A/N: It has been YEARS since I've posted on this format or AO3, and I'm still trying to remember how things work/what's changed, so a little patience if I do something dumb would be appreciated LOL. Also, I couldn't think of a great description for this story; this story is literally the first thing I've actually written out in a frenzy in a loooooong time, so I'm kind of just taking what inspiration I have in stride. ((even though I have so many things I need to do...)). A lot of the first couple chapters was actually a story I'd started back in 2016 but i recently found it and got inspired all over again, so I fixed it up and kept going with it.
Anywho, hope you enjoy!
PROLOGUE
Many years ago….
"Xenophilius Rastemund." A thin man with long, unwashed and tangled silver hair slowly ambled into a large, circular stone room. He stood before a group of men, his wrists were bound in shackles, and his clothes were in tatters and covered in grime. The thin man stared at the men in a haunting gaze with wide, owl-like blue eyes. Some of the men who sat before him in a half circle looked upon him sadly, while others glared with cold hatred.
"Xenophilius Rastemund," the head man spoke again, glancing at a sheet of parchment before him on the long table that all the men were sitting at. "Former wizard, mentor, and alchemist. You have been charged with the mutilation and death of one of our fellow brethren, Nicodemus Pledge. There were numerous eyewitnesses to this incident; what do you have to say in your defense?"
Rastemund was silent for a moment, before a grin began to grow underneath his bush of a beard. A hacking cough escaped his chest as he laughed, his chains rattling as his form shook. The half circle of men glanced at each other uncertainly, quite bewildered at this man's response to an accusation of murder.
"Hehehehe-cough-, he wasn't-cough- perfect," the man in chains finally spoke through his laughter. "Too imperfect, wasn't the right-cough- fit. Wasn't the right fit. Wouldn't match with the creature I picked. Wouldn't match, wouldn't match… hehehe… I'm close, though, close close close…. so close to finding the perfect match, to create the perfect species, to create the perfect species…" Rastemund continued to mumble on incoherently, swaying on his feet as he stared into the distance. The head wizard sighed, setting down the parchment. Sadness lurked behind his eyes.
"He's completely mad…" he said. "What happened to this man?"
"I heard a potion blew up in his face," one of the council men said. "That's just one rumor though. Another one I've heard is that he was cursed by some sort of demon."
"The question isn't how he got to be mad, the question we should be asking ourselves is what to do with this man?" A third one spoke up angrily. "He has killed a young wizard in training in the most… horrid way possible. All for the sake of… of… I don't know, pleasure?!"
"To 'create the perfect species,' didn't you hear him? Didn't you see his house, and all the… the horrors he kept there? He seems obsessed with creating the so-called "perfect species"," the second one replied, "No matter how he got this way, I believe his mind has become too warped and dangerous to continue on in this world. Let us give him a peaceful passing."
"Kill him?" A fourth one objected.
"He killed young Nicodemus!"
"But he is mentally ill, perhaps there is a cure for him! Or what if he slowly regains his former mental state?" The fourth suggested. "Before his illness, he was a powerful, respected wizard of great renown, that has to count for something! We can't just kill him like he's a thoughtless criminal when there might be something left hidden behind all this… madness."
"What would you suggest then?" The head wizard turned to the fourth, his face tired and worn. He just wanted to get this trial over with already. The fourth wizard seemed to notice this, but pondered his thoughts carefully.
"I suggest exile. To an abandoned island up north. Cast spells around the island so no boat will be able to reach or leave it. Let Fate decide what to do with him," he said at last.
The councilmen considered the fourth wizard's proposal, and some nodded their heads in agreement. Indeed, it sounded a kinder punishment for a man they once knew so well.
"We will take more time to consider your offer," The Head councilman said. "For now, Xenophilous Rastemund will be returned to his cell." He waved his hands, and armed guards came forward and gripped Rastemund by the arms, leading him away. Rastemund was still laughing as the doors slowly closed behind him. Many of the councilmen didn't mention it then, but inwardly they had all already decided. They would exile him and leave him to Fate.