Temperamental

Chapter 16

The generals of Auralis were gathered. The surroundings were solemn.

"Esteemed generals, it is unconfirmed what the motive behind the demi-human gathering is for. Their leader is a mysterious and powerful magician able to nullify slave magic."

"Ridiculous!" One of the solemn men shouted in rage. "Slave magic is impossible to break." The man's eyes narrowed into slits as though to dare the other to continue speaking nonsense. His presence would have been unendurable if those in his company were not equally ferocious.

After a tense silence a different voice spoke up; "Let him finish." The general speaking this time was the youngest in the room, but his age did not mean his opinion was to be taken lightly.

"You can't be serious." Muttered the annoyed elder general. He sank back into his seat and rolled his eyes. The man had already determined this meeting as a waste of time and effort.

The original voice hesitantly continued to brief the situation.

"Originally the magician went unnoticed as slaves dying in battle or disappearing suddenly was a common occurrence. However, as early as four years ago strange disappearances occurred. Here, look at these..." the man paused to hand out a document.

"This was a report of a slave who's seal disappeared and was thought to be dead by its master. However, according to the master, the slave was briefly seen accompanying a man in white in the neighboring town. If you continue reading, you will find more cases which are similar to the first."

The room was filled with silence as each general studied the documents laid out before them.

"Surely this can't be possible?" The outspoken general of earlier once again commented. His words were followed by several acknowledging mumbles by the other few generals.

Slave magic... Auralis relied heavily on slave magic. Demi-humans had more endurance and were a cheap source of labour that kept the economy afloat. Thinking of the fact that it was possible to remove the magic...

"No no no! It can't be possible. We must capture that mage at all costs." The old general spat.

The youngest general, who had remained impassive during the outrage, finally spoke. "I don't think it was a magician."

"What do you mean?" The young man's words drew attention from all in the room.

Composing his words carefully the man responded. "A magician's magic doesn't seem powerful enough. I don't think we are dealing with a human." The young man glanced meaningfully out the window. He did not elaborate further, preferring to let the others hypothesize as they please.

"In terms of the creatures with the greatest magic potential... Adrian you can't possibly be talking about the birth of a celestial beast?"

The youngest general, Adrian Raine, tilted his head to the side without making a sound. However the other generals knew that this was his acknowledgement, and indeed the speculation made sense.

Although slave magic was easy to cast, it involved complex elements of blood, wood and metal. It was a simple matter to create the spell but to unravel it required huge levels of magic consumption and a deep comprehension of all elements. For a creature to casually break slave magic it could only be a deity or celestial beast of unimaginable power.

But the thought of a celestial beast roaming around freely... it was not terrifying, merely it stimulated the greed of every mortal. Even the most common celestial beast- the mighty dragon- was a treasure trove waiting to be plundered.

"Do we have access to the sealing stone?" A quieter voice spoke out. This general was the most organized in thought and immediately compiled various ways to capture the beast.