#7 PROGRAM

A lone figure was seen sitting on throne, in his hand a gem. No one else being present, only silence filled the great hall... King Draymond had ended his communique with Investigator Dorset. The conversation troubled him to no end.

Dorset informed him that the so called Hero, emitted no mana fluctuations when he projected the modified spell during his questioning.

'Too troubling, records show that only the countryside Hero Ash Devere can mimic and amplify spell models- the worse part is, we can't know for sure if it is Ash, he displayed no mana whatsoever to mimic the spell. Then what the hell did he just do.. How is it even possible to do that? Maybe he used a mana stone and detonated it for the spell...but, he was searched. Only broken armor and a skull were in his possession.'

King Draymond sat on his throne. The possibilities seemed endless, he didn't want to go near the stranger right now. Instead he rose from his throne and headed to the corner of the Great hall; there behind the tapestry, a marked stone, bearing the royal emblem. There Draymond placed his hand on it- releasing mana to activate the array hidden in the emblem.

The brick was then pushed in, the surrounding area started folding it from the emblem, revealing a passage way. Draymond used his mana sense to make sure no one was present before he entered the tunnel. The tunnel led him to a more private room, only known to very few people, here Draymond and other would conduct meetings of the highest importance.

Currently the King was contacting the Federation of Sanct, a government in which sovereign power is formally divided between a central authority and a number of constituent regions so that each region retains some degree of control over its internal affairs; the man in charge had gathered support from most Dukes and their regions, collectively overthrowing the Royal family of Sanct. Draymond feared this man, for what he could do with his words and his mind if he chose to, allowing him into the country could potentially be the most troublesome situation if he allowed it to happen.

The communication array lit up- the connection having gone through, a ray of light appeared from the array circle, slowly taking the shape of a man. Draymond moved to sit behind a long oval table, usually held for private meetings, today it'd be just him and the Holder of the Sanct.

As Draymond pulled up a seat and settled himself in, he could see the Holder of the Sanct, the man that led the revolution- Dark brown eyes scanned the room, his clean face and sharp nose projecting a high sense of intelligence and intuition.

"Your Highness Draymond, what do I owe the pleasure for this surprising meeting?"

Draymond rolled his eyes. "Knock it off will you Sven, no need for the ass kissing- I need one of your men to come to the kingdom to check something for me."

Sven's eyes narrowed, concerned by this matter, he kept silent for Draymond to continue.

"So, as you know- the first day of Frost was upon us. I sent my children out to enjoy the peace and quiet by letting them go to the Silent sea. As you know, not many can venture out to the Silent Sea, but with some protective arrays and charms, a vacation to the sea is practically harmless."

"Well thank you letting me know of you vacation plans Draymond, I might consider going myself the next time I have a break." Sven smiled lightly.

Draymond rolled his eyes, "A stranger appeared to the children only to be incapacitated by the guardian assigned to them...before he was, he mentioned how he had traveled through the sea."

Sven frowned, "okay, it is unusual. Not many can travel or would travel the sea if given the choice, but I hardly think that's a issue for concern."

"He managed to subdue Helena, she was on protection detail. Not only that, he was incapacitated because he willingly let his guard down. No mana, no nothing. When brought here for questioning, he called himself Ash. Mimicking my Echo model."

Silence ensued, both parties looking at one another. A faint light was lit in Sven's eyes. Draymond, laced his fingers together, crossing his legs, he continued.

"The problem being, when he mimicked my model. He didn't use mana. The records show he was never able to do that before. The requirements for a Hero status must be that one is attuned with mana and all its forms. But when he used my model, he emitted no forms. None. Not only that, he carried nothing on him to support the mana needed for the spell. When he was captured, he only had his armor and a human skull..."

"Human skull?"

"Yes."

"Did you detect anything from it?"

"Traces amounts of an energy, nothing we can determine just yet.."

"Send me the data. As quickly as you can."

Draymond confused by the sudden sharp tone in Sven's voice, of course he didn't let it be shown on his face. He took out his gem and placed it on the table. A light blue hue could be seen from the gem and a tendril of energy shooting out from it towards the array currently displaying the leader of the Federation.

Sven pulled out his own gem, staring at it intensely. The gem in his hand displayed data in the form of an astral screen. After a few silent minutes, Sven looked up.

"We'll send someone over immediately, expect them within a week or so." Sven seemed visibly shaken.

"Sven, what's the urgency?" Draymond, concerned about the sudden shift in pace. Sven had spent years trying to take down the throne, he was a cold calculating man, it shouldn't take the the appearance of a stranger to change his mood.

"Draymond, all I can say is that, the man you're holding might actually be the Countryside Hero. Just make sure yo keep the skull safe and contained."

Draymond took a sharp breath, the idea that a Hero has been found after nearly two years was unbelievable. The Hero program had allowed countries to scour for youths with potential. Only those who had affinities for all elemental mana could be accepted into the program. High officials were allowed to know how many were recruited, but from all the countries and regions searched, only a handful had the potential needed to enter the program. These youths had knowledge on spell models of all elemental types, weapon masters ready to be hardened by battle.

They were sent out of the most harrowing missions with only the smallest chances of success. Very few had returned. Of course, official records would imply they were missing in action rather than being killed in action.

Those who returned had developed tremendously, instincts sharpened and some with extraordinary sense of mana. The Countryside Hero being one of the few, he had officially been declared Missing in Action. The return of an Hero would be a massive boost of morale for the Federation, but what Draymond was more interested in was Sven's mention of the skull...

'What could it possibly be...'