Seris stood in a relaxed, almost casual stance while confronting the head of the temple who had caught her sneaking into the archives. Despite her outward appearance, she was secretly readying herself for a fight. So far, her encounters with the modern day sorcerers hadn't been exactly friendly.
"Perhaps I should introduce myself first. My name is Talos Myron, I'm in charge of this temple. May I have your names?"
Seris shrugged, "sure. I'm Seris Ardentis."
Talos nodded slowly before turning his gaze on Erin.
"And the civilian?"
"Erin Densetsu, I'm a journalist."
Talos smiled while making a welcome gesture with both hands. He appeared to be completely relaxed as if he wasn't here to fight anyone.
"I have seen the images and videos uploaded to social media sites. You have made a very large, positive impression on the local populace. Could we talk more in my office?"
"Actually, I'm here to find out some things not to become buddies with administrators."
Talos laughed loudly at Seris's firm rejection.
"Ah youth, you remind me of myself when I was your age. I too was a rebel. How about I make you a deal. If you come with me and answer a few questions, I will let you have full access to the entire temple and do my best to answer any questions you have."
Seris looked suspicious but nothing about this man radiated hostility. In fact, the energy he was given off was warm, friendly, and seemed sincere. Besides, if things got bad, Seris was pretty confident in her ability to fight her way out without any issues.
"Okay, sure, but Erin comes too."
Erin, who had been feeling more comfortable with the situation, smiled brightly at the inclusion.
"I think that's very fair. Follow me."
***
The office of the Temple Head was well decorated. Pictures of all kinds hung on the walls, most of them showing Talos with another sorcerer of some kind. He appeared younger in some, while older in others. Erin, with his sharp investigative eyes, deduced that Talos must have been in his position for a long time now. At least twenty years if his estimations were correct.
Talos sat behind a dark colored wooden desk in a simple chair that offered comfort but nothing else. His desk was neat, organized, and looked like a principal's desk from a school office. The man apparently prized order and cleanliness above all else.
"I have gotten two reports from my field units. One report is that you saved a small group of sorcerers from a rampaging hoard of demonic imps. The other report states that you arrived in time to help Darius Valeno against an unusually strong barbarian type demon."
Seris smiled as she recalled how egotistical Darius had been. His arrogance had nearly cost him his life and it had humiliated him in front of the other sorcerers.
"To be fair, your man Darius already weakened the enemy by the time I intervened."
"How so?"
"The demon had spent a good deal of energy beating the hell out of him."
Talos shook his head, a heavy look on his face.
"I'm aware that Darius can be… well a lot to handle. I do apologize for his behavior. I had given the order to Orion Caldas to shadow you. He was supposed to just observe and report back to me. Unfortunately, the other elders that serve alongside me had other ideas."
Seris seemed to accept that explanation. It actually made sense to her. During her time, the elders of the order had been very political and conniving. It would seem that not much had changed there.
"I don't blame you. I'm not fond of being spied on though."
"Again, I apologize. I had to do something though given the circumstances. An unknown sorcerer walking into the city while killing demons with little to no effort, demanded answers."
"You had to make sure she was on your side, you mean."
Erin frowned, pointing out the obvious hidden answer that Talos refused to say out loud.
"These days, with how things are going, I can't take any chances. I have to consider the safety of every member of this temple in addition to the safety of the local surrounding cities."
Seris frowned at his explanation
"I've come to understand that demonic incursions and attacks are becoming more frequent. When did that start?"
Talos stared at her with a quizzical look.
"It started around ten years ago. It's been slowly ramping up in frequency over the last decade but that's all. Alongside the usual demonic imps, there has been a growing number of incidents involving stronger than normal demons."
"Like the barbarian."
"Exactly. We have no idea why the attacks are rising and we know even less about how some of these demons are seemingly evolving to become stronger."
Seris found that odd. Demons moving up to newer positions was nothing new of course. Demons would often betray each other and kill one another for better spots of authority. She had never heard of demons evolving to become stronger though.
"Surely you must have a theory?" Erin asked, scratching his head.
"Officially, no. Unofficially I believe that something or someone is making them stronger."
"Enchantments?"
Talos shook his head, "no not in that sense. There has been rumors of a demon general, hand picked by the demon king, who has been placed in charge. We don't have a name or any information on his powers but I suspect he is somehow augmenting demons to make them more destructive."
"That's concerning," Seris muttered as she rubbed her chin in contemplation.
If that theory was true, then it could open up new avenues of incredible danger between demons and mankind. It could even give the demons the solid hand needed to win a full on war if they chose to finally invade the mortal realm.
"Now some questions for you, fair is fair."
Seris looked up, snapping out of her complicated musings.
"Go for it."
"Who are you really? You used the name of a famous sorcerer but we both know she has been dead for three hundred years. Are you running from a different temple?"
Seris smiled at that. Sorcerers who got into trouble at one temple, would often flee to a different one in hopes of continuing their careers.
"My name is really Seris Ardentis."
"I see, so your parents knew their history then. Not surprising though, she was one of the greatest sorcerers in human history."
Seris blushed at his compliment but Talos didn't notice as he was rummaging for a pen and paper to make notes with.
"To answer your other question, no I'm not running from another temple. I've always been a part of this temple."
Talos had a look that was a mix of pity and curiosity. It wasn't hard to see that he was of the opinion that Seris might be a little insane.
"She's telling the truth sir, she really is the same Seris that used to live here."
Talos chuckled as skepticism still colored his features.
"Okay, what about your mana? Who taught you?"
Seris thought back to her childhood. She had been raised since she was five years old at the temple. She didn't remember or know anything about her biological parents. The temple instructors had basically raised her while teaching her everything they knew about the art of magic.
"I had several teachers. All of them were experienced masters of magic that taught in this very same temple."
Talos frowned while putting down his pen. He leaned back and steepled his fingers under his chin, staring thoughtfully at Seris.
He was trying to decide how best to handle someone who was clearly suffering from delusions while also holding an unimaginable amount of mana and power.
Seris, unaware of what Talos was thinking, simply sat in silence. Her blue eyes gazed confidently into his own hazel colored eyes. She saw that beneath the friendly exterior, there was a shrewd, calculating man who was better at manipulation than he was letting on. It was like staring at a version of what she could have been if she had accepted his job position all those long years ago.
Despite the silence that now hung heavy between them, she wasn't bothered by it.
Seris was ready for anything.