Lufia 4 is out today, May 6th, 2003!!! Oh, happy day!!! (Although my mom said that I can't get it until the Weekend, Damn it…)
NOTE: THIS CHAPTER, DOOM ISLAND REVISITED, HAS BEEN CHANGED TO HAVE THREE PARTS: I COULDN'T FIT ALL OF IT IN ONE PART. SORRY.
Disclaimer: Take a wild guess… Is it 'yes I do own the whole Lufia series and all of its characters and wonderful plots' or is it "No I don't own Lufia though I wish I did'? Let's see, did I hear a " No"? Well, you're RIGHT! I don't!!! (Though I wish I did)
Author's Note: Thanks to Orion's Shadow and Jack of Spades for your continued correspondence to this fic. I really appreciate you guys and the help you've given (especially Jack of Spades). *Gets all teary-eyed* I luv you guys- *tomato hits square in the face* Hey! Who did that? *A huge guy about six and a half feet tall and heavily muscled, stands up and points to himself, as if daring me to ask* Uhh, nevermind.
One thing that I forgot to mention last chapter: In this fic, Wain is able to accomplish feats worthy of gods; superhuman strength at times. So, if you want a fic which sticks to how they might behave if they created a sequel to this of Estoland, look elsewhere, for you won't find it here.
One more thing, there is some coarse language in this fic so- Hey! What are you doing?! *readers pick me up and march me to the window and the fifty-story drop* Unhand me at once! I demand that you let go of meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee- splat. *Red spot appears on the pavement. *Readers cheer*
*Comes back* Of course, if that happened, there wouldn't be any more continuations of this fic, so _obviously_, I won't die. Isn't that great?!! *crickets and readers with murderous glares in eyes* Eh, guess not… *backs up*
Some phrases in this fic are of my own creation: Definitions may be found at the bottom of this fic.
OK, I'm probably putting everyone off this fic with this really long intro, so I think I'll stop now.
Now, onto…
Estoland: The Quest Continues
Chapter 5: Doom Island, Revisited Part Two of Three
"Gotcha!" Wain cleaved the Medusa in half diagonally, then jumping back as to avoid the splatter of blood as the last of the monsters fell.
"Is it just me, or is it that wherever we –no, you- go, there are monsters and fighting?" Dei asked, standing off to the side, his armor tinged with a few slight splotches of blood, probably belonging to one of the dozen monsters that had attacked them simultaneously.
"How should I know? All I know about my fate is that I was destined to fight, and that was from a fortune teller," Wain replied, smiling slightly since he had never told the rest of his companions how Seena and he had met.
"Oh. If it had been any other case, I would've said that that was a lie, but then… You, Wain of Patos. Protector of Peace. Slayer of the Sinistrals. Zealot against Zalbak. No one can exactly say that you were not destined to fight, although… " And now, Dei mumbled just loud enough for both Aima, who was standing next to Dei and Wain to hear. "I just think that fortune tellers are liars, who run scams that have whole populations believing them…"
Wain smiled, thinking, 'If Seena heard that, she'd go ballistic. So, I guess that Seena never got around to telling him what her profession is…' The smile dropped off abruptly. 'And she'll never get the chance if I don't get that antidote in time.'
"Let's go, we're wasting time, Dei." Aima called from ahead of the small clearing where now laid several monster cadavers.
"Yeah, let's." Wain chorused.
((((++++----++++))))
"Are they coming?"
"Yes, sir. Right on schedule, like the man told us."
"Good."
"STOP THAT! UNHAND ME AT ONCE, YOU BARBARIANS-" *CRACK* and then, a muffled *whump*
"And put her into a cell, preferably one which is sound proof. Guard it well. Dismissed."
"Sir."
((((++++----++++))))
*knock knock knock*
"Anyone in there?"
"Hello?"
"So, I guess no one's home."
If anyone had come to the small thatched villa in the middle of a small clearing complete with a thin, bubbling brook running through it, they would have suspected the three to be thieves: A man with flaming red hair was at the door, looking around the clearing in a furtive manner every few seconds. A shorter man with a few strands of unruly white hair falling down from beneath his helmet was peeking into the glass-paned windows, as a woman clad in a dark green robe stood on the other side of the house, looking for an opening.
"Look," Dei motioned for Wain and Aima to come. "The glass is broken."
"So is the wall back here," Aima called.
"The door seems to be fine, it is still as strong as ever," Wain commented. "Is the hole in the wall large enough for us to get in?"
"No," Aima replied, as the two men gathered around her. "I'm not sure if I can get in, and I know with all that armor, Wain definitely can't. However, I think that you might just fit." She said, looking directly at Dei, along with Wain.
"Huh?" Dei turned from looking in the hole, only to see his two companions staring right at him. "What? What did I do…" He trailed off, then looked from them to the hole, then back again.
He shook his head furiously.
"NO. Uh-uh. Nana. Minime. Definitely NOT. I am NOT going in there. How am I supposed to know that there isn't someone in there already, holding a sword right above the hole, just waiting for me to stick my head through? No. I am just fine, thank you, standing firmly out here" He crossed his arms, closed his eyes, and shook his head no.
"Oh, come on, Dei," Aima said. "Not even for me?"
She pouted slightly, causing Dei to waver in his "standing firmly", affecting a small smile from Wain.
'It's times like these when I feel like I'M the only mature one in this group,' Wain thought, as he watched the antics of his friends.
"Anyway," Aima was saying, "You already looked through the broken windows, right?"
Dei opened one eye and looked at her appraisingly. "Yeah… What about it?"
"You didn't happen to see anyone in there with a sword poised above the hole, did you?" Aima spoke with a trace of a smile on her lips.
"Well… no…" Dei opened both eyes and seemed to be thinking.
"Well, there you have it. You saw it with your own two eyes. No one is in there, so we might as well have a look around, right?" Aima spoke convincingly, with reason on her side.
Wain still stood on the sidelines of this debate, thinking. 'So, I guess Aima won this round,'
For, it had gotten to be a routine for Aima and Dei to argue about every small thing, usually one would win, then the other would tie it and up it by one, then the other would come back and up it again, and so on so forth.
"But what if some guy was hiding under a table and moved near the hole after we stopped looking?" Dei's response slashed through Wain's last thought.
'Check that.' Wain decided to put a stop to this when he saw Aima open her mouth for another way to persuade him to her point of view. It was taking too long, and Seena would be becoming more distant from full recovery for every second that they wasted.
"Come on guys, we still have to help Seena, and Dei, you are the only one who can fit through the hole. You won't want her to be mad at your reluctance to help when we finally get the antidote, do you?" Wain stepped between the two.
"Get the antidote, hahahahahaha! That's funny!!"
"Who's there?" The three friends turned around to see several fighters clad in red armor wielding a variety of weapons from morningstars, spears, axes, and daggers.
"We are the members of the Second Wing Knights who shun all swords, believing them for weaker men since they are the easiest weapon to handle, also allies of the Vermilion Warriors and the Forest Guard."
"Why are you here?" Aima called out, slipping on her fist.
"What do you want?" Dei pulled out his Mad Edge, and readied it for battle.
"Who are you working for?" Wain pulled out both the Alum and Dual Blades from their sheathes on both sides of his waist.
"Wain? Are you sure that's smart? Two blades, especially ones with that amount of power aren't easy to handle even with two hands," Aima whispered as the men of the Second Wind Knights advanced slowly.
"Don't worry. I've been practicing." Wain replied, loud enough for all to hear, as the Knights, who numbered about half a dozen charged.
Loud clashes of steel, iron, Zircon filled the clearing, with the occasional ring of Floatium slicing through other blades intervening. Aima glanced at Wain. He had been practicing. He wielded the two ultimate blades with the utmost precision and skill.
Dei looked at the two he was fighting. He was surprised that only two of them were able enough and were holding against his flurry of cuts and stabs. No doubt about it, this group of Knights was good.
Then, a wild yell was heard by all from a side of the clearing.
Dei turned his head, just in time to see a dozen more fighters clad in red rush forward. 'Damn it, more??!'
He looked towards Wain, who was just plain slicing off their weapons with his two blades, making them retreat for their lack of weaponry.
Dei thought, 'Even Wain can't hold all of these guys off,' for their weapons had a silver aura around them, signifying sorcery-enhanced weapons, contrasting with the red of the Dual and the blue of the Alum.
However, an amazing sight was in store for the Dei, Aima and the ones fighting them, because, a wind began to blow.
"Huh? What the fuck-" A man in red shouted as a white bolt of pure Spiritual Energy fell from the skies and fed directly into Wain. Then, as suddenly as it had begun, the bright bolt disappeared into oblivion.
"Nothing to worry about. Unless…" A figure wearing the cloak of the Cult stood atop the small villa holding a short staff with a dark violet jewel atop it. "But no, it's heresy to even think that."
But then, a faint white glow began to emit from Wain, diverting all attention to him.
Then, he disappeared, leaving the rest of the fighters around him in a state of shock.
Next, a blue are suddenly appeared, its path traveling through each red-armored warrior.
A flash of black vertical lines on the roof, across form the Cult member. Wain appeared, his Alum blade out and his Dual Blade sheathed.
A wind blew.
All the red clad Knights of the Second Wing fell, as one, deep gashes appearing simultaneously across their armor.
The Cult member's eyes opened wide, his mouth dropping. These were the strongest fighters of the Second Wing, and they were defeated this easily? And there was also the case of the bright white bolt. 'Th-that was impossible! Only the Gods could attain that speed.'
"Now, kindly tell us what was after 'unless'," Wain spoke softly, yet his voice carried to all the surviving fighters, mainly him, the member, Dei and Aima.
"OK, OK!! I'll talk! Just- Don't kill me, alright?" The member dropped his staff, his courage now fled.
"Also, what is this?" Wain's sword flicked out, cutting a small, strange golden chain around his neck.
"Auugh!" The man fell to his knees, writhing in agony, rolling down and falling the twenty feet to the ground with a heavy *whumph*.
"AUUUUUUUGGHH!!" He cried, hands grasping his throat, where the chain had been.
Wain looked at Dei, surprised at the reaction to a simple chain being removed, though it had confirmed his suspicions: the man had had a strange look in his eyes, and they seemed to be glowing with a slight golden aura, and the necklace was also glowing the same way, leading Wain to believe that he was being possessed by the Cult as a slave for their dirty work.
Eventually, the man stopped, and got to his knees, shaking with the aftershocks of the pain.
"What happened?" Wain asked.
"I th-thank y-you for y-your hel-lp. I-I am most grateful for i-it. The C-Cult forced m-me to help them with th-that necklace. Again, m-my most profound thanks." The man threw off his Cult garb, revealing himself to be around Wain's age with vibrant green hair with golden eyes, and pulled his staff towards him.
"Ah. Then, would you be so kind to give us your name?" Aima asked, still unsure about where the man's loyalty laid.
"My name is Manst. I am a sorcerer's apprentice. I hail from the town of Nardrac, about a week's travel to the East." The man replied, standing up slowly.
"Is there anything that you remember about what just happened?" Dei asked, as Wain jumped from the roof.
"Yes. I remember all of it, all of it."
'Wow. He certainly has good stamina; he already has suppressed the pain.' Aima thought.
"Then, can you recall anything that you were going to say to us?" Wain asked.
"Yes. There is a book that speaks of such events as the white bolt of Spiritual Force, the Book of Deeds. In it, there is a reference to more gods."
With this, Wain stiffened at the thought of more enemies for them to fight and more chances of Seena getting hurt, or worse, killed.
As if reading his mind, the man shook his head.
"No, not Gods of Evil like the Sinistrals, but a reference to the Gods of Good, the enemy of the Evil Gods. It says that there once was a time when the Balance of Good and Evil were kept, and they shared power, keeping the world stable. However, the Sinistrals convinced the last God, Zalbak of the Living Flame, to help them lock the four Gods of Good away, and they succeeded. That was over five millennia ago. Now, the Final Prophecy is beginning to come true:
The Final Prophecy
Three times shall the Island rise
Filled with Evil, Wrought with Lies
Beneath the Shadow, Warriors ascend
Underwater Wreck, they shall rend
Though Gods of Evil, with their feats
The Champion of Good shall defeat
Oppression and Destruction, and Falsities' fission
Restore Order and Harmony, that is his Mission
In his veins, Blood of Maxim
Fate of the World on the Rim
The Fulcrum of Power, where actions Led
Water of Rivers Now Turning Red
The Successor of the Dual Blade
With his skills, victories are made
With Creed of Trust in his Friends
Journey together to the Ends
Atop the Tower, numbering Fifth
Lies the Ancient Scripts of Myth
End of Middle month Dumarr
Comes Holy Ray of Red Star
With power, is Good's Blessing
Keep the World from Digressing
Power of Good in our Fleet
Rout the Enemy to their Defeat
With Force of Good dwindling fast
Minions of Evil finally amass
The Final Battle, now at Hand
At Stake: the Fate of Land
That is the reason that the Cult commanded me to stop you; YOU, Wain of the Village Patos, is the only one who fits the context of this prophecy."
"But, why?" Wain asked, clearly worried and confused. "Why me? Why does the Cult want to attack me? Why not someone else?"
"How much you wanna bet that he still won't understand after he explains, Aima?" Dei had sidled over to her when Manst had been reciting the script, but, he didn't believe in that sort of shit.
Aima quickly motioned for him to shut up; she was also worried, like Wain about this turning of events.
Manst smiled sadly, shook his head and replied, "The Cult of Darkness wishes for the eradication of you and your friends, BECAUSE you are you."
"I'm afraid I still do not understand." Wain said, motioning all four of them to sit down on the conveniently placed benches. "Would it be too much trouble to ask if you provided us with the details?"
"The Cult is working to resurrect the Sinistrals and Zalbak." The forest-haired man spoke, eliciting a loud gasp from the rest.
"WHAT!!?" They gasped as one.
"That's absurd! Such a thing would be impossible!"
"Heresy! If any of the priests heard you, you would be cast out as a heretic!!"
"Could it be done?"
The two turned to face Wain.
"Aw, come on, Wain! You know such a thing is impossible! You know that Erim's Spiritual Force is not present on this world any longer."
"Yeah! Listen to Aima!"
"Yes."
"WHAT!!?" the three gasped again.
"It is possible. On the Eve of the Ides of Dumarr, the Tenth Month, when the Red Star of Maxim is atop the fifth Pillar of Ancient Legends, it can be done, as stated in the Prophecy. The Cult has been working towards this goal ever since you defeated the Gods of Evil." He paused to look around for any enemies still lurking in the shadows of the forest.
When he found none, he continued, "However, since it is also possible to release the Gods of Good on the same day in the same place, the Cult wants to destroy you and your lineage, because only one with the blood of Maxim may release the Gods of Good from their imprisonment."
"I think that that is good and all, but, sir: You wouldn't have any antidote for Swift Darkness Poison, would you?" Wain asked. He had already realized the implications of what Manst said, but keeping Seena from losing ability to breathe was more important, as of now.
"Why would you ask- Oh. I
understand. No, I am sorry to say that I
do not, but the Healer is being held in a cave a short walk from here, and her
knowledge should be able to help you find an antidote to save your lady
friend." He turned, and began to walk
briskly towards the woods.
"But- How?" Dei asked, mouth agape, since no one had yet mentioned anything about Seena yet.
"I believe her name to be Seena, am I right? Thank you, Dei. Oh, before you ask, I think I might have forgotten to mention that I am also a mind-reader, a much respected one, before I was conscripted by the Cult for their work."
"We might as well go; we don't have any alternative, do we?" Wain asked, glancing at his two companions.
With that, they hurried to catch up to Manst.
DEFINITIONS:
Morningstar- A medieval weapon, a hammer-like weapon with several fixed spikes on the hammer part
Mace- Heavy club with a spiked metal head
Maxim- Original slayer of the Sinistrals; also a Star named for him, with an unusual color: RED (like the Dual Blade, coincidence? I think not.)
Ides- The fifteenth day of the 3rd, 5th, 7th, and 10th month, and the thirteenth day of others
Dumarr- The tenth month in the world of Lufia
Pillars of Ancient Legends- 12 Pillars with ancient text on them telling of 12 prophecies: the Final Prophecy is written on the Fifth Pillar. 10 pillars are arranged in a circle, with the remaining two pillars in the center pointing North and South
Cult of Darkness- Group of people who are trying to resurrect the Sinistrals and Zalbak once more
Gods of Evil- Four Sinistrals; composed of (from weakest to strongest) Gades of Destruction, Amon of Chaos, Erim of Death, and Daos of Terror. Archenemies of the Gods of Good
Gods of Good- Benign Four; composed of opposites to the Sinistrals;??? of Restoration, ??? of Unity, ??? of Life, ??? of Peace. Archenemies of Gods of Evil
Zalbak of the Living Flame- Once a Neutral God, was swayed to the side of Evil by the Sinistrals; helped in imprisoning the Gods of Good
Spiritual Force- Also known as SF, Spiritual Energy of the Soul affects attributes of that person of which it is housed and their companions
Dual Blade- Red blade made of Floatium, amplifies Spiritual Force
Alum Blade- Blue blade, even more powerful than the Dual Blade
Patos- Town in which Wain, our protagonist, hails from (comes from), located in Southland, Epsis Continent
Final Prophecy- If fulfilled, Balance restored to the world; If not, Evil reigns unchecked forever: Only one of Maxim's blood can unlock the Gods of Good, however
Author's Note: Thanks for bearing with me for all this time: I hadn't much time to work on this, so I decided to finish this in honor of the Fourth Lufia.
All comments are accepted, although flames shall be dealt with a Wave Spear.
Next time, on Estoland: The Quest Continues: Will Wain and company return within the allotted three days before Seena is incapacitated by the poison? Can Manst really be trusted? Will he be another competitor for Seena's attention? (Wild guesses, anyone? Did I hear a 'no'? CORRECT!!!) What about the Final Prophecy?
Next time, on Estoland: The Quest Continues: Doom Island Revisited, Part Three of Three!
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Blackraven10187