Chapter 17 - A Night in Jail

There were plenty of things to think about while you were put in the cells of any Magic Council containment. Locki found that he could ponder many important topics without distractions like work and Kagura's need for him to go outside. He could finally think about the direction he wanted Scarlet Hand to go in like what Berrel asked earlier, or the fact that he ignored his specialties and chose to stagnate when he realized he couldn't do much with his magic.

Most importantly, he could finally think up another name for Haunter. Since Wisp didn't really work now… he really hoped this didn't become a thing.

"Haunt!" said pokemon's fanged mouth and large, white eyes popped out from the darkest corner of the room. Haunter had seemed to gain the ability to travel between shadows after his little lightshow transformation, but Locki now had to deal with the headache that was giving it a name.

"Do you really not like Wisp? I thought it was good." Locki argued back.

"...Haunt."

Locki sighed, annoyed. "Okay, I still can't communicate with you like this."

A flash of inspiration came over the teenager as he pulled up Haunter's guild member information.

[Haunter (Wisp (Name tentative))]

The gas Pokémon. A poison/ghost-type Pokémon that enjoys adventure, playing pranks and misfortune. Its tongue is said to steal the life of others. Currently, it wishes for a better name.

Best Abilities: [Smog], [Lick]

Mood: [Happy]

Bond: 35%

"Aha!" Locki nodded, praising his own genius. Waving his hand at the shadow, he said, "Okay, I'll just throw more names till you like them."

"..." Locki narrowed his eyes as Haunter's large eyes looked away from him.

"Shade?" Locki asked, looking over at the screen in his vision. He tried to refresh it, but the result did not change. "No? How about Purple?"

"Haunter!" the Pokemon's smiling mouth immediately turned into a frown. Locki moved on, unperturbed by its change in emotions. He didn't even need to look at the screen for this one.

Locki continued to say more and more names at his sentient gas cloud. At one point he no longer needed to look at the information because he recognized the dismissal of his companion. Instead, he just grew increasingly annoyed at it as it turned down every name he came up with.

Finally, Locki stopped, fed up.

"How the hell did you even change into Haunter in the first place? Wasn't it the name?"

"Haunt…" a three fingered hand appeared out from Locki's shadow, knocking against his chest lightly. The brief contact made the guild master feel as if he dipped into an ice bath, chilling him to the bone. Haunter narrowed its eyes at him, and for a moment, Locki felt he knew that gaze. He had always looked at Kagura when he knew she was being hunted by the Tower of Heaven.

It was just like how Kagura didn't want to drag him into her matters to protect him. He sometimes forgot that others might want to do the same when he tried to do everything himself.

"You wanted to support me, huh…" Locki whispered silently. He sighed deeply.

A brief smile eclipsed his frown before he smothered it. "...how cheesy. Joker?"

"Haunt!" Haunter immediately denied his name. Locki shook his head with a wry smile, leaning back in his tiny cell as he continued to idly call out names.

The cells of the Magic Council in Evermont were not the largest or best. However, that was only relative to the mage that they housed. Locki, considering his talent and strength, wasn't really regarded as a threat and it showed.

They had thrown him in one of the smallest cells they had. It was a solid stone room that barely allowed him to pace around, and he was sure he only had enough space to lay down if he curled up into a ball. The only opening had crisscrossed metal bars stuck into the walls, floor and ceiling almost as if the stone had grown around them. Outside the cell, a flickering torch shone as the only source of light that he could find.

Locki knew why they had given him this cell. It was supposed to alienate captives. Soften them up for interrogation. He was supposed to go crazy from the silence and oppressive darkness with the only sound being a torch to occupy this empty place.

Instead, Locki found that his only skill [Carpentry] told him about the wooden structural supports hidden within the walls made of magic. It was an odd thing that slowly let him realize that he had ignored this skill for so long. For something that he considered useless once, it let him know quite a bit about the ways to fix the structural weaknesses of this cell.

Or take advantage of them.

It was a small thing that stuck out at the back of his mind while he continued his one-sided conversation with Haunter. Like when he neglected his affinity for support magics, considering himself weak without even trying. Sure, he wasn't as talented as monsters like Kagura, but to just give up seemed a little odd.

Locki paused as the thought continued in his head, frowning. When exactly did he give up? Was it really because of his grandfather and father's situations? Even if it was, that would only make him less inclined to be a guild master instead of giving up as a mage in general.

"Haunt?" Haunter's face disappeared from the wall and appeared on the floor.

Locki ignored its antics as he was already used to the Pokemon that tried to scare him at every given opportunity. A small memory appeared at the back of his head. A strong, hooded man's figure appeared in his head. Someone he had known had basically told him [he would not get stronger], and then left him to be comforted by Dralt, picking up the man's drinking habit.

But, was it really that? Locki knew himself. He was easily swayed, easily gave up, and heavily discouraged by his relatives' endings. However, he was the only one who could tell himself what to do, so even if he respected someone, he wouldn't be so affected by someone else. He certainly was someone who would give up if he knew he couldn't do something, but to refuse and not use his own strengths was something that seemed a little weird.

Then again, he was an ungrateful bastard sometimes, but–

Locki hurriedly dodged a tongue that threatened him as Haunter realized he was ignoring it.

"Hey! Don't do that! You know your tongue is dangerous now." Locki glared at Haunter who tried to lick him again.

"Haunt!"

"Don't start with me. I have no guarantee that you might kill me like that."

"I'd be grateful if you did die here, brat."

Locki stilled as he watched Lon stalk into the corridor where he was held. The old woman's face appeared around the corner, her hard eyes glaring at him under the torchlight. She hadn't said anything after her first comment, and Haunter had chosen to disappear as soon as she appeared. Yet, Locki was a little unnerved by how the woman just continued to stare at him with silent severity.

He had once been a bit annoyed whenever he saw her, but after she taught him pretty much all the grunt work he had to do, Locki felt a little put off by the intense stare. Like she was more disappointed than anything.

"Do you have any idea what you have done?"

Locki curled his lips into a frown, staring back at her. As much as he wanted to flinch at the words, Locki knew just what was the reason he did everything; he certainly wasn't going to regret doing something with the intention to protect his guild members. "I'm sure you know what happened. You have already interrogated the guy I captured, right?"

Lon's eyes narrowed in the dim lighting. "You certainly are playing a dangerous game, Locki. Even your grandfather knew not to mess with cults. Especially one that worships Zeref."

"So what? I should give up?"

Lon stared at him for an uncomfortably long time. "...did you know this when you picked up Kagura? Do you not know how complicated your situation is right now?"

"Its… not that complicated." Locki offered awkwardly.

"Not that complicated?" Lon paused and shook her head. "Its never a simple thing even with only the cults. But, for you, a dumb brat, it is not just a complicated situation."

Locki waved his hand. "Well, I mean I have a plan for the guilds here, but really, its not that complicated to think about."

"The fact that you really think that proves you are a dumbass." Lon sighed as she saw the confusion present on Locki's face. After a second, she waved her hand as a wooden chair slowly appeared from thin air. Sitting down with a slow grunt, she leveled him a glare before she continued. "Do you really think you're in that cell because you need a timeout? You executed mages in the street, that attack dog you hired also has no record of ever appearing before your little declaration of war, and now I just had to interrogate a criminal who you crippled in order for you to not go to jail permanently. Does that seem simple to you?"

"I– sure, that's a problem, but they wouldn't leave me alone if I didn't do something to show–"

"You think I don't know that?" Lon cut him off quickly. "I knew you would declare your stance against the magic guilds, and your choice was not bad, but this is no longer just gangs and dumbasses you are declaring war against. Its a Zeref Cult as well."

Locki frowned, taking in her words slowly. He knew he had missed something at how hysterical she got. Carefully, he asked her, "Shouldn't the Council take over that issue? They are against the cults after all."

"You need to start looking more into Fiore politics. If you were anywhere other than here, then maybe they would. However, you are now also being watched for spitting in the face of their rules. They are electing to put you on a watchlist for, and I quote 'housing a dangerous mage who's agenda has already caused the deaths of several others'. Basically, since you're the only one who they can pressure, they are going to do so."

"But…" Locki slowly realized his naivety. He had assumed that, like all institutions of the Magic Council, they would prioritize the destruction of dangerous cults. However, Fiore had a problem with freedom of thought.

Well, to call it a problem would be demonizing the issue. They allowed their mages and guilds to express themselves in whatever ways they wished to attract more mages. This normally wouldn't be too much of an issue, but some guilds can actively commit crimes while under the guise of normal mages. It was why the problem of Evermont hadn't gotten better despite so many people with knowledge of what went on behind the scenes.

Locki bit back a curse as he took in his mentor's words. "So, this is just politics now, huh."

"Exactly," Lon said with a shake of her head, clearly annoyed as well. "Fiore is primarily controlled by the notions of the king and his confidants, and any mention of Zeref Cults is not welcome, so you're taking the brunt of their heat. Sometimes its not about if you're in the right or wrong, its about who they can blame easiest."

"Now, that's some bullshit." Locki frowned, disliking politics more and more. He already had enough on his plate than to cater to the whims of idiots who felt like they could meddle in his problems. Sighing, the blonde teen looked back to the old woman in front of him. "Well, what are they doing anyways? You're not here to arrest me, right?"

Lon snorted. "I wish, brat. No, no you're going free soon. The Fiore branch just wants to make a punching bag to show how 'competent' they are. Good news, you are free to screw around more in Evermont as they don't want to continue to pressure you so much that you'll leave Fiore. The bad news is that you won't be eligible to take on any S-rank quests through Fiore's networks."

Locki stood up quickly. A frown marred his face. He knew that Lon had no say in the matter, so he chose to glare at the ground. "Are they mad? How am I going to upgrade my authority otherwise?"

S-rank missions. They were what elevated Magic Guilds beyond mere gatherings of rabble and simple gangs. There were way too many missions below S-rank that were completed every day, so the simple fact of the matter was that no one important really paid attention to your guild until you started racking in S-rank mission completions.

In addition, once a guild proved that they had S-rank capacity, they could start to interfere with decisions of the Magic Council. Like requesting certain things to pass through upper management, or to ignore the various crimes happening in your city. Of course, this only was within their specific area, but governmental bodies such as Fiore would start to be more cautious when concerning someone's Magic Guild when they had S-rank capabilities. After all, completing an S-rank mission meant that you were at least S-rank yourself.

And S-rank mages were, on average, worth more than cities.

Quickly, Locki realized he might have made a mistake as S-rank was the bare minimum his plans needed if he wanted to fight the four Magic Guilds of Evermont. An unreasonable heat grew in his stomach as he thought of Fiore's actions. He could understand it, but that didn't mean he liked it.

Almost as soon as he went over the information in his head, Locki cooled the anger in his chest. He heaved a heavy breath before he leveled Lon a stare. Oddly, she just studied his face carefully.

"What?" he asked.

Lon shook her head, schooling her features so he wouldn't figure anything from them. "Nothing. You certainly calmed down quick. Do you have a plan now?"

"A couple." Locki hummed, choosing not to answer. "Do you know the reactions of the other Magic Guilds?"

"And why would you think I know that, brat? Why don't you tell me what you think they're going to do. I am sure an oh so smart mage such as you can figure out the basics."

Locki huffed, clearly expecting the answer. "Well, on the assumption that they know everything we do… Rose Tyrants are probably going frantic trying to cover their bases. If there's any substantial evidence that they're connected to the Tigertooth, then they could lose their Magic Guild position and fall directly to a Dark Guild for even being associated with a cult. Jade Serpents and Steel Hawks are the closest in relationship, so they will probably follow whichever of the two acts first."

Locki crossed his arms and hunched over, thinking hard on the last guild. They were the ones he had thought were the most suspicious since they still had the most ties to Bosco, but the more he thought of them he decided against it. They would not be the first people to start anything, especially when their backer is something stronger than a simple small Cultist group.

"The False Giants guild have sent invitations to Evermont's Magic Guilds in the hopes to have a Magic Item Exchange." Lon helpfully added, gathering Locki's attention.

"Yeah, that makes sense." Locki nodded, thanking his mentor quietly for the information. As the leading spies for Bosco in Evermont, the False Giants guild will want to manage the issue carefully. Their actions to arrange a meeting is just to gauge everyone's positions before they figure out how to react.

Locki felt an idea come around, his features lighting up in the dark. "When is this exchange?"

"Next week, but…" Lon frowned at him, glaring with a cutting gaze. "You intend to buy time? Using your small stunt to prove that the Magic Council will stand behind your actions so long as you call it a manhunt against the Zeref Cults? A threat to bring down everyone simply by accusing them."

Locki tried not to flinch. "... okay how the hell did you guess that immediately? Like it's been only a couple seconds, woman."

"It is easy to see when you get to my age." she laughed dryly. "However, your plan only works because you've already been targeted by the cults already, and when it does, the Zeref Cults will start coming out of the woodwork once they realize you're throwing their name around."

"Then, I am counting on you for the Council's side of things. I am acting as high quality bait here."

"Just don't get the girl killed or worse."

Locki met her gaze easily, not flinching away. "That's a given. [I'll die before her]. And you know me. I take care of myself."

Lon paused, closing her eyes carefully. "Try not to let it come to that point… How much time are you trying to steal with this suicide maneuver of yours anyways?"

"I have no idea. Two years, at least. Enough to train and find an S-rank mission without Fiore's help." Locki shrugged, unsure. S-rank missions were not the easiest things to chance upon. "I was hoping to use a different strategy to show that I wasn't worth messing with. Things got out of hand."

"'Out of hand' is a very poor way to put it." Lon said in mild amusement. "Though, if its an S-rank mission, you already have one lined up, requesting you by name."

"What?" Locki frowned, trying to remember who exactly he knew that would give him such an opportunity. S-ranks were things that could change the situations of Magic Guilds, and more talented guilds had gone under just by the fact that they were not able to get any for so long. It was why Fairy Tail unknowingly bullied any guild that tried to grow within Magnolia. "Could it be Phe?"

Lon raised an eyebrow. "Who's Phe?"

Locki coughed, feeling a dusting of embarrassment on his cheeks at being so blindsided. "Anyways, who is it? I doubt I would know anyone important enough to warrant an S-rank mission."

Luckily, Lon chose to drop the topic as well, dropping another bombshell on his calm. "Your brother."

Locki tried not to choke on his spit.

"Older brother to be specific; he's one of the five princes of Desierto."

"Oh.. wait, what?"

Lon chuckled happily, laughing harder as Locki glared at her.

"Very funny. Such a good joke. Now, who is it?"

Lon smirked, causing Locki to feel like a stone had sunk into his stomach. "I didn't lie. I was also confused when I received the request until he mentioned a letter… you didn't read your father's letter, did you?"

Locki knocked the back of his head against the cell wall. He had stored the letter from his late father away, refusing to look at it. Turns out that he would now have to read it for reasons that he didn't even want to know.

"... he was a right bastard, wasn't he?" Locki asked absently, eyes tracing the ceiling's cracks.

"I heard your father was promiscuous, but I thought you were the only result of it." Lon said carefully. Locki could tell she was paying attention to his reaction, gauging how much this information affected him. He appreciated the fact that she tried to make it a joke as if it could lessen the blow.

Still, his appreciation did not extend to his father. Locki gave a derisive snort. "I was just the only result that you could see. I heard my mother just dropped me off, wanting nothing to do with me. He was just too caught up in his adventures to care for his children, I guess."

Lon sighed, realizing the direction of the conversation. She slowly rose out of her chair, waving her hand as it disappeared in a shower of light and sparks. "I will come and release you tomorrow morning. The official stance of the Magic Council will also be released then; use that information how you will."

Locki found his tongue heavy as he watched her leave. He felt like he wanted to say something, but in the end, he kept his lips shut. Gradually, he found himself back on the ground, staring off into the darkness of his cell.

A chill ran up his spine as a pair of large eyes appeared from his shadow. Haunter rose up from the surface as if it was pulling itself out of a pool of water. One of its three fingered hands appeared between his eyes and playfully knocked against his forehead, painfully bouncing his head on the wall.

"Ow! What the fu–" Locki cursed, turning angrily as he saw Haunter. He tried to glare at the Pokemon, but paused as he found himself on the receiving end of Haunter's own frown.

His retort died on his lips as he saw one of the only times the Pokemon wasn't laughing or smiling. It was jarring. He hadn't thought that Hunter could be seen without a smile. Though, it did stop the useless thoughts that went through his head.

Locki sighed, dodging a tongue that tried to lick him from the shadows. He leveled an exhausted smile at the purple ghost. "I guess I needed that. Thanks… ghostie?"

"Haunt!" A clear denial returned.

Locki felt a small laugh come to him as he looked over the Pokemon. He realized very quickly that, like with his own [Carpentry] skill, he had no knowledge about Hunter. All he learned from Kagura was that he was a fair young ghost Pokemon.

Idly, he touched his pocket. A familiar tier 1 Blue Prism appeared as he searched around, and he sighed as he held it aloft between his thumb and pointer finger. Locki had brought it along just in case he needed it; he would have hoped that he got lucky on the randomness of his ability when pushed to the limit, but Locki knew that he shouldn't trust such a random option. It was more as a peace of mind than a last option.

Locki pursed his lips as he shifted his attention between the Prism and Haunter. The only time that he could slightly control the randomness of his [Dimensional Guild System] was when he specified one of his guild members as a "dimensional node." The only reason why he had been saving up his Prisms was to hope that the tier 3 Prism would offer life changing options.

However, he now realized that he might have been a little selfish in the grand scheme of things. His fight with the other support magic mage had let him see that his strengths did not lie in being overtly strong, nor did his system allow himself to become obscenely stronger.

Instead, it gave him avenues to pursue. He should have seen it when he first knew what the system was called. It gave him powers that he could not use, items that he had no training in, and members that needed to first accept him as their guildmaster. The [Dimensional Guild System] was centered around his guild; centered around a guild that grew stronger with him, and not just him who carried everything.

Locki sighed as he looked back at his actions.

"When did I change so much?" Locki whispered to himself as he clutched the Blue Prism in his hands.

[Do you want to use "Tier 1 Blue Prism" to summon a random item?]

[Targeting system locating nearby nodes]

[One dimensional node found]

[Would you like to use "Member – Haunter" as a node?]

"Yes, give me something to understand my… guildmate." Locki said, hoping for the best. He knew he was out of his expertise when it came to Pokemon, so he needed information. Whatever information he could get.

Unlike tier 2 Gold Prisms, this one didn't really have any special effects. There were no ghostly screams or explosions of energy. Instead, the tier 1 Blue Prism simply disappeared and a thick book appeared within his hands.

Locki felt the weight drag down his arms as his eyes settled on the title of the book. So You Want to Die Earlier: A Guide to Ghosts by: Elite Four Agatha.

The blonde guildmaster had no idea who Agatha was, nor did he care too much about her station. All the teen focused on was the fact that this book dealt with ghosts, specifically ghost-type Pokemon.

Tenderly, Locki opened the book for a read. After a moment, he looked over to the Pokemon who hovered right over his shoulder.

"You have another form?" Locki asked, disturbed.

"Haunt!"

Locki felt lost, wondering if he could actually create a name for his friend.