Disclaimer: Breath of Fire IV and its characters belong to Capcom. The story belongs to
me.

This is the continuation of my first fic. I didn't intend on continuing this story. I just
wanted to fill in the gaps between the lemon I'm working on. Now, on with chapter 2.

The Awful Truth

Looking for Grandfather was taking longer than I thought. Helping to rebuild the capital
with my fellow troops was taking up more time than expected. I have to admit the
Emperor's servant A-tur did a very good job at leaving it in shambles. Any Emperor who
would do this to the capital of his own Empire was insane. There was no logical
explanation for it.

Recovering the bodies of those killed in the destruction had to come before the actual
rebuilding of Chedo. It's surprising how anyone survived its destruction. I hoped that
Grandfather was one of the survivors. I pray that I get to see him one more time before I
begin my search of him.

Too many things are on my mind at once, the recovery effort, the reconstruction of the
capital, and him. I have to do things one at a time.

First things first. Recovering as many bodies as possible was a top priority at this point.
By the time it was over, there would be too many bodies to count. There were still more
civilians and soldiers unaccounted for. It was getting late. We were to resume tomorrow.

The next day more progress was made in the recovery effort. There were even more
bodies than yesterday. At least all of the people who were in Chedo at the time were
accounted for, dead or alive.

Suddenly one of the troops approached me with some news of my Grandfather. I had
given them orders to inform me of any news of General Rhun's whereabouts. He had
informed me that he had found him somewhere near the castle entrance.

There were more troops at the castle entrance by the time I had arrived. They addressed me
with an eerie silence. I was curious about what had happened. The looks on their faces
revealed the truth about Grandfather. I could have sworn I felt tears come to my eyes.
No, this isn't happening. No training had ever prepared me for what was to come.

The troops had tried to prepare me for what I was about to see. I finally took a look at my Grandfather. He looked like he was just resting from battle, trying to recover from his injuries he received from fighting that monster. He looked so peaceful. I tried calling his name. I also shook him, but I got no response from him. I looked for a pulse, but to no avail. The only thing the other soldiers could was bow their heads in sadness. They had already known the truth before I saw him for myself. They tried giving me words of comfort. It didn't work. They were trying to deal with the loss in their own way. He was a hero to them and an inspiration.

General Rhun was more to me than a hero. He was the only family I had left. There is no one alive in my family; first my parents, now my Grandfather. It was too much for me to bear. It was as if I was living a nightmare that day.

We gave him a proper burial as well as the others who died in the destruction. It was time to start helping the civilians rebuild Chedo as best we could. Everyone tried to fight back the tears that were coming to their eyes. There was some progress. However, Chedo would never go back to its former glory. The Emperor's servant had made certain of that. As soon as the rebuilding was finished, I would leave to find that certain someone, wherever he is.

The day was almost over and it was getting dark soon. It was time for me to turn in. I checked in at the inn by the city entrance for a good night's rest. As soon as I settled in, all my grief came crashing down on me all at once. Many tears were shed for Grandfather. I couldn't bear the fact that I would never see General Rhun, my Grandfather, again. Somehow, I ended up crying myself to sleep. Hopefully, my dreams would be much better than this nightmare. I might end up dreaming of him.

I will find my happiness, not just for me but because Grandfather would want to see me happy. Right now, I know he's among the countless stars in the night sky, watching over me. Knowing that, tomorrow will be a brighter day.



I know. Sorry about this chapter being short. I'm probably going to write another chapter after this one. Please bear with me and review this chapter if you happen to come across this story. I'm also trying to work on a lemon as a probable side-story. Thanks.