Disclaimer: Neither of us own Eternal Sonata or anything related to it—that right belongs to Bandai Namco. Moving on—this is a collaboration between Rien Pierce, who originally had this idea, and myself. Enjoy!
The Brightest Darkness
By Rien Pierce and Soren Highwind
Chapter One—Encroachment
The captain of the S.S. Hauptstimme sat in his quarters, studying the map of the kingdom his fleet of bellicosoships was sailing toward.
According to his network of informers, it was allied with a distant northern kingdom, and prospered almost solely by trading with that nation. That meant that if one were taken over, the other would soon fall of its own accord. It also had no standing military force, and the nearest reinforcements were in an equally far-off western country.
In short, it was easy pickings for an invasion.
The captain studied the map more intently, spotting the cave on the outskirts of the city he had been warned about. It lay on the western outskirts of the city, and functioned as an escape route to a small nearby village. Not much of a threat, but he made a special note, regardless—blocking off that cave should be one of their immediate priorities upon landing.
Trailing back to the center of town, he spotted the church his informants had told him of. Apparently, it had been built long ago, specifically for the circumstances it was about to experience, and had survived many invasions.
That would have to be disposed of, as well.
He continued studying the map for several minutes, until a knock came to the door. "Captain?" called a muffled voice.
The captain sighed in irritation. "Come in, Cadenza."
He did so, gently shutting the door behind him.
The captain's second-in-command was a tall, lithe man who appeared to be in his late twenties, with short, ragged blond hair and electric blue eyes. He wore simple garb, rather unfitting of his position: a silver sleeveless shirt, dark green baggy pants, and brown calf-length combat boots. Underneath this outfit, he wore a suit of dark grey chainmail. Strapped to his back was a large claymore, the tip nearly touching the wooden floor of the ship.
The captain looked up from the map of the city, frowning slightly as he did so. "What news do you have, Cadenza? Are we nearing the city?"
"Yes, Captain," the other man answered. "We will be within firing distance in one hour."
"Good. Tell Admiral Ruvio to ready the cannons."
"Yes, Captain." He turned to leave, and was almost at the door when the captain spoke up. "Cadenza?"
He turned around. "Yes, Captain?"
"I notice you still have yours." He was referring to an earring Cadenza was wearing in his left ear, a simple one in the shape of a musical note.
Without turning around, he answered, "And you no longer have yours," before exiting the room.
The captain went back to studying the map. What an idiot, he thought to himself. He's almost as bad as Ruvio. He shook his head. It doesn't matter. I'll be there soon, and then I'll find you.
Frédéric.
Admiral Ruvio stood by the wheel of the ship, watching the helmsman guide the Hauptstimme towards the city they were preparing to invade. What was it called again? he wondered. Rita…Ratar…whatever. Who cares, as long as I get to destroy it? He stroked his salt-and-pepper beard and smiled in anticipation.
He heard footsteps coming from below deck and turned to see Cadenza. "Ruvio," he said. "Tell the fleet to ready the cannons. We reach the city in one hour." He saw Ruvio's expression and scowled. "And try not to fire until the captain gives the order."
Ruvio gave a wry smile. "I'll try to contain myself." Ruvio looked towards the nearest deckhand. "You heard the man!" he shouted in his gravelly voice. "Ready the cannons! The rest of the fleet will follow suit."
As the deckhand began relaying the order to the rest of the crew, Ruvio turned to Cadenza. "This should be fun, eh?" he asked, another smile plastered to his battle-scarred face.
The sight sickened him.
"If you say so," he answered. He turned his gaze towards the city, which was beginning to form into different shapes, rather than the indistinct smudge it had been.
Ruvio's smile quickly became replaced by a scowl. "What are you doing?" he demanded.
"Getting a good view of the city before we destroy it," he said without turning around. He looked over his shoulder. "Shouldn't you be wearing your armor? Those clothes won't do anything for you." He waved dismissively at Ruvio's outfit for emphasis.
Indeed, his current attire would not provide much protection. He wore an open dark blue vest—the better to show off his huge, rippling muscles—and plain tan shorts. His feet were bare. Affixed to his vest was a medal, one he always wore—an anchor overlaid on two crossed swords, which signified his rank.
Ruvio shook his head, smiling once more. "Why should I? It isn't like I need it. Besides, that armor's just for show, anyway." He turned to head below deck, ponytailed black hair whipping in the sudden breeze.
Cadenza turned his attention back to the city and shook his head.
Frankly, he just couldn't understand why the captain bothered using Ruvio in the first place. He was a brilliant naval strategist, to be sure, but he was far too overconfident for his own good, and he was a bit too…zealous when it came to combat. And killing in general, be it soldier, civilian or otherwise. And causing destruction for amusement. And…
He shook his head furiously. Calm down, he told himself. You're losing control again. Fool that he was, there was nothing he could do, so long as the captain wanted Ruvio in his service. Cadenza would simply bide his time until then.
He stood at the front of the ship, watching the city grow ever closer. After some time, he looked over his shoulder. "Hey, helmsman!" he called.
"It's Tempo!" he responded, somewhat irately.
"All right, Tempo then," Cadenza called back, amused. "How long until we reach the city?"
"About thirty minutes, give or take," he said. He went back to watching the sea.
"Thanks." He continued looking at the city, committing the view to memory before it would be destroyed.
"Sir?" Tempo asked after a few minutes.
"Yes?" Cadenza called without turning around.
"Where are we going? I forgot." He scratched his head sheepishly.
Cadenza sighed in mild irritation. Does anyone remember where we're going? he wondered. We're only invading the place. He turned around to answer the helmsman.
"We're going to Ritardando."