1. Macabre Marmalade (COMPLETED; EDITING)

XXV (11.2)

All three of them stared at the Anadori woman, dumbstruck and in awe. It wasn't the words themselves but the physical manifestation of her words that spread around her, like her icy mood actually impacted the environment. I must tell her. No point in hiding this since she is right. Her duty is to defend the people as much as she can, he let out a long sigh and nodded.

"Fine. I am not sure but I think it's because of this," Todor said reaching for Ezezu and summoning the book on his palms. "I have no idea how they found out or why they cared for it."

Holanador stared at the book then she closed her eyes. The temperature returned to normal, ice on the windows melting away in few seconds.

"So, it has come to that," she said sadly shaking her head. "How long did you had the ability to summon the maharoon?"

"I managed to open it on Friday I think? And be able to summon it on my will since Sunday," Todor answered unsure why that was important.

"So you survived the psychic residue and it hasn't destroyed your mind. Yet. Has parasitic consciousness made itself known to you yet?" Governor asked knowingly. The psychic residue, parasitic consciousness? Does she know how this magic works? No Terror memory told me Ezezu is a soul, is that a way for her to keep the dogma that humans have no souls? Todor speculated wildly as he stared at the old Anadori woman. Like all of her kind, she showed no signs of aging. She looked mid-twenties, the maybe early thirties and like all Anadori, beautiful and flawless.

"Which one of the eight did produce this maharoon? Swift Mind? Honey Lips?" she asked Todor energetically walking towards him.

"No Terror," he said flatly. The Anadori woman stopped mid-step her head tilting slightly.

"Are you sure?" she asked slowly, her eyes boring into him as if daring him to tell a lie.

"I am sure. I spoke to the memory of him inside of my mind," he admitted.

"Tell me once you gain your power, what are you planning to do with it?" she continued to examine and interrogate him.

"I ... " he wanted to say something plausible that would not make her laugh at his childish dreams, but now he was convinced that any answer that was not one hundred percent true would be seen through in seconds by her aged eyes. "I want to protect myself and people I care for first. Then find a way to bring back the internet."

The old woman was taken aback by that answer. Does she look pleased by that?

"Good, good. I might work with this," she said patting her chin with an index finger.

"What did you expect that his child-like dream is considered as a good answer?" Cassandra blurted suddenly.

"Seven free cities of Albinion were formed at the very end of Three Banners War," the governor started her explanation. "Vallahon, Merlintonwn, Evelikton, Greenpasture, New Eldorado, Atlantis, and Moriganhold. Where those cities now stand the three greatest armies ever amassed stood. Magic and technology aimed at total annihilation. At that very moment, if we fired at each other, we had enough power to crack the Earth's crust and doom this entire planet. That is how close we were to destruction," she stopped and looked at three of them. "When Knitting started we Anadori expected a quick victory. We stored so much mana that we were sure to wipe out Morgothlites in a week. But you humans happened. You made it a three-way fight, you stood pound for pound and turn quick lighting war into the war of attrition."

"That is all well and good but what does this have to do with Teddy's answer being deemed good?" Cassandra interrupted her.

"I am getting to it, patience girl," Cassandra snorted and waved her hand for the governor to continue. " So what I was trying to say before I was interrupted was human technology was equal to our own magic which was the reason why peace was achieved. Seeing that many deaths and not wanting it to continue regular soldiers threw away their sunpikes, their rifles, and their hawr-makan axes. It was the first time all three races mingled and mixed in such a number. And when the peace was signed many stayed there, slowly turning army camps into independent towns, which later grew into seven cities of Albinion."