Navigation 5: The Journey Begins
It was the first night away from Cross. How vast the continent of Cross was to first time travelers like Sara, Celes, and Chris! Of course, to Dias Flac, this was just a revisit down memory lane. On the way towards the port of Herlie, they stopped at the wizard village of Mars. Dias half smiled, remembering the tranquility of the village.
"Is that?! It is! It's our grandchildren! Celes, Chris!" An elderly man cried out. It turned out to be Celine's father.
"Grandpa!" Celes called out.
"Grandma!" Chris said, running to them, embracing his grandmother.
"My how you children have grown!" Celine's mother replied.
"What brings you all here to Mars?" their grandfather asked.
"We are traveling to find the source of the demons that have appeared near Arlia," Sara replied.
"So…Arlia has been affected now, too?" The elder asked. "Come, all of you, if you please. There is much I have to tell you, young travelers, and you as well, Master Dias."
"What has happened, elder?" Dias asked as they entered the house.
"Mars was attacked earlier in the week, by mechanical soldiers. If you have noticed, the village is quite barren. We've sent most of the people to Herlie or Cross itself. They came on so strong," he replied.
"How horrible! What were they after?" Celes asked, garnet eyes wide.
"They were after some crest…" was the reply.
"The Crest of Annihilation?" Dias asked, disbelieving.
"But that was destroyed years ago!" Chris explained.
~*~*~
The young Nedian woman pressed her small, now frail body against the glass of her strange prison. Her hair was still a beautiful shade of dark blue, yet her eyes showed the horrid things she has gone through recently.
"My shining star…please be strong," she whispered, taking a glimpse at the lush planet in the distance.
An evil looking man entered her cell. He was, like she, a Nedian, but his aura reeked of darkness. His eyes glowed red.
"Where is the Crest?!" he screamed at her.
"I know not what you ask…" was her reply.
"Stupid woman!" he struck her. "You were a big part of the battle against the great Ten Wise Men, Rena Lanford! Don't play dumb! Where is the Crest of Enchantment?"
The strong Rena fell to the floor with a thud, but she staggered to stand. "Without it to be your Crest of Annihilation, you will never revive the Ten Wise Men!"
He struck her again, using a lightning spell. With a scream, Rena fell to the floor again. "Now will you tell?"
"I hid it when you will never reach it! It is being protected as we speak!" she cried, her deep blue eyes shining.
One of the man's minions ran in quickly. "My Lord, I have news from Expel!"
"What is it?" the man asked.
"There is much strong energy coming from there!" the minion replied.
"Expel, hmm? Set up communication with our 'mole' on planet Expel," the man said.
"Yes, lord."
"My shining star…" Rena whispered before falling unconscious.
~*~*~
With a gasp, Sara awoke from a strange dream. It had still been night when she awoke. "Just a dream, I suppose," she whispered to herself. Quietly, Sara got up from the bed in the inn and walked out onto the balcony, allowing the gentle wind to blow against her grey nightshirt and long blue hair.
She had been sleeping like this for as long as she could remember. Dreams would haunt her, like her past was trying desperately to catch up with her present. Why could she not remember anything about her parents or anything before Arlia? Where were her parents? Why did they abandon her? And why did she have such a strange, yet beautiful pendant in her possession? And her ears…they were not like everyone else's. They were slightly pointed.
"Just…who am I?" she whispered to herself. As those deep blue eyes looked up into a starlit sky, she spotted a shooting star. "Oh! A shooting star!"
Celes, noticing her friend missing, walked out onto the balcony, with a blanket. "Did you make a wish, Sara?"
"I wish…that we find the source of the problem, and solve it," she said.
"I wish…that Sara finds her parents…" Celes smiled, wrapping the blanket around both of them.
"Celes…I wonder…if there is a force out there that is watching over me…even though I am far away," Sara said.
"I am sure that there is, Sara. But for now, we all will watch over each other, ne?" Celes replied with a warm smile.
~*~*~
Day had already arrived, and Sara was at the elder's house bright and early. "Sir, where would you suggest that we start looking for some answers?"
"Ah child, you should not be looking for trouble."
"Please…" Sara begged, her pendant glowing slightly.
"Child, what a strange pendant you have there. Does it always respond to your emotions?"
"No. This is the first time it has done it. But please, sir, where can we start?" She asked.
"Try the Mountain Palace ruins. Monsters used to roam there long ago and now you do not need permission from the king of Cross. Perhaps that is a good starting place?"
"Thank you. We will be sure to find the problem," Sara replied, bowing. She left the house to rejoin her friends.
"What did he say, Sara?" Dias asked.
"Perhaps we should start our investigation at the Mountain Palace ruins," she replied.
"But I hear that place is haunted," Celes said.
"What better place is there to start then?" Chris replied. "Shall we be off?"
"Yes, let's go everyone!" Sara said with enthusiasm, taking Celes's hand and running ahead, smiling. Chris quickly chased after them.
Watching the three young travelers caused Dias to reminisce about his travels with his old companions. He was cold to all of them save Rena, but in the end, he would have died for each and every one of his companions. To see such a bond already between those three was giving Dias hope every day. However, what tragedy would be in store for them?
~*~*~
Somewhere, quite far from Expel, the woman watching over, Rena Lanford, softly sat on a bed. "My bright, shining star…" she smiled weakly. She knew it was only a matter of time before she would get her strength back, but she wondered if her captors would find out where she hid the Crest of Enchantment. Her Sara was still alive, and growing up to be such a strong woman. Rena would give up everything just to hug her child again. And her husband, Claude. She lost him completely, as an Earthling's aura was complex to read as it was. Rena could only hope that he was on Expel or nearby, on his way to save her.
"My shining star…"