Authors Note: This is my first Fic, so I bear with me (I'm still new to writing). This chapter is mainly about establishing the new character, Emi. The true "story" part begins with the next chapter. Please Enjoy (And R&R!)
A/N2: Many thanks to ThorHammer17 for his review! The prologue is now updated, better than before. Expect Chapter One to get the following treatment soon.
"..." : Characters talking
'...' : Thinking
/.../ : Djinn talking
Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to Golden Sun or any of its contents; I do own Emi and the Jupiter Djinn Storm.
The girl stared out over the wreckage, numb with disbelief. Izumo, one of the island villages out in the Great Eastern Sea, had just been crushed into nonexistence by some unknown force. All that now remained was charred beams and splinters of once proud buildings. A harsh breeze began picking up as she stepped through the broken gates, stinging her eyes with acrid black smoke. Nervous, she began to call out, hoping in her heart that she wasn't the only survivor.
"Anyone?" "Anyone here?"
She stumbled, tripping over a fallen beam, her scream of surprise echoing in the harsh silence. Brushing the soot off of her long limbs, she continued onward, occasionally tripping again as her eyes glazed over in shock. In front of her was a small flame, its flickering tendrils like coils of death.
The receding flames lit her violet hair with a devilish orange glow, turning her head into a sight that would make small children scream. Heat forced itself against her face, while smoke stung her eyes, bringing forth tears.
The girl stopped next to one of the buildings, gagging as the wind changed direction, filling her lungs momentarily with the sweet acrid scent of burning flesh.
She turned away from that one, not wanting to let her imagination do the rest of the work on what had happened to the people inside.
Vaguely she could tell her feet were leading her somewhere without her command, her mind unconsciously willing them in the direction of home. She knew beforehand what she would see.
Legs now rooted to the ground, she stared at the blackened remnants of the house her family had dwelled in; where she had lived before her training began. All it took was one small tear to fall, one tear to break the dam holding back her emotions. Her tears began falling with increased frequency, blurring her vision of the nightmarish sight in front of her.
She picked up a charred piece of wood poking out of the ground in front of her, tears sizzling slightly as they fell on it. The wind began to rise, and she watched as the shard she held crumbled. She sifted her fingers through the small flakes that still remained, shattered remnants of a former whole.
'Just like my life is now.'
Slowly sinking to her knees, she placed her head in her hands, shutting out everything. She let out a small moan of despair, sobs slowly wracking her slender frame. There was no one left to share her pain. Only her.
For the first time in her life, she wished life would desert her, so great was the despair…
Emi sat up in bed, and clutched her knees to her chest, still shaking with the force of her nightmare. Gazing out at into the night, she wondered how a dream could feel so real…
"Emi."
"Emi!"
The voice calling her out of sleep was promptly followed by a loud banging on her room's door.
"Coming, taskmaster."
Emi sighed as she rolled out of bed. Quickly she changed into one of the grey training robes that were customary of her school. The emblem of Venus was etched into the right shoulder, signifying the school's long time tradition of turning out competent Venus Adepts. At only16, she wasn't quite at the age where one would begin training with Psynergy; she would have to wait one more year for that. Instead, it was focus on blade wielding techniques, sharpening the body in preparation for becoming an Adept. Still not quite awake yet, she walked over to the small mirror, stretching out her limbs absentmindedly.
Looking back at her were dark violet eyes, covered by a few wisps of stray violet hair.
Emi never really understood how she got her hair color, or why it was different than everyone else's. She had her mother's violet eyes, and her father's height, but purple hair? With a grimace, Emi combed her hands through the shoulder length strands before sulking downstairs.
Emi stopped before entering the main corridor, not wanting to get taunted by her peers for her unnatural hair color just yet. Taunting and jeering always seemed to be a part of her life, being the odd one out. Oh, she ignored all of it by now.
'Not that lashing out does any good…'
Her purple eyes seemed to freeze as she recalled the last time she had struck back. The parents had scorned her, shunned her from the rest of the village. And her two instructors, Sira and Kira, couldn't do anything about it. Not when their jobs were at stake. If they protected her they wouldn't get funding for their school.
'Normally you would think being different would mean being special. Too bad it doesn't always work out that way…'
She tossed her head from side to side, before she let it hang in front of her.
'Master Kira would have liked to help me too…'
Her instructors, Kira and Sira, were the twin owners of this sword fighting school. Kira was marginally taller; the more powerful of the two, his charcoal black hair only barely long enough to tie into a tight club behind him. Sira's smaller stature made him the man for speed, though he kept his locks long enough to keep in a ponytail behind him.
Amused, she twirled a long figure around a few strands of her own hair, delighting in how soft its violet strands were. She sighed. It was time to get going.
'I'll get yelled at if I tarry any longer.'
Gritting her teeth, she stepped through the sliding door into the training hall, expecting one or more of her "peers" to be about, ready to pester her again. When she only saw Kira, she frowned in puzzlement. Then it dawned on her where they were.
'Of course; It's their day off. Trust them to desert their studies.'
They didn't really get days off here in this school; not when people skipped training on any days they could get away with it. She rolled her eyes, wondering how people could be so lazy.
Feigning an expression of disgust, she focused instead on getting into her training, hefting a practice blade off the wall. Her instructor held a similar blade, for today they were doing a real fake sparring match. She was accustomed enough to these blades that her teachers now used actual battles to teach, rather than performing practice strokes, or striking a dulled blade against a dummy suspended from the ceiling.
"Ready?"
Kira raised his blade once she was in position at the center of the training floor. At her nod, they began.
The only sound was the ring of metal on metal as two blades flashed and collided again and again. Her face set in a mask of grim concentration, Emi focused on speeding up her strokes, feeling herself slowly giving up ground to her opponent's superior strength. Realizing she could not match her instructor's endurance if the fight were to drag on, Emi knew she had to take a chance. Quickly she stepped forward, inside her opponent's swing, simultaneously raising her blade. She stopped when she felt the edge of a sword tap her just above the waist.
She opened her eyes to find her sword at her instructor's neck, while his blade rested lightly at her side.
"That was a…interesting bout, Emi."
At her instructor's gaze, she nodded in understanding. Slowly lowering her weapon, trying to conceal how tired her arm was, she replaced it upon the weapons rack where she had found it earlier.
Exhaling slowly, Emi sank to the floor, muscles complaining with the strain of so long a fight. Today they had fought with heavy training blades, which weighed roughly twice that of a standard Long Sword. The blades were designed to increase endurance as well as speed, both effects taking place once one shifted back to using lighter weapons.
'I'm just glad I didn't drop it this time…'
She smiled, remembering the first time she had tried to pick up one of these types of blades. She had barely been able to lift it an inch off the ground.
As if reading her mind, Kira spoke, brown eyes laughing.
"That is what these years of training are for, young one."
Emi's violet eyes clouded over, remembering the long years she had endured. Over her four years at this school she had always been fast, far faster than her peers. Of course this only led to more taunting, but she didn't care. Her instructors had noticed this of course, starting her on the heavier blades much earlier than the basic training course proposed. She frowned, wondering why she was always so different from everyone else. She blinked, breaking her train of thought. Reminding herself that she was still in the midst of a training session, she turned back to look at her instructor expectantly.
"That was the first draw I have had in quite a while."
He drawled his words slowly.
At this Emi's mouth quirked upwards slightly, recalling how much the extra practices she had snuck in during nighttime had helped her training. Seeing her face, he smiled slightly too; it had been more than once that this particular instructor had come down on night rounds only to find her practicing alone.
Leaning down to where she sat, he put a large, calloused hand on her shoulder.
"Well done, Emi."
She gave him a cheerful smile as a reply, happy to be praised.
'It is a nice contrast to how my peers treat me.'
She sighed, then yawned.
Emi stood back up, looking once again into the amused eyes of her instructor.
"I think I need to go take a rest again…"
Her drowsy mind half-noticed she was speaking through yawns now.
Her taskmaster only shook his head at this and laughed, deep voice echoing in the quiet room.
"You more than deserve it after that match."
She gave him a thankful smile, trudged up the stairs, sleepily opening her door and landing on the bed, falling asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.
Emi looked up, as if waking from a trance.
All she saw around her were trees and shrubs ensnared in a thick, swirling fog.
She seemed to be in some sort of a clearing, the remains of some sort of temple. These ruins were remarkably familiar to her by now; she had been here many times before, if only in her dreams. She wondered whether they actually existed in reality, or if they were just a figment of her imagination.
It had been quite a while since she had come here…
She hopped down from the rock she was seated on, just like always, and began trudging forward, her boots yielding a soft crunch each time they pressed against the worn cobblestone.
As she walked along the path, the fog swirled into shapes, forming picturesque representations of creatures, only to fade back into a white wall in moments. She didn't recognize half of the creatures the fog showed her, though she knew they must exist. At the thought of creatures, she opened her ears and listened intently in the woods on both sides of her.
Aside from her soft footsteps, the woods were eerily silent, as if bereft of any living creatures.
"That's very strange…"
She stopped walking momentarily, shifting her head to stare intently at the pathway beneath her. Every time she came here she couldn't understand why this path was here.
'It's almost reminiscent of a link between two places…'
She smiled, remembering what was coming.
'Or two people.'
She began running, laughing at the wonderful feel of the wind floating its way through her long hair. After a few fleeting moments, she reached a second clearing, this one housing a lone individual. She slowed to a stop, gracefully halting with her feet closed together.
From where she stood she could make out a familiar green cloak and dark brown hair, the fog hiding the rest of his features.
She ran up and gave him a hug, ruffling his hair.
Letting out a small laugh, he returned the hug.
"It's good to see you again."
Sometimes it seemed like this man was her only friend…
"Felix!"
Groggily, Felix sat forward on his cot, clutching his throbbing head. Shaking his head to wake up, his eyes fell blankly on the wall in front of him, as his thoughts shifted back to that peculiar dream.
'I was dreaming of her again…'
"Felix are you in there or not?"
"Yes Jenna, I'll be right there."
More awake now, he ran a hand through his dark brown hair, quickly tying it back into a loose ponytail at the nape of his neck. After donning his usual green cloak, and buckling on his long sword, he stopped at his mirror.
Gazing back at him were a pair of deep brown eyes, shining as if hiding unseen depths. Oddly enough, they reminded him of another pair, though these were a deep violet…
"Felix!" Jenna's insistent voice brought him back to reality once again.
'It was only a dream…' He thought as he stepped through the doorway to greet his sister.
"I swear Felix, sometimes you seem like you exist in another world entirely!"
Jenna shook her head slightly as if to emphasize her point, auburn hair swishing slightly in its high ponytail. Today she was dressed in a long flowing dress, a slightly darker shade of red than her hair. On it were swirling patterns of spiraling flames, seeming to emulate actual fire as she walked. It matched her element perfectly.
'She's certainly dressed up for today…'
Felix really wasn't. He was still wearing his standard Knight's uniform, grey coat worn over steel plate mail, with a sword belt buckled loosely around his waist. He wasn't wearing his greaves today, because of how they hindered his movement. He laughed at the thought of wearing greaves to a festival.
'I don't want to look like a walking chicken at a festival…'
The only reply Felix gave to Jenna's earlier question was a grunt as he shifted his sword belt into a more comfortable position. His ears picked up her barely audible sigh, nodding as she beckoned him to follow her down the long corridors.
The two siblings had just passed the great hall in the castle, where Jenna paused while Felix stole a glance at the great hourglass situated on a dial in the center of the room. He shook his head as he returned, message not needing to be spoken.
'We're going to be late. Isaac will kill us if we are.'
Garet, a close childhood friend of theirs, came out of a cross corridor just in time to be a human roadblock for the running siblings. The collision ended with a three-person pyramid; Garet on the bottom, very displeased at having such an annoying wake up call.
"Oof watch where you're going, you—"
He stopped when he saw who was on top of him.
"Jenna, Felix!" Garet cried out, laughing as the trio stood up.
"Normally I'm the only one to go running into people on accident. Has some of my clumsiness rubbed off on you…?" Garet chocked out after his laughter subsided.
Jenna, face flushing with a tinge of rage at being called clumsy by king clumsy himself, raised a fist to strike him.
"Can it."
Felix caught her wrist before the blow could connect. He ground his teeth, displeased at his friend's lack of punctuality and his sister's short temper.
"Garet. What are you doing here? Do you even know what day it is?"
He hoped switching the topic would cool off his little sister's temper.
"Oh crap. Thanks Felix."
Garet took off, racing madly back into his room. Jenna shook her head, watching him leave.
"Let's go brother; Garet will be later there than us, so maybe we won't get yelled at by Isaac."
Snickering, they took of, sprinting towards the gates for the celebration.
Isaac sighed, leaning his head back in his chair to stare once again at the ceiling, his studies forgotten. Today was a festival, arranged to celebrate the war effort. It was also a celebration for him, as today was the day he graduated out of Vale's Adept Academy, to become a Knight. How lucky he was to have the festival and his big day coincide together. Guests would of course come up and congratulate him. He would make sure that he had his friends to hide behind.
Isaac closed his eyes and sighed once more, thoughts shifting to the Academy. These days, it seemed that every young person in Vale went to there; Adept or not, it was needed to have every hand ready for war.
'This war is so stupid. Why can't anyone else see it? All one nation does is point fingers at another, hoping to gain power in the ensuing conflict.'
Even the Academy, which taught swordplay, trained the young adults in Psynergy, was now giving lessons on the war. Isaac shook his head, remembering how boring that class had been.
'Boring but necessary. War is all too real for us.'
Weyard had been entrenched in this war for about a year now, some countries declaring themselves neutral, while others took sides. No one really knew who started the conflict, or what initial quandary started the strife. Isaac let out a small sarcastic laugh, scoffing at the thought.
'Not that anyone cares anymore; it has turned into a pure power struggle. No one cares about the lives wasted except us, the people who fight in these battles.'
Fidgeting, he got out of his chair to look at the map of Weyard, framed on the wall of his large study.
He traced his finger along the continents caught in the strife, finding the cities and villages caught in the middle of the conflict.
"Vale, Vault, Kalay to the south on one side. Tolbi and Lalivero in northern Gondowan are on the other. Imil, Kolima and Bilibin declared themselves neutral. Towns like Xian have natural obstacles guarding them..."
His finger dropped back down to his side, his blue eyes hardening.
"And the war front is spreading, more rapidly by the day."
He took one last look at the aged map, shaking his head. The war only encompassed Angara and northern Gondowan at the moment, though he suspected that would change. Once the conflict started spreading across the sea, no one would be safe.
"Even islands like that of Izumo will be drawn into the conflict if it doesn't stop…"
Sighing in disgust, he turned to prepare himself for this joyful day…
The young girl cried.
Once again she had been the butt end of a taunting session; pointless pestering over her violet hair color.
She didn't know why she had this hair. Sometimes it seemed more of a curse than a blessing. Sniffing slightly and trying holding back tears, the young girl of about 10 began picking her way along the beach, a small stick in hand. The girl began waving the stick around, imagining she was holding a sword, fighting a battle against a great adversary.
Soon she grew tired, glancing back at Izumo as her stomach growled with hunger.
'If I go back, I only face more taunting…'
Numbly, she wondered why she ever went back. The older girls were the main instigators to her taunting; mostly because they were upset with how their life was working out.
'All I can do is run away…I can't even fight back.'
She was determined to get into a sword fighting school, not wanting to get taunted anymore. She looked down at the ground as her tummy rumbled once more. Should she go back or not?
Unable to make a decision, she wavered unsteadily on the beach.
Closing her eyes, she felt the mists descend from the sea, surrounding her. Idly, she wondered if he would come; her only friend.
She felt sturdy arms close around her, gently supporting her. A familiar voice called into her ear.
"Let it all out. I am here for you, my friend."
In the arms of her only friend, she wept, letting her tears flow, their saltiness matching that of the sea…
Emi woke up, tears streaking her cheeks. This time it was a dream of the past, back when she still stayed with her parents. Wiping her eyes with the warm blanket, a sad smile worked its way onto her face as she reminisced about life back then.
'I don't know how I would have survived without his support. I wonder what his name was…'
Her brow furrowing, she tried to recall what his name was. She had known that boy from the dreams as long as she could remember, yet at 16 she still didn't know his name. He had helped her so much, giving her comfort when she felt down, being a confident when she had troubles.
'I guess having his name was never an important matter at the time…'
She remembered how she would tell him stories about Weyard, legends and tales older than anyone still alive. She missed those stories, learning them from her mother Shara. Thinking of her family brought tears to her eyes.
'How I miss them…especially Shena.'
Her little sister was too young to play with her, being seven years younger than her. By the time Emi had come here at 12, Shena was only five years old.
'At least she'll be treated okay, with her cinnamon brown hair and hazel green eyes. Better than I was at least.'
She made a pouting face, blowing a small raspberry into the morning stillness. Giggling to herself, she stood up, shivering slightly as she stretched out muscles still stiff from yesterday's training session.
'With all this thinking I'm not getting any more sleep, at least not anytime soon'
Completing her usual stretching routine, Emi rummaged through her small dresser, pulling out and donning snug, warm clothes, not wanting to be caught off guard during a particularly cold winter.
'It's certainly cold enough for snow today,'
Emi cast a critical eye through her shut window, searching the sky for any clouds that might bring snow.
'No clouds in the sky at all, meaning no snow for today.'
She turned to open her door after brushing out the tangles in her violet hair, pausing when she heard voices in the training hall below her. Sighing to herself, she turned her head to gaze forlornly back at her small cot.
'I don't want to face the taunting just yet…'
It still wore at her, though she did her best to ignore it whenever possible. Immediately she brightened however, when she remembered today was her day off. Knowing how hard she worked, her instructors actually gave her a day off, so she didn't have to fret over skipping training.
'It comes with working harder than all the rest'
Her twin instructors made certain her day off was always different from the day the others skipped, as a token of kindness for her devotion to learning. It was the largest reward her instructors could give her; she knew they knew all about the taunting and pestering she endured. Smiling to herself, she opened her door, knowing exactly where she wanted to go for the day.
Emi stepped quickly through the hall, unable to hide the spring in her step as she moved to pull her Great Sword and its sheath out of her cubbyhole. She smiled at the sword, running her hand over its long leather sheath. It had been the best gift she had gotten for her sixteenth birthday, given to her by her instructors for her hard work.
'Never mind it was also the only gift…'
She stopped that train of thought. There was no point in losing herself in sadness, not on this day.
She paid no attention to the annoyed looks of her peers, grinning at the thought of getting back for all the taunting she had endured.
Casting one more look up at the sky to judge what the weather held, she trudged toward the forest, her one place of solace in life.
A few moments later she was following the single trail out of the village, breath puffing in icy clouds in front of her. Winter air always reminded her of the festivities the season involved.
'I should really be enjoying the beautiful landscape in front of me, not reminiscing over the past.'
Yet all she could do was frown. Winter was truly a bittersweet time of year for her, the festivities were nice, but the taunting and jeering she faced really put a damper on the feelings…
Entrenched in her own thoughts, Emi almost missed the sound of voices coming up on the path behind her.
Quickly glancing around, Emi climbed up the nearest tree, not wanting to work her way out of another session with the elder girls of the town. Holding her breath as they passed below her, she sighed with relief when their animate discussion faded off in the distance.
Climbing down stiffly from her place in the tree, she let out a muffled squeak of surprise, falling from her perch as her hand brushed against something small on the branch next to her.
Groaning slightly from her landing point in the bushes, she glanced back up at the tree, wondering what her hand had touched. She was promptly greeted by something soft and purple smacking her in the forehead, then landing in her lap.
Sitting up slowly, Emi glanced at the little creature, picking it up in her hands to get a better look at it. It had minute turquoise eyes, positioned slightly forward from the sides of its head.
"Why hello there, you little thing."
Emi crooned at it, stifling a giggle as it cocked its head endearingly as if it understood her words.
/You are a Jupiter Adept, are you not?/
Emi couldn't find the source of the voice. It was as if it was spoken directly into her mind, not audibly. Glancing around the bushes in confusion, she jumped when she realized it was the little creature speaking.
Dropping it suddenly, she backed up, a frightened expression taking control of her face.
"What…are you?" she asked, not really intent on finding out the answer. She was in the midst of questioning herself about why she was so afraid of something so cute when it spoke again.
/I am a Jupiter Djinn. My name is Storm./
"Jupiter Djinn huh, never heard of anything like it."
Emi sat, ignoring the twigs and leaves poking into her skin, bemusedly watching the Djinn as it flapped its tiny wings to get airborne.
She pulled herself out of the bushes that had broken her fall, making sure she wasn't injured anywhere. Satisfied that she was okay, Emi looked inquiringly toward the little Djinn, still floating lazily through the air in front of her.
"I'm heading out along the path to Gaia Rock. You coming with me?"
She really hoped the answer would be yes.
/Of course,/ he replied, his small face set in an odd expression.
She could swear, just from the voice, that if it had teeth, it would be sporting a wide grin on its face right now. Emi gave out a little laugh as the Djinn floated above her and flopped itself on top of her head.
"Comfortable?"
/Yes./
Laughing again, she stepped off onto the path once more, delighted to have finally found a new friend.
A sleek ship swiftly approached the Island of Izumo, bent on destruction.
As the town settled down in the early evening, its citizens eating dinner, shapes entered the village. The sun was sinking below the horizon, enveloping the land its red light.
One form stopped between every two buildings, fading into the shadows to wait for the signal.
One figure did not stand next to a building. Instead, this man walked calmly to the center of the village, where he climbed onto the platform used mainly for festivals.
Agatio smiled, his grin reaching both of his pointed ears. Everything was going according to plan.
"Ha! How can these people be so careless?"
He raised his hand, lighting a small orb of orange flame in his palm.
That was the signal. It was time for the plan to begin.
Immediately, each figure began shimmering, setting their assigned houses on fire, making sure the people inside could not escape.
Izumo roiled, baking in the flames. Screams tore their way through the night sky as the people inside the houses smoldered.
Satisfied with the destruction, Agatio and his men walked out, heading back to the ship.
"Now men, we head home, back to Prox for a celebration!"
The men cheered loudly. It was always good to have a celebration after a hard day's work.
Emi had been touring around the island with Storm, conversing happily, joyful to have finally found someone who didn't want to tease her about her hair. In fact, she had learned from their discussion that purple hair was common for Jupiter Adepts.
'Now that's a pleasant surprise. It would be nice to be considered normal for once…'
She paused in her walking, wondering what being normal was like.
Emi looked up in the direction of home, sensing something. That was another thing Storm had told her about. Jupiter Adepts sometimes had premonitions of the future.
"Something is wrong. Very wrong. And it involves Izumo"
She dreaded what was coming, shivering slightly.
"I think I need to head back home, Storm."
She glanced up at her small companion, wondering what his reaction would be.
/I'm coming with you, if that's what you are asking./
"Hold on then. I'm going to run."
Grimly she broke into a sprint, racing along the path that winded its way through the forest towards Gaia Rock. When she was approaching the edge of the forest, her nose smelled something nasty.
'Smoke…'
She wrinkled her face in disgust. It was the acrid kind of smoke, one that came from a combination of burning different substances other than wood.
'That would mean whatever is burning isn't supposed to be burned…'
Her heart sank as she approached the edge of the woods. Smoke was coming from the direction of her home. Willing more power into her legs, she sprinted faster, coming onto the outcropping that overlooked her village.
It was Izumo that was burning.
Her dream from two nights hadn't been just a nightmare; it was a premonition. Just like in the dream, she was now alone. Sinking to her knees, she began crying, tears falling from her shattered face.
Storm placed his tiny wing around her, giving her what comfort he could.
So...How was it?
A/N: A little explanation on why I chose to use a new character:
It wasn't really a conscious decision for me in the beginning. I could have used one of the eight party members, but they didn't really fit what I wanted the character to be able to do. (Besides, I have the shippings planned out already for those characters. ^_^) In the end it boiled down to whether wanted to use a new character, or use Karst (As she was closest to the idea I had in mind). Karst was closest, but I wanted this character role to have a kind side (and be able to travel with the others, which I didn't think Karst would be able to do, not without me bending the character a bit). I don't want to bend any character personalities in this fic; I'd really like to keep all all of that similar to in-game. So I chose to use a new character. Anyway, I'm almost done with the next chapter, where the story actually begins.
Please Review!