Quick Note - Hey guys, doing something a little new here. This is a one-shot story that has been accepted by the author UGX7 for his Destiny of Remnant story. This small story follows the tale of the four Relics of Remnant, if you have not read Destiny of Remnant...then check it out, it is so good. If you are new to me however then hey what's up?! If you like my style of writing, then I would love it if you gave my two series Knights of Grimm and Eclipse a read.
Anyways! Onto the tale...
"Grandpa?" The young boy whispered in a soft-spoken voice, gazing up at the older man with his wooden walking cane resting upon his legs, as he sat on the porch of his house as he stared out at the stunning green hills of Early Vale. The Shattered Moon hung over their heads in the sky of black infinite, speckles of bright twinkling stars stretching out across the beautiful skies. Misty white clouds float above them, echoes of a destructive and violent past that the world still hadn't completely healed from. The scars of war and annihilation covering its hide like that of an old Goliath. The old man looks down to his grandson with a soft smile.
"Yes?" The Grandfather replies, tapping his digits upon the rounded head of the walking cane. The boy stammered, his nervous nature causing him to fight towards the answer he has for his beloved grandfather, but luckily, he was a patient man. After living for seventy-four years and six months, patience is the strongest attribute he has earned.
"Um...I saw a book in your bag last night...I think it was called...the Shattering?" He asked him curiously, and the Grandfather looked up at the Shattered Moon, exhaling softly and closing his silver eyes as he stared up.
He chuckled softly, reaching behind his neck and scratching the fine grey hairs, sounding somewhat impressed by the young boy's eagerness to learn more about the world. The Grandfather glanced down to his leather briefcase by his rocking chair where the birds tweet gracefully, bouncing around as they embrace the energy in the air. That of life, and joy of having that privilege, unlike the many poor souls that were lost.
"Good eyes, boy, I was wondering when you would ask me that." He says as he reached into the briefcase and pulled the book out, slapping it on his lap. On the cover is a very familiar image, that of the Shattered Moon, and four fragments falling into the atmosphere of Remnant, fire burning around the shards from the lunar light and crashing into the planet. Or at least that is what the young boy assumed, since the fragments are falling towards the planet, but not showing the aftermath.
His silver eyes gaze at the cover with awe, desperation to seek knowledge in his eyes. "I'm curious to know what sparked your interest." The Grandfather remarked, and the boy softly smiles as he looks up at him shyly, feeling so small in comparison to his wise forefather.
"Well…I want to know…I want to know about the world around me. It's so beautiful but can also be so scary…I just want to know why." He explained, and the Grandfather nodded understandingly.
"You're speaking of the Creatures of Grimm? Have they been giving you nightmares recently?" He asked his grandson, who hung his head almost shamefully, feeling as if he should be braver than that. Until his grandfather gently squeezed his shoulder with his much larger and weathered hand, warming the cold concerns that flowed in him. "Don't be ashamed, little one. Your father was scared of them once, as was I…and my father and his father before him. But one day…you will no longer be afraid…and they will fear you." He assured as he taps the side of his head with his hand, by his silver eyes.
His grandson shyly smiled to his grandfather. "I hope so, Grandpa…I wanna be like you!" He declared.
The Grandfather pauses, his eyes zoning out as he reminisced on his long past and the many things that he had done over the years. The people he had to kill as a Relentless Crusader, the amount of blood that had stained his hands and his old armour…it was too much to fathom.
He exhaled through his nostrils, stroking the spine of his book. "Well…I hope you are not…totally…like me." He stated with a smile, tears welling up in his old eyes.
The Grandfather cleared his throat, grasping the front cover of the book and opening it up to reveal the inside and the first page. "Okay…the story I'm going to tell you has been passed down through hundreds of generations…tis likely that the facts have changed over the years." The Grandfather explained as he patted his knee so then his grandson would jump up and sit on his lap as he told the tale.
"In a time, long past, there was a people very much like our own…a people who could not wield the gifts that we have today. Aura, semblances, dust…even magic was forbidden. All those who ever dared to practice the dark arts were taken, burned and hanged for their crimes. Many of them were just pinned on, targets made to incite fear amongst their people…turning it all into nothing more than a myth. A memory…" The Grandfather narrates to the Grandson, who gasped with shock at this.
"There were…people before us?" He asked curiously.
"Indeed, little one." The old man confirmed.
"What happened?" The child inquired, so the Grandfather continued the story in the book as he turned the page from the illustrations…almost cave like…of a people with sky scrapers that punctured the clouds.
"Eventually an ancient evil darkness awoke, an evil that was there before the God of Gods said, 'Let there be light.' Its malevolent influence had subtly spread over the years, but now it was awake. It took in the world for a year or two before using its evil influence to manipulate many people, even world leaders, into doing things that worked towards its goal. Those who still practiced magic powers, what came to be known as Semblances, sensed this and got together to discuss what to do, and it was decided to reveal themselves to the world, which naturally led to a lot of confusion, panic, and such. Things spiralled out of control and eventually the evil force managed to manipulate things so that a great and terrible war broke out across the world, now with magical powers in arsenals as well." The Grandfather narrates, sending chills down the young boy's spine as he heard him say those words.
There are Gods…
There are Devils… and things worse.
And that was the point that they gained the gifts that they have in the world today.
"The ancient evil…is that…the Grimm?" The boy asks, the answer from his grandfather shocked him more than he expected, because he shook his head.
"No…The Darkness created the Grimm shortly after the destruction of our moon, but that comes later," The Grandfather explained, looking down at the book once more. "The War that broke out annihilated the planet, bombs exploding everywhere that tore the cities apart and shattered mountains like porcelain sculptures. And our Moon…" He explained as he looked up at the Shattered Moon with his grandson. "There was a city on the moon, and it wasn't safe from the war either, as that was where the world that was ended."
"What happened to the city on the moon?" The boy asked.
"The texts have long forgotten…but the survivors from the Cataclysm have described it as the Shattering…the largest explosion ever recorded in history impacted our moon, and blew it apart. Debris fell into the planet, spreading destruction and death for as far as the eye can see…it nearly wiped out all life on the planet." The Grandfather explained gravely.
The old man took in a deep, heavy sigh before he continued. "Oceans swallowed up land, continents shifted and cracked apart, and many, many lives were lost. But, despite all of that, our world was not dead. Life found a way to hang on, and so people managed to survive. Man rose from a world of Dust from the moon, reborn, many of the survivors having a magic known as Aura within them, helping them survive, and thus the aura within every living thing grew stronger. The Darkness made one last effort to kill our race, and thus created the Creatures of Grimm, but exhausted most of its power in doing so, so decided it needed a... representative, someone to lead these beasts of darkness. So, it chose one of the survivors, a girl named Yuri whose heart was filled with misery and anger." He explained and narrated, speaking as he flows back into the words inscribed into the book. He stared at the pages as the white pages turned black with red eyes forming in the darkness…with only one young, barely alive woman standing alone in the darkness, clenching her fists with tears down her eyes. "Chose her, to be a Queen of Darkness."
"Who was she?" The boy inquired fearfully, staring at the picture.
"Nobody knows for sure…she disappeared from the texts ever since she was chosen by the Darkness." The Grandfather explained, looking down at the book once more
"And so the world was reborn, simply a remnant of what it once was, and thus it received its new name. The reformation of the world also brought about the creation of the Faunus, people with the features of animals," The Grandfather explained.
"Wait, Faunus weren't around before the Shattering? What made them?" The Boy asked.
"The texts are somewhat conflicting on that story, but I might tell you that tale another time. So, the survivors were outnumbered by the Grimm monsters, but not outmatched, and they fought together, becoming the first Huntsmen and Huntresses! Shortly after, something miraculous happened; the heroic survivors discovered something." The Grandfather narrated, turning the page away from a picture of heroic warriors standing victorious over defeated Grimm.
"What?" The boy excitedly squeaked, bouncing on his Grandfather's knee, the old man laughed at his Grandson's eagerness to learn.
The page lands on the most important of them all, showing a group of warriors, clad in armour made from whatever they could find from the Remnants of the Old World. Discovering…four rocks glowing constantly, surrounded by four divine looking beings of light.
"They discovered Fragments from our moon, all four in craters, seeming to call out to them. Very quickly did they learn that they were being called by Two Gods and Two Goddesses, brother and sisters, who told the heroes what they were…for one burned a warrior, another gave him a choice, another made one fertile, so he could have a child with his love…and the other granted him vast amounts of knowledge. These rocks…these…relics…are echoes from an ancient past, empowered by the gods, who were impressed by our race's survival and strength." The Grandfather read as the four stones rise up in the picture and the boy gasps.
"This is real?" He asked with shock.
"Yes…the survivors of the Cataclysm used these Relics to start anew, hiding the secrets of a long-forgotten nightmare. These four Relics remain today, for their loyal protectors creating carriers that could control them. A sword which set alight when the relic was planted into it for Destruction, a Lantern which could light the way who seek Knowledge. A Sceptre which could Create everything and anything the user wishes for…and an Axe…an Axe that the user could control everything. As an axe can be used to either cut down a tree to build a log cabin or cut down a living being for sustenance. For even we can choose…the path of light…and the path of darkness." The Grandfather explained as he closed the book and looks at his grandson with a smile.
"And that…is the story of the Shattering, and of how Remnant…came to be." He explains and his Grandson gazes at his Grandfather with disbelief.
"Th-That is how…I'm here?" He asks with shock.
"How we are all…here." The Grandfather replies.
"But what about…the Darkness?" He asks fearfully, and the Grandfather pauses.
"It's still out there…every day…but there will come a time when another Cataclysm will arise. And the Destiny of Remnant will be decided, just as the Old World was." He explained.
"We all have a part to play…what part will you choose?"