Dragalia Lost: Shattered Light
Chapter 6: To Woodhaven
We made it back to Euden's group just as the unknown sylvan archer awoke, his body swathed in bandages to cover his remaining injuries. Cleo stated she didn't want to use another Elder Cure on the archer when it could be saved for a time more important.
"Ughh… wh-where am…?" The archer tried to stand up, his posture unsteady and gaze woozy. Eleonora frowned when she saw him.
"Another sylvan, but it's not one from my village. Likely from Woodhaven," Eleonora muttered before approaching the injured hunter, "What even happened to you? Did the Empire devastate your home too?"
"Urk… yeah. The stupid Empire happened," The archer groaned, trying to sit up. Elisanne pushed him down gently however, "And now I'm getting nursed by those crapsacks. This is a disgrace…"
"Except we're not part of the Empire. Hell, we're being hunted by them at this very moment," I told the archer as I kneeled down to get to eye level, "Now if you can, tell us exactly what happened when the Empire attacked. I want to know what they're planning to do here"
"How am I supposed to know? They attacked us for no reason. We were just going about our lives, when-" The archer gave a hard cough, spilling up blood briefly, "Argh…"
"Sit still, or else I shall cast tranquilizing magic on you. It's for your own good," Cleo threatened as he wiped the sylvan's mouth with a rag to wash away the blood, "Tell us everything that happened. Begin with your name"
"I'm Luca. My village and the kingdom have always left each other be. I heard about all the political shake-up but assumed things would stay the same," Luca explained, "Until that snake came along with his dragon and ordered us to bend the knee to the emperor. He said he was some prince, sixth in line for the throne"
"Emile and Mercury…" I heard Euden murmur as Luca continued.
We refused, of course, at which point he threatened to destroy the village," Luca's eyebrows scrunched up with fury, "So I lunged at him, and...and I was winning!"
"You absolutely do not look like you were winning," Elisanne grumbled, "You look like you picked a fight with a Greatwyrm and you did"
"You lost and washed up by the side of the lake" Cleo added flatly and Luca gasped in shock.
"What? No! I fought valiantly!" Luca replied the best he could before clearing his throat, "...Er, by my reckoning"
"You idiot. You should of led your village out of there instead of charging headfirst at a pactbound prince and his dragon," Elisanne scolded, "And despite radical injuries, you still decide to hound after us like we're part of the Empire. What were you thinking?!"
"Regardless of his reasons, we now know that the Empire's going around terrorizing villages to set an example," Euden grit his teeth, "And if they don't comply, well…"
"They destroy it, just like they did to Luca's and mine" Eleonora finished bitterly, "I hope the residents made it out safely…"
"I don't care about their reasons. They need to pay for this," Luca growled, trying to stand again. This time however, Cleo slammed him back down, "Ow! Let go of me! My people need me!"
"You need to REST!" The sylvan healer snarled in response.
"Luca, you won't be any use to your people dead. Let us come with you at least," Euden offered and Luca shook his head vigorously.
"And put you face-to-face with that dragon? I don't think so," Luca protested, "I don't want you on my conscience, too"
"Emile is using his dragon to torture innocent people. That affects all of us. But we can stop him together. And more to the point, I'm sick and tired of running away," Euden said defiantly, "I need to confront him and find out who has taken my father's place on the throne"
"Wait… just WHO are you?"
"Prince Euden of Alberia. The seventh in line for the throne and for what it's worth, the younger brother of Emile" Euden answered and Luca gasped.
"Holy pine nuts! You're the traitor they're all looking for!"
"Bzzt! Wrong! Lies!" Notte cried, "Don't believe a word those spiders say!"
"Oh, I don't. Now that I've gotten a closer look at you, I can see in your eyes that you're all honest folk," This time, Luca managed to stand up without much difficulty, although he winced, "I accept your help, Euden. Gratefully. Now follow me, everyone. We have a dragon to confront!"
"You're going to trust us just like that?" Ranzal asked, surprised and Luca laughed.
"You guys nursed me back to health, so I need to repay you anyways," The sylvan archer shrugged, "Plus, there's a saying that goes in my village: when the wicked brand traitors, that's when you know who to trust. The enemy of my enemy is my friend, so we're a team now"
"That's good. Before we find Emile and Mercury though, let's look for your villagers. Maybe they managed to escape the Empire," I suggested and Euden nodded in approval.
"Good plan. Let's go to Luca's village first and search from there"
"I'll lead then. Follow me!" The sylvan accepted his bow from Elisanne and raised it high in the air, a bright smile marking his face, "Let's make the Empire wish they never threatened us!"
It was a short walk to Luca's village. Euden and the sylvan took the lead, quietly talking with one another, but they were loud enough for us to hear anyways.
"You know, that brother of yours is a real scoundrel. I hope the five above him in line for the throne have more brain cells than he does," Luca off handingly said. Euden winced slightly at the insult to his brother, "... Sorry, that was uncalled for. But can you tell me about the others actually? I know so little about human society"
Euden frowned, thinking, "Well, including me and Zethia, that are eight royal children. But not all of us live in Sol Alberia, the capital city. My brother Leonidas and my sister Chelle, first and third respectively, rule great cities of their own. Valkaheim and Chanzelia, to be exact"
"Interesting. Who is second in line?" Luca inquired.
"That would be Phares. He lives in the royal city as the court alchemist, where he studies all manner of things," Euden held up his hand, touching his pinky finger, "The fourth is Valyx, who leads a unit in the royal army. All of them are pactbound to dragons"
"That's bad news if any more start to develop a taste for conquest" Luca frowned, chewing on his lip.
"Forging a dragonpact is a condition for joining the line of succession, so it's inevitable," Euden continued, "I have one, although not because I want the throne"
"What about the Auspex? Does she have a pactbound dragon?" Ku Hai asked curiously and Euden shook his head.
"She's the only one in the royal line without one. She forfeited her claim to the throne and became the Ilian Auspex instead," The prince replied, "She was never one for ruling over others anyways"
"That's your sister that went missing, right? I'm sorry to hear that," Luca frowned. One look at his face told me he was really thinking about his own sister, Sarisse, "So are they good folk like you? Or violent dastards like Emile?"
"They're good people!" Euden replied almost too quickly, "Admittingly, I haven't spoken to them very often, but the ones I know are incredible people"
"Leif should get the credit for that. He has worked closely with every single one of the Alberian royals," I commented and Euden nodded in agreement, "He always was the most levelheaded and sensible person in the room"
"Agreed. He's not royalty, but he's been the best of us regardless," Euden had a forlorn look in his eyes, "Makes me wonder what he's doing with Dyrenell then…"
"If he wasn't royalty, then who is he? He must be special if he's worked with every Alberian royal," Luca asked, breaking Euden out of his thoughts.
"Leif is the captain of the Alberian royal knights. But more importantly, he was a good man and a faithful friend," Euden got a wistful look in his eyes, "I can talk to him about anything. We all trust him"
…
"..Nngh. Show me again, Leif! I'll best you this time!" Euden panted as he rose his training sword again, determination burning on his face. Leif's training was brutal, but the prince never complained. His desire to sit down and stop was washed away by the want to surpass Leif, one way or another.
"You will one day, Your Highness. I can see it in your eyes," Leif smiled, sheathing his blade. Euden lowered his as well while the captain went over to fetch a drink from a nearby cooler, "I shall train with you until you are every bit as strong as your older siblings!"
"Did they start out like this as well?"
"Oh yes they did. Even Leonidas, strong as he is now, was frankly a wimp in combat until I took him under my wing"
"Leonidas?! A wimp? You have to be joking, Leif!"
"It's no jest. Leonidas, Phares and Emile were all inept in combat just like you are now. It wasn't until they trained and developed their skills did their swordplay become legendary. Or lancework, in Prince Phares's case," Leif handed Euden a water bottle, "It's why I'm called the White Sparrow after all"
"What do you mean?" Euden inquired as he took a sip of the cold water, refreshing himself.
"I may not have dragon wings like you, but I can fly ahead and show you the way," Leif replied, "And I intend to make you quick with your sword and quicker with your mind. Now come, Your Highness. We begin anew"
"I'm ready for it!" Euden lifted his blade, pointing at Leif. The captain did the same, poised to strike.
"You don't have Leonidas's fierceness or haughtiness, nor Phares's skill with a lance, but you must have something," Leif leapt towards Euden, bringing his sword down in a diagonal strike. Euden rose his sword to block, but Leif feinted his incoming attack and whacked the prince's side instead, "And I shall find it! I will strike at you until you sing!"
…
"Euden? Still with us?" Luca broke the prince out of his stupor again and he flinched in shock slightly, looking around himself, "Don't worry. We're almost at my village"
"Ah… I'm sorry. I was remembering better times. Times where I could have anything I wanted," Euden replied wistfully, "A father to revere, siblings to admire, a good friend in Leif... Even the royal guards were all kind to me. And most importantly, Zethia was by my side"
"You will see her again" Elisanne assured encouragingly. Euden smiled lightly, as if trying to believe it himself.
"We will. But it makes me think: where do the rest of my siblings stand on this? And Leif must be beside himself with what's happening right now," Euden bit his lip, "Will my family ever be united together again…?"
Silence fell over us as we crossed the boardwalk and made it into a small grove leading towards Luca's village. The sylvan took a slightly faster approach, muttering to himself in discontent. Only Eleonora kept pace.
"Please be alright…" Luca whispered through gritted teeth. His grip on his bow tightened as a troubling feeling built in his gut. His knuckles turned white with anticipation and he felt himself shivering. Something happened to his sister. He just knew it.
"How does he move so fast through all this brush?" Elisanne asked as she sped up to keep up with the two sylvans, "The moss clinging to my boots makes it so hard to move…!"
"Gotta hand it to the sylvans: they know how to make nature work for 'em," Ranzal shouldered his axe, glancing at Cleo, "Right, Cleo?"
"Don't… talk to me… right now," Cleo panted, strangely exhausted, "Oh how I loathe exercise…"
"Only a few steps longer. The village is just up ahead," I said, pushing my way through the sloshy moss and into a clearing with the others, where the sky was filled with smoke and smog. The leftover of an attack.
"By the goddess… what did Emile do?!" Euden gasped. All of Woodhaven was devastated into smoldering ruins. Only a few houses remained and all of them were more ruined shacks than actual living spaces. Not a soul was in sight, Imperial or sylvan.
"No! It's too late. This went worse than I thought!" Luca buried his hands into his face, "It's all my fault…"
"Everything has been laid to ruin. I've never seen anything so terrible," Elisanne frowned as she observed the nearby remains of the village. Some of the houses look like they were blasted by a magical cannon. Splotches of water marked the walls like someone hit them with a tidal wave.
"But I don't see any bodies, which means the people here may have escaped," Euden said optimistically, "Let's take a lot around the rubble and see if anyone's around"
"Good idea. Sarisse? ...Someone answer me!" Luca yelled into the deserted village. Nobody answered, "Hello?! Is anyone here?!"
"To think Emile used Mercury to devastate a village like this," I clenched my fist in disgust, "They say Mercury is the most compassionate of the five Greatwyrms, so to see her used to destroy is a travesty"
"Indeed. I wonder what Emile even did to earn her trust. From what I'm hearing, he seems like the worst possible fit for her," Elisanne agreed, "A Greatwyrm like Mercury would have never formed a pact with him"
"He bought his pact. That's what," Ranzal replied, inspecting a nearby ruined shop, "I dunno what he did exactly, but word goes around that he tricked or bribed Mercury with a promise in order to form a pact. There was no way that slimeball was doing it the proper way"
"Gaining dominion over a Greatwyrm like that… Detestable," Cleo fumed, "I hope he learned his lesson from Ku Hai and hightailed out of here"
"Actually… he called angrily to chase after me after me and Roc gave them a thrashing, so I can't say he's off our tail yet," The swordsman shook his head, "Prince Emile doesn't sound like the person to give up like that"
"Stubborn and persistent to the end. I suppose that is one good quality of him," I sighed before scanning our surroundings again, "Hm, doesn't seem like anyone's around"
"It definitely looks like the sylvans escaped this village, but…" Cleo looked at the ground, frowning, "It's strange how there are no bodies or blood anywhere. No sign of a struggle either besides the ruined houses. Just what happened…?"
"Wait! Someone's coming! Hide!" Luca hissed and we all dove behind cover as Emile, Harle and an Imperial armored knight walked into the desolate village, carrying a white haired girl with tall white ears. The Imperial knight's hands were on the sylvan girl's shoulders, restraining her.
"Let go of me, you pompous jerk!" She screeched in anger.
"Not until you tell me where the villagers have hidden, you animal!" Emile shot back, fury clinging to his voice. I dared to look above my barrel hiding place and saw that the prince was caked in dirt and looked utterly windswept. A result of Ku Hai and Roc's efforts definitely. Harle on the other hand, didn't have a scratch.
"I don't know! And even if I did, I'd never tell you!" The sylvan girl clutched her hand into a fist, "Now take THIS!"
Before any of the Imperials could react, the girl smashed her fist into Emile's gut, making him yelp in pain. I winced in pain from the blow myself.
"OW!" Emile cried before glaring at the girl, eyes blazing with anger, "...You DARE strike a prince? G-get her away from me!"
"Yes yes, of COURSE, Prince Emile. Please calm yourself. Remember that our objective is to capture the prince and his retinue of traitors. Pay these animals no mind. They belong in cages," Harle snapped his sheathed blade onto the sylvan girl's thigh, making her snarl in anger, "You there! Lock her in the carriage!"
"Yes, sir!" The Imperial armored knight grabbed the sylvan's hands, restraining her further.
"Ah! Get your hands off me!" She shrieked and I heard Luca grunt beside me, drawing an arrow and nocking it into his bow.
"What are you doing?!" I hissed as I ducked down into my hiding spot, "Harle and Emile are still here. We can't take them on!"
"I don't care. That is my sister, Sarisse! And those Imperial vermin are about to lock her away like she's some animal!" Luca snarled before rising from his hiding spot into plain view, "Have a load of this! Radiant Bonds!"
An arrow enveloped in bright golden light flew through the air, nailing the Imperial knight right in the head and splintering his helmet into pieces, along with his skull. Surprised, Emile and Harle watched in disbelief as we all revealed ourselves, coming in to surround them.
"This is more than I can handle alone. Prince Emile, to me!" Harle called and took the prince's arm as he drew his Dainsleif, "Toodles, Prince Euden. We'll see each other again soon!"
"You may have escaped once, but you won't survive once I unleash Mercury on your jaunty band. I swear it!" Emile yelled hoarsely, but Harle already dragged him off. We decided to not pursue them and instead help Sarisse.
"Are you alright?" Cleo was helping Sarisse up, dusting the dirt and grime off her body. The sylvan looked at each of us warily before centering on Luca.
"I'm alright, but HOW?! How are you not dead?!" Sarisse cried at her brother, looking more outraged than relieved. Luca simply rubbed his head in exasperation.
"Ha ha! Oh, come on. Do you really think a dragon could kill the likes of m-" Luca replied sheepishly, but Sarisse slammed her fist into his gut, the same way as she did for Emile, "Owwww!"
"You idiot! That was a DRAGON, and you were INSANE to take it on!" Sarisse yelled angrily, " Know your limits next time, mush-for-brains!"
"Holy carp! I think that blow lifted Luca a couple'a feet off the ground" Ranzal marveled as Luca collapsed from the blow, clutching his stomach in agony. His face turned a pale shade of green.
"Luca? You still with us, buddy?" Notte floated down to the sylvan's fallen body, "Oh man, I don't think eyes are supposed to roll back in your head like that"
"It's his fault for worrying me," Sarisse groaned before stepping over Luca's body, "Now apologize, Luca!"
"I think we should wait for his organs to shift back to their original positions first…" Cleo muttered before raising her rod, casting a minor heal spell to restore Luca. The sylvan got to his feet, looking winded still.
"So where are the rest of the villagers?" Euden asked.
"Down at the Forest Refuge. I came back to try and find my idiot brother here, but got caught along the way," Sarisse frowned, "Well, thanks for rescuing me and him. We've been looking for Luca all day and night"
"And that's why you elected to greet me with your fist instead of a wave?" Luca groaned as he stood up, shaking himself off, "You're WORSE than the dragon"
"That'll teach you to catch a lady by surprise" Sarisse replied smugly.
"I'd hate to intrude on your sibling squabble, but we should be getting to the Forest Refuge. The empire is still on our trail," Cleo interrupted. Sarisse looked at her and a minor smudge of confusion marked her face, "What is it?"
"Sorry. It's just that we don't see a lot of sylvans outside of Woodhaven. But pay it no mind," Sarisse shook her head, glancing at Eleonora as well, "Let's make for the refuge. I'm sure everyone will want to meet the man who rescued Luca"
…
It was a short walk to the forest refuge. Luckily, it was off the beaten road and deep within a forest grove, so the Empire definitely won't be able to trace us here. Eleonora was glancing around, looking troubled. She was staring at Luca and Sarisse with a strange look of envy and content.
"What is it, Eleonora?" I asked, breaking the sylvan out of her thoughts. She flinched, turning her head to me.
"N-nothing. It's just that seeing Luca, Sarisse and all the sylvans ahead reminds me of my own village. All the residents there, good upstanding sylvans, murdered in cold blood by the Empire and their fiends," Eleonora clutched her Proof of the Wind tightly, "Their innocent lives stolen away for what? So the Empire could show off their power? We didn't even do anything to them!"
"I'm afraid that's exactly why the Empire did it: to show off and test their power," I bit my lip at the prospect of it. Suddenly I felt very ill wearing my Alberian armor, "Looking at all these sylvans, what does it make you feel?"
"A burning desire for revenge. To take back the lives stolen from the Empire. More innocents will die from their hands and I won't stand it," Eleonora growled, "Human or sylvan, they were all innocent. The Empire preys on that"
"Be that as it may, don't let your vengeance define your entire being. You are one person and can't defeat the Empire yourself," I reminded her. Me consoling someone felt very uncharacteristic, "Don't endanger yourself or any of us for it, alright?"
"Mmgh… I'll try"
Not long later, we exited the forest tunnel and made it into the refuge, where dozens of sylvans were walking out and about, carrying bows, arrows, daggers and other supplies. They were preparing for an invasion.
"Is everyone all right?" Luca called to the nearest sylvans and they turned to him, looking both amazed and shocked.
"...Luca?! You're alive!" A bunch of sylvans started hugging and slapping Luca on the back. He responded with passionate, if not arrogant tales of his battle with Mercury.
"I've never seen so many sylvans in one place…" Euden marvelled. I nodded in agreement.
"Nor I. Just look at all those ears! There's a whole sea of them," Elisanne got moony eyed, "It's adooorable…"
"I suppose there is a certain… flair to them," Cleo replied uneasily and Elisanne balked away, looking embarrassed.
"What? Huh? Did I say something?" Elisanne smiled sheepishly, blush marking her cheeks, "Uhm… pay me no mind"
"Luca, you blasted fool! What were you thinking, taking on a dragon in battle?" A sylvan elder cried, breaking apart the crowd swarming Luca.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to put everyone through so much trouble" Luca replied, looking ashamed. The elder stamped his cane onto the ground in irritation.
"You should be. Houses can be rebuilt, but lives cannot. We've all been worried sick" The elder's tone took on a less strict and more caring tone. Luca slumped in guilt.
"I'm sorry, Elder. I'll never do anything that stupid again. I swear it on my bow and in the name of Mother Nature" Luca apologized and the elder smiled, satisfied.
"Very good. Now I believe we owe you our gratitude, travelers" The elder turned to Euden and the rest of us.
"We only did what anyone would do. And while I know it's not my place to tell you what to do, Elder, the Empire's army is going to find this place soon," Euden warned the elder, taking note of the invasion preparations around us, "We should devise a plan before that happens"
"Hm, then it's just as I feared. But my people are not fighters, and we have nowhere else to run," The elder glanced at his fellow villagemen, "The best we can do is harry the Empire with the environment, but we have serious trouble penetrating heavy armor"
"Eh, don't worry about that. We'll keep ya safe. All we gotta do is lure Emile away from his troops and then "persuade" him to back off," Ranzal gripped his axe, eager to fight, "Bet the Empire dropped some fiends around here, so let's hunt them down first, yeah?
"I agree. They'll be a thorn in our side if we let them run free," Elisanne nodded, "Let's split up into groups of two and get rid of the fiends around here"
"I'll go with Eleonora," I volunteered. The sylvan looked at me, surprised, "Just to make sure she doesn't go too far with her fiend slaying"
"What do you me-" Eleonora sighed, cutting herself off, "Fine. We've worked together before, so this should be quick"
"I'll go with Elisanne. Ranzal, go with Luca," Euden decided, gesturing to our party members, "Cleo is with Sarisse and Ku Hai…"
"I can handle myself. I have Roc by my side," The swordsman pulled out his dragonstone, summoning the wind-bound mercenary dragon by his side. The sylvan villagers backed up in both amazement and shock, "The fiends won't know what hit them"
"Alright, good. Take care to not devastate TOO much of the forest," Euden told Roc and she nodded in understanding, "Okay everyone, clear out as many fiends as you can around here and meet back when you're finished. We'll figure out our next move from there!"
With that finished, Eleonora took my arm and we plunged into the verdant, endless forest together, unaware of what prowled in the darkness...
Our team:
- Adrian, Yearning Freedom - Shadow lance. Level 13
Equipment: Mailbreaker, Ensorcelled Sword (Weapons) and Alberian Banner (WP)
Skills: Luna Breaker
- Eleonora, Curious Archer - Wind bow. Level 14
Equipment: Proof of the Wind (Weapon) and Crown of Yore (WP)
Skills: Viper Bolt and Vendetta Arrow
Kind of a boring chapter this time. Not the best one to return with after a hiatus, huh? Luckily, things will ramp up in the next chapter and we'll probably face down Mercury by then. Until then, enjoy Sarisse and Luca's introductions to the story I guess. If you want to be notified of when a new chapter comes out, favorite and follow. If you want to give constructive criticism, leave a review. I'd love to get the chance to improve my story whatever way I can. Until next time!