Chronicle Of The Stars

"A mythweaver?"

A cold, arrogant voice rang out in the room. It was "0250". He asked directly, no respect, no honorifics, only pride. The tall figure of him cast a shadow over Magister Leiny as she looked up to him.

The flame lit up from him, and his palm outlined a piercing red mark. The cold in the room was blown away, leaving only the pressure of his presence. 

Without any further words, Magister's hand shook slightly under the table, and she began sweating, like a cornered deer before a lion king; her pride faltered beneath his gaze.

However, she quickly strengthened her look and stared back at the man while firmly holding the book, "I don't have it." 

Still, she tried to act composed, whispering to herself,"...The pact.. wasn't supposed to be broken yet."

However, he didn't reply; instead, fire sparks were formed, and his black leather cloak fluttered. Slowly, he lifted up his hand and removed the mask. 

High cheekbones, a strong jawline, and thick eyebrows with a sharp nose, as some strand of black hair hung over his nose. Hazel burned in his eyes, glinting with the certainty of someone born "chosen".

His muscular body was already a threat, yet his stare was on another level. In a moment of silence...

"Squizz!" - A sword flashed... too fast for her eyes.

Its chain-link echoed in the room, and the blade shimmered as though it was forged from a molten sun, leaving its edge right next to her neck. 

Leiny was horrified, yet her attitude annoyed him. His gaze sharpened, and a trace of flame spread through his arms, fusing with the blade's edge.

Embers released, and their temperature increased, heating the whole room. 

Leiny trembled in fear, looking at the sharp blade. "Atlantis! It's in Atlantis!" - An instant answer, saving her life before the blade could cut her into pieces. 

Sure enough, 0250 was pleased with the information. A smirk was shown on his face, and he took back the sword. "Where is it?" - His mind was covered with excitement. 

However, Leiny stood still, avoiding his look with a darkening face. For a moment, the room fell quiet...

"... In 5 months, find it." - He turned, putting his mask on, and a sense of relief appeared in Leiny as she breathed more naturally, not under the pressure anymore.

The heat, the flame, and the death's threat were fading away along with 0250, who was walking to the door. 

After a few moments, he left, but his heavy footsteps remained. Leiny, on the other hand, smashed the table in rage, and the lantern lit up once again in the mysterious atmosphere.

"Curse you, Ariel Illes! If it wasn't for my plan, I'd have killed you!"

The roar rocked the whole room. In her eyes... a glitter of purple slowly spread and replaced the black color, blending chaos in it, like a message to this world. 

"Return"

...

...

...

His step echoed - slow, steady in the corridor's silence.

0250 - Ariel Illes walked with a calm manner, his cloak fluttered, and the heat clung to it as the air he had left behind the chamber of Magister Leiny faded.

The lanterns flickered and scattered to both side as if afraid of his presence, 

He didn't look left or right, only forward. Until ...something happened.

A soft beat from his palm. Faintly like a rhythm leading its way to the other side of the walls.

He halted, took a breath for a second, turned his head gradually to the left, and stared at the library.

No sound came from within. Still, he reached for the handle and entered. Dust hung in the air like it was suspended by time. Books lined up on the ancient shelves, thousands of layers. 

However, none of them mattered; the mark he had pulsed harder than ever, searching for its resonance. To the second floor, his steps were guided by his own attention, the wooden stairs, the small pathways of the library, all were thought to be the lead of his action.

After minutes lost among shelves and shadow, he stopped.

Then- there. A boy lay on the floor.

A step closer, he approached. The boy's boots and clothes were the ones from the academy. "0009?" - Ariel flicked his gaze to the boy's shoulder and read his number aloud.

He showed no sign of consciousness, one hand clutched his chest, and the other sprawled outward. 

Ariel knelt down, trying to figure out what the resonance was... until he saw it.

A hint of magic in his flame flared up. Ariel narrowed his eyes as he looked at the strange reaction.

"...Ignis?... No... A constellation?" - He muttered and quickly studied his clothes more closely.

"Compression magic?" - A faint but recognisable trace was left on the boy's ulster. However, before the man could analyze the magic, his eyes drifted to the palm.

The light pulsed.

Once. Only once.

He reached out. Without hesitation, he placed his gloved hand over the boy's palm. And the moment his palm touched the other's -

The world twisted.

The library vanished into water.

A great dark sea shimmered beneath a boundless, starlight sky. There was no sound; silence was the only thing here... even the ocean's surface remained, no currents, no tide, only stillness. 

Ariel - clutched his sword tightly as though he was ready for the worst situation, yet nothing happened.

Between the boundary of sky and ocean, he stood there... he was small, too small in this world. Ariel was dazzled by the omniscient scenery and released his hand, as though everything he wanted then was to witness this scene.

Stars emerged, and some... lit up in a pattern. One by one, they formed and linked themselves until...

 "Leo..." - He blurted out, staring at the glowing figure of a lion.

It was "The constellation... Leo." 

However, when he was stunned, he saw something... There wasn't only Leo.

Another pattern of stars appeared. In seconds, it connected with each other, glowing even brighter than Leo... and a voice reverberated through the realm.

"Aquarius." 

Ariel - in a surprise, lowered his gaze to look forward, and a light figure revealed itself in several paces ahead - Velmir.

He rose slowly, his luminous body reflected through the sea.

The stars shifted, and above them, two constellations drew closer across the sky, their lines interwining slightly.

And Ariel broke the silence.

"Who are you?"