"Ezra, we've been waiting for you!" - Owain smiled, greeting the younger Wundersmith.
Something flickered in Owain's gaze and expression, something that made Ezra start and worry. But he dismissed it as a figment of his imagination. Lately, he often had thoughts that something was wrong. It was so common that it could turn into paranoia, which Ezra categorically did not want. So he just apologized for being late and smiled back.
All Wundersmiths and Elders were present in the hall, which meant that there was some serious and urgent matter on the agenda. Ezra frowned. Although no, not everyone was here: he had just noticed Elodie's absence, which was very strange, and besides, usually someone from the government was present at such meetings, but now there were only representatives of the Wundrous Society. He was puzzled by this.
"What was the reason we were called?" - Ezra turned his gaze to Elder Levine, crossing his legs and clasping his hands in his lap. - "And where is Elodie?" - this question was intended more for Griselda Polaris, who was sitting at the far end of the table.
"She's not feeling well. We considered it advisable not to disturb her" - a Wundersmith said in an even voice.
After Griselda's words, Ezra's anxiety moved to a new level. He was sure that if Elodie had really been ill, he would have been one of the first to find out about it. Ezra assumed that Griselda Polaris had lied to him, but he couldn't believe it. She wouldn't lie. Maybe Elodie just couldn't get in touch with him, anything could happen. Ezra decided to keep silent, just nodding and leaving the subject for another time. But he was still furtively watching Griselda's behavior, just in case. The anxiety was growing.
"About our meeting, Mr. Squall" - Elder Levine chimed in. - "Some are already aware of the reason for our meeting, and now it's time to let the others in on it. A few months ago, we asked Griselda Polaris, Rastaban Tarazed and Owain Binks about one service, specifically about creating a "living" weapon, ruthless and not thinking about whether to carry out our order or not. Simply put, some kind of monster, unquestioningly obeying our commands. We felt that such a weapon would be extremely useful for defeating our enemies. Or at least using it as a warning. So to speak, to discourage them from any desire to attack us or harm us".
Ezra frowned and noticed that the rest of the audience were not surprised at all. So this news was unknown only to him. Therefore, the Elder's words about "let the others in" were a pretty strong exaggeration. Not that he didn't like this idea (a weapon was always necessary if someone wanted to attack the Free State), but he considered such a "living" weapon, a monster, as the Elder described, to be too cruel even towards enemies.
And he told them about it. They just shook their heads.
"It may get out of control eventually. There are no guarantees that this won't happen" - Ezra sounded annoyed. Is this a joke for them?
"You can talk about anything like that, Ezra. About any of our creations, about any of the Wundrous Act that we create. But this does not stop us from creating new ones" - Mathilde spoke for the first time in all this time.
"And what...? You said you asked, but you didn't say it was ready. Is there a problem? We wouldn't have gathered here just like that" - one look at the faces of the Elders and the Wundersmiths was enough to understand that he had hit the nail on the head.
"You're right as always, Mr. Squall" - now a smirk appeared on Elder Levine's face. It was a bad sign. - "You see, the experiments carried out did not give the required results. Of course, we have achieved some success, but..." - she spread her hands. - "Nothing significant".
"As we believe, for a "living" weapon, a living being is needed with which it could show itself. They would become one, complementing each other. In a way, it would be beneficial for both of them, as they would become several times stronger by combining their abilities. Of course, we cannot guarantee a successful outcome, but, as they say, those who do not take risks do not win" - Rastaban said in a bored voice and shrugged his shoulders, as if it was something ordinary for him.
