I created my own system

{We should inform the Archduke.}n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Arabella's voice crackled through their communicator, bringing them back to the present.

"We will," Apollo replied, still distracted by the Artisan's final words. "But first, do you guys have any intel on the warehouse he mentioned?"

The map Apollo and Alicia had in hand showed several suspicious warehouses that were located on the city's outskirts, so they needed more information to narrow it down. One that could tell them the specific target of their mission.

{I think I know the one he's referring to,} McKenzie said. A map flashed on their communicator bracelets. {Start with this area. I'm pretty sure that's the place.}

"Thanks," Alicia said, glancing at Apollo, who seemed lost in thought.

"We need to move fast," Apollo said quietly, shaking off the lingering confusion. "If they've already created one vessel, there's no telling how soon they'll make their move."

Alicia nodded, her expression grim. "Let's hope we can stop them before it's too late."

As the sun slowly descended below the horizon, it began to cast long shadows across the bustling city streets, Apollo and Alicia who were being followed decided to make another appearance and change the path they were taking.

And so the two pretended to return to their inn and create doubles that would act as them. Then they create another identity that will help them blend in.

{Let will teleport the two of you, it's much that way since the city is being guarded by an artifact} Aarron suggested which the two did not decline.

"Do it" they said, with their approval golden shards of light began to dance until the space surrounding them bent and took them right near their supposed destination.

They arrived at the edge of the district, where old, some even decaying warehouses stood like they hadn't been used for a long time. The place was eerily quiet, with only the occasional rustling of loose tin roof and wind hasase noise you can hear. The duo then found a spot hidden from view and crouched low, surveying the area.

{Good luck!} Aaron said after the successful teleport, and after that Mckenzie took over the communicator.

{You two ready?} he asked.

"Yeah, which one was the one you referring to again" Apollo asked waiting for his friend to clarify the target. Jeremiah already scanned the area however due to the artifact the data was inaccurate.

{That one you see among the warehouses the least noticeable, the most plain and ordinary looking}

The two felt confused since all the warehouses were close to collapse. Then among the clutter of old storehouses, they noticed the least suspicious one, it wasn't eye-catching and seemed invincible instead. It was not too broken or too fixed.

"That one?" this time it was Alicia who asked.

{Yeah that's the one}

"Good then we will go now"

{Apollo}

Before the two could even leave their hiding place Alya suddenly called stopping them from walking.

"What is it, Alya"

{As soon as you enter be quiet and head down}

"Down?"

{Yeah, down, well I don't really know but I felt disgusted as soon as I saw the ground, so I thought there must be something on it. You know my instinct so go towards the path that can lead you down}

"Alright we will remember that"

Apollo and Alicia moved stealthily through the darkened warehouse district, even when there was no other presence they remained hidden.

"I've already sent a message to the Archduke," Apollo said quietly as they navigated the narrow alleys. "But we can't wait for reinforcements. Time isn't on our side."

They finally arrived at the side entrance of the warehouse. Alicia picked the lock in a matter of seconds, and they slipped inside. As soon as they entered, they were greeted by the cold, stale air of the dimly lit corridors. The building was filled with crates, some marked with Church symbols, others bearing strange runes they didn't recognize.

"They put an illusion spell on it so ordinary people will only recognize this as ordinary goods" the boy realized as he scan the area.

"Apollo look" Alicia called attracting the boy's attention.

There were no signs of people until their attention was called by a singular door among the objects they saw.

{I've confirmed multiple heat signatures inside,} Samael's voice crackled in their earpieces, giving warning to the people they should be wary of.

[They're guarding something important, but there's no sign of a god. Creator, there is something in there, lady Alya is right, something is happening below] Jeremiah finally spoke since it was finally able to scan the entire city despite the artifact's interference.

With no time to wait for reinforcements, they transform into a shadow, slipping right through the gap in the door. They had to handle this quickly and, more importantly, subtly. The last thing they needed was to tip off the Revolutionary Church about their involvement. So they plan to make the entire chaos look like an accident.

Apollo and Alicia pass the guards and head straight to the other room they saw. The duo then scanned the area, noting the security patterns and the equipment scattered around.

"They're definitely conducting some kind of experiment here," he muttered. "But we need to handle this quietly."

Alicia nodded in agreement, her ruby eyes scanning their surroundings. "If we make a scene, the Church will know we're onto them. We need to eliminate the vessel and the lab without leaving any traces."

They slipped further into the warehouse, passing guards unnoticed, the form they had taken made their move silent as they headed toward the heart of the building. As they neared the central chamber, the sound of low chanting reached their ears. They exchanged a glance—this was it. Another door was there and like the previous, they slipped in. As they entered a long stairs heading down welcomed them.

Without any hesitation the two head down despite the limited light on the stairs.

"Another door again" Apollo couldn't help but groan since the warehouse felt like a labyrinth instead.

"Let's just head inside" Alicia argued dragging the shadow Apollo with her.

Inside, a large room revealed a grim scene, a young boy, no older than Apollo, strapped to an altar, his body wrapped in glowing chains of energy. Around him, robed figures chanted, their voices rising and falling in a steady rhythm. At the center of the altar, ancient runes glow like subtly pulses of heartbeat, feeding power into the bound vessel.

Alicia's eyes narrowed. "That must be the vessel," she whispered. "We can't just barge in and take them out. It'll raise too many questions."

Apollo's mind raced. They needed to sabotage the operation without directly confronting the guards or leaving evidence of their presence.

"Jeremiah scanned the altar and all the magic being used here, give me something I can use to make this look like an accident," Apollo whispered. "There's a lot of unstable magic being used here. Can we overload the ritual, will it be capable of destroying everything without anyone suspecting foul play."

Jeremiah began analyzing and testing if his Creator's theory could actually work.

[I have scanned the runes and also the ancient way of their chanting. Creator if we slowly alter one of the runes on the alter we can create the overload you wanted. We could also interfere with the incantation resulting in the flow of mana going everywhere.

Should we proceed with that?]

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Apollo then nodded and relayed that information to his partner.

Alicia just nodded thoughtfully. "That was smart, If we break the right parts of the magic circle, the feedback could cause an explosion. It'll look like they made a mistake. No one will ever suspect us."

Apollo grinned while signalling Jeremiah to assist them. "Let's do it."

They moved closer to the ritual, staying hidden in their shadow form. Alicia focused her magic on the glowing runes that surrounded the vessel. She carefully probed the spell work according to Apollo's instructions, identifying the key points where the energy flow could be disrupted.

Her hands glowed faintly as she began to tamper with the delicate structure of the ritual, making subtle adjustments that wouldn't be noticed by the robed figures.

"It's almost ready," Alicia whispered after a few minutes.

"Once I destabilize the last rune, it'll take a few minutes for the energy to overload. We need to be out of here before that happens."

Apollo glanced around the room and approached one of the robe men. "Continue let me just ask this guy."

With a nod, Alicia made the final adjustment to the ritual. The energy in the room shifted, a faint hum growing louder as the magic began to destabilize. The robed figures continued chanting, oblivious to the danger they were in.

Apollo moved quickly, utilizing the power of Mystics and space to isolate his target. After the two authorities have been established, Apollo immediately transforms into a human.

"Hey," he called out softly, his voice calm and non-threatening.

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