Sous

Hacate was a bright young witch, innovative and a free thinker. She eas constantly studying, reading, and interacting with people to try and become better at her craft. What that craft was, she didn't know. What she did know was she wanted to learn all that she could from various species. It was hard though since the species lived amongst their own with no real desire to venture out. But there were things she wanted to learn that witches and wizards weren't the best at such as alchemy. She knew the vampires excelled in alchemy. Technology she knew the elves excelled at. Pixies and fairies excelled at transportation and sealing. The list was endless to her.

Hacate entered into the kitchen of her home and slammed a book on the kitchen table. Her mother looked at her while preparing a meal. She had to stop herself from rolling her eyes, knowing her daughter brought the book forth to mention something. She also didn't want to deter her daughter from learning and wanted to act as if she found interest in it to keep her daughter motivated.

The small town they lived in was lower class, there wasn't a lot of opportunities for the people who lived there. She wanted her daughter to get a good education to branch out but the schools they went to were often combined with humans and since humans couldn't do magic but excelled in technology, many of the witches and wizards felt stunted.

"Yes, Hacate."

"You know what I want to do?" The eleven year old asked.

"To be teacher." Her mother answered.

"Yes, but I also want to build a school. The best magic school in all of Nadia."

Her mother raised an eyebrow.

"It will have professors from all walks of life like vampires, wolves, and stuff! We'll be able to learn from one another."

The mother wiped her hands on her apron. She looked outside feeling the the chill of the air.

"I believe you can do it, Hacate."

"Really?" Her daughter asked.

She walked over to her daughter, giving her a kiss on the cheek. "Of course, now go get your little booty outside and get some wood before the snow sets in."

At the age of sixteen, Hacate recieved a permit on vacant land in which she could use to build the school. Using a construction spell, she built the school Hacate the stone, gravel, and dirt it was birthed from.

She wanted the school to be huge! But opted for it to be small with twelve classrooms to represent the twelve houses she created based on values and morals. She then created four departments representing the four natural elements: earth, air, fire, water. Now she needed professors, ideally twelve but the chances of that were slim since Hacate was a nobody, with nothing to her name. Still at the age of seventeen, she made a pilgrimage to various corners of Nadia and Canas to try and find the best professors. It was a long shot but she went to Red Woods. There was said to be a werewolf pack that was known for their abilities within agility and sparring. It was said although the pack was small, they were strong.

Red Woods Springs was growing on the human end and they seemed to have formed an economic partnership with the humans revolving around deer meat.

Humans didn't seem to care too much for her being a witch, like they had some sort of hang up so she managed to get into the werewolf side by simply crossing the train tracks.

"Hmm, the map said this was a vampire community but I don't...I don't really see any." The town across the train tracks from the humans seemed completely abandoned. There was a map she had and the map pointed out that Red Woods was home to humans, wolves, vampires, and elves. The train tracks had a community of vampires and just above was the werewolf colony she was headed to. The elves was said to be east of the wolves. Maybe she'll go check that area out later.

She walked into town to be greeted wearily by the werewolves. Her reception to the pack was worst than when she interacted with the humans. Hacate got the nasty feeling that they looked down on her.

With no help from the locals, she managed to walk up the steps to the city hall. She picked up her robe as she did so making sure to not trip.

The receptionist looked at her from writing down notes. "You're the witch wanting to speak to the Alpha?"

Hacate was stunned she was referred by her species versus her name. She tilted her head, unsure how she wanted to retort back.

"Hacate, my name is Hacate and yes, I'm here to see the Alpha."

"Please wait right here."

They had Hacate waiting for more than forty minutes. Forty minutes surpassing the time she was actually scheduled to see the Alpha. She was certain the wolves looked down on her. This wasn't what she wanted. She didn't want to hire a professor from a pack that believed themselves to be superior than the other species.

With her head held high, she started to exit from the waiting room until the Alpha appeared.

"You may step into my office."

"Maybe the map hasn't been updated but the vampire town by the track lacks...vampires."

"There no vampires here," the Alpha said, adjusting his tie. "Same for the elves."

Hacate studied this man. With her experience and her education, even if most was self taught, she was able to conclude the pack either ran the vampires and elves off or killed them while the humans looked on else where.

"I apologize for the inconvenience. I believe this meeting won't be of any benefit to your pack."

The Alpha looked the witch up and down, providing a smirk that seemed condescending. "From the letter you sent, I agree with. Here at Apex, we haven't any desire to intermingle with other species. And we highly look down on our members who do." Hacate nodded her head. "Surely, you can see yourself out."

Hacate nodded her head once more; whence she stepped outside of the city hall, she lifted her wand into the air for a quick transportation spell. There was nothing else to see here in Red Woods. The vampires and elves were dead or chased away while the humans looked the other way. This wasn't what she wanted for her school.

At the age of twenty-one, Hacate was a school that had seven professors and about two hundred children. It was a school that prided itself in accepting those of all species to create community. Year by year, more and more students were enrolling and more and more professors applied for positions. By the time she was twenty-four, more space had to be added on, and boarding rooms were even added for students who came from far and wide of Nadia. Wolves were even present at this school which she was completely happy by although she did noticed the vampires and wolves tended to not get along so well. She also noticed the same thing of the fairies and pixies. Something that lagged on her mind though was the influence of Apex. Some teachers said there was nothing to worry about, that Apex was an entire country away. There was no way they could have any influence in Nadia. But as Hacate became older and wiser, and dabbled in more areas of magic such as prophecies, making her an oracle by the time she was twenty-seven. Although she told no one, she had a prophecy that Apex would reach their boarders and would reach their wolf students causing conflict and division, and death.

At the age of forty, a young vampire showed up on campus at night. Most vampires chose to work during the night since there were spells and potions that easily allowed them to interact in the day. Still, a young vampire approached Hacate saying he wanted to teach alchemy.

"Hmm," she nearly laughed. "You're no more than thirteen. What is your name?"

"Clarence. The heir to the patriarch's throne."

"That means you will live centuries if you are to be patriach."

"That is correct," Clarence said.

She looked at this boy not ignorant to the politics of vampires. "If you're the heir to the patriach, how old are you really?"

"1300."

"And when do you plan to make your age consistent and steady?"

"An oracle told me I'm to meet a man."

"What man?" Hacate asked.

"I do not know his name. He is part vampire and wolf. We are to be friends, she said."

"I see."

By the time Hacate was 50, Clarence had proven himself to an important ally and friend. She never desired love or romance, and she saw the students of the school as her children as the first headmistress but Clarence probably was her first best friend.

His knowledge surrounding alchemy was a thing to be admired and taught her tremendously when it came to potions, but what was most rewarding for Hacate and Clarence was when they discovered consumption. A form of cannibalism. When one consumes the body of another to obtain their power. It was at this time there wasn't a word for dark arts or black magic, everything was just magic. Hacate was naive whereas Clarence was not. Whereas Hacate saw the good in everyone until proven otherwise, Clarence saw the bad in everyone until proven otherwise.

They argued. Hacate wanted to share this new discovery with the magae world. Clarence on the other hand, argue it would lead to exploitation and greed.

They had both gone to bed that night to their own chambers. Clarence knew Hacate would teach the potion to her students and Hacate knew that Clarence knew she would.