The caravan marched on until the sun began to set, with only a small break to pass around some rations for lunch. In the meantime, Amy managed to get to know the family she chose to ride with. Where they lived couldn't be reached by train and they seemed to be further out in the outskirts than Pryston. They had just finished a trip to the city, wanting to show their daughter around the capital for a couple of days. And her opinion on it was quite vocal.

"I hated it," The young girl would frown exaggeratedly, crossing her arms. "So smelly."

Amy couldn't help but agree. In the end, they chose to camp together when night fell, helping them with setting up their own things and staying with them until late. Her own tent was a small cheap thing bought just before heading out on the road. Taller than it was wide, it only had enough room for her and her cat, nothing else. However, just before she went off to sleep, and also while waiting for Felin to return from his incursions, Amy decided to walk over to the Mage encampment.

Since the sun was long past the horizon, the night was too gloomy for most to be comfortable staying out in, there weren't many people out to see here shuffle over to the other end of the camp. Only one person watched her curiously as she approached, leaning back against a boulder half-asleep.

"Hello... Damien," Amy greeted somewhat awkwardly, unsure if she should even speak at all.

"What brings you here then, Amy?" Damien asked, his eyes staring into the campfire, still in a stupor.

"Thought I'd try and get to know some of you better, but it seems they're all mostly asleep."

"They shuffled off quickly. I don't know what the association pair was doing but they seemed to be tired after being so busy."

"Busy?" Amy creased her brows, taking a seat on a makeshift chair beside him. "They didn't seem that way to me."

"They found a blockage on the road ahead in the afternoon and told the caravan master about it," He said. "In the end, rather than risking banditry or delays, they took a side road and Grey was forced to be on guard for the rest of the day. We're far ahead of that now but Crawford seems on edge."

"Crawford? Oh, the caravan master," Amy muttered to herself, having forgotten his name.

"What brings you to this side of the Empire then? If you don't mind me asking."

"No, not at all," She smiled, joining him in looking at the fire's dancing flames. "I've been away for a long while and thought it's finally time to come home."

"You have family in Pryston then?"

"Oh yes, it's where we've lived since before my grandparents were born. I was only away for so long because of a contract."

"Hmm..." Damien hummed for a moment, his head turning towards her slowly. "You were in government Schooling, correct?"

"Yes, how'd you know?"

"Clark was talking with Grey perhaps a bit too loudly," He snorted, shaking his head. "She seemed quite jealous of you. Something about your advancement being faster than hers."

"Jealous? Of me?" Amy laughed in disbelief.

"You know how it is with these association Mages. Always politicking and worrying about power, even among friends, if you can call what they have 'friendships'."

"I suppose..." Amy trailed off. "Why is someone like you coming through Pryston then?"

"Someone like me?" Damien smirked at her teasingly "Why, you make me sound like a miscreant."

"No, no, nothing like that," She was quick to deny, waving her hands about. "I mean that... someone who's a part of a School like the Devouring Maw. I could never even imagine anything like that."

"It's not all sunshine and rainbows, if that's what you're asking," Damien narrowed his eyes, almost imperceptibly. "I'm... on a bit of a sabbatical, if you can call it that. Not really one of my own choice, but I can't talk about it too much. School secrets, you know?"

"I understand," She nodded. As she was about to ask another question, she hesitated and he piped up in her stead.

"I can guess what you're thinking. Probably about to ask if the rumours are true, right?"

"I mean... Maybe not like that, but yes," Amy admitted, blushing slightly.

"I guess it's time for the same spiel I always do then," Damien sighed, turning his entire body to face her properly. "The Devouring Maw is not an 'evil' School no matter what the Holy See may say or encourage about us. Our methods used to be rather extreme and especially bad during the Mage Wars, but things have calmed down a lot since then. Nowadays, we're simply an ordinary School like any other. Even the Holy See is just a School, no matter how hard they try to be otherwise."

"What about the torture chambers then? They surely have to be real, right?" She smiled, raising an eyebrow.

"You've got me!" He leant back, putting his hands up in the air. "The Devouring Maw definitely has secret chambers under every branch specifically for the torturing of innocents. I don't even know where that rumour came from anyway."

"Probably just paranoia. You've got this ominous group of bad people who don't seem to be above some rather... distasteful things, so it isn't too much of a reach to assume they might be doing even worse things behind closed doors."

"That's the thing, the Devouring Maw didn't do anything worse than what other Schools were doing in the Wars. They've suppressed it mighty well, but some of the stories I hear about the Holy See back in those days... They weren't any prettier than us."

"Oh I know," Amy said, much to Damien's surprise. "I'm not that ignorant. You just... hear some things, that's all."

Neither of the two Mages spoke after that, letting a small silence reign amongst them for a comforting amount of time. The Devouring Maw was a School established far in the past, rumoured to be even older than the Holy See which arrived from beyond the plane. Unfortunately for the School, its magic and Spell were of the darker variety, and not just in Element. Forged in lawless days, their methods and practices are seen as somewhat barbaric in modern times, especially if the talk about what they put their Apprentices through are to be believed. These so-called Initiates are hardly ever seen outside their many institutions across the globe and if they are, then they have been outcast. These outcasts would tell horror stories of the terrible treatments they had to endure, all in service of their great School. Even the Magicks of what the School practiced were kept under wraps, the only things these Initiates were allowed to use were basic Dark Spells. For Damien to be a Disciple, he seemingly had to endure living Hell, and now he was an apparent Density Mage, by his own description. I wonder if that's one of the paths the School offers. I haven't heard much about them though, so I doubt I can just ask the guy about it; School secrets and all that. Still, he seems alright to me. A bit scary sometimes but... not at all living up to the rumours.

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Amy shifted in her seat, letting herself relax a bit, feeling comfortable now she had gotten to know the frightening Disciple a bit better. Merely enjoying the dark night, they looked into the dying campfire, its fires flickering and almost extinguished. Just as it let out its last sputters of life, Amy got up impatiently and walked over to tend to it. A small ball of fire conjured itself in her hands, not even a Spell but a Cantrip, and breathed heat back into the blackened wood. Soon enough, the flames roared up, beginning their short lives over again. Damien studied her curiously as she walked back to her side, scrutinising her enough to be impolite.

"What is it?" Amy finally said, looking at him with annoyance.

"I'm just surprised, that's all."

"About what?" Amy frowned, almost thinking he was making fun of her.

"You're... rather strong for an Apprentice. Especially one from government Schooling," He made a face, thought it didn't seem to be directed at her.

"I've... made the best of my own situation. I'm grateful for what the Empire taught me but..." Amy let the sentence go, looking pointedly over at the pair of tents where the assumed the association Mages were sleeping. Whispering, she grimaced, "It simply isn't enough."

"You seem to have done well for yourself though."

"If it wasn't for... If it wasn't for someone telling me about Mage Tiers, I would've still been a Mageling, dreaming about Tier 3 and 4, none the wiser about how people actually managed to cast at that level. I have to ask, are Mage Tiers really that much of a secret? Would teaching them to people like me really do any harm?"

Damien deliberated for a few seconds, choosing his next words carefully as he joined her in gazing at the same two tents. "I am but a Journeyman, however... I don't believe it would do harm, no. I merely believe that there are some old fools in power, too set in their ways to see their own mistakes. And this is one of them. Did you know that the Empire is one of if not the only country in the world to not teach Mage Tiers to everyone? It's seen as that much of a fundamental part of being a Mage that some cannot imagine not knowing what it is. And yet, people like you, wander around without having a clue of how magical society actually works. And, sadly, this practice does produce, on paper, good results."

"How? I sort of get the principle behind the whole thing but how could it possibly do that?"

"Going by the statistics I've seen, the Empire has the most powerful Spellcasters on the continent. And yet, they are also quite lacking in Mages at high Tiers. In the eyes of those in power, this is a success; they have a strong yet controllable populace and they can stay in power without contest. In the eyes of others? It makes them paradoxically weak and strong."

"What do you mean?"

"If we take a country with a world-average number of Archmages and Monarchs, around one hundred in total, then that is higher than how many currently reside in the Empire. Archmages and Monarchs may certainly pass through here, likely on work from their own Schools or institutions, but they aren't nationals. To the rulers of this hypothetical average Empire, that makes them easy to subdue... on paper. Because wars are not won with Monarchs and Archmages. They are won by Journeymen and Apprentices, which the Empire has in droves. And, to add insult to injury, most of these Journeymen and Apprentices aren't actually at that Tier. However, they can cast in it and that's all that matters when it comes to war.

"Now, I know it may seem like I'm praising it, but this strategy of the Empire has its holes. Its armies are more susceptible to higher Tier Spells due to lower Mage Tiers and if the rulership is every defeated then the populace is fucked, but the Empire has a key advantage beyond that all. Soft power. The Empire is home to the most powerful Monarch in the world, and as such, is host to the council when they meet."

"Council?" Amy blurted, recognising the word.

"Think of it as a global group of all the Monarchs in the world. They meet every now and again to discuss important issues and things to look into. My Master once attended a meeting as an aide and it was apparently pretty boring. Just bureaucracy."

"I see," She murmured, trying not to let her panic show too much. Trying to put her mind at ease, she moved on, shifting the topic of conversation back on track. "Does your School agree with the Empire's tactics then? I can see that you're in disapproval, but..."

"I cannot speak about my entire School of course, but from the occasional higher-ups I've talked to, and when the topic was mentioned, it seems to be met with... disdain. To keep people like you unaware of the true path of magic itself is... revolting, to say the least."

"...At least I'm not alone on that," Amy smiled warmly at him, though her mind still lingered on the Empire and its Mages. Specifically, the association. "By the way, were you approached by Grey and Clark at all today?"

"About what?" Damien cocked his head to the side, leaning in slightly.

"They... Well, I don't know any better way to put it," Amy frowned, leaning in to him and keeping her voice quiet. "They tried to make me wary of Gadrun and Zachrem. As if... they were expecting a confrontation between them and wanted me on their own side."

"Interesting," Damien said, looking at those same tents out the corners of his eyes. "I can't say they have, which makes sense in my case."

"Why's that?"

"I'm working with them," Damien grinned. "Or rather, a better way to put it, my School is working with them. I'm merely here to help them with their work."

"Their... work?" Amy asked, suddenly anxious that she'd spoken to the wrong person. He's been pretty nice the entire time but what if he thinks I'm against them?

"Nothing dangerous if that's what you're asking. They're... I can't say much as it's not business to disclose, but think of it like surveying. If they want and you ask they can tell you more than that, but it's definitely for your own safety, not your detriment. Those association Mages should know that unless..."

"Unless they want to disrupt it?"

"Yes, which doesn't make much sense. This is a... No, I can't say. Just know that they, especially Grey, should know better than to try this."

"I see."

"Anyway, it's probably time for me to head to bed. It's getting late so I reckon Gadrun shouldn't be too mad at me switching over the watch now."

"You're keeping watch together?" Amy asked as she got up, wiping some dirt off her skirt.

"We decided it to be the best course of action. Those association Mages declined to help with it. You can imagine how Gadrun felt about that."

"I definitely can," She chuckled. "Good night, Damien. Have a good rest."

"You too Amy, you too."

* * *

Wrapped up tight in her sleeping bag, Amy stayed awake for another hour or so before going to sleep, both ruminating over what she had heard earlier and waiting for someone. That same individual soon pranced through the flaps of her tent, making his entrance very clear.

"Oh Amy, I hate it here already," Felin moaned, pacing around her head.

"Don't be too loud about it, you don't want to be caught already," Amy reprimanded, although with how sleepy she was it didn't come out as harsh as she intended. "Did you at least find anything or did you spend the entire hunting for mice?"

"Of course not, and how dare you suggest I'd hunt only mice. I can manage deer in my current form," He replied smugly. "Well, I can't say I've gathered much, but there is something of interest with the two Journeyman Grey said to be careful of."

"There is?" Amy sat up slightly, getting a better look at her Familiar who was now sitting beside her.

"They seem to be transporting some device with them. It looks like some magical instrument, but not one I had seen used back in my day."

"Damien, the Disciple of the Devouring Maw, said that he was working with Gadrun on some... surveying project, I think he said."

"Very interesting," Felin smirked. "Now why on Ryuen would foreigners be looking to survey the Empire's own grounds?"

"Very interesting indeed."

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