The Pale Moonlight

In the dimly lit corridors where myriad lights conquer the walls and floor of the hall, reflecting upon glass panes and mirrors that were placed along the way. The iridescence of the beams of light circulates with its presence.

Walking alone in the pale light corridors was hurried steps that were filled with trepidation, as the steps get closer and heavier with every second as it nears their destination. The thud stops near the door as the small square mirror that was placed on the table reflected a white silvery glow as the figure passed by.

Looking through the mirror, the eyes of the radiant sun can be seen from the reflection dazzling upon the glass. The eyes carried sadness as they wandered around the parts of the mirror, seemingly finding their way to another self deep inside the soul.

'They say that the eyes are the windows to the soul. I still don't get how it works but I haven't seen anyone who has told me about my eyes.'

Alicia thought as she stared at her own eyes before facing the wooden door in front of her. Taking a deep breath she composed herself, preparing to speak to the man of the house, her uncle, who called for her attention. She didn't know what it was about, but she knew that a call from this hour would mean a bad omen.

After she composed herself she gently knocked on the door and paused before saying that it was her at the door.

"Uncle, It's me. I came after you called me…"

"Come in, Alicia"

"Please excuse me," She gently opened the door as it creaked with mystery and surprise, the door elaborate but intricately made was opening to a new room full of uncertainty.

The room was dazzling with complex pieces of furniture that made it unique, with its stunning and well-maintained state it sparkled even in the night. The Bookshelves that were full of clean old books that showed history and knowledge glimmered with curiosity waiting for someone to use them. There were at least 5 bookshelves full of books of varying books of different genres the walls were uniformly placed and looked clean to the eyes, and the furniture was properly placed and organized.

The light shimmered with the magic circuit that flowed through the room, illuminating everything seemingly making everything cohesive in its aesthetic with its comforting light. In the middle was a large table full of documents, a quill pen, and a stamp. There is a lamp of delicately made steel with a design meticulously made for the rich and deserving placed at the edge of the table shining on the desk to further illuminate everything.

Alicia looked around mesmerized by the thought placed on building this room with delicacy and taste, it was something that she didn't expect her uncle to have. Considering that he is usually ruthless and would be sometimes out of place. It was an unconventional skill for him, although Alicia realized that she might be just placing boys in a general thought, it was quite rare to see a man be as organized as clean the same or much more as a noble girl.

She was always close to her uncle but never was directly invited to his Study. She would occasionally hold conversations with her uncle in the garden or in the living room where they would have privacy at the same time the view of everything with peace and quiet. This time it was different, it was much more private, and a lot more secrets to hide.

"I heard you were walking with a boy around the festival downtown near the Marketplace. Was it fun?" Standing by the window Francis greeted Alicia with a neutral but calm expression.

"Oh, well…yeah, I guess. For the first half of it, it was, and for the most part, it was interesting and…intriguing." Alicia's eyes wandered around being a bit jittery, feeling nervous about the sudden question.

'Calm down, Aya, you expected this already, it's not like you did something out of line, and besides he's gone and somewhere around the village by now,'

"I also heard that you invited him to become your second-in-command, care to explain? Aya?"

Francis sized her up and asked a question while keeping a straight face while grabbing a chair and sat down in front of the desk full of documents and crossed his arms, waiting for her answer. She was quite intimidated by her uncle, although she knows she didn't mean any harm. It was because he cared for her, too much in fact that she sometimes gets restricted from talking to the opposite gender.

"I told you, don't call me that when we aren't in the estate, Uncle. It's weird and somebody else might find out about it"

"It's a pretty nickname, Miss Alicia, it was first given by your father no? If I remember correctly, it was when the time wasn't…so stressful"

Francis' face and tone became a bit dark after finishing his sentence, Alicia noticed it too and remembered that time and it quickly became nostalgia, but Francis quickly came about and continued to sing the conversation in a jolly mood.

"Anyways, that was all in the past. Both of you are making huge progress and tell me about your second-in-command, already."

"There's really nothing about him, jeez don't worry about it"

"I wouldn't worry if you didn't ask him to be your second-in-command"

"How'd you even know about that?"

"How would I not know when somebody screamed it while giving a heartfelt salute introducing her status? Come on Alicia, what's stopping you from telling me"

"Can we just please proceed with the binding ritual right now? Like fast?" Alicia's voice squeaked a bit higher trying to convince his uncle to proceed with their monthly binding ritual. But the only answer she received was the disagreement of her uncle with a shake of a head.

"Ughhh, fine. So there's this guy called Arthas, he said he was a wanderer that stumbled upon the village that was attacked by a monster. The village led by Moltar was almost destroyed and somehow gave this guy coins and his 'cloak'. So I was thinking that maybe he should be a good pick…probably? So yeah that's it, happy?"

Alicia explained the situation in a kind of a simple fashion that made it confusing and complicated, her tones and voice intonations changed throughout her explanation but overall she successfully conveyed it the way she wanted. Confusing and simple.

She didn't want to say anything else and would usually speak in a frantic way to hide things from to whom she communicates, she doesn't notice this but Francis does after being with her for so long, but he chose to ignore it.

He waited in silence as he began to think about the possibilities of what happened while they were busy with the fight.

"To be able to actually defeat Moltar's Village defenses…A City Catastrophe class?"

"Yes…that's my speculation, and to think he defeated it."

"Is there anything else? What magic does this boy possess? What's the situation of the village right now?"

"Yes, I wasn't able to ask what magic Arthas uses, but to be honest, I'm not sure either. I can barely sense any mana coming from him. For the village he said about it almost being destroyed, which for me is kind of surprising considering the fighting power that they possess, it was unbelievable."

"Difficult to believe it might be, we might as we'll take this to mind and think what it could imply. Let's talk about it in the morning, for now, we continue with the usual binding spell."

Francis immediately stood up not wanting to waste any more time and quickly went to one of the bookshelves and went through books and drawers finding something, his facial expression was dynamically changing throughout his treasure hunt between tight spaces.

"Where is it, I was sure I placed it somewhere. It's gotta be here I'm sure of it."

"What are you finding Uncle?"

"The moonstone, it's here somewhere I don't know where it is, I know I placed it somewhere"

"Seriously Uncle, you should start organizing your things, though the room is very clean, you should at least organize your things so that they won't get lost"

"You know Alicia, men would know where their things would be. Whether it would be placed at the far ends of the earth, or the darkest places of the land, as long no one would touch them, move them, or maybe clean them. We would know where it would be"

"So are you saying that men are dirty creatures that would just place their belongings everywhere and know where they are?"

"Not dirty, Efficient"

"How so?"

"Because unlike some creatures we can adapt to any situation and place them anywhere in the comfortable environment and be efficient in placing them convenient to get when needed"

"Yeah I don't get that concept, seriously how can you men be so simple?"

"How can you ladies be complicated when everything is just simple?"

"I don't know beats me, the world is just that way. We're getting sidetracked here, did you find it?"

Francis held up his right hand and showed Alicia a white stone. Its color was of pure hue, and a touch of darkness can be seen embroidered onto its surface as small thin black lines run along its being.

Looking closely it was a gem of wonders, intricately and meticulously made, full of mysteries and charming with the unknown.

"Yes, I did. I didn't expect it to be so buried deep. Huh, I swear I placed it somewhere easy to reach"

"Don't you think that you have gone senile? You've probably forgotten who I am in the next few years"

"Just because I forgot this one time doesn't mean I will continue to forget"

Francis responded to Alicia's light humor and then quickly closed his eyes. Taking a deep breath, he extended his right arm and clenched his palm where the stone was grasped hard and covered with his bulky hand.

As soon as he clenched his hand a bright blueish light began to emit from the moonstone inside his hand. The light desperately wanted to escape as it continued to further brighten the room soon it reach a calm, tranquil glow that seemed to carry strength and the moon's glow.

"Let's start Alicia Blanche, the sacred ritual that shall be conducted tonight shall serve the bearing of the Moon's survival. The fabled Mooneater sealed in the flesh of man. Prepare!"