It was a moonless night, and a small family was travelling via caravan with only the light of the stars to guide them. This family consisted of a mother, a father, and a little boy... who I knew to be me. Everything seemed quiet... almost too quiet for the forests of Ronfaure.

"How much longer until we get there, Dad?" I asked.

"Hush now, Shinta," my mother said. "you need your sleep, let your father drive."

Something felt strange about this trip... I just couldn't shake the feeling, no matter how hard I tried.

"Please," my father said. "take Shinta and run, hurry- before we're completely surrounded."

"I understand..." my mother said, picking me up. "but will you be alright?"

"I'm not certain," my father responded. "but get to San d'Oria as quickly as possible. Ronfaure is no longer safe for you two."

My mother got out of the caravan with me, and just as she stepped down an arrow went into her chest, mere inches from my face.

"Mother!" I screamed in horror.

My father jumped out of the caravan, wielding his prized lance, and landed near us.

"Are you alright?" He asked my mother.

"I'll... be fine." She responded.

"Save your strength," he replied. "we all have to make it out of here together."

An orcish raiding party ambushed the caravan, and my father fought them off well, until a purple light struck through his shoulder.

"W... what?" He asked. "Who are you?"

"I will soon be the new ruler of this land," a voice said. "and I don't want to have to deal with meddling fools such as yourself!"

Another purple light went straight through his heart afterwards, making him fall to the ground in a puddle of blood.

"No!" My mother said, tears coming down her eyes, knowing she couldn't even move with the arrow in her chest.

"You're no good either!" The voice shouted just before another arrow went into my mother's chest, going in deeper than before.

"S-shinta..." my mother said. "you must... live on. You can't die here... please... live." With that, she faded away, still holding me in her arms.

"Well..." the voice said. "one more life to take before I return to my slumber."

"...M...mother..." I said, unable to stop crying. "Mother!"

I woke up in my bed inside the dormitory of the San d'Orian Cathedral.

"That dream again..." I said to myself. "doesn't it ever stop?" I got dressed and left the dormitory, stopping by a window on my way out.

Three years ago, King Trion had been assassinated by a surviving Dark Knight from the Dark Project. As a result of the incident, San d'Oria was plunged into a brutal Civil War. Entire families were split apart by the chaos, and invading orc armies were free to roam about the streets, doing whatever they pleased. Before it got too unstable, the orcs that were in the Cathedral were slain and the Papsque and every one of his pupils joined their magics to create an unbreakable barrier around the Cathedral. By doing so, they could focus on strengthening their magics and fighting skills to one day reclaim San d'Oria as a nation.

However, things only went from bad to worse. Demons had started spawning outside of the barrier, killing anything in sight- man, woman, child, or orc. San d'Oria was considered to most within the Cathedral to be a lost cause, but the Papsque didn't give up hope, and neither did I. I had no ability to use magic of any form, but I had been training as a fighter and found old dusty books in the Library on alchemy.
With these two skills, I figured, I could at least help in the fight somehow.

I looked at the sky and sighed, knowing that no amount of physical strength or alchemic knowledge would ever help stop this war.

"Shinta!" Kalyun said, running up to me. "You've got to hurry! The Papsque wants to speak with you in his chambers!"

I had known Kalyun for as long as I can remember, and although he pulled pranks from time to time, nothing he ever said was this serious- I knew he couldn't be kidding.

"Thanks, see you at lunch!" I said, running to the Papsque's Chambers, hoping he wouldn't be angry at me for delaying him, or running in the Cathedral. I stopped in front of his door, and opened it and walked inside. "You wished to speak with me, Your Holiness?" I asked.

"Yes, Shinta," the Papsque responded. "please, have a seat."

I sat in one of his many chairs, and readied myself for what he was about to say.

"Shinta..." he said. "you are the only one in this Cathedral who knows not a single drop of magic. Why do you think that is?"

"Um... I'm not really sure, to be honest." I said.

"Genetic Alchemy." The Papsque told me. "It is a form of alchemy developed by your grandparents that gives the subject the ability to perform any type of alchemy without the use of symbols or transmutation circles. However, there are two downsides to such an art. One, being that it may lay dormant for many generations- the subject implanted with it may never be able to use such a power. The second, is that it takes place of any magic abilities the user may ever have."

"But that's impossible," I said. "I've never even met my grandparents."

"You didn't have to," the Papsque responded. "it was implanted within their child, your father- the last Dragoon of San d'Oria, Kazu."

"..." I was speechless. Not only could I never learn magic, and use alchemy without symbols, but the two people I looked up to as a child were actually the same person.

"Take this." The Papsque said, handing me a sword sealed within a sceath. "If you are truly the heir of Seijuro and Kazu, then you will know what to do with it... when the time is right."

"Thank you, Your Holiness." I said, bowing, then I left his chambers. So much had come into my world in one visit there...

"Hey, Shinta!" Kalyun said. "Did everything go alright? And what's with the sword?"

I grinned, and said, "You'll see my friend. We will all see soon enough."