Amidst the chaos tearing through Sklaviunt, Alex found himself struggling to figure out a way to handle the crisis in his current weakened state.
Unfortunate as it was, his options were limited, leaving him unsure of how to proceed.
Of course, this did not mean he planned on giving him as he knew what was at stake.
"We are going to have to move soon," Melita said as the explosions grew louder and the tremors, closer.
Theoren let out a sigh. "That’s not possible, dear. There’s nowhere left to go. The city has closed its gates and there’s fighting everywhere. We might end up getting involved in a fight that’s not ours to engage in."
"He’s right." Alex chipped in from the side. "But staying here is also not wise. If this building collapses, that’s it for us."
"So we can’t stay, we can’t leave... what can we do?" Melita asked, torn between annoyance and worry about what was in store for them.
"We have to leave," Alex said. "But we need to be prepared to fight, else, we risk dying a dog’s death."
"I don’t have any weapons apart from an old musket my grandfather left me," Theoren remarked. "And it doesn’t have any bullets, so all it’s good for is stabbing."
Alex let out a sigh as he closed his eyes, taking a moment to figure out a way to be of help.
Perhaps the first step was figuring out a way to deal with his paralysis.
Then, it came to him, allowing him to open his eyes with a question in mind.
"Do you know what a concoction is?"
Theoren nodded. "My grandmother was quite spiritual during her time."
"Do you know how to make one?... Preferably one for healing?"
"Unfortunately, I can’t. I was never really interested in learning and after seeing how my mother died due to her beliefs, I didn’t dare to try it out."
Alex frowned. "What killed her?"
"I don’t know. All I know is she came down with a disease not too long after a really crazy ritual. Ended up draining her of life bit by bit until she begged my grandfather to take her life." Theoren recounted, barely managing to keep his emotions in check as he spoke.
Letting out a sigh, Alex responded. "In that case, I have something else in mind."
"What is it?" Melita asked to which Alex responded.
"How good are you guys at drawing?"
Eubulus got down from his carriage and shifted his gaze to the top of the northern wall of Sklaviunt where a figure was currently standing.
Furrowing his brows, he inquired loudly. "Who are you?"
The figure suddenly disappeared from the wall, only to appear on the ground, in front of the carriage.
"Thera." The woman replied. "Councilwoman Thera."
"I do not recall you being part of the Tribunal," Eubulus remarked cautiously.
Thera flashed a smile as she replied. "Indeed. I got inducted last year, weeks after Scholars Day had ended."
"I see..." Eubulus looked her over. "And the other council members are aware of your identity as a denizen of the supernatural world?"
Eubulus seemed skeptical of her response, quite aware of how Henosians saw Mystics.
Though they weren’t regarded as enemies, Henos had long been built on a history of mainly human rule, unlike the other three continents that had mostly mystical rulers.
For that reason, allowing a Mystic to rule over them would be considered odd and so, might not be easily accepted.
Of course, Eubulus was not about to focus on that as he inquired. "What’s happening in the city?"
"Change, Sir Keeper."
"The people have grown wary of Scholastica and its ways, so they decided to break away."
Eubulus’ expression turned sour. "What are you trying to say?"
Thera grinned. "You, of all people, should know what I mean, Sir Keeper."
"Well fine then, I will be more than happy to spell it out for you," Thera said. "From this day onwards, Sklaviunt shall be considered an independent state."
"Impossible!" Eubulus lashed out immediately. "I cannot allow such to happen!"
"Unfortunately, it’s already underway so you have two choices. Accept or die."
Melita, with Alex’s instructions, helped to draw a pentagram on a piece of paper in the center of the basement with some ink and a feather quill.
"What is this?" Theoren asked, easily recognizing the shape to be one with mystical properties.
Alex sighed. "It’s a way to take care of our current situation."
He wasn’t about to tell them that he planned on summoning a Devil, so thought it best to lie to them for the time being.
"Help me up," Alex said to Melita with her and her grandfather coming to his aid.
Once he was seated upright, he ignored the pain tearing through him and instead inflicted some more as he asked for a knife, which Theoren provided, after which he cut his palm and allowed a few drops of his blood to drop on the paper.
The white parchment soon turned red with blood, causing the pentagram to look quite ominous.
That wasn’t all, of course, as Alex placed his palm on the paper and began to call it Vessina’s as well as Xistora’s name.
Unfortunately, he didn’t know the summoning spell in deviltongue and so could only hope that either one of those two would answer him on account of the relationship they had.
Melita and Theoren exchanged looks, their expressions tense, as they wondered if they were truly safe.
Even though they chose to trust Sir Smith, there was no assurance that what he was doing would be successful.
Yet another tremor helped to reorient their thoughts as they turned to regard Alex once again at which point, something happened.
The parchment burst with a blinding red light, knocking them away and causing Alex to grunt.
Soon, the light died down and Vessina made an appearance, her arms akimbo and her lips curled in amusement as she regarded Alex.