DEREK JAEGER

"Slow down, Hilde!" shrieked Lilian as she sped along the muddy trail in the woods. In the blazing sun, her Grey wool robe flailed behind her as the wind blew over her face. A large brown wolf raced beside her. It was twice the size of a regular Wolf and considerably stronger and quicker. It snorted as it approached her and came to an abrupt stop.

"Why did you stop?" she asked, coming to a halt as well. The wolf crept behind one of the large trees, and a young guy in his early twenties emerged seconds later. He had finely chiseled and muscular jaws that complemented his large frame.

"The Priests have arrived," he warned. They hurriedly took cover behind a large tree. As they started to hear the invaders' bickering, they became quiet as if they had never been there.

"I'm certain I sensed an evil aura here..."

"The dark bloods would never dare to utilize their witchcraft in the pope's domain... You obviously heard wrong."

"Don't tease him, Matthew. You know Samuel is never wrong," said the one who seemed to command the team. The squad consisted of twelve priests who distributed over the area with their weapons - silver swords that had been bathed in Holy water to dispel darkness upon contact.

Lilian shivered in her hiding place, Hilde comforted her, but it was a pointless attempt as the Priests gathered behind the tree they hid behind. It was just a matter of minutes until they were apprehended.

"Look beyond the tree."

A priest came slowly with his sword, moving slowly towards the tree, and suddenly sprang in front for a surprise move, but he scowled.

"There's nothing, Captain! Only a thorny tree," he said as he headed back to the squad.

"You see, Samuel guessed incorrectly," they mused as they returned.

Lilian waited until they were gone and the thorn barricade she had built with her witchcraft burnt away. She slumped to the ground, having depleted her energy while attempting to create a barrier. She still lacked the skill for managing her talents, and each attempt to do so sapped her energy. Hilde lifted her in his arms and sprang over the treetops, propelling her onward, towards the Academy, a bastion for the Dark Bloods.

.

The Academy, also known as The Crimson Lake, served as a safe haven for the Dark Bloods. Nilfgard kingdom, ruled by the Pope regarded people with abilities beyond human capabilities as Dark Bloods. It was said to be a devil's gift, and all unholy things in a Holy city were to be expelled. For thousands of years, the early popes saw it as their duty to rid the world of any traces of Dark Bloods, so they raised an army of holy priests who captured them and immersed them in holy water, watching them burn until nothing remained of them. The Dark Bloods needed a safe haven, so the Academy was built. It protected all Dark Blooded beings and was guarded by experienced ones with vast knowledge and abilities. Sorcery was the academy's core origin; it protected it from external forces and shifters, people who could transform into beast forms, guarded it. The Academy stood for a thousand years, unable to be attacked or breached by the ruling Pope's army.

Hilde and Lilian sneaked into the academy but there was the principal standing there as if expecting them to be there. They froze, they had been caught. 'What a bad day!' Lilian uttered and quickly looked away from the cold gaze of the principal. Lady Martha, the principal, stood there, her brown eyes lurking on the two kids and she tapped her feet on the ground while her arms were crossed.

"Lady Martha..." Hilde called, slowly standing in front of Lilian. They knew how scary she could be especially when pissed. They had broken the most important rule of the academy - Never to step out of the Bastion under no circumstance. Yet, they had breached the rule, under Lilian's suggestion for a quick stroll.

"Don't you dare..." She said sternly. Her words depicting warning.

"I..." Hilde wanted to say but Lilian quickly brushed him away and instantly, the ground gave way, collapsing. Hilde shuddered, narrowly escaping the danger. Lady Martha was dangerous, a very ruthless one, he knew.

"I'm sorry, Martha. I put him into this..." Lilian apologized, and she waved her hand. The collapsed floor closed back. She staggered forward but Hilde was swift to hold her. She had just depleted the little energy she had gathered. Lady Martha sighed and walked away. Lilian knew that when it involved her, Lady Martha would soften and she did. When she watched the principal no more, she freed herself from Hilde and let out a soft chuckle. Hilde chuckled along and broke into a big laugh. They had just escaped the vicious principal.

Lady Martha sighed as she listened to their laughter from the shadow and shrugged. She made her way to the council, where the rest of the council members were already gathered. The council consisted of twenty five members, but one was absent. Everyone seemed to be tensed like something evil had happened.

Martha mounted the stage and coughed, getting everyone's attention. One of the members, a man who seemed to be in his late sixties stood up. He seemed extremely pissed with how taut his veins stood. "Those kids must be severely punished!" He snapped, seething with rage.

"Calm down, Elder Damien!" Martha cut him off.

"Because of them, Lucy is gone!" One of the members spoke, agreeing with the the Elder. Martha looked at everyone's faces, they seemed to be of same opinion and were determined to do anything. 'Bunch of idiots...' She thought. They should have listened to her before they had landed in the state they were in. When Hilde and the girl sneaked out of the Fortress, the Council had gotten wind of it and had made the move to bring them back. Lucy had volunteered to go but she told them the kids would be safe but they wouldn't listen. Lucy left to get them back but never to return. She seemed to have come across the priests and judging from her absence, she probably lost against them and seeing how the army operated, they would have cleansed her. Cleansing means death. That was why the council was gathered. They had just lost one of the prominent witches and her disappearance would soon be noticed by the Academy, they needed to find someone to replace her.

" What do you propose we do? We can't just keep quiet over her disappearance! That girl especially, she must be severely punished!" Martha watched the old man speak and she could sense the hidden smirk in the corner of his lips.'Sly old man...' She scoffed inwardly. She had always known him to be power hungry and always looked for every chance to pick at her weakest point after having lost the position of the principal to her. She had tried countless times to discard him but her efforts were futile. He had much more influence and his authority was on par with that of the principal's position. He also had an advantage; The other council members were solidly behind him.

"The girl would be punished but not now, when she is at the strongest point of abilities, her powers would be stripped away..." She answered. She could see the satisfactory looks on their faces. That was the most gruesome and highest form of punishment given to the ones under the subjugation of the academy. Being at the strongest point and getting stripped was so severe that it could lead to death. The thought of it reminded her of Isabella, one of the most powerful sorcerers the academy had ever produced had gotten stripped of her witchcraft and the consequence of it led to her demise Twenty-two years ago. She told them what they wanted to hear but they were fools to think they would be able to touch Lilian.

"Lucy would be replaced and that's calls the end of the council for today..." She finished and ended the meeting. She sensed that if she continued, Elder Damien would figure out what she was up to.

She strolled into her spacious office, adorned with bookshelves nestled in the corners. The chandelier dangling from the ceiling emitted an occasional creak, filling the room with an eerie ambiance. Maria let out a sigh, settling into her worn-out chair behind the desk. The office desperately needed a revamp, yet the aged furniture somehow brought her solace. Extracting a blank piece of paper from a book atop the desk, she grasped her quill pen and commenced scribbling. "Dear Jaeger..."

Restless and agitated, Lilian tossed and turned on her bed, as though a persistent unease plagued her. She scanned her surroundings, locking eyes with her companions, who conveyed a message through their glances. The two girls she resided with engaged in a hushed conversation, punctuated by a brief, mocking laughter. Lilian paid no mind to their mockery but instead focused on their discussion. Straining her ears, aided by her heightened perception, she distinctly caught their words. "...Hilde, I've heard, has been apprehended by the school..." one of the girls said.

Why would the school authorities take Hilde? She was the one who had incited him to break the rules by going outside the walls! Panting heavily, she sprinted, pushing her legs to carry her as far as they could. She deserved to be punished instead of the innocent boy.

Under the veil of darkness, as the moon cast it's dim light upon the bastion, only the guard shifters patrolled the premises. It was during this opportune time that she deftly masked her own scent, seamlessly blending with the enveloping shadows.

With calculated steps, she penetrated the formidable building that held him captive. This foreboding structure was notorious among all, within the bastion, for it served as the grim repository of punishment, ensnaring traitors and rebellious individuals who had dared to defy the authority of their sanctuary. It's formidable interior boasted a network of corridors, each leading to chambers that had borne witness to the imprisonment of countless transgressors for an eternity. Undeterred by the dread that typically gripped the hearts of those who crossed its threshold, she navigated the curved passages, guided solely by her heightened olfactory senses. It was this extraordinary gift, bestowed upon her by her lineage, that set her apart from her fellow witches.

Yet, throughout her life, she had harbored a sense of resentment towards her uniqueness, longing to blend in with her peers. However, on that crucial night, as she embarked on her secret mission - meeting up with Hilde and making sure she eased the guilt she was feeling. Her resentment transformed into a surge of gratitude. She found solace in the very differences that separated her from the norm, for they granted her the tools necessary to surmount the obstacles that may lay before her

"Lilian... I'm here," his hushed voice reached her ears, eliciting a surge of urgency within her. Without hesitation, she hurried towards him, finding him confined behind the grim prison bars. The design of the cell lacked any semblance of beauty, a deliberate enchantment that deterred Hilde from drawing near.

"I'm sorry," she murmured, her voice heavy with dejection, as she knelt before the imposing bars. Her once-immaculate white gown cascaded onto the ground, forgotten in her anguish. "It should be me trapped here, not you." Her fingers instinctively grasped the iron bars, and an unsettling surge of dark energy pulsed through her palms. She detected the presence of wolfsbane, the very essence keeping Hilde at bay, preventing him from getting closer to her.

"Don't be consumed by guilt. Remember, I chose to go with you," he reassured her, offering a comforting smile.

"But still, I forced you..." she began, her voice trailing off in remorse.

"Shhhhhhh," he interrupted, silencing her words. "I am strong, and nothing can harm me." His eyes sparkled with determination, momentarily captivating her in their mesmerizing gaze. He possessed a unique allure that set him apart from his peers, his unconventional handsomeness radiating an undeniable magnetism. His enigmatic brown eyes contrasted strikingly against his fair complexion.

The echoing footsteps of patrolling guards abruptly shattered their tender moment, jolting them back to reality. Lilian swiftly rose to her feet, a sense of purpose igniting within her. "I'm sorry, but I have to go. I will speak to Principal Martha," she assured decisively. In an instant, she vanished from his sight.