Introductory Note and Disclaimer

Though the focus is on Suikoden V, some elements of this story are a mix of Shadow of the Colossus and an old game boy game called Final Fantasy IV, whose maker I don't know of (since its a third person game and doesn't have the usual Final Fantasy battle style, I don't think its by Square Enix.). Will is a character from this game but I doubt there's anyone else out there who knows him so I'm not sure if he's an OC or not…

Adversity

Roy woke to the rusty screech of the opening door and lifted his head slightly to see who was coming in. His body was cramped from sleeping crouched in the corner of the cell, but this was one thing he was used to. The light from outside spilled into the room, as well as the shadows of three people, two of which were holding onto the third. The latter was thrown unceremoniously onto the floor of the room before the door shut with a resounding clang of metal.

The boy hurriedly pushed himself to his feet and went the few steps across the narrow room to the fallen figure by the door. Gently adjusting him so that he would be more comfortable, Roy studied the face of the other, which was framed by messy dark locks. Despite the wavering life of candles being the only source of light in the dank cell, it didn't take him long to recognize his fellow gladiator Will.

As gladiators, both of them had to fight ruthless death matches with the others who were trapped in this merciless place, but they had both managed to survive long enough to form a friendship. It hadn't been purely luck that had kept them alive for all this time and they could easily be considered two of the most skilled. However, Roy had to admit that Will could sometimes prove to be the better warrior between the two of them, and he was surprised for him to be injured enough to not be able to get up.

"Will, what happened to you?" he asked a bit gruffly, trying to find an injury on his friend in the half-light. Not getting an answer, he concluded he was unconscious and not about to tell him where he was hurt. Roy had learned to treat many of the usual sword wounds they received over the span of their imprisonment at the arena, but he was startled to find a series of thin but deep punctures arranged in a semi-circle on Will's flank. He shivered, realizing that the wounds looked horribly like teeth marks.

The younger gladiator then began to remove his friend's light armor, which had deflected the bite about as effectively as if it had been a piece of wood. As he did so, Will moaned lightly and stirred into consciousness. He opened his eyes and stared up at Roy, his gaze slightly unfocused. The brown-haired boy frowned slightly and asked, "What did you get yourself into up there? Don't tell me they're using monsters against us now."

Will smiled a bit weakly, almost glad to hear Roy's usual straightforward comment. Then his expression darkened, as he seemed to remember what had happened. "You can say that they are but… It's not even a normal monster, Roy," he said in a voice that almost caught in his throat. "I think they probably had it genetically engineered or something and its not even close to being a fair match if it goes against a person. The crowd was probably bored of watching humans fight humans over and over again." He said this last sentence quietly, staring up at the ceiling and only glanced at the other warrior when he felt him starting to put bandages on his wound. "Don't bother, I think it was poisonous anyway."

"Don't say things like that," Roy said harshly, persisting on tying the strips of blanket about Will's chest. The wounds seemed deep but he guessed they would heal—as long as that thing hadn't been poisonous. Stubbornly, he refused to entertain the idea. He worked in silence for a few moments until his friend reached up and grabbed onto his yellow scarf, tugging him down. A bit taken aback, he looked into his friend's face and felt a stab of fear when he realized that he was getting paler.

"They're probably going to make you face it next," Will mumbled, barely audible even in the small, silent cell. "I don't want you ending up like me, so listen up. The monster is much bigger than a regular human so they had to make a gate big enough to admit it. It was probably done in a hurry so you can count on it not being too sturdy. The beast's reflexes are really slow, so if you can manage to get it to knock into the gate, you should be able to get out."

"You're telling me how to escape? What, you think I'm going to leave you behind here? You're injured and I plan on—"

"Don't try to be a hero," Will interrupted rather brusquely, though his voice sounded as if he was having difficulty talking. "You know as well as I do that any chance to get out of this god-forsaken place should be taken without hesitation." Here, the fading gladiator paused and smiled ever so slightly. "Besides, I don't think I'm… even going to be here for you to leave behind…"

The hand gripping Roy's scarf loosened and fell limply against its owner's chest. The boy didn't move, still gripping the end of the bandage he hadn't even managed to finish tying in trembling hands. He let go of the cloth and clenched his hands to stop them from shaking, roughly brushing the threatening saltiness from his eyes. "Will…" Uttering a whispered curse, he bowed his head over his friend's lifeless body and was silent.

Roy was permitted little time to grieve, however, as within a few minutes, a guard rudely banged the cell door open, demanding he get ready to go into the arena. Knowing there was nothing else he could do, he rose from his kneeling position and gently draped the remaining blanket over Will, swearing wordlessly to kill the monster in order to stop it from killing any more gladiators, as well as to avenge his friend.

The boy straightened, looking around the room to make sure there was nothing else that he could take with him. He would escape no matter what—he refused to waste Will's effort of finding him a way out even if he had had to battle a fierce monster. He strode to the door and caught up his tri-nunchaku, which had been leaning on the wall next to it, and strode out of the cell without looking back. A guard followed him to the entrance to the arena, but made no attempts of restraining Roy, assured that there was no way he could escape anyway.

The barred gate into the circular ground stadium opened to admit him and Roy had only to blink once to get his topaz yellow eyes used to the sunlight. He took no notice of the loudly jeering crowd seated quite high above him and instead looked straight ahead. The barred gate opposite him had been replaced and rebuilt, just as Will had said, in order to allow something several feet taller to come through. Whatever his opponent was, it was definitely gigantic.

Roy cast a quick look around the arena, gauging how much room to maneuver he would have left when the monster came in through the gate. If it was as big as he guessed, there would be just enough room for him to attack it without— The ground below him trembled abruptly and he took a step back to keep his balance. His heart hammered in his chest, but he showed no emotion on his face and took a ready stance as he watched the door clatter open.

The creature that lumbered out into the open arena was excruciatingly slow and looked like an awkward and unnatural mix of other wild monsters. It had four legs, the front two of which were held just off the ground. They were thick and crowned with 3 sword-like claws protruding straight forward. The creature seemed unsteady and hunched forward, only balanced by a long tail that seemed to have been added as an afterthought. It had needle like teeth with a serpentine head and neck, which were in brash contrast to the rest of its body, though the same dull, brown scaly hide also covered it.

Roy looked almost fearlessly up at the horned monster, which was at least three times his own height. Thinking quickly, he decided that if he could get behind it, it would take long enough for it to turn around for him to get onto its back. All he had to do was get out of range of its claws—apparently the most dangerous part of the beast. He didn't wait for it to move and instead rushed to the side, in an attempt to get around it. But as he did so, he glanced at it and to his shock saw one of the paws lancing straight towards him, its striking speed not proportioned to its steps.

Sliding to a stop, Roy faced the attack and swept his weapon upwards just before the claws reached him. They missed him, deflecting upwards, but the force of the blow as well as the paw itself caught him and he was thrown against one of the stadium's walls. The people above him cheered in bloodlust and the gladiator staggered to his feet, snarling against his injury. He turned his attention back to the beast and saw that it had withdrawn its paw and was now coming at him with its fangs.

Now that he had adjusted to the monster's speed, Roy managed to dodge it and the dragon-like jaws closed on thin air. Taking opportunity of its bowed head, he leapt up and clung to the scales just behind the horns, which were as thin and lethal as its teeth. He felt a sickening lurch as it reared its head, nearly throwing him clear. Pain shot through his ribs and he flinched, only just managing to hold on. Along with the pain however, came the memory of Will's wound caused by this creature, and a new anger filled him. Recklessly gripping onto the hide with one hand, he swung his tri-nunchaku and hit one of the creature's eyes, which was just in his reach.

Its roar of pain sounded as unnatural as its body was and it shook its head wildly scattering its own blood and its tail swept up great clouds of earth into the air. Roy's grip finally slipped and he fell, though managed to land unharmed a few feet away. The beast's wild thrashings caused it to overbalance and it stumbled backwards, smashing into a portion of the stands and clear through the poorly made metal gate. In the following panic caused by the cries of terror from the decimated stands, the gladiator climbed through the rubble and ran towards the structure's outer wall, which was now in view.

Thanks to his skills in climbing and the mayhem caused by the panicking crowd, Roy managed to get over the perimeter wall of the castle. He landed in a crouch on the grass on the outside foot of the wall and felt a thrill as he looked over the wide cliff where the stadium was perched, out into a field not limited by stonewalls. A river flowed several feet away, going right past the stone arena and flinging itself headlong off the cliff in a powerful curtain of water. Listening to its gurgling roar, he straightened up, stowed his folded tri-nunchaku into the harness at his back and began heading towards it.

Still a bit overwhelmed by the idea of freedom as he walked, Roy caught sight of a small stand of trees ahead of him by the cliff's edge and, hearing voices, crept closer to investigate. Concealing himself amongst the foliage, he peered around a tree and saw two figures conversing in low tones in a clearing guarded on all sides by trees. They seemed strange and long limbed and both had long knives attached to both wrists. Unless he was much mistaken, the boy thought the two looked a lot like assassins. Listening carefully, he managed to hear snatches of rough conversation that seemed to be discussing a plan against a royal family of somewhere-or-another.

Trying to hear more, he leaned forward, rustling the tree leaves and abruptly, as if he had made a loud sound, both figures flicked masked faces to stare at Roy. Their dark, sunken eyes chilled him to the core and he stood transfixed for several long seconds. Then he came to his senses and fled for a second time that day, cursing himself for getting himself into a predicament as soon as he had escaped from the last one. He could hear the two pursuing him and he ran wildly through the small wood.

However, almost as soon as he had cleared the trees, he slid to a stop. He muttered an oath under his breath as he realized that, in his panic, he had managed to corner himself on a small rock jutting out over the waterfall. Roy turned to go in another direction, but froze, as the two assassins emerged from the trees, nimble as shadows. He backed away from them, feeling the rock carefully to make sure he didn't fall.

A few steps from the edge, Roy reached back and gripped his weapon, ready to draw it if the two looked like the were about to attack him. "Stay back," he warned dangerously, sounding more confident then he was. The two weren't fooled though, and began to weave slowly towards their trapped prey. Involuntarily, the warrior inched another step back and felt a jolt of fear as he felt part of one foot meet open air. Managing not to fall, he glanced back over his shoulder to see where the edge was and this was his mistake.

Roy realized this as soon as he turned his attention back to his attackers and found one practically upon him. Unable to draw his weapon in time, he felt the hard haft of a dagger drive powerfully against his chest and he was shoved backwards off the cliff, without even any time to cry out. Then all he could see was flashes of sky and water as he plummeted down towards the roaring Feitas.

-

Sister and brother, Faylen and Faylon trudged across the slightly muddy banks of the river that flowed past the mountain, which they had recently started inhabiting. The latter trudged cheerfully in his slightly more irritable sister's wake and was about to suggest they go to Sable to get more supplies when she stopped. Faylon nearly walked straight into her. "Hey, what are you-?" he started to ask until he looked in the direction she was staring.

A boy about his own age was lying facedown on the edge of the river ahead of them, still partially submerged in the water as if he had fallen in. Faylen had already broken into a run towards the brown haired boy by the time it had registered to Faylon what he was seeing. By the time he caught up, his sister was already crouched at the boy's side, gently removing the arm that was curled around his face. She checked to make sure he was breathing and found he had no signs of any serious injuries, aside from him being unconscious. Though she wouldn't know for sure until he woke up.

Meanwhile, Faylon shaded his eyes and stared upriver for any clues where the boy could have come from, but he could see nothing but level fields and slightly turbulent water. "I've never seen him before," Faylen said in surprise after a pause, gently lifting the unconscious figure from the mud. "Sable's small enough for everyone to know everyone else," she said finally. "So he must be…"

"From somewhere else?" the brother offered with a smile, deciding that they didn't really need to be concerned as to where the boy had mysteriously come from. He crouched down next to his sister and carefully gathered the stranger into his arms. "Anyway, he's not going to get much better lying out here. Let's take him up to the headquarters?" Faylen nodded and led the way back towards the mountain.

-

Roy woke with some difficulty and was honestly surprised to find himself warm and dry in a bed with a rocky ceiling over his head. He sat up a bit too quickly and his head swam from the sudden shift of position. He put a hand to his forehead, trying to clear his thoughts and only then realized that he was wearing a long sleeved shirt that neither belonged to nor fit him. Not to mention that there was a girl he had never met before asleep with her head at the foot of the mattress.

Thoroughly confused, he started to get up, still clutching his head, when the pink haired girl woke up. Seeing this and not being one to beat around the bush, Roy demanded immediately, "Where am I?" This seemed to startle the girl for she didn't answer right away. Then she smiled slightly, somewhat liking his frank question. "You're on a mountain near Sable. I'm Faylen and my brother Faylon and I just rescued you from the river. Now, who're are you?"

Roy chose to ignore the returned question for a moment and tried to organize the information. Sable… he hadn't even heard of the place before. But if he had somehow gotten here by way of the river, at least he could be sure he was still in Falena. The river… He had fallen off a cliff and into a river and yet, he was still alive? As he was trying to fathom this thought, Faylen cut in impatiently, "We saved you, you know. You could at least have enough gratitude to tell me your name."

This time, Roy was the one taken aback. This girl, Faylen, was a lot like him. "It's Roy," he said finally, meeting her eyes. She looked at him, saying nothing until the door of the small cave room opened and a boy, who he assumed was Faylon, entered. "Oh, you're awake," he said pleasantly, moving to the bedside with the other two. "I'm Faylon and-"

"Yes, I know, your sister's already told me," he said curtly, though not in an unfriendly manner. These two did seem like his kind of people… Maybe he wouldn't mind staying awhile. When Faylon finally presented the question of where he had come from, Roy was, for once, willing to answer.

It only took a few weeks together for Roy and the other two to become as thick as thieves, literally in their case. Roy had few if any memories of his life before being a gladiator and the carefree life of a bandit suited him well. He decided that he would be content living this way all his life.

Few significantly different things happened to the trio, until one day Roy met a small group of travelers on the road outside Sable. Not needing any more supplies, he walked by them without stopping, his tri-nunchaku over his shoulder until one of them called, "Wait. You, boy." He stopped and looked over his shoulder, bored. "What?"

The one who had spoken had the air of a noble, lanky, with blonde hair tied in a ponytail. He was pretty much a wimp in Roy's opinion. Glancing around, he realized that most of the travelers were staring into his face almost as if he were a ghost. Frowning in irritated discomfort, he turned sharply and continued on his way as if nothing had happened. "If you have nothing important to say, then just leave me alone."

"Hang on, I do!" the noble said hurriedly before Roy could go very far. "How would you like to do a job for me?" This almost amused the bandit and he turned to deliberately to scrutinize the traveler. "What, do I look like someone who would work for you? What do you want me to do, organize papers or something? Find someone else."

"It's not like that," the noble said, a bit eager to have gotten Roy's attention. "You're a bandit, aren't you? All I want you to do is wear something and do what you usually do." At this, the boy raised a brow. "Excuse me?" he asked with mock politeness.

"Come on, all you need to do is go to the upstairs room in Sable's inn and I'll show you what you need to wear. I'll even pay you for it—that's what you want isn't it? Money?" Though Roy was a bit tempted to accept the offer, the deal of just wearing something and getting paid for it, no matter what the amount, seemed too shady for his taste. "Maybe," he said finally. "But first you have to tell me why."

Here the noble glanced at his companions then at the surrounding fields as if he were afraid of someone overhearing. "All right," he said, then dropped his voice to an undertone so Roy had to step closer to hear him. "It's to destroy the name of someone…I don't like." "So why me?" The stranger frowned a little at all the question then said, "I'll tell you when you get to my room at the inn."

Roy finally agreed, but only to go to the room and wear what he was asked. But he made it clear that he hadn't yet decided if he would 'do the job' or not. The travelers headed into Sable and the bandit hurried back to where he knew Faylen and Faylon would be, by the river, to ask their opinion on the matter. It would be something different at the very least.

A few hours subsequent to this, Roy headed into Sable, walking purposefully towards the inn. Both of his friends had said it was a good opportunity but a dangerous one, and he felt secure knowing that they were hidden somewhere nearby, ready to help him in case anything happened. He climbed the short flight of stairs into the inn and threaded his way carefully through the jovial afternoon crowd. He went unnoticed up the stairs to the second floor and practically ran into the noble he had met earlier.

Roy followed him into one of the rooms, careful to keep one hand on his tri-nunchaku, which he had been sure to bring with him. The room was empty, however, and he relaxed his guard ever so slightly. "Just put those on and let me know when you're done," the man said quickly and slipped out of the room. The bandit went to the door after it had closed, tried the knob to make sure it hadn't been locked, before turning his attention to the armor on the bed.

The boy ambled over to the neat pile and picked up the main armor, noting its intricate design. It seemed like something made for royalty or something. Swiftly, Roy slipped on the new clothes, a bit surprised at how well they fit him. As he was tying the long red and orange scarf around his neck, he noticed a silver-white wig tied in a short braid and decided that it was also part of this 'costume.'

When Roy had finished, he walked towards the door to the let the noble know he was through, and as he did so he passed a mirror on one wall. He paused, realizing with a start how different he looked. The only thing he could recognize of himself were the bright yellow eyes looking out from under the long whitish bangs. Shaking his head slightly, he opened the door and let the noble back in.

His appearance seemed to greatly amuse the older man and he walked around Roy, studying him from every angle. A bit uncomfortable, he shifted on the spot, following the noble with his eyes. "Yes, its perfect. You look exactly like the real thing," he concluded, stopping in front of the bandit who answered testily, "All right, I put it on. Now tell me why you chose me to 'play act' for you."

The noble looked like he wasn't sure if he actually wanted to tell him, but looked a bit intimidated at the look Roy was giving him. Finally, he went to one side of the room where a pile of baggage lay and extracted a small portrait of four people. "This is the royal family of Falena," he said handing it to the boy, who looked it over carefully. His eyes fell on the boy, the prince he supposed, etched near the bottom left of the canvas and his eyes widened in surprise. He and the prince had exactly the same face. Also, now that he had the wig and clothes, he could easily pass off as him.

This job the noble was offering might not be so boring after all.