By Sargent Snarky
A random idea I had… AU using the characters from .hack and some of the plot ideas, settings, spells, monsters, items and mythology sort of stuff (The Gott Statues, magic portals, chaos gates, Epitaph of Twilight, among other things) in a more 'realistic' setting. As in, a medieval fantasy sort of world… Please note, I will try to stick to character personalities, but – as some of you may have seen in my other fanfics – I don't always keep to character. Heh. S'a lot harder than you'd think to keep to a preset guideline for how a character acts because you kind of have your own version of the character in mind that is similar to, but not exactly like the actual character. Err… I'm not sure if you understand that. I don't. But oh well. In case I've completely eradicated any meaning this paragraph had, I'll reiterate: This is a complete AU in which 'The World' is umm… 'Real,' albeit in a medieval fantasy setting. Oh, and I screw around with the characters and whatnot. You'll see what I mean…
Oh, and I kind of start in the beginning of the middle, as it were, and there'll be a couple flashbacks. Not many, but there'll be a few. And there'll be plenty of references to things going on before I begin this story. But don't let the confusion bother you! Most of it will be explained, and the rest probably isn't hard to figure out.
Do you seriously think I own the .hack conglomeration? If so, you are an idiot. If I owned the .hack franchise, I would be working on G.U. rather than writing fanfiction and drooling over the trailer, praying that Bandai actually releases it in America this year, like they say they will… Oh, and I wouldn't be panicking about final exams (for the year)… You see, I'd be Japanese, and I'd be much older than I am now. (fifteen) Common sense people..
Along similar lines, -drools over the trailer for G.U.- Evil Kite… -does happy dance- Yay! Someone besides me had the idea of a possessed freaky Kite!
Along the same line (again) –drools over the trailer and screen shots for Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess- Man, I wish I had a Game Cube…-sigh-
To go off on a tangent, most of the girls I have met do not play video games. OK, so maybe they've played them, but they aren't fanatics like myself, and one of my best friends. However, most of the major .hack fans I've found have been female. O.o How weird is that. I mean, it's not even the sort of game you'd think girls would like. I love it, but I love fantasy sort of RPGs… I am awful at first person shooters, but the fact that I don't own any impedes any progress I could otherwise make in my accuracy. Well, I have a copy of Quake I, II, and III, but… um… When the old computer died, I lost my save files for them. And, well, I have yet to install them on the newer computer. Anyway, the same thing goes for DDR. I've met more guys who play DDR with any skill than girls. Weird. Because DDR is game you'd think girls would like more. However, the best people I've met who play DDR are Asian. It's kind of freaky the way Asians kick butt at DDR. O.o
Woooow. I really got off on a tangent there. Sorry..
One thing I really do need to mention: I'm going to try a different way of writing this story… The prologue and occasional interludes will be in 3rd person, but I'm going to try and tell the majority of the story from 1st person, albeit from varying points of view. For example, the prologue thing is in 3rd person, but the first chapter starts out with Tsukasa's POV. Later, it switches to Kite's POV. Aura's POV will be in there on occasion… and possibly others… Probably not, but I know for a fact that the main storyline will progress under Kite's, Tsukasa's and Aura's POVs.
Oh yeah. That reminds me. This fic for sure has a Kite&Tsukasa pairing. After writing Fragments of a Shattered Mirror, I decided that I liked that pairing. O.o Go figure. It's not that I have anything against Kite&Blackrose… I happen to like that pairing, too… But… -grins- This is an unusual pairing, and I happen to like it a lot.
Oh. And for those of you who've read Fragments, I am pretty sure that this will be longer. In fact, I plan to have it be much longer than Fragments. Also, this story will not be as, em, dark. It won't be a torture fic. Ehehe… Kite would kill me if I messed with him much more… As it is, Tsukasa jabs me in the ribs with her staff every time I so much as think about giving them too much hell in this story. However, that doesn't mean they get off easy… Ow! Stop it! -deathglare at Tsu- Don't make me take your teddy bear.. Tsukasa: O.O! Not my teddy! Noooo! –glomps teddy and stares at me with wide, accusing eyes-
(Um… watch .hack/GIFT to see Tsukasa's teddy bear… )
Summary: Doom is coming. It rises in a great wave, threatening to drown all the world in its murky depths. One queen plots total domination. All she needs to succeed is the princess of the Twilight. All that stands in her way are a young warrior and a young wavemaster.
Before they have any hope of stopping the Queen Morganna from succeeding in her diabolical (hehe! That's a fun word) plans, however, the warrior must gain and master the very power Morganna bequeathed to her eight minions and the wavemaster must gain the trust of and control over the six elemental guardians.
Anyway.. here's the story:
Prologue
In Medias Res…
A man and a woman sat at a small round table in the main room of a small house. The house was comprised of four rooms: two bedrooms, a kitchen and the main room, which served as a gathering space, eating area, and any other of a number of purposes. The woman was short and curvy, and had long red hair and a kindly expression. The man was tall and thin, but with broad shoulders and dark bluish hair. (Yes. Weird hair colors were not uncommon in certain areas of this world.)
"The small one hasn't woken up yet?" asked the man.
"No. The child is still asleep," replied the woman with a sigh
"And the other girl?"
"She woke up a while ago, but she's sleeping again now."
"Yeah. Are they sisters, do you think, and the boy is their brother?"
"No. They aren't siblings. At least I don't think they are…"
"You sure?"
"Well, no… But they don't look like each other at all."
"Why else would they be traveling together?"
"Don't know. But that boy… How is he doing? He's in your care, right?"
"Yes. He's stirred once or twice. Mumbled in his sleep, and shouted something about 'twilight' and a monster that steals souls."
"Huh? A monster that steals souls…"
"You've heard of it?"
"Mm… Once or twice… Hey! Maybe these three are…"
"What?"
"Nothing."
"Wait a minute. These three… you don't think they are the ones she's looking for?"
"That's what I was thinking."
"What should we do?"
"They're just kids… We can't let her get them."
"But the law… and the bounty. Besides, if we're caught harboring them…"
"It'll be our heads, not to mention theirs. I know. But… they're just kids…"
"But… It won't just be our heads. It'll be the heads of everyone in the village!"
"Can you really condemn those kids? Especially now, when they're so vulnerable."
"I know… I know… Believe me, I know! I have a daughter of my own, but…"
"But you don't want to see her die," spoke a third voice, quite startling the two adults.
The two quickly turned to the older girl, fully awake and watching them with sad lavender eyes from the doorway to one of the two bedrooms. The eyes, unlike the eyes of a normal child, held wells of sorrow, suffering, and a maturity unnatural in one aged fourteen years. The girl's silver hair, which was obviously not caused by age – a peculiarity only found only in the Avaria or the Lunaria – hung in uneven tendrils about her small-boned face as she looked at them. Her under tunic – a simple tan garment with long sleeves and a skirt reaching a bit past her knees – hung slightly lop-sided and quite loose upon her thin bony frame. No other clothing did she wear at this time, though it was all in a neat pile next to her pallet.
"Uh. Oh. You're awake," stammered the woman. "Are you feeling all right?"
The girl tilted her head to the side, as if considering how to respond. She sighed, and answered, "I'm fine. But you aren't. We thank you for your hospitality and care, but…"
The girl bit her lip, looking over her shoulder at the other child, a few years younger, who still slept. The younger one had small features, even more fine-boned than the other, and skin pale as the moon. Her hair, too, was white – or at least it had been; it hung in dusty, matted strands now. Sleeping, she seemed so innocent, so peaceful.
Concern and pleading filled the older child's eyes when she looked back at the two adults. "Please. Can you keep her safe? She won't mind cutting her hair or disguising herself. She might even enjoy it." A smile touched her lips, but only for an instant. "I… I know that you don't want trouble, but please! Kite and I… we can't keep Aura safe, and we promised we wouldn't leave her alone. But if she's with you, she won't be alone… and she'll understand in time. Please!"
The man and the woman were taken aback by this request. They looked at each other, then back at the young one before them. For a long moment there was silence. The adolescent took it as a negative and sighed, eyes dropping to the floor.
"I'm sorry. I... shouldn't have asked you to… to take on another burden. If you could let us stay until Aura's rested… That's enough."
The man shifted and the woman flushed, guilt flickering in her expression. "Child," she said, rising and reaching out to rest her hands on the adolescent's shoulders. The girl flinched, taking a slight step backwards, though she lifted her eyes to look into the woman's.
"I… I'm sorry," the woman said. "Really, it would be selfish of me, of us to just turn you kids out. Stay as long as you like… and if you must leave, I'll be more than happy to care for… for Aura. And keep her safe."
Shock passed quickly into gratitude and a small measure of happiness within the girl's eyes. She smiled, albeit a small smile, and bowed. "I cannot thank you as I should, and I have no way to repay you-"
"Psh. That's all right, dear," said the woman. "It'll be enough to know that I've helped you kids out. Before we do anything else, though, we really ought to have a proper introduction."
"You do that, Faille," interjected the man, standing up and moving to the door. "I'm going to check on the boy."
"Kite's all right?" queried the girl.
The man nodded. "Mostly. He had a nasty gash across his ribs, but whoever tended it did a superb job, and I doubt it'll leave a scar. Last I checked, he was just sleeping."
"Good. Thank you, sir," said the girl, bowing to him.
He waved and said, "Just call me Paeto."
"Thank you, Paeto."
"Now then," said the woman. "I'm Faille. And you?"
"My name is Tsukasa. The little girl is Aura, and the boy is Kite."
"I see. Hmm.. Am I correct in guessing Aura is the kidnapped princess?"
Tsukasa sighed, gazing at the floor as she nodded unhappily.
"And you two are the wicked murderers of Lord Orca, and several guards, as well as the attackers of Sir Ginkan the Silver Knight, the kidnappers of Morganna's daughter, and the thieves of some ancient relic thing?"
Tsukasa winced, refusing to look Faille in the eyes, and nodded.
"And am I still correct in guessing that much of that is not true? Or at least not true in the way it's presented?"
Tsukasa nodded again, and murmured, "We weren't the ones who stole Lord Orca's soul. Why would Kite do that to him? Lord Orca was like his father… But we saw when his soul was stolen. …And the guards. We only knocked them out. We didn't kill them. Mo – Morganna's changed a lot since… since… but we took Aura away to keep her safe from her mother. Aura isn't really her daughter, by blood anyway. (a slight bitter note crept into Tsukasa's voice, making Faille wonder…) I mean, Morganna has a blood daughter, but an illegitimate one… and no one knows about her… And the book was Lord Orca's. Or at least it was under his care. And he gave it to Kite before… But we don't have it anymore, or at least we don't have the original book anymore."
"What about Sir Ginkan?"
"… He…" Tsukasa looked up into Faille's eyes with a desperate sort of pleading. "I didn't mean to hurt him! I… just summoned one of the Guardians because he wouldn't let us leave. He didn't know what was going on! He didn't know how vital it was that we got Aura out of there! He was just doing his duty… And I tried to reason with him! I tried to explain! Aura even tried to tell him, but… He drew his sword, and attacked me, calling me traitor. Kite was with Lord Orca and Aura was with me, and I wield wave energy, not a sword… And… I couldn't think of anything else… And I made sure the Guardian just knocked him out, and didn't do any permanent damage."
"Hush, dear. It's all right. I understand… But, only those of the Royal line can summon, much less control a Guardian."
Tsukasa froze, then nodded, slowly. "Y-yeah…"
"I see," said Faille, a smile curving her lips. "Well, I've never had royal company before."
"Uhn…"
"It's all right, dear. I wonder then, who was your father?"
Tsukasa blushed. "Mother told me… But she made me promise never to tell."
"It's all right. I won't tell anyone."
"Lord Balmung, of the Avaria."
Faille let out a low whistle. "Quite a pedigree you have, child."
The girl unconsciously reached back, scratching between her shoulder blades. Recently, it had begun to itch a lot, plus there was a strange ache there some mornings. However, she wasn't think of that now, just absentmindedly scratching. She sighed. "You won't tell anyone at all, right? I mean.. I really shouldn't have told you, but… Well, something about you is just… trustworthy… and I guess I just needed to tell someone."
Faille laughed softly. "It's all right Tsukasa. Now, are you hungry? If not, you can go back to sleep. It's late evening now, as it is, and I think I shall be retiring soon myself."
Tsukasa was about to politely decline food when her stomach rumbled, almost as though it had its own ears. She blushed, and Faille chuckled again.
"Well, I've some bread and cheese, as well as some piney apples and mushrooms. We've a lot of those around here. Oh, and a few bearcat eggs, but we can have those for breakfast."
A green haired youth, who lurked in the shadows beneath the small window of the cottage, grinned to himself, crimson eyes glittering faintly. A long thin scar was the only thing marring his otherwise smooth pale complexion. Dressed in dark clothing as he was, the boy would have been quite difficult to distinguish from the night, even his dark green hair and purple scarf, save for the pale skin of his face – the only part of him left unshrouded with black or brown cloth.
"How interesting," he murmured to himself with a silent giggle before slinking swiftly away.
Once at a sufficient distance to avoid being seen by those he had just been spying upon, the boy stood up and stretched. Trees dotted the land, and he happened to be standing beneath one,
Therefore, with a cry of "Boing!" he leapt up, climbing swiftly.
Nothing like a good broad tree branch for a short nap!
In a neighboring cottage, a short, thin youth with a mop of teal hair atop his head woke with a start, and a soft cry of, "No... Orca!"
Breath coming in short gasps, the boy stared unseeing with wide cerulean eyes for several moments before he blinked and seemed to come back to himself. The first thing he realized, other than this was not where he'd gone unconscious, was that someone had removed his shirt, vest, hat, gloves, shoes, socks, belt and sheaths containing his twin blades, and had set them all in a neat, folded pile at the foot of the pallet upon which he lay. The second thing he noticed was that the bandage around his ribs had been replaced, but the new one was soaked with cold sweat. Looking down at himself, and running a hand through his hair, the boy realized he was still covered in the chill perspiration. His hair was damp with it.
He grimaced, but turned his attention to where he was. It was a small room, cluttered with assorted jars, crates, bags and loose miscellany. The faint smell of onions drifted from one of the bags, the odor of mushrooms from another, and the distinctive fragrance of piney apples from yet another. So he'd been put in the larder. At least the door was only a blanket hung on a door frame. He wasn't trapped here. They hadn't caught him, and hopefully they hadn't caught Tsukasa or Aura while he'd been out of it.
After drying himself off somewhat with the blanket he'd been sleeping under, the boy folded it and set it upon his small pillow. Then, he began to get dressed. He was just buckling his belt when the door of the cottage creaked open. The boy froze, eyes trained upon the blanket-covered doorway. He remained tense as the curtain was pulled aside, and a tall man with dark blue hair poked his head in. The man smiled and seemed relieved.
"Excellent," he said. "You're awake. Perfect timing, too. One of the girls who was with you just woke up, too. You're Kite, aren't you?"
The boy nodded slowly and finished fastening his belt.
"I'm Paeto," said the man, extending a large hand that rather dwarfed Kite's slender, long-fingered one. "Why don't you come out into the main room? I've food if you're hungry; I'm sure you can smell it, since this is my larder. I only have three rooms, I'm afraid, and I didn't know how long you'd be out of it, so I put you in here where you wouldn't be too obvious or in the way. "
"Thank you, sir," said the boy, bowing slightly.
"Just call me Paeto."
"Um.. Thank you Paeto," said Kite. "Could you tell me how Tsukasa and Aura are doing?"
"Well, the older one's awake and doing all right, and the younger one's still asleep."
Kite nodded, picking up his gloves, socks and boots before following Paeto into the main room. Paeto told him to just set the shoes by the door and take a seat. Kite did as much, sitting cross-legged on one of the small mats next to the low table. His cerulean eyes followed Paeto as the tall man moved about the room, collecting a few things. The boy turned to look behind himself upon hearing a soft sound, but winced, hissing through his teeth as a sharp fiery pain laced his side.
Hearing the soft hiss, Paeto turned and smiled wanly. "Be careful. Your wound is still healing, although I must say whoever originally tended it did a remarkable job. Almost magic the way it healed so cleanly."
Kite almost laughed at the irony of that statement. It had indeed been a simple healing spell cast by Tsukasa that tended the wound. She would have cast a more powerful healing spell, but they were all exhausted, and they didn't know if they were out of danger yet. Therefore, an elementary spell had to do, and it had done pretty well, closing the wound and knitting some of the flesh together.
A moment later, a small gremlin, the source of the noise Kite had heard, darted out from behind a box, chittering to itself. In it's purple claws it clutched a glittering silver coin. It paused midway across the floor, yellow cat eyes staring up into Kite's. It's long rabbit-like ears perked up, then flattened as Paeto turned and espied it as well.
"Damn varmint," he snarled, leaping forward and snatching the coin from the creature's grasp.
It cowered away in fear, trembling. Paeto's anger melted away a little as the creature directed its best pleading I-am-really-cute-and-you-know-you'd-never-hurt-me gaze at him. Sighing and rolling his eyes, Paeto pocketed the coin.
"I just don't know why Natsume likes you so much, little freak. You're always getting into stuff, especially shiny things. Gah," hissed Paeto with partially forced annoyance. "One of these days…"
Kite chuckled softly to himself, and the gremlin pattered over to him, sniffing the boy curiously. Suddenly, it jumped onto his lap, and snuggled closely against the dark green pants. Kite laughed again and scratched the creature behind the ears, to which it began to purr contentedly.
Paeto smiled warmly as he set a plate before Kite on the table. "It likes you. Natsume – my daughter – named it Shmark."
As if on cue, the gremlin lifted its snout into the air and let out a 'shmark' to prove its name. Kite smiled and turned his attention to the plate. On it were a sliced piney apple, some bread, some cheese, and one dried white cherry – a real delicacy found only in the winter.
"Thank you very much, sir, uh, Paeto," said Kite, bowing as best he could seated with a gremlin in his lap. "Um… You said Tsukasa's awake, right?"
"Yes."
"Would you mind if I went and talked with her for a bit? We, uh, need to sort a few things out."
Paeto nodded slowly. "Eat your meal, first."
"Thank you."
Kite made a sandwich out of the bread and cheese and munched on it.
After he'd had a few bites, Paeto – who'd been studying the boy closely – asked, "You three are the ones who are wanted, right?"
Kite froze, swallowing his mouthful and looking at Paeto. "…Why?"
"It's nice to know when one is extending his hospitality to a criminal."
Kite flushed somewhat. "We aren't what they say we are, sir," he said, voice edgy.
"I never said you were. But you did break the law, I think."
"Sort of," said the boy, hesitantly. "But… Tsukasa, Aura, and I didn't kill anyone, or steal anything. What they say we stole… Lord Orca gave it to us before… before…"
His eyes dropped to the table, a sadness filling them.
"Before…?" prompted Paeto.
"His soul was stolen."
Paeto looked rather incredulous. "Soul was stolen?"
"Yeah. This weird creature came after us, and Lord Orca told us to run. He said he'd hold it back. We didn't want to leave him, so we stayed there, but the creature… was more powerful than anything I've ever seen. It blocked or dodged everything Lord Orca sent its way. Then, it sent him flying with one blow… and then it… it…" Kite broke off with a shudder before adding, in a frightened whisper, "Never… I never want… to see that again."
Paeto nodded sympathetically. After a few minutes, Kite finished his sandwich in silence. Then, lifting the gremlin off of his lap, he stood up and bowed to Paeto.
Putting on his gloves, socks and shoes, Kite looked into Paeto's eyes and said, "I know that it is a dangerous burden, but please let us stay here for a little while. Just until all three of us are recovered. We have no way to repay you, but…"
Paeto sighed. "That's a lot like what Tsukasa asked us… And I suppose I'll have to answer the same way Faille answered: Yes. We'll give you shelter for a little while. Here, I'll take you to Faille's house. It's just across the way, but it's dark out…"
Tsukasa was just pulling on her gloves when a soft knock sounded at the door to Faille's cottage. Faille herself had just been getting ready for bed. She sighed, gestured for Tsukasa to go back into the other room, and moved to the door. Peeking through a small spy hole, the woman relaxed when she saw it was Paeto and the boy. She quickly let them in, but only the boy entered. Paeto stayed outside. He looked rather jumpier than he had before, and was that a twinge of guilt Faille saw in his eyes? She passed it off as sheer worry.
"Aren't you coming in Paeto?"
"No, Faille," he replied, running a hand through his dark hair. "The boy now knows his way back to my house. He'll be fine."
"What's the matter, Paeto?"
"N-nothing"
"Paeto?"
"Well, it's this whole business of those three kids. It's not that I want to be heartless or anything, but…"
"We understand," said Tsukasa, and Paeto jumped; he hadn't realized she and Kite were listening. "We won't stay long… We'd leave now, even, if it weren't for Aura."
Kite nodded his agreement. "Please. There is more at stake than just us… We… can't explain it, but…"
Faille nodded. "You two kids just go on into the room where Aura is. We won't turn you in."
She shot a glare at Paeto for even thinking of doing that. The boy and girl nodded, then disappeared farther into the house. Faille and Paeto remained in the doorway.
"Faille," said Paeto after he was sure they were gone.
"Shut up."
Paeto was taken aback.
"Look, Paeto," said Faille, gentler this time. "They're just kids. Did you talk to the boy? Did you ask him what happened? When I talked with Tsukasa, and she told me what happened, there was no lie in her voice, or her eyes. They are not criminals so much as they are acting as they see right. Whether it is right, I don't know. Tsukasa would not tell me more than that the Queen Morganna has changed somehow and that she is planning something awful. Apparently the three children are trying to stop whatever that awful thing is."
"But…"
"Paeto, they'll just be here another day or two. They're sensible, so obviously they won't do anything to attract undue attention."
"…"
Faille sighed. "If it makes you feel that uncomfortable, the boy can stay with me, too. Good night."
She shut the door and latched it.
A/N
As I said before, I'm trying a new way of writing this.. and the only real reason I didn't write this part in first person and as Chapter 1 is that I didn't decide to actually try writing first person until after I'd finished this much.. Ergo, I just make this the prologue, even though it isn't. It's the actual beginning of the story. Sorry again for the really long notes at teh beginning... I started writing this at like 11 pm one night.
Sargent Snarky (Who has email again! And a new email address... )
