Heh heh heh… I have always wanted to make a fic like this. Enjoy!
Under the Moonlit Sky
Three figures ran through the night. A crimson-haired man led the way while a brown-haired woman holding a small child and a large animal with fan-like ears followed. The tall grass swayed in the wind near the trees as they proceeded forward.
"How did he and his men pass into this world?" The woman frantically asked, trying to keep up.
The man looked behind him and replied. "Probably the same way we got here." He was not too thrilled about it either.
The child squirmed in the woman's arms. "Mommy? Daddy? Where are we?" He asked innocently. His messy brown hair covered his two huge red-amber orbs.
The boy's mother asked her husband as well. "Yes. Where are we again?"
The man scanned the area. "Around a secluded town called Ozette. We should be nearing it soon." He paused. "But we need to hurry!" He quickened his pace.
"Why?" The woman asked alerted. "Do you think they may know where we're headed?" The green and white animal whined loudly.
"LIGHTNING!" An unknown voice shouted. A burst of electricity fell from the sky and landed in front of them. "Hahahahaaa… You thought you could get away that easily?" The male voice cackled.
The family and their pet continued their efforts to get away. Their pursuers constantly bombarded them with magic.
Under the crimson-haired man's voice, he began to chant. Then beams of blinding light rained from above, instantly killing a few of the men that they were fleeing from. In the distance, the woman could see the silhouette of a village.
"Kratos!" She called. He saw it too. A blue light appeared around his body. Then two translucent sapphire wings unfurled from his back. He grabbed his wife and child and rose into the sky.
Kratos looked to the ground. "Noishe! Hurry on ahead!" The loyal pet galloped faster.
Kratos tried his best to dodge each attack while still holding on to his family. But the barrage of attacks was too much. He was struck down by a jolt of electricity. They plummeted to the earth, but Kratos was able to prevent them from receiving too much injury.
Suddenly, they were surrounded. A white-haired man with pointed ears and menacing eyes came forward. "Hmmm… You have all caused me much grief. Now I am here to reclaim what you stole from me." He stepped closer. "Anna… You stupid girl. Going around with no real understanding of what you have. And you inferior little wrench will now suffer."
"Kvar!" The red head shouted. "If you harm them, I swear…" He hissed, balling his fist.
"Now, now, Kratos." Kvar began. "I won't only harm her," he grabbed Anna by force. "But I'll harm you." He tugged on Anna's left arm and pulled off the red crystal from her hand.
"NO!" Kvar's soldiers restrained the weakened Kratos. Lloyd was left crying on the grass. Anna fell onto the dirt. Her body glowed a violent red as it began to mutate. She let out a piercing scream of agony. Her skin turned into a scaly green and her hands began to bulge. Then a white flash came from her body.
After everyone regained their sight, the transformation was complete. She was a monster. "No… Anna…" Kratos stared in disbelief.
Her arms flung around with no control. She knocked down some of Kvar's men and unleashed an unprecedented amount of mana.
Kratos desperately warded off the half-elven soldiers, slashing them away with his mighty Flamberge. His wife continued her rampage, but he was unable to do anything to her. He could not hurt the person he loved. He could not do it. Then Anna indiscriminately turned on her 3 year old child. The little boy cried at the top of his lungs as the monster that was really his mother tried to give him injury.
A green and white blur hit the monster. She dropped Lloyd, who safely landed on Noishe who just appeared. The large animal growled at the monster and bit her with his sharp teeth. She swung her massive arm at the dog-like thing. Noishe was tossed to the side and whined with pain.
Kratos was now face to face with the monster Anna had become. "Anna! Anna… I… I can't fight you…"
The monster struggled to move. Anna was somehow able to take temporary control. She attempted to speak. Her voice wavered and cracked. "K-Krat-tos… Kill me… Please… You… have to…"
"N-no… I can't kill you…" He was left immobilized.
"Kill me… before I can hurt our son… I don't want to hurt you… Please, Kratos!"
Kratos tightened his grip on his sword. "Anna… I'm sorry… I-I can't."
Anna went out of control again. She attacked Kratos. Kratos only guarded against her blows. She again turned on Lloyd. Kratos could not let him die. He rushed in front of his defenseless son and had no choice. He drove his sword through the monster. Anna fell on her side, lifelessly. She turned back to human form.
Kvar chuckled with amusement as he watched from a distance. He smirked evilly and ordered his troops to kill the rest of them.
Kratos neared his wife. He could still hear a small pulse from her heart. She was just barely staying alive. Kratos saw her exsphere resting near her body and picked it up. He knew he must get them away from there. He hastily grabbed Lloyd in one arm and Anna in the other. He took out his wings once more and took off.
The half-elves threw a flurry of attacks into the sky. Noishe rose to his feet and rammed himself into the men. He took off shortly after and tried to catch up with his human friends.
Some of Kvar's minions were far up ahead, sending powerful simultaneous waves of attacks at the family.
Anna was slowly regaining consciousness. Everything was a blur to her. She could feel the wind rush against her face. Almost inaudibly, she whispered her husband's name. With all of the chaos happening, he did not seem to hear her, no matter how well his angelic ears were. Anna's eyes closed once more and she blacked out.
Kratos flapped his wings harder. It was difficult enough to evade attacks mid-air, but he was carrying an unconscious woman and a child that had no idea what was going on. He was contemplating on where he should go. It passed through his mind that he should dive down into the forest below, but it was too risky. He even sent his own spells at the soldiers. But they just kept coming. All he could hope for was that they could lose the trailing men somehow.
Kratos was wearing out quickly. He heavily panted as he pushed forward. Ozette would soon be below them, but he knew it was unwise to stop there.
After a matter of seconds after he flew right over Ozette, an arrow flew into Kratos's arm. He flinched and tried to re-steady himself in the air, but more projectiles struck him. Another arrow pierced his arm, causing him to lose hold of both Anna and Lloyd. The shining crystal fell along with them. "No!" He shouted.
Ignoring the pain, he swooped down to catch the falling figures.
The half-elves took this opportunity to close in and take down the winged man. A multitude of attacks knocked Kratos far to the side, allowing Anna and Lloyd to drop into the cover of the trees.
"LLOYD! ANNA!" He hurried to that area of the forest.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-
At the forest floor, Anna laid on her side, a pool of blood surrounded her body. Lloyd was wailing over his mother. His eyes were pouring with tears and his face was red. Anna tried to comfort him.
"D-Don't worry Lloyd. E-Everything will be o-okay." She coughed up some blood. "Daddy will be c-coming s-soon. I-It's going to be all right." Lloyd only cried louder.
In the distance, a whine could be heard. Noishe had found them. He had an injured leg that was stained red. He crouched next to Anna and whimpered next to her. He rubbed his muzzle on her reddened clothes.
There was a slight rustle of dry leaves and twigs. Then a dwarf wearing green and a nearly completed human-shaped robot came into view.
"Oh my…" The grey-haired dwarf uttered. He kneeled beside Anna and quickly examined her. "Tabatha!" He called the robot.
Tabatha robotically walked to the dwarf. "HOW MAY I BE OF SERVICE MASTER?" Her feminine mechanical voice asked. Her visibly uncompleted body parts shined in the moonlight.
The dwarf looked at the doll. "We must get this woman to the house!" He looked back to Anna. "Wh-What happened?" He brusquely asked.
"Desians… want my exsphere…"
The dwarf gave a questioning look. "Desians? …They aren't from…" He picked up the red gem. "And an exsphere…"
Anna wheezed, "P-Please help Lloyd… my son… Take care… of… him…"
"Oh, no… Tabatha! Help me carry this woman!" The two lifted Anna gently. Lloyd was still crying. Noishe picked the boy up with his teeth and placed him on his back. They began to walk out of the forest.
Once they entered the dwarf's stone home, he and Tabatha set Anna on a bed. Her labored breathing was slowing at every breath she made. Lloyd was with Noishe, quietly seated by the entrance. The 3 year old stared sadly at the stone floor.
Tabatha was sent to get medical supplies, though Anna's chances of living were slim.
The dwarf sat next to the ailing Anna. "You are aware that you may not…"
"Yes. I know." She let out no more than a whisper. "If I don't survive, I want you to take care of Lloyd… for when my…" She started to heavily gasp for air.
"Miss! …I'm sorry, what is your name? I am Altessa."
"Anna… Irving- Au…" She began to drift away. Her eyelids were becoming heavy.
"Tabatha! We're losing her! Come! Quickly!" The robot appeared.
Tabatha attempted to clot the stab wound to stop the blood. She gave Anna a few gels too. But it was not enough. After a few moments, Anna's breathing ceased. Altessa felt for a pulse. He could not find one. "…Tabatha… Get a cloth and drape it over her. I do not want the boy to see." Altessa solemnly sat in silence as Tabatha did as she was told.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
Our crimson-haired man ran around shouting the names of his family. He pulled out the arrows embedded in his skin and swore to himself.
"LLOYD! ANNA!" Kratos was frantically scouring the part of the forest he saw his wife and child land. His ears picked up lots of shouting coming his way. "I don't have time for this." He stressed. Kvar's men were going to come and find him.
They came and fought him with their own swords. As angry as he was, Kratos slaughtered them all. He wanted them to feel the pain Anna must have been experiencing. Anna… He had to find her and their child.
He continued his search. There was no sign of them. But soon enough, he found a patch of blood-stained grass. "Anna… Lloyd… They must have been here. They could still be alive…"
He looked above him. The branches full of pine green leaves hung loosely, as if something fell through. Something gleamed in his eye. He took out his wings again and picked something from the tree. In the midst of the leaves was a golden locket. His eyes widened.
"This… is Anna's locket…" He opened it. His eyes misted over.
Kratos thought they could have been found by a passing villager in Ozette. He headed toward the town, unbeknownst to him that they were in the other direction, away from the forest. Even so, he searched through the isolated town. He asked people if they had seen them. There were no clues. They were gone. He broke down in tears.
Kratos felt he had no choice. Everything he held dear was taken from him. He had to go back to…
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
"Tabatha," the dwarf began. "Go check on Lloyd."
"YES MASTER." She nodded and left the room.
Altessa opened his hand. He was still holding Anna's exsphere. "…"
The robot tended to the dog-like creature. Noishe's right hind leg was sprained. Tabatha cleaned away the blood from Noishe's fur. The young Lloyd stared at the mechanical girl.
"Is Mommy okay?" He was given no response. "Where is my daddy?" Tabatha seemed to ignore him for a moment.
She finally looked at him with her blank, green eyes. "IT IS LATE. YOU MUST GO TO SLEEP." Lloyd realized that he actually was sleepy. He yawned and curled up next to Noishe, who, too, yawned. They were in the land of dreams.
Tabatha walked back to Altessa. "LLOYD IS NOW ASLEEP."
"Good." The old dwarf said. "We must now make a proper grave for his mother."
Together, they dug a rectangular hole in the dirt outside of the house and carefully placed Anna's limp body inside. After covering her with soil, Altessa got two wooden boards and made them into a cross to mark the grave. He finely carved in Anna's name and the day's date into the wood. He then gathered freshly picked flowers and placed them on the mound of earth to pay his last respects.
The robot and her master reentered the house.
"Mommy? Mommy! Where are you?" Lloyd was wandering around the residence. Tears were about to stream out of his eyes. "Mommy…"
"Lloyd…" Altessa kneeled next to the boy to match his height. "Your mother… She is in a better place."
"But where is she?" The brown-haired boy scanned the room.
"…She's not here, Lloyd. I'm sorry." The child began to cry for his mother. But of course, his desperate pleas were not answered. Altessa told Tabatha to bring the boy to a bed and make sure he sleeps this time.
Lloyd eventually cried himself to sleep. Tabatha went to the dwarf's work area. He was sitting on a simple stool and studied the red crystal under a light. He finally noticed the robot standing there.
"That boy… He has been through a lot. I think it would be best if he stays here." He gazed back at Anna's crystal. "…I wonder…"
Oh, that took forever to type. This chapter seemed to follow Anna's death. Chapter 2 will talk about Lloyd's childhood… And obviously there will be spoilers… Hm. This will be one of my more serious fics. Please keep reading! I wish for reviews of this story!!!