Tower Hidden in The Depths

As the morning sun rose upon the world, Priscilla had already taken to the field with Noir's assistance. He had been demonstrating various kicks and setups to Priscilla while Lucia worked hard on selecting a list of beginner-level spells that would be perfect for Priscilla's beginning of the school year. 

A slow kick, enough to be studied landed against Priscilla's leg, the foot slid snuggly in the back of her knee which caused her to topple over on the ground. A fiery red glare stared up at Noir who just giggled to himself, but after helping her up he decided to show her one of his favourite kicks. The question mark kick. It would strike the back of the leg like the previous one, but it would use the ricochetting force to launch the foot and deal a fatal blow against the opponent's neck.

Priscilla, having endured his kicks for at least an hour was ready to ask if she could put the kicks to work. 'Let me try them on you!' Her face was practically red with both embarrassment and anger.

'Sure sure. Knock yourself out.' He readied his stance, waiting to take the brunt of the first kick. Priscilla went low, breaking the stance she was taught, trying to deliver a surprise kick. Noir swiftly moved behind her, flicking her to the back of her head.

'Try what I thought you, not your fancy surprise version. It will be a million years before you could even land a single hit on me with your snail speed.' He giggled to himself before readying his stance once more, this time he had no intention of dodging, regardless of how poor her form was.

Her foot flew through the air, slotting between his thigh and shin, knocking him down toward the floor. The ricochetting force sent her stumbling back a little bit.

'You concentrated far too much on the first kick, that is just a setup to deliver the kick that matters. You won't be able to knock someone out with that strike, you have to get anywhere near the head.' He was not upset at his pupil, a desire burned in his chest to teach someone who was eager to learn. Even when he asked Lucia to spar, normally she would shut him down claiming there was too much on her calendar to do something so silly.

For the final time, he readied his stance, looking straight into Priscilla's eyes while she cocked her leg forward, completing the first step of the kick. Though a little unbalanced, she managed to land the second kick to his nape as she continued stumbling until eventually hitting the ground with a soft thud.

'That was good! Slowly you will get the hang of this kick. But it would be best to hurry and do some long-distance running. I am sure you are fine having small, short-lasting battles but taking a couple of kicks and then trying two or three of them really took all the breath of you Haha.' He wiped away a tear from his eye, trying to rub a little salt on her wound.

Priscilla looked down at her legs, thinking about how much stronger she could become if she mastered these kicks. 

'Now now! I know that look. Knowing a couple of kicks doesn't mean you will win every fight. There are still so many things to take into consideration when fighting. Terrain, time of day, opponent, and most importantly your body's endurance.'

He threw a little notebook toward her, with as much information he could cram into it in one night. It had details not only about kicking, but striking with fists, elbows and even her head. Details on how to increase the strength of her bones with micro-fracturing and what supplements to take for her muscle strength building to speed up.

'You don't have to start all of that right now, but in the near future, maybe next week, you will begin. Remember, in just three short months you are going to an academy where witches have been practicing the arts for their entire lives. You have only been a witch for no more than a month. And while your potential rivals some witches in their 80s, there is no way you can go against the monsters that dwell in Patagonia.

'Yeah well...let's just work on building stamina for now. Hearing all of this shit about how I don't measure up to other witches is making me depressed.' Priscilla tugged on the sweatpants cords and tied them tightly so they wouldn't slip off. Noir followed her slow pace as they ran around the large open training field.

On the far side of the underground town, Bianca had found a spot where she began practising meditation. Lucia informed her that while she couldn't increase the size of her grimoire, her aura could gradually increase allowing her to take on more difficult spells with precise control.

============================≧◉ᴥ◉≦=================================

A set of dimly lit lanterns hung from the corridor walls, light shining on her face before being plunged back into darkness in the windowless mountain hideout. A large secular table stood in the centre of the large room which was devoid of anything but four other doors. Four other people joined Lucia around the table, all different statures and backgrounds, tied by the single duty of protecting the US.

'Hello my dear sisters, I commence this year's third summit-'

'Shut it Lucia, we were meant to have it next month. What could be so important?!' A shorter, feisty woman named Easel was the first to pipe up about Lucia's sudden summon. The other three nodded in unison, equally annoyed about this sudden gesture.

'I understand your anger dear sisters, but The Order of Lilacs has gone on the offensive. Yesterday we reprimanded three of their goons who had trapped my disciple in a three-layered veil.'

Gasps erupted in the room, shaking the thin flames of the lanterns strung across the walls. Across Lucia's face, a smile carved its way into her cheeks, hidden only by a thin layer of paper that covered all of their faces. 

'Recently I have stumbled upon a child, not a witch by birth but quickly adapted to the lifestyle. My generous self has taken her under my wing to teach and ensure that the future of our secret society remains stable. But I can not do it alone...'

The other witches panned their eyes toward Lucia. 'What do you need?' Asked another witch named Aaliyah.

'I want...No. I need access to Babel's Library for Priscilla's sake. As a council, we must request the UN for this access as soon as possible.' Lucia put on a few tears and a shaky voice, trying to sell her performance.

'Very well. I second the motion!' Easel raised her hand.

'You have my support.' Aaliyah raised her drink into the air.

'You are definitely scheming something...but if you gain something out of the States being safe, then so be it.' A wary fist raised in the air from the shortest woman named Victoria.

'I don't trust you.' Miranda kept her hand down on the table. An old hatred seeped from around her paper wall that stuck invisible spikes into Lucia's legs.

With that, four council members supported the choice of Priscilla being allowed to study in the ancient library. Lucia's scheme had finally been set into motion and the board had been set up to play her games once more.

============================≧◉ᴥ◉≦=================================

The bristles of her broom shook in the air as she excitedly performed aerial tricks to express her joy. Her broom slid through the entrance of the cave, revealing the bustling town filled with witches and supporters alike. On the far end, two figures could be seen dancing along the track since morning time. Lucia flew closer to the track where Noir had been pushing Priscilla to her absolute limit.

'Hey! Come down here!' He screamed his lungs out toward Lucia. 

Her feet planted onto the ground allowing Noir to pull away from training Priscilla for a little while. Priscilla's face planted into the ground, allowing for air to shakily come inside and leave with just as much force.

'How was the meeting?'

'It was fine, managed to suggest the use of Babel's Library.' Noir nodded his head, trying to figure out if he heard what she said was correct.

'THE Babel's Library? Not just one of those amusement parks?'

'Yup!'

'Right, as if those four stingy bastards would give you the thumbs up for that.'

'They did!' Lucia pulled out a piece of paper with five separate names written at the bottom of the page.

Noir ripped the paper out of her hands. To his absolute shock, she had told no lie. Their names were neatly written along the dotted line.

Priscilla who had pushed Noir aside now faced the smiling Lucia.

'Could you do me a favour, Lucia?'

'Anything for you my dear!' She hugged herself perversely.

'Yuck...anyway, could you spar with me? No magic, just fighting.'

'Sound exciting.'