28 The Conclave

The doors of the Eternal Chamber close behind Lord Magistrate Juron as he takes his seat at the council table. Greeting the assembled Conclave, he spoke with gravity in his voice.

"I am sure you are all aware why I have gathered you here at such an hour. As such, I will get straight to the point. Dark times may be upon us again. I have been sensing disturbances in the magic leylines recently, and it troubles me deeply. If we do not find out what this is immediately, we could be facing dire consequences."

"Lord Magistrate.", a Conclave member raised his hand in question. Juron recognized him as High Magistrate Duke Elethorne, reddish-brown hair, and a small tuft of beard on his chiseled chin.

"Yes, friend Duke. You may speak."

"Lord Magistrate, we have been sensing a lot of disturbances in the leylines ever since the Surge. What makes these ones different?"

Juron was about to answer the question when another Conclave member spoke up. She had a strong voice despite her age, and her gray hair, instead of making her look old, was an indication of her unmatched knowledge of the magic realm.

"These could be signs of the famous prediction of the 'Rapture Event'. But then again, all other anomalies in the leylines were considered as such, and have yet to be proven correct. We should let the Lord Magistrate elaborate more on these... 'disturbances'."

Juron chuckled heartily and replied,

"Tactful as ever, High Magistrate Elaina. Although, you're right. I have considered the 'Rapture Event' for these disturbances. To start with, if you study them closely, they were stronger that any of the past anomalies, and they were very much different. Compared to those in the past where it occurs 'within' the leylines, these recent ones appear as if from the 'outside'."

High Magistrate Duke once again was quick to give speak out his thoughts.

"But that would mean someone has been using magic for 'creation'. Of course, the transmutation of inanimate objects is allowed within the rules but only to a certain degree, and it wouldn't cause such an effect to the leylines. Whereas, when we talk about doing it to the living, then it's an entirely different story. We all know that the Arcane Watch has been strict on these kinds of magic because of its irreversible and dangerous results."

The Conclave nodded in grim agreement. They had been very careful in regulating the use of magic. The world was already recovering from the devastation brought by the Surge. If something catastrophic such as the 'Rapture Event' would happen, it could be the end of all humanity.

"We will have to look on this matter further.", Lord Magistrate announced. "I need the Conclave here in the Arc Tower, to help me in meditation and to find the source of these anomalies. To add to that, I also suggest sending out an envoy to investigate the areas of high magic activities and perhaps find us clues to what is happening."

The Conclave member in charge of Watch personnel, High Magistrate Kiri, cleared her throat,

"About that, Lord Magistrate. This mission can be a very dangerous one and we cannot involve the acolytes nor the apprentices. Most of our arcanists and magi are already occupied with researches and investigations. I'm afraid I can only spare one person for the mission. "

"That will have to do for now.", Lord Magistrate Juron acknowledged. "Thank you, High Magistrate Kiri. If there aren't any more questions, the meeting is adjourned."

The Conclave nodded in chorus and went on to resume their rest. As they exited the Chamber, Lord Magistrate called out,

"High Magistrate Thoran, do you have a moment?"

The gruff looking Conclave member grunted in affirmation. After the Eternal Chamber was cleared, Lord Magistrate Juron motioned for High Magistrate Thoran to join him as they walk down the halls.

"We've known each other a long time, Thoran. We were on the same research team investigating the cube before the Surge."

"Hmm. I've never known you to be fond of lame pleasantries, Lord Magistrate."

Juron looked at this mountain of a man, slapped those broad shoulders, and laughed cheerfully.

"Oh, come on. Is it so wrong to greet an old friend?"

Thoran decided to return back the slap, almost toppling the Lord Magistrate. He then roared back in laughter as his companion collected himself.

"Hah, is that good enough greeting for you now, Juron?"

After the both of them have settled, the serious atmosphere returned.

"Enough of that now. I know you called me here for a reason. What's the matter?"

"You've been the head of the Science and Inventions Department ever since the Surge, Thoran. I know you're not as excited of magic as the rest of us are, but you have done a lot of breakthroughs yourself. I need your help. Should the 'Rapture Event' be true, we need a backup plan."

High Magistrate Thoran felt the gravity of those words. The famous 'Rapture Event' was brought up 10 years ago. Some of the people who didn't die but were hit by the waves of the Surge suffered from a strange mental condition. They said they were hearing strange voices at night, some of them scribbling unknown symbols onto anything they can get their hands into, sometimes even on their own skin. A young scientist who studied these people had a strange conclusion. As he translated the crazed ramblings, the words such as "World End" and "Force" came up. Fitting these puzzle pieces together, the scientist added them up to what is known today as the prediction of the 'Rapture Event'. But just after he declared this to the world, he vanished without a trace.

"I will look into it, Lord Magistrate."