Inner Sanctums
Right after reuniting with Bit and Leena - - and Harry, but no one really cared about him - - the rebels began to gain ground quickly. The heroes figured it had something to do with the legendary weapons and armors in the possession of Bit and Leena. And in fact, they weren't that far off. The armor was extremely strong for its light appearance. It also aided in running, making the wearers much faster. And the weapons gave them both a great boost in physical and magical strength.
Soon afterwards, all of the guards were slain. The warriors took that opportunity to sneak through the gates of the castle, and begin heading for the emperor's rooms. While the main rebel forces, the Lightning Squad, and Harry stayed near the entrance in case a patrol unit came back to the castle, they sent in a small unit of eight soldiers. As you may have already guessed, this unit consisted of Jamie, Fara, Leon, Julianna, Brad, Naomi, Bit, and Leena.
They moved stealthily along the corridors, trying not to engage in battle and kill anyone not part of the plot. It was deduced that, since it was late, the emperor would be in his rooms reading or planning his next conquest. So that's where the search began.
On the way, they ran into the gray haired advisor and the one with the goofy glasses. The warriors hid at once and listened in on their conversation. They were hoping to get some tactical information to use against the emperor.
"Hey Altile," began the one with the glasses, "Have you noticed that the emperor isn't acting like himself lately? I don't think he's sick or anything."
Altile replied, "You're absolutely right Polta. Ever since that man named Fury joined us, he's been acting differently than usual."
"Princess Sara even ran away from the castle. She's the most levelheaded individual I know. That shows me how serious the situation is. I guess she was worried for her son Vega, what with her father's new behavior," Polta commented.
About that time, the duo shut up and walked on by. With all of these new developments, the young warriors were now sure that they were facing a demon manipulating the emperor. When they were 100% sure not to be spotted, they ran towards the emperor's chambers.
It wasn't long before they arrived at their destination. Inside the chamber, lay the emperor. But something wasn't right. He wasn't moving or breathing at all. Someone had killed Emperor Vilyane before they could even get there.
"Hmmm. . .I guess I've found my scapegoats," said a sinister voice from the doorway. When Bit and the others turned, they saw the man with the flowing golden hair. But he wasn't in his flowing robes like he'd been back in the main chamber. Instead he had on pure black armor with rubies imbedded onto it. His gauntlets and boots were the same way. In his hands, he held a long sword with a black blade and hilt, and a ruby imbedded on the hilt.
"Oh no!" exclaimed Fara, "It's the legendary blade Deathsaur. The demon used it in his killing spree thousands of years ago."
The man stated, "A Berserker. Hmmm. . .you're descended of the brother of the despicable warrior Liger. And the elf man is definitely the great-great-great-great grandson of that wench Florinda. But these two with the ancient armors. . .they definitely have the scent of Gabriel and Lesalia, but neither of those fools left a descendant, or had any living relatives. Could just be the armors playing tricks on me in order to make me fear you all."
"Who are you?" asked Bit. "You do have a right to know before you die," he told them, "My name is Fury. I became an advisor here in order to find the legendary Orb of Power, and the flying fortress Backdraft. Now that I've stolen the orb from Jatiran, and know how to activate the fortress, the emperor is unneeded. So I disposed of him. No need for competition."
Leena screamed, "Demon! I'm betting you ate the poor souls of the Jatiran soldiers too."
"Quite right little girl. I am a demon, and the soldiers made quite a delicious meal. Their bodies are also useful as my undead slaves," Fury cackled. He snapped his fingers, and a group of zombies entered the room. Each of them had pure red eyes and pale white skin. They moved in on the shocked heroes, and restrained them before they came back to their senses.
"You too will become my nourishment," Fury told them, "I need a large amount of energy to revive the fortress. So I devoured your soldiers. Once the fortress raises, I will again be weak. Then, you will all be the ones to restore my power, and join my army."
Fury snapped his fingers, and suddenly the ground began to shake. Outside of the window, they could see something rising from the lake. It was a huge castle that immediately floated up into the air. It rose above the clouds where no man could reach it.
The demon looked at his victims. Immediately, he turned towards Leena and grabbed her arms. "You will do nicely for my first meal," he told her, "Don't worry, it doesn't hurt at all, and when I'm done, you'll be my immortal undead slave." He leaned in closer and put his mouth to hers, preparing to feast on the girl's soul.
But the end didn't come as anyone expected. A large ax with a spear point on top slashed across Fury's back. A deep gash opened in the demon's body. He dropped Leena, and turned towards his new attacker, hoping to be able to get a meal out of him.
"That was for my father," a female voice said. Everyone turned to find a young woman with long purple hair and blue eyes. With her was a legion of guards. The guards began to engage the demon, and his zombies joined the fray. The girl turned to the heroes. "I'm Princess Sara of Vilyane. Quickly, while he is busy, we must escape. We all know that you eight are the best hope for the world."
With no other option, the heroes ran out of the castle with Sara. About the time they got to the courtyard, a light flew out of the emperor's room, and headed for the fortress. They all knew it had to be Fury, and wondered how to reach him.
- - - -
Well, now what do they do? Defeat the demon, of course. This is another great cliché, the evil advisor who kills the emperor. And the advisor either manipulating the emperor or killing him early and putting a fake in his place. What's with the similarities between Bit and Leena and Gabriel and Lesalia? Well, I'm ripping of a game called Xenogears for this one. Wanna guess what it is?
Right after reuniting with Bit and Leena - - and Harry, but no one really cared about him - - the rebels began to gain ground quickly. The heroes figured it had something to do with the legendary weapons and armors in the possession of Bit and Leena. And in fact, they weren't that far off. The armor was extremely strong for its light appearance. It also aided in running, making the wearers much faster. And the weapons gave them both a great boost in physical and magical strength.
Soon afterwards, all of the guards were slain. The warriors took that opportunity to sneak through the gates of the castle, and begin heading for the emperor's rooms. While the main rebel forces, the Lightning Squad, and Harry stayed near the entrance in case a patrol unit came back to the castle, they sent in a small unit of eight soldiers. As you may have already guessed, this unit consisted of Jamie, Fara, Leon, Julianna, Brad, Naomi, Bit, and Leena.
They moved stealthily along the corridors, trying not to engage in battle and kill anyone not part of the plot. It was deduced that, since it was late, the emperor would be in his rooms reading or planning his next conquest. So that's where the search began.
On the way, they ran into the gray haired advisor and the one with the goofy glasses. The warriors hid at once and listened in on their conversation. They were hoping to get some tactical information to use against the emperor.
"Hey Altile," began the one with the glasses, "Have you noticed that the emperor isn't acting like himself lately? I don't think he's sick or anything."
Altile replied, "You're absolutely right Polta. Ever since that man named Fury joined us, he's been acting differently than usual."
"Princess Sara even ran away from the castle. She's the most levelheaded individual I know. That shows me how serious the situation is. I guess she was worried for her son Vega, what with her father's new behavior," Polta commented.
About that time, the duo shut up and walked on by. With all of these new developments, the young warriors were now sure that they were facing a demon manipulating the emperor. When they were 100% sure not to be spotted, they ran towards the emperor's chambers.
It wasn't long before they arrived at their destination. Inside the chamber, lay the emperor. But something wasn't right. He wasn't moving or breathing at all. Someone had killed Emperor Vilyane before they could even get there.
"Hmmm. . .I guess I've found my scapegoats," said a sinister voice from the doorway. When Bit and the others turned, they saw the man with the flowing golden hair. But he wasn't in his flowing robes like he'd been back in the main chamber. Instead he had on pure black armor with rubies imbedded onto it. His gauntlets and boots were the same way. In his hands, he held a long sword with a black blade and hilt, and a ruby imbedded on the hilt.
"Oh no!" exclaimed Fara, "It's the legendary blade Deathsaur. The demon used it in his killing spree thousands of years ago."
The man stated, "A Berserker. Hmmm. . .you're descended of the brother of the despicable warrior Liger. And the elf man is definitely the great-great-great-great grandson of that wench Florinda. But these two with the ancient armors. . .they definitely have the scent of Gabriel and Lesalia, but neither of those fools left a descendant, or had any living relatives. Could just be the armors playing tricks on me in order to make me fear you all."
"Who are you?" asked Bit. "You do have a right to know before you die," he told them, "My name is Fury. I became an advisor here in order to find the legendary Orb of Power, and the flying fortress Backdraft. Now that I've stolen the orb from Jatiran, and know how to activate the fortress, the emperor is unneeded. So I disposed of him. No need for competition."
Leena screamed, "Demon! I'm betting you ate the poor souls of the Jatiran soldiers too."
"Quite right little girl. I am a demon, and the soldiers made quite a delicious meal. Their bodies are also useful as my undead slaves," Fury cackled. He snapped his fingers, and a group of zombies entered the room. Each of them had pure red eyes and pale white skin. They moved in on the shocked heroes, and restrained them before they came back to their senses.
"You too will become my nourishment," Fury told them, "I need a large amount of energy to revive the fortress. So I devoured your soldiers. Once the fortress raises, I will again be weak. Then, you will all be the ones to restore my power, and join my army."
Fury snapped his fingers, and suddenly the ground began to shake. Outside of the window, they could see something rising from the lake. It was a huge castle that immediately floated up into the air. It rose above the clouds where no man could reach it.
The demon looked at his victims. Immediately, he turned towards Leena and grabbed her arms. "You will do nicely for my first meal," he told her, "Don't worry, it doesn't hurt at all, and when I'm done, you'll be my immortal undead slave." He leaned in closer and put his mouth to hers, preparing to feast on the girl's soul.
But the end didn't come as anyone expected. A large ax with a spear point on top slashed across Fury's back. A deep gash opened in the demon's body. He dropped Leena, and turned towards his new attacker, hoping to be able to get a meal out of him.
"That was for my father," a female voice said. Everyone turned to find a young woman with long purple hair and blue eyes. With her was a legion of guards. The guards began to engage the demon, and his zombies joined the fray. The girl turned to the heroes. "I'm Princess Sara of Vilyane. Quickly, while he is busy, we must escape. We all know that you eight are the best hope for the world."
With no other option, the heroes ran out of the castle with Sara. About the time they got to the courtyard, a light flew out of the emperor's room, and headed for the fortress. They all knew it had to be Fury, and wondered how to reach him.
- - - -
Well, now what do they do? Defeat the demon, of course. This is another great cliché, the evil advisor who kills the emperor. And the advisor either manipulating the emperor or killing him early and putting a fake in his place. What's with the similarities between Bit and Leena and Gabriel and Lesalia? Well, I'm ripping of a game called Xenogears for this one. Wanna guess what it is?