No Longer Alone
Howdy! Didja miss me? Well, fret no more. The 25th chapter of 'No Longer Alone' is up and ready!
Seems a lot of people have their ideas with how our latest addition to the cast is going to mix things up. Heh… well, let's hope I can keep you all entertained. Today's chapter looks to be a little shorter than usual, however…
If Amelia isn't here, then she must be… Even as Franz started running down the ship, he was gazing at the centre of the town, where the attack squad was supposed to be by now…
"Yo, Franz!"
Whirling, he caught sight of Forde, already astride his own warhorse, and hanging on to the reins of Neige. "Thought you two might wanna get reacquainted. She's a little antsy after being cooped up inside for so long."
"Thanks." Franz nodded gratefully and whistled, calling his steed over. Quickly grabbing ahold of the saddle and mounting her, he drew his sword and nodded to his brother. A moment later, Kyle rode up beside the both of them.
"The area's as secure as it's gonna get. We're to move in to assist the group at the residential area."
With a nod shared by the three cavaliers of Renais, they were riding into the town at full speed, the glint of determination in their eyes.
"So, Ewan…" Amelia broke off speaking long enough to smash her lance into the head of an approaching revenant. "Mind telling me why you're here and fighting with us? Not that I don't appreciate the help, of course."
"No problem!" The apprentice mage grinned as he shot off a fireball that eradicated a skeleton that had been dueling a Frelian knight. "See, I'm actually part of a mercenary band-"
"Um, you don't… look like a mercenary…" Amelia said hesitantly as she ducked under a sword swipe of yet another bone warrior. Lashing out with her foot, she succeeded in dislodging the left thigh bones of the creature and it collapsed to the floor. Another stab to the head finished the job.
"Yeah, I know – I'm still in training and all… whoa!" The redhead jerked back to avoid a blast of dark energy from a nearby eyeball. "Anyway! Apparently there was a screw-up and one of our soldiers was assigned here when she wasn't supposed to be. I'm supposed to be looking for her."
"I see…" Taking careful aim, she struck down the Mogall that had been harassing Ewan. "But that still doesn't explain why you decided to help me… help our side."
"Oh, that's easy!" Ewan laughed lightly. "It'll be easier to look for who I'm supposed to if I'm not alone. And all things being equal, I'd rather fight for the team that's not allied with ancients monstrosities of death and darkness, you know?"
At Ewan's flippant response, Amelia felt a fresh jolt of pain through her heart. She still… she still hadn't gotten used to the truth of the matter… of Grado's alliance with… with those… things.
The apprentice mage apparently noticed something was wrong, because he turned to face her. "Amelia? You okay?"
She waved it away with a smile that in no way mirrored what she was really feeling inside her heart. "Fine. I'm fine."
The pupil-mage nodded and wiped some of the sweat from his brow. "Well, I should start looking for her. She should be fine, wherever she is… she's a tough one."
Amelia frowned as the two of them set out to rejoin the larger group of soldiers. "Um… maybe you could tell me what she looks like? So I could… y'know… help you keep an eye out for her."
"Oh… well… she's got lilac hair – it's actually really pretty. Her face is… well, she usually keeps her feeling under wraps, so it always looks really stern…"
"Everyone always looks stern in the middle of a battle." Amelia pointed out. "Well, unless they're looking fierce. Or scared."
"Well, yeah…" Ewan sighed. "I'm not very used to fighting, you know… aside from clearing out a couple of monsters near Caer Paelyn – oh, that's where I live – this is my first real battle."
"It – it is? Wow… you're a natural." Amelia sighed and shook her head. "My first battle… my first battle was a complete disaster. If – if it hadn't been for Franz, I would've…"
"Franz?" Ewan quirked and eyebrow. "Who's he?"
"Oh! Right, once I've got the chance, I'll have to introduce the two of you. I'm sure you two will get along great!"
"That's nice…" Ewan grinned. "But you haven't really told me anything about him yet."
"Oh, uh…" The lancer gazed at the ground, a tiny smile on her face. "Franz is… Franz is the one who saved me."
"Saved you?" The questioning look on the mage's face was apparent for all to see, but before Amelia could make a proper reply, they came the thundering of hooves from behind the two of them, and there he was, smiling with relief as he pulled Neige to a stop next to her.
"Amelia! I was wondering where'd you run off to."
"Yeah, I just…" She shrugged, a sheepish smile on her face. "Got caught up in the rush and ended up here somehow. Oh!" Turning to Ewan, she gestured back and forth between the two of them. "Franz, Ewan. Ewan, Franz. He's a journeyman mage-pupil… guy. He's been helping me out."
"Oh… hi, Ewan." Franz smiled at the flame-haired youth, but Amelia thought he could detect some traces of uncertainty in his expression. Well, whatever it was, she was sure it could be sorted out later…
A sudden uproar distracted the group – the Grad soldiers had apparently rallied and were now preparing for another assault to try to force the Frelian defenders back. Only… this time they appeared wary of sacrificing their human soldiers and were, by and large, letting the monsters do the work for them.
Amelia traded a nod with Franz, and as one, they charged into the melee.
Parrying a sword-slash, Franz twisted and stabbed down, cutting deep into the enemy soldier's leg. With a cry of pain, his opponent fell.
Making use of the short breather he was allowed, he quickly scanned the field of battle around him. Amelia was several paces away, finishing off a fallen gargoyle. No other enemy troops appeared to be targeting her for the moment.
Forde and Kyle were off to the side, cutting a bloody swathe through their opponents. Well, he didn't need to worry about them just now… Pivoting on one foot, he turned and headed for Amelia, who was currently falling back to defend a wounded Neimi. Just then, he was distracted by a shout.
"Marisa!"
And out of the corner of his eye, he spotted the mage kid – Ewan, wasn't it? – turning away from his enemy, and running over to one of the Grado soldiers.
What in the- "HEY!" Franz snapped, turning and charging after the soldiers. "What do you think you're-" One of the Grad soldiers, apparently finding a lone, unarmoured youth an easy target, and raised his axe.
NO! Moving as fast as he could, he managed – barely, just barely – to knock the axe away with his sword, enough so that it didn't cut into Ewan's spine. The young mage spun around, eyes wide.
Twisting, Franz tried to bring his sword around to stab the Grad, but it was a predictable move and easily countered. Stepping back, he started to move into a defensive pose when –
"Get down."
Instinctively, Franz complied, and he caught sight of a blur moving past him. A moment later, the axefighter staggered back, clutching a bleeding arm.
"Back off. Now." Standing in front of the both of them was a female swordfighter, her face emotionless as he held a curved blade in a ready position. The Grad soldier glared daggers at her, but seemed to reconsider taking on three soldiers at the same time. With a muttered curse, he retreated from the frontlines.
As Franz tried to make sense of the situation (and the newcomer), Ewan walked over, a big grin on his face. "You're as strong as ever, Marisa!" Then, he paused. "Although… it's not like you to spare a soldier like that."
"I'm quitting without notice." The female swordfighter said tersely as she sheathed her weapon. "Killing them when they still assume I'm on their side is the tactics of cowards and rogues."
"Oh, okay." Ewan then turned to Franz. "Thanks for the save back there – I don't think I'd have made it out unscathed if you hadn't been looking out for me."
"Well… I couldn't just let you get yourself chopped in half because you were careless. You're Ewan, right?"
"Yup. And you're Franz." The pupil grinned cheerily at him. "Amelia told me about you."
Exactly what Amelia had said about him was filed away under a long list of things for Franz to do later, 'later' being a period of time in which there were no opposing forces after him with an intent to injury.
For now, though, there was a battle to fight.
"You okay, Neimi?" Amelia gave her friend a concerned look. The archer nodded. "Just a bit of a leg wound. I'm fine now."
Assured of her friend's safety, Amelia continued wading through the melee, always picking out the monstrosities as her targets.
Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Franz and Ewan seemingly working together in facing down their foes and she quirked a smile. So far the two seemed to be getting along fine – although the fact that they were in a battlefield made actual bonding time rather difficult to come across.
Well, perhaps she could stand to join them-
The attack was sudden and unexpected, and Amelia barely had enough time to dodge the lance-strike before it would have pierced her heart. As it was, a streak of pain exploded in her arm, and she steadied herself as she turned to face her next foe.
The soldier was helmeted, such that she could not see his face. He was also fully armoured, which put her at a bit of disadvantage, seeing as how her chestplate had been discarded some time ago.
That, and she didn't really want to make a habit of facing Grads in battle…
Moving into a defensive stance, she was able to block a couple of the strikes from her opponent, but it was clear that he was far more skilled than her, and that he had the advantage. Breathing heavily, she tried to skip backwards to get herself some breathing room – and ended up slamming into a revenant that had stumbled up behind her.
With a cry of surprise, she was sent tumbling, tucking herself into a roll as she did so. As soon as she had recovered her balance, she glanced up to see the helmeted soldier standing over her, his spear leveled at her head.
At that exact instant, three things happened at almost exactly the same instant.
An arrow zipped through the air, impacting solidly with the Grad soldier's knee. With a cry of surprise and pain, he stumbled.
A fireball smashed into the soldier's hand, exploding in a blaze of light and heat. Amelia winced at the intense heat that roiled off the orb of flame, but she was otherwise unharmed. The force of the attack caused the Grad to release his grip on his weapon, which clattered to the floor.
Third, and last, was the shining blur of Franz's sword in a vertical slash as he cut down on the soldier's helm. Amazingly, the steel headgear cracked partially, and the force of the impact knocked the soldier forward.
Not thinking, Amelia instinctively brought her lance up, aiming it at her enemy's chest. With a horrible screech of tortured metal, the armour held, but the force of her strike sent the lance upwards – to where it pierced the soldier's neck. A small spurt of blood came out, spattering Amelia across her face.
"Amelia!" Neimi cried as she ran over, her bow still clutched tightly in hand.
"You okay?" Ewan questioned as he put away the spellbook he had been holding.
She glanced up, saw Franz looking silently at her, and she smiled.
"Fine." She sighed. "Just a little rat...tled…" Her voice trailed off as she glanced down at the soldier she had just killed. His helmet had fallen off his head when he had slumped to the ground, revealing his head.
Along with his impressive mane of scarlet hair.
Amelia slumped to the ground and let out a choked sob.
"How's she holding up?" Franz said softly as Neimi emerged from the room she was sharing with Amelia. The battle was long over by now, ending with yet another victory for the Frelian Army. Amelia, however, had been so badly shaken by what she had seen that she'd been unable to participate for the remainder of the battle – for whatever reason. Franz still wished he knew more about the situation…
"She's still pretty pale and quiet…" Neimi sighed. Franz shook his head. Back when Amelia had looked down at the defeated soldier, she'd turned white as a sheet before taking a step backwards. "She hasn't said much," Neimi continued. "She just… well, she just sits and stares."
"Maybe it was someone she knew." Franz opined. "You know, from back in the Grado army."
"Back from the what?" Ewan glanced up from where he had located himself by the window.
"Oh… you didn't get a chance to find out. Yeah, Amelia's from Grado. I… fought her…" 'Fought' was of course too kind a term, but Ewan didn't really need to know that. "And convinced her to lay down her arms – later she wanted to join us, and here we are. That's the summary, anyway."
A silence descended on the three of them, until Neimi broke it via a soft smile and touching Franz's shoulder. "I… think you should go in."
"Wha-?" Franz glanced up. "But-"
"Franz, it's obvious she trusts you a whole lot. More than anyone else – me included." Neimi's smile grew more resigned. "You were the first one who befriended her, after all. Go on. Go talk to her."
"But… but I-" I don't know how to talk to someone! Franz's mind screamed in mute protest as he stiffly walked to the door.
Opening it a crack, he peered inside to see Amelia looking out the window.
"Amelia?" He questioned softly. "Can I come in?"
There was a long moment in which nothing changed. Then a slight, almost imperceptible nod.
Feeling just a little bit buoyed by this response, he walked forward, settling himself down on the wooden chair next to hers.
What to do? What to say? He couldn't find the least thing to say that felt would help, and so he said nothing.
Then, after a moment's hesitation, he reached over and clutched her hand tightly.
She felt and registered Franz's awkward – but comforting – actions, and she closed her eyes, letting the maelstrom of her emotions continue to thunder about within her.
The two of them sat in silence, Franz not asking… not talking… just… being there. For her.
That thought comforted her more than she would have believed possible.
With a sigh, she closed her eyes, and began to talk softly. "Back in Grado… he was my instructor. My sergeant. He taught me the basics of being a soldier… showed me how to do things… He taught me what he could in the little time I spent with him. On my last day there… he… he told me that he was the best recruit he had had the privilege of tutoring in a very long while. I was… I was so happy when I heard that. And I killed him. I killed him. I… killed…" She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to stem the flow of burning tears.
"It… he was wearing a helmet, Amelia." Franz said softly, stumbling over his words. "You couldn't have known it was him."
She knew that, on a logical level, that Franz was right. She also knew, on a logical level, that if she hoped to continue fighting without going insane, she was going to have to become strong enough to face her qualms about fighting – and killing – her own countrymen. But none of this served to make her feel the least bit better.
"Maybe…" She continued numbly. "Maybe I couldn't recognize him – but he could recognize me. And he attacked me, all the same. He fought me – he would have killed me." As if she needed more proof of the gulf that separated her from the country she called her homeland. Her role as the traitorous deserter was now set in stone.
Franz simply sat there silently for a long while, his hand curled around hers, and she bit her lip. She needed someone, anyone, to spill out her burdens on, and now… she had inflicted Franz the same burdens she carried… it wasn't fair to him. He was probably trying to find the words to comfort her right now…
"I wonder why this whole war started." Franz finally spoke softly. "I wonder about it a lot. I wonder why Grado would suddenly betray all the ties they'd built up with the various nations on Magvel. I wonder why they would turn upon us – their closest ally and friend – with all of their military might. I wonder why, and how, so many lives could be destroyed so suddenly and so quickly by so random a turn of events." He closed his eyes and sighed. "I wonder how my life could have been upended so quickly."
"I…" Amelia begun, her voice grinding to a halt almost immediately.
"Then I remember you. I remember that you don't know any more than I do, that you're just as scared and confused as I am. I remember you telling me the story of how the legendary hero Grado saved all of Magvel – and that that was how your country got its name. I remember the pride in your voice as you spoke about how you believed your country was one that believed in justice and peace. And I remember seeing the slow sadness and resignation in your eyes as you remember that you're fighting a war against your own nation. I remember that whatever pain, anxiety, whatever I'm feeling, you feel it a hundred times worse."
"…It was wrong for Grado to invade Renais." Amelia finally found her voice. "I don't know what in the world could possibly hope to justify such an action. Grado has no right to ruin the lives of thousands. It's all… it's all wrong. I know this." She squeezed her eyes closed, leaning forward to rest her head on her hand. "And now… I find out that… they're using… monsters…" She choked back a sob. "It's wrong. All of it. I want to do what is right… I want to stop Grado. But…"
"But you still love your homeland." Franz finished the sentence for her. "You still wish you could return to the days where you believed in Grado, in her Emperor… that doing the right thing wouldn't be as painful as this."
She nodded mutely.
"I can't pretend to know what it's like. I've never faced such a crisis of conscience as you have." Franz continued, staring out the window, at the brilliantly blue sky. "I… I honestly don't know what to say, Amelia. I just…" He closed his eyes, sighed. "I just want you to know – if you ever need a shoulder to cry on, or a kind word, or, well, anything at all – I'll be there for you."
Amelia smiled through the tears. "Thank you." She said softly. "Thank you."
It was evening when Amelia left her inn-room in search of sustenance. She had some time to gather herself, and despite the lingering ache in her heart, she felt ready to… well, smile. To function.
Besides, she was starving.
As she rounded the corner, she was met by the sight of a red-headed mage arguing with a young axefighter.
"No, you can do it in two steps. Look, first you divide up the coins like th- Oh, hey! Amelia!" Ewan flashed her a cheery grin. "How're you feeling?"
"Oh, fine." Amelia smiled at her friend. "Where's Franz?"
Ross sighed and muttered. "He's at the training session that I should be joining shortly. Thanks for reminding me."
Ewan grinned at the Journeyman. "Well, tough luck. Just make sure you don't train too much – wouldn't want your brains turning to muscle too, you know!"
"Ha ha, very funny." Ross muttered. "C'ya around, Amelia."
"Yeah… bye." Amelia waved after the departing figure.
That, of course, left her alone with Ewan in the hallway.
"So…" The mage shrugged. "Where're you off to?"
"Oh, dinner, I guess." Amelia shrugged.
"In that case," Ewan stood and bowed as regally as he could manage. "Would the fair maiden mind if I were her escort for the night?"
She chuckled, despite herself. "Ewan, cut it out."
"Heh. So, you don't mind if we went together, do you?"
"Of course not! I'm sure I'd enjoy your company very much."
And so she went with Ewan, enjoying the coolness of the evening, letting herself forget her sorrows – if only for the time being, for the moment.
Chapter End
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