Hello, everyone! I just woke up 10 minutes ago (it's now 11:21 am) but let's get this started! READ THIS! IF YOU NORMALLY DON'T READ THIS PART, NOW WOULD BE THE TIME! So, something different happens in this chapter. Instead of the fight with the pirates, there are gonna be fights in the arena. So I don't want reviews saying "What the heck? This doesn't happen in the game!" Yeah, duh, I realize that! Just go with it! This chapter was so long and I had to change a few things so I worked on this all night! If there are a lot of mistakes that I didn't catch then I'm. I basically stayed up until one in the morning to get this finished in time. XP Sorry for this being long but let's go ahead and get the chapter started!
Disclaimer: I do not own anything of the game or characters. I only own my OC, Luna (well, I guess I also own the OC's at the arena). ^_^'
Chapter 7:
"For the thousandth time, I don't need to sit on a horse!" I complain. "I'm fine!"
He looks at me and sighs in annoyance. "And I told you a thousand times that you do." He says in an even toned voice glaring at me. "You twisted your ankle so you shouldn't walk on it."
"Hey, hey, you guys." Sain says smiling nervously. "There is no need to argue."
My brother walks ahead leaving me behind on Sain's horse. I'm riding on it while Sain is walking leading it by the reign. I watch my brother as he walks away. I start feeling some guilt swell up inside of me. I didn't mean to be so rude like that. I just don't want to be treated like a baby. I want to be able to hold on my own.
"Luna."
I jump and look next to me. Lady Lyndis is next to the horse smiling up at me.
I smile at her. "Hi, Lady Lyndis. Is there something I can help you with?"
She shakes her head. "I just wanted to tell you that Mark means well. He worries about you."
I snort. "A little too much." I reply.
"That's 'because you are his younger sister. He wants you to be safe." She looks at the ground. "It's never good to lose family."
I look at her sadly. I always forget that her parents are gone and she has no siblings. All she has is her grandfather.
"I'm sorry, Lady Lyndis." I say. "I didn't-"
She smiles up at me cutting me off with, "It's alright. What I'm trying to say is… the group we have here… we are all friends. It's not a bad thing to lean on one another once in a while. Especially when we need it."
My eyes grow wide. I can't argue with that. She really does have a point. I sigh in defeat.
"You are right." I say. "I'm sorry."
Lady Lyndis pats my leg reassuringly. "Make sure you and Mark make up." She winks saying, "I'm sure he would like that."
I smile giggling slightly. "Thank you, Lady Lyndis."
(Much Later at Port of Badon)
Sain helps me down the horse. I can see the blush on his face as his hands are on my sides. As soon as he puts me down I shove him back so he falls down right on his behind. I laugh as he sits up looking up at me with puppy eyes.
"Luna!" he whines. "Why do you have to be so mean?"
"'Cause you are a pervert." I reply.
The group laughs watching us. That's when my brother comes up and hugs me.
"I'm sorry." He says.
I smile hugging him back. "No, I'm sorry. I was being childish when you were only trying to help."
We let go and I see his warm smile. He definitely needs to smile more. Seeing a grumpy face doesn't make him look nice. The brother I knew when we were kids smiled all the time. Mark nods before walking to where the three lords had grouped up. When did he start becoming more serious? My eyes widen.
"Do you need help walking around?" someone asks.
I snap out of my daze and turn to see Lucius. I smile still feeling a bit shaken up. "Um… I think I'm okay for now. Thank you, though."
His face changes to concern. "Are you alright? You look pale."
"I'm fine." I say quickly.
He was about to speak when suddenly someone calls out, "Lucius!"
Lucius and I both turn to see its Raven calling for him. He is standing by Priscilla looking grumpy. Lucius smiles at me apologetically.
"I'm sorry." He says. "When someone calls for me, I answer."
I laugh slightly nudging him towards the two red heads. "Just go, ok?"
He nods before jogging over to the two. The three of them make a nice little group, I notice, as they stand together talking about something. I try to make a step in another direction but I immediately feel the pain shoot up my leg making me flinch shutting my eyes tightly.
"You shouldn't walk on it yet."
I look up to see the source of the voice, Dorcas. I haven't talked to him much at all so I always forget the fact that he is tall and very muscled; makes me a bit intimidated. He is such a warm person, though, making me comfortable around him at the same time. I seriously need to make up my mind.
I nod. "Sorry. I thought it would be healed by now."
"Would you like me to carry you around?" he asks.
I look around. I see the three lords talking to someone by the ships. Everyone else is talking among themselves. I look back at Dorcas.
"Sure." I reply smiling. "Thank you." He picks me up and places me on his shoulder. I gasp looking down at him. I exclaim, "You're strong!"
He looks up at me smiling. "You are light."
I smile wider. "I guess that's good for you, then."
Dorcas smiles. Suddenly, I spot Lady Lyndis walking away looking frustrated. I wonder what's wrong with her. I look back at the lords to see my brother is talking with them as well. My brother walks up to me and Dorcas.
"We are going to the inn over there." He says pointing to a building.
I look at Mark confused. "Why?"
He sighs. "No one is willing to take us to the Dread Isle so we are going to ask the pirates there."
"Is that safe?"
"It's the only option we have."
I gulp. "Let's go, then." I look down at Dorcas. "Can you just carry me to there? You can put me down at the entrance."
"Sure." He replies.
Mark walks next to Dorcas as he carries me to the inn. At the entrance he puts me down. My brother then helps me walk into the inn. The strong stench of alcohol fills the air as we make our way to the two lords Hector and Eliwood. An old pirate walks up to them.
"What do you want, whelps?" the man asks. "You're here to see me, aren't you?"
Lord Eliwood steps forward. "You're commander of the pirate armada, aren't you?"
"Gwah hah hah!" I jump at his laugh. "'Commander of the pirate armada'! I like the sound of that!" Chills suddenly run up my spine. "Are you lads that naïve? Or are you just dumb? Which is it?"
Lord Hector becomes angry and steps up. "You insolent…"
Mark blocks him while Lord Eliwood looks at him sternly. "Peace, Hector!" Lord Eliwood exclaims. He looks back at the pirate. "If I've insulted you, I apologize. How should I address you?"
The pirate crosses his arms. "Hmph… You don't frighten easily, do you?" He sighs. "Well, at least it seems you're not stupid. "Captain" will do, whelp." He then places his hands on his sides. "I'm Fargus, captain of the Davros."
"Fargus…" Lord Eliwood says. "Master Fargus? Or should I call you Captain?"
"You're not one of my mates. Call me Fargus." Fargus then glares. "Now, what do you want?"
"We want to book passage to Valor."
Fargus pauses. "How much will you pay?"
Lord Eliwood shakes his head unsure. "We don't know the current rates. Tell us how much you want."
Fargus smirks. "100,000 gold."
My eyes grow wide. "What?" Mark asks bewildered. "100,000 gold!"
Fargus crosses his arms. "Well? Will you pay?"
Lord Eliwood ponders for a bit. He looks at my brother unsure. Mark nods. "We've no choice, but we need a little time. We'll get the gold and return as quickly as possible." Lord Eliwood then looks at Lord Hector. "Come, Hector."
Lord Eliwood steps out of the inn in a rush. Mark returns to my side ready to help me walk out.
"Wa-Wait a moment!" Lord Hector calls shocked. "Eliwood!" He rushes out of the inn.
Mark and I were making our way out when I feel a hand touch my butt. I turn around quickly pissed off and slap the guy across the face. The pirate topples over out of his chair. He looks at me his face pink from all the alcohol he probably drank. The cheek I slapped turns red.
"Don't you dare touch me." I say angrily. "I already know a pervert. I don't need a drunken pirate touching me."
As my brother helps me out I hear the pirates laughing behind me. I look at my brother to see him angry.
"I should punch the guy." He mutters.
I smile. "It's ok. I think I took care of him well."
Mark smiles at me. "Good reflexes. I could hear the slap very clearly."
I giggle. "When I'm mad, you don't want to mess with me."
"What? You're not serious?" I hear Lord Hector exclaim.
Mark and I walk over towards them.
"We've no other way, do we?" Lord Eliwood asks him.
"Well, no." Lord Hector replies. He says something else but I can't hear it well since it's so quiet.
"Did you say something, Hector?" Lord Eliwood asks.
Lord Hector shakes his head. "No, nothing. Let's go earn some gold!"
They were pretty much ready to do what they needed to do when a pirate runs up to us. I prepare myself just in case he is a pervert, too.
"Ahoy!" he calls. "Hold your ground, boys!"
Lord Hector groans. "What now? We don't have the money yet."
The pirate frowns. "Fool! Of course you don't! I know that. The captain's got a message for you."
"A message?" I ask.
He nods. "If you can defeat the five champions at the arena, the captain is going to give you passage."
"For free?" Mark asks. "No gold?"
The pirate shrugs. "The captain's a tad off-kilter. He'd rather have a bit o' fun with you than take your gold. Smooth sailing for you." He runs towards what I assume to be the arena. "You better hurry up!"
Lord Hector frowns. "Oh, for… This is a joke, isn't it?"
Lord Eliwood says, "Looks serious enough. Let's go!"
Everyone walks towards the arena. I feel bad for slowing down Mark, though. I'm sure he wants to be up front so he can talk to the two lords. Speaking of the lords, I wonder where Lady Lyndis is. Is she upset about whatever happened earlier? I hope she comes back soon.
"You walk ahead, Mark." I say to my brother. "You need to plan things for the arena fights."
He looks down at me unsure. "I can't leave you behind."
I smile. "I'll be fine on my own."
After a moment he nods. "Be careful." He says.
"I will." I reply.
He walks ahead leaving me behind. I sigh. All I have to do is be careful how I walk and I should be ok. As the other members of the group walk ahead, I tread carefully. Stupid twisted ankle. If it wasn't for you, I would be fine right now and not such a burden.
"Excuse me?"
I turn around to spot a man with purple hair. He is wearing dark robes and has a glass piece in front of his one eye. I also notice he is carrying what looks like a book of some kind; possibly a tome.
"Yes?" I reply.
He smiles politely. "I was speaking with an old sailor a few moments ago. He told me that you're planning to travel to Valor. Is that so?"
I nod. "It's true."
His eyes grow wide. "Really? So that's why you are dealing with pirates?" I nod again. "…I see. In that case, would you mind if I joined you? My name is Canas. I'm a scholar of sorts… I've been seeking passage to Valor, but none will take me. My proposal probably sounds somewhat selfish, no?" I open my mouth to speak but he just continues on talking. "You should know, I can help in combat. I've some skill with a form of elder magic… Some call it dark magic, a rather biased term, if I must be blunt. But at the very least, I can take care of myself, and perhaps others."
I smile. "That would be very helpful, actually. Sure, you can join. You just need to talk to my brother, Mark. He's the tactician of the group I travel with."
He nods. "I understand. Thank you." He looks down at my foot. "You injured yourself?"
"Yeah."
"Let me help you, then." He offers.
"Great, thanks. I can lead you to my brother this way, too."
So that's how Canas ends up helping me walk over to the arena. I spot Lady Lyndis with the two other lords. I'm glad to see that she is back. I hope she is ok now. I then locate Mark reading a book. Why is he reading a book now? Something to help him think of a plan?
"Mark!" I call to him waving.
He sees me and Canas. He walks over to us keeping the book open.
"Who is this?" he asks looking at the magic user.
"This is Canas." I introduce. "He uses da-… elder magic." I say quickly. I almost forgot that Canas doesn't like the term 'dark magic'. "He wants to join our group."
Mark eyes him over. Then he nods. "Welcome to the group. I could use your skills for this particular fight."
Canas smiles. "I will gladly do whatever is needed of me."
(A Short While Later)
"The first champion, Saeran!" the announcer calls out.
The crowd cheers as an archer steps into the ring. My heart pounds from the loud noises.
"The challenger… Wil!"
Wil steps out into the ring. The crowd claps some more. I wish I could be out there but my ankle is bad. I hope Wil does alright. I close my eyes tightly hoping the first battle goes well.
"Begin!" the announcer calls!
I open my eyes and watch. Wil takes the first shot. It hits the man's side when he tries to dodge. I smile. So far so good! The champion then takes a shot. It scratches Wil's shoulder making me gasp. That was a little too close to the face!
The fight continues on. I stand up and lean against the wall. Everyone in the group excluding the next four who will fight and my brother are sitting up in the audience. They are sitting down in the ring watching the fight. Mark is there to make sure no one on our side ends up dying. I gulp at the terrifying thought.
After a few minutes of fighting I can see that Wil is not doing well. I hate to think it but the other archer seems to out-match him. He looks exhausted, too. Both guys are bleeding from cuts and other wounds but Wil has been hit the most.
"Wil, get out of there!"
I look down. My brother is standing up looking panicked at Wil. Wil looks at him and nods sadly. He quickly raises his hand in the air. It's the sign that he surrenders in the fight. A large bell rings signaling the end of the match.
The announcer yells, "The winner is our first champion, Saeran!"
The crowd cheers loudly. Wil walks over to the bench in the ring and sits down. Mark pats him on the back saying a few things which I can't hear. The crowd is really hyped up. Saeran leaves the ring. The crowd settles down.
"Our second champion, Nanda!" the announcer calls.
The crowd cheers once more as a magic user steps up. From the robes, I can tell he uses anima spells. So, that means Mark is sending out…
"The challenger… Canas!"
The crowd claps and cheers. I smile to myself. Just like I thought. This fight should turn out better. Dark magic has an advantage over anima. I don't know why, but I just know it does. I remember Mark telling me this a long time ago when he was first learning to become a tactician. He showed me a book, too.
"Begin!"
This time the second champion was the one to attack first. He uses fire magic but it misses Canas. Canas quickly reacts by opening his magic tome and chanting up a spell. I could see the dark symbol under him. It appears so fast, though, that the champion can't dodge. So, the hit lands.
After a bit of fighting, the champion retreats. The bell rings and I smile. The champion might have been faster but Canas' spells had more effect on him than the guy's fire magic.
"The winner is the challenger, Canas!"
The crowd cheers. I hear my own group clap and cheer as well. I clap still leaning against the wall. I wonder who the next champion is. I bet Mark does, though. That's why he picked the people he did to fight. I still feel sorry for Wil, though.
"Next is our third champion, Kalei!"
Crowd cheers as a female sword wielder steps forward. She looks very intimidating from where I am sitting. She has long pink hair up in a pony-tail. Kalei looks beautiful and tough.
"The challenger… Guy!"
Guy steps forward. A sword wielder against a sword wielder... I wonder how this is going to turn out. I'm surprised Mark didn't use a lance wielder. I should ask him about it later.
"It's because he asked."
I look next to me to see Matthew standing next to me. I look at him confused.
"What do you mean? Guy asked to fight?"
Matthew nods. "Apparently Guy knows the champion so he basically begged Mark to let him fight her."
My eyes grow wide. "Really?" I look back at the ring. "I wonder how he knows her."
"Who knows?" Matthew asks.
"Begin!" the announcer calls.
In a flash both blades clashed with each other. They were both fast as they jumped back and launched at each other again. It was getting hard to keep track of their movements. Even the moments when either one gets hurt. I could feel the tension within the air.
After what felt like a long while there was a clash. Then a sword flew into the air. I watch it spin a few times and then fall to the ground point first. It stabs the ground. That's when I see Guy had fallen back and the other sword wielder had her sword pointing at his face.
I could see she was saying something. I wish I could hear what she was saying! Guy looks at her angrily before sighing in defeat. He raises his hand. The bell rings.
"The winner is our third champion, Kalei!"
Crowd cheers. The champion says a few more things to Guy before helping him up. She then walks out of the ring. Guy grabs his sword and sits down at the bench.
"Poor Guy." I say.
"Hey, he can't win every fight." Matthew says.
I sigh. "I know, but still…"
"Our fourth champion, Zacheus!"
The crowd cheers as this time an axe wielder steps forward. He looks muscled and pretty strong. I've noticed that a lot with axe wielders. They all seem to have thick muscles.
"The challenger… Raven!"
My eyes grow wide. It's the red haired sword wielder that my brother decided to use. I have yet to see him fight so this should be fun to watch. I hope he does well. If we lose another fight we are done for. We won't be able to get free passage to Dread Isle.
"Begin!"
The axe wielder attacks first. Raven dodges with ease. The guy looked faster than normal axe wielders and yet somehow Raven dodged like it was no problem. It's good to know he is fast on his feet. How does he do attacking wise?
I watch as Raven charges forward and slashes the guy. A cut appears across the chest area. I gasp watching the blood flow out. The axe wielder stumbles only slightly. To my surprise, though, he charges at Raven right away. He is one tough fighter to be able to attack right away after that wound!
He injures Raven's arm but not too seriously since he is quick. After watching for a while Raven finally beats the axe-wielder making me feel relieved. The bell rings. Now there is only one champion left. As long as the next fighter on our side wins this one, we are good to go on our boat trip.
"The winner is the challenger, Raven!"
The crowd cheers and I can see Raven smirking. He leaves and sits down. It becomes quiet. The anticipation makes my heart beat quickly as I wait for the announcer to call out the next champion and who the challenger is.
"Ladies and gentlemen!" the announcer calls out. "The moment you have all been waiting for! The fifth and final champion, Damian!"
The crowd roars with life and cheering. I watch as a paladin steps out into the ring. He has strange magenta hair and purple armor on. He looks very strong, though. Who is Mark sending out for the final one?
"Our final challenger… Hector!"
My eyes grow wide. Lord Hector steps into the ring wielding a hammer. So that's who Mark chose. Alright, so we just need Lord Hector to win. After this, Fargus gives us a ride on his ship for free. I laugh slightly thinking, 'No pressure.'
"Begin!"
Lord Hector runs up. The paladin dodges the attack though making me nervous. But when Damian went to attack Lord Hector dodged as well. It's then when Lord Hector is able to land a hit with the hammer. It's not too long, though, before the paladin is also able to land a blow.
The air continues to feel tense around our group as the fight continues on. Lord Hector and Damian both become tired after charging at each other for a while. Damain goes in for a hit but misses. That's when Lord Hector launches at him with his hammer.
It hits right on target with the paladin's chest and he falls off his horse. I gasp watching the paladin fall off the horse and hit the ground. It stays dead silent as he just lies there for a few moments. Then, slowly, the hand rises up. The bell rings.
I smile excitedly. "The winner is the challenger, Hector!"
The crowd roars jumping up in their seats. I was beaming and overjoyed along with Matthew and the others in our group. Lord Hector gives a thumbs up to the five below and then at us above in the audience.
(Later)
"Aha! You made it, whelps!" Fargus exclaims greeting us at the entrance of the arena.
"That was… hard…" Hector pants.
He must still be tired from the fight with the fifth champion. Serra and Priscilla had healed up the five fighter's wounds but they were still tired.
Lord Eliwood asks, "You'll give us passage now, won't you?"
Fargus smiles proudly. "I'm a man of the sea. I always keep my word." He then glances at Lady Lyn. "Are my old eyes lyin' to me? Is this beauty really with you? Gwaa ha ha ha! My lucky day!"
Lady Lyn glares at him not looking amused. I look at her worriedly.
Lord Hector looks at her. "Listen, I know how you feel, but you have to accept it. We've no other choice!"
Lady Lyn turns to him and snaps, "I know that! I haven't said a word, have I?"
She walks off with Lord Hector behind. People start packing things and climbing aboard the ship. Before I could get on, though, I turn to see a woman with red hair and wearing red run over to the ship. She looks at me and smiles.
So, what did you guys think? Was it interesting and cool? I'll leave that for you guys to tell me when you review! :D Oh, and the idea about the arena... it's not originally mine. Credit goes to patattack. Alright, let me go thank the reviewers!
Meru-64 (Your review never fail to amuse me. XD Thanks for keeping this fun for me.)
patattack (Thank you SOOO much for the idea and helping me with it! I think this chapter got more interesting 'cause of it! So, yeah, thanks again! :D)
Hyralc (I'm glad I did good with Lucius. I like him a lot, too. Hopefully in all my chapters I do good with him and all the other characters and give this game justice.)
SuperNova23 (Thanks for your support and I'm glad I was able to help you with your own fanfic. I really do like it! ^_^)
ExposedWiresExposedVeins (Don't worry about your reviews! There the only reason I am able to catch the mistakes and blunders I makes. Especially the Oscar/Oswin thing. I always mix those two names up for some reason! . So... thanks! XD)
Is it just me, or are my author's notes getting longer and longer. o.o I don't mean to but if I want to say something I just kinda do! . I apologize if this annoys anyone! Anyway... see you all next Saturday! I have to babysit all this week but I will definitely make sure to find free time. ^_^ Sayonara! Au revoir! Bye! XD
