Machina Arcanis: Two Worlds Collided-Chapter 244. Scribes of Noctua

244. Scribes of Noctua

A short elven man appeared in the doorway, wearing a poncho similar to the scribes and scholars. His, however, was elevated by the distinct embroidery of an owl feather — black and white in a stunning pattern.

He had long, sleek, dark hair braided into a low tail and bright blue eyes. His most notable feature, however, was his pointed ears — they were more horizontal and wider than any elf Zetius had ever met.

“Excuse me, scholars,” the elf said firmly. “If you’re interested in the topic, I’d recommend you go inside rather than loiter at the entrance.” His voice ended with a distinct rattle.

Zetius scowled. The elf’s stare was even more insulting, peering up from a lowered chin as if they were slow-witted children. 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

“Oh…” Zetius stepped out of the way.

The elf shook his head before stepping in.

Without any other choice, they decided to seat themselves close to the entrance, while the prideful elf sat in the exact middle section of the audience, like he was a big shot.

Zetius mulled over the interaction. If the elf had looked at Cubie like that, he would understand. But he had been lumped into the band of low intellect, and that stung his pride.

After a while, Cartier wrapped up her presentation, leading to the discussion section.

She started with, “Then where did the gods seal the mad titan Cronos? Let us discuss that.”

The scholars murmured among themselves, their interest keen.

That’s an amazing question. Zetius nodded along vigorously. He turned to gauge the crowd's reaction, and the short elf also nodded with satisfaction.

“What an excellent question! One that not only implies a challenge to our understanding of history, but also has the possibility to be applicable to our current predicament.”

The wide-eared elf spoke up, his tone commanding, one that sent the room into silence.

“O’, I welcome you, Master Scribe Maldiv of the Scribes of Noctua, himself.” Cartier bowed with grace, her head dipped low with humility. “Although I feel as though I’m a mere scribe, who enjoys the search for knowledge.”

Zetius raised his brow. Eh? She can be over-the-top demure, too? I guess Miss Mirai’s etiquette training is bearing fruit.

“Not at all. It’s the challenging line of thinking I would have expected from a rising scribe such as yourself, Cartier Di Joy,” Maldiv said, clasping his hands on the table.

“If I may!” The chubby lady raised her hand. “How about the underworld? Tartarus?”

“Quite a fitting place for the prison of the mad titan!” Cartier remarked.

Another man rose, his chest perked up with pride, his chin flying high. “I suspect it could be anywhere in the underworld, not necessarily Tartarus.”

“That would be unlikely,” Maldiv interjected calmly. “The underworld is a massive plane of the dead. Tartarus is a part of that plane, but it also includes other realms, such as Elysium. My dear Cartier, would you mind explaining why?”

Cartier smiled. “With pleasure, Master Scribe. The possibility of Cronos being sealed in any underworld is just astronomically low. The divinities' resting place and the so-called heaven of heroes' souls shall not be shared or polluted by the prison of the mad titan.”

The room filled with waves of mumbling as the scholars discussed with one another. Even a man next to Zetius began a heated debate with his friend.

“And I thought they were friends. Now they’re not even agreeing on one thing,” Zetius muttered, wiggling his nose. He then realised Triss was resting her chin on the back of her hand, staring at him. She chuckled at his reaction, which caused him to fluster slightly.

“To add, we understand the divinities often held high regard for their tradition. Ancient texts and records have proven this time and time again,” Maldiv concluded firmly.

“What about in the ocean?! The domain of Poseidon!” Another scribe proposed, her tone reluctant.

Maldiv glanced at her with his low gaze, clearly displeased with the ill-prepared answer.

“I mean… The crushing weight of the sea could provide the sealing…” she rambled on.

“That doesn’t make much sense to me.” Zetius scowled, crossing his arms. Triss just poked fun at him, as he seemed immersed in the discussion as if he were one of the scholars himself.

“That would also be a low chance for the prison to be at the depth of the trench. Don’t tell me you think Atlantis can house the mad titan? The one who felled Zeus himself?” Maldiv chuckled, shaking his head with amusement.

“But…” The female scribe fell back to her seat.

“The Mariana Trench is the deepest part of the ocean,” Cartier added, flipping through her notes with her arc ring. “It’s just a mere eleven kilometres to the surface. If the prison were located on Earth, it’d be almost too easy for, let’s say, a Celestius mage to attempt the unshackling. That would prove to be quite a high risk for our reality.”

“Let me try, let me try!” Another dog Wildren stood up and cleared his throat, his tail wagging with excitement.

“Please.” Cartier gestured for him to speak.

“The Dreamless Realm!” he blurted.

Maldiv’s eyes widened with surprise, his calm demeanour shattering momentarily. Then the Master Scribe rubbed his chin in deep contemplation. It earned the dog Wildren scribe great joy for the Master to think so deeply about it.

“That’s a medium possibility!” Cartier exclaimed, her eyes sparkling. “As I mentioned here. We have solid evidence from the man who journeyed through the Dreamless and even met with the titanesses, Moirai!”

With professionalism, she pointed her four fingers at Zetius, and all eyes glanced over.

“She’s onto us!” Cubie disappeared into Zetius’s sternum, leaving him alone and exposed.

Zetius humbly stood up, adjusting his arc coat. “That claim is true. The Celestius mage of Pisces, Elenore Blair Veyne, could also act as a double witness and support my claim. The possibility of titans dwelling inside the Dreamless Realm is not just probable, it’s a proven fact.”

“Thanks, Zetius!” Cartier beamed.

Should have given me a prompt before the conference. Zetius blew air out of his mouth in relief. He felt the heat from the glaring eyes alone. So much for public speaking.

“Quick thinking!” Triss balled his shoulder in glee. She was having far too much fun with this.

“Hmm… A word from the Champion of Gaia himself.” Maldiv closed his eyes.

The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Wait… So he knew who I was and still treated me like a slow-witted child? Zetius’s eye throbbed with irritation.

“The Dreamless Realm is an entropy plane. Chaos and uncertainty would likely be introduced, which makes the realm ill-fitted for a prison. However, I do feel like a higher power might be able to navigate this realm better than us,” Maldiv rumbled on, his smile never fading.

“May I propose if I can have an audience with Celestius Nyrethein, the grand master of the Dreamless Realm? I believe she might be able to shed light on this theory?” Cartier raised her hand while her right hand scribbled the discussions frantically.

“Of course!” Maldiv exclaimed. “I’m thinking the same exact thing. You seem to be reading my mind, Cartier.”

“I appreciate your kind words, Master Scribe,” Cartier said, touching her sternum.

“My immediate concern is not her expertise, it's her…” He glanced around nervously before wiping sweat from his forehead. “Eagerness to cooperate with our organisation.”

“But sir, we won’t know unless we try. You have taught us that,” the dog Wildren chimed in, seeing his theory getting pushed.

“Very well. It seems to be quite an unexpectedly healthy discussion, more so than I initially thought,” Maldiv admitted, shifting in his seat as though it was over.

But then it was Cartier’s turn to raise her hand, causing him to pause.

“Cartier? You have a theory of your own?” Maldiv asked, surprised.

“Yes, sir,” Cartier spoke firmly and stepped forward.

“No kidding. What’s she been cooking up?” Zetius muttered under his breath. “And when?”

“You merely see the surface, Zetius. While you’re practising late at night, our Little Cartier has been working on this in her own free time!” Triss revealed, giggling.

Maldiv remained seated, crossed his legs, and opened a note of his own for the first time. “Please, pray tell.”

“Right away,” Cartier said, fidgeting with her ring. The light in the room dimmed, and a massive hologram of the fractured moon beamed up in front of her.

The image prompted a loud, collective gasp from every scribe in the room.

“Hahahahahahaha!” Maldiv cracked up, clapping his hands. “That’s astronomically absurd, but I’d love to hear it nonetheless.”

“Firstly, on 16 September 2538 CE, the cosmic-scale spell, Phos Timorias, or the Light of Punishment, was unleashed upon the skies of Germund. It caused massive casualties on both sides of the war.”

Cartier paused dramatically, letting the people absorb the information. The room shifted, becoming quiet and sombre with the remembrance of grief.

Zetius cupped his mouth. “That’s when it all began…”

Seeing his stiffened posture, Triss gently brushed her hand on his shoulder, to which he returned with a thankful nod.

“However, it also shattered Luna base… coincidentally?” Cartier squinted her eyes and swept them around the room.

Soon, the low mumbling returned as the scholars started their speculation and shared their ideas.

“Hmm… I’m not one hundred per cent convinced. However, the timeframe of every major event that followed does support this claim. To which, leading up to the sixth apocalypse." Maldiv’s eyes sparked, and he quickly gestured for her to continue, unable to mask his excitement.

“The highest piece of intel was that the rogue Celestius Ignius Lux Draconus had previously posted himself as the trusted adviser of the former empress Nohrell Voss Fenrith of Dunkelheit, using the essence of Phantasma...”

“The illusion magic…” Zetius muttered bitterly. He knew his master’s essence well; he had even seen it in action when he was young.

He found his rage bubbling up despite his attempt to hide it.

“Then, it could have been a top-level orchestration by the rogue Celestius all this time,” Maldiv concluded, pinching his chin.

“Masked as the great war, only to be the destruction of Cronos’s imprisonment... and set the sixth apocalypse into play,” Cartier said, her hands shaking.

It was a leap of faith for her and everyone in this room. Clearly, she didn’t have all the information, but if she managed to get the Owls to invest their resources into her theory, maybe they would discover the truth.

Another scribe raised his hand. “I’d like to object!”

Cartier winced, her tail pointing to the ground. “Pl~please state your reasoning,” she stammered.

“As a resident of Germund, I find that claim to be highly offensive! What is the probability of striking the moon from Earth? Could it not just be a coincidence? Have you performed any sort of calculation on the trajectory?” the man challenged relentlessly, his teeth bared.

“Calm down, Sam. This has nothing to do with geopolitics.” Maldiv waved him down. “Very well, Cartier. I do hope you have an answer for that.”

“I myself wouldn’t be able to perform such a complex calculation…” Her voice shrank, her legs visibly trembling.

“Then I refuse to believe that lousy hypothesis,” Sam grumbled, crossing his arms defensively.

That’s bad… Stay strong, Cartier, Zetius thought, biting his lip. Triss cupped her mouth, flabbergasted.

“If I may, everyone…” Cartier raised her hand before they could all completely dismiss her. “I’d like to invite someone who has expertise in arithmetical calculus and a high-level understanding of celestial mechanics. Please hear him out... the Master Architect—”

“—Lunarius Canis Wolfgang!” Cartier gestured to the entrance.

Zetius’s jaw dropped. He just hadn't expected the two-metre-tall Canis in his wolf form, dressed in a full philosopher's robe from head to toe.

“Hello, every-Owl! Or should I say, the Noctuan Scribes?” The big wolf stepped into the room with a casual smile and waved. His very presence immediately lifted the suspense and dispersed the tension in the air.

“We welcome you wholeheartedly,” Maldiv said, touching his chest in a respectful gesture.

“The Master Scribe Maldiv himself?! I’m in luck!” Canis exclaimed, clapping his large paws together loudly. The room chuckled. “And I see a few of my friends here as well,” he spoke, before turning to wink charmingly at Zetius and Triss.

“May I take the stage, Cartier?” Canis asked.

“By all means.” She stepped away.

As he reached the podium, he flicked his ring a few times. The whole calculation beamed up into the room. Equations, calculations, and simulations floated in the air, filling the entire building with blue complex symbols.

“Oop! Spare me a bit, I’m a bit old-tech, you see,” Canis said sheepishly. Another round of giggles followed.

Eventually, the complex calculations disappeared, leaving a simple projection of the Light of Punishment's trajectory to the moon.

“Very well. Cartier reached out to me two weeks prior to support her with this... absurd theory,” he said, exchanging a big grin with Cartier beside him. “I’ve performed multiple simulations, as you saw earlier. Long story short, the possibility of the Light of Punishment misfiring and hitting the moon was well below five per cent.”

“Which means the chance of intentionally destroying the moon is more than ninety-five per cent,” Maldiv said, deep in thought.

“But—” Sam rose to his feet, stubborn. “Have you considered all the variables? What about the effect of the gravitational force from a colossal body? Surely it would draw the Light of Punishment toward it. That would skew your calculation, no?”

“Sam, I can assure you that assumption was considered in the simulation. As you can see here, we did see a slight effect on its trajectory.”

Canis spoke gently, his eyes locked onto Sam’s. “I understand. Being a citizen of Germund myself, I find it hard to believe that our people were the sacrificial piece for the sixth apocalypse. But reality is often grim and cruel. It’s a bitter herb to swallow.”

Sam struggled to find words and fell into his seat, defeated.

“Excellent! This is such a monumental discovery, Cartier.” Maldiv clapped his hands loudly. “And thank you for your assistance, Sir Lunarius!”

“More than happy, Master Scribe!” Canis smiled with his full fangs.

The room suddenly erupted into loud applause, more like sports cheering than a scholar meet-up.

Zetius, Triss, and Cubie followed suit, smiling at the two presenters. Cartier bowed at the waist multiple times in humility.

“Trust, yet verify!” the scholars chanted in unison, before filing orderly out of the chamber.

Once everyone had left — except for Cartier’s close circle — Zetius, Cubie, and Triss rejoined her at the podium with big smiles.

“Zetius!” Cartier lunged to hug him, her hands still trembling, but her tail wiggled with victory.

They parted briefly. “That was fantastic work, Cartier. You handled the pressure very well. You had me worried in the first half,” he praised. The girl beamed widely.

“You like my theory?” she asked, searching his dazzling red eyes.

“I love it! I just never thought it was the moon all along. It makes so much sense now,” Zetius replied between chuckling.

Cartier raised her finger, closing one eye. “Trust, yet verify! We don’t know until we test it out somehow!”

“Can I get a hug too?” Triss said. The girls wrapped themselves tightly, rocking with joy.

“Lunarius Canis!” Zetius turned to exchange a warm hug with the big wolf.

“Zetius! You look great, my friend,” Canis chuckled.

“Sir Canis, look!” Cubie shape-shifted into a female humanoid form.

Canis's big jaw dropped; she just blew his mind. His priceless reaction sent their shared laughter echoing through the air.

“Well,” Canis said, finally closing his jaw, “after a monumental discovery like that, I believe a celebration is in order. My treat. Who wants ice cream?”