Welcome back to this fic.

As I said in the previous chapter, we'll be introduced to the mysterious organization, the Ludicium Magicam. Also, I may be using some characters from different series in this fic, so you could consider this as a crossover or some sort.

DISCLAIMER: like the rest of my fics, I do not own the canon characters. I only own the original characters.

"The achievements of an organization are the results of the combined effort of each individual."

~Vince Lombardi

"Helped are those who create anything at all, for they shall relive the thrill of their own conception and realize a partnership in the creation of the Universe that keeps them responsible and cheerful."

~ Alice Walker

-X-

"How long since that kid joined in?

"When I first saw him, he was quite the noob. He had poor combat skills and he was quite weak.

"But when we found out that he has the smart and adept quickly to the things around him, I realized that he's got potential.

"And damn I was right... Especially when we discovered his hidden talent.

"Logically, we decided to have him joined us with a bit of training. He improved drastically until he graduated from the Manus Conseruit Academy and joined in the ranks.

"Who are we? We're the Ludicium Magicam. We are an organization sworn to protect this realm from those who would abuse magic and those who prey upon the humans. Not to mention, to keep 'magic' a secret from the rest of this realm, since the folks aren't exactly ready to accept this kind of thing.

"That night, he was sent off to his very first mission. Something I'd never give to him. His first mission was to investigate vampire activities at Russia. It's dangerous and it would've killed a newcomer. But wow, he actually did it. He eliminated all the vampires.

"For me, I'd congratulate him in person. But that is when he told us that someone is conspiring with the vampires..."

-X-

"Were you aware of your actions whilst doing them?"

Standing in front of his boss' desk, Kanon glanced at a middle-aged man dressed in black robe. The man has a full beard and black hair with silver streaks. The boy's expression was blank as usual. His name is Khelben "Blackstaff" Arunsun.

Kanon wanted to say something, but the next remark stung him as if he was slapped in the face shutting him up. He could only pay attention to his boss and listen.

His boss' office was quite nice. It stirred anyone to see the amusing little trinkets on the shelves in the bullet-proof glass cupboards, hanging on the wall. Everything there, from the old tomes to swords with few firearms, each has its own history. If you were lucky when he's in a good mood, you'd get to hear those stories from him.

Anyway, the man in the black robe continued to scold the boy.

"You had only completed half your mission, and you weren't even using your full potential," Khelben said in a gentle tone.

Kanon remained silent.

"Do you at least understand your own mistakes?" Khelben has finally cooled off a bit and looked at Kanon in the eyes. Now the latter has the chance to talk. "It seems so," he answered.

"Okay," Khelben stopped striding round the office and sat down in a leather armchair, "Let's hear it."

The man in the well-made robe had turned businesslike. To the human eyes, he looked like he was in his middle age, but in reality, he's far older than that. Don't his appearance fool you, he's actually powerful than he looks. In fact, Khelben is an Archmage, an extremely powerful spellcaster.

"My first mistake, sir... That I didn't treat my mission seriously. If I had been more serious, I would've prevented more deaths," Kanon has his tone under control as he continued to speak. His boss and master listened to him diligently urging him to continue.

"When I discovered that someone else was involved, I didn't stay at Russia and investigate it. I just told the Russian branch about it and returned home," Kanon spoke again.

"Care to tell me why?" The man in the fine robe spoke next.

Kanon was silent again but only for a moment as he started to speak again. "Because... I thought it's not part of my mission so I shouldn't be involved."

"Now that is a problem. I'm not saying you're stupid, you are smart. You have the potential but you acted impulsively," the boss eventually spoke, voicing his criticism toward Kanon.

"You've done a fine job in eliminating the vampires, I won't deny that. However, your impulsive actions will endanger, not just your life, but more innocent lives. Think about your actions in your next mission," he told Kanon in a strict manner.

"Understood, Master Khelben," the boy bowed his head.

"Very well," Khelben's tone became much more normal, "You'll be given your next mission tonight. For now, get some rest. Your next mission might be more difficult."

More difficult, he said. What could possibly be worse than vampires? Well, that's what Kanon thought.

"But before you leave," Khelben snapped the tips of his fingers. A small animal suddenly flew into the office out of nowhere and approached Kanon from behind. The boy was a bit surprised to see the bird as the animal landed on his boss' index finger. The bird was an European Robin, a female to be exact.

The little bird had her eyes on the sullen boy.

"A bird?" Kanon uttered in a monotone voice.
"I'm giving you a Familiar. It's best if you have a partner in your missions," Khelben said to him.

"Partner?"
"You need someone to watch over you and, in addition, help you in your missions. Her name is Elise."

The robin suddenly took off from Khelben and flew toward Kanon. The latter didn't know how to react to the little bird as she got even closer. The only thing he could was to raise his hand allowing the bird to land on it.

When the European Robin land on his hand, Kanon suddenly felt a warm sensation coursing from his hand through his entire body. It was only for a quick moment before it disappeared.

Kanon then looked at the robin. In turn, the female bird looked at him, tilting her head from left to right. It seemed that the bird gained interest with the boy.

The bird suddenly spread her wings and flew away into the air. Kanon quickly turned his head up. To his surprise, the bird was no longer there.

"Good, she agrees to be your Familiar," Khelben suddenly spoke. Kanon turned his attention back to his boss.

"Where did she go?" Kanon asked.
"To your place," Khelben answered almost immediately, as if the Archmage knew what Kanon was going to ask next.

"Now then, you're dismissed. Get some rest for tonight."

Kanon stepped out of the office into the hallway.

Where's he now, if you may ask?
He's at the Ludicium Magicam HQ, the entire place resembled an office building with people in robes and formal clothing.

Everyone in headquarters were quite busy, working on their respective jobs. Some of them were keeping schedules and arranging missions for certain members of the organization. Those who specialized on the field were talking to their superiors before they set off to complete them.

Most tables have workers with devices that oddly resemble holographic screen. You may think that they're our modern technology, but it's actually not. In reality, they're conjured by a mix between magic and the current science of that time period. You may refer them as Holo-screen computers. These were obviously used for gathering data and information.

Hanging on the walls were emergency cases. Each emergency case was different and contained magic item.

Other members were in certain rooms, the most notable one was a large door. Beyond the door was a room where they monitor the entire world. Another notable one was a door with a label on it saying, "Personnel Only."

Kanon walked across the hallway ignoring the busy members. He was still wondering about his new Familiar from the office. Khelben was well-known as a man who's always serious. The boss was very serious in giving Kanon a Familiar, but why would he choose an European Robin? A bird that small hardly qualified as help. How could a robin be any help?

Upon reaching the headquarters' lobby, he sat at one of the comfy chairs, still lost in thoughts. The lobby resembled a cafe completed with comfy chairs and tables. They even have stand where organization members can order drinks and food.

Most of the people were aware of his presence as they stared at him. They soon began a gossip between themselves. In reality, they were very interested with him due to numerous facts about him. One was the fact that he's the youngest of the organization. The common age for newcomers was always nineteen to early thirties. It was quite unusual for someone like him to be able to join the organization at such a young age.

The boy didn't care with their gossips or rumors. He didn't even care with the people surrounding him. He just sat there waiting for someone.

However, there was one person that Kanon paid much attention. Not too far from his place, he found a certain girl in a seat right in front of his. The girl had long blonde hair that reached the tips of her shoulders. She had a clear, smooth skin in addition to her beautiful appearance.

Her choice of clothing was normal though. She wore a denim button down shirt and blue jeans.

Kanon noticed that the girl was smiling. In fact, she had been keeping that smile for hours, not even a frown. Other than her smile that distinguished her from the rest of the crowd, she has her eyes closed and never opened them. Strangely, she could still see even when her eyes closed. She rarely had them open.

The girl soon realized the boy was looking at her. When she turned her attention to Kanon, the latter immediately turned his head away looking disinterested. It's hard to tell the girl's true response toward his action. The only response was the girl giggling while looking at him.

It wasn't long when someone approached him from behind and smacked him on the back of his head.

Kanon turned and found a young man in his early 30s. He had a short, black, messy hair with similar clear skin as the girl in the front table albeit muscular. The man wore a white T-Shirt with a trench coat and blue jeans.

"How's it going, little buddy?" the man asked in a slick tone raising the palm of his right hand. Think of it as a form of greeting.

Kanon wasn't amused as he kept his usual blank expression. He noticed the girl in the front table giggled.

"Considering I've done such a wonderful job for letting a possible suspect go," Kanon talked to the man while his eyes were set on the girl until he turned his eyes upon the latter, "The boss was so proud of me that he yelled at me, Mr. Gabriel."

"Man, that's harsh, y'know," the man, whose name is Gabriel Cunningham, replied in the same slick tone, "Sorry to hear that."

England
December 29th, 1989

Moments later, Kanon and Gabriel, in their winter attires, arrived at one of the local restaurants.

It was one of the less popular ones around, there weren't too many people coming into the particular restaurant.

After taking their table, they took off their winter coats and placed them on their chairs.

Gabriel sat on the occupied table in the opposite position of Kanon. Their place was just by the large glass window. The former soon called the waiter and ordered a coffee. As for the latter, he wanted a strawberry shortcake. The waiter wrote down the orders and left.

"Y'know what?" Gabriel spoke once they're left alone, "I'd say you've done a good job for your first mission. I mean, you'd taken out some vampires, that wasn't an easy job at all. I was really surprised when Khelben decided to give you that."

"I will admit..." Kanon took a deep breathe and became silent again. About three seconds, he spoke again, "I was scared at first. I had no idea what I should do since I was facing one of the most dangerous beings in the world."

"Heh, and here you are," Gabriel motioned his hands toward Kanon before placed his right arm on the back of the chair while his other arm on the table, "Alive and well."

"Still, I didn't do well. I didn't give some thoughts to my mission when I had the suspicion that someone was helping the vampires. I was focused on my objective, the vampires," Kanon confessed to Gabriel while keeping his monotone voice.

In response to his answer, Gabriel smacks Kanon by his head, but to the point it hurts. More like in a playful manner.

"Kid, don't go emo on me," the carefree man said in a relaxed tone, "Leave the guy to the Russian branch. You oughta focus on getting better in your next assignment."

Kanon nods in response.

The young boy turned his head to the glass window, glancing at the street outside. The street's ground was entirely covered in snow. Many children were out there playing in the snow. Some of them were playing a snowball fight while the rest were building snowmen.

From that very moment, the waiter arrived with their orders.

Both Kanon and Gabriel took the time to enjoy their respective orders. Gabriel has always loved coffee. He enjoyed the distinctive smell of caffeine and the taste. As for Kanon, he liked the sweet flavor of the cake.

"So what did the chief said to ya?" Gabriel asked while taking a sip of his coffee.
"He assigned a Familiar for me," Kanon answered in the same monotone voice.

"Really? Kid, you're lucky to have a Familiar," Gabriel said in a surprised tone, "Not many newbies got a Familiar. It took about a year or two to have one."

"But mine's an European Robin. How can a small animal be a help to me?" Kanon told his friend voicing his concern over the boss' decision.

Gabriel chuckled.

"Kid, no need to sweat the small details. You should've known what they taught you back at the academy. Appearances can be deceiving," the young man said to the boy.

Kanon was left speechless after hearing his friend's wise words. Knowing Gabriel ever since he first entered the organization, he knew he could trust him deeply. The man has been always there for him whenever he wanted some advice. In fact, Gabriel was one of the first few people who welcomed him into the group.

Kanon stared at his half-eaten sweet until he noticed Gabriel looked at his watch. The latter had raised his eyebrows while keeping his carefree expression. He immediately picked his cup and drank the last of his coffee.

"Sorry kid, love to stay and chat," Gabriel placed his now-empty cup to the table and some cash near Kanon's plate, "But my break time is almost over. I'll see you at the apartment tonight. Take care yourself."

Gabriel then left.

Kanon was left alone, leaving him wondering about his new Familiar and his assignment tonight.

Hours have passed, the sun had begun to sat.

Now that it's almost nighttime, some of the stores have closed.

The street lamps had lit up.

Streets all over the city were still covered in cold snow. The children still enjoyed the snow continuing to play, not wanting to return home just yet. For the adults, they're all over the streets since they have yet to finish their objectives. Some of them have done their rounds so they're on their way back to their respective homes.

Among the crowd was Kanon, who's also on his way back home. In his arms were a pair of grocery bags, containing several household appliances and ingredients for cooking dinner.

The apartment was just around the corner of the street nearby the antique shop, 'Ancient Treasure Vault.' It wasn't that big but the view wasn't that bad either. Not too expensive either, the price was right. The apartment was a good place to call it home.

Kanon stood there glancing the view of his 'home.' He had just moved into the apartment a week ago. He didn't have to pay his rents, leave that to a certain member of the Ludicium Magicum to pay the rents for him. He should be lucky knowing someone was willing enough to pay the rents.

Even though he lived in one of the rooms, he wasn't alone. In fact, three of the members from the organization lived in the apartment as well, although in separate rooms. His friend, Gabriel Cunningham, was one of them.

Upon entering the apartment, he made it to his place. It's in the fourth floor Room #402.

His place wasn't that big and it suited him considering that he lived alone. Well, not anymore since he's going to have a Familiar soon, let alone a female even though it's an animal.

There he was, standing in the main room, or the foyer if you look at it that way. It was quite empty too, nothing much but a table and a pair of two chairs in the middle. It'll take a while to tune up the place. The windows were quite clean although they still missing curtains to close them.

There's the bathroom in the right corner of the room. There's also the kitchen in the left completed with its own table and a stove. Not to mention, other few things that every kitchen needed such as a small cabinet hanging on the wall and a small microwave for heating up stuffs. Finally, the bedroom in the front. It's very small but suited him.

After locking the door, Kanon made his way to the kitchen and placed the groceries on the table near the stove. The first things he pulled out from the bag were a frozen beef and some eggs. He then took a Crock-Pot and a frying pan from the cabinet.

Kanon merely stared at the things in his hands before he placed the kitchen appliances on the stove and the food on the table. He turned his attention to the window.

It's exactly what the boy had expected. There she was, the female European Robin was sitting on the windowsill.

Kanon made his way through the rooms and reached the window. Strangely enough, the bird stared at the boy with her small pupils. Just by looking at the bird made it felt as if you were actually looking at an actual person. That's nothing much to say if the animal's a Familiar, a supernatural being taking form of any animals it wanted.

"I knew you'd come soon," Kanon suddenly talked to the bird as he gently opened the window. Once it's opened, the little bird flapped her wings and flew into the room. She landed on the chair and closed her eyes, as if she had always lived here. Maybe she got cold on the way over to the apartment.

Kanon closed the window and turned on the bird.

He had no idea what to say to his new 'partner.' It's not like his friend Gabriel, whom he knew for a long time. Now he's feeling a lot more awkward the more he thought about it. He had a partner he couldn't even talk to, let alone a female.

Kanon became silent for a moment.

"Is your name Elise?" Kanon finally started with a question. His voice attracted the bird's attention as she opened her eyes, staring directly at him.

"Okay... Why don't we start from the beginning?" Kanon talked again as he approached the table. He pulled the chair and sat down. In turn, the European Robin looked at him attentively. That alone convinced Kanon that the bird could understand every word he said. At least the bird could understand.

Kanon took the time to breath before starting the conversation.

"My name is Kanon. As you can see, I'm new in the organization. I... I don't think I have a family," Kanon suddenly paused for a while before he continued to talk to his Familiar, "All I remember is that... I was at a beach."

Kanon was silent again taking the time to recall his past. The bird was listening.

"I was at a beach, soaked wet. I didn't know how long I was there, but they say I was messed up. They found me early in the morning. If they hadn't found me, I..." Kanon shook his head sideways. Just by trying to remember what happened before the beach only brought pain onto his head. Thus, he couldn't remember anything much farther back.

"That's all I could remember... Nothing else," Kanon uttered.

The bird still had her attention on him and listened to his every word. Kanon soon noticed the female robin titled her head, prompting the former to continue on.

"Well, I was brought in by Master Khelben. That was the time I heard about this organization, to keep both magic and the supernatural in secret, to protect it from being misused, and eliminate threats coming from both aspects. At first, I didn't know why he took me in. I didn't know much about combat or even spells like the rest. But now, I can see why."

Kanon summoned the crimson-colored sword, which was made out of pure energy, from his fist. The bird looked at the magnificent energy blade.

"I never knew I had this kind of power. It was able to harm anything, even those from both the supernatural and magic aspects. Even through solid steel," Kanon explained his powers in detail to his 'partner' before the blade faded away.

"And so, they took me to the Manus Conseruit Academy where I learn a lot about combat and the history of magic. It was like school, really, until I graduated. Now here I am," Kanon said to the bird, now feeling much more relax to talk.

"I was grateful that he took me in. He may be a bit strict at times, but I believe he's such a nice man. If he hadn't took me in, I wouldn't know what to do, or even know what would happen to me next."

"So... I guess you know what happen in my first assignment."

The bird chirped.

"I'll take that as a yes," Kanon nodded his head.

"But now that I think about it... I could've done much better during that time. I guess I wasn't that smart," Kanon confessed to the little bird.

"So... Since you're my Familiar... Don't hesitate to tell me if what I'm doing is wrong. You got it?" Kanon said to the bird, which the latter answered with a nod. The boy answered as well with a nod.

The bird suddenly turned her attention to the kitchen.

"Oh, that's right," Kanon quickly stood up, "I should be making dinner immediately."

Kanon sprinted his way back to the kitchen. Now that the bird's in the apartment, the boy pulled something out from one of the groceries. It's a bag of bird seed.

"Are you hungry, Elise?" Kanon held out the small bag toward the robin, "I bought this just for you."

Much to his surprise, the bird shook her head sideways.

"W-What? You don't like this?" Kanon raised his right eyebrow in surprise, "Then what do you eat?"

The bird, Elise, flew across the room and landed on the frozen beef. That alone gave Kanon his answer.

"I truly didn't expect that..." Kanon uttered whilst keeping his straight face.

-X-

Meanwhile, at the same time...
Somewhere in the city...

A young man arrived home.
He's dressed up in a sleeveless shirt and blue jeans with a black jacket.

He seemed normal from a normal human's point-of-view, but there's something very odd about him.

The man entered the house slowly.

Not long after he entered, someone suddenly screamed in terror before a disturbing sound was heard. It appeared to be the sound of something cutting through a large piece of meat.

Inside, there was a young woman... Dead on the ground.

Her abdomen was sliced wide open exposing what inside the human body. For her face, it was cut in half.

Standing in front of the corpse was the man, holding a large knife. The man had a disturbing grin on his face, but it wasn't just the grin that distinguished his feature. It was his eyes...

His eyes have no pupils.

End of Chapter

And that's the end for this chapter as we get to see everything about the Ludicium Magicum and a few characters who will be joining up very soon.

Now that Kanon has his own Familiar, his next assignment isn't far enough. Can you guess what's next?

The characters that make their debuts are:
- Khelben "Blackstaff" Arunsun, one of the most renowned Archmages from the Forgotten Realm series and the leader of the Ludicium Magicum. He's from another 'realm' but his new mission is to be here in this particular 'realm.' If he had both a seiyu and a voice actor, his seiyu would be Makio Inoue and his voice actor would be Patrick Stewart.
- Gabriel Cunningham, a young man who's a member of the Ludicium Magicum and an original character in this fic. He's quite care-free and a very nice guy, but he's actually one of the best members in the organization. If he had both a seiyu and a voice actor, his seiyu would be Daisuke Namikawa and his voice actor would be Liam O'Brien.