In Heiss City hall, a high-rise office building located in Horseville, a town at the heart of Heiss city...
"Assign more Magic enforcers with Fire affinity to the central watchtower guarding the Horkii rainforest-Axille border. Goane's report yesterday showed a significant spike in Plant monster populations around the south-west sector... Yes! Fire spells take care of them more efficiently than any other elemental spell we've thrown at them, so we'll require more Fire wizards to control their numbers... Alright, work on that right away. And dispatch another Legendary Space wizard to the central watchtower... The current one urgently needs assistance with the containment efforts... Yes, he's perfect for the job. Alright, enure they all report for duty as soon as possible. We cannot afford to lose more land to those abominable creatures!" A tense and frustrated voice conveyed through a phone's receiver, which rested on a sprawling polished desk in an immaculately decorated office on the fifteenth floor of the sleek, high-rise building.
"Understood, chief," the person on the other end of the line replied.
The mayor of Heiss city, Harold Wills, let out a deep sigh and hung up the phone. Despite being a robust man in his late forties, his weary demeanor made him appear a lot older. His chiseled features, however, belied his exhaustion. "Another day, another problem," he grumbled to himself, shuffling through the stack of papers on his desk. It was always the same - an endless barrage of crisis to address, and never enough time to tackle them all.
As he delved through the endless stack of papers, the mayor's mind grew weary; reports after reports of Black Fraggers sighted in Axille and the escalating crisis in Horkii rainforest dominated his desk and his every waking moment. Sometimes he wondered if being mayor was even worth it, with all the unending need for decision-making and instruction-giving. It was starting to bear down on him. He couldn't help but feel a pang of envy towards the receptionists and clerks and janitors outside his office; their duties were straightforward and required little mental strain, unlike his. He massaged his temples, trying to ward off the headache that was starting to form.
A sudden knock at the door caught his attention.
"Who's there?" Mr. Wills demanded, but the response was an unsettling silence. He tried calling out his secretary's name, but he got no response, only an eerie silence. Then, a dark, billowing smoke began to seep into the room, obscuring the mayor's vision and shrouding the office in a murky haze. The sunlight streaming through the windows were extinguished, plunging the space into an eerie gloom.
Mr. Wills sprang from his chair, alarm etched on his face; this was no ordinary smoke. In fact, it radiated a terrifying magic wave which sent shivers down his spine. With a swift gesture, he gathered his magic energy and conjured three glittering icicles pointing at the door with anticipation, poised for release.
"Who are you? What is this?!" He demanded, but there was no response, only more black smoke filling the room. He started to feel lightheaded, his vision growing fuzzy and dark. Suddenly, everything went black...
The mayor's eyes flickered open, and he found himself back in his chair, just as before. But the atmosphere in the room had shifted; despite the smoke having cleared, a somber gloom lingered. Mr. Wills abruptly became aware of a throbbing sensation, which turned out to be his head pounding mercilessly. He tried to rub his temples, only to realize his arms and legs were paralyzed. A low curse escaped his lips as a searing headache and confusion contorted his face.
Just then, a sultry feminine voice cut through the air, making him twitch despite his paralysis. "Greetings, Mayor Harold Wills."
Wills' gaze jerked toward the speaker, landing on a slender woman standing in the corner. She wore a sleek black suit, complemented by a matching briefcase, dark sunglasses, and an array of black accessories, including a hat, jewelries, watch, shoes, and makeup. Her understated yet mysterious demeanor commanded attention, her tranquil air belied by an undercurrent of enigma.
"Who... are you?" Mr. Wills asked, straining to form the words. The pain in his head was becoming intense, and he could barely focus on anything else.
"Oh, you wanna know who I am?" the woman said, her voice sounding as smooth and soothing as silk. "You can call me..." There was a momentary pause before she said with the most casual tone, "Vixen." The gloom seemed to shudder at the sound of her name, and the shadows appeared to tremble with fear.
The mayor's eyes widened in terror. "Vixen?" He repeated with a trembling voice. The mere mention of the name sent a chill down his spine, and he felt an instinctive sense of panic. Who had not come across the name Vixen? It was a stuff of legends, a name whispered in the dark, used to frighten naughty children into behaving. It was said that she lurked in the shadows, that she could reach through the night and snatch away those who misbehaved.
In reality, the Vixen was an infamous moniker associated with a notoriously powerful and dangerous member of the Black Fraggers, a clandestine group of magical terrorists. The organization had, according to records, existed in Kreete for over six hundred years and earned a reputation for mercilessness and destruction. The Vixen was rumored to be their most fearsome operative.
Throughout the wizarding community and international security circles, the name was a cause for concern. The Vixen's true identity and position within the Black Fraggers remained a mystery, yet her involvement in the organization's numerous diabolical operations was consistently suggested by investigative findings. These operations had claimed the lives of countless wizards and ordinary folk, cementing the Vixen's reputation as a ruthless and elusive individual.
The Vixen's presence sparked unprecedented security measures, with lockdowns and heightened alerts implemented wherever she was reported to be. The Vixen was basically a legend in the world of international terrorism, known and feared far and wide. For the magical world, she embodied the ultimate boogeyman, her very name enough to strike fear into the hearts of even the most hardened wizards.
Despite his evident unease, Mr. Wills managed to maintain a composed exterior. "What do you want?" His trembling voice asked. He could sense the sheer power radiating from the mysterious woman. He couldn't detect her aura, but he could tell she possessed immense strength. Her presence in his office, coupled with her ability to paralyze him, a 6th rank Legendary wizard, hinted at a dire scenario: his elite security guards might have been compromised (God, I hope they're not dead). Regardless, it was made clear that she was a force to be reckoned with. He deduced that she was at the very pinnacle of the Legendary realm, one step away from becoming a Formidable wizard. She was one heck of a powerhouse, one who could stand toe to toe with someone like Manhawk.
"What I want is very simple," the woman replied, her voice low and sultry as she gracefully settled in the seat across from the mayor. She let out a melodramatic laugh, sounding almost like a pantomime villain. "I want two boys who currently reside in Heiss, this city. One is named Robert Manuel, and the other called Oliver Swells."
Mr. Wills's expression deepened in perplexity as he rummaged through his memory. Then, a sudden spark of recognition ignited, and he exclaimed, "Wait just a moment. You're talking about Robert and Oliver, the boys Manhawk identified as being possessed by the Earth and Ice Ancestor souls. Look, I'll be honest, I'm not in a position to give them to you. In fact, I don't even know how I would go about doing that. Others who know about the Ancestor souls are afraid to go after the boys because of Manhawk and the support he receives from the Superior Wizards. Please, is there anything else you'd like? I'll do my best to accommodate your request." He gave her a pleading look.
The Vixen smiled with an air of bold amusement. "Most people know better than to question my demands. Perhaps I need to be more explicit." Her smile became unnerving and her eyes glinted dangerously. She tapped her finger on the table, and the shadow beneath her began to shift and morph, taking on a life of its own. The shadow solidified into the dark figure of a woman wielding a shadowy axe and it began to move slowly but menacingly around the desk, towards the Mayor. It stopped beside him, pointing the cold dark axe at his cheek.
"Choose between the boys and Axille," the Vixen declared, her voice deadly calm. "You should understand why I'm hesitant to hack off your jaw - you'll need your words to fulfill my request. You have until the end of the year to make your decision, Mayor." As she finished speaking, the shadow clone dissipated into dark magic particles.
"Choose wisely," she whispered, her voice dissolving into the gloom as she transformed into a cloud of black smoke and vanished silently into the shadows. The room became eerily tranquil, and the warm afternoon sunlight began to stream in once again. The mayor was left alone in his office, feeling more terrified than he'd ever been in his life.
Cautiously, he tried to move his arm, and to his relief, he was able to do so.
But his initial relief gave way to a flurry of anxious thoughts. "Damnit, what am I supposed to do now?" He muttered, a sense of panic rising within him. "Manhawk has to be informed about this - this is way above my pay grade!" Mr. Wills was well aware of the implications of the Vixen's words - the boys or Axille. In essence, refusing to surrender the boys would condemn Axille to become the epicenter of another devastating catastrophe at the brutal hands of the Black Fraggers. The very thought sent his heart racing. He wasn't ready to face the Black Fraggers only half a year after his election! Nah, this was a job for those big shots in the Magic Council!
The week flew by, and Robert spent every evening in the bushes behind the laboratory, practicing his spells and meditating to strengthen his magic. Robert hadn't managed to think about it in Miss Greene's apartment the last time, but he did not like the idea of being escorted to Heiss Magic School by her. Fortunately, it didn't require much talk to convince Miss Greene, but she insisted that he obtained her permission before setting off.
So, after acquiring Miss Greene's permission in the afternoons, following the midterm examinations, he'd drift to Heiss Magic School in his sand form, where he received magic lessons and learned new spells. By Saulday, he and Oliver had both reached the second rank of the Common realm.
That Saulday morning had an atmosphere charged with a sense of excitement and anticipation. For the junior students, this was the day they got to go home to their parents, and the air was filled with the sounds of laughter and the joyful reunion of parents and their young ones. But for the senior students, although they were to return to their homes as well, it was a day tinged with bittersweet nostalgia, as they looked at the younger students with a mix of fondness and wistfulness, thinking back to when they, too, had been so young and eager to return home. They knew that before long, these younger students would no longer need their parents to come and pick them up on closing day, but would instead be venturing out into the world on their own.
Robert stood in the corridor outside his classroom, watching as families gathered at the school gate to collect their children. A smile spread across his face as he watched the joyful reunions, parents hugging their kids and kids running to their parents' open arms. It filled him with happiness to think that he would soon be seeing his own mother and sister. Just the thought of it made him feel warm and fuzzy inside. Dora had already left with her wealthy father, Alan Lambard, who picked her up in a luxurious white car, but not before she gave Robert a lustful and lengthy kiss. Vanessa, meanwhile, was at a meeting with the science teachers in the laboratory. Tom and Zarie canvassed the school grounds, gathering student opinions on the semester's first half. Robert couldn't help but ponder how he'd respond if questioned: "The craziest since kindergarten!" he thought, chuckling.
"Hey, are we leaving yet?" Oliver called out, walking towards Robert with his backpack bouncing on his back, filled with who knows what.
"Hold on a minute, I'm just savoring this moment," Robert replied, a playful smile on his face. But just as he finished his sentence, Oliver conjured a tiny ice pin and gently poked his butt with it. Robert yelped, rubbing his backside as though it really hurt, even though Poison's regeneration power had neutralized the pain.
"Let's go!"
The streets of Axille were silent and empty as usual, the occasional passerby only accentuating the desolation. Robert and Oliver had decided to walk home together, and even before they stepped through the school gates, they had begun discussing plans for their magic beast hunting expedition. The streets were eerily quiet, and the silence seemed to amplify their every word.
Robert normally felt an intense rush of liberation, a mix of relief, euphoria, and satisfaction, whenever he escaped the confines of Solar Springs High School on closing day, just like any boarding school student. This sensation was rooted in his deep-seated longing to break free from the monotony and confinement that had defined his life for months as a boarding school student. However, this feeling had eluded him now. His recent adventures, which began when he and Oliver sneaked out of school and encountered Manhawk, had forever altered his perspective, rendering the familiar sense of liberation inaccessible.
"It's simple, we'll head into Horkii rainforest by midmorning and capture any magic beasts we come across," Oliver said, "then we'll bring them back and the old men would guide us on how to bind the creature with a contact, easy."
Robert's expression contorted in feigned confusion. "Old men?" he asked, a smirk spreading across his face. "What old men?"
Oliver's calm demeanor was a stark contrast as he replied, "The old men are inside us, silly!" He burst into a grin, and the two shared a hearty laugh.
Solomon's disapproving grunt cut through the merriment, prompting the two boys to swiftly compose themselves. A moment of silence passed before Oliver's gaze dropped, a subtle smile spreading across his face. It was a rare, introspective gesture, hinting that he was on the cusp of sharing something deeply personal.
"I must admit, I'm deeply grateful to Xolomon for choosing to merge with me," he said, his tone unwavering and his face regained it's blank expression. "Without him, I'd surely be a corpse by now. The night my adoptive father killed my moth... his wife, and I froze him, I was left with nowhere to turn. Everyone in the village were searching for me, and I found myself wandering the streets, desperately seeking a safe place to rest my head. But, as it turned out..."
"You slept in the sewers?" Robert cut in, smirking. Oliver frowned.
"No, I slept in a castle," Oliver corrected him, his eyes sparkling. "An ice castle, crafted by Xolomon just for me! I have no idea how he did it, but I fell asleep in someone's backyard and woke up to find myself in a breathtaking castle made entirely of ice. It was marvelous, even the cold emanating from the glowing ice walls didn't faze me one bit. In fact, that night, I slept better than any king could have hoped for. The bed was made of the fluffiest snow you could imagine!"
Robert's eyes widened at Oliver's visible enthusiasm - a rare sight. "Why the life story?" he asked, grinning playfully. "Trying to make me jealous of your Ancestor soul?"
Oliver chuckled. "No, Robert. I'm just explaining that I'm a bit of a loner. I don't have a family and I live in an ice castle far, far away from civilization... wait, do you hear that?" he trailed off as a strange, ear-piercing shriek caught their attention. Both boys snapped to alertness, scanning their surroundings to locate the source of the sound.
They glanced around for some seconds, before Robert's exclamation of "Look out!" cut through the tension. He was pointing upwards. Oliver's gaze followed just in time to see a blonde individual strapped into a jetpack plummeting towards them. The person's frantic struggle to regain control of the contraption was evident, as it careened wildly through the air, towards Robert and Oliver.
The duo responded impulsively.
They quickly changed position, and Oliver gathered his magic energy, casting a "Snow bed!" spell, and Robert cast a "Dirt pile!" spell simultaneously. Their actions transformed their previous location into a soft snow bed and a pile of dirt, respectively, aimed at cushioning the fall of the jetpack freak. However, due to the slight delay between their spellcasting, Oliver's snow bed was overlaid by Robert's pile of dirt.
The jetpack boy crashed into the dirt-topped snowbed, causing a cloud of dust to explode around him. There was a grunt of pain. Robert and Oliver hastened towards the boy, hoping the spells had served their intended purpose - as a makeshift landing surface to break the boy's fall. But before they could reach his side, the boy sprang to his feet, brushing himself off and directing a scowl at Robert.
"You could have let the ice guy do his thing," Zack grumbled, brushing the dirt off his face.
Robert's eyes widened, recognizing him. "Zack! What are you doing here? How did you find me?"
Zack's annoyed expression instantly transformed into an enthusiastic smile. "With this," he said, producing a tiny sleek object, no larger than a grain of rice, from Robert's hair.
"Why did you..."
"Shhh, don't ask questions you don't wanna know the answer to," Zack shushed. "I'm here to inform you two that I'm joining your magic beast hunt!" he whispered excitedly.
"How do you know he's a wizard?" asked Robert.
"Well, this magic device not only sends me your location but also transmits audio information," Zack explained. "From what I've been hearing, Oliver, or as you call him, has the Ice Ancestor soul, and who was that girl yelling at you..." Robert interrupted him before he could continue talking about Dora and the others.
"This is Oliver, no need for introductions, I'm sure," Robert said, gesturing to Oliver. Then, turning to Zack, he added, "And this is Zack, the thorn in my side that I've been telling you about. He's a magic technologist." The two boys shook hands, their eyes sizing each other up.
"Sorry for dropping in like that - the controls on this baby got stuck. You know, ever since you talked about creating gear to aid me in combat, I've been as busy as a Swinkle fly. Check out this prototype," Zack said, proudly gesturing to the jetpack on his back. "And that's not all - I've also been experimenting with some high-risk project. Let's just say I've made some pretty potent stuff." Zack grinned evily, proceeding to walk alongside them. Robert and Oliver exchanged glances, sensing that "pretty potent" was a severe understatement for downright dangerous.
"So, I managed to obtain permission from the school to go home and obtain my magic beast, just like all the other students in the magic class," Zack rattled on. "But here's the thing - they let me leave without even verifying if I'm actually a wizard - which was kind of the plan. Now I'm in a bind. If I go back home my uncle will be very mad, cus I'm in the tech class and not the magic class so he'll know I'm skipping. That's why I need to ask - can I stay with one of you?" He looked at Robert and Oliver expectantly.
Robert and Oliver exchanged a glance. Who'd want to share a house with this freak?! "Stay at Robert's house," Oliver said immediately.
"Zack, how would you like to live in an ice castle?" Robert quipped, grinning mischievously. But before Zack could respond, an unfamiliar voice suddenly yelled from the end of the street.
"Hey jerks!"
Turning around, they saw a black-haired boy with piercing green eyes, riding on the back of a magnificent, blue-furred creature with feline features. The magic beast sleek coat glistened with intricate silver patterns, and its eyes glowed like sapphires. Its tail swished from side to side, and its gaze was focused on the three boys who were not far from it.