Shattered Sanity

KABOOM!

Thunder rumbled across the darkened sky as heavy raindrops fell over the Northwatch Grounds, striking the grass and surrounding stone pathways rapidly enough that the earth had already begun darkening beneath the downpour.

Gary Ironveil stood beneath the rain without making the slightest effort to find shelter, allowing water to soak through his robes and run down his face as he continued staring towards the distant entrance of the Northern Forest.

The five Second Years surrounding him had similarly taken their positions across the Northwatch Grounds, spreading themselves far enough apart to cover the primary pathway leading out from the forest while remaining close enough to support one another once the fighting began.

However, while the others at least tried to conceal their presence so that their opponents would not be wiser to their location, Gary made no such effort, as he stood at the center of the road, waiting for Riven to show up.

.

.

Meanwhile, from a few dozen meters behind the Aureate position, another figure had arrived at the Northwatch Grounds without any of them realizing it.

Mary remained crouched behind a large boulder beside one of the pathways, keeping her body hidden from sight while rainwater streamed down the stone above her and soaked through portions of her already damp uniform.

She had originally been travelling north in search of Argent’s forward assault divisions, although the moment [Aether Pulse] initially revealed six people occupying the territory ahead, she had abandoned the pathway and approached considerably more carefully.

Another faint wave of Aether expanded outward from her body before returning moments later, allowing Mary to now sense more.

’Now I sense nine....’

Mary thought, as she moved forward, running from boulder to boulder, until she came close enough to have a good look.

From [Aether Pulse] alone, there was no reliable way for her to determine which House any of those nine students belonged to, as Aether signatures did not conveniently identify someone as Argent, Aureate, Sable or Viridian.

However, after cautiously peeking around the edge of the boulder and catching sight of their uniforms through the rain, Mary immediately recognized the unmistakable colors of House Aureate.

That was enough for her.

Cedric had specifically ordered Mary to locate Argent’s forward assault divisions and bring them home rather than involve herself in unnecessary fights, and there was absolutely no reason for her to approach nine Aureate students alone.

Hence, Mary slowly pulled herself away from the boulder and prepared to leave before any of them discovered she was nearby.

However, just as she began turning away, a voice carried through the rain from somewhere ahead.

”How much longer are they going to take? Are you absolutely certain they’re coming out through this entrance?”

One of the Aureate Second Years asked impatiently, as he looked towards the three injured students waiting nearby.

”I’m positive. They have a lot of prisoners with them, so they’re moving slowly, but Dawnriver and his crew should be approaching the forest entrance any moment now....”

One of the injured students replied, as Mary immediately froze.

’Dawnriver?’

Her attention snapped back towards the Northern Forest.

For several seconds, Mary remained completely still as the meaning behind what she had just overheard began falling into place.

The Aureate students weren’t merely occupying the Northwatch Grounds.

They were waiting for Riven.

Mary immediately returned behind the boulder and activated [Aether Pulse] again, although this time she didn’t focus upon the Aureate students occupying the open ground ahead.

Instead, she concentrated upon the Northern Forest beyond them.

A faint wave of Aether travelled away from her body, spreading across the Northwatch Grounds before reaching beyond the forest entrance and penetrating between the trees.

Several faint signatures gradually appeared inside Mary’s mind.

She concentrated harder.

More became visible..... around eighteen in total.

She could sense their vague human forms moving slowly through the outer section of the Northern Forest, with three walking ahead, twelve clustered unusually close together through the middle, and another three following behind them.

The formation itself immediately looked strange.

However, one of the three figures walking at the front captured Mary’s attention above everything else.

Normally, it was impossible for Mary to determine exactly who a particular Aether signature belonged to.

[Aether Pulse] didn’t show her faces, uniforms or physical features, as the people within its range appeared inside her mind as little more than vague human forms surrounded by concentrations of Aether.

Yet this time, Mary knew exactly who she was sensing.

Because beside one of those three human signatures was something else.

A weapon she knew all too well.

Sky-Cleaver.

Unlike the standardized weapons issued by the Imperial Academy, Riven’s halberd was an Aether Artifact, constantly releasing a faint and highly distinctive signature of its own.

Mary had spent enough time training around Riven to become familiar with that presence, and there was no other weapon inside the Academy whose Aether felt quite the same.

’It’s him....’

Mary thought, as her expression tightened.

Riven was approaching the Northwatch Grounds.

And he wasn’t alone.

Mary focused upon the strange formation again, with three figures walking ahead, twelve clustered together through the middle and another three following behind.

’Prisoners....’

It suddenly made sense why Riven’s group was moving so slowly and why the Aureate students outside already knew exactly where they were going to emerge.

Mary carefully leaned around the boulder once again and looked towards the Aureate students waiting near the forest entrance.

’Shit.... Things are going to get rough here’

Mary thought, as she quickly pulled her head back behind the boulder.

’I should leave, but if I do.... Riven could get captured.’

Mary thought as she bit her lip, as although every instinct within her body told her to leave before the Aureate students discovered her presence, she somehow could not bring herself to move.

There were five Aureate Second Years ahead alongside Gary Ironveil and three other juniors, while Mary was completely alone against a group she had no chance of defeating by herself.

However, if she left now, Riven and the others were going to walk straight into the ambush without any warning, which meant she needed to somehow reach them before they emerged from the forest.

Unfortunately, there was no direct path towards Riven that didn’t take her through the Northwatch Grounds, while attempting to sneak past the Aureate students across open terrain was practically begging to be discovered.

Going around wasn’t much better either, as by the time Mary made a wide enough detour to avoid them, Riven could already have emerged from the forest.

Hence, Mary remained crouched behind the rain-soaked boulder as another flash of lightning illuminated the Northwatch Grounds, desperately searching for some way to warn Riven without exposing herself in the process.

Then she released another [Aether Pulse], only to discover that Sky-Cleaver’s familiar signature had moved considerably closer, and that within a few seconds, Riven was probably going to be in visible range for the Aureate students to discover.