Darkening Hopes
Chapter 4
Loki sighed, and settled down into his chair. The King's words echoed in his head along with the gentle humming of the airship. It was an old model, ran on steam, and Altena had barely let them borrow it. So now he sat in the chamber room, drumming his fingers on his chair arm.
'Failure is not an option...' those words echoed back and forth across his brain. Do not fail. Do not die, remember your assignment. Only after Loki left Forcena did he realize how hard his assignment would be; he had to protect Rolante from the Guild...unless something else came up. But now he was in the service of Queen Lise, and only she could dismiss him unless he was recalled by urgent request by King Richard.
He had left before Duran had woken that morning, and now he regretted it greatly. The only thing he left for his son was a note and a dirk. He had written in the note how Stella would be taking care of Wendy in her house in Maia, since Forcena was now in the times of war.
War.
Could they really call it that now?
Loki agreed to his own question. There had been attacks, small retaliating attacks...but all had a very large purpose in them, therefore it must be considered a war. So...another war. The last Mana War, which was between the Dragon Emperor-no, between Kuk and the six heroes of Mana plus Princess Lumina, had been devastating. It didn't help that the other two evils of the world had been unleashed as well. The Dragon Emperor had supposedly defeated them both...so how was it that the Dark Prince survived? The Emperor was very powerful at that time; Loki remembered clearly. After all, being a Dark Dragoon for twelve years was more than enough to realize the powers of the Dragon he served. But then, he wondered, why was it he still didn't understand Lumina's power?
Koren had told him about the strange spell she used against Heath when they had invaded the Beast Kingdom, and he saw it for himself when he was in the Clock of Doom, already deceased with Koren and Empress Vealena. The Empress had opened a View Orb to allow them to watch the dramatic battle. He hated it there, and he never wanted to go to that place again. A giant sundial with no sun exposed how much time the world had left before destruction. However, the system was so ancient that it was impossible for him or his prince to decipher. It seemed Vealena could read it, but she would not reveal its secrets, nor give hints with her facial expression.
'Maybe she doesn't want us to know...' Loki pondered, 'Maybe she's scared like the rest of us. It doesn't matter what she says, it's like everyone knows it's almost time...' The Knight of Gold shuddered. That was a morbid thought, a little bit too morbid for his liking. He hated dreading about the future, it wasn't like him. He only wanted to dwell on present problems. Right...focus on the mission...
"Sir? Sir!"
"Mm...huh? What?"
Loki blinked hard and stared at the Knight in front of him. His face was urgent, with a slight hint of panic.
"Sir Loki, the others have spotted something following us at a top speed. They are approaching quickly sir..." he explained, saluting his General. Loki blinked harder.
"A threat?"
"We cannot clarify that at this time sir. Lieutenant Hykor asked me to bring you on deck." He concluded, and settled into a waiting position, his hands flat against his armor. Loki cursed at himself for falling asleep, but nodded.
"Thank you, I'll take a look above." He commented, and the Knight saluted again and led Loki up the stairs and onto the deck. With the first step, Loki felt like he was inside of a whirlwind, the clouds flew by them at a fast pace, surprising with the speed of the airship. He steadied himself and followed the Knight to the center of the bridge. An older Knight, at least five years Loki's senior, stood waiting.
"Sir Loki, we still cannot identify the object, but it is pursuing at its top speed, and will be upon us in approximately two minutes." Hykor reported stoutly, his voice as rugged and tough as he looked. Loki nodded.
"Then we will wait to see what it is Hykor, it couldn't be Navarre, their airships go even slower than this old one. Be it friend or foe, I'm sure we can defend it. Return to your post, I'll wait here alone."
"But sir-!"
"That was an order Hykor, you too..." he spoke carefully to the younger Gold Knight who had lead him up, "get everyone off deck. Trust me on this." Hykor sighed, saluted Loki, and turned around. He clapped three times and shouted a code word meaning "Clear!" All the Knights present quickly snapped to attention, saluted stiffly, and went below deck. Hykor and the younger Knight followed, and Loki turned around and faced the clouds. Indeed...there was a faint black shadow approaching but it looked like little more than a small blob in the mass of clouds. He squinted and looked more closely. Over the sound of the rushing wind he could barely make out the gentle swish of wings. Then suddenly, the objects became clearer, startling the General.
Rocs!
Beastmen!
Loki took a few steps back to allow the great warriors and their birds to land on the deck with a loud thud and a violent shudder. There were three of them, hulking, muscle bound demi-humans with hair all along their arms and faces. Even with their mouths closed, Loki could see the gleaming fangs protruding from their mouths. The supposed leader took a few steps forward and faced the Gold Knight.
"Greetings, Loki of Forcena. I am Sergeant Utiok of the Beast Kingdom...of course...you might have already guessed," he said, smirking. Loki couldn't help but to smile, "We have come in peace to bring urgent news that you must hear of. Will you listen?" Loki was surprised by how formal the Beastmen were acting, but then he remembered that the Beast Kingdom had never really been on the best of terms with Humans. Loki nodded, smiling, and Utiok relaxed slightly. He took a deep breath and let it out, and Loki knew that this was going to be difficult for him.
"I'm sure you heard of the Deathjester, who played a major role in trying to achieve the plans of the Masked Mage during the Dark Times," Loki nodded, "We have received reports from Mintos of strange murders and odd happenings within the town. Many of the witnesses reported seeing a dark shadow, neither 'alive nor dead' as they said, creeping about the scenes of the crimes. The witnesses also had experienced a cold sensation, something indescribable to them, but we Beastmen know the feeling. It was the feeling that occurred within us when we were around the Deathjester..." Utiok trailed off, and Loki's mouth went slightly agape.
"You don't mean...?!?" he started, but Utiok nodded grimly.
"The Deathjester has returned, this time as his true form. We cannot classify the correct species yet, but we do know that he is even more dangerous than before and highly aggressive. We saw your airship while flying towards Maia and decided to follow. It is best you know, Sir, we heard of the plans that Princess Lumina set out from Prince Kevin, don't worry, no one else but high officials know." Utiok comforted Loki, who nearly jumped out of his skin knowing that someone else knew of Lumina's plans.
But did anyone else know?
"Will you inform Forcena and the other countries?" Loki questioned.
"Yes, don't worry, we will fly back to Maia, Byzel, and the Forcena area. Wendel, Elrand, and Altena also know. We are staying away from the Sultan, Deen, and Navarre areas for...er...obvious reasons." He shrugged. Loki sighed heavily.
"Well, thank you Sergeant Utiok, we appreciate the information. Good luck!" he called, and Utiok nodded and smiled in thanks. He signaled to his company, and the Rocs soared up and grasped their waiting hands. Then, with an exaggerated flap of their wings, the Rocs soared into the air and fell behind the airship quickly taking the Beastmen with them.
Loki's mind raced. The Deathjester was back, the Death Eater Man. Someone who devoured souls...was it possible that it was the Dark Kingdom that had brought him back? The Gold Knight paced the deck figuring out the possibilities; it was possible that the Dark Kingdom could have reached the ambling Deathjester, who could have surrendered voluntarily to Archdemon since he no longer had a master. But then again, he also could have been captured; tortured, and created back into his real self to create the "dark shadow" people had seen. Only a dark shadow...neither dead nor alive. Loki stopped pacing as a single, disturbing thought penetrated his head.
What IS the Deathjester?
A/N: DUN DUN DUUUNNNN!!! So what IS the Deathjester? I have decided, but you guys can guess too! Follow the clues...try to think about mysterious creatures...and if anyone guesses it I'll uh...give you a cookie! Woo!
Chapter 4
Loki sighed, and settled down into his chair. The King's words echoed in his head along with the gentle humming of the airship. It was an old model, ran on steam, and Altena had barely let them borrow it. So now he sat in the chamber room, drumming his fingers on his chair arm.
'Failure is not an option...' those words echoed back and forth across his brain. Do not fail. Do not die, remember your assignment. Only after Loki left Forcena did he realize how hard his assignment would be; he had to protect Rolante from the Guild...unless something else came up. But now he was in the service of Queen Lise, and only she could dismiss him unless he was recalled by urgent request by King Richard.
He had left before Duran had woken that morning, and now he regretted it greatly. The only thing he left for his son was a note and a dirk. He had written in the note how Stella would be taking care of Wendy in her house in Maia, since Forcena was now in the times of war.
War.
Could they really call it that now?
Loki agreed to his own question. There had been attacks, small retaliating attacks...but all had a very large purpose in them, therefore it must be considered a war. So...another war. The last Mana War, which was between the Dragon Emperor-no, between Kuk and the six heroes of Mana plus Princess Lumina, had been devastating. It didn't help that the other two evils of the world had been unleashed as well. The Dragon Emperor had supposedly defeated them both...so how was it that the Dark Prince survived? The Emperor was very powerful at that time; Loki remembered clearly. After all, being a Dark Dragoon for twelve years was more than enough to realize the powers of the Dragon he served. But then, he wondered, why was it he still didn't understand Lumina's power?
Koren had told him about the strange spell she used against Heath when they had invaded the Beast Kingdom, and he saw it for himself when he was in the Clock of Doom, already deceased with Koren and Empress Vealena. The Empress had opened a View Orb to allow them to watch the dramatic battle. He hated it there, and he never wanted to go to that place again. A giant sundial with no sun exposed how much time the world had left before destruction. However, the system was so ancient that it was impossible for him or his prince to decipher. It seemed Vealena could read it, but she would not reveal its secrets, nor give hints with her facial expression.
'Maybe she doesn't want us to know...' Loki pondered, 'Maybe she's scared like the rest of us. It doesn't matter what she says, it's like everyone knows it's almost time...' The Knight of Gold shuddered. That was a morbid thought, a little bit too morbid for his liking. He hated dreading about the future, it wasn't like him. He only wanted to dwell on present problems. Right...focus on the mission...
"Sir? Sir!"
"Mm...huh? What?"
Loki blinked hard and stared at the Knight in front of him. His face was urgent, with a slight hint of panic.
"Sir Loki, the others have spotted something following us at a top speed. They are approaching quickly sir..." he explained, saluting his General. Loki blinked harder.
"A threat?"
"We cannot clarify that at this time sir. Lieutenant Hykor asked me to bring you on deck." He concluded, and settled into a waiting position, his hands flat against his armor. Loki cursed at himself for falling asleep, but nodded.
"Thank you, I'll take a look above." He commented, and the Knight saluted again and led Loki up the stairs and onto the deck. With the first step, Loki felt like he was inside of a whirlwind, the clouds flew by them at a fast pace, surprising with the speed of the airship. He steadied himself and followed the Knight to the center of the bridge. An older Knight, at least five years Loki's senior, stood waiting.
"Sir Loki, we still cannot identify the object, but it is pursuing at its top speed, and will be upon us in approximately two minutes." Hykor reported stoutly, his voice as rugged and tough as he looked. Loki nodded.
"Then we will wait to see what it is Hykor, it couldn't be Navarre, their airships go even slower than this old one. Be it friend or foe, I'm sure we can defend it. Return to your post, I'll wait here alone."
"But sir-!"
"That was an order Hykor, you too..." he spoke carefully to the younger Gold Knight who had lead him up, "get everyone off deck. Trust me on this." Hykor sighed, saluted Loki, and turned around. He clapped three times and shouted a code word meaning "Clear!" All the Knights present quickly snapped to attention, saluted stiffly, and went below deck. Hykor and the younger Knight followed, and Loki turned around and faced the clouds. Indeed...there was a faint black shadow approaching but it looked like little more than a small blob in the mass of clouds. He squinted and looked more closely. Over the sound of the rushing wind he could barely make out the gentle swish of wings. Then suddenly, the objects became clearer, startling the General.
Rocs!
Beastmen!
Loki took a few steps back to allow the great warriors and their birds to land on the deck with a loud thud and a violent shudder. There were three of them, hulking, muscle bound demi-humans with hair all along their arms and faces. Even with their mouths closed, Loki could see the gleaming fangs protruding from their mouths. The supposed leader took a few steps forward and faced the Gold Knight.
"Greetings, Loki of Forcena. I am Sergeant Utiok of the Beast Kingdom...of course...you might have already guessed," he said, smirking. Loki couldn't help but to smile, "We have come in peace to bring urgent news that you must hear of. Will you listen?" Loki was surprised by how formal the Beastmen were acting, but then he remembered that the Beast Kingdom had never really been on the best of terms with Humans. Loki nodded, smiling, and Utiok relaxed slightly. He took a deep breath and let it out, and Loki knew that this was going to be difficult for him.
"I'm sure you heard of the Deathjester, who played a major role in trying to achieve the plans of the Masked Mage during the Dark Times," Loki nodded, "We have received reports from Mintos of strange murders and odd happenings within the town. Many of the witnesses reported seeing a dark shadow, neither 'alive nor dead' as they said, creeping about the scenes of the crimes. The witnesses also had experienced a cold sensation, something indescribable to them, but we Beastmen know the feeling. It was the feeling that occurred within us when we were around the Deathjester..." Utiok trailed off, and Loki's mouth went slightly agape.
"You don't mean...?!?" he started, but Utiok nodded grimly.
"The Deathjester has returned, this time as his true form. We cannot classify the correct species yet, but we do know that he is even more dangerous than before and highly aggressive. We saw your airship while flying towards Maia and decided to follow. It is best you know, Sir, we heard of the plans that Princess Lumina set out from Prince Kevin, don't worry, no one else but high officials know." Utiok comforted Loki, who nearly jumped out of his skin knowing that someone else knew of Lumina's plans.
But did anyone else know?
"Will you inform Forcena and the other countries?" Loki questioned.
"Yes, don't worry, we will fly back to Maia, Byzel, and the Forcena area. Wendel, Elrand, and Altena also know. We are staying away from the Sultan, Deen, and Navarre areas for...er...obvious reasons." He shrugged. Loki sighed heavily.
"Well, thank you Sergeant Utiok, we appreciate the information. Good luck!" he called, and Utiok nodded and smiled in thanks. He signaled to his company, and the Rocs soared up and grasped their waiting hands. Then, with an exaggerated flap of their wings, the Rocs soared into the air and fell behind the airship quickly taking the Beastmen with them.
Loki's mind raced. The Deathjester was back, the Death Eater Man. Someone who devoured souls...was it possible that it was the Dark Kingdom that had brought him back? The Gold Knight paced the deck figuring out the possibilities; it was possible that the Dark Kingdom could have reached the ambling Deathjester, who could have surrendered voluntarily to Archdemon since he no longer had a master. But then again, he also could have been captured; tortured, and created back into his real self to create the "dark shadow" people had seen. Only a dark shadow...neither dead nor alive. Loki stopped pacing as a single, disturbing thought penetrated his head.
What IS the Deathjester?
A/N: DUN DUN DUUUNNNN!!! So what IS the Deathjester? I have decided, but you guys can guess too! Follow the clues...try to think about mysterious creatures...and if anyone guesses it I'll uh...give you a cookie! Woo!