A/N: This story is dedicated to Arsenic Cupcakes, my first reviewer and the person who gave me an idea for this story.
" Occuria's Chosen tool, like her ancestor which they were so proud of? I shall have the great pleasure of crushing her soul."
I charged at the group of mortals who had had the strength and the wit to find my prison in the upmost chamber of the Great Crystal of Giruvegan. I was ablaze with enthusiasm. How long had it been since I had tasted the thrill of battle? Bitter memories of restraint gave my attacks a quality of viciousness that the Occuria would have shunned. How very refreshing!
Mortals though they were, they fought with great power and skill. They had felled many of my former allies who had been locked up within crystals as I was. Their power now matched against mine, I had no inclination to hold back. I gathered my power asleep for too long and cast Holyja over the crew. A pleasant surge of dazzlingly white magick showered down on them and I gloated over their pained cries.
Yet in the next moment, I felt another kind of spell being cast from behind me. I turned around to find a Hume so young she seemed a mere child to me – even in their short-lived ranks – quickly replenishing her allies' strength though she was in no good shape herself. Having been the embodiment of salvation in the life that felt so far away now, I had long ago acknowledged the importance of healing in battle. Even the most valiant of soldiers quickly falls to their knees if they forget to heal themselves from time to time. Thus I decided to strike the youngest Hume down first.
"Penelo!" I heard the cry of another Hume, blond, confident, heedless of the many dangers of the world. However it was another man who made it first to the girl's side, sheltering them both with his magick-imbued shield. He, too, had seen his deal of battles; I knew this from looking at his grave eyes and calloused hands.
On my right, the Viera and the third Hume male had switched to defensive action to recover from the attack. Both reeked of adventure and life without masters to follow. I grudgingly ignored them for my curiosity was taking the best of me. I turned to see the last of my opponents who was already healed, attacking away as if berserked.
A young Hume woman, whose bloodline spoke of great deeds, yet she herself was so laughably small and frail. Tormented by past ghosts, frightened of future threats. Such a feeble individual was the arbiter of the Occuria's new scheme to rule over the world as they used to in the time of their glory?
I watched her in wonder. What was it that made this heart so special?
The battle was being drawn out, neither side making significant progress. I did feel myself becoming increasingly exhausted, though. Had all those centuries spent in idleness made my combat skills so rusted? In the past, I would vanquish battalions with just one sweep of my wings. I had wiped out the very city of Giruvegan! Why could I not beat these simple mortals?
Suddenly I felt the mists in the chamber quicken. Raithwall's descendant had started a chain. The mist was wildly swirling around and I could no more catch it to amplify my spells. The Quickenings followed one another, the mortals taking turns in sending them at me wave after wave. Finally the whirlwind of mist lost its momentum, ceasing the chain. A Black Hole obscured my vision and I felt my heart tremble in humiliation.
The Quickening chain was the turning point of the battle. I could not regain the upper hand and was forced to admit defeat.
Profoundly astonished by the outcome of the clash, I felt my body fall apart as I screamed in angered shock. The crystal in which the Occuria had sealed my soul shattered loudly, leaving behind a glowing glyph in the air. The Princess who had now laid her sword approached the glyph, intending to claim me as her servant. I, however, was not yet ready to give in without resistance.
My physical body was quickly disappearing but with the newfound strength of my soul I attacked the Princess from within her very being. She dropped her sword and bent on her knees, gripping her burning chest tightly.
"Ashe! W-what's happening to her?" The girl who had just been occupied with healing the other members of the group now spun her head in the Princess' direction with frightened eyes.
"It seems that the lady is less than willing to come quietly," the Viera's partner remarked dryly, yet with a hint of surprise in his voice. Had the other Espers accepted the pact with their new master without a fight? Did they really see no contradiction in a god serving a mortal?
"You bear the mark of the tyrant gods. They think they can use me through you but I will consume you. I will never be part of their plans! I will never serve an Occurian pawn!"
"I…am no pa...wn." I was bewildered. She could talk back to me through her soul? She should be a useless puppet any moment now.
"I will…restore my kingdom…my own way. I won't let…anyone...use me. I cannot…stop now."
I weighed her power against mine. I had a good chance of winning the duel but I would not be able to leave unscathed. A part of my power had already mixed with hers. She had taken me by surprise. Was this the power the Occuria were lusting for when they chose her as their sword-arm?
"Very well. I yield to you, Hume. I will take part in the sweet revenge you harbour in your heart. Destroy everything that holds you away from the freedom you yearn for."
I let myself be washed away by the current of her will and was united with the rest of myself. The Princess' body relaxed and she let out a relieved sigh. Sweeping sweat from her forehead she got on her feet and faced her companions' inquiries regarding her condition with a contented smile. I was imprisoned again, this time shackled in a distant corner in the back of her mind, ready to be summoned at any moment when she willed it. Still, I could see through her eyes and hear through her ears. I found myself eager to see the Ivalice in which the era of the Stones was threatening to return once more on the land. The Ivalice in which mortals thrived, abandoned by the gods for so long.
Distantly I wondered who had been the one taking care of the Mythril Gates as I was gone.
A/N: You can think of this chapter as a prologue of a sort. (Not that it's going to be too huge a story though.) Please excuse its length.
I didn't even try to make the game's battle system show in this story. It was difficult enough to begin with.
Well, I hope you'll have fun with the story (my first multi-chapter one, whoopee-doo!) Thanks and bye for now ;)