AN: Nothing really to add. Tales of the Abyss doesn't belong to me, etc! Please rate and review!
ND 2016 - Two Years Before
Luke strained, but the glow in his hands didn't increase. He tried to draw on more of the Seventh Fonon, but a wave of nausea washed over him instead and he fell to his knees.
"I can't do it!"
Mohs stood over him, disapproving. "You must, Luke! It's been a year now! What will people think of a Fon Master who cannot read the Score? How will you know the path the world must follow if you cannot read it? We cannot cover for your incompetence forever."
Luke wanted to curl up and hide. He buried his face in his arms. "I don't know... I don't know, okay?"
A large hand softly came down on his shoulder. "Fon Master, get up."
Luke looked up, sniffing back the tears that were threatening to leak from his eyes.
Van Grants was looking down at him. "Come on Fon Master, there's someone I'd like you to meet. Go out to the courtyard. I'll meet you there."
Luke nodded and left.
Van turned to Mohs. "You can't treat him like that. He'll break."
Mohs clenched his teeth. "He's useless, tiresome, and childish. He can't use half the fonic artes he needs, and he can't even read the Score. He'll never be a good Fon Master."
"He's still young. Give him time." Van paused. "Look, I know someone who can teach him. Let me deal with him."
"Like you dealt with Ion?... Fine. Do as you wish."
Van's eyes didn't betray any of his thoughts; neither did his steady voice. "Ion was a... mistake. It won't happen again."
"Commandant Grants?" Luke asked, sticking his head back in. "Are you coming?"
"Yes, Fon Master," Van called back. "I'll be right there."
"So, who are we meeting?" Luke asked as he bounced in place, previous depression forgotten.
Van took him by his shoulder and led him around to a door Luke hadn't really paid much attention to. "You'll see. First though, you need to get changed into something a little less... conspicuous."
"Whoa!" Luke's eyes got big as Van led him out into the middle of a great underground hall, surrounded on all sides by levels of pathways. People, some in Oracle Knight's uniform, some in Order adept's clothing, bustled back and forth on the different levels and a troop of Oracle Knights practiced in formation in the middle of the hall.
Van carefully steered the gawking Luke to a door on the far side.
The Order adept manning the storeroom openly stared. "Commandant Grants! Fon Master!" Remembering his manners, the adept bowed deeply. "What may your humble servant do for you?"
Van looked around. "I need a staff, about so long," he spread his hands, "and a adept's uniform for a boy about his size," he gestured to Luke, who was also staring.
Van leaned down and whispered in Luke's ear. "You should stop staring. You look like you've never seen Oracle Knight Headquarters before."
Luke looked up at him. "But I haven't. I've spent my time upstairs."
"Not even the Tatlins let you down here?" When Luke shook his head, Van's eyebrows came together, but he didn't say anything.
The adept came back with a folded pile of clothing and a staff and bowed again. "Will that be all, sirs?"
"Yes, thank you." Van turned to leave, but had to stop to remind Luke, "Come along, Fon Master."
Luke hurried to catch up.
Van's quarters were spartan to say the least. There was a cot, a trunk at the end of the cot, a small book shelf, and an old map on the wall. Everything was clean and military straight.
Van put the clothing on the cot and closed one of two doors leading to adjoining rooms. Luke could just see another trunk and a cot with a large stuffed rappig on it before the door closed all the way. The other room looked to be a small kitchen and washroom.
Van went to the door and turned. "You can dress yourself, I assume?" When Luke nodded, Van continued. "Good. When you're done, come join me in the practice room at the end of the hall."
He left and Luke was alone. Luke carefully removed his headdress and the attached tassels and set it on the cot next to the stack of clothing, then removed his outer tabard. Something caught his eye and he stopped.
He stepped closer to the map and bookshelf. On the bookshelf was a collection of weighty books with titles like 'A History of Auldrant' and 'The Score and The Order of Lorelei', and a large lump of fused fon stone, rock, and dirt. There was even some grass and leaves trapped inside the glass-like fon stone that surrounded the rock and dirt. Two books without titles caught Luke's eye. He opened the smaller and more worn of the two.
40 Sylphday, (an inkblot covered the month), ND 2002
Today, clouds covered the sky and hid the sun. It feels like a warning. Father says that war is coming, but Mother hushes him. I think she's worried about what will happen to us, especially the baby, if war breaks out. With Father one of Lord (here the name was scratched out and illegible) knights, I don't know what will happen either.
I just hope this time the baby will be all right. (This time, a whole paragraph was scratched out.)
Dr. Balfour came again today. He says that just in case, the military will be moving the (the rest of the sentence was covered by a dark stain). He also said I've been one of his best assistants yet.
That man scares me. It's almost like he isn't human. You can never tell what he's thinking.
41 Loreleiday-
(the rest of the page was torn out)
(the next page was written in a shaky hand and covered in blotches where the paper had gotten wet)
I've lost track of the date... but what would be the point anyway?
How could anyone let something like this happen? There's nothing left!
Luke closed the journal hastily and picked up the other title-less book. The inside page read 'The Theory of Fomicry' but the rest of the pages were too technical to make any sense to Luke. He put the books back and stood to look at the map.
It was clearly old, and there was something odd about it. It took Luke a minute to realize the map had another continent marked on it, where on modern maps there was only ocean. He squinted to read the mapmaker's spidery script.
"Brother, I'm back-" Luke turned, feeling like he had been caught red handed, to see a girl about his height and age in the door, holding a basket of ingredients.
The girl turned beet red at the sight of him. "F-Fon Master-! I'll just leave this here..." She put the basket on the floor just inside the door and fled.
Luke stared at the closed door in perplexity, then went back to the cot to figure out how he was supposed to wear the adept's uniform. It didn't look too different from his Fon Master's robes, so it couldn't be too hard, right?
Van bowed to his sparring partner and slid his sword back into its sheath. A small hand tapped his shoulder, and he turned to see a girl with her ash blond hair tied up in a bun and dressed in an Oracle Knight trainee uniform.
"Mystearica!" Van smiled. "Good, I'm glad you're here already. I-"
Tear did not look so happy as she grabbed his arm and pulled him off to the side.
"Ow ow ow, Mystearica, show more respect for your elders," Van grumbled, rubbing his arm.
"Vandesdelca, why is the Fon Master in our quarters?" she demanded.
"Ah... I hope you didn't walk in on him-"
Tear smacked him. "Brother!"
Van rubbed his arm again. "...I was going to say talk to Legretta. It seems I need to ask her to work on your temper as well."
"Stop ducking the question. What is he doing there?"
Van sighed. "I was hoping to avoid you knowing who he was, but as it is, I need you to work with him. Teach him how to use the Seventh Fonon. He was in our rooms because it can't get out that he's having trouble. I thought we could pretend he was a new trainee."
"I suppose that explains that..." Tear was interrupted as a small redheaded adept entered the room, looking lost.
Van waved. "Over here."
Luke came over and Van sighed. Luke's outer tabard was on backward and his hat was crooked. "Hold still."
Luke did, and Van turned the tabard around.
Van looked at him critically. "Your hair's too distinctive." He quickly braided Luke's long hair and tucked it under his hat. "There. Now you look like all the other adepts."
Van's sparring partner came over from the other side of the room. "Commandant, is this the new adept?" She was a willowy woman, with shoulder-length blond hair tied back in a ponytail.
"Yes. Tear and I will be working with him, Legretta."
The woman turned to Luke. "What's your name?"
"Luke," Luke answered hesitantly.
The woman smiled pleasantly. "Luke? 'Light of the Sacred Flame' in Ancient Ispanian, and the name of our Fon Master. A good name, Adept Luke." She turned to Van. "I have things to attend to now, Commandant. I shall see you tomorrow."
"Tomorrow, then."