Chapter 7

Truth and Other Burdens

Days passed. Instead of languishing in a dungeon for some unknown crime, Willow was kept sequestered in an unused house in southern San d'Oria. The ever watchful Temple Knights served as her jailor-hosts. She was given a change of clothes, even if they were a slight step above rags, and matching shackles. They fed her regularly. It was nothing extravagant but definitely better than sharing rarabs with Vincent.

The two-story house was sparsely furnished with a bed, table set, and a solitary candle. Her bed and table were in the main living room area of the house. The other portions of the house were sealed off or locked. Even the windows were boarded up except for one that just narrowly offered a sliver of view of the nearby street. Everything about the place gave off a lonely vibe which was compounded by the guard. None of the Knights would talk to her or even look her in the eye, save for one.

One of the Knights, a tall, silver-haired young Elvaan who brought her food from time to time, would smile at her. He was part of the troop of Knights assigned to guard her. She began to welcome their silent exchange. For lack of anything better to do, she started watching him through the window as he walked his post around the house. Through his dealings with others, she noticed a fierce determination in his eyes yet when he looked at her she saw kindness there too. One day, he smuggled a book in for her. It was a collection of short stories and fantastic tales of ancient San d'Orian heroes.

The old, tattered book, simply titled On Heroism, was filled with stories of the well known heroes like Lady Eldie Montiont, Erpalacion B Chanoix, Lanfeaur d'Oraguille, indeed the d'Oraguille line comprised the bulk of the work, but there were also tales of lesser known heroes. Some citations barely offered a few sentences to remember their honorable deeds. It was in these blurbs of history that she ran across the name Cainere P Vaugroun. There wasn't much information there only that his valiant actions during the First Battle of Konschtat directly led to the destruction of the Gusgen mines.

From a chair overlooking the window, Willow pondered the words of the book when the door opened and her first actual visitor arrived. The same man who set the guards upon her at the cemetery now stood looking down at her, his face contorted in rage.

"Where is your father?"

"Who are you? What do you want with me? Why have-"

"Silence! I am asking the questions here. We have men looking for that traitor in Bastok but our efforts have been fruitless so far. Is he in the capital? Or is he in one of the smaller towns outside?"

"You waste your time. I will not give him up."

"Your cooperation is not necessary only your presence. Sooner or later he will come for you, or he will be arrested by the Musketeers. They have agreed to join the search. The Republic as well as the Kingdom does not look favorably on war crimes. Regardless, he will be brought to justice."

"War crimes…" she whispered in astonishment.

"It does not surprise me that coward lacked the courage to tell you what he has done."

"He is not a coward!"

"He is a coward and a burden to all who have the unfortunate circumstance to know him."

"Papa is the most honorable man I know, perhaps the most honorable man in Bastok."

"That is an easy feat, to be sure. Even the most honorable man in Bastok is less than the worst thief in San d'Onara. It is fitting he has been hiding out there. What does anyone in Bastok know of honor?"

"Why do you hate him so?"

His features softened somewhat. "Hate? I do not hate him, merely disappointed. As my older brother, he was everything to emulate. Instead, he took all we had and threw it away.

"I am sorry we are meeting in this way, Willow. I have not seen you since your mother's funeral. You bear such a resemblance to her. It's unfortunate to have to detain you since you held no part in the matter. Understand that your father's actions have shamed us all. We should lead the life of the privileged as our station demands. But, your father squandered every ounce of nobility left in our line."

"Tell me then, what was his unpardonable sin?"

"I will leave that for him to admit. In the meantime, I believe my daughter wishes to say something to her long lost cousin. I'll leave you two alone," with that he got up and exited the house. The door opened and in walked a fiery-haired girl.

"Hildegarde?"

"Do you have any idea the hardships I faced growing up? Every day I listened to my father's laments while we barely make ends meet in that den of thieves!"

"I'm sor-"

"Every day, I get up and I train endlessly and without complaint with one purpose in mind: to join the Royal Knights and try to win back the honor that was stolen from me before I was even born! Can you imagine what it feels like to grow up surrounded by scum and knowing you are better than them?"

"Listen, I-"

"No, you listen. My father may consider you an innocent victim in all this but as far as I am concerned you are all at fault: you, your coward father, and your whore mother."

The word penetrated her ears and burrowed into her mind setting off a wave of emotion. Willow's skin felt intensely hot. She lunged at Hildegarde's throat but the shackles she wore prevented her from lifting her hands above her waist. Hildegarde stood her ground and cocked her arm back. The next event seemed to take forever to occur. Willow helplessly watched as Hildegarde's fist slowly sailed through the air at her face. Just before the fist landed, the image of the smooth-barked tree popped into her mind. Then, everything went black.

Skull-splitting pain woke her. The darkness outside had a disorienting effect and she could not tell if it were late evening or early morning. A damp washcloth covered her forehead and for a moment, she was a little girl again surviving a goblin attack. She looked around for her father but instead found the Knight watching over her.

"Good evening. Do not move, milady. You hit your head fairly hard, and so did Miss Hildegarde."

"My teeth hurt."

"Yes, she managed to knock two of them out. I was able to set them back and heal some of the damage but the swelling will take some time to go down. If it assuages your anger any, your uncle chastised her once they left. I do not believe it was his intention for her to attack you. Excuse me, 

where are my manners? I am afraid I have not properly introduced myself. My name is Maurequane C Bergnier."

"I am Willow Raulemant… excuse me, Willow Vaugroun."

"Two names? It is a pleasure to meet you both."

"It is a long story, one I do not completely know myself. I have been meaning to thank you for all your kindness. If I could ask one more, do you know what crime my father is being accused of?"

"We are forbidden from speaking about such matters to you, milady. However, we are forbidden from conversing with you at all yet that has not stopped me from carrying on this conversation," Maurequane smiled gently at her. "If I honestly knew I would tell you. However, I am just a guard and not privy to such information. Whatever your father has done, it is the internal affairs of the Royal Knights. I am a Temple Knight."

"All I know is that my father is accused of some heinous war crime."

"I gathered as much. Forgive me for eavesdropping; it was hard not to. Your uncle's voice carries."

"I never even knew I had an uncle, or any other family for that matter. I grew up in Bastok with such ignorance of them."

"This is your first time to San d'Oria?"

"Yes it is."

"That explains it then."

"I know I have never seen you before. I would have remembered such beauty. I am truly sorry your first experience here has been such a traumatic one." Willow's unbruised cheek flushed a rosy color and once again her skin warmed, but in a good way. "If you would indulge me one curiosity, who is Vincent?"

"Vincent? How is it you know him? He is… a friend. We met in Konschtat and he has been traveling with me ever since."

"He is a most peculiar fellow and quite the determined sort. At least two or three times a night since you have been here, he has attempted to gain entrance. Either one of the other guards or I would catch him red-handed. We have detection spells in place to catch intruders. At first, the others and I found his attempts humorous, but then they were just sad. The others wished to forcibly expel him from San d'Oria, but I could understand his tenacity," Muraquane smiled warmly once again.

"Vincent finally agreed to stop if I would give you the book to pass the time. Since then he has not been back, yet I did overhear a report of an adventurer matching his description causing quite a stir down at the chocobo stables. The adventurer in question hopped on a chocobo and fought his way out of the city, peculiar indeed. If you would excuse me, milady, I must return to my post before my relief comes and finds us. Good evening."

Willow's heart sank watching him leave. The kindness of giving her the book garnered him so much favor. Then again, he did disregard his orders for her. Even if Vincent was her benefactor, Maurequane risked much to bring it to her. She stared out the window absently, trying to digest the recent turn of events. All of things she had been so sure of all of her life were suddenly shattered. She wished her father was there to explain everything. She wished to speak with Maurequane for just a bit longer. Most of all, she wished she could rub her cheek.

More days passed. Maurequane checked on her from time to time, yet never said a word after their initial exchange, only a kind smile. On the days he would stand duty there would be fresh lilacs waiting for her when she awoke. To fill her days, she would read her book, or stare out the window wondering what Magiere or Vincent were up to.

One morning, Willow was awakened by sound of someone shouting outside. The sun had not broken the horizon yet but the night was waning. The voice exuded authority of some kind. As quietly as her shackles allowed, Willow got up and went to the door and listened. The shouter had an unfamiliar voice but the other belonged to Maurequane. His superior had caught him bringing her flowers and was berating him for it. She ran to the window but couldn't see them. Thankful as she was for the gesture, she felt sorry he was in trouble for her.

Willow ran back to the door to listen when flashes of purple light from outside poured in the window. The verbal abuse stopped and was replaced by the ringing sounds of swords unsheathing and someone commanding, "Halt!" Moments later, three loud crashes of metal hitting stone echoed in the quiet morning air. Footsteps and the sounds of jingling keys signaled the approach of the stranger. Willow backed away from the door as it opened, framing the outline of a man she knew well.

"Papa!" She nearly toppled her father when she barreled into him for a hug.

"Willow, we do not have much time. It'll only be a matter of time before they wake and more of them arrive." Nouvalmille pointed at the sleeping guards. He quickly flipped through the keys until he found the desired one and began unlocking her shackles. His attire sparked a hint of cognizance. In the dim early morning light, she could make out the feathered cap and tattered, crimson garb of a red mage.

"Papa, what is going on? Your brother, an uncle I never knew I even had, came in and told me you were guilty of war crimes!"

"Leuvemant was here? What did he tell you?"

"He said you were a coward, a burden, and had no honor."

"I suspected he would not understand, as I see in your eyes that you do not."

"What do you mean? Why is this happening?"

"All of this goes back to my actions during the Crystal War. I was a Royal Knight then, Order of the Red Rose, and assigned to the 500-strong detachment that was constructing defenses around and reinforcing the Garliage Citadel. Your mother was here in San d'Oria, heavy with you and ready to give birth. The family physician anticipated a difficult birth. It was something in the way your mother carried you. During the pregnancy, known as ectopic one, she was plagued with aches and pains, more so than usual. Against the physician's advice she miraculously carried you to term.

"The doctor was correct. She gave birth to you, but hemorrhaged profusely. The doctor was powerless to stop it. Magical restorative means were ineffectual; the damage to your mother's internal organs was too severe. She passed shortly after bestowing upon you the name Willow. Since the work on the Citadel was nearly complete, I was allowed a leave of absence to return to San d'Oria to bury your mother and set my house in order before returning to the front lines.

"When I had arrived home, a letter awaited me. Your mother, sensing the end was near, had written it. You see, your mother was also a Royal Knight, fearless and determined. Her martial prowess far surpassed my own. It was for these qualities that she was sent out time and again on missions with low survivability chances. She always made it through. Yet after a particularly difficult mission where she was one of only three survivors, she became despondent and withdrawn. Her will to fight was exhausted.

"She wanted to settle down. She wanted a family. In the years beforehand, we had tried many times, but it never took. Twice her body rejected it. It was as if her body wouldn't allow her to carry a sword and a child at the same time. Once she became pregnant again, she was returned to San d'Oria on maternity leave. She never touched her sword again.

"The letter your mother wrote outlined her final wish. She wanted you to grow up in peace, never having known the harshness of combat, the sorrow of losing friend after friend in battle, and regret of the atrocities of your actions. It was her intent that if by some miracle she had survived the birth, then the three of us would leave San d'Oria. But she was not expecting to survive and it did matter to her. Your life was the only miracle she needed.

"She named you Willow to break with San d'Orian tradition. She knew had you stayed you would be forced, by me and tradition, to join the ranks of the Royal Knights. The Vaugroun house is an old line that has served in the San d'Orian knighthood with distinction for hundreds of years: paladins, dragoons, dark knights, and even the occasional red mage. It is with that weight on my shoulders that I would have quickly refused her request. However, I must abide by her final wishes, and your name is reminder of it.

"Shortly after her burial, while I contemplated her written words, I received news that the entire detachment had been annihilated. The original plan was to tunnel past the Yagudo forces massing in the Meriphataud Mountains to the south. We were to meet up with Tarutaru mages and with their help deal with the Yagudo threat. However, the Orcs got wind of the plans and informed the Yagudo. They waited until just the right moment before the Yagudo infiltrated the Citadel via a secret entrance and surrounded and slaughtered my friends and fellow knights.

"Along with the news came orders to return to my unit, a reconstituted Order of the Red Rose, and make our way to Tavnazia, where we would make our stand against the beastmen hordes along with the strong contingent of the Allied Forces of Altana. So I was torn between duty to my country and duty to my wife. You know what my decision was.

"So, I gathered the barest essentials we needed for the trip and fled San d'Oria in the night. Thanks to our ancestors' legacy we had power, respect and wealth and had you grown here, your life would have been spent in comfort, before joining the knighthood. However, to honor your mother I abandoned my duties and my fate. It was not until we showed up in Bastok that I found out the entire Allied Force and Tavnazia were both wiped out. Twice, I have eluded my death thanks to your mother.

"Our family's lands and assets were seized and liquidated to help fund the war effort. Leuvamant was young, too young for the Army, and was without wife or child. Our parents fell in service as well, so there was no one to look after him. Yet, he was old enough to find his own way. I was confident he would land on his feet. I appear to be mistaken and he has grown bitter with the passage of time.

"When you left, I knew it was only a matter of time before you knew the truth. I had planned to tell you all of this upon your return. I was at the guild this morning when a Hume came to find me and informed me of your capture. It was a consequence I had hoped would not come to pass. I came as soon as I paid off my debts and set my other affairs in line."

The sounds of a throng of rapidly approaching footsteps on pavement disturbed the silence outside.

"We do not have much time, my child. You must leave this place. I will surrender myself to the guard. I have grown weary of hiding and you are ready to stand on your own. You have been for quite some time. Once they have me, they will no longer need you. Make your way to Mhaura. Your friend Vincent waits for you there. I have entrusted him with some keepsakes of your mother's: the letter she wrote me and her sword, which she received from her mother as well. Keep them safe.

"Long have I thought of your mother's actions. There were times when I was infuriated at the boredom of having gone from swords to plowshares, so to speak. If I had not, I would not have seen you grow into the fine woman you are. I cannot wait to tell your mother about you. Now go."

"Papa…"

"Go!"

- - - - - -

She remembered leaving her father behind once again. True to his word he surrendered himself to the San d'Orian authorities. Despite the fact that it was during peace time, since his actions were committed during war, he was condemned to death. Although she was not around to see it, she heard he was beheaded on the parade grounds, and then finally laid to rest with his wife, Willow's mother.

It was a somber event. No cheers rang out among the crowd. There was no joy in his death. She met up with Vincent as her father demanded, but returned to San d'Oria once again shortly thereafter. Determined to repair her family name she joined the auxiliary militia of the Royal Knights. Hildegarde was also among their ranks and things were tense for a quite a while. Those memories would have to wait for a different day.

The strain of the spell was lingering. Try as she might, she couldn't shake the fatigue or her sadness. Willow did her best to focus on what needed to be done. Changing her linkpearl once again, she spoke into the shell.

"Mag?"

"Will! I'm out of ideas. I need to make a break for it."

"I was just about to tell you to come. Everything's set. We're just waiting on a few people to show. They'll be here by the time you make it. I'll see you in a few."

"Don't leave!"

"I'll stay on shell in case something goes wrong with your escape. Don't worry; I'm here."

Willow got up and stretched. A vigorous shake of her head failed to empty the cobwebs. A purple void opened in front of her and out stepped adventurers of various shapes, sizes, and races. Each was a hodgepodge of mismatched armor and weapons. There was an assortment of scythes, swords, lances, knuckles, etc. A small, female Tarutaru with a wand-sized "staff" waved at Willow before disappearing into another void.

"Thanks for your support, guys. I'll wait for the others to show up before we go over the plan."

The assembled crew grunted and nodded their agreement. Moments later, the Tarutaru arrived once again, bringing more adventurers with her. Vincent grinned roguishly at her once he appeared as well. Willow returned the sentiment. With everyone present and accounted for, she dismissed the crystal.

"Gentlemen, and Hanini, Magiere will be showing up soon leading the Tenshodo through those two trees," Willow pointed at the spot she rigged. "Note the flags in ground. They're there to help with any wind adjustments you may need. At this distance it shouldn't be much of a problem but we need to be dead-on. We need to knock them off their mounts in that spot. I've got a little something I've been meaning to try out."

"Geez, Will, no need to be so mysterious. What's the deal?"

"If you must know, Hork, they're gravity bombs. That'll keep them from running off. We should make short work of them then."

"Sounds good to me, you guys ready for a fight?" Horkas raised his lance and shouted. The others soon followed suit, much to the Willlow's chagrin.

"Guys, it's not wise to give away your position in an ambush."

"Sorry, Will. Just itchin' to kick ass."

"You'll get your chance, now everyone down!" All counted, there were thirteen adventurers, Willow included, lying in wait. She looked over the bunch and smiled at the futility of the hulking Galka trying to hide. She enlisted the aid of Hanini to cast invisibility spells on the four of them that had shown up.

In the distance, Willow could make out Magiere on a chocobo. Behind her followed a yellow mass of followers whose number was indistinguishable at that range. The nearer they drew the easier it was to discern their strength. Willow put their number at eight. Satisfied at their numerical superiority, she began assigning riders to the firing line to ensure each rider received their due "attention."

"Everyone have their targets? Ready your weapons. Range, 55 meters. Wind, west at 20 knots." The firing line loaded crossbows and nocked their arrows. Magiere passed the trees. Within moments, her pursuers passed the mark as well.

"Fire."

As planned, the riders were thrown off the chocobos and landed in the patch of gravity bombs. Willow mouthed the command to set them off. Plumes of smoke and flashes of light marked each bombs detonation. The passing wind revealed the Tenshodo riders slowly getting to their feet. Each looked as if they were trudging through waist deep water. The scene brought a smile to Willow's face.

"Attack," she shouted, drawing her sword. Magiere, Vincent, and the rest of companions went charging forward to meet their hindered opponents. Even Hanini, running as fast as her tiny legs could take her, charged. For the briefest of moments, she thought of her father once again.

At first she was baffled by the crown's actions. Why would they allow a disgraced knight to be interred with the honored dead? It wasn't until much later that she realized that it was penitence for carrying out such a cruel punishment in peace. The traditions and laws only allowed one course of action in his case. The situation they found themselves in today was all thanks to Magiere's penchant for thievery, even if it was directed towards a worthy cause. In the face of all the sacrifices her mother and father made for her to grow up in peace, the familial sword in her hand knew her life now was anything but peaceful. It seems everyone is bound by the past, kings and commoners, knights and adventurers.

Willow lamented the day's events. It was supposed to be a morning of practicing spells then Magiere and she were supposed to visit her father. She would take the time and dress up. After all, today was a special occasion. It was three years ago this day that he embraced his fate with honor.

Note: I've been working on this for quite a while thanks to many events in real life which have prevented me from actually getting online anymore. If you've made it this far then thanks for reading. This is my first attempt at putting anything to words, and I think it shows. What was supposed to be simple short story ended up being a whole hell of a lot longer than I anticipated. Eh, such is life, no? Thanks, again.