I could tell right away that this was not normal. The energy I felt leaving my hand was nowhere near able to vaporize all of the water in the room, or so I’d believed. I think Grandmother and Professor Ritter agreed, as they both approached me to observe the flame in my hand. I think they were trying to block the class from seeing it, because they surrounded it on either side and Grandmother specifically seemed to just take it from me, effortlessly, and extinguish it. I wasn’t really able to process this in the moment, but looking back this was probably my first experience with power I couldn’t understand.
Grandmother retreated again, and Professor Ritter addressed the class about what was going on.
“She’s alright,” she began, “but that was the result of clearing a blockage. She’s probably going to be fatigued for the rest of the day after that one.”
“Blockage?” Usk asked.
“Think of it like plugging a dam. If there’s a lot of pressure on it from one side and the other side finally lets a tiny bit out, it’s all going to fire off at once. This may happen to some of you, too. If it does, don’t fear. Just be ready to feel more exhausted than you ever have.”
She wasn’t kidding, either. I don’t think I’ve ever felt quite like that before or since. I could hardly move my legs out from under me and my entire body wanted so badly to just be flat on the ground. Even in this state, I could tell that my hair had whitened considerably more. I could find out later that day that it had gone completely white at the moment I released all my Flux, but for now I remember feeling more frustrated that I’d have to start choosing colors for my outfit more carefully based on this. My sense of annoyance at reconfiguring my wardrobe won out against my fatigue.
“Hang out after class, we need to talk about that flame.” I heard Professor Ritter whisper in my ear as she got under my arm with her shoulders. I barely even registered she was helping me move because I felt so heavy, but after I blinked I was back in my seat. Up to this point I hadn’t said a word, lacking the energy to do so. But I really needed to thank her for helping me, and so what came out of my mouth was some garbled mess of syllables that I’m sure sounded profound and grateful, in the most satirical way possible. I don’t remember much about class after that, but I do remember blinking and being midway through the class. Most of the room had awakened their abilities it seemed. Another blink, and I saw them all standing. I faintly heard Elodie ask if I was okay, but after that I heard nothing. Another blink and I saw red mist, purple flames, and heard a woman crying.
This shot me awake,
“Easy, kid.” I heard a male voice. “That must have been an intense awakening.”
That was Sir Mirroheart’s voice. I was supposed to meet him after class to talk as well, so I guessed that Grandmother told him what happened and to wait.
“Intense and kinda scary.” I heard Grandmother say. “As soon as her hand opened, the water in the room just evaporated, and the wall is still kind of smouldering.”
I slowly came to my senses, lifting my head from where I realized was the surface in front of me. Some might call it a desk, even.
“What did I do?” I asked, probably not sounding anywhere near that coherent.
“You somehow not only released your entire Flux reserve at once, but did so with Primal Magic as the result.” Grandmother said, arms behind her head with a wide grin. “I wouldn’t expect any less from my own blood.”
“Primal Magic?” I mumbled, rubbing my eyes. “You mean that purple thing you put out?”
“Yeah, that.” she replied. “That’s raw energy, which usually isn’t possible for mortals to make. I don’t like using it unless I’m working. How you managed to do that is beyond me.”
I saw Sir Mirroheart raise one of his crossed hands to his chin, or at least where I presumed it was, as if in thought. If these two legendary people didn’t know what was going on, I was sure that meant I did something bad.
“So… What does that mean then?” I asked, not wanting to wait for what I knew was coming.
“It means you may be too volatile for public classrooms, after all.” Sir Mirroheart spoke up. “And it also means you’re the best lead we have on something.”
“Wait, what?” I turned to face him, and saw that he had a hand out, just as he had on the first day I met him.
“I need you to channel that power at me again so I can feel it. Then I’ll explain.”
“I-” Grandmother cut me off.
“She’s probably too weak right now.”
“That’s fine.” he said. “Even a fraction of what you described would be enough. Come on, kid. On your feet.”
I stood from my seat, finding my knees still didn’t like me very much but otherwise feeling like my normal groggy morning. I raised a hand to meet him, but then stopped.
“Wait, shouldn’t we be further apart?” I asked, to which he shook his head.
“Right there is fine.”
I nodded, and closed my eyes. This time, I found it much easier to envision the blood flowing to my palm than before. I also tried to imagine less of it doing so, which I felt was probably how I’d mitigate whatever this Flux was. Once again, I felt the heat in my palm and the chill in my fingertips, closing them into a ring. At this stage, I decided I’d try to open before it gathered too much or something else I didn’t understand, and opened my hand immediately. The result was a glowing orb of light, which I felt very little fatigue generating and even managed to open my eyes properly after creating. It danced in my hand as I tried to remain steady, but the excitement of doing something correctly had me a little shaky, and the light eventually rolled out of my hand, hitting the floor and dissipating into a weak fog which smelled lightly of cinnamon.
“… Huh?” I stared, confused at the scent and the pitiful display, but Sir Mirroheart seemed satisfied.
“Similar, but the signature is slightly off. Like copied homework.” he said, gesturing to Grandmother with his hand folded, which I thought was silly.
“I was afraid of that.” she said, her hand finding my shoulder. “Sorry June, but you’re not as volatile as we thought.”
“How is that bad?” I said, excited now. “That means I can stay in regular classes!”
“Well, yes, but-” Grandmother stopped, and stood next to Sir Mirroheart. “You tell her, it’s your case.”
“Last week, a member of the Archive staff named Franz was mysteriously killed, with two crime scenes. My team investigated a bit and what we found were some ancient texts which seemed capable of possession. One of my newer soldiers lost her eye when someone turned on her.”
I was unsure as to what this had to do with me, but remained silent to wait for that to inevitably come out in an overly understated fashion.
“The only text we recovered from the home that was legible, in fact, is the one capable of this. And the one who found it was the Third Princess, offering her assistance to the investigation.”
There it was. Maybe it was how expected the delivery of the shock was, but it stopped hitting me as hard every time this happened. It wasn’t often, but it was usually pretty serious stuff.
“That would explain her injuries when she came home that night.” I said, shrugging. “But she’s innocent isn’t she? Why else would she still be walking free?”
“She was under the control of whatever entity is in that text yes, and she was cleared of any charges due to that. However, there’s one thing that we still can’t figure out.”
“It’s the energy, isn’t it? Mine is similar so you were worried about me.” I stated, taking all the steam out of his exposition. He seemed to be caught off guard by my being so direct, and I heard him audibly stammer for the first time. It’s the small things that give me joy.
“Right. But since you were neer anywhere near the victim or the text, the only conclusion I could come to was that Lady Aldritch somehow passed the Flux from the crime scene on to you, whether she intended to or not.”
“Makes sense.” I crossed my arms, trying to lend in with the intellectuals and winding up looking like I was pouting. “Even still, I doubt it was intentional. She and I are great friends, I’d know if she had any secrets.”
“Then it was accidental. I’m taking you on your word for that.” He replied. “That was why I wanted to talk to you after class today, to verify if you trusted her.”
“I do.” I stood my ground. He took a moment before chuckling, and Grandmother sighed in relief.
“Just as stubborn as Dayton, right?” she said, to which Sir Mirroheart agreed.
“Thanks kid, you’ve helped a lot.” Sir Mirroheart confirmed. “And your tone has totally changed in the last week, too.”
“I’ve been adapting I think.” I said, proud that my maturity was being noticed.
“You sound like an Imperial noble, but that’s not really incorrect is it?” he joked. “Something about how you’re speaking feels more sure of yourself than the June I picked up for school. The city has been good to you.”
“I think it’s more that Grandmother, you, Arceia and Key have been good to me. I don’t feel alone here like I was worried I would, so I’m relaxing more.”
I said this, but my hair turning white was definitely causing me a lot of alarm. I wondered how mom and Allie would react. As I thought that, I reminded myself of the Sending Heart.
“Oh, while I’ve got you both here and since you’d be the best judge. What should I do to build up some money?” I asked, no shame or hesitation.
“Aren’t you on the Combat Race team?” Grandmother asked, not missing a beat. “A job on top of that might be a bit much.”
“I guess, but I want to be able to buy my mom a Sending Heart and talk to her a bit more frequently.”
“Is that all?” she laughed. “Just take up a secretary job or something on weekends. That should be enough to eat out and buy a couple Hearts after the semester.”
“After?” I sighed. “What can I do that’ll speed that up?”
Sir Mirroheart coughed, as if trying to break up the lightness of the conversation a bit.
“Actually, why don’t you try your luck against some Peacemakers during the Destruction Festival?” he asked. “There’s plenty of money to be made winning games there.”
“No can do.” I said, now starting to realize how busy I’d become in such a short time. “I’m going with Arceia to see the lanterns that week in the Empire.”
I could feel Sir Mirroheart confused and equally elated at my decision. It was clear in his posture, which I was starting to pick up more on as time went on. His stance was clouded by his overbearing red cloak, but it still moved in specific ways with him when he made similar gestures enough.
“Well then, your best bet is bounty hunting.” he replied, nervous to say so. “That requires going outside the city usually, and fighting monsters or gathering ingredients. Sometimes people, too. Think you can handle a few simpler bounties in the weeks before the Festival?”
“Depends on what they are, but I don’t think I’ve got much in the way of options if I want this done quick.”
I shrugged, and Grandmother nodded.
“I think she can handle it, if you give her the right bounty. Is that one with the wolves still open?”
“Let me check.” Sir Mirroheart produced his own Sending Heart, and then silence for several moments as he pressed it into his palms. During this pause, I looked again to the singe marks I made on the wall, and noted they had finally darkened. What was once smouldering was now lightly smoking with a small hint of cinnamon still in the room. That part still confused me, and so I decided to ask.
“Grandmother, about the smell…” I began, and she immediately knew where I was going.
“Oh, that’s just what Flux burning smells like. You’ll get used to it eventually.”
“I guess that should have been obvious.” I shrugged again, finding it a common gesture lately. “So it can look like anything, and it smells like cinnamon when heated. What about normal?”
“Odorless, as you can tell. It’s around and inside you as we speak, but you can’t smell it. Actually, a funny story about that; Mages will sometimes sell the scent as perfume if they can harness it. Along with bottling beverages that were fermented in Flux to add a cinnamon taste, that’s the main export of magical, marketable products.”
“Weird.” I nodded. “But pretty cool! I wonder-” Sir Mirroheart cut me off.
“Yeah, it’s good to go.” he said calmly. “Kid, there’s a bounty to track, capture, or kill a pack of wolves that’s been antagonizing a farm outside the northeast wall lately. The reward sounds like it’s pretty hefty for something so simple though, which usually means the poster doesn’t include all the details.”
“What’s the reward?” I asked.
“Three hundred Petals.” he replied, and seemed to understand that I wouldn’t understand as he produced one of the coins I remember seeing last week, with a hole in the center. “These.”
“And that’s… A lot?” I hesitated. “I mean three hundred is a lot to me but what is that in city money?”
“Petals are worth less than Eagles, which is the other coin I showed you before. Five Petals is worth one Eagle. Because I know that still means nothing, here’s a practical example; One Eagle can buy you a pretty well made table, and five Eagles is all you’d need to afford one Sending Heart. The rest would be for whatever you needed, but you’d probably be set for the semester on the one bounty.”
“That’s ridiculous.” I exclaimed in an expressionless tone. “How big is this wolf pack?”
“That’s why I said it sounds fishy. Wolves are barely worth a Petal each usually. There’s no way this pack has three hundred wolves in it, so, what isn’t being said?”
“I’m no good at mysteries.” I said, blunt as I could. “But I also doubt I’d fare very well without some form of weapon or armor.”
“Why not split the bounty with someone else?” Grandmother suggested. “Between a small group I’m sure a few Petals is nothing.”
“Oh, good point. I’ll ask Arceia and Ragnis.” I nodded. “Thanks!”
“Even a hundred Petals is probably enough to get what you want and then some clothes. Good call. But on the matter of weaponry, I’ve got you there.” Sir Mirroheart patted my shoulder as he had many times before, but I could tell his grip was a bit stronger than usual. Was he worried?
“Come to the barracks for the Peacemakers, I’ll get you outfitted for a mission with some gear on loan. We can give you a test for armor fitting and weapon preference while we’re there.”
“I-” I stuttered. “Well, that’s a lot more than I deserve, but thank you. I’ll take you up on that. When can we get started?”
“Right away.” he replied. “This is supposed to be an immediate thing right?”
Magna Varia 