Author's Note: Aya, I think you misunderstood what Dart said, or took it
too literally. He wasn't calling Lavitz stupid; he was saying that the
knights' sense of duty made them do idiotic things. He wasn't saying Lavitz
was stupid, he was saying that charging through the entrance of a heavily
guarded prison alone was stupid. And let's face it, it kinda is. Let's not
get TOO defensive of Lavitz. Remember that they end up being best buds
before Lloyd KILLS him. Damn Wingly.
Yes, I'm trying to make Shana seem less useless. It's gonna to be impossible to make her cool, but I'll try to dampen her uselessness as much as I can, just to make it easier on myself. And don't worry, I know Dart loves Shana. Whether or not I like Shana, that's part of the story, and it will be a part of the fic. I'm just going to alter the story so he's not obsessing over Shana for every minute of the story, like he did in the game. He really doesn't admit to himself until the dinner party in Disc 2.
Chapter 3
We sped off back towards Seles, a pack of Hellena wardens hot on our tails. We ran up to the top of a nearby hill, only to see an unexpected obstacle.
I swore. "Shit. They've set up a roadblock!"
A thick wooden barrier of logs blocked the path back to Seles, marked with sentries on either side. It looked as if they had chopped down entire trees and laid them across the path. They must have known I had come from Seles from the soldier I had left alive, and assumed correctly that we would be heading back there, and constructed the block as fast as they could to cut off our escape. I spotted a crude side path that branched off into the grassland. I motioned Lavitz and Shana, and we ran along the path into the prairie.
As we fled, one of the wardens appeared to have a sudden miraculous gain of intelligence, and unstrapped a bow from his back. The others, amazed by this stroke of genius, and soon arrows clouded the sky. Despite the terrible aim, the law of averages dictated that one of the many projectiles had to hit home. Lavitz was the unfortunate recipient of said missile. It arced straight for his shoulder, sinking in between two plates in his armor. Blood gushed forth, and he swore quietly.
As my legs churned, so did my stomach. I was exhausted. Breaking though a prison, killing more than a dozen guards, and then beating that gigantic hulk of a man, and leading a rushed escape in full armor without even pausing for breath really takes it out of you. We crouched behind a nearby tree, and the wardens, their brief spasm of intelligence apparently gone, called off the pursuit, obviously under the misconception that we had been hit by their barrage and collapsed. I breathed a sigh of relief, and motioned to a shabby old shack nearby, indicating that it was a good place to take a break.
Lavitz held his injured shoulder gingerly as he plopped down on a chair. "I must return to King Albert immediately. He requires my assistance."
Shana looked at the knight curiously. "King Albert?"
Lavitz glanced up at her; as though amazed she didn't know. The people of Seles had little use for government. In fact, the only reason I knew who King Albert was myself was the fact that I had spent all of those years abroad. "Yes, King Albert, lord of Basil and true heir of all Serdio. Those Sandorans are getting more aggressive."
I nodded. "I'll come with you. I may be able to learn more about the Black Monster, or at least get closer to it."
Lavitz looked up at me sharply, causing him to wince in pain. "The Black Monster? What does the Black Monster have to do with you?"
"The Black Monster destroyed my home town. Both of my parents died trying to fight that shadowy bastard. I would do anything just to find it, and give it what it deserves."
"So you want revenge?"
"Revenge? Of course I want revenge. Wouldn't you?"
"We knights have been taught to rise above such petty things as revenge."
"Then it's a pretty good thing I'm not a knight. You don't understand what it's like to watch your home go up in flames, to see your parents wither to some twisted black husk, and to be helpless to do anything about it!"
Shana's voice was soft. "Dart, you were five years old. What could you have done?"
My voice was harsh, far harsher than I meant to be. "It makes no difference!"
Lavitz placed his good hand on my shoulder. "I'm sorry. I didn't know."
I turned away and sighed. "We'd better get going."
They nodded, and we exited in silence. Reaching a rocky outcropping, we only stared in dismay, as there was a gap between it and the other side, a gap far to wide to jump. Below us lay the raging river we had crossed to reach the shack. I sighed heavily. "What now?"
Lavitz moved his wounded arm weakly, then looked at me expectantly. I shook my head, indicating I had used all my healing potions back in Hellena. He grimaced, then finished raising his arm to point at a large tree that stood near the gap between the two cliffs. "That. If we had a way to knock it down, we could use it as a bridge."
I bobbed my head in agreement. "I saw a rusty old axe back in the cabin."
"Yeah, that would work. You'll have to do it though. I can't exactly do hard labor with this shoulder."
"Right. I'll go grab it."
I threw open the door so hard it crashed against the weak boards of the wall, and they made a sound as though they were about to cave in, bringing the whole shack down upon my head. Fortunately, the walls held, and I spotted the ancient hatchet gathering dust in the lonely corner. Picking it up, I headed back to Lavitz and Shana, who were waiting expectantly.
Raising the axe, I dropped my shoulder and swung hard, striking the thick outer bark. Wood chips flew, sap oozed, gumming the rusted blade, but I raised it again, slamming the worn handaxe into the new cavity. Once more should do it. I chopped again, but although it leaned at a surprising angle, it didn't break. I could fix that. Lifting my boot, I delivered a sharp kick to the trunk, snapping what little held it together and sending it crashing to the other side.
However, gravity crushed our feeble plans. The force of the fall snapped the branches that Lavitz and I counted on to keep the tree from falling through the gap, and the trunk tumbled into the river below. Lavitz and I both swore simultaneously, while Shana shook her head in amusement. A slight smile curved on her lips as she chided us gently. "Men."
I made no response, but I slammed my fist into my open hand and gritted my teeth in frustration. I snorted in irritation, and looked down at the river. "We'll have to go back down there and try to find a way around the river."
We headed back down in disappointment, only to see something strange headed down the river. The tree had gone down the river and caught on the banks, creating a makeshift bridge. Lavitz and I looked at each other in amazement, while Shana gave a small giggle at the stunned look on our faces. We decided not to knock our good luck, and crossed over the bridge. Making our way up the newly opened path, we reached a clearing where we spotted a small gaggle of people. Our curiosity piqued, we decided to check things out.
It was not a congregation at all, but a family, huddled in the middle of the road, obviously unsure of what to do with themselves. Two nervous parents consoled a crying child. Lavitz and I glanced at each other. There was no doubt that the Sandorans had forced this family out of their home. Obviously feeling a certain amount of sympathy, the knight headed towards them. I held out an arm to halt Shana from following. Let Lavitz handle this, I pantomimed silently.
He approached them. "Greetings, weary travelers. Shouldn't you be at your home about now?"
The father hung his head. "We have no home any longer. It was ransacked and burned by the Sandorans."
I gave Shana a look that said 'I told you so', earning an indignant glare in response. Lavitz nodded. "Well, why don't you head for Bale? You may take temporary lodging there until you find a way to support yourselves."
The mother sobbed in gratitude, while the father shook the knight's hand profusely. Lavitz politely refused any offers of compensation, and directed them to the safest overland route. As they headed on their way, Lavitz returned, a smile of gratification lighting his face. I folded my arms. "Look, I know a shortcut, we can cut through the Limestone Caves."
Lavitz nodded. "Sounds good. The faster we reach Bale, the better."
"Right. I'll lead the way."
We made our way into the depths of the caves. Light was practically nonexistent in the limestone caverns, but our eyes adjusted enough for us to see enough to navigate. There were a few minor encounters with monsters, enough to deter an ordinary person from entering the maze of limestone, but they were easily dealt with. We reached a river that flowed through the bottom levels of the cave. Stones dotted the water, enough that they could be used as platforms. We hopped carefully along the rock bridge, staying far away from the swift current.
However, some were more suited to this task than others. Lavitz, who had gone first, was having difficulty. His heavy armor made it hard for him to jump very well. I stayed close behind him in case he needed help. My expectations were confirmed when Lavitz's metal-plated heel slipped on one of the more mossy stones, and he lost his balance with an explosive oath. I leaned forward, catching his arm. However, it was his bad shoulder, and he let out a bellow of pain.
I pulled him to his feet. I shrugged at him in apology, but it couldn't be helped. His bad arm was the only one within my reach. Better to give him momentary pain than for him to be carried away by the current, hit his head on a rock, and drown. He nodded, and rubbed his wound. "Damn shoulder."
I went ahead, examining the passage before us. I smiled, and turned to him. "You may not have much longer to worry about that."
He glanced to where I indicated, and his face also split into a grin. "Rock fireflies."
Shana, who was lagging slightly, finally caught up, staring curiously at the dancing swarm of lights. "What are those?"
"Special species of firefly. Their tail lights have healing properties."
As I explained, Lavitz was already immersed in the cloud of insects. He gave a sigh of relief, then flexed his repaired arm. Swinging his spear a few times in experimentation, he turned to us and smiled. "Good as new."
I nodded in satisfaction. "Nothing like rock fireflies. The things can come in handy. Anyway, if my memory serves me correctly, we should be reaching the end of the caves pretty quickly."
"Great. The sooner we get to Bale, the better. King Albert needs me to defend Basil from those Sandoran bastards."
"Yes, you've mentioned that," I remarked dryly.
Lavitz gave me a grin of apology. "Sorry. I know I must sound monotonous."
I waved my hand, signifying unimportance. "I was joking. Of course, Shana and I will be happy to help in any way we can."
Shana made her agreement known. She appeared to be ecstatic over even being included in this discussion. How different she had become in these years, I mused, but the eagerness remained the same.
As we made our way into the final chamber before the caves gave way to Basil, I thought I detected a faint hissing noise. Odd... I hadn't remembered that before. But I put it all down to nerves, convinced myself I was overreacting, and continued forward.
When we walked into the gigantic chamber that led to the entrance to the Basil countryside, I definitely sensed something wrong, an ominous presence in the air. A warrior's sixth sense, and I could tell Lavitz felt it as well. Again I heard the hissing noise, but I no longer wrote it off to nervousness. I turned to the two yawning mouths that led deeper into the maze, and saw a pair of huge yellow eyes blinking out at us. An enormous copper-colored snake emerged, its fangs glistening in anticipation.
I drew my sword. "Damn! I definitely don't remember that being here!"
With an eerie hiss, the snake lunged. I jumped back a couple feet, then ducked beneath the serpentine head, jabbing upwards with my blade. I felt it penetrate scaly flesh, and withdrew it to discover it covered with acid- green blood. Green blood, I thought. Definitely not natural.
The snake hacked in its throat in pain at the wound that spurted green fluid, and reared up to its full height, which was considerable, for its head nearly brushed the ceiling. It then dived downward, preparing to devour Lavitz whole. The Serdian knight rolled to the left, swinging his spear above his head, slicing through the scales and sending a trail of blood flying into the air in its wake and splattering to the ground in a line. Shana cocked and let fly an arrow, which plunged into the snake's thick neck, the head lodging itself deep into the dust-colored skin.
The snake hissed and spat, obviously unused to discovering such skilled resistance, and slithered into the cave from which it came, and its head popped from the second mouth, out of reach of my and Lavitz's weapons. Shana, however, was undeterred, and sent another arrow arcing through the air, this one embedding itself directly in one of the massive yellow eyes, with various fluids spurting forth. It shook its head in agony, sending the guts into the air. I watched in disgust as the rain of gore splattered to the limestone floor.
The serpent, managing to gain control of its pain, made one final lunge straight for me, hoping to bite me clean in half. I sidestepped to the right, holding out my sword. The snake's charge sent its body running along my blade, drawing a long gash. I jumped backwards as quickly as I could, having no particular desire to spend all night cleaning my armor again as the blood gushed forth like a fountain, covering the stone below in a carpet of green ooze.
The beast shuddered once more, then crashed to the cave floor, lifeless. I cleaned the blade of my weapon with a spare rag, glancing in nausea at the ooze-covered cloth, which smelled strongly of oil. As I tossed to the floor, I turned to Lavitz, pointing to the exit. He nodded, but jerked his thumb towards Shana, who was still standing by the body, staring at it with an expression that was impossible to interpret. "Shana? Time to go."
She turned to me, jerking herself from her thoughts. "Of course."
Too late I heard the hiss of triumph. I whipped around, and saw the monster rise from its false death. It lunged for Shana, mouth open wide.
"Shana!"
Shana turned, eyes wide with terror. But the snake halted, Shana's fear reflected in its gaze. Shana began to glow with a fierce light, that cut through the air like a knife. It appeared to cut through the serpent as well, for it gave a horrible piercing shriek and its head smashed to the ground, the spark of life dimmed in the one remaining eye.
Lavitz and I looked at each other in surprised amazement as the light faded and Shana dropped like a stone in a dead faint.
Author's Note: Yup, there's Chapter 3! Sorry it took me a while to update, I've been busy. But there it is. Be happy.
Yes, I'm trying to make Shana seem less useless. It's gonna to be impossible to make her cool, but I'll try to dampen her uselessness as much as I can, just to make it easier on myself. And don't worry, I know Dart loves Shana. Whether or not I like Shana, that's part of the story, and it will be a part of the fic. I'm just going to alter the story so he's not obsessing over Shana for every minute of the story, like he did in the game. He really doesn't admit to himself until the dinner party in Disc 2.
Chapter 3
We sped off back towards Seles, a pack of Hellena wardens hot on our tails. We ran up to the top of a nearby hill, only to see an unexpected obstacle.
I swore. "Shit. They've set up a roadblock!"
A thick wooden barrier of logs blocked the path back to Seles, marked with sentries on either side. It looked as if they had chopped down entire trees and laid them across the path. They must have known I had come from Seles from the soldier I had left alive, and assumed correctly that we would be heading back there, and constructed the block as fast as they could to cut off our escape. I spotted a crude side path that branched off into the grassland. I motioned Lavitz and Shana, and we ran along the path into the prairie.
As we fled, one of the wardens appeared to have a sudden miraculous gain of intelligence, and unstrapped a bow from his back. The others, amazed by this stroke of genius, and soon arrows clouded the sky. Despite the terrible aim, the law of averages dictated that one of the many projectiles had to hit home. Lavitz was the unfortunate recipient of said missile. It arced straight for his shoulder, sinking in between two plates in his armor. Blood gushed forth, and he swore quietly.
As my legs churned, so did my stomach. I was exhausted. Breaking though a prison, killing more than a dozen guards, and then beating that gigantic hulk of a man, and leading a rushed escape in full armor without even pausing for breath really takes it out of you. We crouched behind a nearby tree, and the wardens, their brief spasm of intelligence apparently gone, called off the pursuit, obviously under the misconception that we had been hit by their barrage and collapsed. I breathed a sigh of relief, and motioned to a shabby old shack nearby, indicating that it was a good place to take a break.
Lavitz held his injured shoulder gingerly as he plopped down on a chair. "I must return to King Albert immediately. He requires my assistance."
Shana looked at the knight curiously. "King Albert?"
Lavitz glanced up at her; as though amazed she didn't know. The people of Seles had little use for government. In fact, the only reason I knew who King Albert was myself was the fact that I had spent all of those years abroad. "Yes, King Albert, lord of Basil and true heir of all Serdio. Those Sandorans are getting more aggressive."
I nodded. "I'll come with you. I may be able to learn more about the Black Monster, or at least get closer to it."
Lavitz looked up at me sharply, causing him to wince in pain. "The Black Monster? What does the Black Monster have to do with you?"
"The Black Monster destroyed my home town. Both of my parents died trying to fight that shadowy bastard. I would do anything just to find it, and give it what it deserves."
"So you want revenge?"
"Revenge? Of course I want revenge. Wouldn't you?"
"We knights have been taught to rise above such petty things as revenge."
"Then it's a pretty good thing I'm not a knight. You don't understand what it's like to watch your home go up in flames, to see your parents wither to some twisted black husk, and to be helpless to do anything about it!"
Shana's voice was soft. "Dart, you were five years old. What could you have done?"
My voice was harsh, far harsher than I meant to be. "It makes no difference!"
Lavitz placed his good hand on my shoulder. "I'm sorry. I didn't know."
I turned away and sighed. "We'd better get going."
They nodded, and we exited in silence. Reaching a rocky outcropping, we only stared in dismay, as there was a gap between it and the other side, a gap far to wide to jump. Below us lay the raging river we had crossed to reach the shack. I sighed heavily. "What now?"
Lavitz moved his wounded arm weakly, then looked at me expectantly. I shook my head, indicating I had used all my healing potions back in Hellena. He grimaced, then finished raising his arm to point at a large tree that stood near the gap between the two cliffs. "That. If we had a way to knock it down, we could use it as a bridge."
I bobbed my head in agreement. "I saw a rusty old axe back in the cabin."
"Yeah, that would work. You'll have to do it though. I can't exactly do hard labor with this shoulder."
"Right. I'll go grab it."
I threw open the door so hard it crashed against the weak boards of the wall, and they made a sound as though they were about to cave in, bringing the whole shack down upon my head. Fortunately, the walls held, and I spotted the ancient hatchet gathering dust in the lonely corner. Picking it up, I headed back to Lavitz and Shana, who were waiting expectantly.
Raising the axe, I dropped my shoulder and swung hard, striking the thick outer bark. Wood chips flew, sap oozed, gumming the rusted blade, but I raised it again, slamming the worn handaxe into the new cavity. Once more should do it. I chopped again, but although it leaned at a surprising angle, it didn't break. I could fix that. Lifting my boot, I delivered a sharp kick to the trunk, snapping what little held it together and sending it crashing to the other side.
However, gravity crushed our feeble plans. The force of the fall snapped the branches that Lavitz and I counted on to keep the tree from falling through the gap, and the trunk tumbled into the river below. Lavitz and I both swore simultaneously, while Shana shook her head in amusement. A slight smile curved on her lips as she chided us gently. "Men."
I made no response, but I slammed my fist into my open hand and gritted my teeth in frustration. I snorted in irritation, and looked down at the river. "We'll have to go back down there and try to find a way around the river."
We headed back down in disappointment, only to see something strange headed down the river. The tree had gone down the river and caught on the banks, creating a makeshift bridge. Lavitz and I looked at each other in amazement, while Shana gave a small giggle at the stunned look on our faces. We decided not to knock our good luck, and crossed over the bridge. Making our way up the newly opened path, we reached a clearing where we spotted a small gaggle of people. Our curiosity piqued, we decided to check things out.
It was not a congregation at all, but a family, huddled in the middle of the road, obviously unsure of what to do with themselves. Two nervous parents consoled a crying child. Lavitz and I glanced at each other. There was no doubt that the Sandorans had forced this family out of their home. Obviously feeling a certain amount of sympathy, the knight headed towards them. I held out an arm to halt Shana from following. Let Lavitz handle this, I pantomimed silently.
He approached them. "Greetings, weary travelers. Shouldn't you be at your home about now?"
The father hung his head. "We have no home any longer. It was ransacked and burned by the Sandorans."
I gave Shana a look that said 'I told you so', earning an indignant glare in response. Lavitz nodded. "Well, why don't you head for Bale? You may take temporary lodging there until you find a way to support yourselves."
The mother sobbed in gratitude, while the father shook the knight's hand profusely. Lavitz politely refused any offers of compensation, and directed them to the safest overland route. As they headed on their way, Lavitz returned, a smile of gratification lighting his face. I folded my arms. "Look, I know a shortcut, we can cut through the Limestone Caves."
Lavitz nodded. "Sounds good. The faster we reach Bale, the better."
"Right. I'll lead the way."
We made our way into the depths of the caves. Light was practically nonexistent in the limestone caverns, but our eyes adjusted enough for us to see enough to navigate. There were a few minor encounters with monsters, enough to deter an ordinary person from entering the maze of limestone, but they were easily dealt with. We reached a river that flowed through the bottom levels of the cave. Stones dotted the water, enough that they could be used as platforms. We hopped carefully along the rock bridge, staying far away from the swift current.
However, some were more suited to this task than others. Lavitz, who had gone first, was having difficulty. His heavy armor made it hard for him to jump very well. I stayed close behind him in case he needed help. My expectations were confirmed when Lavitz's metal-plated heel slipped on one of the more mossy stones, and he lost his balance with an explosive oath. I leaned forward, catching his arm. However, it was his bad shoulder, and he let out a bellow of pain.
I pulled him to his feet. I shrugged at him in apology, but it couldn't be helped. His bad arm was the only one within my reach. Better to give him momentary pain than for him to be carried away by the current, hit his head on a rock, and drown. He nodded, and rubbed his wound. "Damn shoulder."
I went ahead, examining the passage before us. I smiled, and turned to him. "You may not have much longer to worry about that."
He glanced to where I indicated, and his face also split into a grin. "Rock fireflies."
Shana, who was lagging slightly, finally caught up, staring curiously at the dancing swarm of lights. "What are those?"
"Special species of firefly. Their tail lights have healing properties."
As I explained, Lavitz was already immersed in the cloud of insects. He gave a sigh of relief, then flexed his repaired arm. Swinging his spear a few times in experimentation, he turned to us and smiled. "Good as new."
I nodded in satisfaction. "Nothing like rock fireflies. The things can come in handy. Anyway, if my memory serves me correctly, we should be reaching the end of the caves pretty quickly."
"Great. The sooner we get to Bale, the better. King Albert needs me to defend Basil from those Sandoran bastards."
"Yes, you've mentioned that," I remarked dryly.
Lavitz gave me a grin of apology. "Sorry. I know I must sound monotonous."
I waved my hand, signifying unimportance. "I was joking. Of course, Shana and I will be happy to help in any way we can."
Shana made her agreement known. She appeared to be ecstatic over even being included in this discussion. How different she had become in these years, I mused, but the eagerness remained the same.
As we made our way into the final chamber before the caves gave way to Basil, I thought I detected a faint hissing noise. Odd... I hadn't remembered that before. But I put it all down to nerves, convinced myself I was overreacting, and continued forward.
When we walked into the gigantic chamber that led to the entrance to the Basil countryside, I definitely sensed something wrong, an ominous presence in the air. A warrior's sixth sense, and I could tell Lavitz felt it as well. Again I heard the hissing noise, but I no longer wrote it off to nervousness. I turned to the two yawning mouths that led deeper into the maze, and saw a pair of huge yellow eyes blinking out at us. An enormous copper-colored snake emerged, its fangs glistening in anticipation.
I drew my sword. "Damn! I definitely don't remember that being here!"
With an eerie hiss, the snake lunged. I jumped back a couple feet, then ducked beneath the serpentine head, jabbing upwards with my blade. I felt it penetrate scaly flesh, and withdrew it to discover it covered with acid- green blood. Green blood, I thought. Definitely not natural.
The snake hacked in its throat in pain at the wound that spurted green fluid, and reared up to its full height, which was considerable, for its head nearly brushed the ceiling. It then dived downward, preparing to devour Lavitz whole. The Serdian knight rolled to the left, swinging his spear above his head, slicing through the scales and sending a trail of blood flying into the air in its wake and splattering to the ground in a line. Shana cocked and let fly an arrow, which plunged into the snake's thick neck, the head lodging itself deep into the dust-colored skin.
The snake hissed and spat, obviously unused to discovering such skilled resistance, and slithered into the cave from which it came, and its head popped from the second mouth, out of reach of my and Lavitz's weapons. Shana, however, was undeterred, and sent another arrow arcing through the air, this one embedding itself directly in one of the massive yellow eyes, with various fluids spurting forth. It shook its head in agony, sending the guts into the air. I watched in disgust as the rain of gore splattered to the limestone floor.
The serpent, managing to gain control of its pain, made one final lunge straight for me, hoping to bite me clean in half. I sidestepped to the right, holding out my sword. The snake's charge sent its body running along my blade, drawing a long gash. I jumped backwards as quickly as I could, having no particular desire to spend all night cleaning my armor again as the blood gushed forth like a fountain, covering the stone below in a carpet of green ooze.
The beast shuddered once more, then crashed to the cave floor, lifeless. I cleaned the blade of my weapon with a spare rag, glancing in nausea at the ooze-covered cloth, which smelled strongly of oil. As I tossed to the floor, I turned to Lavitz, pointing to the exit. He nodded, but jerked his thumb towards Shana, who was still standing by the body, staring at it with an expression that was impossible to interpret. "Shana? Time to go."
She turned to me, jerking herself from her thoughts. "Of course."
Too late I heard the hiss of triumph. I whipped around, and saw the monster rise from its false death. It lunged for Shana, mouth open wide.
"Shana!"
Shana turned, eyes wide with terror. But the snake halted, Shana's fear reflected in its gaze. Shana began to glow with a fierce light, that cut through the air like a knife. It appeared to cut through the serpent as well, for it gave a horrible piercing shriek and its head smashed to the ground, the spark of life dimmed in the one remaining eye.
Lavitz and I looked at each other in surprised amazement as the light faded and Shana dropped like a stone in a dead faint.
Author's Note: Yup, there's Chapter 3! Sorry it took me a while to update, I've been busy. But there it is. Be happy.
