A/N: This is a fanfiction that I've been writing for a year and decided to make it public. The setting of this lovely story takes place in the wonderful fantasy online game called Mabinogi. With that said, all Credit Mabinogi related does not belong to me. but Nexon and Devcat themselves. I only own the OCs (with friend's permission, but credit goes to them still of course) and the plot.

I'll be honest, this was supposed to be a script for a series I have been planning on doing for Mabinogi with a couple friends of mine. But due to reasons like one of them can't go on Mabi anymore because they don't have a computer and one of them don't feel like playing anymore, it was cancelled. I decided to write it to a story and then BOOM. This happened. So yeaaah..Thank you for taking the time to read this. Enjoy the first chapter and please review~!

I have up to Chapter 9 in this story. I am writing Chapter 10, probably as you read this.

I

THE FLAME THAT STARTED IT ALL

There was a tale from long ago about four chosen fighters who saved and created the world we live in. These chosen fighters served to stop the evil known as the Crusade, whose sole purpose was to destroy the entire world. Our world back then was filled with wastelands. Everyone was poor. No one was helping each other, and they carried no hope until the four fighters appeared. The Crusade wanted nothing, but to see suffering and hatred. It made them feel alive to see them feel empty and hurt. However, the chosen ones decided that it was enough and rebelled against them. They each had a power they used to retaliate. That power was..

Under a clear blue sky, a group of young boys were tossing around a dark-haired young girl as they laughed maniacally. The girl was being shoved, and occasionally punched around as she took every hit with a squeak escaping from her mouth. There was nothing she can do for she was merely outnumbered by a group of fifteen year olds. One last punch sent her falling to the ground with a loud thud, leaving the flowers she was carrying out of her hands.

"You're so boring, kid!" One of the boys screamed, kicking the girl on the stomach. A painful groan was soon heard as she wrapped an arm around it. "Can you at least entertain us a bit?!"

The girl didn't respond as her blue eyes turned to the group fearfully. She was twelve years of age. Her hair length was up to her shoulders with her bangs flowing to the left side. In total, there were four teenagers surrounding her. She didn't want to fight, and even if she did, she would lose the battle. The child did not know how to fight to begin with.

One of the boys decided to stomp on her side as yet another painful cry was released. "Stupid, stupid, stupid kid! Say something!"

Her side was attacked with every slurred word of hatred from his mouth. The others laughed at her helpless state. She began to feel the blood rush in from her head as well as the numbness. What could she possibly say to a group of teens who bully her every day for fun? No matter how many times she tells them to stop, the damage would worsen. If she says any fighting words, it will result the same. It was to the point that no matter what she say, she will still be in the world of pain. A voice rang through her head, causing her to finally act. Her hand caught the boy's feet to cease the stomping, "Will..Will you stop, please?"

The boy grinned mischievously at the sight of the girl giving him a look of struggle before using his other foot to kick her head. Promptly, the child let go of his foot from the sneak attack.

"Finally, the nun talked! About time!" The attacker responded in triumph before the other boys joined with their friend on the abusive act. The girl shielded her face from the kicks with her arms, knowing that blood was already trickling down her forehead. Suddenly, footsteps were heard rushing to the scene and she managed to hear someone screaming her name before one of the boys was tackled.

"Zale!" The blue-eyed female cried out the newcomer's name, who started fighting the boys single-handedly. She started pushing herself from the ground to watch the fight, not knowing what to do. Zale is one year older than her. He has dirty blonde messy hair with green eyes.

Her friend gave her an angry look and quickly yelled, "Asaya, run! Back home!"

Asaya winced at the sound of a punch landing on his face before putting on a worried look. She shook her head in refusal of his request, receiving an unsatisfied look from the dirty blonde. The girl isn't going to leave. Their house were literally five minutes away! Finally on her feet, another person entered the scene for it turned out to be an old man she recognized as the town leader. He walked past her as Asaya felt a wave of relief that someone had come to stop this meaningless fight. She watched in worry with her hands clasping in front of her chest.

"You little rascals! Stop this at once!" Each boy received a good smack on their head by the old man's cane. "Devin, I will tell your mother once again what you are doing to this poor girl."

He pointed at the said girl with his cane while the girl flinched in wary of the boy named Devin giving her a smug look. "Ha! Not like she'll remember what happened tomorrow anyway."

"Watch it!" Zale defended angrily, narrowing his eyes at the teenager.

Asaya frowned solemnly while lowering her head down in shame. She could see the blood from her forehead on the ground. The group of boys started laughing at her pitiful state before receiving another whack on the head by the elder's cane. Zale slowly moved towards to the girl and was about to put his hand on her shoulder. He stopped after seeing her bleeding forehead, causing him to lightly growl in irritation. Finally, he placed a comforting hand on her shoulder before turning to look at the elder and teenagers. The town leader sighed heavily and turned to the duo, "Zale, take her back home and tend to her wound immediately. I will deal with these troublemakers."

The group started to sneak away the moment the elder looked away. Asaya was the first one to notice and immediately put on an astonished look. She was about to warn the man, however, the old man waved his cane in a circular motion at the boy's direction. An immediate yellow ring sparkled around the four boys, who couldn't move a single budge.

"Oh dammit." One of the boys murmured.

Zale and Asaya was shocked at the sudden power. The young male should be used to it already, but the girl wasn't. This power is still new to her. Being the first one to recover, Zale nodded his head at the town elder before taking the girl's hand.

"Thank you, Elder Duncan."

Asaya quickly bowed her head meekly at the elder just as soon as her friend pulled her away from the scene. She had her head turned from looking at the scene for several minutes as they head to their home.

The name of their town is called Tir Chonail. It is a very nice and small village where everyone practically knows each other. Zale and Asaya both live in a local inn where they had to pay nothing for it. The owner decided to let them live in a room due to their young age. The young girl always volunteer at the local church to help the priestess while Zale was attending the combat school in the village. Because of the church and the school being close, it was easier for Zale to look after Asaya.

Entering the inn, the two didn't see the owner and her husband around the building. They proceeded to walk upstairs. "Thank you..Again."

Zale heard Asaya say in a depressed tone. He stayed quiet for a moment before letting out a sigh. The girl saw a reassuring smile from him when he turned around to face her. "I told you I'd protect you." Zale then looked forward with a frown, "That was low of them to make fun of your amnesia like that."

It almost sounded like a growl from Asaya as she pursed her lips in silence. "What were you doing out though?" The boy asked curiously while putting the key inside the knob keyhole.

Asaya shifted her eyes to the side, "I..I wanted to visit your parents."

"..."

The silent young man stopped in the middle of opening the door, leaving a confused Asaya behind him. Eventually, Zale walked in the room without a word. It has been a year since the death of his parents. A vanilla smell aroma scented the small inn room. Two beds with a window behind each one was seen the moment they entered. On their right side was a family picture of Zale's family, excluding the blue-eyed girl. Underneath it was a small desk with his father and mother's picture on it as a candle lit up in between. On their left was the small dining space taking up the corner. The table and chairs as well as the kitchen is a part of it.

Zale placed his shield and sword on his bed as Asaya went to her bed to sit on the left side of it. Across from her is the bathroom, where she watched a certain someone go in a minute later. Her head lowered, feeling somewhat guilty for mentioning his parents. Times like these often silent the blue-eyed female. A moment later, the dirty blonde came out of the bathroom in another change of clothes. He was wearing a simple shirt and pants that he deems his home clothes. Asaya realized afterwards that she should be doing the same. The young girl leaped off the bed to approach a drawer beside her bed. Her nun outfit had gotten messed up from her fight with the bullies. The black dress and her hair was damped. Asaya picked out a white nightgown with a blue ribbon around the collar. It was a long sleeve dress covering her entire body that Zale's mother tailored for her. She heard the jiggles of a key behind her. The quiet one decided to ignore it, knowing it was Zale.

"I'm going to buy groceries for dinner real quick."

"Okay. Be careful!" The worried girl cried out after him. The boy flashed her a cheeky grin when he opened the door and walked out while closing it. Asaya understands fully how reckless he can be. After putting on a smile and staring at the door, the child entered the bathroom to change.

Having a power holds great responsibility because not only you have a gift to save yourself, but also a power to save others. People may come after a certain power to use it for selfish reasons. Even the holder themselves may use it for the same reason, or to a certain extent of evil. Even the four fighters knew that common sense except one. Legend has it that every hundred years, a group of people inherit a "flame." But, I learned that this legend was a lie. These chosen fighters had a red, blue, green, and silver flame. This is the only hope of mankind to defeat the Crusade.

Asaya exited the bathroom, and the first thing she noticed is the fact that Zale was nowhere to be found in the small inn room. A wave of worry started to overwhelm her soul. She knew that it shouldn't have taken that long to get groceries. He is a very fast runner too. The young girl knew that she should wait, but a gut feeling is bothering her.

Almost on cue, an explosion erupted outside her window. Asaya let out a startled shriek while covering her ears. Her heart started racing after a momentarily earthquake was felt before loud screams were heard. 'What's going on?!' The blue-eyed girl thought frantically until a gasp of realization escaped her lips.

"Zale!" She cried out before leaving the inn room to find her friend. She could hear the screams of the villagers, and the constant explosions. Once she left the building, she became horrified by the hectic commotion known as war.

The trees are burning and the scent of bloodlust flow the air with its nasty aura. Adults were running away from these scary looking monsters in armor. Everything look chaotic to the frightened girl. One thing was still in her mind, and it was Zale's safety. She started running to the direction of the grocery store while screaming out his name. At the same time, Asaya tried her best to stay away from the monsters. Being extra careful during her search, Zale was still nowhere to be seen. What is happening to the village, she constantly wondered.

"The Crusade..! They're back! H-How?!"

"Everyone run!"

Asaya heard the majority of the people yelling before screams of excruciating pain filled the atmosphere. She could only run from witnessing the villagers being murdered one by one. When she was close to the grocery store, the young girl's heart sank and stepped back to hide behind a tree. The small store were engulfed by flames, leaving nothing but monsters and bodies around the town square. She was beginning to fear for Zale. As much as she wanted to run to check the bodies, the monsters were the only things stopping her. Her entire body began to shake from the fear as she clutched on the tree bark tightly. 'Zale..Where are you?'

Within a mob running, the black-haired female caught sight of the bullies. They were running from an armored horse with fusing bombs attached at each side. It was ready to blow up any minute. She took a step towards their general direction with a hand reaching out to them. Her mouth opened wanting to call out to them, but she stopped herself. What can she even do to help? Uneasiness settled in as realization hit her like a ton of bricks. A look of devastation dramatically formed on her face. Before she could even move or say a single word, a shadow fell over the small child. With widened eyes, Asaya turned around to see a person in a black, gold, and white robe covering their entire identity towering her. She couldn't see their eyes or face. Taking a cautious step back, the horrified female started to form tears in the corner of her blue eyes.

"No...You're not the one." A deep voice spoke to her before the robed man disperse in thin air.

A loud scream brought the child back to reality. Turning back around as fast as she can, her hands soon covered her mouth after watching an explosion take place from afar. The aftermath of an earthquake caused her to hang on to the tree nearby. Her hand still cover her mouth as she muffled, "No.."

"Asaya, come with me!" A rough hand grabbed her wrist before pulling her away from the smoking scenery.

The frozen girl noticed that the one with her was the town elder. She didn't say a word or look at him. The only reason she knew it was him was by his voice. Tears were streaming down her face as she helplessly lowered her head. The two ended up in the ruins that used to be known as the blacksmith shop. It was still smoking and the burning smell was enough to disgust the child more. The shop is located in the southern plains, away from the chaos at the town center. Duncan opened a door planted on the ground, soon showing a face of a middle age woman. Other villagers were hiding away from the devastation, much to her relief. The elder picked up the girl gently to hand her to the woman. Before she allowed herself to hide, she immediately looked back at the old man in bewilderment.

"Wait! But Zale..!"

"Asaya?!"

The girl winced at the familiar voice calling her name before looking down and past the woman's shoulder. As she was being carried down, the woman handed her to a pair of arms that soon embraced her in a tight hug. Asaya, not being able to see in the somewhat spacious and dark cave, didn't know who it was until he spoke the words, "I'm glad you're safe."

She sobbed and returned his hug, "Zale!"

"Elder, where are you going?" The woman who grabbed Asaya cried out worriedly. The children broke the hug to join the others watching what was going on at the hideout entrance above. Asaya calmed herself while wiping her eye.

Duncan gave her a resigned look, "I have to stop this destruction." He smiled and looked at the other villagers, who was shocked by his response. "Take care of each other. The Crusade will not destroy my village."

"Wait!" Zale cried out after the old man, but the door already closed.

The villagers started whispering among themselves, expressing lament towards the town elder. A few people started to cry due to the situation, especially whimpering during the quakes shattering the ceiling. Asaya hanged on dearly to her friend, using his shirt to catch her tears. But, she could sense his urge to help fight. The child hugging him could sense the anger, causing her to slowly glance up to him. Before she could say anything, the dirty blonde gently lifted her off his shirt as a confused look was shown.

"Zale?" She murmured softly, hoping he wasn't going to do anything stupid.

Looking down at her with a gentle smile, he placed his hand on her shoulder before standing straight. Asaya quickly grabbed his wrist to stop him from going up the ladder. "No! Don't go."

"Elder Duncan is going to get killed! I can't wait here and do nothing!"

Straightening herself up slowly with a concerned look, her hands clasped together underneath her chin as if begging him to reconsider. "You're going to get yourself killed too!"

Zale gave his friend one last glare before continuing his advance to the door. She let out a choking sound of disbelief. He refused to listen to her, and Asaya didn't want him to leave after finally reuniting with him. Zale is very close to her despite not knowing her own family history. If it wasn't for him, she would've been lost. The fact that she doesn't have any clue to stop him made her feel so helpless. At this point, she was willing to bet he isn't going to stop. At all.

"Zale, please!"

The other villagers were concerned as well, but no one had the nerve to aid her in her attempt to stop her only friend. It bugged her greatly. Her heart sank the moment he stepped on the ladder step as her eyes widened. The ground above started rumbling, leaving the debris fall on the people underground. The pressure was too much. What can a thirteen year old like Zale do? He didn't have his sword and shield due to Asaya, who wanted to find Zale as soon as possible. If she had the right mind, things would have been different. Grinding her teeth angrily, a sudden white aura surrounded the twelve year old. Everyone, including the escaping boy, froze to look at the source of the light. They watched in awe as surreal winds blew around the child, who doesn't realize what was going on. She kept her eyes closed while in a praying like stance, letting her emotions consume her. The villagers begin to question what was happening to the young one and themselves as the winds grew powerful. It was to the point the ground started shaking immensely. Zale's hand slipped to his surprise as he fell on his bottom due to the earthquake. The debris didn't contact the villagers almost like a barrier was protecting them.

Zale groaned, rubbing his lower back, "Oww..Hey, Asa-"

His voice trailed off after realizing that the light around his friend had gotten brighter. He fell in utter silence, speechless as to what was happening. Before long, orbs of white light came out of Asaya and ascended to the surface.

Back in the town, the elder was in a pinch. Using too much power resulted Duncan to be on the ground with monsters surrounding him. The moment he thought it was over, all of his enemies suddenly was attacked by light orbs. They all vanished after immediate contact, leaving black smoke trail to the air. Every single monster was defeated, leaving the one responsible to a deep slumber.