Valis – Warrior of Infinity (Valis – The Fantasm Soldier Fanfic)
ACT 0: Night
ZeLoz (aka Bill)
From atop the Castle Vanity, at night, one could see the deep, majestic blue of the endless night sky, dotted with shining pearls and stretching into endlessness. Below, one could also spot the surrounding kingdom; its denizens mostly asleep with small lights stippling the primitive cityscape. Beyond the city limits, the moonlight illuminated the dark emerald hills, blades of grass and meadow billowing playfully in the cooling night wind. Vecanti was a thing of beauty at night, fitting for the fabled Land of Dreams.
But this night was no such night.
"It was a foolish move, Rogles, deciding to attack my kingdom head-on," Valia remarked, readying the brilliant Valis sword, which coruscated with an intense brightness that pierced the deep night, at her side, "My forces are decimating your fiends as we speak."
"And yet, here I am, posing a very valid threat on your life," the Demon Lord Rogles retorted, levitating well above his quarry. His black cape undulated in the harsh, rainy squall, his golden mask shining in the black fusillade of sharp wind, icy water, and soupy darkness.
The sky was garroted by the rising smoke of the battlefield, where the vicious demons and monstrosities of Rogles did battle with Valia's devoted knights. Though victory was in sight for the latter, this was not without heavy losses from both sides. The battle raged on, with the storm assailing all participants, taxing endlessly the endurance and morale. Detracted from this battlefield were the very forepersons of the conflict, both locked within their own mortal engagement.
"Rogles, what do you wish to gain from such foolishness? Prior to your farce, I have had no quarrel with you or your ilk," The wary empress stood valiantly, clutching her blessed blade tightly.
"Your seat of power has gone unchallenged for too long. The hour of resignation is at hand." His empty voice stated coldly.
Drawing a well-armored arm from the depths of his mantle, he amassed a large concentration of energy within his palm, which he then swung downward at Valia. The glowing sphere of energy split into luminescent rings, all of which flew straight for their target. The bands were easily dispelled by a strong sweep of the sword, which released it's own wave of energy homed in on the shadowy figure above. He deftly threw off the assaulting sword beam with stunning agility and swooped down to his adversary for a more direct tactic. Valia made her own move to quickly close the distance between the two, gripping the ancient sword with both hands and bringing it down upon Rogles. Again, he eluded her attack and used a counter blast of energy to knock Valia into the air. However, though she was quite old, Valia reoriented herself and somersaulted, landing her feet onto the ground with nary a scratch or sign of fatigue.
"It's hard to believe you have been the empress for so long, what with such acrobatic skill. And to think you have a daughter," Rogles mused.
"Two, actually," Valia corrected, breaking out into a dead sprint.
Rogles knew clearly that it would be folly to try to parry such a sword as the Valis sword. No armor, especially not his armor of hardened shadow and blood, could stand against the god-like power of that blade. His only recourse was to evade yet again and rely on a counter blow.
Valia swung again, but only to cut through the turbulent wind. Rogles did a back dash maneuver while gathering colossal amounts of energy into his palms. He brought his hands together, triggering a great beam of black magic aimed at Valia. Swiftly, she brought back up her sword, easily cutting through the massive beam.
"Such brute force attacks will only hasten your demise, Rogles!" Valia exclaimed, swinging her sword against the fierce wind, creating another crescent-shaped gale intermixed with mystic energy from the blade. Rogles brought up his other arm to guard against the attack, but a slight underestimation prevented him from foreseeing the more-than-slight recoil received from the blade of wind, knocking the defending arm away from his front to his side. Taking advantage of this slight disorientation, Valia went in for the killing blow.
"This is the end, Rogles!"
But just as Valia's blazing sword was about to make contact with her adversary, it connected with a reflective flash of silver. To her surprise, another sword abruptly stopped Valia's attack, and behind this sword stood a rose-haired swordswoman in black armor, who seemed to be in the service of Rogles. The young woman cast a fiery glare at Valia, which, for a split second, compromised her concentration.
This was the perfect chance for Rogles.
Seeing Valia taken aback, Rogles realized that she had not noticed his undamaged hand gathering a black mass of concentrated power aimed at her chest. From under his visor, Rogles grinned wickedly.
An incredible burning force gripped the distracted Valia's side, which sent her spiraling through the night sky and into a nearby wall. As she made impact, a small bit of blood shot out of her mouth and more trickled slightly from the ends of her lips. The Valis sword had flown out of her hand and clanged unceremoniously at her side. Using her now free hand, she felt the charred spot of her robes, when a feeling of dread far greater than the intense shot of pain overcame her. Something was missing. Something was terribly wrong.
"What's the matter, Valia?" Rogles cackled ominously, "You look as if you've lost something of particular importance."
From the palm of his smoking hand, Valia could see clearly through the stormy gale six gleaming stones, shining with such urgent intensity as if they were calling out to her, to be snatched away from Rogles's shadowy palm and constricting fingers.
"Th... The Fantasm Jewels!!! You...!"
"That's right, Valia! To think you, the wise matriarch of the Land of Dreams, would foolishly carry around such a treasure with you into battle! Now, thanks to my Champion, here, you've lost your trump card!"
Rogles looked out into the battlefield before Castle Vanity. The rain had gone, and crimson rays of the rising sun started to rise from the horizon. The battle out there was concluding, if not already finished.
"It looks like you were right, Valia," Rogles snickered sarcastically, "My forces look to have been thoroughly routed. You win this battle."
"You... fiend..." The wound left behind by Rogles point-blank assault was starting to take it's toll on Valia's aging body. She could not properly hold the Valis sword while holding the sharp pain in her chest, much less continue the fight.
"Shall I finish her off, Lord Rogles?" The young woman asked, beholding the sparkling, sapphire gems in her master's possession.
"No, we will take our leave for now. I needed only to humble this great ruler, and to show her who is worthy to rule."
He then turned to the defeated monarch, "Listen well, o benevolent ruler of Vecanti. If you are fool enough to continue this war, then there shall be no quarter for you or those who swear allegiance to your authority. The Valis sword may still be in your possession, but I have the Fantasm jewels. With these, the strongest of your forces will tremble to my power. I leave you now, Empress. Your reign is over."
With that, the two disappeared in a black flash.
"Mother!" It wasn't two seconds after Rogles' departure that Valia heard the panicked footsteps of someone ascending the nearby staircase.
From the passageway leading into the castle, a young maiden with light blue hair and billowing ceremonial robes of royalty ran to her mother's side, face pale with horror.
"Valna, what... what are you doing here?" Valia asked feebly with a voice broken with enervation.
"No, you mustn't speak. Here, I'll take you to your chambers. I'll summon the castle nurses and..."
"But... No, Rogles must be stopped. He... He has the Fantasm jewels. Vecanti is in grave danger. I... I must...ugh..."
Valia tightly clutched the Valis sword and tried to rise, but Valna set her hand on her mother's back to restrain her. Such recklessness would only aggravate the dire wound.
"No, mother. You are much too weak to do battle. I'll take care of this."
"Valna, Rogles power is too great. Only one capable of wielding the Sword of Valis could possibly stop that... that monster."
"You'll die if you are not treated soon! I must go, mother. It is in my blood to inherit the sword."
"No... not your blood. There is another... another one who can wield... Valis..."
"Who?" Valna's voice became desperate, shaking with intense fear and anxiety from uncertainty.
"There is... one in Assiah... the world of humans. I must contact... her. I... I must... contact... Yuko..."
In the lavender eyes of Valia, the world went dark as consciousness eluded her. Valna quickly carried her mother to her chambers to take care of the injuries, and at the same time wondered who is it that her mother spoke about, and why this potential wielder of the Valis sword resided in the human world.
Through the stain glass windows of Vecanti, a golden light vanquished the dreadful night of bloodletting. A new dawn had come to Vecanti, providing naught but brief respite from the looming nightmare over the world of dreams.