Chapter 36: Catastrophe of Ballroom 3

" Ladies and gentlemen please welcome the host of todays ballroom, The fourth prince of Tamriel, Aegnor Von Silverstar. "

Right at eight in the evening when the bell rang, The announcer announced while prompting everyone in the hall to look in the direction of the entrance. Through the entrance stepped in a figure of a young Elf who was around the age of thirteen carrying a regal aura to him. He had Silver hair and Golden eyes that carried a hint of innocence of the youth to them. And the Silver suit he was wearing matched perfectly with his choice of jewelleries giving him an aura of a true royalty. Around him stood five towering figures of Elven guards clad in silver armor readied to draw their blades at the moment of danger.

With each step he took on the red carpet that led to the Podium, Lights around the hall started to shine brightly revealing the true beauty of the ballroom. The whole hall was painted in a rich golden color that gave it a beauty that screamed Elegant. The floor was Build with shining wood that portrayed the reflection of ones standing on it.

" Good Evening to everyone present here in the Ballroom today. I thank all of you for being here on this memorable ceremony. Not everyday do we see cadets of different prestigious academies in one room sharing the same drink and wearing same colored dresses as everyone, Except for one I see. "After getting to the podium, the young prince said addressing everyone while briefly looking at Avion, who wasn't even paying attention while sitting on a bench in the garden as the prince said the last part.

Soon the prince called over the Lucas' group who handed over the artifacts, to present them with Medals of Loyalty as a sign of gratitude for their good deeds. It lasted only for five minutes as the prince addressed every one once again and said,

" The main reason why I gathered all of you here today is to deepen our bond with each others, It's been almost seven centuries since we've become allies and I hope all of us will be able live like allies for many years to come just like our ancestors before us. That's all for now, Then let the ceremony commence. "

Just as those words left from the young prince mouth, the orchestra started to perform their melodies and soon the whole hall was filled with Soft Elegant music which prompted some cadets who were brave enough, to ask the opposite party for a dance.

After five minutes into the ceremony, There could be seen Elves and Humans in their teens clad in white outfits, dancing in circles elegantly on the Glossy wooden floor like a herd of swans swimming in clear water.

Soon more and more teens decided to join the fray, while some decided to make connections with the elves and humans while sharing drinks. Lucas' group was amongst them as they decided to share a drink with Russell and some of the elves in his group. On the other hand Zeref decided to spend his time alone in the corner of the hall while sipping on his drink.

While all of this was happening, Avion decided to enjoy the little time he had before the massacre happened while enjoying the scenery of the garden. There was only five minutes left and the first ones to get attacked will be the nobles who were invited to oversee the ballroom.

For Avion every second that passed felt like an eternity and soon what he was expecting happened. A womens scream reverberated across the ballroom and the whole hall began to get covered in ominous red smoke rapidly. The Elven guards who were there to protect the prince drew their blades and started to look for the exit but was surprised to see a mana barrier that was trapping everyone around the huge hall.

" Quick, Protect the Prince! Their is a barrier around, So we can't leave until we break the barrier or kill the caster. " One of the guards said while pointing the sword in his hands towards the barrier in front.

" But how is that po- " Just as one of the guards was about to ask a question, a blood curdling scream was heard from a woman that sent shock waves across the hall while grabbing the full attention of everyone present.

Slowly the people who were exposed to the red smoke started to loose the sensation of their bodies as they fell to the ground with loud thuds, only the muffled screams left their mouths as they tried to warn others and ask for help. The nobles were the first ones to get paralyzed as their muffled screams filled the hall.

And slowly the blurry figures of ten people who were wearing animal masks started to move through the red smoke like a shadow as they skillfully got neared the paralyzed nobles. What left in their awake was only muffling sounds and blood of the nobles that dyed the wooden floor in red color. They couldn't even scream in pain due to being paralyzed as more and more blood gathered in the floor and created a small pond.

" The smoke has a paralyzing effect! Don't breath in the smoke and gather near the podium Everyone! " Elbereth warned everyone while summoning a Silver Great sword.

" Where is that damn Auror- !!? " Just as Elbereth was calling for Aurora, One of the attackers who was wearing a brown bear mask and a white suit came through the red smoke while holding a Long sword and striked Her to which she responded instantaneously as if she was expecting it before hand.

And while all of this was happening the temperature in the hall suddenly dropped to the point of being able to see your own breath. And soon the smoke itself started to turn in to ice. The whole hall turned dead silent for a moment as this phenomenon was taking place and only the sound of intense battle of Elberth could be heard in the distance.

And then suddenly the frozen smoke shattered with a glass shattering sound revealing a pool of blood and the dead bodies of some nobles who were paralyzed on the spot. The cadets who were oblivious to what was happening within the smoke suddenly started to panic and some even started vomiting seeing the gruesome scene in front of them.

" Wa-What's happening? "

" Ru-run! Let me outta here. "

" I di-didn't come here to die, "

" What's going o- *blarghhh* "

" Shut up! You're are the next generation of soldiers. Don't panic like babies and try to survive this situation together with others. Are you forgetting that you are currently training under the academy to face situations like this in the future. Now calm down and think of ways to survive this situation. "

Aurora said in a calm yet a menacing tone while walking towards the podium from the middle of the hall. Before she was the one who used her powers to dispose of the smoke by freezing them. She was also wearing a white long dress and her ocean blue eyes shone brightly while her body emitted a chilling aura. With every step she took the floor beneath her froze as she made her way towards the panicking cadets.

Seeing his master coming towards them, Lucas smiled brightly as he summoned his long sword and got prepared to fight.

" Why are you late Aurora? " The next one to spoke was Elbereth as she walked towards Aurora while carrying the head of a dark elf whom she was fighting a moments ago. He was the one who was wearing a bear mask.

" I was trying to contact the emergency force, But the signal is jammed. What about you, Did you got any info out of that guy? " Aurora said in a indifferent tone as she reinforced her self with mana.

" Only thing he said before dying was ' All Hail Azazel' " Elbereth said with a serious tone while throwing away the head in her hand as it rolled across floor towards the people who were wearing animal masks.

" Adeus. " That was the only words that left from Auroras mouth as the atmosphere suddenly became heavy.