Chapter 18: Historical Guidance

Lilia answers Ruggie's question, "Indeed. While the Watchman has become something of an urban legend by now… Back in the old days, when mages were called witches and wizards, they were feared across the land. People believed the Island of Woe would punish any wizard who abandoned their principles and went mad with power."

"One of my family's history books claims that the group is so ancient, they date back to the Age of the Gods. The relationship between magic and blot hadn't been established at that time. According to my history book, people believed overblots were disasters that occurred without warning. The Jupiter family forebear sealed those disasters away on the Island of Woe and brought peace to the land. A watchman was tasked with keeping those disasters from plaguing the world again. That person was one of the Shroud's family ancestors," Malleus adds to the explanation."

"That sounds less like history and more like myth," Cater says, "It's all on such a grand scale. Ya boy Cay-Cay can barely keep up…"

But Lilia says, "Mind you, humankind never stopped researching magic, eager students that they were. Time marched on, and at some point magic became safe to practice. The witches and wizards of yore became known as mages. Nowadays, mage licenses are international. Mages are globally recognized as contributing to the betterment of society. And governments passed laws and forced agencies to discipline magic abusers who caused trouble for people… over time, the Watchman of the Island of Woe faded from the history books. But the group continued their research on the disasters—or blot, really—as the organization Styx."

"We were aware that Idia was the son of the Shroud family, yes… But this is the first time I've heard of a connection between them and Styx. I've read just about every notable work on magic history, yet I've never seen any of this discussed," Trein says.

"Ah, but see, you're limited to the texts that survive among humankind. Humans and Fae stopped intermingling quite a long time ago," Lilia says, and continues, "Plus, different cultures and species pass down lore in different ways—not every truth is written down. There is no shortage of historical narratives that have been twisted to suit someone's agenda."

"All this is giving me butterflies in my stomach," Tanzanite says, feeling uneasy.

"Twisting historical narratives, huh…" Jasper says, adds just as shocked.

Then Trein says, "This makes me wonder… Was the headmage aware of Idia's connection to Styx? Does that mean he wasn't able to work with the Shroud family to avoid this scenario?"

"Who can say, really? Even if he had known, he wouldn't have been able to stop them," Malleus says.

"As for Styx...Why did they capture a group of overblotters? What's their plan?" Trey questions.

Then Jade says, "Based on what Lilia said, I doubt they'll treat them hospitably. If they're lucky, they'll only be examined. If they're unlucky, they'll become test subjects. And if they're REALLY unlucky, they may already—"

"Woah, hey! Don't even joke about that, Jade," Kalim replies with a frown on his face.

"Yeah. If what you say is true, then Briar and the others are in serious trouble," Jasper says, sounding upset.

Rook frowns in response as well.

Then Floyd says, "Y'know, there's one thing that's buggin' me after hearin' all this. Those goons rolled up and blasted half the campus. There's tons of witnesses, right? Someone must've got 'em on video. Seems to me like they're not tryin' to stay very secret. Maybe they don't care. Or maybe they have some REAL reliable way of cleanin' up after themselves."

Trein remains silent after hearing that.

"I don't like the sound of that one bit. I say we worry about our own skins 'stead of wastin' time on the others," Ruggie says.

"While Bucchi's wording leaves something to be desired, he does have a point. We don't know where the Island of Woe is, which means we cannot pursue our kidnapped students," Trein says.

"Which means, we don't know where we can find Briar and the boys," Sereia says, worried.

"But still, why go after Briar of all people? She never went Overblot before, so why would they want someone like her? Up until now, she didn't even know how to use magic, and lived in a world without one," Ruggie questions.

"Hmmm…" Trein replies.

Malleus notices something and questions, "Professor, do you have an idea?"

"Well, it's only a theory, but… Crowley, including myself, have been trying to understand how Briar entered our world. And ever since the Overblots incidents, we've been trying to find out what kind of magic that can heal overblots. Overtime, we weren't able to find much, until we found something shocking…" Trien says.

"Shocking?" Jasper asks, confused.

"What do you mean?" Tanzanite asks.

"It's only a theory, and it's a slim one, but there is something unusual about Briar and her abilities. Crowley and I have been doing some research about this. After some research, we come to see that the magic she has is natural and ancient. The reason why we're unsure is because it's assumed that those who have that kind of magic died out years ago, and only one species of mages could use it," Trien says.

"And that is?" Ruggie questions.

"It's possible that Briar might be a Salubrious Faes, also known as Blot Healers, because they have a unique ability to heal Overblots," Trein says.

This shocked everyone in the room to hear it, and out of all of them, Malleus and Lilia are especially shocked.

"But Briar is a human. There's no way she can use that kind of magic, and there's no way she could be a fae," Ruggie says, shocked.

But then Kalim says, "But we all saw first hand what Briar's magic can do. And she helped Jamil and the others."

"As I said, it's mainly a theory, and since that species of Fae rumored to have died out years ago, so there isn't concrete evidence to know if she's actually a Blot Healer," Trein says.

Then says, "I want all of you to return to your dorms and conduct a roll call. check for any injured students and report back to me."

"Yes, sir," Everyone replies.

And with that, everyone begins to take their leave.

Rook remains silent.

Out of the room, Sereia, Tanzanite, Jasper, and Trinket have sad expressions, knowing that there is a strong possibility that Briar and Grim aren't able to be found, or let go for that matter.

Suddenly, someone calmly calls out, "Excuse us."

The group turn to see Malleus and Lilia walking up to them.

"How are you all feeling? You all got sad looks on your faces?" Lilia asks.

"We're just worried about Briar," Sereia says and looks at Briar's medallion.

"And we feel useless that we can't do anything about it. Nor know where to look," Jasper says.

"I can tell that Briar and Grim mean a lot to you, and as their friends, you all wish you could help," Lilia says.

The group lowers their heads with a nod.

Malleus then says, "I understand how you are feeling. Sadly, there isn't much we can do about it."

"Well, we still wish we can," Jasper says.

Malleus then kneels to Sereia and asks, "Do you mind if I see that necklace?"

"Um okay. It's Briar's medallion and it's very important to her. It fell off after the guys took her away," Sereia says, and passed the necklace to Malleus.

Malleus then takes the necklace and observes the gemstone on it. He also sees the gemstones on the necklace.

In his thoughts, Malleus says, "I see… so… this… this was her medallion…"

Malleus turns to Sereia and asks, "Do you mind if I hang on to this for a while? I want to check on something with it."

"Oh um, okay. I'm sure Briar won't mind," Sereia says.

"Alright, but you need to give it back to Briar," Jasper says.

Malleus nods his head. With that, the groups go their separate ways. Malleus looks at the medallion with a calm expression, but deep down, he is deeply concerned, especially for Briar's wellbeing.

Lilia turns to Malleuys, "Are you okay, Malleus?"

"I'm alright, but I can't help but worry. Truth is, I've been worried about her since Kalim called. Now that this theory came up, I am even more worried about her," Malleus says. He lets out a sigh, "Especially about me worrying that Briar will one day remember, especially the truth."

"You're right," Lilia says, "If Briar is who we think she is. Then, it would mean that she went through such lengths to make sure it's possible. Even resort to giving her the medallion that was once hers."

"Indeed. She really went through so much, to protect her younger sister, even though it ended up costing her life," Malleus says.

Lilia sighs, "Yes. However, for now, we should get back to the dorm, and focus on what we need to do."

Malleus nods and looks at the necklace and his thoughts have one thing in mind, "Briar… no Briar Rosetta… is that really you? After all these years…"