Chapter I: The Phoenix Clan

The Air Pirates returned to their base with their ship, the Pyrolisk, loaded with the spoils of the battle they just fought. When the remaining crew of the airship they had attacked surrendered, their lives were spared and their ship let go without its treasures. Such is the way of the Blue Rogues.

Not all Air Pirates are alike. All pirates consider themselves either Blue Rogues or Black Pirates depending on their policy. Black Pirates will pick off unarmed ships and steal from the defenseless, but Blue Rogues prefer a fair battle and will only fight if their adversaries can fight back. Black Pirates keep all the treasure to themselves, while Blue Rogues donate a share of their spoils to help those more in need than them.

Captain Vince of the Phoenix Clan had always had a kind heart and hated unfairness, so his band was unarguably of the Blue Rogue variety. The Clan's home base was hidden under a small village, and they supported the town with the gold they won. If it wasn't for these Blue Rogues, the village may have become a ghost town within weeks.

After docking in the cove hidden beneath the island, the crew began to unload the Pyrolisk and decide what should be done with each piece of treasure. Cysma helped carry the chests full of gold, while Nira helped organize the items.

Once all of the chests were taken care of, Cysma was dismissed for the remainder of the day, but he wanted to help out Nira with the sorting.

"Oh, that's nice of you, but I think I have it under control." She replied, "I'll call you if I do need help."

And so he went about chatting with his fellow rogues about the raid and what they did. Many of them were still busy, however, and he didn't want to get in the way, so he retired to his sleeping quarters.

The captain had taken quite a liking to Cysma and Nira, and due to that, as well as their stellar performance as Air Pirates, the two were given their own rooms in the base. Although those rooms consisted of little more than a bed, desk, drawers, and bookshelf, it was better off than the hammocks of the single-room sleeping quarters of the rest of the crew.

Cysma had been interested in books about the history and geography of Arcadia, particularly the tales of famous Air Pirates in the past. The most well known of them were Daccat and, much more recently, a Blue Rogue named Vyse.

Though it was only 20 years ago, not much information about Vyse could be found. But from the few records that do exist, it seems that Vyse had first struck out on his own when a mysterious young girl of unknown origin fell into his hands. Apparently she had an important mission that required her to travel to every continent in Arcadia. This mission also didn't sit well with the empire of the old Valua, and its commander and 6 admirals fought Vyse tooth and nail throughout his voyage, but he never gave up and even outwitted the armada numerous times. In fact, when Vyse was captured and imprisoned in the Grand Fortress, he escaped the supposedly inescapable prison and was even said to have kidnapped the heir to the Valuan throne on his way out!

Later on, the leader of the Armada turned his back on the empire just before it was completely destroyed by a tragic catastrophe. The evil commander had ambitious plans to conquer the rest of Arcadia with his forces, but Vyse had miraculously united the armies of all the other nations and fought back in the famous Battle of Soltis. All of the leaders of the Valuan Armada still alive were killed in that battle, and that day has since gone down in the annals of Arcadia forever and is even celebrated as a holiday every year.

The prince of Valua that Vyse had captured now lives on to this day as the king of the reformed kingdom of New Valua. Many of those who supported or sailed with Vyse are still alive today, but, ironically, there are no records hinting of the current whereabouts of Vyse himself. They say that he continued his life as a Blue Rogue, the girl he helped complete her mission even joining his crew, but the recorded history of him comes to a screeching halt there.

Cysma was fascinated by this historical mystery, and aspired to one day set off on a voyage to find the answer. He often talked to the crew about it, and quickly found out that a multitude of stories had been spun around the enigma. Some say he died during a raid, others say he got lost in the Dark Rift and discovered a door to another world. The tales only got more and more surreal from there. Vince suggests that Vyse still lives among the people of Arcadia, and that he may be closer than we think…

"Cysma?"

Nira had gone to check on him, only to find Cysma had fallen asleep at his reading desk, his face buried in the open book. She went to tap him on the shoulder, and he instantly sat straight up with a frightened look on his face. "Is there something wrong?" She asked.

"No…I'm fine." He replied quickly, "What makes you think there's something wrong?"

"Look at yourself! Your face is all covered in sweat!"

"Oh…um…just a bad dream I suppose."

"Are you all right?"

"Yes! I told you I was fine!" Cysma had a bit of a quick temper at times that would get him in trouble with his superiors, though Nira tried to help him with this.

"Was it about Tofenn?"

Cysma sighed discontentedly. "Now that you mention it, yes it was."

"Ahh…I see." Nira understood what he dreamt of. As memories of one's past can resurface in dreams, Tofenn was a particular memory Cysma and Nira wish they could forget.

It was the name of the town they grew up in, a town that was destroyed by an unknown force a decade ago. With Cysma and Nira's families gone, they were the only survivors. It was even a miracle for them to even be alive today, as it was Vince that saved them as children that fateful day.

Nira has learned to forgive and forget, and hopes that the ones that attacked their village will one day see the error of their ways and repent. For Cysma, however, those assailants were beyond redemption. Throughout the ten years and counting as an Air Pirate, his desire to one day become stronger and get even with the murderers of his family and friends only grew. He often channeled his anger into fighting and struck down his enemies with such ferocity that he felt no remorse for knowing that he was taking lives. Indeed, his strength was fueled by hatred.

"Anyways, I came to tell you that we'll be heading out to Skyport City tomorrow morning to sell our leftover goods at the market. You'd better get a good night's sleep, as we're waking up early." Cysma nodded to show that he understood what Nira had to say, and she left him.

As he lay in his bed that night, he wondered when the opportunity to find the destroyer of Tofenn might arise. He vividly remembers the face of the one that personally killed his parents, so he would make that man the first target…

When Cysma awakened that morning, he looked around the base to find it empty and silent. Did he oversleep? Did the Phoenix Clan leave without him? He ran up to the surface of the island to find out.

It was actually too early for him. The sun was only just coming up, and only the early birds of the village were awake. Seeing it pointless to head back to sleep, he decided to take a walk around the village.

As he walked along the edge of the island, he stared out into the sky. Unlike our world, Arcadia isn't covered by oceans of water, but rather air instead. All land consisted of islands floating in the sky, and people traveled between them in airships fueled by the falling fragments of the six moons, which are known as moonstones.

Eventually the others awakened, and Vince ran out to tell Cysma that they will be departing. "Glad to see you were up early." The captain added, "Usually we have to drag you out of bed to get you going!"

With the crew and leftover treasures aboard, the Pyrolisk left its dock and flew out from beneath the island. Cysma and Nira were out on deck, enjoying the fresh morning breeze while serving as lookouts, but their pleasant moods quickly faded as they sighted an unsettling figure in the distance.

"That ship…that flag…No, it can't be!" Nira was shocked, "Captain, there are Black Pirates heading straight for us!"

As soon as Vince received the message, his crew deployed their weapons and the ship's cannons. The enemy ship drew its arms as well, but with at least a dozen cannons sprouting from each side of the hull! "This isn't any Black Pirate, it must be Gault!" Cysma observed.

Gault was a Black Pirate feared across Mid Ocean, known for attacking without warning and raiding helpless ships swiftly. Because of him, many merchants from around the world were afraid to trade anywhere near his self-proclaimed territory. Because of his proximity to the Phoenix Clan, he and Vince's crews often clashed.

Gault's ship, the Pisesuvate, fired all of its cannons in sequence at the Pyrolisk. Several cannonballs hit their target and struck the side of the ship, causing its crew to lose their balance. The airship tilted in the direction it was shot, and Cysma was scrambling for something to hold onto. Vince ran out on deck to help him and Nira just as the Pisesuvate had released a strange projectile straight up into the sky.

"Cysma! Nira! Hang on!" Vince was frantic in trying to help his crew, reaching for their hands as they slid towards the edge of the deck. It was then that the skybound projectile, a torpedo, struck the deck head on and flung debris and crewmembers in every direction. Cysma, Nira, and Vince were all blasted off the ship and into the sky…