Yayerz. This is my first fanfic. So yes. I'm writing this because I want to do an AQ story one day. However, I've effectively holed myself into a corner because my AQ character is also my DF one. (yes I know how flippin' wrong that is! 0.0) So I get to do foreshadowing, which is fun. In the long run, this will probably require a massive amount of retconning. ;p
Anyway, I apologize if the first half of this chapter is bland/slow. I'm not very good at writing the OHMYGOSH IT BE DARK AND SCAREH! stuff. Also: action scenes may suck. You hath been warned.
Hopefully, I didn't make Kiyan seem like a Mary Sue. Or one of those flippin' "cool, moody, snarky anti-heroes" that the women's movement or something has indirectly created. (which aren't that bad, really) It's already bad enough she's a rogue. (they're all rogues! ALL!) And there's no romance. Sorries. ._.'
About 4,980 years after the Reset...
"Sky's clear today," Matzir muttered. He rested one hand on his pitchfork. He and his best friend, Raoulf, were standing in front of their house. The village of Trestin was practically asleep; they could hear only quiet, hurried whispers and soft footsteps. It was a normal, average day.
Or so they thought.
"Sure is," Raoulf agreed. The two friends gazed up at the glorious expanse. After a while, Matzir spoke;
"We look like idiots."
"Yeah, we do."
Krisha and Syisha, two powerful enchantresses, emerged from the house. Syisha was carrying a toddler wrapped in a red cloth.
"We must go," Krisha whispered. "Kiyan is asleep inside. Take care of her."
"Sure thing," Matzir nodded at his wife. Raoulf patted Syisha's toddler on the head.
"My little boy's growing up," He said proudly. Syisha smiled and held the child tighter.
"You most certainly are, little Gal-Gal!" She cooed. The boy gurgled happily.
"Come, sister," Krisha smiled. The enchantresses left their spouses and strolled to the nearby forest. Matzir and Raoulf continued their idle chat.
"Sure is a lovely day."
"Sure is."
In the forest...
Syisha placed Galanoth on a log. A butterfly flew past him. Galanoth swatted at it angrily.
"You will need to learn about nature, little one," His mother chuckled. Krisha rested on a tree, a faraway look in her soft brown eyes.
"What's wrong, sister?" Syisha questioned.
"Nothing...just...I feel...something..." Krisha muttered. She straightened up. "It doesn't matter. Let's take Galanoth to the lake; he's never been there before."
Back in Trestin...
"Is that a red dot?" Raoulf squinted.
"Yeah. Maybe it's just a red bird or something," Matzir said dismissively.
"It's moving closer."
In the forest...
"My head really, really hurts," Krisha pressed one hand to her forehead. Syisha looked up at her, concerned.
"You don't think someone could be after the gems?" She whispered. Krisha shook her head in disbelief.
"That's...not possible..."
Trestin...
"It's really close now," Raoulf hissed.
"I may just be imagining it, but it looks like a-" Matzir was cut off by a villager's cry.
"DRAGON!"
Forest...
"What?" Krisha whirled around. "Did someone say-?"
"No..." Syisha whispered. "No! Not now!"
"Get back to Trestin!" Krisha urged her sister. "I'll protect Galanoth! Just please, get Kiyan!"
Trestin..
"HELLO," The dragon landed in the middle of the village, crushing some residents in the process. "HOW ARE YOU TODAY?"
"Leave!" Raoulf shouted. He and some other male villagers were holding pitchforks and axes.
"I WAS PLANNING ON GOING TO THE NEXT TOWN OVER, BUT IT JUST SO HAPPENS THAT IT'S BEING INVADED BY THE UNDEAD," It smiled. "LUCKY ME. IT TURNS OUT THAT TWO EXTREMELY POWERFUL ENCHANTRESSES LIVE HERE."
Matzir and Raoulf exchanged a worried glance.
"WHERE ARE THEY? I MAY NOT STRIKE YOU IF YOU REVEAL THEM IMMEDIATELY."
"Never!"
The dragon let out a huge blast of fire, setting the surrounding houses-and people-alight.
"THAT WAS A WEAK ATTACK. WANT MORE?"
A few of the villagers surged forward, yelling in rage. It stomped on them effortlessly.
"I WILL PICK YOU OFF, MAKE NO MISTAKE. HAND THEM OVER NOW."
"Raoulf!" Syisha cried. Raoulf ran to her and started to lead her away.
The dragon's eyes fixed on them. "THERE YOU ARE, MY PRETTY."
Syisha's eyes blazed. "You will not find the gems, Akriloth. Even if you kill me and my sister you will not get them."
"REALLY?" Akriloth let out a loud laugh. "HA HA HA HA! YOU THINK I DON'T KNOW THEIR LOCATION?"
"I know you know," Syisha snapped. "I'm just telling you that-"
"ENOUGH," Akriloth silenced her with a swoop of its tail. It knocked away more of the houses. Syisha let out a sob.
"DO YOU SEE WHAT I CAN DO? I CAN KILL YOUR FRIENDS, YOUR FAMILY, AND YOUR CHILDREN. THEN, I WILL DESTROY YOU AND TAKE YOUR PRECIOUS GEMS. SURRENDER AND I MIGHT LEAVE."
"No!"
"VERY WELL," Akriloth whirled around and crushed Matzir with one simple flick.
Syisha couldn't even scream. She just stood there, gaping at the villain.
"DO YOU SEE NOW?"
She shook her head, tears filling her eyes. "No."
Forest...
Krisha placed Galanoth in the hollow of a tree. "There; you'll be safe here."
Galanoth sniffed. "Where's Mommy?"
Krisha just shook her head. She had felt Matzir's death; she knew hers would be coming soon as well.
She kissed the boy before heading back to the village.
Trestin...
"Raoulf!" Syisha wailed. Akriloth grinned at her.
"THAT WAS A PAINLESS DEATH. SUCH A SHAME. I WANTED TO BREAK YOU, NOT INCREASE YOUR RESOLVE," The dragon seemed to shrug. "OH WELL."
Meanwhile, Krisha had sneaked into her house. She found her daughter crying underneath her bed.
"Wha-?"
"Sssh," Krisha picked her up and rocked her.
"Where's Galanoth? There's a scary dragon outside, where is he?!"
"He's in the forest," Krisha said gently. She picked up a brown backpack and handed it to Kiyan.
"I've known this day would come for a long while," The enchantress admitted. "Here; you'll need these. I put my Dragon Amulet inside."
"But-"
Krisha carried Kiyan out of the house and started to run back to the forest. Akriloth leaned in and whispered to Syisha;
"YOU HAVE A NIECE? HOW QUAINT."
"Stop it!"
Krisha, realizing Akriloth had spotted them, put Kiyan down.
"Run!"
"What? Mommy-"
"RUN!" Krisha scooted Kiyan away. The little girl took one last, terrified look at her mother before sprinting into the forest.
Breathing deeply, Krisha walked into the burning village and stood beside her sister. Akriloth snorted.
"I WOULD BURN DOWN THE FOREST, BUT MY PRECIOUS GEMS ARE IN THERE, AREN'T THEY?"
The women did not reply.
"I KNEW IT," Akriloth smirked. "I WILL SPARE YOUR CHILDREN, BUT ONLY SO THEY CAN LIVE IN MISERY. THE WRETCHED THINGS WILL PROBABLY DIE IN THE WILDERNESS, ANYWAY."
Krisha and Syisha both cast ice spells on Akriloth. It deflected them with ease.
"YOU'RE PAST YOUR PRIME," With that, Akriloth swatted Krisha away. She slammed against a piece of debris and fell to the ground, lifeless. Syisha looked Akriloth in the eye.
"ONE LAST CHANCE; YOU WILL SURRENDER THE AZRU TO ME!" The dragon bellowed.
"Never!"
The next day...
Kiyan blinked rapidly, trying to adjust to the severity of the sunlight as she regained consciousness. Her head hurt; she felt dizzy and nauseous.
"Hey there, little one," She heard a soothing, female voice. "Feeling better?"
"Kinda," Kiyan whimpered. Her vision cleared; she saw a black-haired woman wearing a strange, thin, blue armor.
"You sure you should've given her a potion?" A tall, lanky man approached them, a concerned expression on his wrinkled face.
"It was only a bit. Sure, it has some alcoholic content, but it's not enough to get her drunk."
"Some alcoholic content? It's, like, sixty-seven percent."
"No, just twenty-three percent."
"Sixty-seven!"
"Twenty-three!"
Kiyan started to cough violently. The woman took out a bottle and poured some red liquid out. The man rolled his eyes and muttered something about juvenile drunkards.
"Here, sweetie, drink this," She said. Kiyan obliged.
"Who are you?" She choked.
"I'm Mlril. This is my husband, Krel. What's your name?"
"Kiyan," The little girl squeaked.
"That's a pretty name," Krel said.
"Where are my parents?"
"They-they had to go away," Mlril stammered, "I think your cousin was saved, though." Krel just stood there, reading over a piece of paper they had found stuck to a tree.
To whomever it may concern,
Greetings. I am Kulgen, the leader of the Dragonslayers. A group of us were passing through the area when we spotted the charred remains of Trestin. Sadly, there were no signs of life in the village. One of us spotted a little boy crying in the hollow of a tree.
This child, Galanoth, is seemingly the only survivor from this attack. He is the son of the powerful enchantress, Syisha, and the nephew of the great mage, Krisha. We are taking him to the mountains around Dragesvard. I am planning on raising him as one of us. If you can prove that you are related to him in any way, we will gladly return him to you.
Rest assured, the dragon responsible will be defeated, one way or another. I am sure that it was Akriloth, an insanely powerful fire dragon. We will hunt it down and-
The rest of it was torn. Krel folded the paper up and put it in his pocket. (A/N: No, don't ask how rogues have pockets. 0.e)
"Kiyan, would you like to come with us?" Mlril asked, stroking the girl's brown hair. Kiyan sat upright and adjusted her backpack.
"I-I guess..."
4,986 years after the reset
"No, for the last time, I do NOT want to buy magical daggers!"
Krel slammed the door on the salesman and returned to the main room. Kiyan and Athena, his biological daughter, were sitting on the floor.
Athena was a year younger than Kiyan. This small age difference made them very good friends. Kiyan had grown much taller. Her curly brown hair fell into her eyes as she pretended to sip from a cup.
"Dad, we need tea!" Athena whined. Her short, copper red hair bounced lightly as she turned towards her father.
"Why th'heck do you need tea?"
"We're having a tea party!"
"LIFE IS NOT A TEA PARTY!"
Kiyan sniffed sadly. "I should know. My real parents are-are d-dea..."
"No, no, wait! Don't cry!" Krel rushed to Kiyan's side. "Daddy's sorry. I'm just having a rough day because this stupid salesman tried to sell Daddy these magical daggers which were really just glowing sticks, then Mommy yelled at Daddy for snatching the sticks and stabbing the salesman with them, then Daddy had to..."
Kiyan winked at Athena as their father rambled. The sisters grinned at each other. Kiyan wasn't crying. She never cried.
Krel and Mlril had taken Kiyan to the United Rogue Clans. It was basically several rogue groups who had formed an alliance in order to defend against the Darkwolf bandits, better known as the "Darkwolves". Each group could be identified by the color of their armor.
The United Rogue Clans lived in a small village near the Elven Outpost. Relations with the Outpost were excellent, since the Clans protected them in exchange for a small amount of gold. Kiyan herself had never been inside the Outpost, but she thought that its gates were pretty awesome.
"Krel!" Mlril burst through the door, panicked. "The Elven Outpost! It was invaded by the Darkwolves!"
"WHAT!" Krel shot up and raced out the door. Mlril followed him. Looking out the window, Kiyan saw that nearly all the adult rogues were heading for the Outpost.
"Hey!" A brown haired boy popped his head through the doorway.
"Hi, Raicom," Kiyan greeted him. Raicom was from the Brown Group. She and Athena had practically grown up with him.
"My parents said I have to stay here for a while," Raicom entered and plopped down beside Athena. "Dad said that they're going to beat the crap out of those bandits."
"Probably," Kiyan shrugged. "They've done it before."
Later...
"The Elven Outpost burned down," Krel said solemnly. He had several cuts and burns on his face, and a huge gash on his leg.
"Do you need a potion, Dad?" Kiyan asked nervously.
"No thanks. Too much alcohol."
"What happened to the Elves?" Athena asked fearfully.
"They were all lost," Mlril sighed. She brushed away a tear. "Only the Chieftain's family survived."
"We've accepted them into our Clans," Raicom's father said, "They'll be living with the Blue Group." The rogues parted to reveal a shivering family of four. Kiyan spotted a black-haired Elven girl around her age.
"Th-thank you for letting us stay," An elderly female Elf whispered softly.
"It's the least we can do," A senior rogue muttered. "We could've saved your friends, but..."
"The Darkwolves have a new leader," Krel said gravely. "I didn't catch his name. They've become very, very powerful. We'll need to be more careful about defending ourselves."
The adults then left to discuss something. The Elven girl sat down and started to cry. Kiyan tiptoed up to her and hugged her.
"I know," She said comfortingly. "I lost my family when I was a little girl. I can't imagine how much it must hurt losing an entire settlement."
The Elven girl sobbed harder. Kiyan stayed with her for nearly an hour. Finally, her crying subsided.
"I'm Aaerlyn," She sniffed.
"Kiyan," The young rogue shook her new friend's hand.
"I'm scared," Aaerlyn whimpered.
"Don't be. Our Clans will protect you. I'm really, really sorry that they couldn't-"
"It's okay," The Elf insisted. "I know they tried their best."
"Well, I'm still sorry anyway."
Five months later...
In a short amount of time, Kiyan and Aaerlyn had become best friends. They sat outside the Blue Group's house, rooting through Kiyan's old backpack.
"You used to like those?" Aaerlyn wrinkled her nose when Kiyan produced a pack of beet-flavored gummies from one of the pockets.
"I was five. And, also, these are around six years old, so they don't look that great."
"You're sure all of your biological family are dead?" A recurring topic was the chance survival of any of Kiyan's relatives, even distant ones.
"Everyone except Galanoth. He writes to me occasionally. I'm quite positive that I don't have any distant relatives; I remember my Dad saying that they were all killed by King Slugwrath or something."
"Wow."
"At least I have nice parents now. It could be worse; I could have these awful people that force me to do all their chores and stuff. And Athena is really cool too."
"Uh-huh," Aaerlyn kept digging around in the bag. "Hey...what's this?" She pulled out a gold chain with a dragon pendant.
"That's a Dragon Amulet. My mom used to wear it all the time."
"Cool," The Elf seemed deep in thought. "I'm just wondering, though, what happened to the gems that Akriloth stole."
"Azru."
"Gesundheit."
"No, Azru. That's what my aunt called them."
"Huh. I wonder why Akriloth wanted them so bad?
"I'm not sure. I recall my mother saying that they helped weaken a great beast or something. Anyway," Kiyan stood up. "It's not important. Probably never will be."
4,992 years after the Reset...
Aaerlyn had left two months ago. A group of Elves from the east had visited. At the end of their stay, Aaerlyn's parents decided that they should leave with them and be with others of their kind. Raicom, too, was gone. He was training to be a warrior in Falconreach. Athena would be leaving soon as well; she wanted to learn Alchemy.
This would effectively leave Kiyan alone without any friends or siblings.
"Won't you get bored here?" Athena asked for the twentieth time.
"Definitely. We're not even real rogues," Kiyan complained. "We don't steal or anything. It gets annoyingly monotonous, even with you here," She stared at her adoptive sister. "Do you know that Mage guy who invited you?"
"Nope. I hear he's not scary and old or anything. He already has one student, but he said he doesn't mind teaching me some spells. That'll probably help when that Reens person shows me how to make potions. I could enhance them with speed boosts and such. Or poison them, if I hate whoever's gonna drink it."
"That's good to know," Kiyan rolled over on her bed. "Maybe you could skip the potions and just make poison."
"So what are you gonna do? Live here for the rest of your life?"
"I don't know. Raicom keeps telling me about Falconreach. It sounds really cool; they even have a Guardian Tower there."
"Yeah, because Guardians are SO awesome and SO powerful!"
"And it only costs $19.95 to be one!" (A/N: Hooray for product placement!)
"Kiyan," Mlril and Krel entered Kiyan's room."Raicom sent you a letter."
Dear Kiyan,
GET YOUR LAZY BUTT OVER HERE!
Love, Raicom
"Wow, that was freakishly convenient," Athena commented.
Kiyan sighed. "How far away is Falconreach?"
"What?! You're going to leave before me?" Athena gasped. Kiyan smacked her lightly.
"Quite far. You should leave tomorrow if you want to get there in a week."
"Just like that?! You're really going to let her go?"
"She's sixteen. I think she's old enough," Mlril pointed out.
"Okay. She'll go first thing in the morning," Krel smiled.
"Don't most people?" Kiyan asked.
It took her family about three minutes to figure out how sick that was.
The next day, Kiyan and Mlril prepared leave. Kiyan placed her daggers into her old backpack. She clasped her Dragon Amulet (because it's so cool it gets to be capitalized) around her neck before mounting her horse.
"I'm going to miss you!" Athena sniffed. "What will I do without you? I'll be soooo bored! I can't-"
"Dude, chill. You're leaving about three days from now."
"Oh yeaaaah."
Kiyan waved goodbye to the Clans and rode out of their territory with her mother. After a few hours, they reached a dense forest. Mlril halted her horse.
"Would you like me to go farther with you?"
"No, I'm fine," Kiyan handed her reins to Mlril. "You can take Peony back. Keeping a horse with me would be too hard."
"Are you sure?"
"Very," Kiyan hugged her mother tightly.
"Listen, I-I know that you are not of my flesh and blood, but you are truly my child," Mlril squeezed her back. "Your father and I are extremely proud of you."
"Thanks, Mom."
"I love you."
"I love you too."
Kiyan pulled away and walked off.
After a few minutes, she could see what appeared to be a manor of some sort in the distance. She slashed her way through the dense trees using her daggers.
Kiyan made it to a clearing with worn-out path that led to the manor. She was about to step on it when she noticed a small cliff. She walked over to see the view.
There she stood. One day, she would be involved in the safekeeping of the Orbs. One day, she would become a great hero. One day, she would save Lore.
Today was not "one day". Rest assured, "one day" would come soon enough-too soon, in fact. But for right now, she would have to make do with her currently much simpler, calmer existence. For now, instead of being a savior, instead of being a crucial part of Lore's survival, instead of being an Avatar, she is a somewhat naïve, relatively hopeful rogue with a warped sense of humor.
She had no purpose, no mission, no ulterior motive. She was just really, really bored.
"It's the perfect day for adventure. I can just feel it!"
Suddenly, a red dragon popped up and stared at her.
"Eeeeek! Aren't new adventurers supposed to start off fighting rats or something?"
"Only in RuneScape," The dragon replied.
"What?"
"Never mind," It coughed. It pushed its head closer, seemingly ready to attack.
"Nononononono! I'M NOT READY!" Kiyan wailed. She shielded her face with her daggers, awaiting her fiery end.
Instead, the dragon rested its head on the ground. A small, red Moglin and a woman wearing a long, white cloak with a hood stepped off. The woman was carrying a black box with a dragon symbol on it.
"Hiyas!" The Moglin chirped at the perplexed Kiyan. "The path is clear, priestess!" He called to his companion.
"Thank you, Twilly. Pardon us. We're just passing through," The woman smiled at Kiyan. Kiyan nodded briefly, not wanting to take her eyes off the dragon. Twilly led the priestess eastward.
"I really should just eat this adventurer now...it would save me a lot of trouble in the long run," The dragon contemplated. "But then again, she DID make me promise..."
"If you're going to consume me, may I request salt?" Kiyan asked. "Pepper makes me sneeze."
"...See you in a few years!" The dragon cackled before flying away. Shrugging it off, the rogue continued on her way to Falconreach.
"Oh my. Who put this carpet in the middle of the forest?"
"Priestess! That's not a carpet, that's a gorillaphant!"
"RAWR!" Kiyan saw Twilly get punted clear across the forest. The Moglin landed at her feet. He sat upright and started to cry.
"Aw, c'mere, little guy," Kiyan said gently. "Help me attack that nasty old gorrillaphant!"
"Yay!" Twilly cheered. Kiyan and he ran up to the gorrillaphant. The rogue hammered at his legs while Twilly backed her up with spells. She was about to run her dagger down one of its legs when it kicked her away and brought its tusks crashing onto her head.
"Oww! How'd it do that?" Kiyan griped.
"That's because Twillies enchanted the forest water with a powerful liquid that causes the creatures to be highly dangerous!"
"You did what?!"
"Isn't Twillies smart?"
Kiyan punted the Moglin. Hard.
Twilly landed smack dab on the gorrillaphant's face. The beast let out a loud bellow and thrashed wildly, confused. When one of its paws was lifted, Kiyan thrust one of her daggers into it. The gorrillaphant collapsed.
"Thank you ever so much!" The priestess gushed. "May I know the name of my hero?"
"But Lady Celestia, you said her name is Kiyan and that's she's destined to save the world!"
Kiyan blinked. "What?"
"Twilly," Celestia hissed. She turned back to the rogue. "I'm sorry, we need to get going. Could you please tell Captain Rolith that we're taking the shortcut? He's in Oaklore Keep," She explained, pointing at the Keep in the distance. "Don't tell anyone else. Only him."
"Sure."
"Thanks. I'm certain we will meet again," Celestia said.
"Especially since she's going to take that Black Dragon Box and-"
Celestia cut Twilly off with an impatient sigh.
"Hey, Twilly?" Kiyan addressed the Moglin.
"Yes?"
"What was that powerful liquid you used?"
"Health potions."
Oaklore Keep was beautiful and sunny. In the center was a tall, brown building, with a few smaller buildings joined to it in a sprawling, clumsy manner. A few armored knights were wandering around, stopping occasionally to chat. Kiyan tapped one of them on the shoulder.
"Excuse me," She whispered. "Do you know where Captain Rolith is?"
"Oh, I'm afraid he's not here right now. He's at a neighboring village a few miles away," The knight answered.
"When will he be back?"
"Two days from now."
"Well, that's a problem..."
"I could relay your message, if you want," The knight offered.
"Thank you, but the sender requested that it be kept private."
"All right," He examined Kiyan closely. "You look trustworthy enough. Why don't you stay until he comes back?"
"Really? That's very kind! It's not like I'm in any rush to get to Falconreach, anyway."
"No problem. My name is Sir Valance, by the way," Sir Valance shook her hand.
"I'm Kiyan," The rogue looked around. "No offense, but is there anything to do here?"
"Actually, I DO have something you could help with...maybe you should go to the Mess Hall first. It's right over there," He pointed at a door with a painting of a *root beer* mug over it. "I'll prepare the equipment for your task."
"Okay!" Kiyan grinned at Sir Valance gratefully and headed to the door to the Mess Hall.
"Wow, am I glad that that roleplaying is done," She mumbled when he was out of earshot.
The Mess Hall was a crowded, well, mess. More than fifty knights were crammed into chairs. At the center of the room stood an armor clad, humanoid boar.
"Hi," Kiyan said casually. The boar looked up at her.
"Hello. I'm Sir Loin."
"Is everyone's name a pun here? This place is awesome!"
"Would you like something to eat?"
"Nope. I'm just in here to kill time."
"You seem to be an adventurer of some sort. If you don't mind, could you possibly get rid of-hold on. How's the grub, boys?" Sir Loin called out to a group of knights sitting across the room.
"This is Sir Fanturf," He said, pointing at one. "That's Sir Reeyal and Sir Hup next to him."
"These taste weird. Can I have a steak instead? Another knight shouted.
Sir Loin glared at him. "That's the soon-to-be-late Sir Deen," He growled at the now cowering man. The cook turned back to Kiyan. "Anyway, would you mind getting rid of those pesky tuskmongers out back? They're eating all my crops."
"But...isn't that like killing a family member to you?"
"...I'll pretend I didn't hear that."
"Yeaaah."
Kiyan returned to the Mess Hall twenty minutes later, leaving a trail of KO'ed tuskmongers behind her.
"That task was a boar."
"That's not funny."
"I bet when they wake up, they'll come after me with pitchporks."
"Seriously, stop."
"You know, this restaurant is certainly swine dining-"
"Shut up!" Sir Loin headbutted her to make her do so.
"THAT's gonna leave a mark..." She groaned. "I think you may have hit my hamstring-"
"You just don't give up, do you?" Sir Loin snapped.
Kiyan ran outside in order to avoid another headbutt. Somewhat dazed, she wandered around before stumbling into the library.
"Hi! Wait...you're not a knight..."
"No, I'm not," A black-haired, pigtailed girl wearing glasses agreed. "I'm Maya, Oaklore's bookkeeper."
"Nice to meet you, Maya!" She noticed how downcast Maya looked. "What's wrong?"
"A few bandits stole a crate," She sniffed. "When they realized its contents were just books, they dumped them somewhere in the forest. We managed to recover most of them, but a few are still missing."
"Wow, that's terrible. I think I'm heading out to the forest later. I'll keep an eye out for them."
"Thank you so much! These books are very important to the Keep," Maya explained. "They hold important historical records. Their previous owner, an anonymous donor, would be very displeased to find them gone. I haven't met him myself, but Rolith tells me he's a great Elf." (A/N: Foreshadowing FTW! :D)
"Kiyan!" Sir Valance called. The rogue gave a quick goodbye wave to Maya and ran outside.
"I need you to help us with the Sneevils."
"You mean those weird box-obsessed goblins?"
"Yes, them. Could you go to the forest and teach them a lesson? I think they've started to head for the Keep. Also, Sir Chandestroy- "
"That's the best pun!"
"...Sir Chandestroy told me that Sir Junn, our doctor, needs some purple royal honey from the Oaklore Buzzers. All the knights are allergic to bees, so we need something to cure us quickly."
"That sounds easy," Kiyan shrugged.
Sir Valance walked her to the gate. "You're welcome to keep any weapons you may find there. Just beware of the seedspitters. The forest officially begins after you pass the big oak tree."
Kiyan exited the Keep, passed a few guards, and strolled around aimlessly until she hit the tree.
"OW! They should put warning signs on these things!"
So Kiyan, the future savior of Lore, two of the greatest heroes ever, and the eventual very embodiment of Hope, spent five minutes of her first real quest rubbing her sore head.
"That hurts like the Dickens...HEY!" The rogue noticed a small, green figure scampering away, holding a large cardboard box.
Gripping her daggers tightly, Kiyan followed it. She didn't need to be very careful; the Sneevil was too busy singing to its new possession to notice her.
"I looooveee you for sentimental reaaaaasooons!" It crooned. She winced at its horrible voice before tripping over a branch.
"I have GOT to stop doing that...!" Kiyan cried. She quickly clamped one hand over her mouth.
"What?" The Sneevil whirled around. "Who there?" No reply. "Show uself!"
Kiyan had to bite her hand in order to not make any inappropriate jokes.
The Sneevil clutched the box tightly. "NO ONE CAN STEAL MY LOVELY BOXY!"
Okay, that was it. That was the tipping point. Kiyan fell over laughing hysterically.
"You!" It shrilled, stomping over to the bushes where she was hiding. "YOU WANT TO STEAL MY LOVELY BOXY!"
"No, I don't. Believe me...she seems (ahem) taken..."
"FOR LOVELY BOXY!" The Sneevil shrieked. It leaped into the air and stuck its leg out to kick the rogue.
"Now, now," Kiyan scolded. She grabbed the Sneevil's leg and tossed it to the ground. It sat upright, dazed.
"I'll let you go-you and your Boxy, since no one wants cardboard boxes that much, anyway."
"I DO!"
"Yes, but you're different," Kiyan cleared her throat. "Anyway, I just need some information."
"Fine!"
"Are you Sneevils planning on invading Oaklore Keep?"
"Of course!"
"Why?"
"It looks like a giant box!"
Kiyan pictured the Keep in her head. "Yeah, actually, it does," She admitted. "But look-you have your Boxy. Doesn't that satisfy you?"
"No!"
"I mean, how would YOU feel if Boxy invaded an...I dunno, really ugly cabbage just because it looked like a Sneevil? It would mean she's in love with your race, not you. And that would hurt a lot, like your head if you knock it on a gigantic oak tree."
"...Yeah..."
"Treat Boxy the way you would like to be treated!" Kiyan exclaimed. "Be faithful to her! Treasure her! Love her! But don't make little Sneeboxes, because that would just be weird."
"Yes...yes!" The Sneevil declared. "Me tell friends no invade! WE LOVE OUR BOXES ONLY!"
"Atta boy!" Kiyan cheered.
"We only invade Keep for money!"
"...What?"
The Sneevil ran off, leaving a very confused rogue behind with a throbbing headache.
Kiyan batted an Oaklore Buzzer away. She was holding a large jar of royal purple honey in one hand.
"Leave me bee!" She shouted. The Buzzer, annoyed by this terrible jest, flung itself at Kiyan and attempted to sting her.
"I guess you're not a PUNny Bee, huh?" She snickered. The Buzzer flew off, disgusted.
Kiyan had been tracking the Sneevil for hours. If she could get to its home, she might be able to persuade their leader not to attack. She could see a fort made out of boxes in the clearing; she figured that was probably it. A few Sneevils stood guard in front of the door. Kiyan approached them.
"I need to speak to your lea-"
"GET HER!" The two guards pounced on her.
"What the-?" Kiyan watched as the Sneevils pounded on her arms weakly.
"Okay, stop. That tickles!"
"FOR BOXIES!" They chorused.
"This is gonna take a while..."
The rogue stepped over a fainted Sneevil and climbed up a ladder. The silly little things were too small and puny to pose any threat to her. She had managed to fight through about three levels of them with ease. As unintelligent as they were, she had to admit, it was a nice fort.
The next floor was an open-air platform swarming with Sneevils. There was a large door on the other side. Kiyan bashed two of Sneevils' heads together and kicked the rest away, slamming them into the boxes. She knocked on the door.
"Yeah? Wus da password?" A voice on the other side asked.
"Uh oh. Password?" Kiyan guessed.
"No! What you think we are, the Watergate staff?" (A/N: Yeah, that's probably not historically accurate at all. ;p Consider that line non-canon or something.)
"I'll be right back," Kiyan grabbed one of the conscious Sneevils. "Tell me the password!"
"No!"
"Tell me the password or I'll kill you!" She threatened.
"No!"
Kiyan sighed and dropped the Sneevil back onto the floor. "I'll just tell Sir Valance I failed," She muttered sadly. She kicked a box dejectedly as she slunk back to the ladder.
"No!"
"I didn't say anything!"
The Sneevil started to cry. "You kicked box! DON'T KICK BOX!" He pleaded.
Kiyan took one good look at his frightened, sullen face. Upon seeing all the love and devotion he had for it, she came to a profound conclusion.
"I'll kick box if I want to," She growled menacingly. She lifted her foot again for good measure.
"You don't!"
"I do!" She inched her foot closer.
"NO!"
"I'll kick box then EAT IT!"
"Nooooooo!" The Sneevil wailed. He threw himself at her feet. "I'll tell password AND secret knock if you don't kick box!"
"...There's a secret knock?!" Kiyan exclaimed.
"Yeah. What you think we are, the Watergate staff?"
"...No..."
Kiyan bent down. The Sneevil whispered the password and the secret knock to her. He then ran off, hugging the box tightly. The rogue went back to the door and tapped on it again.
"Yeah? Wus da password?"
"All your boxes R belong to us."
"Yeah, yeah, great. Now do da knock. Do eet!"
Knock
Knock
KNOCK
KNOCK
KNOCK
…Knock...
(A/N: The word 'knock' now sounds foreign to me.)
"Dat wus dee best nock I'b eber hurd! Get een eer!"
The door opened; Kiyan stepped inside. She was greeted by three horrified Sneevils. Another ladder was propped up on one of the walls. It led to a big, tarp-covered hole. The Sneevils started to scream as she walked towards it.
"OMG! It's a human and she knows our seekret knock!" The first one cried.
"Oh no! How did she figueer eet out?"
"...Or she's da tallest Sneevil ibe ebber seen!"
"So long, boxheads!" Kiyan knocked two of them out. The first one glared at her.
"Yu are ebil!"
"Ebil? That's not a word. I have no idea how the heck would want to be considered ebil."
"I am dee box office majoor! I habe to protecht de oders and de beeyutifal boxes!" The box office major launched himself at Kiyan. She stepped aside, causing him to crash onto the ground.
"Yu are meen!"
Kiyan conked him on the head with her boot. He fainted.
The rogue scurried up the ladder, lifted the tarp, and crawled through the hole. She immediately hit her head on a crate.
"OW! Again?!" Kiyan raised a dagger. "I oughta-hey!" A dusty, red book lay on top of the crate. She grabbed it and stared at the cover. The words, "Property of Oaklore Library" were scrawled on the front.
"This must be one of Maya's!" Kiyan opened it and read the first page.
"Lore.
Lorithia.
We reside in Lorithia.
Lorithia resides in us.
Lorithia is Hope.
We reside in Hope.
Hope resides in us.
We are Lorithia.
Lorithia is us.
We are Hope.
Hope is us.
Lore."
"Woah...this is a super crappy book," Kiyan tossed it into her backpack and stood up. "It's like a messed up free verse poem or something," She examined the other boxes, barrels, and various containers. Most of them had the word "Weapons" stamped on them, but none of them actually held anything of importance. The Sneevils must've dumped most of the stuff out, as they were prone to doing.
Kiyan continued scanning the containers for something of value. She was interrupted by a loud shriek.
"Who are yu?!?" A Sneevil wearing a piece of cardboard on his head had spotted her. Two other Sneevils were behind him, sitting on a pile of boxes.
"More roleplaying. Oh, joy," Kiyan sighed.
"I am Boxking. These are Imps of Barrels and Chests. Who you?" The Sneevil barked.
"Hello, good sir. I come here on behalf of the noble knights of Oaklore Keep. They are aware that you may possibly be considering invading them in order to-"
"We invade Box! We rule Box! We take Box's money and buy MORE BOX!"
"So much for roleplaying, huh?"
"I ATTACK YOU!"
"That's not very nice!"
The Boxking and the Imp of Barrels charged at her, while the Imp of Chests perched on top of the boxes and flung their unimportant contents at her.
Kiyan stepped over the Imp of Barrels and stabbed him in the back. She kicked the Boxking away before smacking the Imp of Chests with her daggers. The Boxking recovered and tried to ram into her, but she managed to grab his arm and toss him aside. She clambered onto the pile of boxes, took a huge one, and threw it on top of him.
"That should hold you until your followers come to."
Kiyan hopped off the boxes and examined some of the weapons the Imp of Chests had thrown. Most of them were practically nonexistent. She picked up an old, rotting wooden sword.
"I might as well take this..." She sheathed her daggers and grasped the sword. The word "Shipwreck" was written across the hilt.
"I wonder what this used to be," Kiyan pondered. "Maybe a house or a dam or something."
After giving the tome to Maya and dropping off the honey at the infirmary, Kiyan stepped out into the courtyard to find Sir Valance. After a few minutes of searching, she entered the main building.
"...And then, Sir Mise, I sang out my heart to her, confessing how I felt," Kiyan heard somebody drawl. She climbed up the stairs, following his voice.
"Sir Annaid, I'm guessing it didn't go very well, considering how this is your fifth mug of *exotic nonalcoholic beverage*" Another person spoke.
"Uh...Hey," Kiyan said awkwardly. The knights looked up at her. "Do you know where Sir Valance is?"
"He's in the meeting upstairs," Sir Mise jerked his head towards the ceiling. "Visitors are allowed, so don't worry."
"Thanks. And...uh, Sir Annaid, I hear that 'For Sentimental Reasons' works reaaaallly well on (cough) women."
"I could try that," Sir Annaid agreed thoughtfully. Kiyan headed up the staircase again.
"Welcome, brave hero!" Kiyan nearly fell over in shock. "We are the Knights of the Pactagonal Table and we beseech you to join us in our adventures of glory!"
"That's...very kind," She noticed group of knights standing around a table.
"Our greatest threats are the Vurrmen and Sneevil attacks," Another knight boomed.
"Agreed, Sir Gent," The first knight nodded. "And we need to continue our quest for the Semi Holy Grande Pumkin-spice Cappuccino."
"Kiyan here has helped us with the Sneevils," Sir Valance gestured at the rogue. "They haven't tried to steal boxes all morning."
"Oooh! Oooh! Hey, Sir Preem! Why don't we tax the villagers so they can't afford food? Then we can send thugs to beat them up!"
A long, looming silence followed.
"Sir Tax," Sir Preem frowned. "We're the good guys, remember?"
"Oh...right," Sir Tax winced.
"Excuse me, but...what's a 'pactagonal'?" Kiyan asked. Another huge bout of silence followed.
"Sir Tainly...(cough) certainly you're joking!"
"Right, Sir Kull!" Sir Vallance cried. He turned to Kiyan."It's a form of the pactogram. The pactogram is one of the most basic shapes! Every geometry course uses it;
-Circle
-Square
-Triangle
-Pactogram"
"It's an essential part of daily life-it has unlimited uses," Sir Kull added. "Just one glance at our table should prove it!"
Kiyan stared at the table. It was shaped like a pie with one piece cut out, and it had a small hole on top of the missing block, like an eye.
"Ooo...kay..."
"Anyway, that's all the time we have today. Meeting adjourned!" Sir Preem and the others headed down the steps. Sir Valance remained.
"We seem to have another problem," He sighed. "The Sneevil Ninja Shogan-"
"Wait, what?"
"The Sneevil Ninja Shogan. They have spies planted all over the area. I hate to impose, but could you head to the Dojo and see what you can find out?"
"Is this Dojo shaped like a giant box, too?"
"No."
"Awww, man."