Witches of Mellgrah

"Ah, Anastasia was her younger sister, right?" Maya clasped her hands.

"That's right," he affirmed, nonchalantly patting her shoulder as if praising her. "Anastasia was just about to undergo her Initiation." He paused, realizing that he should explain it first. "Old mages' initiation was a coming-of-age ceremony that's more akin to Mellghrah's Harvesting Ritual. It was to accept a new mage into the clan and allow her to harvest the power of her ancestors."

Then, Erik went on to explain the 'catch' of how the next child could gain more power than the first one, and Maya listened in horror. If the older sibling inadvertently passes, or was sacrificed, before the younger one's Initiation, they would harvest their sibling's full power during the ceremony.

Overwhelmed and disoriented, Maya grabbed her head, attempting to digest the load of new and unsettling information about the medieval witches. The implications of how the story would proceed were becoming clear.

Erik looked away in discomfort. It was clear he bore the responsibility and the burden of unveiling this knowledge to a new Prima, without holding anything back. But it meant that the task of laying out the dirty laundry of past witches now befell him.

"Even at the time, the practice of sacrificing children was a morally unacceptable and outright evil act. It was only practised in secrecy among some power-hungry dark families. Prima Magae's family would never stand for it."

"B-but, why would Anastasia cooperate with their plan after they sacrificed her sister?" Maya felt something wasn't right.

"It's because they concealed it well. It was the time of the Witch Hunts," he reminded. "Humanity's mass hysteria was weaponized. Her whole immediate family was put on trial and burned at the stake."

"That's horrible."

"If she was so powerful, why didn't she save herself?" This time, Elena asked a question.

"Because she couldn't. A conspiracy was set up against her. She couldn't reveal the existence of witches to the world at the most volatile times, and she was especially vulnerable herself, being with child."

Maya gasped.

"She had no choice but to put her faith in humanity to the test, and it failed her." Erik's voice was solemn. "The world has burned a pregnant woman, along with her husband, in fear of demon-worshipping witches."

This was the bleakest history lesson Maya had ever received, and it wasn't yet done.

"Soon, the whole Prima Magae family was cornered and trailed, followed by anyone sharing a drop of their blood," Erik continued. "Until there was only one left, sent away to a boarding school for safety while the world was turning tumultuous, oblivious to what was happening at her home."

Maya was speechless. She felt that her prior rage seemed insignificant in comparison to the trials they had endured. They were left in silence, beginning to feel the weight of their fatigue. But the thought of sleep was the furthest thing from Maya's mind right now.

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The continuation of the story was easy to imagine for Maya. Young Anastasia had participated in her Initiation and suddenly inherited the enormous power of her whole clan. And only then, the news reached her—news of what 'humans' did to her family.

Maya felt the result in her heart—seething rage. No wonder her soul was so unstable, considering what she suffered through.

"But wait, Erik," a contradiction suddenly surfaced in Maya's mind. "Anastasia was a spirit mage. Wouldn't she be able to speak to the dead and learn the truth?"

Erik's eyes met hers for a moment. "That's why the method was particularly sinister." He tiredly ran his fingers through his tousled hair and continued, "When someone is burned alive, their soul is disrupted and cannot linger. Although most Primas can communicate with the dead to some degree, they can't access the soul of someone who died by burning."

"Oh…"

"Well, she most likely did find out eventually. But Mellgrah had already been created."

There! Another discrepancy in her knowledge Erik had so unexpectedly revealed.

"Didn't she die while creating Mellgrah?" Maya questioned. The way Erik spoke suggested there was a time after.

Erik took in a slow, measured breath before answering. "It took great sacrifices, but Anastasia lived a while longer. Long enough to crumble under the weight of her power and consuming guilt. And long enough to throw a wrench into Mellgrah's delicate mechanism."

"What do you mean?"

"Creating Mellgrah took the magic out of our world as the power source, and the way its original plan was envisioned was for it to be a perfect utopia for the ruling few, handing them all that power," Erik explained, starting to put his crossbow back together.

"Before she died, she altered the grand plan in a way only a Prima could decipher, and ultimately undo. Turning Mellgrah into an unceasing mechanism no one could steer, until it runs its course and implodes on itself."

Wide-eyed and with bated breath, Maya and Elena hung on Erik's every word. The confirmation they had dreaded was now a stark reality—the world was indeed inching towards its end. This revelation wasn't a mere conjecture but a solid, undeniable truth.

"So the world really is ending…" Maya said quietly. "And I'm the only one who can save it…" It was a burden she couldn't escape.

With a comforting squeeze on her shoulder, Erik offered her a glimmer of reassurance. Maya responded with a feeble smile.

"And how do you know all that?" Elena pierced him with her gaze, watching him through scrutiny the entire time.

"I'll get to it," he dismissed her inquiry.

Maya found herself once again grappling with the enormity of her responsibility. However, this time, she didn't feel so utterly helpless and alone. Yet, a problem loomed:

"But how am I supposed to discern what she altered, especially when she herself can't recall?" Maya asked, puzzled.

Instead of answering, Erik asked a question, "Have you learned about arrays?"

Maya shook her head. She had a basic understanding of it being the most advanced form of magic and an entirely different type of magic from the one they were taught at the academy.

"I know it's a formulaic type of magic that is more akin to science."

"Well, what Mellgrah is, in its essence, is one exceedingly complicated array," Erik explained. "The basic formula was never a secret, considering the manpower and coordination required to construct it. However, the fine-tuning of details is only known to the architect."

Erik then turned to her, his gaze firm and intense, imparting a message of utmost importance.

"You don't need to save it, Maya."