Legend of the Plague
by Brookness
Disclaimer: I do not own The Legend of Dragoon, nor it's contents. Just this story.
Chapter I: Plague
Dart heard a noise from outside his window. He looked around his dark room, lit up only by the moonlight that had shone in from the window. He sat up, the cover flowing down to his waist, showing off his handsome, muscular chest as he rubbed his eyes awakening.
He peered out the window and saw a dark figure. He squinted his eyes as he then realized who it was. He quietly got up and opened up the window, climbing out to the roof-side. He looked at her as she sat hugging her knees close to her chest. Her long dark hair flowing in the gentle midnight breeze, along with her large white t-shirt she used as a night gown, and her headband horns sticking a ways out from her head. He sat at her side leaning back, letting his arms support his weight.
"What's wrong, Rose?" He asked. She gently scoffed, and slightly turned her head away, "There has to be something wrong in order for me to see you?" He looked at her slightly surprised, "Well... I guess not. So, you can't get sleep?"
"I haven't been able to for a couple weeks now. But, I guess that's what comes with the whole package." She told.
"I miss him, too." Dart sighed, "I'm sure he misses us both as well."
"He can't miss us. He's gone." She muttered. She looked over at him, realizing that he had no shirt on. She blushed in surprise, and quickly turned away, pretending she hadn't noticed.
He pulled out two lollipops. He unwrapped one and stuck it in his mouth, letting it slightly hang. He handed her a purple one. She took it and did the same.
"You should go back in and get some sleep. I'm sorry I woke you." Rose told. Dart nodded, "Nah, I'm okay." He said smiling kindly, "I'm fine right here."
"Everything has changed so much over the past year. Thank you for letting me live here with you and Shana. Though, I'm sure she hates that another girl is in the house. Me, in particular." Rose told. Dart chuckled, "Oh, you love that she hates that." She held a slightly devious smirk. "Though, we can't forget Meru." Dart told.
"She's very fond of you. It's quite annoying. But, Meru is Meru." She told. He chuckled, "Yeah. I guess she's more like my little sister now.
"Everyone is living their own lives. It's been so long since we've seen them." She said.
"I know. I miss them a lot. But, we'll be meeting up with them again soon." Dart assured, "For now we should get some rest. You can sleep on my bed since Meru seemed to have taken over your spot on the couch." He said as he peeked in through the window to the living room. There, Meru was spread out sleeping comfortably and snoring.
They made their way into his room, and stepped on the bed, and then on the floor. He fixed up his bed for her, and she sat down as he went to the closet and pulled out a sleeping bag and pillow for himself, and lay it on the floor.
"I'll sleep on the floor." Rose told. Dart nodded, "I'm the man. I'll sleep on the floor." He lay down and looked into her dark-blue eyes, and she looked into his crystal-blue eyes. She quickly turned and lay on the bed, with her arms folded behind her head. He turned the other direction and closed his eyes.
She stared up to the ceiling for several minutes until her eye lids suddenly grew heavy and she fell asleep.
Hours passed and footsteps approached. The door knob to Dart's room turned, and the door opened. *GASP!*
"Shana! Dart and Rose did it!" Meru's voice called. Shana came up beside her and stared. By then Dart and Rose opened their eyes at Meru's yelling.
Rose was laying next to Dart on the floor, her leg slightly over his, and her head had been rested on his arm. She was still wearing her large white t-shirt as a night gown. They both jumped up and stared in embarrassment. "Uh..."
"Sorry.. I must've fallen off... Uh.. I'm going to take a shower." Rose told as she walked out of the room with no eye contact. "Oh, no you don'! Not before me!" Meru chased.
It was quiet in the room. Shana nor Dart had made a sound. "She needed a place to sleep.. So, I let her have my bed, and I slept on the floor. I.."
"You don't have to explain, Dart." She said as she walked up to him and kissed his cheek, "Breakfast is ready. Be down in 5?" She said as she walked out the door. He looked down as he sighed, "Yeah." He muttered to himself.
He walked to his closet and began looking for clothes. He found a white t-shirt and put it on.
*SLAM* "Aw!" Meru whined as she slid down the bathroom door with her back, "C'mon, Rose.."
5 minutes later...
Rose walked down the hall with her armor on, and sat at the table joining the others. On their plates were eggs sunny-side-up and cheese, bacon, and a piece of toast. Along with a glass of orange juice for each.
They all dug into their food.
"This is good food, Shana. Thank you for making it." Rose told. Shana smiled and nodded.
"Rose, why are you wearing your armor?" Meru asked.
"It makes me feel whole." Rose replied.
"That's pretty weird." Meru told. Dart chuckled, "Meru, don't pick on her."
Shana gathered the plates after everyone finished and went to go wash them. Rose stood up and followed her to the kitchen.
"I can do it." Shana told, not making eye contact. Rose stared at her in the thought that she had done something wrong. But, she didn't make another sound, and left to the living room. She rested her back against the wall and thought to herself.
"You okay?" Dart asked. Rose looked at him, and then back to the floor, "I am fine."
"Um.. Guys? Come look at this.." Meru slightly whispered, looking out the living room window. Shana shut off the water, and dried her hands as she, Dart, and Rose made their way beside Meru.
"Who is that?" Meru asked. It was a man with his head down, continuously bumping his body into the tall front gate at the end of the front yard. "That's a good question. What the hell is this guy doing?" Dart mumbled to himself.
He stepped aside, and reached into the closet. He pulled out his large sword, and began unlocking the locks to the door.
"What are you doing?" Shana asked.
"I'm gonna go see who he is." Dart replied.
"I'll go, too." Rose insisted.
"No. Stay here. All three of you. I don't know what this guys problem is, but I'm gonna find out. Keep an eye out." He told as he opened the door, and stepped out on the front porch, posing for a strike.
Meru, Shana, and Rose all watched through the living room window as Dart slowly approached the front gate. It was locked, so there was no way he could just barge in.
"Hey.." Dart spoke. The man kept bumping into it, and didn't speak. "Hey!" Dart spoke a little louder, "Who are you?"
The man stopped moving, and just stuck his hands through the gate bars like he was trying to grab Dart. "What the hell... What are you doing?"
The man looked up. There was dried blood stuck to his chin, and parts of his face. His clothes were all dirty. His eyes were pure white, and slightly blood-shot. Dart stared in slight fright.
Rose looked at Meru and Shana, "Wait here." She said as she armed her Rapier. "We're going, too." They both said as they grabbed their weapons. They opened the door.
"Oh my god..." Meru and Shana muttered. Rose walked up to Dart.
"What the hell happened to him?" Dart asked. "He's... His mind... It's like it's gone..." Rose muttered.
"What? What are you talking about?" Dart asked.
"Dart, look at him," She pointed out, as Dart followed her point, "He doesn't move like a regular person. Look how he's acting."
"Then how the hell is he moving?" Dart asked.
"I don't know... But, last night... I thought I saw a man moving just like this man is moving. Like he had no mind, like he was dead. I just thought it was my imagination, but... What the hell is this?" She told.
Suddenly a woman's scream was heard, as she began running out from a building. Her long brown hair flowing behind her. "Help me, please, somebody!" She shrieked. She was being followed by people that looked and moved just like the man was.
Dart armed his sword, "We gotta help her!"
"We'll use our Dragoon Spirits to fly over the gate." Rose told as she took out her Dragoon Spirit orb, and held it out. Dart did the same. She stared in shock, as nothing happened.
"It's... it's not working..." Rose muttered, "We can't transform..."
Meru and Shana did the same. Still, nothing happened.
"Why can't we transform?" Dart asked, surprised.
"I.. don't understand..." Rose muttered.
The woman's screams were heard once again.
"We can't just stand here and do nothing. We have to help her!" Dart urged.
Without hesitation, Rose nodded and whisked out her Rapier, "I'll cover you."
"Shana, Meru, stay here and keep the gates locked until we get back. Do you understand?" Dart asked.
"But, Dart.." Shana started.
"Do you understand?" Dart interrupted abruptly, with a fierce, serious look on his face. Shana had never seen that look before, but she knew it was for a good reason. She nodded in agreement.
Dart turned back to the gate. He unlocked it and kicked the man to the ground, as Rose followed. Shana and Meru quickly locked the gates behind them, as the man got back up soon after.
Dart and Rose swiftly ran through the town. They spotted the woman being cornered. She screamed in terror.
"Hang on!" Dart shouted. The woman heard and looked at them approaching her way. Suddenly, a small hint of hope was seen in her blue eyes.
Dart knocked down the Mindless Ones, one by one with the hilt of his sword. They fell quickly, but rose back up in just a few seconds.
"Rose, what do we do? They keep getting back up like it doesn't even hurt them." Dart hollered.
"Just keep it up, we have to focus on getting her out of here." Rose replied, knocking some down as well.
Meru hugged Shana as they both watched the man, trying to get in the gate. He was groaning oddly like he was hungry.
"Shana, what's going on?" Meru muttered. Shana had a strong face of concern, "It'll be okay, Meru. Don't worry. Dart and Rose will be back in just a minute."
Dart and Rose finally reached the one's that approached the woman, and knocked them down. Without another move, Dart grabbed her by the hand and put her on his back. They began running back in the direction of the house. Again, they knocked down more and more.
"I can see the house! We're almost there!" Dart hollered.
Suddenly Dart felt something grab his leg, and he tripped and tumbled over with the girl. Suddenly being so close, seemed so far away.
Dart looked at what had stopped him. It was one of them. It grabbed the girl and started pulling her as she yelled. "No!" Dart yelled, grabbing her hand.
Rose was surrounded by a bunch of them, and fighting them off. Dart struggled to fight them off, but as he spent his time trying to, more began to surround them. His face formed to terror, as he looked into the girls terrified face. It bit her leg, and she screamed in utter pain. Still, Dart tried to get her out, "Hang on!" He yelled.
She looked at him, "It's okay to let me go. Let me go. Avenge me. But, let me go." The girl spoke with tears in her eyes. "No!" Dart yelled, trying harder to pull her out. She grabbed his hand with her other free hand, and pulled it away from hers. It dragged her further away, as she stopped moving.
Dart stared in shock. He couldn't move. All he could hear was his own heart beating.
"Dart!" Rose yelled, as she grabbed his hand and pulled him up. They ran to the house gate, and knocked out the man that waited there, again.
Quickly, Meru and Shana, shut the gates and locked them. Dart and Rose both fell to the ground, gasping for air. Dart still held a terrified and shocked look on his face.
"Dart..?" Shana spoke. "It.. it bit her leg... It bit her leg, and ate it... It ate it..." He muttered.
"Ate..." Meru muttered in a scared tone.
"Rose... What on Earth is going on?" Shana asked.
Rose stood up, "The walls around the house are tall, thick, and sturdy. But, the gates may be fragile. We need to barricade the gates. But, we need to do it quietly. I've tested it out when I used my sword against a metal pipe. They all began following the echo. Those things respond to loud noises."
"What about those boulders for a barricade?" Meru pointed to the big boulders that were in the yard for decoration. "Perfect." Rose replied.
"Dart. You need to snap out of it. We need to do this." She added. Dart stood up and shook it off.
"Well, the boulder may keep them out, but look at him." Shana pointed to the man groaning at the gate, "He's been there this whole time. He'll attract attention." She told.
Rose pulled out her Rapier, "Don't look." She told them as she walked up to the gate. Meru, Dart and Shana all turned their heads in slight sadness.
"Forgive me." She muttered. All that was heard was a slash of Rose's Rapier, a splatter, and the sound of a body hitting the ground.
It was a quiet moment. A breeze from the wind blew. They all gathered behind the boulder and began pushing it in the direction of the gate as quietly as they could.
"Wait inside. I have a couple of things I need to prepare. It's best not to have too many people out here. It might be too noisy." Rose told, "You should get yourselves cleaned up. I'll call if there's trouble."
Meru and Shana nodded as they headed inside the house. Dart stared, "Rose, be careful." She nodded. He then made his way inside.
The sky had turned a golden yellow, as if the sun was already going down. Rose stood quietly in her own thoughts.
[Meanwhile, in the capital Denningrad, Mille Seseau...]
"Queen Theresa, the chaos has gotten too out of control. We have to get you into the underground castle tunnels, now." One of the Knights urged.
"No, my people. I cannot go!" Queen Theresa urged. Miranda stepped out looking at her with kind eyes, "If you are not safe, there will be no hope for Denningrad. It's okay, Queen Theresa. I'll handle this. Please go."
The Queen slowly nodded her head and agreed to go along with it. Miranda then looked at the 5 Knights in a fierce way, "You, watch the Queen with your life. Take her to the tunnels and lock the titanium-steel gates shut. No one goes in, no one goes out. If anyone, and I mean anyone, that looks suspicious shows up, stop them. Do not open those gates until I, personally show up. If anything else, I'll be sure to send you my messenger hawk for any information. Do you understand?"
The Knights nodded in agreement, and lead the Queen down the path to the tunnels. Miranda pulled out her White-Silver-Eyed Dragoon Spirit, but nothing happened. She swiftly made her way through the castle stairs and halls, and out of the castle. People were screaming for help, running away from other citizens that moved and looked different, and they were attacking them. Miranda stared in shock, "What the hell is going on?"
[Meanwhile, in the capital Bale, Serdio...]
"Your Majesty, Albert! The situation has gotten far worse than imagined. The chaos seems to spread through just a bite. It's horrid, Your Majesty. We've locked down the castle and it's perimeter due to your safety. But, what do you want us to do?" The head of the 1st Knighthood asked.
Albert thought thoroughly about what he was going to do. A bit of sadness grew in his eyes but it quickly converted to determination, "Evacuate everyone you can. Get as many of the innocent to the underground bunker. Also... Take my dear Queen Emille to the emergency tunnels. Let nothing and no one harm her." Albert commanded.
Emille stared in fright, "What? Albert, no! Not without you!" She denied. He looked into her jade eyes, "Don't worry, my love. I must protect as many as I can. I will be back for you." He assured. Tears formed in her eyes, but he wiped them away. They kissed passionately for a moment before they parted.
"Kongol will fight with human king Albert. Kongol protect humans." Kongol assured them both, holding his large battle axe over his large shoulder.
The knights lead Emille to a corridoor that would eventually lead to the tunnels. The men sealed the titanium-steel door behind them.
[Meanwhile, in Rogue, Mille Seseau...]
"Quickly, hurry!" Haschel shouted to the villagers to get onto the boats.
He was fighting off as many of the Mindless as he could, but they just kept coming. He evacuated as many of the uninfected as he could into the rafts and boats and followed as well. As they floated away on the rafts and boats, they all looked back at their village. Some people were still left behind, screaming. But, the screams grew less, and less.
What is happening? Haschel thought to himself.
[Back at Dart's house]
A white hawk flew down to Rose's arm. She pulled out a letter that was rolled up in it's back pouch.
Rose walked in through the front door, and shut it. She locked all four locks. The others closed every window in the house. They all sat in the living room.
"It's a message from Miranda." She told.
"Guys... Something horrid has begun. I don't know why, or how it all started, but as from what I heard.. It's reached pretty far. It's some kind of infection. People bite each other, and then they turn into those... things... I've safely taken the Queen to the tunnels, so that's taken care of. But, something else is wrong... I can't transform into a Dragoon. I don't know what else to do other than fight my way out. I need to know if you guys are okay, and what we're gonna do. Let me know you're okay. -Miranda" Rose read aloud.
"So what are we gonna do?" Meru asked.
"I have an idea..." Rose told.
"We are okay, and safe. Yes, none of our Dragoon Spirits are working either. I'm not quite sure why, but I know we will figure it out soon. But, we need to know if everyone is alright. There are check boxes next to everyone's name. All of ours is checked. Check yours, and then send the messenger hawk with the same message to the next person on the list. As soon as that's all done. We will all meet up in Reiyorak. I know it's one of the biggest cities, but it also has the most supplies. From then on we will carry on. Report back. -Rose" Rose finished writing.
"So we're really doing this." Shana spoke.
"I set up a trap. If anyone or anything tries climbing over the walls, the string and bell I set up will ring, and we all will hear it." Rose told.
The golden-yellow sun was gleaming on the yard and walls outside.
"She was right there... I had her hands. But, I couldn't save her.." Dart told with his head down in sadness.
"Dart, the point is, you tried. You didn't know what was going to happen, you didn't know what those things could do. Now you do. Now you can redeem yourself." Rose assured.
"That man was human once." Dart spoke. They all looked at him. "I saw a bite mark on his right shoulder when I kicked him down. It was the same kind of bite mark that was left on that woman's leg... He was human once. They were all human once."
"So if they are, they're dead. They don't have personality, they don't have inhibitions or regrets. They're walking stomachs. They're walking dead. They are not human anymore." Rose said, "This means we don't need to hold back." She muttered.
"What do you mean?" Meru asked. "We won't knock them out anymore. We have to kill. Kill the dead." Rose replied.
"She told me to let go... She told me it was okay to let go... But, I won't do it. I'm gonna fight. For the sake of everyone and everything. I won't let go." Dart assured.
Rose nodded, "Before it gets any later, we should all take a shower and eat dinner. We'll need to just sleep in one room for the night for safety."
"We'll stay in mine. It's smaller, better for us. It has a better lock, and it has a good escape way." Dart insisted. "Meru, you can go take a shower first. We'll keep watch. Just make it quick, and quite." Rose said.
Meru made her way to the bathroom quickly. Shana went into the kitchen.
"You did good out there. You tried." Rose told Dart. He smiled, "Thanks for saving me." She nodded.
After Meru, Shana took a shower. Then Rose, then Dart. Soon after, Shana handed out Rice Balls for everyone. Half an hour went by and the sun was already leaving the horizon.
"Lights out. Grab what you need and head to the room." Rose told. Meru and Shana grabbed their covers and pillows. They all had their battle armor and weapons equipped and ready.
[Denningrad, Mille Seseau...]
Miranda opened the letter and read it. She scratched in a check mark with her nail in the box next to her name, and sent it off.
[Bale, Serdio...]
The messenger hawk reached the castle in Bale.
"Sir, it's a message for you." One of the knights told.
Albert opened the pouch from the hawk and read it. He checked the box next to his name with a feather pen, as well did Kongol.
[Rogue, Mille Seseau...]
Haschel and the villagers were still floating off in the sea on the boats. All quiet and scared. The messenger hawk found him and flew down to his arm. He opened the letter and read it. Soon after, he tore a small hole in the box next to his name, and sent it off with a smirk on his face.
Morning came. As soon as the golden light touched Rose's eyelids, she awoke. She looked outside the window, and spotted Miranda's messenger hawk. She jumped up, holding onto her Rapier. She opened Dart's window, climbed onto the rooftop and looked. There was a whole crowd of the Mindless at the front gates. Her hair blew in the wind. She stepped back inside and woke the others up.
"We've got a problem." She told.
They all climbed onto the rooftop and looked at the crowd.
"That's alot..." Meru muttered. "That echo from the metal pipe must've reached pretty far. Along with the screaming and everything else, they must've all heard it and followed it. This is my fault..." Rose looked away.
"No, it wasn't. If it wasn't for you, we wouldn't have known all that we know now. So, let's get ready. We're leaving." Dart told.
They all gathered their gear, and prepared to leave. "Meru, Shana. Are you two ready to do this?" Dart asked. They nodded.
"Let's kick some brainless ass!" Meru jolted. She grabbed her large hammer and put it over her shoulder. Shana grabbed her bow and arrows, packing in some flammable one's with her normal arrows along with matches. Rose and Dart armed their weapons and all of them climbed down the rooftop, to the front yard.
"Dart, why are we leaving through the window and not the front door?" Shana asked. "I'd rather keep this place locked up as much as possible." He chuckled, as he adjusted his red headband.
Rose cut the trap line with her Rapier, and the line and bell fell to the ground.
"So, what are we going here?" Meru asked.
"We'll climb over the wall, using that tree to reach the top to make it easier. So we don't have to move the boulder. It would make it harder for them to grab us as well." Rose said. They all headed up the tree. Rose was first, then Dart. He looked up in search for a branch to grab, and saw up her skirt. His face turned beat red. "Hey!" Rose shouted, as she launched her foot in his face. He fell to the ground. "I'm sorry, I-"
"Dart!" Shana yelled as she slapped him. "Don't be a pervert." He sighed and then climbed up. Meru and Shana followed. They let the sturdy tree branches hold their weight. The golden-yellow morning sunlight beamed through the leaves of the tree.
"What's the plan?" Dart asked Rose, as he eyed the Mindless Ones. They were groaning and moaning, crowding over each other.
She stood quietly for a moment, looking at their surroundings with her narrowed eyes. "Okay. We'll jump down and start chopping our way through the crowd." Rose told.
"Right. I'll go first." Dart insisted. Rose nodded, "I'll cover the back. Meru and Shana, you both need to watch each other's backs in the middle of the charge." They nodded in determination.
"Those things can't grab us. When one of them grabbed my leg, it was an incredible pull. I don't know if any of us can break free if they grab a hold of us." Dart informed.
Rose looked at the crowd, "Then we'll need to be fast, and fierce." They all stepped carefully on the wall. They all looked at each other. "Ready?" Dart asked with a smirk.
They all nodded in determination. Then, they jumped, "Go!"
End of Chapter I.