Revolving Lantern [Lyra]

A line of cozy townhouses stood side-by-side under the gray, overcast sky. The sun had been reduced to a dull bulb shining through a sheet of clouds, but Althea found that the weather only served to enhance the quiet serenity of one of Clover Town’s coziest residential areas. It was an immensely suburban section of the isle that she would have never considered visiting outside of her current circumstances. Its cobblestone streets were still lightly populated, and the streetlamps emitted a warm, orange glow. The fresh scent from the nearby lakeside drifted in on a soft breeze, whistling softly through the neighborhood’s white picket fences.

However, Althea’s presence here implied that peace would not last long. Of course, the sword strapped across her back would be enough to suggest that, but she had already wrapped it, hilt and all, in a makeshift sheath of cloth. In this case, the more relevant factor was her profession as a mercenary. Although she had recently taken up the hobby of wandering Fiore’s most distant lands, the young woman was still a mage for hire. She supported herself through conflict, and the idyllic streets of this sleepy part of town were home to her current employer. Of course, the details she was privy to concerning her actual job had been vague, but Althea knew enough about these kinds of tasks to come prepared for combat either way. In fact, the sword on her back was a very recent addition, having been purchased with this very job in mind. The blade was of common quality, with only the most basic of arcane elements present to enforce durability. But still, the spirit judged that as more than enough for any potential hiccups in the operation. In the past, before her time stuck in the Aetherial Wastes, she exclusively used her bare hands for any and all fighting. The addition of equipment to her arsenal was only meant to further enhance her strengths at close range, and simply carrying a few pounds of extra weight wouldn’t hinder her in any way.

However, it wouldn’t take the blonde very long before finally coming upon the house address listed in the memo she received. After giving a few sturdy knocks on the white wooden door, Althea immediately heard the sound of footsteps from the other side of the wall. Whoever it was, they seemed rather rushed to reach the door, and when they did, the door creaked open and an elderly man emerged. He was of shorter stature, the hand that steadied himself on his walking cane being thin and frail. It was likely that this was the mayor of Clover Town, the person who entrusted her with a task this time around. However, upon laying eyes on her, the man’s wrinkled face stiffened, his sharp gaze shifting warily over their surroundings. “Hurry, come inside.” Wordlessly following the elder’s degree, she stepped into the townhouse. Swiftly, yet softly, he closed the door behind her, letting out a labored sigh.

“Come this way.” As he led her deeper into the house, his eyes drifted to the wrapped-up sword on the aetherial spirit’s back. “I didn’t know you would be arriving so… conspicuously.”

Idly inspecting the cozy interior, Althea replied with a slightly bored expression. “I think that anyone who lives here would be able to notice they haven’t seen me here before. Additionally, if anyone asked, I could just tell them that this was…” She pondered for a moment. “...an extra large club sandwich that I’m saving for later.” Her comment could be interpreted as a simple dismissive remark, but Althea was being dead serious. Well, if anyone told her that they were carrying around an almost three-foot-long sandwich for future cases of the munchies, she wouldn’t find any reasons not to believe them.

“Oh… I-I see.” The old man cleared his throat, tearing his eyes away from the incredibly conspicuous clothed blade. “Anyways, you must be Althea Eventide, correct?  Thank you for accepting my request.” At this point, they arrived in a rustic living room, three cups of tea sitting on top of the wooden table.

Wait, three? Althea’s eyes narrowed, “I’ll be working with someone else for this job?” She said, not bothering to hide the annoyance in her voice. Even back when she openly chased the company and affections of others, working alone had been one of her more perennial habits. It wasn’t that she was averse to entrusting some work to others, but things were just simpler when she was by herself. No need to go over plans of action or share any details about her skills, she

The mayor’s grip on his cane tightened, “It’s not that I… don’t have confidence in your skills. I just feel very strongly about this, and I’m handling this situation with the utmost sincerity. Don’t worry, they should be arriving anytime now.”

Although Althea could understand where the mayor was coming from, his words didn’t make the situation any less desirable. Her intentions behind taking up a job before even having the chance to fully regain full use of magic were motivated wholly by a desire to distance herself from Magnolia and all the memories attached to it. Not developing any further emotional investment in the town and its people was easy, but forgetting all the time she spent in it with her guild? Well… the fact she once again became part of Fairy Tail despite her reservations was an apt example of how difficult cutting off all her connections would be. Making any additional social links would only further complicate the issue. And yet here she was, forced once again into someone's company, albeit under the context of a job. However, there wasn’t much she could do at this point other than wait in cold silence for the other hired hand to arrive. But before Althea could even begin debating whether or not she should drink the beverage provided by the mayor, a knock was heard on the door.

A young woman entered, and the first thing Althea noticed was the particular atmosphere she carried. She had striking pink hair, and her eyes almost seemed to glitter with warm emotion, but the air around her remained distinctly calm. There weren't any weapons on her person, but Althea was familiar enough with magic to know that it was near impossible for a mage to truly ever be ‘disarmed.’ The spirit continued sizing the woman up even as the mayor reached out to accept her handshake. “The pleasure is all mine, Miss Karant.” He replied, “You have no idea how relieved I was when I first received word that you accepted my request.”

However, the biggest surprise of Althea’s day so far came when the woman, Lyra, turned to her for a handshake. Well, in hindsight, it wasn’t all that shocking, but the action still put her into a dazed silence for a moment. It had been… a while to say the least since she last exchanged formalities like this. In the past, she would’ve given Lyra a beaming smile and enthusiastically taken up her handshake, but now? All she wanted to do was pretend the pink-haired woman in front of her was no different from the air. But despite the spirit’s personal feelings, the fact they’d need to cooperate to some degree seemed unavoidable at this point. And so, with extreme reluctance, Althea reached out to accept the gesture.

“Althea.” She said with a slight edge to her voice. Pulling her hand back at the soonest possible moment, she would then cross her arms and immediately cast her gaze to the side. It was a bit excessive, but whatever got the point across that she was here exclusively for the job and not to make new acquaintances. The other mage had, evidently, also stated their guild alongside their name, but she considered the addition of ‘Fairy Tail’ in her introduction would simply be extraneous detail. Putting aside that her pale blue guild mark was plain to see on the back of her right hand during the handshake, she also just didn’t feel too incredibly keen on opening the gateway for extending the conversation in any way possible.

It was then that the mayor cleared his throat, carefully lowering himself on a floral-patterned armchair in the corner. “Well, thank you both for accepting this task, please feel free to make yourselves comfortable. It isn’t much, but I brewed some hot tea for us. It’s alright if you don’t want a beverage right before starting work, but the weather around here is starting to get chilly, and it’s important to stay warm– Ah, my apologies, I’ll stop the rambling and just get straight to business.” His expression suddenly became severe, his lips pressed into a straight line. “I’m certain that there’s something… wrong going on in Clover Town’s Orphanage. I first noticed it not too long ago, but the children are…” The mayor hesitated, struggling to find the right words. “...Well, let me start somewhere else. You see, I’m well acquainted with a few of the kids in the Orphanage; it isn’t very far from my house, so they always used to come over and weasel me out of treats. The children came by often, so I always made sure to keep up a stock of… Well, that’s beside the point.” He chuckled briefly, but his expression was grim. “Some time ago, they stopped coming over to visit, but it isn’t like an old man like me can eat all those sugary snacks I had lying around for them all. So, I decided to drop by the Orphanage to hand them out, but…” The elder’s gaze lowered, “Something was horribly wrong. I don’t even know how to describe it, but those boisterous children who used to visit me were just… wandering aimlessly around the courtyard. None of them were playing or even talking– and their eyes. They were so vacant, so empty. I tried approaching them, but they didn’t say a word to me. The children… they were just looking right through me.” He let out a shaky sigh, placing his forehead in the palm of his hand. “And then she came out... the Orphanage’s new director who took over a few months ago. I asked her about the children, and she just assured me that they were ‘sick’ and gave me a few excuses before shepherding them back inside. I didn’t believe a word she said, but one thing was certain: something was wrong with the orphans, and she had something to do with it.” The mayor kept his hand near his face, but tears could be seen streaming down his chin. “Please, investigate this matter. I have no idea what’s going on and can’t assure you that it’ll be a simple task, but if not for me, do it for the children…”

The other mage, Lyra, thankfully didn’t seem too phased by Althea’s unsociable behavior. The spirit’s aim was to skip over idle conversation and pleasantries, not to completely sour a professional relationship. Of course, said relationship would have to remain as nothing more than that, but that didn’t seem very difficult under these straits. The topic of conversation promptly and quickly moved away from introductions and towards the problem at hand, with the mayor droning through a lengthy speech about his conundrum. Evidently, there was something wrong with the local orphanage. She didn’t know anything at all about the inner workings of the minds of children, but she could at least tell that the situation was concerning. Such a sudden personality change could never be a good sign, but it wasn’t like it was any of her concern to discern whether or not the occurrence warranted further investigation. She had been hired to look into things, not wonder if she should in the first place.

As the mayor finished his explanation and implored for the two mage’s cooperation, Althea remained silent, crossing her arms as she blankly watched Lyra assure him. In her eyes, the pink-haired woman’s response to the mayor’s plight was that of a model legal mage. Compassionate yet collected while still acknowledging the client’s concerns. And when Lyra’s attention shifted from the mayor to Althea, the youth, first of all, took a moment to gulp down her previously untouched cup of tea all in one go… and it was pathetically lukewarm. The blonde didn’t have particularly strong inclinations towards the beverage, but she couldn’t help but be disappointed in not sooner remembering its presence. Still, that was far beyond the point. Althea placed down the cup with a decisive clink before getting to her feet. “I have no questions.”

Completely disregarding Lyra’s presence, she would then speedily walk right up to the front door. Well, ‘disregard’ was a strong word. She was more so just… getting a ‘head-start’ on things. Lyra had mentioned before that she would mainly be performing the role of support during this venture, but it wasn’t like they needed to necessarily do things as a unit. “I’ll be off now.” And with those words, she curtly opened the door and closed it behind herself. However, before even getting off the mayor’s porch, Althea realized a major oversight in her plan. She had no idea where to go. If only she could use magic, she would’ve been able to create a ‘fold’ in space to immediately transport herself there with nothing but the vague intention of going to ‘the orphanage.’ However, something like that would be impossible in the current situation, so she had no choice but to ask for directions.

And thus, as quickly as she left, the spirit returned to the interior of the townhouse with the same dull — slightly bored — expression she had before. “I have a question now. Where do I go?”

“A-Ahem, well, it’s very close. Head to the right and take the second left turn. The orphanage is the gray brick building at the end of the street. However, I remember enclosing its address in our earlier correspondence…”

“Alright then.” The youth nodded, but the corners of her mouth were downturned into a slight frown. At this point, she forgot the orphanage’s address as well as to ask for directions before setting out. Clearly, Althea still hadn’t grown completely accustomed to being back in Earthland yet. She had never been great at keeping minor, inconsequential details straight, and she just returned from a realm that didn’t operate on any of the logic or common sense so prevalent in this one. Addresses and directions were worthless when distances and positions were not fixed in the first place. So, she would naturally turn to her ‘support,’ Lyra, for assistance. “Can you remember that? If you can, then lead the way.”

Despite Althea’s plan to ‘temporarily ditch Lyra’ falling through, she was still fully intent on completing the task at hand. Of course, any emotional investment failed to extend past her motivation to get a paycheck, but it wasn’t like that sentiment was uncommon amongst mercenaries such as herself. For Althea, morality was more or less an afterthought when accepting jobs. Well, she didn’t steal or take on assassination requests… At least, she technically didn’t. Weren’t bounties on criminals just publicly accepted requests for murder? The only difference was that one was legal and the other wasn’t, but the blonde wasn’t equipped to critique whether killing someone was right or wrong. The first time she took another’s life was a long time ago, and she never felt a hint of regret or remorse about doing so. Ultimately, she couldn't truly understand the difference between the life of an innocent versus a criminal, or how human life itself could hold any semblance of value. Maybe that’s what separated her from humans? Or maybe she was just desensitized? Who cared either way?

But on to more relevant matters. Not only was Lyra capable of remembering the directions, but she also displayed the utility of the ‘support’ she mentioned earlier. As she moved towards the orphanage and away from the mayor’s house, Althea couldn’t help but silently admire the quick and convenient way her speed could be increased by such a noticeable degree. One would assume that simply accelerating someone's movements would decrease reaction speed and precision, but no. Instead, the blonde was able to traverse the streets of Clover Town with improved haste without worrying about tripping over a misplaced rock or uneven sidewalk. Maybe it was just due to her already being used to running at faster-than-average speeds, but such an effect seemed appropriate for something as all-encompassing as the notion of magic.

Thanks to Lyra’s abilities, however, the two mages were able to reach their destination within a brief amount of time. Upon finally finding their way there, Althea crossed her arms as she wordlessly inspected the building’s exterior. When her pink-haired companion mentioned something ‘wrong’ about the place, she couldn’t help but nod in agreement. She had very few prior experiences with orphanages or children to draw upon for discerning if anything was particularly out of place for such an environment. As someone with a rather abnormal childhood, she knew very little about what an 'institute for children' was meant to do, nor did she care to learn. However, something she could rely on was her raw instincts as a spirit, and they were telling her that something about this place was… off. No, just ‘off’ wasn’t a strong enough term. Contorted would be much more appropriate to describe how the air itself hung unnaturally in this space. Althea had a rather paltry amount of experience compared to other beings of magical origin, so she couldn't discern the exact nature of the distortion. But clearly, this job would be far from a simple investigation.

After finishing her surface-level glance at the building, the blonde reached for the sword on her back but hesitated before properly gripping it. She was never one who favored an indirect approach to a given job. Rather than silently stealth into the realm of a target, she had always just barged right in, making it a battle of raw strength and power. It wasn’t that she was incapable of strategy, she just considered doing anything else to be a waste of her time. After all, why set a trap for a deer when she could easily hunt it down with her bare hands alone? However, the situation now was slightly different from the norm. For one thing, Althea was far from her peak performance. The breadth of magic she could operate at the moment was extremely limited, but usually, she’d be confident in her raw combat ability being enough. And with the addition of Lyra, brute force would’ve been a good choice for the vast majority of jobs. However, it’d be hard to judge how things would develop when you factored in the existence of the orphans into the equation. Althea wouldn’t hesitate to ‘put them down’ if push came to shove, but she had a feeling that the cons of a child dying would outweigh the pros. She was, after all, still intent on getting paid by the same old man who hired her for the sake of these orphans. But again, a problem lay in the number of question marks surrounding this job. They were about to step into enemy territory, and the true ‘end goal’ hadn’t been truly defined as of yet. Before confronting the director, she'd prefer if they found out what was happening first.

Finally, she grabbed the sword, carelessly discarding its makeshift sheathe on the ground before turning to her companion. As fit for a blade she purchased from an ordinary blacksmith, it was a well-made but otherwise typical broadsword. “I consider ‘sneakiness’ to be nothing but a hassle.” But to avoid something bothersome from happening, it’d be best to avoid facing the orphanage’s director on her terms. However, it’d only be a matter of time before she discovered their presence. And who knows, she probably already knew they were coming. “…Let’s go with a game of hide-and-seek instead.” She couldn’t tell yet who’d be the cat and who’d be the mouse, but this was a place for children. They might as well play one of their ‘games.’ Raising the sword towards the orphanage, it began to glow with a soft golden light. “Erode.” Upon uttering the command, glittering particles of magic drifted to the walls of the brick building, eating away at the bricks as a flame does to paper. When her work was done, she’d created many holes of various sizes throughout the structure. “I made some more front doors. Hmm, I especially like that hole over there.” She pointed to a newly formed gap on the second floor about the size of an adult male. “Okay, bye then, Lyra. Unless you plan on following me. If you are, then do so quickly.” After all, the erosion she caused was only temporary, and the bricks would soon revert to their original state. But without another word, Althea would turn around and enter through the second floor in a single leap, sword brandished and ready for the tumultuous job ahead.

Deftly rolling into the building, she sharply gazed around her surroundings. The only source of light was from the hole behind her leading to the outside, and there wasn't another soul in sight. However, signs of life were evident from the many empty beds that lined the walls. Maybe this was a bedroom for the children? It was ominously quiet, but she'd have to attempt some kind of investigation for clues.

Althea had simply chosen a wall to enter through at random, but that didn’t stop her from feeling rather unimpressed by the room. As far as she could tell, it didn’t seem to feature anything apart from lines of neat, empty beds and the occasional piece of furniture. She had been at least expecting to come across one of the orphans to try and ascertain the problem with them before confronting the director, but no such luck. Hopefully, there had actually been some sort of trap laid for them at the front entrance – if not, then the spirit spent some of her magic power for absolutely zero gain. Thankfully, she wouldn’t need to utilize any additional energy to peruse the dark room. Her spiritual senses had grown to be much sharper than any of her physical ones, and they gave her more than enough information about her surroundings, with or without a light source. And even if she utilized her magic to scan the area, Althea doubted that she’d find anything of note. Well, the sheer level of cleanliness in the room did strike her as odd, but maybe the director was just really good at cleaning. Children didn’t strike her as the type to leave behind such a spotless room, but it could be feasible that someone went out of their way to produce such an exorbitantly sterile environment. But given the nature of her current request, she anticipated that the reason wouldn’t be so innocent.

Regardless, her partner in this endeavor didn’t take long at all to follow after her. Althea was only half-expecting Lyra to leap right in with her, and she would’ve preferred if she went off to some different corner of the orphanage to investigate without the blonde needing to see, hear, or talk to her. After completing navigation to their destination, the pros of the pink mage’s presence (self-sufficient, reliable, potential support, seems like a nice person, etc.) were canceled out by the cons (working with others is annoying). From how she saw things, the only critical contribution Lyra could make was accomplished the moment she helped her arrive at the orphanage. Well, it couldn’t be helped. Althea was the one who left things as an open invitation, and while she didn’t welcome Lyra’s presence, she certainly didn’t detest it either. Her companion was clearly an incredibly powerful mage in her own right, and Althea anticipated her being capable of more than just ‘carrying her own weight.’ Her pink wings, which were evidently the mode of flight she had mentioned prior, as well as her newly materialized sword of crystals were more than enough of an indication of that. It’s just that the spirit felt like the task at hand wasn’t nearly hazardous enough for her to absolutely require any of the assistance Lyra offered.

Still, Althea couldn’t help but silently agree with her partner’s observations. There was clearly something amiss in the orphanage. You would think a building full of children would have more signs of rough-housing, playing, or… any sign of life at all. However, that was far from enough to change her inclinations toward ‘working with others.’ “Split.” The spirit replied blandly, lethargically turning to gaze at Lyra through the dark. Having the other woman suggest parting ways wasn’t a boon she was expecting, but the blonde quickly acted upon the opportunity. Their collaboration had been brief, but hopefully, the other woman would come out of the orphanage alright on her own. From now on, Althea anticipated completing this job just as she had all her others: quickly, brutally, and most importantly – alone. Without another word, she began walking across the room.

The floorboards creaked under the spirit’s feet as she approached the one and only door leading in and out of the room. However, she was only able to pass by a few rows of beds when the door opened without her needing to do so herself. Well, that made it sound like the door simply opened itself, but that wouldn't be the case. On the other side of said door stood a woman dressed in a modest black dress. She held a lit candle in one hand while the other lightly rested on the shoulder of a small child, their face buried in the cloth of her skirt. The woman’s eyes widened, and it seemed like she was about to say something, but Althea didn’t have the patience to delicately deal with a potential threat.

She pointed the tip of her broadsword towards the stranger, her eyes frigid. “Explain, or else.” After all, wasn’t it highly likely that this person was the orphanage director and by extension the most prominent threat in this job? Additionally, Lyra was undoubtedly right when she said there was ‘nothing’ around, so how did this ‘something’ suddenly pop out of nowhere? “Move if you want to die,” Althea added, although she was more or less just bluffing. She only killed the people she was meant to. Any serious collateral damage had to be avoided at all costs. So, just lopping off an arm or two would be more than enough. And if she proved herself harmless, the spirit would just reattach the limb, so ultimately, no harm done.