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Headmage's Office
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Indeed. While the Watchman has become something of an urban legend by now... Back in the old days, when mages were called witches and wizards, they were feared across the land. People believed the Island of Woe would punish any wizard who abandoned their principles and went mad with power. |
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One of my family's history books claims that the group is so ancient, they date back to the Age of the Gods. The relationship between magic and blot hadn't been established at that time. According to my history book, people believed overblots were disasters that occured without warning. The Jupiter family forebear sealed those disasters away on the Island of Woe and brought peace to the land. A watchman was tasted with keeping those disasters from plaguing the world again. That person was one of the Shroud's family ancestors. |
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That sounds less like history and more like myth. It's all on such a grand scale. Ya boy Cay-Cay can barely keep up... |
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Mind you, humankind never stopped researching magic, eager students that they were. Time marched on, and at some point magic became safe to practice. The witches and wizards of yore became known as mages. Nowadays, mage licenses are international. Mages are globally recognized as contributing to the betterment of society. And governments passed laws and forced agencies to discipline magic abusers who caused trouble for people... ...over time, the Watchman of the Island of Woe faded from the history books. But the group continued their research on the disasters—or blot, really—as the organization Styx. |
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We were aware that Idia was the son of the Shroud family, yes... But this is the first time I've heard of a connection between them and Styx. I've read just about every notable work on magic history, yet I've never seen any of this discussed. |
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Ah, but see, you're limited to the texts that survive among humankind. Humans and fae stopped intermingling quite a long time ago. Plus, different cultures and species pass down lore in different ways—not every truth is written down. There is no shortage of historical narratives that have been twisted to suit someone's agenda. |
| Twisting historical narratives, huh... | (For some reason, I've got butterflies in my stomach.) |
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This makes me wonder... Was the headmage aware of Idia's connection to Styx? Does that mean he wasn't able to work with the Shroud family to avoid this scenario? |
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Who can say, really? Even if he had known, he wouldn't have been able to stop them. |
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As for Styx...Why did they capture a group of overblotters? What's their plan? |
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Based on what Lilia said, I doubt they'll treat them hospitably. If they're lucky, they'll only be examined. If they're unlucky, they'll become test subjects. And if they're REALLY unlucky, they may already— |
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Woah, hey! Don't even joke about that, Jade. |
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...... |
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Y'know, there's one thing that's buggin' me after hearin' all this. Those goons rolled up and blasted half the campus. There's tons of witnesses, right? Someone must've got 'em on video. Seems to me like they're not tryin' to stay very secret. Maybe they don't care. Or maybe they have some REAL reliable way of cleanin' up after themselves. |
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...... |
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I don't like the sound of that one bit. I say we worry about our own skins 'stead of wastin' time on the others. |
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While Bucchi's wording leaves something to be desired, he does have a point. We don't know where the Island of Woe is, which means we cannot pursue our kidnapped students. I want all of you to return to your dorms and conduct a roll call. check for any injured students and report back to me. |
| Yes, sir. |
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...... |
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| Chapter 17 | Book 6 • Chapter 18 | Chapter 19 |
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