Merlin wore a brown knee-length woolen tunic with a long ash scarf around his neck, he walked over to his seat, his gaze fixed on Hunter, staring at him suspiciously.
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'That's Merlin?' Hunter thought, 'I always thought he would be an old white-bearded man'
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"Oh he's really old, just not physically aging," Waleed stated
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'Wait, you knew him?'
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"Never met him formally but I'm sure he'd never forget me," Waleed said, Hunter could hear the smirk on his face.
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"The court is in session."
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Santa walked to the front of the councilors, "Honorable councilors," he began, "I stand in front of you today as a heartbroken man," he stated, "never in my life did I imagine a day like this would come. Indeed, today is a day of pain, a day of sadness, a day where a student in the school of mysticism is brought in front of the council for using forbidden arts.
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"Before I present evidence against the accused, allow me to indulge you in a little history, the history of the school of mysticism. In the year 1642, an idea was proposed by the honorable, lady Hecate to the council, she suggested building a school in the Savanna, for witches since many were emerging there, the proposal was approved and a school was built, a school I and plenty others present here today attended, many other branches soon followed. Since its inception, they haven't been any major issues in the mystic world.
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"But today, we have gathered here only because there has been a major issue in our world ..." Santa paused, he was a portly, white-bearded man, wearing a long red coat with white collar and cuffs, white cuffed red trousers and a black leather belt and boot.
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"Chaos magic!" He exclaimed, "A disease that has plagued our beautiful world since the beginning of time by He Who Has Slept Before Man Crawled From the Sea to the more recent, alchemist, Cal-Ra ..."
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'Where is he even going with this?'
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"Shhh," Waleed replied, "this is history, shut up and pay close attention,"
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'Aren't we suppose to be a team?'
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"... And for nearly 1500 years peace has reigned in our beautiful world with no sign of chaos magic until recently disrupted by this man!" Santa exclaimed pointing to Hunter with his left hand, "... A snake that has slithered into our paradise!"
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Santa turned to the councilors, "I never witnessed the war of heaven and hell nor was I born when Cal-Ra initiated the class wars, but I'm sure everyone here today knows about it, either having heard it from tales passed down from generation to generation in their family or learned about it in school. The pain and horrors we've heard and felt from these tales are enough to make a grown man cry but yet they are nothing compared to the pain felt by those who were alive in those times ... The councilors, Lilith, Mene, and Hecate, were present in both wars, and Conan and HIM were present in the class wars.
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"You five more than anyone knows what chaos magic is capable of, what it can do to those who wield it and their surrounding. I call on you councilors to remove the disease before it infects the entire body, thank you," he bowed before returning to his seat.
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The tall man with a loud voice turned to Hunter, "is there anything the defense would like to say?"
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'Is there?' Hunter thought
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"Of course there is!" Waleed exclaimed, "tell them everything that happened, don't mention anything about me."
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'Right'
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Hunter got up from his seat, "Ahem" he cleared his throat.
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"Honorable councilors, I'd like to start by saying it was never my intention to use chaos magic and like old man Santa did, allow me to start with a back story."
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There was a loud gasp echoed by everyone present in the court
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"Haha" Waleed laughs
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'You sure this is fine?'
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"You're on point, keep going," Waleed encouraged
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"As I was saying, a bit of back story, it began during our study tour some time ago, I don't know when exactly, I've been locked up for quite some time, haven't had the luxury to count --"
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"You little brat!" Santa shouted as he stood up from his seat, slamming his hand on the table.
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"This snake is making a mockery of the council," he stated, "he has also made fun of me and called me an old man"
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"How is that making fun of you?" Hunter asked, genuinely confused, "you are an old man, are you not?"
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"Huh?!" Santa exclaimed, placing his hand on his chest.
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There is an indistinct chatter from the audience, "Silence! Silence!" The man with the loud voice ordered and the audience quickly obliged.
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"I'm sure the kid meant no disrespect," Lilith stated, "isn't that right Hunter?" She asked shooting him a wink and a small smile.
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Hunter was lost for words "Err ..." Was all the words he could make.
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"Focus kid, you can't start short-circuiting the first time a woman winks at you," Waleed said
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'She's not the first woman to wink at me!' Hunter argued
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"Sure, keep telling yourself that, maybe you would believe it," Waleed countered
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"As I was saying," Hunter continued, "my team and I were assigned to Adina Forest to exorcise some darklings but instead, we were ambushed by some demon spawns. Because of this turn of events, one of my teachers, Ms. Gibbs-White instructed that we return to our hotel suite and await further instructions - which was exactly what I did. A few days later, we were chilling in our suite when I suddenly ... I felt a demon's presence nearing our suite."
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"You felt it?" Hecate inquired.
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"Yes," Hunter nodded,
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There was a loud indistinct chatter that fills the room again prompting the tall man to speak again, "Silence!" He shouted
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Merlin got out of his seat, standing up straight, "councilors," he started, "this is proof that the accused has been tampering with chaos magic for a while, how else would he have felt magic outside of his class?" he stated
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"I had no idea what chaos magic was before attending the school of mysticism," Hunter claimed
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"Impossible!" Merlin and Santa objected simultaneously
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"Counselors, maintain order!" The tall man instructed before turning to Hunter, "the accused is advised to only state facts in the council. You could be severely punished for lying in court."
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"I am only stating facts," Hunter insisted
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"Very well," the man got up and walk over to Hunter, towering over him despite Hunter's own 6 feet height. He handed over a shiny orb to Hunter, "Hold onto this, the orb of truth would prevent you from lying," he said
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'Is this bad?'
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"Not really, you and I are bonded so we are one person, you're not lying, you never were," Waleed explained
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Hunter placed his hands on each side of the round orb, he lets out a sigh before speaking "I didn't know chaos magic existed until I read about it in the Metropolitan School of mysticism's library." He stated, he turned to Merlin, "is that good enough for you?"
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Hunter continued his narration of the event, his hands still placed on the orb, telling the council how everything unfolded until he got to how he was able to use magic despite a magic negation spell.
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"... When I felt the demon approaching us again, I knew I had to think fast. My second lesson in school was about energy emission, there, I learned that every single thing emits energy of its own just some more than others so I thought if this mist is magic why is it stopping me from using magic, surely it must emit some sort of energy I could tap into and use and that's that," Hunter explained
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"That explains your use of black magic," the King of fairies, Conan noted, "... but what about the chaos magic?" He asked, "witness at the scene mentioned how you 'formed a shirt out of nothing', 'cleared the mist that had formed', and then 'held the pure demon's hand until it was lifeless'"
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"I --" Hunter stuttered, 'what are they talking about?' He asked Waleed
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"Well, chaos magic is my field of study so naturally when you gave me control that was what I used"
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'My goodness'
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"If I may ..." a feminine voice interjected, snapping Hunter out of his trance, the voice came from the audience.
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"Approach the podium," the tall man instructed. "State your name, class, and position, if any is held."
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The woman was beautiful and appeared to be in her mid-twenties. Her hair color was light red which she kept in a loose braid with bangs reaching just past her eyebrows and two longer side bangs that framed her face. Her eyes were yellow with multiple red rings within them.
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She walked confidently to the front of the councilors, her outfit consisting of a white long-sleeved shirt, a black tie, black pants, and brown shoes.
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As she walked past him, Hunter found himself wondering who the woman was.
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"Circe, sorcerer, head of the public safety and demon control agency."
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"You may speak Circe,"
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"Thank you," she bowed, "It is clear that Mr. Heffernan's ability transcends the modern understanding of magic, his abilities most probably encompass both that of a sorcerer and a dark mystic," the light red-haired woman suggested.
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"As for the chaos magic ..." Circe paused, her orange eyes moving sideways and taking a glance at Hunter, a mischievous smile danced on her lips and he could have sworn he saw her wink at him, "Dark magic, Black magic, and chaos magic go closely together, it is possible that when he tapped into the energy from the mist which was black magic, his tremendous potential allowed him to exceed its limits and cross over to chaos magic. Honorable councilors, such talent should not be locked away or removed entirely from this world especially not at a time like this where more and more black magic users have been appearing, instead, they should be trained and put to good use, for the sake of our world and that of humanity."
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"Councilors, Lady Circe is clearly out of her damn mind!" Merlin shouted, "Chaos magic users, intentional or accidental should be buried with other filth of man!" He argued,
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"Maintain order counsel Wyllt," the tall man instructed, "this is your final warning"
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Merlin sighs deeply before speaking, his tone softer than before, "I apologize... It's just that, I've seen what chaos magic has done to stronger minds, and very few living today have suffered more pain than I did because of it, I lost my mother, my brother, my friends, and my entire village ... I beg of you councilors, don't let such plague infect our world once more," he pleaded
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"To suggest Mr. Heffernan's ability is a plague is purely accusatory, he has shown no sign of hostility except to his attacker back at Adina and has shown none while being held here, he clearly is in control of his ability and has stood here intending to accept whatever the council deems necessary but execution shouldn't be advised, since he has an enormous potential, my organization would be open to taking him, training him and watching over him, if he is to ever exceed his limitations, we have more than capable agents suited to take him down."
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Merlin shakes his head, "You intend to doom us all just for another agent?"
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"Enough," the tall man shouted, "if there are no further arguments, the council would now make its decision"
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When no one else spoke, the tall man rose from his seat, his eyes suddenly turn bright yellow and so did that of every councilor present.
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It was only for a short while but a while nonetheless before all their eyes returned to normal.
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"The council has decided." The tall man stated, Hunter could feel his stomach starting to churn and hear his rapid heartbeat in his ears.
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"After much deliberation, the council has decided to acquit Hunter Heffernan of all charges."
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Hunter let out a sigh of relief.
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"However," the man continued, "Hunter is required to continue his studies at the Metropolitan School of mysticism on the weekdays where he must be monitored by agents of the Public Safety and demon control agency and work with the agency on the weekends. Circe, daughter of Hecate and the head of the agency would be held responsible if he is found guilty of any other crime."
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'We did it!'
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.
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.
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.
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After that, everything felt like a blur to Hunter, his savior, Circe, quickly disappeared before he could thank her while Lauren appeared and took him and the others back to the school.
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Hunter had barely settled in his room when he heard a soft knock on the door to his dorm room. He approached the door cautiously, remembering Lauren's advice on their way back, she had warned him to tread carefully since many at the court had sought his execution as she fear that some might attempt to assassinate him since the council's decision didn't go their way.
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Hunter opened the door, "Sydney,"
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She walked into his room, scanning the small apartment, everything was well placed and arranged, "yeah, why don't you come in,"
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"Sorry, I just wanted to talk to you about something,"
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"Sure, you want some water?"
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Sydney glanced sideways at the boxes of water beside the bed, "I'm fine ... Remember how we met?"
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"Yes," he nodded, "Some guy was trying to bully you, Benson, I think it was"
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"And you remember why he was doing that?"
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"You said it was because you were going to kill the moon or something"
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Sydney nods, "it's a story every werewolf knows from childhood: a rogue wolf would appear, become the alpha of all alphas and when the rogue wolf is done with the wolves of the earth, the rogue wolf would move to the moon, kill it and destroy every werewolf including them self. Many have considered the tale as a warning of the consequence of excessive ambition and hunger for power at least until I came along.
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"You see, most werewolves don't start to feel their wolf until they are at least 12 but I could hear mine since I was 5. Also, most werewolves don't make their first shift until they reach 16 and I made mine when I was 12 and my wolf looked ... Different ... It matched the description of that of the rogue wolf in the tale because of that, other werewolves, including those not a part of my pack, wanted me dead, they would storm our building every day demanding I was handed over to them. My grandfather met with some of the councilors from the council of mysticism and told them of my story, most of them agreed I shouldn't be executed and instead placed me under the supervision of a secret organization. That hasn't stopped others from attempting to attack me."
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"I'm sorry to hear about that," Hunter said not unkindly
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"Thanks," she smiled, "that's not why I told you that story though"
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"Huh?"
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"I just want you to know that you're not alone, having others surveillance you at all times, having others seek your head or having a second being inside of you, I know what all that is like so if you ever want someone to talk to, I'd be there to listen."
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And with that, Sydney walked out of the room.
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'Having a second being inside of you?' Hunter thought,
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"She knows about me," Waleed stated
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Hunter sighs, "yeah, is that bad?"
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"No, you've only met recently but she hasn't given you any reason not to trust her plus she seems nice and I'm sure it would feel great having someone else to talk to, it must be getting quite boring for you, talking to me alone,"
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'Yeah, I'm already sick and tired of hearing your annoying voice'
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"We have the same voice Hunter," Waleed replied
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'Whatever'
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Hunter threw himself on the bed and closed his eyes ready for sleep to overtake him, it was only sometime after noon but he was eager to get some rest in. Before any of that could happen, there was another knock on the door causing Hunter to groan.
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"Don't worry, it is safe to open the door," said Waleed
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'How do you know?'
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"Just a feeling."
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Hunter unlocked the door, and a tall woman with pale skin stood on the other side with a small smile. She had long disheveled shoulder-length black hair, a Greek nose, and relaxed dark brown eyes. She wore a white blouse, a long trench coat, and a skirt that goes down to her ankles as well as black lace-up boots.
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"You must be Hunter, I hope I wouldn't receive such a hostile welcome every time I am here," she said extending her hand for a handshake
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"Sorry, I just had a long day," he apologized, shaking her hand, it felt cold like she had just taken it out of a freezer.
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"So did I and yet, here I am. I'm Jade," She said, "I'm with the public safety and demon control agency."
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'Huh! Already? What day is it again?'
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"It's Saturday," Waleed replied
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'Crap!'
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