Chapter 16
The bartender glanced around the tavern. Business was fairly slow, with the day only being in the mid-afternoon stage. He expected things to get busy after the next round finished, which should be soon. He picked up the local newspaper, whose headline stated: "Peregrin triumphs over Zylo". This tournament had been good to him, bringing in a lot of people. Sure, you ran into some unsavory characters, but the money was worth it. You did run into some strange of course during these busy times. As the barkeeper mused to himself, he heard the door opening, then closing a second later. He glanced over to the doorframe. A hamster was currently standing in it, and glancing about. The barkeeper glanced away, then turned back to his newspaper. He frowned suddenly, as he thought back to what he had thought he had just sawn: an hamster? He put down the paper, and slowly twisted his head to look to the side.
The hamster was still there, and was now sauntering over to the bar. The bartender stared. It was a normal looking hamster, except for the fact that it was twenty times larger than any hamster he had ever seen. Its teeth were huge. As well, it had this most ridiculous helmet on its head. The hamster walked over to the bar, and sat down, and looked at the bartender expectedly. The bartender continued to stare in disbelief. The hamster cleared his throat, which came out as an high-pitched squeak. The bartender finally picked up on his cue.
"What'll you be having...uh...sir?" The bartender stuttered. He wondered if the hamster could understand his language. Fortunately, this particular hamster was used to dealing with humans, centaurs, and magical creatures alike.
"A glass of beer please," said the hamster. "Make it snappy will ya? I have some friends to visit."
The rodent could talk! The bartender pulled himself together. "Ri..Right away sir." He walked over to the barrel of local brew on tap, and filled up a tall glass. Topping it off with foam, he slid it over to the hamster. The hamster deftly caught it one hand, and took a long drink. The hamster let out a long sigh of satisfaction.
The bartender approached cautiously. It was part of his job to chat up the customers. Talkative people tend to drink more, after all. However, the bartender wasn't used to "shooting the breeze," with a overgrown, talking hamster.
"How are things today, sir?" He began with a simple question. The bartender briefly wondered whether the hamster was one of those brooding characters, but dismissed that thought almost at once. He didn't seem the type. Of course, the bartender had never had the chance to classify hamsters before.
The hamster immediately proved his suspicions to be right. "Swell, just swell." The hamster said, enthusiastically. "Just in to visit some old friends, and watch this Champion of Arm-Wrestling, or whatever it's called."
The bartender nodded. "Have you known these friends for long?"
The hamster...smiled? At least, that's what the bartender thought he was doing. For all he knew, that was a homicidal grin, that was to be followed shortly by a lightning-quick attack by those oversized teeth...
The hamster however, wasn't of the murdering type. "Eh, we go way back. All the way from the war against Runefaust, actually. Some of my old battle-comrades."
The bartender looked at the hamster skeptically. He had been in the War? What did he do, gnaw some trees to death? No, wait, that was the beaver. Either way, the bartender found it laughable that an overgrown rat had participated. "You were in the War, sir?"
"Oh yes, right in the thick of it," The hamster said. "Went up against all sorts of evil dudes. Of course, it wasn't just me. There were a whole bunch of other people, like Mae, Anri..."
"Queen Anri?" The bartender said, in disbelief.
"Right, she was a princess before, wasn't she? Yeah, and that Matt character, or whoever. We were called something, the Singly, the Shingle..."
"The Shining Force?" The bartender's eyes practically jumped of his sockets. This talking hamster was a member of the Shining Force?
"Yup!" said the hamster proudly. "Travelled the whole world over with them! You know, that Mark character..."
"Max," the bartender corrected.
"Whatever. I taught him everything he knowed." The hamster said boastingly.
"Right..."The bartender looked at him skeptically.
"It's true," the hamster insisted. "Why, they were in a deep pickle before I arrived to pull them out of the woods, so to speak. It was really me, behind the scenes, guiding everyone. I could have taken everyone out by myself of course, but I preferred to let them have their time." The hamster leaned back, nodding smugly.
"..." The bartender was silent. What was he going to do, argue with a talking hamster?
Fortunately, the bartender was saved from answering by a group of new customers coming in: a group of centaurs, two humans, and what looked like an upright, talking, and walking wolf. The bartender sighed. This had just been one of those days.
*
"...so here I am, trapped outside my own quarters, naked, when Lord Varios walks by. Lord Varios has as much a sense of humour as a cold fish. So I stand to attention, throw my best salute, and say 'Sir, I regret to inform you that my stealth operation exercise has failed." finished Lowe.
Everyone broke out in laughter, except for Earnest, who gave a slight chuckle. Max smiled in amusement. He had been the one to lock the door by climbing through the window, while Hans had stolen Lowe's clothes.
"So what happened?" asked Zylo, grinning.
"It went OK, actually. Lord Varios made me hold salute, gave me a onceover, and said 'It's obvious that the exercise was a failure. I recommend you go and cover up it's shortcomings."
"How'd you get your clothes back?" asked Mae.
"I climbed through the window," said Lowe, shrugging. "It was curiously open." Lowe turned around to glare at Ken, who was clutching his sides in silent laughter.
Ken straightened up, and put on a innocent look. It fooled nobody. "What?"
"I know you weren't there," Lowe said suspiciously. "You were on patrol that night. But I bet you know who did it..."
"Yes, I do."
Lowe glared. "Who?"
Ken smirked. "I'll never tell."
Lowe made an exasperated sound. The group chuckled.
Mae poked an elbow into Earnest's ribs. "You know, you shouldn't try to act so funny all the time. Your sense of humour is driving us into hysterics."
"Huh?" said Earnest, confused.
"Lighten up, man!" said Lowe. "Jeez, you'd still think the War was going on, or something."
"We've got to remain on guard!" said Earnest fiercely. "There's still resistance out there!"
"Sure," said Lowe, "but there's a time for vigilance, and there's a time for fun! Guess what time this is! I mean, even Mae here is having a good time, and she's, well..."
"Lowe, do you want to finish that sentence? I am your superior."
Lowe completely ignored her. "Even Anri's here! And Goddess knows how council meetings and committees and paperwork to go through. She's here having a good time."
"Like I could ever have fun with the likes of you, Lowe," Anri smiled. "But even your company is preferable to the endless amount of politicians I have to meet. Fortunately, I can use this Tournament as an excuse to get away. Officially, I'm acting as an diplomat to Peregrin. Unofficially, I'm here to check the state of taverns in Guardiana. I expect to have to do a very, very, thorough job."
They had arrived at their destination, a local tavern, which was rumored to have an excellent local brew.
"Ah, finally!" said Zylo. "And this is where you deliver on those drinks you promised, Peregrin. Your pocketbooks will rue the day you beat Zylo, the werewolf!"
"Rue? Since when did you start using such complicated words?" mocked Lowe.
"I picked it up in between hunting sheep down and howling at the moon," Zylo said sarcastically. "What, you think I can't read or something?"
"Boys, behave," chided Serena. "We have to do some light drinking now, in preparation for doing some heavy drinking later on."
Max nodded solemnly. "We have no time to waste." He gestured to the doorway. "Shall we?"
They stepped inside. Earnest looked around. "Looks like there's one table over there...why...don't we..." He fell silent as he spotted a large...brown....thing hurtling straight at him!
"ARGHHH!!" Earnest let out a shout of surprise as the foreign creature well...glomped (note. Enthusiastic hug- Refer to various Animes) him?
"Earnest!" The brown object shouted, in a high pitched voice.
Surprised at hearing his name called by an attacking monster, Earnest stopped struggling, and looked down. A familiar face, complete with helmet, and large oversized teeth, was looking at him happily. "Jogurt?"
"Duh! Unless you've seen other large hamsters around," said Jogurt, the Hamster.
Earnest sweated. "It's nice to see you in all, but would you mind getting off me?" He struggled to pull the hamster off of him; he had a surprisingly tight grip.
"Yeah, sure thing." Jogurt released his death grip on Earnest.
Anri chuckled. "That's one for the historians to remember. Big, Bad, Earnest, who faces down enemies without a sweat, and breaks down walls without feeling a thing, panics and squeals like a little girl when an large, cute, hamster attacks him...?"
Everyone broke down in laughter. Earnest tried to say something in his defence, but realized there was nothing left to say.
"I'm never going to be able to live this down," he thought.
Jogurt turned his attention to Anri. "HII!!" He crushed her in a tight grip.
"Can't...breathe..." gasped Anri.
Jogurt proceeded to give everyone in the group a bone-crushing hug, even Serena and the disguised Max.
"Uh...I guess introductions are in order," said Anri. "Peregrin, Serena, this is Jogurt. Jogurt, this is Peregrin and Serena."
Max and Serena both waved their hand. Jogurt gave an enthusiastic nod of his head.
"So..." began Ken, "what are you doing here Jogurt?"
"First, I'm buying drinks for everyone here." Jogurt gestured to the bartender. "Drinks all around please!"
"Wait, do you even have any money?" asked Anri.
Jogurt pulled out a sack of gold, which was strange, considering he had no pockets. "Yup! I've got plenty!"
"How does a hamster earn money?" Max asked curiously.
"Oh, that!" exclaimed Jogurt. "That's easy. I simply look like this," at this point, Jogurt put on the puppy dog eyes. "Then I hold out my helmet, and people put money in it!"
"That's cute," said Serena.
"That's disgusting," said Zylo. "Why in my ancestor's name would people give money for free to a useless thing like you?"
"Two things: Looks, and personality," Jogurt said smugly.
Anri acted quickly, looking to avoid an argument. "No, really, what are you doing here?"
Jogurt shrugged. He had no shoulders, but the motion was implied. "I came to visit you guys, of course. I was bored. And I want to watch this Champion of Armor, or something."
"That's Champion of Arms," Ken corrected.
"Whatever," Jogurt said. "Anyway, what's happening anyway?"
"We're up to the finals," Anri said happily. "It's Peregrin versus Mae for the championship."
Jogurt made an surprised sound. He pointed at Max. "YOU made it to the finals? You don't look all that strong."
Max weakly smiled. "Just lucky I guess."
Zylo rolled his eyes. "Luck, my foot. I've never had my style shut down so effectively before."
Max winced. It had been an fairly easy fight for him. Knowing Zylo's style inside and out, he had been able to successfully block and parry each of Zylo's attacks. Considering that Zylo fought hand-to-hand, and Max fought with a weapon, Zylo swiftly had his arms and legs become numb and sore, from Max's hard blocks. From there, it had been a fairly easy fight. "Sorry."
Jogurt pointed to Earnest. "Did you enter?"
"Yes. And I lost," growled Earnest.
"Oh." Jogurt scratched his head. "How about Art...Art something?"
"Arthur? Peregrin beat him too." Ken said.
"Uh...how about that bird-guy?"
"His name is Balbaroy," said Anri, rolling her eyes. "Peregrin eliminated him from the tournament as well."
"Wow," said Jogurt, surprised. "It's like a 3 for 1 special on Shining Force members."
"Uh...what's a 3 for 1 special?" asked Serena.
"Anyway, you better win Mae. Otherwise, Peregrin here is going to make the Shining Force look like Shining Chumps," said Lowe.
"Easy for you to say," Zylo muttered. "It's not like you did much in the battlefield."
"It doesn't matter. The streak stops here, Peregrin," Mae said, grinning. "I'll make sure you receive the best medical treatment."
Everyone laughed. At this point, they had finished their first round.
"Anyone hungry? Let's go to that place in the South end of town," said Lowe.
"As long as they have an excellent selection of nuts, and fruits, I'm there," exclaimed Jogurt.
They left the restaurant.
*
Serena walked on, chatting and laughing. This was fun! Here she was, actually talking with members of the famous Shining Force. She was even getting a chance to talk with Queen Anri, and she hadn't turned out to be stuck up at all. Even Earnest was a nice guy, once you dug down. Jogurt's good cheer was infectious, and even Earnest was being drawn out of his brooding mood.
Peregrin was still his outgoing self. However...when Serena looked at him, his mood seemed...false. Like he was acting. She wasn't sure, as she didn't have any evidence to support her theory, but Peregrin seemed to be under a lot of stress and pressure. Of course, that might just be because of the tournament. That could turn anyone jittery. Who would have expected he would have gone this far?
In fact, what was with him anyway? After dramatic victories over Arthur, Balbaroy, and Zylo, one might have expected a sense of happiness, or joy. He had been just as calm afterwards as he was during the battle.
Why had Peregrin felt a need to disguise his identity? Was he some kind of criminal? Serena didn't think so. She had learned much of him, not only combat skills, but also the basic philosophy he held. He had taught Serena to be kind to others, and to respect all life; to help people in need, and not to bully the weak. A man like that couldn't be a criminal, could he?
Peregrin was a mystery, an enigma to her. She wanted to understand him...
They passed through the marketplace. It was still fairly light out, and the place was full of vendors hawking their wares, while shoppers tried bargaining to come to a mutually satisfying agreement. The smell of roasted chicken filled the air.
Serena slowed suddenly. She looked about. There was something...She couldn't put a finger on it, but something was definitely wrong. She felt a presence, something that filled the air with its stench, something evil. It was just an hunch, but Serena had learned to follow her instincts, and heart.
Lowe, who was walking beside her, saw her slow down. "Serena, what's up?"
"Something doesn't feel right," Serena replied, glancing around. The marketplace was still full of people. What was going on?
"Yeah, I know. I shouldn't have had so much of that ale too..." Lowe was oblivious to Serena's worry. Serena looked around. There was one man, off by himself. And he was pointing in their direction....
"...but hopefully, a good meal will balance that out and..."
"DOWN!" Serena shouted. She grabbed Lowe and pulled her down with him, as she dove for the floor.
Peregrin reacted instantly, grabbing the two nearest people beside him, Anri and Jogurt, and dropped to the deck. The Shining Force, trained by years of experience, was quick as well. Mae and Ken both went into kneeling positions folding their legs beneath them and dropping down. Zylo went into a dive, tucking his arms, and rolling on his shoulder.
A beautiful, sky-blue beam came out of the man's hands, circular in shape, about 3 metres wide in diameter. It swept over the heads of Serena, Peregrin, and the rest, and struck the people directly to the right of them. Blue sparks played over their bodies, and they convulsed, rapidly. They fell down to the ground, stunned, and twitching.
The man cursed. He pulled back his hands, and put the together so that the fingers were parallel. He began chanting nonsensical words under his breath...
It was too late. Peregrin was already there, having drawn his sword, and swung his sword with a shout. He scored a direct hit, cutting the man open from shoulder to hip. Serena waited for the man to fall.
It never happened. The man's skin began to give off a glimmer, and seemed to...melt? The man's skin began dripping down his body, peeling away like scraping mud off. The man's features crumpled up, then slid away, reveaing an skeletal face, with glowing red eyes.
"A Demon Master!" Ken gasped.
The Demon Master hissed. He slowly backed away, and then melded into the shadows of an alley.
Peregrin charged after him, roaring. Only to come to a confused stop. "He's gone?" he asked, looking around.
Anri held up a hand. A fire sprang to life, arising from her palm.
"Since when could you cast fire spells?" Lowe asked, surprised.
Anri shrugged. "I've been practicing. She cast her gaze around. "Looks like he's gone. I wonder how he pulled that particular disappearing act?"
Mae shook her head. "It doesn't matter. Right now, we've got to ensure your safety. Ken, I want you to get back to the castle. I want Guardiana on full alert. Double security, and patrols. Also, I want Hans and some other hunters tracking down that Demon Master.
"I'm on it," Ken said. He galloped away swiftly, heading in the direction of Guardiana castle.
Mae turned to Lowe. Lowe was checking on the condition of the innocent people who had inadvertently been struck by the Demon Master's spell. "Lowe, how are they?"
Lowe was checking a young man's pulse. "Hmm. Heartbeat is regular. Looks like some kind of paralyzing spell. Doesn't look like there'll be any permanent damage." Lowe lifted up the eyelid, and peered inside. "However, they could suffer some kind of cardiac trouble, or suffering from shock. We need to get them back to an hospital, fast."
Mae nodded. "Right. Do what you can. Zylo, can you...?"
Zylo stopped her short. "No problem. I'll get word to Khris, and we'll see what she and the rest of the healers can do."
Mae smiled in gratitude. "Thanks, Zylo." Zylo took off at a run, and took a high leap, landing on the rooftop of a nearby house. He bounded across, from rooftop to rooftop.
That only left Serena, Peregrin, Mae, and Anri. Jogurt was nowhere to be seen. "What should I do?" asked Serena.
"Would you and Peregrin mind helping me escort Queen Anri back to the castle?" Mae asked.
Serena nodded. "Of course. Is that OK, Peregrin?"
Peregrin turned around. He was currently crouched in front of what looked like a wooden bin, used to contain trash. "Huh? Yeah, sure, no problem." Peregrin returned his attentions to the bin. "OK, you can come out now."
A disheveled head, helmet attached, poked out of the bin. "I wasn't hiding you know. I just...got stuck after diving out of the way. Yeah." Jogurt said, pitifully.
"Anything you say," Peregrin said, rolling his eyes. He reached into the bin, and pulled Jogurt out by the head, and set him down. Peregrin turned back to Mae. "Should we get going?"
Mae nodded. "Let's roll. Queen Anri?"
Anri scowled. "Not yet. There's still things I can do. Like making ice packs for the wounded, for example."
"Lowe said that their injuries are not serious. They'll be fine. We are going now."
"But...I can help them!" Anri protested.
"There will be no further discussion. Your safety is of first importance. We are moving now!"
Anri stomped her foot angrily. "You can't tell me what to do."
Mae shrugged her shoulders. "Yes, I can, actually. When it comes to matters like the defense of the city, or the safety of the head of state, the military leader has precedence in such matters, according to Rule 7, Section 8 of the new amendment of bill C-61. It was passed by your father."
Anri sighed. "You're right." She glanced at the injured. "Will they be OK?"
"They sure will," a new voice said. Serena looked up. There, along with some other healers, and doctors, stood Khris, armed with medical supplies, and carrying both Lowe's and her staff. She tossed Lowe's staff to him. "I thought you'd need this."
Lowe snatched it out of mid-air. "Thanks, Khris." He looked to Anri. "Your Highness, Mae is right. These people will be fine. Please, get to safety."
"I told you not to call me that," Anri muttered. "All right, let's get going." They got moving, with Mae taking point, and Serena and Peregrin taking the rear. Jogurt hung around with Anri.
Serena thought back. That had been a Demon Master back there, one of the most powerful magicians alive. How did it get in? The answer to that question was obvious: it had somehow disguised itself as a human, and snuck in during the Tournament. Of course, that meant that anyone around them could be disguised...Serena shivered.
Second: what had the Demon Master hope to accomplish? The most obvious answer seemed to be an assassination attempt, aimed at taking out Queen Anri, one of the key leaders in the world. But that answer didn't make any sense, Serena thought. The spell used had been one designed to stun an opponent, not kill him. Why bother incapacitating someone, then killing them? A simple wide-area Freeze spell would have been a better option. Why all the trouble? Perhaps that meant a kidnapping? But why attack in the middle of a large crowd, when the target was surrounded by allies? Serena didn't think she would find the answer to this soon.
"Are you OK?" a soft voice asked.
Serena started, then looked. Peregrin was looking at her with concern. Somehow, they had reached the castle already.
"Huh? Sorry, I was just thinking." Serena said.
"No problem. Good job spotting that Demon Master, by the way. How'd you know?" Peregrin asked, curiously.
"I...I don't know. I just got this feeling, like something there was wrong. And I just acted, on instinct." Serena said, a touch desperately.
Peregrin looked at her strangely. Serena sighed. "I know it sounds strange."
Peregrin shook his head in denial. "No, it's not strange at all. In fact, you remind me of someone I knew. Tell me...when you say it felt wrong, did it feel like...a clogging darkness, like something dark was there where there should have been light?"
Serena blinked in surprise. "That's it exactly. How did you know?"
Peregrin smiled. "I have a friend to introduce you to, if you don't mind."
Serena nodded, confused. "It's fine. But what do you mean? What's this friend like?"
Peregrin scratched his head. "It's hard to explain...well...you'll see."
*
After saying goodbye to Anri and Mae, as Mae whisked off Anri, surrounded by guards, to her room, Peregrin led Serena through the corridors of Guardiana castle.
"Peregrin? Where are we going?" Serena asked.
"To see that friend of mine. Unless you're too tired?" Peregrin replied.
"No, I'm fine. But who is this friend of yours?" Serena asked again.
Peregrin ignored her. "Ah, we're here." They had reached a room at the end of a hallway. It seemed to be living quarters. Peregrin gave a soft knock at the door.
A low, calm, voice came from the door. "Come in."
Peregrin opened the door, and gestured inside. Serena went in. Once inside, she took a look around. It seemed to be a small, but comfortable room. The room itself was fairly sparse; there were little signs of decoration, and the whole thing had a sense of being practical, yet it somehow had a sense of calmness. A bed was propped up against the wall. A fire was lit in the fireplace opposite the wall. And sitting in an armchair, facing the fire was an elderly wolf.
Serena looked to Peregrin in confusion. "Why didn't you tell me we were going to see Nova?"
Peregrin shrugged. "I wanted to surprise you, that's all. Besides, it's fun to see you get all curious. You get so agitated in that state."
Serena rolled her eyes. "Very mature. Good evening, Nova."
Nova got up from his chair, and bowed. "Good evening, Miss Serena, and Peregrin as well. What brings you here at this time?"
"It's Serena. I think she might have some talents that might interest you." Peregrin replied. He gave Nova a significant look.
Nova returned the look with interest. "Indeed? Please, sit down, both of you." He gestured to the other two armchairs in front of him.
Once Serena and Peregrin had gotten comfortable, he continued. "You seem to be in a lot of distress, Serena. Would you mind telling me what's bothering you?
Serena went through an explanation of what had happened that afternoon. Nova stayed quiet throughout, pausing only to nod sometimes, and trade looks with Peregrin.
"Interesting," Nova said. "Now, when you say you somehow sensed something was wrong...it felt like sickness perhaps? You might have possibly felt a nauseous sensation in the stomach."
Serena blinked in surprise. "Yes, that's it exactly. How'd you know?"
Nova smiled. "I shall explain, in due time. Now, please, allow me to run an little experiment."
"What kind of experiment," Serena asked, cautiously.
"Nothing. I just want you to close your eyes for a few minutes, and tell me what you feel." Nova replied.
Serena searched Nova's face, which currently had a serene expression. She could read nothing from that. She looked to Peregrin, with a questioning look in her eyes. Peregrin nodded.
Serena looked Nova squarely in the eyes. "All right. Let's do it."
"Thank you. Now please, relax, and close your eyes."
Serena closed her eyes. Was something supposed to be happening now? She felt slightly embarrassed as she just sat there. Was this just some kind of game?
Serena felt something change. The room...it suddenly felt darker, colder...enclosed. It was exactly what she had felt in the afternoon. Something was happening!"
Serena opened her eyes in panic, and glanced about wildly. She expected to see another Demon Master, or maybe a horde of monsters attacking. However, nothing had changed. Nova was still sitting in his armchair, with that same calm expression, while Peregrin was now grinning broadly, in excitement.
"What...what's going on?" Serena asked, confused, and scared.
"I knew it!" Peregrin said, excited. "She has it, Nova! She has the Sight!"
"Your instincts were correct, Peregrin," Nova said. "She does indeed have the gift."
"Uh...would someone mind telling me what's going on?" Serena asked. The Sight? What the Hell?
"Pardon me," Nova said. He paused, as if to gather his thoughts. "What you have is a rare gift, possessed only by a few certain individuals. This gift allows one to sense the aura of people, how they are deep down inside. The Sight allows you to strip away all exterior disguises, and allows you to glimpse directly into the core. Few have the gift, and even fewer have the ability to develop it to actively use it. Most can not develop this talent further then say, determining what the mood in a room is. You however, were able to narrow it down to a particular source, in a crowded area as well. I've never seen such talent."
Serena paused, trying to take all this in. She had a gift? Preposterous. She had never had any sort of talent like this, not that she could think of. But...
Serena thought back. Back right before the big battle with Adom, she had noticed a nauseating feeling she had. She had put it down to nervousness, but perhaps it was this Sight Nova was talking about?
She thought back to when Ginny and her had been attacked by a group of men. Right away, she had been able to sense that they were a bad lot. Was that intuition, or the Sight?
Serena looked at Nova. "How can you be so sure?"
"That was the whole purpose of my experiment, Serena," Nova replied, smiling. "I have spent years mastering the Sight. I am able to change what my soul feels like, as strange as it sounds. Observe," Nova closed his eyes for a few seconds, then opened them. "Serena, what do you feel?"
Serena closed her eyes. "I feel...happiness."
Nova nodded. "That was exactly the feeling I was trying to project. Only one with the Sight could feel that."
Serena nodded slowly. "OK, let's assume I have this...Sight thing. So what?"
"Although your raw abilities are impressive, they are still unrefined," Nova explained. "With the right training, you could master your abilities, and be able to See at an even greater degree then you do now."
Serena thought about it. It sounded scary. Would she turn out to be some kind of freak in the end? Impulsively, she looked to Peregrin. "What should I do?"
Peregrin spread his hands. "I will not tell you."
"Why?" Serena asked, desperately.
"It is your own decision. You must make the decision based on what you think, and what you think alone." Peregrin said, solemnly. "Only you can choose the path to travel. I can only tell you this: listen to your heart."
Serena's head was whirling. She could refuse to take the training. She could go back to leading the happy life she was living, helping with the farm, getting married one day, raising a family, then growing old and content. She could live a life of happiness, comfort, and security.
But...she would go through life without knowing what would have happened if she had taken the opportunity. How things would have turned out. She knew how her life would probably turn out if she refused. This was one dark road she could tread on. When Serena thought about it though, she knew there was only one choice to make. She had gone through her life impulsively, following her heart. Why stop now?
She raised her head. "I'll do it. Can you train me?"
Nova smiled. "I have been waiting for a student of your caliber for quite some time. I would be honoured."
Peregrin grinned. "Congratulations."
Serena smiled. "Thanks." She turned to Nova. "So when do we start?"
"Anytime you wish," Nova replied. "Perhaps in the morning, or the evening, tomorrow?"
Serena shook her head. "Evenings are OK. I train with Peregrin in the morning anyway."
Peregrin held up a hand. "It's alright. We can stop the sessions in the morning if you want."
"If you stop teaching me, I'll never forgive you," Serena replied easily. "You'll never get that cake on your birthday I promised to bake."
"You don't even know when my birthday is. And since when could you bake?"
"My mother taught me many useful things. Like sowing stitches. And the art of gossiping. All you know how to do is farm and fight."
"Fair enough." Peregrin looked to Nova. "It's getting kind of late. I guess we should be going now."
"Yes, and you get up fairly early in the morning, as usual," Nova said, smiling. "Well, farewell. I'll see you, at, oh, sundown tomorrow, Serena?"
"Sure," Serena said. There was something that was still on her mind..."How do you two know each other?"
Peregrin and Nova traded looks. "Well, uh, Nova was kind of a mentor to me, you see. He taught me a few of his philosophies," Peregrin explained.
"When was this exactly?" Serena asked.
"Uh...Uh..when you were in..." Peregrin seemed to be nervous. "um...Manarina! Yeah, that's it...when you were stopping there, right Nova?"
"Yes, that's right! When I was there, on my travels, researching magic!" Nova seemed somewhat flustered as well. That was a first.
"Well...alright...I'm going to bed then. It's been a fairly long day," Serena explained, smiling tiredly.
"Sure," Peregrin said. "Can you go first? I've got to talk to Nova for a bit."
"No problem," Serena said. She took off for her room, and thought about the day's events.
"This has been a very strange day, girl," she thought to herself.
*
Max wiped the sweat off his brow. "Phew, close shave, huh?"
Nova nodded. "Indeed. Max, how long are you going to keep this charade up? Anri misses you. The rest of the Shining Force misses you."
Max looked away. "Anri is strong. She doesn't need someone like me back in her life, who only knows how to kill." Max looked up at Nova. "I saw your signal. What do you want to talk about?"
Nova looked at Max. "It's Serena. Right now, she has the power of Sight. This would be a great asset against the remnants of Darksol's evil minions. However, she is untrained, and because of this, vulnerable. If word of her talents reaches the enemy, they will not hesitate to kill her. Please, watch out for her."
Max sighed. "I've been doing that all this time..."
*
Author's section type thing:
Greetings and salutations! Yes I know it's been a long time...stupid school. I was really hoping to be more active on this, but it hasn't turned out that way. Damn that Harvest Moon for being so addictive..who would have thought that milking cows day after day could be so much fun? From here on, I'm trying to stick to a strict schedule of releasing a new chapter every 2 or 3 weeks. By the way, I really don't have that large of an ego, it was all part of my fairly warped sense of humour...so don't think that I think that I'm Tolkien, Asimov, and Brooks rolled into one, with a healthy dash of Tolstoy on the side. Because I'm not.
Once again, e-mails can be sent to the usual address. Find it in one of the previous chapters, since I'm typing this in Word, and it does that annoying auto thingee with e-mail addresses, and I don't like that. And note to all those other SF writers out there: WRITE! I see a good one about Earnest and Mae that's very promising, read that one now! Oh, and the usual plug of Silverknight's...his/her(?) work is top-notch.
PS. Read 8-bit theater. It's funnier then midgets at a circus!
Cheers!
The bartender glanced around the tavern. Business was fairly slow, with the day only being in the mid-afternoon stage. He expected things to get busy after the next round finished, which should be soon. He picked up the local newspaper, whose headline stated: "Peregrin triumphs over Zylo". This tournament had been good to him, bringing in a lot of people. Sure, you ran into some unsavory characters, but the money was worth it. You did run into some strange of course during these busy times. As the barkeeper mused to himself, he heard the door opening, then closing a second later. He glanced over to the doorframe. A hamster was currently standing in it, and glancing about. The barkeeper glanced away, then turned back to his newspaper. He frowned suddenly, as he thought back to what he had thought he had just sawn: an hamster? He put down the paper, and slowly twisted his head to look to the side.
The hamster was still there, and was now sauntering over to the bar. The bartender stared. It was a normal looking hamster, except for the fact that it was twenty times larger than any hamster he had ever seen. Its teeth were huge. As well, it had this most ridiculous helmet on its head. The hamster walked over to the bar, and sat down, and looked at the bartender expectedly. The bartender continued to stare in disbelief. The hamster cleared his throat, which came out as an high-pitched squeak. The bartender finally picked up on his cue.
"What'll you be having...uh...sir?" The bartender stuttered. He wondered if the hamster could understand his language. Fortunately, this particular hamster was used to dealing with humans, centaurs, and magical creatures alike.
"A glass of beer please," said the hamster. "Make it snappy will ya? I have some friends to visit."
The rodent could talk! The bartender pulled himself together. "Ri..Right away sir." He walked over to the barrel of local brew on tap, and filled up a tall glass. Topping it off with foam, he slid it over to the hamster. The hamster deftly caught it one hand, and took a long drink. The hamster let out a long sigh of satisfaction.
The bartender approached cautiously. It was part of his job to chat up the customers. Talkative people tend to drink more, after all. However, the bartender wasn't used to "shooting the breeze," with a overgrown, talking hamster.
"How are things today, sir?" He began with a simple question. The bartender briefly wondered whether the hamster was one of those brooding characters, but dismissed that thought almost at once. He didn't seem the type. Of course, the bartender had never had the chance to classify hamsters before.
The hamster immediately proved his suspicions to be right. "Swell, just swell." The hamster said, enthusiastically. "Just in to visit some old friends, and watch this Champion of Arm-Wrestling, or whatever it's called."
The bartender nodded. "Have you known these friends for long?"
The hamster...smiled? At least, that's what the bartender thought he was doing. For all he knew, that was a homicidal grin, that was to be followed shortly by a lightning-quick attack by those oversized teeth...
The hamster however, wasn't of the murdering type. "Eh, we go way back. All the way from the war against Runefaust, actually. Some of my old battle-comrades."
The bartender looked at the hamster skeptically. He had been in the War? What did he do, gnaw some trees to death? No, wait, that was the beaver. Either way, the bartender found it laughable that an overgrown rat had participated. "You were in the War, sir?"
"Oh yes, right in the thick of it," The hamster said. "Went up against all sorts of evil dudes. Of course, it wasn't just me. There were a whole bunch of other people, like Mae, Anri..."
"Queen Anri?" The bartender said, in disbelief.
"Right, she was a princess before, wasn't she? Yeah, and that Matt character, or whoever. We were called something, the Singly, the Shingle..."
"The Shining Force?" The bartender's eyes practically jumped of his sockets. This talking hamster was a member of the Shining Force?
"Yup!" said the hamster proudly. "Travelled the whole world over with them! You know, that Mark character..."
"Max," the bartender corrected.
"Whatever. I taught him everything he knowed." The hamster said boastingly.
"Right..."The bartender looked at him skeptically.
"It's true," the hamster insisted. "Why, they were in a deep pickle before I arrived to pull them out of the woods, so to speak. It was really me, behind the scenes, guiding everyone. I could have taken everyone out by myself of course, but I preferred to let them have their time." The hamster leaned back, nodding smugly.
"..." The bartender was silent. What was he going to do, argue with a talking hamster?
Fortunately, the bartender was saved from answering by a group of new customers coming in: a group of centaurs, two humans, and what looked like an upright, talking, and walking wolf. The bartender sighed. This had just been one of those days.
*
"...so here I am, trapped outside my own quarters, naked, when Lord Varios walks by. Lord Varios has as much a sense of humour as a cold fish. So I stand to attention, throw my best salute, and say 'Sir, I regret to inform you that my stealth operation exercise has failed." finished Lowe.
Everyone broke out in laughter, except for Earnest, who gave a slight chuckle. Max smiled in amusement. He had been the one to lock the door by climbing through the window, while Hans had stolen Lowe's clothes.
"So what happened?" asked Zylo, grinning.
"It went OK, actually. Lord Varios made me hold salute, gave me a onceover, and said 'It's obvious that the exercise was a failure. I recommend you go and cover up it's shortcomings."
"How'd you get your clothes back?" asked Mae.
"I climbed through the window," said Lowe, shrugging. "It was curiously open." Lowe turned around to glare at Ken, who was clutching his sides in silent laughter.
Ken straightened up, and put on a innocent look. It fooled nobody. "What?"
"I know you weren't there," Lowe said suspiciously. "You were on patrol that night. But I bet you know who did it..."
"Yes, I do."
Lowe glared. "Who?"
Ken smirked. "I'll never tell."
Lowe made an exasperated sound. The group chuckled.
Mae poked an elbow into Earnest's ribs. "You know, you shouldn't try to act so funny all the time. Your sense of humour is driving us into hysterics."
"Huh?" said Earnest, confused.
"Lighten up, man!" said Lowe. "Jeez, you'd still think the War was going on, or something."
"We've got to remain on guard!" said Earnest fiercely. "There's still resistance out there!"
"Sure," said Lowe, "but there's a time for vigilance, and there's a time for fun! Guess what time this is! I mean, even Mae here is having a good time, and she's, well..."
"Lowe, do you want to finish that sentence? I am your superior."
Lowe completely ignored her. "Even Anri's here! And Goddess knows how council meetings and committees and paperwork to go through. She's here having a good time."
"Like I could ever have fun with the likes of you, Lowe," Anri smiled. "But even your company is preferable to the endless amount of politicians I have to meet. Fortunately, I can use this Tournament as an excuse to get away. Officially, I'm acting as an diplomat to Peregrin. Unofficially, I'm here to check the state of taverns in Guardiana. I expect to have to do a very, very, thorough job."
They had arrived at their destination, a local tavern, which was rumored to have an excellent local brew.
"Ah, finally!" said Zylo. "And this is where you deliver on those drinks you promised, Peregrin. Your pocketbooks will rue the day you beat Zylo, the werewolf!"
"Rue? Since when did you start using such complicated words?" mocked Lowe.
"I picked it up in between hunting sheep down and howling at the moon," Zylo said sarcastically. "What, you think I can't read or something?"
"Boys, behave," chided Serena. "We have to do some light drinking now, in preparation for doing some heavy drinking later on."
Max nodded solemnly. "We have no time to waste." He gestured to the doorway. "Shall we?"
They stepped inside. Earnest looked around. "Looks like there's one table over there...why...don't we..." He fell silent as he spotted a large...brown....thing hurtling straight at him!
"ARGHHH!!" Earnest let out a shout of surprise as the foreign creature well...glomped (note. Enthusiastic hug- Refer to various Animes) him?
"Earnest!" The brown object shouted, in a high pitched voice.
Surprised at hearing his name called by an attacking monster, Earnest stopped struggling, and looked down. A familiar face, complete with helmet, and large oversized teeth, was looking at him happily. "Jogurt?"
"Duh! Unless you've seen other large hamsters around," said Jogurt, the Hamster.
Earnest sweated. "It's nice to see you in all, but would you mind getting off me?" He struggled to pull the hamster off of him; he had a surprisingly tight grip.
"Yeah, sure thing." Jogurt released his death grip on Earnest.
Anri chuckled. "That's one for the historians to remember. Big, Bad, Earnest, who faces down enemies without a sweat, and breaks down walls without feeling a thing, panics and squeals like a little girl when an large, cute, hamster attacks him...?"
Everyone broke down in laughter. Earnest tried to say something in his defence, but realized there was nothing left to say.
"I'm never going to be able to live this down," he thought.
Jogurt turned his attention to Anri. "HII!!" He crushed her in a tight grip.
"Can't...breathe..." gasped Anri.
Jogurt proceeded to give everyone in the group a bone-crushing hug, even Serena and the disguised Max.
"Uh...I guess introductions are in order," said Anri. "Peregrin, Serena, this is Jogurt. Jogurt, this is Peregrin and Serena."
Max and Serena both waved their hand. Jogurt gave an enthusiastic nod of his head.
"So..." began Ken, "what are you doing here Jogurt?"
"First, I'm buying drinks for everyone here." Jogurt gestured to the bartender. "Drinks all around please!"
"Wait, do you even have any money?" asked Anri.
Jogurt pulled out a sack of gold, which was strange, considering he had no pockets. "Yup! I've got plenty!"
"How does a hamster earn money?" Max asked curiously.
"Oh, that!" exclaimed Jogurt. "That's easy. I simply look like this," at this point, Jogurt put on the puppy dog eyes. "Then I hold out my helmet, and people put money in it!"
"That's cute," said Serena.
"That's disgusting," said Zylo. "Why in my ancestor's name would people give money for free to a useless thing like you?"
"Two things: Looks, and personality," Jogurt said smugly.
Anri acted quickly, looking to avoid an argument. "No, really, what are you doing here?"
Jogurt shrugged. He had no shoulders, but the motion was implied. "I came to visit you guys, of course. I was bored. And I want to watch this Champion of Armor, or something."
"That's Champion of Arms," Ken corrected.
"Whatever," Jogurt said. "Anyway, what's happening anyway?"
"We're up to the finals," Anri said happily. "It's Peregrin versus Mae for the championship."
Jogurt made an surprised sound. He pointed at Max. "YOU made it to the finals? You don't look all that strong."
Max weakly smiled. "Just lucky I guess."
Zylo rolled his eyes. "Luck, my foot. I've never had my style shut down so effectively before."
Max winced. It had been an fairly easy fight for him. Knowing Zylo's style inside and out, he had been able to successfully block and parry each of Zylo's attacks. Considering that Zylo fought hand-to-hand, and Max fought with a weapon, Zylo swiftly had his arms and legs become numb and sore, from Max's hard blocks. From there, it had been a fairly easy fight. "Sorry."
Jogurt pointed to Earnest. "Did you enter?"
"Yes. And I lost," growled Earnest.
"Oh." Jogurt scratched his head. "How about Art...Art something?"
"Arthur? Peregrin beat him too." Ken said.
"Uh...how about that bird-guy?"
"His name is Balbaroy," said Anri, rolling her eyes. "Peregrin eliminated him from the tournament as well."
"Wow," said Jogurt, surprised. "It's like a 3 for 1 special on Shining Force members."
"Uh...what's a 3 for 1 special?" asked Serena.
"Anyway, you better win Mae. Otherwise, Peregrin here is going to make the Shining Force look like Shining Chumps," said Lowe.
"Easy for you to say," Zylo muttered. "It's not like you did much in the battlefield."
"It doesn't matter. The streak stops here, Peregrin," Mae said, grinning. "I'll make sure you receive the best medical treatment."
Everyone laughed. At this point, they had finished their first round.
"Anyone hungry? Let's go to that place in the South end of town," said Lowe.
"As long as they have an excellent selection of nuts, and fruits, I'm there," exclaimed Jogurt.
They left the restaurant.
*
Serena walked on, chatting and laughing. This was fun! Here she was, actually talking with members of the famous Shining Force. She was even getting a chance to talk with Queen Anri, and she hadn't turned out to be stuck up at all. Even Earnest was a nice guy, once you dug down. Jogurt's good cheer was infectious, and even Earnest was being drawn out of his brooding mood.
Peregrin was still his outgoing self. However...when Serena looked at him, his mood seemed...false. Like he was acting. She wasn't sure, as she didn't have any evidence to support her theory, but Peregrin seemed to be under a lot of stress and pressure. Of course, that might just be because of the tournament. That could turn anyone jittery. Who would have expected he would have gone this far?
In fact, what was with him anyway? After dramatic victories over Arthur, Balbaroy, and Zylo, one might have expected a sense of happiness, or joy. He had been just as calm afterwards as he was during the battle.
Why had Peregrin felt a need to disguise his identity? Was he some kind of criminal? Serena didn't think so. She had learned much of him, not only combat skills, but also the basic philosophy he held. He had taught Serena to be kind to others, and to respect all life; to help people in need, and not to bully the weak. A man like that couldn't be a criminal, could he?
Peregrin was a mystery, an enigma to her. She wanted to understand him...
They passed through the marketplace. It was still fairly light out, and the place was full of vendors hawking their wares, while shoppers tried bargaining to come to a mutually satisfying agreement. The smell of roasted chicken filled the air.
Serena slowed suddenly. She looked about. There was something...She couldn't put a finger on it, but something was definitely wrong. She felt a presence, something that filled the air with its stench, something evil. It was just an hunch, but Serena had learned to follow her instincts, and heart.
Lowe, who was walking beside her, saw her slow down. "Serena, what's up?"
"Something doesn't feel right," Serena replied, glancing around. The marketplace was still full of people. What was going on?
"Yeah, I know. I shouldn't have had so much of that ale too..." Lowe was oblivious to Serena's worry. Serena looked around. There was one man, off by himself. And he was pointing in their direction....
"...but hopefully, a good meal will balance that out and..."
"DOWN!" Serena shouted. She grabbed Lowe and pulled her down with him, as she dove for the floor.
Peregrin reacted instantly, grabbing the two nearest people beside him, Anri and Jogurt, and dropped to the deck. The Shining Force, trained by years of experience, was quick as well. Mae and Ken both went into kneeling positions folding their legs beneath them and dropping down. Zylo went into a dive, tucking his arms, and rolling on his shoulder.
A beautiful, sky-blue beam came out of the man's hands, circular in shape, about 3 metres wide in diameter. It swept over the heads of Serena, Peregrin, and the rest, and struck the people directly to the right of them. Blue sparks played over their bodies, and they convulsed, rapidly. They fell down to the ground, stunned, and twitching.
The man cursed. He pulled back his hands, and put the together so that the fingers were parallel. He began chanting nonsensical words under his breath...
It was too late. Peregrin was already there, having drawn his sword, and swung his sword with a shout. He scored a direct hit, cutting the man open from shoulder to hip. Serena waited for the man to fall.
It never happened. The man's skin began to give off a glimmer, and seemed to...melt? The man's skin began dripping down his body, peeling away like scraping mud off. The man's features crumpled up, then slid away, reveaing an skeletal face, with glowing red eyes.
"A Demon Master!" Ken gasped.
The Demon Master hissed. He slowly backed away, and then melded into the shadows of an alley.
Peregrin charged after him, roaring. Only to come to a confused stop. "He's gone?" he asked, looking around.
Anri held up a hand. A fire sprang to life, arising from her palm.
"Since when could you cast fire spells?" Lowe asked, surprised.
Anri shrugged. "I've been practicing. She cast her gaze around. "Looks like he's gone. I wonder how he pulled that particular disappearing act?"
Mae shook her head. "It doesn't matter. Right now, we've got to ensure your safety. Ken, I want you to get back to the castle. I want Guardiana on full alert. Double security, and patrols. Also, I want Hans and some other hunters tracking down that Demon Master.
"I'm on it," Ken said. He galloped away swiftly, heading in the direction of Guardiana castle.
Mae turned to Lowe. Lowe was checking on the condition of the innocent people who had inadvertently been struck by the Demon Master's spell. "Lowe, how are they?"
Lowe was checking a young man's pulse. "Hmm. Heartbeat is regular. Looks like some kind of paralyzing spell. Doesn't look like there'll be any permanent damage." Lowe lifted up the eyelid, and peered inside. "However, they could suffer some kind of cardiac trouble, or suffering from shock. We need to get them back to an hospital, fast."
Mae nodded. "Right. Do what you can. Zylo, can you...?"
Zylo stopped her short. "No problem. I'll get word to Khris, and we'll see what she and the rest of the healers can do."
Mae smiled in gratitude. "Thanks, Zylo." Zylo took off at a run, and took a high leap, landing on the rooftop of a nearby house. He bounded across, from rooftop to rooftop.
That only left Serena, Peregrin, Mae, and Anri. Jogurt was nowhere to be seen. "What should I do?" asked Serena.
"Would you and Peregrin mind helping me escort Queen Anri back to the castle?" Mae asked.
Serena nodded. "Of course. Is that OK, Peregrin?"
Peregrin turned around. He was currently crouched in front of what looked like a wooden bin, used to contain trash. "Huh? Yeah, sure, no problem." Peregrin returned his attentions to the bin. "OK, you can come out now."
A disheveled head, helmet attached, poked out of the bin. "I wasn't hiding you know. I just...got stuck after diving out of the way. Yeah." Jogurt said, pitifully.
"Anything you say," Peregrin said, rolling his eyes. He reached into the bin, and pulled Jogurt out by the head, and set him down. Peregrin turned back to Mae. "Should we get going?"
Mae nodded. "Let's roll. Queen Anri?"
Anri scowled. "Not yet. There's still things I can do. Like making ice packs for the wounded, for example."
"Lowe said that their injuries are not serious. They'll be fine. We are going now."
"But...I can help them!" Anri protested.
"There will be no further discussion. Your safety is of first importance. We are moving now!"
Anri stomped her foot angrily. "You can't tell me what to do."
Mae shrugged her shoulders. "Yes, I can, actually. When it comes to matters like the defense of the city, or the safety of the head of state, the military leader has precedence in such matters, according to Rule 7, Section 8 of the new amendment of bill C-61. It was passed by your father."
Anri sighed. "You're right." She glanced at the injured. "Will they be OK?"
"They sure will," a new voice said. Serena looked up. There, along with some other healers, and doctors, stood Khris, armed with medical supplies, and carrying both Lowe's and her staff. She tossed Lowe's staff to him. "I thought you'd need this."
Lowe snatched it out of mid-air. "Thanks, Khris." He looked to Anri. "Your Highness, Mae is right. These people will be fine. Please, get to safety."
"I told you not to call me that," Anri muttered. "All right, let's get going." They got moving, with Mae taking point, and Serena and Peregrin taking the rear. Jogurt hung around with Anri.
Serena thought back. That had been a Demon Master back there, one of the most powerful magicians alive. How did it get in? The answer to that question was obvious: it had somehow disguised itself as a human, and snuck in during the Tournament. Of course, that meant that anyone around them could be disguised...Serena shivered.
Second: what had the Demon Master hope to accomplish? The most obvious answer seemed to be an assassination attempt, aimed at taking out Queen Anri, one of the key leaders in the world. But that answer didn't make any sense, Serena thought. The spell used had been one designed to stun an opponent, not kill him. Why bother incapacitating someone, then killing them? A simple wide-area Freeze spell would have been a better option. Why all the trouble? Perhaps that meant a kidnapping? But why attack in the middle of a large crowd, when the target was surrounded by allies? Serena didn't think she would find the answer to this soon.
"Are you OK?" a soft voice asked.
Serena started, then looked. Peregrin was looking at her with concern. Somehow, they had reached the castle already.
"Huh? Sorry, I was just thinking." Serena said.
"No problem. Good job spotting that Demon Master, by the way. How'd you know?" Peregrin asked, curiously.
"I...I don't know. I just got this feeling, like something there was wrong. And I just acted, on instinct." Serena said, a touch desperately.
Peregrin looked at her strangely. Serena sighed. "I know it sounds strange."
Peregrin shook his head in denial. "No, it's not strange at all. In fact, you remind me of someone I knew. Tell me...when you say it felt wrong, did it feel like...a clogging darkness, like something dark was there where there should have been light?"
Serena blinked in surprise. "That's it exactly. How did you know?"
Peregrin smiled. "I have a friend to introduce you to, if you don't mind."
Serena nodded, confused. "It's fine. But what do you mean? What's this friend like?"
Peregrin scratched his head. "It's hard to explain...well...you'll see."
*
After saying goodbye to Anri and Mae, as Mae whisked off Anri, surrounded by guards, to her room, Peregrin led Serena through the corridors of Guardiana castle.
"Peregrin? Where are we going?" Serena asked.
"To see that friend of mine. Unless you're too tired?" Peregrin replied.
"No, I'm fine. But who is this friend of yours?" Serena asked again.
Peregrin ignored her. "Ah, we're here." They had reached a room at the end of a hallway. It seemed to be living quarters. Peregrin gave a soft knock at the door.
A low, calm, voice came from the door. "Come in."
Peregrin opened the door, and gestured inside. Serena went in. Once inside, she took a look around. It seemed to be a small, but comfortable room. The room itself was fairly sparse; there were little signs of decoration, and the whole thing had a sense of being practical, yet it somehow had a sense of calmness. A bed was propped up against the wall. A fire was lit in the fireplace opposite the wall. And sitting in an armchair, facing the fire was an elderly wolf.
Serena looked to Peregrin in confusion. "Why didn't you tell me we were going to see Nova?"
Peregrin shrugged. "I wanted to surprise you, that's all. Besides, it's fun to see you get all curious. You get so agitated in that state."
Serena rolled her eyes. "Very mature. Good evening, Nova."
Nova got up from his chair, and bowed. "Good evening, Miss Serena, and Peregrin as well. What brings you here at this time?"
"It's Serena. I think she might have some talents that might interest you." Peregrin replied. He gave Nova a significant look.
Nova returned the look with interest. "Indeed? Please, sit down, both of you." He gestured to the other two armchairs in front of him.
Once Serena and Peregrin had gotten comfortable, he continued. "You seem to be in a lot of distress, Serena. Would you mind telling me what's bothering you?
Serena went through an explanation of what had happened that afternoon. Nova stayed quiet throughout, pausing only to nod sometimes, and trade looks with Peregrin.
"Interesting," Nova said. "Now, when you say you somehow sensed something was wrong...it felt like sickness perhaps? You might have possibly felt a nauseous sensation in the stomach."
Serena blinked in surprise. "Yes, that's it exactly. How'd you know?"
Nova smiled. "I shall explain, in due time. Now, please, allow me to run an little experiment."
"What kind of experiment," Serena asked, cautiously.
"Nothing. I just want you to close your eyes for a few minutes, and tell me what you feel." Nova replied.
Serena searched Nova's face, which currently had a serene expression. She could read nothing from that. She looked to Peregrin, with a questioning look in her eyes. Peregrin nodded.
Serena looked Nova squarely in the eyes. "All right. Let's do it."
"Thank you. Now please, relax, and close your eyes."
Serena closed her eyes. Was something supposed to be happening now? She felt slightly embarrassed as she just sat there. Was this just some kind of game?
Serena felt something change. The room...it suddenly felt darker, colder...enclosed. It was exactly what she had felt in the afternoon. Something was happening!"
Serena opened her eyes in panic, and glanced about wildly. She expected to see another Demon Master, or maybe a horde of monsters attacking. However, nothing had changed. Nova was still sitting in his armchair, with that same calm expression, while Peregrin was now grinning broadly, in excitement.
"What...what's going on?" Serena asked, confused, and scared.
"I knew it!" Peregrin said, excited. "She has it, Nova! She has the Sight!"
"Your instincts were correct, Peregrin," Nova said. "She does indeed have the gift."
"Uh...would someone mind telling me what's going on?" Serena asked. The Sight? What the Hell?
"Pardon me," Nova said. He paused, as if to gather his thoughts. "What you have is a rare gift, possessed only by a few certain individuals. This gift allows one to sense the aura of people, how they are deep down inside. The Sight allows you to strip away all exterior disguises, and allows you to glimpse directly into the core. Few have the gift, and even fewer have the ability to develop it to actively use it. Most can not develop this talent further then say, determining what the mood in a room is. You however, were able to narrow it down to a particular source, in a crowded area as well. I've never seen such talent."
Serena paused, trying to take all this in. She had a gift? Preposterous. She had never had any sort of talent like this, not that she could think of. But...
Serena thought back. Back right before the big battle with Adom, she had noticed a nauseating feeling she had. She had put it down to nervousness, but perhaps it was this Sight Nova was talking about?
She thought back to when Ginny and her had been attacked by a group of men. Right away, she had been able to sense that they were a bad lot. Was that intuition, or the Sight?
Serena looked at Nova. "How can you be so sure?"
"That was the whole purpose of my experiment, Serena," Nova replied, smiling. "I have spent years mastering the Sight. I am able to change what my soul feels like, as strange as it sounds. Observe," Nova closed his eyes for a few seconds, then opened them. "Serena, what do you feel?"
Serena closed her eyes. "I feel...happiness."
Nova nodded. "That was exactly the feeling I was trying to project. Only one with the Sight could feel that."
Serena nodded slowly. "OK, let's assume I have this...Sight thing. So what?"
"Although your raw abilities are impressive, they are still unrefined," Nova explained. "With the right training, you could master your abilities, and be able to See at an even greater degree then you do now."
Serena thought about it. It sounded scary. Would she turn out to be some kind of freak in the end? Impulsively, she looked to Peregrin. "What should I do?"
Peregrin spread his hands. "I will not tell you."
"Why?" Serena asked, desperately.
"It is your own decision. You must make the decision based on what you think, and what you think alone." Peregrin said, solemnly. "Only you can choose the path to travel. I can only tell you this: listen to your heart."
Serena's head was whirling. She could refuse to take the training. She could go back to leading the happy life she was living, helping with the farm, getting married one day, raising a family, then growing old and content. She could live a life of happiness, comfort, and security.
But...she would go through life without knowing what would have happened if she had taken the opportunity. How things would have turned out. She knew how her life would probably turn out if she refused. This was one dark road she could tread on. When Serena thought about it though, she knew there was only one choice to make. She had gone through her life impulsively, following her heart. Why stop now?
She raised her head. "I'll do it. Can you train me?"
Nova smiled. "I have been waiting for a student of your caliber for quite some time. I would be honoured."
Peregrin grinned. "Congratulations."
Serena smiled. "Thanks." She turned to Nova. "So when do we start?"
"Anytime you wish," Nova replied. "Perhaps in the morning, or the evening, tomorrow?"
Serena shook her head. "Evenings are OK. I train with Peregrin in the morning anyway."
Peregrin held up a hand. "It's alright. We can stop the sessions in the morning if you want."
"If you stop teaching me, I'll never forgive you," Serena replied easily. "You'll never get that cake on your birthday I promised to bake."
"You don't even know when my birthday is. And since when could you bake?"
"My mother taught me many useful things. Like sowing stitches. And the art of gossiping. All you know how to do is farm and fight."
"Fair enough." Peregrin looked to Nova. "It's getting kind of late. I guess we should be going now."
"Yes, and you get up fairly early in the morning, as usual," Nova said, smiling. "Well, farewell. I'll see you, at, oh, sundown tomorrow, Serena?"
"Sure," Serena said. There was something that was still on her mind..."How do you two know each other?"
Peregrin and Nova traded looks. "Well, uh, Nova was kind of a mentor to me, you see. He taught me a few of his philosophies," Peregrin explained.
"When was this exactly?" Serena asked.
"Uh...Uh..when you were in..." Peregrin seemed to be nervous. "um...Manarina! Yeah, that's it...when you were stopping there, right Nova?"
"Yes, that's right! When I was there, on my travels, researching magic!" Nova seemed somewhat flustered as well. That was a first.
"Well...alright...I'm going to bed then. It's been a fairly long day," Serena explained, smiling tiredly.
"Sure," Peregrin said. "Can you go first? I've got to talk to Nova for a bit."
"No problem," Serena said. She took off for her room, and thought about the day's events.
"This has been a very strange day, girl," she thought to herself.
*
Max wiped the sweat off his brow. "Phew, close shave, huh?"
Nova nodded. "Indeed. Max, how long are you going to keep this charade up? Anri misses you. The rest of the Shining Force misses you."
Max looked away. "Anri is strong. She doesn't need someone like me back in her life, who only knows how to kill." Max looked up at Nova. "I saw your signal. What do you want to talk about?"
Nova looked at Max. "It's Serena. Right now, she has the power of Sight. This would be a great asset against the remnants of Darksol's evil minions. However, she is untrained, and because of this, vulnerable. If word of her talents reaches the enemy, they will not hesitate to kill her. Please, watch out for her."
Max sighed. "I've been doing that all this time..."
*
Author's section type thing:
Greetings and salutations! Yes I know it's been a long time...stupid school. I was really hoping to be more active on this, but it hasn't turned out that way. Damn that Harvest Moon for being so addictive..who would have thought that milking cows day after day could be so much fun? From here on, I'm trying to stick to a strict schedule of releasing a new chapter every 2 or 3 weeks. By the way, I really don't have that large of an ego, it was all part of my fairly warped sense of humour...so don't think that I think that I'm Tolkien, Asimov, and Brooks rolled into one, with a healthy dash of Tolstoy on the side. Because I'm not.
Once again, e-mails can be sent to the usual address. Find it in one of the previous chapters, since I'm typing this in Word, and it does that annoying auto thingee with e-mail addresses, and I don't like that. And note to all those other SF writers out there: WRITE! I see a good one about Earnest and Mae that's very promising, read that one now! Oh, and the usual plug of Silverknight's...his/her(?) work is top-notch.
PS. Read 8-bit theater. It's funnier then midgets at a circus!
Cheers!
