Disclaimer: I do not own the characters contained within this story. The characters contained herein are the property of their respective owners and blah blah blah.
It had been beautiful once. Spires of pearl rising from emerald green hills into the clear blue sky above, the buildings white finish glistening in the sun. The trees were in constant bloom, the grass always green. It was always spring, the weather always warm and mild. Songbirds, the likes not seen anywhere else, sung here, their songs carrying across the vast cityscape.
This was Fanelia, a land long protected by ancient magicks, beloved of the gods of heaven and earth. It had existed apart from the world for nearly ten millennia, their existence all but lost to antiquity. That is what it used to be.
All that was left now was fire and dust, the once pearl white city now lay blackened and wasted. Here and there if one listened they could still here the screams of the dying, the sound of steel on steel. Armor clad soldiers surged through the flame licked streets in droves, followed closely behind by strange giant behemoths, their heavy footfalls leaving craters in their wake.
In the center of the city, surrounded by soldiers, stood a single man. All about him were the corpses of his foes, his blue/green hair matted with blood. After nearly an hour of constant battle, he fell before the legions about him, swords plunging into him from nearly every direction. As he fell, he uttered but a single word…
"Van…" The flames roared about him, and then the image was consumed in fire.
ESCAFLOWNE: LEDGEND OF THE DRAC'THANI
"Hai, athair!" A young girl shouted out, skipping happily down a wooded path. The woods were flooded with light from the midday sun, the rays shining down into the forest below. Such scenery was common, yet it never ceased to instill deep warmth in her heart every time she saw it. Her tail swished back and forth happily.
It was early spring, the trees of the forest brimming with life, the leaves a full green. On the horizon were a series of snow capped mountains, circling about the forest protectively, their presence adding a beautiful contrast to the rich greenery it surrounded.
"Sugoi! It's been a while since we had such a beautiful day like this." Merle said to herself. She breathed deep for a moment, savoring the smell of the forest and the earth.
"The fish should be plentiful about now, and Jajuka-otusan is always hungry for river trout. Yay, fishing time!' She thrust her hand into the air dramatically, and then eagerly began to skip off down the path toward the sound of rushing water.
"Are you sure it's ok to let Merle go out there by herself?" A young beastwoman asked, her lightly furred face filled with concern. Another beastman looked back at her, his face more feral looking than his companions.
"I do not think it will be a problem Anana. She is old enough to take care of herself." Despite his words, his face also showed a degree of worry.
"Yet surely you know about the rumors about that army of humans which passed by not too long ago, do you not ionúin1?" Anana asked.
"They are not our concern; I doubt that they are interested in us anyway." He shot back. Despite his words however, he could not help but wonder. He looked out across the forest, his thoughts turbulent.
'Though I must admit that I am a bit curious as to whom they are warring against. These lands are sparsely populated, only our and other beast tribes dwell in these forests.'
"Jajuka-ionúin?" Anana's voice roused him from his thoughts. He turned and looked back at her. He smiled at her reassuringly. "Do not worry, I doubt that anything will happen."
The young beast girl in question stood poised, her eyes narrowing as her hands twitched nervously. After a moment of preparation, she struck!
SPLASH!
A poor unsuspecting trout suddenly found itself torn from the water by a pair of furred hands, the nails sinking into its sides. Merle stood in the middle of the river, her simple animal skin dress damp from the water. A couple trout already lay upon the shore, another dangled precariously in her mouth. Her catlike ears twitched a bit as she spotted another one swimming was a ways down stream. She jumped out of the water and proceeded further down the shoreline until she was in line with it.
She continued her fishing for a while, stopping when the sun began it's descent in the sky. She stretched her arms and looked happily back at her stash.
"That should be enough, athair2 should be very happy with this!" She nodded happily.
She began to gather up the fish, placing them into a small satchel that she carried at her side, and then began to leave. She stopped short however as her sharp eyes spotted something floating down river.
"Huh, wonder what that is?"
Being the curious type, Merle quickly dropped her satchel and ran back to the riverside. After a few moments, the object came into view.
"By Dia! It's a person!" Merle quickly rushed out into the river, the current rippling against her legs. The water around the body was slightly discolored, blood leaking slowly into the water.
Acting quickly, Merle grabbed the body, hoisting him over to the shore. After depositing him there, she stood up, trying anxiously to think of what she should do.
"I should go get help! Just you wait here; I'll be back in no time!" With that, she took off into the forest, her sack of fish lying forgotten on the ground.
"It is getting late. Perhaps we should go and look for her." Anana asked. Jajuka turned to her from his vantage point of the mountains.
"Hmmm, perhaps you are right, she has been gone longer than I told her to." With that, he began to head for the opening of their simple hut. No sooner had he pushed open the flap however…
"Aithair, aithair!"
"Ah, there you are Merle, I was just about to go look for you and…"
Please, aithair, come quick. I found someone injured in the river. Please, we have to help!" She panted, her breath heaving out of her.
"A body you say? Very well, show me where it is."
The evening sun was nearly set by the time they both made it back to where Merle had left the young man. She immediately rushed over, her arms going about him as she attempted to move him. She stopped however when she noticed her father standing there, making no move to help.
"Aithair, please, you have to help!" She cried.
Jajuka stood there for a few moments before answering. "It's just a human Merle. Leave him be.
Merle's eyes widened, then narrowed dangerously. Her tail bristled.
"How can you say that! He's hurt, bad, and you just want to leave him here?"
Jajuka sighed. He knew that Merle was highly respectful of life, of all life. While he greatly admired that quality, he knew also how much trouble such sentiments could cause.
"I understand your feeling on this matter Merle, but you must understand as well that humans bring nothing but trouble. It is best if we simply leave him."
"NO! I will not just let someone die because you're too suspicious to do anything about it! Isn't it our village code to aid those who need it! Aren't we bound by honor to help those in trouble!" Her large eyes bored into him relentlessly, their green depths blazing with barely contained anger.
Jajuka grimaced slightly. He hated that look; it was almost as bad as her 'other' look. I took no more than half a minute before he gave up. With a sigh he bent down near the boy's body, reaching over to pick him up.
"Ouch!" He jerked his hand back suddenly, wringing it a bit. It felt as if something had burned his hand.
"What was that?" Seeing as no answer was forthcoming, his daughter looking at him with a quizzical look on her face, he reached over again, more cautiously this time. He touched the boys' armor, a suit of metal which bore exquisite craftsmanship. Reaching further, he grasped at a bloody area of the boys tunic, and jerked his hand back again as the strange burning sensation shot it's way up his arm.
'Is his blood hot? Just who is this boy?' Acting more carefully, he gently lifted the boy in his arms, carefully avoiding touching the bloody spots. He was momentarily amazed at how light the boy was despite the armor he was wearing before he started off down the path, Merle following closely by his side.
AN: Well, how was it. Like it? Hate it? Do you care? Is anyone even reading it?
Any comments, compliments or criticisms (Constructive please) are welcome, and necessary. Recommendations and/ or hopes are also accepted.
By the way, this is an AU fic, so do not bother writing me in regards to how the characters are not how they are in the series. I am well aware of that. Despite that, all of your favorites will show up, in some way or another, so sit back and enjoy the show.
Chapter 2 should be out pretty soon, my creative energy for this story is burning so I have plenty of ideas on how I want this to go.
1 Ionúin: Gaelic for 'Beloved'
2 Athair: Gaelic for 'Father'
3 Dia: Gaelic for 'God'