Prologue

688 Old Valendian
The Capital City of Archades

Lauren Tanner had been married to her husband, Vincent, for a full year when her daughter, Saia was born. It was meant to be a happy moment. Saia was a beautiful baby, with hair so blonde it was almost silver, and a doe-eyed gaze of grey. Lauren figured she recieved them from her great-grandmother, a lovely half-Nabradian. Lovely as the features were, they were unusual in Archadia, where most everyone had dark features. And so, Vincent Tanner came to believe that baby Saia was not his child.

Everyday, Vincent would shout insults at his wife, insulting her faith, disowning his child. Lauren would not speak against his insults, and over time, the only thing she'd say was "She is your child, Dear." Saia listened to this, everyday, as she sat in her room and read. She did not interfere with their conversations. Some days she would not leave her room, and others she'd only leave to get books from her parent's library. At age four, she'd finished every book, aside from one; the tattered diary of her great-great-grandmother.

692 Old Valendian
Archades

Saia woke from her bed with a stifled yawn. Rummaging through her nightstand drawer, she pulled out her ancestor's journal and opened it to her current page. As she continued her reading, she slipped on an over-sized shirt and headed out of her bedroom and into the kitchen. She had to put down the book to pour her cereal. She could hear her parents, or rather, her father, arguing in the next room.

Saia didn't like her father. He was always yelling at her mother, always saying cruel things. She took her bowl of cereal in one hand and her book in the other, and entered the dining room herself, sitting at the opposite end of the table from the quarreling couple. Despite the distance, she noted, her father brought her into the conversation.

"Look at her! She has none of my features! She shows none of my traits! She is nothing like me, how can you say she is my child?" He shouted, index finger pointed at Saia like a hunting Lobo. Saia sighed exasperatedly, standing from her seat, leaving behind her book and bowl. She walked over to her still-pointing father and took his finger between hers and her thumb. "Father," she said evenly, "You say I am nothing like you. However, I must note: Since my birth you have been nothing but cruel to Mother. Therefore, as proof of my descent from you, I shall show you my cruelty. I am going to break this finger in seven places." As she said that, she pinched her fingers together, fracturing the bone. She did this seven times, each fracture being an even, clean break. Her father fell down, still howling in pain.

Saia looked up to her mother. The woman looked horrified beyond words. She looked as though she was contemplating suicide. This was not the reaction Saia had wanted. She looked her mother straight in the eye and told her, "Mother, you will not kill yourself, no matter what I do, No matter what he says or does." The woman looked back at her blankly, but Saia knew she understood. Saia had read of the skill she displayed, called Trance. Lauren would not be dying anytime soon. Two days afterward, Vincent left "on business". He did not return.

694 Old Valendian
Archades

Saia woke from her bed, stretching silently before sliding out of her sheets and dressing into her favorite black shorts and a black top. She strapped her guitar onto her back, a Mindflayer 5k Custom, and shouted a goodbye to her mother before heading out the door. She'd noted, over the last two years, that her mother refuses to speak to Saia. All she does is glare.

Saia walked from Trant to Molberry, as she had everyday, and stopped only when she reached the small plaza that was placed oddly in Molberry district. Many shops outlined the square of blank space in a neat manner, making the area a "rush hour" spot. A few ardent children came to watch street performers. That was Saia's business. She set down her guitar case, opening it to reveal her beautiful Mindflayer, which was colored dark blue and splattered with purple. She noted her appearance seemed to intimidate most of the adults, while others seemed intrigued, wondering what the six-year-old street performer would do. She tuned each string with one strum each, mostly to grab any attention she had not yet attained, and then, she played, singing into the Seer Microphone attached to the guitar's neck, a programmed drum beat playing through the amp at an even tempo.

Well I've been lookin' real hard
And I'm tryin' to find a job
But it just keeps gettin' tougher every day
But I got to do my part cause I know in my heart
I got to please my sweet baby, yeah

The people passing by stoppped to watch, to see the child play the song so easily. Saia sang with emotion. The only place people seem to enjoy emotion is in song, she'd noted. The children smiled at the tune of her guitar.

Well, I ain't superstitious
And I don't get suspicious
But my woman is a friend of mine
And I know that it's true that all the things that I do
Will come back to me in my sweet time

Children pushed themselves closer, watching her play with excited eyes. Saia focused on her guitar, assuring every note was perfect. She focused on her voice, assuring that she did not mispronounce the lyrics, that the notes were sung at a perfect alto pitch.

So keep on rock'n me baby
Keep on a rock'n me baby
Keep on a rock'n me baby
Keep on a rock'n me baby

Saia noted that the adults were smiling in her direction, and even dropped money into her coin pouch. Most likely they were mothers who enjoyed seeing their children dance.

I went from Bhujerba
All the way to Nalbina
Rozarria, Archades, and Phon.
Northern Mosphora where the girls are warm
So I could be with my sweet baby, yeah

As Saia finished the third verse, a stranger snuck past and stole what earnings she'd made. She'd stopped the song, her face donning a desparate look. "My rent...!" She cried. A woman subsequently shouted "Thief!" though in reality it was unnecessary. Saia had slipped her guitar over her shoulder and was now in hot pursuit of the gil-thief, giving the crowd a new spectacle to watch. Saia noted that no one bothered to help, though some children did shout encouragements her way. Saia sprang past the thief, cutting him off. "You will return what you've stolen, and never appear before me again," She commanded him, making direct eye contact. He placed the pouch in her hand, and ran off. As she returned to her station, she heard a slow clap emnate from the center of the audience. Those surrounding the applauding young man backed away. From those in earshot, Saia heard them whisper.
"That's Lord Vayne."
"Emperor Gramis' Third son..!"
"Isn't he a sort of Military leader? Why is he here?"

"A thrilling show, young lady," The man they called Vayne said in mock-compliment. "I would like a chat with you, miss, if I may." Saia eyed him curiously. Whoever he was, he meant business. What business could he want with a child? She pondered. She nodded to him, and packed up her things before joining him at his side. He smirked in a way that was too complex for her to discern a meaning from it. "Let's take a walk, shall we?"

"Very well, I shall walk and you may chat," she said in agreement. The teen seemed to stifle a laugh at her response. And so they walked. Vayne had begun the chat with questions about Trance, which Saia answered. He asked how it worked, and if it was teachable. Saia told him the basics of the skill, but explained that the skill was useless if tried by others.

Vayne also questioned why she was performing on street corners instead of sitting in school. "I play to pay the rent, for my mother can't work. But, what it this 'school'?" Vayne laughed at that, and explained the purpose of school to the child, who scoffed in response, "I have no need for that."

It was then Vayne proposed an offer to Saia. "Why don't you work for me? The chance that people with steal from you will be lessened, and I'll even insure your mother may live comfortably so long as you do." At this, Saia nodded. "Very well, I shall work for you, then," she replied.