Mercenaries within the land were not the barbaric, uncivilized image that commoners have placed upon them. If anything, they were extremely dignified, very polite, and unless you knew who to look for, completely undistinguishable from the general public.
Most mercenaries are self proclaimed, but are in reality little more than angry farmers with whittling knives . The select few who do manage to flourish as a blade to be auctioned for the highest bidder, lead successful, high standard, albeit low profile lives. Because no matter how peaceful a Kingdom may seem on the surface, down below, grudges are held, businesses are competing, and more often than not, the easiest solution is simply to eliminate the cause of your stress. As long as you have the means to pay for it, that is.
Pay was definitely not the issue for King Lucas. Competence was. And if nothing else, the Dragon's Light Mercenaries were ruthlessly competent.
There were many factors that differentiated the Dragon's Lights from some other rag tag mercenary group. Aside from being absolute masters in the field of assassination, as well as having meticulous information of the land's topography due to extensive travelling, the Dragon's Lights were known to be fanatics. They were strict members of the Draconicism Faith, and claim to be the Dark Dragon God's 'willing instrument' in the world of mortals. As such, they would only accept jobs when the targeted have offended the word of God, and actively purge 'blasphemers' on the side.
The core group was composed of 5 rather unique individuals, and Ness watched as they stepped almost silently into the Throne room in a V formation, like migrating geese. And they definitely seemed deviant from the regular people in Tazmily Estate.
The most obvious was that they clothed themselves in brown tunics, instead of the stitched cotton wear nearly all of Nowhere Kingdom dressed in. A very old and simple fashion style indeed. The next was that despite having relatively youthful features, all 5 retained a significant beard reaching the bottom of their necks. As well as the matching holstered curved sabre swords on their sides.
They were murmuring. Ness could see the mercenaries bringing up the rear talking in a hushed tone, and directing stares at King Lucas. It was pretty obvious that they were thrown off by the King's appearance. Either that, or they were not thrilled at the prospect of working for a 14 year old kid, no matter what position he held or how much he paid.
The leading man of their formation stepped forwards, and Ness's eyes fell immediately to the bowl hat with a feather on top of his brown hair. He proudly recognized it as a differently coloured version of the hat that he wore as well.
The leader of the Dragon's Lights then got down on one knee, and bowed deeply.
"King Lucas of the esteemed Nowhere Kingdom, my name is Jonel of the Estate of Sunshine, leader of the Dragon's Light, His willing sword. It is an honour to be in the presence of God's own chosen surrogate in the Land of Mortals." Jonel's deep voice recited.
King Lucas regarded the bowed man for a moment. "God's own chosen surrogate...would that be me?"
When most people look, Jonel's face seemed to be permanently frozen in a look of disapproval, as his brown eyebrows were always creased down. So it was difficult to discern any reaction to Lucas's question.
"Of course, your Highness. You and your family are, after all, chosen by the Lord to lead our Kingdom."
To Ness, this was beginning to sound eerily similar to the scripts he read back in his old homeland. As he stood stiffly in the corner the King directed him to, he recalled some of the teachings in his Religion dominated schools. The King of the land was picked by God to be his servant in the dimension of mortals. It seemed like there were certain similarities between Catholicism and Draconicism belief structure after all.
It soon became apparent Lucas was not a believer of such teachings. "I am fairly certain that God had little hand in making me the King of Nowhere. I cannot say that I feel his presence in me. I'm fairly certain all decisions I make are of my own will. Then again, I suppose that if He was so willing, He could've made it seem like I am thinking for myself while I am actually the puppet and He the one holding the strings."
Ness could register Jonel's face pale bit by bit as King Lucas talked. He learned from Jeff around a year back of the Dragon's Lights, and their cult like structure. Lucas was boldly challenging their faith.
"But this is not of relevance to our discussions," Lucas continued. "Rise, Jonel."
The mercenary slowly got up from his crouched position. Ness took in the setting. Jonel's brown tunic and travel pants were rot in comparison to the bright Royal clothing of King Lucas. But this man was a deadly killer. Ness felt the only thing stopping him from sprinting up to the young King and running his sabre through his heart was the presence of the 7 Elite Captains standing guard on either side of the 5 mercenaries.
"Now then, let this meeting commence." Lucas stated. Ness was still trying to adjust to the fact that although Lucas's voice was the high pitched, gentle one of any regular 14 year old, every word that came out of the blonde's mouth was akin to law.
"Firstly, I wish to express my joy to have garnered your trust to meet under such circumstances. Your group has killed...numerous Nobles and merchants throughout the Kingdom, and have caused respectable havoc among all settlements across Nowhere."
King Lucas breathed in. "However, as promised, this meeting will be conducted between mutually respected individuals, and you will not fall under any threat of arrest. Nor will you in the event of us being unable to reach a compromising agreement for your services."
Jonel nodded impassively. "We would not believe an individual such as yourself to be one who would conspicuously deceive us, the servants of God himself, lest you invite yourself to be taken by Hades."
Did he just tell Lucas to go to Hell? Ness thought.
"I have called upon your services because of your extensive knowledge of the inner workings of Dalaam." Lucas continued.
The 5 mercenaries seemed to stiffen.
"I believe that your group has had a hand in many Dalaamian assassinations, most of which boldly took place in the heart of their own Kingdom. Your ability to pass in and out of Dalaam and get away with murders there will be a great asset to our war effort against Prince Poo."
Ness blinked. The Nowhere Kingdom was at war with Dalaam? He had fallen under the impression that it was little more than a spat or disagreement. He didn't think the battles along the borders were that serious.
Jonel nodded slowly, deliberately. "The Dalaamians have perpetuated their blasphemous actions against the Lord, they foolishly reject the Dark Dragon as their creator. It is our duty to preach to these stubborn fools, and those who don't listen shall die by our blades."
"Good, that's what I want to hear." Lucas said matter-of-factly. "In inevitable conflicts with them in the future, we could use your help gathering as much inside information and wreaking as much internal damage as possible. Every person that dies on their side is potentially one less that will die on ours. Having you on our side means I don't have to throw away as many scouts anymore."
Ness looked at the young blonde King who he has made friends with. He seems to have forgotten that Ness was still in the room. And Ness could not help but feel a bit uncomfortable as they talked about people's lives as if they were expendable. If the direction of this meeting kept going where it was headed, the Throne room would become a very uncomfortable place for the young Noble. Was this how it happened back in Eagleland too? The Kings and Commanders sat in their comfortable rooms and gambled away the soldiers' lives? All for the 'greater good'?
And all of a sudden, he felt a pair of eyes looking his way. He looked up, and stared into the deep cobalt irises of the King of Nowhere. Lucas's face was passive, his crown glittering in the sunlight from the large windows. Ness felt transparent under the studying gaze. And now all 5 of the mercenaries and the Elite Captains were looking his way as well. For the first time he could remember, Ness wished that all eyes weren't on him. He tried his best to not reveal any weakness to the deadly killers present in the room.
"Ahem." All eyes turned back to King Lucas. "We shall discuss the specifics of your task, if you are willing to accept our prearranged payment and terms of operation, at a later time."
Ness let the breath he was holding escape from his mouth very, very slowly. He was grateful that Lucas did not press the subject, and had not directed further attention to him. It was only natural for the King to be observant and considerate. Well, maybe not all of them were as considerate as this one.
Lucas looked at the Dragon's Light mercenaries, somehow making eye contact with all of them at the same time. "But that is only if you agree. I trust you have had sufficient time to make a decision?"
The murmuring started back up. Jonel looked back at his mercenary group, and watched them chatter. It was clear from the frowns on their faces that they indeed have not reached a unanimous decision.
King Lucas sighed, his small shoulders lifting and dropping back down. "Well, before you give me an answer, there are a few things I would like to discuss with you gentlemen in private. Captains, you are dismissed. Return to your respective posts."
Ness turned pallid, eyes widening. What was Lucas thinking? He would be leaving himself alone...well with Ness...in the room with 5 deadly, deadly mercenaries who have not even given their clear allegiance yet! If they decided to turn on him, Nowhere would once again have a dead King. And Ness certainly would be able to do little, even with his magic, to turn the tides.
But neither Lucas, nor his 7 Elite Knights seem to be conscious of this fact, and Ness watched dully as they bowed and marched uniformly out the large front door. Even the mercenaries seem surprised by this move, as they watched, eyes wide, the door shut with a loud clang that echoed through the silent Throne room.
All eyes turned back to the King.
"...Umm...Lucas..." Ness ventured out quietly, eyes fixed on the 5 bemused mercenaries.
"Please do not speak out of turn, Sir Ness." Lucas said just as quietly. The tone was not unkind. Ness slunk back, praying the King knew what he was doing, and that they would both live to see the setting sun.
"Well then," Lucas said. "It is blatant that you as a group have not decided yet. I would very much like to hear any objections and concerns any one of you may have right now, and I will address them to the best of my ability."
The 5 men looked at each other, then back at Lucas. There was something about the way they were measuring the young King that made Ness feel uneasy. But Lucas seemed unfazed.
He's no fool. He runs an entire Kingdom. He knows what he is doing. I sincerely hope.
The leader Jonel cleared his throat. "Yes, well, I believe some of my friends here have a few...objections they would like to clear."
"Yeah, like how one so...youthful like yourself managed to become the Ruler of the Kingdom." One of the men at the back piped up.
Ness and Lucas both turned to study him. "What is your name, kind Sir?"
"Ocho, of the Tanetane Kingdom."
Ness remembered in one of his lessons that Tanetane was an island Kingdom in the far west, way past the Minch Kingdom, in fact. It was a wonder anyone managed to reach Tazmily Estate from there.
Lucas nodded in acknowledgement. "Well, to answer your query, my father was assassinated by what I believe to be an unhappy citizen of Nowhere, and I was simply forced to take his place." He said easily.
This was the first of the Royal Family that Ness has actually heard Lucas talk about. And judging by how blunt and emotionless his answer was, perhaps he wasn't on the best of terms with them. For all he knew, Lucas could've hated his family. Well, his deceased mother and father anyways.
Ocho wasn't satisfied. "I learned as much from estate news reports." He scoffed.
"Then what more are you expecting?" Lucas asked candidly.
"A more...thorough explanation to what transpired."
"...you're suggesting that I was the one who killed my father for the crown?"
...how could I have missed that possibility? Ness thought. It was more than possible that Lucas killed his own father, but he doesn't seem like the kind of person capable of something like that. Then again, he knew very, very little about King Lucas.
"I did not say that," Ocho defended, although the slight smirk on his face said otherwise. "I am merely requesting for your Highness to fill in some of the gaping holes in the story of how your father died."
"Such as?"
"What was his purpose for taking long leaves of absence with squads of Knights to roam the countryside? How did your mother die? How did you manage to procure such a one sided victory against the invading Dalaamians when they were on the brink of victory for so long at Murasaki?" Ocho drawled out, gaining momentum each word he spat out.
Ness turned to Lucas. He was curious for an answer as well.
The young blonde King merely looked bored. "Did you not think others working under me have asked those very same questions? And if they have yet to procure an answer from me, what makes you think you can?"
Damn. Ness was disappointed, but he did not show it, unlike Ocho, who was fuming.
"If you expect us to do your bidding in any shape or form, we expect answers to our questions!"
"Whether I give you an answer or not is irrelevant to the 'biddings' I want you to do." Lucas leaned his head against the palm he propped up on the armrest of the Throne, eyes half open. "We are paying you a significant amount of Dragon Points, and have agreed to not throw you into the dungeons for past offences against us. That should be plenty enough for you, mercenary."
Ocho seemed to swell up like an octopus about to take off, but Jonel placed his arm in front of the man. "Please forgive my friend's directness, my Lord. He merely wishes for you to build more trust among us, so we may work together better."
"Is that so?" Lucas played around with his long Staff, looking up and down the hilt, still with an incredibly bore expression on his face. "The Dragon's Light Mercenaries wish to build more trust with me?"
The 5 men in tunics seem a bit put off by the lack of attention the King is sparing them. "Of course, my Lord." Jonel said.
Lucas looked at them. "Do you gentlemen know who Deimos Fleance is?"
Ness could clearly see the mercenaries all pale significantly, eyes widening. What? Who's Deimos?
Jonel recovered first. "You know then."
Lucas snorted. "Of course I know."
Desperate for information, Ness asked "Know what?"
The King turned to look at his black haired friend, who had obediently stood in that place the entire meeting. "Deimos Fleance is an admirably successful merchant of Osohe Kingdom, very wealthy. He is also the undercover leader of a group of annoyances that plot to undo the Nowhere Kingdom." Lucas explained uninterestedly, as if this was the most minor of inconveniences.
He turned back to look at the Dragon's Lights. "He has also paid a good amount to these gentlemen to kill me." He stated bluntly.
One reason or another, Ness was not that shocked to hear this. His biggest concern now was the safety of both himself and King Lucas. Why, oh why did he dismiss his Elite guards?
"...how did you find out?" Ocho asked.
Fantastic, they are not even trying to deny it, Ness inwardly groaned.
"You don't need to know." Lucas retorted.
"...well then," Jonel said in a low tone that sent shivers up Ness's spine. "If you were aware of our intentions, why did you choose to leave yourself undefended against 5 merciless warriors of God?"
"Simply because I have nothing to fear. Even in the extremely unlikely case that you manage to slay me, you have no chance of escaping the Castle afterwards."
"But we would have taken the Crown down with ourselves."
"Would you really kill God's own chosen in the land of mortals?"
Jonel's eyes flashed. "You are not God's chosen. You are a mage. Magic users have no right to exist. They have stolen the powers that belong only to the Dark Dragon God. They trespass upon the domain of Godhood. You are a blasphemer!"
Jonel's words rung loudly in Ness's mind. Are mages truly offenses to God? Is he a deviation that has no right to live in this world? Even though Ness was never a firm believer of God, he could not help but feel unnerved by the idea. "Magic users have no right to exist!" Those words were hauntingly familiar...
Lucas sighed tiredly. "It is that kind of superfluous thinking that is holding back progress in this world. But it matters not. You may attempt to assassinate me at your own risk. You may attempt to do it now, or when I am asleep. Just be wary that if I do catch you, I will not hesitate to kill you."
There was no mercy, no bluff in Lucas's tone when he said that. He meant every word, and he drove home the point with authority.
But the impression was lost on Ocho, who laughed. "The day I see a pitiful child like yourself put even a scratch on us..."
"...would be today."
Ocho's eyes grew large. "I beg your pardon?"
King Lucas rose from his regal Throne, holding his Staff tightly. He let his red Cape fall to the floor. He stood stretched to his full height, his maroon shirt and golden hair clearly visible in the sunlight.
"Put weight into your words, mercenary. Come fight me, and I promise you, I will take that sabre of yours, and skewer it up your ass sideways."
Ness choked.
Ocho's lips curled into an ugly snarl. "It would not be wise to provoke me, your Highness."
"Do tell." Lucas stepped slowly towards the mercenary group. "Please, enlighten this 14 year old child to your ways of the sword."
The mercenary slowly stepped forward as well to meet his challenger. "I shall take you on myself."
The rest of the Dragon's Lights stepped back and allowed their comrade a personal fight. Ocho and Lucas stopped a few metres apart from each other. Ocho's teeth were bared, his stance curled up, ready to spring, while Lucas remained passive, eyebrows slightly knit. Even from this distance the height difference between the full grown man and the young Lucas was apparent. They stared at each other like wolves about to tear his enemy apart.
Ness was glad to be a bystander, and he watched with baited breath, heart thumping uncontrollably, waiting for the spar to begin. Now he would know what kind of a warrior the King of Nowhere was.
Ocho made the first move, accelerating forward in a blur of speed. He brought his curved sabre up and swung down at King Lucas's face, so quickly the blade was a flash of silver before Ness's eyes. But it was met with Lucas's long Staff, which he held with one hand to parry the blow easily.
Clearly the Staff that Lucas carried was no ordinary walking stick. It did not break, it did not even dent from the sword swing.
Ocho heaved down on the sword against the Staff, hoping to overpower the young King. The blade inched closer and closer to Lucas's face, but at the last second, Lucas conceded, sidestepping and pulling his staff away from the sword. Ocho, who was using his full force to push down on the sword, could not recover, and lurched forward. Taking full advantage, Lucas then used his one hand to swing his Staff around with blinding speed and struck the mercenary between the shoulder blades, putting him flat on his front side, lying on the thick red carpet.
Ocho grimaced, pulling himself off the ground, and stared at the young King, who stood looking bored, his staff held across his small body in a defensive position.
Since brute force won't work, then precision and speed should. Ocho jumped at Lucas, and thrust his blade towards the boy's chest. But his attack was stopped by the Staff once more. Not deflected, stopped. The tip of the sword was halted by the Staff's pole right in the middle. A little bit more to either side, and the blade would've slid off the cylindrical Staff and into Lucas's chest.
Reacting quickly, the mercenary pulled back and slashed to the side, but it was also deftly blocked by Lucas. Ocho grew more and more heated as he rained down blow after blow upon the King, only to have all of them dodged or parried.
And finally, he let his anger get the best of him, and he slashed too hard and too high, aimed to scalp Lucas's forehead. The young King quickly ducked underneath the hard swing, knowing his opponent would not be able to gather back quickly enough, and thrust the flat bottom end of his Staff into Ocho's stomach. The mercenary doubled over, and Lucas quickly followed up with a kick to his feet. Ocho felt his feet get knocked out under him, and before he could fall to the floor, Lucas brought his other leg around and delivered a harsh spin kick to his face. The force carried the hapless mercenary a few metres away before he thudded to the stone floor.
Amazement aside, Ness felt a vague sense of familiarity when watching King Lucas fight. The mercenary Ocho was by no means a pushover. Ness could tell the man in the tunic was a competent warrior who was familiar with his weapon. Yet Lucas managed to outmaneuver and eventually overpower the man. And that's when it hit him. Lucas's fighting style was very similar to Ness's own. Frustrating the opponent until he makes a mistake, then taking advantage, that's what he had done to that Dalaamian farmer some days ago. Except Lucas managed to pull it off with more grace and accuracy, and against a much more skilled fighter. The King was no weakling.
"Hey, get up." King Lucas called out in a bored voice. "I wouldn't imagine the floor makes a comfortable slumber."
Ocho pulled himself up with his hands, seething.
Lucas chuckled. "Come now, I am a 14 year old King. Did you not think that I would've been eaten alive if I weren't at least the slightest bit independent as a fighter?"
You knew your pride was at stake if you were being chastised by a kid. Ocho launched himself, sword flailing, back at Lucas.
Jonel watched the scene before him. He motioned to one of his cohorts, who nodded and slunk away to the side, behind a pole.
The black haired boy with the blue and cream garment was too busy watching the King and Ocho battle. King Lucas was much too preoccupied with his opponent. Therefore no one said a word as Jonel noiselessly crept up behind Lucas, his own sabre unsheathed, like a snake about to strike his unsuspecting victim.
Lucas managed to knock Ocho away from him again, but it was too late by then. Ness saw the second mercenary behind King Lucas too late, and could not shout out any warning. He watched helplessly as Jonel plunged his blade towards the back of the unsuspecting Lucas's head, intent on ending the young blonde's Rule right then and there.
The sword never reached its target.
There was a sound akin something smashing into, but not breaking, a window. The blade was stopped cold against a strange sphere surrounding Lucas, made of plate sized, glowing blue translucent diamonds.
The blue light lit up Jonel's face, which held partly a shocked expression, and partly a grimace, as his wrists were on fire from his attack being brought to an immediate stop.
There was no doubt in Ness's mind that it was Lucas's doing. There was no doubt that it was magic. As he stood gaping at all that had just happened in the past blink of an eye, the back of his mind subconsciously registered the spell.
Shield.
Lucas slowly turned around to meet Jonel's face. Somehow, the young King managed to seem more frightening with a bland expression than with an angry one.
The shield disappeared, and Lucas swung his Staff at Jonel, who jumped back to evade the blow, clearing space between the two.
"Well, if I am going to Hell anyways for using magic." Lucas said, face stoic. "I might as well use it as much as possible before I die, wouldn't you agree?"
"Thrice damn you and your powers, your Highness." Jonel spat.
Ocho slowly got back up from behind Lucas, and scurried back to his 3 comrades.
One of them was missing...
"Mmmft...!"
King Lucas jerked his head around to the noise, and saw, with a stab of anger, that one of the mercenary scum had snuck around and now had a thick arm around Ness's mouth, and another holding his sabre across the young mage's throat. Ness was struggling under the hold, clawing at his abductor's thick arms, kicking at his shins, but the mercenary held.
Before he could do anything, Lucas was forced to jump back, as Jonel, hoping to catch him with his attention split, aimed to behead the young King.
The first signs of anger showed up on Lucas's young visage as he stared down the 4 mercenaries in front of him. He gripped his Staff with both his hands, and let out a low growl.
"Since you are so willing to strike a deal with us, let us make a deal." Jonel spoke in a low voice, although Lucas could easily detect a triumphant undertone.
"You shall fight the 4 of us without the assistance of your blasphemous magic, and we will make sure not a drop of your young friend's blood hits the floor."
God damn it! If there was anything Ness hated more than these lowly killers-for-hire, it was being a liability to his friends. Still struggling vainly against the crushing hold of the mercenary behind him, Ness wondered how he even managed to get himself into this situation, and more importantly, how he was going to get out. If he was going to get out. Ness knew that if it came down to it, he may just have to take one for the good of the Nowhere Kingdom. He doubted Lucas could take on 4 deadly killers without magic.
But as always, Lucas remained unnaturally calm. "If anything, the decision is you gentlemen's."
Jonel raised his forever furrowed eyebrows. "How so?"
"If you let Sir Ness free, then the Dragon's Light Mercenaries shall go free, and we shall avoid further incident. If even a single drop of Sir Ness's blood hits my Castle's floor, all 5 of you shall immediately die an excruciating and humiliating death by my hand. And I will personally see to it that any remnants of your pathetic mercenary group are vanquished from this mortal existence."
Taken aback, the mercenaries immediately began to show signs of hesitancy. Ness could even feel the grip on his mouth slacken slightly, but not enough for him to escape. Getting over the shock, the black haired Noble commended Lucas for taking such a bold and aggressive step, even though it was bargaining with his life.
'Ness, can you hear me?'
Ness jumped slightly at the familiar sensation of hearing someone in his head without using his ears. He realized Lucas was talking to him directly in his mind. Just like Ionia had done.
Outwardly, the King was not even looking his way, and appeared to be holding an unpleasant conversation with Jonel and the rest of the mercenaries, but Ness was barely paying attention. He was instead trying to figure out how to respond to the young blonde. He focused all his attention on the King, trying to shut out all outside noise, and tried to keep only Lucas's slim figure in his vision.
There was a curious sensation flooding through Ness. Everything felt muted, dull. But he was hypersensitive to everything Lucas was doing. All his movements, every little sound he made were amplified. Ness closed his eyes, hoping it would work.
'Yes'
Relaying even one word took a lot more strength than he anticipated. He snapped out of the trance like sensation, and looked at Lucas. The young King gave no indication of having received his message.
But then... 'Good. Not bad, being able to reply on your first try.' Lucas's gentle voice ran through his mind. 'So why aren't you doing anything to try to get out of that idiot's hold?'
What was he talking about? Ness had been fervently struggling against his captor. Unless...unless he meant something else? Surely he couldn't have meant for him to use magic? But now that he thought about it, it would make the most sense to use his given ability to tip the scales in his favour.
Lucas was still talking to the mercenaries, but another thought came Ness's way.
'Come on, Ness. Show me what you are capable of.'
Ness was still hesitant. Rockin' was a powerful spell, undoubtedly, but what would the effects be against humans? He's never used it in such a dangerous situation before.
Then he caught Lucas glancing his way quickly. And Ness was almost sure that the blonde slipped a quick smile at him before he turned away.
He's right. I have to save myself, fight, like I always do. To Hell with over-thinking everything. Well, here goes.
And once more, he focused his energy deep within his body. He once again felt the power of his destructive spell coursing through his limbs. Take this, you son of a whore!
And the strobe of blue, yellow and red lights exploded out of Ness's body, radiating out with such force that the 4 mercenaries standing away from him were blown a few steps back.
As for the poor fellow who decided to take Ness hostage, he now lay crumpled against the unforgiving stone wall, his tunic shredded and smoking, his head bleeding, completely unconscious.
As soon as his body recovered from casting the Rockin' spell, Ness picked up the mercenary's fallen sabre, and rushed to Lucas side, beaming proudly. King Lucas returned the smile in earnest.
The two young mages turned their heated gazes at the remaining Dragon's Lights, who were ghostly pale. They raised their swords defensively.
"Damn you. It seems like there are more of you offences in our pure world than I first thought." Jonel said through clenched teeth. "It is our duty as the Lord's willing instrument, to purge you from our land!"
"Is that so?" Lucas said quietly.
Suddenly Ness felt a significant power building, not within him, but from the young King beside him. It was very similar to his experience of building pressure when he first learned Rockin', but the power was external this time. And the pressure just as incessant.
Then he saw it. A cyan glow on Lucas's right hand. A shimmering band of flashing light surrounded his hand in a hexagon shape. The glow brightened as the power increased. And as Ness felt the energy buildup climax, Lucas raised his glowing right hand.
A blinding flash. A sound like an explosion, drowning out the yells of the mercenaries. A sickening crunch. Force. Heat.
When everything settled, things came to an eerie calm in the Throne room. The Sunflower flags waved gently. 4 more unconscious bodies now joined Ness's victim.
"...looks like the Dark Dragon will have his work cut out for him then." Lucas finished quietly. His right hand still had a fading residual blue glow.
Ness's mind subconsciously registered the spell.
...Love...
During the whole incident, the Crown had not once fallen from Lucas's gentle blonde hair.
-01210-
A farmer named Butch slammed the rake into the soft earth, and pulled, leaving 4 perpendicular lines in the ground. He then sprinkled some seeds on the soil.
He rose from his bent over position, and arched his back backwards with a groan, feeling his joints snap back in place. Sweat poured off his fat face as the unforgiving sun beat down on him from the cloudless sky. He was not accustomed to all this work. Usually his brother Biff would be doing his share of planting as well, but nooooo, he had to get sick.
Satisfied that he had done enough mud scraping for one day, he went to do his favourite job, slopping the pigs. Butch loved his pigs more than anything. They were all perfect in his eyes, more perfect than any of the other farmers' meatless carcasses of pigs.
As he filled the troughs, his eyes wandered to a line of horses carrying large carts slowly trotting south along the road. He listened to the steady clip clop of the horseshoes, the rumbling and squeaking of the wooden wheels. Butch's farm was right next to a main trade route leading into Tazmily Estate from the west side.
Suddenly the convoy stopped. Right in the middle of the busy road, right in front of Butch's farm.
From one of the carts that was fashioned for holding travellers, stepped out a rather wide man. He had beady eyes, an eye-drawing black moustache, and a very large nose. He wore strangely out of place clothing. A disk like hat with a long white cloth extending from it that covered all of the man's hair, a long sleeve white garment, with a brown leather vest over it, matching white pants and brown shoes, and a belt with a shiny bronze buckle.
Butch stared at the potbellied man as he made his way over to the fence of his pigs' pen. He wore a raunchy grin.
"Ah, what a fine day it is!" The man declared loudly, spreading his arms out. He spoke with a rather thick accent that Butch couldn't place.
"Erm...can I help you there, traveller?" Butch offered less than enthusiastically.
"Oh, no, please, no need to burden yourself with someone like me!" The large man replied. "I was merely taking a much needed break from my journey, when I laid eyes on these...wonderful pigs of yours!" He rolled the 'R' sounds off his tongue.
Butch immediately perked up. Most farmers around the area did not share his opinion about his pigs, saying there is nothing special about them, and calling Butch deluded for thinking so. It was very nice to receive recognition where it was deserved.
"Well...you certainly have a good judgement, stranger." Butch said, much more enthusiastically.
"You don't need good judgement to see how wonderful these pigs are! But please, I am no stranger to you. My name is Fassad, and I hail from the Minch Kingdom. What do you go by, my friend?"
Minch Kingdom huh? Well they certainly have some nice people there to say the least. Butch thought. "My name is Butch, humble farmer of the Nowhere Kingdom."
"Well it is a pleasure, Butch!" The man named Fassad leaned closer to the farmer. "Tell me, my friend, are you happy with your life here in the Nowhere Kingdom?" He asked in a quieter voice.
Was he? Butch thought about how his life has transpired so far. He worked his farm all his life, and the Nobles owning his plot paid decently for his crops. And 3 years ago he was even given the chance to partake in Royal decisions through voting. He has never starved, in fact, he has built up quite a bit of weight. He'd say he was decently well off.
"Why yes, I would say I am fairly content with my life in Nowhere."
"I am happy that you are, my friend." Fassad nodded, still wearing that wide grin. "But you tell me that you are only fairly content. You must think there are things that can be done to make you even happier?"
Butch nodded vigorously. "Of course, but I can only expect so much as a farmer."
Fassad made an odd gesture, as if surprised by his answer. "But my dear Butch, is it not the bound duty of the King and the Kingdom to make their citizens as happy as possible in life?"
That...made a lot of sense, actually. "I suppose..."
"Well, I do not believe that you are gaining proper happiness and recognition for all your work! I mean, just look at these marvelous pigs! And your Kingdom has the gall to not properly reward you for nursing such beautiful animals?" Fassad said in a shocked tone.
It made sense. Everything that came out of this traveller's mouth made sense. Why in God's name wasn't he being recognized more? "Yeah...yeah! I deserve more!"
"Of course you do. That is why it is the duty of myself, and all of Minch Kingdom to make everyone as happy as possible."
Fassad reached behind his wide belly, and took out a pale bag of jingling objects. Butch didn't need to see inside to know it was a large amount of Dragon Points. His mouth inadvertently drooled.
"And so, I would like to rectify this unjustness. I would like to buy one of your incredible pigs, for the price that it deserves." Fassad shook the bag of currency in front of Butch's greedy eyes.
"Of course, my friend, let me pick one out for you right now!"
Fassad watched the fat farmer scramble to catch one of his pigs, his smile betrayed none of the real emotions he felt inside watching this pathetic farmer. "Remember my friend, King Porky and all of the Minch Kingdom wishes for the best for all in this land! If you wish to learn more, I shall be spreading the goodwill in Tazmily Estate for the next few weeks!"
Soon after, Butch was now short one pig, but a bag full of DP richer. He stood there, watching Fassad's convoy continue towards Tazmily. The farmer wondered what he had done to deserve such good fortune and joy. But remembering the words of that Minch traveller, he realized that he had always deserved such, and Nowhere Kingdom was simply not providing him with what he rightfully should receive.
-01210-
"I would like you to teach me more about the magical arts." Ness said, his tone serious.
King Lucas looked at the young novice mage. Although the black haired boy remained collected as he walked beside Lucas, the King could feel his sense of willingness and excitement bubbling in his mind.
"I would be happy to oblige, just let me shed this Royal clothing first..." Lucas began to unravel the Cape from his shoulders. "...I only really need to wear them during meetings and announcements and such, as a formality..." He then folded the large red Cape into a neat square bundle, carrying it in his hands. "...but otherwise I prefer not to burden myself with excess accessories." He gingerly lifted the shining Crown off his blonde hair and placed it on top of the folded cloak.
Ness thought Lucas did indeed look more mobile without the Cloak dragging behind him, or Crown balanced on his head.
"For the occasion, your Cloak and Crown are very elegant, if anything." Ness said.
"Thank you. It took a while for a commissioned SewMaster to stitch my Awesome Cloak, and the Awesome Crown is an heirloom."
"...that's...awesome..."
Lucas chuckled. "It sounds rather strange, but all Royal accessories I self-prefix 'Awesome'. I also have an Awesome Ring back in my room."
Well, there was certainly no denying that they were what Lucas calls them. "Was that Staff you handed to Duster your 'Awesome Staff' as well?"
"Actually, no. That is the Mystical Staff. And as you probably noticed, it's no ordinary walking stick."
"Mystical Staff?"
"Yes." Lucas opened a small wooden door, and dropped off his Awesome Cloak and Crown in there. Ness couldn't see what was inside. "The Mystical Staff is my preferred weapon, in fact. Made of a secret alloy, and reinforced with magical spells, that Staff is impervious to most damage, and does not wear out. It was a gift for me made by one of my Pure Mage friends."
That's another use for magic that Ness hadn't yet thought of. Enchanting weapons to make them stronger. He could only imagine what a good sword with powerful enchantments could do in battle. Speaking of which...
"Why do you not use a sword as your weapon? Why a Staff?"
"Simply because I have no need for a slaying weapon like a sword. The Mystical Staff does a wonderful job defensively, which is what I like. It is a decent incapacitating weapon, as well. I just need whatever foe I face to be unable to pursue me any further."
Lucas paused. Then added, "besides, if I ever feel the need to use lethal force to dispatch of enemies, my magical powers are more than suffice, and much more efficient than any sword."
That statement sent a shiver up Ness's spine. He remembered the 5 mercenaries that were knocked out cold by magic back in the Throne room. They had been apprehended and put into dungeons by guards soon after, Lucas vaguely telling Ness that he would 'deal with them' later on.
This meant that the spell Lucas used was not at its highest power. Heck, Ness's Rockin' spell had almost killed a grown man. Magic at its full power was definitely more lethal than any single Knight or even siege machine. Ness could only imagine the carnage Lucas caused during his retaking of Murasaki and Sunshine.
But it was just so damn hard to imagine the handsome, innocent looking Lucas in the middle of battle, slaying hordes of enemies with his spellcasting. If anything makes Ness uncomfortable around his blonde friend, it's the fact that he could shred anyone that gets on his bad side in the blink of an eye if he so wishes.
-01210-
An innkeeper named Sir Jackson, or as his friends and customers affectionately called him, Jackie, was wiping the counter of his reception desk. He was a tall person, with no hair on his head, and his eyebrows were always raised in a manner that made him look forever forlorn.
Jackie was a successful entrepreneur, having built his Yado Inn from scratch, and developed it into a well regarded and successful temporary housing for weary travellers and merchants. He was wealthy, but above all, respected, even by Noblemen and Royalty of the Nowhere Kingdom.
It was nearing dusk, the time when most travellers sign in to stay for the night at the homely Yado, so Jackie was preparing his business to receive the guests.
The squeak of his front doors indicated that the first guest of the night has arrived. A rather fat man came up to the counter. He had beady eyes, an eye-drawing black moustache, and a very large nose. He wore strangely out of place clothing. A disk like hat with a long white cloth extending from it that covered all of the man's hair, a long sleeve white garment, with a brown leather vest over it, matching white pants and brown shoes, and a belt with a shiny bronze buckle.
"Good evening, and welcome to Tazmily Estate's Yado Inn. My name is Sir Jackson. Shall I help accommodate you to one of our fine rooms?" Jackson recited in his crisp voice.
"Ah, what a fine Inn this is!" The man said rather loudly, rather exuberantly. "Why never in my years have I seen such a well kept and homely Inn such as this one!" He spoke with an accent that Jackie couldn't quite place, and Jackie was familiar with all manners of accents from travellers all over the land.
"I am pleased to hear you speak such generosities of my Yado." Jackie said happily. "Now, would you like me to reserve a room for you?"
"It would be an honour for me to reside here!" The man nodded, a large grin on his face. "Please, call me Fassad. I am a merchant hailing from the Minch Kingdom."
Minch Kingdom huh? I rarely see people come here from Minch. Sir Jackson thought. "Well then, Fassad of the Minch Kingdom, how may I help you?"
"I am on an extended trip here in wonderful Tazmily Estate, so I would like you to graciously reserve one of your comfortable rooms to me for the next 3 weeks, please."
Jackie raised an eyebrow, even further than it already was raised, that is. It was rare to have merchants request for extended stays, as the rooming was expensive for such a long time. But he did not question it. "3 weeks it is then. Do you have any material possessions that require specialized care, such as horses or carts?"
"Why yes, I do. Would you be able to provide good care for my 4 steeds and 4 merchandise carts?"
In total, that was quite a bit of stuff. Then again, to be expected if this man Fassad was staying here for 3 weeks. "We shall take care of them, you've no need to worry." Jackie nodded to one of his employees, a beautiful lady called Tessie, and she promptly headed out to tend to Fassad's requests.
Jackie did some calculations on a piece of parchment. "Your total for accommodations, plus holding and guarding for your merchandise, and care for your horses, comes to 1300 Dragon Points." Quite a hefty amount, for anyone.
Except Fassad, it seems. "Oh my! Such a generous offer! So inexpensive!" There was no sarcasm in Fassad's voice either. Jackie was surprised. No one had ever told him he charged less than he should have.
"My dear Sir Jackson, tell me, how do you make such a living charging so leniently for your clients?" Fassad inquired.
Jackie thought about it. His earnings from paying customers mostly went to monthly property tariffs. In Tazmily Estate, space was limited, as the Estate could only expand so much on a peninsula, so land taxes were quite significant. The rest were split between expenses for supplies and food for maintaining the Inn, and pay for his workers. Even after all that, he was left a decent amount to himself, enough to make him a wealthy man.
"I do well enough. I am happy with my business."
"And I am joyous to hear that, my friend." Fassad nodded. He then leaned close. "But tell me, do you think that you can be even more well off, even happier than you are right now?"
Could he? Jackie was wealthy, but certainly not the richest in Nowhere. There certainly were things that could be done to make him even happier.
"Well..." But he wasn't sure what.
"Ah, so there is the possibility that you could be happier." Fassad said. "And isn't it the sole duty of the King and his Kingdom to make his citizens as happy as possible?"
That did make sense. "Yeah, I suppose."
"Well, my friend, that is why I am here! I am here to inspire change and happiness in the Nowhere Kingdom! To make sure that all can be as happy as possible living their lives! To make sure that people don't have to suffer paying ridiculous property taxes, or not being recognized for the work that they put in!" Fassad seemed unnaturally happy himself.
The majority of his income was sucked away by property taxes. Jackie smiled at the large man in front of him. "You are doing a noble deed, traveler from Minch."
"Thank you. Oh, and of course, here is my payment for your generosity." Fassad reached behind his wide belly, and pulled out a large bag full of jingling objects. He put it on the table, and Jackie's eyes widened.
It was the most Dragon Points he had ever seen in one place. The golden coins shined under the Inn's candlelight. It was more than enough to cover Fassad's expenses. It was enough to cover him for the next 3 months.
"I...I cannot accept..." Jackie stuttered.
"You most certainly can! This is the kind of money you should be earning, without the property taxes! King Porky is kind to all his citizens in Minch Kingdom, so I have excess DP to give you! Do you not think that your King Lucas should extend the same courtesy to you?"
Jackie's eyes were transfixed on the glittering DP. "Yes...yes he should!"
"Precisely." Fassad's eyes flashed in disgust at the man's greed, but Jackie didn't notice. "Now then, I think I shall be heading to my room, I have quite a day ahead of me tomorrow! Can you please direct me to where I shall stay?"
"Oh...oh! Of course! My apologies..."
Jackie watched as Fassad walked briskly to the room that he was directed to. He turned back to the large bag of DP that the traveller paid to him. He slowly put the money under the counter, glad that he was finally getting the wealth that he should've achieved a long time ago.
-01210-
It was a breathtaking sight, to say the least. King Lucas had led Ness to the top of the outside wall surrounding the Castle, to the side that faced the ocean. The young Noble watched the water glisten and flash like jewels from the light of the setting sun. He could make out some stars already appearing in the sky.
Ness came to the Castle with Fuel during noon of that day. It has been quite an afternoon.
"Amazing view aside, why did you bring me up here, Lucas?"
"You wanted to learn more about magic. I wanted to bring you to a calming place, where you can effectively focus."
Ness looked out over the battlements to the ocean. Here, the only sound present was the faint crashing of waves against the bluffs. The chatter of Tazmily Estate could barely be heard. If there ever was a place on the hectic Tazmily Peninsula that was calming, it would be here.
"I come here often when I want to relax, and sever myself from the day to day rabble." Lucas said. He took a long, deep breath, and exhaled.
Ness copied him. Inhale...exhale. It really did seem like he was detached from the urban environment here.
"So tell me, Ness, how was it that you first discovered you possessed magical powers?"
The answer came easily. "It was a funny story, really. I was still young, and naive. My friends and I were throwing a ball of yarn around. One of them threw it at me, but it was too far to reach. But I really wanted to catch it, and that's when the ball of string curved towards me, into my reach and letting me catch it. At first, we dismissed it as a trick of the eye, but when we replicated the situation, and I managed to do it again, it became obvious that I was a magic user."
Lucas smiled warmly. "Often times, mages discover their abilities through willpower. They will something to go their way, and it unlocks the dormant powers within their mind."
"Was that how you discovered yours as well?"
"Indeed."
The two friends watched the waving water.
"Ness."
"Hm."
"You are not from this land, are you?"
"...no, I am not. How did you know?"
"There are hints that I can detect. Magic power originating from this land has its own kind of...identity, if you will." Lucas held up a hand, and a green glow appeared, shimmering on his palm. A simple healing spell, Ness easily recognized.
"When you used your power, I did not recognize the 'identity' that your magic affiliated with." Lucas continued. Ness held up a hand, and the green glow of the healing spell appeared shimmering on his palm as well. But now that he compared his healing spell with Lucas's, he saw that it was ever so slightly different. His was a darker shade of green. Even the way it shimmered in his hand seemed deviant from the blonde's.
"...and you were able to detect the difference? Is that hard to do?" asked Ness.
"With experience, no. But magic can be used to sense many things. The most basic, and the one that you probably have experienced the most, is recognizing spells being casted by others."
Ness nodded. It made sense of how he knew the names of the spells that he saw...and felt Lucas cast back in the Throne room. Shield. And...
"Lucas?"
"Yes."
"What is Love?"
Lucas put his hands behind his back, smiling. He feigned ignorance. "Are you talking about the emotion or the name of my spell?"
Ness rolled his violet eyes. "Your spell. Why must you be so difficult around me."
The young King chuckled. "The two are actually intimately related. The origin of my power in my Love spell is from the mysterious and magnificent emotion of the same name."
"...does that mean the force of Love is based on how powerful your...erm...love is?"
"...that is correct in essentials." Lucas turned to meet the eyes of his student. "Tell me Ness, what is your resolve for casting your Rockin' spell?"
"My resolve?" Ness repeated, a bit thrown off.
"Yes. What goes through your mind when you successfully cast your destructive power?"
The answer came without hesitation. Without the need to even look for it. Ness knew exactly what goes through his mind as he charges up Rockin'.
"To protect those I care about. To do my very best to achieve my goals."
Lucas nodded, as if he received the answer he was expecting. "Excellent."
"...what?"
The young King turned to look up at the growing number of stars. "You and I are a bit different from most spellcasters, at least the ones I know of. And that is because of our ability to control and utilize magical power in its rawest form, its most pure state.
"The names Rockin' and Love are symbolic, almost like if we were to describe ourselves in one word, it would be those two terms. And don't worry if you don't know what Rockin' means. A word does not have to have a set meaning to describe something, otherwise humans would be painfully simple creatures. That is why you will never be able to find the name of our spells written in a book, or used again by someone else. It is unique to our individual persons."
The temperature was beginning to drop with the sun. Lucas continued. "The Elemental spells, Freeze, Fire, Thunder, and other Assist spells such as Offence Up or Flash, are a manifestation of magical powers. In other words, magic not in its purest form, but transformed to perform a certain task by the mage. They are formed, moulded into existence by the caster's emotions, which are reflective of the sense of purpose they have at the moment. But magic in its purest form cannot be casted like that. This is the main difference between other mages and us. While they utilize their magic through their emotions, we utilize ours through our resolve."
Lucas put a hand on Ness's shoulder. "And I am glad that your resolve is one of good intention. Your power can only go up from here."
Ness was right about his assumption of Lucas. The first time he looked into the young King's deep blue eyes, he thought he saw the wisdom and experience of one much, much older than a mere 14 year old.
"But we can also cast Assist spells, right, since Healing, Shield, and Hypnosis fall under those categories, am I correct?"
"Of course. If we so wished, we could learn any of the regular offensive spells such as Thunder as well. But you will find that your Rockin' would more than suffice for any offensive power you may find yourself needing."
As he stood there, on top of the Castle walls, watching the sun set, Ness more certain now than anything that he was glad to be friends with the King...no, not just the King, but with Lucas. The blonde was easy to talk to, wise, and charismatic. To Ness, it didn't matter if he carried secrets that he didn't want to reveal. He was just glad to have his mutual friendship.
But it still would be nice to know a bit more about him. "Lucas."
"Yes."
"What is your resolve?"
Lucas sighed, not in frustration or annoyance. It almost sounded sad. "Let me share a bit of wisdom that I have come to learn with you, Ness."
"Oh, okay."
"...love is a feeling that is as painful as it is wonderful. Love is neutral. Love has no allegiance, no good or bad. This is what makes it a tricky emotion."
"...how so?"
"Because how much you love will also be how painful it becomes. Please know that I am not discouraging you to love. The world would be a sad, sad place without it. If you wish, you can love someone all you want. You can tear out your heart for them, and it still may not express the unconditional, unchanging love you have for them. But you just have to realize the dangers of it.
"The world is a cruel place. If you're not careful, your love will turn around and hurt you worse than any physical pain, so much so that sometimes you want to die, just for the pain to stop. You have to make sure that you are as strong as your love. So you can withstand the pain. You must not let your love blind you, lead you astray, because there is nothing in the world more pitiful than a person who is being guided by his love, unknowing that it is leading him down a path to Hell."
Even though he did not fully comprehend what Lucas had told him, Ness knew that his friend was doing more than simply giving him advice. He wished Lucas would open up, tell him more about his life.
"But enough of that," Lucas said, voice suddenly a bit cheerier. "We came here to work on your magic."
"...umm, right."
"Okay. If you haven't figured it out yet: because you can use Rockin', your magical powers are very much above average, you just haven't discovered its full potential yet."
Ness liked the idea of having hidden powers that are yet to be discovered.
"With a heightened reserve of magic power, also comes a heightened awareness of things that you usually would not pick up with only your equipped senses." Lucas explained. "Detecting magic is just one. Another would be detecting emotions. That should be something that you have also experienced."
"Yeah, with you, actually," Ness pointed out, referring to when he first found out Lucas was the King of Nowhere.
"Exactly. Usually the hints are subtle, but if interpreted right, you can tell what a person is feeling without searching their body language or face for hints, or listening for underlying tones in their speech."
Lucas tilted his head, smirking deliberately. "However, people with strong wills can close off their mind completely, giving off no hints to what they are feeling at all."
Ness blanked, but then also loosened into a smirk. "Then can I trust you to tell me what you are feeling, if I want to know?"
"Maybe."
"Tch."
The sun was almost completely down now, and the back of Ness's mind was telling him to go home for dinner. But he did not want to leave just yet.
"Perhaps the most important power you possess, is the ability to detect life." Lucas put a strong emphasis on that word. "You would be surprised at the range of detection you have. A strong spellcaster like you should be able to sense life as far away as the fringes of Nowhere Kingdom."
"Really?" This was pleasantly surprising. Being able to sense as far as the eye can see, perhaps further.
"Yes indeed. Without training, however, you would be hard pressed to find the exact location of a certain life signature. There are certain signatures that should stand out to you, such as the people you are close to, like friends or family. Other mages who are not obscuring their presence will be easily sensed as well."
The power to find the people you care about. Very useful indeed. Ness deliberated.
"Attempt it."
"...what?"
"Try it out, experience what it feels like."
Ness was uncertain. "H-here? Now? But..."
"This is why I brought you to such a serene and calming place. To help you shut out distractions, to wash away uncertainty." Lucas said patiently.
Ness inhaled...and exhaled. "Alright. I'll have a go at it."
"Good. Close your eyes, and clear your mind of everything but your objective. Do not limit yourself, stretch as far as your magical senses allow you. Take in the signatures of life from everywhere..." Lucas instructed.
Ness did what he was told. Being regularly an energetic person who has trouble sitting still for too long, he was surprised at how easily the calmness came to him. He shut his utilitarian senses off, and reached out with his magic. He was conscious of his powers growing, spreading.
And he felt it. Life. It was as if each living organism was glowing in his mind.
Lucas was the brightest, being right beside him. A massive conglomeration of glows clouded his senses. Tazmily Estate at its finest. A few of them stood out to him however. Adjusting his powers to focus on them, he felt, with a strangely warm and proud feeling, the very discernible life glows of his mother and sister Tracy. He even felt the presence of some of his friends, the most obvious being Jeff, who was right in the middle of the Tazmily blob, and Fuel, who was quite close to him distance wise. He grinned in his head when he felt the unique signature of his fond Lady friend, Nana.
Ness moved past Tazmily, sharpening his senses to better pick up those farther away in the Kingdom. Ionia must be hiding herself, because Ness couldn't feel her life, but he did catch a glimpse of Sir Lighter. Continuing to move outwards, faster than any horse could travel, he detected some scattered groups of glows, probably just sparse settlements and villages. The glows slowly dimmed with distance. As Ness began to reach the edges of his power's capability, his sense of direction and location blurred dramatically. He now had no idea where he was in the Kingdom.
At the very edge of his range, he felt a pretty big gathering of glows. Perhaps another Estate. He tried to go further, straining his powers, but could not.
He was about to leave this calming state and open his eyes when he felt a very distinctive life glow, on the absolute edge of his range. He adjusted, diverting his attention to this intriguing glow. There was something strange about it. Something was familiar about this glow's specific signature. Something very, very familiar. He tried to match it with the people he knew, the people he was close to.
There was one match. A fair face, crystal blue eyes, platinum blonde hair. It couldn't be...it is...IT IS!
Ness's eyes snapped open with a gasp.
"Paula!"
-21012-
Disclaimer: Have you figured it out yet? I don't own the Mother series.
As this story begins to pick up, and gets into the main plot, expect more chapters to be like this one. Because there is always the awkward moment where you want the story to progress so much in one chapter, but simply cannot keep it very short.
Character development will be the main theme of this Fic. As the plot goes on, you'll find that Lucas is less 'out of character' than you think, and Ness will also undergo pretty serious changes. In a lot of ways, this Fic is a representation of my interpretation of the Mother characters, after what happened in their respective stories. I like overthinking things. It's fun.
I do read and appreciate reviews. Thanks for reading. See you in (#) chapters.
