Formation

Chapter 1

A women hurried through the streets of Nazra, muttering a hasty 'excuse me' every time she ran into someone in the crowd. Her green cloak billowed behind her as her golden, but graying hair.

The road had shops and buildings lining it; there were shops with garments she would have admired. She nearly lost her focus admiring a wooden staff displayed in a gleaming case, and almost wandered into a store after noticing a royal blue dress with silver sequins that resembled scales.

Of course, the city of Nazra was one of Cigamdaln's trading hub. There were more shops than spells she knew, and it was the only place she can find someone she needs to talk to.

After an hour of running around, she bumped into a boy, his hair was white and it gave him the appearance of an unruly fur ball, and he looked out of place among the paler people with his darker skin.

"Ah! Azral!" The woman exclaimed.

Azral blushed with embarrassment a bit, and smoothed out his ragged tunic, "Hello Professor Rosewood."

She chuckled, "I believe I let you call me Cornelia?" 

Azral shrugged, "Iaso insisted I showed proper manners."

"And she did a wonderful job raising you to be polite."

He giggled, gentle and innocent, like a child, "Yes, she said that I needed to work on them, and she grilled it into me."

Cornelia laughed, and stopped. Her face became serious in an instant, "Azral dear, you know why I'm here don't you?"

Just like her, Azral's playful grin slid iff his face, "I- I shouldn't be around people, it's too dangerous for me to do so."

She gazed at him, her eyes firm, yet caring, "You need to social contact, and education is required for you to be considered an adult."

He flinched as he met her gaze, "I'm f–fine. I have Iaso who teaches me, can't she be registered as my teacher?"

Cornelia shook her head, "I'm afraid not."

He huffed.

"But you have only learned the basics to magic, and you need it."

Azral sighed, "But I know spells, I know how to use magic and that should be able to bring me through life!"

She shook her head again, "That is not enough, and we also have another problem on out hands, don't we?"

"Her," he said, with the slightest bit of fear in his voice.

She looked up, as if she was in the past thirteen or so years. She remembered yelling, meteors raining from the heavens, and the sky, once speckled with stars and galaxies that glowed ominously.

She remembered seeing her beloved looking at her with wild eyes as a ram with a starry hide crashed its horns into his side, sending him toppling over a cliff.

"–Nelia! Professor!"

She returned to the past, startled. Azral's red eyes looked at her with concern.

A small piece of her panicked at the sight of those red eyes. Once innocent became cold and unemotional. The eyes of someone not human, the eyes filled with a dark ambition.

Breathe, she thought, this isn't her, this is Azral, the most peaceful boy I know.

And yet he is, or will be capable of terrible things.

"Azral, we have an idea how to stop it."

His mouth dropped, "B-but there can't be one! How–?"

Cornelia shushed him, "We have found someone with Sayo Kard's blood. The bloodline of the man who defeated her."

He scratched his head, "Can we really call it a defeat? It was more like she retreated."

She gave him a look and received a quick 'sorry'.

"Right, Sayo used his blood to seal her, and it would have destroyed her–."

"Except she evaded it," Azral interrupted. "She is biding her time, and as lovely as that idea sounds, we can't possibly believe that one of Sayo's blood could seal her. Sayo's clan had advanced runes that I am sure no one teaches anymore."

"But it's our only hope."

He sighed and rubbed his arms, which were marked patterns that branched with a square-like angles that were a few shades lighter than his skin.

"I'll ask Iaso."

She frowned, "You need to make your own decisions too sometimes."

"I know! It's just that I don't think I'm the best for decisions."

She shrugged, "You never know until you try. You might have great instincts."

Cornelia ruffled through her cloak and pulled out a scroll, "Perhaps you should keep this with you, in case you might want to attend."

He shoved it into his tunic's pocket, suddenly anxious to get home, "Well then, I have to return to Iaso; I still have these herbs she needs."

Cornelia nodded, "Yes, well, goodbye and please consider!"

Azral watched her leave and turned around to head back home.