Sworded Affair

Chapter 24: Truth Laid Bear

“...And then I used my fast travel to get out of the basement, right before the entire building fell on top of me. I think you know the rest from there.”

Emma finally finished her tale, leaving nothing out from the moment of her departure from the Dungeon up until her hasty return.

“You certainly haven’t lost your talent for getting into trouble,” Felix shook his head in amazement. “A single day out, and not even looking for him specifically, yet you somehow still manage to stumble headfirst into a genuine magic user.”

Her brother’s avatar froze, eyes glazed over abruptly as his attention was drawn to something far in the distance that Emma couldn’t see. Waiting patiently for his consciousness to return, she slowly sipped her holy tea; grateful for the break after talking nonstop for the better part of an hour.

“There’s nobody by the name of Amalgam recorded in the weave,” Felix confirmed upon his return, moments later. “Neither his true name you saw, nor his preferred pseudonym, not that he bothered much with hiding his identity; Amal Gam? Really?”

“There’s probably no need for that kind of caution in the modern day,” Emma laughed. “Not when the last recorded witch hunts were over three centuries ago. Which, admittedly, has me wondering, since it’s clear there’s an established magical society predating the apocalypse. Amal mentioned how few practitioners there are in this day and age, so presumably there used to be more.”

“The cars you saw bother me as well,” Felix added. “That none of them had any modern electronics can’t be a coincidence; every car made in the last decade is stuffed full of silicon gadgets. For an entire car park not to have a single wreck on display; including the ones owned by the youngsters Amal heard from? That’s either a massive coincidence or deliberate action.”

“They probably knew modern technology was dangerous,” Emma agreed. “Amal didn’t have a single example in his house, and I bet none of the others do either, even if they didn’t know the true reason and just chalk it down to following a ‘traditional lifestyle’. Maybe magic just doesn’t do well with technology? So it would be a known factor for those in on the secret.”

“Then when the apocalypse arrived; it brought along with it a massive amount of magic all at once.” Felix realized. “It must have; to enable things like your System to function, and even more so to build and maintain the Dungeons as I have. Losing all our silicon wasn’t an intentional strike against society at all; it was just collateral damage.”

[Sufficient mystery acquired.

Masquerade edict disabled.

Quest: 404 - Answers Not Found updated!

Objective: Discover the cause of the mana surge that brought about the Apocalypse

Reward: ???]

“My System seems to agree.” Emma spoke aloud for her brother’s benefit. “Though how I’m going to investigate a mana surge is beyond me; despite what Amal thinks, I wasn’t actually a practitioner until this week, and only thanks to the System at that.”

“Maybe mom will know?" Felix suggested. "Casting a ward, tracing back the movements of mana; they can’t be too different in principle, right?”

“I’ll make sure to ask when I find her,” Emma agreed. “Shouldn’t be too hard, now that I can fly. London isn’t too far away by air, not really.”

“Sure, but go check if dad’s at home first,” Felix reminded her. “If he wanders off again looking for us, only god knows where he’ll end up.”

Nodding fervently, Emma wasted no time in saying her goodbyes before returning to the front gate with another use of fast travel.

Display non-threatening NPCs, Emma instructed as she craned her head skyward, and was quickly spoiled for choices.

Sifting through a sea of [Finch - Level 0] and [Sparrow - Level 0], Emma eventually found her desired choice of mount, the humble [Pigeon - Level 0]. Capable of sustained flight above fifty miles an hour, with a top speed almost twice that and recorded flights of six to seven hundred miles a day, this was the ideal vehicle for the first use of her new Ability.

“Spirit form,” Emma grinned as her body slowly faded from view. Unity.

[Oversoul successful, you Shaman King wannabe.]

There was no outward change to the pigeon in question; save for the fact that it suddenly fell some hundred meters or so, splattering into the ground in a crimson stain.

“Oops,” Emma grimaced as she materialized next to the dead bird, physically well but having taken a blow to her pride. “Maybe I should try that with a bird on the ground first? Flying is harder than it looks.”

[Radically different body types have an adaptation period, yes. Admittedly, I was expecting you to use that on a human target first. Oh well, live and learn I suppose.]

Grumbling to herself about annoying Systems and neglecting to mention critical information, Emma set off to find a pliant bird for a spot of flight training.

—

“That’s not normal, is it?” Noah wondered as he poked the sleeping bear with a big stick.

Whilst definitely not the smartest course of action in normal circumstances, today Noah was buoyed by the arrival of his colleague and former British Army Sniper, Ryan Young, fresh from the temporary forward operating base established some miles north of his home. Personally, Noah thought that a L115A1 Sniper Rifle was a bit of overkill for a wild animal, but he wasn’t going to question it; not when Ryan was the expert when it came to guns and appropriate force.

“Bears aren’t supposed to hibernate until winter is near,” Ryan frowned. “Whereas we're only a month into spring. You said he’s been like this since you found him?”

“After eating through his own weight in beef jerky, yes.”

“Definitely ain’t normal,” Ryan offered. “But probably harmless, if he’s really going to be out for three months. Sure you don’t want to come back to FOB with me? Conditions there aren’t the best, but at least we’ve got running water again, and no bears.”

“It’s tempting, but I’ve got my orders,” Noah shook his head. “Shelter in place, wait for a VIP and don’t harm the wildlife unprompted. God knows why they added the last part, that certainly was never in any of the training manuals.”

“It was added because if you’d actually shot that bear, I’d be trying to identify both your bodies right now.”

“Honey?” Noah automatically turned at the sound of his wife’s voice, only to do a double take.

Gone were the woolen sweaters and jeans she favored in the cold spring weather; replaced with a heavily stylized Victorian duelist's jacket, complete with a chestful of medals he couldn’t recognize despite five years in the service and far longer spent among career military colleagues. A pair of white tights and high heels completed the outfit, which distinctly reminded him of something from years ago.

“Revolutionary Girl Utena?” Noah asked, his memory jogged.

“One of the inspirations, yes,” Elizabeth nodded in agreement. “Unsurprisingly, she remains a foundational influence in magical girl culture, though we all have our own favorites from among the greats. A word of warning, watch out for anyone modeling herself after Homura Akemi; they all trend towards sour dispositions and horrifically potent magic, not a great combination to work with.”

“I’m afraid I’m a little bit lost here,” Ryan interjected, though he’d slightly relaxed his grip on his rifle, having met Elizabeth before at the occasional work social that permitted spouses.

“London has fallen,” Elizabeth replied curtly, pretending not to see how both men’s legs wobbled at the news. “As have, in all likelihood, every other major city with a population of over a million, and far more besides. I’m sure you both had your suspicions, given neither of you have been able to get through to headquarters since the terminus.”

“The terminus?” Noah mouthed the unfamiliar words, desperate for a distraction from the rest of his wife’s words. “Is that what we’re calling it now?”

“It’s always been called the terminus, ever since the first contingencies for it were drawn up during the reign of King George the third.” Elizabeth’s eyes narrowed. “The plans have received substantial amendments in the years since, of course. Ministers in the eighteenth century did not, as a rule, discuss the disposal of nuclear warheads in the event of societal collapse, yet I was assigned that mission all the same. That’s been taken care of, by the way.”

“How’d you know we couldn’t reach HQ?” Ryan challenged her, still somewhat suspicious and honing in on the only part he fully understood. “Were you tapping our lines?”

“I know it because you know it, and I’ve known since I came within fifty feet of you. You may remember me from a few Christmas parties, but I wasn’t able to introduce myself properly back then, so allow me to rectify that now. I am Elizabeth Faust: Magical Girl, telepath and head of internal affairs for the Eternal Britannian Empire, the sole magical authority of the British Isles. In light of recent events, particularly the demise of both the British royal family and the mortal parliament, we will be taking a direct hand in governance for the foreseeable future. Your cooperation and support are both appreciated.”