FSE

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The weather around the Australian University of Magical Studies was calm, bright sunny days and cool crisp nights when only the whirling of the winds would disturb the silence that befell an empty school at night. On this day, however, things were not as calm and quiet as they seemed. Outside the little classroom, the school was tidy and in a constant buzz of busy learning. The air, as always, had a crackly feeling that results from building ontop of major Ley Lines. Inside, however, a private war had been fought.

Matthew stalked back into his class, eyeing all the students as he passed. The two days he had been away were murder on the classroom. Burn stains marked the walls, there were a few gaps where the materials had been taken to use for other purposes, each desk looked like a small, personal warzone (usually between the Red Erasers and the Green Erasers,) and more than half the students were messing around when he entered. They promptly stopped when he stood at the front of the class, soon followed by the Headmaster, who looked amazed at the amount of damage a couple of days away could do to a classroom.

"I thought you said you'd sent a substitute teacher." Matthew growled. "And I thought I told you guys to read that damned grimoire!" He snapped.

"I did send a substitute, but..." Greywell looked about the room, eyeing all the damage that the students had done in their 'free time.'

Melissa walked in dressed in full enforcer uniform and looked shocked. "Wow, it's like the aftermath of the other day. Whose class is this?"

"Ours." Zanobi echoed scornfully. "At least when it was a classroom and not a warzone, anyway."

Matthew looked up to the roof, which was also displaying burnmarks and missing holes that he could have easily slipped into. His eyes stopped on the adult struggling against the duct tape holding him up there.

"Ah, there you are." He said sarcastically as he pulled a chair over and let the teacher down. "You can go, I'm taking my class back." The man practically hugged Matthew as he came down from the ceiling.

"They're monsters!" He took a second glance at Matthew. "So are you!" He yelled, making Matthew wince.

"Not so loud, these ears aren't decoration, and don't call me that. I know they're a pack of little monsters, but now they're my pack of little monsters." He pulled out of the man's desperate hug and watched him scurry behind Greywell before snapping his attention to the classroom. "Okay, you guys have five minutes to clean this all up or you'll all find out how much I dislike writing up the paperwork for thirty detentions." The students sat still and simply watched him.

"NOW!" Greywell yelled, angrily glaring at them. This snapped them to attention, and they rushed about, frantically trying to remember where they had left the missing pieces of wall or roof and cleaning the scorchmarks and dessicated desks. Melissa giggled.

"They're little monsters alright." She said, watching as several students promptly shoved another into a hole in the wall and tried to duct tape her in.

"Andrew, Markas! Mary is not a part of that wall!" Matthew called out. "Find the bits that belong there before you do something stupid!" He turned his attention to Master greywell. "Anything they don't fix I'll have to tidy up later tonight before I go home."

"Alright Matthew, as long as it gets done." Greywell replied. "I'm going back to my office. Have a nice day, Miss Patrick." He said, waving to them before he clicked his fingers and vanished in a puff of smoke. Matthew and Melissa watched the students use up the whole five minutes urgently rushing to and fro, reparing walls, ceiling and desks. Eventually the room looked passable enough to allow them to sit back down, although Matthew noted many small imperfections or still burned portions of the room that he'd have to clean up quickly before leaving later that day.

Melissa had a talk with the class about the Paladins and what was involved in becoming one, specifically the dedication it took. At the end of the first period she left back to the enforcer's HQ, and Matthew finally managed to get the class back on track, reading the grimorie that they were supposed to be reading to begin with.

Miles away, up in the English moorlands, a secret facility was under heavy lockdown. A lone female figure, roughly five foot three with short, messy red hair and a pair of long ears ran through the corridors stealthily avoiding the guards as she went. She wore but the lightest of rags to cover the essentials, and chains hung from her wrists; chains which were recently wrenched from a solid concrete wall. She grabbed a passing guard, and snapped his neck, then she left him in the shadows and scurried out to the front door. There were precious few guards around here, and she discreetly pushed the door open and carefully stepped into the snowy night.

'This'll be it then.' She thought to herself.

'Looks that way.' Another voice in her head thought back. 'We need to get a message out to someone who can help us. I've been working on it, give me control.'

The girl nodded and closed her eyes. Her eyes snapped open again and she held a hand out. The air distorted around her hand, similar to how heat off of a barbeque looks. A yell behind her made her jump, and whilst still casting she ran forth. Several guards leapt on her and held her down.

'It's now or never!' She thought.

'It's not ready yet, I don't know who it'll contact!'

'DO IT!'

The warping in her hand exploded outwards as she yelped in fright and frustration and was dragged back into the facility. On the other side of the world, Matthew grabbed his head, yelped in pain, and fell to the floor.

Spellbreaker

Matthew awoke in the nurses' office. His ears bled a little, but the headache he suffered was by far his most pressing concern. The lights themselves felt like they were burning his eyeballs out of his skull. He slid out of bed and stumbled to the lightswitch. The sudden absence of light was not only very loud, but incredibly soothing. He could feel Zanobi want to say something in his head, but the silence was too noisy to hear anything over, he tried to think this to his familiar, unsure if he understood. He groaned when the door next to him opened, flooding the room with sunlight.

"Ah." Said nurse Canthrope as she walked in. "Good to see you're up and about."

"Shut the door." Matthew groaned. "That light is loud."

The nurse stood next to him, put a hand to his head and his headache suddenly dissipated. Matthew groaned again.

"Thanks." He said. Finally he could hear Zanobi in his head. 'What is it?' He asked in his own head.

'We need to see the Headmaster right away.' Zanobi replied. 'And West.' He added. 'It is very important.'

"Alright." Matthew said. "Zanobi's insisting that I go to Greywell; is that alright by you, Miss Canthrope?"

She nodded. "Yes, just don't go hitting your head on anything too hard, your migraine is only disguised. I'll come and see you in his office in ten minutes with a headache-curing spell."

Matthew nodded and stepped into the bright sunlight. He idly wandered to the Headmaster's office. He didn't rush, a lot could happen in the courtyards even on a quiet day. Stray spells, rough-housing, the occassional question. Even after being a teacher at the school for one whole year, he still had to dodge a hurled fireball or thrown rock for being what he was. Intolerance was amazingly rife in the elder students, and one thing they didn't tolerate was someone who was covered in fur, had two pointed ears atop their head, a long tail, and could change shape at will. He was also capable of utilising almost all the schools of magic, all except for inscribing, which was incredibly difficult to handle when you were almost unable to hold a needle. He could pick it up all right, but it would keep sliding out of his fingers. He contented himself with always having a needle and spool of runethread on him, hidden in a little pouch behind his ear.

He caught a stray student, flung by the geomancy he was practicing in the yard, before heading into the teacher's block and up to Greywell's office. He could hear that the Headmaster of the college was alone in the room, talking idly to one of his familiars. The headmaster had two familiars, an Eagle named Lucius and a large Salamander named Sinclaire, who could be found hiding in the little nooks and crannies of rooms, where he would spy on teachers that Greywell had suspicions about, at a frighteningly common rate. Matthew knocked politely before opening the door and walking in. The headmaster had Lucius on his desk, and he was teasing the large bird of prey with a dead mouse, pulling it out of reach whenever he would snap at it.

"Ah, Matthew." Greywell said idly, not even looking up at him. "I see we're all better now?"

"Not quite, sir." Matthew replied. "I've still got the migraine, but I can't feel it at the moment." He sat in a chair opposite Greywell and ran a claw down Lucius' back, the large bird cooed. "Sir, could you teleport West into this room please? Zanobi says that something very important has happened that you must both hear."

"How important?" Greywell asked, suddenly focusing his undivided attention soley on him. This was unnerving, even for Matthew, Greywell was undoubtedly the second most dangerous man in the magical world, second only to West who had an entire army of well trained war mages at his disposal, and being the focus of his glare was like being sized up by a grizzly, usually to the same ends.

"Life and death." Zanobi echoed from the walls.

Greywell sighed and clicked his fingers. There was a disgruntled thump in the hallway outside the office, enough cursing to fill an entire dictionary, and then an inpolite rapping at the door. The door swung open and West walked in rearranging his jacket.

"You've got to practice that more often." Matthew noted.

"This had better be really important, Greywell." West snapped. "I'm meeting the Prime Minister of Australia in ten minutes."

"Gimmie the damned mouse~!" Lucius repined. His master chuckled and simply teased him further.

"Not getting much lunch today, are we Lucius?" He chortled cruelly.

Matthew shifted shape into his animal self, still sitting on the chair, and allowed Zanobi to take control.

"Sit down, West." Zanobi said. "There is no time to play today."

West sat next to Matthew and impatiently crossed his arms. "Alright, what is it?" He growled.

"Alright, I'll start from the beginning." Zanobi said calmly. "Roughly one hour ago, Matthew and I were in our classroom when a surge of magical energy forced alot of information into our head. This, when done to an unprepared mind, can be devestating, and the subsequent pain knocked us out. I awoke before Matthew did, and I shouldered the migraine entirely upon Matthew so that I could assess the damage done. Whilst checking the information that had been literally downloaded into our brain, I discovered that high in the snowy moorlands of northern England, there is an underground bunker. This facility is not the problem, but what is being done there is.

"For the last month, people have been going missing from remote English towns, according to the news anyway. These people are being experimented on magically, the people there are using them to achieve their own sick ends. The information downloaded into our brain is from a girl who almost escaped; it is a distress call. The majority of the information is a desperate plea, if it were written it would be a scrawl of names all covered over with the words 'help us'. The man who runs the facility has been using the people to try to create more like us. More people who are blended with familiars or animals. Some of the evidence we've got is damning, the experiments have all been going wrong except for the girl who sourced us this information, and failures usually end up dead. The facility is a veritable fortress and is heavily guarded, we need your help, General."

The room sat in stunned silence until West leaned forward. "Do we have a name of the man who runs the facility?" He asked.

"All I can discern is that he calls himself Mike." Zanobi replied. "And that he is an expert in Summoning magics. I'll be able to tell you more as I read through it."

West sat back in the chair and rubbed his chin. He wasn't prone to taking swift action, a habit that a life of policing mages causes one to take on if they don't want to end up with less limbs than they started with. "This is startling news indeed." He said. He reached into his pocket, pulled out a card and handed it to Matthew. "Take this and show it to Alexander Cross, my second in command; he'll enact exactly what this card means." He said. "Be careful of him, he's got a bit of a mouth on him, and I suspect him of being very interested in my position." West stood up and clicked his fingers to Greywell. "I'd like you to send me back to Parliament house, please." He said. "And then send Matthew to Enforcer HQ. The sooner we get this all over with the better."

Greywell nodded and clicked his fingers, making West vanish. Matthew changed into his humanoid shape and tucked the card into a pocket.

"Master Greywell, I have a request." Zanobi said, quietly echoing from the walls.

"Yes, Zanobi?" Greywell probed, going back to idly playing with Lucius.

"This may end up in a way that even we don't want." Zanobi said. "Promise that, whatever happens, you won't hate us for what we might do."

Greywell looked at Matthew with a worried expression. "Zanobi... What is wrong?" He asked. "You never talk like this."

"As I unravel this information more and more things come frighteningly into focus. All the memories the girl had of being at that facility are in our head, all the memories are terrifying; pain, torture, starvation, and solitary confinement. And... There is a name. A name that probably wasn't meant to be heard by her."

"What name?" Matthew asked.

"Michael Luinski." Zanobi said, the name echoing eerily in the office. "He's the one pushing the buttons."

Greywell dropped the mouse onto the desk, as the air around Matthew boiled. Lucius ignored the suddenly easy to reach meal in favour of hiding behind his master. "Matthew, the code." Greywell advised.

"Do not kill a human." Matthew said, shaking slightly. "I know. But..!"

Greywell walked around the desk and pulled Matthew's face level with his own, lifting the furred male out of the chair. "Matthew, today I am going to throw that into the spotlight. I care not how inhuman he may have become, you must not break that rule for revenge."

Matthew looked Greywell dead in the face, now focusing entirely into the man's eyes. "There is only one way I would ever have to break that rule, and I hope that the situation is never so dire that I have to use an intant-killing spell on a human being." He said. "Not even one so deserving of my wrath as he."

Greywell sat on the desk and crossed his arms. "So... You found it, did you?" He asked. "The Dark section of the library..?"

Matthew blushed and turned his head. "Yes."

"There is nothing to be ashamed about, Matthew; knowledge is what you strive for, to become a walking library; possibly so that one day you might challenge me. I must warn you though, that it is the only schooling of magics that are never taught here for a reason; the Unholy school is the darkest of black magics, and is more dangerous than all the other combined." Greywell growled. "That is why the books are so deeply hidden into the library, where no student ever travels and even the cleaning magics are weak. Those spells are dangerous, and I ask; nay, emplore you to never use them on another living being." Greywell sighed. "The spell you refer to is known as 'Flood of God'. Brightplate is smashed into dozens of tiny barbs that then rip the target to shreds."

"I can understand why it is called Unholy..." Matthew said shyly. "Stealing the life of another to bolster your own lifespan, curses, damaging spells, and most frighteningly Human Summoning..." He shuddered at the words. Using human beings as materials for summoning was a great taboo, never taught but every student knows the penalty for using another as their materials.

Greywell pushed Matthew back into his seat with an angry look on his face. "If not for that schooling of magic you wouldn't exist!" He yelled. "Do you know what it took from me to bring you back?! Your parents knew the cost of doing such a thing, and yet they wanted you back all the same. You and all the other mages in the world need to learn that there is no such thing as truly Black magic, it all has a practical application in the end, the trick is finding out where it is! I sacrificed ten years of my lifespan to pull you back from the rift, ten years that it has taken me two to get back!"

Now matthew looked confused. "Wha..?"

"A book that I have kept out of the library's archives for six years since I found it helped me get my life back, and it's not a fast process." Greywell said. He walked to a cupboard and opened the door, rusted hinges protesting loudly as it swung open. He pulled a small grimoire bound in what looked like leather from the cobwebby recesses and threw it onto Matthew's lap. Matthew considered it sceptically. "That is one of only four copies in the world, and with good reason. It is a book on Holy magic, but the book belongs in the Dark section. Human summoning? Time splitting? Hah! Tricks for amateurs! This book teaches advanced teleportation, life transferral and even summoning multiple familiars, all of which can kill multiple people if they go wrong."

"You're kidding." Zanobi said. "You've got a copy of the Dracul Necrosis? The information that I was granted when I became a familiar told me that they had all been destroyed long ago!"

"Now you have it." Greywell said. "I've read it cover to cover, and there is only one spell in it I cannot grasp. The first capter is on creating lifespan to fill in what you have lost, the jidst is that you collect magic in vast quantities and store it within yourself. When you have enough, you cast a simple healing spell upon yourself using all the stored magic. It's dark because if the spell backfires then you could obliterate a whole two-kilometre radius of your exact loaction. When I pulled you from the rift, I hadn't read section three, where it details how you can do exactly that without sacrificing anything. If I'd had that when Arthur had had his accident, his mind never would have deranged as it did, though he'd still be covered in fur."

"It certainly is odd." Matthew commented. "Like the book itself is watching me." Though, when he paid close enough attention, the leather itself seemed to have a strange characteristic that he couldn't put his finger on.

Greywell sighed. "Matthew, I would like you to quickly read sections three and five." He said. "Teleportation is in section five and 'Rifting' as it is called is in section three. Mayhaps, in the future, we can stop any more Arthurs."

Matthew went to open the book, but hesitated. To a normal person, this'd seem odd, but to him the book felt... Wrong. It didn't smell right, he could even feel Zanobi reeling away from it.

"What's in section four?" He asked. Behind him the headmaster grimaced.

"Segmant four details a ritual called 'Harvest'. Though technically white magic, the spell is the only true example of black magic that I have ever encountered." He replied. "It is a spell that, when used on a dying individual, can completley heal them to perfect health; however there is a cost for such a gift."

"This sounds like the 'liferaft' spell that I've been searching for in the Holy section." Matthew commented.

The headmaster sighed. "I'll find the book for you, then." He said. "No, this spell is different. Instead of using magic itself as an emergency backup for when things go pear shaped, this spell must be cast by a third party. It transfers life from one individual to save another, killing the sacrificed. It was used in past years on people who had no chance to live by sacrificing those guilty of great crimes, why do you think that the Victorian Era had such harsh laws?" He took the book from Matthew's unresisting hands and tucked it into a pocket. "The few remaining books are dark relics from an age long forgotten." He mumbled. "There were originally dozens, however they were hunted down and destroyed in an attempt to destroy the dangerous spells within. Don't let anyone take it from you, I shall come and get it in one hour."

Nurse Canthrope knocked on the door and let herself in. "This won't hurt a bit." She said, putting a hand to Matthew's head.

Matthew popped into existance in West's office, this time standing by the windows. There was a man sitting at West's desk talking to someone on a phone, but it most certainly was not the General. Matthew summed him up, middle-height, roughly thirty, blonde hair and a snide voice that scraped at him, like nails down a chalkboard. He deduced that this was either Colonel Cross, the man just under West in command, or a man in a lot deeper than he bargained for.

"Hi." Mattew said, making the man jump. He spun around in the chair making it squeak as he slammed the phone onto the stand.

"Who're you?!" He yelled. "How'd you get in here?!"

Matthew slapped his hands to his ears. "Not so loud, dick!" He snapped. "That really hurts!"

"Answers!" The man yelled. Matthew read the tag on his jacket, this was Cross alright.

'Well, West did warn us that he had a mouth on him.' Zanobi said.

Matthew winced, bowed and introduced himself. "Paladin Matthew Anderson." He said. "Or, as I've been told, I'm more commonly referred to around here as 'Bearkiller'. You must be Cross, the officer that General West told me to meet." He held out a fur covered hand. "Pleased to meet you." He said.

'You lying son of a-' Zanobi mumbled in his head, but Matthew tuned him out at the last word.

Cross stood up, put his hands on his hips and considered Matthew for a moment. "Why don't I believe you, then?" He said. "Maybe I should get you thrown out a window?" He pushed a button on the intercom. "Mel, get your sorry ass in here!" He snapped.

A moment later, Melissa walked in the door. She was in her uniform, and she had obviously used magic to lenghten her hair to her shoulders, but she was still a sight for sore eyes. "You wanted to see me sir?" She asked, before stopping dead when she saw Matthew. "... What's going on?"

"This guy claims to be Bearkiller Anderson." Cross said, angrily.

"Oh he does, does he?" She rhetorically asked, the comedic value of this all showing on her face. "Well, we all know that Bearkiller Anderson could talk without saying a word." Matthew groaned.

"Do I have to do this?" Matthew asked.

Cross looked angrily confused. "Do what?" He growled.

"Have his familiar talk for him, because a dipshit colonel won't listen?" Zanobi echoed. "We've got things to do that're very important, we have no time to play with you."

The colonel flung out a fist, but he struck nothing but air. Matthew had shapeshifted down before he connected, and then promptly back. Matthew pulled the card that West had handed him from his pocket and smacked it in Cross's face.

"Orders West has given me to give to you." He flatly stated. "Melissa, could you please escourt me to the barracks? I'd like to request a room I can have to myself for a day if that's alright."

"Of course it's alright." She replied.

Cross angrily pulled the card out of his face and looked at it wearily. "My secretary will do no such thing, I'll call another Enforcer to guide you."

"Colonel Cross, I'm no-one's secretary!" Melissa snapped. "Do your own goddamned paperwork for once, General West does!"

"Do I have to demote you?" He snapped back.

She spun on her heel and stormed back out, angrily grumbling to herself as she walked. Matthew, before leaving, flicked a little magic at the potted money-tree in the corner, which came to life and started eating the desk-chair that Cross was sitting in. Content that his work was done, he followed Melissa, closing the door behind him with a click and leaving Cross to deal with the ravenous plant life.

'Geomancy is fun.' He thought to Zanobi, who laughed back.

'A nice touch, making it eat everything in sight.'

Melissa led him through the corridors, past the Evetrium and all the way to the barracks, where she stopped by a familiar door and knocked before opening.

"Hey guys." She said as she stepped inside. They replied to her greeting quietly before going back to making their beds. "I brought someone with me." She said, stepping aside to let Matthew enter.

"Hello, again." Zanobi echoed. The trio in the room jumped when his voice suddenly sounded through the room.

Daniel was the first to reply. "Oh, hello you two. How're you doing?" He asked as Adelaide finished tidying her bed.

"Never better." Matthew replied. "But I see the housekeeper's been, what's going on?"

"What do you mean?" Adelaide asked irritably.

"Well, last time I was here the room was a mess, and I could distinctly smell alchohol from the refrigerator, but now the smell is gone and the room is tidy." Matthew said, tapping his nose. "And your pet mouse is missing, too."

Melissa closed the door and hastily checked the room before she spoke. "Cross is the problem." She said. "He's a powerhungry asshole. The minute that West left he had us cleaning all our rooms, throwing out our alchohol and all sorts of things! He's made me his personal secretary because he 'has far too much on his plate to worry about paperwork'."

Matthew rubbed his chin with a wry smile on his face. "What're you thinking?" Zanobi asked, yet again echoing from the very walls.

"I'm wondering what speciality he's in?"

"Inscriptions." Daniel said automatically. His tattoos are literally empowering marks, he's faster, stronger and more annoying than anyone else in the ranks. Why?"

"I'm going to give him the option to challenge those orders that West gave me to him." Matthew said. "But it's not going to end well for him."

"And why would that be?!" Cross yelled from the door. This was enough to get Matthew to cringe; but when he slammed the door, Matthew fell to the floor holding his head in agony.

"It hurts!" Matthew wailed. Melissa knelt down and pulled his hands from his ears. Small traces of blood trickled out his ears.

"You've burst his eardrums!" She said, angrily. She held her hand to Matthew's head and mumbled a short chant. The blood evaporated and Matthew stopped writhing. He sat up and shot Cross an angry stare.

"You're a dick, you know that?" Matthew growled. Cross lifted him up and threw him against the wall with ease, like Matthew was light as a feather.

'He is really strong." Zanobi commented in Matthew's head. "Though he'd still not beat you in man-to-man, he'd give you a run for your money."

"I'll take you on!" Cross yelled, his face going red.

"One hour from now in the Evetrium." Matthew said through gritted teeth. "Headmaster Greywell will be here in less than an hour to retrieve something that he loaned me, he can adjudicate the match for us."

"Be there!" Cross yelled, stepping out and slamming the door once more. Matthew was ready this time, and held his hands over his ears. Melissa crossed her arms and gave Matthew an angry look.

"You've got your work cut out for you now, how're you going to stop him from simply yelling you into submission?" She asked.

"I can fix my hearing to be less sensitive to his loud voice." He replied. "And his muscles will not be a problem, either." Matthew smiled and patted the pocket that the book was hidden in. "With a little help, anyway."

He spent the remaining time in a little one-bed room at the far end of the Barracks' top floor, five storeys up. He locked the door, tucked a towel into the gap and began reading. Section five was simple enough, and he mastered it in but a few short minutes, teleporting himself onto the roof, to the bottom floor, into West's office and back without ever being noticed. Section three required a Runic Circle to perform and a drop of blood, neither of which he was willing to play with at this time, but it looked easy, and he was certain he could do it. He had finished the first two sections in no time at all, but... He still had ten minutes, and he let his mind wander, eventally absent-mindedly reading through section four without even noticing. He did, however, learn exactly how it worked. It was tricky, if not extremely difficult, compared to the other two. Eventually Master Greywell popped into the room and took the book back without saying anything, and Matthew informed him of the upcoming duel.

"This will be interesting indeed." Greywell chuckled. "I wish to make it absolutley clear that I would like you to do little more than injure this man."

"Oh, it'll be too easy." Matthew said.

"His tattoos, however, give him an edge." Zanobi warned. "He will not be an easy target."

"Neither will I." Matthew replied. "And I've adapted my hearing, I should be immune to his monstrously loud voice now."

"Well, let's go." Greywell said, urging him out. "We've precious little time."

"Incidentally, I now know the location of the lab, I'll share it with you on our way."

Matthew led him out, closed the door and then led him down to the Evetrium while Zanobi talked with Greywell. They walked in and Matthew was awestruck at the amount of enforcers in the room. People were everywhere. The balconies were packed to the brim, and Cross stood in the middle of the room, his arms crossed and his look angry.

"Took your sweet time!" He yelled. "I've been waiting for you for ages!

Greywell walked back out of the room and up onto one of the balconies, where he stood with his arm over his head.

"On the count of three-" He announced. Cross got into a fighting pose while Matthew stood his ground, idly putting his hands in his pockets.

"One!"

Cross chuckled. "This is going to be too easy."

"Two!"

"I'm going to paint the walls with you."

"Three!"

Cross charged, his fists glowing with magic as he prepared to attempt to break Matthew's ribs in a punch that'd crack concrete. He got within feet before Matthew discretely clicked his fingers and reappeared on the other side of the massive hall. Cross was momentarily confused, but he swund around in a loop and pelted back after Matthew. Yet again, he was inches of landing a serious hit when Matthew vanished and reappeared on the other side of the area.

"What..?!" Cross breathed.

"Oh, drat." Matthew said humourously. "Can't hit what's not there, can you?" He clicked his fingers a few times, popping into different parts of the room as he did so. He clicked one final time and vanished completley from Cross' vision.

Cross searched the room for the furry mage to no avail. "Running away, eh?" He said. "That makes me the victor."

The sound of someone clicking their fingers rang out from the ceiling, and Matthew reappeared on the far side of the wall. "I don't run." He said, before he smiled in a sly manner and clicked in rapid succession, one time each hand, and popped around the room rapidly before stopping behind Cross with his hand to the back of his head.

"Checkmate." He said. "DESINO!"

Cross siezed up, the time magic freezing him solid. His face was a mixture of rage and shock, and he glared angrily at Matthew when he walked into view.

"And that's the end of that." He said.

A sole clapping rang out through the hall, and Matthew turned around to see West standing behind him.

"Not bad, not bad at all." He said. Matthew's ears twitched and he held a hand over West's mouth, muffling his next sentence.

"Shh!" He hissed. "Something's not right! Something is missing!" His eyes skimmed the crowd, everything looked in place except... "Melissa is missing!" He said, his eyes visibly growing wider. "Stolen right from under our noses. It's now or never, General; they've gained the sheer nerve to steal from the Enforcers, we have to act!" Now he tirned his attention to the massed army of mages. "Just now," he called "from out of our protective grip, one of your own has been kidnapped." He called. The other enforcers became worried, and many looked around. "She has been snatched right from under us by a man I once knew, who has been doing this for the better part of two months. Now that Greywell and West are here we shall catch him red handed! I am going to teleport to the facility she has been taken to, hopefully she can be saved from sharing my fate; and Greywell will teleport you all to the facility's front gates."

"This is not a joke, nor is this to be taken lightly." Zanobi echoed. "The guards will be heavily armed."

Cross gained control of his body once more and knelt down next to Matthew. "What are our orders, General West?" He asked.

West looked up at Greywell, who nodded solemnly. "You have one mission; Search and Destroy. If you can, do not kill; we are not murderers."

"There is one other kidnapped perosn there, who probably looks kind of like us." Zanobi said. "Consider this a hostage situation, only with more flexible rules."

Matthew bared his teeth and his eyes shone red momentarily. "By high time you get to me inside the facility, I'll have torn my way out to you."

"I'm going to accompany the enforcers." Greywell bellowed.

"I am going as soon as possible." Matthew yelled. "Let's try to end this with as little bloodshed as possible."

He clicked his fingers and vanished.

He reappeared in a small room, light shone all around him in small orange motes, and a single table and chair stood in the middle of the room. His ear twiched as he picked up the faintest of sounds from the air, a mixture between a scream of absolute agony and a plea for help in a voice he recognised. He gritted his teeth and let a tear fall from his eye.

"I'm too late... I'm sorry, Mel." He said. "We might have a little time before they return, I'll do what I can. Hold on to that remaining thread of reality just a little while longer. It alone shall be your slavation."

Zanobi guided his claw as he scratched out a Runic Circle on the table. It had to be just right, or he could risk killing Melissa; this he knew for certain. A rune wrong here, a scratch too long there, and she could be torn apart by the magic as she rematerialised. He cut his finger with a claw and let a droplet of blood drip onto the table The runes in the circle shone like silver and the motes in the air spun around him. Magic crackled through the air, making his fur and hair stand on end and he held out his hand above the table, and grasped her hand in his own as it formed. Rapidly the motes of light condensed together until she was whole once more and her clothing formed around her like it was being woven. She smiled at him weakly for a moment, wagged her new tail and twitched her ears, before passing out in his arms, shifting into a quadrapedal shape. She was about the same size as he was when an animal, and she shared the same stripes down her back, although the stripes on her thighs were split near the ends to; but her tail ended in an alternately coloured tip, darkened like her stripes, and her ears featured the same characteristic. There was something about her animal form that made Matthew feel... Warm and fuzzy inside.

'She could be out for hours.' Zanobi said. 'We need to be somewhere safer.'

Matthew clicked his fingers and randomly teleported to another room a few floors up. This time the room was empty, the walls, roof and floor were all padded and the sound of moving chains could be heard from right behind him. He turned to look at what else could be in the small padded room to find another fur covered being. She was slim, roughly five foot four with white fur and short messy hair from which two long ears protruded. She wore naught but rags, and she hung by her arms from the wall behind her. She was not awake, but she had obviously been sleeping a while, as she didn't notice Matthew in the room. Matthew put Melissa in a corner and padded up to the girl. he shook her lightly to wake her, and she jolted in fear at his touch.

"W-what's going on?!" She said. "What do you what?! Have I not been punished enough?!" She shied away from his touch and started weeping. "Please..!"

Matthew shook her by her shoulders. "Hey, snap out of it; I'm not going to hurt you." He snapped. "You sent for help, and here I am. Keep quiet and I'll relase you."

She shook her head. "I've tried picking the lock." She said. "I cannot manage it."

Matthew grinned. "I don't need keys." He said, putting his hand to the chains. "Casso."

The chains smashed from around her wrists and she threw her arms around Matthew. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" She sobbed, hugging tightly.

"Don't thank me until we're out of here." He replied. He dahsed to the door and quietly peered outside, checking for guards before bolting back to Melissa. "What's your name, miss?" He asked.

"My name is Bunny, which is ironic because that's what I am now..." She said. "I... I'm also another creature though, he took up the name of Leverett. What're you?"

"I'm Matthew." He said. "And I'm a Thylacine, more commonly called a Tasmanian Tiger." He gave her a calm glance. "I also share my head with my familiar, whose body has blended with mine, he's called Zanobi."

"And her?"

Matthew had to admit he was stumped. She looked kind of like him, but was a darker shade and her stripes and markings were all different.

'She is also a Thylacine.' Zanobi said in his head. 'We don't all look the same, some of our markings are different.'

"She is also a Thylacine." Matthew mumbled. "Melissa was blended just a short while ago and I rescued her in the nick of time; as soon as she comes-to I can get us all out of here."

He spent the next few minutes teaching her how to change shape and converse with her familiar, he showed her a few tricks and even shifted form to allow Zanobi to chat with her more fluidly. She was amazed at how she could understand things that before she could barely grasp. She told Matthew how she had been a student at a college for mages not a day's walk from where they currently were. Suddenly a pounding on the door told them it was time to leave, right as Melissa woke, and Matthew wasted no time in dragging her over to Bunny. He threw her into Bunny's arms, held them tight and clicked his fingers, aiming for the front gate, hoping to god that he got there.

He, and the girls, popped into existance right at the front gates, just behind Greywell. The headmaster hadn't been there long, and it took him all of a few seconds to pull them from the snow. The army all around them was fighting furiously, knocking out mages and armed goons as fast as they could. Matthew ducked just as a stray firebolt flew right at him.

"I didn't think it'd be this intense." Matthew commented.

"Me neither." Greywell replied. "But now it is time for it all to come to an end."

Matthew faltered. "Sir?"

"I shall show you the powers you may eventually challenge, Mr. Anderson." He said. "All it takes is a little concentration."

Greywell clicked his fingers, and the weather changed; what was mild winds in calm weather turned into harsh blizzard and raging storms. Magic curled around his hand and the very landscape erupted, smashing the stone walls and throwing guards to the ground. Chains, created from the iron in the soil itself, wove through the air and latched onto fleeing guards, pinning the to the ground. Greywell grinned, he was having fun; what he always wanted to do, more than anything was to fight a worthy opponent. He knew that Matthew might end up being that man, so a chance to show him real power was something he couldn't miss. Show had backed up against the gate, and Greywell threw his hand towards it. The blizzard stopped, the Earth settled, and the snow heap exploded.

"It may surprise you to know, Matthew;" he said, happily, "but I'm a specialist in Holy magics."

The massive wooden gates in front of them jolted for a moment, drawing their attention before a voice rang out through the din of the combat.

"VERNIELEN!"

The wood exploded outwards, raining thousands of splinters down on the group around Greywell, who deflected them all away with a wave of his hand. Michael stepped into view, flexing his fingers as lightning crackled off his hand.

"Long time no see, freak." He said. "You have stolen that which is mine, give them back."

Matthew's anger rose, but he didn't let it show. "Michael, what an unpleasent surprise." He growled. "I see you're as unstable as ever."

"Michael, what on Earth have you done?!" Greywell yelled. "How many have you killed? And for what?!"

"Two years ago, you humiliated me in front of the entire school." He said, pointing to Matthew. "So I learned. I don't want you to die anymore, no, no no. I'm going to see you rot by doing to others what you did to yourself and then claim it was all your idea. If that didn't destroy you, hey; I've still got an army of extremely powerful beings willing to do my dirty work and destroy you. Now, enough prattle, you have stolen what is mine. Give them back or I'll kill someone."

"We don't belong to you!" Melissa yelled.

"Why don't you try to take them from me?!" Matthew yelled, weaving what little light there was into a shield. "You would be so willing to shed blood over me?! Why don't you fight your way through me to get to them you coward?!"

"Very well."

Lightning flicked from Michael's fingers and struck Melissa, making her scream in pain. A voice echoed through the now silent courtyard, a young female voice with urgency lacing her tone.

"No!" It screamed. "I cannot wake her, and the shock is stopping our heart, help us, please!!"

Greywell put his hand on Melissa's chest and focused. Light flicked through his fingertips, but she didn't wake.

"I cannot heal her." He said. "It is too much damage all at once for even me to heal."

Matthew fell to his knees. For the second time in his life, he could feel his heart tearing itself in two. Tears flowed over his face and he looked up at Greywell, anger masked by his sadness and fear.

"I can't lose her." He mumbled. "Not a second life, not a second Esmerelda, I can't lose another!"

"Matthew, the code." Greywell said, sharply. "You must not kill. You promised me that you would not kill!"

"If I let her die, I'll have died myself. My heart is not strong enough. Last time I destroyed a monster over her injury." He replied. "I can't lose her, please... My life is forfeit without her..."

Greywell turned his face up to Michael, who was chuckling to himself with personal pride. "I hope you're satisfied, Michael Luinski." He yelled. "Two innocents lost by your doings! How inhuman do you intend to become?"

"Oh, yes." He said, hardly containing his glee. "The almighty Greywell talks about humanity, how touching. I don't care how you see me, as long as I breathe, every gasp of air will be spent in hatred of Mr. Anderson. A second chance to destroy Matthew, and he can do nothing to stop me. Your precious code makes you unable to do what must be done! You're weak!" He flexed his fingers. "And life is for the strong!" Lightning flicked from his hand towards Greywell, but Matthew deflected it with his shield, which he buried into the ground as he stood up.

"You talk about strength?." He mumbled. "You talk about hatred?" Now his stripes began to glow all their own as magic spun about him, a red glow flared in his eyes. "Weakness comes from people who give in. The day I became this... I used to despise it. I used to hate that I was different, but now, after two years, I know better. That day was not an accident, that day was a blessing! I became a paladin and turned from something more into something powerful, a beacon of light in the darkness of the world. I struggled through the adversity and barriers to graduate top of my classes! I made something decent with my life!" Matthew's eyes glittered. "Adversity is what makes us strong, taking a disadvantage and making it our greatest strength! You have already taken too much from me for one lifetime." A tear rolled down his face. "I'm not going to let you take my friends away from me again!" He yelled. "I'll make you pay for what you've done!"

"You cannot without breaking rule one." Michael laughed. "'Do not kill'... What pathetic dribble. Only the strong survive, all others should just roll over and give up. The will to kill is what makes me stronger than you."

"No, killing is easy." Matthew said. "Strength comes from sparing the life of those who should pay with their lives!" Matthew growled. "I cannot teach a pupil who will not learn. I have tried to be the beacon of light, but when darkness comes, I will not back away; I will not stand down! I'll uphold the rule, but I'll do it in the only way I know how!"

Green light flared around him, the stripes on his back shone brightly and he was engulphed in brilliant green flames. The world grew dark around them, and even the fires seemed to give off almost no light whatsoever.

"If I have to enter the darkest of shadows and sacrifice what I value in my heart to save my nearest and dearest from you..." Matthew mumbled. "As long as I succeed..!"

The green fire vanished, leaving him standing in the snow, glowing gold and silver with dark red hair that absorbed the light and only his eyes still normal. His entire body was covered in Lightplate, like an impenetrable skin. A tear formed in his eye as he glared at Michael.

"... It would be worth my innocence." He said. "I am sorry, Headmaster, but today I damn the rule. This man, this... Monster, will only go on to kill again! He must not go unpunished for the blood he has shed!"

"You read section four." Greywell said, as if he already knew. "Didn't you?"

"I am sorry." Matthew said. "I have delved into the shadow."

"There is no light or dark." Greywell said, shaking his head.. "Only good and evil within humanity. It is your intention that colours magic. Today your intention is purest white, and I must only advise your life as I can, steering you constantly through life the Just way. Though darkness is easy, a shade of grey is best, never cross the threshold into the black abyss, but strive to keep things fair as they must be. No light is constant, and it cannot exist without darkness to shine through." He smiled and wiped the tear from Matthew's eye. "And even the stars flicker."

The light shone over Matthew's body and he knelt down to put a hand on Melissa's side. His other hand he held up, pointed directly at Michael, and he bared his teeth.

"Thankyou for being there for me, Master Greywell." He said. "Always you have lead me down the most difficult path, not because it is better for me to learn the hard way, but because what is right is always hard."

"Your life isn't over yet, Matthew." Greywell replied. "There is still a long road ahead of you, and now the hardest test of all is to turn from the light, only to burn brighter."

Matthew nodded, and turned his face to Michael. "CASSO!" He yelled at the top of his lungs, as if a god were going to come in person to hear the chant. The light covering Matthew exploded into thousands of motes and flew from his body, pummeling into Michael as tiny barbs and literally tearing him to shreds. The effect was like watching someone explode into a cloud of red mist. Matthew drew his hand back. "Adficio." He mumbled. The light spun around in a great loop, condensed together into a liquid and pelted into Melissa. She instantly inhaled deeply, and her eyes slowly flicked open. She looked about the trio standing over her and smiled weakly. Matthew picked her up when she held out a paw to him.

"I thought I had lost you!" He said, hugging her tightly.

"I... Was dying." She said, weakly. "I heard Greywell say he couldn't save me... How did you manage?"

Matthew turned his face away from her when he suddenly felt like a traitor. "I..." He began.

"Did what had to be done." Greywell finished for him. "As you always have." He brushed stray hair out of Melissa's face. "As always I have asked too much of you, I have made you my sword when I am more than capable, but today you did what was right... You did what I could not possibly have done, despite breaking rule one in favour of rule two, which is by far more important."

"Help those who cannot help themselves..." Matthew mumbled.

The female voice called out through the clearing once more. "We're alive?!" It cried.

Matthew chuckled. "Yes, child, you are alive." Zanobi said. "Now be silent and find a name for yourself while we discuss things with Melissa, there is much she needs to know about herself."

Greywell shrugged.. "Meet me back at the school." He said.

"Before you go!" Matthew snapped, grabbing Greywell's hand. "Take these." He pulled the needle and thread from behind his ear and handed them over. "We're going to need another pair of gloves now, and possibly a collar, too."

Greywell nodded and clicked his fingers. The surrounding army and he all vanished, taking Bunny with them, leaving the duo of furred individuals completley alone on the frozen battlefield.

"Everything changes now... for both of us." Melissa mumbled.

"That's alright." Matthew replied, scratching her behind her ear. "It's not easy, but then, what is?"

"Could I be called Aisha?" The voice asked curiously.

Matthew scruffed up Melissa's hair. "Sure, why not?" he said. "Let' get out of this snow, and then we can talk better without freezing to death."

He clicked his fingers, and the field of snow and dirt lay silent, disturbed only by the gentle whirling of the wind; and, where Michael had been standing, a single winter flower burst into bloom.