Grimoire

A thick haze covered the empty streets of Arkham, the full moon casted an eerie glow over the city. Perched silently on a nearby rooftop, Espoir sat bathed in the pale light of the full moon. In the distance, a black smog from the various factories lingered in the air while he waited for his prey. Jacque the Slasher. If Espoir’s theory was correct, Jacque needed either a new moon or a full moon for some form of condition.

Espoir sighed, leaning against the wall behind him. He had scanned the alleys for the third time, growing increasingly frustrated. “This is pointless,” he muttered under his breath, doubting the serial killer would even show. As he readied himself for another sweep, a scream echoed through the quiet night. “Looks like I won’t be leaving empty-handed,” Espoir said, more to himself than anyone else. He swiftly dropped into a nearby alley and began racing toward the source of the scream.

But there was one problem.

He had no idea where the scream had actually come from! This isn’t good. Closing his eyes, he concentrated, trying to pinpoint the exact direction from which the sound had originated.

“Please no!”

That one came from a few blocks down. Sprinting over, Espoir slid into an alley. Pulling out his gun, he saw a tall figure dressed in a black trench coat. Covering his head was a large brimmed top hat. Pinned against a wall was a woman with red hair in a …rather revealing dress trying to fend off the man. Without hesitating, Espoir shot at the shadowy figure. To his surprise, he seemed to react by holding his jacket sleeve up. The bullet passed through him and hit a nearby crate. The man quickly ran down the alley and passed through the wall of a nearby building.

“You okay?” Espoir asked the clearly distressed woman. She looked like she was on the verge of hysterics as she grasped her throat.

“He…he had a knife. He said he was going to kill me l-like the others…” She sobbed. Espoir sighed as he walked her out of the alley.

“Get off the street,” Espoir ordered. Since the Slasher had gone through the right wall of the alley, Espoir ran in that direction. Closing his eyes, he tried to sense any aura nearby but found nothing. “It’s never easy…” he muttered to himself again. Using a gust of wind on his feet, Espoir launched himself up the side of a building and climbed over the fire escape. Running across the rooftops, he got a visual of a man in a black cloak heading north toward the clock tower.

"Accelerate," Espoir activated his spell causing a faint green aura to envelop him. Using [Accelerate], Espoir was speed across the rooftops, keeping track of where Jacque was going. He was able to pass him from above. Espoir dropped onto the street in front of the Slasher, forcing him into a nearby alley. Drawing his dagger and pistol, Espoir cornered him to a dead-end. Seeing he was trapped, Espoir's opponent drew his own weapon. It was a pure black blade with a silver skull on its grip. An ominous crimson aura permeated into the alley as they began to fight.

Deflecting a backhanded slash, Espoir got a quick kick to his torso, sending the slasher back. “So, you’re the one messing with my city,” Espoir said, trying to keep his mood light. Blocking a slice aimed for his throat, he quickly pulled out his gun and attempted to shoot him in the chest. He had a direct shot but only to realize he was out of bullets. You’ve got to be kidding…

The Slasher smiled creepily as he attempted to slice Espoir across the neck. Espoir tried to deflect the attack with his dagger, which was infused with a light-gray aura, but the blade slid right through it. Espoir quickly threw up a barrier, but it was effortlessly pierced as well. So that's how it works! Before it could make contact with him, Espoir placed his free hand on the bottom of the knife. “Gotcha!”

A surge of electricity connected with Jacque the Slasher, causing him to cry out in agony. As he fell to the ground, the smell of burnt flesh filled the air. “I noticed you managed to phase through matter,” Espoir explained. “You escaped the alley and just now dodged my knife. I assume that’s your Spell Art or something similar. However, you either make your body intangible or your knife. It’s never both.” If he had a little more time he’d have been able to make the attack more lethal. At the moment he was able to temporarily stun him.

“You’ve got a good set of eyes,” Jacque mumbled, his accent thick, like one you'd find in the countryside. “So, what’s your deal exactly?” Espoir asked, nonchalantly “Couldn't get any ladies back home, so you came to the big city and started assaulting them like some kind of freak? You could, I don’t know, have gotten a better hairstyle or maybe not dressed like that? Maybe wear a bigger hat?”

The Slasher scoffed at Espoir's words, he attempted to get up but found his body still unresponsive. “Why does it matter?”

Espoir shrugged. “Just curious. Besides, I figured a magic user would punch above his weight class a little…” Espoir went to grab his knife while he had the upper-hand. As he reached out for it, An eerie smile crept across the serial killer's face. “You were wrong about something. I don’t have any ability like that.” He let out a cruel laugh as aura surged from the knife into Espoir. Images of the Slasher mutilating his victims flashed in Espoir’s mind. The scenes of each victim played out in his mind like memories. Everything from the blood, the sick way he got pleasure as he did it, enjoying every moment. Espoir could even hear their begging for their lives as he killed them…

It was depraved, disgusting.

Inhuman.

Gaining the upper hand, Jacque the Slasher swiftly grabbed his knife off the ground and rushed at Espoir, who was momentarily stunned by the images he was seeing. Aiming to cut his jugular, Jacque's knife glowed with a crimson aura as he went for the kill.

SLASH

A sharp cry echoed through the night as blood splattered across the alley way.

Unexpectedly, it was the Slasher who had been cut! His left eye and face were sliced down-ward, shattering his monocle in the process. A mixture of broken glass and blood dripped down his face as he clutched it in agony, the wound was very deep and cut through his check and lip. Aria had sliced him with her sword. Espoir, horrified by the memories forced on to him, threw up. Looking over at Aria, Espoir saw his plan had worked perfectly.

Four hours ago...

Both Espoir and Aria were sitting under the Grand Clock Tower of Arkham. The clock tower was made of dark-gray stone going high into the sky. Each side of the tower had a glowing yellow clock face infused with chroma. The faces of the clock glowed even in the daylight. It was both the tallest building in Arkham as well as the tallest in the nation. Outside of the Citadel which floated in the sky.

The two of them were eating some ice cream Espoir had bought from a nearby vendor. The sun was beginning to set as they prepared to catch the Slasher. “You want me to tail you?” Aria asked. Espoir nodded as he rolled up a brown map of the city, he had been tracing the exact route he expected Jacque the Slasher would take.

“I believe he has some kind of ability that requires him to kill in order to fuel it. Unfortunately, we need to catch him in the act to stop him properly,” Espoir explained. “I can stall him until you catch up.”

“What if he tries to kill you? More importantly, why would you put that much trust in me?” she asked. Espoir must have known she was only following him because it was mutually beneficial for her. They had only known each other for just over a week, and yet he was willing to trust his life with her? Aria assumed he was crazy but that seemed insane even by his standards.

“Hmm?" Espoir cocked his head at her question. "That's easy, I trust you since you obviously hate that he’s killing innocent people too.” Espoir said plainly, much to Aria’s bewilderment. Pulling his jacket over himself, Espoir stretched as he prepared to start. “Regardless of how you may feel about me being the Silver Grimoire, I know you hate what he's doing more than you distrust me. Or maybe I'm wrong, and I'll die, who knows.” Espoir laughed, a small smile formed on his face. He knew that Aria would follow along from the moment he suggested finding the Slasher. Despite her cold demeanor, she wasn’t the type to want to sit by and let people die if she could help it.

Aria stood in the alleyway with her blade aimed at The Slasher’s throat. I suppose I owe her one. Espoir thought to himself as he recovered from what he saw. Truthfully, Espoir was grateful that Aria got here in time.

The Slasher coughed out as he clutched his wound. “Damn it. I’m running out of time…” Seeing he was outnumbered, Jacque took a step back and threw his coat at them. Using it as a distraction, he ran out of the alley. Aria swiftly sliced the coat in half as she chased after him, and Espoir quickly followed.

“Kieran~” A woman with wavy black hair said. She was dressed in a red-black corset that hugged her chest and a frilly black skirt. Her purple eyes were locked on her boyfriend. “Hmm, now that the play is over, we should head back to your place. You said you loved my new dress, so I figured you’d want to see what’s under~” A man with brown hair styled into twin parted bangs and neatly combed in the back had his arm around her. He wore a wine-colored dress shirt and dark dress pants.

“Perfect!”

Kieran's gray eyes narrowed at the figure rushing out of the nearby alley. "Hey! Watch out!” Espoir yelled. Both he and Aria were chasing the killer, who was now running toward the couple on the sidewalk. The Slasher brought his dagger out, aiming to gut the woman. As she screamed in fear, Kieran hit Jacque in the side of the arm. As his arm recoiled back from the hit, Jacque's eyes widened as his muscles acted on their own, causing him to drop the knife.

“How unsightly,” Kieran sighed.

Before Jacque could run, Kieran delivered a two-hit combo to his kidney and face, causing him to collapse on the ground in pain. “Hey babe, step back for a moment.” Kieran’s girlfriend nodded and stepped off the sidewalk toward Espoir and Aria. Meanwhile, Kieran unbuttoned the top of his shirt. He looked more annoyed than angry. Before he could deal with the man in front of him, his eyes narrowed at Espoir and Aria. “What are you kids doing?”

“Kid?”

“Kid!?”

Kieran rubbed his temple. “Alright, whatever.” His attention returned to the creep. “Can I ask why you two are chasing a man in an alley at this hour? Also, what’s this guy's deal anyway?”

“He’s the Slasher,” Espoir explained, stepping forward. "We were trying to catch him."

Kieran’s eyes narrowed at the man in front of him, still recovering from his attack. “The Slasher? Of course, this happens while I'm in town. How annoying, but I guess it can't be helped. Unfortunate that I have to work even on my vacation." Kicking the knife back to The Slasher, Kieran glanced at him before rubbing his chin in thought. "I wonder if I should finish this quickly or try to show off. I try not to fight in front of the ladies if I can help it. Then again, you did try attacking me in front of my date, so I suppose this is unavoidable.” he taunted. As Jacque re-grabbed his knife, Espoir and Aria watched silently. They figured they’d be better off watching in case Jacque tried to run away again. The strange man had an air of confidence to him.

Jacque regarded Kieran for a moment. It''s unknown what he was thinking, he was likely weighing his options. He must've known that he had nowhere to run. As he sized up his opponent, Kieran kept a confident demeanor. “Don’t tell me you’re only strong enough to pick on prostitutes.” Kieran smirked. "Didn't get enough love from mom back home?"

Jacque The Slasher clutched his knife before charging at Kieran. As he feinted a punch with his other hand, his arm passed right through Kieran. Kieran's eyes widened. Now behind him, Jacque tried to backstab Kieran, but Kieran seemed to react swiftly. Before the knife could make contact, Kieran's body pivoted and grabbed the man's wrist instantly. Using his free hand, Kieran struck Jacque in the center of his chest before moving slightly to the left, delivering a powerful punch. Jacque was launched back toward the alley, dropping his knife in the process. Falling to the ground, Jacque the Slasher found himself unable to breathe. Clutching his chest in pain, a tightness welled within him as he felt a pain through his body. The serial killer's eyes were erratic as the pain intensified before everything went dark.

Clara ran over and pressed her lips against Kieran's. "You never told me you knew how to fight. I wonder how I should repay my hero..." Noticing where her hands were moving, Kieran coughed and pointed toward Espoir and Aria, who were both awkwardly looking away from the couple. Clara seemed to have forgotten they were there and quickly stopped. Kieran sighed and placed his arm around her hip. “So you two said you were chasing him, right?”

They nodded. Kieran sized them up for a moment before grabbing the now-dead man by the foot with his free hand. “I’m going to have to report this, or maybe I can get Raza to do his job for once. Anyway, since there's a bounty on his head, do you two want it?”

"Huh?” Their eyes widened at the offer. The bounty for catching The Slasher was five hundred Cial, more than enough to buy a decent plot of land and even a house. Why would he not want that kind of money?

Kieran noticed their confusion and offered a kind smile. “I get paid well for what I do. You two did all the work, so I'd hate to steal money,” he explained. “Considering those dogs at the station hate to see someone like me do their job, I think that’s a fair trade. Win-win for everyone, right?”

If he had no issues with it, then Espoir figured he’d accept. If nothing else, the money would be good to fund his travels across Albion for the next couple of months. “Sure. Can you send the reward to Roxy’s Bookshop on the corner of the old town?”

Kieran raised an eyebrow before sighing. “Sure thing, I’ll have it sent there, kid.” Espoir knew he added that last part intentionally but decided not to correct him since he was doing him a favor. Kieran recommended Espoir and Aria get off the street and maybe find themselves a 'nice room' since it was late. He even offered to pay for it but the duo declined. He gave a backhanded wave before dragging the corpse with him into the night.

As Kieran left, Espoir turned his attention to the knife. He could sense magic emanating from it. It pulsated with an aura; however, it wasn’t a grimoire but something else… Carefully grabbing the knife again, Espoir confirmed his suspicions. The Slasher hadn't been a grimoire user; rather, his knife somehow had an ability infused into it. While grimoires were made through an Eldritch, Espoir didn’t sense anything like that. Who made this knife? Espoir understood Jacque didn’t have any magic; rather, it was the knife's ability that let him go intangible, along with making him see those memories. That raised one final question: Did he kill because he enjoyed it, or was it the knife that made him kill? The only one who could answer that was now dead.

Meanwhile, Aria’s eyes narrowed at the stranger as he was leaving. The way he fights and uses magic... She felt herself stiffen as she realized who that man was. Don’t tell me he’s one of them!? The way he effortlessly killed The Slasher, combined with the way he carried himself. Aria realized he was a member of Albion’s Mage Corp. The same military branch responsible for destroying Easenna and killing her people.

Unknown to either of them, that night, Espoir and Aria had come face-to-face with one Albion's strongest mages.