"I'm telling you Sunset if I have to hear one more thing about vials, gaskets and strange mage plants I'm gonna turn into an alchemy paste!"
Sunset giggled. They two had been stuck in that hospital room for three days. Doctors said he wasn't allowed to leave until they could be assured his mana was flowing normally for long enough. Everyone had come in to see him during the time. Trixie, Coloratura, Wallflower, even Lyra. Bonbon however, was absent. He had some idea of what might be going on in regards to her, but he was too afraid to ask.
"Well the doctor has finally given you clearance to leave. And I figured I'd give you a little getting better surprise. Especially since you did so well on all the homework."
"Oh yeah? What's that?"
Sunset reached into her brown satchel, hesitating for a moment. She was nervous, even had a bit of blush to her face.
"You've been out of the loop for a bit being sick and all but uh... there's a big event coming up marking the transition between the late sun and rising moon. I-It's an old mage tradition I-I'll explain it to you some other time b-but uh..."
If she got any more flustered he'd have thought Sunset were going to propose to him.
"I was wondering," she said, pulling out a beautiful necklace with a glowing emblem of her crest "Would you go with me to the Great Moon Ball?"
"I'd be honored too. Tell me what it's all about."
"Well, according to an old mage legend, there was once a beautiful maiden named Rising Moon. She was princess of a great kingdom and was destined to take the throne. Her brother, jealous of her ascendance, had her kidnapped by a powerful dragon. The king sent his best knight, a battle mage by the name of Late Sun to vanquish it. He did so, but there was a curse within the dragon the sealed the maiden away inside the moon. The princess's love shone so bright that the moon began to glow throughout the night. The knight waited by the spot where he fell the dragon day in and day out, waiting for her return. It's a silly celebration, but it's sort of a... um..."
"Sort of what?"
"A celebration of t-true love..."
"Moving awfully fast aren't we?"
"I-I'm sorry I didn-"
"No it's ok I'm kidding. So tell me what we do. How does the ball work?"
"There's a lot you need to do in preparation. First we exchange a special necklace with our magic crest on them."
"How am I going to get that? Especially with mine."
"Easy. Lyra can help your create one. She comes from a long line of mages who create speciality magic items and wands."
"I'm guessing these necklaces are far from ordinary."
"Right you are." she said "there's a bit of a process. Don't worry though. It's nothing too intense."
"Next, as Late Sun did before the night of the curse, you're to have dinner with me at my home."
"Oh really?"
"Really. However you'll need to look your best. Especially since my family can be very... shall I say 'picky' to put it kindly. I've already asked Wallflower to give you some etiquette pointers."
"It's nothing complicated is it?"
"Not really. But you'll need to pay attention. The final piece is a dress robe. Normally this would be made by your family, but since you haven't a mage family of your own, I made one for you myself. You can find it in the chest in your room. I think you'll like it a lot."
"You've gone through quite the trouble for me."
"It's the least I can do." she said "do be sure to try it on when you get back to your dorm. The ball is going to take place at the end of the month."
"I'm just happy to get out of this awful hospital bed."
Anon got up and paused before reaching the door
"Before we go..." he paused "How's Bonbon?"
Sunset looked down
"She's... not well. Doctors give her a year left."
He gripped the door handle tight. Sunset walked up and hugged him.
"You are not at fault for this, Anon. In fact, if it wasn't for you, she wouldn't even have a year left."
Anon clenched his fist
"I have to say, I'm not really liking this whole chosen one crap."
Sunny continued embracing him, saying nothing
"Why did Clover choose me? So many amazing and talented mages out there and I'm the one she picks. Why?"
"I know you'll find the answer. And I know it wasn't a fluke. Whatever reason Clover had, it had to be a good one."
"I hope so. I really hope so."
"Let's head back to Generosity House."
"I want to see Bonbon."
Anon could feel her grip around his belly tighten
"You shouldn't."
"I have too. I can't just leave her after all this."
"She's in room 342, the floor just above this one. But..."
"But what?"
"Prepare yourself is all I'm saying."
"Come with?"
"Of course."
The pair walked up to the next floor, reaching room 342. Bonbon was hooked up to all sorts of strange machinery. Her right arm was pitch black and oily, as if it been dunked inside a pit of tar. She wasn't even conscious. Sunset clinged to his side.
"What on earth is wrong with her?"
"This is what happens to mages effected with acute magic sickness. The skin slowly beings to poison and rot from the stale mana. Since she was marked, the Greater Magic can't siphon away any mana either. It's a slow and excruciating death. She'll likely spend most of the year comatose to combat the pain."
Anon felt his heart drop into his stomach.
"And there's no cure? No magic that can help with this?"
"If there were, we'd have used it." she said "She's as good as gone."
"There has to be some way. Something we can do to fix this."
"Come on, Anon." she said, pulling his arm "You're going to worry yourself silly if we stay here."
"No! There has to be some way to right the wrong I made!"
"Well, there is one way."
Both he and Sunset nearly jumped out of their skin. Lyra was standing right next to the window.
"Lyra, Jesus." he said "Nearly gave me a heart attack."
"Sorry, Anon. Recovering well?"
"Yes. But go on. How can we save her?"
"There is one thing that we can use. Something we can use to kill two birds with one stone: the legendary blade Excalibur. It was something Clover used to eliminate King Arthur all those years ago."
"She killed King Arthur?"
"So the records claim, though the details are fuzzy. You'd think the assassination of one of history's most notorious mass mage killer would be something rife with explanation. All we really know is that Clover killed him and she sealed the blade away."
"How can we use it to cure Bonbon's sickness?"
"Easy. It is said that whoever wields the blade is granted a single wish. No doubt we'll learn some more about Clover along the way. It's a win on all fronts."
"Where is it?"
"That's the rub of the matter. it's in some ruins beneath the King's old castle, in the mortal world no less. And it's sealed away with some very powerful magic. Many a mage has tried to excavate it, all to no avail. But if there is anyone who can remove a seal Clover, herself implemented, it's the bearer of her crest."
"Can't argue with you there. I'd be happy to accompany you."
"I will warn you though. It's going to be dangerous. All sorts of magical phenomenon have gathered around the place."
"I'm not worried about the risks."
"You can't honestly be thinking of going can you?" another voice chimed in
You, Sunset and Lyra all jumped again. It was Lady Valencia in all her glory.
"What is this grand central station?" Anon jabbed
Vignette, clearly not amused, wiped out her wand and tapped it twice. The world around them stood still.
"You should remember your place, mortal." she hissed "I am not one of your buddies at school. You will address me with the respect due me."
Anon felt a large bead of sweat trickle down his face
"Now I suggest you chose your next words more carefully this time." she said "You don't actually intend on retrieving excalibur do you?"
"Of course I do."
"Do you understand the implications of such an action? Removing Excalibur from its tomb will spread like wildfire throughout the mage world. By some novice with no magical history no less. They'll put it together eventually."
"I can't just let her die."
"You won't retrieve the blade or I'll make you wish you were the one in that bed. Do I make myself clear?"
"Crystal." he said through gritted teeth
She tapped her wand twice again and time flowed as normal. Not only that but she was gone. Both Sunset and Lyra looked bewildered
"What on earth was she doing here?" Sunset gasped
"She knows about the crest. She's black mailing me into handing it over once I learn its secrets." he said "Don't worry though. I fully intend to retrieve that blade. I'm not simply going to stand by and watch Bonbon die."
"Excellent. We'll set out in two days." Lyra said
"Works for me." he said "why two days though?"
"I need to get some help. Like I said, retrieving this isn't going to be a simple task. It's above my level of skill, at least alone."
"Well now that, that's settled." sunset gripped his arm "back to Generosity House?"
"Yes."
Once they were a good distance away from the medical wing, Sunset whispered into his ear.
"I'm going to try and get Valencia off your back. Since my family in part of the court, we may be able to put pressure on her to back down."
He nodded
"It won't be easy though. She by far has to be the sneakiest and most clever of the king's children. And man does she hold a grudge. But I don't care if I have to call in every favor. It's trouble for all of us if she's around."
"I don't now how I'm ever going to be able to repay you for all these favors."
"Don't worry about it. Though there is something... never mind. We'll speak about it later."
"What is it?"
"A conversation for another time. Come."
The two walked back to Generosity House. Rarity was standing at the gate, seeming to take notes. She waved Anon over.
"Seems you're needed." Sunset said
She gave him a big hug
"Take care. Be safe."
Anon returned the hug
"Always. I'll see you soon."
Anon strode over to Rarity. She didn't take even a second to look up from her notes.
"Recover well?"
"Just fine. I'm well and back at 24/7."
"Good." she said "I have some unfortunate news though. We'll need to speed up your initiation process. Walk with me."
Anon followed behind her, walking into the secret meeting place inside the painting.
"No doubt you've heard of Nightmare Moon."
"Yes. Encountered her. I'll never forget it. The difference in power... it was like heaven and earth."
Rarity began to pace
"She was weak then," she explained "and she's been steadily growing in power. According to our experts observing her, we have maybe a month before she regains all of her power again. And you don't even know combat magic yet. Hell, you don't even know life magic. I've made the decision to suspend your classes. From now on your sole focus will be on facing the current threat."
"I realize it's a silly question..." he said "But why me? I mean we have mages like you, Rom, and countless others I'm sure I'm not even aware of. I'll do all I can to help of course, but why am I the one who has to take her down?"
Rarity let out a sigh
"Because the only way to defeat her is to use spell from Clover's brand of Life Magic. I poured over as many tomes as I could trying to find a way we could combat her. And there's a big problem: her soul is so bound to the moon she has become basically immortal."
"She can't be killed?"
"No. In the past, at least from what I can uncover, Clover used some sort of sealing spell. What the spell is, I have no idea."
"I guess I'll have to dive back into memories again."
"I'd take a break from that for a while. But my point still stands: you need to be combat ready. I'll be putting you through the trails soon."
"How soon?"
"In a week I hope."
Anon looked down
"What are our chances?"
"I can't say yet. It'll all depend on how you mature within this month. But I trust in you. And in Clover's decision. She chose to pass the crest onto you for a reason. I won't question her."
Anon gritted his teeth, feeling anger all of a sudden
"What if she was wrong?"
Rarity turned to face him and took a seat beside him
"Are you alright?"
"No, I am not alright! I'm supposed to save a world I only learned about weeks ago and I nearly killed a friend!"
Anon out his head in his hands
"This is all too much. I'm no Clover. I'm not a hero."
Rarity rubbed his shoulder sympathetically
"I know it seems hopeless right now. But you are going through a process many mages before you have undergone. And you'll come out the other side stronger for it."
"You don't know that."
"You have to have some faith. In yourself. And Sunset."
"Sunset?"
"She clearly likes you a lot. If for no one else, do it for her sake."
He lifted his head
"You're right."
"That's the spirit."
"Rarity can I ask a favor?"
"Of course."
"You're an accomplished mage right?"
"I'd consider myself that, yes."
"In two days time, I'm going to be retrieving the ancient blade Excalibur with the help of Lyra and a few of her friends. Any chance you could join us?"
"Excalibur? Well I suppose if anyone could break the seal, you could. I'd be happy too."
"Thanks, Rarity. And thanks for the talk."
"Of course. I won't lie to you, Anon. This month is going to be harder than anything you've ever faced. It's going to be painful as well. But I have confidence you can do it."