Restoring the Timeline

More Marks and New Stakes

With the cabin not yet complete, Rose and Dimitri returned to their unit. Rose was feeling incredibly light, like the weight of the darkness is lifted. She couldn't wait to explore her potential magic further under the guidance of Adrian, unaware she would be getting another tutor soon too. 

Enjoying the quiet campus which was yet to fill with students once more, Rose explored her magic and continued to doodle her possible new stake design. It was during one of those times that she'd been distracted by Dimitri joining her for a workout that one of Abe's people became curious about what it was she had been so enthralled with that she seemed almost oblivious to the world around her. Determined to find out and justifying to himself that it wasn't snooping since her notebook had been left out in the open, he found it. Gasping, he quickly took a picture of the detailed drawing and notes and sent it on to Pavel. Given they were at Court, he suspected that before Rose and her friends were required to attend again, there'd be at least one made, charmed and ready to demonstrate if it worked. 

Having used stakes in battle more than once now, Rose had found numerous flaws in their design. And now that she was armed, thanks to Yeva's gifted stakes, she found them much heavier than is practical for everyday use. Typically made of pure silver to be strong yet easily shaped, Rose had begun to fine tune her design. Having researched the tensile strengths of various metals she settled for using a steel alloy core with a silver coating and lengthening it to be thinner while keeping its tensile strength and the silver holding the magic. Being longer would also make it easier to pierce between the ribs and find the heart with less strength applied, meaning even Moroi could place orders for stakes. Even if they never used them, it would no doubt give them peace of mind to know they could if they need to.

Quick to see the possibility of such a design, Abe and Pavel researched the strength of the amount of silver used in their present stakes in comparison to Rose's proposal and found her idea held greater possibilities. Yet another idea that seemed so simple, especially given how Rose proposed twisting the core alloy to increase its strength. Without any reason not to, Pavel suggested they get Abe's weapon masters to make a few and test them personally, keeping their own stakes as well of course, before referring the idea to Hans. Rose deserved full credit but they knew she felt she'd already pushed the boundaries too far with her ideas to raise guardian numbers. She's unlikely to push further, especially with something as serious as this.

Within the week of the order being placed, they had their test stakes. The weapon masters knew better than to hold anything Abe related and their curiosity was just as piqued. Quick to have them charmed, Pavel's gut was telling him he would not be carrying them idly for long and was none too happy when his gut was proven correct. The very next day, on a routine trip outside wards they'd made countless times before, Abe, Pavel and three others were set upon by a group of strigoi. Thankfully all were uninjured and the fight had not lasted long. It had been a random hunting party. A former Moroi had spotted Zmey and thought they could take him down. Like so many before him had failed to do.

Each of them made a kill using their new stakes, marveling at how they forgot they even had them; given they are so light it felt more like an extension of their hand. Heading back to the safety and wards of Court they made the necessary verbal report to the Alchemists and left the sun to take care of the strigoi. They were isolated and within close proximity of Court. Once back within the wards, Abe and Pavel immediately set an appointment with Hans to discuss possible mass production of the stakes Rose designed, copying the photographed notes as well as gifting one such stake to Hans.

Meanwhile back at the Academy, her friends continued to give her a wider berth. Though Eddie and Chelsea were faster to include her, it could be said that they only did so because they hadn't born witness to her magic incident. Even Christian seemed more accepting of her than Lissa, and that hurt, a lot. All of that was made worse though when she was told it was time for her to be marked, yet again. Rose didn't even know how may she would be getting, unaware of just how much death she caused at that house that day and yet grateful that the humans would not be marked. She considered asking Lionel if he could perhaps outline two molnija to symbolize the human lives she took, honoring them without having to bear the weight of additional marks.