Phantasmagoria — Ewigkeit in Wiedergeburt

UMrFP01.png

The Womb went silent. The quad of Witches continued their assault firmly, yet desperate and uncoordinated, as slowly, but surely, they were finally rewarded with some form of visible success: A small, but respectable, hole! The now resulting sound of something akin to a giant balloon deflating through it was in a weird way, considering their situation, kinda funny. If not for the foul stench of death that was accompanied by it.

The layers of flesh and skin that stood seconds ago as a majestic sphere hang now shrivelled from the ceiling. The nearly blinding, orange glow of the Womb, now reduced to a diminishing flame. It looked like the monstrosity collapsed onto itself as the remaining cells escaped into the holes they emerged from. Was this it? Were they victorious?

The Witches were granted only a few seconds of peace as the decayed construct slightly shifted. No, something was moving it. The diminishing flame flickered, as they could all hear a distorted voice speaking.

"̤̪̭͖͚͎̻P̭͍͓̹͈ ̛̳̙͇l̦̬͇͠ͅ ̝̘̫ͅe ͈͕̘̞̦̯̭a͖̙̖͇̥̹͘ ̯̣s̞̳̗̪͠ ͎̗̠e̡͓̝̯͉ͅ ̩̙̩̲̜.̼̼͓͙̬̩͘ͅ ̤.͓͖͔̯͈ ̥͎̖.̭̘̹͙̬͢
̬͗͆s̝̩͓̫̐̚ͅ ͙̰ͅͅt̻̭̋̀͟ ̡̮̲̤̜̝o͕͔̞͚̽͡ ̴ͮp̙̺̹͎͇͊̎ ͉̤̜̱ ̝͍̯̥̼́̇ͯhͦ͌̌ ̘̻̼͓͇͎̪̄̓̆͌ͫͨ̆́ṷ̠̘͕̲ͅ ͔̯͆͛r͉͒͌͠ ̰̞̼͙̰͛ͭt̻̺̪̺͖̣̥̒̽̉̿ͥ͗ ̩̩̄̿i̷̯͔̝̹͈ ̷͕̀͛n̪̥͉͕̂͆͑͒̈̅ͅ ͎̮̺̘̯͔͈̃̈ͤ͐ͫͣ̚͝g̍̕ ̹̻͍̯ͣ̄̄̅͂̾͠u̵̼̼̣͇͙ͅ ͈̭͊ͪͮͮ̌ṡ͊̇͗ ̼̼̝͈̙͎̑.̲̼̘̮̹̺͌ ̵̥̔͐̾̃.̌̾̎ ̦̻̀ͫ̓ͅ.̵ͫ̓̂ͥ
w͌ͩ͐̀̎̑ ͋̌͐ĕ͋ ͪͮͮ̆ͧ̀ j̏̋ͨ ̒͑ͫͫu͟ ̸-ͯ͗ͪ͐͆̋"̃ͩ͞


"Croitzal ronzell gungnir zizzl..."

Melody sang in a low, soft, voice as the temperature in the cave started to raise and a spear out of white, hot, flames materialized itself. Not batting an eye the Mentor Witch threw the weapon towards the orange light in a straight line - engulfing it in white, searing, flames.

"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH! Pai-"

"...Boom!"

Melody flicked her finger as the spear, apparently still stuck inside, exploded violently enough to shake the entire place. Slowly, the fire and dust settled. Only leaving the smell of burned flesh over as the Womb seemed to have completely burned down. The strange light from before now missing.

Clap clap clap clap

"Good Job!" Seemingly not too worried about how hurt the group was, Melody congratulated them. "Maybe you kinda would have managed that last blow but that thing wasn't quite what it was supposed to be. Look." She pointed at where the Womb once was: At pretty much just a pile of burned left-overs and... nothing? Unless...

"That's an entrance to an Alptraum. Don't worry if you can't quite see something like that, yet. Either way it's kind of a big deal but nothing the Mission stated to take care of. If I, or anyone else, had known, something like that would never have been assigned to you."

Despite the death of the Womb, the Manablight itself was still certainly very active. Although... it seemed silent. Something was missing. Ah, the heart finally ceased to beat.
 
As soon as the womb exploded, Melora collapsed to her knees. The exceeding pressure of trying to keep upright while getting battered by the sheer force of sound and trying to keep her focus long enough to form spells and think of different ways to hurt this thing while not throwing up because all the good and eyes and so on. It was all terrifying and terrible, and now that it was done all that tension just left.

"I can't believe all that was for us to be told that we didn't actually destroy all this fleshy goo,"
Melora said.

Melody pointed to the ashes, and for a moment, Melora wasn't sure what Melody was pointing at. Then, the shimmer of a rift caught her eye. Images of her smiling, her younger self running around the fields. Melora couldn't imagine how awesome those images looked. She staggered to her feet and moved to touch it before pulling back.

"Melody? What's and Alptraum? Is it an extension of Manablight?"
Melora asked.

If it was, she shouldn't touch it. It was bad. And yet... she was entranced by the images. What was beyond that rift? What was an Alptraum? Could she see all these images in there? Surely she could be patient for another moment or two. To keep her hands busy, Melora removed her mask, letting it slide off.

"Is everyone all right? I know I could go for a quick rest after we leave this place, that fight was harsh. Glad we all made it through, though. Seems like a bunch of stuff was... unexpected. Shoudl we expect that every time, or are we all just unlucky?"


@Skyswimsky
 
As the heart began to burn bright with flames, Aurora collapsed down to her knees, pressing her ears tight with her hands. "Make it stooop! Someone, please...!" Her lip quivered as she fought back tears and an open wailing. After what felt like an eternity, her distress finally faded, left to only a slightly shiver.

She looked shell-shocked. Absolutely paralyzed. Though Rune hurried over to check on her, she completely ignored the loyal golem and anyone else for several minutes. After whatever dark thoughts she had had run their course, she stood up with a dead look and turned back the way they'd came.

"Let's go," she echoed like a hollow shell.
 
The noise.

The horrible, grating and buzzing noise. It pierced Eirlys' ears with a thousand voices, sounding as though a hive of termites crawled into her skull, then every single one of them started shouting in inhuman voices, raising an unbelievable cacophony. Immediately, her hands flew to her ears and her Flowiron constructs collapsed as the magic maintaining her symbols faded, leaving behind nothing but a puddle of metal. Exactly as miserable as its creator, the material quickly solodified, weighing down on the floor below while Eirlys tried her best to make it through the horrible cries of their enemy. It almost felt like... like it pounded away at her soul, rather than her physical being.

But it did not last for long.

Thankful for the intervention of Melody, Eirlys collapsed onto her knees with a relieved breath. She... She... She was now a proper Questing Witch! Thank goodness for that; she did not think she would be able to complete this trial, especially with things going this wrong. Of course, she heard about the Manablight's warped constructs and a horrifying world was not new to her. The Metal Sea tormented her nearly every night and yet...

The Metal Sea did not make such tormented, horrible noises. It always remained silent, lurking in the background as though it were an obelisk of malice. And even though it tried to trap her at times, it lacked this degree of cunning. But she only had to be careful, right? And heal take care of herself, of course. With her allies at her side, she might even be able to do it.

Another relieved sigh left Eirlys' lips. Standing up, she inspected herself, finding several open wounds on her body. Her clothes also ripped in several places, revealing naked skin underneath and honestly? She looked pretty bad. Bruised and bleeding, she did not look like she just won a battle; not that others were better off. However, one was worse off than any of them.

Aurora.

Eirlys' throat tightened as she saw the shell-shocked girl. Without thinking on her actions, she rushed into the shell-shocked girl's path and opened her mouth-

But no sound came. So she fumbled for her sketchbook, flipped to an open page, retrieved her pencil, tapped the page, fumbled some more again, made a quick sketch of two figures hugging, placed a question mark beside it and all but shoved it into Aurora's hands. All the while her heart threatened to leap out of her chest.
 
The screaming was almost unbearable as the Womb was destroyed. Mina's own voice was drowned out by the sound, which she almost thought was coherent. But it was impossible to know. Mina picked herself up off the floor of the cave and dusted herself off.

She could see some sort of shimmer that Melody was probably referring to, but nothing else. "Hm. Don't think I can see it." There was no reason to deny it, at least. She'd have to ask the others about it later.

"I'm fine. Well, nothing a little recuperation can't handle." Mina replied to Melora's question. "I'm pretty sure preparing for surprises or more than we bargain for is part of the job. Less so that we can always have every eventuality prepared ahead of time. So for now, I say we worry about getting out of here and, I dunno, hanging out somewhere nice and cozy back at Phantasmagoria."
 
"Y'all deserve some good rest." Melody kept the positive vibe going. "It was tough, especially for your first time, but there will be tougher scenarios ahead. Cherish the fact you have each other." She gave some words of encouragement before paying attention towards Melora's question.

"What's an Alptraum, you ask?" A tad confused at the green-haired girl's lack of knowledge. "Pretty sure you should already know that, but hey, I hated theory, too! Ahem." Clearing her throat, Melody more-or-less repeated what was already known to pretty much most Witches.

"As you know the Threshold of Kakophonia, or the way easier to pronounce name Manablight, is something akin to a spreading plague. Blight. Corruption. Kind of thing. And while any attempts at reverting this corruption back into, uh, not-corruption...! have been fruitless so far, there are ways to stop the spread." She pointed, once again, at the friction that seemed to tear on reality itself. "Usually, the closer the Manablight is to such a phenomenon, an Alptraum, the faster its growth. There are some entities that help with spreading the Manablight, like the supposed-to-be monstrosity you have just defeated, but an Alptraum is the center of the spread. Honestly, there's still much we have to learn about their functionality, and the fact that our surroundings are rather... tame... around this gives me reason to believe it just appeared recently." Melody waved her hand dismissively as she decided to quickly wrap it up. How she hated teaching.

"They lead you to, urm, another place...? Another dimension! Of sorts. Just like Phantasmagoria. It's really, really, dangerous and nothing youngling's like you should worry about too much. We should simply hurry back before something more dangerous happens!" Pushing Melora slowly towards the exit, the group of Witches finally made their way home.

While the Gaping Maw was certainly not dead, it seemed to have given up on harassing the group as they easily made their way out again. Fresh air, it was truly terrifying how easily one could adjust to the disgusting smell they were now reminded of again. By now, the sun was about to set for the night, painting the endless horizon into a deep orange.

"Huh, quite some time passed, eh." Melody said slightly surprised as she once more pulled out her broom from her hat. This time, there was no race, she simply led the group back into the very same cave they initially exited through. "You better do well to remember this." The older Witch reminded them. "There are some other ways to get back, but this one will be your main means of traveling back and forth."

As they entered the big hollow part of the cave with the giant circle in the middle, nothing much had changed. There were still various Witches about doing their thing as the scared brunette gave a whistle, a bit surprised even considering how beat up they looked. "Good Job making it back in one piece." Despite some snark in her voice, it was a somewhat warm welcome nonetheless.

"Alright girls." She clapped her hands together as she yelled to the others. "Get off your lazy asses and prep the spell. Today a buncha new front-line heroes were born!" The other various faceless magical girls peeked curiously for a moment, before a few started clapping. Then more. Then the entire cave was filled with the sound of applause.

"You did good. We know it's not easy, doing what you did." - "Awh, thank you." - "Nobody talked to you, Melody of the Lazy Sea."

And just as before, quick preparations were done for the very same teleportation spell once more.

...
...
...

As the light and sound faded, the group found themselves back in the more fancy hall. Home.

"Well then..." Melody took a few steps forward as she cleared her throat and removed her hat once more, facing the group. "Congratulations on passing your E-Rank training mission! I know you're tired and all so I keep it short." One by one, Melody pulled out some sort of translucent jewel. Handing each one of them one.

"As you may or may not know, certain shops and other places offer various services for Questing Witches. This is your D-Rank identification. As a D-Rank, you can take on other D-Rank or C-Rank missions! You know, at the Mission Board and all. The same place you put up requests for materials you wanted for your Historia. Uh..." God, she really hated explaining things, didn't she? "...yeah, I nearly forgot." She also pulled out a single debit crystal. "And here's your pay. It's more than usual, first time and all." Handing it off to Mina, the Leader. "You're a team, so you split it how you see fit."

"Any more questions?" With that, it seemed like goodbye.


Congratulations on beating The Gaping Maw! More precise information as, always, in the Discord/OOC!

Achievements unlocked:
  • Not this kind of Fiction: Melody survived.
  • Fledglings new Steps: Attained D-Rank and is eligible for participating in D-Rank and C-Rank missions.
  • The Nightmare just begun: Discovered an Alptraum inside the Gaping Maw.
  • A Cry for Help: ???
 
Last edited:
Aurora’s dead stare snapped up to meet Eirlys. There they were held; there they waited, neither girl making any real contact until a sketch was pressed into Aurora’s dirtied hands.

She glanced down into the page, then back up at the artist. Opening her mouth just slightly, it appeared for a moment as if a comment was forming, but it shut once again. Aurora’s hand raised up to rest on Eirlys’ shoulder for a long moment, before she gently pushed the timid girl aside so she could leave.

The remainder of the trip back, Rune continually shoved the page in Aurora’s face or brought attention back to the offer in some way, sending the same message over and over again. Though Rune’s forceful approach was far more demanding, Aurora still evaded the attempts all the way back home.

...

Aurora glanced at the debit crystal. It’s glow was dazzling — probably containing more than she had to her name, though it was for the whole team. The gaze was quickly broken however, as Aurora quietly backed out of the room and made her way back home.
 
Rejection hurt.

For the longest of times, Aurora kept the hope alive in Eirlys. It almost seemed as though the other girl had done it deliberately, taking as long a time as humanly possible, then gently putting a hand onto Eirlys' shoulder. At that moment, the silver-haired girl's heart leapt into her throat and she could feel a spring of joy unwind, knowing that her message-

Did not reach Aurora.

It hurt so much.

Why did it hurt so much?

Perhaps because she did not understand. Whenever she felt consumed by her emotions, Eirlys had always welcomed her mentor's aid, and in return, she aided her mentor. So to refuse a genuine offer to help, just like that, through literally brushing her aside... it wounded her deep down. Because she knew she could help. She was a member of the Feathers; she knew just the thing to do in cases like this! She knew she could help! So why did Aurora not accept her help? The answer was obvious: Eirlys failed again. Her words, along with her sketch, failed, despite her and Rune's best efforts.

The rest of the way, Eirlys remained just as silent as Aurora, trying to patch up her wounds. It did not go well. The magic pulsing through her Flowiron felt weak and it drained her more than usual. Perhaps she exhausted herself too much with that last attack? Possible, but her heavy heart told her this was not the case. Despite her accomplishments, she felt she failed the teachings of her coven in a bad way. It did not even occur to her that maybe Aurora did not want to be helped, so her thoughts kept consuming her even as people congratulated Eirlys on a job well done. The words failed to reach her ears.

Only the sight of a large debit crystal shook her out of her reverie, and she blinked.

Mis-matched eyes focused on it for a couple of seconds as she tried to process everything.

"I... I'm... I'm... I'm... I'mnotfeelingallright," she blurted, then turned away in an attempt to rein in her emotions, trying to calm down. But the matter with Aurora did not let her.
 
Things had gone well enough. Nobody died, at least, which was a good thing in Mina's book. She'd heard the sort of stories everyone else had. She was mostly just relieved that things were over. Aurora's silence, compared to her earlier energy, was concerning, but there wasn't that much she could do that Eirlys didn't attempt, on the way back.

"There any solid landmarks for this place," Mina asked on the way into the cave they'd be using regularly. "I'm not sure I spotted any way to pretty clearly find it." She made a mental note to make or check for some sort of homing glyph from her coven next time they passed through. It could save a lot of time navigating in the future.

When Melody was berated for her mistake on the thanks, Mina stifled a laugh, and spoke up herself. "Thanks. It definitely wasn't easy." And then they were back. And got their badges of rank and pay. The debit crystal now in Mina's hand was full of more Flow than she had ever seen. Even if they split it up, it'd still be quite a bit compared to the school days. Of course, she would have to divide it fairly among everyone. Both the money and the crystal of rank disappeared into Mina's pockets.

Aurora was already leaving. "Hey, wai-" And it was too late to really stop the other girl, so Mina would have to track her down later to give her her pay. Or anything else. Mina grumbled for a bit under her breath, before putting on a more cheery disposition.

"Well, I guess we should try and divvy up our pay. Or at least, like, go hang out or something. I dunno why they make teams of complete strangers, but we're gonna need to actually get to know each other at some point." Eirlys excused herself, but at least didn't also run away. "One sec."

Mina walked up to Eirlys and wrapped her arms around the other girl, pulling her into a hug.
 
Melora slammed her fist down on her ope palm in an 'oh yeah' gesture. Going through the motions of being reminded of all information just reminded her. They all lived, but they were all deeply hurting. Even if it wasn't all visible. Melora was about to chase after Aurora when she departed when she heard Mina speak up.

Even though Melora wanted to fill the space that Aurora left with jokes, she too felt the impact of the day. She was tired of pretending so hard. When presented with the trinkets representing that they were now true Questing Witches. The items in Melora's hands felt weightless. After all they went through it should mean something. Yet, it was just cheap jewelery.

Melora stuffed the items in her pocket, and marched over to where Mina was holding Eirlys. She stayed for a moment, two, holding the other two with a death grip. The Moon had more fuel for the fire, now. Melora gave a final squeeze before backing off.

"Hey, Eirlys, It's okay to not be all right, you know? We did just wade through something really icky and gross. I'd be pretty surprised if anyone was nearly as level headed as I'm pretending to be right now. Anyway, I'm going to follow Aurora. She was extra not all right. I'm gonna give her the hugs that you didn't give her earlier."
Melora smiled. "There's no failure here until we're dead. I want us all to remember that."

Melora gave a wave then jogged off to find Aurora.

The other girl was despondent, so her gait was understandably slower. Melora at a jog easily kept an eye out for Aurora and her golem. Thankfully, Rune was easily recognizable at a distance.

"Ruuuunnnne! Aurora!"
Melora called, wading through people until she reached the duo. "I was thinking we could go for food at a cafe! And it's no fun to go alone, but the other girls live in the opposite direction. So I was hoping... that we could go. Since you have the pay, we can take it out of the debit crystal. Call it war funds. Get reimbursed by the team leader later."

Without giving the other girl a chance to respond, Melora locked eyes with Rune as she looped her much longer arm onto Aurora's and started dragging the other girl towards the cafe. Chattering the whole way.

"I think their chocolate cake is good, however I've always thought that marble was better overall. What's your favorite type of cake?"


Sometimes distractions were the best thing for a broken mind. Pulling yourself out of the mire of negative thinking was impossible to do alone. And this was a grade a marsh Aurora had fallen into. Overall, the whole experience was terrifying.

"Does Rune eat? Do you eat, Rune? Nod if yes shake your head no, of course."


@Luma
 
Aurora slowly turned as Melora’s call filled her ears, staring back at her with a mild confusion as she explained herself.

"Cake...?" she echoed as if it was a mysterious, foreign language. After a painfully long pause, she answered simple and quick, "Lemon tart."

Meanwhile, Rune glanced curiously off to the side, as if the question was something it was now asking itself. After some thought, Rune shrugged, vaguely shaking its head side to side.

...

"You don’t have to do this..." Aurora cut in despondently, ducking out of Melora’s elbow. "It’s obvious I’m not cut out to be a Questing Witch. I had all sorts of wonderful ideas in my head... how it’d be like...... and I always knew Manablight was awful, but I wasn’t expecting... that..." Aurora’s whole body shivered for a moment.

"I’m going to resign later today, so you don’t need to do this. Go get to know the rest of your real team..." she advised, turning away again to wander back home.

"Good luck, Melora," she concluded with a momentary, backways glance. Quickly tugging her right sleeve back down to her wrist, Aurora continued on her way. Rune remained behind for a few seconds, throwing Melora another quick shrug before following off after her.

@Karyra
 
Without warning, hands embraced Eirlys from behind, and the girl let out the most adorable 'eep' heard in the history of Witchkind. But even if that was not quite objectively true, it was certainly amongst the most adorable ones. As if to make matters worse, she even blinked, completely taken off-guard by the gesture.

Naturally, Melora joined in before she could do anything and Eirlys felt herself redden in a magnificent blush. Of course, the terrible feeling of not being able to help Aurora did not go away, so the two emotions mixed, creating a terrible concoction. Eirlys almost felt her stomach fall out of her body, little bees buzzing around and her heart - her treacherous, treacherous heart - thumped in her chest. This conflict made her feel dizzy, almost naoseous. Even worse, she could not gather her strength for even a squeak, thus completely sealing her fate.

A terrible, terrible fate.

Granted, the embrace felt nice, but Eirlys did not feel as though she deserved it. The mission was accomplished, yes, but she could not help Aurora, and that thought still ate away at her. It returned and returned and returned and returned. As many times as it pleased, despite the best efforts of her comrades. So she did not feel like she should be the one being comforted. She did not know if she wanted to be the one being comforted.

Apparently, her team-mates had other ideas. Especially Mina, who kept the embrace even after Melora went after Aurora.

"You... you should be... be going after Aurora... needs it more..." she muttered to her 'captor'; her words forced and barely audible. She would be all right in a couple of minutes, she knew. But Aurora, she did not know. The poor girl looked devastated.

And once again, Eirlys' thoughts returned to how she just could not help her, how her stupid, stupid words held her back!
 
[ Before the Departure ]

"Well, we're not, cape girl, so best to chill and enjoy the socializing. You could give us a better introduction, too. It's not as if we're all a part of some military operation at all times. So it would be best to know the people who have your back, yeah?"

Melora said. She didn't seem to appreciate Seia seemingly brushing off social pleasantries with the other witches. The Praetorian remained apathetic to those accusations. From the corner of her eye, Seia looked at the girls of her squad. Catching a glimpse of Aurora slipping out of view. Seeming to want to get away from Seia and her overbearing presence.

There was no point to pleasantries.

Why pretend to be interested in any of these people? She was here to someday see mother. That was the goal. It was her intention to prove herself and advance upward as soon as she could.

Getting to know these people?
Oh please. Don't bother me.

Seia just couldn't do it. Not in the way she was now.


Melody, the witch leading their group - or more accurately, proctoring it - led them to the 'gates'. The transportation system that would take them to their first mission outside the tower. Now gathered together in a particular room, the process of the teleporting out began.

Seia trusted that the ever rising noise and ever brightening light wasn't something to fear. She fought against her instincts to be fearful of it.



[ First Arrival to the Outside ]


Instantly, the noise and light was gone.

She found her breath being taken away by the new sights, sounds, and vastness of the outside world. It was completely different from what she imagined. She lost herself to just looking around, soaking it all in.

In Seia's peripheral hearing, she could hear Melody mentioning the levels of danger of the various monsters they were to face... Seia was already thought that information so she started to let herself get lost in the new surroundings. So lost she missed the part about them racing to their destination. She only came to as she spotted them flying off.

She'd been left behind! Air jumping in this case wasn't going to cut it! At least at the speed and distance that the others were quickly putting as they began to go further off.

Seia tapped the pink ribbon wrapped at her waist. Obeying Seia's will, it untied itself, and became as a long pole. It wasn't a proper witch broom by any means. But, it could hold rigidity like a spear and fly at her command.

Regardless, Seia steeled herself for what was going to be a bumpy ride. She made a running start for the cliff, jumped off, and made after the others, zipping in sudden and chaotic straightaway motions through the air.



Seia arrived at the cave that the others had landed at. She was sure of it. The echoes from further in the cave indicated the others had gone on ahead. The late young witch proceeded after them.

Going further into the cave, she saw it. The stony walls were becoming like flesh. The further she went in, the more undeniable the organic nature of the depths of this 'cave' became.

So this was the effects of Manablight. Turning a cave into something as horrid as this. By now, even Seia's echoing steps became mushy. She was now stepping on more flesh than floor.

"Absolutely disgusting." She pursed her lips despairingly.



She ran with more haste and put her hand over her wand at her side. Seia was prepared to draw it in anticipation of a threat that could come from anywhere. The monsters associated with Manablight could do many things, and just being separated from the others made herself an inviting target for ambush.

She prioritized regrouping with the others.


[ The First Battle ]


As she approached the sounds of the other witches engaged in combat grew closer. Seia's sharp hearing revealed witches faithfully going through their practiced combat maneuvers, being amazed, and some bits of faltering around for good measure. But they were all better than Seia right now on the account that they were actually there, fighting.

In desperation, Seia tried to push herself even further. Trying to go faster...!

But she tripped.
Falling into the ground with not a thud, but an audible and embarrassing slap. The layer of mucus on the ground did not discriminate against seeping into her clothing. She could immediately feel this cold yet faintly warm, uncomfortably slimy and sticky...

This was too much!

"Gross. This is Mucus?! Gross!!! This is the worst thing ever!!!"

Seia hugged her shoulders. As she sat dejected on the ground. Her clothes, sensing a lack of faith, was unable to maintain their pearly white appearance. And adsorbed some of the mucus as they started to darken.

No. This was nothing! Becoming a questing witch meant that she'd have to endure hardships many times more than this. If she was ever going to see her mother, she had to become a successful questing witch.

This wasn't the time to be lost in how repulsive this place was! If she couldn't stomach something like this then all the time she put into this would be wasted!

Seia spat out to avoid swallowing some of the supposed mucus on her face.


With a single aggravated wipe of her face. She picked herself up and moved on. Bits of the mucus fell off her Praetorian Uniform behind her as she ran on. The filth seeming to be ejected off the garments themselves as they reinforced a return to being brilliant white.


She arrived just after the conclusion of the fight with the Flesh Golem. The party was able to defeat it on their own. But, the eyes that were now looking at all of them - the intruders, seemed to indicate that they had done little more than agitate the area. Everyone, still on a bit of a high from defeating their first foe, generally ignored Seia who had just managed to catch up.

Beyond the eyes, there was something that worried Seia though. The vibes that were coming from their witch proctor Melody was a little alarming. But it was only temporary. She basically told the party to follow their chosen leader, and that she was still just there to advise, and only step in when absolutely necessary.

The first dilemma was a fork further into the cave.

Mina - the leader, suggested they go the right path. Seia could smell an alluring smell coming from the path Mina chose NOT to go into. If this were a type of trap, then it probably made sense to take the path she chose. Finally reunited, she followed behind the others. Already feeling a wall between them, given that they had experienced their first time in combat while she was absent.



[ The Hand ]


Further into the path. A bloody hand reached out of the fleshy wall. Alarmingly, a voice: beckoning for assistance. This cave was full of unpleasant suspires. The fleshy distortion of the cave was gross enough, but now this hand reaching out for assistance. No doubt, this was just another form of a trap, likely.

If the cave was resorting to this, then maybe this was-

"M-Melody,"
"How'd you get stuck in the wall!? Um... uhm... hold on, we'll get you out soon!"

A wave of realization. Said saw that one of the girls were attempting to assist the hand. And she was convinced that is was Melody?

"Aurora, wait,"
"Aurora, That's probably not-"

"Look closely! No fingernails. It's probably a fake."

Mina was correct. The girls managed to stop Aurora from being sucked in by the trap. Eirlys used her magic to blow up the monster revealed behind the arm in all gory fashion. A meaty chunk bounced of Seia's cheek in the aftermath.

"A-a-a-a-a-aurora! A-a-a-a-a-re y-y-y-y-y-you all r-right?"

Seia nonchalantly wiped the blood off her cheek. Past the point of having any reaction to being in contact with of this repugnant material this cave made. She looked merely inconvenienced.

"Hey Mina, How'd the Manablight manage to copy the sigil so accurately? Think other witches have been through?"

...There was silence. Aurora had nearly been killed in that trap. Their proctor soon acknowledged this.

"Good Job."
"The Manablight, your enemy, will employ all kind of means to make you drop your guard. It's not just about being able to overpower them with force, but it can also be cunning. It was a near perfect copy, wasn't it? If not for your allies, that could have ended very badly for you, Aurora. Being too kind will only get you killed."


Being too kind will only get you killed...

Somehow, those words resonated to Seia, in away that made her feel more detached and lonely. Still, that really was the true nature of the real world, wasn't it?

"You really need to be more careful,"
Mina said as she began to attend to Aurora's wounds from the brush in with the trap. "Come here, let me see if I can patch you up a bit."

They moved on. The group seemed to be endeavored to complete this task without any more accidents or missteps. Together.


Of course, except for Seia.
She kept her distance. On guard from Manablight, and from the others. There was nothing elegant she had to add to this group of people.



[ The First Boss ]



At the end of the tunnel, they arrived at their destination, and their target.

To sum up Seia's participation in that fight: it was mostly insignificant. She engaged some of the peripheral tendrils, ones that weren't even in the others' radar. Regardless, engaged them she did. Maybe, possibly, she was able to keep some part of that entity partially occupied, as it grew more frustrated over the fact that it was unable to take down this seemingly lone witch who was facing off against tendrils on her own.

That didn't stop every attack though. Most notably, Seia felt one tendril strike her across the face. To which she returned the gesture in kind.

Ultimately though, Seia didn't have to cast any major spells or recite a Hymn. Or maybe it just wasn't appropriate to in this situation. Instead, she relied upon her physical and martial prowess. She was fighting against several foes on skill alone.


This nightmarish introduction to the world of Manablight and monsters ended with the bloodcurdling screams of the beast. The party at the core of the action, was able to defeat the foe. From the looks of it, the destruction of the large sphere at the center seemed to do this monster in. Seia looked up to the Alphatraum that had opened up in the wake of the monster. Impressive to see it first hand. But, more pressing to her were her wounds.

Seia felt like she managed well enough. But certainly, the foe put up a good fight, and fighting off alone was not the most wise thing to do. Regardless, indeed, her instructor was right. She was able to hold her own in combat. Hearing Proctor Melody speaking things about wrapping up the mission, Seia gathered back up with the others. Still remaining distant. She noticed that her cheek felt rather... Peculiar.


She put her hand up to the side of her face. Upon inspection it indeed was bleeding. The tendril that struck her across the face managed to cut her it seemed. She could see her own hand, now stained with her very own blood. It was cut. Alarming to see, but nothing serious.

But most importantly...


This is what it would take to find her mother someday.
Nothing else mattered. No matter what cuts or bleeding, pains or hardships.

To reunite with her mother. Everything would be worth it when that day came,.


The group teleported back to the tower. They collectively received their pay a metaphorical pat on the back. Apparently, it was up to the team to decide how to split the earnings. It only made sense to just split equally. Hopefully it never would have to become more complicated than that.


Seia, nursing her cut with a handkerchief up to her cheek, sought no compensation today, however. She didn't really do anything after all - and all this was to her was a necessary chore to move forward. But more than anything else she just didn't feel like she deserved anything.

If only she didn't get herself lost in being amazed at the outside world, being left behind as the others flew ahead. She'd probably made a mistake she wouldn't be able to recover from. It didn't matter though. All those mistakes came from forgetting her real objective.

At the end of this adventure, their proctor asked a final question. Left them their payment to be divided amongst them, and let them depart.



Aurora and her Golem left, with Mina scurrying on after her. Seia wanted to say that she had no interest in taking a cut for... Everyone seemed to have gone after Aurora at this point. Why...? In passing, Seia followed her curiosity.


She caught up, catching a part of an exchange when the girls had caught up.

"I think their chocolate cake is good, however I've always thought that marble was better overall. What's your favorite type of cake?"
"Does Rune eat? Do you eat, Rune? Nod if yes shake your head no, of course."


"Cake...?"
"Lemon tart."

A ways behind, Seia was getting the gist of it. Melora was desperately trying to appeal to Aurora, whom seemed to have been shaken by the mission.

"You don’t have to do this..."
"It’s obvious I’m not cut out to be a Questing Witch. I had all sorts of wonderful ideas in my head... how it’d be like...... and I always knew Manablight was awful, but I wasn’t expecting... that..."
"I’m going to resign later today, so you don’t need to do this. Go get to know the rest of your real team..."

Real team... Seia echoed in her head. For her, her team were the other Sisters in the Praetorian Order.

"Good luck, Melora,"



So basically, Aurora felt like she couldn't handle being a questing witch after seeing what she saw today. The shock of seeing the reality that lie outside of the tower was too much for her. But... Aurora? That name.

Now that Seia thought about it. Wasn't this the girl who broke that Seraph Augustus statue back then? That girl. This girls' story stood out to Seia. Not just because some statue was broken, but because of hearing about the notorious reputation this girl had for joining and leaving all manner of covens. From what Seia understood, Aurora was a standout because she apparently failed to be acceptable in pretty much any coven she joined, thus she had previous memberships in a whole lot of them. Seia could passing remember how sad that sounded.

So, this girl was the exact same one from that story?


She heard about it a long time ago, but that story stuck out to Seia because it felt like it was something that she could've just as easily ended up into. Sure she was picked up by the Praetorians, but, before all of that she felt lonely and helpless on her own. It was only because of the support she received from her fellow sisters in the order that she was able to discover her potential, and find her dream to find her mother. If no one had reached out to her, then she could've just as easily ended up being lost among the covens.

The goal of finding her mother was something that drove Seia immensely. But, none of that would've been possible if it hadn't been for the people who supported her in the Praetorians. For someone like Aurora, who didn't have that support of other people, finding her own worth, or what she truly desired was probably something she was still struggling with.


Being in a witch squad offered Aurora something that she couldn't have with the covens thus far. As cruel as it might be to face the horrors of the outside world, crueler still would it be to live a life feeling completely worthless. These thoughts and words were... Probably what the other girls were trying to express. But finding a hard time doing so. Neither did Seia. She could not figure out what to say, nor was she comfortable just saying it either. But, for a person like her, 'acting upon' rather than being 'eloquent' was her way.

Don't be mistaken.


This group of witches were of no worth to Seia in the grand scheme of things. But for Aurora, maybe she would be able to find something she was missing out on among them. So, for Seia, the answer was straightforward.

She was okay being the villain if something good might come of it.



"....Yeah. You should probably listen to Aurora, Melora."


Catching up to them, young Praetorian witch spoke out to the girls as she approached.

"It took me a while, but I finally recognize who you are Aurora. You were once a part of the Praetorian College, where you not? I'm surprised, that a wash-out like you actually managed to make it past the entrance exams."

She appeared visibly annoyed, nursing the cut on her cheek with a scowl.

"You know? I've heard lots of interesting things about you. Like how you've basically joined every single coven but got kicked out of each one for being a failure. After seeing you nearly get killed back there, I was sure of it. You really are the universal cop out everyone says exists. I'm impressed. It's like I've come face-to-face with a legendary animal or the like."

"So what, Aurora? Are you going to just decide that you're completely worthless? You intend to run away and let another group of people down?"


Everyone was shocked that Seia, so quiet up until now, was speaking in such an inflammatory manner. It wasn't the result she wanted though. So she pushed harder.

"At the end of the day, the only person you're doing a service to is your own ego. Thinking that removing yourself will just improve things? Why don't you just cut that garbage idea out of your head and try to struggle a bit more? Your attitude is super annoying to watch and makes me want to vomit." Seia pompously turned her head to the side. "It's gross to see you like you are now. That's all."


What was getting into Seia.
For a couple of the girls, in idea clicked into their head.
Was this Seia's way of telling Aurora to not give up?

Someone had to speak up. Seia just wasn't quite getting the point across right!

@Karyra
@Luma
 
  • Spicy
Reactions: Luma
As Aurora quickly retreated out of Melora's grip, the taller girl tried to follow after, quickly trying again. the words died in her throat as she heard Seia say something that made her see red. Melora's head whipped around to look at Seia, and the warmth and easygoing persona that Melora wore was gone.

"Did you or did you not see the sheer amount of horror that was in the cave or what, Seia? I forget, how much punishment did you take from that horror show? A cut on your cheek?"


Melora turned back to Aurora, catching up and grabbing Aurora by the arm. Melora was careful not to ruffle it, but her grip was tough.

"You want to know why I don't trust Judgement, Aurora? Because she's literally stabbed me before. She's beaten me up, and gone on a rampage I can't stop until the time runs out."
Melora gripped Aurora's arm tighter. "I have seen myself die any number of times in more horrifying ways each time. But if I ran from those, I would have to deny the very reason I made my Historia."

She pulled Aurora closer.

"I hate how Seia phrased it, but you are running away. Why did you want to be a Questing Witch? Was it a noble reason? Did you have a real tangible reason? Is it better than my reason? Because it can't be. My reason is selfish and awful, and I don't care."

Melora was clearly angry. How could she throw away her hard work and knowledge like that? How could she devalue everything she'd worked for, so easily like this?

"Are you going to throw Rune away because you're just a little scared? Do you think that this is a better solution than trying and making a better deck for next time?"

Melora pulled out her deck. If Aurora ran, she was going to use Strength to pry answers from Aurora.

"Don't run because it's hard. Don't you want to see what you can do? How amazing your magic can be? How much you could learn? If it comes from pain, that's fine, but your magic is already far more amazing than mine. If not as a teammate, then as your friend, I want you to become a better person."

Some level of her own mind found this speech disgustingly sweet and compassionate. She'd known this other girl for a whole day, tops. However, she wanted as many people around her as possible. The more people between her and that.... thing. The better. The logical part of her said that the best way to play was to keep only herself alive. Aurora didn't need to be part of that equation. However, her stupid compassionate heart said that just leaving this as it was just wasn't acceptable.

Stupid compassionate heart.

"Aurora, are you still going to run?"


@Luma @Ehb
 
"I'm surprised, that a wash-out like you actually managed to make it past the entrance exams."

Aurora had to grab Rune's arm as it nearly lunged forward to engage the verbal attacker. Glancing back at Aurora, Rune obeyed the silent command to remain standing in place as Seia finished her bizarre encouragement. The golem leered into her eyes just before she turned off to the side.

"You want to know why I don't trust Judgement, Aurora? Because she's literally stabbed me before. She's beaten me up, and gone on a rampage I can't stop until the time runs out. I have seen myself die any number of times in more horrifying ways each time."

"Ouch..." Aurora commented amidst the pep-talk, offhandedly trying to push Melora's grip further down her arm. In the short time she'd gripped Aurora closer to the elbow, Melora was able to feel the strange hardness of the skin up there, even through the sleeve.

"Are you going to throw Rune away because you're just a little scared? Do you think that this is a better solution than trying and making a better deck for next time?"

Rather than concern, Rune seemed to find amusement at the notion in a similar way oxygen might find the idea of lungs claiming 'I don't need you' funny. Aurora glanced up at Rune and they shared the look for just a second before returning the gaze to Melora, having concluded the impossibility of that idea in tandem.

"Don't run because it's hard. Don't you want to see what you can do? How amazing your magic can be? How much you could learn? If it comes from pain, that's fine, but your magic is already far more amazing than mine. If not as a teammate, then as your friend, I want you to become a better person."

More silence on Aurora's part.

"Aurora, are you still going to run?"

Closing her eyes, Aurora took a deep breath, and exhaled slowly. If the two were watching closely, they might've noticed a small wisp of smoke release from the corner of her mouth as she did so. Either way, she reopened her eyes to speak.

"I appreciate what you're both trying to do..." she gave a meaningful glance at Seia, correcting, "...what I think you're trying to do; but I've heard it all before. 'Welcome to the coven, we'll be best of friends.' I've heard it before. 'Just focus and try harder and you'll get it.' I've heard it before.... well uhm... never like you just said it, but ya know..." she shrugged in Seia's direction.

Aurora awkwardly pried Melora's hand off her arm, glancing at the deck in her other hand with suspicion.

"What are you hoping I'll say? 'Okay, I'll stay and put all your lives in danger?' If you think I'm running away, or that I'm not trying hard enough, all that proves is that you just don't know me at all. I never left a coven because I wasn't trying hard enough. It's always been because of my mistakes. Mistakes that were putting lives at risk. This isn't so different. You can always say, 'Oh, it's already dangerous!' but you don't need me there to make it worse, and I don't..."

Aurora paused.

"You're not going to take no for an answer, are you?"

She glanced over at the deck again, forcing her mind into overdrive. How to get rid of an insistent idealist? Ideas, ideas, ideas.

Aha!

Turning to the satchel at her side, Aurora plunged her hand in, pulling out a notepad and magic quill which began to write... and write and write and write and write...

After a few minutes, she tore the page out and handed it to Melora.


For the safety of my squad, I, Aurora Avril, will be resigning as a Questing Witch. I underestimated just how dangerous it was and I'm sorry I put everyone in danger. If you ALL agree by signing your name that, despite my accidents listed below, you still want me in your squad, I'll reconsider.

  • Seraph Augustus decapitation
  • Mana-street fires
  • Rogue golem attacks
  • Speculous shockwave
  • Release of the "Ancient One"
  • Arcanis house hauntings
  • The week of babbling
  • Mismatch epidemic
  • Armageddon nightmares

Stepping forward, Aurora held her hand over the bottom of the page for a moment before whisking it away. On the bottom was now a fancy 'Aurora Avril' signature. Just as she was about to place her stuff away, she snatched the page back again.

"Whoops, forgot one..."

...and several misplaced Witch-mails

"There." She handed the paper back to Melora, retiring her quill and notepad. "You know, most people don't even know half of those were my fault. Do you see now? If I have a track record of disastrous mistakes, it's irresponsible for me to join a tightly-knit squad of professional witches when they depend on each other for their lives."

Aurora turned to leave once again.

"I'm going home to take a bath, but I wrote my address on the back. Feel free to stop by as a friend," she offered as if the signature thing had already failed. "I do really like cake."

With that said, Aurora ran off. However, Rune stayed behind, staring at the paper with a hopeful smile.

@Karyra
@Ehb
 
Hovering over Melora's shoulder. Seia eyed the paper that Aurora had handed her before taking leave. Despite hers and Melora's words, she wasn't convinced. The paper... Filling out all of the signatures. Asking for everyone in the squad to beg her to stay. That sent the wrong vibes to Seia's mind. Like, someone who was completely dependent on other people to evaluate their own self worth.

There was a time when she was like that too. Disgusting.

But, beyond that, there was something else much more pressing and poignant about the paper in Melora's hand. Various 'mistakes' listed out. A pretty long list of things things that had gone wrong that Aurora admitted to having caused. Listed on top, damage to a Seraph Augustus Statue. That confirmed it. This was the girl who defaced that one statue. The amount of chaos attributed to this one person, if all completely true, was rather impressive.

Melora heard Seia sigh right beside her ear. It was uncomfortably close, actually. But, before Melora could turn to see her - and ask her what she was doing - the paper in her hand was whisked away by the Praetorian.

"This is probably the most idiotic thing she could've done in this situation." The paper, now in Seia's possession fluttered as Seia looked over it more closely. "She's basically just admitted to a whole bunch of crimes that some of these covens are actively trying to find the perpetrator for."

"...and As a member of the Praetorians, charged with the enforcement of rule of law in the tower, I cannot overlook this."

That was right. Those clothes. Seia WAS part of the Praetorian Coven. They were essentially considered the police force of the tower. The paper in her hand was like a key to bringing closure to a whole series of different unknown accidents that have occurred over time. Even if each any everyone of of these occurrences were just accidents, there were those who sought to have someone be held responsible for it all.

"I guess, Aurora actually did make herself useful after all." Seia said, donning a pleased expression. "Leading the authorities to her for these crimes will no doubt net some commendation towards a promotion in my Coven, no doubt."

It would be more impressive if she just apprehended Aurora here. But, it was best to give this confession letter to her Coven and allow them to decide. Still, this evidence was.... Could you even call this evidence at this point when she was just admitting to it all?


Not bad.
Not bad at all.

Seia's first day as a Witch, and she's about to put an end five or even six different investigations.
That was a promotion literally being handed to her on a silver platter.



Eventually, Melora's eyes met with Seia's. The red-haired praetorian was still standing there with the paper firmly in hand. She wasn't going to walk off and immediately run to her coven quite yet. But, her eyes were giving off this tension. A single question remained in this encounter:

Was Melora going to contest Seia for control over that paper?

Melora just might be able to take back the paper. She might even be able to do it by force if she needed to. They were both witch initiates after all. Seia did practically nothing during the mission. But after that. Just how many ways could things go wrong in attacking a Praetorian Witch?


The stare-down continued until Seia finally spoke.

"You're in my way Melora. Please let me through, if you'd be so kind."

@Luma
@Karyra
 
  • Like
Reactions: Accelerator
Mina finally let Eirlys go. "You don't, you know, need to ask permission to hug someone." She looked around. "Guess we should try and catch up."

Everyone else had escaped them, anyway. Which meant it was time to find them again. Or not. No reason to keep standing around, though. Mina again activated her flight spells and considered carrying Eirlys along with her. But with how nervous her companion already seemed, it was probably better not to make any more invasions of her personal space. "I'm going on ahead," Mina announced, already floating a few inches above the ground. She took off into the air to fly after Aurora and the others, keeping a few feet above head height. It wasn't really a good idea to fly in the halls, but it felt like a good idea at the time. Bend the rules a little.

Aurora was already on the run again when Mina caught up with the others. Damn it, too slow again. "Hey, Mel, what's going on?" Whatever Aurora was up to, chasing her again might not actually do anything. Maybe Aurora actually did need some time alone. Maybe it wouldn't. But chasing her down again, especially with Rune still around, didn't seem quite right. And, really, she just wanted to get back to her room and out of clothes she may well burn rather than wear again.

Mina looked over to Seia. "Something wrong?"
 
Noticing Mina floating after them from a distance, Rune waved a little ‘hello’ of acknowledgement. In that short period of time, Seia had already lunged for the page.

"I guess, Aurora actually did make herself useful after all." Seia said, donning a pleased expression. "Leading the authorities to her for these crimes will no doubt net some commendation towards a promotion in my Coven, no doubt."

The pleasent expression on the golem’s face turned hostile quicker than a blink. Without a moment of hesitation, Rune raised its arm, the top popping up to reveal a shiny, metal barrel, already glowing red from a primed fire blast. Pointing it towards the paper, Rune made the intention clear: it would burn the paper at any cost before it could be used to attack Aurora that way, regardless of how many fingers had to go along with it.

@Ehb
@Karyra
@R-9 Pilot
 
Melora, temporarily distracted by the sudden strange texture change in her grip, that she nearly missed the look between golem and master. Melora noticed smoke come from the exhale, and was so caught off guard that she hadn't realized that Aurora had squirmed out of her grip. Melora's mind tried desperately to reconcile these facts, and looked at Rune.

Numbly, Melora took the paper. Most of these incidents would need further investigation. Most looked fairly harmless. A lack of mail? Eh. However, these did need looking into. The statue incident? Now that was just plain funny. Melora never had much love for pomp and circumstance, and statues could be repaired easily through magic.

"We just met each other today. We're not anywhere near close-knit." Melora replied.

This was not the tactic to take. For now she had to take this to-

The paper nearly disappeared like magic. Seia had grabbed it. However, it seemed like she knew all about these incidents. Melora wanted to deck this snotty know it all, but Seia knew these crimes. Perhaps...

"You're in my way Melora. Please let me through, if you'd be so kind."

"Uh, no. Considering that she's in our squad, and I had no prior knowledge of these crimes, I'd like to know the severity of them. Mail I can pass on caring, but some of these are truly just accidents with no harm to the residents." Melora said without really looking at Seia. "I mean, unless somebody died from babbling for a week, I don't think it's worth jail. But hey, maybe you can convince me to be on your side."

Mina showed up, the team leader. If nothing else, Seia obeyed authority. Maybe Mina would be able to control the situation better? It was possible that this thread would lead somewhere interesting.

"Oh, Aurora gave me a list of things she's done. Mistakes and stuff. Seia wants to take her to jail for it."
Melora said. "Oh, and Rune will probably take fingers off Seia is she tries anything stupid. Better than me, because Aurora wants to quit. I figure that we learn what these are, we learn whether or not we should let her quit. I'm on 'Team No'."

"Oh, and if we all sign this paper apparently Aurora will stop pitying herself for a bit and rejoin the squad. But... I'm not sure but I think there's something going on with her. Something bad." Melora paused and finally looked at Seia. "Surely, since your coven is in charge of making sure everyone in the Tower is safe, you'd want to know why our squadmate has blue skin, and exhales smoke, yes? Surely you can't pass up the possible endangerment of a citizen?"

Melora carefully slid her hand from Strength to The Moon, waiting for her chance. All she needed was a moment to steal back that paper if Seia was going to be this hard on crimes. Melora wasn't even sure some of these were crimes. For all she knew, the "ancient one" mentioned could just be a pet of some kind.

@Luma @Ehb @R-9 Pilot
 
  • Like
Reactions: Luma
As expected, Seia's words and apparent intentions were not received well. Aurora's Golem seemed to be poised to attack, and the vibes Seia felt off of Melora were not anywhere near friendly, or cooperative. With Mina's arrival though, there was a break to allow Melora to explain. To sum it up, things were 'Tense'.


"...Hey, Thing." Seia spoke out.
"If you care about your master enough to threaten to do something like that, consider just how much trouble both of you would be getting into for what you're posturing to do to me."


Seia looked between Melora and Rune. There seemed to be one, obvious thing that they were fixated and antagonized over: The paper in Seia's hand.


"You want this paper so badly?"
With an inconvenienced expression, she put both of her hands on the sheet.
"Go ahead. Take it from me."

Seia looked like she was poised to tear the sheet that Aurora wrote in half. The grip her fingers had on the otherwise unremarkable sheet would see it easily ripped apart with even the slightest motion.

"Blast me apart with that toy cannon and the paper's gone. You'll get disassembled and Aurora gets sent to the dungeon floor where prisoners are kept. The girls sent there stop being people... Rather, they become toys for the people who like to experiment."


Was this girl serious?
Seia was at some point goading the girls into attacking her, but at the same time forewarning of the repercussions. What did she even want? What did Seia have to gain from going this far?

"...If Aurora is so weak that she needs a paper and a bunch of signatures to find her own reason of being a Journeying Witch, then it's for the best that she drop out, and face judgment for the things she's done. A person with no-self worth, is of no worth."

"That kind of person has no place in this tower. Or in the struggle of saving the world."


The Paper was meaningless.
Seemed to be what Seia was getting at. Even if everyone filled it out with their signatures, Aurora still had a root problem to her eligibility in being a part of this team. That was a problem. A big problem that would someday come back to haunt them at the worst possible time if they allowed for it to happen.

If her worth as a witch was just the value of ink and paper from essentially strangers... Then it was logical that Aurora should quit. And be punished for the things she had done.

"Should Aurora be unable to pay society back by being a questing witch and helping against the Manablight then it should be up to the authorities to decide how she should pay back the people that have been wronged by what she caused. At the very least, those people and those Coven have a right to know the reason and person behind something that caused them trouble."

Seia narrowed her eyes coldly.
A person's value in society... It was hard to exactly paint everything that Seia's words were trying to convey. But for the two one thing stuck out:

One's Worth.
The pitiful girl, Aurora seemed to have none. No worth in herself.
For the Praetorian girl, a person like that had no value to society.

In Seia's mind, that display gave no excuse to gloss over the things she had done. Whether Aurora did or didn't do any of those things, or how severe they were was irrelevant. If Aurora had no wish to be a part of the team beyond getting self confirmation... And to be saved every time... Then the only thing she was to Seia was someone who she had to report to her coven about.


Melora felt a sick feeling in her conscience.
From a logical standpoint. Seia was not wrong. There was nothing wrong with Seia reporting to her superiors about what she'd heard. In fact, it was likely Seia was obligated to do so. The young praetorian would be betraying her coven even by withholding that knowledge.

That's why, she felt a tension.
If Melora didn't have an answer, she'd have no choice but to let Seia walk away, or attack?

Blasting apart Seia's fingers. Stealing the paper back... Those were things that they could indeed win physically.
But, it also felt like that by doing that, they'd lose in an aspect that was much more important.

Any ill thought-out attempt to take back the paper would not be the actions of someone who truly wanted to help Aurora. But an outburst of one's own pride.

But, who would be that person? To argue the worth of someone whom didn't find any worth in themselves and build it up from the ground?


Even with that in mind: they...

@Luma @Karyra @R-9 Pilot