Author's Note: The first Tales of the Abyss fic I'm uploading. I'll get some feedback and such, and then decide on how to continue this. If it's liked, I'll have a more elaborate story-line. If it's not so popular, it'll be a lot shorter with less of a story-line. Also, my life has been really busy for the past month or so, with emotional ups and downs. It's been hard for me to update my other CCS story, Accepting Fate. But I will get the next chapter up, hopefully soon!

Enjoy!

Summary: The young Kimlascan princess, Ana-Lyesa, had heard the stories of the Great Luke fon Fabre, who'd saved the world hundreds of years before, and his team, who'd stuck with him to the end, all of whom were greatly respected and wonderful in their own ways. Ana-Lyesa had always loved these stories, and gets as much information on the subject as she can from the libraries and the oral stories of the older folk, but what happens when she discovers a very old diary in the gardens?

The 'y' in Ana-Lyesa is pronounced with a long 'e' sound, so the name is like 'Anna - Lee-essa' pronunciation-wise. Hope that makes sense to ya'll.

Disclaimer: I don't own Tales of the Abyss or the characters in the game at all XP. But Ana-Lyesa and all the characters I've made for this fic are mine...


"And like that, Luke the Great saved all of Auldrant from Vandesdelca's horrible plans."

The old man's voice rung in the ears of a young hooded woman, and she turned to see the man with a gathering of children surrounding him. The blond woman watched in curiosity.

"But what happened after that? Did he ever come back?" one of the children questioned loudly.

The man chuckled. "Of course, but it was a year later. Nobody knows the details of how he actually got back, but everyone was happy when he did. He went on to become Duke of Kimlasca with Mystearica Aura Fende as his wife. Since then, the world has lived in prosperity and peacefulness, free of the Score," he explained.

The young woman smiled, and the crowd of children dispersed, cheerful with the happy ending to a very well-known tale. The old man watched them leave with a fond smile on his wrinkled face before he noticed the cloaked woman standing nearby.

"Ah, Miss Ana-Lyesa. Sneaking out again?" he teased .

The girl called Ana-Lyesa rolled her eyes, an indignant blush appearing on her fair cheeks. "Well, can you really blame me? Father is far too protective!" she complained, and the man nodded in understanding.

"Yes, yes, I'm not accusing you of anything. Anyhow, still interested in the history of Luke the Great, I see," he chuckled, turning the conversation in another direction.

Ana-Lyesa's eyes brightened. "Of course! His story is exciting; a real-life fairytale! Not to mention the fact that it was the last time anything big happened on this planet," she responded excitedly.

"Of course. You always were one for adventure. But those were hard times, when people strictly followed the Score and ended up dying because of it," he said, and Ana-Lyesa nodded hurriedly.

"That's right, but Sir Luke actually got to do something about it! He didn't just sit at home and let others fix the problems! That's why we all call him so great! I'm always curious, though, to know what sort of things really went on with him and his friends. You know, the personal-type stuff. There's not much other than plain facts of history that you can get after a few hundred years," the girl animatedly rambled.

Again, the man was laughing in amusement. "I understand your sentiments, Princess, but this was five-hundred years ago. Most of those details are long-gone," he said.

Ana-Lyesa, identified as the princess, sighed, nodding to his statement.

"Yes, I know that, but I can still hope that maybe there's some piece of evidence somewhere!" she replied earnestly.

"Alright, Princess, but you should probably head back to the castle before they realize you're missing," the old man urged.

Ana-Lyesa nodded, offering a smile as she walked off, waving to him. "Alright! See you later, Mr. Frings!"

And with that, the young blond was off to her home...at the top of the city of Baticul, in the palace.


"Ana-Lyesa? Where are you!?"

The young princess bit her lower lip, glancing around the plants of the luxurious garden, hoping not to be seen by the maids.

"Princess Ana-Lyesa, come out! It's dinnertime!"

The voices faded away soon after that, and Ana-Lyesa heaved a sigh of relief, loosening her tense muscles.

"Great, they're gone," she murmured to herself, straightening before turning once again to the tree she'd been hiding under. There were strange carvings etched into the bark near the ground, and from the looks of them, they were very old, and in a language she didn't understand. This was why she was skipping dinner. Because this was a clue to some mystery just waiting to unfold, and she would not miss the chance to uncover it.

Looking around the tree-trunk, she found no other marks like the first, and the girl was disappointed at first, until in her search she tripped on something at the base of the tree. Frowning, Ana-Lyesa bent to see what it was she tripped on, and her eyes widened.

There was a small door, that opened into the ground. It was like a small, cupboard-size compartment in the ground. Grinning to herself, Ana-Lyesa put her hand on the handle and tried pulling open the door. She assumed it would be easy to open.

It didn't budge. Her brows creasing further in irritation, she tugged harder until, suddenly, it flew open and she fell back, startled by the sudden progress.

Taking a deep breath, Ana-Lyesa pushed away the grass and shrubs around the compartment, and found a book; it was a diary. Cocking her head to the side in interest, she gently pulled out the diary, brushing away the heavy layer of dust and debris on the cover to show the lettering, Luke. Her eyes perked up at the familiar name, and instantly, the princess opened the book, her heart set on reading what was written in the yellow, old pages.

And here, she would discover the secrets she had, for many years, yearned for.


~*~

A/N: So, feedback is much appreciated, and this is just the prologue, so it's a lot shorter than what is normal. The idea just popped into my head, and actually, I was originally gonna have it as a one-shot, but plans change. As I said before, the direction of this fanfic is entirely up to the readers :)

Hope you like it so far!