Disclaimer: No, Legend of Dragoon doesn't belong to me, but if it did, I would please fans by creating a PS2 or PS3 version of the game. Now that friends would be sweet!

Author's Note: My fan fiction has finally made it to the double digits! Yippee! I've never written anything that made it this far, so I am über excited!

"Another Legend"

By Shinshia101

Chapter 10

After paying the fee, the seven companions boarded the Queen Fury and departed from the Donaun dock early the next morning.

Riza climbed the ladder to the crow's nest. It was a nice peaceful place. The cool ocean breeze swept through, causing her short hair to compile in her face. She ran her fingers through her hair and leaned on the rim of the nest. It had been almost a week since she had left home in search of the dragoon spirits. She wondered how her father was doing. Was he alright without her? Did he miss her? She sure missed him. She hugged the mainmast that protruded out of the crow's nest.

The night before she had a strange dream:

A seed had fallen onto arid soil, but suddenly it grew into a great tree with many branches and fruit. One by one the fruit dropped into the ground: 1, 2, 3, 4,…until Riza was able to count 107 fruits. Each fruit split open and the seeds formed new trees, some bigger than others. However, there was still one fruit left on the original tree, much different than the other 107 fruits before it. It was abnormally bigger than the others and instead of being rosy red like the others; it had a pale blue color. Riza stepped forward to touch the malformed fruit. It was as if it was calling her. When her hand came in contact with it, the fruit immediately glowed and suddenly busted open. Millions of seeds surrounded her and looked as if they were bowing to her.

It was then that she had awoken. The dream itself wasn't strange it was just that she couldn't stop thinking about it. Was there supposed to be a hidden meaning in the dream? Her mind drifted to the day the Wingly woman came to the palace. Her right hand gently rubbed her temple. That pain she felt…her head felt as if it was metal being hit with a sledge hammer! What was that? Was it Wingly magic? She could not tell, yet she had a feeling it was something else. But what? She hoped the occurrence never happened again, especially if they were to ever meet the Wingly woman again.

"Hey, Riza!"

She looked down and noticed Tristan climbing up the ladder toward her. She moved a bit to the side to allow room for him to fit. She watched as he let out a sigh. She wondered what he wanted.

"I need 50 gold coins," he said, extending out his right hand.

"What?" she asked. She wasn't sure if she had heard him properly. Had he just asked for 50 gold coins?

"I said I need 50 gold coins," he repeated bluntly.

It was a very expensive and random request. "Why? Don't you have money, too? Where is yours?"

"I lost it."

"You 'lost it'?" Riza repeated, shocked. "That's a meal for two, and then some. How the hell did you lose that kind of money?"

Tristan averted his gaze downward. "It was just a little bet I had with the chef…it doesn't matter how I lost it!" he snapped.

Noticing that she wasn't going to give in, he sighed. "Look Riza, it's not that much. Just give me the money and I promise I'll pay you back. Please!"

"No."

"What?"

"I said, no. Why don't you ask someone else?"

He rolled his eyes. "Derrick and Kylin are Soa knows where; Kish and Nayeli are lovey-dovey in the cabins, and I am definitely not asking the Wingly!"

"He has a name you know." Riza said. "It's Vector, or have you forgotten that?"

"Whatever. Are you going to give me the money or not?"

"What will you give me?" she inquired.

"What do you want?" Tristan asked, hesitantly.

"Hmm…" Riza thought, placing her pointer finger on her chin. "I'm not quite sure. When I think about it, I'll be sure to tell you." She gave him a sly smile.

"Riiiiight," Tristan dragged. "Now, the money."

"I told you I haven't thought of what I want yet."

"Riza!"

"Alright, alright! Don't have to act all crabby. You owe me. Remember that." She handed him the sac full of money. He counted it just to be sure it was the right amount and scurried off to pay his debt.

After a moment of silence, she climbed down the ladder and walked on the deck. Riza unsheathed her newly honed swords. Maybe she could use this time to practice. She placed a spare piece of wood on one of the masts. She ran to the far end of the ship and faced her opponent. She then charged and cut the wood violently. She was done too quickly. In a matter of seconds the square plank of wood was nothing more than a pile of splinters. She sighed, unsatisfied. She decided to go take a nap; at least that would keep her occupied.

"Do you notice something odd with the sky?" Captain Kayla asked one of her sailors.

The male sailor looked up. "Nuthin' Captain," the sailor replied. "The sky looks perfectly fine to me."

The woman narrowed her eyes. "There are too many clouds." She turned to the sailor. "How long will it take us to reach Fueno?"

"Prob'ly another 20 minutes, Captain."

"You better be right. A storm is coming and I don't think it is going to be a good one." The Captain said. She felt something land between her eyes. She wiped the bridge of her nose. She then looked up; it had started to rain. "Forget 20 minutes; cut that time in half!"

"Ay!"

-------

It started off as a drizzle. Riza stretched her arms, and wiped the sleep from her eyes. She watched as the water droplets fell on her face. She always found that a little bit of rain was refreshing. She felt a chill and shivered. Perhaps it would be best if she went back below deck. She noticed Kylin on the shrouds. The young girl was opening her mouth as if to catch the droplets.

"Hey Kylin, what are you doing?" Riza called up to her. "It's getting kind of wet up here; we need to go below deck."

"Just another minute," the young elf replied. "I wish this was snow!"

Riza smiled, but noticed that the rain was suddenly getting harder. Clouds were quickly filling the sky, turning from blue into dark gray. A sudden flash of lightning caught her attention.

"Kylin, you need to get down now!"

"I'm coming!" A roar of thunder boomed in the sky. Kylin held on tight to the shroud net. "I'm scared!"

"It's okay, Kylin. I'm right here! Just let go of the shroud and I'll catch you!" The rain was hit her eyes and it was getting harder for her to see. She stretched her arms upward, reassuring Kylin.

The young girl shook her head. "I can't!" The thunder boomed again and the rain began to flood down.

Kylin was too high up the shroud, and telling her to jump wasn't a wise plan either. The only way was to climb up and get elf down herself. Riza cussed. Where did this come from? Did this start from just a drizzle?

--------

"Captain the storm is steering the ship off course!"

"Where is it headed?" Captain Kayla yelled, trying to make her voice louder than the booming waves.

"East!"

The female captain cussed. She ran to wheel and turned it with all her might to the left, but to no avail; the winds were too strong. The ship twisted and turned on top of the waves. Cargo began to topple over the ship.

"Get everyone below deck, immediately!"

--------

Carefully, Riza climbed up the shroud. A few times she had almost lost her balance due to the wet nets. When she was near enough to Kylin, she stretched out her hand and the girl hesitantly accepted it. Together, they went down the shroud, pausing a few times as the wind began to pick. Finally she had reached the deck, but now the winds were merciless!

"KYLIN!!!"

The squall blew the small girl out of her hands and to the edge of the ship. Kylin hung on to the rim of the ship, for if she released her hold, she would fall into the belly of the ocean.

"Help!" the girl cried. "Help me!"

Riza noticed rope on the ground and quickly tied one side of it around one of the masts. Making sure it was tightly knotted, she took the loose end of the rope went back to Kylin. With her free hand she pulled the diminutive girl and tied the rope around the girl's waist.

"Riza!"

She turned and noticed Tristan at the entrance of the lower region of the ship. Grabbing Kylin, she tossed the young girl to him. He caught her and untied her and Kylin quickly went below deck with the other crewmen. Riza was left on deck. She held on tightly to the shroud as the wind sifted wildly around her. She just needed to time herself right. Tristan stood there at the entrance waiting for her. As the winds began to cease a bit, Riza began to move; however, a large wave of water engulfed the ship. She tried to grab something, anything, but it was too late. The wave had already sent her overboard.

"RIZA!!"

"Throw a lifeboat! Damn it!"

Riza gasped for air. She saw the lifeboat in the distance and started to swim toward it. She suddenly felt a sharp pain on her left leg; it had cramped. Crap! She moved her arms frantically, hoping it would keep her afloat, but the merciless waves covered her, pushing her farther and farther away from the ship. Water quickly flooded into her lungs, choking her. She felt herself sinking lower and lower, as if some unnatural force was pulling her down. No, she would not let herself die like this! Again, she tried to swim upward, tried to get her head above the water, but her efforts were in vain. Was this it?

Down, down into the sea she sank. Images quickly flooded her mind; all the things that she wanted to do before her life was over. She would never get to see her father again, or her grandfather, or ever become a knight, which was her dream ever since she was a child. All things she never got to say…

Tristan…

His face was all she could see, his obnoxious, devious face! A face that she had grown to love…

Help me! Tristan, help me!

His voice echoed in her ears. Riza… Riza!

Memories flooded her mind…

"You are such a jerk!" she could hear her eight year old self yell.

"And you're such a bitch, I guess we're even," he whispered in her ear, calmly.

"What is going on? Riza why are you on the floor?" her father gazed at her.

"He-" she began before she was cut off.

"I tried to pull the chair for her to sit at the table, but she slipped off the chair." Tristan replied, innocently.

Her father looked at Tristan and smiled. "That was very kind of you, Tristan. You are such a great friend to Riza." He reverted his gaze toward her. "Be more attentive, Riza!"

---

"Let's turn this up a notch," she heard him say.

"How so?" she asked, holding her spear in lunging position. She raised a brow as Tristan began to take off his armor. "Giving up already?"

"No armor, no weapons, just our fists and feet. You in?"

"Alright," she felt herself smirked, dropping her spear. "Let's dance!"

---

She fell backward onto the grass and gazed at the sky.

"Thanks, for the company." she mumbled.

"Anytime," Tristan said looking down at her. "We demon children have to stick together!"

Stick together…

She knew her mind was playing games with her; if only the games were real! Her reality wasn't one that she wanted.

Don't leave me!

She reached up to grab the face, his face, but the image disappeared. Although she was surrounded by water, she could feel the tears well up in her eyes.

She closed her eyes, accepting her fate.

I'm going to die!

"No, you cannot die. I need it….my body…"

Then her whole world went black.

"We have to go get her!" Tristan said as he paced, impatiently. They had arrived at Feuno about fifteen minutes after Riza had fallen off the ship. He had hoped that she had somehow made it to shore, yet he hadn't seen her. He searched the town, asking every person that he would come across if they had seen her. But each person shook his or her head, saying that they haven't.

Frustrated, he punched the wall, creating a dent. He caught sight of the hotel manager looking at him, but he only glared back at the old man, who remained silent. Good, he needed to think, think of where Riza could be. He could hear Kylin crying in the background. Couldn't she be quieter? Soa, she was so loud!

"She's…dead isn't she…?" the young elf moaned. "Riza's dead!"

"She's not dead!" Tristan snapped, causing the girl to cry even more. "And would you shut the hell up!"

"Hey! Watch your tongue!" Derrick scolded, grabbing his shoulder. Tristan shook it off. "You aren't the only one who lost someone here!"

"Just because we can't find her doesn't mean that she's dead!" the black hair boy replied, raising his voice. No, he refused to believe something like that could happen. Riza, dead? Impossible! To him, those words were like an oxymoron. But a small doubt began to linger in the back of his mind. The current would've been overwhelming for any human. What if she was…

Dead…?

No, this was all a dream. Yes, that was it! They were still on the ship to Mille Seseau and he was below deck, sleeping.

Wake up damn it! Wake up!

Hot unwanted tears started streaming down his face. Soa, why her? Why? He couldn't take it anymore. He had to find her. Maybe, just maybe… He grabbed his coat and headed out the door.

"Where are you going?" Derrick demanded.

"I'm going to look for her," he replied, slamming the door behind him.

The sun shone brightly in the sky as two young men walked toward the pier. One was tall and lean, with curly brown hair, while his companion was also tall, and tan with shoulder length blond hair.

"Do you think we'll get a good catch today, Gary?" the blond boy asked his friend. "Its been days since we actually have. Do you think the water could be contaminated or something?"

Garrett shook his head. "The only reason we haven't had a good catch recently is because you've been rushing us to see that Nisselian girl." He adjusted his fishing rod, allowing it to lean on his right shoulder. "Honestly, Jason can't you think of something other than what's in your pants?"

Jason laughed. "What are you talking about? I'm thinking about food, aren't I?"

When they reached the pier, Garrett placed his fishing rod down and took a seat. He placed the bait on the hook and threw the line. It plopped into the water and he waited. The cool breeze beat against his face and he inhaled the smell of the sea. Life was good, and yet after a while, it became the same old thing. Waking up in the morning, doing chores, going fishing, taking care and helping his grandmother. Sure there were the little incidents were Jason would have something going on, but as soon as it passed it was back to routine. He wished that something could happen that would just get him out of the vicious cycle of ubiquity.

Garrett sighed and let his head fall backward. His eyes slowly wandered to the left, when something caught his attention. He turned his head. Something was on the shore. A dead animal, perhaps? No. He squinted his eyes and gasped, and broke out into a run.

Jason, noticing his friend's sudden movement, called out to him.

"Hey, Gary, where ya going?"

The brown haired boy reached his destination. His eyes hadn't failed him; it was indeed a human being lying on the beach.

"Hey, what's the big hurry, Gary? We have to…oh man!"

Garrett immediately knelt down next the body. Cautiously, he turned it over revealing the face of a young girl.

"Is she…?" Jason started.

Garrett placed his pointer and middle finger on her neck. He could feel a soft beating hit his fingers. The pulse was faint, but it was still there. He sighed, relieved.

"Well?" His friend inquired.

"She's still alive," Garrett replied. "But…"

"Can't you do something? You're the one who wants to be a doctor!"

Garrett sighed. It was true that she was alive, for now, but if he didn't do something, she would soon be dead. He placed his hands, one on top of the other, on her chest, then started to press hard. He repeated the motion, up and down, until finally he heard a grunt. He looked down and saw that the girl had spit out some water and coughed. He sat her up, patting her back, aiding as she regurgitated the water out of her lungs.

"Are you alright?" he asked, after the coughing had subsided.

Her eyelids opened only half way. Her eyes drifted from Jason then to Garrett. She grabbed the cuff of Garrett's sleeve, and pulled hard.

"My body…" she mumbled. "I need…" She was unable to complete her sentence. Her head drooped forward and her eyes closed again. She had passed out.

The brown haired boy sighed again. She must be exhausted. But what puzzled him was the girl's seemingly unconscious muttering. What did she mean her body? What did she need? On top of all of that, who was she? How did she end up here? From what he could see there was no doubt that the girl was some sort of warrior. Was it possible that she fell overboard while returning from some mission, perhaps? Whatever the situation was, Garrett knew that he had to make sure she was well treated.

He lifted her up bridal style, allowing her head to rest on his chest. He flushed when he looked down at her face. Even though it was pale from the cold water, she had a unique beauty to her. He would make sure that she got well. Perhaps she would help him break the cycle of his mundane life.

"Hey no fair! How come you get to take the babe home?" Jason hollered, following his friend.

Garrett rolled his eyes. Did he honestly have to answer that question? "I'll be back in a few minutes. Just try not to wander off before then."

"Wait, I'm coming with you!"

The two boys walked past the pier to the village, unaware of the pair of ruby eyes that was watching them.

Author's Note: Seems a lot like what happened to Dart, with Riza falling into the water and all. I'm just trying to keep some of the LOD feel to it. Man I wrote this mad late: It's 4:21 AM now! o_O This shows my dedication and to make up for not posting for like 2 months. Anyway, R&R. Good night!