Well, guys, we all knew THIS kind of story was going to come along sooner or later- and considering I'm on a block with my other stories, have been a bit mellow, and the ideas have been nagging at me (…and I'm procrastinating from other things…) I couldn't resist getting it started!
Seriously, guys, if you know me well, it's pretty amazing I could hold out for this long XD
So without further ado, I give you…
Wizards and Werewolves- A Fangface/Ni No Kuni crossover :D
Disclaimer: I don't own the cartoon nor the game… and admitting that throughout this story just might kill me!
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Year: 1950
Place: Ivory Tower
It had been several weeks since the world had been set anew. With the reformed Queen Cassiopeia at peace, the rest of the kingdoms and villages throughout the realm could finally relax, no longer having to fear the Dark Djinn nor White Witch causing misery and heartbreak.
Having frequently been visiting the other world from his home in Motorville, Oliver always felt like he was having a dream, seeing that the magical world he had been introduced to just last summer was no longer filled with chaos. He smiled at this, as he walked down a corridor of a large, marble-white castle.
With all the kingdoms united in truce, there was reassurance that peace would be kept in the world, so long as everyone continued to work with one another.
One ruler stuck by this, as he and his older brother assisted Queen Cassiopeia herself in the reconstruction of Nazcaa. The Ivory Palace had been restored to its original continent, with the Witch Queen working on making the large island easier to visit via with roads and pathways leading from the sea to the kingdom, as well as making sure the beasts on the island kept at bay in the deep forests and mountain-ranges.
While rebuilding the kingdom's geography was one detail to be focused on, Cassiopeia felt there was more she needed to do. Unfortunately, due to being kept in the dark about kingdom matters back in her early days of rule, with the Zodiarchs having been 'in control', she did not know where to start- not even recalling how her kingdom had once been when her father, the Wizard King, had been in rule as she was only five at his time of death.
Thus is when she called upon the young Emperor of Hamelin, Marcassin, and his older brother, Prince Gascon- or 'Swaine', as he preferred to be called by friends. Marcassin had come into rule when he was only 7; though he had done well in caring for the kingdom up until he had been heartbroken, he preferred to have his brother rule alongside him. While the young Sage of Hamelin knew much about magic and leadership, his brother had more experience with machines, as well as having lived a life of a commoner to know how to work with people outside of royalty.
Since the two brothers also played a part in restoring her to her former glory, as well as were close companions to the young wizard, Oliver, Cassiopeia had faith that they would be a great help in assisting her to restore her own kingdom.
And, of course, she requested help from the Pure-Hearted One himself. Oliver entered the council room, where Cassiopeia was seated with Marcassin and Swaine, in the middle of conversation. "Oliver! I'm so glad you could make it," Cassiopeia said in greeting.
"I'm sorry I'm late- Miss Leila wouldn't let me go out until I finished my homework," Oliver stated, referring to his guardian in Motorville. With school back in session, he was only able to visit the world of Ni No Kuni on weekends or breaks. No one in his world really questioned where he'd go off to- as long as he was keeping out of trouble and returned home at a decent time, he was free to wander from one world to the next.
"How is your schoolwork going, by the way?" Marcassin asked. "Gascon said something about you going on something called 'Fall Break' soon,"
Oliver nodded. "Yeah, it starts Monday," he took a seat near Cassiopeia. "I figure I can use it to help you out a little more, Queen Cassiopeia,"
"That is very kind of you, Oliver. …And please, we're good friends now, you may call me 'Pea'," Cassiopeia replied with a smile. "After all, that is the name I went by when we 'first' met,"
Oliver chuckled, remembering the living-illusion of Cassiopeia's child-identity, who helped him throughout his journey from time to time. "Okay, if you say so, Pea."
"Right then, so what do you need help with today, your highness?" Swaine asked Cassiopeia. "Creatures still roaming your palace? Need help mapping out more areas to build a port?"
"No, I believe we have all those matters taken care of," Cassiopeia replied, standing up and walking along; the others followed. "There is something I have yet to address- the history of Nazcaa. Growing up, I did not think much about the customs of my old country, nor learn much of my own father's ways of ruling. I feel that, if I can find out about the history of my kingdom, I will have more insight on how to rebuild it," She turned to Marcassin. "Would you know anything about it, Marcassin? I recall you bringing up knowing that it had existed 10,000 years ago,"
Marcassin pondered for a moment. "I do recall learning about it in my studies, but since the kingdom had been lost in ancient times, not many records were shown. All I had learned was that the Wizard King was the master of magic, and had to hide the stones of Mornstar so that, when he died, no one could use the wand for dark purposes, and entrusted the stones to his closest allies. After that, it only spoke of how the kingdom fell to ruin mysteriously- until we saw your memories and learned the truth,"
Cassiopeia nodded solemnly, then sighed. "Then I suppose our history has been lost…"
"I don't suppose this place would have a library, would it?" Swaine asked, peering around as they walked through the halls. Despite the group had gone through several floors when searching for the White Witch the first time, they didn't exactly have time to tour around. "That would help us learn a few things,"
"Yeah! The library in my town is full of history books- maybe if there's one here, we can find something!" Oliver added.
Cassiopeia paused to think. "My father did have a study… but it was on the top floor, and the only way it could be opened was by a special password." She replied. "Everyone tried to guess what it was, as well as myself, but we could never figure it out."
"Well, let's take a shot at it anyway," Swaine suggested. "And if not, I bet we could pick the lock somehow,"
"It's worth a try," Oliver added.
Cassiopeia nodded, and lead them to one of the teleportation pads in the corridor.
After a series of wandering the halls and teleporting to higher floors, the Witch Queen showed them a large room, where there was nothing but a swirling staircase that seemed to go as far as the glass ceiling. "It has been so long since I've come here," she whispered to herself as they walked towards the staircase, looking around the wide, empty room. "Father never let me in the study, but always allowed me to play in this room until he was finished."
"Jeepers, it's huge!" Oliver commented, though noticed that the room was empty. "Did you bring a lot of toys up here or anything?"
Cassiopeia shook her head, smiling. "The only thing I could bring here was my imagination. Mostly, I would pretend it was the ballroom, and would dance around; or pretend I was ice-skating, and slide across the floor. Once, I slipped and bruised my arm, and my father immediately rushed down the stairs to my aid, upon hearing my cry." She sighed. "Amazing how much I can remember, just from an empty room…"
"Speaking of stairs, however, was there an alternate way up?" Swaine asked, looking at the length of the staircase- counting at least 124 steps until he couldn't see any higher.
"Do not worry- father had a special way of going upstairs," Cassiopeia then stepped on the bottom step, concentrating before stating, "Mobilize" and the stairs began to move upwards, as if turned into an escalator!
"Neato!" Oliver exclaimed, climbing onto the step, with Swaine and Marcassin following.
Within minutes, they had reached the platform at the top, only seeing a blank wall before them. "Where is the door?" Marcassin asked, curiously.
"Right here," Cassiopeia then turned one of the knobs that lined the banister; what they thought was a wall turned out to be a mere screen, which shifted upwards to show a large doorway. "Now to guess the password…"
Everyone thought hard about what kind of password the Wizard King would use, guessing terms such as 'Mornstar', 'Astra', 'Nazcaa', and even 'Pea', but none seemed to work. Oliver took out his Wizard's Companion, wondering if there was a clue that would help, when he noticed something out of the corner of his eye. "Huh? Horace?" he gasped, seeing the ghost of the Sage of Ages standing before him. The ghost tried to speak to him- but his voice was muted. Oliver cast 'Spirit Medium', in order to hear what he was saying.
"Ah, that's better. Hello, Oliver, it's good to see you again," Horace stated.
"What brings you here?" Marcassin asked, as he and the others noticed the ghost's presence.
"Horace has actually been staying here, since I returned the Ivory Tower to Nazcaa," Cassiopeia answered, blushing a bit. "I suppose I got so caught up in my plans, I forgot to mention so. I believed it was only right, as he was loyal to the kingdom in his days,"
"I also found it would be redeeming to help guide Cassiopeia now that she reformed," Horace added, bowing his head solemnly. "…considering I failed to aid her, all those centuries ago…"
"You did nothing wrong, Horace. What had happened remains in the past- what matters now is that you're here to help,"
"Speaking of 'help', you wouldn't happen to know the password to open this door, would you?" Swaine asked.
"Gascon," Marcassin scolded, as his brother cut-in during a moment.
"No, he's right- as Cassiopeia stated, I am here to help. …However, if you want the password, you will have to earn it by answering a riddle," Horace said, with a smirk.
Oliver nodded. "Okay, what's the riddle this time?" he asked.
"The password is based on the name the Wizard King gave to one of his wands, in memory of his first love." The ghost turned to Cassiopeia. "If you can recall her name, then you have your password," With that, Horace disappeared.
"Well, that's helpful- the king could have had several wands in his lifetime! Which one could he have named after someone he loved?" Swaine remarked.
Oliver turned to Cassiopeia. "He said you had to recall it, Cassiopeia… Do you remember anyone your father named a wand after?"
Cassiopeia thought, then looked at the wand in Oliver's hand. "Astra…" she whispered, then gasped. "Astralicia! That's the password!"
Upon saying the name, the doors suddenly glowed, opening before them. Everyone looked in, seeing a large study, full of shelves filled with scrolls and leather-bound journals. "How did you figure out the name so quickly?" Marcassin asked the witch queen as they entered.
Cassiopeia looked down at the floor, sighing. "Astralicia was my mother's name… My father named his wand after her, after she died. I was too young to remember much of her… but my father told me the story of how he named his wands every so often." She cleared her throat. "Come, there is so much to learn here, we'd best get started before the day is gone,"
Marcassin paused, rubbing the back of his neck. Swaine gave him a nudge. "Had to ask, didn't you?" he whispered, earning a look from his brother.
"Just… let's just get to work," Marcassin muttered.
"Here's something," Oliver called, finding a scroll on a desk. "It's a list of all the books in here,"
"The archives," Cassiopeia noted, looking at the scroll. "'Nazcaa's Founding'… 'Leaders and Diplomats'… 'The Wizard Wars'… This is perfect! I can find everything I need to know from this list!"
Oliver looked at an entry on the list, which piqued his curiosity. "Huh? Hey, Pea, look at this… 'The Exile of Tobias- How The Wizard King Defeated The Sorcerer Sadist'?"
"I never heard of such a tale," Marcassin commented.
"These archives are over thousands of years old, I don't think anyone has," Swaine replied.
"Myself included," Cassiopeia agreed, looking at the list to see where to find the tale; she looked on the shelves, finding a dusty leather-bound book with yellowed pages on one of the lower shelves. "The story is recorded in here." She turned through the pages, skimming the paragraphs before pausing. "Hmm, well father never told me THIS story…"
"What does it say, Pea?" Oliver asked.
"It's just what the archives said- how my father defeated an evil sorcerer," Cassiopeia then read the story aloud…
"'Long ago, when the world was still new to magic, there were two young princes who studied together in the magical arts- Prince Tobias of the kingdom Bellicosia, and Prince Nilrem of Nazcaa. The two were once friends in childhood, until the day came for them to take the tests at the Temple of Trials. Both put in great effort, but Nilrem was the one who surpassed all tests with amazing results that even impressed Uzzia, the Supreme Sage at the time. Uzzia dubbed him as the Wizard King, whereas Tobias was only known as a Minor Sage.
"'Angered that Nilrem gained such a high title, Tobias vowed to usurp him and began to practice with Dark Magic, which he forged into his wand, 'Serpens'. With his newfound power, he spread pain and agony throughout the lands, corrupting Guardians and taking the lives of others in order to gain superiority.
"'Nilrem managed to defeat Tobias, using the power of Light Magic, though could not take his life as it was not in his heart to do so. Nilrem only managed to weaken his former-friend, able to only banish Serpens to another realm and time, rendering Tobias powerless; He then sealed Tobias into a prison on a hazardous island, unmapped and uninhabitable, along with his most faithful servant, and those who followed him were cast into hiding so long as their master was imprisoned.
"'This is how Nilrem lived up to his title as the Wizard King, vowing to protect the world and make sure none have to fear Darkness, so long as he lived.'"
"Wow- your dad was a hero!" Oliver exclaimed.
"Yes- just like you," Cassiopeia beamed.
"But… why banish that wand? Why not just destroy it?" Swaine questioned.
Cassiopeia looked at the archives. "There's more information on the story- from what Guardians Tobias had corrupted, to the spell my father placed on him, to how my father managed to gain two wands…"
The ex-thief chuckled. "Looks like there's a lot to catch up on,"
"I would like to look over a few things as well… Nazcaa seems to have quite the history," Marcassin said, looking at one scroll. "It says here that it was introduced to mechanisms by Hamelin merchants, and was the first to help in crafting aerial machinery!"
"I suppose that means our two kingdoms have quite a connection," Cassiopeia stated with a smile, making the young sage blush.
"Y-yes, I suppose so…"
Swaine rolled his eyes. "(Just ask her for a date already, pretty-boy)…" he whispered under his breath, noticing his younger brother had developed an infatuation with the Witch Queen since her reformation.
"Did you say something, Gascon?" Cassiopeia asked.
"Nah, just wondering what book can give us insight on how to rebuild your kingdom," he lied.
"There's something we can look at- 'Nazcaan Culture- Traditions, Festivities, and Culinary Delights of the Kingdom'," Oliver read from the archives.
"I will start with that, then!" Cassiopeia said, looking around until she found a book about her kingdom's culture. The tome itself was a bit thick in pages, she noticed as she pulled it out. "…I suppose I have a lot of reading to do,"
"You look through that, and we'll check out some of these other books," Swaine suggested, browsing the shelves. "…particularly one about some of these mechanisms Nazcaa had…"
As Cassiopeia read, everyone explored the shelves. "So… that one wand 'Serpen' was banished into time to another world," Oliver stated, after thinking about that subject a bit more. "You don't think it might be in my world, do you?"
"If it is, I hope we do not come across it," Marcassin replied. "A wand powered by evil spells… I wouldn't dare use it,"
"Neither would I… but… what if someone found it?"
"Then we'd be screw- *ahem* in deep trouble," Swaine said, reminding himself to watch his language in front of Cassiopeia. "But, I doubt anyone in your world knows magic, much less believes in it, so there's not much to worry about. Plus, Tobias probably died in that prison of his- he's not around to use it,"
"True… but if Serpens ever does show up, I recommend we destroy it," Cassiopeia replied, then paused. "…though, I wonder why my father hadn't done so, instead?" she shook her head. "No matter. Let's focus on the first task,"
Everyone agreed, and continued their research.
After a couple hours, they decided to call it a day and head home. "We should invite Esther and Mr. Drippy next time," Oliver stated as they all walked down the long corridor, leading outside.
"I considered summoning them, but learned that Esther is training to be a Great Sage after Rashaad, and Mr. Drippy is catching up with all his fairy friends," Cassiopeia replied. "I only summoned you all because Marcassin and Gascon have experience in ruling as well as people-skills. And I knew I would need help of the Pure-Hearted One,"
Oliver blushed. "I'm just happy to help. But Esther and Mr. Drippy know quite a few things too,"
"Plus, the more people we have to help with doing research, the sooner we can get done," Swaine added.
Cassiopeia nodded. "True- it wouldn't be fair to exclude half the heroes who saved the world, either." They made it to the door and she bid them farewell, watching as Oliver cast 'Gateway' to Motorville, while Marcassin cast 'Fast Travel' for him and Swaine to return to Hamelin.
Horace appeared next to her, walking with her down the corridor. "You seem worried. What is troubling you?" he asked her.
"That story about Tobias," Cassiopeia replied, solemnly. "I do not know why, but I have this horrible feeling about him…"
"What could be wrong? He was imprisoned long ago, and rotted on an unknown isle, did he not?"
"That is just it…" Cassiopeia looked out the window, cringing as she wrapped her arms around herself. "I do not think we are rid of him, yet."
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A/N: Okay, a little early for suspense, I know. I just wanted to introduce the main element of the story, as well as give some foreshadowing for the next chapter. …crap, I hope that doesn't count as a spoiler 0_0
Also, like to just point out that 'Nilrem' is just 'Merlin' spelled backwards, since I wanted to give a reference to another famous wizard… and I'm about as creative as a blank piece of paper these days. :P
Anyway…
So there's part of our cast introduced. Next chapter we get to the rest- from the other side of the fabric of space and time ;)
Please review, but don't flame.