"What you ask?" said Ms.Flemming as she continued writing in the air. "I'm bringing in extra help."
Katashi watched the scarlet words bend and twist in the air, as if some invisible force was tying them into a knot. The words had read "Magical Broom That Sweeps By Itself".
As the once-words turned and squirmed, Katashi slowly let go of the girls hand. Carefully, he moved his left hand across his body and over to the revolver sitting backwards in the holster on his right hip. He wrapped his fingers around the handle, but kept his index finger off the trigger.
Witchcraft! he thought. She's a witch, Ex Nihilo class...
He had been warned of this in his cultural orientation classes. In Clasvania there were only certain types of magic allowed: elemental magic and Triggered Ignition. Powers over light and dark were marginally accepted, though frowned upon. All other magic was forbidden and indeed, alien to the nation. Anyone displaying any other powers were deemed witches and were sent to a special "colony" in the Ares Mountains never to be heard from again.
Even as a small child it was drilled into him that witchcraft was the sheer power of madness twisted into reality and that anyone capable of such abilities was little more than a ravening animal on the inside. In his cultural orientation classes he was told that he would see things at Saisei Academy that would push his sanity to the limit. Anything he could think of, there was probably someone out there in the world who could do it.
Silently, he began to funnel fuel into his revolver in preparation for a potential attack. The air around the revolver began to shimmer like a desert horizon. All he needed to do was will it and the fuel would ignite immediately, filling the revolver with ferocious energy.
There were two things that held him back: One was orders: He was told NOT to fire on anyone in the academy unless they attacked him first, even witches. The other was the fact that his mentor was a female. Intentionally wounding a female was punishable by death and despite the situation he felt himself hesitant to use force against her.
The words finally formed the outline of a broom and within seconds the broom simply was. Not only that but it began to sweep out papers on its own, with no one controlling it. Katashi gritted his teeth, slowly backing up to keep both the broom and Ms.Flemming in sight at all times. Despite himself he kept turning to the broom, watching it work in amazement. Someone walked into the room but Katashi didn't even notice as he continued watching.
"Oh, it's the third student." Said Ms.Flemming as she began looking through some papers she had with her.
The papers... Thought Katashi. How much did the government authorize her to know about me?
A broom sweeping by itself? Someone being able to write such a thing into existence? It didn't make sense. It didn't make sense at all. This shouldn't be able to happen. His eyes glowed dimly as he tried to absorb everything.
"That completes the circle. I believe an introduction is in order." Ms.Flemming then pointed her quill at the other girl and smiled. Katashi expected lightening to shoot from it or perhaps razors to come flying out. But nothing happened.
"Ladies first, as they always say, yes?"
A witch....how am I supposed to handle THIS? |