Luminaries

Chapter 1

"No, they were trying to kill her!"

"It makes sense!"

"I bet Richard Hanks was behind it!"

"Nuh-uh! Bruce Collins!"

"Y'all both stupid! It was the police!"

Theory after theory was thrown into the air of the eager classroom. Everyone seemed to have a different opinion on the truth behind Princess Crystal's attack.

Zira snuggled his head further into his arms, letting his classmates' chatter filter out. It was sixth period, and he was ready to go home. The day had been long, and he desperately desired a nap. Of course, he was not going to get that. He did have a job to go to after all. His mind then began to wander back to the current topic. He did that a lot—wander.

The case was strange. Three months ago, Crystal Chatel, daughter of Prime Minster Calvin de la Croix of France, along with two of her classmates, were shot and left in an alleyway. According to the police, the three students somehow got caught in the middle of a crossfire between two rival gangs. They ruled it as an accidental shooting. Classic case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Yeah, no one bought that.

Especially since the girl had the tendency to write journal articles exposing corrupt organizations.

Not only that, but all their gun wounds were all clean shots. Every single one intending to go straight through their hearts.

Some said the police were behind it, others said her family tried to off them. Though out of all the theories and speculations, the one question nobody could answer was why?

Why did someone want to kill them?

Guess that answer was best left to the speculators.

Zira had to admit, this was probably the most his classmates have been involved in a class discussion. School had only been in two weeks, but it seemed like students were more interested in not showing up than they were the lather. But then again, what would you expect from a typical teenager?

The school bell rang.

Finally.

Metal legs scraped the tile as students stood and gathered their textbooks. Zira stuffed his inside his black backpack. Slinging the make-shift weight over his shoulder, he followed suit with the rest of the class towards the door.

"Remember!" Ms. Willow tried to the catch the attention of her decreasing students. "The museum trip is tomorrow, so make sure you've turned in your permission forms."

As he shuffled out of the room with his classmates, Zira couldn't help his lips from curving upward behind his mask. He was too excited for tomorrow. The purpose behind the museum trip was to gather information on an exhibit of choice and write a three-page paper on it. It was their first major assignment of the semester, and Zira was determined to get an A. He even chose the perfect exhibit to write about.

The Grimoire of the Sun and the Moon.

The very book that belonged to the goddesses themselves.

Everyone knew the story. When the Sun and Moon goddesses died thousands of years ago, their spell book was lost to time. There had been many explorers throughout history who took up the quest to find it. Last year, it had finally resurfaced and tomorrow would mark its first ever public unveiling. He knew the museum would be packed full of people trying to get a glimpse at the ancient relic. But what most people didn't know was that ever since it was rediscovered, no one had been able to open it. There was a magic seal of some sort, keeping its contents hidden. Every world renounced mage so far had failed in their attempt to open it.