Wings of Darkness, Wings of Hope.
Summary: This story is intended as a fanfic around a future novelization of BoF2. Tells about the past of Nina Wyndia, before being taken to NewHaven (HomeTown), to be a student in the Magic School. How they realized about the Black Wings, and how the Fate of the Crown of Windia depends on her. This is the revised version.
Part One.
Ten years before the events of the start of Breath of Fire II.
"State your name and business with his Majesty the King of Wyndia," said one of the guards at the entrance to the throne room. Protocol called for it and the crossed halberds blocking the way in, but both recognized the armoured man standing before them.
"Davan Skye, Wing Commander of the Elite Corps," he replied, touching the insignia on his left shoulder. He pulled back the winged helm that covered his face, revealing concerned amber eyes. "I bring urgent news for his majesty's ears alone. It can't be delayed any further."
The two of them hurriedly opened the enormous wooden doors and stood firm as their superior almost sprinted past them. Neither said anything, but they wondered what would have a seasoned war veteran like Commander Skye in such a hurry. Even facing the Grim Reaper many times over hadn't fazed him – hell, he wore his scars proudly, a reminder to the Wyndian army that he was not someone to be crossed! Now, though, worry had etched new lines across his face.
"We'd better not mention this to anyone," whispered one.
"Right," his friend agreed. "Not unless we want to be on dungeon-cleaning duty for the rest of our lives."
xXx
"Your Majesty, King Kenneth, Lord of the Wing Clan," said Skye, kneeling and folding back his wings. Fortunately for him, the throne room was empty of supplicants needing their king's advice on matters, but the monarch was debating something with his ministers and advisors.
"Yes, Wing Commander?" said the king, raising a hand to signal a halt. "What brings you here in the middle of discussion about the tax policy for the remainder of the year?"
"An urgent message from the Seer of the High Winds," he replied. "If you'll forgive my impertinence, the Seer said that the news was only to be delivered to you and the Queen, your majesty."
"So be it. There is nothing to forgive, Commander," he said with a smile. "Please excuse us, gentlemen. It seems this is a more pressing matter. We will summon you to finish this meeting later."
The ministers and advisors bowed to their king before turning and leaving the throne room, although more than one shot dirty looks at Skye. He shrugged them off; he had put up with worse than upset ministers before.
"Davan, what is so urgent?" asked Kenneth, dropping the royal plural as he opened the doorway to a secret passage leading towards the Queen's chambers.
"For now, I can only tell you that she passed away, my liege," he answered in a whisper; although they were now alone, there was no point in taking chances. "And that she left a message for you and Hina, in the hands of me and the six remaining members of the Elite Corps."
Kenneth paled. "What happened to the other six?"
"We were attacked by a demon after the Seer's death," Skye answered, sorrow in his eyes. "Even the power of our most highly trained soldiers wasn't enough to take it down without casualties. The healers are tending to the survivors as we speak. I wasn't wounded severely and I had to get the message to you before it was too late."
"Where did this demon come from?"
"You will not believe me . . . ," he warned.
"Try me."
Skye sighed. "The Seer made me swear a magical oath that I wouldn't reveal her words to any other; my life would be forfeit if I were to do so. She handed me a scroll, and afterwards . . . she screamed, and asked us to slay her before 'it' came out. We couldn't do it then, but she turned into a demon and started attacking us. We fought it, but it was a long and hard battle and the seven of us left barely managed to make it back to Wyndia. It shames me, but we had to leave the bodies of our fallen comrades behind."
"This is indeed serious . . ." Kenneth mused. "Who would have expected the Seer to be a demon? But let's go find Hina and discuss this properly. And please, I can't stand it when you're formal all the time, Davan! If even my childhood friend and brother-in-law were to address me like the king at all times, I'll never be able to live with myself."
"Don't worry, I'm sure Hina will keep your feet on the ground," smirked Skye, momentarily letting go of the troubles that plagued him. "I feel sorry for everyone who gets bossed around by my sister. Ladon's fangs, I wouldn't even wish it on a demon!"
"Come on, don't start now, or I'll make you Lord Skye of Garra!" the king laughed. "She has her tender side as well, though it's incredibly well hidden some days."
"That's cheating!" he protested. "You know that I hate those nobility titles. There's too many snobby nobles around. My place is on the battlefield, protecting Wyndia. I can't stand all of the posturing and sycophants. Still, you can't deny that Hina is bossy."
"Yes, yes, point taken. If I couldn't rule over the kingdom for some reason, I have no doubt that she'd have everything running her way within the hour. She's almost the definition of a steel hand in a velvet glove. But we're about to reach our destination and I don't feel like sleeping in the royal bathroom for the rest of the month, so we'd best stop talking now."
Skye chuckled. "As you command, your majesty."
xXx
Queen Hina of Wyndia was alone in her chambers, perched in an armchair with a book in her hands. Her eyes were sad, skimming gently across the printed words as she sat lost in thought.
"Another heart-rending romance novel, dearest songbird?" Kenneth said to his wife as he pushed aside the tapestry that concealed the secret passage. He smiled widely as she jumped in shock.
"Can't you come through the proper door every once in a while?" she asked mock-angrily. "You could at least pretend to be a civilized king!"
"I am wounded beyond compare by your spiteful words, my dear," he replied, feigning a hurt expression and clutching at his chest dramatically.
Skye laughed, following the king into the room. "Sis, you know he wouldn't come that way just as a jest."
"Maybe so, but you would. And he would follow, just like old times. You're still my little brother, and you always will be. You'll never grow up, Davan." She smiled at them both.
Skye pulled the tapestry back into place and raised his hands, chanting softly. A thin glowing sphere encompassed the room, ensuring that the words of its occupants would stay hidden to unwelcome ears.
"Unfortunately, Hina," Skye said as his sister gave him an inquiring glance, "this journey was not merely for enjoyment. I bring dire news. But first, when is Nina's wing-day?"
"She will be ten years old at dusk tomorrow," Hina answered. "But surely you know this?"
"Please trust me in this," he implored. "Cancel the public wing-day ceremony tomorrow. You can use the excuse that it's very special to you as parents. Many noble families used it in the past. The citizens will understand."
"Why?" asked Kenneth, shock and confusion in his eyes. "The royal wing-day is an occasion of joy for the whole kingdom. We can't disappoint our people."
"Because this is what the Seer of the High Winds told me before she succumbed to the demon's curse," said Skye, taking a magically sealed scroll from a pouch and handing it to Hina.
As one, Kenneth and Hina pressed their royal rings, emblazoned with the symbol of Wyndia's monarchy, against the wax seal holding the document closed. It unfolded gently, releasing the scent of old parchment and rosemary, and the voice of a woman whose years extended past her natural time began to speak.
"Your Majesties,
If you receive this, then you will know for certain that I have passed away. I know not if I will be reunited with my ancestors because of my foul deeds. I made a pact with a demon to become a Seer and many years ago spoke of a prophecy that will bring you great grief.
I am sure that you will remember this foretelling. The Wings of Destruction, the wings of one who will turn the feathers of our people crimson with our own blood through civil war. That one shall be executed on her wing-day, lest all of Wyndia fall prey to the disasters of a god's wrath.
But there was more to it than that. In truth, the one with the Wings of Destruction shall also achieve a magic that none in our glorious kingdom will ever reach, and be known forever as the Queen of Angels. She will support the Destined in his quest to vanquish the bane of this world left by the Goddess of Devastation five hundred years ago.
The demon with whom I made this pact forced me to hide this in order to bring about the downfall of the Queen of Angels, who will soon be revealed. You must protect this person, your majesties, not only for the world but also for yourselves. For she is your eldest daughter, Princess Nina Wyndia.
By sending this, I hope that I can atone for my sins, if indeed I am judged worthy of doing so. Part of our pact included that if ever I were to impart the truth, I would take on the heart and likeness of a demon. I cannot change my past, but with luck I can avert the atrocities of the future I have seen.
Farewell, my king and queen. Please forgive this feeble excuse of a seer who was so blinded by the thrall of power that she did not consider the folly of her actions and the consequences it would surely bring.
Mirelia Greenwind
The scroll glowed a glaring white as the voice finished speaking, collapsing into dust and charred scraps of paper.
Kenneth was shaking silently, his nails digging into his palms until blood began slowly dripping from his clenched fists. Tears fell down Hina's face, streaking that once-joyful face with disbelieving sorrow.
"Why?" she whispered. "My little Nina . . . it can't be!"
"There's no time to change the law that says she'd be executed," said the king. "And peoples' minds won't change that easily even if we could. They'd never support her as Queen if she even survived that long."
"We still have one day," said Skye pragmatically. "We'll have to hurry."
"Damn you, Davan," snarled Kenneth, now crying. "No parent should ever be asked to kill their child."
"I didn't say that!" he objected. "Nina is my niece as well as your daughter. I love her just as much as you do. I was going to suggest that, well, there's a chance . . ."
He trailed off, but Hina eagerly jumped on his words. "Spill it, little brother," she demanded.
"If the bearer of the Wings of Destruction were exiled in secret . . ."
"We wouldn't have to execute her," Kenneth finished. "We might be able to say that Nina died on her wing-day. It's not common nowadays, but there used to be a deadly illness that manifested moments before the wings grew fully."
"It's a possibility," said the queen, now in a more stable frame of mind. "It just . . . talking about pretending that Nina's dead like this . . . it's distressing. And what about poor Mina? She idolizes her sister."
"You can't tell her," said Skye urgently. "She'd be devastated."
"But what are we supposed to do, then? There's no way that Mina wouldn't notice Nina had gone."
"Why don't you send Nina to the Magic Academy in Newhaven?" he suggested. "She wants to study magic anyway, doesn't she? And it's faraway enough that she'd be safe there, but still in the kingdom so you'd be able to keep an eye on how she's doing and Mina would be able to visit her every now and then."
"Is that the one run by that old monster of a magic teacher, Yoji?" said Hina in surprise. "He'd have died years ago, wouldn't he?"
"No, he's still alive and kicking," Skye replied. "He's probably survived just to spite his students. Remember? Woe to he who made a mistake and didn't immediately learn from it."
"Don't remind me," said Kenneth with a groan. "The royal paperwork is just as nasty, but at least I have ministers watching over my shoulder instead of Master Yoji. Still, Nina's a smart girl; she'll be able to handle it."
"But will she be safe there?" asked Hina, every inch the concerned mother. "Can we station some of the Elite Corps in Newhaven to protect her in case anything happens?"
Her expression slowly faded in depression as neither of the other two said anything for a few minutes. Until suddenly Skye sat up straight, beaming.
"The Ranger's Guild!" he exclaimed. "The Ranger's Guild is always low on funding, isn't it, Kenneth?"
"Yes," the king replied, confused, "but what does that have to do with anything?"
"If the Crown decides to assist them with funding for a few years, then I'm sure they wouldn't object to us disguising two of our soldiers as members of the guild."
"Interesting plan, Davan." The king smiled, feeling relieved. "Although the guards would need to have a certain degree of independence from the guild. Associates, perhaps? In any case, I think that we can arrange a win-win scenario."
"There's a group of Rangers in Wyndia at the moment, waiting on passport renewals before they travel back. I can contact them after the announcements of Nina's illness and arrange for them to escort her back to Newhaven," Skye offered.
Hina nodded. "Thank you, Davan. I'll speak to the Master of Ceremonies about canceling the public ceremony." She looked as though she might start crying again.
Skye, seeing the look on his sister's face, stood up and tactfully edged towards the door. "I'm tired after that ordeal," he said. "I'll be in my chambers if you need me for anything else."
As soon as he had left, Hina collapsed into her husband's arms. "How can I go through with this, Kenneth?" she sobbed. "It's all so neat and tidy, but what if something goes wrong, and Nina, our little Nina, what if we never see her again?"
"Shh . . ." he said, kissing her gently. "It'll work out. At least this way we know she's alive. It's better for people to think we're a cursed family because our heir died than it is for them to think we're a cursed family because our heir had black wings." He kissed her again, trying to convey comfort and understanding of how she felt. "Whatever happens tomorrow, know that I love you and our daughters, and I always will."
Tomorrow would be hard, harder than anything either of them had known before. But they were ready for it, thanks to the sacrifice of a Seer. And with that glimmer of hope she had given them and although it was clouded still, they could see the blue skies of peace.
End Part One.
Author's Note:
Well, this is the first part of the rewritten version. Miss Kestre Wynde has done a marvelous work being an editor and beta-reader, doing the job that only a very talented jeweler would be able to. Also, thanks a lot to the readers who favored it in the first take. If you want the original story, just contact.