Notes: Okay, this fic was started a good while back (actually, I started
this before I got the game ^^, so major changes had to be made. Anyways,
this first chapter is like the thingys you go through with Brad, Ashley,
and Lilka in the beginning of the game. (more like Brad's since this
chapter takes place a few years back.)
1
2 Prologue
Four years ago…
It was a warm summer evening over the Filgaia Plains. Everything was quiet until an airship coming from Slayheim slowly flew into the area surrounding the Town of Meria. The ship, completely torn and ragged, violently crashed somewhere between Meria and the Valeria Chateau. By morning, there were no survivors left…except one. Trapped under the wreckage was a thirteen-year-old girl…The only one to survive out of the fifty people on board.
"Ugh…Where am I? Who am I? What is all this?" she said to herself. She tried, but remembered nothing about where or who she was, or anything! Her head throbbed in pain. Then, a name slowly came to her mind. "Jahara…Sanzami? Is that my name?" She looked around and saw nothing but bloody wreckage and broken equipment. She pulled herself up walked a little ways through the rubble. She clumsily tripped over something under a jagged slab of mangled steel. She looked under her bleeding leg and saw a long gold staff with a dark blue crystal sphere held on top by four long silver spikes. "Ow! What was that!? My leg…I want to go home--wherever that is…" she moaned. Jahara picked up the staff, used it as a support to stay up, and managed to drag herself across the plain towards Meria. She collapsed, unconscious, after an hour or so…
Two hours later, a small mercs group was sent from Meria to help clean up the rubble of the wreckage and look for survivors. After searching the area, they fanned out to look for survivors that may have wandered off. One of the mercs found the blood trail that Jahara had left behind.
"Hey! Over here! Come look at this!" he yelled. They all decided to follow it. The trail led to young Jahara.
"She's still alive, but in critical condition! We have to get her back to town immediately!" They all loaded back up in the truck and headed back for town…
She woke up three days later in a medical clinic located in the Town of Meria. She woke up to see a boy with short, spiky blue hair, about her age, picking up the laundry in the corner of the room.
"Uhh…oww…" she groaned. The boy turned around and put the laundry in a basket. He walked over to the side of the bed.
"Hey! You're awake! Almost no one thought you'd make it! My name is Ashley Winchester! I wanna be a merc, so I volunteered to help out around here for a while! What's your name?" he said. Jahara just blinked.
"Wow, that was a mouthful! My name is…um…Jahara…I think…" she stuttered. Ashley smiled.
"I like that name! The doctor said you'd probably have amnesia or something 'cause you injured your head real bad, but that's a pretty memorable name! I'll go tell the doctor you're awake!" Ashley walked into the doctor's office and peeked in the doorway and saw the doctor talking to a tall young nobleman that was on crutches. Ashley stepped in so the doctor would notice him, but wouldn't be intruding on the conversation.
"Welcome back to Meria, Sir Valeria! How have you been since your accident?" the doctor asked.
"I'm fine, but I'm still getting used to these crutches. Oh, and you don't have to call me 'Sir', just Irvine will do," he corrected. They laughed and the doctor noticed Ashley standing in the corner.
"Oh, Ashley! Come in boy! What is it?" he asked. Ashley walked up to the desk excitedly.
"It's the girl that the mercs brought in! She woke up!" The doctor was quite surprised as Irvine listened curiously.
"Why didn't you say so in the first place?! I thought she would be a goner for sure! Excuse me Si…I mean, Irvine!" As the doctor slipped on his jacket, Irvine stopped him.
"Who is this girl everyone's been fussing about?" he asked. The doctor turned around and picked up his medical bag.
"Well, she is the only known survivor of that unidentified airship that crashed nearby a few days ago! When the mercs brought her in, she was unconscious, her clothes were ragged, and she even looked as though she'd been through a lot before the crash as well, with injuries that seemed older and further healed than those she received in the crash. But we don't know who she is or where she's from. She doesn't look like she's from anywhere around here. This girl's been in a coma for the past three days, probably from loss of blood and injuries. For a while, we thought she'd never wake up..." he replied. Irvine made a half-smile.
"Well, I'd like to meet this girl."
After checking her out, the doctor and Ashley left. (Actually, a nurse pulled Ashley out by the ear because he hadn't finished doing the laundry!) Irvine came in. He sat down in the chair next to Jahara and set his crutches against the wall. She looked over at him with her large emerald- green eyes and pushed her blonde hair out of her face.
"Who are you?" she asked.
"I am Sir Irvine Valeria. What is your name?" he introduced. She sat up.
"My name is Jahara Sanzami. I'm almost certain of it! I don't remember anything else though," she answered.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Jahara. You're a very strong girl to have been the only survivor of that crash! Is that your staff over there?" Irvine said. Jahara looked at the tall, lonely staff in the corner.
"Well…I guess so. That's all I have. That and this choker," she said, raising her chin up a bit to reveal a loose golden choker. Embedded in the center of the thick gold band was a sea-blue jewel roughly in the shape of a tear. Irvine briefly examined it, noticing there was no clasp or any way to remove it from her neck.
"How odd…you can't take it off!" Jahara shook her head and looked back at the staff.
"I tripped over that staff in the wreckage, so I used it as a support to get away. I don't think I got very far though," she answered. There was a short silence between them. Jahara focused her eyes downward, holding back her tears and clutching her sheets tightly in her small delicate hands. "It was horrible being caught in there! The air all around it was thick with the stench of molten steel, burning flesh and blood…but it was almost as though something deep inside was pushing me to get free and not give up, even if I had no clue as to where I was going." Jahara looked up into Irvine's misty gray-blue eyes. "So I was the only survivor? Whatever that was the wreckage of, it was huge! I was the only one left?!" she said, raising her voice a little bit. Irvine nodded his head in reply. Jahara laid back down, pulling the sheets tightly around her. "What will I do now? I don't have anywhere to go, and I don't remember anything! What will happen to me?" she asked. Irvine thought about this for a second.
"You'll probably be here for a while, but I'll come to visit you soon, okay?" he said. Jahara nodded her head. After talking for a while, Irvine left…
A week later…
Jahara had recovered enough to walk around and leave the clinic. She was temporarily staying at the inn and had become good friends with Ashley and his friend Marina. Jahara stayed there for free because she often helped with the chores and didn't have anywhere else to go anyway.
"Come on Marina! Admit it! You DO have a big crush on Ashley!" Jahara said to Marina. Marina's face turned red.
"Hey! I do not! We're just really good friends! That's all there is to it! However did you get that idea?!" she said defensively. Jahara giggled. The two girls sat on a bed in Jahara's room.
"Well, I can see why you would like him – he's really cute, sweet, and has a good sense of humor! Every time you talk to him, your face gets all red and your voice stutters!" Jahara replied, still giggling. Then, they heard a knock on the door. Marina got up and opened the door. It was Ashley! Marina blushed and her voice stuttered.
"A…Ashley! Wha…What are you doing he…here?" she asked shakily.
"Hah! It's true! You're doing it now!" Jahara said behind Marina. Marina's face blushed even more.
"Marina, your father told me to tell you that you need to start your chores," Ashley explained. Without saying a word, Marina rushed down the stairs to do her work. Ashley stepped in the doorway. By now, Jahara was rolling on the bed in laughter. She sat up and tried to stop laughing. "Jahara? There's someone here to see you," Ashley told her. He walked out of the room and she heard someone slowly coming in.
"Miss Jahara?" It was Irvine!
"Sir Irvine? You came back just like you said you would! You're sooo nice!" she said happily.
"Really? You think so?" Irvine replied, puzzled. Jahara nodded and smiled.
"Yeah! Otherwise you wouldn't have come back!" she told him. Irvine smiled back.
"Well, I guess you're right then." He asked how she was doing and if her recovery went smoothly and if she remembered anything else. She answered 'Yeah! I feel great!' and 'No, I don't remember anything else!' Irvine thought for a second. "I talked to some of the mercs that brought you into town. They said that they found you quite a long way away from the wreckage. Did you walk that far?" he asked. She nodded. "It must have taken a lot of strength and courage to pull yourself that far, Jahara." She looked up at him.
"Well, I was really scared. My whole body hurt, but I couldn't stay there!" she explained.
"You were very brave. And because you were so strong, I'll let you in on a secret, but only if you promise to never tell another soul!" he said. Jahara's eyes sparkled with curiosity.
"A secret? I won't tell!" she said excitedly. Irvine laughed a bit.
"Enthusiastic! I like that. All right. Do you like fairy tales? The ones with the brave knights who help people in need?" he asked.
"Yeah! It probably sounds silly, but I want to be like a knight and help anyone who needs me! People help me all the time, so I'd like to help someone else for once," she answered.
"Well, that's good! I'm going to form a group of people like you. Sort of like a group of knights," he explained. "…Soon, our world, Filgaia, will greatly need its heroes, its knights, to defend it from all trouble and disaster." Jahara was very confused by this, but she decided that it would be best not to ask. Jahara looked down at her hands in her lap.
"But, what can I do? I'm only thirteen!" she said. Irvine gently put his hand to her cheek and she looked up at him with sad eyes.
"You may be only but a child now, but I can tell there is a strong power within you that has yet to be awakened. Don't be discouraged, everyone has some kind of power within them, but not everyone knows how to release it. As you grow older, that power will increase and you will have the strength to let it out and protect the ones you care about!" he explained. He wiped her eyes and she smiled again.
"You're so nice Sir Irvine! Thank you." She leaned forward and hugged him. She pulled back and looked at the lonely staff in the corner of the room. The owner of the weapon shop had cleaned the dirt and blood splotches off and polished it. It glistened beautifully in the morning sunlight. "Sir Irvine? What do you think about that staff? Whenever I'm around it, I get this weird feeling. So far, it's brought me a lot of good luck, but it seems like it has more of a purpose than that," she asked him. He looked at the beautiful gold and silver staff and thought.
"I'm not an expert on staffs, but it looks like a magic staff that Crest Sorceresses use. Only, this one is very different in design and has an unusual dark orb at the top. If you'd like, I could have the specialists of Sielje Region examine it, but my best guess is that it is a Mage staff," he assumed. Jahara looked back at the staff.
"Wow, I would've never guessed! A mage's staff…" she said to herself. After a short moment of silence, she spoke up. "Um, Sir Irvine? If it is a magic staff, could I be taught to use it? Could I be one of your knights?" she asked nervously. Irvine looked down at her.
"Of course. People of all ages can learn how to use magic! And with your strength, courage, and kindness, you more than qualify to be a knight, but you may want to start training now!" he answered.
"Yay! I'll try my best!" she promised. Irvine smiled. Then, they heard a knock on the door. It slightly opened and Ashley poked his head inside.
"Sir Valeria? Your sister is back!" he told him. Irvine nodded and Jahara helped him back onto his crutches. He walked over to the door and turned around.
"Jahara, there's one more thing I'd like to ask – where will you go when you can no longer stay at the inn?" he asked. Jahara thought.
"Well, I don't really know," she replied. She shrugged.
"Well, if you want, you can come and live with me at the Valeria Chateau. Altaecia and I would be more than willing to let you live there as long as you need," he offered. Jahara perked up.
"Really?! Do you really mean it? I'd love to!" she answered. "…If its not too much trouble that is!" Irvine smiled.
"You can come whenever you're ready," he said. Jahara gave him one more big hug before he left…
Within the next few days, Jahara moved in with Irvine and his twin sister, Altaecia in their home, the Valeria Chateau. Once she moved in, Irvine had some of Sielje's top specialists examine Jahara's staff. They concluded that it was definitely a magical staff, but its power was unidentifiable—unlike anything they'd ever seen before! With that, Jahara trained extensively with her staff, determined to become a great Magess one day, and eventually became the only one who could use its magic correctly. But, although she was very skilled at her magic, by her nature, she was a bit of a klutz and would occasionally mess up a spell or teleport to the exact opposite of where she wanted to go. Her level of skill and strength had doubled by the time she was sixteen. Only with a strong heart and the desire to keep moving forward can one face destiny head-on and not fall back…well, not too much!
1
2 Prologue
Four years ago…
It was a warm summer evening over the Filgaia Plains. Everything was quiet until an airship coming from Slayheim slowly flew into the area surrounding the Town of Meria. The ship, completely torn and ragged, violently crashed somewhere between Meria and the Valeria Chateau. By morning, there were no survivors left…except one. Trapped under the wreckage was a thirteen-year-old girl…The only one to survive out of the fifty people on board.
"Ugh…Where am I? Who am I? What is all this?" she said to herself. She tried, but remembered nothing about where or who she was, or anything! Her head throbbed in pain. Then, a name slowly came to her mind. "Jahara…Sanzami? Is that my name?" She looked around and saw nothing but bloody wreckage and broken equipment. She pulled herself up walked a little ways through the rubble. She clumsily tripped over something under a jagged slab of mangled steel. She looked under her bleeding leg and saw a long gold staff with a dark blue crystal sphere held on top by four long silver spikes. "Ow! What was that!? My leg…I want to go home--wherever that is…" she moaned. Jahara picked up the staff, used it as a support to stay up, and managed to drag herself across the plain towards Meria. She collapsed, unconscious, after an hour or so…
Two hours later, a small mercs group was sent from Meria to help clean up the rubble of the wreckage and look for survivors. After searching the area, they fanned out to look for survivors that may have wandered off. One of the mercs found the blood trail that Jahara had left behind.
"Hey! Over here! Come look at this!" he yelled. They all decided to follow it. The trail led to young Jahara.
"She's still alive, but in critical condition! We have to get her back to town immediately!" They all loaded back up in the truck and headed back for town…
She woke up three days later in a medical clinic located in the Town of Meria. She woke up to see a boy with short, spiky blue hair, about her age, picking up the laundry in the corner of the room.
"Uhh…oww…" she groaned. The boy turned around and put the laundry in a basket. He walked over to the side of the bed.
"Hey! You're awake! Almost no one thought you'd make it! My name is Ashley Winchester! I wanna be a merc, so I volunteered to help out around here for a while! What's your name?" he said. Jahara just blinked.
"Wow, that was a mouthful! My name is…um…Jahara…I think…" she stuttered. Ashley smiled.
"I like that name! The doctor said you'd probably have amnesia or something 'cause you injured your head real bad, but that's a pretty memorable name! I'll go tell the doctor you're awake!" Ashley walked into the doctor's office and peeked in the doorway and saw the doctor talking to a tall young nobleman that was on crutches. Ashley stepped in so the doctor would notice him, but wouldn't be intruding on the conversation.
"Welcome back to Meria, Sir Valeria! How have you been since your accident?" the doctor asked.
"I'm fine, but I'm still getting used to these crutches. Oh, and you don't have to call me 'Sir', just Irvine will do," he corrected. They laughed and the doctor noticed Ashley standing in the corner.
"Oh, Ashley! Come in boy! What is it?" he asked. Ashley walked up to the desk excitedly.
"It's the girl that the mercs brought in! She woke up!" The doctor was quite surprised as Irvine listened curiously.
"Why didn't you say so in the first place?! I thought she would be a goner for sure! Excuse me Si…I mean, Irvine!" As the doctor slipped on his jacket, Irvine stopped him.
"Who is this girl everyone's been fussing about?" he asked. The doctor turned around and picked up his medical bag.
"Well, she is the only known survivor of that unidentified airship that crashed nearby a few days ago! When the mercs brought her in, she was unconscious, her clothes were ragged, and she even looked as though she'd been through a lot before the crash as well, with injuries that seemed older and further healed than those she received in the crash. But we don't know who she is or where she's from. She doesn't look like she's from anywhere around here. This girl's been in a coma for the past three days, probably from loss of blood and injuries. For a while, we thought she'd never wake up..." he replied. Irvine made a half-smile.
"Well, I'd like to meet this girl."
After checking her out, the doctor and Ashley left. (Actually, a nurse pulled Ashley out by the ear because he hadn't finished doing the laundry!) Irvine came in. He sat down in the chair next to Jahara and set his crutches against the wall. She looked over at him with her large emerald- green eyes and pushed her blonde hair out of her face.
"Who are you?" she asked.
"I am Sir Irvine Valeria. What is your name?" he introduced. She sat up.
"My name is Jahara Sanzami. I'm almost certain of it! I don't remember anything else though," she answered.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Jahara. You're a very strong girl to have been the only survivor of that crash! Is that your staff over there?" Irvine said. Jahara looked at the tall, lonely staff in the corner.
"Well…I guess so. That's all I have. That and this choker," she said, raising her chin up a bit to reveal a loose golden choker. Embedded in the center of the thick gold band was a sea-blue jewel roughly in the shape of a tear. Irvine briefly examined it, noticing there was no clasp or any way to remove it from her neck.
"How odd…you can't take it off!" Jahara shook her head and looked back at the staff.
"I tripped over that staff in the wreckage, so I used it as a support to get away. I don't think I got very far though," she answered. There was a short silence between them. Jahara focused her eyes downward, holding back her tears and clutching her sheets tightly in her small delicate hands. "It was horrible being caught in there! The air all around it was thick with the stench of molten steel, burning flesh and blood…but it was almost as though something deep inside was pushing me to get free and not give up, even if I had no clue as to where I was going." Jahara looked up into Irvine's misty gray-blue eyes. "So I was the only survivor? Whatever that was the wreckage of, it was huge! I was the only one left?!" she said, raising her voice a little bit. Irvine nodded his head in reply. Jahara laid back down, pulling the sheets tightly around her. "What will I do now? I don't have anywhere to go, and I don't remember anything! What will happen to me?" she asked. Irvine thought about this for a second.
"You'll probably be here for a while, but I'll come to visit you soon, okay?" he said. Jahara nodded her head. After talking for a while, Irvine left…
A week later…
Jahara had recovered enough to walk around and leave the clinic. She was temporarily staying at the inn and had become good friends with Ashley and his friend Marina. Jahara stayed there for free because she often helped with the chores and didn't have anywhere else to go anyway.
"Come on Marina! Admit it! You DO have a big crush on Ashley!" Jahara said to Marina. Marina's face turned red.
"Hey! I do not! We're just really good friends! That's all there is to it! However did you get that idea?!" she said defensively. Jahara giggled. The two girls sat on a bed in Jahara's room.
"Well, I can see why you would like him – he's really cute, sweet, and has a good sense of humor! Every time you talk to him, your face gets all red and your voice stutters!" Jahara replied, still giggling. Then, they heard a knock on the door. Marina got up and opened the door. It was Ashley! Marina blushed and her voice stuttered.
"A…Ashley! Wha…What are you doing he…here?" she asked shakily.
"Hah! It's true! You're doing it now!" Jahara said behind Marina. Marina's face blushed even more.
"Marina, your father told me to tell you that you need to start your chores," Ashley explained. Without saying a word, Marina rushed down the stairs to do her work. Ashley stepped in the doorway. By now, Jahara was rolling on the bed in laughter. She sat up and tried to stop laughing. "Jahara? There's someone here to see you," Ashley told her. He walked out of the room and she heard someone slowly coming in.
"Miss Jahara?" It was Irvine!
"Sir Irvine? You came back just like you said you would! You're sooo nice!" she said happily.
"Really? You think so?" Irvine replied, puzzled. Jahara nodded and smiled.
"Yeah! Otherwise you wouldn't have come back!" she told him. Irvine smiled back.
"Well, I guess you're right then." He asked how she was doing and if her recovery went smoothly and if she remembered anything else. She answered 'Yeah! I feel great!' and 'No, I don't remember anything else!' Irvine thought for a second. "I talked to some of the mercs that brought you into town. They said that they found you quite a long way away from the wreckage. Did you walk that far?" he asked. She nodded. "It must have taken a lot of strength and courage to pull yourself that far, Jahara." She looked up at him.
"Well, I was really scared. My whole body hurt, but I couldn't stay there!" she explained.
"You were very brave. And because you were so strong, I'll let you in on a secret, but only if you promise to never tell another soul!" he said. Jahara's eyes sparkled with curiosity.
"A secret? I won't tell!" she said excitedly. Irvine laughed a bit.
"Enthusiastic! I like that. All right. Do you like fairy tales? The ones with the brave knights who help people in need?" he asked.
"Yeah! It probably sounds silly, but I want to be like a knight and help anyone who needs me! People help me all the time, so I'd like to help someone else for once," she answered.
"Well, that's good! I'm going to form a group of people like you. Sort of like a group of knights," he explained. "…Soon, our world, Filgaia, will greatly need its heroes, its knights, to defend it from all trouble and disaster." Jahara was very confused by this, but she decided that it would be best not to ask. Jahara looked down at her hands in her lap.
"But, what can I do? I'm only thirteen!" she said. Irvine gently put his hand to her cheek and she looked up at him with sad eyes.
"You may be only but a child now, but I can tell there is a strong power within you that has yet to be awakened. Don't be discouraged, everyone has some kind of power within them, but not everyone knows how to release it. As you grow older, that power will increase and you will have the strength to let it out and protect the ones you care about!" he explained. He wiped her eyes and she smiled again.
"You're so nice Sir Irvine! Thank you." She leaned forward and hugged him. She pulled back and looked at the lonely staff in the corner of the room. The owner of the weapon shop had cleaned the dirt and blood splotches off and polished it. It glistened beautifully in the morning sunlight. "Sir Irvine? What do you think about that staff? Whenever I'm around it, I get this weird feeling. So far, it's brought me a lot of good luck, but it seems like it has more of a purpose than that," she asked him. He looked at the beautiful gold and silver staff and thought.
"I'm not an expert on staffs, but it looks like a magic staff that Crest Sorceresses use. Only, this one is very different in design and has an unusual dark orb at the top. If you'd like, I could have the specialists of Sielje Region examine it, but my best guess is that it is a Mage staff," he assumed. Jahara looked back at the staff.
"Wow, I would've never guessed! A mage's staff…" she said to herself. After a short moment of silence, she spoke up. "Um, Sir Irvine? If it is a magic staff, could I be taught to use it? Could I be one of your knights?" she asked nervously. Irvine looked down at her.
"Of course. People of all ages can learn how to use magic! And with your strength, courage, and kindness, you more than qualify to be a knight, but you may want to start training now!" he answered.
"Yay! I'll try my best!" she promised. Irvine smiled. Then, they heard a knock on the door. It slightly opened and Ashley poked his head inside.
"Sir Valeria? Your sister is back!" he told him. Irvine nodded and Jahara helped him back onto his crutches. He walked over to the door and turned around.
"Jahara, there's one more thing I'd like to ask – where will you go when you can no longer stay at the inn?" he asked. Jahara thought.
"Well, I don't really know," she replied. She shrugged.
"Well, if you want, you can come and live with me at the Valeria Chateau. Altaecia and I would be more than willing to let you live there as long as you need," he offered. Jahara perked up.
"Really?! Do you really mean it? I'd love to!" she answered. "…If its not too much trouble that is!" Irvine smiled.
"You can come whenever you're ready," he said. Jahara gave him one more big hug before he left…
Within the next few days, Jahara moved in with Irvine and his twin sister, Altaecia in their home, the Valeria Chateau. Once she moved in, Irvine had some of Sielje's top specialists examine Jahara's staff. They concluded that it was definitely a magical staff, but its power was unidentifiable—unlike anything they'd ever seen before! With that, Jahara trained extensively with her staff, determined to become a great Magess one day, and eventually became the only one who could use its magic correctly. But, although she was very skilled at her magic, by her nature, she was a bit of a klutz and would occasionally mess up a spell or teleport to the exact opposite of where she wanted to go. Her level of skill and strength had doubled by the time she was sixteen. Only with a strong heart and the desire to keep moving forward can one face destiny head-on and not fall back…well, not too much!