Author's Note: It seems I ended up making this prologue a lot longer than I intended to, but considering I was keeping track of three worlds, I guess it only stands to reason it became more lengthy. Still I wasn't aiming to go this long. The next prologue will be the last one and then the real meat of the story takes center stage.
Prologue IV: "The Credo of Royalty"
Auldrant, the world of Tales of the Abyss, Malkuth region...
Faced with the threat of being apprehended in a new world, and worse incarcerated, Rita Mordio's list of recent shocks was starting to wear on her nerves now. One moment she was in that weird dimension with Crystal Snail, the next she found herself in yet another unfamiliar land, and completely alone to boot.
Well except for that. She quickly shot her gaze at the fallen Magna Quartz. Maybe if I'm fast enough, I can run to it and transport out of here.
"Well well, I hope you're not getting it in your head to try something, young lady. It wouldn't be in your best interest to pull some imbecilic stunt at this point." Jade's voice brought her attention back as he adjusted his glasses calmly.
"Look weirdo, I don't have time for your crap right now. I have more important problems to deal with." The girl was clearly in no mood to cooperate, as the knights were rather taken aback by her brazen attitude toward the colonel. Jade sighed.
"You certainly have quite a mouth on you, don't you? Very well, if you wish to make this difficult..." The Malkuth military man began chanting a fonic arte, which caught Rita off guard as a glyph appeared underneath at his feet and began rotating clockwise slowly.
"What the..." She tried to ready an arte of her own, but was too slow to start.
"O mighty explosion. Energy Blast!" Jade shouted. A large sphere of white light appeared in front of her and burst suddenly, hurtling her into a tree with intense force. Rita blacked out shortly after. Jade walked over to the unconscious girl and looked at the crystal object laying nearby. "It seems we have quite the unusual trespasser this time."
"Sir, could she possibly be a spy from a new foreign power?"
"I doubt it, but she is still suspicious. Best to keep an eye on her for the time being." Jade knelt down and examined Magna Quartz more closely. We'll need to reduce this object's density if we want to have any hope of taking it back. "Have our fonists come in to deal with this. We'll have our researchers analyze it later."
"Yes sir!" The armored soldier saluted as he took off. Jade looked back to Rita one final time.
"I guess we'll find out in due time just who you are, won't we?"
Grand Chokmah, capital of the Malkuth Empire...
Following the encounter, Jade promptly returned to the castle while his troops and the royal fonists dealt with Rita and Magna Quartz respectively. Entering the throne room, he presented himself before Emperor Peony Upala Malkuth IX and gave a detailed report of what he had found in the forested area.
"So that mysterious surge of unidentifiable energy was because of a girl and a large crystal?" Peony asked in his usual nonchalant but still serious manner.
"Yes, Your Majesty. She was not very cooperative about coming along peacefully, so I had to use force to subdue her."
"Always rough with the ladies, aren't you Jade?" The emperor joked. "I hope you held back."
"Your Majesty, please take this seriously." Jade sighed as he adjusted his glasses. Peony IX was always known to be a carefree joker even during serious conferences between himself and important parties.
"How can a girl and a crystal be the cause of such an enormous release of energy though? It doesn't make sense."
"My theory is the crystal is the one that generated the energy. The girl may or may not have something to do with it, but at this stage I can't say. Our researchers will have their hands full with the object's analysis."
"And the girl?"
"She's been given suitable 'accommodations'. Perhaps when she's in a more cooperative mood, we can talk." The infamously named "Necromancer" said with his usual sarcastic wit.
Terca Lumireis, Zaphias, in the Lower Quarter...
The following morning, Crystal Snail had decided to spend his time with Yuri and Repede strolling around. The townspeople had originally stared at him upon his initial "flashy arrival", but now they treated him as if he'd always been part of the imperial capital and welcomed him warmly, knowing Princess Estellise trusted him. A number of the children were curious about him and Snail took the time to impress the youngsters by using his Crystal Hunter to create large and beautiful crystal structures for everyone to admire.
"That's an interesting move you got." Yuri casually stated with his hands behind his head. "Makes the kids happy at least."
"Back then, it was merely a weapon. I used it to fight X, and I nearly killed him with it. I never want to wield it as a tool of murder again." Snail admitted outright, almost without thinking about it. In the time he had spent in the unknown dimension, he had gained a better sense of how he wanted to live his new "life", even if it was in a place he understood nothing about. All those countless years taught him that there was more to life than hurting and attacking others, as well as finding the sense of peace he realized X had always sought in a war-torn world.
Yuri was quiet for a moment as he understood the Reploid's feelings. It mirrored what X said when he and his allies first met him in Cyberspace.
Reploids constantly destroying each other. It has to end!
"Well hey, I'm not going to pretend I know everything about Reploids and Mavericks and all that stuff from your world, but if you're anything like X, I think you'll be fine."
"I appreciate your words, Yuri. Thank you." Crystal Snail sighed as he thought of his beloved Magna Quartz and hoping for some sign that he could find her again soon. Repede barked, getting his attention as a knight from the castle came running toward them.
"Yuri Lowell, Princess Estellise requires your presence at the castle! The members of the survey team that had scouted the cavern where Captain Scifo and Rita Mordio disappeared have found something!"
"Let's go! This could be our chance to get them back at last!" Yuri, Repede and Snail took off immediately after the knight. When they arrived at the castle meeting room, Estelle was there with Karol, Raven and Judith already in tow. They were examining something on a small cloth set upon a small dresser. Upon closer inspection, there was a single glittering crystal shard sitting on the cloth.
"Mr. Snail, I think you should have a look at this." Estelle said as the members of Brave Vesperia moved aside for him to look. The mollusk Reploid moved forward to get a better look and as his eyes beheld it, it was enough to make his face light up with some faint trace of hope.
"It's a piece of Magna Quartz!"
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, quite sure. The color, the texture, this is definitely a shard from my dear friend."
"So when Magna Quartz vanished with Rita and Flynn, a piece of the crystal was chipped off in the process?" Estelle hypothesized.
"Didn't the team say a big burst of light came explodin' out of the crystal in the previous report?" Raven asked.
"That's right. Perhaps that light was so intense that it caused a piece of Magna Quartz to splinter off."
"What do you think, Snail?" Yuri asked. The Reploid was trying to take in what he had just heard from Raven and realized something that filled him with fear.
"If Magna Quartz slowly breaks like this every time she initiates her warping power, then...little by little she is destroying herself in the process." He said with a grim, almost deathly quiet tone to his voice. The members of Brave Vesperia looked at one another. "I have to find her, and make her stop before she destroys herself completely."
"Don't worry, we'll help you out with this!" Karol announced rather proudly. "You can count on Brave Vesperia to see it through!"
"Capn' Karol's all fired up. Looks like we'll have to make this official, Snail." Yuri said, putting his hand on the Reploid's shoulder.
"I appreciate that your group wishes to help me, but I'm not even certain what I'm supposed to do at this point. Nor do I wish to involve people from another world in my problems."
"The minute Flynn and Rita disappeared, it became our problem." Yuri's tone became serious. "So we're all in this till we get them back." The rest of Brave Vesperia nodded their heads in agreement.
"I'm not sure if this might work, but perhaps we can use that sliver of Magna Quartz to warp the way...she does." Estelle suggested. Snail looked at the princess and his eyes showed a bit of surprise. He hadn't thought about that.
"I believe you're right about that, Princess. I can detect residual traces of strong energy surrounding this small fragment. If I can stimulate it somehow, the warping process can be initiated."
"While that sounds plausible, we have no idea where it might take us, and the risk of us getting lost in some unknown world exists." Judith piped up.
"She's right. If we're gonna commit ta this, then only a few of us should go with Snail here. That way, if Rita and the good Captain happen to come back on their own, then at least there'll be somebody around to explain." Raven added. "In other words, ol' Raven's saying we should think this through before we go jumpin' the gun here. Not properly preparin' gets you killed out on the field."
The room fell quiet after that one. While Yuri and Estelle were eager to get going and find their missing friends, Raven's comments made perfect sense. It reminded the two of them heavily of the random warping of their crazy adventure alongside their allies from other dimensions. Without a clear guiding direction and plan of action, a journey wasn't a journey. It was just idiotic meandering.
"Listen, I know you two and Flynn are more experienced than any of us here with this 'traveling to other worlds' business, but we only have a single piece of that crystal. We have no guarantee it'll take us to where Flynn and Rita were transported. Once we use it, the shard will likely be gone and then all of us could be stranded somewhere we shouldn't be." Judith said, to drive the point home.
"Then that means only two of us should go with Snail...and those two should be us." Yuri put his hand to his chest. Estelle nodded, as the did the rest of the room's occupants. "Now we just need a destination."
"Mr. Snail, perhaps we could go to this Earth where you're from." Estelle put her finger to her chin while thinking about her idea.
"An interesting proposition. Why his world?" Judith asked.
"Magna Quartz is from Snail's world, right? Maybe it actually went home, like the Portalstone."
"But if I recall correctly, you told us the Portalstone never actually left Mii's mansion. Oros Phlox just stashed it under the fountain."
"Wow, right under the owner's nose? That seems almost clever." Karol said, crossing his arms.
"But the concept is somewhat the same. Magna Quartz is from Earth, just like Snail. Perhaps that warp it did was like a homing beacon, returning home to it...her place of origin."
"So Flynn and Rita just happened ta be in the wrong place when the thing decided ta pack up and go home? Damn, what bad timing." Raven shook his head. "But the good news is, once you find the two of them, you can just use another small piece of Magna Quartz to come back here. Everything'll be fine then."
"Very well then, it's decided. Yuri, Estelle and Snail, you three go and find a way to bring our friends back. Bring them back in the name of Brave Vesperia!" Karol shouted as his pointed dramatically in his usual "guild leader's way".
"You got it Capn' Karol. Everyone ready?" Yuri looked to the two of them.
"Yes, let's get them back home! Are you ready, Mr. Snail?"
"Yes. If I concentrate on the location using the electricity from my sensors, I can force the crystal to home in on a location on Earth. Here goes..." As he pictured the Energen Crystal Mine from where he had his final battle with X, electricity began crackling between the tall stalks on his head and he sent the charge into the small shard in his hand. Within seconds, the shard lit up with the same intense light as Magna Quartz had done before and the three of them were gone as soon as everyone else could see again.
"Good luck you guys." Karol said, but with a tone that betrayed his previous confidence.
Earth, Raga Ski Resort...
Yuri slowly opened his eyes, crossing his arms over his body when he realized he was lying in something quite cold. "Damn, what the hell?" He stood up quickly, brushed the snow off his clothes and looked around. "Estelle!"
"I'm here!" The familiar voice of the princess rang out from the bottom of a nearby ski slope.
"And Snail?"
"Here as well, Mr. Lowell." The mollusk Reploid made his way toward them, trudging through the deep snow all the while. "I don't understand what went wrong. I was trying to send us to the Energen Crystal Mine, where I was destroyed by X. It was the last familiar place in my memory banks. I don't recognize this place in the least."
"Geez, it's like the Blade Drifts of Zopheir all over again." Yuri grumbled. The three of them looked around for a bit. Just then, footsteps could be heard as a young boy approached them.
"Hey mister, what are you doing up here? Are you here to ski?" The boy asked.
"Not exactly."
"Excuse me," Estelle started, "I have a question." The boy blushed. He never got asked a question by such a pretty girl before.
"Sure big sis, what is it?"
"Are we on Earth?"
The boy was taken aback so suddenly by the question that he nearly fell back. "Um, sure? This is Earth. Why are you asking such a weird question? Did you hit your heads or something when you fell?"
"It's kind of hard to explain. Say kiddo, you know X and Zero by any chance?" Yuri said, realizing there was no point in trying to circumvent their inquiries.
"You mean the Maverick Hunters X and Zero? Yeah, I've met X before. Are you a friend of his?"
"Yes we are. I don't suppose you could contact him for us, or point us in the direction we could find him?"
"Well we can try contacting the base at the emergency center in town, but it's supposed to be for actual emergencies."
"Please, we're looking for some missing friends of ours and the Maverick Hunters are the only ones who can help us." Estelle pleaded sincerely. The boy was a bit hesitant, but remembered when X saved his best friend from a fate that nearly killed him.
"Toshihiko!" A deep voice called out. A new face approached the group, one belonging to that of a very tall and large Reploid that resembled a large bipedal bison.
"Big Brother Blizzard!" Toshihiko shouted elatedly as he ran to his big friend.
"Everything okay out here? I was wondering what was taking you so long."
"Big Bro, these people need to speak with the Maverick Hunters. Apparently, they know X and Zero. They said they're looking for some missing friends."
"Is that so?" The bison Reploid turned to look at the trio. "Pleasure to meet you. I'm Blizzard Buffalo, and this is Toshihiko. Welcome to Raga Ski Resort."
"My name is Estellise Sidos Heurassein. These are my friends, Yuri Lowell and Crystal Snail."
Snail's name made Buffalo's eyes widen just a bit in surprise. Did I hear that right? Crystal Snail. Wasn't he...
"That's a fancy name you have, Big Sis. Are you royalty?" Toshihiko casually asked while sitting on Blizzard Buffalo's shoulder. Estelle breathed a bit inwardly, wondering whether or not her status might help speed things along.
"Yes, I am a princess actually. We urgently request your help in this matter." She bowed politely to them, which surprised the two.
"I didn't realize we had dignitaries visiting. We'd best call the Hunters then." Buffalo looked to his human charge. The boy looked back, still rather surprised, and nodded in agreement.
As the group made their way down from the ski slope to the emergency center in the nearby town, Estelle couldn't help notice how nice the boy and bison Reploid's friendship appeared. She wondered if this was the kind of peace X and Zero fought so hard to protect in their world. She didn't get to ask many questions to any of her allies during the Portalstone incident, but she had been curious about how it pained X that Reploids were constantly fighting each other. Toshihiko caught sight of her gaze.
"What is it, big sis? Something wrong?"
"Huh? Oh, I was just thinking how nice you two look together. It's very sweet."
"Oh, uh, thanks." Toshihiko blushed again. He just wasn't used to talking to girls who said nice things to him like this. "Big Brother Buffalo is my best friend. He helped me overcome my loneliness in the past."
"And Toshihiko never gave up on me, even when I...lost control of myself and did horrible things. Even when I broke my promise to him, he was the only one who believed in me." The bison Reploid said sincerely. Clearly he didn't wish to remember the horrible past he had experienced, but remembered that the young human sitting on his shoulder was the reason he went on existing, despite the punishment he felt he deserved. "I'm curious though, how do you know X and Zero?"
"We met them on a journey once. A really crazy, insane journey." Yuri muttered, sounding unsure of if he should start talking about it so plainly. Toshihiko and Buffalo looked at each other, with the boy simply shrugging at Yuri's tone. As they marched on, Buffalo wondered about the quietest one of the trio who kept to himself the most.
Is that really Crystal Snail? I only know that X destroyed a Maverick by that name during the Second Maverick War. He could simply be using the name, or he could be a facsimile.
"We're here." Toshihiko announced, bringing Buffalo's attention back. He would have time to think it over later.
Auldrant, Grand Chokmah...
Rita slowly came to, and rose to find herself in a prison cell. She remembered what had happened and panicked a little.
Where am I? Where's Magna Quartz? Damn it, I can't believe this! Her thoughts were furious, but then she suddenly recalled she was able to use her blastia back in the spatial dimension where she met Crystal Snail. Maybe... Rita began chanting an arte and prepared to direct it at the prison bars when she was suddenly interrupted.
"I'd advise you not to attempt escape when we're willing to hear your story." A familiar voice spoke from around the corner.
"Oh great, not you again." Rita muttered.
"It's nice to see you too, Miss." Jade shrugged his shoulders as obnoxiously as possible, irritating the girl further with his nonchalance. "As I said, we're willing to hear your side of things if you promise to cooperate. Emperor Peony wants to know about the large crystal object that was with you in the woods and he would like to request your presence later tonight for an explanation."
"...Look. I need that crystal in order to get home, okay? I'm not supposed to be here."
"Is that a fact? Well if it's that important to you, then we can consider returning it to you once the Emperor listens to your story." Jade adjusted his glasses and exited the dungeon area, leaving Rita to sit anxiously.
Later that night...
Nightfall came to the world of Auldrant and Rita was escorted from her cell to meet with the monarch of the Malkuth Empire. She wasn't exactly the best person to speak with royals, but she had no choice. If she didn't convince Emperor Peony, the genius mage of Aspio could be stranded in an unfamiliar world with no chance of getting home again. Sometimes Rita wondered why she kept getting caught up in these things.
"Now presenting His Majesty, Emperor Peony Upala Malkuth IX." One of the knights standing at attention announced as Rita realized she was in the throne room already. Seated upon an elaborate throne atop a set of three circular sandstone-colored altars of different widths was an attractive man in his mid-thirties with tan skin, sandy blonde hair and dark blue eyes. He did not wear a crown of any kind atop his head nor did he wear any fineries that would peg him as a ruler. Instead, his manner of dress seemed rather casual, despite the fabric looked to be of particularly high quality. He wore a short-sleeved light blue tunic lined with marigold markings, and underneath that was a midnight blue long-sleeved shirt. He wore brick red trousers which had crisscrossing sashes running over them, also marigold. Most interestingly, he wore not boots but open-toed sandals.
"So this is the girl that was apprehended earlier today in the woods." He said with a very jovial voice, which startled Rita. She was expecting him to sound more stern and angry with her, since she had apparently committed a crime. Then again, considering the way he was dressed, it dawned on the girl that perhaps he wasn't much like other royals. "Well she's not as cute as Tear or Natalia, but still not bad either." The emperor said, causing an awkward moment to pass as Rita donned her famous incredulous face.
Definitely not like any noble I know. What kind of ruler says stuff like that? You'd think he was taking lessons from Raven or something!
"Yes Your Majesty, this is the trespasser. She agreed to be more cooperative, so she'll be happy to explain herself now." Jade said as he stepped forth. "Unless you've changed your mind and wish to go back to your cell?"
"Y...yeah. I'll explain." Rita responded nervously. The threat of further incarceration did not appeal to her.
"Now now Jade, let's not turn this into a ruthless interrogation." Peony said as he rose from his throne. "Allow me to properly introduce you, my dear. I'm Emperor Peony IX and you are in Grand Chokmah, the capital city of the Malkuth Empire. Unfortunately, with things as they are currently, the situation has made many folks tense. I'm quite certain you're not a spy for a new burgeoning power, correct?"
"What!? No way, do I honestly look like a spy to you!?" Rita blurted out rather angrily, forgetting who she was talking to.
"Honestly no, not with how clumsy your movements are in battle." Jade said with an impish smile, which ticked Rita off more. "Perhaps you'd best begin explaining yourself before you land yourself in further trouble. My tolerance with young folks is quite thin these days." The humor was sucked out of the moment as Emperor Peony sighed, knowing how Jade could get with people when answers were not immediately forthcoming.
"F...fine. My name is Rita Mordio. I'm a researcher from the town of Aspio, where I'm from. The object that I had with me is called Magna Quartz. It's what brought me here, to your world." She said as calmly as possible, trying to make sure everything she stated didn't sound utterly ridiculous.
"My my, what amusing opening lines." The Necromancer returned after he and Peony looked at each other. "I've never heard of Aspio. On top of that, you said that large object brought you to our world. You mean to say you're not from our planet?"
"That's precisely what I'm saying. I'm from another world entirely called Terca Lumireis. I was brought her by Magna Quartz from my world." Rita chose to leave out the part about the unknown dimension and Crystal Snail. She didn't need to add any more "unbelievable" to this stewpot than she already added.
"I have to say Miss Mordio, that is quite an unusual explanation. I want to believe you, but it sounds like the tale of a ranting drunkard or a madman." Peony sat back down and brought his hand under his chin.
"I'm telling the truth, Your Majesty. I can prove it to you, but I need Magna Quartz in order to do that." Rita pleaded. "Just give me a chance to show you."
Emperor Peony spent some time silent, thinking over the mage girl's words carefully. "I will need a moment to consider my answer. Will you wait, Rita?"
"Sure."
"Guards, please take her to the guest chamber, and give the girl something to drink. She looks as if she hasn't had anything in days." By his command, two knights escorted Rita out while Jade remained with Peony. "So what do you think, Jade? Her story is a bit...out there, but I supposed it couldn't be any less strange than when we learned the truth about our own world, right?"
"Your Majesty, finding out about the Qliphoth hardly compares to a story about coming from another world. I'm willing to believe some things, but this is just too illogical for words." Jade shrugged, frustrated that his friend would even start comparing the truth about Auldrant with the girl's explanation about being from another planet.
"Still, I'd like to give her a chance. After all...she doesn't have fonons." Emperor Peony looked with a silent glare at his most trusted confidante.
"So you noticed it too, Your Majesty? I should have anticipated you'd bring up that point. I do find it extremely bizarre that her body has no fonons cycling through it whatsoever."
"The researchers who were analyzing that object she calls Magna Quartz said that neither the crystal nor the girl contained any fonons. That's simply not possible, at least for a life-form born on our planet." Peony's words carried a sense of finality at that point. Jade nodded in response and had the guards bring Rita back in, whose face lit up with a bit more hope than she had before when the emperor explained what they wanted her to do.
Fonic Research Lab...
It took some time to get everything set up for the "big demonstration", but Peony made it clear that they wanted their scientists to record whatever happened this day. They were curious what one girl was going to do to prove she was from another world. The fact she bore no fonons, the basic particle that made up essentially everything and everyone on Auldrant, was reason enough for them to observe closely. Rita hated being on display like some kind of guinea pig, but she was willing to put up with it for the sake of going home.
Besides, once I warp out of here, none of this will matter. She mused. With that thought in mind, she walked up to where Magna Quartz was laying on a large table, like some patient waiting to be cut up by surgeons. Putting her hand on the area above where Magna's metallic globe lay, she was counting on the encased sphere to work her magic. Come on, I need a warp out of here! Fire up your brain and do it! The genius mage wasn't sure if Magna Quartz had read her mind at the moment, but in that instant, that familiar swell of bright white light began building up and growing wider. As Rita waited for the big exit, she felt a horrible burning sensation and pulled her hand away from the large crystal's surface in pain, as if she'd accidentally touched a stovetop. "Ow!"
Hearing the girl's exclamation of pain, Jade ran to her side in an attempt to pull her away, but by then it was too late. The light grew to its maximum brightness and then suddenly cleared, having blinded all of the room's occupants. Emperor Peony had covered his eyes with the his arm almost instinctually, having avoided the temporary blindness.
"That was certainly quite a show. I guess that proves she was telling the truth, right Jade?" He said. "Jade?"
"Sir, Colonel Curtiss isn't here!" One of the researchers announced in a shock.
"What? How can that be?"
"He just vanished with that girl!"
To be continued...
Raven's speaking style was something I wanted to emulate here, but I feel like it's tough to peg down at times. In the game, sometimes he spoke in a normal conversational way, and other times he spoke in his unique "Raven" way. In the Japanese version of Vesperia, he spoke in a strangely loose style, using terms like "da" and "da wa na" and had lines such as "You just leave it to this old man." In the English version of the game, the translators handled this very well with stuff like "ol' Raven" in lines like "Just leave it up ta ol' Raven." Hope I can get that down better in future chapters that Raven will appear in.
The name of the ski resort where Blizzard Buffalo's stage was in Mega Man X3 was called Raaga in the manga, but I shortened it to Raga since it makes little sense to point out a Japanese vowel extension in English. Also, the kid Toshihiko only appeared in the X3 manga, but there's a lot that can be done with his character, so he won't just be a one-shot.
Again, the reason for this prologue being longer than normal was because I had to keep track of three different worlds, so creating scenarios based on their importance and length is why it ended up as long as it did.