So. It's here. My first release. This is indeed a Mudshipping, but mite feature others later on, if my collective soul so votes. I make my own original storyline, but I must admit, I was influenced by other works. So, I look forward to any reviews, but please no flames. All criticism, as long as it is constructive, is appreciated. Look for me on xbox live, with the same gamertag as my profile, beastoftheast92. So, without further ado, I welcome you to my story. Thanks,
Patrick
(PS: All my thanks to O-Mega Lead's awesome beta skills. Without the awesomeness, this work would not be here. The leftover thanks go to Amanda Chichoraki for the push that made me start this deal.)
(PPS: While I may own this story, I claim no rights to the awesomeness of any of Camelot's creation)
Chapter 0 - Prologue
Mia allowed a small sigh of relief to escape her lips as the caravan bearing Master Hammet rolled away from the secret entrance to Lunpa. Glancing around at her companions, she saw that Garret and Ivan were being as lively as usual, high-fiving with huge grins on their faces. "All right, Ivan! We managed to save your master, even after all those people who told us that we couldn't!" Garret said happily.
"Yeah, it's great isn't it? We've freed Master Hemet! I still have the Shaman's rod, and I can still continue the journey to stop Saurotos and Mernardi. I'm glad that I can help my friends without the burden of having Master captured hanging on my back" Ivan replied. They high-fived again, and Mia giggled.
"Hey guys, aren't we forgetting something? Whose idea was it to come and rescue master Hammet, anyways?" Isaac said, entering the conversation.
"Oh, Yeah! Thanks loads Mia, if you hadn't have thought of using Cloak to sneak into Dodonpa's palace, Master Hammet would still be stuck in there!
Mia flushed slightly at Ivan's words. "Oh… it was no problem… I'm sure one of you guys would have thought of it sooner or later…"
Isaac hit her playfully on the shoulder, "Come on now, don't be so modest! It was a brilliant idea. I'm just glad that Babi agreed to lend the Cloak Ball to us."
"Yeah…" Mia said, blushing a little deeper. She looked up slowly, and Isaac winked down at her before he turned away. "Alright guys, because there is a really good chance of encountering some of Dodonpa's men, tonight we are going to have to draw lots for watches. Short straw gets first watch!"
The four adventurers sat around the fire after dinner, awaiting the outcome of the lot drawing.
"Nuts!" Ivan said as he drew the short straw first. "I always get watch just when I want it the least."
Garret laughed as he got up from his seat, "That's how it always works, shorty. Enjoy it! I'm goin' to bed"
Mia walked up to Ivan as he was pouting. "I'm not short…! Man, I was getting close to that new shine psynergy, too… shucks. It seemed more powerful than the ones before."
"…If you want, I can switch watches with you, Ivan. I don't have one today, but you can owe me for tomorrow."
"Really? Thanks Mia! I've been communing with my djinn through meditation. It helps me to learn new psynergy, so I've wanted to do it for a few days now, but haven't had a chance. I would do it on a watch, but it requires my utmost concentration. Normally I can't even hear what is going on outside, much less be alert enough to hold watch."
"Alright. You go get some rest then. You too, Isaac. Our 'fearless leader' can't be sleepy during the daytime, so get a good night's sleep," Mia told the two boys.
"OK! See you tomorrow!" They said in unison, and laughed as they went off to their tents.
Mia was sitting in front of the fire's smoldering embers, absently staring at the stars while scratching Fizz's head, lost in thought. That was why she liked first watch: it was some free time, just to think and reflect without the boys intruding, even if they did it accidentally. Today, her thoughts turned to her home in Imil, and the time that she spent there.
'Life was always busy for the healer in Imil. The combination of extreme cold and bitter winds meant that there were always people in needing of healing. There was barely even time for Mia to eat or sleep during the cold and flu seasons, with the water at Hermes Fount being restrained by Mercury Lighthouse's inactive beacon. However, as much as she sometimes wished that she could light the beacon so the Fount could help her in her work, she knew that she could not. For it was the solemn duty of the Mercury clan to protect the lighthouse from being lit…'
Mia's thoughts shied away from that touchy subject. She, the pride of the Mercury clan, had failed in her prime duty… 'No, I have been over this too many times, Isaac and all the others say that there was nothing more that I could have done…' Mia thought as she broke from her reverie. Fizz crooned softly under her fingers, making Mia smile softly. Apart from Isaac, Mia was the closest person in the party to her djinn.
Isaac… Now that was another touchy subject, although for a different reason altogether. Mia was still unsure of her feelings for the Venus adept, but even she could tell that they were growing. Isaac made her feel like no other boy had before, but that might have been because she had never associated with one guy for more than the time it took for their illness to recover.
'No, that can't be right… because then I would feel the same way towards Garret and Ivan…' While she did like Ivan and Garret, neither made her feel the same way as Isaac did, even though all three were her precious friends.
Mia thought back on what had occurred since meeting Isaac and co. It was always Isaac who came to the forefront of her thoughts; how he had been the first to accept her at Mercury Lighthouse, moving the statues for her while Ivan and Garet debated over the merits of taking a girl into their party. How he had always been ready to leap to her defense in battle. How he had stayed behind to help her as she struggled in the intense heat of the Lamakan Desert and how anytime she was feeling down, he was there, with kind words and his bright smile. However, she knew that he would do those things for any of his friends, not just her… A small crashing sound in the bushes startled Mia, and she grabbed her Blessed Ankh asshe went to investigate 'If it's only another Rat, I'll take care of it myself, no need to wake the others...'
Mia stopped short of the clearing where the rustling sound was, startled by the presence of psynergy. 'If this monster can use psynergy, I'd better investigate first,' Mia thought, casting Cloak. If the monster really used psynergy, it would be able to see her outline, but Cloak would still help her remain mostly hidden. The "monster" in the clearing was actually Isaac, working his sword forms. 'Ah, that explains the psynergy leak,' Mia thought. She turned to leave and return to her watch, but remembering her earlier thoughts, she decided to stay, just for a minute.
Isaac had his shirt off, and sweat was rolling down his body. Mia noted, blushing furiously at the thought, that Isaac was even more muscular than he let on when he was in his armor. His core and shoulder muscles rippled as he turned, the corded muscle in his arms bulging as he thrust the sword in a coup d'estoc thrust. His powerful calf muscles skyrocketed him into the air as he rotated, executing a balestra combined with a flip, a move designed to put him in a finishing position behind his opponent. Mia watched, enthralled, as Isaac pushed his body to, and beyond, its limits.
The thing that really drew Mia in was not his body though. It was his eyes. As he flowed from form to form with seemingly endless grace, his facial expression never once changed from the serious, intent look that he wore when fighting. But, now that Mia had time to watch him without worrying about herself or the other members of her party, she noticed that his eyes contained a fierce, unchained look of pure fire, eyes that showed the depth of his passion for the sword. Mia shuddered, overcome by the look, almost jealous of the way that he seemed so… free, and surprised by the young man's intensity. However right as she was about to leave, Isaac's dance ended.
"I guess Mia was right" he said to himself as he cooled down by stretching. "I really should get more rest. I haven't been feeling well recently. Prolly not enough sleep…" Mia overheard as he stretched to his full height, body shuddering with sinuous pleasure as each vertebra cracked slowly. "She really is such a nice girl… I wonder what she thinks of me..?"
Mia had been slowly sneaking back to the fire to resume her watch position, but she caught these last words and had to stifle a gasp. 'Does he mean what I think he does??? No, it can't be… it can't possibly be… He probably meant nothing of the sort… but… no! it can't be…it's got to be that he's just worried about Garet, Ivan and I think of him as a leader, ' Mia thought as she fled back toward the camp.
When she reached the fire, her Cloak vanished, leaving her feeling a little drained from its constant use of psynergy. She heard Isaac enter his tent through the back entrance, which explained how he had gotten out to practice without her noticing. Mia was glad that he had not seen or heard her, for right now her heart was a little unstable, and a confrontation could go badly. What her heart needed right now was meditation and prayer.
As she settled into the seiza position, her traditional prayer seating, Mia began to categorize her thoughts.
She had never had a boyfriend, never been in a relationship before. For one, her duties as a healer kept her so busy that, even had one of the boys wanted to see her, they would have so little time together that it would not have been easy. Yet, no one wanted to approach her. It was not because she wasn't pretty, but it was because she had so little self confidence. Even after she surpassed her teachers in the sacred art of Ply, she thought that her skill was worthless, despite encouragement from her teachers and fellow students. She also did not believe that she was even good looking, much less pretty. She almost neglected her azure hair, but that was a keepsake of her mother, so it was important to her.
However, all that changed after she met Isaac. She had carefully watched him and his companions up the Mercury lighthouse, noting the ways that they fought together, understanding each other's moves to the point where the three men moved as one machine. She had been almost jealous, overcome by doubt that she could even hope to help them prevent the beacon from being lit. It was then that Isaac called her over and began explaining their battle tactics, and how she could be included if she wanted. She could clearly recall staring at him, thinking that he had read her mind. However, she shook her head to clear her thoughts, and then joined them in the fighting.
Atop the aerie, it had been her magic that had forced Saurotos to retreat, that had won them the battle, even though the beacon had been lit, a bittersweet moment.
The next memory came a few days after, when Isaac found Mia crying inside the Sanctuary, convinced that she had failed yet again, this time in her life's most important responsibility. After she had confessed her doubts, all of them, to the adept, he had just looked at her for a few moments 'Of course… I was right, He think that I am useless… I am useless' she had thought, turning away and beginning to cry again. Then he did something that she had never expected: He slapped her full across the face. He explained in clear terms why she was not useless, but she had refused to believe him. After thinking for a minute, he had asked his djinn Flint to seal off his psynergy. He then took out his hunting knife and cut his own wrist, three times in quick succession before she could grab his arm and wrest the knife away. "What now?' he had asked. "I cannot heal myself, have no healing items, and if you try to run for help, I will surely die before you get back." She had gasped, and then cast Pure Ply, without even thinking. Isaac had then gathered her up in his arms and held her, stroking her hair until she had stopped weeping and shaking. "And that is why you are NOT a useless person. Never say it, no, never even think it again." He had left shortly after, leaving her to think by herself for a while.
Mia had changed since that day. She slowly grew more and more open, both with others and herself. Any time that she began to relapse, Isaac and the others were there to help support her. She had noticed how Isaac had liked her beryl-colored hair, and she began to groom it daily, growing it almost down to her waist. She wondered how she had transformed from the shy girl that she was into the person she was now.
Mia fingered the silk hair tie that Isaac had bought for her when they stopped in Xian. She had been having trouble with her hair, and Isaac had noticed and bought her the expensive gift using his money that they had found after the fights with the apes in Mogall Forest. Then more recently, he had given her the Cocktail Dress that he had won at the Tolbi Lucky Medal Fountain. He had claimed that it had been an accident, and that he couldn't wear it anyways, but she had seen him leave the pool with spare lucky medals after winning the dress, a clear sign that the dress was what he had been after. Mia's eyes opened slowly as she realized that was when it had started. That was her feelings for him began. They had only expanded during his fights in Collosso, and had kept growing through the Suhalla Desert, and had continued during the trek back to Lunpa to rescue Hammet, after Mia had realized the saving Ivan's master was not only possible, but practical and likely to be worth the return investment. However, Mia had only realized it now:
She liked Isaac!
The Mercury adept was confused. She had talked with other girls back in Imil, but this was the first time she had ever experienced it herself. Actually this feeling ran deeper than what the others had talked about… It wasn't possible… "I know now that I like him, but there is no possible way that that I can… lovehim is there? No… we've only been together for a few months, it couldn't have developed that fast. "
After convincing herself that there was no way that she could love Isaac, at least not yet, Mia made herself think about whether Isaac could possibly like her. She knew that all the acts of kindness that he had shown to her could have been given to anyone, for Isaac had an infinite supply of kindness. Mia chuckled as she realized that one of the things that she liked most about him was currently the most frustrating. However, there was always a light in his eyes when he talked to her. "Maybe… just maybe…" Mia muttered to herself, fidgeting around with the silk hair tie. "After all, wasn't he the one who told me "Nothing is impossible"?"
As she sat wrapped in thought, a rough hand snaked around her mouth, prevent her from either breathing or making a sound. As she struggled against the darkness clouding the edges of her vision, she strained to reach her weapon, but it lay just out of her grasp. Fizz gasped and ran away, out of the camp
"What was that!!?" a dark, guttural voice asked sharply. "Who knows?" answered a thin, reedy voice. "Just let it go, it can't do much. Must be some tame monster."
"Ok. Boy, oh boy, the boss sure is a smart one. For a girl like this, who knows how much we can get at the market?" The surly-sounding one said. "Good point. Turning from thief to a kidnapping slaver sure was a good idea!" the reedy one replied.
The last thing that Mia thought of before losing consciousness was, strangely, the thing that had been on her mind all night:
'ISAAC! Help M—'
A/N: So, sorry about that cliffie. Chapter 1 is on the way, no worries! Also, I'm having trouble with the "page break" lines, so the really large spaces are for new paragraphs/ideas.
Until next time,
Patrick Coen (beastoftheast92)
