A Ragnarok Online fanfiction by Magus LaFlamme

"Witherless Rose"

Disclaimer: Ragnarok Online and all of its contents are copyrighted by Gravity Corp. and Lee Myung-jin. I do not own them in any way.

I'll never forget the day when I first met her.

We first met when she saw me being treated roughly by my former master – a famous forger smith. I had to curse whoever created me – either he was too lazy to add more details or he was a lecherous pervert, just like my abuser. The smith only saw me as an object to satisfy his pleasure; he always looked at me with such lust in his eyes.

Never in my entire life did I feel so violated.

I slowly backed away in order to escape from his molests, crossing my arms over my chest – his favorite body part. My eyes were quivering in fright, as I pleaded silently to him – STOP.

"Ooh, you looked so radiant tonight, my pet," he slurred, his breath heavily reeking of alcohol, his arms outstretched in an attempt to grab me.

"Hiss…" was all I mustered to say. Get away from me, you pervert! I wanted to scream. Wanted to strip that annoying smirk off his face. But I was powerless.

The cold brick wall came in contact with my bare skin, seemingly putting a period to my fate: I was doomed. My arms were still crossed over my chest, shielding them from the abuser in front of me, as tears rolled down my cheeks. Closing my eyes tightly, I prayed to the gods above, and to my eternal master Osiris – to deliver me from my fate.

Save me…

"HALT."

My master stopped advancing towards me and slowly turned around, swaying a little. He was severely drunk. "Wha..? Who the hell are you?"

The sound of high heels echoed throughout the dark Prontera alley, the dark figure of my savior slowly walking towards us. Bell chimes accompanied every step, just like the sound of Moonlight Flower's bell. The streetlight between the two shed enough light for us to recognize who she was.

A Golden-belled female scholar.

The chimes stopped, indicating that she stopped walking. I opened my eyes and first met her emerald green orbs, looking directly at my master. They were cold and calculating, as if they were assessing the smith's capabilities. It sent a chill down my spine.

"Feh…whaddya want, geek?" he sneered. The cold emerald orbs instantly blazed with anger. "You've got a problem or somethin'?"

"You were molesting that Isis," she said in a cold voice. "And she was pleading for you to stop."

"So?"

She clenched her fists. "You disgust me. Your attitude sharply contrasts the fine quality of the weapons you create. Treating a helpless creature with such lecherousness!"

The smith was taken aback as hot air circled around the scholar, playing with the elegant draperies on her arms. Fire in the shape of a ball formed in between her right palm, and it grew bigger and bigger every second. The scholar raised her hand in a throwing stance, eyes fixed onto the man in front of her. The scorching sounds of the flames masked the name of the spell.

"Fire Ball."

Serenity.

I stood in shock and amazement, gaping at the female scholar who turned out to be my savior. The smoking body of the blacksmith rested against the wall beside me, his Bone Helm covering a huge part of his face. He was unconscious.

Silence.

My arms were still crossed on top of my chest, as I tried to calm the rapid beating of my heart. My eyes followed her movements when she walked towards me and stopped – about five steps away. She lifted her head, and I noticed that her previously cold eyes were replaced with warm ones.

"Are you unhurt?" she asked me.

I nodded.

Her lips smiled, and I started to feel calm. It was then that I noticed that she smelled sweet – a mixture of roses and strawberries. It was because of our closeness that I noticed how radiant she looked when she was smiling, probably because her eyes seemed to "smile" along with her lips.

"I'm glad you're alright," she told me, and I felt that it came from the heart. "You are free now. Get away from here - and try to start a new life."

I removed my arms slowly and they started to rest at my sides. I never remembered muttering a word of thanks – probably because I was still in shock and fear…all I did was watch her turn her back and walk away, out into the empty streets of Western Prontera.

The man who was once my master was still unconscious when I fled the city minutes later.

The next few days of my new life was spent exploring the fields surrounding the capital city of Midgard. I made sure to stay away from the adventurers who roamed them in search of power – mainly because I did not want to undergo the same cruelty from them again. The big trees that thrive throughout the fields and the shrubs that grew around them were enough to cover my physique while I watched men and women in brown whack tirelessly at those weak creatures, especially Porings.

During those moments was the first time that I felt total freedom, where nobody had the authority over me, where I was my own master. It was also during those times that I felt a lot of insecurity. Humankind, as I learned from my former master, was a bunch of creatures who wouldn't hesitate to get rid of everything for their own sake. They wouldn't hesitate to get rid of me too, that was certain.

It seemed, during those moments, that my end was just an arm's length away.

"Wah! That Poring stole my carrot!"

"Hurry, it's getting away!"

"It's heading toward the bushes! After it!"

"Bring back my carrot!"

Boing…boing…bump..

I was startled when something cold and soft collided against my elegant shining scales. I looked down and saw it was just a Poring, which made me raise an eyebrow. The pink blob was taken aback due to the force of the impact, and glared at the "obstacle" in his way.

Well, at least that's what I thought he was trying to do. Glare, right?

I blinked twice and observed that the somewhat annoyed expression of the Poring changed into a frightened one. The jelly-like structure of its body wiggled and shook – obviously it was scared of me. Hah. That's right. Tremble before me. I am the mighty Isis!

"Po…po…poring"

I crossed my arms over my chest and smirked.

"…there you are! Now give me back my ca…AAAAAAHHHH!!"

Thump.

"What's the matter, Linka? Why are you screaming?!"

"S-snake! A snake! A really HUGE snake!"

"Feh, just a weak snake and you're so worked up already?!"

"No, you don't understand! It's a HUGE snake! It's got arms and a head!"

Rustle rustle…

"You look pathetic, Linka! Get up! What are you pointing at?"

"THAT!"

The all-too familiar scent of fear made its way to my sense of smell. Just a few meters ahead of me sat a blonde, short-haired female novice, her index finger shakily pointed at my direction. Behind her was a scarlet-haired male novice, who looked just as shocked and scared as his companion was.

"That's not a snake!" he exclaimed. "That's an ISIS!"

The female novice wailed loudly. "Mommy!"

The bushes rustled some more, this time from behind me, revealing a party of three – a hunter, a wizard, and a priest. Seeing them made my heart beat furiously inside my ribcage. I slithered a few yards away from them, only to earn more wailings from that annoying blonde girl.

"It's coming to get me!! It's coming to get me!!"

"Holy shit, an Isis!" the hunter exclaimed. "Buff me, I'm going for the kill!"

I panicked as he reached for an arrow from his quiver, while the wizard was starting to chant his spells. Behind me, the male novice was starting to pull his female companion away from me, possibly to find safety.

"Double Strafe !!"

"Jupitel….THUNDER !!"

Osiris, help me !!

Chapter two is currently in the works. Until then...

Review please.

- Magus LaFlamme -