Father of Despair [HIATUS]

Arc 1 Chapter 7 - "The Sovereign Gate."

Pieter was just your common, everyday city guard in charge of keeping the peace. He wasn't native to the region, rather his accent indicated a southern Eldemarian heritage. He had moved to Cyoria five years ago, at first lured by the prestige of the big city. After all, Cyoria was the magical capital of the continent, who wouldn't want to be here? Also, since young, Pieter had always been mesmerized by the miracles magic could do. So it was no wonder that when the opportunity to move here presented itself to him, he seized it wholeheartedly, leaving friends and family behind.

Now, half a decade later, he could confidently say that he didn't regret his decision. Though the honeymoon phase with the city had long subsided, he still liked it very much and was thankful for the opportunities it had offered him. In just five little years, he'd met and wed the love of his life, who offered him a pair of twins in return. He had friends all over and was working a job he deeply, truly enjoyed.

At first, he had thought that being a guard in the big city would drastically change his day-to-day life compared to his hometown, but for the most part it hadn't... apart for a few novelties. For example, where an explosion would've been enough to trigger an emergency response in his hometown, here in Cyoria it was more or less an everyday occurrence. Nothing dramatic of course, a few students of the academy losing control of their spells, an experience going wrong, an accident with magical substances, a magical beast escaping, etc. Sure, it was unique enough that it had caught him off-guard the first year, but now Pieter was a seasoned guard of the magical city. A young, self-centered, noble brat trying to threaten him with the name of his parents? He didn't care. An old mage trying to confuse him with complicated magical jargon to get out of a fine for destroying public property? Pieter would fine him anyway.

All in all, it was a simple and enjoyable life for Pieter. A routine he very much enjoyed and relished in. Though, there were times when this mundane routine was broken by unexpected events.

And the last week had been exactly that. An explosion had destroyed parts of the academy in the dead of night, the culprits still unknown and on the loose. Since then, his job, and the city itself, had become restless.

Pieter understood perfectly well how important and dramatic that tragedy had been. From his memories, he couldn't recall ever being so many casualties after a single incident such as this one. But still, deep down, he felt like the reception by the regime might be... maybe too extreme? Of course, he would never dare to voice such an opinion out loud.

Though he was but a simple guard, one who wasn't privy to the exact details of the investigation going on nor the reason behind the government's action, it was a fact that his country had reacted unusually fast. As swift as it had been drastic. Not even a day after the incident, a whole battalion had been dispatched to Cyoria from the capital itself. A cohort of special investigators, royal mages and other personnel he wasn't sure about had stormed the city, essentially taking control over the whole region for the sake of their investigations. With so many people mobilized, Pieter was convinced that more was going on in the background, something their administration didn't want the public to learn about. It would be hard to believe that the academy's explosion alone, as dramatic as it had been, would've been enough to shake the higher ups so much.

Seeing the big guns of the government up close had a way to make the common men —such as Pieter— gulp in anticipation and worry. There wasn't any rhyme or reason behind this sentiment. Pieter was an upstanding citizen after all, as a representative of the law both in and out of his uniform, he took his public image very seriously. But still, since they came to Cyoria, he felt like he was around a bunch of wolves and snakes. The way they looked at everyone and everything with an accusatory glance, trying to find the most minuscule discrepancy in the multiple testimonies he gave, was unnerving. It was almost like they were desperate for the smallest clue. Maybe their investigation wasn't going so well? At least, that was what Pieter thought. They thirsted for a culprit, that much was obvious. Who know what they would do if they couldn't find one? Would they report a failure to the Eldemar's council, tarnishing their names in the process? Or would they... 'find' an unlucky culprit?