Hi again! This is an AU fic, set in the dark ages. The dragons come in later in the story, so be patient! Oh, and to let you know anyone you don't recognize from Yugioh is one of my OC's (there are a lot of them, so I will make a list at the bottom of the page in each chapter). Note: Cadnia is both a country and a city, which is the capital of the country (like New York City, New York or OKC, Oklahoma).
Disclaimer: I do not own Yugioh or the Yugioh characters, but all OC's in the story and names of places do belong to me! PLZ do not steal!
Cadnia: The Land of Dragons
Chapter 1: The Quest
Dartz stepped forward to receive his king's orders. He mused. It had been a long time since he and his warriors had been given a serious case. He bowed and sank to his knees in front of the lord of the western lands. "My lord King Rhylus wishes for my service?" He asked in a respectful tone. King Rhylus of Kansentha, the empire of the west glanced down at him. "Arise sir Dartz." He commanded, "Yes, your king has a quest for you and your men." He replied as the blue haired man stood up to face him. "May I ask of this quest, my King?" He inquired. The older man nodded. "It is a request from Cadnia in the east. Fair King Zakaru requires three strong soldiers and a leader to escort his men to Navier. There you will come to a rendezvous point with King Ikaro's men from the south." He explained. Dartz nodded in understanding. "Aye! But may I inquire as to the goods (1) we will be escorting?" He asked. King Rhylus nodded grimly. "You are to protect King Zakaru's children, they are taking a carriage that will be among the mass of men and supplies." He said, giving Dartz a stern look. "This information must not leak to the enemies! You may only inform your three chosen men of this task, after all, they must know what they are to protect." Dartz nodded and bowed again. "Yes my lord! We will not fail!" He declared loyally. His king nodded. "Good. Now go and prepare your men. You are to leave after the morning meal has ended." He said as he handed Dartz a piece or parchment. Dartz bowed one last time before leaving his presence.
A tall blond haired knight sighed. He glanced over at the two younger knights in his group as they continued to quarrel. "Be still you two! Our leader will return soon and we must be ready to leave at that time." He informed them. A red-headed teen, the middle aged of the three, retuned his fierce gaze. "Well I am already packed, Raphael. It is Valon who will not stop fooling around!" He declared. The brunet boy glared at him impudently. "Na-uh! You ain't got anymore packed that I do Alister!" He said angrily. The red head sighed and rubbed his temples. "Grammar, Valon! Let's try to sound like human beings, shall we?" The brunet shrugged. "What for?" He asked. "What if you're ever in the presence of royalty? You would just embarrass yourself!" Alister exclaimed. Valon rolled his eyes. "Hah! Right, like royalty would eva' speak ta any of us! We're knights Alister! We're low-level soldiers! It ain't gonna happen, so don't get 'yer hopes up!" He shouted. Alister cringed. "Well, at least the rest of us don't butcher the language!" He yelled back. Raphael sighed. The blond knew this was never going to end peacefully…he would have to intervene before they ended up a member short. "Enough!" He cried desperately. Valon fumed. "But Raph! He started it!" The boy said, pointing a finger at the red head who was doing his best to play innocent. "I don't care who started it, I'm ending it!" Raphael declared. Valon sat down on the straw-matting to sulk. Alister stuck his tong out at the brunet. Raphael shot him a stern look. "Alister! I've had enough from you too!" He said. Raphael sighed and returned to packing his armor and equipment. This was obviously not how he wanted to start his day.
Dartz strode purposefully over to his tent and pulled back the cloth to find…silence? He looked in to find his three best warriors peacefully minding their own business (A.K.A: Ignoring each other). He stepped in cautiously. "So, who died?" He asked dryly. They all looked up at him before throwing glares at each other. Dartz groaned. "I knew it was going to be one of those days…" He muttered to himself as he set about packing his own things. Raphael turned to him curiously. "So what are our orders master? More patrol duty?" He asked. Dartz shook his head. "I cannot divulge the information here." He responded. Alister finished taking down the tent and they mounted their horses.
Many miles down the road, Dartz turned to his men. "Alright, now I will inform you of our quest." He said. Raphael blinked. "A quest?" He asked in surprise. Dartz nodded solemnly, pulling the parchment from his travel bag. "We are to assist in the transport of the Royal children of Cadnia." The three knights gaped at him, Dartz continued, smirking at their shocked expressions. "We are to take them from their current position on Cavera Road to Navier, where they will be protected from the enemy." Alister blinked. "And just who is the enemy?" He inquired. "Arasiyan soldiers." Dartz replied seriously. Valon gulped. "The Arasiyans? How can the four 'a us defend against Arasiya's armies?" He asked in disbelief. Dartz smiled. "Ah, but we won't be alone. Lady Valentine from Cadnia will be joining us with half of her army." Raphael sighed. "I have heard great things of her forces…but master, we will still be horribly out numbered!" He protested. Dartz nodded. "Aye, but it is our King's orders. We are obligated to go." He replied. "We still have a full day's ride and a river to cross before we reach their resting point." He informed his men.
Late that night they spotted a large group of carriages and men. "That must be the escort." Dartz replied. The four of them steered their horses toward the resting travelers. A large man stepped in their way. "Halt! What business have ye here?" He demanded. Dartz smiled. "I am looking for Lady Valentine of Cadnia, is she among your party?" he asked. The man looked them over suspiciously before turning to a teenage boy. "Aura, please fetch the Lady at once." He requested. The silver haired boy nodded. "Yes, Uncle." he replied as he ran off to carry out the order. He quickly returned with a beautiful blond woman. "Yes Alcanthe?" She asked. The man pointed her in the direction of the newcomers. She nodded. "I see. You must be sir Dartz." She said looking the blue-haired, golden-eyed man over. "Do you have parchment from King Rhylus to confirm your orders?" She asked in a business tone. He dug out the parchment and handed it to her. She nodded. "Very well. Sleep tonight and we will talk in the morning." She replied before walking back to her tent. They followed her advice and set up their own camp.
The next day, Dartz was up with the sun. He glared darkly as his sleeping men. "Wake up! We have and appointment with Lady Valentine today!" He yelled. Raphael and Alister sat up groggily, while Valon continued to snore. Dartz's eye twitched. He walked over and kicked the brunet. "Valon, Wake up!" He shouted. The brunet glared up at him. "Ya didn't hafta kick me ya know!" He said angrily. Dartz simply shrugged and smiled. "Never mind that, we have to meet Lady Valentine." He told them.
The four men wandered around the camp until they spotted the blond haired beauty. She smiled over at them. "Ah, are you rested?" She asked. "We are." Dartz confirmed. She smiled. "Good. Then I shall introduce you to the royal children." She said, leading the way to a large carriage. She knocked softly at the door and waited for a response. Slowly the door opened, revealing an armed man. She nodded to him. "It's okay Takei; let them out for some fresh air." She requested. Takei bowed and stepped out of the way. A brown haired girl with emerald eyes and a boy with dirty blond hair and blue eyes stepped out of the carriage. They were dressed nicely, but seemed intimidated. Mai smiled at them. "Are your highnesses holding out alright?" She asked softly. Nervously the boy and girl nodded. "Yes ma'am." They replied shyly. Dartz studied them carefully, noticing their strange behavior. They were missing the confidence and air of royalty. Lady Valentine turned to the silver haired boy from the night before. "Aura, please take their highnesses for a short stroll. I do believe the stress is hindering them." She stated. He nodded to her. "Yes Lady, as you request." He replied as he escorted the siblings away. She turned back to her company. "Forgive them; they are usually so full of energy." She apologized. Dartz nodded. "Yes, so I have heard." He said suspiciously.
As they were talking a blond teenage peasant approached them. He looked livid. "Mai! Itari is hassling Serenity again." He told the lady. She blinked, a scowl slowly creeping onto her face. "Itari? That scumbag!" She shouted. She sighed and turned back to him, flashing him a knowing smiled. "Don't worry Joseph; I'll deal with him as soon as I finish talking with our guests." The blond turned to the group with a bored look in his amber colored eyes. "Ah, they're the ones, huh? The escort for their highnesses?" He asked dully. He turned back to smirk at the blond woman. "I doubt their presence is necessary." He stated calmly. She rolled his eyes. "Oh? And you would strike down the entire Arasiyan army, Joseph?" She asked teasingly. He smirked. "Yeah, and I would too!" He told her proudly. She laughed and ruffled his shaggy goldenhair. "Good for you kiddo, go tend to your sister!" She told him. He flashed her a warm smile before bounding out of sight.
Raphael smiled. "That one is sure spirited." He commented, referring to the blond teen. Lady Valentine laughed. "Yes, he is one in a million! Forgive his rudeness, Joseph means well, but isn't fond of hired help. He believes in the strength of our army, though." She replied with a smile. Alister snapped out of his daze. "What was it that he called you, lady?" He asked. She blinked. "Oh…Mai is my given name, but only close friends and royalty may call me that." She explained. Aura soon returned with the royal children, who seemed to be a bit more relaxed. Mai nodded to them as they re-entered their carriage. She turned back to the four guests. "I will speak with you again later, but for now I have matters to attend to." She said, excusing herself.
Dartz frowned. "It seems to me that something odd is going on here." He commented. Alister and Raphael nodded, while Valon remained silent. The others looked over at the brunet worriedly. Alister poked him in the arm. "Valon? What's wrong with you?" He asked. Valon blinked, coming out of his daze. "Nothing…that blond guy…he's just…" The brunet trailed off. Alister perked up. He smirked at the brunet. "Ah, love at first sight eh?" He teased. Valon glared back at his friend. "I never said that!" He retorted, a blush creeping onto his face.Dartz sighed. "Back to the main issue, please! Those kids don't act like royalty at all. And why would Lady Valentine act so friendly with that peasant boy?" He wondered aloud. Raphael mused. "I have no Idea. All I am sure of is that they know something we don't." He replied. Dartz nodded thoughtfully. "Agreed, let's keep an eye on them for now." Their leader responded.
End of Chapter 1
(1) Between Cadnia and Navier is a famous trade route called Cavera Road.
JouVal-Yaoi-Fanatik: Okay, thanks for reading! Please review if you liked it! (hint hint)
Here is an index of people and places found in this chapter:
People
King Rhylus: Lord of the western lands; his castle is located in Kansentha which is the third largest empirein Cadnia. He has one child, a son who will soon inherit the crown.
King Zakaru: Lord of the northern lands; his castle is located in Candia City (the capital of Cadnia). He is the highest powered and most respected King, in the country. He has two teenage children, a boy and a girl.
King Ikaro: Lord of the southern lands; his castle is located in Kado, the second largest empire in Cadnia. He has four children of varying ages, two boys and two girls. Despite the long distance from Cadnia City, he has strong ties with King Zakura and often visits the capital.
Aura: A silver haired, blue eyed boy who is the nephew of Sir Alcanthe. He is also serves as a body guard for the royal children.
Sir Alcanthe: A tall, black haired, first-class knight and black-smith who is assisting with the escort of the royal children to Navier.
Takei: A black haired, brown eyed assasin from Cadnia city. It is his sworn duty to protect the royal family at all costs. He has a patch over his right eye, which he lost in an encounter with the Arasiyan army as a child.
Itari: A lecherous soldier in his 30's. His only goals in life are to obtain fame, fortune, and a young wife. He constantly pesters Serenity while her brother is away.
Places
Arasiya: A city long at war with the Kings of Cadnia. Their army has rarely been driven back with few casulties.