Set five years after the events of 'Daughter of Darkness', the ruling family of Regnum Infernale receive a peculiar visitation from their distant past. The visitors urge them to undergo a dangerous magical feat that could change their world forever...
Elijah had been at the Hawthorn School for about two months when he was discovered by John Henry, Baldwin, Behold and Ariel to perform magic with ease, much better than the other students. The same went for John Vanderbilt, who often was in lessons with his roommate at the same time. The Englishman kept to himself a lot, but more was laid bare for John during their evening talks; even that wasn't laying bare the full extent of his mind and what went on in it. Elijah and John, despite exhibiting more powers than their peers, were very different as students.
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The former was more diligent and devoted to his studies, analyzing every detail that he could about something before attempting it. He was prompt and on-time for all lessons. John, on the other hand, was seldom on time and often late, gaining just enough of an understanding needed to perform something. At the school, he was seen demonstrating pyrokinesis, salire per spatium (also known as transmutation), divination, as well as telekinesis. Elijah, by comparison, seemed to be more advanced in all of these skills, plus concilium, vitalum vitalis, and injury reversal. It is because of Elijah's unusual amount of abilities for a warlock that Ariel, John Henry, Baldwin, and Behold summoned him to a private meeting on off-hours. They did the same for John as well.
"Do you know why you were brought here?" Ariel asked.
Elijah, sitting in front of them in a black suit with a peculiar black bowtie, looked at him and shook his head. "Enlighten me."
"Normally we would evaluate you after your first year with the coven," John Henry said, "however, you have been displaying very unusual powers for a warlock. We'd see your powers often in witches."
"You've been immersed in your studies for two months," Ariel said, "so this is to see where you stand here. Each student is assigned at a level between one and four."
"Are you all fours?" the Englishman asked, his light blue eyes piercing through space toward them.
"No. You're looking at a bunch at a bunch of threes, sadly," John Henry said.
"Sixes after cocktails," joked Behold.
"A level four is a warlock we would hold as the equivalent to the female Supreme of the other coven," Ariel said condescendingly. "He would be called the Alpha."
"We won't burden you with theory, no doubt you'd understand every word we are saying anyways," John Henry said, "but there has never been a level four warlock in this coven."
"Let's see if he can pass level one," Behold said with a flamboyant hand gesture. "John Vanderbilt is also going to be evaluated, because he also has shown more than we could ever expect from a newcomer."
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Elijah felt a little uncomfortable with the fact that these evaluations were basically a competition between he and his new acquaintance. After lessons let off the next day, they were held. There were three tests, all of which when mastered, determined an Alpha Warlock's status in the coven. John and Elijah came up to each other, the instructors and High Chancellor watching them as they shook hands under the premise of being good sports.
