Forgotten Royalty
Chapter 1
The Little Red Fighter.
Penelo looked over her shoulder as she and the party wandered through the path that led to Mt. Bur Omicase, the snow already catching in her hair. She shivered and watched the shirtless Vaan shiver and wrap his arms around himself, muttering darkly as the snow fell harder. The only ones that didn't seem effected by the temperature were Balthier and Basch. Of course, they also had the most clothes.
As they began to climb the slopes, Ashe let out a yelp of shock as a skeletal hand reached out of the soil and began to drag the rest of its body out of the frozen ground. Panelo skittered back as another hand shot up near her foot. Vaan hauled back his arm to fling one of the bombs in his Volcano when Ashe began to cast a healing spell on Basch, who had taken a thigh bone to the face. There was a swirl of wind, then nobody could hear Ashe's chanting anymore.
Ashe stumbled forward with an angry expression and pointed over her shoulder to an ice elemental. She moved her lips and throat, but no sound came out. She had been silenced by the magikal being. Fran continued to beat one of the armored skeletons with her war hammer, glancing over her shoulder and swearing loudly. She was their main fighter; she could not leave the fight with the undead to help her bespelled ally. She swore again, then saw a green and red shape flash by her, leaping over Ashe. The newcomer brandished a silvery spear with a bell tied to the head and shouted a challenge at the elemental, who was concentrating on the muted princess. Larsa had a moment to glance at her before turning to toss a hi potion to Vaan, who had been gored by one of the skeleton creature's spears.
The woman was tall, almost as tall as Balthier actually, with long flaming hair tied in a loose braid that was coming undone. She wore wide grey pants tied with a strip of silk and a close fitting green shirt that had no sleeves.
The red haired woman, irritated at being ignored, plunged her spear into the frozen ground point first and hauled back her arm, looking as if she was about to fling a stone at the creature. Then shouted again. This time, as she shouted, a light burst into life in her hand. The fire spell was enormous, and it had caught the attention of the elemental in question.
"Get away. I can handle this snowball."
Ashe nodded and ran to the edge of the high cliff face that surrounded them. The red haired mage yanked the ornamental spear out of the ground and leveled it at the creature, running with a harsh battle cry that echoed off the walls around them. She thrust the weapon into the center of the ice elemental and halted.
"So you do have a center…"
She pivoted and sent the elemental flying, then cast another fire spell as it hit the wall of the cliff. The creature shuddered and fell to the ground into a puddle where it vanished. She turned to her friends, who were finally finished with the skeletons. She pushed back her hair with a long elegant hand and smiled.
"So, does this mean that I'm in this little group?"
Balthier shook his head and motioned for the others to follow him. He called over his shoulder in his usual cool voice.
"Nope, sorry. We have all the fighters we need, and all the mages I care to have."
Larsa saw the strange girl's eyes narrow dangerously, and then she turned and ran at the sky pirate, her spear pointed at his back. Before anybody could call a warning, she was behind him, and jumping over his head, using her spear to gain extra altitude.
"This is the fastest way to the Gran Kiltias."
Her voice, once warm and friendly, had turned as cold as the air around them. She stood exactly in the middle of the path, spear held over her shoulders in a lazy posture. Her smile was wicked as she continued to speak.
"There's a storm coming in. It would be terrible if you were to not get to the encampment in time and froze out here. Happens be I know a shortcut through here, one that will get us to the top of the mountain in a few minutes…"
She tossed her hair, sighing.
"But you don't want my help. Like I said before, other than my shortcut, this is the fastest way up the mountain. You wanna pass, you have to get past me."