Project Mage

Aliana slowly regained consciousness in the medical room of the magical academy, she felt a dull ache coursing through her body. The pale blue-haired Elite Guard could hear the soft hum of magical energy around her. It was a sign that the Medic girls were hard at work trying to heal her wounds.

Her vision cleared and she saw Gaiza, her devoted Messenger, by her side.

Aliana groaned softly. She attempted to sit up. She winced in pain with each little movement she made. Gaiza’s put her hands together and spoke quickly. "Princess Aliana, you're awake. Please, don't strain yourself!"

Aliana managed a weak smile and then replied, "Gaiza, how many times have I told you? You don't have to call me 'Princess.' We're friends, remember?"

Gaiza's cheeks flushed slightly and she averted her gaze pretending to be occupied with something else in the room. "Right, of course, Aliana. Friends." She cleared her throat before continuing, "I just thought it might make you feel more comfortable."

Aliana chuckled softly, her humor tempered by the pain in her body. "Well, thank you for your concern my friend. How did I end up here, anyway? The last thing I remember is Kintovar..."

Gaiza hesitated for a moment before responding, "You were injured during your battle with Roselle, Risebelle and Runebelle. Kintovar's arrival was what stopped the fight. She said something to you before leaving, about the academy's actions and the scientists."

Aliana’s face turned thoughtful while recalling those haunting words from Kintovar. "Yes, I remember now…”

The memory of her encounter with Dr. Kintovar haunted her. The relentless questions and accusations played in her mind like a vivid nightmare. She couldn't believe how easily Dr. Kintovar had broken through her resolve.

Aliana's anger swelled, but it also had a profound sense of self-realization. She had followed orders without question, never considering the moral implications of her actions. Tears welled up in her eyes while dealing with her own guilt and shame.

Gaiza, noticing the distress on Aliana's face, gently spoke, "P-Princess Aliana, are you alright?"

Aliana took a deep breath and nodded, trying to push the memories aside for now. "I'll be fine, Gaiza. Please, go on. Tell me what's been happening with the other Elite mages”

As Aliana's mind wrestled with the implications of her actions, Gaiza gently placed a hand on her shoulder. “I am sorry. What I am about to say may shock you… Abner... he didn't make it. Abner was killed by the now revealed trio of sisters Roselle, Runebelle and Risebelle".

Aliana's heart sank at the mention of Abner's name. She had known him well. "Abner... he was a good mage and a good rival to my blade" she whispered.

Gaiza continued, her tone grave, "And there's something else you should know. Alan... it seems he's attacking the other mages outside. It's as if he's turned against us."

Aliana's eyes widened in disbelief at the revelation about Alan. "No, no,no,no,no, that can't be right," she muttered, shaking her head. "Alan is the most loyal mage to the Academy. This doesen’t make a shred of sense. You agree with me, right Gaiza?"

The news about Abner's death and Alan's apparent betrayal hung heavily in the air. Aliana felt a growing sense of unease and uncertainty about the state of the magical academy.

Gaiza nodded sadly, her eyes reflecting the same concern. "I know it’s very hard to believe, but I saw it with my own eyes. Alan was attacking the other mages who had come to back up Arlysa and Sylra. It was chaos outside."

Aliana's mind raced as she tried to make sense of the situation. "Something must have happened. Alan wouldn't turn on this academy all of a sudden without having a good reason.” She paused, her thoughts going back to the memory of her encounter with Dr. Kintovar.

“I need to see her again..."

Aliana tried to rise from her bed, but she was met with a sharp pang of pain from her injuries. She winced and sank back down, realizing that her body was not yet ready for such exertion.

Gaiza hurried to her side. "Princess Aliana, please! You need to rest. Your injuries are still healing. You’re in no condition to move around just yet!"

Aliana clenched her fists. “But I can't just stay here, Gaiza. There's too much going on right now. I need to find out what's happening with Alan and the others."

Aliana overrode the pain that coursed through her body with the sheer force of will. She was not one to sit idly by while the academy faced such turmoil. With griting of her teeth, she pushed herself up from the bed.

When she began to rise, the medical girls rushed into the room, alarmed by her actions. One of them, a young mage pleaded, “Please, you mustn't exert yourself! Your injuries are still healing."

Another medical girl chimed in, "Yes, you need more time to heal properly. We can't allow you to strain yourself---."

Suddenly, Aliana shot them a frigid glare.

"Move," she commanded with authority and an icy threat. She raised one hand and a shimmering aura of frost enveloped it, forming into a menacing icicle. The medical girls exchanged nervous glances, realizing that challenging the Cryomancer in her current state would be unwise.

With an icy smile that made them all frozen, Aliana continued, "I suggest you make a path for me to walk forward unless you wish to become ice sculptures. I have matters to attend to."

Aliana's icy command left the medical girls no choice but to step aside and make way for the She began to walk, but her legs wobbled and she stumbled slightly. The pain from her injuries was still very much present. Her body protested the exertion.

Gaiza rushed to her side, offering her support as Aliana regained her balance. "Princess Aliana, please be careful," Gaiza implored, concern etched on her face. "You're not fully healed yet."

Aliana nodded, acknowledging the pain that radiated through her body. "I know, Gaiza, but I can't afford to wait any longer. There's too much at stake. It's time to see what's going on."

With Gaiza's help, Aliana took each step carefully.

Aliana and Gaiza made their way down the hallway. She looked off in thought momentarily. She couldn't shake the memories of her encounter with Dr. Kintovar and the questions that had clouded her mind her ever since.

In the quiet of her thoughts, she began to have a conversation with herself, a dialogue that mirrored the uncertainty that had taken root in her soul.

"Was it worth it, Aliana?" she asked herself in the recesses of her mind. A single drop of a tear going down to splash in the void of darkness. “All these years of unwavering loyalty to the academy... was it worth the price we paid? The orders we followed without question..."

She recalled the faces of the scientists and magicless ones she had seen. Their lives were snuffed out mercilessly. The guilt and shame gnawed at her very soul."I swore an oath to the academy for saving my life, for giving me a home on this island but now? I'm not so sure anymore."

But as the memories of the academy's actions, the capture and execution of scientists came to her forefront. The cruel orders she had followed came flooding back. Doubts began to gnaw at her resolve.

"Did I truly honor my oath?" she questioned herself. "Is blind loyalty to the woman in charge and the academy worth all the suffering I've witnessed? All the lives lost, all the pain inflicted? Can I continue to serve a cause that goes against everything I once believed in?"

Aliana came to a halt in the middle of the hallway, her conflicted thoughts weighing heavily on her. Gaiza, ever attentive, noticed the change in her demeanor and asked with genuine concern, "Princess Aliana, is something wrong? Do you need to rest?"

Aliana turned to Gaiza and asked, "Gaiza, do you think I'm a good person?"

Gaiza blinked in surprise at the unexpected question. Her blue eyes searched Aliana's face for clues. "Where is this coming from, Princess Aliana?"

Aliana hesitated for a moment. She struggling to find the right words. "I've been thinking about the things I've done, the orders I've followed without question," she admitted. "I've seen so much suffering. I got to wonder if I've been on the wrong path all this time."

Gaiza's concern deepened while listening to Aliana's confession. She had always admired the Cryomancer's strength and dedication to the academy. "Princess Aliana, you've always done what you believed was right," she replied gently. "You've protected the academy and its values. You’ve been a strong leader for the Elite Guard. I've seen the kindness in your heart, even when you hide it behind your icy exterior."

Aliana nodded, her conflicted feelings still evident. "But what if I was wrong all along?" she asked speaking barely above a whisper. "What if the academy's actions, the capture of innocent scientists and the orders to eliminate magicless individuals... what if they were all wrong?"

Gaiza didn't immediately respond. She wasn't sure how to address the profound questions swirling in the Cryomancer's mind.

Aliana, sensing Gaiza's hesitation, shook her head slightly and continued, "You don't have to answer that, Gaiza. I just needed someone to listen. But there's something more urgent I Need to address."

She glanced around cautiously, ensuring that no one was within earshot and lowered her speech to a hushed tone. "I overheard the Headmaster's plans. She intends to use the mana from the Mana Extractors to leave the island, but doing so would endanger the Mystic Forest and all its inhabitants. Thalindra, the forest guardian, is no longer with us. I fear the plan may involve taking only a select few with her. This will leave the rest to suffer."

Gaiza listened attentively. When Aliana finished speaking, Gaiza hesitated for a moment before responding while fidgeting around.

"Waitaminute, she told all of us that when she leaves the island, she intends to take all the mages with her," Gaiza explained. "It's what we've all been working towards, a way to return to the city from which most of us came, but now that you mention it, I never really considered how that would be possible without an immense source of power."

Aliana's brow furrowed in deep thought.

"You’re finally catching on and waking up to the truth. To transfer what was gathered from the Mana Extractors and transport all the mages, it would require an enormous magical power source. She alone couldn't accomplish such a feat."

The pieces of the puzzle began to fall into place in Aliana's mind. "There must be someone with an incredible amount of power, someone that woman has been keeping hidden. It's the only explanation," she concluded with her eyes narrowing. “And if that's the case, we need to find out who that person is and what the Headmaster intends to do with them."

Aliana and Gaiza rushed into the Academy’s main office. Their eyes scanned the room, but it was conspicuously empty. The spacious office, which had once been the center of authority in the academy, now felt eerily abandoned.

Aliana looked around. "She's not here," she stated with disappointment. She had hoped to confront the Headmaster directly and demand answers about her plans and the mysterious individual with immense magical power.

Gaiza, her blue eyes wide with concern, glanced around the office as well. "What should we do, Princess Aliana?" she asked.

Aliana and Gaiza felt a sudden surge of energy washed over them which froze them in place. It was as if an invisible hand wrapped around their body and held them tight enough for them to be paralyzed.

Both Aliana and Gaiza could feel its oppressiveness pressing down on them. They exchanged alarmed glances. Then they realized that they were in the presence of the most dreadful woman.

Aliana's eyes narrowed.

"This... this is the Headmasters….”