Shadow of the Foresight [A Spiraling Fates Side Story]
By D "Mintaka" Peal
Author Note: Nothing intrigued me more at the time I saw it then the scene with Filia - it was out of the blue, and really didn't fit in at that point. It would make no sense for a long, long time. [And even then, if you missed her, you're missing something minor, but important.]
Shadow is my take in the Fates setting of the events around Clik - Filia's appearance, the pickpocket, and Clik "going boom". [Ok, so I like that phrase.] One-shot, semi-long to long, focused around Claude primarily and about those events. [Has Rena, Celine too, etc. from above.] Onwards!
~*~
The sun was shining down on the trio as they made their way into the port city of Clik, the blonde swordsman, the knuckle-wielding healer, and the crest magician. Claude was at the point, having led the two women through the fields from Cross Cave here, where they could rest, and hopefully catch a ship. For his part the trip had been quiet, with very little need to wield the blade at his side. What had cropped up was easily dispatched between the three.
His blue eyes looked to his right, to the blue-haired figure he had met on first arriving to Expel. Rena was alert, despite the fact she looked a bit travel worn from the trip, and her blue eyes were bright as ever. He had fallen in love with her in ways on first sight, despite his disbelief in that. He had protected her from that monster then, and even now he put his all into making sure she was safe. It was not only his drive to go home that drove every swing of his blade - he had Rena. He was not sure of her feelings for him, but at times it had seemed as though she were going to reciprocate. She had not directly said anything - or done anything - but he could read it.
'Unless it is my own foolish hopes leading me on,' he thought bitterly to himself. He had deluded himself once before about things - that he was being respect for whom he was, and not because he was the son of Ronoxis. He shifted his glance then to his left, to their newest comrade, the enigmatic Celine Jules.
They had met her in the city of Cross, and accompanied her to the Cross Caves to recover an artifact they could not even decipher. So they had come to Clik in the hopes of reaching El and the Sorcery Globe - and his returning home while hopefully saving the world. He still had his doubts about it all - this "Warrior of Light" talk and that he was destined to save this world. That mattered little, and Celine was now with them. Her powers were a great help and compliment to Rena's. She had her flaws, but this was easily overlooked. Her powers perplexed Claude, as he only knew magic as a legend, and yet her heraldry power - which he had witnessed more than enough - was certainly that.
Celine yawned as they reached Clik proper, shaking her head. "I need to rest," the sorceress said, waving one white-gloved hand in front of her face to cool her a bit. "I think I'll go find the inn and rest. I'll see you all later."
Rena nodded, looking at Claude. "Its not a bad idea after all that," she added. "What about you Claude?"
Claude tilted his head to one side, and then shook it a little. "No, I'm not really all that tired," he said, though his feet were telling another story entirely. "I want to have a look around, see what's here and take care of a few small purchases while you rest. Sound good?"
Rena nodded and followed after Celine. "I'll see you later, Claude," she said, waving and heading into town. He stood there alone awhile, and yawned slightly. The mid-day sun was pleasantly warm, relaxing him and he was reminded pointedly of the summer days back home when he would buy and ice cream and sit under the shade of a tree. He felt terribly homesick just then, here at the entrance of Clik, and wondered if it was possible to even make ice cream on Expel. This thought encouraged him to head into town to have a look around and possibly buy some milk and other ingredients to try and make some.
The town itself was quaint in design, and as he passed the tavern - the Happy Barrel - as the sign read, he could almost believe a place like this could exist on Earth. 'Could have,' he thought, remembering that Earth was far past this place in technology. 'Its not bad here at all - its very nice and pleasant. I know father mentioned that some of the less civilized worlds were like what Earth had been. Its really almost a shame.'
His blue eyes scanned the central square quickly, and on a second pass he spotted something the first had missed - someone was selling the coveted item of all time - ice cream. 'Wow. I didn't even think it was possible, but here it is. Wonder if its anything like back home. It looks like it.'
He pulled out his wallet, walking over. A moment later he was walking away a little less rich but a lot more happy as he just about devoured the ice cream. 'Just as good,' he thought to himself, looking around the town center. A clothing store was near where he had sat down, and there was another stand selling crepes. But what caught his away was a woman dressed in clothing that practically hid her features from view. Her lips showed, and she seemed to be muttering something. She was walking this way slowly, as though some heavy burden were on her.
For her part she was, and she had a heavy heart in what she was about to do. 'I wish this weren't so, I wish I did not have to do this. But these people must be warned - the destruction of this town need not take so many lives. I wish I could do more.' Her veiled eyes were watering up, knowing the impending assault of natural power that was planned to strike here soon. She knew what she was doing would anger them, and that she really should not go against Indalecio, but she could not sit by as they killed so many without some chance to save themselves. She would suffer the repercussions later, whatever they might be. For now, she only wanted to try and save some lives.
Claude finished his ice cream, his thoughts having wandered back to Earth. 'I want to go home, but. I just wish it were more like here. Its so much better, even without the conveniences. No rushing, no standards. well, not entirely, but. I just feel so much at peace.'
"People, listen to me!" Claude turned his head, standing, to see the woman standing nearby, her hands spread out as though pleading for something, as if asking why. "You are all in great danger!"
"Yeah right," someone nearby Claude said, an older woman who looked as thought she'd seen and heard everything. "What a crackpot."
"This town is in peril, you all must leave!" The woman sounded earnest, but Claude knew that many even on Earth had predicted the 'end' and all had been wrong.
The woman shook her head, feeling a tear trickle down her cheek. 'Filia, they aren't listening to you!' she thought, taking in all the incredulous and disbelieving stares. She watched as a woman pulled her kids to her and scurried away. "I'm serious! You all must leave now!"
Some of the people were muttering and complaining, but Claude could tell something was amiss. Just then he found he had company in the form of the two ladies he had arrived in town with. "What's going on?" Rena asked.
"I was sleeping, and then I heard a bunch of people complaining," Celine said. "What's she saying?"
Claude shook his head and shrugged. "This woman's saying that Clik's in danger."
Celine looked around and raised an eyebrow. "From what? A feather blowing in the wind? It's a perfectly fine day, nothing's going to happen."
The three watched as the crowd dispersed with no one seeming to care about the raving madwoman. Filia collapsed to her knees, burying her face in her hands, sobbing. Claude walked over, leaving Rena and Celine puzzled. "Are you ok?" he asked, kneeling down in front of her.
Startled Filia looked up, and for a moment he caught a glimpse of her eyes - a startling blue, much clearer than any ocean and deeper then any sea before the veil fell again and she looked down. "It's - its just that I know this place will see disaster soon, and I want so much to save them," she said. "I - I cannot say anything more." She looked up again, studying him a bit longer and gasped. "You're - you're not. this world may have a chance yet."
"Don't tell me you're going to on about the Warrior of Light," Claude groaned, trying not to roll his eyes.
"No, you're not from here. you have a chance against them, those causing these problems. Continue fighting, and make for El. You must help this world before they-" She broke off abruptly, shaking her head slightly. "I - I'm sorry, but I must go. Please, be careful, stay safe!" she said, before rising quickly and dashing away out of sight. Rena walked over first, perplexed.
"What was that about?" Rena asked, watching Claude rise slowly.
".nothing. Nothing at all," Claude said, shaking off a feeling of uncertainty. Part of him believed her, the woman's story seemed to hold some truth. He also had a feeling she knew who was behind this, and wanted to inquire further, but doubted he'd get the chance. There wasn't anything important from what she said that they had not already planned. He swallowed, wetting his parched throat and stretched, trying to act as though nothing was wrong. "We should go look into getting some transportation to El."
Claude began walking ahead of the other two, trying to clear his head. The encounter had not lasted long, only a mere minute, but it had bothered him somehow. If she had ties to this enemy, why was she trying to warn them? Something didn't jive, and it certainly did not help matters. What if it was merely a setting up for a trap at El? He couldn't risk Rena's life - all of Arlia would be upset at her loss, form her mother Westa to the mayor, Regis. Still, they couldn't avoid the trip. Rena and Celine followed a distance back fro the pondering Claude, exchanging concerned glances.
"That was about as nothing as bag full of money," Celine noted, shaking her head. "But if he doesn't want to share, that's his place."
Rena nodded, although she didn't feel quite the same. If something bothered Claude, she worried. She cared about his well-being, much as she had for Dias' when they had been together, before Dias had left Arlia. 'Before his family died. But he didn't lose all of it. I was here. I wish I knew where Dias was.' She sighed slightly, feeling as though the same thing were happening again with another person. Losing someone you cared about once was hard enough - to endure that again like this, with someone she didn't know as well bothered her, and knew it would hurt all the same.
"Well, here we are," Claude said, standing by the plank of a large ship. Men were loading various supplies on her, and various shouts of commands over the hustle and bustle of the work. Nearby stood the captain, overseeing the work. "Excuse me, sir," Claude said, "Is this vessel headed out for El?"
"El?" the captain asked, suspicion in his voice, "Why would anyone in their right minds go to that hellhole? Besides that, no one sails there without a king's permission by passport. No luck, kid."
Claude forced back his resentment at being called a kid, feeling as though he were back among the Calnus crew, and swallowed, fishing out the passport the king had given him. "But you see, the King of Cross is sending us to El to deal with the Sorcery Globe," he said, offering the passport the king had given them. "As you can see, we're authorized to go to El."
The captain scrutinized the papers carefully, and reluctantly decided they were indeed official. He sighed slightly and folded them back up. "All right, you three, we're not leaving for awhile, so why don't you go back to town for awhile - we won't leave without you. I'll hold onto this as a reminder, but don't be too late. Should be mid-afternoon when we're ready."
Claude nodded and then looked at the girls. "Well, there were a few shops we could all go look at." Celine shrugged in reply and Rena only nodded, leaving Claude to lead the way quietly away from the ship and in his own thoughts. As they reached the central square, he was about to ask where they wanted to go when he felt something odd. Celine exclaimed something then as Claude watched a blur streak off somewhere amidst the confusion.
"What was that?" Rena asked.
Claude frowned, searching his pocket. "What the - my wallet's gone!"
"That rude little thief bumped into me AND stole the wallet?" she exclaimed. "This is great!"
Rena sunk into thought. "Little. it must have been a kid. There were some playing over by the ship docks, maybe one of them was the perpetrator."
"Possibly," Claude admitted, silently cursing himself for letting his attention wander. Had he been more alert, he would have noticed the kid sooner and been able to stop him. As it was now, they had no idea where the kid had gone, aside probably being in Clik somewhere. It was reasonable to start where they saw some kids first.
Nearby in the shadows, Filia watched them saddened at the events unfolding. 'I cannot hold this out much longer. they can't go onboard that ship - it would mean death.' She closed her eyes, knowing full well what Indalecio would be thinking about that. 'You've got to get out of here. not. now.'
Claude and company walked over to see two kids playing tag among the crates stacked around the docks. Rena stepped forward, having dealt with many of the Arlia kids for years and knowing the best approaches to talking to them about things. "Hiya," she said, smiling slightly. "Have either of you seen a wallet?"
They shook their heads, and the taller one spoke, saying, "no, we haven't we've been playing tag. I'd suggest you go talk to that rich snob Ketil."
"Yeah," the shorter one added, "That brat would probably know anything about missing money, if he hasn't found it." The two kids snickered, ignoring the perturbed adults there. "So yeah, that's your best bet. We've just been spending our time here playing."
Rena nodded, brushing off the kids' comments about Ketil. "Ok then, let's see if we can find any other children. One of them has to have it."
Celine shook her head as they walked into the town center. "Why would a rich kid steal a wallet?"
"Why would a healthy man take medicines?" Claude asked rhetorically. "The world's crazy, its not the first time something hasn't made sense like that."
Celine frowned slightly, ignoring Claude and keeping an eye for out any kids. They scouted out the main square, only seeing kids that were being watched by parents that seemed happy and carefree. Claude envied them, but kept it to himself, knowing dwelling on that would only make him more irritable. They trekked further back, eyes open looking for anything suspicious, and then he saw it - a small kid with blue hair whose eyes darted around. They looked at each other nodding, and walked over quietly as he looked the other way, when he turned to look towards the center it was too late - Celine had taken the far right and Rena the far left, with Claude confronting him and his back to the wall. "Ack!" the kid cried.
"We've got you now," Celine said. "Now hand over the money!"
"But, but..!" the kid stammered.
Rena shook her head, waving off whatever Claude was about to say. "You're Ketil, right?"
The kid looked flabbergasted a moment, and then frowned, his eyes narrowing slightly. "I bet those other kids were spouting stuff about me, huh?"
Rena nodded. "Yes, but. why did you do this?"
"To prove I wasn't some snotty rich kid!" Ketil exclaimed, throwing his arms in the air. "None of them will play with me because my family's rich, and saying I'm a snob. All I want. I just want to play like all the other kids and have fun." He sniffed slightly, as if to emphasize the point.
Rena looked at Celine, who didn't seem to buy the story at all, and then to Claude, who seemed to have a pained expression, as if he knew that feeling somehow. She wanted to ask then, but knew it wasn't the time. Claude for his part kept quiet for a long moment, leaving an awkward silence. Finally he spoke. "Look, you got away with it to some degree - we need the money, I need my wallet. We're on an important mission."
Rena had an idea then, knowing that Celine and Claude probably would balk but shot it off anyway as an additive - and hopefully a way to get Ketil to have some fun, and maybe even find a way to get the other kids to play with him. "Why don't you show us around town and stuff - sort of a compensation for our troubles - but we'll treat you to ice cream or something. Call it a way to work off what you've done to delay us. This is a rather large town, after all."
Ketil frowned deeply a moment, looking around once more to be sure he could not escape out of this. He didn't need the money - he did need the respect of his peers. But a tour guide? He sighed and then reluctantly nodded, pulling out the wallet and handing it to Claude. "Ok, ok. let's go to the square and go through there, ok?"
Ketil took the lead, Rena and Claude falling in behind a short distance with Celine trailing slowly. "What were you thinking?" Claude asked softly.
"Just trying to make him feel needed and a suitable way to teach him not to do it. I was thinking we'd go to the docks and have a talk with the kids maybe. See if they'd play with him after all this." She shrugged slightly and picked up her pace to catch up to Ketil more.
Their first stop was a comment on the tavern of Clik, the Happy Barrel. "The owner is a bit crazy, but that's ok. Everyone loves the place; people are in and out all the time swapping stories that end up out on the streets. Lots of neat things said. Lately its all been a lot of talk about that Sorcery Globe thing and the monsters. It all sounds cool!"
Claude masked his smirk by raising a hand and faking a cough, eliciting a quick look from Rena. "Yeah, there's a lot of talk about it," he said idly. "Lots of worries and stuff about it."
Ketil nodded. "Anyway, let's continue!" They headed into the actual town square, and Ketil bee lined for the crepe stand, bouncing excitedly. "This place ahs the best food ever, the crepes here are to die for!"
Glances were exchanged - Claude shrugged, pulling out his wallet and some money. "Well, let's give it a try, shall we?" A crepe each later they were all sitting nearby a shop, satisfied and happy. Claude himself hadn't eaten a crepe since he'd left Earth, long before that, when his mother had made them once. It wasn't quite like the ones back home, but it was enough to make him feel homesick all the same. Rena nudged him gently out of his reverie, to notice they were ready to check out the shop nearby. The shop instead turned out to be a restaurant, and they watched with fascination as the cook fixed an elegant meal, Ketil looking excited as he watched the cook move with fluid grace from item to item and through the cooking process.
They left hungry once more, but not for a full dish. Claude chuckled and led the way over to the ice cream stand, wanting to try the peach ice cream now. They ate happily, and a few laughs were shared, the first since Ketil had joined them. Once done, and fingers licked clean, they headed for the last store. This was a clothing store, and the girls immediately took to looking, leaving Ketil and Claude standing to gawk as they started talking animatedly about fashion and what would look good on whom.
Ketil pointed out the men's section, and the two headed over to look somewhat interested until the ladies had worn themselves out or bought it all. "You doing ok?" Claude asked to break the lingering silence between them.
"Yeah. I've never actually been here - mom always does my shopping for me," Ketil said. "Plus I never get to see some of these clothes unless its on someone else."
Claude nodded, remembering that feeling from home, with both his parents so busy with their own things. He had often felt neglected and alone, with few other children to play with - of those who would associate with "the admiral's son". He sighed slightly and shook off the negativity, knowing it would not help now. Claude looked up suddenly as he heard Rena squeal to see Celine in a new dress chasing after Rena who likewise had tried on something - and looked absolutely stunning.
"You ok?" Ketil asked, waving a hand somewhat in front of Claude's face as he watched them stop and start laughing again.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Claude said, slightly in awe. "Just fine." He then busied himself looking through the men's fashions until the ladies came over, occasionally commenting on male fashion in general as Ketil pointed out some clothes, both comfortable and bizarre.
"Ok, we're ready," Celine said, slightly flushed form laughing so much. The heraldic sorceress was smiling slightly, and Rena was grinning widely. Between them it was like an infection, and even Claude and Ketil could not resist smiling either. They walked out, talking about some of the things they had seen, Rena steering them for the docks without giving hint. They stopped as soon as Ketil did, his jaw going slightly slack and his face a bit pale. The kids had stopped playing as well, looking at them all. They looked puzzled, as though they had not ever seen Ketil like this.
"Ketil?" the tall one asked?
"Hey." another said, a look of slight awe on his face.
"Hey guys," Ketil said, his voice slightly tense. Rena nudged him forward.
"Why don't you all play together, after all, Ketil's a pretty fun guy when you get to know him," she said sweetly, winking at Claude. "He was nice enough to give us a tour around the town and we had a blast!" Claude and Celine nodded, still in a pretty good mood.
The tall kid seemed to consider this a bit and then grinned. :"Ok, but we're playing tag, so you better keep up!"
"All right!" Ketil cried, running into the batch of kids. "Who's it?"
"I am!" a small girl exclaimed, and everyone scattered as she ran after them all. The three would-be heroes stood and watched them play awhile until Claude glanced into the sky, noticing the mid-day sun was now making its trek to the west. "Let's get to the ship."
They were all smiling as they walked to the ship, seeing the last preparations being made by the crew as they approached. The captain nodded in greeting. "We're just about ready. Might want to be sure you're ready, and then we'll get ourselves underway."
Claude snapped his fingers, remembering that he had forgotten to pick up some items form the item shop. "Shoot, I forgot some things in all the excitement."
The three trekked back to the town center, never noticing Filia in the shadows crying. She wiped her eyes, and stood straight up. "I'm sorry, everyone," she whispered, fading away.
~*~
Indalecio floated over the sea, his mood rather irritable and sighed, wiping at his cheek absently to remove some dampness. 'This is it. No more games,' he said, raising a hand. Off in the distance he could make out the outline of a town. 'You will not stop us, meager people of Expel. No one can. And no one will,' he added harshly to himself, focusing his sight on the silhouette of the city.
"Quake!"
~*~
Claude was only steps form the door of the item shop when the ground jolted underneath him, throwing him into the wall. Several other people standing her similarly thrown into things, and very few managed to keep their footing. Claude looked around, confused and met Rena's eye. Another jolt shook the town, much harder, eliciting screams from some of the residents. The ground started rumbling then, violent upheavals and side-to-side thrusts that shook loose anything not secured.
"Its an earthquake!" someone cried out in panic.
A passing woman, crying as she ran with her child in her arms muttered, "the crazy woman was right, she probably caused it in anger."
Claude pulled Celine and Rena to their feet, pointing to a hill east of the square where some others were going. "Let's get to the high ground!"
~*~
'Now, to seal their fate,' Indalecio thought, grinning broadly.
'Its not right,' a stray thought said, feminine and echoing with sadness.
'All is fair,' he thought simply, focusing his power.
"Noah."
~*~
Only a few residents had managed to get to the hill, among them the captain of the ship and one of his crew so far, and from their vantage point they could see many of the others milling around in the town center. Some of the other citizens looked visibly shaken by the ordeal, but it seemed over.
That was, until Celine looked out to sea. "Oh my god. the wave."
Those on the hill could only look in horror at the wave coming, higher than any of the buildings in town and approaching rapidly. Someone was screaming from atop the hill at the others below, but it was too late - the speed of the water was insane, and was on them before anyone had a chance. The people on the hill huddled at the very peak, barely safe from the force of the wave and praying their safe perch would hold. Rena was crying, her face burying into Claude's chest as she gripped at his clothes, in disbelief of what had just happened.
Celine stood there gripping her staff so tightly she was certain her knuckles were as white as the gloves covering them. She was not sure whether to be angry or upset as she witnessed the water churn violently about the area that had once been Clik. She didn't know who to blame, or how to react. She had never witnessed such a catastrophe in person before, only hearing about such things - and mostly all concerned with the Sorcery Globe. She swallowed in an attempt to wet her dry throat, parched form the sheer shock of witnessing such devastation firsthand.
Everyone was silent up there in respects to those who had seemingly died in the tsunami, and watched as the water receded once more to the massive body of water they knew as the ocean. Everyone had thought they knew that water well, but today it had lashed out at them with no reason. Finally some muttering broke the dad silence, and accusation against the Sorcery Globe.
Ketil suddenly was at Claude's side, sniffling. "Claude. my mother. she."
Claude knelt slowly, reaching out to take a hold of the child's shoulder. "Ketil, I - I'm."
"Ketil! Oh my God, you're safe!" a woman exclaimed, running form the other side of the hill, the far side form town. "I thought the water had taken you away from me!" Claude looked at the woman, a lady whose clothing was soaked and dirty, but her expression so full of joy at finding her child alive and well. Nearby Claude spied only one of the other children, swallowing hard. 'Did the others.?'
Rena saw the same thing, not wanting to dwell on it. Only a word escaped her lips. "Why.?"
Celine shook her head, shaken visibly as they started taking count of who was and wasn't alive. A mother was looking desperately for her other child, a young one in her arms. Others were already crying, grieving for loved ones and a few were cursing the fate that had befallen them. The captain of the ship walked over, handing over the passport.
"The ship hit dock, and with the following wave, was gone. I don't see 'er out there, kid. I'm sorry," he said, frowning. "She was a good ship, and I'm sorry I can't help you to get that damned globe back for this devastation. My ship. my crew. the city. Everyone. so many lives gone, for what?"
Claude accepted the passport, pocketing it as he too, wondered why it had to come to this. 'She had been right, that woman. If only we had listened to her, there would not have been so much devastation.'
He sighed, looking back out to the endless ocean. 'When will we learn?'
Celine stretched and shook off the horror that was plaguing her, looking at Claude. "Our only choice now is to head east more for Herlie, the other port town. We can stop at my hometown of Mars along the way for supplies and such."
Claude nodded, looking back down on the remains of the city. 'I wonder what happened to that woman, and if we'll ever see her again?' He turned, following the other two after saying their goodbyes, heading onward to their next objective, a small kindling of rage building at what had happened to the city. He had failed to make a difference here - he only hoped he could change things elsewhere.
Author Note: Nothing intrigued me more at the time I saw it then the scene with Filia - it was out of the blue, and really didn't fit in at that point. It would make no sense for a long, long time. [And even then, if you missed her, you're missing something minor, but important.]
Shadow is my take in the Fates setting of the events around Clik - Filia's appearance, the pickpocket, and Clik "going boom". [Ok, so I like that phrase.] One-shot, semi-long to long, focused around Claude primarily and about those events. [Has Rena, Celine too, etc. from above.] Onwards!
~*~
The sun was shining down on the trio as they made their way into the port city of Clik, the blonde swordsman, the knuckle-wielding healer, and the crest magician. Claude was at the point, having led the two women through the fields from Cross Cave here, where they could rest, and hopefully catch a ship. For his part the trip had been quiet, with very little need to wield the blade at his side. What had cropped up was easily dispatched between the three.
His blue eyes looked to his right, to the blue-haired figure he had met on first arriving to Expel. Rena was alert, despite the fact she looked a bit travel worn from the trip, and her blue eyes were bright as ever. He had fallen in love with her in ways on first sight, despite his disbelief in that. He had protected her from that monster then, and even now he put his all into making sure she was safe. It was not only his drive to go home that drove every swing of his blade - he had Rena. He was not sure of her feelings for him, but at times it had seemed as though she were going to reciprocate. She had not directly said anything - or done anything - but he could read it.
'Unless it is my own foolish hopes leading me on,' he thought bitterly to himself. He had deluded himself once before about things - that he was being respect for whom he was, and not because he was the son of Ronoxis. He shifted his glance then to his left, to their newest comrade, the enigmatic Celine Jules.
They had met her in the city of Cross, and accompanied her to the Cross Caves to recover an artifact they could not even decipher. So they had come to Clik in the hopes of reaching El and the Sorcery Globe - and his returning home while hopefully saving the world. He still had his doubts about it all - this "Warrior of Light" talk and that he was destined to save this world. That mattered little, and Celine was now with them. Her powers were a great help and compliment to Rena's. She had her flaws, but this was easily overlooked. Her powers perplexed Claude, as he only knew magic as a legend, and yet her heraldry power - which he had witnessed more than enough - was certainly that.
Celine yawned as they reached Clik proper, shaking her head. "I need to rest," the sorceress said, waving one white-gloved hand in front of her face to cool her a bit. "I think I'll go find the inn and rest. I'll see you all later."
Rena nodded, looking at Claude. "Its not a bad idea after all that," she added. "What about you Claude?"
Claude tilted his head to one side, and then shook it a little. "No, I'm not really all that tired," he said, though his feet were telling another story entirely. "I want to have a look around, see what's here and take care of a few small purchases while you rest. Sound good?"
Rena nodded and followed after Celine. "I'll see you later, Claude," she said, waving and heading into town. He stood there alone awhile, and yawned slightly. The mid-day sun was pleasantly warm, relaxing him and he was reminded pointedly of the summer days back home when he would buy and ice cream and sit under the shade of a tree. He felt terribly homesick just then, here at the entrance of Clik, and wondered if it was possible to even make ice cream on Expel. This thought encouraged him to head into town to have a look around and possibly buy some milk and other ingredients to try and make some.
The town itself was quaint in design, and as he passed the tavern - the Happy Barrel - as the sign read, he could almost believe a place like this could exist on Earth. 'Could have,' he thought, remembering that Earth was far past this place in technology. 'Its not bad here at all - its very nice and pleasant. I know father mentioned that some of the less civilized worlds were like what Earth had been. Its really almost a shame.'
His blue eyes scanned the central square quickly, and on a second pass he spotted something the first had missed - someone was selling the coveted item of all time - ice cream. 'Wow. I didn't even think it was possible, but here it is. Wonder if its anything like back home. It looks like it.'
He pulled out his wallet, walking over. A moment later he was walking away a little less rich but a lot more happy as he just about devoured the ice cream. 'Just as good,' he thought to himself, looking around the town center. A clothing store was near where he had sat down, and there was another stand selling crepes. But what caught his away was a woman dressed in clothing that practically hid her features from view. Her lips showed, and she seemed to be muttering something. She was walking this way slowly, as though some heavy burden were on her.
For her part she was, and she had a heavy heart in what she was about to do. 'I wish this weren't so, I wish I did not have to do this. But these people must be warned - the destruction of this town need not take so many lives. I wish I could do more.' Her veiled eyes were watering up, knowing the impending assault of natural power that was planned to strike here soon. She knew what she was doing would anger them, and that she really should not go against Indalecio, but she could not sit by as they killed so many without some chance to save themselves. She would suffer the repercussions later, whatever they might be. For now, she only wanted to try and save some lives.
Claude finished his ice cream, his thoughts having wandered back to Earth. 'I want to go home, but. I just wish it were more like here. Its so much better, even without the conveniences. No rushing, no standards. well, not entirely, but. I just feel so much at peace.'
"People, listen to me!" Claude turned his head, standing, to see the woman standing nearby, her hands spread out as though pleading for something, as if asking why. "You are all in great danger!"
"Yeah right," someone nearby Claude said, an older woman who looked as thought she'd seen and heard everything. "What a crackpot."
"This town is in peril, you all must leave!" The woman sounded earnest, but Claude knew that many even on Earth had predicted the 'end' and all had been wrong.
The woman shook her head, feeling a tear trickle down her cheek. 'Filia, they aren't listening to you!' she thought, taking in all the incredulous and disbelieving stares. She watched as a woman pulled her kids to her and scurried away. "I'm serious! You all must leave now!"
Some of the people were muttering and complaining, but Claude could tell something was amiss. Just then he found he had company in the form of the two ladies he had arrived in town with. "What's going on?" Rena asked.
"I was sleeping, and then I heard a bunch of people complaining," Celine said. "What's she saying?"
Claude shook his head and shrugged. "This woman's saying that Clik's in danger."
Celine looked around and raised an eyebrow. "From what? A feather blowing in the wind? It's a perfectly fine day, nothing's going to happen."
The three watched as the crowd dispersed with no one seeming to care about the raving madwoman. Filia collapsed to her knees, burying her face in her hands, sobbing. Claude walked over, leaving Rena and Celine puzzled. "Are you ok?" he asked, kneeling down in front of her.
Startled Filia looked up, and for a moment he caught a glimpse of her eyes - a startling blue, much clearer than any ocean and deeper then any sea before the veil fell again and she looked down. "It's - its just that I know this place will see disaster soon, and I want so much to save them," she said. "I - I cannot say anything more." She looked up again, studying him a bit longer and gasped. "You're - you're not. this world may have a chance yet."
"Don't tell me you're going to on about the Warrior of Light," Claude groaned, trying not to roll his eyes.
"No, you're not from here. you have a chance against them, those causing these problems. Continue fighting, and make for El. You must help this world before they-" She broke off abruptly, shaking her head slightly. "I - I'm sorry, but I must go. Please, be careful, stay safe!" she said, before rising quickly and dashing away out of sight. Rena walked over first, perplexed.
"What was that about?" Rena asked, watching Claude rise slowly.
".nothing. Nothing at all," Claude said, shaking off a feeling of uncertainty. Part of him believed her, the woman's story seemed to hold some truth. He also had a feeling she knew who was behind this, and wanted to inquire further, but doubted he'd get the chance. There wasn't anything important from what she said that they had not already planned. He swallowed, wetting his parched throat and stretched, trying to act as though nothing was wrong. "We should go look into getting some transportation to El."
Claude began walking ahead of the other two, trying to clear his head. The encounter had not lasted long, only a mere minute, but it had bothered him somehow. If she had ties to this enemy, why was she trying to warn them? Something didn't jive, and it certainly did not help matters. What if it was merely a setting up for a trap at El? He couldn't risk Rena's life - all of Arlia would be upset at her loss, form her mother Westa to the mayor, Regis. Still, they couldn't avoid the trip. Rena and Celine followed a distance back fro the pondering Claude, exchanging concerned glances.
"That was about as nothing as bag full of money," Celine noted, shaking her head. "But if he doesn't want to share, that's his place."
Rena nodded, although she didn't feel quite the same. If something bothered Claude, she worried. She cared about his well-being, much as she had for Dias' when they had been together, before Dias had left Arlia. 'Before his family died. But he didn't lose all of it. I was here. I wish I knew where Dias was.' She sighed slightly, feeling as though the same thing were happening again with another person. Losing someone you cared about once was hard enough - to endure that again like this, with someone she didn't know as well bothered her, and knew it would hurt all the same.
"Well, here we are," Claude said, standing by the plank of a large ship. Men were loading various supplies on her, and various shouts of commands over the hustle and bustle of the work. Nearby stood the captain, overseeing the work. "Excuse me, sir," Claude said, "Is this vessel headed out for El?"
"El?" the captain asked, suspicion in his voice, "Why would anyone in their right minds go to that hellhole? Besides that, no one sails there without a king's permission by passport. No luck, kid."
Claude forced back his resentment at being called a kid, feeling as though he were back among the Calnus crew, and swallowed, fishing out the passport the king had given him. "But you see, the King of Cross is sending us to El to deal with the Sorcery Globe," he said, offering the passport the king had given them. "As you can see, we're authorized to go to El."
The captain scrutinized the papers carefully, and reluctantly decided they were indeed official. He sighed slightly and folded them back up. "All right, you three, we're not leaving for awhile, so why don't you go back to town for awhile - we won't leave without you. I'll hold onto this as a reminder, but don't be too late. Should be mid-afternoon when we're ready."
Claude nodded and then looked at the girls. "Well, there were a few shops we could all go look at." Celine shrugged in reply and Rena only nodded, leaving Claude to lead the way quietly away from the ship and in his own thoughts. As they reached the central square, he was about to ask where they wanted to go when he felt something odd. Celine exclaimed something then as Claude watched a blur streak off somewhere amidst the confusion.
"What was that?" Rena asked.
Claude frowned, searching his pocket. "What the - my wallet's gone!"
"That rude little thief bumped into me AND stole the wallet?" she exclaimed. "This is great!"
Rena sunk into thought. "Little. it must have been a kid. There were some playing over by the ship docks, maybe one of them was the perpetrator."
"Possibly," Claude admitted, silently cursing himself for letting his attention wander. Had he been more alert, he would have noticed the kid sooner and been able to stop him. As it was now, they had no idea where the kid had gone, aside probably being in Clik somewhere. It was reasonable to start where they saw some kids first.
Nearby in the shadows, Filia watched them saddened at the events unfolding. 'I cannot hold this out much longer. they can't go onboard that ship - it would mean death.' She closed her eyes, knowing full well what Indalecio would be thinking about that. 'You've got to get out of here. not. now.'
Claude and company walked over to see two kids playing tag among the crates stacked around the docks. Rena stepped forward, having dealt with many of the Arlia kids for years and knowing the best approaches to talking to them about things. "Hiya," she said, smiling slightly. "Have either of you seen a wallet?"
They shook their heads, and the taller one spoke, saying, "no, we haven't we've been playing tag. I'd suggest you go talk to that rich snob Ketil."
"Yeah," the shorter one added, "That brat would probably know anything about missing money, if he hasn't found it." The two kids snickered, ignoring the perturbed adults there. "So yeah, that's your best bet. We've just been spending our time here playing."
Rena nodded, brushing off the kids' comments about Ketil. "Ok then, let's see if we can find any other children. One of them has to have it."
Celine shook her head as they walked into the town center. "Why would a rich kid steal a wallet?"
"Why would a healthy man take medicines?" Claude asked rhetorically. "The world's crazy, its not the first time something hasn't made sense like that."
Celine frowned slightly, ignoring Claude and keeping an eye for out any kids. They scouted out the main square, only seeing kids that were being watched by parents that seemed happy and carefree. Claude envied them, but kept it to himself, knowing dwelling on that would only make him more irritable. They trekked further back, eyes open looking for anything suspicious, and then he saw it - a small kid with blue hair whose eyes darted around. They looked at each other nodding, and walked over quietly as he looked the other way, when he turned to look towards the center it was too late - Celine had taken the far right and Rena the far left, with Claude confronting him and his back to the wall. "Ack!" the kid cried.
"We've got you now," Celine said. "Now hand over the money!"
"But, but..!" the kid stammered.
Rena shook her head, waving off whatever Claude was about to say. "You're Ketil, right?"
The kid looked flabbergasted a moment, and then frowned, his eyes narrowing slightly. "I bet those other kids were spouting stuff about me, huh?"
Rena nodded. "Yes, but. why did you do this?"
"To prove I wasn't some snotty rich kid!" Ketil exclaimed, throwing his arms in the air. "None of them will play with me because my family's rich, and saying I'm a snob. All I want. I just want to play like all the other kids and have fun." He sniffed slightly, as if to emphasize the point.
Rena looked at Celine, who didn't seem to buy the story at all, and then to Claude, who seemed to have a pained expression, as if he knew that feeling somehow. She wanted to ask then, but knew it wasn't the time. Claude for his part kept quiet for a long moment, leaving an awkward silence. Finally he spoke. "Look, you got away with it to some degree - we need the money, I need my wallet. We're on an important mission."
Rena had an idea then, knowing that Celine and Claude probably would balk but shot it off anyway as an additive - and hopefully a way to get Ketil to have some fun, and maybe even find a way to get the other kids to play with him. "Why don't you show us around town and stuff - sort of a compensation for our troubles - but we'll treat you to ice cream or something. Call it a way to work off what you've done to delay us. This is a rather large town, after all."
Ketil frowned deeply a moment, looking around once more to be sure he could not escape out of this. He didn't need the money - he did need the respect of his peers. But a tour guide? He sighed and then reluctantly nodded, pulling out the wallet and handing it to Claude. "Ok, ok. let's go to the square and go through there, ok?"
Ketil took the lead, Rena and Claude falling in behind a short distance with Celine trailing slowly. "What were you thinking?" Claude asked softly.
"Just trying to make him feel needed and a suitable way to teach him not to do it. I was thinking we'd go to the docks and have a talk with the kids maybe. See if they'd play with him after all this." She shrugged slightly and picked up her pace to catch up to Ketil more.
Their first stop was a comment on the tavern of Clik, the Happy Barrel. "The owner is a bit crazy, but that's ok. Everyone loves the place; people are in and out all the time swapping stories that end up out on the streets. Lots of neat things said. Lately its all been a lot of talk about that Sorcery Globe thing and the monsters. It all sounds cool!"
Claude masked his smirk by raising a hand and faking a cough, eliciting a quick look from Rena. "Yeah, there's a lot of talk about it," he said idly. "Lots of worries and stuff about it."
Ketil nodded. "Anyway, let's continue!" They headed into the actual town square, and Ketil bee lined for the crepe stand, bouncing excitedly. "This place ahs the best food ever, the crepes here are to die for!"
Glances were exchanged - Claude shrugged, pulling out his wallet and some money. "Well, let's give it a try, shall we?" A crepe each later they were all sitting nearby a shop, satisfied and happy. Claude himself hadn't eaten a crepe since he'd left Earth, long before that, when his mother had made them once. It wasn't quite like the ones back home, but it was enough to make him feel homesick all the same. Rena nudged him gently out of his reverie, to notice they were ready to check out the shop nearby. The shop instead turned out to be a restaurant, and they watched with fascination as the cook fixed an elegant meal, Ketil looking excited as he watched the cook move with fluid grace from item to item and through the cooking process.
They left hungry once more, but not for a full dish. Claude chuckled and led the way over to the ice cream stand, wanting to try the peach ice cream now. They ate happily, and a few laughs were shared, the first since Ketil had joined them. Once done, and fingers licked clean, they headed for the last store. This was a clothing store, and the girls immediately took to looking, leaving Ketil and Claude standing to gawk as they started talking animatedly about fashion and what would look good on whom.
Ketil pointed out the men's section, and the two headed over to look somewhat interested until the ladies had worn themselves out or bought it all. "You doing ok?" Claude asked to break the lingering silence between them.
"Yeah. I've never actually been here - mom always does my shopping for me," Ketil said. "Plus I never get to see some of these clothes unless its on someone else."
Claude nodded, remembering that feeling from home, with both his parents so busy with their own things. He had often felt neglected and alone, with few other children to play with - of those who would associate with "the admiral's son". He sighed slightly and shook off the negativity, knowing it would not help now. Claude looked up suddenly as he heard Rena squeal to see Celine in a new dress chasing after Rena who likewise had tried on something - and looked absolutely stunning.
"You ok?" Ketil asked, waving a hand somewhat in front of Claude's face as he watched them stop and start laughing again.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Claude said, slightly in awe. "Just fine." He then busied himself looking through the men's fashions until the ladies came over, occasionally commenting on male fashion in general as Ketil pointed out some clothes, both comfortable and bizarre.
"Ok, we're ready," Celine said, slightly flushed form laughing so much. The heraldic sorceress was smiling slightly, and Rena was grinning widely. Between them it was like an infection, and even Claude and Ketil could not resist smiling either. They walked out, talking about some of the things they had seen, Rena steering them for the docks without giving hint. They stopped as soon as Ketil did, his jaw going slightly slack and his face a bit pale. The kids had stopped playing as well, looking at them all. They looked puzzled, as though they had not ever seen Ketil like this.
"Ketil?" the tall one asked?
"Hey." another said, a look of slight awe on his face.
"Hey guys," Ketil said, his voice slightly tense. Rena nudged him forward.
"Why don't you all play together, after all, Ketil's a pretty fun guy when you get to know him," she said sweetly, winking at Claude. "He was nice enough to give us a tour around the town and we had a blast!" Claude and Celine nodded, still in a pretty good mood.
The tall kid seemed to consider this a bit and then grinned. :"Ok, but we're playing tag, so you better keep up!"
"All right!" Ketil cried, running into the batch of kids. "Who's it?"
"I am!" a small girl exclaimed, and everyone scattered as she ran after them all. The three would-be heroes stood and watched them play awhile until Claude glanced into the sky, noticing the mid-day sun was now making its trek to the west. "Let's get to the ship."
They were all smiling as they walked to the ship, seeing the last preparations being made by the crew as they approached. The captain nodded in greeting. "We're just about ready. Might want to be sure you're ready, and then we'll get ourselves underway."
Claude snapped his fingers, remembering that he had forgotten to pick up some items form the item shop. "Shoot, I forgot some things in all the excitement."
The three trekked back to the town center, never noticing Filia in the shadows crying. She wiped her eyes, and stood straight up. "I'm sorry, everyone," she whispered, fading away.
~*~
Indalecio floated over the sea, his mood rather irritable and sighed, wiping at his cheek absently to remove some dampness. 'This is it. No more games,' he said, raising a hand. Off in the distance he could make out the outline of a town. 'You will not stop us, meager people of Expel. No one can. And no one will,' he added harshly to himself, focusing his sight on the silhouette of the city.
"Quake!"
~*~
Claude was only steps form the door of the item shop when the ground jolted underneath him, throwing him into the wall. Several other people standing her similarly thrown into things, and very few managed to keep their footing. Claude looked around, confused and met Rena's eye. Another jolt shook the town, much harder, eliciting screams from some of the residents. The ground started rumbling then, violent upheavals and side-to-side thrusts that shook loose anything not secured.
"Its an earthquake!" someone cried out in panic.
A passing woman, crying as she ran with her child in her arms muttered, "the crazy woman was right, she probably caused it in anger."
Claude pulled Celine and Rena to their feet, pointing to a hill east of the square where some others were going. "Let's get to the high ground!"
~*~
'Now, to seal their fate,' Indalecio thought, grinning broadly.
'Its not right,' a stray thought said, feminine and echoing with sadness.
'All is fair,' he thought simply, focusing his power.
"Noah."
~*~
Only a few residents had managed to get to the hill, among them the captain of the ship and one of his crew so far, and from their vantage point they could see many of the others milling around in the town center. Some of the other citizens looked visibly shaken by the ordeal, but it seemed over.
That was, until Celine looked out to sea. "Oh my god. the wave."
Those on the hill could only look in horror at the wave coming, higher than any of the buildings in town and approaching rapidly. Someone was screaming from atop the hill at the others below, but it was too late - the speed of the water was insane, and was on them before anyone had a chance. The people on the hill huddled at the very peak, barely safe from the force of the wave and praying their safe perch would hold. Rena was crying, her face burying into Claude's chest as she gripped at his clothes, in disbelief of what had just happened.
Celine stood there gripping her staff so tightly she was certain her knuckles were as white as the gloves covering them. She was not sure whether to be angry or upset as she witnessed the water churn violently about the area that had once been Clik. She didn't know who to blame, or how to react. She had never witnessed such a catastrophe in person before, only hearing about such things - and mostly all concerned with the Sorcery Globe. She swallowed in an attempt to wet her dry throat, parched form the sheer shock of witnessing such devastation firsthand.
Everyone was silent up there in respects to those who had seemingly died in the tsunami, and watched as the water receded once more to the massive body of water they knew as the ocean. Everyone had thought they knew that water well, but today it had lashed out at them with no reason. Finally some muttering broke the dad silence, and accusation against the Sorcery Globe.
Ketil suddenly was at Claude's side, sniffling. "Claude. my mother. she."
Claude knelt slowly, reaching out to take a hold of the child's shoulder. "Ketil, I - I'm."
"Ketil! Oh my God, you're safe!" a woman exclaimed, running form the other side of the hill, the far side form town. "I thought the water had taken you away from me!" Claude looked at the woman, a lady whose clothing was soaked and dirty, but her expression so full of joy at finding her child alive and well. Nearby Claude spied only one of the other children, swallowing hard. 'Did the others.?'
Rena saw the same thing, not wanting to dwell on it. Only a word escaped her lips. "Why.?"
Celine shook her head, shaken visibly as they started taking count of who was and wasn't alive. A mother was looking desperately for her other child, a young one in her arms. Others were already crying, grieving for loved ones and a few were cursing the fate that had befallen them. The captain of the ship walked over, handing over the passport.
"The ship hit dock, and with the following wave, was gone. I don't see 'er out there, kid. I'm sorry," he said, frowning. "She was a good ship, and I'm sorry I can't help you to get that damned globe back for this devastation. My ship. my crew. the city. Everyone. so many lives gone, for what?"
Claude accepted the passport, pocketing it as he too, wondered why it had to come to this. 'She had been right, that woman. If only we had listened to her, there would not have been so much devastation.'
He sighed, looking back out to the endless ocean. 'When will we learn?'
Celine stretched and shook off the horror that was plaguing her, looking at Claude. "Our only choice now is to head east more for Herlie, the other port town. We can stop at my hometown of Mars along the way for supplies and such."
Claude nodded, looking back down on the remains of the city. 'I wonder what happened to that woman, and if we'll ever see her again?' He turned, following the other two after saying their goodbyes, heading onward to their next objective, a small kindling of rage building at what had happened to the city. He had failed to make a difference here - he only hoped he could change things elsewhere.