Chapter 01- The Knight and his Apprentice
"... Is this the way it has to be, Delita?"
"Delita... You call me Delita again... Why? I told you, Delita is dead... My name is Shadow! That is all he ever was to you..."
The two chosen ones of Mana stood there facing each other, with the
black sky raining upon them as if the heavens were crying. Neither the
sun nor the moon could be seen in the sky, and the only form of light
was the occasional lightning and the gleam of hate in their eyes.
"It... doesn't have to be this way."
"This is our fate, our battle... We were meant to fight... You should have known this since long ago. Who ever wins this battle will be the true Mana Warrior..."
"I won't hold back..."
"Very nice attitude...That's the master I remember... The worlds have finished merging! It's time... The heavens are looking upon us, 'friend'... Let's give them something WORTH watching!"
"..."
A lightning bolt struck the ground as the next thunder was muffled by
the sounds of their swords clashing against each other. Let us go
back... back to when the world was whole, calm, and at peace...
"Don't pull it out, Ramza!" warned the apprentice.
"I've almost got it..."
The young knight kept tugging at the handle of a dirt-encased sword.
After much struggle, he pulled out the dirty and rusted blade. With a
proud filled smile, the one known as Ramza looked closely at it.
"That. that is."
"Yes..." responded Ramza. "It's the Mana Sword..."
"What is the point of having the sword without all of the Stones intact...?"
"All in due time, Delita... all in due time..."
Now full of hope and vigor, the two went on the search for the rest of
the Stones. After crossing the blazing desert, they found the ruby red
Stone of Fire. Struggling through the arctic temperatures of the Sub-
Zero Maze, they found the dark blue Stone of Water. Now the Stones
began reacting once again, to a land once known as the Corridor of
Wind. After continuously climbing to the top, the Stone began flashing
brighter and brighter, signifying how close they were to the next
Stone. After seeing the Stone in the far off distance, they approached
it cautiously as the walls began shaking. In the blink of an eye, the
guardian of the Stone appeared before them. He stood on his fours,
with his white feathers dropping at his sides. He had two heads, and
bore a resemblance to an ancient bird. This was the Mana Beast known
as Danguard.
"Leave this place..." it warned. "I am Danguard... Guardian of the Stone of Wind... Turn back now if you treasure your life."
"I expected to fight another one of you.... hopefully I can get more information out of you than the other ones."
"Others...?!"
Ramza took out the two Stones he had in his possession. The Stones of
Fire and Water were shining beautifully, but their glow caused an
angered look on Danguard.
"How... How did you get those?!"
"Xan-Bie and Fiegmund... I believe they were friends of yours?"
"...Impossible!"
"Now before I strike you down as I did them, I would like some information from you. Refuse, and I'll give you a painful death, much more painful than your friends."
"..."
"Now tell me... Why was I able to obtain the Mana Sword without the power of the other Stones?"
"The Mana Tree, protector of all things Mana, died... with out its power, the spirits died away and the barrier on the sword faded. Not even gathering the Stones will help... there is no Mana left in this world."
"What about... The Holy Land?"
"The Holy land... died along with the Mana Tree... There was no reason for it to exist anymore."
"Wrong!" replied Ramza. "The Mana tree HID itself within the Holy Land for its own survival. Before its death, the Mana Tree left one seedling in its place to flourish... so in a thousand years of rest, Mana would return to this world. It hid itself for its own preservation!"
"..."
"So that is what I am after... This world is near its end. Everything that was under the protection of Mana is dying. Without it, the planet itself will be destroyed. I plan on reopening the gate and bringing back whatever stored power that the seedling has."
"By doing that... the Mana Tree will die! You might prevent the Mana Tree from ever sprouting up again, and cause it to whither away... and it will never return to this world!"
"If it helps this world live for another decade or two... it's worth it."
"You... you're mad... I WON'T LET YOU!"
In a rage, Danguard leaped up into the air, as did Ramza in response.
Ramza swung his Mana Sword and Danguard swung his claws. They landed a
few feet from each other, with their backs facing one another. After
letting out a small growl, Danguard turned into dust, and then
disappeared. Though victorious, Ramza headed towards the small altar
with a wound on his left arm, and stood before the altar where the
Stone of Wind rested. He lifted it and gazed into its light green,
emerald like color. He gripped it firmly in his hands, as he then
handed it to Delita.
"Ramza... are you sure we should do this...? I mean... are you sure that opening a gate to the Holy Land is possible... and that it won't do the world any worse?"
"There is a way... I feel it in my heart... We have to do this, Delita. All these disasters in the word...It won't last for very long. Maybe if the gate to the Holy Land opened up, something bad will happen... but there is also a chance that the stored Mana could help us, and help this world live for another thousand years. At the rate things are going, the world wont last long enough to see the revival of Mana..."
"Ramza...?"
"Yes?"
"I think... before we go any further, we should go back home. It's been almost a whole year since we left."
"You're right. We've been lucky to survive this long... and lately, I have been missing Alexandra a lot."
"As I've missed Celeste..."
"Alright then, we'll pay a visit back home." said Ramza. "But remember Delita, do not mention anything about the Stones to anyone while we are there. the legend isn't taken very well at home."
"... Is this the way it has to be, Delita?"
"Delita... You call me Delita again... Why? I told you, Delita is dead... My name is Shadow! That is all he ever was to you..."
The two chosen ones of Mana stood there facing each other, with the
black sky raining upon them as if the heavens were crying. Neither the
sun nor the moon could be seen in the sky, and the only form of light
was the occasional lightning and the gleam of hate in their eyes.
"It... doesn't have to be this way."
"This is our fate, our battle... We were meant to fight... You should have known this since long ago. Who ever wins this battle will be the true Mana Warrior..."
"I won't hold back..."
"Very nice attitude...That's the master I remember... The worlds have finished merging! It's time... The heavens are looking upon us, 'friend'... Let's give them something WORTH watching!"
"..."
A lightning bolt struck the ground as the next thunder was muffled by
the sounds of their swords clashing against each other. Let us go
back... back to when the world was whole, calm, and at peace...
"Don't pull it out, Ramza!" warned the apprentice.
"I've almost got it..."
The young knight kept tugging at the handle of a dirt-encased sword.
After much struggle, he pulled out the dirty and rusted blade. With a
proud filled smile, the one known as Ramza looked closely at it.
"That. that is."
"Yes..." responded Ramza. "It's the Mana Sword..."
"What is the point of having the sword without all of the Stones intact...?"
"All in due time, Delita... all in due time..."
Now full of hope and vigor, the two went on the search for the rest of
the Stones. After crossing the blazing desert, they found the ruby red
Stone of Fire. Struggling through the arctic temperatures of the Sub-
Zero Maze, they found the dark blue Stone of Water. Now the Stones
began reacting once again, to a land once known as the Corridor of
Wind. After continuously climbing to the top, the Stone began flashing
brighter and brighter, signifying how close they were to the next
Stone. After seeing the Stone in the far off distance, they approached
it cautiously as the walls began shaking. In the blink of an eye, the
guardian of the Stone appeared before them. He stood on his fours,
with his white feathers dropping at his sides. He had two heads, and
bore a resemblance to an ancient bird. This was the Mana Beast known
as Danguard.
"Leave this place..." it warned. "I am Danguard... Guardian of the Stone of Wind... Turn back now if you treasure your life."
"I expected to fight another one of you.... hopefully I can get more information out of you than the other ones."
"Others...?!"
Ramza took out the two Stones he had in his possession. The Stones of
Fire and Water were shining beautifully, but their glow caused an
angered look on Danguard.
"How... How did you get those?!"
"Xan-Bie and Fiegmund... I believe they were friends of yours?"
"...Impossible!"
"Now before I strike you down as I did them, I would like some information from you. Refuse, and I'll give you a painful death, much more painful than your friends."
"..."
"Now tell me... Why was I able to obtain the Mana Sword without the power of the other Stones?"
"The Mana Tree, protector of all things Mana, died... with out its power, the spirits died away and the barrier on the sword faded. Not even gathering the Stones will help... there is no Mana left in this world."
"What about... The Holy Land?"
"The Holy land... died along with the Mana Tree... There was no reason for it to exist anymore."
"Wrong!" replied Ramza. "The Mana tree HID itself within the Holy Land for its own survival. Before its death, the Mana Tree left one seedling in its place to flourish... so in a thousand years of rest, Mana would return to this world. It hid itself for its own preservation!"
"..."
"So that is what I am after... This world is near its end. Everything that was under the protection of Mana is dying. Without it, the planet itself will be destroyed. I plan on reopening the gate and bringing back whatever stored power that the seedling has."
"By doing that... the Mana Tree will die! You might prevent the Mana Tree from ever sprouting up again, and cause it to whither away... and it will never return to this world!"
"If it helps this world live for another decade or two... it's worth it."
"You... you're mad... I WON'T LET YOU!"
In a rage, Danguard leaped up into the air, as did Ramza in response.
Ramza swung his Mana Sword and Danguard swung his claws. They landed a
few feet from each other, with their backs facing one another. After
letting out a small growl, Danguard turned into dust, and then
disappeared. Though victorious, Ramza headed towards the small altar
with a wound on his left arm, and stood before the altar where the
Stone of Wind rested. He lifted it and gazed into its light green,
emerald like color. He gripped it firmly in his hands, as he then
handed it to Delita.
"Ramza... are you sure we should do this...? I mean... are you sure that opening a gate to the Holy Land is possible... and that it won't do the world any worse?"
"There is a way... I feel it in my heart... We have to do this, Delita. All these disasters in the word...It won't last for very long. Maybe if the gate to the Holy Land opened up, something bad will happen... but there is also a chance that the stored Mana could help us, and help this world live for another thousand years. At the rate things are going, the world wont last long enough to see the revival of Mana..."
"Ramza...?"
"Yes?"
"I think... before we go any further, we should go back home. It's been almost a whole year since we left."
"You're right. We've been lucky to survive this long... and lately, I have been missing Alexandra a lot."
"As I've missed Celeste..."
"Alright then, we'll pay a visit back home." said Ramza. "But remember Delita, do not mention anything about the Stones to anyone while we are there. the legend isn't taken very well at home."