Lonely Island Inn

[NicTei]

Alright, some of you may already know what's going up here, but I'm not going to say.  It'll actually be up sometime today, as far as I know, but I'd still like to keep you guessing.  Not that I want you to do that here; I'd prefer if you did it elsewhere.  I don't want my topic loaded up before I can upload anything.
   Night Abyssion has become bored with the life he leads at the aptly named Lonely Island Inn.  Even with his foster father and tutor Old Tim, things are going too slow for him.  But when he decides to explore the strange and foreboding Monolith, his perspective is quickly changed, and he will have to fight to make his way home again.

Table of Contents
Prologue:  Journal Entry 1
Chapter 1:  Old Tim
Chapter 2:  The Monolith
Chapter 3:  Seledonia
Chapter 4:  The High Council
Chapter 5:  Luna
Chapter 6:  Dark Side of the Moon
Chapter 7:  The Valley
Chapter 8:  A Narrow Miss
Chapter 9:  Doppelganger

[Chinaren]

You tell me this isn't the one of the cutest things you've seen?

Ah, what a lovely pussy. 

[Cutypie]

very funny china. I quiet like reading this, it keeps my interests.

[NicTei]

   Calming visibly, Light took a step forward, entering the darkened room.  Not wanting to be left in the corridor by himself, Night followed, his heart pounding as the energy in the air became stifling.  A hand was suddenly on his shoulder, and it seemed to lift.  Looking up, he saw a beautiful woman staring back at him, her ivory skin seeming to glow in the darkness of the room.

   Blonde hair flowed down her back, gentle waves catching light from an undetermined source and casting it off in many directions.  A strange, woven tiara of what appeared to be gold and silver plants adorned her brow, holding her golden hair out of her face and exposing her warm blue eyes to the world.  They sparkled and shimmered like the ocean as she smiled at Night, showing her immaculately white teeth.

“Light Phaeton, what have you done?” a voice boomed from all around them.

   Looking for the source of the voice, Night soon found it.  High above the ground in five white, raised thrones, all arranged from tallest to shortest, sat four robed figures, their features obscured by hoods.  Light was gazing unfailingly at the highest figure, and Night assumed it had been he that had spoken.  Seated beside him on a slightly smaller throne was a woman; her gender could be distinguished only by the way her robe curved.  One throne was empty, however, and though it was the shortest of the five, it still towered over Light.

“Why do you ask me what I’ve done?  Do you assume I did something wrong?” Light answered coolly.

“Fool!  You have brought an outsider into the Council Room!” the female on the second highest throne retorted, swiping her hand across her chest for effect.

“Be still, Yuriah!  We cannot question Light’s loyalty to his people,” the man on the second shortest throne argued.

“Silence, Raphaeon!” the woman bellowed back.

“Will you both hold your tongues?” a taller figure in the middle throne asked, with a sigh.

   Night noticed suddenly that the final throne was suddenly occupied by another black-robed figure, her hood shadowing her features.  She appeared to be watching him intently, for he had the feeling that he was being watched.  Light, however, had taken no notice of the fifth figure, or if he had, he wasn’t showing it.

“If you’ll halt your bickering, I’ll make my case for the outsider,” Light interrupted.

“How dare you talk to us in such a manner!” the woman on the second throne shrieked, leaning forward and pointing her open palm at him.

“Yuriah!” the highest figure bellowed.

   Stopping, the woman looked up at him, her hood turning towards him, then pulled her hand back.  Leaning back in her chair, she sat sideways, her feet hanging over one of the arms while she rested her chin on her hand, her elbow steady on the other arm.  Raphaeon scoffed, but stopped when the middle figure looked down at him.

“Master Phaeton,” the highest figure said dryly, “you may make your case.”

“Thank you,” Light answered, nodding in the direction of the tallest throne.  “I’ve only one thing to say about my friend, Night Abyssion.  He saved my life, therefore putting his own in jeopardy.  Your own rules of etiquette would reason that he deserves a place of rest, at least for the night.”

   There was silence for a while, though Night could’ve sworn that he heard voices whispering back and forth.  It was too faint for him to be sure, but every once in a while, he’d hear something that sounded like someone gasping a word with their last breath.  Finally, they all looked at him, and then to Light.

“Master Abyssion, you may leave.  We have some other matters to discuss with Light,” the woman on the shortest throne said, her voice musical.

   Nodding dumbly, Night turned around to leave and found that there were two armored figures waiting by the door.  He couldn’t distinguish their features through the armet helmets that they wore, the slanted, horizontal slots arranged in the faceguard allowing them to see out without being seen themselves.  The rest of their armor was very form-fitting, and he could tell that one was a woman.  They both held dangerous-looking spears in their armored hands, and they stood on either side of him as he left and waited outside the Council Room.

“Is there any chance I could get a drink?” Night asked timidly, looking at the two knights.

   Neither of them answered, however, so he sat in silence, waiting for Light to exit the Council Room.

{+}

   When his new companion finally stepped out through the doors, there was a tired air around him, and even as he walked out of the Council Room his eyes were closed.  Night got to his feet instantly as he walked by and beckoned for the Rayven to follow him.  Leaving the corridor behind, Light started to ascend the staircase that rose up inside the great tree, Night close behind him.

   Halfway up the staircase, he suddenly got on the railing and jumped.  Night yelled out, but stopped when he saw that Light had landed on a platform a couple of feet away from the stairs.  On the back of the platform, built out of the sturdy wood of the tree, was a small, two-story house, likely only one room per floor.

“Quickly,” Light said wearily, beckoning Night over to the platform.

   Opening his wings, Night was over in a single powerful flap.  Light was already opening the door of the small hut, murmuring something inaudible.  Lights suddenly flashed inside, as if he had lit dozens of candles at once.  Night was surprised to see, however, that it was just one small, glass orb, metal and wires inside it casting off the light.

“What kind of magic…?” he wondered out loud.

“Not magic.  Electricity,” Light replied.

“How does it work?” Night asked, but Light wasn’t listening.

   Somehow on the second level, Light tossed down a box that sounded heavy when it hit, but when Night picked it up he found it was light.  Looking up through the opening in the ceiling where Light had dropped the box, he pulled out of the way just in time as a ladder hurtled down, Light on the bottom rung.  Stepping off casually, he flicked it back up with his foot, a click signifying that it was back in place.

“Is this where you live?” Night asked as Light took the box.

“I consider it storage,” he replied, setting the object on the table.

“My older things should fit you,” he said as he pulled the lid off of the box and started rifling through the clothes inside.  “There’s also a few garments in here I’ve never worn that are marked as such.”

“What’s wrong with my clothes now?” Night asked, looking at his tunic and trousers.

“Your clothes set you apart from those native to this side of Inverse.  It would be best for you if you acquired new attire,” Light replied.  “Remember the stares in Seledonia?”

   Night saw the logic, though he wouldn’t admit it.  Reluctantly, he started to sort through the foreign clothes, finding only a blood-red, button-up shirt that he liked the look of.  Light sighed and shook his head.

“Well, at least it’s easy to figure out what would appear most normal with that,” he muttered, sorting through the clothes on his own.

   Pulling out a pair of black pants that still had tags on them, he tossed them to Night, along with a black undershirt with the clearance sticker still on it.  Night just looked at him dumbly.  Sighing again, for he was far too tired to deal with this now, Light tore the tags off and bade the Rayven goodnight.  
Ascending to the upper level, he pulled a cot out of the corner tossed it at the hole.  Clattering along the floor, it fell to the bottom level.  Dragging out another cot, he opened it and lay down, closing his eyes and drifting off to sleep soon after.

{+}

   Night looked at the clothes for a moment, and then shrugged.  Looking around, he found a dusty mirror in the back corner of the room.  Cleaning it off with a powerful wind from his wings, he slowly put on his new clothes, the foreign feel of them not making it any easier.  He stopped on the red shirt however; he didn’t want to cut holes in it to let his wings through, but without doing that he couldn’t get it on.  It was easy enough for his wings to push their way out of the undershirt; it had no sleeves, so they merely slipped out through the armholes.

“I still don’t understand why I can’t keep my tunic,” he muttered as a strange object fell to the ground behind him with a loud crash, startling him.

   Recognizing that it was a makeshift bed of some sort, he pried it open and set it up against the wall.  Changing back into his tunic, he folded the other clothes as neatly as he could and set them underneath the cot.  After looking at the light a while and trying to figure out how to turn it off, he finally decided that one of the strange-looking, tiny levers on the wall must control it.  With luck, he figured out which one on the first try and stumbled back to his cot, lying down.  It suddenly struck him just how tired he really was, and he fell asleep within seconds.

{+}

   Light was awakened in the morning by the feeling of someone watching him.  Snapping his eyes opening he lashed out with his foot at the figure that was mere feet from his cot, though he stopped the kick when he saw that it was just Night, still wearing his tunic.  Grumbling, Light got up and kicked the cot back into the corner, stumbling over to the hole with Night behind him.

“What do you want?” Light asked when he noticed that he was being followed.

“Those two armored people from yesterday are outside with that blonde woman from yesterday,” Night replied.

“The guards?” Light asked, now fully awake and looking around warily.  “Wait, what woman?  Oh, never mind!”

   Grabbing onto the ladder, Light hit something off to his side that disengaged it, sending him down on the ladder again.  Night scrambled down after him, but Light had forgotten he was there and kicked it up again, sending him back up into the top level with a yell.  Hitting the same switch that Light had, Night fell down with the ladder, jolted off when it hit the floor and tumbling across the ground a ways.

   Light was at the door, but he turned around.  Glaring at Night, he opened the door and looked outside.  Oddly, there were only the two guards standing there.  When Light glared back at Night, the Rayven shrugged.

“What do you want?” Light asked.

“You and the outsider are to report to the Council Room immediately,” the man replied, leaning on his spear.

“Night, get dressed,” Light muttered to the Rayven, who nodded and moved back further into the room.

“What are you doing?  You’re supposed to go there now!” the woman exclaimed.

“Will you be quiet for once?  My friend’s getting dressed,” Light retorted coolly.

“Why you little-!” the woman growled, stepping forward with her spear, but the man stopped her, shaking his head.

“Ready!” Night called as he raced back into view, red shirt slung onto his shoulder.

“Aren’t you putting your shirt on?” Light asked dubiously.

“I can’t; there’re no holes for my wings,” Night answered.

“That can be easily remedied,” Light replied flatly.

“But it’s such a nice shirt…” Night muttered.

“Will you two shut up and go to the Council Room already!?” the woman cried.

   Night jumped over the side of the platform and flew to the ground immediately.  Rolling his eyes and shaking his head, Light leaped to the spiral staircase and slid down the railing, somehow keeping himself steady as he finally landed at the bottom.  Night was already waiting for him by the Gate Master, looking slightly afraid of the face.

   Wordlessly the Gate Master shifted to the side, letting them through.  Light’s stride was confident, and almost a little angry, whereas Night just stepped in timidly behind him.  Looking straight up to the tallest throne, Light let out an annoyed sigh.

“Why are we here?” he asked.

“It’s fallen on your shoulders to decide your own horrible end,” Yuriah said, giggling maliciously.

“Silence, Yuriah,” the highest figure barked.

“Yes, Illeux,” she muttered.

“Light Phaeton, you have done many strange things that we could construe as crimes,” Illeux went on, “though we’ve not punished you for any of them because you’ve had reason.  However, you’ve crossed the line by bringing in an outsider.  You are a danger to this community, and for that reason, you have a choice.  You can either depart for the community near Tansk, or you may leave all communities behind and try living in the world as it is.”

Light was shocked for a moment, but soon found his voice.  “So I have no choice but to leave your community for another, or leave all communities forever?  You cannot have this type of power!”

“Enough, you ruddy brat!  We’ve all grown tired of your attitude, so make your choice!” Yuriah growled.

   Light glared at each member in turn, though the last of the robed figures seemed to be avoiding his eyes.  Glaring back at the top member, he started to say something, but stopped.  He had realized that it was useless now.

“So be it,” he growled before turning around and leaving.

“If you return, it is under penalty of death!” Yuriah cackled after him.

   Looking back at the council members one more time, Night ran after Light, leaving the Council Room behind.

{+}

“Well, we finally got that kid out of our hair!” Yuriah said when the Gate Master had closed the doors once again.

“Yes, but was it the correct decision?” Raphaeon asked.

“You all know as well as I do that if he had stayed, everyone including him would’ve been in greater danger,” Illeux interjected, an air of finality in his voice.  “You’ve been quiet, Farseth.  What are your thoughts?”

“I believe it was Raphaeon and Saris that both voted against his excommunication.  My vote should speak for itself,” the middle figure replied, leaning back in his throne and folding his arms.

“Where is Saris anyways?” Yuriah asked, looking down at the empty throne on the end of the row.

“She will have gone to bid Light a final goodbye, I’d imagine,” Illeux answered.

“Why is she always so soft on him?” Yuriah asked bitterly.

“Mothers tend to love their sons,” Illeux replied.

“Wait, what?  That boy is her son?  We just kicked someone of noble blood out of our community!?” Farseth exclaimed, breaking his usually calm composure.

“Calm down, Farseth,” Illeux commanded sternly.  “No one was to know until this happened or one of them died.”

“But why?  What was the point of hiding it?” Yuriah asked, curious.

“No one remembers.  It was of utmost importance, and a special seal was placed in each of our minds so that memory of that day is barred forever,” Illeux answered after a moment of thought.

“So, we’ve excommunicated nobility because we suspect he was dangerous to us, and us to him?  And no one can remember why his lineage was hidden from him?  Our jobs sure have changed over the years,” Raphaeon mused.

“Are you saying that you miss the battlefield?” Farseth asked, once again calm.

“I do.  It was so much easier when everyone ran when we came over the crest of the hill, or descended from the clouds,” Yuriah answered, letting memories wash over her.

“None of us wished to become what we are,” Illeux said quietly, though all heard it, “but we were given no choice.  I think we can all agree that we are in our current situation because of Chasiah, which was exactly what he wanted.”

   All of the council members shuddered at the use of the name.  Unbidden, a figure appeared in their heads with the name, one that had possessed such power, and used it for such an evil purpose.  Raphaeon cleared his throat, breaking them all out of their trance.

“What we do, we do for the good of the community,” Illeux said after a long period of silence.

{+}

   Light was near the entrance to the community when a strange feeling pulled him back from the doors.  He tried to ignore it, but it grew stronger, and he found his legs walking of their own accord, taking him up the spiral staircase and out onto the highest landing, to a large observatory platform hidden well amongst the leaves, where the citizens could look out upon the land without being seen.  Standing by the railing of the platform, where the leaves had parted and the rising sun shone in, was a black robed figure, one of the council members.

“Light,” she said, her musical voice laden with sorrow and regret.

“What do you want from me, now that you have required I leave the community?” he asked coldly.

   Saris pulled her hood back, her blonde hair flowing out and her blue eyes rimmed red from crying.  There was a strange familiarity in them that Light couldn’t place.  Stepping forward, he stood beside her at the railing.

“Why are you so sad that I’m leaving?” he asked, careful to leave the anger out of his voice.

“I…” Saris began, but stopped.

“Well?” Light asked.

“Not too far from here, in Tansk, there is someone in need of help,” Saris said.  “Your help.”

“How do you know this?” Light inquired curiously.

   Saris didn’t reply.  Reaching into her sleeve, she pulled out a small golden chain.  On it was a cross with wings, shining in the sunlight.  She handed it to him, a tearful smile on her face.  Taking it, he looked at it; again, there was something familiar about it.

“It was…your mother’s…” Saris said, smiling sadly again.  “She would want you to have it.”

   Nodding solemnly, Light unhooked the chain and put it around his neck, clasping it when it was on.  Lifting the small cruciform in his hands, he saw a few letters inscribed in it, spelling out the word ‘Life.’  Letting it drop against his chest, he looked up, but the council member was gone.  A few seconds later
Night flew up out of the stairwell, landing in front of it and looking around.

“Wow.  I didn’t know this was up here!” he exclaimed, looking around.

“We must depart now,” Light answered, pushing past him and sliding down the railing of the stairs.

“Isn’t it hard to balance like that?” Night asked, flying down beside Light in the circular pattern.

“Practice makes perfect,” Light replied absentmindedly.

   When they had reached the bottom, Light looked up again, towards the top of the tree.  Shaking his head and strengthening his resolve, Light started for the exit once more.  Down the mushroom-lit corridor with Night in tow, he ignored the stares of the other residents, who had heard the official announcement from Farseth.  Upon reaching the door far beyond their eyes, the Gate Master looked at him.

“You realize that it’s for your own good?” the face on the door asked him.

“Just move aside,” Light answered irritably.

“As you wish,” the Gate Master answered, moving aside so that the door opened.

“Light,” he called when he had closed again.

“What now?”

“Even if Yggdrasil’s Kingdom is closed to you, there is still a place for you,” the face said.

“Whatever,” Light retorted, ascending a ladder to the top of the tunnel he and Night had fallen down the night before.

“Light?” Night asked when they were outside once more, the roots closing the ground behind them.

“What?”

“When the Gate Master said ‘Yggdrasil’s Kingdom,’ what did he mean?” the Rayven inquired.

Light gave out a cold laugh.  “Yggdrasil’s Kingdom is a place where the most hated race on the planet can go for refuge.  Outside of it, we are beaten, enslaved, and killed as if we were vermin.  If anyone is found harboring us, they are severely punished.  We’re even forced to carry special identification that will tell everyone what we are!” he replied bitterly.

“But what are you?  Serena made it sound like you were horrible, and now you’re saying you’re hated…” Night asked, his voice trailing off.

“We,” Light replied even more bitterly, “are the Terraphim.”

{+}

“Have you ever heard the name Chasiah?”

   The question was posed to Quix, Vance, and Rin by Stephan as they sat outside enjoying coffee and the fresh air.  Quix immediately shook his head, but both Rin and Vance thought for a while.  Finally Rin shook her head slowly, and Stephan could tell by the look on Vance’s face that he didn’t know, though he wouldn’t admit it.

“I’m disappointed in you.  You need to go over your history again,” Stephan said with a wry smile.

“Then tell us, O knowledgeable scholar; who is Chasiah?” Quix teased with a grin.

“Chasiah was a Terraphim, and a nasty one at that,” Stephan answered, thinking hard as he spoke so as not to forget any details.  “He amassed a vast army, composed almost entirely out of members of his own race, with a few others that felt the need for wanton destruction, and with them tried to conquer the world because of how he had been discriminated against as a child.”

“It’s coming back to me now,” Rin said, a slight smile spreading on his face.  It then faded.  “It’s because of him that everyone hates the Terraphim now, isn’t it?”

“You make it sound as if you’re a sympathizer,” Vance warned.

“She’s a scholar, like me,” Stephan retorted, “so she takes no sides.  She’s beyond a conflict of petty race.  Like me, she probably hates that they’re being punished for what one of their own has done.”

Quix sighed.  “Terraphim are animalistic abominations that are the epitome of the unclean,” he recited.

“What was that?” Stephan asked dangerously.

“Sorry, that’s just what we’ve been taught since we were old enough to notice the Terraphim children wearing dirty rags and sitting in the corners of rooms with rocks for toys,” Quix replied, smiling apologetically.

“I hated those classes,” Rin murmured.

“Why did you bring up Chasiah?” Vance asked, changing the subject.

“I’ve been thinking about your problem with the Clockwork Knights.  You all seem to think that there’s someone behind the scenes, correct?  Well, even though it was reported by five prominent figures in Terraphim society that he was dead, his body has never been recovered,” Stephan answered.  “It’s entirely possible that he never died, and is in fact controlling the mecha that continue attacking human settlements.”

“How is that possible?  That conflict was hundreds of years ago; even with the long lifespan of the Terraphim, it’s highly improbable that he would’ve been able to do much more than walk in a circle without being detected, much less been able to control an army,” Vance argued.

“I’m just suggesting that you consider the improbable as well as the probable,” Stephan replied.  “You may find yourself surprised.”

Suddenly, Quix stood up, reaching behind him for his sword.  “We’ve got company,” he murmured, pointing into the trees.

[Saint]

A strange, woven tiara of what appeared to be gold and silver plants adorned her brown,

there are is still a place for you,” the face said.

EDIT: Also, the part where he kicks the bed down.  Night got changed in about a paragraph, but it takes Light only a sentence to pass the bed down.

[NicTei]

Fixed.

[Cutypie]

Very Good! I enjoyed this. A bit o' comedy and drama in it.

[Chinaren]

   Night immediately spun around, looking wildly for the source of the voice.  Still smiling, the woman touched him lightly on the shoulder.  When he looked at her, she pointed up.  Looking up, he drew in a sharp breath.

   High above the ground in five white, raised thrones, all arranged from tallest to shortest, sat four robed figures, their features obscured by hoods.  Light was gazing unfailingly at the highest figure, and Night assumed it had been he that had spoken.  Seated beside him on a throne that was smaller by a foot was a woman; her gender could be distinguished by the way her robe curved.  Strangely, the shortest throne was empty.

Ug, these paras needs a bit of work.  Not up to your usual standard NiceT.

This exchange...

“Why dost thou ask me what I hath done?  Dost thou assume I do wrong?” Light answered coolly.

“Fool!  You have brought an outsider into the Council Room!” the female on the second highest throne retorted, swiping her hand across her chest for effect.

“Hold on, Yuriah!  We cannot question Light’s loyalty to his people,” the man on the second shortest throne argued.

“Shut it, Raphaeon!” the woman bellowed back.

“Will you ladies both cut it out?” a taller figure in the middle throne asked, with a sigh.

   Night noticed suddenly that the final throne was suddenly occupied by another black-robed figure, her hood shadowing her features.  She appeared to be watching him intently, for he had the feeling that he was being watched.  Light, however, had taken no notice of the fifth figure, or if he had, he wasn’t showing it.

“If thou shall halt thy bickering, I shall make my case for the outsider,” Light interrupted.

I appreciate they could all come from different places, but you need to keep things a bit more consistent I think, especially as they're from the same community (I assume).

Fool!  You have brought an outsider into the Council Room

This is the sort of language I would expect in this scenario, from this kind of speaker.  However...

Hold on, Yuriah!  We cannot question Light’s loyalty to his people

'Hold on' is a pretty modern sounding phrase.  Also you could probably do without the comma.

“Shut it, Raphaeon!” the woman bellowed back.

“Will you ladies both cut it out?

Now they sound like a couple of modern teenagers having an argument.

Now for Light...

If thou shall halt thy bickering, I shall make my case for the outsider

  (and others)

I've had this issue before, with 'olde' English, in a short I wrote elsewhere. 

The problem is, you can't really just use it 'a bit'.  It should be all or nothing, and all is pretty damned hard to do.  The line above, if you're doing it 'all', should probably use 'shalt' instead of 'shall' and instead of 'make' you'd probably say 'state' etc. 

Here's another example a bit later on:

“I thank thee,” Light answered, nodding in the direction of the tallest throne.  “I’ve only one thing to say about my friend, Night Abyssion.  He saved my life, therefore putting his own in jeopardy.  Thine own rules of etiquette would reason that he deserves a place of rest, at least for the evening.

Use use 'thee' and 'thine' alongside 'my' (mine) and 'evening' (eve) etc.  It's all mixed up.  There's probably a lot more too.  It's too easy to forget.  eg:

“The guards?” Light asked,

'Thy guards'

Generally I'd not bother with the old style at all, and it looks incongruous with the modern English used by the others.   

[NicTei]

Valid points, all of them.  I'm tired at the moment, and as such can only think of one thing to point out for the olde English.

I think 'shalt' is when you're giving a command to someone, like 'thou shalt,' whereas you can use 'shall' for an action you're doing. 

Er...I can't really find the right words to explain it, so disregard that.

Light speaks in Olde English because I wanted something that set him further apart from the rest of the world.  As it is, I'll leave it for now, or I'd have to go back through and rewrite quite a bit of dialogue.

What kind of 'work' do you suggest I do on those first two paragraphs?

[Chinaren]

They're just a bit sloppy and in need of tightening up, though you do repeat 'look' quite a lot.

[Cutypie]

watched or stared

[Phang]

Iiiiit's time for - Phang's Olde Basterdisede Englishe Educatione Showe!


Even if you want to use Olde Englishe to seperate Light, doesn't mean he has to use 'thou' all the time. Thou and you were both used at the time, and we can thank the Germans they're spelt the same in Modern English.

As seen in other languages (such as French, which plays coelacanth Relicanth for me in situations like this), which still have two distinctive 'you's, thou was informal; in other words, Light is doing the equivalent of referring to everyone as 'mate' or whatever. This is very throwing, especially as he seems aloof otherwise.


And now, watch as I attempt to conjugate verbs!

I am
Thou art
He...euh, never mind.

*scratches head*

Show content

Germans were the first to use printy-gubbins, but didn't use the 'Þ' symbol used to represent the 'th' sound in Olde Englishe. Instead, they used 'y'.

[NicTei]

Alright, I've decided.  I'm going back through all of the chapters I've written so far and will be replacing Light's 'Olde English' with 'Newe English', and that was funnier in my head.

I'll possibly be replacing the chapters I've got up so far, but I may just leave them as is...nah, best to change them so that people aren't confused when they see Olde English turn into Newe English, and that wasn't funny the second time either.

Anyways, to anyone that's in America, Happy 4th; to the people in Britain, we won the war, and yes we do have to brag about it; to the people elsewhere...well, have a nice day.

[Phang]

have a nice day.

Filthy Americanism! You've sullied their vocab now!

This whole Olde Englishe thing gives me an idea though. See you in Spam Street!

[NicTei]

Well, that was certainly non-sequiter...



EDIT:  Okay, got it all done.  Edited and reposted.  *heaves a huge sigh*  Now that that's done with I...can...I can... *falls asleep*

[NicTei]

   Following Light out of Yggdrasil’s Kingdom, Night was beginning to wonder why they were walking through the forest again.  They stuck to the outskirts, walking far enough into the trees so as not to be seen, but close enough to the edge so that Light could tell where they were.  Though they passed small cities and towns, Light kept going, not making for any of them to rest.

“Where are we going?” Night asked after hours of tramping over roots and around trees.

“Tansk,” Light replied, not looking back.

“Why?” Night inquired.

“There’s something there,” Light answered simplistically.

“How far is it from here?” Night whined.

“If you want to waste your breath on questions, go ahead, but leave me alone,” Light snapped.

“That doesn’t answer my question…” Night mumbled, looking to the ground timidly.

“It is a day’s journey from here,” Light answered, still irritable.

“Couldn’t I just fly us there?  I’m sure I could carry you all that way,” Night offered.

   In response, Light just laughed coldly.  Night didn’t understand what was so funny to him, so he didn’t ask.  Just as he was about to ask if they could stop and rest, Light turned to him.

“Stay here; I’ll find food,” he said, pointing to a stump that Night could use as a seat.

   Before Night could protest, Light was off through the trees, moving faster than the Rayven thought he could in the forest.  It wasn’t long before he was out of sight, lost in the green foliage.  Minutes later he was back with an armful of herbs and berries.  Dropping them on Night’s lap, he walked out of the forest and looked around, trying to get his bearings.

   Coming back as Night was finishing his food, he started walking on, relying on the Rayven to catch up to him in no time.  As they walked, they suddenly became aware of a low humming noise that slowly got louder.  When it became a loud roaring noise, Light looked directly up.

   Five large, triangular shapes blasted overhead, heading in the direction that they were walking.  Night noticed a strange look pass over Light’s face before he suddenly took off after them, running through the forest.  Crying out, Night tried running after him, but soon got left behind.  Not wanting to get lost by himself in the forest, he opened his wings and took to the sky, flying as fast as his wings would carry him after the flying objects.

   A town suddenly became visible on the horizon, a cluster of buildings surrounded by a high wooden wall.  The flying objects suddenly picked up speed, an explosive sound preceding their swift acceleration.  Gritting his teeth, Night started to fly harder than he ever had in his life, pushing himself as hard as possible.

   A figure suddenly exploded up out of the trees when he was just a hundred yards from the town, ramming into him and knocking him off course before he could see what happened to the flying machines.  The last thing he saw before his head smacked into the ground was the town wall, just inches behind him.  Then there was only darkness.

{+}

   Light woke up with a dull throbbing in his head.  He had collided with Night when he was trying to go after the flying mecha, the crests underneath them awakening a rage in him that he hadn’t felt for a while.  Staggering to his feet, he looked around and saw to his relief that they had landed in a more secluded part of Tansk, a small garage hiding their landing from view.  As he listened, however, he could hear voices getting closer.

“Wake up!  Wake up!” Light murmured as he shook Night.

The Rayven groaned and turned over.  “What hit me?” he muttered as he opened his eyes.

“It doesn’t matter!  Get on your feet; we’ve got to get out of here!” Light insisted, pulling Night to his feet and dragging him along as he ran along the wall, checking around the corners before moving.

   Seeing the door, he was about to make a break for it when something caught his eye.  Back tracking, he looked through the alley and out into the small courtyard beyond.  A terrible sight met his eyes, one that made his blood boil.  Night saw as well and swore under his breath.

   In the corner of the courtyard was a girl, her arms tied behind her back with a rope that was in turn tied to a tall, thin wooden post that sat three feet away from each wall.  The length of the rope only let her move a couple of feet away from the post in any direction, and judging by the marks on her arms, she had been tied to the post around the waist before either breaking free or being untied most of the way.

   Her green eyes glared at the twelve or more people surrounding her, almost covered by her black bangs.  The rest of her short hair was auburn, glimmering in the sunlight and styled back.  Offsetting her black plaid skirt, her short-sleeved polo was white, though covered in dirt from the ground.    Her long legs were covered by black socks that extended up past her knees.

“Hey,” one of the kids surrounding her said, “her arms are one point, from the waist down is three points, anywhere on her torso is five points, and if you hit her in the head, you get ten points.  Fifty if you knock her out!”

   With that, rocks started flying out from the group.  The girl managed to dodge a few, but others struck her on the legs and arms, the sharp points on some of them drawing blood.  Finally, one struck her in the temple; it was large enough to knock her onto her side on the ground.  She was forced to curl up as more rocks found their marks, the fact that she was stationery making their throws more accurate.

“Those vermin!” Light growled.

   Before Night could stop him, the Terraphim was charging down the alley, exploding into the courtyard with the same speed he had shown before when he was fighting the Clockwork Knight outside Seledonia.  Standing in front of the girl, he hunched his shoulders and put his arms up in front of his face, glaring at them until they realized that they were no longer hitting the correct target.  Likewise, the girl realized that she wasn’t being hit and looked up.

“What’s wrong with you?  Wered you all dropped on your heads!?” he roared, getting out of his defensive stance.

“Dude, she’s a freak!” one of the boys called.

“You’re in danger just standing there!” a girl called.

   Another rock flew in from the side, aimed at the girl, but Night was suddenly there, attempting to catch it but merely stopping it with his hand.  Yelping, he clutched his now bleeding palm, swinging it furiously in the air before wrapping it in the bottom of his undershirt.  They looked at the newcomer for a second before looking back at Light.  A tall boy, obviously the leader, stepped forward, his face hidden by the hood of a white sweatshirt.

“What’s she to you?” he asked, pointing at the girl.

“What is she to you?” Light retorted coolly.

“Why protect her if you don’t know her?” the boy growled back.

“Why not?” Light answered, a dangerous smirk on his lips.

“Whatever.  Just get out of the way so we can continue justice,” the boy growled.

“Justice?  How can you talk of justice?” Light answered.

“Get out of the way, moron!” a boy called from the group, echoed by other voices.

   Light, however, ignored them, turning around and crouching down to the girl.  She looked at him warily as he pulled out a small, concealed knife, severing the ropes and concealing it again with a movement that Night didn’t even see.  A gasp arose from the crowd of kids and they all took a step back.  Taking Light’s hand unsurely, he helped her stand, but kept her behind him, away from the kids.

“Are you insane, kid?  Do you know what she’s capable of!?” the leader gasped.

“Do you know what I am capable of?” Light asked dangerously, his smirk gone.

   That was all it took for the kids to start running.  As their leader was about to run, however, Light grabbed his shoulder, stopping him.  He immediately broke down, blubbering and crying, pleading for mercy.

“Oh, shut up!” Light growled.

When the boy stopped, he went on.  “Did you see the five flying mecha?” he asked.

“Y-yes,” the boy muttered, nodding vigorously.

“Where did they land?” the Terraphim asked fiercely.

“I-I don’t know!” the boy shrieked, breaking down under Light’s glare.

   Any further questions were forgotten as a loud explosion echoed from the far side of town, rocking the ground as a pillar of fire reached into the sky.  Looking in the direction of the pillar, Light let the boy drop.  Without a word, he was gone again, racing in the direction of the explosion.  The girl chased after him, and Night followed her, astounded that she was ignoring her cuts and bruises.  They caught up to Night, and he nodded, though he didn’t look back.

   When they reached the scene of the explosion, they saw two things.  First of all, the five flying objects had landed just outside of town and were visible through a hole in the wooden walls surrounding Tansk.  Second of all, smaller mecha were filing out of the machines and laying everything in their paths to waste with blades and bombs.  When Night looked closely, he saw that they all had the same symbol branded on them somewhere; it was a shield-shape, with a circle and star inside it, the circle and star made of black and the shield white.

“Do you know what that symbol means?” Light asked anyone that was listening, and by his tone, it was clear that he knew the answer already.

“No, what is it?” Night asked, hoping the mecha couldn’t see him.

“It is the symbol of the Order of Deus Iuguolo, the Order of God Killers,” Light replied, spitting out the final three words as if they were poison and glaring at the mecha as they came closer.

   Night was about to ask how Light knew this, but at that moment one of the mecha noticed them.  Letting loose a strange beeping noise, it lobbed a grenade towards them.  Time seemed to slow down as Light dove for the other two, and the grenade landed right beside Night.  He started to run, but the bomb exploded, throwing him forward into a wall and knocking him out for the second time that day.

{+}

   Light saw Night hit the wall and immediately rushed to him, checking him for a pulse as he reached his still form.  Relieved when he found a steady beat, he lifted Night and propped him against the wall he had run into.  The girl gave a yell and he turned; the mecha were all getting closer to them, grenades ready and their blades sharper than ever.

“Stay back,” Light commanded the girl, standing in front of her and putting his right hand on the handle of the sword at his back.  Then, seeming to think better of it, he started to trace a seal into the air.  “This’ll be rough.”

{+}

   Quix was the first to charge into the trees, his sword raised and his movements faster than most.  There was a metallic clank, and he was soon hurled back out of the trees, performing a backslide on his feet and keeping his sword in a battle stance.  Vance and Rin both stood up, their swords ready, and Stephan gripped his staff tighter.  Quix glanced back to Vance and Rin.

“There are at least ten of them right behind the trees,” he murmured.

“Are there any others further back?” Vance asked quietly.

“I saw some strange shadows, so I’ll bet there are,” Quix replied quickly.

“How much do you guys want to bet I take out more of them than you do?” Rin asked suddenly, a smile on her face.

“This coming from the pacifist?  Interesting,” Vance retorted.

“Hey, I’m only uncomfortable killing other living things.  Clockwork Knights are fair game,” Rin answered with a smirk.

“You’re on!” Quix replied as the first wave stormed out of the trees.

{+}

   Aware of a loud ringing in his ears and a stiff soreness all over his body, Night groaned and opened his eyes, immediately giving a small cry at the pain in his head.  The girl was right beside him, looking at something off in the distance in front of him.  Shaking his head slowly, he rubbed his eyes and followed her gaze.

   His chest heaving and sweat adorning his brow, Light stood on a small pile of defeated mecha, their remains burning.  He was truly a terrible sight to behold, lit from below by the fires in the metal carcasses with embers floating up past him into the sky a ways before going out.  The Terraphim stared straight forward, glaring at something only he could see as he clenched and unclenched his fists.

   Night’s eyes were drawn to the strange objects on his back, or rather floating behind him.  They appeared as tongues of dark blue, purple, and crimson fire, though they didn’t move as such.  To some extent, they resembled petals, and they all fit together like a puzzle, though there were small spaces between them.  They were semi-transparent, and Night could see the waves of smoke that poured out of the fallen mecha through them.

   Looking up, Night saw that the sky was already dark, stars fighting to be seen through the smoke.  Suddenly Light was beside him, checking him for any wounds.  When he saw that the Rayven was staring at the strange objects hovering over his back, he gave another cold laugh, chilling Night to the core.

“They are the wings of a Terraphim,” he explained, flapping them and becoming airborne for a moment before touching back down on the ground.

“Are you hurt?” he asked the girl.

The girl shook her head.  Nodding, Light returned to checking Night over for injuries but only found a small cut on his head.  Shaking his head, he helped the Rayven to his feet.

“With hollow bones like yours, I would’ve expected a few to be broken,” he mused.

“I’m too stubborn for that; Old Tim’s told me that many times,” Night answered with a grin.

Light raised an eyebrow.  “Old Tim?” he asked.

“He was my adoptive father, I guess,” Night answered.

“I see,” Light answered, lost in thought for a moment.

“I’m Luna,” the girl suddenly said, startling him out of his thoughts.

“What?” Light asked, looking at her.

The girl pointed to herself.  “I’m Luna,” she repeated.

“I think that’s her name,” Night teased, talking to Light as if he were slow.

“Really now?” Light answered sarcastically.

“Do I detect sarcasm?” Night asked with a grin.

“I created it.  I’m Light,” Light replied, looking to Luna and extending his hand.

   For a moment, their eyes met, and in that instant Light recoiled, darting back a few feet.  He was breathing hard again, and Luna looked understandably shocked.  Night looked at him in confusion, but Light took no notice.  There was only one thing on his mind, a face that meant more to him than any trinket or memory of his parents.  A face with eyes so similar to Luna’s that it was frightening.

   Naturally, memories of that face existed in his mind, many of them happy ones.  All he could recall, however, was a loud noise akin to a gunshot, and the crest of the Order of Deus Iuguolo.  Then the name came to his mind, a name that still drew him into despair:  Evangeline.

{+}

“I counted seventeen, what about you guys?” Quix gasped from his position on the ground.

“Twenty,” Vance replied, breathing deeply.

“Twenty-one.  I win,” Rin answered, stabbing her sword into the ground and leaning on it.

   The three knights collapsed where they had dispatched their last enemy, just outside of Stephan’s small house.  Scraps of metal and pieces of the Clockwork Knight’s inner workings were scattered about them, some even embedded in the trees.  A few trees had, in fact, been cut down by the flashing blades of both sides while they were fighting, and it was only by luck that they had avoided smashing into Stephan’s house.

“Well, now that you three are done littering on my lawn, would you mind focusing your attention on the guy with the knife to my throat?” Stephan asked dryly from behind them.

   Turning, they saw that there was indeed a man standing behind their friend, a large knife pressed to the front of his neck.  Sighing, Vance stood up, hoisting his sword onto his shoulder and glaring at the man.  This was no easy feat, since the man was wearing a sort of armet that didn’t cover his mouth, though that was the only visible feature of his face.  Two slit lines were on either side of the wedge-shaped visor, letting him see out.

“If you don’t want to die a painful, horrible death, you will let my friend go and drop the knife,” Vance growled, obviously not in the mood for negotiations.

   Trembling, the man simply backed away as the knight advanced, vexing him further.  Suddenly Quix was behind the man, his sword at his back and a grin on his face.  Yelping, the man accidently drew his knife across Stephan’s throat, leaving a shallow cut.  In that instant, Vance had pulled the cleric away and Quix had shoved his sword through the man’s gut, the grin gone.  The man fell, but Vance lifted him again.

“Who are you, and what do you want from us?” Vance growled.

“Hail…Chasiah…ruler of…the God-Killers…” the man cried, coughing up a large amount of blood as he spoke.

   A final burst of power arose from him, and he reached for Vance’s throat, but Quix was faster, running him through once more and stopping his blade just short of hitting Vance.  Dropping the body with an annoyed grunt, Vance bent to check Stephan over, but the cleric had already healed his own wound.  Seeing Vance’s concerned gaze, he smiled weakly, still shaken from the incident.

“It was shallow enough that I could heal it without much trouble,” he said.

“Second time in a day we’ve heard that name,” Quix mused, looking at the lifeless body as he cleaned his sword.

“Hold on…check inside his clothes,” Rin said suddenly, an thought occurring to her.

“Wow.  I didn’t know you were such a pervert,” Quix said, raising an eyebrow.  “I mean, he’s dead.”

“Stop being an idiot and check him,” Vance snapped.

   Grumbling, Quix opened the man’s uniform jacket.  Looking at something in confusion for a moment, he reached into an inner pocket and pulled a small card out.  Flipping it between his fingers, a small smile began to emerge on his face.  Handing it to Vance, Rin witnessed a similar reaction in him.  Looking at him quizzically, she took it from him.

   It was an identification card of some sort, a picture of a middle-aged man on the upper-half of the card, text below listing his appearance.  Rin recognized what it was almost immediately, dropping it.  Stephan lifted it to his eyes, then let it fall to the ground as well, appalled by it.

“It’s a Terraphim identification card,” Quix said, picking it up and looking at it again.

“Your theory was correct, Stephan.  It seems that Chasiah is behind this,” Vance said with a small laugh.

“For once I wish I was wrong, especially now that your friend there’s mentioned the Order of Deus Iuguolo,” Stephan said, shaking his head as he used his staff to get to his feet.

“Sounds rather dangerous,” Quix said, a devil-may-care smile coming to his face.

“Right up our alley,” Vance replied with a nod.

“You’ll need more than swords and armor to fight Chasiah,” Stephan retorted darkly.

“What will we need?” Rin asked, following him as he walked back into his house.

“To summarize it in three words:  sheer dumb luck,” Stephan answered with a grim smile.

“I happen to possess a lot of that,” Quix retorted smugly as he waltzed in.

“Good.  Double it, give some to your friends, and double it again, and you may have a small chance with Chasiah.  If you manage to avoid it all going public, that is,” Stephan replied, a wry grin splitting his face.

“What do you mean ‘avoid it all going public’?” Vance asked.

Stephan looked at him.  “Didn’t you know?  Chasiah is the president of SciCorp.”

{+}

“Light, are you okay?”

   The question came from Night, who was looking at the Terraphim in confusion.  Light, however, was still lost in thought, Evangeline’s image blocking out the outside world entirely.  Her ashen blonde hair hanging straight as an arrow down to her chin, her soft, ivory skin under the moonlight, and her emerald eyes that seemed to stare down into one’s very soul; all of this clouded his mind, bits and pieces of his memories of her jumbling together in one flood, until a loud gunshot cut through it all.  Then there was only one image, those same green eyes staring sightlessly into the sky, a trickle of red coming down between them, and further up on her forehead-

“What happened here!?”

   Light was finally snapped out of his thoughts as one of the citizens of Tansk finally looked out the door, staring at the pile of mecha.  Because of the city’s strategy of hiding in their cellars every time a mecha was sighted anywhere near the wooden gates, no one had seen what Light had done.  Only Luna and the mecha had seen what had happened, and as the mecha were now mere scraps, they weren’t saying anything.

“Hey, it’s a Terraphim!  And he’s with that monster of a girl!” a voice called.

   It was the boy from before, his hood still covering his face as he pointed at Light’s wings.  Swearing under his breath, Light got up and grabbed Luna and Night, pulling them along as more people started streaming out with weapons and giving chase.  Looking back and cursing again, Light took to the air, his wings barely flapping as he soared.  Frightened by this sudden change, Luna shrieked and started trying to pull free as they rose higher, Night letting go and flying of his own accord.

   Without warning, she broke free of Light’s grip and started to fall, still screaming.  Light hurtled down after her, cursing all the way down.  Passing her, he got under her and caught her before she hit the ground.  She still looked afraid, but was otherwise unharmed.  Light called Night down to the path he had landed on.

“We’ll run from here, but we’ll have to be fast.  They won’t give up trying to catch us unless we get past the river up ahead.  From there, we’ll be out of their jurisdiction,” Light explained, looking back over Luna’s shoulders at the lights that were starting to pour out of the gates of Tansk.

“Why are they trying to catch us?” Night asked, looking at the torches as well.

“It’s because of me,” Light answered, “but I don’t have time to explain it all to you.  We’ve got to get over the river before they catch up with us!”

   All three of them broke into a run, though they could hear the steady, quick pulse of a horse’s hooves against the path getting closer and closer to them.  Looking back only once, Light swore and started to run faster, and though Night noticed that his wings were now gone, he made no comment.  Just as it seemed that they would be caught by the people on horseback, a figure flew right over them and tackled the man off of his horse.

   Stopping and turning around, they watched as the armored Terraphim sliced into the kneecap of the horse, and in the same fluid motion brought his sword down and severed the man’s head.  Night cried out, but Light watched with interest as a score of the Terraphim knights descended from the sky onto the townspeople.  Tapping on his shoulder, Luna got his attention and pointed to something on the armor of the Terraphim.  It was the same crest that was on the mecha in Tansk; the crest of the Order of Deus Iuguolo.

   Light started to draw the seal in the air, his wings reappearing as pure hatred appeared in his eyes, but Night grabbed him, dragging him towards the river.  He fought against the Rayven, but Luna helped, pulling him by his other arm.  They met their first problem when they arrived at the riverbank:  the water was rushing by quickly, and the other riverbank was at least five meters away.

“How are we going to get across?” Night yelled over the roaring of the water.

Light, who had calmed down considerably, replied quickly.  “We’ll fly over!  You go first, and I’ll come across with Luna!”

“Are you sure about that?” Night hollered.

“Just get going!” Light retorted.

   Nodding, Night flew quickly to the other side of the rushing rapids, landing deftly behind eroded riverbank.  Reluctantly pulling Luna close and muttering for Evangeline to forgive him, he held her tight as he took to the air.  Thankfully she was more afraid of the water than she was of the air, and as such didn’t struggle against him.  She was more than happy, however, when he dropped her to the ground on the other side.

“We made it…” Night muttered, falling on his back and breathing hard from the running.

“That’s twice I’ve been forced to let them go,” Light growled, looking at the Terraphim that were still herding the townspeople back towards Tansk, only their incandescent wings visible.

“What do you mean by that?” Night asked, looking at the winded Terraphim.

“It’s a long story that I’d rather not-Luna, get back!  The banks are too eroded to support-Oh crap!”

   Luna, who had gone to look at the powerful river again, had walked too close and stepped on some loose dirt, which had inevitably given away underneath her weight.  Charging alongside the rushing water with Night right behind him, Light suddenly leaped out onto a rock in the middle of it all as Luna was pushed towards it.  Reaching for her with Night holding his other hand from above, he managed to catch her.

   The river, however, seemed more than happy to accommodate Luna’s two friends, and as it pulled her along with all of its force, it tugged Light off of his rock and pulled Night down with him.  Fighting forward in the current, Night gasped for air before being shoved back underneath the surface, where he struck his head on a rock.  Fighting for the surface again against his clouded head, he realized that he wasn’t going to make it.  Floating back down towards the riverbed, he finally let go of the air in his lungs, and he blacked out.

[NicTei]

I've just realized that this is Tome City's 'Featured Story.'  Are they on a rotator, or was this just given the honor?  Either way, I feel special.

[Chinaren]

Nice, another chapter.  I'll come back to this when I have a bit more time.  You and your long chapters! 

[Chinaren]

Okay, caught up! 

However, I'd just like to take the 'Uber character' alert to condition yellow  ~woop woop woop sounds~  as there are some distinctly over powerful characters coming out, IMO.  Either that or the robots are about as powerful as tin cans.

[Phang]

However, I'd just like to take the 'Uber character' alert to condition yellow  ~woop woop woop sounds~

*joins in* Woop woop woop

[Cutypie]

Ok before I read on, who is "The Rayven" I'm a bit confused, I got so use to night and light...  

[NicTei]

@Cutypie:  Night is a half-bird, half-human species named 'Rayvens.'  In other words, I'll refer to Night as 'the Rayven' occasionally so I don't use his name too often in the paragraph, much like I'll refer to Light as 'the Terraphim.'

@Chinaren:  Okay, good point, and I'd forgotten about that, I guess, but there's an easy enough remedy.  These Clockwork Knights will be just footsoldiers, or something.  There'll be stronger mecha as I go along, and Chasiah's Terraphim will also be formidable foes.

@Phang:  ...  No comment.

[Cutypie]

finished reading it, action action action, thing after thing, mechas. We'll see what happens next, let the mistery be solved.

[NicTei]

Alright, just finished the next chapter of HeartEater and posted an earlier chapter of it, so you know what that means!
...
...
...
Okay, maybe you don't know.  This one's next!

[Chinaren]

When the rewrite comes, I expect less uberness in that last chapter or so!   

[NicTei]

Sorry; I wasn't able to work on this yesterday.  My day was completely and utterly packed.  First I had to go and set up some books for a booksale, then I had to go make food for a supper, then I had to take down the books I'd set up hours before, and after all that, I had to march in a parade with twelve other members of our marching band because other people couldn't be arsed to show up. 

But wait, there's more!  I had another wedding to go to, and didn't get back from that until late at night.  What's more, the computer was basically down all day because the soundcard was making some bizarre noise, so even though there was at least an hour between the first couple of things I had to do, I couldn't write.
...
...
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!!

[Chinaren]

Pah!  Feeble excuses there NiceT. 

[NicTei]

Er...right.  This one is still coming.  I'm a little behind, though, so my apologies.

[NicTei]

   In the darkness, Night was suddenly aware of a dripping noise as he slowly came to his senses.  His entire body ached and his eyelids protested against him opening his eyes, but he did so anyways, taking in the scene before him.  The cold grey stone of a cell wall met his eyes, and turning his head to each side, he found an identical wall on his left and a similarly-colored door on his right, three bars set in a small window at the top of it.

   Shackled tightly to the wall, he couldn’t move far, the iron chains around his wrists thick and impossible for him to break alone.  Kicking his feet around, he heard what sounded like stones moving, but when he looked down he saw only the pale white skull of a child, empty sockets staring up at him in a macabre grin.  Trying not to be sick as a horrible smell met his nose, a movement from directly in front of him caused him to look up.

   Though he tried to scream, no sound came out as a pale white hand reached forward from the stone, a full body following it soon after.  The entire figure was wrapped in a luminescent white cloak, its hood barely concealing its rotten, eyeless face.  As its mouth opened, Night discovered the source of the smell, a horrible shriek echoing through the small space and chilling the Rayven to the core.  It reached forward, its pale hand entering his chest.  Immediately a cold feeling spread throughout him, as if he were being filled with ice.

“In the name of the Kings of Orband, be gone!” a voice boomed through the cell, Night’s ears throbbing as it reverberated through his skull.

   Astonishingly, the figure hissed and began to retreat through the wall as a bright light came closer to Night.  Looking past it, he saw a small, dirty man holding a lantern and a slightly bloody ring with two keys on it.  Looking warily at the bars, the man rushed over to Night and unlocked his shackles, hurrying him through a hole in the wall that hadn’t been there before.

   Following him down a small tunnel, Night looked closer at his guide to keep his mind off of the fact that he couldn’t see the sky.  He was extremely small compared to most other men, standing only half of Night’s height.  A dirty grey beard reached down to his kneecaps, an equally filthy shock of hair of the same color exploding out of his head.  It appeared as though he were wearing just a canvas bag, though it was likely an old, grimy tunic.  As he navigated down the hallways, his hand was always on the walls, as if he needed to make contact with the stone to live.

“Do you know where my friends are?” Night asked quietly.

“There are many cells in this wretched dump,” the man replied gruffly, “but I’ve only found you.”

“I was with two others when I fell in the river,” Night insisted.

“Can ye describe them?  Perhaps I’ve seen them elsewhere,” the man offered.

“One is a girl, she was wearing some sort of uniform, and the other is a Terraphim with long brown hair,” Night answered.

   The man stumbled when Night said ‘Terraphim,’ but made no comment.  At length they came to a small chamber, where Night saw two other figures that looked nearly identical to his guide.  One of them looked up and instantly called to them.

“Oi Grimmuld, what’ve ye got there?” he bellowed.

“Found me a bird boy!” Night’s guide called back.

“He the only one?” the second asked.

“Says he’s got two friends, but I en’t seen ‘em,” Grimmuld answered.

“Maybe one o’ the other’s ‘as got ‘em by now?” the first suggested.

“No, he says one’s a Terraphim.  You know where they’re kept!” Grimmuld said, winking knowingly.

“Aye, but where might the other be?” the second asked.

“He says she’s a girl, so if one o’ the boys found ‘er, he’s not likely to tell us,” Grimmuld said, rolling his eyes.

“Well if they’ve found her, they’d better tell me!” Night cried.

“Easy now, easy.  Maybe ol’ Grimmuld should show you to your other friend first?” Grimmuld said, waving his hands in front of Night’s face.

“Of course!”

“Right then, follow me!”

{+}

   Cool, soft hands held his face as deep green eyes bored into his.  Perfect white teeth were displayed as pale lips were pulled back in a smile that could bring a withered flower back to life.  The cool wind blew through almost white hair, whipping it around wildly as if the wind itself were happy that she was there.  All around, the earth seemed to be rejoicing with the beauty of day, and the girl that had likely made it so.

“Light, why do you blame yourself?” Evangeline asked, cocking her head slightly as a trace of sadness entered her smile.

“It’s all my fault,” Light replied, taking her hands in his.

“I don’t blame you for anything that’s happened,” the girl answered.

“Why not?  If it weren’t for me…” Light argued, his voice trailing off.

“In all the time I’ve known you, you seem to almost relish telling people that they’re forgiven, and even letting go of what they’ve done to you.  Do you mean to tell me that with all this forgiveness within you, you can’t forgive yourself?” she asked.
Before he could reply, her finger was on his lips.  “Don’t answer; just think.”
Light nodded after a while.  “Alright,” he said quietly.

“Good,” Evangeline said, her smile seeming to brighten.  Then she looked somewhere over his shoulder.  “You need to go now.  Your friends need you.”

“What?  No!  I’m not leaving without you!” Light replied aggressively.

“You mean you want to stay asleep and die?” Evangeline asked, her smile fading.

“I’m not dead?” Light asked.

“No; you’re just sleeping,” Evangeline answered, half-smiling.

“Pity,” Light spat.

“Don’t die for my sake, Light.  You can die anytime, but you only have this one chance to live.  You think that just because I was buried years ago that I’m dead?  Have you learned nothing from our time together?” Evangeline asked, her fingers lightly brushing his cheek again.

“If you’re alive, I swear I’ll find you,” Light promised solemnly.

   Evangeline only smiled sadly again before everything became white, the wind whipping even more furiously around Light until he could only hear the roar of a fire.  Snapping his eyes open, he assessed the situation.  He was shackled, by one hand, to a ceiling and suspended directly over a pit of fire.  Looking to the corners of the rooms, he saw three baseball sized mecha, all with their tiny guns trained on him.

“Probably motion activated,” he muttered.  “Well, better make this quick.”

   Letting his wings erupt out of his back, he flipped his legs up onto the ceiling and pushed off as hard as he could, snapping the chain and dislocating his wrist.  Ignoring the pain, he waited until the guns fired to drop, the bullets all hitting the parallel mecha and destroying it.  Hovering above the fire, he looked for the door, but before he could find it, a grating noise akin to stone scraping against stone cut through the air.

   Turning around, he saw Night waving to him from a hole in the wall.  Rolling his eyes, he flew into the hole and the tunnel beyond it, not caring to watch as the hole was closed by the Dwarf that had opened it.  Looking around cautiously while retracting his wings, he finally turned to Night, putting his wrist back in place.

“Where’s Luna?” he asked.

“I don’t know,” Night answered with a shrug.

“Well, figure it out so we can get out of here,” Light snapped.

“We don’t even know where here is!” Night retorted.

“I can answer that for ye!” Grimmuld piped up.

“Then do so,” Light growled.

“We’re in the prison complex under the Dwarven city o’ Orband,” the dwarf answered quickly.

“Great.  We’re not getting out alive,” Light muttered.

“Probably not, but it’s not really that bad living in these tunnels.  No one dares search for you, and you get plenty of food from the rats and occasional pet that gets lost!” Grimmuld said with a toothy smile.

“I’m not living underground!” Night cried startling Grimmuld into dropping his lantern.

“Now what?  Ye’ve broken my light!” the dwarf shrieked in the darkness.

“We’re going to die!” Night yelled, running in circles though he couldn’t see where he was going.

“Oh, shut up.  You’re a dwarf; just follow the stone, or something,” Light snapped.

“Er…about that…I’m only half-dwarf…” Grimmuld muttered.

“You’ve got to be kidding me.”

“No.  It’s a long story, actually.  Ye see, I was born in a small village-!”

“Shut up.”

   For a moment there was no sound but Night’s whimpering.  In the distance they could hear dripping water echoing through the tunnels, and to their side was the sound of the fire roaring behind the wall, but total silence beyond that.  Finally Light sighed, clutching his temples in the darkness.

“Why are the people around me always so helpless?” he muttered as he let his wings appear again, crimson and blue light emanating from them and illuminating the tunnel.

“Let’s just hurry and find Luna so we can get out of here,” Night murmured, shuddering.

“I’ve been meanin’ to ask ye; why d’ye want to find this girl so much?  Can’t ye just leave without her?” Grimmuld asked, scratching his head.
Instantly Light had him pinned against the wall.

“What are you doing!?” Night cried, shocked.

“He would only ask a question like that if he knew where she was and didn’t want us to find her,” Light growled, not taking his eyes off of Grimmuld.  “Where is she?”

“Suppose I don’t tell ye?” Grimmuld spat back.

“Then I’ll bring down everything above us,” Light replied, his voice barely above a whisper but still full of malice.

“Ha!  I’m a dwarf!  I’ll be fine!” Grimmuld shouted.

“Half-dwarf,” Light corrected with a smirk.

   Grimmuld seemed at a loss for words, looking down the tunnels in the hopes that one of his friends would come to his aid, but the three of them were all alone.  Glaring at Light, he muttered a couple of words that Night didn’t hear, and Light let him go.  Instantly he sprinted down the tunnel away from them, Light yelling and giving chase.  Not wanting to be left alone in the dark, Night followed the glow from Light’s wings as best he could.

{+}

   In the main hall of Orband, a very different scene was taking place.  Dwarves, not the skinny things like Grimmuld, but proper, powerful dwarves, were raising their axes for attack or running as a distinctly female figure tore towards them, covered in the blood of their comrades.  An ominous red glow emanated from her eyes, and she seemed to be laughing as she tore out the internal organs of many of the warriors with her bare hands.

“What is she?” the general wondered aloud as his lieutenant’s head rolled to his feet.

“Sir, some of our kin are saying they recognize her from a town just up the river,” one of his other subordinates reported.

“Does that mean…?” the general asked, horror spreading across his face.

“I’m afraid so,” the subordinate answered, trembling slightly.

“Pull back!” the general roared to the survivors.  “Retreat and evacuate anyone still in the city!”

   Turning to follow his warriors, he suddenly felt a searing pain in his chest.  Looking down, he saw a pale hand protruding from his breastplate, his still-beating heart firmly clutched in its fingers.  The last thing he heard before death took him was the girl’s voice ringing horribly in his ears.

“Time to go to sleep!”

{+}

“Now that I’m sure you’re not going to run again, tell us where our friend is!”

   Light had Grimmuld pinned to a wall again, but this time he was holding him upside down by his feet.  The half-dwarf glared at his captor as his face turned red, but said nothing.  Sighing, Light seemed to be thinking, but suddenly lifted his knee up sharply, striking Grimmuld in the head.

“Ow!  Ye hit me in the head!” Grimmuld yelled, stars swimming past his eyes.

“Good.  Maybe it jogged your memory.  Now where is the girl?” Light asked, eerily calm.

“Jus’ don’t hit me again!  I delivered her to Orband, as a goodwill gift t’ the King!” Grimmuld sobbed.

“Take us there,” Light said coldly, tossing the half-dwarf to the floor.

   Hanging his head, Grimmuld started walking, his spirit already broken by Light.  Night didn’t know whether to admire the Terraphim or be afraid of him; he got things done, but his means were questionable at best.  Following after him, Night began to notice a slight upward slope to the passage, along with a slight draft.

“There ye are.  Orband,” Grimmuld muttered, pointing out a small door.

   Light looked out and swore, taking a step back.  Grimmuld, startled by this reaction, looked as well, turning pale and collapsing to his knees.  Night rushed to the door, wondering what could be so horrible, and gasped.

   What was once a great city lay in ruins, blood spattered everywhere on the walls of the buildings and corpses littering the streets.  Weapons lay amongst them, some broken and others simply thrown out of their hands by the attacker.  All around the giant chamber that housed the city, the stench of death permeated the air.

   Without warning, Light dashed out of the tunnel and into the city, taking to the air seconds later.  Leaving the shocked Grimmuld behind, Night flew after him, relishing the sensation of flying despite the place he was in.  Up ahead he saw Light dive down and followed after him, landing beside a dying dwarf.

“What happened here?” Light asked, looking over the warrior’s wounds.

“The girl…” the dwarf gasped.

“Yes, the girl.  Where is she?” Light asked quietly.

“She killed…everyone…” the dwarf breathed.

“Who did?” Night asked.

   Before the dwarf could reply, his small body gave a shudder, and he was gone.  Bowing his head for a moment, Light reached over and closed the dwarf’s eyes.  Standing again, he looked at Night.

“We should check for any survivors.  If anyone is still alive, they may know where Luna is,” he said at length.

   A loud cry shriek pierced the air, coming from the direction of the tunnel.  Swearing loudly, Light leaped into the air and flew as fast as he could towards where they left Grimmuld, Night close behind.  Upon touching down, they were met with a bizarre sight.

   Luna was standing in front of Grimmuld, doubled over in what appeared to be a hug.  Something about the vacant, horrified expression on his face, however, told Light and Night that this was not the case.  They both heard Luna whisper something in his ear as she let him go.  He fell to the ground limply, though they couldn’t see why.

“Luna, is everything alright?” Light asked cautiously, hand on his sword.

   Jumping slightly, Luna turned around, and Night immediately gasped and leaped back a few feet.  The girl was completely covered in blood, her white polo shirt stained red and even her hair wet with the crimson liquid.  Seeing them, she smiled widely and rushed over to them, apparently overjoyed to see them.

“What happened here?” Light asked when she stopped, seeing his hand on his sword.

“I put them to bed!” she said, cocking her head.  “Why?”

“I see…” Light muttered, mentally running through everything that had happened since they had met Luna.

“You killed them!” Night breathed, horrified.

“Calm down, Night,” Light said absentmindedly. 

“So that’s what the boy meant by her being ‘dangerous’,” he exclaimed to himself when the memory revisited him.

 “Can you wait here a moment, Luna?  Night and I have to discuss something,” Light replied, stepping back when Luna nodded.

“We need to just high-tail it out of here!” Night whispered fiercely when they were out of earshot.

“No; we’re not leaving her here.  We’re bringing her with us,” Light asserted.

“But why!?  She’s mentally unstable!  For all we know, she could be plotting our demises as we’re speaking about her!” Night retorted.

“Night, think back to meeting Luna.  Do you know how many times she could’ve killed us?” Light argued.

Night thought a moment.  “True, but just because she didn’t before doesn’t mean she wouldn’t now…”

“For all we know, she’s got some kind of dual personality disorder that’s brought on by a certain emotional trigger.  For now, let’s just bring her along and watch her carefully,” Light replied calmly.

“Whatever.  But you are going to make sure she stays calm.  Any signs of ‘kill-everything-in-sight’ lunacy, and I’m gone!” Night said firmly.

“What about getting home?” Light pointed out.

“I can do that without an insane girl,” Night retorted.

   Giving a small, cold laugh, Light walked back to Luna.  Night stepped tentatively forward, but stayed a meter away from the blood-covered girl.  Light saw him and rolled his eyes, but made no comment.  Suddenly, he looked back towards the ceiling of the chamber.

“I believe we have our way out,” he said, pointing straight up.

“Great!” Night exclaimed as he leaped into the air, flying straight for the hole.

   Rolling his eyes, Light looked at Luna a moment, wondering if it would be possible to carry her out of there without getting blood all over his clothes.  Seeing no way to do so, he sighed and held out his hand.  Hesitantly, she reached out and took it as he started to lift into the air.

“Hold on tight,” he warned as she grabbed onto him instinctively, wrapping both arms around him in hopes of not falling.

“Evangeline, forgive me,” he muttered as she hugged tightly onto him.

   With a powerful leap he was airborne, rapidly catching up with Night.  As they climbed higher and higher, Night keeping as far away from Luna as he could, Night noticed clouds gathering above it.  These were the cumulonimbus clouds that he had come to dread seeing at the Inn; a storm was coming, and judging by the color and size of the clouds, it wasn’t a petty shower.

“We’re going to have to find shelter,” he said to Light as he stopped, still looking up.

“I don’t want to have to stay in Orband,” Light replied.

“Neither do I, but unless we can find another city near the base of the mountain…” Night answered, his voice trailing off as thunder erupted around them, the very mountain shaking.

“It reeks of death…” Light said, looking down at Orband with distaste.

“It’s so far underground,” Night muttered, also looking at the dwarf city.

“If you wish to escape the storm, stay and keep Luna with you, but I’m not remaining here.  I’m not sticking around here,” Light said with an air of finality, glaring at the storm clouds.

   Not wanting to go out into the storm, but equally reluctant to be left alone with Luna, Night finally nodded and followed Light as the Terraphim flew up out of the hole and into the dark sky beyond.  Lightning struck mere centimeters away from him, causing him to yell in shock as the thunder echoed in the small valley at the base of the mountain.  Light shouted something to him that he couldn’t hear, but he looked to where he was pointing and saw a small gathering of lights in a clearing.

   Feeling the hair on the back of his neck rising, Night looked up just as another burst of lightning headed towards him.  Time seemed to slow to a stop as Light reacted, suddenly in front of the Rayven, his hand in the path of the lightning.  There was a bright flash, nearly blinding Night, and when he could see again he saw that Light was already flying as fast as he could for the city.  Dumbfounded, Night set off after him, urged onwards by the claps of thunder that became more and more frequent.

{+}

“So how would we go about finding Chasiah?”

   It was Quix that had posed the question as the three knights and Stephan sat around in his house, trying to figure out the next course of action.  Stephan started to reply, but closed his mouth, thinking hard.  When it became clear that he didn’t have a reply, Quix sighed.  Suddenly the cleric stood, as if he had heard a strange noise.

“You’ve got an idea,” Vance guessed.

“I think I’ve just remembered something, yes,” Stephan answered as he left.

   Moments later he walked back into the room, burdened by a large, leather-bound book, the pages yellowed slightly with age.  Vance looked at it dubiously, but Quix and Rin were staring at it, interests piqued.  Dropping it on the table with a heavy thud, Stephan opened the cover, coughing as a cloud of dust erupted from it and a staring at the cover as it came off in his hand.

“I don’t think we need an ancient lore lesson, Stephan,” Vance said sarcastically.

“It’s not; I’ve recorded even recent events in this book.  Stupid time travel fairies,” Stephan replied, though the last part was muttered to himself.

   Flipping through the aged pages, Stephan stopped slightly over halfway through and started to run his finger down a very long list of names.  Murmuring to himself, he flipped the page over and looked through the continued list.  Rin and Quix looked on, the fore noticing that the names all had a black ‘x’ behind them and the latter noticing that the book appeared to be breathing.  Finally, Stephan uttered a cry of triumph.

“Ha!  Here we go!” he said, repeatedly pointing to a name in the book.

“What is it?” Rin asked.

“I’ve found one of the few people that survived after turning down a direct offer from Chasiah!” Stephan said with a smug grin.

“Really?  Stephan, have you been peeping on the world with some crystal ball that you got from that gypsy that was living with you for a while?” Quix asked, grinning as well.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Stephan muttered.

“How do you know if they’re dead or alive, then?  I thought you said you recorded in this thing, but you obviously haven’t left the house in a while,” Rin asked, pointing at the book.

“Through various little charms and enchantments,” Stephan replied, holding the book down firmly as it started to edge towards the end of the table, “I’ve got it to record itself, though it seems to have come to life in the process.

“So, who are we looking for?” Vance asked, standing up.

“Hold on…” Stephan muttered, looking at the book, “bloody thing decided to reorder the names on me…”

“Got it yet?” Rin asked after a moment of silence, during which Stephan looked through the pages for the list of names.

“Yes.  His name is Light Phaeton,” Stephan said, pointing to the name.

“Where have I heard that name before?” Rin asked, looking to the ceiling in thought.

“Oh, he’s got quite the past,” Stephan said with a smirk.

“I assume you’re going to tell us all about it?” Vance asked, rolling his eyes.

“But of course.  You know I can’t resist a good story-telling opportunity,” Stephan answered with a knowing smile.

“Just make it quick,” Vance muttered, sitting back down.

“Alright, but for you to understand, I’m going to have to go back, back to when the war first started…” Stephan began, ignoring the loud thud as the book finally leaped off of the table and crawled back to its shelf.

[Cutypie]

No one replied this is sad. I'll reply when my work has slowed down.

[Saint]

Yeah, I haven't read Chapter five yet.  Sorry dude.  Tatter's really dragging me down of late.