I don't mean to infringe on copyrights here, so I'm updating my previous
chapter. Enjoy my latest work!
In the last chapter, the new Shining Force consisting of Rob, the untested, immature Swordsman; Ashley, the beautiful, studious Priest: Jason, the headstrong, impatient Knight; the equally stubborn Warrior Jold; and Horatio, the gifted, but reclusive Mage had been sent on a journey by King Bowie to discover if in fact Zeon had broken free. They had just arrived at the Ancient Shrine when they were ambushed.
The wearied 'Force quickly tried to retreat, but the normally dim witted creatures had prepared for that. With a deafening crash, a pillar collapsed, cutting off means of escape. Just great, Rob thought, Two seconds into my first battle and we are already outnumbered and cornered. Well, I can fix one of those problems. The dark-haired Swordsman unsheathed his Short Sword and with a silent prayer on his lips, charged at the nearest Gizmo with a fury even he did not know he had. Startled by the sudden charge, the Gizmo had no time to avoid the lethal blow to its ghostly core. With a piercing scream, the evil phantom dissolved into nothingness. Jold, seeing that the creatures could be killed, lifted his Short Axe above his head and threw himself at a Gizmo. The evil being quickly dodged to the left-and directly into the path of Jason's Spear. Impaled on the weapon, the Gizmo could not dodge Jold's next blow. Meanwhile, Horatio had nearly passed out with fear. This was no strategy textbook or training exercise with practice weapons. The threat of injury or death was real, and there was no turning back. He cowered behind a boulder, hoping not to be discovered. Ashley, convinced that Rob had gotten them all into a colossal disaster, held off the Oozes with the Blast spell. The raw energy stopped the slithering piles of goo from reaching the others. A smirk started to appear on her face as she watched the living blobs be hurled at the walls from the effects of her spell. Rob felt the breeze as one Ooze flew past him to collide with a pillar and disintegrate into green particles. He turned and saw Ashley striking another Ooze with her Short Rod. Better weapon than I thought possible. Wonder how Horatio's doing with his, he mused. Hey where is the little guy? "Hey, Jason!" "What?" "Have you seen Horatio since the start of the fight?" "I think I saw him duck behind that rock!" Horatio grimaced in embarrassment as he heard Rob run up toward him. His cowardice would be found out. Unless. The wiry Mage clambered to the top of the boulder and surveyed the situation. If the remaining monsters could be forced close enough together, he could take them all out with a series of Blaze spells. He began his preparation for the spell. Jason saw Horatio emerge from hiding to start chanting and moving his arms and hands in a peculiar way. How does he expect to fight like that? Then the fire rained down on the demons, sending them to their flaming graves. The centaur stood, slack-jawed in amazement. One spell had destroyed four monsters at a time, in one hit. "Bring the rest of them together!" Rob commanded. Immediately everyone started to force the remaining monsters, already weakened by Ashley's magic, into a tight circle. The speed of the Gizmos and strength of the Oozes was no match for the four fighters as Horatio prepared his next Blaze. Suddenly, one of the Gizmos charged forward in a desperate attempt to break free, teeth gnashing, eyes glowing a demonic green. Jold was knocked back by the force of the blow, bleeding from several nasty bites the Gizmo inflicted on him. Horatio, seeing the dwarf collapse, let loose with his spell to vanquish the remaining monsters in a stream of fire emanating from his hands. Jumping from the boulder, he reached in his pocket for one of the Medical Herbs he carried. He began spreading the healing herb over the wounds on his comrade's body. Small cuts on Jold's face closed first, and then the gashes on his chest began to shrink and disappear. Meanwhile, Ashley began her real work, healing everyone's injuries. Rob sat on a stone, slowly sharpening his sword. Every rough spot on the blade was either the effect of a missed swing hitting stone or a Gizmo's teeth. Focused on his task and impervious to his own injuries, he recollected every error in his swordsmanship. A wide swing, a hurried jab, all avoidable. He was still sulking when Ashley approached him to treat his wounds. "You do know you're bleeding right?" "What difference does it make? We should all be dead." Ashley began her healing spells over the cuts and bruises on the pessimistic Swordsman. "But we aren't. It's because of Kazin's lessons and your leadership that we're alive." "Did you even see what happened to Jold? He almost bought it back there." "You couldn't have seen that coming. No one did. There, you're finished." Rob, satisfied with his Short Sword's condition, stood up and called everyone together. "All right everyone, we've fought our first real battle. And we came out alive. Still, that is no reason to let our guard down while we look for the Jewels, or anything else wrong with the seal downstairs. But first we have to find a way to open that door on the north side. Horatio, you start on the east side with Jason. Jold, you're with me on the west side. Ashley, take the north and check the door itself, see if there is anything wrong with it." With that the young commander strode off toward the west wall of the building. Jason saw his best friend's mood had changed greatly since the beginning of the battle. He was not moody and remorseful as he often was. Must have been winning the battle and the personal attention from Ashley. Wonder if he'll ever tell her how he feels about her. Rob began his search of the walls and floor, looking for the entrance to the lower chambers. Sifting through the dust and grime of untold centuries he patiently, methodically inspected the stone for a handle, a lever, a secret panel, a recessed switch, an inscription, a sledgehammer, anything that would open the damn door. A sudden light and warmth caught his eye. Jold held two blazing torches in his hands. "Horatio made these with his Blaze spell. Here, take one, it looks like were going to need them." "Thanks." "You shouldn't beat yourself up over what happened. I was caught off guard-not that that's ever going to happen again, heh, heh." Rob closed his eyes in exasperation. The dwarf had been cocky before, but he had nearly been killed by it. Yet he did not seem to care. If only I could do the same. I'm the leader. I have to look out for everyone. I can't just count on everything turning out okay, like Jold. Can I really do this? Rob began lifting the stones littering the floor and looking underneath. Should have asked Slade where the entrance was. Maybe not. "Hey, I found something over here," Rob shouted to the others. "What is it?" "Is the jewels?" "Did you find the lock for the door?" "If you found beer, you'd better share!" Hit with this onslaught of questions from everyone, Rob simply stepped back to show them his discovery. A small stone platform had been hidden under the rock and it had something carved in it. Upon closer inspection it was shown to be the seal of Granseal and the seals of Mitula and Volcanon. Beneath these three crests was written: "He whose heart is pure and noble shall enter the chamber, and the wicked shall meet their fiery torture in Hell. The good seeking entrance should go in the path of Volcanon's and Mitula's sight." Jason, having read the inscriptions, scratched his head in confusion. "How are we supposed to know where Mitula is and what she's looking at? And Volcanon's a statue, he looks at the same thing everyday. It doesn't make sense." Ashley, however, immediately figured out the riddle. "We need to look wherever both the carvings are looking to find the real entrance. The other door is fake." "How do you know that?" Rob inquired. "I'm sensitive to certain magical forces. That door over there is almost redolent with incineration spells, electrocution hexes, impalement incantations, and a bunch of others I don't even know." Horatio, in the mean time had begun studying the carvings. The eyes pointed to an apparent dead end. The Mage crossed the floor to the barren wall and pressed his hand to it. Without any resistance, his hand passed through the illusion. "Guys! I found the door!"
In the last chapter, the new Shining Force consisting of Rob, the untested, immature Swordsman; Ashley, the beautiful, studious Priest: Jason, the headstrong, impatient Knight; the equally stubborn Warrior Jold; and Horatio, the gifted, but reclusive Mage had been sent on a journey by King Bowie to discover if in fact Zeon had broken free. They had just arrived at the Ancient Shrine when they were ambushed.
The wearied 'Force quickly tried to retreat, but the normally dim witted creatures had prepared for that. With a deafening crash, a pillar collapsed, cutting off means of escape. Just great, Rob thought, Two seconds into my first battle and we are already outnumbered and cornered. Well, I can fix one of those problems. The dark-haired Swordsman unsheathed his Short Sword and with a silent prayer on his lips, charged at the nearest Gizmo with a fury even he did not know he had. Startled by the sudden charge, the Gizmo had no time to avoid the lethal blow to its ghostly core. With a piercing scream, the evil phantom dissolved into nothingness. Jold, seeing that the creatures could be killed, lifted his Short Axe above his head and threw himself at a Gizmo. The evil being quickly dodged to the left-and directly into the path of Jason's Spear. Impaled on the weapon, the Gizmo could not dodge Jold's next blow. Meanwhile, Horatio had nearly passed out with fear. This was no strategy textbook or training exercise with practice weapons. The threat of injury or death was real, and there was no turning back. He cowered behind a boulder, hoping not to be discovered. Ashley, convinced that Rob had gotten them all into a colossal disaster, held off the Oozes with the Blast spell. The raw energy stopped the slithering piles of goo from reaching the others. A smirk started to appear on her face as she watched the living blobs be hurled at the walls from the effects of her spell. Rob felt the breeze as one Ooze flew past him to collide with a pillar and disintegrate into green particles. He turned and saw Ashley striking another Ooze with her Short Rod. Better weapon than I thought possible. Wonder how Horatio's doing with his, he mused. Hey where is the little guy? "Hey, Jason!" "What?" "Have you seen Horatio since the start of the fight?" "I think I saw him duck behind that rock!" Horatio grimaced in embarrassment as he heard Rob run up toward him. His cowardice would be found out. Unless. The wiry Mage clambered to the top of the boulder and surveyed the situation. If the remaining monsters could be forced close enough together, he could take them all out with a series of Blaze spells. He began his preparation for the spell. Jason saw Horatio emerge from hiding to start chanting and moving his arms and hands in a peculiar way. How does he expect to fight like that? Then the fire rained down on the demons, sending them to their flaming graves. The centaur stood, slack-jawed in amazement. One spell had destroyed four monsters at a time, in one hit. "Bring the rest of them together!" Rob commanded. Immediately everyone started to force the remaining monsters, already weakened by Ashley's magic, into a tight circle. The speed of the Gizmos and strength of the Oozes was no match for the four fighters as Horatio prepared his next Blaze. Suddenly, one of the Gizmos charged forward in a desperate attempt to break free, teeth gnashing, eyes glowing a demonic green. Jold was knocked back by the force of the blow, bleeding from several nasty bites the Gizmo inflicted on him. Horatio, seeing the dwarf collapse, let loose with his spell to vanquish the remaining monsters in a stream of fire emanating from his hands. Jumping from the boulder, he reached in his pocket for one of the Medical Herbs he carried. He began spreading the healing herb over the wounds on his comrade's body. Small cuts on Jold's face closed first, and then the gashes on his chest began to shrink and disappear. Meanwhile, Ashley began her real work, healing everyone's injuries. Rob sat on a stone, slowly sharpening his sword. Every rough spot on the blade was either the effect of a missed swing hitting stone or a Gizmo's teeth. Focused on his task and impervious to his own injuries, he recollected every error in his swordsmanship. A wide swing, a hurried jab, all avoidable. He was still sulking when Ashley approached him to treat his wounds. "You do know you're bleeding right?" "What difference does it make? We should all be dead." Ashley began her healing spells over the cuts and bruises on the pessimistic Swordsman. "But we aren't. It's because of Kazin's lessons and your leadership that we're alive." "Did you even see what happened to Jold? He almost bought it back there." "You couldn't have seen that coming. No one did. There, you're finished." Rob, satisfied with his Short Sword's condition, stood up and called everyone together. "All right everyone, we've fought our first real battle. And we came out alive. Still, that is no reason to let our guard down while we look for the Jewels, or anything else wrong with the seal downstairs. But first we have to find a way to open that door on the north side. Horatio, you start on the east side with Jason. Jold, you're with me on the west side. Ashley, take the north and check the door itself, see if there is anything wrong with it." With that the young commander strode off toward the west wall of the building. Jason saw his best friend's mood had changed greatly since the beginning of the battle. He was not moody and remorseful as he often was. Must have been winning the battle and the personal attention from Ashley. Wonder if he'll ever tell her how he feels about her. Rob began his search of the walls and floor, looking for the entrance to the lower chambers. Sifting through the dust and grime of untold centuries he patiently, methodically inspected the stone for a handle, a lever, a secret panel, a recessed switch, an inscription, a sledgehammer, anything that would open the damn door. A sudden light and warmth caught his eye. Jold held two blazing torches in his hands. "Horatio made these with his Blaze spell. Here, take one, it looks like were going to need them." "Thanks." "You shouldn't beat yourself up over what happened. I was caught off guard-not that that's ever going to happen again, heh, heh." Rob closed his eyes in exasperation. The dwarf had been cocky before, but he had nearly been killed by it. Yet he did not seem to care. If only I could do the same. I'm the leader. I have to look out for everyone. I can't just count on everything turning out okay, like Jold. Can I really do this? Rob began lifting the stones littering the floor and looking underneath. Should have asked Slade where the entrance was. Maybe not. "Hey, I found something over here," Rob shouted to the others. "What is it?" "Is the jewels?" "Did you find the lock for the door?" "If you found beer, you'd better share!" Hit with this onslaught of questions from everyone, Rob simply stepped back to show them his discovery. A small stone platform had been hidden under the rock and it had something carved in it. Upon closer inspection it was shown to be the seal of Granseal and the seals of Mitula and Volcanon. Beneath these three crests was written: "He whose heart is pure and noble shall enter the chamber, and the wicked shall meet their fiery torture in Hell. The good seeking entrance should go in the path of Volcanon's and Mitula's sight." Jason, having read the inscriptions, scratched his head in confusion. "How are we supposed to know where Mitula is and what she's looking at? And Volcanon's a statue, he looks at the same thing everyday. It doesn't make sense." Ashley, however, immediately figured out the riddle. "We need to look wherever both the carvings are looking to find the real entrance. The other door is fake." "How do you know that?" Rob inquired. "I'm sensitive to certain magical forces. That door over there is almost redolent with incineration spells, electrocution hexes, impalement incantations, and a bunch of others I don't even know." Horatio, in the mean time had begun studying the carvings. The eyes pointed to an apparent dead end. The Mage crossed the floor to the barren wall and pressed his hand to it. Without any resistance, his hand passed through the illusion. "Guys! I found the door!"