the long run, but that beats having to roll up your sleeves to place these magic circles."
Staring at the magic circle closely, Katachi raised his left arm a little bit to get a better look at the newly-added seal.
B : "Don't worry. That seal identifies you as an Academy student. It wears off when you leave this area, and vice versa."
Hearing that, he relaxed his left arm.
B : "In any case, welcome, to the Sage Raufid Magus Academy! I'm your principal and the descendant of Raufid, Bertund. There is path finding magic all over the corridors and walls, so you just need to close your eyes, think of your destination and walk forward naturally. The magic will guide you directly, so there's no need to be afraid of getting lost."
Bertund wagged his fingers around, as a gesture to represent the magic's assumed omnipresence.
B : "The path determination magic is unlocked only during breaks and is fixed at night, which means even if you try to sneak out during curfew, you'd be naturally redirected back to your room. Enjoy your stay here, Mister Kotsuba. I'll be heading back to work now. If you need anything, just form my image in your head and you will know how to get to me."
K : "Okay."
B : "One last thing - Take it easy just for today, and wander about the school, enjoy the scenery, remember the places if you have to. Walking and admiring without thinking of where you want to go is the secret to countering this magic. Your first lesson is scheduled to start in two days. Enjoy yourself until then."
With a wave, he invited Yorn back into the room, and closed the wooden door with a gentle click.
Saturday, 10 November 2012
Chapter 1 : Welcome_To_The_World_Stage
1569 A.D.
In his eyes reflected the sky. It wasn't a sky that was clear, it wasn't a sky where people could call blue. It was a sky covered with clouds, an overcast that blanketed the lands.
The farmers nearby rejoiced at the gift of rain. Women complained and hurriedly kept their laundry. Children sat by the small windows to await the ritual of Sharyu Zuku to begin. People hastened their footsteps to avoid getting their sandals wet.
And yet, Katachi sat there, motionless.
K : (The sky is vast...)
His face twisted, expressing a deep longing. No matter how much he had yearned it, that was not something people could just get.
K : (Can I fly in it, away from here...?)
He stretched his left hand up towards the sky, and clasped it gently. A small bird flew past, and his eyes followed.
How badly he wished he could fly freely, like the bird.
If given the opportunity, he would have given everything he had in order to escape this place.
Alas, what the mind wants was what the body could not get. Giving up, he relaxed his left arm and it landed onto the soft grass and soil with a thud.
"Katachi! Be a good boy and help me keep the laundry, will you?"
A familiar voice called out to him, a little hasty and rushed.
K : "Yes, Mother Rin!"
Shifting his weight between both legs, he slowly stretched them and stood up. Katachi brushed off a few stalks of grass and dirt attached to his cloth shirt and headed towards her.
*** ***
Before he even began to remember things, Katachi was abandoned by his parents.
The reason, the cause was unknown, and as much as the young 9-year old wished to find his real parents, he knew he couldn't. What was a young, 9 year old supposed to do, when nobody was even willing to give him the slightest of clue?
All he knew was that when he was found, a wooden tablet with "Kotsuba Katachi" carved on it was tied to his anklet. He knew nothing else regarding his parents.
Mother Rin was a kind soul who found him crying on a soft patch of grass at the outskirts of the town. Nursing and raising him as her own, she soon had a second mouth to feed at home, but that was not a problem for the formidable nun.
The townsfolk, however, did not take his arrival with equal cordiality.
Adults branded him as a bastard child. Children hurled rocks and nasty insults at him because their parents said it was fine to. The only ones who haven't ill-treated him were the elderly whom he had been nice to, and Mother Rin herself.
Katachi's childhood was littered with horrible memories; So many of them, that he would rather not recall any if it were possible.
His only happy memories were of those he enjoyed with Mother Rin, and when he was alone, usually in the library or open in the fields, or in that one spot near a field where he could admire the carefree children from afar, in morbid silence.
And yet, Mother Rin insisted that he should be kind to others.
R : "Listen very carefully, Katachi. There are two things I have to tell you."
The first time he came back crying at the age of four, Mother Rin comforted him.
R : "First, you have to know, Katachi. I love you a lot, I really do, but I am not actually your mother. I am not the mother that gave birth to you. You were just outside the town, lying in a patch of grass near a field of medicinal herbs. Your parents may be dead and they may have gave their lives to make sure you were safe."
That was bound to break a child's heart, under normal circumstances. But what's broken can't be broken any further.
R : "But don't worry, Katachi, Mother Rin is here for you. Come here~"
Katachi remembered the warmth of Mother Rin's bosom and arms clearly when she hugged him after saying that. It was a cozy, comforting, accepting warmth that made him relax and feel that he was loved. His urge to cry was suppressed immediately, and he reciprocated Mother Rin's motherly snuggle.
R : "That was the first thing you need to know. Mother Rin may not have given birth to you, but Mother Rin wants to be able to love you like how your mother would have wanted to. Is that okay?"
Nodding his head gently, Katachi remembered a flashback where one of the adults in town on the pillory accepted all of the bad words and insults without flinching.
R : "The second thing I want to tell you is also really important. Are you ready?"
With that one adult as his model, he mimicked the man with much effort, took a deep breath and exhaled, gearing himself to accept anything.
R : "You have to treat others with kindness, Katachi. Even though they may be bad, even though they may hurl bad words and rocks at you, you still have to be kind to them. They are immature right now and are doing foolish things in a moment of folly, but you have to bear with it and reply with kindness. There will come a day where they themselves, just like you, will turn into adults and regret doing those things."
Mother Rin's love and guidance, and the townsfolk's behaviour towards him forced Katachi to mature at an abnormally fast rate; When compared to other children and even the adolescents, he was perhaps maturing too quickly, forming a rather large anomaly.
Yet, as much as Mother Rin made sense with what she had said, he did not run towards her crying because he was bullied.
It had been for another reason - One not even she had expected.
*** ***
K : (This madness... No more shall it plague us. If I must give my life, I shall do so for Mother, whom has taken such great care of me.
Such that the ones to come after me would be free from it... Such that the people behind me suffer no more.)
*** ***
It was time for Katachi to step onto a new stage.
As he hit the rich age of 10, he was now old enough to enrol into one of the famous academies in the region - the Sage Raufid Magus Academy.
Packing his stuff, he prepared to set off almost immediately. Being the poor child he was, he had not much to carry with him, except the clothes on his back and some documents to certify his identity as a student.
R : "Be sure to sleep well, eat well, and grow up properly, okay, Katachi? You can always come back any time."
The nun looked back at him with tears in her eyes, as she held the wrists of the young boy gently. She was clearly saddened by his departure, but it is impossible for change not to transpire.
K : "Yes, Mother Rin. I'll be sure to come back and visit every couple of moon cycles."
Katachi straightened the strap to that shoddy and flimsy thing he called a bag, and entered the riderless carriage dispatched by the school.
And with that, Katachi began his life on a new world stage.
In his eyes reflected the sky. It wasn't a sky that was clear, it wasn't a sky where people could call blue. It was a sky covered with clouds, an overcast that blanketed the lands.
The farmers nearby rejoiced at the gift of rain. Women complained and hurriedly kept their laundry. Children sat by the small windows to await the ritual of Sharyu Zuku to begin. People hastened their footsteps to avoid getting their sandals wet.
And yet, Katachi sat there, motionless.
K : (The sky is vast...)
His face twisted, expressing a deep longing. No matter how much he had yearned it, that was not something people could just get.
K : (Can I fly in it, away from here...?)
He stretched his left hand up towards the sky, and clasped it gently. A small bird flew past, and his eyes followed.
How badly he wished he could fly freely, like the bird.
If given the opportunity, he would have given everything he had in order to escape this place.
Alas, what the mind wants was what the body could not get. Giving up, he relaxed his left arm and it landed onto the soft grass and soil with a thud.
"Katachi! Be a good boy and help me keep the laundry, will you?"
A familiar voice called out to him, a little hasty and rushed.
K : "Yes, Mother Rin!"
Shifting his weight between both legs, he slowly stretched them and stood up. Katachi brushed off a few stalks of grass and dirt attached to his cloth shirt and headed towards her.
*** ***
Before he even began to remember things, Katachi was abandoned by his parents.
The reason, the cause was unknown, and as much as the young 9-year old wished to find his real parents, he knew he couldn't. What was a young, 9 year old supposed to do, when nobody was even willing to give him the slightest of clue?
All he knew was that when he was found, a wooden tablet with "Kotsuba Katachi" carved on it was tied to his anklet. He knew nothing else regarding his parents.
Mother Rin was a kind soul who found him crying on a soft patch of grass at the outskirts of the town. Nursing and raising him as her own, she soon had a second mouth to feed at home, but that was not a problem for the formidable nun.
The townsfolk, however, did not take his arrival with equal cordiality.
Adults branded him as a bastard child. Children hurled rocks and nasty insults at him because their parents said it was fine to. The only ones who haven't ill-treated him were the elderly whom he had been nice to, and Mother Rin herself.
Katachi's childhood was littered with horrible memories; So many of them, that he would rather not recall any if it were possible.
His only happy memories were of those he enjoyed with Mother Rin, and when he was alone, usually in the library or open in the fields, or in that one spot near a field where he could admire the carefree children from afar, in morbid silence.
And yet, Mother Rin insisted that he should be kind to others.
R : "Listen very carefully, Katachi. There are two things I have to tell you."
The first time he came back crying at the age of four, Mother Rin comforted him.
R : "First, you have to know, Katachi. I love you a lot, I really do, but I am not actually your mother. I am not the mother that gave birth to you. You were just outside the town, lying in a patch of grass near a field of medicinal herbs. Your parents may be dead and they may have gave their lives to make sure you were safe."
That was bound to break a child's heart, under normal circumstances. But what's broken can't be broken any further.
R : "But don't worry, Katachi, Mother Rin is here for you. Come here~"
Katachi remembered the warmth of Mother Rin's bosom and arms clearly when she hugged him after saying that. It was a cozy, comforting, accepting warmth that made him relax and feel that he was loved. His urge to cry was suppressed immediately, and he reciprocated Mother Rin's motherly snuggle.
R : "That was the first thing you need to know. Mother Rin may not have given birth to you, but Mother Rin wants to be able to love you like how your mother would have wanted to. Is that okay?"
Nodding his head gently, Katachi remembered a flashback where one of the adults in town on the pillory accepted all of the bad words and insults without flinching.
R : "The second thing I want to tell you is also really important. Are you ready?"
With that one adult as his model, he mimicked the man with much effort, took a deep breath and exhaled, gearing himself to accept anything.
R : "You have to treat others with kindness, Katachi. Even though they may be bad, even though they may hurl bad words and rocks at you, you still have to be kind to them. They are immature right now and are doing foolish things in a moment of folly, but you have to bear with it and reply with kindness. There will come a day where they themselves, just like you, will turn into adults and regret doing those things."
Mother Rin's love and guidance, and the townsfolk's behaviour towards him forced Katachi to mature at an abnormally fast rate; When compared to other children and even the adolescents, he was perhaps maturing too quickly, forming a rather large anomaly.
Yet, as much as Mother Rin made sense with what she had said, he did not run towards her crying because he was bullied.
It had been for another reason - One not even she had expected.
*** ***
K : (This madness... No more shall it plague us. If I must give my life, I shall do so for Mother, whom has taken such great care of me.
Such that the ones to come after me would be free from it... Such that the people behind me suffer no more.)
*** ***
It was time for Katachi to step onto a new stage.
As he hit the rich age of 10, he was now old enough to enrol into one of the famous academies in the region - the Sage Raufid Magus Academy.
Packing his stuff, he prepared to set off almost immediately. Being the poor child he was, he had not much to carry with him, except the clothes on his back and some documents to certify his identity as a student.
R : "Be sure to sleep well, eat well, and grow up properly, okay, Katachi? You can always come back any time."
The nun looked back at him with tears in her eyes, as she held the wrists of the young boy gently. She was clearly saddened by his departure, but it is impossible for change not to transpire.
K : "Yes, Mother Rin. I'll be sure to come back and visit every couple of moon cycles."
Katachi straightened the strap to that shoddy and flimsy thing he called a bag, and entered the riderless carriage dispatched by the school.
And with that, Katachi began his life on a new world stage.
Wednesday, 7 November 2012
Prologue : Regretful_Fate
Kotsuba Musashi.
Hearing this name would instil the image of that one "Word of Power" hunter. Kotsuba Musashi was that sort of man - A slim, well-built being, wearing a simple tanned leather coat and chitin pants, with hair the colour of charcoal. It was easy to distinguish his Ohdean background from other Word of Power hunters out there.
Right now, he had arrived at a place no one else seems to have been to for the longest of time.
With wooden flooring and walls riddled with soot, it was no doubt a strange room. The ceiling had been blasted off by some form of attack, revealing the strange inter-dimensional space surrounding the room. Broken debris of the pillars and walls lay on the wooden panels which comprised the floors.
Kotsuba Musashi had arrived at one of the mythical Sealed Rooms, which supposedly houses a Word of Power within. These rooms, rumoured to have belonged to castles decades ago, have been ripped from their citadels in entirety, and sealed within this strange, distorted dimension, away from the vile claws of Man.
But there he stood, with the resilience and triumphant valor befitting a representative - In defiance of it all.
In the centre of the room, was a most strange pillar with a simplistic design.
The pillar was floating above ground, tilted at a 45 degree angle with the bottom pointing toward the room's entry point. Just slightly above the base was a character of an Anikan origin, radiantly glowing with a golden light.
One ought to have been happy at this sight. Being inside a mythical Sealed Room, with a Word of Power before oneself, anyone would have gladly accepted this power with open arms.
And yet...
Musashi's face twisted into a heavy, anguished look of disbelief.
"No..."
He was blatantly unsatisfied with what was before him.
With his eyes fixated onto the golden character, he slowly dragged his feet across the dusty wooden panels, stopping before the pillar. He recognized that character in his native tongue, but he knew subconsciously that it had meant something else in its entirety, something meant to be spoken in a different language and intonation.
That character, was 定.
"No... No! NO!!!"
Kotsuba Musashi collapsed down, and knelt on his knees. Holding his head in denial, he looked up toward his 'prize', as if in a prayer. From a distance, he looked quite insane, had what he uttered been left unheard.
"This... This wasn't supposed to happen... The most heavily guarded Word of Power should have been 再... Why is it 定!?"
The undeniable fact laid before his face, almost cackling at his grimace. He shook his head ever so slightly, refusing to believe the reality blatantly laid out before his eyes. But there it was - In its greatest glory, that golden word lay upon the barren, plain pillar.
(All the lives lost... All the resources sacrificed... All of that could be rewound if I had 再 to create a 再度 concept... All of that could have been recovered... All of it didn't have to go to waste if only it had been 再...!!!)
He could not even cough.
Relaxing his hands slowly, he sunk deeper and deeper into devastation.
Had that word been something else, it would have been different.
Had that word been what he expected it to be, he could have saved them all.
(... I don't have the dignity to walk back alone like this, with them dead... As much as I wanted a Word of Power, I needed 再, not 定...)
Certainly, had he retrieved what he sought after, the power to revive the dead and recover the resources expended must have been valuable enough to risk it this far.
His will wavering, Musashi looked at the pillar above his head once more.
(... I dare not take it.)
He was afraid. Had he taken that power, and went back to Rugnud, he would be ostracised as a cold-blooded murderer who had used others' lives for personal gain; A merciless, dishonourable monster who would throw the lives of others away to achieve the end-goal.
He did not want that.
As pure as the power was, as beautiful as it had always been, in his hands it would be viewed as something obtained through dirty means. The act would be misjudged by the corrupt eyes of the people who sought after it, and these hands of his will be branded by, stained in the blood of the people he didn't kill.
Musashi did not mean for this to happen.
His head drooped into a position where it was just dangling on his neck. He looked down at his attire, stained with the blood of those who had given their lives willingly.
He remembered the owners of the stains clearly.
The spattered drops were from that young boy Rohat, whom was impaled by a spear wall. A joyful, sprightly man with a great future ahead of himself, dead from a moment of folly and an unexpected trap.
The smudge of blood and grime belonged to his childhood friend Dekomura, whom gave his life to redirect a boar down a cliff. Unfortunately, the boar's tusk scarred a great wound on his left thigh, and the persistent Bloodswarm locusts made his wound fester much faster than normal.
In the end, he too succumbed to fate. And despite that, Dekomura's final words...
... He offered Musashi his corpse to disable the traps ahead, such that his chances of reaching the Word of Power may heighten, as little as it may be.
The moments of their deaths flashed before his eyes in an instant. The valiance and dignity they had, in order to ensure that this retrieval had been a success, would be sullied by those greedy hyenas in human skins.
He couldn't accept the Word of Power.
Those very lives would have their sacrifices pinned upon him wrongfully.
Those very people who looked up to Musashi as a model would weep and turn in their graves when they learn of their families' spite towards the man they gave their lives willingly for.
And yet, he could not let their deaths be in vain.
(Everyone... I have let you down... I-... I'm truly, truly sorry. As much as you have put into getting this for me, I can't accept this.)
Musashi stared blankly at his body, his head devoid of energy and his eyes losing its brilliance.
His focus was, unconsciously, locked onto a specific part of his field of vision.
A vial.
A vial, dangling from his neck, with a strange, white liquid within.
It was his lucky charm, should he be killed on the job - A bottle of his own semen to carry on his heritage.
"... ! "
Luster returned to his pupils and he grabbed the vial on his neck gently, but quickly.
He sprang up, determined.
The solution had been under his nose the entire time.
Dangling the vial on his hand, he slowly tapped the vial onto the pillar. The simple motion sparked a strange effect - The golden character faded away, and the vial glowed a brilliant, equally radiant glow. The pillar, which was supposed to have dropped, remain suspended - Part of the pillar had been stuck in some debris before Musashi, preventing it from falling.
(... I will never live with myself had I taken this power. I won't be able to answer the dead respectfully. That is why... My dear, precious child, please understand... This is Daddy's only gift to you. Cherish it well, my sweet child.)
Holding the vial in his hand tightly, he uttered to himself. Or perhaps, he was talking to something?
"Let's go home... Katachi."
Turning back, he exited from whence he came, a door which was not a door, the only entrance and exit of the Sealed Room.
And with that...
Kotsuba Musashi's days as a Word of Power Hunter ended with his failure.
... But what of the 定 he had gifted the semen?
Hearing this name would instil the image of that one "Word of Power" hunter. Kotsuba Musashi was that sort of man - A slim, well-built being, wearing a simple tanned leather coat and chitin pants, with hair the colour of charcoal. It was easy to distinguish his Ohdean background from other Word of Power hunters out there.
Right now, he had arrived at a place no one else seems to have been to for the longest of time.
With wooden flooring and walls riddled with soot, it was no doubt a strange room. The ceiling had been blasted off by some form of attack, revealing the strange inter-dimensional space surrounding the room. Broken debris of the pillars and walls lay on the wooden panels which comprised the floors.
Kotsuba Musashi had arrived at one of the mythical Sealed Rooms, which supposedly houses a Word of Power within. These rooms, rumoured to have belonged to castles decades ago, have been ripped from their citadels in entirety, and sealed within this strange, distorted dimension, away from the vile claws of Man.
But there he stood, with the resilience and triumphant valor befitting a representative - In defiance of it all.
In the centre of the room, was a most strange pillar with a simplistic design.
The pillar was floating above ground, tilted at a 45 degree angle with the bottom pointing toward the room's entry point. Just slightly above the base was a character of an Anikan origin, radiantly glowing with a golden light.
One ought to have been happy at this sight. Being inside a mythical Sealed Room, with a Word of Power before oneself, anyone would have gladly accepted this power with open arms.
And yet...
Musashi's face twisted into a heavy, anguished look of disbelief.
"No..."
He was blatantly unsatisfied with what was before him.
With his eyes fixated onto the golden character, he slowly dragged his feet across the dusty wooden panels, stopping before the pillar. He recognized that character in his native tongue, but he knew subconsciously that it had meant something else in its entirety, something meant to be spoken in a different language and intonation.
That character, was 定.
"No... No! NO!!!"
Kotsuba Musashi collapsed down, and knelt on his knees. Holding his head in denial, he looked up toward his 'prize', as if in a prayer. From a distance, he looked quite insane, had what he uttered been left unheard.
"This... This wasn't supposed to happen... The most heavily guarded Word of Power should have been 再... Why is it 定!?"
The undeniable fact laid before his face, almost cackling at his grimace. He shook his head ever so slightly, refusing to believe the reality blatantly laid out before his eyes. But there it was - In its greatest glory, that golden word lay upon the barren, plain pillar.
(All the lives lost... All the resources sacrificed... All of that could be rewound if I had 再 to create a 再度 concept... All of that could have been recovered... All of it didn't have to go to waste if only it had been 再...!!!)
He could not even cough.
Relaxing his hands slowly, he sunk deeper and deeper into devastation.
Had that word been something else, it would have been different.
Had that word been what he expected it to be, he could have saved them all.
(... I don't have the dignity to walk back alone like this, with them dead... As much as I wanted a Word of Power, I needed 再, not 定...)
Certainly, had he retrieved what he sought after, the power to revive the dead and recover the resources expended must have been valuable enough to risk it this far.
His will wavering, Musashi looked at the pillar above his head once more.
(... I dare not take it.)
He was afraid. Had he taken that power, and went back to Rugnud, he would be ostracised as a cold-blooded murderer who had used others' lives for personal gain; A merciless, dishonourable monster who would throw the lives of others away to achieve the end-goal.
He did not want that.
As pure as the power was, as beautiful as it had always been, in his hands it would be viewed as something obtained through dirty means. The act would be misjudged by the corrupt eyes of the people who sought after it, and these hands of his will be branded by, stained in the blood of the people he didn't kill.
Musashi did not mean for this to happen.
His head drooped into a position where it was just dangling on his neck. He looked down at his attire, stained with the blood of those who had given their lives willingly.
He remembered the owners of the stains clearly.
The spattered drops were from that young boy Rohat, whom was impaled by a spear wall. A joyful, sprightly man with a great future ahead of himself, dead from a moment of folly and an unexpected trap.
The smudge of blood and grime belonged to his childhood friend Dekomura, whom gave his life to redirect a boar down a cliff. Unfortunately, the boar's tusk scarred a great wound on his left thigh, and the persistent Bloodswarm locusts made his wound fester much faster than normal.
In the end, he too succumbed to fate. And despite that, Dekomura's final words...
... He offered Musashi his corpse to disable the traps ahead, such that his chances of reaching the Word of Power may heighten, as little as it may be.
The moments of their deaths flashed before his eyes in an instant. The valiance and dignity they had, in order to ensure that this retrieval had been a success, would be sullied by those greedy hyenas in human skins.
He couldn't accept the Word of Power.
Those very lives would have their sacrifices pinned upon him wrongfully.
Those very people who looked up to Musashi as a model would weep and turn in their graves when they learn of their families' spite towards the man they gave their lives willingly for.
And yet, he could not let their deaths be in vain.
(Everyone... I have let you down... I-... I'm truly, truly sorry. As much as you have put into getting this for me, I can't accept this.)
Musashi stared blankly at his body, his head devoid of energy and his eyes losing its brilliance.
His focus was, unconsciously, locked onto a specific part of his field of vision.
A vial.
A vial, dangling from his neck, with a strange, white liquid within.
It was his lucky charm, should he be killed on the job - A bottle of his own semen to carry on his heritage.
"... ! "
Luster returned to his pupils and he grabbed the vial on his neck gently, but quickly.
He sprang up, determined.
The solution had been under his nose the entire time.
Dangling the vial on his hand, he slowly tapped the vial onto the pillar. The simple motion sparked a strange effect - The golden character faded away, and the vial glowed a brilliant, equally radiant glow. The pillar, which was supposed to have dropped, remain suspended - Part of the pillar had been stuck in some debris before Musashi, preventing it from falling.
(... I will never live with myself had I taken this power. I won't be able to answer the dead respectfully. That is why... My dear, precious child, please understand... This is Daddy's only gift to you. Cherish it well, my sweet child.)
Holding the vial in his hand tightly, he uttered to himself. Or perhaps, he was talking to something?
"Let's go home... Katachi."
Turning back, he exited from whence he came, a door which was not a door, the only entrance and exit of the Sealed Room.
And with that...
Kotsuba Musashi's days as a Word of Power Hunter ended with his failure.
... But what of the 定 he had gifted the semen?
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